Jewels From James

Jewels From James

Fiendlike, beastlike, manlike, Godlike

"Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you" (Luke 6:27-28).

To return evil for good, is fiendlike.

To return evil for evil, is beastlike.

To return good for good, is manlike.

But to return good for evil, is Godlike.

This is true practical Christianity.  

"Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good" (Romans 12:21).
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It is in the closet of private prayer, that...
our cares are lightened, 
our sorrows mitigated,
our corruptions mortified, 
our graces strengthened, and
we shake off the dust of the earth!
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Men may see something of God in me!

"For I have given you an example that you also should do just as I have done for you" (John 13:15).

It has long been my conviction, that there is a great deficiency in evangelical churches - of the practical enforcement of Christian duties in detail; especially of what may be emphatically called the Christian virtues - the passive graces of the Christian character, the exercise of brotherly kindness and love.

It is not so acceptable to have all the special and difficult duties of the Christian's life, or man's conduct to his fellows, set clearly before the understanding and enforced upon the conscience. Men do not like to be followed through all the labyrinths of the heart's deceitfulness, beaten out of every refuge of lies, and made to feel the obligation to love where they are inclined to hate; and to forgive where they desire to revenge.

And we ministers pander too much to this taste. The pulpit has not done its duty. We have preached to the intellect, to the imagination, and to the taste - but not enough to the heart and to the conscience. In our endeavor to please, we have not been sufficiently intent upon the greater object - to profit. We have not preached justification too much - but sanctification too little. We have urged faith - but not love. We have descanted upon the evil of licentiousness, and falsehood, and dishonesty, and covetousness - but have said far, far too little about malice and bitterness. We have urged men to zeal and liberality - but not enough to humility, forbearance, and forgiveness. We have rightly led men to view the Cross of Christ - but we have not sufficiently urged them to take up their own cross. We have properly entreated them to view Jesus as their Righteousness - but not sufficiently as their Example.

O, Christians... study that wonderful character, contemplate that illustrious pattern, dwell upon that beautiful model, until the frosty incrustations of your cold, hard heart have all melted, like icicles before the sun!

How wonderful and how ennobling is the conception, and what an ambition should it raise in the mind of the Christian, to consider and say, "Men may see something of God in me!" Yes, we can teach them what God is, as to His moral character, and let them see in our merciful disposition a ray of the infinite sun of His own glory. These sweet relentings of our nature, these soft and genial currents of our soul, these effusions of love - these are but the overflowings of His goodness, His own love, into our hearts, and the reflection of His infinite mercy to us.

"The one who says he abides in Him should walk just as He walked" (1 John 2:6).

"Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in His steps" (1 Peter 2:21).
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Casting all our sins into oblivion!

"Who is a God like you, removing iniquity and passing over rebellion for the remnant of His inheritance? He does not hold on to His anger forever, because He delights in faithful love. He will again have compassion on us; He will vanquish our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea" ( Micah 7:18-19).

Wonderful language! This is one of the finest images to represent the completeness of God's pardoning mercy to be found in all the Bible. He casts our sins not into a brook nor a river where they might be found again; no, nor into the sea near the shore where the tide might wash them up again - but like a stone cast into the depths of the sea, where they can never be fished up again, but lie forever buried and forgotten at the bottom of the ocean! This is divine forgiveness - casting all our sins into oblivion!
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Infected and enfeebled

The church is infected and enfeebled with worldliness.

"Who gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from the present evil world" (Galatians 1:4).

"And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever" (John 2:17).

~John Angell James~