SPIRITUAL DRYNESS.
We often meet with those who complain of dryness and deadness in their
worship. They are very unlike the Psalmist's picture of the "blessed man."
"He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth
forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither." This is a
true picture of the Christian life. The soul should be as a watered
garden--fresh and green and sparkling. It should be a springtime. You have
seen a garden in the spring or one that is well-watered. All is beauty,
freshness, and vigor. Such a garden is used by the prophet to symbolize
the Spirit-filled soul. He says, "And the Lord shall guide thee
continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones; and
thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose
waters fail not." Isa. 58:11.
In order to have such a happy experience, however, the children of God
must meet certain conditions. The context says, "If thou draw out thy soul
to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul." If our souls are not drawn
out in pity for the hungry and we fail to do what we can to relieve them,
we need not expect anything other than a spiritual drought in our own
cases.
Spiritual dryness is sometimes the result of attachment to the world. "Set
your affections on things above, and not on things on the earth." Unless
we live by the Bible, we can not be spiritual. A little affection for the
things of earth robs the soul of spiritual life. In this matter Satan is
an excellent reasoner. He will suggest that your desires are only for the
glory of God; that you have no affection for the worldly object, but
desire it only for God's glory. A young lady to whom I gave warning said
that her desires were pure and that she had no affection for the object,
but sought only to please the Lord. Very soon, however, she came to the
realization that her soul was a desert place, and all because she had
believed the falsehood of Satan. Beware how you desire earthly things for
God's glory. Underneath may be a desire for self-gratification, ease, or
luxury. If you are troubled by a lack of sensible devotion in worship,
examine your affections. Possibly you may find some tiny roots twining
around something of this world.
Spiritual dryness may be the result of sloth. "Slothfulness casteth into a
deep sleep." Prov. 19:15. Spiritual idleness soon results in spiritual
dryness. That sophism of Satan's, "No time for prayer," is very dangerous.
Any neglect of spiritual devotion must result in lukewarmness. Oh, how
unreasonable is man and how easily the desires of the flesh deceive! If
you neglected to water your garden, you would not wonder for a moment why
it was drying up. Then, when you are neglecting to water the soul in
vigorous, spiritual exercises, why do you wonder at your being so
spiritually dull? "Awake, thou that sleepest!" Up and away to the hill of
the Lord. Be the frequent witness of a sunrise scene from the mount of
prayer.
The San Jose scale works imperceptibly at first. Oftentimes its presence
will be detected only by the experienced. Its presence will perhaps be
known first by the fruit. If your spiritual fruit is not as beautiful,
well-flavored, and fully developed as it should be, look for the presence
of sloth in the soul. The poison of sloth will get into the soul little by
little. First there will be a momentary delay of spiritual duties. Satan
is too wise to suggest an entire abandonment of them, but he will suggest
a little postponement. One delay will soon be followed by another and then
by another. These delays are an opiate that dulls the spiritual senses,
and thus they will yield more readily to postponements and finally find
pleasure in them.
Let me make this still more simple, for some may need it made very easy to
understand. When the soul is like a watered garden, it will be drawn to
God in prayer in the early morning. Any delay will cause uneasiness and
restlessness. The soul longs to hasten away to the presence of God. But
one little delay after another brings on a morbid condition. The soul
loses its keen relish; its senses become deadened, so that there is no
uneasiness; while the senses of the self-life will find pleasure in sloth.
When the soul once gets into the habit of idleness, it experiences no
little difficulty in getting out. On becoming aware of his state, the
individual may acknowledge his inactivity and make half-formed resolves to
be more earnest and diligent, only very soon to relapse into the same
former sluggishness. This virus of sloth inoculates the entire spiritual
being, poisoning the will and making spiritual activity most disagreeable.
Not only does it destroy the will of the soul, but it blindfolds the eyes
so that the individual can see no necessity for great fervency in spirit
or for diligence in spiritual exercise. In a half-dazed manner he
acknowledges that the "watchings often" and "fastings often" and "praying
always" of the apostle Paul were very consistent in him, but does not
realize that such would be as desirable in his own Christian profession.
