TFTD - November 2013

[Resource Manager]

01 November 2013

"Christ is our shining example of sincerity and truth; our minds must feed on him by a contemplation of what he is and what he has done for us. We feed on him when in lowly submission we habitually subject our thoughts, our wills and our desires to his authority, when our hearts and minds turn to him and find in him all the sustenance that we require. So if we imitate him and feed on him, our sincerity will be manifest, and we shall be able to endure the final light test without fear or distress."

- W.A. McLennan
Sincerity (1981)

[Resource Manager]

02 November 2013

"The work of "sound doctrine" is ... threefold: it is first to be the channel of God’s grace; secondly, the motive power of men’s response; and thirdly, the guide and governor of their course of action as a result of that response. By that doctrine, therefore, we examine ourselves as we come to be tested around the emblems of Christ’s love, knowing our shortcoming, but seeking him as we remember him where he is in our midst."

- L.G. Sargent
Sound Doctrine (1955)

[Resource Manager]

03 November 2013

"From Abraham to the Lord Jesus sheep have their part in the history of the Holy Land and are woven into the very texture of psalm, prophecy and parable. The hilly scenery of Judea, with streams in the valleys, rocky gorges then infested with beasts of prey, and upland grazing grounds, forms the background for the Shepherd Psalm; and the shepherd boy who wrote it was taken "from following the ewes great with young" to "feed Jacob the Lord’s people, and Israel his inheritance". And as such he was the forerunner of the Good Shepherd who came to seek and to save that which was lost."

- John Carter
Sheep in Israel (1955)

[Resource Manager]

04 November 2013

"The influence of the Scriptures upon our minds as we read them daily tends to give us the power to discriminate; they give us the sound mind of which the apostle Paul speaks, which enables us to see when a certain principle applies and when another principle applies. It gives us the power to discern between good and evil. We have our senses exercised by reason of use, in regard to spiritual things."

- W.H. Dean
Rightly Dividing the Word (1923)

[Resource Manager]

05 November 2013

"So complete is the spirit of unity between the Father and the Son that Jesus could say, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth." (Matthew 28:18). All power-the power of the Father residing in the Son, the power to know all about tomorrow, even the tomorrows of all his friends, even our tomorrows. Nor was it to his immediate followers only that Jesus said, "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." (Matthew 28:20) It is equally an assurance to us all of the offer of his constant companionship; of his never failing awareness of our needs. It is a promise again that we can be quite without fear because he knows the future for each one of us and wants nothing more than that we shall all be with him in the great tomorrow of his Father’s purpose. Was it not to this end that he gave his life? Is not this the essence of the great Shepherd Psalm? It is full of the promise of guidance and protection, of the dispelling of fear, no matter how dark the way, and finally "I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever." (Psalm 23:6)"

- W.W. Gillingham
Boast not Yourself of Tomorrow (1978)

[Resource Manager]

06 November 2013

"If we ask what is the divine object in thus dealing with mankind, we can find an answer in the Bible. God formed the earth not in vain. He formed it to be inhabited (Isaiah 45.). "God has made all things and for his pleasure they are and were created" (Revelation 4:11). In the final result, then, nothing will endure except that which is in harmony with God. Men sometimes ask foolish questions and pass presumptuous criticisms in this matter. They ask why should not God have made beings immortal and perfect from the beginning without any period of trial and trouble. It is like asking for a picture with great light effects but without any shadows. It is asking for men and women with well developed characters but without any of the experience that gives character."

- Islip Collyer
The Father in Heaven (1924)

[Resource Manager]

07 November 2013

"Remember that the Truth only becomes potent and powerful to save, when, in the form of mental impression, it is drawn from the written Word and deposited in the mind of the believer, where it becomes the driving force in producing righteous thoughts, words and deeds. Reflect also upon this truly comforting thought: that a godlike character formed by the rich, profound indwelling love of Christ cannot be destroyed. It is imperishable."

