But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name\u2019s sake. <\/i><\/p>\n
\u2014Luke 21:12<\/i><\/p>\n
6101<\/b> It Costs\u2014It\u2019s Easy<\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cIt costs much to obtain the power of the Spirit. It costs self-surrender and humiliation, and a yielding up of our most precious things to God. It costs the perseverance of long waiting, and the faith of strong trust. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut when we are really in that power, we shall find this difference, that whereas before, it was hard for us to do the easiest things, now it is easy for us to do the hard things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014A. J. Gordon<\/p>\n
6102<\/b> George Mueller\u2019s Secret<\/b><\/p>\n
To one who asked him the secret of his service, George Mueller said: \u201cThere was a day when I died, utterly died;\u201d and, as he spoke, he bent lower and lower until he almost touched the floor\u2014\u201cdied to George Muller, his opinions, preferences, tastes, and will\u2014died to the world, its approval or censure\u2014died to the approval or blame even of my brethren and friends\u2014and since then I have studied only to show myself approved unto God.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014British Weekly<\/i><\/p>\n
6103<\/b> Corpse Began To Stir<\/b><\/p>\n
John Sung came to America in 1920 to work on his doctorate in Chemistry. He excelled in his studies. Attractive offers of jobs came to him. Also Christ\u2019s call came to him. After a period of great spiritual struggle, he dedicated himself utterly to God. <\/p>\n
Soon afterwards, he had a most unusual dream in which he saw himself in a casket. God seemed to say to him, \u201cJohn Sung is dead\u2014dead to self, but alive to Christ!\u201d Then it seemed that the corpse began to stir. Angels began to weep! \u201cDon\u2019t weep, angels,\u201d said John. \u201cI will remain dead to the world and live only for Christ!\u201d He became a mighty preacher of the gospel. For 15 years, he was \u201ca burning and shining light\u201d in China and Southeast Asia. He was acclaimed China\u2019s greatest evangelist. <\/p>\n
6104<\/b> Make Me A Captive<\/b><\/p>\n
Make me a captive, Lord, <\/p>\n
And then I shall be free;<\/p>\n
Force me to render up my sword, <\/p>\n
And I shall conqueror be! <\/p>\n
I sink in life\u2019s alarms, <\/p>\n
When by myself I stand;<\/p>\n
Imprison me within Thine Arms, <\/p>\n
And strong shall be my hand. <\/p>\n
\u2014Selected<\/p>\n
6105<\/b> God\u2019s Disastrous Answer<\/b><\/p>\n
Years ago I was called to the home of a widow whose daughter was the apple of her eye. When the child was 3 years old she became very ill, and the doctors said that she would die. We can all understand the shock of this news, but we cannot justify the mother\u2019s reaction. She rebelled violently and accused God of cruelty\u2014like the Israelites in Exodus 17:3. She demanded that the Lord spare her daughter and told Him she could never trust Him again if He did not do so. Well, God granted the request, in spite of the doctors\u2019 predictions. The child grew up and lived a normal life for 13 years, but then joined with bad companions. Finally, the girl broke her mother\u2019s heart when at the age of 17 she fell into real trouble. <\/p>\n
The tragic end of the story was told me by the weeping woman when I arrived at her home that morning. \u201cMy Janie is dead\u2014a suicide. Last night she hung herself in her room!\u201d After minutes of convulsive sobbing she concluded, \u201cO Doctor, how I wish God had taken her when she was 3 years old.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014M. R. de Haan<\/p>\n
6106<\/b> William Booth\u2019s Secret<\/b><\/p>\n
When J. Wilbur Chapman was in London, he had an opportunity to meet General Booth, who at that time was past eighty years of age. Dr. Chapman listened reverently as the old general spoke of the trials and the conflicts and victories. <\/p>\n
