Past Christian Quotes If you would like to be sent the Christian Quote of the Week (each week or so), via email, please send a request to ssper@scripturestudies.com Christ's Suffering for Us "[Remember, whenever you hear or read of Christ’s sufferings, that they were all carried out on our behalf, in order that we may not suffer for our sins.] We are intended to see this truth in every part of His passion. We may follow Him all through, from the bar of Pilate, to the minute of His death, and see him at every step as our mighty Substitute, our Representative, our Head, our Surety, our Proxy, -- the Divine Friend who undertook to stand in our stead, and by the priceless merit of His sufferings, to purchase our redemption. -- Was He scourged? It was that 'through His stripes we might be healed' -- Was he condemned, though innocent? It was that we might be acquitted though guilty. -- Did He wear a crown of thorns? It was that we might wear the crown of glory. -- Was He stripped of His raiment? It was that we might be clothed in everlasting righteousness. -- Was he mocked and reviled? It was that we might be honored and blessed. -- Was He reckoned a malefactor, and numbered among transgressors? It was that we might be reckoned innocent, and justified from all sin. -- Was he declared unable to save Himself? It was that He might be able to save others to the uttermost. -- Did He die at last, and that the most painful and disgraceful of deaths? It was that we might live for evermore, and be exalted to the highest glory. -- Let us ponder these things well. They are worth remembering -- Our sins are many and great. But a great atonement has been made for them." -– J. C. Ryle, from Expository Thoughts on the Gospels - Matthew (1857), pg. 391-392 Related Bible Verse:  "'He himself bore our sins' in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; 'by his wounds you have been healed.'" (I Peter 2:24) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Expository Thoughts on the Gospels - Matthew), is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/ryle_jc/Ryle_Expos_Thoughts_Matthew.pdf The Significance of the Cross "The cross is the central point of the world’s history; all the great lines of our deepest moral and spiritual interests meet in it or radiate from it. It was once a thing must hateful and most horrible... But the Lord most holy died thereon for our salvation; and the glory of his precious love has shed an aureole of golden light around the tree of shame. And now the cross is to Christian hearts, of all things dear, the dearest and the most sacred; for it tells us with its silent eloquence the blessed story of the exceeding great love of our Master and only Savior Jesus Christ." -– B. C. Caffin, from The Pulpit Commentary (1881), Vol. 34 (Matthew, pt. 2), pg. 608 Related Bible Verse:  "'He himself bore our sins' in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; 'by his wounds you have been healed.'" (I Peter 2:24) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (The Pulpit Commentary, Vol. 34), is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/pulpit_commentary/Pulpit_Commentary_v34_Ma tt2.pdf The Dangers of the World, and God's Sovereignty "For what else can be said where heat and cold bring equal danger? Then, in what direction soever you turn, all surrounding objects not only may do harm, but almost openly threaten and seem to present immediate death. Go on board a ship, you are but a plank’s breadth from death. Mount a horse, the stumbling of a foot endangers your life. Walk along the streets, every tile upon the roofs is a source of danger. If a sharp instrument is in your own hand, or that of a friend, the possible harm is manifest. All the savage beasts you see are so many beings armed for your destruction. Even within a high-walled garden, where everything ministers to delight, a serpent will sometimes lurk. Your house, constantly exposed to fire, threatens you with poverty by day, with destruction by night. Your fields, subject to hail, mildew, drought, and other injuries, denounce barrenness, and thereby famine. I say nothing of poison, treachery, robbery, some of which beset us at home, others follow us abroad. Amid these perils, must not man be very miserable, as one who, more dead than alive, with difficulty draws an anxious and feeble breath, just as if a drawn sword were constantly suspended over his neck?... But when once the light of Divine Providence has illumined the believer's soul, he is relieved and set free, not only from the extreme fear and anxiety which formerly oppressed him, but from all care. For as he justly shudders at the idea of chance, so he can confidently commit himself to God. This, I say, is his comfort, that his heavenly Father so embraces all things under his power — so governs them at will by His nod — so regulates them by His wisdom, that nothing takes place save according to His appointment; that received into His favour, and entrusted to the care of His angels, neither fire, nor water, nor sword, can do him harm, except in so far as God their master is pleased to permit." -– John Calvin (1509-1564), from Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book