- P.O. Barnard 
The Light and the Windows (1945)

[Resource Manager]

08 November 2013

"The blessings of love and forgiveness flow to us through the channel of faith in the message of the Gospel of Christ and by God’s acceptance of us through Jesus. Forgiveness comes to the believer when he personally seeks and asks for it in the way appointed by God. Forgiveness is certain: but it is not automatic. There is forgiveness with God, but it is not bestowed on men without their knowledge and cooperation. Such a thing would be true if redemption were the erasure of a debt, or a substitutionary transaction which had totally removed the necessity for us to seek forgiveness. The Bible approach is much simpler and much more satisfying. Forgiveness comes to the man who believes the Gospel, repents and is baptized in the name of Christ."

- Harry Tennant
The Christadelphians: What They Believe and Preach

[Resource Manager]

09 November 2013

"The achievement of complete fulfilment is for Jesus alone, and none of us can emulate his full success. Nevertheless, there is a sense in which we can attain to a kind of completeness. To each of us there is open a maximum of spiritual growth consistent with the gifts which we have. By insistently placing ourselves under the influences which tend to the production of the fruit of the spirit and by reaching forth into the sunlight of the divine goodness we can, by His blessing, yield fruit approximating to the best of which we are capable. We can feel more and more as the years pass by that our lives are not being frustrated, but, despite much weakness and many blemishes, are following after that perfect life of Jesus, which, in the mercy of God, will make up all our deficiencies in the last day."

- F.E. Mitchell
Last Words (1943)

[Resource Manager]

10 November 2013

"The whole picture that we have in the Scriptures of the life of the acceptable servant of Christ is one of action. We are compared to soldiers, fighting the good fight of faith, that we may lay hold on eternal life. We are described as runners; we are told to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. We are exhorted to be constant, to press toward the mark for the prize of our high calling in Christ Jesus."

- Carl C. Wolfe
The Two Seas (1957)

[Resource Manager]

11 November 2013

"The rudiments of the first principles of the oracles of God" Hebrews 5:12 R.V.

"Without knowledge of God faith has no object, hope no ground, love no true direction. For the development of all these qualities there must be learning in the word. Yet the study of those deeper things unfolded in the Letter to the Hebrews is not an end in itself. It is a means to an end, and the end is full growth, which means growth of the whole personality, exercised and experienced in the life in Christ. That growth will be manifested in deepening faith, strengthening hope, and increasing love, with the power of endurance which comes from them. This is the true maturity: this is the genuine product of knowledge."

- L.G. Sargent
The Full Grown Man (1969)

[Resource Manager]

12 November 2013

"We work in a small compass, each according to circumstance and ability, but our prayers can be large. We need to enlarge our vision to equal that of the Son of God and see a world oppressed and in travail. If we think of human suffering spread over six millennia, we shall feel a more urgent desire within us, that all the kindreds of the earth may be drawn to that banner of the root of Jesse. For "his rest shall be glorious"."

- Elwyn Humphreys
The Father Seeketh Such ... (1974)

[Resource Manager]

13 November 2013

"When the faithful sheep have followed their master through trial, tribulation, or beside sweet pastures and living waters, wherever he had led them, trusting in him through storm and sunshine, comes the blessed rest which remaineth to the people of God ... and it surely will be "Come you blessed of my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you. Enter you into the joy of your Lord."  (Matthew 25:34, 23)"

- A. Mellor
The Good Shepherd (1929)

[Resource Manager]

14 November 2013

"Sometimes like the wise men we stray, wandering in darkness when the star is not seen. Sometimes like them we feel the need of guidance, and mayhap seek it inadvertently in the wrong place. Yet if we persevere in our course, ever determined to reach the journey’s end, God’s mercy will be upon us, and in the midst of our groping, the star will shine again, shedding its heavenly light upon our way. In the end it will bring us, not to the place where a young child is, but to the presence of the king."

- F.E. Mitchell
Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh (1943)

[Resource Manager]

15 November 2013

"Let us not be taken unprepared, unawares: of course we shall be taken with astonishment and wonder when we see him, for we, like those before, have preconceived notions of what the Coming of the Son of Man will mean. But let us prepare ourselves for the day of glorious surprise, that day of which Paul writes, "when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe" (2 Thessalonians 1:10)."

- John Morris
Many Were Astonied (1983)

[Resource Manager]

16 November 2013

"If we open the shutters in the morning the light will pour in. We do not need to beseech it to do so: it will pour in if we let it. It is so with the peace of God: it will rule in our hearts if only we will let it: "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him" (Psalm 37:7)."

