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@p p p p p ppp@ ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @sssssssss s s s sssssssssssss$s%uuus,s-uu u u u u s&s's(s)s*s+s.uu!u!u!u(u(u(ussss ss ssss!s"s#   szObjectszReferencedObjectszRelationship 4z7@4z7@SummaryInfo*********** 4z7@4z7@SysRel%%%%%%%%%%% 4z7@4z7@Scripts&&&&&&&&&&& 4z7@4z7@Reports&&&&&&&&&&& 4z7@4z7@Modules&&&&&&&&&&& 4z7@4z7@Forms$$$$$$$$$$$ 4z7@4z7@DataAccessPages........... >x7@>x7@MSysRelationships22222222220 >x7@>x7@MSysQueries,,,,,,,,,,* >x7@>x7@MSysACEs))))))))))' >x7@>x7@MSysObjects,,,,,,,,,,* >x7@>x7@MSysDb''''''''''% >x7@>x7@Relationships.........., >x7@>x7@Databases**********( >x7@>x7@Tables''''''''''% tle Page0@!33: Keeping The Church Faithful(0$ 33: Keeping The Church Evangelistic/4(31: Keeping The Church Pure,, 30: Keeping Brethren Informed%5z."29: The Importance of Sound Doctrinew5)28: Doing All In Doing Good$.q, 27: Doing All In Exercising Disciplinei!l7+26: Doing All In The Name of The Lord In Worshipz,fA525: Teaching and Preaching In The Name of Christ6_A524: Doing All In The Name of The Lord.Y6*23: The Christian Woman and The Homeh_L5)22: The Christian Woman Working For Christ<D;/21: The Christian Woman Living For Jesus09-20: The Christian Man and The HomeE'3'19: The Christian Man Working For ChristN9-18: The Christian Man Living For z7@z7@SummaryInfo*********** z7@z7@SysRel%%%%%%%%%%% z7@z7@Scripts&&&&&&&&&&& z7@z7@Reports&&&&&&&&&&& z7@z7@Modules&&&&&&&&&&& z7@z7@Forms$$$$$$$$$$$ z7@z7@DataAccessPages........... 38#7@38#7@MSysRelationships22222222220 38#7@38#7@MSysQueries,,,,,,,,,,* 38#7@38#7@MSysACEs))))))))))' 38#7@38#7@MSysObjects,,,,,,,,,,* 38#7@38#7@MSysDb''''''''''% 38#7@38#7@Relationships.........., 38#7@38#7@Databases**********( 38#7@38#7@Tables''''''''''% Q]m5~6t7          2                     IdParentIdNameType DateCreate DateUpdateOwnerFlagsDatabaseConnect ForeignName RmtInfoShort RmtInfoLongLvLvPropLvModuleLvExtra  E J Id ParentIdName        (u@Eu@Topic Notesn@t888,,,,,,,* @!,u@,u@MSysModules2----------+ ,u@,u@MSysModules,,,,,,,,,,* %&u@%&u@MSysAccessObjects22222222220 u@u@Details"@t444(((((((& @ Tu@Tu@UserDefined1@t888,,,,,,,* @ 0u@0u@SummaryInfok@t888,,,,,,,* @u@u@SysRel''''''''''% u@u@Scripts((((((((((& u@u@Reports((((((((((& u@u@Modules((((((((((& u@u@Forms&&&&&&&&&&$ u@u@DataAccessPages0000000000. 0u@0u@MSysRelationships22222222220 0u@0u@MSysQueries,,,,,,,,,,* 0u@0u@MSysACEs))))))))))' 0u@0u@MSysObjects,,,,,,,,,,* 0u@\&u@MSysDb@t333'''''''% @0u@0u@Relationships.........., 0u@0u@Databases**********( 0u@0u@Tables''''''''''% VCN  2  02   Description AbbreviationCommentsd`w``bbfvvs`hfvd`w`a`vfvgruov ordxmfv ufm`wjrpvijsvufsruwv vbujswv v}vufm w`amfvov}v`bfvov}vrakfbwvov}vtxfujfvov}vufm`wjrpvijsvov}vdavxoo`u}jpgr ?y17@?y17@SummaryInfo*********** ?y17@?y17@SysRel%%%%%%%%%%% ?y17@?y17@Scripts&&&&&&&&&&& ?y17@?y17@Reports&&&&&&&&&&& ?y17@?y17@Modules&&&&&&&&&&& ?y17@?y17@Forms$$$$$$$$$$$ ?y17@?y17@DataAccessPages........... ?y17@?y17@MSysRelationships22222222220 ?y17@?y17@MSysQueries,,,,,,,,,,* ?y17@?y17@MSysACEs))))))))))' ?y17@?y17@MSysObjects,,,,,,,,,,* ?y17@?y17@MSysDb''''''''''% ?y17@?y17@Relationships.........., ?y17@?y17@Databases**********( ?y17@?y17@Tables''''''''''% {@@ @ d`w``bbfvvs`hfvd`w`a`vfvgruov ordxmfv ufm`wjrpvijsvufsruwv vbujswv v}vufm w`amfvov}v`bfvov}vrakfbwvov}vtxfujfvov}vufm`wjrpvijsvov}vdavxoo`u}jpgrl that loves Him. He is in the believer, as the sap is in the vine, and the spirit of energetic life in the body. But, in a very deep and blessed sense, the believer is in Christ. Of each of these sides of this marvellous truth there are many illustrations in this Epistle, so specially devoted to the study of the preposition in. We are dealing now with those passages only that assure us, as believers, of being in the Beloved.\par \b WE ARE IN CHRIST, IN THE FATHER'S THOUGHT (\cf1\ul\b0 Eph_1:3-4\cf0\ulnone\b , \cf1\ul\b0 Eph_1:9\cf0\ulnone\b , \cf1\ul\b0 Eph_1:11\cf0\ulnone\b )\par \b0 The disclosures made to the apostle Paul of God{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f1\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Tahoma;}{\f2\fnil\fcharset0 MS Sans Serif;}} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\keepn\nowidctlpar\sb240\sa120\lang1033\b\f0\fs32 THE SECRET OF GUIDANCE \f1\par \pard\nowidctlpar\sb120\lang1036\f0\fs24 By F.B. Meyer\b0 \par \b\par \par \pard\keepn\nowidctlpar\sb240\sa120\lang1033\fs32 Contents\f1\par \pard\nowidctlpar\sb120\lang1036\f0\fs24 \par \pard\nowidctlpar\fi-240\li400\b0 1. The Secret of Guidance \par 2. Where Am I Wrong? \par 3. The Secret of Qi'Ij4      v}vufm w`amfvov}v`bfvov}vrakfbwvov}vtxfujfvov}vufm`wjrpvijsvov}vdavxoo`u}jpgr?y17@?y17@Details&&&&&&&&&&&  ?y17@?y17@UserDefined***********  ?y17@?y17@SummaryInfo*********** ?y17@?y17@SysRel%%%%%%%%%%% ?y17@?y17@Scripts&&&&&&&&&&& ?y17@?y17@Reports&&&&&&&&&&& ?y17@?y17@Modules&&&&&&&&&&& ?y17@?y17@Forms$$$$$$$$$$$ ?y17@?y17@DataAccessPages........... ?y17@?y17@MSysRelationships22222222220 ?y17@?y17@MSysQueries,,,,,,,,,,* ?y17@?y17@MSysACEs))))))))))' ?y17@?y17@MSysObjects,,,,,,,,,,* ?y17@?y17@MSysDb''''''''''% ?y17@?y17@Relationships.........., ?y17@?y17@Databases**********( ?y17@?y17@DescAbbrevComments VC.N..   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But put ink or vinegar or wine into it, and will they pour the tea into the vessel? And can God fill you, can God bless you if you are not absolutely surrendered to Him? He cannot. Let us believe God has wonderful blessings for us if we will but stand up for God and say, be it with a trembling will, yet with a believing heart:\par \par "O God, I accept Your demands. I am Yours and all that I have. Absolute surrender is what my soul yields to You by divine grace."\par \par You may not have such strong, clear feelings of surrender as you would like to have, but humble yourselves in His sight, and acknowledge that you have grieved the Holy Spirit by your self-will, selfconfidence, and self-effort. Bow humbly before Him in the confession of that, and ask Him to break the heart and to bring you into the dust before Him. Then, as you bow before Him, just accept God's teaching that in your flesh "there dwelleth no good thing" (Romans 7:18), and that nothing will help you except another life which must come in. You must deny self once and for all. Denying self must every moment be the power of your life, and then Christ will come in and take possession of you.\par \par When was Peter delivered? When was the change accomplished? The change began with Peter weeping, and the Holy Spirit came down and filled his heart.\par \par God the Father loves to give us the power of the Spirit. We have the Spirit of God dwelling within us. We come to God confessing that, and praising God for it, and yet confessing how we have grieved the Spirit. And then we bow our knees to the Father to ask that He would strengthen us with all might by the Spirit in the inner man, and that He would fill us with His mighty power. And as the Spirit reveals Christ to us, Christ comes to live in our hearts forever, and the self-life is cast out.\par \par Let us bow before God in humility, and in that humility confess before Him the state of{ the whole Church. No words can tell the sad state of the Church of Christ on earth. I wish I had words to speak what I sometimes feel about it. Just think of the Christians around you. I do not speak of nominal Christians, or of professing Christians, but I speak of hundreds and thousands of honest, earnest Christians who are not living a life in the power of God or to His glory. So little power, so little devotion or consecration to God, so little perception of the truth that a Christian is a man utterly surrendered to God's will! Oh, we want to confess the sins of God's people around us, and to humble ourselves.\par \par We are members of that sickly body. The sickliness of the body will hinder us and break us down, unless we come to God. We must, in confession, separate ourselves from partnership with worldliness, with coldness toward each other. We must give ourselves up to be entirely and wholly for God.