The American evangelist then asked the general if he would disclose his secret for success. \u201cHe hesitated a second,\u201d Dr. Chapman said, \u201cand I saw the tears come into his eyes and steal down his cheeks, and then he said, \u201cI will tell you the secret. God has had all there was of me. There have been men with greater brains than I, men with greater opportunities; but from the day I got the poor of London on my heart, and a vision of what Jesus Christ could do with the poor of London, I made up my mind that God would have all of William Booth there was. And if there is anything of power in the Salvation Army today, it is because God has all the adoration of my heart, all the power of my will, and all the influence of my life.\u201d\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr. Chapman said he went away from that meeting with General Booth knowing \u201cthat the greatness of a man\u2019s power is the measure of his surrender.\u201d<\/p>\n
6107<\/b> Tolstoi\u2019s Agreement With God<\/b><\/p>\n
A good many years ago there was born in Russia a boy who thought himself so ugly that he felt there was no happiness for such as he. He had a wide nose, thick lips, small grey eyes, and big hands and feet. When he grew to be a man he became a famous writer. In one of his books he tells that he was so anxious about this ugliness that he besought God to work a miracle, to turn him into a beauty. If God would do this the boy promised that he would give God all he then possessed, or would possess in the future. <\/p>\n
That Russian boy was the great Count Tolstoi. Happily as he grew older he discovered that the beauty for which he sighed was not the only beauty, nor the best beauty. He learned to value more the beauty of a character strong and great and good in God\u2019s sight. <\/p>\n
\u2014James Hastings<\/p>\n
6108<\/b> From His Hand<\/b><\/p>\n
I will not take that bitter thrust<\/p>\n
Which rent my heart today<\/p>\n
As coming from an earthly soul\u2014<\/p>\n
Though it was meant that way. <\/p>\n
But I will look beyond the tool, <\/p>\n
Because my life is planned;<\/p>\n
I take the cup My Father gives\u2014<\/p>\n
I take it from His hand. <\/p>\n
He knows, and even thus allows, <\/p>\n
These little things that irk. <\/p>\n
I trust His wisdom and His love, <\/p>\n
Let patience have her work. <\/p>\n
Though human means have brought the sting, <\/p>\n
I firmly take this stand:<\/p>\n
My loving Father holds the cup, <\/p>\n
I take it from His hand. <\/p>\n
Now those who watch may wonder why<\/p>\n
These things do not disturb. <\/p>\n
I look right past the instrument<\/p>\n
And see my Lord superb. <\/p>\n
The trials which would lay me low<\/p>\n
Must pass through His command;<\/p>\n
He holds the outstretched cup to me<\/p>\n
I take it from His hand. <\/p>\n
\u2014Mrs. Ray Mercer<\/p>\n
6109<\/b> Eisenhower\u2019s Committal<\/b><\/p>\n
General Eisenhower, surrounded by his staff officers, stood on a high hill overlooking Malta harbor. In the light of a full moon shining down on the sea he watched the troop-laden ships weigh anchor and sail out into the mists while squadrons of planes roared into the sky. Deeply moved, Eisenhower sprang to attention and saluted his heroic men. Then he bowed his head in silent prayer, his staff joining him in this brief act of devotion. Turning to an officer beside him, Eisenhower said: \u201cThere comes a time when you\u2019ve used your brains, your training, your technical skill, and the die is cast. The events are in the hands of God, and there you have to leave them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014Mrs. Ruby Miller<\/p>\n
6110<\/b> He Knows<\/b><\/p>\n
He knows, He loves, He cares, <\/p>\n
Nothing this truth can dim, <\/p>\n
He does the very best for those, <\/p>\n
Who leave the choice with Him. <\/p>\n
6111<\/b> Nothing Else<\/b><\/p>\n
At a meeting of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Bobby Richardson, former New York Yankee second baseman, offered a prayer that is a classic in brevity and poignancy: \u201cDear God, Your will, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Amen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014Biblical Recorder<\/i><\/p>\n
6112<\/b> What\u2014Where\u2014When<\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cThe last words of Richard Baxter, the famous English Puritan divine, author of the celebrated work The Saint\u2019s Everlasting Rest<\/i>, and the man \u201cwho preached as a dying man to dying men,\u201d were these: \u201cLord, what Thou wilt, where Thou wilt, and when Thou wilt.\u201d\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014Ministers\u2019 Research Service<\/i><\/p>\n