- Claud Lamb
The Fruit of the Spirit (1980)

[Resource Manager]

17 November 2013

"Obedience for the Christian can never be understood apart from freedom. He obeys because he loves God and His Purpose in giving His Son as a means of redemption. There is nothing compulsory in Christian obedience; rather is it something that is offered in willing service and in freedom of action. We love God, because He first loved us. Freedom has been granted us, and we rejoice in the liberty of the Gospel."

- David J. Greathead
Obedience (1972)

[Resource Manager]

18 November 2013

"Christ loves us, do we love him? Perhaps we should prefer to answer as did Peter, “Thou knowest that I love Thee.” Yes, Christ does know if we love him. But can we know if we love him for our own assurance? Yes, we can. He has supplied the test by which we can assure our hearts that we do. We can personally measure ourselves by this test. It is–Do we love each other as Christ has loved us? Is it our desire and do we try? If we do then we love Christ, for this is his commandment, and those who love him keep his commandments."

- G.S. Sherry
Love Ye One Another as I have Loved You (1936)

[Resource Manager]

19 November 2013

"In his last prayer Christ prayed that we might be sanctified through the truth; therefore, "follow holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14)"

- G.T. Fryer
Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness (1943)

[Resource Manager]

20 November 2013

"We wait earnestly for that wedding day, watching with loving anticipation for the appearance of the Bridegroom. What a thrill we shall have when the cry goes forth ­- "The Lord has come!" For those of us who may fall asleep, what a glorious awaking! Until he come we endeavour to be like him, so that he may see in us some resemblance of himself and acknowledge us as part of his Bride."

- David Rowe
The Marriage Feast

[Resource Manager]

21 November 2013

"Love one another": for God is love; and Jesus himself had come among men to show them in his own person the reality and nature of God’s love. How could the community he founded be truly his and a faithful witness to his Father if it was not also within itself a corporate embodiment of the same kind of love? Such is Jesus’ own argument: "Love one another, as I have loved you ... By this shall all men know that you are my disciples."

- Neville Smart
Love One Another (1963)

[Resource Manager]

22 November  2013

"Life in Christ was all that Paul cared for. True life is about imbibing all the principles which Christ stood for, of absorbing his attitudes and priorities, of feeding upon all that he lived and died for. Just as Christ could have said, "To me to live is God" (in effect, Jesus did say this: see Luke 1:49; 22:42; John 5:30; 6:38), so all his followers must seek to make him and his Father the centre of their lives. It should be true of us, that "those who live ... live no longer for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised" (2 Corinthians 5:15)."

- Tecwyn Morgan
Studies in John (1990)

[Resource Manager]

23 November 2013

"We are called to be partakers with him in his kingdom. By the gospel, we are asked to prepare for a place among those who will share his throne, who will exercise with him power over the nations, and possess the glory, honour, and immortality of the kingdom which has been in purpose, prospect, and preparation from the foundation of the world. We have accepted the invitation, and having, like Abraham, embraced the promises, like him, we confess, that meanwhile we are strangers and pilgrims upon the earth."

- Robert Roberts
A Town Hall Address (1884)

[Resource Manager]

24 November 2013

"There is no mystery about "walking in the Spirit." It means simply, obeying God. By remembering Christ, by contemplating his obedience, his perfection, his implicit trust in God, we may become, as he did, "of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord"; and to every enticement with which we may be faced, we shall be able to give an unhesitating reply "It is written ..."

"Blessed is the man that endures trial: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to them that love him." (James 1:12)"

- N.L. Evans
Temptation (1942)

[Resource Manager]

25 November 2013

"The apostle said that glory was one of the things sought by those who patiently continued in well doing. The glory is God’s glory. Moses asked to see the glory of God. He was not shown the features of God, but he heard the glory of God in the announcement of his attributes. "The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth." The patience which continues shows all these attributes of God in a reflected image of this man’s maker; he becomes finally a manifestation of the glory of God.

"Let patience have her perfect work": the fruit unto holiness, and the end—everlasting life."

- F.W. Barnett
Patient Continuance (1961)