\par \par How much Christian work is being done in the spirit of the flesh and in the power of self! How much work, day by day, in which human energy-our will and our thoughts about the work-is continually manifested, and in which there is little waiting upon God and upon the power of the Holy Spirit! Let us make a confession. But as we confess the state of the Church, and the feebleness and sinfulness of work for God among us, let us come back to ourselves. Who is there who truly longs to be delivered from the power of the self-life, who truly acknowledges that it is the power of self and the flesh, and who is willing to cast all at the feet of Christ? There is deliverance.\par \par I heard of one who had been an earnest Christian, and who spoke about the "cruel" thought of separation and death. But you do not think that, VCeN"" ,    c  an  rc ee at   h piFlagsFormModuleNameReplicationVersionTypeTypeInfoVersion"'Index1"""to Himself. God's nature is to be always giving. You see it, in the sun and the moon and the stars, in every flower, in every bird in the air, in every fish in the sea. God communicates life to His creatures. And the angels around His throne, the seraphim and cherumbim who are flames of firewhere does their glory come from? It comes from God because He is love, and He imparts to them part of His brightness and His blessedness. And we, His redeemed children-God delights to pour His love into us. Why? Because, as I said, God keeps nothing for Himself. From eternity God had His only begotten Son, and the Father gave Him all things, and nothing that God had was kept back. "God is love."\par \par One of the old Church fathers said that we cannot better understand the Trinity than as a revelation of divine lovethe Father, the loving One, the Fountain of love-the Son, the beloved one, the Reservoir of love, in whom the love was poured out-and the Spirit, the living love that united both and then overflowed into this world. The Spirit of Pentecost, the Spirit of the Father, and the Spirit of the Son is love. And when the Holy Spirit comes to us and to other men, will He be less a Spirit of love than He is in God? It cannot be; He cannot change His nature. The Spirit of God is love, and "the fruit of the Spirit is love."\par \par \b MANKIND NEEDS LOVE\b0\par \par Why is that so? That was the one great need of mankind, that was the thing which Christ's redemption came to accomplish: to restore love to this world.\par \par When man sinned, why was it that he sinned? Selfishness triumphed-he sought self instead of God. And just look! Adam at once begins to ac{qghe woman of having led him astray. Love to God had gone; love to man was lost. Look again: of the first two children of Adam, the one becomes a murderer of his brother.\par \par Does that not teach us that sin had robbed the world of love? Ah! what a proof the history of the world has been of love having been lost! There may have been beautiful examples of love even among the heathen, but only as a little remnant of what was lost. One of the worst things sin did for man was to make him selfish, for selfishness cannot love.\par \par The Lord Jesus Christ came down from heaven as the Son of God's love. "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son" (\cf1\ul Joh_3:16\cf0\ulnone ). God's Son came to show what love is , and He lived a life of love here on earth in fellowship with His disciples, in compassion over the poor and miserable, in love even to His enemies. And, He died the death of love. And when He went back to heaven, whom did He send down? The Spirit of love, to come and banish selfishness and envy and pride, and bring the love of God into the hearts of men. "The fruit of the Spirit is love."\par \par And what was the preparation for the promise of the Holy Spirit? You know that prom@@LVAL %al man, and instead of denying his Lord he denies himself, just remember that. In the sixteenth chapter of Matthew when Peter had said, "Lord, be it far from Thee, this shall never happen that Thou shalt be crucified," Christ said to Him: "Peter, not only will I be crucified, but you will have to be crucified too. If any man is to be My disciple, let him take up his cross to die upon it, let him deny himself, and let him follow Me." How did Peter obey that command? He went and denied Jesus! As long as a man, a Christian, is under the power of the flesh, he is continually denying Jesus. You always must do one of the two, you must deny self or you must deny Jesus, and, alas, Peter denied his Lord rather than deny himself. On the other hand, when the Holy Spirit came upon him, he could not deny his Lord, but he could deny himself, and he praised God for the privilege of suffering for Christ.\par \par Now, how did the change come about? The words of my text tell us,--"And Peter went out and wept bitterly." What does that mean? It means this, that the Lord led Peter to come to the end of himself, to see what was in his heart, and with his self-confidence to fall into the very deepest sin that a child of God could be guilty of;--publicly, with an oath, to deny his Lord Jesus! When Peter stood there in that great sin, the loving Jesus looked upon him, and that look, full of loving reproach, loving pity, pierced like an arrow through the heart of Peter, and he went out and wept bitterly. Praise God, that was the end of self-confident Peter! Praise God, that was the turning point of his life! He went out with a shame that no tongue can express. He woke up as out of a dream to the terrible reality "I have helped to crucify the blessed Son of God." No man can fathom what Peter must have passed through that Friday, Saturday and Sunday morning. But, blessed be God, on that Sunday Jesus revealed Himself to Peter, we know not how, but "He was seen of Simon;" then in the evening He came to him with the other di8LVALD @ @     race to give to you this message-that your God in heaven answers the prayers which you have offered for blessing on yourselves and for blessing on those around you by this one demand: Are you willing to surrender yourselves absolutely into His hands? What is our answer to be? God knows there are hundreds of hearts who have said it, and there are hundreds more who long to say it but hardly dare to do so. And there are hearts who have said it, but who have yet miserably failed, and who feel themselves condemned because they did not find the secret of the power to live that life. May God have a word for all!\par \par Let me say, first of all, that God claims it from us.\par \par \b GOD EXPECTS YOUR SURRENDER\b0\par \par Yes, it has its foundation in the very nature of God. God cannot do otherwise. Who is God? He is the Fountain of life, the only Source of existence and power and goodness. Throughout the universe there is nothing good but what God works. God has created the sun, the moon, the stars, the flowers, the trees, and the grass. Are they not all absolutely surrendered to God? Do they not allow God to work in them just what He pleases? When God clothes the i_VBA_PROJECTaadir|x0* pHd topic @8= Vh @? J< rstdole>stdole h%^*\G{00020430-C 0046}#2.0#0#C:\WINDOWS\System32\e2.tlb#OLE Autom`ation`mADODB> ADOBDDEB1D10-8DAA006D2EA 4D1DProgram Files\CommonM\ado\ms21NMicrosoft ActiveX Data Objects 2.1 LibraryHE LVAL `sciples and breathed peace, and the Holy Spirit upon him; and then, later on, you know how the Lord asked him, "Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?"--three times, until Peter was sorrowful, and said, "Lord, thou knowest all things, thou knowest that I love thee." What was it that wrought the transition from the love of the flesh to the love of the Spirit? I tell you, that was the beginning,--"Peter went out and wept bitterly," with a broken heart, with a heart that would give anything to show its love to Jesus. With a heart that had learned to give up all self-confidence, Peter was prepared for the blessing of the Holy Spirit.