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#06/ 03-Mar-1999
P O S I T I V E W O R D S
Editor: Peter Wade
----- http://www.peterwade.com/ -----
IN THIS ISSUE...
1. At the Positive Words site
2. Songs I Remember
3. Positive Words for Today
4. Searchlights from the Word
5. Humor
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1. NEW AT THE POSITIVE WORDS SITE
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We welcome new subscribers arriving daily from all
over the world.
MUST READING before Easter are the articles from the
series "The Great Experiences of Jesus' Life" by S.D.
Gordon. In the early 1900s, S.D. Gordon was a widely
traveled speaker in high demand. A prolific author, he
wrote more than 30 devotional books, most with the
phrase "Quiet Talks" in the title. Four articles are
now online; three will follow in a few weeks.
THE JORDAN: THE DECISIVE START
Experience is going through a thing yourself, and
having it go through you. And "through" here means not
as a spear is thrust through a man's body, piercing
it, but as fire goes through that which it takes hold
of, permeating; as an odour goes through a house,
pervading it.
Experience is weaving fact into the fabric of
your life. The swift drive of the double-pointed
shuttle, the hard push of the loom back and forth goes
through you. Experience is sowing truth in actual
personal occurrences. The cutting, upturning edge of
the plough, the tearing teeth of the harrow, go on
inside your very being, while perhaps the moments drag
themselves by, slow as snails.
Experience is hammering truth into shape upon the
anvil of your life, while the pounding of the
lightning trip-hammer is upon your own quivering flesh.
Now Jesus became a perfect man by means of the
experiences He went through. He is an older Brother to
us, for He has gone through ahead where we are now
going, and where we are yet to go.
http://www.peterwade.com/articles/gordsd/exper01.shtml
THE WILDERNESS: TEMPTATION
The Jordan led to the Wilderness by a straight road.
A first step without slipping leads to the second.
Victory opens the way to fresh struggles for higher
victories. The perfect naturalness of Jesus is
revealed here, His human naturalness. He had taken the
decisive step into the Jordan waters. And while
absorbed in prayer had become conscious of a new
experience.
The Spirit of God came upon Him in unusual
measure. The effect of that always is to awaken to new
alertness and vigour every mental power, as well as to
key up every moral resolve. Jesus is caught at once
by the grasp, the grip of this new experience of the
wondrous Spirit's control. Keenly alive to its
significance, awakened anew to the part He was to
perform, and to a consciousness of His peculiar
relation to God and to man, He becomes wholly absorbed
in this newly intensified world of thought.
Under the Spirit's impulse He goes off into the
solitude of the wilderness to think. And in this mood
of deep absorption, with every faculty fully awake and
every high moral impulse and purpose in full throb,
came the temptation with the recorded climax at the
close.
http://www.peterwade.com/articles/gordsd/exper02.shtml
THE TRANSFIGURATION: AN EMERGENCY MEASURE
The darkest hour save only one has now come in Jesus'
life. And that one which was actually darkest, in
every way, from every view-point darkest, had in it
some gleams of light that are not here. Jesus is now a
fugitive from the province of Judea. The death plot
has been settled upon. There's a ban in Jerusalem on
His followers. Already one man has been cut off from
synagogue privileges, and become a religious and
social outcast. The southerners are pushing the fight
against Jesus up into Galilee.
The great need just now was not simply for men
who would be loving and loyal, but men who would be
leaders. It has ever been the sorest need. Men are not
so scarce, true-hearted men, willing to endure
sacrifice, but leaders have always been few, and are.
Nothing seems to be less understood than leadership;
and nothing so quickly recognised when the real thing
appears.
The whole purpose of the transfiguration was to
get and tie up leaders. Goodness makes character. It
takes goodness plus ability to make true leadership.
The heart can make a loving follower. It takes a
heart, warm and true, plus brains, to make a leader.
