(Octavius Winslow, \u201cChrist is Ever with You!\u201d 1863)<\/p>\n
\u201cSurely, I am with you always \u2014 even unto the end of the world!\u201d Matthew 28:20<\/p>\n
Christ is ever with His people \u2014 as a shield and deliverer. Our estimation of this truth, will be proportioned to our intelligent apprehension of the number and potency of our enemies \u2014 and the costliness and preciousness of the treasure thus divinely protected.<\/p>\n
There are assaults from which Christ alone can shield us!
\nInnumerable and invisible,
\nsleepless and restless,
\nworking with an almost almighty power,
\neverywhere with an almost omnipresent existence,
\never plotting our ruin \u2014
\nare the spiritual enemies of our soul, and the sworn foes of our faith!<\/p>\n
The world and its fascinations,
\nSatan and his devices,
\nthe flesh and its tendencies,
\nerror and its disguises \u2014
\nare all confederate against the child of God, opposing his every advance in holiness!<\/p>\n
But Christ is our ever-present shield, near at the moment of assault, and skillful to deflect and disarm it! \u201cFear not, Abram, I am your shield!\u201d are words addressed to all who have like precious faith with him. Oh yes! the Lord encompasses you. Encircled by danger \u2014 you are also encircled by the ever-present protection of Jesus!<\/p>\n
\u201cSo do not fear \u2014 for I am with you! Do not be dismayed \u2014 for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand!\u201d Isaiah 41:10<\/p>\n
With what unslumbering vigilance,
\nwith what divine power,
\nwith what changeless love \u2014
\ndoes the Lord Jesus shield the work of grace in the soul of His people!<\/p>\n
Who keeps that spark alive \u2014 in the midst of the ocean?<\/p>\n
Who guards this vineyard night and day \u2014 lest any hurt it?<\/p>\n
Who preserves . . .
\nfaith from faltering,
\nlove from chilling,
\nhope from dying?<\/p>\n
Who . . .
\nstrengthens the \u2018work of grace\u2019 when it is feeble,
\nraises it when it droops,
\nrestores it when it relapses,
\nkeeps it in the cold of winter and the drought of summer;
\nand, when the frosts and winds of autumn would nip and scatter its foliage \u2014 clothes it with the freshness and bloom of spring?<\/p>\n
Oh, it is Jesus, encircling with His all-protecting shield \u2014 the work of grace which His death has accomplished, and which His Spirit wrought!<\/p>\n
Trembling believer! The work of grace in your heart shall never die! The kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy in your soul \u2014 is indestructible! \u201cThey shall never perish!\u201d is the declaration of the Shepherd who bought you with His blood! You are watched over by Christ \u2014 and kept by the power of God.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
\nmy God is my rock, in whom I take refuge!
\nHe is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!\u201d
\nPsalm 18:2<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
(Octavius Winslow, \u201cChrist is Ever with You!\u201d 1863) \u201cSurely, I am with you always \u2014 even unto the end of the world!\u201d Matthew 28:20 Christ is ever with His people \u2014 as a shield and deliverer. Our estimation of this truth, will be proportioned to our intelligent apprehension of the number and potency of our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,68],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-author-octavius-winslow","category-christ-his-person-and-excellencies"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5165","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=5165"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5167,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5165\/revisions\/5167"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}