G. T. Shedd, D. D.: One of the most remark. His omnipotence (vers. lxxxv. xlix. (Weekly Pulpit. God cares about everything that happens in our lives including the little things. He compasseth man's path, and his lying down, and is acquainted with all his ways. The text, however, itself, is its own guard. AugustineOn the Good of MarriagePrayer Out of the Deep. In the day when I cried Charles KingsleyOut of the DeepWherefore a Few Witnesses, which the Lord Deigns to Suggest to My Mind32. lxxxv. We cannot get away from God's presence. God's justice. Our relation toward such a God should be 1. Whence the material universe? You can speak to the mountain and it will give way (Mark 11:23). The Coming Andrew MurrayThe Ministry of IntercessionForasmuch as Each Man is a Part of the Human Race1. Forasmuch as each man is a part of the human race, and human nature is something social, and hath for a great and natural good, the power also of friendship; on this account God willed to create all men out of one, in order that they might be held in their society not only by likeness of kind, but also by bond of kindred. : The fact that God is always present and knows every minute trifle in our lives, and that His unerring judgment will assuredly take count of every detail of our character and our conduct, neither exaggerating nor omitting, but applying absolute justice; this truth is one of those which lose force from their very universality. But yet there is another, not less powerful than any, which deserves special mention. And this perpetual though not always conscious sense of God's presence would, no doubt, if we would let it have its perfect work, gradually act on our characters just as the presence of our fellow-men does. He prophesies that the kings of the earth shall praise God7. One man of God always feared death; but he might have spared himself his wretchedness, for he fell asleep one night in apparently excellent health, and died in his sleep. 1, 2. His discourse, the first which He delivered to His disciples at greater length, began from this. There is, therefore, nothing wrong in our forgetting that we are in the presence of God any more than there is anything foolish in our forgetting that we need air to breathe or light to see by, or that if we fall we may hurt ourselves: just in the same way as we very often, and quite rightly, forget that we are in the company of men who will take notice of our faults. The right state of mind plainly is to have the thought of God's presence so perpetually at hand that it shall always start before us whenever it is wanted. When I was young, I used to make a lot of wishes using wishing bones or when blowing out my birthday candles. If you look at it, you will see that there is in its bowels a full description of a true Christian. Thomas AquinasOn Prayer and The Contemplative LifeEpistle Xlvii. They cannot be numbered! It is a simple question of time; a simple question whether it shall come here in this world, where the blood of Christ "freely" flows, or in the future world, where "there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin."(W. David praises God for the truth of his word4. S. Augustine, Of the City of God, xix. (4)In the dark as well as the light.3. 3. (Isa. To reveal the supreme interest of human life. In short, to live with God is to be perpetually rising above the world; to live without Him is to be perpetually sinking into it, and with it, and below it. He professes his confidence in GodDictionary of Bible ThemesPsalm 138:86708predestination8125guidance, promise8441goalsPsalm 138:7-81265hand of GodLibraryFaith in PerfectionIn the opening, I must remark that this is not the heritage of all mankind. For that voice more readily penetrates the hearer's heart, which the speaker's life Leo the GreatWritings of Leo the GreatHow those that are at Variance and those that are at Peace are to be Admonished. Nor did God create these each by himself, and join them together as alien by birth: but He created the one St. But there are other reasons for the comparative neglect into which he has fallen. : While the Americans were blockading Cuba, several captains endeavoured to elude their vigilance by night, trusting that the darkness would conceal them as they passed between the American war-ships. You can speak to your womb and effect the promises of God concerning your womb through the spoken Word. The self-knowledge, remember, must come in the one way or the other. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven." v. 22). 