March 18
The town of Crimond in Scotland is remembered for two things. It was the home of Jessie Seymour Irvine, daughter of a local minister. She composed the haunting melody which has borne the words of Psalm 23 out of the Scottish Psalter all round the world. Many a soul crossing over to The Other Side has done so to the words of it’s final stanza, sung to Crimond. “Goodness and mercy all my life, Shall surely follow me; And in God’s house forevermore, My dwelling place shall be.” The village of Crimond is also noted for its unusual tower clock. When the clock maker was constructing it, he...
Read MoreMarch 17
“What is that to thee? Follow thou Me” (Jn 21:22). If the Enemy cannot use disinterest or discouragement to stop evangelism, he will tempt us with distractions. In his classic work, Via Sacra, T.H. Darlow writes: Curiosity becomes perilous, not because it is in itself evil or irreverent, but because it is so apt to dissipate the soul. Our Lord will have nothing to distract us from simple, personal faith in His own Person. To our subtle doubts and curious fears and eager questionings, He has one reply: What is that to thee? Follow thou Me. The stress falls on the last word. He says in effect:...
Read MoreMarch 16
Thomas Olivers (1725-1799), a Welsh orphan, billed himself as “the worst boy known in Tregynon for thirty years.” Thrown out of town at age 18, he arrived in Bristol, England, where he heard George Whitefield preaching on the words of Zechariah 3:2, “Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” As Olivers recounts, “When the sermon began, I was one of the most abandoned and profligate young men living; before it ended, I was a new creature. The world had changed for Tom Olivers.” He gave his life to spreading the gospel wherever he went. One Sabbath evening in 1770, he heard an opera singer,...
Read MoreMarch 15
The gospel is free so everyone can afford it. Its terms are so simple that “wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein” (Isa 35:8). It is a universal offer: all are welcome. If someone asks, “What about Hindus and Muslims?” we answer, “Yes, He invites them too! The gospel is also easy to verify for any serious skeptic: “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!” (Ps 34:8). The provision is unlimited in its supply (although it is a limited-time offer) so there is no fear of a shortage in “the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Eph 3:8). And this gift...
Read MoreMarch 14
Warren Wiersbe, in his book, 50 People Every Christian Should Know, tells of an English merchant traveling in Scotland in the seventeenth century who “made this entry in his journal: In St. Andrews I heard a tall, stately man preach, and he showed me the majesty of God. I afterwards heard a little fair man preach, and he showed me the loveliness of Christ.” The first preacher was Robert Blair, the second was Samuel Rutherford. Rutherford ministered in the Scottish village of Anwoth for nine years. “I see exceedingly small fruit of my ministry,” he wrote after two years. “I would be glad of...
Read MoreMarch 13
Reconciliation means “to be returned to favor.” This is necessary only on our side; God does not need to be reconciled. “All things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Cor 5:18). In the same way, our message to sinners is on their part alone: “we pray you in Christ’s stead, be reconciled to God” (v. 20). Paul adds the prefix apo to the word in Ephesians 2:16 and Colossians 1:20-21 to mean fully reconciled. In Hebrews 2:17, the word should be translated “propitiation.” This word is the same used for “mercy seat.”...
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