6113<\/b> Elliot Remained A Country Preacher<\/b><\/p>\n
For nearly forty years Josiah Elliot, the country preacher, had prayed one prayer: \u201cLord, let me have one, please Lord, let me have one city church. Don\u2019t keep me a country preacher all my life. Let me have one city church.\u201d God kept him in the country! One by one the boys came out of his churches and went away to college, to the seminary, and on to preach the Gospel of Christ. One of the boys he had led to Christ led George W. Truett to Christ; another led Casper Warren to Christ. Both of these men have served as presidents of the Southern Baptist Convention! <\/p>\n
6114<\/b> Three Questions In Prayer<\/b><\/p>\n
We must consider times and seasons. George Mueller used to say that he first asked and settled this question concerning any proposed measure: \u201cIs this the Lord\u2019s work?\u201d Then, \u201cIs this the Lord\u2019s way?\u201d And last, but not least, \u201cIs this the Lord\u2019s time?\u201d<\/p>\n
6115<\/b> Lady Huntington\u2019s Attitude<\/b><\/p>\n
Lord Bolingbroke once asked Lady Huntington how she reconciled prayer to God for a particular blessing with absolute resignation to the Divine will. \u201cVery easy,\u201d answered her ladyship, \u201cjust as if I were to offer a petition to a monarch, of whose kindness and wisdom I have the highest opinion. In such a case my language would be, \u201cI wish you to bestow on me such a favor; but your majesty knows better than I if it would be agreeable to you or right, to grant my desire. I therefore content myself with humbly presenting my petition, and leave the result of it entirely to you.\u201d\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014The Presbyterian<\/i><\/p>\n
6116<\/b> Can Prayer Foster Atheism? <\/b><\/p>\n
Louis Cassels, Religion Writer of UPI, raises this question and comments thus:<\/p>\n
\u201cA mistaken view of prayer implanted or encouraged by parents, may cause a youngster to become an atheist in his teens.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then Cassels proceeds to recount an experience presented in an article by Better Garton Ulrich in the Christian Herald<\/i>. It was of a mother who could not understand why her college-age son had rejected belief in God. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe mother recalled fondly how as a small child, her son had prayed with unquestioning faith that God would grant him a bicycle. It was obvious from her tone that the parents in buying him the bicycle, had deliberately encouraged their child to believe that if he only prayed believingly enough, the prayers would be granted.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cassels goes on to say: \u201cThis kind of religious training is disastrous because it teaches a child to think of prayer as a letter to a heavenly Santa Claus. It may work for a while but sooner or later the child will pray for things the parents don\u2019t know about, or can\u2019t provide. He will then conclude either that there is no God, or, worse, that God exists but doesn\u2019t love him anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014Denver Post<\/i><\/p>\n
6117<\/b> Confederate Battle\u2019s Best Answer<\/b><\/p>\n
General Gordon, of Atlanta, Ga., told me of how the Confederate troops prayed for victory before the battle of Sharpsburg. The dav before the battle they prayed earnestly that they might be victorious, so earnestly that both officers and men felt that their prayers would be answered. General Gordon said that many felt satisfied that the Confederate forces would sweep the Union lines, and would be on their way to Washington within a week. <\/p>\n
But the next day the battle came off, and it was one of the most crushing blows that the Confederates received during the war. General Gordon, who was shot five times, said that after the battle the men were discouraged. They felt that God was on the side of the largest legions. Some of the officers suggested that it would be better to spend less time in praying and more time in manufacturing powder and bullets. The suggestion seemed to be a good one even to the General. <\/p>\n
