"Therefore said I, Now will the Philistines come down upon me to Gilgal, and I have not entreated the favor of Jehovah: I forced myself, therefore, and offered the burnt-offering." - 1 Samuel 13:12
We know Saul was rejected by God because he was too zealous, too eager to offer sacrifice, too hasty in prayer. How manifold were his reasons for action; nevertheless, God in the meantime had sought for Himself a man after His own heart and had appointed him (David) to be prince over His people. The man the Lord desires is not one who is so hasty that he cannot wait. If the choice were left to us, we would undoubtedly incline towards people like Saul; for was he not an unusual man? He stood head and shoulders above all the people. Yet God does not seek for an unusual man, but a man after His own heart. May the aim of our service to the Lord not be so much a desiring to do great things so that we as well as others may be pleased, but may it be a touching of the heart of God in order that He may be delighted. Only people such as this will God use. He is looking for such people.
The Lord My Portion (Watchman Nee 主僕倪柝聲弟兄)
Read the Scriptures: 1 Samuel 13
Showing posts with label sacrifice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sacrifice. Show all posts
Monday, May 14, 2007
Monday, April 30, 2007
Sacrifice of Praise
"Through Him then let us offer a sacrifice of praise to God continually." - Hebrews 13:15
Praise of God is Satan's target. I do not say he does not oppose prayer; for you only have to start praying to God and sure enough, he intervenes. Yet even more does he assault the praises of God's children. He would gladly exert all his strength to prevent God receiving one word of praise, for if prayer is frequently a battle, praise is victory. At the sound of it Satan flees. I discovered this during the first two years of my Christian life, and have not ceased to rejoice in the peace of heart it has brought me.
Let us not, however, make the mistake of equating praise with joyfulness. Look at the Scriptures. It was out of the pressure upon his people that God drew forth so many of the songs that there delight us. He does not measure praise merely by its exuberance. For in its nature praise is sacrifice. Not only must we exalt His name when we stand on the summit and view the promised land; we must learn also to compose psalms of confidence in Him when we walk through the valley of the shadow. This is praise in truth.
The Joyful Heart (Watchman Nee 主僕倪柝聲弟兄)
Read the Scriptures: Hebrews 13
Praise of God is Satan's target. I do not say he does not oppose prayer; for you only have to start praying to God and sure enough, he intervenes. Yet even more does he assault the praises of God's children. He would gladly exert all his strength to prevent God receiving one word of praise, for if prayer is frequently a battle, praise is victory. At the sound of it Satan flees. I discovered this during the first two years of my Christian life, and have not ceased to rejoice in the peace of heart it has brought me.
Let us not, however, make the mistake of equating praise with joyfulness. Look at the Scriptures. It was out of the pressure upon his people that God drew forth so many of the songs that there delight us. He does not measure praise merely by its exuberance. For in its nature praise is sacrifice. Not only must we exalt His name when we stand on the summit and view the promised land; we must learn also to compose psalms of confidence in Him when we walk through the valley of the shadow. This is praise in truth.
The Joyful Heart (Watchman Nee 主僕倪柝聲弟兄)
Read the Scriptures: Hebrews 13
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