\par \par And, now, you can easily see the application of this story. Are there not many just living the life of Peter, of the self-confident Peter as he was? Are there not many who are mourning under the consciousness, "I am so unfaithful to my Lord, I have no power against the flesh, I cannot conquer my temper, I give way just like Peter to the fear of man, of company, for people can influence me and make me do things I do not want to do, and I have no power to resist them? Circumstances get the mastery over me, and I then say and do things that I am ashamed of."? Is there not more than one, who, in answer to the question, "Are you living as a man filled with the Spirit, devoted to Jesus, following Him, fully giving up all for Him?"--must say with sorrow, "God knows I am not. Alas, my heart knows it."? You say it, and I come, and I press you with the question, Is not your position, and your character, and your conduct, just like that of Peter? Like Peter, you love Jesus, like Peter you know He is the Christ of God, like Peter you are very zealous in working for Him. Peter had cast out devils in His name, and had preached the gospel, and had healed the sick. Like Peter you have tried to work for Jesus; but, oh! under it all, isn't there something that comes up continually? Oh, Christian, what is it? I pray, and I try, and I do long to live a holy life, but the flesh is to!$ve that the everlasting God Himself will come in to turn out what is wrong. He will conquer what is evil, and work what is well pleasing in His blessed sight. God Himself will work it in you.\par \par Look at the men in the Old Testament, like Abraham. Do you think it was by accident that God found that man, the father of the faithful and the friend of God? Do you think that it was Abraham himself, apart from God, who had such faith and such obedience and such devotion? You know it is not so. God raised him up and prepared him as an instrument for His glory.\par \par Did God not say to Pharaoh: "For this cause have I raised thee up, for to show in thee my power" (\cf1\ul Exo_9:16\cf0\ulnone )?\par \par And if God said that of him, will God not say it far more of every child of His?\par \par Oh, I want to encourage you, and I want you to cast away every fear. Come with that feeble desire. If there is the fear which says-"Oh, my desire is not strong enough. I am not willing for everything that maycome , and I do not feel bold enough to say I can conquer everything"-l implore you, learn to know and trust your God now. Say: "My God, I am willing that You should make me willing." If there is anything holding you back, or any sacrifice you are afraid of making, come to God now and prove how gracious your God is. Do not be afraid that He will command from you what He will not bestow.\par \par God comes and offers to work this absolute surrender in you. All these searchings and hungerings and longings that are in your heart, I tell you, they are the drawings of the divine magnet, Christ Jesus. He lived a life of absolute surrender. He has possession of you; He is living in your heart by His Holy Spirit. You have hindered and hindered Him terribly, but He desires to help you to get a hold of Him entirely. And He comes and draws you now by His message and words. Will you not come and trust God to work in you that absolute surrender to Himself Yes, blessed $MSysDb!@ov}vda&            IdParentIdNameType DateCreate DateUpdateOwnerFlagsDatabaseConnect ForeignName RmtInfoShort RmtInfoLongLvLvPropLvModuleLvExtra  ," Id ParentIdName        VC N))    ey2  paIDTitleCommentsfff3a 2()q uty biti)r ID PrimaryKey))nd leave the work. The condition for obtaining God's full blessing is absolute surrender to Him.\par \par And now, I desire by God's grace to give to you this message-that your God in heaven answers the prayers which you have offered for blessing on yourselves and for blessing on those around you by this one demand: Are you willing to surrender yourselves absolutely into His hands? What is our answer to be? God knows there are hundreds of hearts who have said it, and there are hundreds more who long to say it but hardly dare to do so. And there are hearts who have said it, but who have yet miserably failed, and who feel themselves condemned because they did not find the secret of the power to live that life. May God have a word for all!\par \par Let me say, first of all, that God claims it from us.\par \par \b GOD EXPECTS YOUR SURRENDER\b0\par \par Yes, it has its foundation in the very nature of God. God cannot do otherwise. Who is God? He is the Fountain of life, the only Source of existence and power and goodness. Throughout the universe there is nothing good but what God works. God has created the sun, the moon, the stars, the flowers, the trees, and the grass. Are they not all absolutely surrendered to God? Do they not allow God to work in them just what He pleases? When God clothes the lily with its beauty, is it not yielded up, surrendered, given over to God as He works in it its beauty? And God's redeemed children, oh, can you think that God can do His work if there is only half or a part of them surrendered? God cannot do it. God is life, love, blessing, power, and infinite beauty, and God delights in communicating Himself to every child who is prepared to receive Him. But ah! this one lack of absolute surrender is jus{qgthing that hinders God. And now He comes, and as God, He claims it.\par \par You know in daily life what absolute surrender is. You know that everything has to be given up to its special, definite object and service. I have a pen in my pocket, and that pen is absolutely surrendered to the one work of writing. That pen must be absolutely surrendered to my hand if I am to write properly with it. If another holds it partly, I cannot write properly. This coat is absolutely given up to me to cover my body. This building is entirely given up to religious services. And now, do you expect that in your immortal being, in the divine nature that you have received by regeneration, God can work His work, every day and every hour, unless you are entirely given up to Him? God cannot. The temple of Solomon was absolutely surrendered to God when it was dedicated to Him. And every one of us is a temple of God, in which God will dwell and work mightily on one condition-absolute surrender to Him. God claims it, God is worthy of it, and without it God cannot work His blessed work in us.\par \par God not only claims it, but God will work it Himself.\par \par \b GOD ACCOMPLISHES YOUR SURRENDER\par \b0\par I am sure there is(&LVAL2 @ @     !;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\cf1\lang2058\i\f0\fs22 Anthology of Works by\i0\par \cf2\b\fs28 Andew Murray\cf1\b0\fs22\par \cf0\fs16{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://www.worldinvisible.com/library/bookcat.htm"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf3 http://www.worldinvisible.com/library/bookcat.htm}}}\cf1\f0\fs16\par \fs22\par \cf2\b 01\cf1\b0 Abide in Christ\par \cf2\b 02\cf1\b0 The Spirit of Christ\par {\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red255\green0\blue0;\red0\green0\blue0;\red0\green0\blue255;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\b\f0\fs22 The Deeper Christian Life\par an Aid to its Attainment\par By Andrew Murray\par \b0\par \cf1\b 01\cf0\b0 Daily Fellowship with God\par \cf1\b 02 \cf0\b0 Privilege and Experience\par \cf1\b 03 \cf0\b0 Carnal or Spiritual?\par \cf1\b 04 \cf0\b0 Out of and Into\par \cf1\b 05 \cf0\b0 The Blessing Secured\par \cf1\b 06 \cf0\b0 The Presence of Christ\par \cf1\b 07 \cf0\b0 A Word to Workers\par \cf1\b 08 \cf0\b0 Consecration\par \par AUTHOR OF "THE MASTER'S INDWELLING,"\par "WITH CHRIST IN THE SCHOOL OF PRAYER,"\par ETC., ETC.