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. Does the Contemplative Life consist solely in the Contemplation of God, or in the Consideration St. : 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. You have a plan on hand. The duties of that Covenant are God's law; and the demands of the law are all made John CunninghamThe Ordinance of CovenantingIntroduction. For which of us has a flawless record of submission to the Divine purpose? 7 ad 3m II. The worst has been seen, and that too by the holiest of beings, and yet eternal glory is offered to us! "I dwell with him that is of a humble and contrite heart, to revive the heart of the contrite ones."--ISA. The Lord Will Perfect That Which Concerns Me. N.T. Hoyt, D. D.)God's knowledge of manW. Being rich he becomes richer; being already high born, of still nobler lineage; being illustrious, he gains greater renown; and--what is more than all--once a sinner he is now a saint. Further, what strong guarantees I have thus to believe I The honor of the Divine Name is pledged to keep those who trust in him; the atonement of the Lord Jesus - for will be not ' with him also freely give us all things'? 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. 23, 24). able characteristics of a rational being is the power of self-inspection. 2. 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. "But how do you know all this? And here let us look upon the bright as well as the dark side of this subject. When David said the lord will perfect that which concerns him, David wasn't saying how I wish the lord perfect that which concerns me. 3. 13-16).4. 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. 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. His omnipotence (vers. Being rich he becomes richer; being already high born, of still nobler lineage; being illustrious, he gains greater renown; and--what is more than all--once a sinner he is now a saint. 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. 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. David praises God for the truth of his word4. 7 ad 3m II. "Though I walk in the midst of trouble, Thou wilt revive me: Thy right hand shall save me."--PS. Those who live much in refined and educated society acquire refinement insensibly. To Dominicus, Bishop. "To church, sir," was the reply "What to do there?" To reveal the supreme interest of human life. The text, however, itself, is its own guard. 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. Letter Xliii a Consolatory Letter to the Parents of Geoffrey. The blood of atonement will never fail. 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. 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. 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. II. xlix. 7. 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. The Lord Will Perfect That Which Concerns Me 2 | SermonAudio 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. Because Thou "wilt perfect"; therefore "forsake not the works of Thine own hands." Hoyt, D. D.)God's knowledge of manW. GOD ACCURATELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY KNOWS ALL THAT MAN MIGHT, BUT DOES NOT, KNOW OF HIMSELF. He must be prepared for the Kingdom that has been prepared for him Saint Bernard of ClairvauxSome Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux, That the Ruler Should be Always Chief in Action. Our hearts will put us in mind of God's eye being upon us every now and then involuntarily. 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. 1, 2. There is no reason to mourn a son as lost who is a religious, still less to fear for his delicacy of constitution. Like the air we breathe, like the light we see, it involves a mystery that no man has ever solved. vi. 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, (4)In the dark as well as the light.3. AugustineOf Holy Virginity. But in almost every case the dazzling rays of a searchlight frustrated the attempt, and the fugitives' vessel was captured by the Americans. And now you that are afraid about the future, rest with us in this sweet promise. 1. iii. 8). AugustineOf Holy Virginity. Mercy must be the theme of our song here; and mercy enduring for ever must be the subject of the sonnets of paradise. The separate, personal thinking of God toward every one of us.(1)Innumerable.(2)Constant.II. Thomas AquinasOn Prayer and The Contemplative LifeEpistle Xlvii. If God makes your son His son also, what do you lose or what does he himself lose? He will revive us."--HOS. 12), while the devil was exulting against us;--then God, in His loving-kindness, not willing man made in His own image to perish, said, Whom shall I send, and who will go?' 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. Is the Contemplative Life wholly confined to the Intellect, or does the Will enter into it? People Listen In Different Wayscan You Reach All Of Them? 7. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius, The Saints' Final Perseverance Secured by the Mercy of God, The saints' final perseverance secured by the mercy of God, David praises God for the truth of his word, He prophesies that the kings of the earth shall praise God. To reprove some prevalent impieties in human conduct.(1)Atheism.(2)Indifferentism.3. 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. lvii. What encouragement the sinner has to seek God, seeing He is a God of such mercy. A Consolatory Letter to the Parents of Geoffrey. 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? 1216141335123 . If you look at it, you will see that there is in its bowels a full description of a true Christian. 