But he told me years after that the prayers of the Confederates on the day before that battle were best answered by defeat; that if the Confederates had captured Washington and defeated the Union our nation would now be far down the scale among the weaker nations of the earth. <\/p>\n
\u2014R. H. Conwell<\/p>\n
6118<\/b> Just Inches From Bottom<\/b><\/p>\n
Hannah Whithall Smith tells about a man sliding down a rope into a well. He supposed the rope to be of ample length, but to his dismay he reached the end of it without touching the bottom of the well with his feet. He tried in vain to climb up the rope, and dared not let go for fear of being dashed to pieces. He held on as long as he could, and when utterly exhausted let the rope slip from his grasp. He fell\u2014just three inches! <\/p>\n
\u2014Blessed Hope Quarterly<\/i><\/p>\n
6119<\/b> Just Inches From Bottom (2)<\/b><\/p>\n
In the hill country of Missouri, close to where I grew up, there are areas that bear the scars of past mining operations. One timbered section has many old holes long ago abandoned. Some of these holes are shallow\u2014no more than six to ten feet deep. Others are much deeper, some as much as seventy-five to one hundred feet deep. <\/p>\n
One night a neighbor was possum hunting in this area and stumbled into one of these holes. As he went over the edge, he grabbed a sprout and held on for dear life. Fearing he had fallen into one of the deeper holes, the poor fellow yelled and screamed at the top of his voice until he was so hoarse he could yell no more. Then he started praying. <\/p>\n
Finally his strength played out, and he could hold on to the sprout no longer. So he said his last prayer and let go, expecting to drop to his death. Imagine his surprise and joy when he dropped only six inches and his feet rested on solid ground at the bottom of the hole! <\/p>\n
\u2014Gospel Herald<\/i><\/p>\n
6120<\/b> Five Words Defined <\/b><\/p>\n
Surrender isn\u2019t giving up<\/p>\n
something you don\u2019t want \u2026 <\/p>\n
It\u2019s giving up what you do want. <\/p>\n
Victory isn\u2019t walking<\/p>\n
across the goal line \u2026 <\/p>\n
It\u2019s struggling through opposition to goal. <\/p>\n
Trust isn\u2019t going<\/p>\n
just where the lights are \u2026 <\/p>\n
It\u2019s following through the dark valleys. <\/p>\n
Love isn\u2019t giving<\/p>\n
when others are giving \u2026 <\/p>\n
It\u2019s giving when others are not giving. <\/p>\n
Faith isn\u2019t overflowing<\/p>\n
to others \u2026 <\/p>\n
It\u2019s emptying itself to others. <\/p>\n
6121<\/b> Houdini Out-Smarted<\/b><\/p>\n
Houdini, magician and escape artist, could get out of any jail, handcuffs or strait jacket that he ever tried\u2014except one, a little jail in the British Isles. <\/p>\n
He worked at the cell-door lock for more than two hours\u2014at that terrific speed which usually unlocked doors in three seconds. But the lock wouldn\u2019t spring. Finally, exhausted, he fell against the door. It swung open. It had never been locked. <\/p>\n
6122<\/b> Bird Yields To Wind<\/b><\/p>\n
Wordsworth in one of his poems tells about a bird that was carried from Norway by a storm. It fought hard against the gale in its effort to win its way back to Norway, but all in vain. At last it yielded to the wind, and instead of being carried to destruction it was borne to the warm shores of England, to the green meadows and forests. <\/p>\n
\u2014John T. Montgomery<\/p>\n
6123<\/b> \u201cAll Ours Are Yours\u201d Pershing<\/b><\/p>\n
There was a dramatic moment, a great crisis in the world\u2019s history, when General Pershing placed the American Army under the command of General Foch, who had just been made commander of all the allied forces, but none of the phrases that General Pershing used were widely quoted as epigrammatic. One which might so have been selected was the words: \u201cInfantry, artillery, aviation, all that we have are yours. Dispose of them as you will.\u201d<\/p>\n
God wants to hear the church in America make such a consecration as that. It will then be as irresistible as an \u201carmy with banners.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014Aquilla Webb<\/p>\n
