Stranger and Pilgrim

by Augustus Toplady (1740-1778)

Not unto us, o LORD, not unto us, but unto Thy Name, give glory for Thy mercy, and for Thy truth’s sake (Psalm 115:1).

Some expositors have supposed, that this Psalm was penned by the prophet Daniel; on occasion of the miraculous deliverance of Shadrac, Meshac, and Abednego, when they came out, unhurt, from the burning fiery furnace, into which they had been thrown by the command of king Nebuchadnezzar.

And, indeed, there are not wanting passages, in the Psalm itself, which seem to countenance this conjecture. As where we read, at the fourth verse (speaking of the idols of the heathens, and, perhaps, with particular reference to that golden image which Nebuchadnezzar commanded to be worshipped), their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands: they have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they but they see not.

I dare say, that, in such an auditory as this, a number of Arminians are present. I fear, that all our public assemblies have too many of them. Perhaps, however, even these people, idolaters as they are, may be apt to blame, and, indeed, with justice, the absurdity of those who worship idols of silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. But let me ask: If it be so very absurd, to worship the work of other men’s hands; what must it be, to worship the works of our own hands? Perhaps, you may ask, “God forbid that I should do so.” Nevertheless, let me tell you, that trust, confidence, reliance, and dependence, for salvation, are all acts and very solemn ones too, of divine worship: and upon whatsoever you depend, whether in whole or in part, for your acceptance with God, and for your justification in His sight, whatsoever, you rely upon, and trust in, for the attainment of grace or glory; if it be any thing short of God in Christ, you are an idolater to all intents and purposes. Continue reading

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Pride is idolatry of self. Spurgeon called it the “worst malformation of all the monstrous things in creation; it hath nothing lovely in it, nothing in proportion, but everything in disorder. It is altogether the very reverse of the creatures which God hath made, which are pure and holy. Pride, the first-born son of hell, is indeed like its parent, all unclean and vile, and in it there is neither form, fashion, nor comeliness.”

Humility, on the other hand, is of all graces most to be treasured and embraced. It ought to be lived in our communication, our dress, our thoughts, our doctrine, and in our prayer.

A child of God would never assert that he could do ought to merit righteousness, perhaps never think it; but the ongoing inability every Christian has in being continually and entirely heart-broken by God’s glorious grace to him or her is evidence enough of the pride still remaining within the heart.

Pride is a brainlessly ignorant thing, an entirely dishonest thing, a malignantly selfish thing, but above all, it is a most deceitfully adaptive thing.

Pride sometimes takes its shape in doctrine; it teaches the religion of man’s-sufficiency; it tells us what man can do, and will not submit itself to the scriptural teaching that we are by nature utterly lost, fallen, debased, and ruined creatures, as we are.

Other times, pride takes the form of prayer, petition, praise, even repentance, but all tainted with the stigma of self-righteousness. Men will “thank God” that they are not like other men, thinking themselves humble, never knowing that the deceitfulness of pride prompts them to pray. Continue reading

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“When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for a people to declare their dependence upon God…”

The Declaration of Independence begins with the words, “When in the course of human events.” The Scriptures, God’s Declaration of our Dependence upon Himself, begins with the words, “In the beginning.”

After reading Edward’s sermon this afternoon, God Glorified in Man’s Dependence, I spent some time contemplating my life and how I ought to show honor to God by acknowledging dependence upon His sufficiency. For a few hours this evening my family (all eight of them) left for a short time and it gave me an opportunity read Edward’s sermon yet again. And then I wrote the following poem:

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There is no truth more comforting in my life than to know that God is glorified through my dependence! May God cause me to despair of my own ability, to rest in Christ, to trust Him for all, to praise Him when I don’t understand, and to glory in my weakness!

“It is of God that Christ becomes ours, that we are united to Him. It is of God that we receive faith to be close to Him and have an interest in Him. It is of God that we receive all the benefits Christ has purchased.” – Jonathan Edwards

Believing this and confessing it before men is that faith whereby we exalt the Sufficiency of Jesus Christ! May the Lord enable all of us to that end!
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The scripture tells us that “The LORD will command his lovingkindness” (Psalms 42:8); and again, ”The LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.” (Psalms 133:3); and, ”He hath commanded his covenant for ever” (Psalms 111:9).

Surely, nothing can be more comforting to the child of God than this! To know that the very God who sovereignly works all things according to His omnipotence and who is obeyed even by wind and waves has commanded His own holy attributes to endure with lovingkindness forever and ever, to the praise of His redemptive glorious grace in Christ Jesus!

I have penned a short little poem to capture this beautiful truth. My prayer is that the Lord will use this to uplift and edify God’s remnant, elect according to Grace!

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Mouse-traps are said to be irreducibly complex. Remove one piece, and the rest becomes worthless; it actually ceases to be a mouse-trap. So also, God’s creation, like the mouse-trap, is irreducibly complex in innumerable ways.

The great puritan theologian Thomas Watson, when writing a treatise regarding the Glory of God, does a magnificent job of describing the infinitely irreducible “God of Glory.”

Consider well the following insight from Mr. Watson:

Question: When we speak of God’s glory, the question will be moved, What are we to understand by God’s glory?

Answer. There is a twofold glory:

1. The glory that God has in himself, his intrinsic glory. Glory is essential to the Godhead, as light is to the sun: he is called the “God of glory.” Acts 7:2. Glory is the sparkling of the Deity; it is so co-natural to the Godhead, that God cannot be God without it. The creature’s honour is not essential to his being. A king is a man without his regal ornaments, when his crown and royal robes are taken away; but God’s glory is such an essential part of his being, that he cannot be God without it. God’s very life lies in his glory. This glory can receive no addition, because it is infinite; it is that which God is most tender of, and which he will not part with. Isa. 48:11, “My glory I will not give to another.” God will give temporal blessings to his children, such as wisdom, riches, honour; he will give them spiritual blessings, he will give them grace, he will give them his love, he will give them heaven; but his essential glory he will not give to another. King Pharaoh parted with a ring off his finger to Joseph, and a gold chain, but he would not part with his throne. Gen. 41:40. “Only in the throne will I be greater than thou.” So God will do much for his people; he will give them the inheritance; he will put some of Christ’s glory, as mediator upon them; but his essential glory he will not part with; “in the throne he will be greater.”

2. The glory which is ascribed to God, or which his creatures labour to bring to him. 1 Chron. 16:29, “Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name.” And, 1 Cor. 6:20, “Glorify God in your body, and in your spirit.” The glory we give God is nothing else but our lifting up his name in the world, and magnifying him in the eyes of others. Phil. 1:20, “Christ shall be magnified in my body.”

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