GODLY SORROW BETTER THAN FALSE JOY

"The soul realizes that nothing stands between it and hell except Christ; and rather than die she cries out to Him, willing to follow His direction.

I hope you do not think I limit the Holy One of Israel in working to the same degree and measure in everyone. But in all cases the humbling work of the Spirit must convince a person before peace and comfort come to empty the soul of false confidence which she has stored up. Then the heart becomes like a vessel whose bottom has been beaten out until all the water spills out. It hates sin it once loved. The hopes, which pleased and sustained her are gone and the person is left in a desolate and solitary condition.

The soul realizes that nothing stands between it and hell except Christ; and rather than die she cries out to Him, willing to follow direction. The soul is like a patient who is thoroughly convinced of her doctor's skill and care. This is what I call "the broken heart."

I beg you, though, not to rest until your conscience answers some questions. Was your wine once water? Does your light arise from darkness? Is your peace the product of soul-conflict and trouble? Did you bleed before your were healed? If so, bless God who has turned your mourning into dancing.

On the other hand, if you drank wine before your pots were ever filled with water; if your morning dawned before there was evening; if your peace was settled before your false peace was broken; if your conscience was sound and whole before it was lanced and drained of pride and carnal confidence-- you may possess short-lived peace. But Jesus denies all this to be His cure. It requires far more power to work true godly sorrow than false joy. You would be happier mourning from distress of a troubled conscience than dancing around the devil's idol of peace.

"As many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them" Galatians 6:16. Now "this rule" is the holy walk of the "new creature" according to God's Word (v. 15). The principles of grace planted in the believer's soul are as appropriate to it as the agreement between the eye and light.”

Quoted material from, ”The Christian in Complete Armour Daily Readings in Spiritual Warfare” by Gurnall and James S Bell. http://www.moodypublishers.com/pub_productDetail.aspx?id=41823&pid=53617

Armor of God Power Point

Ready-to-use PowerPoint presentation on the Armor of God from Ephesians 6:10 with more than 200 slides. Fully illustrated. Teacher's notes and reproducible handouts in PDF format on the disk. 

Topics Include
• Sword of spirit
• Breastplate of righteousness
• Gospel of peace Belt of truth
• Spiritual warfare
• Shield of faith
• Helmet of salvation

The Armor of God - Learn to "stand firm in the faith."

The Armor of God Power Point helps to bring Apostle Paul's message to the Ephesians (6:10-18) to life. This bestselling Power Point provides a historically accurate background of a Roman Centurion's armor then draws vital correlations to the spiritual armor God gives his children: the Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, Feet Prepared with the Gospel of Peace, The Shield of Faith, The Helmet of Salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit. Glossy, full-color Power Point will help you to "stand firm in the faith." 

Armor of God Power Point makes an excellent supplemental resource for these bestselling Christian authors titles:

• Kay Arthur, Lord, is it Warfare? Teach Me to Stand: A Devotional Study on Spiritual Victory
• Beth Moore, Armed for War, enhanced CD
• Dr. Charles F. Stanley, When the Enemy Strikes: The keys to Winning Your Spiritual Battles.

Click here for pricing and order information.

THE NEED FOR REPENTANCE

"Now as for laying a sure foundation for solid peace in your heart, you cannot complete it without prayers and tears-- I mean repentance. But by themselves, these remedies will never provide peace with God. Peace of conscience is nothing more than the echo of pardoning mercy which brings the soul into sweet rest as its pleasant music sounds in the conscience. This echo is only the same voice repeated; so if tears and prayers and good works cannot purchase our peace of pardon, they cannot effect the peace of comfort either. Remember what I have said-- you cannot have inner peace without these; but you cannot have it by them alone.

A common wound will hardly heal unless it is wrapped up from the open air and kept clean; yet these measures do not cure it-- the medicine does. I do not want you to stop praying and serving; just do not expect peace to grow only from their root. If you do rely on this you isolate yourself from any benefit of true peace, which the Gospel offers. One resists the other like two famous rivers in Germany, whose streams will not mingle when they meet.

Gospel peace will not merge with any other peace. You must drink it pure and undiluted or not at all. Speaking for himself and for all other believers, Paul testified, "We are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh" Philippians 3:3. He was declaring, "We do not fall behind in any holy duty or service. No, we go beyond them, because we worship God in the spirit; but even this is not the tap where we draw our joy and comfort. We rejoice in Christ Jesus, not in the flesh." Thus anything, which opposes Christ and our rejoicing in Him, Paul calls flesh

Quoted material from, ”The Christian in Complete Armour Daily Readings in Spiritual Warfare” by Gurnall and James S Bell. http://www.moodypublishers.com/pub_productDetail.aspx?id=41823&pid=53617

A HARVEST TIME OF JOY

"Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart Psalm 97:11.

Now God promises to bless His people with both outward and inward peace. It would be a sad place to have quiet streets but the cutting of throats inside our homes. Yet it would be even worse to have peace both in our streets and houses but war in our guilty consciences. Therefore Christ purchased the peace of pardon to obtain peace of conscience for His forgiven ones; and then He willed it to us in the promise: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you" John 14:27. There He both writes and executes His own will-- to give out with His hands what His love has bequeathed to believers. There is no fear, then--His will shall be performed to the fullest, seeing that He lives to get that done by the power of His Spirit.

"Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart" Psalm 97:11. It is planted in the believer when principles of grace and holiness are dropped into it by the Spirit of God. Thus it is called "the peaceable fruit of righteousness" Hebrews 12:11. It sprouts up as naturally from holiness as any fruit does from seed of its own kind. It is true that this seed ripens into fruit sooner in some than it does in others-- spiritual harvest does not take place at the same time in everyone. But here is the security-- whoever has a seed-time of grace in his heart will also have this harvest-time of joy.