I, Chapter 17, Sections 10-11 Related Bible Verse:  "My times are in your hands." (Ps. 31:15) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Institutes of the Christian Religion, by John Calvin) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/calvin_john/Calvin-Insts-pt1.pdf Judging Yourself "Acquaint yourselves with those marks that are proper only to a true Christian. Overlook all those that are common with hypocrites, such as outward profession, constant attendances, some affections in duties. Let us not judge ourselves by outward acts: A player is not a prince, because he acts the part of a prince. But we must judge ourselves by what we are in our retirements, in our hearts. He only is a good man, and does good, that does it from a principle of goodness within, and not from fear of Laws, or to gain a good opinion in the world… The great accusation the devil brings against Job was that he served not God for naught, that his service was not sincere, that he acted a righteous part for his own ends, and to preserve his worldly prosperity (Job 1:9,10). But if our ends be right, and our actions in the course of them according to His rule, if our hearts in them respect God’s Law, and His glory, how the devils arrows will drop down, as shot against a brazen wall." -– Stephen Charnock (1628-1680), from "Discourse on Self-Examination", in The Works of Stephen Charnock, Vol. 7, pg. 209 Related Bible Verses:  "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith: prove your ownselves. Know ye not your ownselves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?" (II Cor. 13:5, KJV) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (The Works of Stephen Charnock, Vol. 7, by Stephen Charnock) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/charnock_stephen/Charnock-Works-pt7.pdf The First Winter of the Pilgrims "'Twas a most heavy trial of their patience, whereto they were called the first winter of this their pilgrimage, and enough to convince them and remind them that they were but Pilgrims. The hardships which they encountered, were attended with, and productive of deadly sicknesses; which in two or three months carried off more than half their company. They were but meanly provided against these unhappy sicknesses; but there died sometimes two, sometimes three in a day, till scarce fifty of them were left alive; and of those fifty, sometimes there were scarce five well at a time to look after the sick. Yet their profound submission to the will of God, their Christian readiness to help one another, accompanied with a joyful assurance of another and better world, carried them cheerfully through the sorrows of this mortality: nor was there heard among them a continual murmur against those who had by unreasonable impositions driven them into all these distresses. And there was this remarkable providence further in the circumstances of this mortality, that if a disease had not more easily fetched so many of this number away to Heaven, a famine would probably have destroyed them all, before their expected supplies from England were arrived. But what a wonder was it that all the bloody savages far and near did not cut off this little remnant! If He that once muzzled the lions ready to devour the man of desires, had not admirably, I had almost said, miraculously restrained them, these had been all devoured! But this people of God were come into a wilderness to worship Him; and so He kept their enemies from such attempts, as would otherwise have soon annihilated this poor handful of men, thus far already diminished." -– Cotton Mather, from Magnalia Christi Americana, or The Ecclesiatical History of New England, Book I, Chapter 1, Section 10 (1702) Related Bible Verses:  "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Magnalia Christi Americana, or The Ecclesiatical History of New England, by Cotton Mather) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/mather_cotton/mather-magnalia-v1.pdf The Cross "The cross, which to the old world was the symbol of deepest abhorrence, shame, infamy, and perdition, has now become for the new world the symbol of honor, blessing, and redemption. Even the superstition and vanity of the world have adopted this sign. It has risen to be the object of veneration. It is the original form of most of our orders of honor. But the glorification of the cross is the symbol and type of the transformation of death from a curse into salvation." -– Johann Peter Lange, from A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical - Matthew, pg. 531 Related Bible Verses:  "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (I Cor. 1:18) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical - Matthew, by Johann Peter Lange) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/lange_johann/Langes_v17-Lange-Matt.pdf God's Grand Design "Look around! God’s inventiveness and ingenuity is displayed in the variety of creatures rife throughout the creation: from earwig to eagle; from mite to mammoth; from oyster to orchid. God is full of wisdom; He has considered every contingency; He is a grand designer who has left no need