\par \par FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY\par CHICAGO NEW YORK TORONTO\par PUBLISHERS OF EVANGELICAL LITERATURE\par COPYRIGHT 1895, BY\par FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY\par \pard\cf2\lang1033\par ----------------------------\par Placed into E-Sword TOP format by David Cox, \cf0{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "http://www.davidcox.com.mx"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf3 http://www.davidcox.com.mx}}}\cf2\f0\fs22 \par dcox@davidcox.com.mx. \par \lang2058\par } T( U(p/ qbO@1"s`QB3/ leComments))sound on Tۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o   ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o   ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o    ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o    ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o     ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o    ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o    ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o   ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jKV#o     ۇ O8V#jKrvwlrV#jKV#jKV#jKV#jK 01 Daily Fellowship with Godm-!02 Privilege and Experience_Hc, 03 Carnal or Spiritual? B\(04 Out of and IntoCS#05 The Blessing SecuredII(06 The Presence of Christ~S>*07 A Word to WorkersQ3%08 Consecration3, 00 Murray - Deeper Life@*(LVAL -{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\b\f0\fs22 The Deeper Christian Life\par an Aid to its Attainment\par By Andrew Murray\par \b0\par \b CONSECRATION\par \b0\par "But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of Thee, and of Thine own have we given Thee."\par \par To be able to offer anything to God is a perfect mystery. Consecration is a miracle of grace. "All things come of Thee, and of Thine own have we given Thee." In these words there are four very precious thoughts I want to try and make clear to you: -\par \par 1. God is the Owner of all, and gives all to us.\par \par 2. We have nothing but what we receive--but everything we need we may receive from God.\par \par 3. It is our privilege and honour to give back to God what we receive from Him.\par \par 4. God has a double joy in His possessions when he receives back from us what He gave.\par \par And when I apply this to my life--to my body, to my wealth, property, to my whole being with all its powers--then I understand what Consecration ought to be.\par \par 1. It is the glory of God, and His very nature, to be always GIVING. God is the owner of all. There is no power, no riches, no goodness, no love, outside of God. It is the very nature of God, that He does not live for Himself, but for His creatures. His is a love that always delights to give. Here we come to the first step in consecration. I must see that everything I have is given by Him; I must learn to believe in God as the great Owner and Giver of all. Let me hold that fast. I have nothing but what actually and definitely belongs to God. Just as much as people say, "this money in my purse belongs to me," so God is the Proprietor of all. It is His and His only. And it is his life and delight to be always giving. Oh, take that precious thought--tLVAL .here is nothing that God has that He does not want to give. It is His nature, and therefore when God asks you anything, He must give it first Himself, and He will. Never be afraid whatever God asks; for God only asks what is His own; what He asks you to give He will first Himself give you. The Possessor, and Owner, and Giver of all! This is our God. You can apply this to yourself and your powers to all you are and have. Study it, believe it, live in it, every day, every hour, every moment.\par \par 2. Just as it is the nature and glory of God to be always giving, it is the nature and glory of man to be always receiving. What did God make us for? We have been made to be each of us a vessel into which God can pour out His life, His beauty, His happiness, His love. We are created to be each a receptacle and a reservoir of divine heavenly life and blessing, just as much as God can put into us. Have we understood this, that our great work--the object of our creation--is to be always receiving? If we fully enter into this, it will teach some precious things. One thing--the utter folly of being proud or conceited. What an idea! Suppose I were to borrow a very beautiful dress, and walk about boasting of it as if it were my own, you might say, "What a fool!" And here it is the Everlasting God owns everything we have; shall we dare to exalt ourselves on account of what is all His? Then what a blessed lesson it will teach us of what our position is! I have to do with a God whose nature is to be always giving, and mine to be always receiving. Just as the lock and key fit each other, God the Giver and I the receiver fit into each other. How often we trouble about things, and about praying for them, instead of going back to the root of things, and saying, "Lord, I only crave to be the receptacle of what the Will of God means for me; of the power and the gifts and the love and Spirit of God." What can be more simple? Come as a receptacle--cleansed, emptied and humble. Come, and then God will delight to give. ILVAL /f I may with reverence say it, He cannot help Himself; it is His promise, His nature. The blessing is ever flowing out of Him. You know how water always flows into the lowest places. If we would but be emptied and low, nothing but receptacles, what a blessed life we could live! Day by day just praising Him--Thou givest and I accept. Thou bestowest and I rejoice to receive. How many tens of thousands of people have said this morning: "What a beautiful day! Let us throw open the windows and bring in the sunlight with its warmth and cheerfulness!" May our hearts learn every moment to drink in the light and sunshine of God's love.\par \par "Who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of Thee, and we have given Thee of Thine own."\par \par 3. If God gives all and I receive all, then the third thought is very simple--I must give all back again. What a privilege that for the sake of having me in loving, grateful intercourse with Him, and giving me the happiness of pleasing and serving Him, the Everlasting God should say, "Come now, and bring Me back all that I give." And yet people say, "Oh, but must I give everything back?brother, don't you know that there is no happiness or blessedness except in giving to God! David felt it. He said: "Lord, what an unspeakable privilege it is to be allowed to give that back to Thee which is Thine own!" Just to receive and then to render back in love to Him as God, what He gives. Do you know what God needs you for? People say, "Does not God give us all good gifts to enjoy?" But do you know that the reality of the enjoyment is in the giving back? Just look at Jesus--God gave Him a wonderful body. He kept it holy and gave it as a sacrifice to God. This is the beauty of having a body. God has given you a soul; this is the beauty of having a soul--you can give it back to God. People talk about the difficulty they meet with in having so strong a will. You never can have too strong a will, but the trouLVAL 0ble is we do not give that strong will up to God, to make it a vessel in which God can and will pour His Spirit, so as to fit it to do splendid service for Himself.\par \par We have now had the three thoughts: God gives all; I receive all; I give up all. Will you do this now? Will not every heart say, "My God, teach me to give up everything?" Take your head, your mind with all its power of speaking, your property, your heart with its affections--the best and most secret--take gold and silver, everything, and lay it at God's feet and say, "Lord, here is the covenant between me and Thee. Thou delightest to give all, and I delight to give back all." God teach us that. If that simple lesson were learnt, there would be an end of so much trouble about finding out the Will of God, and an end of all our holding back, for it would be written, not upon our foreheads, but across our hearts, "God can do with me what He pleases; I belong to Him with all I have." Instead of always saying to God, "Give, give, give," we should say, "Yes, Lord, Thou dost give, thou dost love to give, and I love to give back." Try that life and find out if it is not the very highest life.