Daily Bible Notes: September, 8th
The following daily bible notes for every day of the year, are taken from six public domain sources:
- "Morning and Evening" by Charles H.Spurgeon
- "My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year" by John H.Jowett
- "Yet Another Day - A Prayer for Every Day of the Year" by John H.Jowett
- "The Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith" by Charles H.Spurgeon
- "The Morning Message" by G.Campbell Morgan
- An Evening Meditation from "Searchlights from the Word" by G. Campbell Morgan
1. "Morning and Evening" by C.H.Spurgeon
Morning
From Me is thy fruit found.
Hosea 14:8
Our fruit is found from our God as to union . The fruit of the branch is directly traceable to the root. Sever the connection, the branch dies, and no fruit is produced. By virtue of our union with Christ we bring forth fruit.
Every bunch of grapes have been first in the root, it has passed through the stem, and flowed through the sap vessels, and fashioned itself externally into fruit, but it was first in the stem; so also every good work was first in Christ, and then is brought forth in us. O Christian, prize this precious union to Christ; for it must be the source of all the fruitfulness which thou canst hope to know. If thou wert not joined to Jesus Christ, thou wouldst be a barren bough indeed.
Our fruit comes from God as to spiritual providence . When the dew-drops fall from heaven, when the cloud looks down from on high, and is about to distil its liquid treasure, when the bright sun swells the berries of the cluster, each heavenly boon may whisper to the tree and say, "From me is thy fruit found." The fruit owes much to the root - that is essential to fruitfulness - but it owes very much also to external influences. How much we owe to God’s grace-providence! in which He provides us constantly with quickening, teaching, consolation, strength, or whatever else we want. To this we owe our all of usefulness or virtue.
Our fruit comes from God as to wise husbandry . The gardener’s sharpedged knife promotes the fruitfulness of the tree, by thinning the clusters, and by cutting off superfluous shoots. So is it, Christian, with that pruning which the Lord gives to thee. "My Father is the husbandman. Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit He taketh away; and every branch that beareth fruit He purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit." Since our God is the author of our spiritual graces, let us give to Him all the glory of our salvation.
Evening
The exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe according to the working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead.
Ephesians 1:19,
In the resurrection of Christ, as in our salvation, there was put forth nothing short of a divine power . What shall we say of those who think that conversion is wrought by the free will of man, and is due to his own betterness of disposition? When we shall see the dead rise from the grave by their own power, then may we expect to see ungodly sinners of their own free will turning to Christ. It is not the word preached, nor the word read in itself; all quickening power proceeds from the Holy Ghost. This power was irresistible . All the soldiers and the high priests could not keep the body of Christ in the tomb; Death himself could not hold Jesus in his bonds: even thus irresistible is the power put forth in the believer when he is raised to newness of life. No sin, no corruption, no devils in hell nor sinners upon earth, can stay the hand of God’s grace when it intends to convert a man. If God omnipotently says, "Thou shalt," man shall not say, "I will not." Observe that the power which raised Christ from the dead was glorious . It reflected honour upon God and wrought dismay in the hosts of evil. So there is great glory to God in the conversion of every sinner. It was everlasting power . "Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over Him." So we, being raised from the dead, go not back to our dead works nor to our old corruptions, but we live unto God. "Because He lives we live also." "For we are dead, and our life is hid with Christ in God." "Like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." Lastly, in the text mark the union of the new life to Jesus .
The same power which raised the Head works life in the members. What a blessing to be quickened together with Christ!
2. "My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year" by J.H.Jowett
Romans 10:1-13
1 Brothers, my heart's desire and my prayer to God is for Israel, that they may be saved.
2 For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.
3 For being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, they didn't subject themselves to the righteousness of God.
4 For Christ is the fulfilment of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
5 For Moses writes about the righteousness of the law, "The one who does them will live by them."
6 But the righteousness which is of faith says this, "Don't say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?' (that is, to bring Christ down);
7 or, 'Who will descend into the abyss?' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead.)"
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth, and in your heart;" that is, the word of faith which we preach:
9 that if you will confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For with the heart, one believes resulting in righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made resulting in salvation.
11 For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes in him will not be disappointed."
12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich to all who call on him.