Character is the essential for life. For true
leadership, there needs to be character plus ability:
the ability to keep the broad sweep of things, and not
be lost in details, nor yet to lose sight of details;
to discern motive and drifts; to sift through the
incidentals which may be spectacular, and get to the
essential which may be in Quaker garb.
http://www.peterwade.com/articles/gordsd/exper03.shtml
GETHSEMANE: THE STRANGE, LONE STRUGGLE
Great events always send messengers ahead. There is a
movement in the spirit currents. A sort of tremor of
expectancy affects the finer currents of air. The more
sensitively organised one is, that is to say, the more
the spirit part of a man dominates body and mind, the
more conscious will he be of the something coming.
Jesus was keenly conscious ahead of the coming of
Calvary. Apart from the actual knowledge, there was a
painful thrill of expectancy, intensifying as the
event came nearer. The cross cast long, dark shadows
ahead. The darkest is Gethsemane. It would be, for it
was nearest. But there were other shadows before that
of the olive grove. Jesus plainly reveals in His
behaviour, in His appearance, that He felt keenly,
into the very fibre, so sensitively woven, of His
being, that the experience of the cross would be a
terrific one for Him. It was deliberately chosen by
Him, and the time of its coming chosen in the full
knowledge that it would be an awful ordeal. It would
establish the earth's record for suffering, never
approached before or since.
As He turns His face for the last time away from
Galilee, and to Judea, it is with the calmness of
strong deliberation. Yet the intenseness of the inner
spirit, in its look ahead, is shown in His face, His
demeanour. As He comes to a certain Samaritan village
on the road south, the usual invitation to stop for
rest and a bit of refreshment is withheld out of
respect to His evident purpose. It is clear to these
villagers that His face is set to go to Jerusalem. In
Luke's striking language, "His face was going to
Jerusalem." What going to Jerusalem meant to Him had
no meaning to them. They saw only that face, and were
so caught by the strong, stern determination plainly
written there, that they felt impelled not to offer
the usual hospitality.
http://www.peterwade.com/articles/gordsd/exper04.shtml
OTHER ARTICLES
For those who are fans of Dr. E.W. Bullinger we also
present the exquisitely simple truth that "Abraham
Believed God" (
http://www.peterwade.com/articles/bullingr/abrabel.shtml ) --
the essence of the gospel of God. And Dr. A.J. Gordon,
one of Bullinger's contemporaries, shares how, through
faith, we became "Partakers of the Divine Nature" (
http://www.peterwade.com/articles/gordaj/partaker.shtml ).
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2. SONGS I REMEMBER
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Be careful what you sing! Music is such a powerful
medium and you need to be sure that what you sing
lines up with the Word of God. I cringe when I think
of some of the songs I chose for the congregation to
sing when I was a young pastor. But I was not alone.
William Booth-Clibborn (we have his book "Too Much" on
our web site) wrote about this in the introduction to
his book "How to Keep on Fire". I quote...
Imagine a believer actually singing about his
failures! It is bad enough to have been through such
off-color experiences without brazenly shouting about
them! Witness this terrible "tour de force"! Saints
singing of their sins! Christians putting their
miserable mistakes to music! One should be ashamed of
his having passed through such ordeals, let alone
telling others about them; and of all things, to
expect the congregation to join in on such melancholy
melodies is absurd! Even the world has more sense! It
sings about life at its best, about love, adventure,
and so expresses the joy of perfect health and
happiness. No one ever composed a song about typhoid
fever, or put the exquisite pains of lumbago to music!
A case in point we should like to quote in full. It
is a typical backslider's ditty. It should never have
been found in any collection of church hymns. It has
no place with them. How it ever got into the
collection of "Victory Songs, No. 4" (our own hymnal)
is hard to understand. It was a serious faux pas. Yet
here it is, just what you may expect when a backslider
takes it upon himself to compose a hymn. He can do
nothing but translate his own morbid vision and
illegitimate feelings into words -- as is illustrated
in the hymn, "The touch of His hand on mine." It
begins: "There are days so dark that I seek in vain,
For the face of my Friend Divine; But though darkness
hide, He is there to guide, By the touch of His hand
on mine."