\par \par 4. God gives all, I receive all, I give all. Now comes the fourth thought: God does so rejoice in what we give to Him. It is not only I that am the receiver and the giver, but God is the Giver and the Receiver too, and, may I say it with reverence, has more pleasure in the receiving back than even in giving. With our little faith we often thing they come back to God again all defiled. God says, "No, they come back beautiful and glorified"; the surrender of the dear child of His, with his aspirations and thanksgivings, brings it to God with a new value and beauty. Ah! child of God you do not know how precious the gift that you bring to your Father, is in His sight. Have I not seen a mother give a piece of cake, and the child comes and offers her a piece to share it with her? How she values the gift! And your God, oh, my friends, your GLVAL 1od, His heart, His Father's heart of love, longs, longs, longs to have you give Him everything. It is not a demand. It is a demand, but it is not a demand of a hard Master, it is the call of a loving Father, who knows that every gift you bring to God will bind you closer to Himself, and every surrender you make will open your heart wider to get more of his spiritual gifts. Oh, friends! a gift to God has in His sight infinite value. It delights Him. He sees of the travail of His soul and is satisfied. And it brings unspeakable blessing to you. These are the thoughts our text suggests; now comes the practical application. What are the lessons? We here learn what the true dispositions of the Christian life are.\par \par To be and abide in continual dependence upon God. Become nothing, begin to understand that you are nothing but an earthen vessel into which God will shine down the treasure of His love. Blessed is the man who knows what it is to be nothing, to be just an empty vessel meet for God's use. Work, the Apostle says, for it is God who worketh in you to will and to do. Brethren, come and take tonight the place of deep, deep dependence on God. And then take the place of child-like trust and expectancy. Count upon your God to do for you everything that you can desire of Him. Honour God as a God who gives liberally. Honour God and believe that He asks nothing from you but what he is going first to give. And then come praise and surrender and consecration. Praise Him for it! Let every sacrifice to Him be a thank-offering. What are we going to consecrate? First of all our lives. There are perhaps men and women--young men and women--whose hearts are asking, "What do you want me to do--to say I will be a missionary?" No, indeed, I do not ask you to do this. Deal with God, and come to Him and say, "Lord of all, I belong to Thee, I am absolutely at Thy disposal." Yield up yourselves. There may be many who cannot go as Missionaries, but oh, come, give up yourselves to God all the same to be consecratLVAL 2ed to the work of His Kingdom. Let us bow down before Him. Let us give Him all our powers--our head to think for His Kingdom, our heart to go out in love for men, and however feeble you may be, come and say: "Lord, here I am, to live and die for Thy Kingdom. Some talk and pray about the filling of the Holy Spirit. Let them pray more and believe more. But remember the Holy Spirit came to fit men to be messengers of the Kingdom, and you cannot expect to be filled with the Spirit unless you want to live for Christ's Kingdom. You cannot expect all the love and peace and joy of heaven to come into your life and be your treasures, unless you give them up absolutely to the Kingdom of God, and posses and use them only for Him. It is the soul utterly given up to God that will receive in its emptying the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Dear friends we must consecrate not only ourselves--body and soul--but all we have. Some of you may have children; perhaps you have an only child, and you dread the very idea of letting it go. Take care, take care; God deserves your confidence, your love, and your surrender. I plead with you; take your children and say to Jesus: "Anything Lord, that pleases Thee." Educate your children for Jesus. God help you to do it. He may not accept all of them, but He will accept of the will, and there will be a rich blessing in your soul for it. Then there is money. When I hear appeals for money from every Society; when I hear calculations as to what the Christians of England are spending on pleasure, and the small amount given for Missions, I say there is something terrible in it. God's children with so much wealth and comfort, and giving away so small a portion! God be praised for every exception! But there are many who give but very little, who never so give that it costs them something, and they feel it. Oh, friends! our giving must be in proportion to God's giving. He gives you all. Let us take it up in our Consecration prayer: "Lord, take it all, every penny I possess. It is all ThinLVAL3{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;\red255\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\cf1\lang2058\f0\fs22 THE LORD\rquote S TABLE\par A Help to the Right Observance of the Holy Supper\par by Rev. Andrew Murray\par \par \b\fs28 Contents\par \cf2\fs22 08.00 Preface\cf1\b0\par \cf2\b 08.01 Part I \cf1\b0 The Week before the Supper\par I. Sabbath The Divine Invitation\par II. Monday The Preparation\par III. Tuesday The Host\par IV. Wednesday Self-Examination\par V. Thursday Confession of Sin\par VI. Friday Faith\par VII. Saturday Self-Surrender\par Saturday Evening--A Prayer for the Holy Spirit\par \par \cf2\b 08.02 Part II \cf1\b0 The Communion Sabbath\par Sabbath Morning An Exercise of Faith\par I. Take, Eat\par II. In Remembrance of Me\par III. My Blood\par IV. The New Covenant\pae." Let us often say "It is all His." You may not know how much you ought to give. Give up all, put everything in His hands, and He will teach you if you will wait.\par \par We have heard this precious message from David's mouth. We Christians of the nineteenth century, have we learned to know our God who is willing to give everything? God help us to.\par \par And then the second message. We have nothing that we do not receive, and we may receive everything if we are willing to stand before God and take it.\par \par Thirdly. Whatever you have received from God give it back. It brings a double blessing to your own soul.\par \par Fourthly. Whatever God receives back from us comes to Him in Heaven and gives Him infinite joy and happiness, as he sees His object has been attained. Let us come in the spirit of David, with the spirit of Jesus Christ in us. Let us pray our Consecration Prayer. And may the Blessed Spirit give each of us grace to think and to say the right thing, and to do what shall be pleasing in the Father's sight.\par \b\par \pard\cf1\b0\par } LVAL 4{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\b\f0\fs22 The Deeper Christian Life\par an Aid to its Attainment\par By Andrew Murray\par \b0\par \b VII. A WORD TO WORKERS\par \b0\par Some time ago I read this expression in an old author:--"The first duty of a clergyman is humbly to ask of God that all that he wants done in his hearers should first be truly and fully done in himself." These words have stuck to me ever since. What a solemn application this is to the subject that occupied our attention in previous chapters--the living and working under the fulness of the Holy Spirit! And yet, if we understand our calling aright, every one of us will have to say, That is the one thing on which everything depends. What profit is it to tell men that they may be filled with the Spirit of God, if, when they ask us, "Has God done it for you?" we have to answer, "No, He has not done it"? What profit is it for me to tell men that Jesus Christ can dwell within us every moment, and keep us from sin and actual transgression, and that the abiding presence of God can be our portion all the day, if I wait not upon God first to do it truly and full day by day?