unsatisfied in His self-sustaining creation. The flower depends on the bee, the whale makes use of the parasite, the hermit crab utilizes the castoffs of the snail. The existence of all is intertwined with the existence of all others. The large and the small, the great and the humble, the hideous and the beautiful all have their God-given niche in the completed puzzle of the creation. All have a purpose; all are equally important. Never consider yourself unimportant. If the grains of wheat can feed the world, what great purpose must God have for you. Seek it! In prayer, dedicate yourself to His desire for you in His grand design." -– Scott Sperling, from Scripture Studies, Vol. I, No. 2 Related Bible Verses:  "So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good." (Genesis 1:21) "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." (Psalm 19:1) "For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse." (Romans 1:20) Our Failure in Prayer "What a shame is this to us, that God is more willing to be prayed to, and more ready to hear prayer, than we are to pray." -– Matthew Henry, from "How to Begin Every Day with God", in A Method for Prayer (1710) Related Bible Verses:  "My voice shalt thou hear in the morning." (Psalm 5:3, KJV) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (A Method for Prayer, by Matthew Henry) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/henry_matthew/Henry-Method_for_Prayer.pdf The Divine Authority of the Bible "So, then, the efficacy and virtue of the Scripture to produce the love of God and our enemies, to purify the heart, to pacify the conscience, to rectify both the whole constitution and conversation of a man, to take him off from the delights of the world and flesh, to make him glory in afflictions, sing in the flames, triumph over death; all these and more do necessarily conclude the Divine authority of the Scriptures." -– John Trapp (1601-1669), from  The True Treasure Related Bible Verses:  "All Scripture is God-breathed." (2 Tim. 3:16) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (The True Treasure , by John Trapp) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/trapp_john/Trapp-Bible-pt4.pdf The Bible: One Grand, Unified Book "The books of Scripture were not handed down to us by chance or accident; neither are we to regard them only as a manual of sayings and examples, or as isolated relics of antiquity, from which no perfect whole, no comprehensive and finished plan, can be educed; but as a matchless regular account of God's dealings with man through every age of the world, from the commencement to the end of time, even to the consummation of all things. They indicate together one beautiful, harmonious, and gloriously connected system. For though each scriptural book is in itself something entire, and though each of the inspired penmen has his own manner and style of writing, one and the same Spirit breathes through all; one grand idea pervades all." -– Johann Bengel (1687-1752), quoted in  Introduction to Paul's Epistles  by Paton Gloag Related Bible Verses:  "For prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit." (2 Peter 1:21) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Introduction to Paul's Epistles , by Paton Gloag) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/gloag_paton/Gloag-Pauline_Epistles.pdf Trials and the Discipline of God "Solomon advises: 'When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other' (Eccl. 7:14). There is nothing wrong with being happy when God gives us good times. We 'should enjoy them--not wantonly, or selfishly, but as opportunities of glorifying Him, and doing good to our fellow-creatures' [Bridges]. 'But when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other.' As Job put it: 'Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?' (Job 2:10). God has His reasons for allowing us to endure trouble, though we may view trouble as what is 'crooked' in life. Look back, and you will realize that the troubles you have experienced have been valuable for your spiritual growth, 'not only as our school of discipline, but as the test of our improvement in this school. For if prosperity doth best discover vices, adversity doth best discover virtue' [Bridges]. It is worth remembering that God sends both good times and bad times: both are signs of His love. How, you may ask, are bad times a sign of His love? The writer of Hebrews teaches us: 'Endure hardship as discipline. God is treating you as sons... Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in His holiness' (Heb. 12:7,10). Every loving parent knows that discipline springs from love." -– Scott Sperling, from  Study on Ecclesiastes 7:13-22  Related Bible Verses:  "Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees." (Heb. 12:7-12) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken can be found at: http://www.scripturestudies.com/Vol7/G3/wis.html. Comparison of Secular and Christian Knowledge "What right has an unbelieving astronomer to despise a Christian laborer as an ignorant man? Let them be compared as to the point in question, the possession of knowledge. Either is ignorant of the other's peculiar department, but it is an error to suppose the astronomer's department the higher of the two. The Christian knows God; the astronomer knows certain of His material works. The Christian knows moral, the astronomer physical laws. The subjects of the Christian's knowledge are as real as the heavenly bodies. The knowledge is as difficult, and perhaps, in its higher degrees, as rare. It reaches further, it lasts longer, it produces greater results." -– William Arnot (1808-1875), from  Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth  Related Bible Verses:  "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction." (Prov. 1:7)"Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" (1 Cor. 1:20) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth , by William Arnot) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/arnot_william/Arnot- lawsfromheavenfo00arnorich_bw.pdf The Bible: Its Value "The Bible: Let us read it, let us study it, let us love it, let us reverence it. It will guide, it will cheer, it will enlighten, it will make wise, it will purify. It will lead us into all truth. It will deliver us from the fermenting errors of the day. It will save us from the intellectual dreams of a vain philosophy, from the vitiated taste of a sensational literature, from the specious novelties of spiritual mysticism... It will lead us into light and love, into liberty and unity, imparting strength and gladness." -– Horatius Bonar (1808-1889), from the preface to Light and Truth   Vol. I Related Bible Verses:  "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (II Tim. 3:16-17) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Light and Truth , by Horatius Bonar) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/bonar_horatius/Bonar-Light_and_Truth-pt1.pdf Knowledge Worthless Without God "He who pursues any [field] of knowledge, however good and honorable in itself, while he forgets God, is … emphatically a ‘fool’. He may be admired by men, as a very prodigy of science, or philosophy, or literature, and may be adorned with all the titles of human honor, and send down his name to future ages with a halo of the light of this world around it; but in the eye of God, he stands the object of deep and merited condemnation; and, while eulogized and extolled on earth, is pitied and deplored in heaven." -– Ralph Wardlaw (1779-1853), from Lecture 2, in Lectures on the Book of Proverbs   Related Bible Verses:  "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction" (Proverbs 1:7) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Lectures on the Book of Proverbs , by Ralph Wardlaw) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/wardlaw_ralph/Wardlaw- Vol_I_lecturesonbookp01wardgoog.pdf The Light of the Spirit Required to Understand the Things of God "Although there be much light in the Scriptures to guide men's way to God's glory and their own happiness, yet it will all be to small purpose if the eyes of our understanding be darkened and blinded. If you shall surround a man with daylight, except he open his eyes, he cannot see. The Scriptures are a clear sun of life and righteousness; but the blind soul encompassed with that light is nothing the wiser, but thinks the lamp of the Word shines not, because it sees not. It hath its own dungeon within it. Therefore the Spirit of God must open the eyes of the blind, and enlighten the eyes of the understanding, that the soul may see wonderful things in God's law." -– Hugh Binning (1627-1653), from "The Common Principles of the Christian Religion", in The Works of Hugh Binning,   Vol. I Related Bible Verses:  "The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit." (1 Cor. 2:14) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken ( The Works of Hugh Binning, Vol. I, by Hugh Binning) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/binning_hugh/Binning-Works-v1.pdf The Book of the Creation "The world is a glass, wherein we may contemplate the eternal power and majesty of God. 'For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead,' (Rom. 1:20). It is that great book [of the Creation] of so large a character that a man may run and read it; yea, even the simplest man, that cannot read, may yet spell out of this book that there is a God. Every shepherd hath this calendar, every ploughman this ABC. What that French poet divinely sung is thus as sweetly Englished: 'The world's a school, where, in a general story,God always reads mute lectures of His glory.'" -– Thomas Adams (1583-1653), from "Politic Hunting", in The Works of Thomas Adams,   Vol. I Related Bible Verses:  "For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — His eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse" (Romans 1:20) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken ( The Works of Thomas Adams, by Thomas Adams) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/library/adams_thomas/Adams-Works-pt1.pdf The Christian Life: First Suffering, Then Glory "Suffering and glory were conjoined in the case of the Master, and will also be conjoined in the case of the disciple; first the cross, then the crown; first the battle, then the victory; first