they find the desire to do evil is stronger, and they succumb to sin. The experience of the Apostle Paul is that of countless numbers of people. He said, “ the good that I would I do not; but the evil which I would not, that I do” (Rom. 7:19). Is there no way out? Must we be carried hither and thither, like drifting wood on the sea, by the fierce winds of tempta tion? No! There is a way out, for the Lord Jesus, the conqueror of Satan, is at hand to enable us to be more than conquerors in the fight. The Apostle Paul, who knew the misery of being in bondage to sin, dis covered with great joy the secret of victory and freedom. Trusting in Christ for salvation, living in union with Christ, he no longer followed the impulses of the flesh; he was empowered to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit both gave him power and direction so that he no longer walked after the flesh but “ after the spirit.” He was freed from the law of sin and death” and walked in newness of life (Romans 8:2). As he dwelt in Christ so the life, the power of Christ flowed into his life, giving him victory over self and sin. Paul, who as Saul of Tarsus, had lived a life of defeat could now give thanks to God for in Christ he had found the secret of victory. When we receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour and enter into a living union with Him we receive a new heart, new desires, a new outlook, a new pur pose, and we are inspired by new motives. The impossible becomes possible. A Meth odist minister in the East End of Lon don would walk home after the Sunday service with one of his office-bearers. He noticed that on reaching a certain public house the man would raise his hat in passing it. He asked him one day if there was any significance iii this action. “ Yes,” he replied, “ there was a time when I couldn’t pass that pub; it drew me as a magnet draws a steel. But through the grace of Christ I have been completely delivered from the love of alcohol. So I raise my hat as an acknowl edgment of gratitude to Christ for His saving and keeping power.” Through Christ we can go on from vic tory unto victory. The battle will not be won in a day, for there will come times when we will forget to keep our eyes fixed on Christ, but we shall no longer live a life of perpetual defeat. Though we may fall we shall rise saying to our enemy, as Bunyan’s Christian did when brought low by Apollyon, “ Rejoice not against me, 0 mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise” (Micah 7 :8). There is no need for any man or woman to live a defeated life. We can defeat the enemy of our souls if we are ready to confess our sinfulness, our helplessness and hope lessness, and in true humility trust entirely in Christ’s precious blood for pardon, for power to overcome the world, the flesh and the devil. Then life will begin anew and you will have cause to thank Him for His pardoning grace and overcoming power. It is still true that “He breaks the power of cancelled sin and sets the prisoner free.”
The Lighthouse of Love By John G. Ridley*
F OR God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). Martin Luther well called this verse “ the Bible in miniature,” the Word of God gathered up into one verse, which flashes like a priceless jewel in its vast and boundless beauty. To me, it is the lighthouse of Scripture —the lighthouse of love, for “ God is love.” Homeward bound many years ago, our transport passed through the Straits of Babelmandeb at night. I recall standing on the deck that misty, murky night as the wind roared through the rigging and
the choppy waves cracked against the sides of the ship. A gloomy feeling swept over my heart as we ploughed our way through those storm-tossed waters. Sud denly, far away in the distance, I saw a flash of light, and, in a few moments another flash, and so on, every few moments, flashes of light. It was a light house! It is hard to describe the delight given by those friendly flashes on that dark, dismal night in those dangerous waters. I thought of the guidance of that light to the officer on the bridge, and was comforted. That light brought a message to me. Not far away there was land, and all that land means to those tossed in “the cradle of the deep.” Thus, John 3:16 stands forth on the
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