Words of Wisdom and Revelation # 7

Words of Wisdom and Revelation # 7

The Hiddenness of God's Workings

We are so often found looking for, praying for, expecting, some mighty, shattering intervention of God in our situation, something that is evidence and proof that God is with us, something we can lay hold of, to which we can point and on which we can report, and such does not happen. Again and again when we have passed most critical points in our history and turned most serious corners, we have had to say, "How did we do it, how did it come to pass?" Well, it just happened. It undoubtedly involved very great power on the part of God, and there is no doubt that, if God had not done it, that there would have been disaster; yet it is done. But how? We thought the Lord must come this way and that, and we were telling Him what He must do, but He never came by our way, never did it like that at all. It, so to speak, just happened. We are going on like that. It may be from time to time the Lord will show His hand. He is the God of the sudden leap as much as He is the God of the long process, but normally the way of faith is this way. Silently, almost imperceptibly, without any power to detect that He is doing it, the needed thing is being done.
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Qualification for Serving the Lord's Purposes

The Lord does really need men and women to serve His ends. His need may be very great, and yet He may not be able now to open the way for you to come in to serve Him in meeting it. The Lord is waiting until your heart is broken over this whole situation, and it is such a heart-matter that you come to the place where you say, "Lord, the only justification of my life is that your interests are served." It must be a matter of heart-love for the Lord and for what is His,k and not for the work, the ministry; not for anything but for your Lord and what is His. When you get there, and you are found upon your face before the Lord breaking your heart because you see He is not getting what He ought to have, when this becomes the travail of your soul, you will find the Lord will begin to do something. This is the necessary basis for the Lord to bring out His servants.
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The Cost of Special Service to God

A thing which is to serve the Lord in a specially vital way is not born easily, and is not brought into being without some unusual suffering and travail. There is much bitterness of soul to be gone through, and many tears.

For a time, a drawn-out time, it appears that there will be nothing. The barrenness, with its attendant heartache and sorrow, seems long to remain. And yet there can be no philosophical acceptance or fatalistic capitulation. The Lord is a factor in this situation, and there is a "hoping against hope," a wistful look toward the "God Who quickeneth the dead and calleth the things that are not as though they were" (Rom. 4:17).

So it is, when the Lord determines to secure for Himself that vessel of peculiar purpose, and cuts off all the many activities, works,and occupations which, while being in the same household of faith and in some relation to Himself, are largely by the energies of nature and the ability of man. When and where there are not those usual accompaniments and out workings, those issues and results, the evidences and proofs; then there is criticism, taunting, pointing of the finger, and grievous imputations. The very acts of Divine sovereignty are given a twist to mean just the opposite of God's thought. So one system of things taunts the other. Well, well, so be it. It ever was; it ever will be.

When the Lord wants something for an hour of peculiar need, the methods have to be out of the ordinary. To those concerned He has to say, "Others can; you cannot."

We are entering more and more deeply into such an hour at this time. The general thing is not meeting the situation. The Lord must bring through something which will "come to the kingdom for such a time as this" (Esther 4:14).
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The Surprising Ways of God With Us

If we do really walk with the Holy Spirit, we find that He is leading us into things that we never thought of, never intended - but as He does it we have to say, This is not something that has just arisen, this is something that was intended of God. I am just coming into a program; the Lord has not shown me the whole program, but this is like item after item on the program.

As we look more deeply into God's ways with us and know God's principles, we see a wonderful logic in it all.
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Possessing Our Inheritance

How many Christians are enjoying the inheritance, are possessing their inheritance, are even progressing toward the possession of their inheritance? Many are not, yet they are children of God, legally heirs. Between being a legal heir and becoming a spiritual inheritor, something may happen so that you miss the inheritance. The New Testament is all the time telling us that we have a great inheritance - then do not miss it! we have great rights - then do not let them go; we are called into something from eternity - but be sure you "make your calling and your election sure." It is the difference between our legal status and our spiritual state.

~T. Austin-Sparks~

(continued with # 8)