He wonders why he is not healed as people were in the days of Paul. Why
wonder? He does not wonder why the flowers wither when it does not rain.
It is the fervent, earnest prayer that God hears.
Nothing but the greatest diligence and determination and strong laying
hold upon God will ever put spiritual sloth to death. In this respect it
is like the South American animal called the sloth. Though one species of
the sloth is only the size of a cat, and is extremely slow on the ground,
its highest rate of speed there being not more than ten feet an hour, yet
it is difficult to exterminate.
One reason why so many are slothful is that they do not realize the true
worth of prayer. Oh, I would to God that men rightly valued communion with
God or a few thoughts of him! The lifting of the heart to God in praise or
adoration is of greater value than the wealth of worlds. It is not enough
to know much about the doctrine of the Bible, to be acquainted with this
present reform, and to live a fair outward life; we must be filled with
the Spirit. We must be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, whose
leaf does not wither. Take plenty of time to gain heaven. Take time to be
spiritual. A home in heaven is worth laboring for. Work out your salvation
with fear and trembling. Spiritual dryness is the result of spiritual
indolence. Be active, and you will not be unfruitful.
More
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A VALUABLE LEGACY.
A legacy is a gift that some one makes to another; usually something that one leaves behind, when departing from this world, for others to enjoy. Some have left great sums of money to others and to institutions, and these bequests have been called... A VIEW OF JESUS.
Let us take a look at Jesus. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit may unveil him and present him to us clearly. Now we see him. We see him as our all and as in all. Can you see him thus? Is he everything to you? and is he in everything that comes to y... ALONE WITH GOD.
This life of ours will never be all that it should be unless we are much alone with God. Only those who are oft alone with him know the benefit that is derived therefrom. You can not be like God unless you are much with him, and you can not live l... BE DOERS OF THE WORD.
I want to remind you again that the mission of this little volume is to teach you how to live. The life beyond depends on the life here. Let me emphasize what I have repeatedly said before: to live as we should, we must live by every word of God. ... CONSIDER THE LILIES.
What a beautiful lesson Jesus has taught us of rest and quietness from the lilies! "Consider the lilies of the field," he says, "how they grow: they toil not, neither do they spin." He is trying to teach us how free we can be--free from all earthl... DEVOTION TO GOD.
Devotion to God implies ardent affection for him--a yielding of the heart to him with reverence, faith, and piety in every act, particularly in prayer and meditation. We catch a glimpse of the true meaning of devotion from what is said of the cent... DEVOTIONAL READING.
A person may almost be known by the books he reads. If he habitually reads bad books, we can pretty safely conclude that he is a bad man; on the other hand, if he habitually reads religious books, we can reasonably presume that he is a religious m... GENTLENESS.
Fruit-bearing trees are used in the Scriptures to represent the race of mankind. The Savior likens the wicked to "corrupt trees," which bear evil fruit and the righteous to "good trees" which bear good fruit (Matt. 7:15, 20). He also teaches very ... GODLY LIVING.
When some one is spoken of as living a worldly life, it is meant that he lives in a worldly manner, or in a manner like the world. Likewise, when some one is spoken of as living a godly life, it is meant that he lives in a godly manner, or in a ma... HE CARETH FOR THEE.
Life will never be successful unless we learn to let God care for us. Unless we have faith to know that God is our keeper and that hence we have nothing to fear, we shall never be the cheer and sunlight in this dark world that God designed us to b... HOW TO KEEP THE WORD OF GOD IN THE HEART.
Since keeping the Word of God in the heart is the only way to successful Christian living, you will at once want to know how to keep it in the heart. The Word is kept in the heart the same as food is kept in the body. The food is eaten, and then b... HOW TO LIVE THE CHRISTLIFE.
Man can not naturally live the Christ-life. But Christ has promised to come into our hearts and live in us. In order that we may have Christ dwell in our hearts and that we may live his life, there must be a giving up of our self-life. There must ... HOW TO UNDERSTAND GOD'S WILL.
In order to do God's will we must first know his will. In order to have real satisfaction, rest, and contentment in the Christian life--and there is no true rest outside the Christian life--we must have the full assurance that we are doing the wil... HOW WE MAY LIVE AS THE BIBLE READS.