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. OURSELVES. But we dont seem to see changes in that problem or issue because most times for the situations we find ourselves in, it is not just God we need to talk to. "(Archbishop Temple. Does the Contemplative Life comprise many Acts? Now, in this condition of things, God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him might not perish, but have everlasting life. vi. Nay, more, this process of self-inspection may go on indefinitely, and the man grow more and more thoughtful, and obtain an everlastingly augmenting knowledge of what he is and what he does, so that it shall seem to him that he is penetrating so deeply into those dim and shadowy regions of consciousness where the external life takes its very first start, and then he may be sure that God understands the thought that is afar off, and deep down, and that at this lowest range and plane in his experience he besets him behind and before.II. That of a prayerful seeking of the Divine guidance (ver. The faith of that Centurion He on this account chiefly praised, and said St. 10But the angel said . And lest the presence of God should be too much for us, Christ has taken human nature on Him, and has provided that He will be always with us as long as the world shall last. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. )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. In my trouble I will call upon the Lord, and complain unto my God; so shall He hear my voice out of His holy temple, and my complaint shall come before Him; it shall enter even into His ears.--Ps. IN WHAT DID IT ISSUE? One of my favorite scriptures is this confession from the psalmist David: "The LORD will perfect that which concerns me" (Psalm 138:8, NKJV). And lest the presence of God should be too much for us, Christ has taken human nature on Him, and has provided that He will be always with us as long as the world shall last. He will revive us."--HOS. G. T. Shedd, D. D.)God's presenceArchbishop Temple. But there are other reasons for the comparative neglect into which he has fallen. Like the air we breathe, like the light we see, it involves a mystery that no man has ever solved. That of welcoming the Divine searching (vers. But if that knowledge whereby man knows himself is mysterious, then certainly that whereby God knows him is far more so. In a sermon preached before the Virginia Company in 1610 William Crashaw advanced a range of arguments to justify the Virginia enterprise. In my trouble I will call upon the Lord, and complain unto my God; so shall He hear my voice out of His holy temple, and my complaint shall come before Him; it shall enter even into His ears.--Ps. 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. (Isa. GOD ACCURATELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY KNOWS ALL THAT MAN KNOWS OF HIMSELF. The separate, personal thinking of God toward every one of us.(1)Innumerable.(2)Constant.II. ID. Does the Contemplative Life consist solely in the Contemplation of God, or in the Consideration St. )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. "Thou hast made me: I reverently challenge Thee to complete Thy work." 23, 24). 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. 12), while the devil was exulting against us;--then God, in His loving-kindness, not willing man made in His own image to perish, said, Whom shall I send, and who will go?' The worst has been seen, and that too by the holiest of beings, and yet eternal glory is offered to us! Do the Moral Virtues pertain to the Contemplative Life? Rom. David praises God for the truth of his word4. 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. But in almost every case the dazzling rays of a searchlight frustrated the attempt, and the fugitives' vessel was captured by the Americans. Those who live much in refined and educated society acquire refinement insensibly. Does the Contemplative Life comprise many Acts? Does the Contemplative Life comprise many Acts? And lest the presence of God should be too much for us, Christ has taken human nature on Him, and has provided that He will be always with us as long as the world shall last. )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. GOD ACCURATELY AND EXHAUSTIVELY KNOWS ALL THAT MAN KNOWS OF HIMSELF. 19-22).3. "Thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever." The separate, personal thinking of God toward every one of us.(1)Innumerable.(2)Constant.II. Letter Xliii a Consolatory Letter to the Parents of Geoffrey. 1, 2. Differently to be admonished are those that are at variance and those that are at peace. Hilary of PoitiersThe Life and Writings of St. Hilary of PoitiersPsalmsThe piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. That of a prayerful seeking of the Divine guidance (ver. vi. For it is written, But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace (Gal. The self-knowledge, remember, must come in the one way or the other. 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. 7 ad 3m II. 17, 18).2. : 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. And some will pass through great affliction and some will experience a great many wants. For those that are at variance are to be admonished to know most certainly that, in whatever virtues they may abound, they can by no means become spiritual if they neglect becoming united to their neighbours by concord. He is a man like ourselves; but as we look on him, we note how bright his eye, how radiant his countenance, how calm yet how joyous his tone, how happy in his conviction he seems to be, as he keeps saying to himself, "The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me." It is here proposed to show, that every incumbent duty ought, in suitable circumstances, to be engaged to in the exercise of Covenanting. 17, 18).2. 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. 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. Hence Paul Leo the GreatWritings of Leo the GreatSense in Which, and End for which all Things were Delivered to the Incarnate Son. THE GROUND OF THIS CONFIDENCE GOD'S MERCY. 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. That of adoring and constantly thoughtful reverence (vers. Specially with His people. Letter Xliii a Consolatory Letter to the Parents of Geoffrey. Decision # 5: Choose Daily to Serve the Lord. 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. OURSELVES. But while all held their peace, the Son [441] said, AthanasiusSelect Works and Letters or AthanasiusCovenant Duties. Lectionary texts. cxxxviii. For the Chief Musician. 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. )God and ourselvesW. To follow Jesus means to take up his dream and work for it.".