God would not be keeping His promise if even one saint should go without his reaping time. "He that goes forth and weeps, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him" Psalm 126:6.  Now if you think the Gospel might be defective because a certain Christian's peace has not matured, know this-- it is on the way, and when it does come it will be everlasting. Do not focus on how the saint begins but how he ends. "Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace 
Psalm 37:36.

Quoted material from, ”The Christian in Complete Armour Daily Readings in Spiritual Warfare” by Gurnall and James S Bell. http://www.moodypublishers.com/pub_productDetail.aspx?id=41823&pid=53617

Armor Of God Wall Chart

Includes reproducible worksheets and teaching tips on back of this chart. Stand Firm in Faith!
This well-known passage from Ephesians 6:10-18 shows the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the shield of faith, and more, each with a scripture reference. 

Reproducible worksheets on the back help students apply the principles of spiritual warfare. One worksheet includes an elementary age craft. 19" x 26". 
Heavy chart paper. Many posters of the Armor of God show armor from the Middle Ages, not from the time of the Bible. 

This chart has historically accurate Roman armor. This is important to teaching and understanding this portion of the Bible

Includes reproducible worksheets and teaching tips on back of this chart.

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The Armor of God

 Learn to "stand firm in the faith."
The Armor of God pamphlet helps to bring Apostle Paul's message to the Ephesians (6:10-18) to life. This bestselling pamphlet provides a historically accurate background of a Roman Centurion's armor then draws vital correlations to the spiritual armor God gives his children: the Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, Feet Prepared with the Gospel of Peace, The Shield of Faith, The Helmet of Salvation, and the Sword of the Spirit. Glossy, full-color pamphlet will help you to "stand firm in the faith." 
12 panels, fits inside most Bibles, 8.5 x 5.5 inches, unfolds to 33 inches long.

Learn to put on the full armor of God when facing temptations and struggles. The key to this best-selling pamphlet is the insights brought by Paul's knowledge of a Centurion's armor. Having a correct picture in mind is important to accurately teaching and understanding this portion of Scripture. While many other illustrations ofThe Armor of God show armor from the Middle Ages, or other time periods, the Rose illustration presents historically accurate Roman armor. In a side-by-side fold-out format, The Armor of God pamphlet describes each piece of armor, its historical background, and its application to our spiritual battles today.

The Apostle Paul knew how important it was for believers to understand the provision of spiritual armor that God made for them. Paul's teaching to the Church at Ephesus was born out of firsthand knowledge of Roman Centurions' armor. He saw them up close on many occasions.

CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR COPY

The Armor of God pamphlet provides the following information:

• A detailed description of the armor of God
• Historical background on how the armor was put on and its purpose
• The application of the armor to our lives today, such as how the "Belt of Truth" prepares believers to be truthful
• Other biblical passages
• Greek or Latin terms

The pamphlet also presents:

• The passage of Ephesians 6:10-18 verse-by-verse alongside an illustration of a Roman Centurion in full armor
• Background information on Paul, his missionary journey, and life in Ephesus
• A chart that helps believers stand firm in spiritual warfare by contrasting the "Devil's Schemes" with God's plan and the armor or weapon to combat it, and a Scriptural reference. For example: One of the Devil's schemes is LIES. God's plan/armor is Truth. Proverbs 14:25 would be a good reminder of God's plan

Armor of God pamphlet makes an excellent supplemental resource for these bestselling Christian authors titles:

• Kay Arthur, Lord, is it Warfare? Teach Me to Stand: A Devotional Study on Spiritual Victory
• Beth Moore, Armed for War, enhanced CD
• Dr. Charles F. Stanley, When the Enemy Strikes: The keys to Winning Your Spiritual Battles.

SOME DO NOT WALK IN GOSPEL TRUTH

“As many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them" Galatians 6:16. When peace is absent, then, can we blame the Gospel? No matter how superior the pen is, even in the hand of a skilled scribe, it will not write on wet paper. It is not the pen's fault, nor the hand's-- the problem is the paper.

If the heart of the saint-- no matter how famous and respected-- is defiled by a lust, which has not yielded to repentance, God's promise will not speak peace. This person has become a disorderly walker, and no joy and peace can reach him in his self-made prison. The Spirit knows how to use His rod of correction.

Many misunderstand the meaning of peace. As for those who walk as close to the Gospel as they can but still see no comfort, they may have peace and not realize it. The saint's true joy is not a giggling lightheadedness like the world's; true joy is real. The parlor where the Spirit of Christ entertains the Christian is an inner room, not a porch next to the street where everyone who passes by can smell the banquet. "A stranger does not intermeddle with his joy" Proverbs 14:10. Christ and the Christian may be having supper within, even though you have not seen a single dish go in, or heard the music which sounds so splendid to believers. You might assume this soul does not have peace because he has not hung out a conspicuous sign on his countenance announcing the peace which he has inside.

On the contrary, sometimes there is never more inward peace and comfort in a saint's heart than when his face is covered with tears. If you should hear a Christian moaning and sobbing about his sins you might go home thinking that Christianity is a melancholy, dismal religion. And yet the one you pity would not part with his sorrow for all the giddy joy the world gives away. There is a mystery in these tears which human understanding cannot resolve. 


Quoted material from, ”The Christian in Complete Armour Daily Readings in Spiritual Warfare” by Gurnall and James S Bell. http://www.moodypublishers.com/pub_productDetail.aspx?id=41823&pid=53617