It is just as natural and easy for a Christian to live the Christian life as it is for a sinner to live a sinful life. The sinner needs make no effort to live a sinful life; he lives it naturally and easily. Life proceeds from the heart. The heart... INTRODUCTION.
We have only one life to live, only one. Think of this for a moment. Here we are in this world of time making the journey of life. Each day we are farther from the cradle and nearer the grave. Solemn thought. See the mighty concourse of human live... KEEP THE ROOTS WATERED.
How often you admire a tree for the loveliness of its green foliage and the profusion of its luscious fruit. You speak to your friend of the beauty of the tree and of the goodness of God in bestowing such a gift to men; but perhaps you do not spea... KEEPING THE COMMANDMENTS A TEST OF LOVE.
We are commanded to love God. It is the first and greatest commandment. Love is more than an emotion; it is an act of the will. A mother loves her child constantly, though she may not always experience the emotions of love. Her care for her child ... KEEPING THE COMMANDMENTS.
God's Word is pure. Heaven itself and the great white throne is no more pure than the Word of God. That life may be pure, it must be in sweet harmony with the blessed Bible. A life that is lived in obedience to the Bible is as pure as the Bible. S... LIVE BY FAITH.
Live by faith. There is no other true and right way to live. Without faith it is impossible to please God, and of course the life that pleases God is the only life that is perfect. We can please God; we can walk each day in a way that is pleasing ... LUKEWARMNESS.
A lukewarm life is a displeasure to God; he would have us to be fervent in spirit. God is pleased with us when we are lively stones, but not when we are formal and lukewarm. A lukewarm state is a dangerous state. One very dangerous thing about it ... MAN THE VEHICLE FOR EXHIBITING GOD'S PERFECTIONS.
Man was created for a purpose, and that purpose was to glorify his Creator (Isa. 43:7). But man sinned and came short of the glory of God. The Lord, that he may yet be glorified in the man, provides a way of redemption. Through the redemption we h... OUR LIFE IS TO ADORN THE GOSPEL.
To adorn is to make attractive, to beautify. We are exhorted by the apostle Paul to adorn the doctrine of the New Testament by our every-day life. This thought should be a powerful incentive to close living with God and assiduously keeping all of ... PRAYER.
A work of this nature would be inexcusable for not saying something about prayer, for who can live life triumphantly without prayer? Who can properly estimate the true worth of prayer or rightly appreciate the privilege of prayer? Man esteems it a... PRAYERFUL REMEMBRANCE.
At evening time when dark'ning shades draw nigh And flickering rays of light go chasing by, When all around glad nature sweetly sings And seems you hear the sound of angel's wings, Some one in memory may be brought to thee. Maybe s... PREFACE.
If the reading of this little book encourages any on their pilgrim way; if it arouses them to greater diligence; if it creates in them a stronger desire to live more like Christ; if it gives them a better understanding of how to live,--this poor s... SHUT THE DOOR.
It is as impossible to live and prosper spiritually without prayer as it is to live and prosper physically without food. Those who enjoy a close walk with God and have power with him are those who pray. Natural abilities and intellectuality can ne... SOME USE TO JESUS.
O Christ, the way, the truth, the life, Keep me safe mid the raging strife; Help me a warrior brave to be And take the battle-field for thee. I fear not the swift arrow's power Since thou art my high, strong-built tower; The dar... SOMETHING TO DO.
There is so much to do that every one is needed to help in doing it. In this great, busy world of life there is something for every one to do. The command is, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might." Think over these words for a ... SORROWFUL YET ALWAYS REJOICING.
This world is sometimes called "the vale of tears." Jesus said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation," but he also said, "In me ye shall have peace." The way to heaven is through tribulations. Those whom John saw standing before the throne and ... SPIRITUAL DRYNESS.
We often meet with those who complain of dryness and deadness in their worship. They are very unlike the Psalmist's picture of the "blessed man." "He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season;... STEADFASTNESS.
"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord." 1 Cor. 15:58. Steadfastness is an essential principle in Christian character. There can be no success nor prosperity in the Christian life when... TENDERNESS.
