1. The first and chief need of our Christian life is, Fellowship
with God.
The Divine life within us comes
from God, and is entirely dependent upon Him. As I need every
moment afresh the air to breathe, as the s sun every moment afresh
sends down its light, so it is only in direct living communication
with God that my soul can be strong.
The manna of one day was corrupt
when the next day came. I must every day have fresh grace from
heaven, and I obtain it only in direct waiting upon God Himself.
Begin each day by tarrying before God, and letting Him touch you.
Take time to meet God.
2. To this end, let your first act
in your devotion be a setting yourself still before God. In prayer,
or worship, everything depends upon God taking the chief place.
I must bow quietly before Him in humble faith and adoration, speaking
thus within my heart: "God is. God is near. God is love,
longing to communicate Himself to me. God the Almighty One, Who
worketh all in all, is even now waiting to work in me, and make
Himself known." Take time, till you know God is very near.
3. When you have given God His place
of honor, glory, and power, take your place of deepest lowliness,
and seek to be filled with the Spirit of humility. As a creature
it is your blessedness to be nothing, that God may be all in you.
As a sinner you are not worthy to look up to God; bow in self
abasement. As a saint, let God's love overwhelm you, and bow you
still lower down. Sink down before Him in humility, meekness,
patience, and surrender to His goodness and mercy. He will exalt
you. Oh! take time, to get very low before God.
4. Then accept and value your place
in Christ Jesus. God delights in nothing but His beloved Son,
and can be satisfied with nothing else in those who draw nigh
to Him. Enter deep into God's holy presence in the boldness which
the blood gives, and in the assurance that in Christ you are most
well-pleasing. In Christ you are within the veil. You have access
into the very heart and love of the Father. This is the great
object of fellowship with God, that I may have more of God in
my life, and that God may see Christ formed in me. Be silent before
God and let Him bless you.
5. This Christ is a living Person.
He loves you with a personal love, and He looks every day for
the personal response of your love. Look into His face with trust,
till His love really shines into your heart. Make His heart glad
by telling Him that you do love Him. He offers Himself to you
as a personal Saviour and Keeper from the power of sin. Do not
ask, can I be kept from sinning, if I keep close to Him? but ask,
can I be kept from sinning, if He always keeps close to me?
and you see at once how safe it is to trust Him.
6. We have not only Christ's life
in us as a power, and His presence with us as a person, but we
have His likeness to be wrought into us. He is to be formed in
us, so that His form or figure, His likeness, can be seen in us.
Bow before God until you get some sense of the greatness and blessedness
of the work to be carried on by God in you this day. Say to God,
"Father, here am I for Thee to give as much in me of Christ's
likeness as I can receive." And wait to hear Him say, "My
child, I give thee as much of Christ as thy heart is open to receive."
The God who revealed Jesus in the flesh and perfected Him, will
reveal Him in thee and perfect thee in Him. The Father loves the
Son, and delights to work out His image and likeness in thee.
Count upon it that this blessed work will be done in thee as thou
waitest on thy God, and holdest fellowship with Him.
7. The likeness to Christ consists
chiefly in two things--the likeness of His death and resurrection,
(Rom. 6:5). The death of Christ was the consummation of His humility
and obedience, the entire giving up of His life to God. In Him
we are dead to sin. As we sink down in humility and dependence
and entire surrender to God, the power of His death works in us,
and we are made conformable to His death. And so we know Him in
the power of His resurrection, in the victory over sin, and all
the joy and power of the risen life. Therefore every morning,
"present yourselves unto God as those that are alive from
the dead." He will maintain the life He gave, and bestow
the grace to live as risen ones.
8. All this can only be in the power
of the Holy Spirit, who dwells in you. Count upon Him to glorify
Christ in you. Count upon Christ to increase in you the inflowing
of His Spirit. As you wait before God to realize His presence,
remember that the Spirit is in you to reveal the things of God.
Seek in God's presence to have the anointing of the Spirit of
Christ so truly that your whole life may every moment be spiritual.
9. As you meditate on this wondrous
salvation and seek full fellowship with the great and holy God,
and wait on Him to reveal Christ in you, you will feel how needful
the giving up of all is to receive Him. Seek grace to know what
it means to live as wholly for God as Christ did. Only the Holy
Spirit Himself can teach you what an entire yielding of the whole
life to God can mean. Wait on God to show you in this what you
do not know. Let every approach to God, and every request for
fellowship with Him be accompanied by a new, very definite, and
entire surrender to Him to work in you.
10. "By faith" must here,
as through all Scripture, and all the spiritual life, be the keynote.
As you tarry before God, let it be in a deep quiet faith in Him,
the Invisible One, who is so near, so holy, so mighty, so loving.
In a deep, restful faith too, that all the blessings and powers
of the heavenly life are around you, and in you. Just yield yourself
in the faith of a perfect trust to the Ever Blessed Holy Trinity
to work out all God's purpose in you. Begin each day thus in fellowship
with God, and God will be all in all to you.
FILL THE VOID HOME YOUTH PAGE KID'S PAGE HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN HEAVEN or HELL? ONLINE BIBLE OUR MISSION HELP US TO SHARE THE GOSPEL CONTACT US