13 For, "Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved."
THE BRACING AIR OF PUBLICITY
There is a belief which never registers itself in confession. It never exercises itself in the strong, bracing air of publicity. It is a cloistered belief, and suffers from want of ventilation. Such Christians are always anæmic; indeed, they are always puny, and never get beyond the stage of spiritual babyhood. "Ye are yet babes!" Belief which is never oxygenated by open confession can never nourish the soul into vigorous and exhilarant health.
But there is a belief which expresses and confirms itself in confession. "With the mouth confession is made unto salvation." Such confession is a means of moral and spiritual health. And confession in the early days meant risk, venture which exposed the life to the shedding of blood. It meant a frank defiance of the world, and an eager challenge of the devil. And it is on such fields of open encounter for the Lord that muscle is made, and the soul goes "from strength to strength," and "from glory to glory."
My soul, art thou secretly ashamed of thy Lord? Art thou afraid to "lift high His royal banner"? Then thou wilt always be as a feather-bed soldier, and the trophies of the honourable war are not for thee. Stand out in the open, and boldly testify, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!"
3. "Yet Another Day - A Prayer for Every Day of the Year" by John H.Jowett
September 8th.
My Father, help me to remember Thy holiness. May the great vision keep me from irreverence! May I never lose sight of
the great white throne! May my soul be continually upon its knees! May I perfect holiness in the fear of the Lord!
4. "The Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith" by C.H.Spurgeon.
A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench.
Isaiah 42:3
Then I may reckon upon tender treatment from my Lord. Indeed, I feel myself to be at best as weak, as pliant, as worthless as a reed. Someone said, "I don't care a rush for you"; and the speech, though unkind, was not untrue. Alas! I am worse than a reed when it grows by the river, for that at least can hold up its head. I am bruised, sorely, sadly bruised. There is no music in me now; there is a rift which lets out all the melody. Ah, me! Yet Jesus will not break me; and if he will not, then I mind little what others try to do. O sweet and compassionate Lord, I nestle down beneath thy protection, and forget my bruises!
Truly I am also fit to be likened to "the smoking flax," whose light is gone, and only its smoke remains. I fear I am rather a nuisance than a benefit. My fears tell me that the devil has blown out my light, and left me an obnoxious smoke, and that my Lord will soon put an extinguisher upon me. Yet I perceive that though there were snuffers under the law, there were no extinguishers; and Jesus will not quench me; therefore, I am hopeful. Lord, kindle me anew, and cause me to shine forth to thy glory, and to the extolling of thy tenderness.
5. "The Morning Message" by G.Campbell Morgan.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Proverbs 3:6
Our deflections from faith occur most often through our failure to allow God to undertake in all the small matters of life. Some little business worry, or home difficulty, or personal danger, will drive us to acts that dishonour our Master. That is the man of greatest faith who not only in the crises but in the commonplaces waits for God.
6. "An Evening Meditation" taken from "Searchlights from the Word" by G.Campbell Morgan.
Turn us again, O God, and cause Thy face to shine, and we shall be saved.
Psalms 80:3
It is impossible for any student of the New Testament to read this Psalm without consciousness of its spiritual relation to the allegory of the Vine in the Paschal discourse of our Lord. It is not within the province of a note such as this is, to deal with that subject. Suffice it to say that here we have a song written by some singer amid the twilight, which shows how acutely some of these great souls of the past understood the thought and purpose of God in the national life of the Hebrew people; how keenly they realized the failure of that people to understand, or to realize that purpose; and how clearly they saw the only way of realization. All that is a subject for careful study. The words we emphasize are those of the refrain. With but slight variation they occur three times in the Psalm: here, and again in verse 7, and in verse 19. First, there must be their turning back, their restoration to God; and that must be by the act of God. Then there must be the lighting up of the face of God. That is, there must be given to them the clear showing of His reconciled favour. Thus, and thus only, can the failing people be saved. This is true of God's ancient people. It is equally true of the Church, in so far as she has failed to fulfil her calling. Both for Israel and the Church this prayer has been answered in Christ. In Him we may be restored to God. In Him, the face of God is shining upon us in grace.
Note: To the best of our knowledge we are of the understanding that the above material, all published before 1926 and freely available elsewhere on the internet in various formats, is in the public domain.