NOVEMBER 20 You have taken up my cause, O Lord; you have redeemed my life.(Lamentations 3:58) Observe how positively the prophet speaks. He does not say, “I hope, I trust, I sometimes think that God has taken up my cause”; instead, he speaks of it as a matter of fact that is not to be…

NOVEMBER 19 Avoid foolish controversies.(Titus 3:9) Our days are few and far better spent doing good than disputing over matters that are, at best, of minor importance. The old scholars did a world of mischief by incessantly discussing subjects of no practical importance, and our churches suffer too often from petty wars over obscure points…

NOVEMBER 18 A spring locked, a fountain sealed.(Song of Songs 4:12) In this metaphor, which has reference to the inner life of a believer, we have very plainly the idea of secrecy. It is “a spring locked.” Just as there were springs in the East over which an edifice was built, so that no one…

November 14And I will cut off from this place … Those who bow down and swear to the Lord and yet swear by Milcom.(Zephaniah 1:4-5) These people thought they were safe because they were with both parties: they went with the followers of Jehovah and bowed at the same time to Milcom. But duplicity is…

NOVEMBER 13 The branch cannot bear fruit by itself.(John 15:4) How did you begin to bear fruit? It was when you came to Jesus, cast yourself on His great atonement, and rested on His finished righteousness. What fruit you had then! Do you remember those early days? Then the vine flourished, the tender grape appeared,…

NOVEMBER 11 Underneath are the everlasting arms.(Deuteronomy 33:27) God—the eternal God—is Himself our support at all times, and especially when we are sinking in deep trouble. There are seasons when the Christian sinks very low in humiliation. Under a deep sense of his great sinfulness, he is humbled before God until he hardly knows how…

NOVEMBER 10 It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher. (Matthew 10:25) No one will dispute this statement, for it would not be proper for the pupil to be exalted above his Teacher. When our Lord was on earth, what was the treatment He received? Were His claims acknowledged, His instructions followed,…

NOVEMBER 9 So walk in him.(Colossians 2:6) If we have received Christ Himself in our inmost hearts, our new life will display its intimate acquaintance with Him by a walk of faith in Him. Walking implies action. Our Christian life is not to be confined to our closet; our belief must be revealed in our…

NOVEMBER 8 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord …(Colossians 2:6) The life of faith is represented as receiving—an act that implies the very opposite of anything like merit. It is simply the acceptance of a gift. As the earth drinks in the rain, as the sea receives the streams, as night accepts light…

NOVEMBER 7 Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.(Isaiah 49:16) Undoubtedly, part of the wonder concentrated in the word “Behold” is due to the contrast with the unbelieving lament of the preceding sentence. Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” How amazed the divine mind seems…