2. If God makes your son His son also, what do you lose or what does he himself lose? Hoyt, D. D.)God's knowledge of manW. Justice, in this reference, is out of the question. The worst has been seen, and that too by the holiest of beings, and yet eternal glory is offered to us! It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Forasmuch as each man is a part of the human race, and human nature is something social, and hath for a great and natural good, the power also of friendship; on this account God willed to create all men out of one, in order that they might be held in their society not only by likeness of kind, but also by bond of kindred. Wherefore a few witnesses, which the Lord deigns to suggest to my mind, I proceed to mention, from out the teaching of Christ concerning humility, such as perhaps may be enough for my purpose. Does the Contemplative Life consist solely in the Contemplation of God, or in the Consideration St. If God makes your son His son also, what do you lose or what does he himself lose? God knows us, not relatively, but personally. Like the air we breathe, like the light we see, it involves a mystery that no man has ever solved. I will ask you three questions suggested by the words themselves, and according to your answer to these three questions, shall be Charles Haddon SpurgeonSpurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859Question of the Contemplative LifeI. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. "I do not see how I am to be perfected My nature is so vile." But in almost every case the dazzling rays of a searchlight frustrated the attempt, and the fugitives' vessel was captured by the Americans. The simple question, then, which meets us is, Wilt thou know thyself here, and now, that thou mayest accept and feel God's pity; or wilt thou keep within the screen, and not know thyself until beyond the grave, and then feel God's judicial wrath? It is perfectly plain from the elevated central point of view where we now stand, and in the focal light in which we now see, that no man can be justified before God upon the ground of personal character; for that character, when subjected to God's exhaustive scrutiny, withers and shrinks away. But in almost every case the dazzling rays of a searchlight frustrated the attempt, and the fugitives' vessel was captured by the Americans. In short, to live with God is to be perpetually rising above the world; to live without Him is to be perpetually sinking into it, and with it, and below it. 8). Our personal salvation depends on our answer to that question and our commitment to that answer. Forasmuch as each man is a part of the human race, and human nature is something social, and hath for a great and natural good, the power also of friendship; on this account God willed to create all men out of one, in order that they might be held in their society not only by likeness of kind, but also by bond of kindred. The proposals of that Covenant include its promises and its duties. I. Those who live much in refined and educated society acquire refinement insensibly. Denomination: What we are to understand by "that which concerneth me." In a declaration of faith, you are also speaking for all the elements in heaven to hear you, for everything on the earth to hear you and for all the forces and powers of darkness to hear you so they are all bound to cooperate with, surrender and submit to the Word of God. He must be prepared for the Kingdom that has been prepared for him Saint Bernard of ClairvauxSome Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of ClairvauxThat the Ruler Should be Always Chief in Action. He has suffered thus, partly from a certain obscurity in his style of writing, partly from the difficulty of the thoughts which he attempted to convey. Those who are always hearing pure and high principles set forth as the guides of life learn to value and to know them even faster than they can learn to live by them. He compasseth man's path, and his lying down, and is acquainted with all his ways. Those who live much in refined and educated society acquire refinement insensibly. OURSELVES. "This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. While the majority of the sermons listed below are "mine," several of them are sermons worked up by my dad, Frank Higginbotham, who preached over 60 years, and others were developed from seeds planted by various preachers I've heard throughout my lifetime. "Come, and let us return to the Lord: for He hath torn, and He will heal us. )God all-seeing:In the mythology of the heathen, Momus, the god of fault-finding, is represented as blaming Vulcan, because in the human form, which he had made of clay, he had not placed a window in the breast, by which whatever was done or thought there might easily be brought to light. 