In order for life to be what it should, it must flow from a heart full of tenderness. This is that quality of soul which enables us to give kind attention to others, to be willing and eager to do good, to exercise great carefulness to give no offe... THE BIBLE WAY.
If the Bible had not been given us, we should not always know the way that Jesus walked. But he has given us his Word. The way of the Bible is the way of Christ, and is therefore the true path of life. O pilgrim to the heavenly kingdom, the Word o... THE BLESSEDNESS OF OBEYING GOD'S WORD.
Everything is said in the Scriptures that can be said to show us the need of living in harmony with the Bible. If our lives are out of harmony with one text in that blessed book, we are not yet fitted for heaven. We can never be admitted into the ... THE CHRISTIAN AN EPISTLE OF CHRIST.
The life we live is being read. We are not going through the world unnoticed. Some one is looking on, and some one is to some extent fashioning his life after ours. Our life each day is being written down in some one's memory. My own dear children... THE CHRISTIAN IS TO WALK CIRCUMSPECTLY.
"See then that ye walk circumspectly." Eph. 5:15. To walk circumspectly is to walk cautiously; to look where one is stepping; to be vigilant, watchful, diligent, attentive. Be our pathway ever so light, if we do not look where we are stepping, we ... THE CHRISTIAN WALK.
Life is termed a walk in the Scriptures. Where they say that we ought to walk as Jesus walked, they have reference to our manner of life. The way in which a Christian walks is called the way of life. It is called the way of life because it leads t... THE CHRISTIAN'S WALK A WALK WITH GOD.
"He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." Micah 6:8. The life of Enoch is descriptive of the Christian's life, and it is said that he "... THE GOLDEN RULE OF LIFE.
"And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them like wise." Luke 6:31. This is a good rule for every-day living. It is known throughout the Christian world as "The Golden Rule." It has great depths. It contains more no doubt than an... THE HEAVENLY WAY.
There is a heaven. There is a place of rest and happiness. I have not gone to heaven, but heaven has come to me; therefore I know there is a heaven. Many who have eaten oranges have never been in a land where oranges grow, but these persons know t... THE LATEST IMPROVED.
As we walk along the streets of villages and cities, we see machines of different kinds exposed to view and bearing a card with these words: "The Latest Improved." For our life to be perfect every day, it must be our latest improved. The world is ... THE MODEL LIFE.
In doing anything, it is always well to have a model by which to fashion our work. In fact, nothing is done without a pattern, either real or imaginary. The little boy making a toy has in in his mind a model by which he is framing his work. Likewi... THE RELATIONSHIP WE HAVE WITH CHRIST THROUGH OBEDIENCE.
The reason why it is more blessed to obey the Word of God than to be the mother of Jesus is obvious. Spiritual things are higher than physical things. Spiritual relation is closer than natural relation. Brotherhood in Christ is closer than brother... THE WARFARE OF A CHRISTIAN LIFE.
It is blessed and glorious to be a Christian. No other life is so beautiful and pure; no other life is so tranquilly peaceful; no other is so full of rest, happiness, and satisfaction. The Christian, however, does not go to heaven on flowery beds ... THE WAY THE SAIL IS SET.
I stood beside the open sea; The ships went sailing by; The wind blew softly o'er the lea; The sun had cloudless sky. Some ships sailed eastward, some sailed west, Some north, some southward trend. How can ships sail this w... TIMELINESS IN DOING GOOD.
To spend well this one brief life of ours, we must be active in doing good. This we have already learned. But not only should we be active in doing good, but we should do the good act when the act will be most helpful. Do the good deed when the go... UNDER THE FIGTREE.
In the beginning of his ministry Christ called to Philip to follow him. Upon being called Philip went in search of Nathanael to tell him that he (Philip) had found the Christ. Nathanael was somewhat doubtful, but at Philip's invitation he went to ... WHO ARE THE WISE?
Who is a foolish man? It is a man who hears the sayings of Jesus and fails to do them. He is likened to a man who was foolish enough to build his house upon the sand. This man would better not have built at all, for the cost of building was lost. ...