Take that first verse, for example. It speaks a plain
untruth. There never was a day so dark that the
Christian sought in vain for the face of Christ, and
nowhere is it found in the Bible that God promises to
guide us by a touch of the hand. Every scripture
speaks of His presence and glory in our hearts.
Christians do not need a touch of the Divine hand.
They need the love of God shed abroad in their hearts
by the Holy Ghost. That is what is going to help them
in the trying hour.
The second stanza is worse. It practically concedes
that it is normal for a Christian to have times when
"he is tired of the toilsome road". Even if that were
true, he should hush about it, let alone sing about it
from the housetops. And besides, since when is God's
highway, God's glorious Gospel way, called "the way of
holiness" in Isaiah 35:8, to be compared to a toilsome
road! Why, we are assured that no unclean thing shall
pass over it, that no lion shall be found there, nor
any ravenous beast shall prowl upon it; and though the
wayfaring man be a fool, he shall not be able to err
therein, because you cannot go wrong on a straight
road. It has no turns. Nothing about this text
suggests toil or hardship.
As to the next sentence of this backslider's song, it
is a fearful and horrible confession -- "that for ways
of the world I pine". Be it true that some Christians
do wish to return to the world and crave after its
pleasures, follies, and amusements, they should
confess this with tears on their knees before God in
the secret of their private prayer closet, not compose
songs about it and get up and sing these sentiments as
a solo. Certainly the Scriptures do record the fact
that the children of Israel hankered after the garlic,
the leeks, the onions, the cucumbers and the flesh
pots of Egypt once they were in the wilderness, but
that is a matter of shame and is to their discredit.
The third verse gets really dark. Here this unhappy
poet says, "When the way is dim, and I cannot see
through the mist of His wise design, How my glad heart
yearns and my faith returns by the touch of His hand
on mine". It is true that often the way God wishes us
to take is not made plain to us, but why should we
lose faith because of this. Jesus prayed for Peter
that his faith would not fail, but this writer seems
to have lost his faith and has it returned by a touch!
That is certainly walking by feeling!
The last verse of this sordid song is too terrible.
Death is called a "sad hour". Not so to the true
Christian. He is said, by the author of this song, "to
stand alone" -- that is impossible! Christ is always
with him and has promised never to leave nor forsake
him; and if we are to be guided through the chilling
dark waters of death, we will need more than just the
touch of His hand, we must have the Everlasting Arms!
Well, that is an example of a backslider's song, and
it is revolting in the extreme. There is no reason for
considering life to be such a perpetual struggle
against impossible odds. God has provided, through the
means of grace, sufficient strength and power for
every Christian to be happy, victorious, and abounding
in the qualities of an abundant life.
It is possible for every Christian to attain the
victorious life. We believe, with all our hearts, it
is the true standard and is so declared by the
Scriptures.
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3. A POSITIVE WORD FOR TODAY
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THE PRINCIPLE OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
"In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make
your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:6).
How do I acknowledge God? I must recognize that He is
with me. Hebrews 11:6 says, "Anyone who comes to him
must believe that he exists and that he rewards those
who earnestly seek him." God exists and He rewards
with the best those who put their trust in Him. I will
acknowledge His presence in every part of my life --
in my family, in my business, in my personal life.
When I do, He will make my paths straight. He will
guide me.
The Jerusalem Bible renders it, "He will see that
your paths are smooth." Moffat says that "He will
clear the road for you." For those who believe that He
exists and that He rewards those who seek Him, it's
straight ahead down a clear road.
I picture in my mind coming to a fork in the road.
God will guide me as to which road to take. He will
direct my path, He will guide me in the way I need to
go. I need God's guidance this year. I will not get
the guidance I need from the newspaper or from
television. God's Word gives me the principles I need
for right living, according to His will for me.(From
"Outdo, Outwit, & Outperform", Chapter 6, adapted by
Hildy Matthews.)
