In the Old Testament, we find the idea that God enters into the sufferings of His people. "In all their afflictions, He was afflicted." The relation of God to the woes of the world is not that of a mere spectator. The New Testament goes further, and says that God is love. But that is not love which, in the presence of acute suffering, can stand outside and aloof. The doctrine that Christ is the image of the unseen God means that God does not stand outside.
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Feast of Hilda, Abbess of Whitby, 680 Commemoration of Elizabeth, Princess of Hungary, Philanthropist, 1231 Commemoration of Mechtild, Bèguine of read more
Feast of Hilda, Abbess of Whitby, 680 Commemoration of Elizabeth, Princess of Hungary, Philanthropist, 1231 Commemoration of Mechtild, Bèguine of Magdeburg, Mystic, Prophet, 1280 The Kingdom of Heaven is not for the well-meaning: it is for the desperate.
Feast of Stephen, Deacon, First Martyr There is not a heart but has its moments of longing, read more
Feast of Stephen, Deacon, First Martyr There is not a heart but has its moments of longing, yearning for something better; nobler; holier than it knows now.
The chief pang of most trials is not so much the actual suffering itself as our own spirit of resistance read more
The chief pang of most trials is not so much the actual suffering itself as our own spirit of resistance to it.
Belief in law is essential to the philosophical conception of prayer. If the universe were a mere chaos of chances, read more
Belief in law is essential to the philosophical conception of prayer. If the universe were a mere chaos of chances, or if it were a result of absolute necessity, there would be no place for intelligent prayer; but if it is under the control of a Lawgiver, wise and merciful, not a mere manager of material machinery, but a true Father of all, then we can come to such a Being with our requests -- not in the belief that we change His great plans, nor that any advantage could result from this if it were possible, but that these plans may be made in his boundless wisdom and love to meet our necessities.
Humiliation is the beginning of sanctification; and as without this, without holiness, no man shall see God, though he pore read more
Humiliation is the beginning of sanctification; and as without this, without holiness, no man shall see God, though he pore whole nights upon his Bible; so without that, without humility, no man shall hear God speak to his soul, though he hear three two-hour sermons every day.
Feast of John Keble, Priest, Poet, Tractarian, 1866 Sun of my soul, Thou Savior dear, It is not night read more
Feast of John Keble, Priest, Poet, Tractarian, 1866 Sun of my soul, Thou Savior dear, It is not night if Thou be near; O may no earth-born cloud arise To hide Thee from thy servant's eyes.
Wisdom is a sacred communion.
Wisdom is a sacred communion.
Commemoration of James Hannington, Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa, Martyr in Uganda, 1885 I fear that many people seek read more
Commemoration of James Hannington, Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa, Martyr in Uganda, 1885 I fear that many people seek to hear God solely as a device for securing their own safety, comfort and righteousness. For those who busy themselves to know the will of God, however, it is still true that "those who want to save their life will lose it." My extreme preoccupation with knowing God's will for me may only indicate, contrary to what is often thought, that I am overconcerned with myself, not a Christlike interest in the well-being of others or in the glory of God.
A conversion is incomplete if it does not leave one integrated into the Church. By this we do not mean read more
A conversion is incomplete if it does not leave one integrated into the Church. By this we do not mean any particular part of the Church; what we do mean is that conversion must leave one linked in loving fellowship with one's fellow believers. Conversion is not something simply between a man and Jesus Christ, with no other person involved. True, it may start in that way; but it cannot end in that way. Conversion is not individualistic. It is, in fact, just the opposite. It joins man to his fellow men, and certainly does not separate him from them. (Continued tomorrow).
