Apr 19
16
“To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden
manna.”
–Revelation 2:17
How often God’s word is to you a sealed book; how often you hear from
the pulpit the most encouraging preaching, yet get no encouragement from
it; how often you hear Christ held forth in his Person, blood and
righteousness, and go away as you came, without any sensible relief.
What is the reason? Because you are overcome. Unbelief, bondage,
darkness of mind, insensibility rest upon your spirit, and all these
keep you from feeding upon the manna.
But sometimes a gracious word comes over all these hills and mountains
of unbelief, bondage, doubt and fear, and as this word drops into your
heart, you begin to shout victory over all your foes and fears. Then the
word of God begins to open itself up in its sweetness and blessedness.
The Lord of the house brings out the hidden manna, and the word of God
is made sweet and precious to the soul.
Sometimes you read the word of God as a dry and barren task to satisfy
conscience. When is that? When you are shut up in unbelief and bondage.
But at other times the word of God is read with pleasure, and it is to
you the joy and rejoicing of your heart. This is when you can believe
it; and thus faith turns the word of God into manna. But if you are
barren, then the word of God is barren; if dead, the word is dead; if
cold and lifeless, the word is so too. But when the scene changes, when
the clouds are dispersed, then you see light in God’s light. Then it is
a blessed Bible, a precious book, full of sweet promises and encouraging
invitations. It is in this way the manna is given to the overcomer. J C
Philpot
GOD’S FAITHFULNESS
Throughout my days my path’s been marked
By God, my Father’s, loving heart.
He’s ordered every step with care.
I’ve met His goodness everywhere.
When I was lost and knew Him not,
Prevenient grace marked every spot;
And angels came for God’s elect,
Though in rebellion, to protect.
Then in the time and at the place
Which God had purposed by His grace,
The Spirit came and made me live.
God caused His chosen to believe.
Through all my days, since first I saw
That Jesus Christ is all in all,
My Savior has in faithfulness
Sustained and kept me by His grace.
When fallen, He restores my soul,
Forgives my sin, and still upholds
His erring child with love and grace,
And proves His cov’nant faithfulness.
When sick, my Savior makes my bed
And soothes my aching, fainting head.
And when I leave this world of woe,
To God, my faithful God, I’ll go!
No more to sin, no more to sigh.
The tears you see will soon be dry.
When I have dropped this robe of flesh,
I’ll leave behind all signs of death!
Immortal life awaits my soul!
When I’m with Christ, I shall be whole!
Conformed to Him who died for me
With Him, at last, I shall be free!
Don Fortner
Five Things About Manna
Exodus 16: 1-31
There are five things pictured in the heavenly manna as it is given in
figure of Christ the true bread of God. These are things which every
believer shall come to know in the sweet experience of grace.
First: He will come to see that this true manna was provided by God
alone. It did not rise up out of the cursed ground or evolve on the herb
bearing grass; it was divinity given. “He gave them bread from heaven to
eat.” (John 6: 31) “He commanded the clouds from above, and opened
the
doors of heaven and rained down manna upon them to eat and gave them the
corn of heaven.” (Psalms 75: 23-24
Second: This manna must be discovered. All those who did not look did
not discover the manna. The manna fell where God said it would. The
manna fell in the assemble of God. The manna was easy to find. Most men
do not find Christ because they do not look where the manna is revealed.
Third: The manna must be gathered. Manna on the ground did no good to
anyone. Simply hearing about the manna satisfied no mans hunger. It must
be gathered. Who gathered this manna? Hungry souls sought it out and
gathered it in.
Fourth: The manna must be processed. Israel did not just scoop it up by
handfuls and eat it like jelly beans; it was ground in the mills or
beaten in a mortar and then baked into bread. (Matthew 11: 8) The gospel
of Jesus Christ is processed by the inward working of the Spirit. (I
Corinthians 2: 10-14) It must be heard, considered, understood, and
believed.
Fifth: The manna must be eaten. Manna in a basket will not give life. It
must be chewed and swallowed. It must be taken within where God, the
Holy Spirit, makes it one with us and creates faith and life and hope.
Christ is our manna! May God be pleased to guide us where he can be
found, reveal him to our hearts, cause us to gather to ourselves the
full measure God has given, help us to process what we have gathered,
and eat to the full what God has given. Amen — Darvin Pruitt
Joseph Hart
The Death and Excellency of Christ. Isa. 13. 12
1 The things on earth which men esteem,
And of their richness boast,
In value less or greater seem,
Proportioned to their cost.
2 [The diamond, that’s for thousands sold,
Our admiration draws;
For dust men seldom part with gold,
Or barter pearls for straws.]
3 Then what inestimable worth
Must in those crowns appear,
For which the Lord came down to earth,
And bought for us, so dear!
4 The Father dearly loves the Son,
And rates his merits high;
For no mean cause he sent him down
To suffer, grieve, and die.
5 The blessings from his death that flow,
So little we esteem,
Only because we slightly know,
And meanly value him.
6 [’Twas our Creator for us bled,
The Lord of life and power;
Whom angels worship, devils dread –
God blest for evermore.]
7 O could we but with clearer eyes
His excellencies trace,
Could we his person learn to prize,
We more should prize his grace.
“When Adam by transgression fell,
And conscious, fled his Maker’s face,
Linked in clandestine league with hell,
He ruined all his future race.
The seeds of evil once brought in,
Increased and filled the world with sin.
But lo! The Second Adam came,
The serpent’s subtle head to bruise;
He cancels his malicious claim,
And disappoints his devilish views;
Ransoms poor sinners with His blood,
And brings the sinner back to God.
[To understand these things aright,
This grand distinction should be known:
Though all are sinners in God’s sight,
There are but few so in their own.
To such as these our Lord was sent;
They’re only sinners who repent.]
[What comfort can a Savior bring
To those who never felt their woe?
A sinner is a sacred thing;
The Holy Ghost hath made him so.
New life from Him we must receive,
Before for sin we rightly grieve.]
This faithful saying let us own,
Well worthy ‘tis to be believed,
That Christ into the world came down,
That sinners might by Him be saved.
Sinners are high in His esteem,
And sinners highly value Him.” —Joseph Hart
DEALING OUR BREAD TO THE HUNGRY
By only the constraint of Christ’s love for us believers deal our bread
to the hungry by telling others how Christ broke our yoke by bearing our
sins on the cross. We bring the poor to our house—Christ’s church—to
hear the good news of our Redeemer. The gospel is the means God has
chosen to reveal that Christ is the covering for the nakedness of his
people. (1 Cor 1: 21) Beholding what great things Christ has done for us
in his great mercy and grace, we rejoice to show mercy rather than deal
harshly with others. When others deal harshly with us, Christ makes his
child remember how mercifully and kind Christ deals with us constantly.
He says, “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one
another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” (Eph 4: 32);
“Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a
quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.” (Col 3: 13)
Also, believers take the physical burdens off others anyway we can. We
literally give them bread and a coat and whatever they need. Christ does
it for us every day. He says to every believer, “And seek not ye what ye
shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind…your
Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather seek ye the
kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. Fear not,
little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the
kingdom. Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which
wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief
approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.” (Lu 12: 29-33)
To rest in Christ from all our works, to use everything he has given us
to promote his gospel, to sacrificially seek the good of his people, all
the while trusting that Christ has and shall provide everything we need
here and hereafter, this is living by faith, motivated only by Christ’s
love.
Clay Curtis.