AFFIRMATION: Thankfully, as I acknowledge God, He
will direct my paths.
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4. SEARCHLIGHTS FROM THE WORD
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G. Campbell Morgan was a well-known preacher and
writer from the turn of the century. In this spot each
issue we reproduce a comment from one verse in every
chapter of the Bible. We continue with the so-called
"Prison Epistles" of Paul: Ephesians, Philippians,
Colossians, Philemon.
"Be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18).
Much has been written about this injunction, and
everything has been of value. It certainly is a
central word to the saints. To men outside the
Christian experience it has no meaning. For them, the
first necessity is that they should be born of the
Spirit, that they should receive Him. To those that
have been so born, and who therefore have become
temples of the Holy Spirit, the one and inclusive
responsibility is that they should obey this word.
The filling of the Spirit is not an event which takes
place once; it is rather a continuous experience which
has to be maintained. The indwelling Spirit is a
spring of living water. As He is yielded to, He fills
all the life, and persistently to such an extent that
the rivers overflow, and running forth bring life to
those beyond. This filling is hindered when any part
of the life is shut up against the Spirit. Our
constant responsibility is that of yielding ourselves
to His inspection, to His direction, to His effective
operation. As we do so, He fills, and that means He
cleanses, energizes, and transforms the life; and so
passes out through the life in the influences which
heal and help others.
It is interesting to read the words immediately
following, in which the Apostle gives us two results
which always follow the filling of the Spirit. The
first is that of the exercise of praise, which
glorifies God. The second is that of mutual
submission, which ministers to the needs of others.
Thus the filling of the Spirit means the end of the
self-centred life; and the realization of such life as
glorifies God and blesses men.
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5. HUMOR
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Each issue includes one of the best pieces we have
seen since our last issue. So here goes...
I received a letter this week that started: "I have
known you ever since I was a little kid. I am 43 years
old now." Just for a minute or two, I felt really old.
So here are...
TOP TEN HYMNS FOR PEOPLE MY AGE
10. "It is Well with my Soul (but my legs get tired)"
9. "Nobody Knows the Trouble I Have Seeing"
8. "Amazing Grace (considering My Age)"
7. "Just a Slower Walk with Thee"
6. "Count Your Many Birthdays, Name them One by One"
5. "Go Tell it on the Mountain - and Speak Up!"
4. "Give Me That Old Timer's Religion"
3. "Blessed Insurance"
2. "Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah - I've Forgotten
Where I Parked"
AND THE NUMBER ONE HYMN FOR PEOPLE OUR AGE IS ....
1. "Nearer, My God, to Thee"
THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL
At the Henry Street Hebrew School, Goldblatt, the new
teacher, finished the day's lesson. It was now time
for the usual question period.
"Mr. Goldblatt," announced little Joey, "there's
somethin' I can't figger out." "What's that, Joey?"
asked Goldblatt.
"Well accordin' to the Bible, the Children of Israel
crossed the Red Sea, right?" "Right."
"An' the Children of Israel beat up the Philistines,
right?" "Er--right."
"An' the Children of Israel built the Temple, right?"
"Again you're right."
"An' the Children of Israel fought the 'gyptians, an'
the Children of Israel fought the Romans, an' the
Children of Israel wuz always doin' somethin'
important, right?" "All that is right, too," agreed
Goldblatt. "So what's your question?"
"What I wanna know is this," demanded Joey. "What wuz
all the grown-ups doin"?
COMMANDMENTS
A Sunday school teacher was discussing the ten
commandments with her five and six year olds. After
explaining the commandment to "honor thy father and
thy mother," she asked "is there a commandment that
teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?"
Without missing a beat, one little boy (the oldest of
a family of seven) answered, "Thou shall not kill."
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THANKS for reading Positive Words. Please share it
with a friend!
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(c) 1999 Peter Wade
http://www.peterwade.com/
"IN CHRIST" QUOTE FOR TODAY