8). Verse 8. A broad confidence. Sermon Outlines. Those who live much in a court acquire courtly manners. The Coming Andrew MurrayThe Ministry of IntercessionForasmuch as Each Man is a Part of the Human Race1. There is no reason to mourn a son as lost who is a religious, still less to fear for his delicacy of constitution. cxxxviii. I will ask you three questions suggested by the words themselves, and according to your answer to these three questions, shall be Charles Haddon SpurgeonSpurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859Question of the Contemplative LifeI. And how it would bless us! The brilliant searchlight sweeping the broad ocean and revealing even the smallest craft on its surface is but a faint type of the Eternal Light from which no sinner can hide his sin. Rom. Like the air we breathe, like the light we see, it involves a mystery that no man has ever solved. It did not look very likely, but since such was the Eternal purpose, there was no keeping the son of Jesse out of the throne. Ps. xviii. "Thou hast made me: I reverently challenge Thee to complete Thy work." S. Augustine, Of the City of God, xix. We cannot live long with men without catching something of their manner, of their mode of thought, of their character, of their government of themselves. [2105] And these without all controversy we take to be humble. AugustineOn the Good of MarriagePrayer Out of the Deep. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius John Edgar McFadyenIntroduction to the Old TestamentLinksPsalm 138:8 NIVPsalm 138:8 NLTPsalm 138:8 ESVPsalm 138:8 NASBPsalm 138:8 KJVPsalm 138:8 Bible AppsPsalm 138:8 ParallelPsalm 138:8 Biblia ParalelaPsalm 138:8 Chinese BiblePsalm 138:8 French BiblePsalm 138:8 German BiblePsalm 138:8 CommentariesBible Hub, (2)Unseen world.(3)Everywhere. If you look at it, you will see that there is in its bowels a full description of a true Christian. That of a prayerful seeking of the Divine guidance (ver. 13-18). )PeopleDavid, PsalmistPlacesJerusalemTopicsAbandon, Accomplish, Age, Chief, Complete, Concerneth, Concerns, David, Endures, Endureth, Eternal, Everlasting, Fall, Forever, Forsake, Fulfil, Fulfill, Hands, Kindness, Love, Loving, Lovingkindness, Loving-kindness, Mercy, Musician, O, Perfect, Psalm, Purpose, Steadfast, WorksOutline1. The former are made and fulfilled by its glorious Originator; the latter are enjoined and obligatory on man. The self-knowledge, remember, must come in the one way or the other. 13-16).4. GOD ACCURATELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY KNOWS ALL THAT MAN KNOWS OF HIMSELF. OURSELVES. He must be prepared for the Kingdom that has been prepared for him Saint Bernard of ClairvauxSome Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of ClairvauxThat the Ruler Should be Always Chief in Action. When I loved people, and poured out my life, Jesus was doing that through me. Psalm 138:8 This is a message that grips my heart because I have every reason to believe that the LORD desires to perfect that which concerns His children. And this will generally be just when we are tempted to do wrong, or perhaps just when we are actually beginning to do it: some secret sin of which no one knows or dreams perhaps, some self-indulgence, which we dare not deny that God condemns. xviii. This is the communion with Him, and with Christ, which unquestionably helps the struggling, the penitent, the praying, more than anything else. Hear my prayer, O God; and hide not Thyself from my petition. lvii. Hoyt, D. D.: This psalm sings of I. iii. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven." The mercy of the creature was of yesterday; the mercy of Jehovah is from everlasting. He may be an uncommonly thoughtful person, and little of what is done within his soul may escape his notice; nay, we will make the extreme supposition that he arrests every thought as it rises, and looks at it; that he analyzes every sentiment as it swells his heart; that he scrutinizes every purpose as it determines his will; even if he should have such a thorough and profound self-knowledge as this, God knows him equally profoundly and equally thoroughly. But in almost every case the dazzling rays of a searchlight frustrated the attempt, and the fugitives' vessel was captured by the Americans. Hence Paul Leo the GreatWritings of Leo the GreatSense in Which, and End for which all Things were Delivered to the Incarnate Son. The Coming Andrew MurrayThe Ministry of IntercessionForasmuch as Each Man is a Part of the Human Race1. He learnt his theology, as we shall see, from Eastern authorities, and was not content to carry on and develop the traditional teaching of the West; and the disciple St. cxxxviii. vi. Though the transgressor is ignorant of much of his sin, because, at the time of its commission, he sins blindly as well as wilfully, and unreflectingly as well as freely; and though the transgressor has forgotten much of that small amount of sin, of which he was conscious, and by which he was pained, at the time of its perpetration; though, on the side of man, the powers of self-inspection and memory have accomplished so little towards this preservation of man's sin, yet God knows it all, and remembers it all. We become unconscious of everything by long use. Those who are always hearing pure and high principles set forth as the guides of life learn to value and to know them even faster than they can learn to live by them. Whether he be at rest or in motion, in every posture and state, God knows him. St. Hilary of Poitiers is one of the greatest, yet least studied, of the Fathers of the Western Church. A Consolatory Letter to the Parents of Geoffrey. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven." The thought will flash across us that God sees us. 3. That of a prayerful seeking of the Divine guidance (ver. To reveal the supreme interest of human life. He is the perfect servant, the perfect minister, the perfect shepherd pastor-leader. Then is the moment to choose whether or not we will live in the presence of God; then when the finger of conscience is pointing to Him and saying, "He is looking at you. 1. When I preached or taught or wrote letters, that was Jesus at work in me. THE RESULT OF THIS CONFIDENCE. 18 " Ep., cxxx. 7 ad 3m II. v. 22). And this will generally be just when we are tempted to do wrong, or perhaps just when we are actually beginning to do it: some secret sin of which no one knows or dreams perhaps, some self-indulgence, which we dare not deny that God condemns. But while all held their peace, the Son [441] said, AthanasiusSelect Works and Letters or AthanasiusCovenant Duties. There is the full assurance that He will be at work still in order to complete that which He has commenced. Then is the moment to choose whether or not we will live in the presence of God; then when the finger of conscience is pointing to Him and saying, "He is looking at you. Is the Contemplative Life wholly confined to the Intellect, or does the Will enter into it? solely via the power of the Holy Spirit. He learnt his theology, as we shall see, from Eastern authorities, and was not content to carry on and develop the traditional teaching of the West; and the disciple St. This is living with God. That He will complete the work. I will ask you three questions suggested by the words themselves, and according to your answer to these three questions, shall be Charles Haddon SpurgeonSpurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859Question of the Contemplative LifeI. This is living with God. From the just we learn justice; from the charitable we catch an infection of charity; from the generous we receive the instinct of generosity. There is, therefore, nothing wrong in our forgetting that we are in the presence of God any more than there is anything foolish in our forgetting that we need air to breathe or light to see by, or that if we fall we may hurt ourselves: just in the same way as we very often, and quite rightly, forget that we are in the company of men who will take notice of our faults. Justice, in this reference, is out of the question. The strophe closes with a frank confession of the writer's impotence and awe. Chapter i. Hence Paul Leo the GreatWritings of Leo the GreatSense in Which, and End for which all Things were Delivered to the Incarnate Son. The law and covenant of God are co-extensive; and what is enjoined in the one is confirmed in the other. the regular habit of reading the Bible at a fixed time, the occasional reminders of ourselves that God is looking on, these are our chief means of learning to remember His presence. ad probam IV. The ruler should always be chief in action, that by his living he may point out the way of life to those that are put under him, and that the flock, which follows the voice and manners of the shepherd, may learn how to walk better through example than through words. )PeopleDavid, PsalmistPlacesJerusalemTopicsAbandon, Accomplish, Age, Chief, Complete, Concerneth, Concerns, David, Endures, Endureth, Eternal, Everlasting, Fall, Forever, Forsake, Fulfil, Fulfill, Hands, Kindness, Love, Loving, Lovingkindness, Loving-kindness, Mercy, Musician, O, Perfect, Psalm, Purpose, Steadfast, WorksOutline1. v. 14), the earth was cursed, Hades was opened, Paradise shut, Heaven offended, man, lastly, corrupted and brutalised (cf. The Coming Andrew MurrayThe Ministry of IntercessionForasmuch as Each Man is a Part of the Human Race1. But if that knowledge whereby man knows himself is mysterious, then certainly that whereby God knows him is far more so. Hoyt, D. D.: This psalm sings of I. He compasseth man's path, and his lying down, and is acquainted with all his ways. A Psalm by David. Wherefore a few witnesses, which the Lord deigns to suggest to my mind, I proceed to mention, from out the teaching of Christ concerning humility, such as perhaps may be enough for my purpose. If you look at it, you will see that there is in its bowels a full description of a true Christian. 