the toil and heat of the day, then the rest. But the glory will be so transcendentally great that the sufferings will be completely forgotten; or rather, we will bless God for them, as being the prelude to the glory." -– Paton Gloag, from "The Groaning Creation", in Exegetical Studies (1884) Related Bible Verses:  "Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" (Romans 8:17-18) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Exegetical Studies, by Paton Gloag) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/gloag_paton/Gloag-Exegetical_Studies.pdf Waiting on God "Let us inquire what it is to wait on God... -- 1. To wait on God is to live a life of desire towards God; to wait on Him as the beggar waits on his benefactor, with earnest desires to receive supplies from him; as the sick and sore at Bethesda's pool waited for the stirring of the water, and attended in the porches with desire to be helped in and healed... 2. It is to live a life of delight in God, as the lover waits on his beloved... Our desire must still be so towards God, as that we must be wishing for more of God, yet our delight must be so in God, as that we must never wish for more than God... 3. It is to live a life of dependence on God, as the child waits on his father, whom he has confidence in, and on whom he casts all his care. To wait on God is to expect all good to come to us from Him, as the worker of all good for us and in us, the giver of all good to us, and the protector of us from all evil... 4. It is to live a life of devotedness to God, as the servant waits on his master, ready to observe his will, and to do his work, and in everything to consult his honour and interest. To wait on God is entirely and unreservedly to refer ourselves to His wise and holy directions and disposals, and cheerfully to acquiesce in them, and comply with them. The servant that waits on his master, chooseth not his own way but follows his master step by step. Thus must we wait on God as those that have no will of our own but what is wholly resolved into His and must therefore study to accomodate ourselves to His." -– Matthew Henry, from "How to Spend the Day with God", in A Method for Prayer (1710) Related Bible Verses:  "Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day." (Psalms 25:5. KJV) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (A Method for Prayer, by Matthew Henry) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/henry_matthew/Henry-Method_for_Prayer.pdf The Reasons Behind Prohibitions in the Bible "It is neither the purpose nor the tendency of the [prohibitions in] the Bible, to sadden the natural vivacity of early life; to quench the gleam of light-hearted pleasure in the youthful eye; to shroud the rising morn with dark clouds of melancholy. God is good. All His prohibitions are only prohibitions of what would be injurious to ourselves; -- and all the principles of which He orders the cultivation and exercise, are inseparably associated with the attainment and enjoyment of happiness." -– Ralph Wardlaw, in Lectures on the Books of Proverbs, Vol. I (1844) Related Bible Verses:  "And we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28, NIV) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Lectures on the Books of Proverbs, Vol. I, by Ralph Wardlaw) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/wardlaw_ralph/Wardlaw- Vol_I_lecturesonbookp01wardgoog.pdf The Christian View of Injustice and Suffering in the World "Even under the light of Christianity, there are, perhaps, few who have not at particular seasons felt the strife between faith in the perfect government of the world, and the various feelings excited in the mind by what they have experienced of human suffering. The pains of the innocent..., the protracted calamities which are often the lot of the righteous, and the prosperity which often crowns the designs of the wicked, have at times excited wonder, perplexity, and doubt in every thinking mind. We, as Christians, silence our doubts and confirm our faith, not only by what experience teaches of the general wisdom and benevolence of the Creator, and by the consideration that affliction comes from the same hand which is the source of all our blessings, but by an enlightened perception of the moral and religious uses of adversity; by the assured hope of that joy in a better world of those who endure to the end; and, above all, by the filial conviction which ought to become, and often is, a principle of action in all the relations of life, that He who spared not His own Son to secure our redemption from the calamities of sin, cannot possibly, after such proof of His love, mean other than well and kindly to us, no less in the bitter than the sweet which He casts into our lot." -– John Kitto, in Daily Bible Illustrations from Job and the Poetical Books (1851) Related Bible Verses:  "He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all -- how will He not also graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32, NIV)"I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble and suffering, but take courage - - I have conquered the world." (John 