\par \par Look at the Lord Jesus Christ; it was of the Christ Himself, when He had received the Holy Ghost from heaven, that John the Baptist said that "He would baptize with the Holy Ghost." I can only communicate to others what God has imparted to me. If my life as a minister be a life in which the flesh still greatly prevails--if my life be a life in which I grieve the Spirit of God, I cannot expect but that my people will receive through me a very mingled kind of life. But if the life of God dwell in me, and I am filled with His power, then I can hope that the life that goes out from me may be infused into my hearers too.\par \par We have referred to the need of every believer being filled with the Spirit; and LVAL 5what is there of deeper interest to us now, or that can better occupy our attention, than prayerfully to consider how we can bring our congregations to believe that this is possible; and how we can lead on every believer to seek it for himself, to expect it, and to accept of it, so as to live it out? But, brethren, the message must come from us as a witness of our personal experience, by the grace of God. The same writer to whom I alluded, says elsewhere:--"The first business of a clergyman, when he sees men awakened and brought to Christ, is to lead them on to know the Holy Spirit." How true! Do not we find this throughout the word of God? John the Baptist preached Christ as the "Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world;" we read in Matthew that he also said that Christ would "baptize with the Holy Ghost and with fire." In the gospel by John, we read that the Baptist was told that upon Whom he would see the Spirit descending and abiding, He it was who would baptize with the Spirit. Thus John the Baptist led the people on from Christ to the expectation of the Holy Ghost for themselves. And what did Jesus do? For three years, He was with His disciples, teaching and instructing them; but when He was about to go away, in His farewell discourse on the last night, what was His great promise to the disciples? "I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, even the Spirit of truth." He had previously promised to those who believed on Him, that "rivers of living water" should flow from them; which the Evangelist explains as meaning the Holy Ghost:--"Thus spake He of the Spirit." But this promise was only to be fulfilled after Christ "was glorified." Christ points to the Holy Spirit as the one fruit of being glorified. The glorified Christ leads to the Holy Ghost. So in the farewell discourse, Christ leads the disciples to expect the Spirit as the Father's great blessing. Then again, when Christ came and stood at the footstool of His heavenly throne, on the Mount of Olives, reaLVAL 6dy to ascend, what were His words? "Ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto Me." Christ's constant work was to teach His disciples to expect the Holy Spirit. Look through the Book of Acts, you see the same thing. Peter on the day of Pentecost preached that Christ was exalted, and had received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost; and so he told the people; "Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." So, when I believe in Jesus risen, ascended, and glorified, I shall receive the Holy Ghost.\par \par Look again, after Philip had preached the gospel in Samaria, men and women had been converted, and there was great joy in the city. The Holy Spirit had been working, but something was still wanting; Peter and John came down from Jerusalem, prayed for the converted ones, laid their hands upon them, "and they received the Holy Ghost." Then they had the conscious possession and enjoyment of the Spirit; but till that came they were incomplete. Paul was converted by the mighty power of Jesus who appeared to Him on the way to Damascus; and yet he had to go to Ananias to receive the Holy Ghost.\par \par Then again, we read that when Peter went to preach to Cornelius, as he preached Christ, "the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word;" which Peter took as the sign that these Gentiles were one with the Jews in the favor of God, having the same baptism.\par \par And so we might go through many of the Epistles, where we find the same truth taught. Look at that wonderful epistle to the Romans. The doctrine of justification by faith is established in the first five chapters. Then in the sixth and seventh, though the believer is represented as dead to sin and the law, and married to Christ, yet a dreadful struggle goes on in the heart of the regenerate man as long as he has not god the full power of the Holy Spirit. But in the eighth chapter, it is the "LVAL 7law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" that maketh us free from "the law of sin and death." Then we are "not in the flesh, but in the Spirit," with the Spirit of God dwelling in us. All the teaching leads up to the Holy Spirit.\par \par Look again at the epistle to the Galatians. We always talk of this epistle as the great source of instruction on the doctrine of justification by faith: but have you ever noticed how the doctrine of the Holy Spirit holds a most prominent place there? Paul asks the Galatian church:--"Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" It was the hearing of faith that led them to the full enjoyment of the Spirit's power. If they sought to be justified by the works of the law, they had "fallen from grace." "For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith." And then at the end of the fifth chapter, we are told:--"If we live in the Spirit, let us walk in the Spirit."\par \par Again, if we go to the epistles to the Corinthians, we find Paul asking the Christians in Corinth:--"Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you?" If we look into the epistle to the Ephesians, we find the doctrine of the Holy Spirit mentioned twelve times. It is the Spirit that seals God's people; "Ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise." He illumines them; "That God may give the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him." Through Christ, both Jew and Gentile "have access by one Spirit unto the Father." They "are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit." They are "strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man." With "all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love," they "endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." By not "grieving the Holy Spirit of God," we preserve our sealing to the "day of redemption." Being "filled with the Spirit," we "sing and make melody in our hearts to the Lord," and thus glorify HimLVAL 8. Just study these epistles carefully, and you will find that what I say is true--that the apostle Paul takes great pains to lead Christians to the Holy Ghost as the consummation of the Christian life.\par \par It was the Holy Ghost Who was given to the church at Pentecost; and it is the Holy Ghost Who gives Pentecostal blessings now. It is this power, given to bless men, that wrought such wonderful life, and love, and self-sacrifice in the early church; and it is this that makes us look back to those days as the most beautiful part of the Church's history. And it is the same Spirit of power that must dwell in the hearts of all believers in our day to give the Church its true position. Let us ask God then, that every minister and Christian worker may be endued with the power of the Holy Ghost; that He may search us and try us, and enable us sincerely to answer the question, "Have I known the indwelling and the filling of the Holy Spirit that God wants me to have? Let each one of us ask himself: "Is it my great study to know the Holy Ghost dwelling in me, so that I may help others to yield to the same indwelling of the Holy Spirit; and that He may reveal Christ fully in His divine saving and keeping power?" Will not every one have to confess: "Lord, I have all too little understood this; I have all too little manifested this in my work and preaching"? Beloved brethren, "The first duty of every clergyman is to humbly ask God that all that he wants done in his hearers may be first fully and truly done in himself." And the second thing is his duty towards those who are awakened and brought to Christ, to lead them on to the full knowledge of the presence and indwelling of the Holy Spirit.