{"id":1200,"date":"2011-08-07T10:01:14","date_gmt":"2011-08-07T10:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=1200"},"modified":"2011-08-07T10:01:39","modified_gmt":"2011-08-07T10:01:39","slug":"none-cast-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=1200","title":{"rendered":"NONE CAST OUT"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the resting place, let the weary rest; and this is the place of repose\u00a0Isaiah 28:12<\/p>\n

\u201cWhoever comes to me I will never drive away.\u201d\u00a0John 6:37<\/p>\n

An invitation to every burdened Israelite\u2014every way-worn pilgrim of the wilderness, to come for shelter under the branches of the Heavenly Palm!<\/p>\n

How these and such like gracious words which proceeded out of the mouth of Jesus, must have told on the wondering multitudes He addressed, those who never heard kind sayings before\u2014who were led to imagine that it was learned scribes, or devout Pharisees, or austere Sadducees, or elaborate-robed priests, who alone had any hope of salvation! Can we marvel that \u201cthe common people heard Him gladly,\u201d when He lifted them up from the dust of degradation; when He proclaimed boldly\u2014\u201dI came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.\u201d I came not to call\u00a0you<\/em> rich\u2014you<\/em> learned\u2014you<\/em> who pride yourselves on your religious formalism and self-righteous austerities\u2014but\u00a0you<\/em> broken-hearted penitents, weeping prodigals, despairing Magdalenes\u2014you<\/em> the most erring wanderers from the fold, who are really and earnestly seeking to return. \u201cIf ANY man thirsts, let him come unto Me and drink.\u201d \u201cIf ANY man enter in he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reader! say not, \u2018This invitation cannot be for me. I cannot take my place under the gracious palm-shade, just as I am, with the memory of countless transgressions.\u2019 Yes! it is just because you\u00a0are<\/em> wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked, that He invites you to come. Come, just as you are. Christ does not require any previous\u00a0qualifications<\/em>. It isbecause <\/em>you are weary He asks you to partake of the shelter. It is because <\/em>of your poverty that He so importunately exclaims\u2014\u201dBehold, I have set before you an open door.\u201d<\/p>\n

When, in a season of scarcity and poverty, thousands thrown out of employment are forced to avail themselves of bread doled out to stop the rage of hunger, they are not heard to say, \u2018We must have proper clothing\u00a0first.<\/em> We must first cover these children\u2019s bleeding, frost-bitten feet, before we can venture to appear before the distributors of a city\u2019s or a nation\u2019s bounty.\u2019 No; if they did so, it would invalidate their plea\u2014it would send them home again to a cupboard, and hearth, and wardrobe, as empty as they left it. It is\u00a0because<\/em> they appear in tattered rags, andbecause<\/em> hunger has written its appeal on their emaciated faces and in the hollow eyes of the hapless children at their side, that the door opens for relief.<\/p>\n

There is no desert wanderer, haggard and footsore, who may not come to that grove of \u201cexceeding great and precious promises.\u201d God has made provision not for the strong only, but for the weak, the tempted, the sorrowful, the suffering. The feeblest bird may make a perch of these branches. The anointing oil of blessing poured on the head of the true Aaron, flows down to the very\u00a0skirts<\/em> of His garments, so that the least and lowliest are made partakers of His covenant grace.<\/p>\n

It is well for us, however, to remember that there is but one Redeemer; and \u201cneither is there salvation in any other.\u201d A few days previous to the Elim encampment, there was but one way for the Hebrew host through the Red Sea from the pursuing hosts of Pharaoh. There was but one way for evading the destroying angel\u2014by the sprinkling of blood on the doorposts of their dwellings. There was but one way, in a subsequent age, for Rahab escaping the general destruction of Jericho\u2014by hanging out from her window the scarlet thread. There was but one way\u2014by washing in the river of Jordan\u2014that the proud Syrian captain of a yet later day, could have his leprosy healed.<\/p>\n

The Hebrews, on that memorable night of the death of the firstborn, might have built up Egyptian pyramid on pyramid to keep out the messenger of wrath. It would have been of no avail. Or the army of a million, passing through the sea, might have piled its coral rocks to make an avenue through the waters. The wild waves would have laughed them to scorn and made them the plaything of its tide! Naaman might have made a toilsome pilgrimage to every river of Asia\u2014from Abana and Pharpar, to the Euphrates and the Indus\u2014but all would have been to no purpose. Nothing but \u2018the waters of Israel\u2019 would prove efficacious in curing his malady.<\/p>\n

Let us make sure of a personal interest in the\u00a0one<\/em> great Salvation. That Almighty Redeemer remains, to this hour, immutable\u2014all-sufficient\u2014faithful among the faithless\u2014changeless among the changeable. Bernard beautifully sang in the words of his familiar hymn\u2014<\/p>\n

\u201cJesus, Thou joy of loving hearts!
\nThou Fount of life, Thou Light of men!
\nFrom the best bliss that earth imparts,
\nWe turn unfilled to Thee again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yes! you who are weary, sick at heart it may be of the world which has deceived you\u2014bubble after bubble bursting in your hands; that gracious Savior, with outstretched arms, is waiting to welcome you back. With the\u00a0hoarded love of eternity<\/em> in His heart, He is ever repeating the \u201cfaithful saying and worthy of all acceptance\u201d which heads this meditation\u2014\u201cwhoever comes to me I will never drive away!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWith a heart full of anxious request,
\nWhich my Father in heaven bestowed,
\nI wandered, alone and distressed,
\nIn search of a quiet abode.
\nAstray and distracted, I cried
\nLord, where would You have me to be?
\nAnd the voice of the Lamb that had died
\nSaid, \u2018Come, My beloved, to ME!\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI went\u2014for He mightily wins
\nWeary souls to His peaceful retreat,
\nAnd He gave me forgiveness of sins,
\nAnd songs that I love to repeat;
\nMade pure by the blood that He shed,
\nMy heart in His presence was free,
\nI was hungry and thirsty\u2014He fed;
\nI was sick, and He comforted me.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe gave me the blessing complete,
\nThe hope that is with me today;
\nAnd a quiet abode at His feet,
\nThat shall not be taken away.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho shall separate us from the love of Christ?\u201d<\/p>\n

John MacDuff, 1879.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThis is the resting place, let the weary rest; and this is the place of repose\u00a0Isaiah 28:12 \u201cWhoever comes to me I will never drive away.\u201d\u00a0John 6:37 An invitation to every burdened Israelite\u2014every way-worn pilgrim of the wilderness, to come for shelter under the branches of the Heavenly Palm! How these and such like gracious […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54,61],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-author-john-macduff","category-believers-assurance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1200"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1203,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1200\/revisions\/1203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}