And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.”. Our idea of the Lord’s-day is altogether different from this hideous caricature of it.
EVEN NOW
SERMON NO. 2249
In the second place, I know there is hope now, “even now”; for the Christ still lives. I know that “even now” Christ can save you, and I pray you to believe it, for the Father is still waiting to receive returning prodigals.
WORDS TO REST ON
SERMON NO. 2250
Persons who naturally run in a groove form another class who rest upon the words of men. You may always rest, in the next place, on words which are the words of God himself.
OUR COMPASSIONATE HIGH PRIEST
SERMON NO. 2251
Our Lord can have compassion on the ignorant, and on such as are out of the way. He can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way.
THE UNKNOWN GIVER AND THE MISUSED GIFTS
SERMON NO. 2252
She did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil.” My third observation will be, that this ignorance leads to perversion of God’s gifts: the gifts of God were profaned by being. How, then, can these things be the gift of God?” Why, the moment we think seriously of this matter, we perceive that no. In the third place, when men thus fail to recognize and acknowledge God’s goodness, THIS IGNORANCE OFTEN LEADS TO THE PERVERSION OF GOD’S.
Again, God’s gifts are ill-used when because of the very abundance of them, we begin to excuse excesses. Equally bad is it when a man uses the gifts of God’s providence so as to foster selfishness. My text is sadly true with reference to many; “She did not know that I gave her corn and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal.” They prepared for God’s enemies what God himself had given to them, and what he meant to be used only for his own glory.
THE PERSEVERANCE OF FAITH
SERMON NO. 2253
He said unto her, “O woman, great is thy faith!” He did not say, “Great is thy love to thy child;” nor, “Great is thy earnestness;” nor, “Great is thy. If thou hast faith as a grain of mustard seed,” he will see it, and he will accept it. He sees something that he prizes more than any of these things; therefore he says to her, “O woman, great is thy faith!” He is charmed with that choice decoration of her heart.
Of a certain place it is said, “He did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” Their doubt blocked the way. And if the Lord now speaks his gracious word with power, as I pray that he may, he will say, “Minister, comfort that woman, who puts her trust in me.” He will say, “Ordinances, comfort those weary ones. Bread and wine, be sweet to the taste of those poor troubled ones.” He will say, “Prayer-meetings, be a joy to those poor tried ones.” It is a commanding voice with which the Lord of hosts speaks, when he says, “Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people, saith your God.
EXPOSITION
Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith
And Jesus departed from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee;
And his disciples say unto him, Whence should we have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fill so great a multitude? And Jesus saith unto them,
THE TWO GUARDS,
PRAYING AND WATCHING
SERMON NO. 2254
But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews
- Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity; and cover
- Remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses
- And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the
- And I said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall,
The strength of the bearers of burden is decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall. These Jews ought to have been helping to build the wall; but they did not come to the help of the Lord’s people. Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows.
They went back to their building, and continued still in the service of the city. In what places, therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us: our God shall fight for us. So we labored in the work: and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars appeared.
GOD JUSTIFIED,
THOUGH MAN BELIEVES NOT
SERMON NO. 2255
- What then? Are we better than they? No, in no vain: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are under sin; as it is written
- But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God
- For there is no difference: for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
- To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him who believeth in Jesus
Looking at the other side of the case, it is true that, at times, the “some”. It is full of the mercy of God; but it is also full of treachery of the human heart. It may be that, even among hearers of the gospel, those who do not believe.
Among those who appear to be the children of the kingdom, brought up in the worship. He believes God’s word, and he thinks more of that than of the universal opinion of men. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.
DANIEL’S BAND
SERMON NO. 2256
Because Daniel was greatly beloved of God, he was early tried, and enabled to stand. Daniel was early tested, and because he was a man greatly beloved of God, he stood the test. I must stand fast, even in the smallest matter, in keeping the law of the Lord my God.” If thou art enabled to do that, thou art a man greatly beloved.
If your trial should be like going into a den of lions, if you are a man greatly beloved of God, you will come out again. If a man is to be greatly beloved of God, he must live above the world, as Daniel did. Once more, men who are greatly beloved by the Lord live wholly for God and for God’s people.
I JOHN 4:9-21
In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through
- For he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him,
John writes for himself and his fellow-apostles, and he says, “No man hath seen God at any time,” but — We have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. You take him to be the Son of God, and consequently rest your eternal hopes on him, God dwells in you, and you dwell in God. How many here can join with the beloved apostle, and say, “We have known and believed the love that God hath to us”.
It is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” If I am a believer in Christ,. We love him, because he first loved us.” If he could come down to us, we can go up to him. Not, “if a man love God,” but if a man say, “I love God.” It is a blessed thing to be able to say, “I love God,” when God himself can bear witness to the truth of our statement; but the apostle says, If a man say, I love God,.
INEXCUSABLE IRREVERENCE AND INGRATITUDE
SERMON NO. 2257
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God
- By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all notions, for his name: among whom are you also the called
- For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; that is, that I may be comforted together
- Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation
- Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their
- And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping
I am set apart unto the gospel, cut off from everything else that I may preach the glorious gospel of the blessed God to the perishing sons of men. In Rome called to be saints.” God has beloved ones in the darkest parts of the earth. The prison of the Palatine was just under the vast palace of the Caesars; and everybody in the house could come into the guard-room.
Your Master would have you go to Rome under the protection of the eagles of your empire. Paul says, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,” and then gives his reason for not being ashamed of it,. Oh, sirs, when you are afraid of the truth, you may be well be afraid of hell.
WHERE IS THE LORD?
SERMON NO. 2258
And behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies
Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not; thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting. That last sentence may be read, “Thy name is, our Redeemer, from everlasting.” This is a sweet plea with God: “We have offended thee; but we are still thy children. O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardenedour heart from thy fear.
O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine
The fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thineadversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence.
The fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence! When thou didst
When a man rouses himself from sinful lethargy, and stirs himself up to take hold of God in prayer, he will become an Israel, a prince prevailing with God. I am my father’s son, and so I always shall be; and if I am my heavenly Father’s son, I shall never cease to be so. Now, O Lord, thou art our Father!” This truth must not be perverted into an argument for sinning; it ought rather to keep us from sinning, lest we should grieve such wondrous love.
The prophet touches the minor key, and weeps and wails for the sorrows of his people; but he does not neglect to pray. In the next chapter God breaks out, and says, “I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not.” How much more quickly is he found of them who do seek him. Verily, God does hear prayer; and he will hear prayer; let us not cease to pray to him as we look round on the sad state of the professing church at this time, and with Isaiah let us cry, “Wilt thou.
THE SIMPLICITY AND SUBLIMITY OF SALVATION
SERMON NO. 2259
In the beginning was the Word
- And the light was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not
- But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not
- John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before
The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. The only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.”.
Of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. John was first in his day, the morning-star of the Light of the gospel, yet even he felt that he was not worthy to do the least thing for Christ. The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
CHRIST’S HOSPITAL
SERMON NO. 2260
