Forgetfulness of Self
The sermon 'Forgetfulness of Self' by Mary Wilder Tileston teaches that true freedom and peace come from entrusting oneself to God's keeping and faith in His eternal love.
Mary Wilder Tileston preaches about the assurance of faith in God's ability to keep and protect what we have committed to Him, leading to a life of peace and trust in His care. The sermon emphasizes the importance of surrendering our hearts and minds to God, allowing Him to work through us effortlessly, and to love without self-reflection. It highlights the concept of abiding in Jesus, entrusting ourselves to His eternal love for rest, peace, and joy even amidst life's busyness.
Text
I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day.
2 TIMOTHY 1:12
LET me Thy power, Thy beauty see;
So shall the hopeless labor cease,
And my free heart shall follow Thee
Through paths of everlasting peace.
My strength Thy gift--my life Thy care,--
I shall forget to seek elsewhere
The wealth to which my soul is heir.
ANNA L. WARING
TO give heart and mind to God, so that they are ours no longer--to do good without being conscious of it, to pray ceaselessly and without effort as we breathe--to love without stopping to reflect upon our feelings--such is the perfect forgetfulness of self, which casts us upon God, as a babe rests upon its mother's breast.
JEAN NICOLAS GROU
Abiding in Jesus is not a work that needs each moment the mind to be engaged, or the affections to be directly and actively occupied with it. It is an entrusting of oneself to the keeping of the Eternal Love, in the faith that it will abide near us, and with its holy presence watch over us and ward off the evil, even when we have to be most intently occupied with other things. And so the heart has rest and peace and joy in the consciousness of being kept when it cannot keep itself.
ANDREW MURRAY
Sermon Outline
- The Perfect Forgetfulness of Self
- Abiding in Jesus
- Rest and Peace in God
- Rest from Self-Effort
- Peace in God's Presence
- Benefits of Forgetfulness of Self
Key Quotes
“To give heart and mind to God, so that they are ours no longer--to do good without being conscious of it, to pray ceaselessly and without effort as we breathe--to love without stopping to reflect upon our feelings--such is the perfect forgetfulness of self, which casts us upon God, as a babe rests upon its mother's breast.” — Mary Wilder Tileston
“Abiding in Jesus is not a work that needs each moment the mind to be engaged, or the affections to be directly and actively occupied with it.” — Mary Wilder Tileston
Application Points
- To experience true rest and peace, one must learn to entrust oneself to God's keeping and faith in His eternal love.
- Forgetfulness of self requires a constant surrender of one's heart and mind to God's presence.
- Abiding in Jesus is not a work that needs constant effort, but rather a trusting in God's ability to watch over us.