\par \par Now, if we are indeed to come into full harmony with these two great principles, then there come to us some further questions of the very deepest importance. And the first questions is:--"Why is it that there is in the church of Christ so little practical acknowledgment of the power of the Holy Ghost?" I LVAL 9am not speaking to you, brethren, as if I thought you were not sound in doctrine on this point. I speak to you as believing in the Holy Ghost as the third person in the ever-blessed Trinity. But I speak to you confidently as to those who will readily admit that the truth or the presence and of the power of the Holy Ghost is not acknowledged in the church as it ought to be. Then the question is, Why is it not so acknowledged? I answer because of its spirituality. It is one of the most difficult truths in the Bible for the human mind to comprehend. God has revealed Himself in creation throughout the whole universe. He has revealed Himself in Christ incarnate--and what a subject of study the person, and word, and works of Christ form! But the mysterious indwelling of the Holy Spirit, hidden in the depths of the life of the believer, how much less easy to comprehend!\par \par In the early pentecostal days of the church, this knowledge was intuitive; they possessed the Spirit in power. But soon after the spirit of the world began to creep into the church and mastered it. This was followed by the deeper darkness of formality and superstition in the Roman Catholic Church, when the spirit of the world completely triumphed in what was improperly styled the Church of Christ. The Reformation in the days of Luther restored the truth of justification by faith in Christ; but the doctrine of the Holy Ghost did not then obtain its proper place, for God does not reveal all truth at one time. A great deal of the spirit of the world was still left in the reformed churches; but now God is awakening the church to strive after a fuller scriptural idea of the Holy Spirit's place and power. Through the medium of books, and discussions, and conventions many hearts are being stirred.\par \par Brethren, it is our privilege to take part in this great movement; and let us engage in the work more earnestly than ever. Let each of us say my great work is, in preaching Christ, to lead men to the acknowledging of the Holy SpirLVAL :it, who alone can glorify Christ. I may try to glorify Christ in my preaching, but it will avail nothing without the Spirit of God. I may urge men to the practice of holiness and every Christian virtue, but all my persuasion will avail very little unless I help them to believe that they must have the Holy Ghost dwelling in them every moment enabling to live the life of Christ. The great reason why the Holy Spirit was given from heaven was to make Christ Jesus' presence manifest to us. While Jesus was incarnate, His disciples were too much under the power of the flesh to allow Christ to get a lodgement in their hearts. It was needful, He said, that He should go away, in order that the Spirit might come; and He promised to those who loved Him and kept His commandments, that with the Spirit, He would come, and the Father would also come, and make Their abode with them. It is thus the Holy Spirit's great work to reveal the Father and the Son in the hearts of God's people. If we believe and teach men that the Holy Spirit can make Christ a reality to them every moment, men will learn to believe and accept Christ's presence and power, of which they now know far too little.\par \par Then another question presents itself, viz., What are we to expect when the Holy Spirit is duly acknowledged and received? I ask this question, because I have frequently noticed something with considerable interest--and, I may say, with some anxiety. I sometimes hear men praying earnestly for a baptism of the Holy Spirit that He may give them power for their work. Beloved brethren, we need this power, not only for work, but for our daily life. Remember, we must have it all the time. In Old Testament times, the Spirit came with power upon the prophets and other inspired men; but He did not dwell permanently in them. In the same way, in the church of the Corinthians, the Holy Spirit came with power to work miraculous gifts, and yet they had but a small measure of His sanctifying grace. You will remember the carnal strife, envyLVAL ;ing, and divisions there were. They had gifts of knowledge and wisdom, etc.; but alas! pride, unlovingness, and other sins sadly marred the character of many of them. And what does this teach us? That a man may have a great gift of power for work, but very little of the indwelling Spirit. In 1 Cor. xiii., we are reminded that though we may have faith that would remove mountains, if we have not love, we are nothing. We must have the love that brings the humility and self-sacrifice of Jesus. Don't let us put in the first place the gifts we may possess; if we do, we shall have very little blessing. But we should seek, in the first place, that the Spirit of God should come as a light and power of holiness from the indwelling Jesus. Let the first work of the Holy Spirit be to humble you deep down in the very dust, so that your whole life shall be a tender, broken-hearted waiting on God, in the consciousness of mercy coming from above.\par \par Do not seek large gifts; there is something deeper you need. It is not enough that a tree shoots its branches to the sky, and be covered thickly with leaves; but we want its roots to strike deeply into the soil. Let the thought of the Holy Spirit's being in us, and our hope of being filled with the Spirit, be always accompanied in us with a broken and contrite heart. Let us bow very low before God, in waiting for His grace to fill and to sanctify us. We do not want a power which God might allow us to use, while our inner part is unsanctified. We want God to give us full possession of Himself. In due time, the special gift may come; but we want first and now, the power of the Holy Ghost working something far mightier and more effectual in us than any such gift. We should seek, therefore, not only a baptism of power, but a baptism of holiness; we should seek that the inner nature be sanctified by the indwelling of Jesus, and then other power will come as needed.\par \par There is a third question:--Suppose some one says to me:--"I have given myself up to be filLVAL <led with the Spirit, and I do not feel that there is any difference in my condition; there is no change of experience that I can speak of. What must I then think? Must not I think that my surrender was not honest?" No, do not think that. "But how then? Does God give no response?" Beloved, God gives a response, but that is not always within certain months or years. "What, then, would you have me do?" Retain the position you have taken before God, and maintain it every day. Say, "Oh God, I have given myself to be filled, here I am an empty vessel, trusting and expecting to be filled by Thee." Take that position every day and every hour. Ask God to write it across your heart. Give up to God an empty, consecrated vessel that He may fill it with the Holy Spirit. Take that position constantly. It may be that you are not fully prepared. Ask God to cleanse you; to give you grace to separate from everything sinful--from unbelief or whatever hindrance there may be. Then take your position before God and say, "My God, Thou art faithful; I have entered into covenant with Thee for Thy Holy Spirit to fill me, and I believe Thou wilt fulfill it." Brethren, I say for myself, and for every minister of the gospel, and for every fellow worker, man or woman, that if we thus come before God with a full surrender, in a bold, believing attitude, God's promise must be fulfilled.