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Some Thoughts On Martyrdom Afraid? Of What? Afraid? Of what? To feel the spirit's glad release? To pass from pain to perfect peace, The strife and strain of life to cease? Afraid? Of that? Afraid? Of what? Afraid to see the Saviour's face, To hear His welcome, and to trace, The glory gleam from wounds of grace, Afraid? Of that? Afraid? Of what? A flash - a crash - a pierced heart; Brief darkness - Light - O Heaven's art! A wound of His a counterpart! Afraid? Of that? Afraid? Of what? To enter into Heaven's rest, And yet to serve the Master blessed? From service good to service best? Afraid? Of that? Afraid? Of what? To do by death what life could not - Baptize with blood a stony plot, Till souls shall blossom from the spot? Afraid? Of that? Written by E.H. Hamilton, after hearing of the death of his missionary colleague, Jack Vinson. Vinson was martyred in 1931 and showed no fear of death to his Chinese captors, telling them, "Kill me, if you wish. I will go straig...

Praise God It is Thanksgiving Day here is Canada (where I am from), and I thought it would be beneficial to post some of my favourite verses on giving of thanks or praising God. I had posted Psalm 100 in my Devotional on Sevens In Scripture (rewritten a couple of years later as Sevenfold Praise Part One and Sevenfold Praise Part Two ), and have decided to include those observations here as well: Psalms 100:1-5 A Psalm of praise. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before His presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD He is God: it is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name. For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations. Seven Ways to Praise God: 1. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. 2. Serve the LORD with gladness:...

Romans 8 - God Is For Us In Romans 8:28, we see that our Heavenly Father God is working out all things in our lives for our good. (This is a promise only God's children can claim - those who have been born again into God's family through faith in Jesus for salvation.) The good that He is working out is to make us more like His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 8:28-29 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. We can take confidence in the Lord and His will for our lives, and trust Him for all that He allows or brings into our lives - because He has a purpose for everything. One verse that I often think of in relation to the above passage is: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will...

More Sevens In Scripture I find it interesting to note that there is a seven-fold division within the Word of God itself. The Old Testament was divided by the Jews into the Law of Moses (the OT historical books - Genesis to Esther), the Prophets (Isaiah to Malachi), and the Psalms (or Writings - Job to Song of Solomon). (See Luke 24:44.) In the New Testament, we have the four Gospels (the life of Christ), Acts (early church history), the Epistles (Romans to Jude), and End-times Prophecy (Revelation). There are also seven dispensations (by this I mean eras, nothing hyper-dispensational here - not referring to different ways of salvation or doctrines, as some mean when they use this term) of man's history, as presented in the Bible itself. 1. Innocence (in the Garden - from Creation to the Fall) 2. Pre-Deluvian Age (from the Fall to the Flood) 3. The Patriarchs (Fathers of Israel - from the Flood to the Law) 4. The Law (the time of Moses to the time of the Church) 5. The ...

Some Sevens In Scripture: One theme that has always interested me in Bible study is the number seven. To me it is God's stamp of approval, His personal sign of handiwork on His Word. The number seven or a multiple thereof signifies perfection, fulness, completion. (This can be seen in Daniel's 70 weeks of years, Jesus' command to forgive a brother seventy times seven times, and Jesus' genealogy in Matthew 1, where each section lists fourteen names.) This idea is also carried across when something happens seven times, a phrase or idea is repeated seven times, or a description of something has seven aspects to it - like Hebrews 1:1-3 mentions seven things about our risen and ascended Lord that assert His divinity, Matthew 15:19 describes how completely evil man's heart is, and Ruth's seven-fold declaration to Naomi in Ruth 1:16-17. Revelation 5:6 refers to Jesus Christ and states symbolically that He has perfect (complete) strength (7 horns - omnipotent), perfect ...

(This is the older version of this study. Please click below for the updated section of this commentary: Smyrna The (Persecuted) Suffering Church Revelation 2:8-11 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the First and the Last, Which was dead, and is alive; I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. The messages to the churches have a threefold meaning: Firstly, each letter has a primary association , having a local and direct bearing upon the church to which it was writt...

Lessons In The Valleys: The Valley Of The Shadow Of Death Part One Before he was a king, David was a shepherd. He knew all the responsibilities and requirements of a shepherd. He knew how to care for and protect his own sheep. As a believer, he knew the contentment and satisfaction of being one of the Lord's sheep. The Lord was David's Shepherd. Like an earthly shepherd cares for his sheep in all ways - feeding, watering, leading, protecting from the dangers of the wild, nurturing - so too does the Lord God care for His sheep. Psalms 23:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. In order for the Lord to be your Shepherd, you must be one of His sheep. Has there ever been a time and place in your life when you have repented of your sin (turned from sin in your heart, turned from going your way) and turned to the Saviour to save you? The Bible teaches in Leviticus 17:11, that the blood of an animal sacrifice must be shed to cover our sins, "for it is the b...

1 Corinthians 13:12 1 Corinthians 13:12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. As with other passages of Scripture (such as John 8:32; Isaiah 11:6; 1 Corinthians 2:9), this verse is one that is often misquoted in such a manner as to give a meaning contrary to what the context states. Many use this verse to justify ecumenical gatherings and doctrinal confusion by stating that now we can only see through a glass darkly , and we will not be able to see clearly (ie. understand the Scriptures completely - at least in a way to remove all doctrinal confusion) until we get to Heaven, but is this verse really teaching that? I emphatically say, "no, it isn't!" As a matter of fact, this verse and whole passage is stating that when we get the perfect (complete) canon of Scripture we will be able to see clearly . The Holy Spirit has revealed the truth and opened up many things to us in the New...

Job's Lessons In Trust: Times Of Testing Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. Eschew means to "avoid, shun, abstain from, keep away from." Here we see a God-fearing (Proverbs 8:13; 16:6 and Job 28:28), upright (saved, righteous) man that sought to please the Lord in his life. He was perfect (meaning "spiritually mature" ), and kept himself away from evil. He also strove to ensure that his children didn't forsake the Lord. (See verse 5) Yet, as the story goes on to relate, Job undergoes a tremendous time of testing - all because of his steadfast walk with the Lord! Job 1:6-12 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them. And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. A...

The Fire On The Altar Susannah Wesley, mother of John and Charles Wesley, once said, "Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, or removes your desire for spiritual things - that is sin to you." Leviticus 6:12-13 And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings. The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out. According to the New Testament, true believers in Jesus Christ are referred to as priests. (See 1 Peter 2:9) As such we need to always keep the fire of devotion to the Lord burning on the altar of their hearts and not become lukewarm or cold. Revelation 3:15-16 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will s...