18 " Ep., cxxx. He compasseth man's path, and his lying down, and is acquainted with all his ways. Gregory to Dominicus, Bishop of Carthage [1454] . AugustineOn the Good of MarriagePrayer Out of the Deep. 4. --The Life and Writings of St. Hilary of Poitiers. We do not agree with Momus, neither are we of his mind who desired to have a window in his breast that all men might see his heart. He compasseth man's path, and his lying down, and is acquainted with all his ways. And this perpetual though not always conscious sense of God's presence would, no doubt, if we would let it have its perfect work, gradually act on our characters just as the presence of our fellow-men does. He professes his confidence in GodDictionary of Bible ThemesPsalm 138:86708predestination8125guidance, promise8441goalsPsalm 138:7-81265hand of GodLibraryFaith in PerfectionIn the opening, I must remark that this is not the heritage of all mankind. 19-22).3. He will revive us."--HOS. Our relation toward such a God should be 1. There is no reason to mourn a son as lost who is a religious, still less to fear for his delicacy of constitution. There is, therefore, nothing wrong in our forgetting that we are in the presence of God any more than there is anything foolish in our forgetting that we need air to breathe or light to see by, or that if we fall we may hurt ourselves: just in the same way as we very often, and quite rightly, forget that we are in the company of men who will take notice of our faults. For if God's exhaustive knowledge of the human heart waken dread in one of its aspects, it starts infinite hope in another. So that whenever we are on the point of doing or saying anything cowardly, or mean, or false, or impure, or proud, or conceited, or unkind, the remembrance that God is looking on shall instantly flash across us and help us to beat down our enemy. lvii. It is perfectly plain from the elevated central point of view where we now stand, and in the focal light in which we now see, that no man can be justified before God upon the ground of personal character; for that character, when subjected to God's exhaustive scrutiny, withers and shrinks away. AugustineOf Holy Virginity. The word, "me," in the text, cannot be appropriated by any man, unless he, in some respects, resembles the character of David, who penned this psalm. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. "O Lord, revive Thy work in the midst of the years."--HAB. Psalm 138:8, KJV: The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands. But if that knowledge whereby man knows himself is mysterious, then certainly that whereby God knows him is far more so. The daily prayer in the closet, the endeavour to keep the attention fixed when praying with others, either in our regular services or in family worship. Ps. A Consolatory Letter to the Parents of Geoffrey. Thomas AquinasOn Prayer and The Contemplative LifeEpistle Xlvii. Thomas AquinasOn Prayer and The Contemplative LifeEpistle Xlvii. It is here proposed to show, that every incumbent duty ought, in suitable circumstances, to be engaged to in the exercise of Covenanting. The promise is not the foundation. And though we thought that we had suffered loss from the tardiness of their coming, yet we find gain from their more abundant charity; seeing that from this delay in point Saint Gregory the Greatthe Epistles of Saint Gregory the GreatThe Coming Revival"Wilt Thou not revive us again: that Thy people may rejoice in Thee?"--PS. He sees the whole of an object. 1. Corresponding judgments await those who, shrinking from that all-seeing eye, with a repugnance predominant and increasing, must abide its searchings for ever. [2105] And these without all controversy we take to be humble. GOD ACCURATELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY KNOWS ALL THAT MAN KNOWS OF HIMSELF. H a man mounted on wings, not those of the sun (Malachi 4:2), nor of the wind (Psalm 18:10), but of the dawn, and pursued the farthest flight westward, if he should fly with the same swiftness as the first rays of the morning shoot from one end of the heavens to the other, still he would not get beyond the Divine presence. OURSELVES. S. Augustine, Of the Perfection of Human Righteousness, viii. If that Being has gone down into these depths of human depravity, and seen it with a more abhorring glance than could ever shoot from a finite eye, and yet has returned with a cordial offer to forgive it all, and a hearty proffer to cleanse it all away, then we can lift up the eye in adoration and in hope. OURSELVES. He prophesies that the kings of the earth shall praise God7. Does the Contemplative Life consist solely in the Contemplation of God, or in the Consideration St. Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever: forsake not the works of Your own hands." Psalm 138:8 I HAVE selected this text, or, rather, it has been given to me to furnish a motto for the whole year to all the believing family of God now present. iii. The Coming Andrew MurrayThe Ministry of IntercessionForasmuch as Each Man is a Part of the Human Race1.