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| Excerpt from Thomas Brooks ~THE PRIVY KEY OF HEAVEN | | The cockatrice must be crushed
"Lust having conceived, brings forth sin." James 1:15
First, sin has its conceptionwhich is its delight; and then sin has its birthwhich is its action; and then sin has its growthwhich is its custom; and then sin has its endwhich is its damnation!
The very thought of sin, if but meditated on, will break forth into action; action into custom; custom into habit; and then both body and soul are irrecoverably lost to all eternity!
If the subtle Serpent can but wriggle in his tail by a sinful thought, he will soon get in his head by a worse action!
The cockatrice must be crushed in the egg, else it will soon become a serpent!
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| 2008/7/26 10:04 | | PaulWest Member
Joined: 2006/6/28 Posts: 3405 Dallas, Texas
| Re: Excerpt from Thomas Brooks ~THE PRIVY KEY OF HEAVEN | | Quote:
The very thought of sin, if but meditated on, will break forth into action; action into custom; custom into habit; and then both body and soul
Thanks for posting this. I've always regarded holy meditation as the rain that waters our thought-seeds into young saplings. The quote above by Thomas Brooks, the same principle can be applied to our holy thoughts; the seed being the Word of God planted in our hearts. If meditated upon, the seed can germinate into action, action then into custom, custom into habit, and at last we have the nourishing the body and soul, much the same as sap flowing from the unseen roots nourishes the leaves and bark of the tree.
We need to come to the place where we see the Holy Bible as a sack of holy seed; when we open the cover, it is as if we are opening a burlap sack and exposing the soil of our hearts to God's blessed seed. I have packets of cucumber and tomato and jalapeno seed that have been sitting in my utility room for over a year now, but they haven't sprouted in their paper envelopes, nor do I expect them to. But does this mean they are not alive? Likewise, the Word of God sits latent in our paper Bibles upon our shelves - though just as much alive as the fruit and vegetable seeds we have in our pantries that are awaiting implantation in soil and watering. When we do this, a miracle takes place!
In the flower pot, with water and sunlight, a living action suddenly beings that grows into a habit, then a gradual custom, and finally the vine itself. Brethren, the fruit is not far away after this... _________________ Paul Frederick West
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| 2008/7/26 10:31 | Profile |
| Re: | | Quote:
PaulWest wrote:
Quote:
In the flower pot, with water and sunlight, a living action suddenly beings that grows into a habit, then a gradual custom, and finally the vine itself. Brethren, the fruit is not far away after this...
That's encouraging thanks for sharing that.
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| 2008/7/26 15:30 | |
| Re: | | The secret kisses
When a Christian is in a wilderness, which is a very solitary place, then God delights to speak friendly and comfortably to him: Hosea 2:14, "Behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak friendly or comfortably to her," or as the Hebrew has it, "I will speak to her heart."
"When I have her alone," says God, "in a solitary wilderness, I will speak such things to her heart, as shall exceedingly cheer her, and comfort her, and even make her heart leap and dance within her." Certainly the soul usually enjoys most communion with God in secret.
A husband imparts his mind most freely and fully to his wife when she is alone; and so does Christ to the believing soul. Oh . . . the secret kisses, the secret embraces, the secret visits, the secret whispers, the secret cheerings, the secret sealings, the secret discoveries, which God gives to His people when in secret prayer.
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| 2008/7/27 9:35 | |
| Re: | | Oh remember
Oh remember that at such a time you went into your prayer closets with hard hearts, and dry eyes; but before you came out of your closets, ah, how sweetly, how graciously, how powerfully were you melted, and humbled before the Lord!
Oh remember how that at another time you went into your closets clouded and benightedbut came out of your closets with as glorious a shine of God upon your souls, as Moses had upon his face, when he came down from the mount from communing with God!
Oh remember how often you have gone into your closets with cold, frozen spiritsbut before you came out of your closets, what a fire has God kindled in your souls, what a spirit of burning have you found in your hearts!
Oh remember how often you have gone into your closets straitened and shut upbut before you have come out, how have your souls been aflame!
Oh remember what power God has given you against corruptions in your closets, and what strength God has given you against temptations in your closets!
Oh remember the sweet discoveries of divine love that you have had when in your closets! Oh remember the secret visits, the secret kisses, the secret embraces, the secret whispers, the secret love-tokens, that Christ has given you in your closets!
Oh seriously ponder upon these things, and then closet duties will be sweet unto you!
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| 2008/7/28 7:44 | |
| Re: | | All Christians have their secret sins. Secret not only from other menbut from himself! It is but natural for every man to err, and then to be ignorant of his errors. Every man's sins are beyond his understanding. There is not the best, the wisest, nor the holiest man in the worldwho can give a full and entire list of his sins.
"Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults." Psalm 19:12
"Who can understand his errors?" This interrogation has the force of an affirmation: "Who can?" No man! No, not the most perfect and innocent man in the world!
O friends! who can reckon up . . . the secret sinful imaginations, the secret sinful inclinations, the secret pride, the secret blasphemies, the secret hypocrisies, the secret atheistical risings, the secret murmurings, the secret repinings, the secret discontents, the secret insolencies, the secret filthinesses, the secret unbelievings, which God might every day charge upon his soul?
Should the best and holiest man on earth have but his secret sins written on his forehead, it would not only put him to a crimson blushbut it would make him pull his hat over his eyes, or cover his face with a double scarf!
"Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults." Psalm 19:12
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| 2008/7/28 20:22 | | PaulWest Member
Joined: 2006/6/28 Posts: 3405 Dallas, Texas
| Re: | | Quote:
Should the best and holiest man on earth have but his secret sins written on his forehead, it would notonly put him to a crimson blush but it would make him pull his hat over his eyes, or cover his face with a double scarf!
Or in my case, a paper bag of shame. Lord God, cleanse me from secret faults, secret thoughts. How I despise myself and yearn to be freed from the flesh. _________________ Paul Frederick West
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| 2008/7/28 21:37 | Profile |
| Re: | | The outward dress and garb of religion
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spicesmint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the lawjustice, mercy and faithfulness." Matthew 23:23
Take heed of spending too much of your precious time about circumstantials, about the minor things of religion, as "mint, dill, and cummin," or in searching into the circumstances of worship, or in standing stoutly for this or that ceremony, or about inquiring what fruit it was which Adam ate in paradise, or in inquiring after things which God in His infinite wisdom has concealed.
It is one of Satan's great designs to hinder men in the great and weighty duties of religion, by busying them most about the lowest and least matters of religion. Satan is never better pleased, than when he sees Christians puzzled and perplexed about those things in religion, which are of no great consequence or importance. Such as are more busied about ceremonies than substances, about the form of godliness than the power. Such are more taken up with the outward dress and garb of religion, than they are with the spirit, power, and life of religion.
There cannot be a surer nor a greater character of a hypocrite, than to make a great deal of stir about little things in religion, and in the meantime neglect the great and main things in religion.
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| 2008/7/29 6:26 | |
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