6124<\/b> One Goat Lied Down<\/b><\/p>\n
During the great Reformation in Europe, Luther and Zwingli found themselves at odds in their concern for the movements they were leading. Early one morning, Zwingli walked out on the mountains of Switzerland and a soul-stirring sight confronted him. He saw two goats making their way over a narrow path on the mountain. One was ascending the trail, the other descending. He also noticed that they must pass at a point where the trail was so narrow that there was room for only one goat. He watched to see what would happen. <\/p>\n
The animals rounded a turn in the path which brought them in full view of each other. They backed up, as though ready for a lunge, and then the most amazing thing happened. The goat on the trail below laid down in the path, while the goat above him walked over his back. The first animal then arose and continued his journey up the trail. <\/p>\n
To Zwingli this meant that the way down is the way up. Christ humbled Himself so that men could walk over Him into the Kingdom of light, knowing that afterward He would be exalted. <\/p>\n
\u2014Herman A. Hoyt<\/p>\n
6125<\/b> The Path I Feared<\/b><\/p>\n
I said, \u201cLet me walk in the field.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said, \u201cNo; walk in the town.\u201d<\/p>\n
I said, \u201cThere are no flowers there.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said, \u201cNo flowers, but a crown.\u201d<\/p>\n
I said, \u201cBut the skies are black, <\/p>\n
There is nothing but noise and din.\u201d<\/p>\n
And He wept as He sent me back. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere is more,\u201d He said, \u201cthere is sin.\u201d<\/p>\n
I said, \u201cBut the air is thick<\/p>\n
And fogs are veiling the sun.\u201d<\/p>\n
He answered, \u201cYet souls are sick, <\/p>\n
And souls in the dark undone.\u201d<\/p>\n
I said, \u201cI shall miss the light, <\/p>\n
And friends will miss me, they say.\u201d<\/p>\n
He answered, \u201cChoose tonight<\/p>\n
If I am to miss you, or they.\u201d<\/p>\n
I pleaded for time to be given. <\/p>\n
He said, \u201cIs it hard to decide? <\/p>\n
It will not seem hard in Heaven<\/p>\n
To have followed the steps of your Guide.\u201d<\/p>\n
I cast one look at the fields, <\/p>\n
Then set my face to the town;<\/p>\n
I said: \u201cMy child, do you yield? <\/p>\n
Will you leave the flowers for the crown?\u201d<\/p>\n
Then into His hand went mine;<\/p>\n
And into my heart came He;<\/p>\n
And I walk in a light Divine, <\/p>\n
The path I had feared to see. <\/p>\n
\u2014George McDonald<\/p>\n
6126<\/b> People Will Notice<\/b><\/p>\n
In his book God\u2019s Challenge for Today<\/i>, T. J. Bach tells of a lady who testified publicly that she had entered into a deeper relationship with God. When asked if she had experienced more power in her life or had more important work assigned to her, she answered, \u201cNo, I don\u2019t think so. But I have noticed that my children put more confidence in me, and that my friends now frequently ask me for counsel and prayer.\u201d Says Brother Bach, \u201cWhen God brings you closer to Himself, people will soon know about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2014Our Daily Bread<\/i><\/p>\n
6127<\/b> Epigram On Submission<\/b><\/p>\n
\u2022 The best way to know God\u2019s will is to say \u201cI will\u201d to God. <\/p>\n
\u2014The Bible Friend<\/i><\/p>\n
\u2022 God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him. <\/p>\n
\u2014Jim Elliot<\/p>\n
\u2022 To know the will of God is the greatest knowledge, to find the will of God is the greatest discovery, and to do the will of God is the greatest achievement. <\/p>\n
\u2014George W. Truett<\/p>\n
See also:<\/b> Consecration ; Humility ; Sacrifice ; Matt. 10:24.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name\u2019s sake. \u2014Luke 21:12 6101 It Costs\u2014It\u2019s Easy \u201cIt costs much to obtain the power of the Spirit. It costs self-surrender and humiliation, and … Continue reading “SUBMISSION”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5312"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5312\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}