16:33, NIV) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (Daily Bible Illustrations from Job and the Poetical Books, by John Kitto) is available as a PDF eBook at the Classic Christian Library, free of charge at: http://www.classicchristianlibrary.com/library/kitto_john/Kitto-Daily_Readings_5.pdf Human vs. Christian View of Death "Humanly speaking, death is the last of all, and, humanly speaking, there is hope only as long as there is life. Christianly understood, however, death is by no means the last of all; in fact, it is only a minor event within that which is all, an eternal life, and, Christianly understood, there is infinitely much more hope in death than there is in life -- not only when in the merely human sense there is life, but there is life in consummate health and vitality." -– Soren Kierkegaard, in The Sickness Unto Death(1849) Related Bible Verse:  "Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Revelation 7:16-17, NIV) Sufficiency of the Word of God "The great turn to be made in heart and life is from all other things to the Word of God. Conversion turns us to the Word of God, as our touchstone, to examine ourselves; our state, our ways, spirits, doctrines, worship, customs; as our glass, to dress by (James 1:23); as our rule to walk and work by (Gal. 6:16); as our water; to wash us (Ps. 119:9); as our fire to warm us (Luke 24:25-32); as our food to nourish us (Job 23:12); as our sword to fight with (Eph. 6:17); as our counselor, in all our doubts (Ps. 119:24); as our cordial, to comfort us; as our heritage, to enrich us." -– Philip Henry, cited by Matthew Henry in Memoir of Rev. Philip Henry, Chap. VIII (1853) Related Bible Verse:  "I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies. " (Psalms 119:59, KJV) Courage to Obey "The Christian of all men needs courage and resolution. Indeed there is nothing he does as a Christian, or can do, but is an act of valour: A cowardly spirit is beneath the lowest duty of a Christian, as in Joshua 1:7: 'Be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest' -- What? Stand in battle against those warlike nations? No, but 'that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee.' It requires more prowess and greatness of spirit to obey God faithfully, than to command an army of men; to be a Christian than a captain." -– William Gurnall in The Christian in Complete Armour, Chap. I (1655) Related Bible Verse:  "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power" (Eph. 6:10, NIV) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (The Christian in Complete Armour, by William Gurnall) is available at the following link, free of charge: https://archive.org/details/christianincomp00unkngoog God's Love for Us "The sovereign mercy of God, born in His own bosom, nurtured from His own heart, could alone have induced Him to look with love upon us. But what love it has been! No commonplace love, no ordinary affection. Mothers have loved us, fathers have loved us; we know the love of a fond spouse, and the love of children and of friends; but these are only like twinkling glowworm sparks, while the love of God seems to us to be the very sun, blazing in full glory in the heavens. He loved us: to what shall I liken His love? He loved us as He loved His only-begotten Son; nay, He seemed to love us even more than that, for He spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all. He loved us better than He loved himself; for, in order that we might live, He put Himself to that great loss of tearing His Only-begotten from the place of His everlasting abode in peace. Oh, wonder of wonders, that God should ever have loved us so!" -– Charles Spurgeon in "Moses' Dying Charge to Israel" (Ser. No. 2345), The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Vol. 40 (1894) Related Bible Verse:  "He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all — how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?" (Rom. 8:32, NIV) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Vol. 40, by Charles Spurgeon) is available at the following link, free of charge: http://www.spurgeongems.org/chsbm40.pdf Faith in the Invisible "Heavenly things are far off from carnal sense: he that will believe no more than he sees, shall be forever blind. The best things are invisible to human eyes. God is invisible... Light is invisible... Christ is invisible... The Spirit is invisible... His power is invisible... The kingdom is invisible... The best eyes see but in a riddle: 'Now we see through a glass, darkly,' I Cor. 13:12. Here faith supplies all defects; for it is the office of faith to believe what we do not see, and it shall be the reward of faith to see what we do believe (Augustine)." -– Thomas Adams in An Exposition upon the Second Epistle General of St. Peter, pg. 105 (on II Peter 1:9) Related Bible Verse:  "Then Jesus told him, 'Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.'" (John 20:29, NIV84) Note: The work from which the above quote was taken (An Exposition upon the Second Epistle General of St. Peter, by Thomas Adams) is available at the following link, free of charge: http://www.archive.org/details/expositionuponse00adam Click Here for More Quotes