\par \par If you were to ask me of my own experience, I would say this:--That there have been times when I hardly knew myself what to think of God's answer to my prayer in this matter; but I have found it my joy and my strength to take and maintain my position, and say: "My God, I have given myself up to Thee. It was Thine own grace that led me to Christ; and I stand before Thee in confidence that Thou wilt keep Thy covenant with me to the end. I am the empty vessel; Thou art the God that fillest all." God is faithful, and He gives the promised blessing in His own time and method. Beloved, for God's sake, be content with nothing less than full hLVAL =ealth and full spiritual life. "Be filled with the Spirit."\par \par Let me return now to the two expressions with which I began: "the first duty of every clergyman is humbly to ask of God that all that he wants done in those who hear his preaching may be first truly and fully done in himself." Brethren, I ask you, is it not the longing of your hearts to have a congregation of believers filled with the Holy Ghost? Is it not your unceasing prayer for the Church of Christ, in which you minister, that the Spirit of holiness, the very Spirit of God's Son, the spirit of unworldliness and of heavenly-mindedness, may possess it; and that the Spirit of victory and of power over sin may fill its children? If you are willing for that to come, your first duty is to have it yourself.\par \par And then the second sentence:--"the first duty of every clergyman is to lead those who have been brought to Christ to be entirely filled with the Holy Ghost." How can I do my work with success? I can conceive what a privilege it is to be led by the Spirit of God in all that I am doing. In studying my Bible, praying, visiting, organizing, or whatever I am doing, God is willing to guide me by His Holy Spirit. It sometimes becomes a humiliating experience to me that I am unwatchful, and do not wait for the blessing; when that is the case, God can bring me back again. But there is also the blessed experience of God's guiding hand, often through deep darkness, by His Holy Spirit. Let us walk about among the people as men of God, that we may not only preach about a book, and what we believe with our hearts to be true, but may preach what we are and what we have in our own experience. Jesus calls us witnesses for Him; what does that mean? The Holy Ghost brought down to heaven from men a participation in the glory and the joy of the exalted Christ. Peter and the others who spoke with Him were filled with this heavenly Spirit; and thus Christ spoke in them, and accomplished the work for them. O brethren, if you and I be Chris_LVALk>es most, but grace, and that it is the soul, led through its sinfulness to be occupied with God in His wonderful glory as God, as Creator and Redeemer, that will truly take the lowest place before Him.\par \par In these meditations I have, for more than one reason, almost exclusively directed attention to the humility that becomes us as creatures. It is not only that the connection between humility and sin is so abundantly set forth in all our religious teaching, but because I believe that for the fullness of the Christian life it is indispensable that prominence be given to the other aspect. If Jesus is indeed to be our example in His lowliness, we need to understand the principles in which it was rooted, and in which we find the common ground on which we stand with Him, and in which our likeness to Him is to be attained. If we are indeed to be humble, not only before God but towards men, if humility is to be our joy, we must see that it is not only the mark of shame, because of sin, but, apart from all sin, a being clothed upon with the very beauty and blessedness of heaven and of Jesus. We shall see that just as Jesus found His glory in taking the form of a servant, so when He said to us, "Whosoever would be first among you, shall be your servant," He simply taught us the blessed truth that there is nothing so divine and heavenly as being the st's we should take our places and claim our privilege. We are witnesses to the truth which we believe--witnesses to the reality of what Jesus does and what He is, by His presence in our own souls. If we are willing to be such witnesses for Christ, let us go to our God; let us make confession and surrender, and by faith claim what God has for us as ministers of the gospel and workers in His service. God will prove faithful. Even at this very moment, He will touch our hearts with a deep consciousness of His faithfulness and of His presence; and He will give to every hungering, trustful one that which we continually need.\par \par \pard\cf1\par } LVAL ?{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\sl240\slmult1\lang2058\b\f0\fs22 The Deeper Christian Life\par an Aid to its Attainment\par By Andrew Murray\par \b0\par \b VI. THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST\par \b0\par "But straightway Jesus spake unto them saying, Be of good cheer, it is I, be not afraid."--Matt. 14:27.\par \par All we have had about the work of the blessed Spirit is dependent upon what we think of Jesus, for it is from Christ Jesus that the Spirit comes to us; it is to Christ Jesus that the Spirit ever brings us; and the one need of the Christian life day by day and hour by hour is this,--the presence of the Son of God. God is our salvation. If I have Christ with me and Christ in me, I have full salvation. We have spoken about the life of failure and of the flesh, about the life of unbelief and disobedience, about the life of ups and downs, the wilderness life of sadness and of sorrow; but we have heard, and we have believed, there is deliverance. Bless God, He brought us out of Egypt, that He might bring us into Canaan, into the very rest of God and Jesus Christ. He is our peace, He is our rest. Oh, if I may only have the presence of Jesus as the victory over every sin: the presence of Jesus as the strength for every duty, then my life shall be in the full sunshine of God's unbroken fellowship, and the word will be fulfilled to me in most blessed experience, "Son, thou art ever with me, and all I have is thine," and my heart shall answer, "Father, I never knew it, but it is true,--I am ever with thee and all Thou hast is mine." God has given all He has to Christ, and God longs that Christ should have you and me entirely. I come to every hungry heart and say, "If you want to live to the glory of God, seek one thing, to claim, to believe that the presence of Jesus can be with you every moment of your life.\par \par I want to speak about the presence of Jesus as LVAL @it is set before us in that blessed story of Christ's walking on the sea. Come and look with me at some points that are suggested to us.\par \par 1. Think, first, of the presence of Christ lost. You know the disciples loved Christ, clung to Him, and with all their failings, they delighted in Him. But what happened? The Master went up into the mountain to pray, and sent them across the sea all alone without Him; there came a storm, and they toiled, rowed, and labored, but the wind was against them, they made no progress, they were in danger of perishing, and how their hearts said, "Oh, if the Master only were here!" But His presence was gone. They missed Him. Once before, they had been in a storm, and Christ had said, "Peace, be still," and all was well; but here they are in darkness, danger, and terrible trouble, and no Christ to help them. Ah, isn't that the life of many a believer at times? I get into darkness, I have committed sin, the cloud is on me, I miss the face of Jesus; and for days and days I work, worry, and labor; but it is all in vain, for I miss the presence of Christ. Oh, beloved, let us write that down,--the presence of Jesus lost is the cause of all our wretchedness and failure.\par \par 2. Look at the second step,--the presence of Jesus dreaded. They were longing for the presence of Christ, and Christ came after midnight: He came walking on the water amid the waves; but they didn't recognize Him, and they cried out, for fear, "It is a spirit!" Their beloved Lord was coming nigh, and they knew Him not. They dreaded His approach. And, ah, how often have I seen a believer dreading the approach of Christ,--cry