July 25
Captain Gustav Stearns was an army chaplain with the 127th Infantry of the U.S. Expeditionary Forces in Europe during World War I. Wounded in battle, honored by General John Pershing for gallantry in action, in one day he buried 51 soldiers under shell-fire. He preached to over 4,000 wounded soldiers on one occasion, and was not afraid to preach a once-crucified, now living Savior. But one of his officers objected: “I wish you would stop preaching so much on the sacrifice of Christ. If you would tell us more about His beautiful life, we would be motivated to walk in His steps,” his superior...
Read MoreJuly 24
“But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts” (1 Thess 2:4). In his book, Tales of Great Truths, G.A. Neilson tells of an incident when some unbelievers decided to send their best debater to argue with a local preacher. He was received kindly and began the conversation abruptly: “I believe there is a dispute between us. I thought I would call on you this morning and settle it.” “And what it this disagreement between us?” asked the Christian. “Well, you say,” continued the visitor, “that the...
Read MoreJuly 23
“God” in various religions might be thought of as benevolent towards creation, but the gospel was Good News when it first burst on the world because men realized “God is Love.” The revelation provided by Christ Himself, the awe-full brunt of suffering which He was prepared to bear in order to redeem mankind, His triumph over man’s last enemy, His ascension to timeless reality taking Human Nature with Him—all these showed one thing, that God is by nature Love and that He loves humanity. Those who accepted this foundation-truth…found that their own “love-energy,” which had previously been...
Read MoreJuly 22
J. Budziszewski, a “repentant atheist,” writes: “How then did I become undeceived? Not because anyone called my bluff. When I told the faculty of the University of Texas that there is no rationally knowable difference between good and evil and that we aren’t responsible for our deeds anyway, they gave me a job teaching the young.” Explaining the change, he says: “I did pray to God one night. I told him that I thought I was talking to the wall. I said that if he existed, he could have me, but he would have to show me because I couldn’t tell. As the minutes ticked past, the wall looked more...
Read MoreJuly 21
God-hungry men find God. “As the hart pants after the water brooks” (Ps 42:1), so the souls of the Upper-Room crowd panted for the living God. Spiritually naked, they fled to Him to be clothed upon with the blessed Spirit. Empty, they craved to be filled. Powerless, they tarried until they were endued. Bankrupt, they pled the riches of His grace. Then this fear-filled crowd became fire-filled messengers. Though swordless, these soldiers of Christ fought the might of imperial Rome and won. Though without ecclesiastical prestige, they opposed the frozen orthodoxy of sterile Judaism and pierced...
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