Scripture at Sunrise 04.18.2023

“I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” -Joshua 1:5

This word to Joshua is often quoted; it is the basis of that New Testament word “He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

Beloved, a life of warfare is before us, but the Lord of Hosts is with us. Are we called to lead a great but fickle people? This promise guarantees us all the wisdom and prudence that we shall need. Have we to contend with cunning and powerful enemies? Here is strength and valor, prowess and victory. Have we a vast heritage to win? By this sign we shall achieve our purpose; the Lord Himself is with us.

It would be woe to us indeed if Jehovah could fail us; but, as this can never be, the winds of disquietude are laid to sleep in the caverns of divine faithfulness. On no one occasion will the Lord desert us. Happen what may, He will be at our side. Friends drop from us, their help is but an April shower; but God is faithful, Jesus is the same forever, and the Holy Spirit abideth in us.

Come, my heart, be calm and hopeful today. Clouds may gather, but the Lord can blow them away. Since God will not fail me, my faith shall not fail; and as He will not forsake me, neither will I forsake Him. Oh, for a restful faith!

[from Faith’s Checkbook by Charles H. Spurgeon]

Scripture at Sunrise 11.10.2022

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” -Joshua 1:9

“When you’re suffering, God doesn’t promise you all the answers you’re seeking, what He promises you is way better, He promises you Himself.” -Paul Tripp via Twitter

Scripture at Sunrise 09.08.2022

“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” -Romans 10:17

“We deceive ourselves if we claim to want to hear His voice but neglect the primary channel through which it comes. We must read His Word.” -Elisabeth Elliot via Twitter

Scripture at Sunrise 06.01.2022

For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.” -Isaiah 41:13

It is not the strength of your faith that saves you, but the strength of Him upon whom you rely. -Charles H. Spurgeon

Scripture at Sunrise 05.24.2022

“One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the Lord your God, He it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you.” -Joshua 23:10

Why count heads? One man with God is a majority though there be a thousand on the other side. Sometimes our helpers may be too many for God to work with them, as was the case with Gideon, who could do nothing till he had increased his forces by thinning out their numbers. But the Lord’s hosts are never too few. When God would found a nation, He called Abram alone and blessed him. When He would vanquish proud Pharaoh, He used no armies, but only Moses and Aaron. The “one-man ministry,” as certain wise men call it, has been far more used of the Lord than trained bands with their officers. Did all the Israelites together slay so many as Samson alone? Saul and his hosts slew their thousands but David his ten thousands.

The Lord can give the enemy long odds and yet vanquish him. If we have faith, we have God with us, and what are multitudes of men? One shepherd’s dog can drive before him a flock of sheep. If the Lord sent thee, O my brother, His strength will accomplish His divine purpose. Wherefore, rely on the promise, and be very courageous. 

[from Faith’s Checkbook by Charles H. Spurgeon]

Scripture at Sunrise 01.11.2022

“And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud” -Genesis 9:14

Just now clouds are plentiful enough, but we are not afraid that the world will be destroyed by a deluge. We see the rainbow often enough to prevent our having any such fears. The covenant which the Lord made with Noah stands fast, and we have no doubts about it. Why, then, should we think that the clouds of trouble, which now darken our sky, will end in our destruction? Let us dismiss such groundless and dishonoring fears.

Faith always sees the bow of covenant promise whenever sense sees the cloud of affliction. God has a bow with which He might shoot out His arrows of destruction. But see, it is turned upward! It is a bow without an arrow or a string; it is a bow hung out for show, no longer used for war. It is a bow of many colors, expressing joy and delight, and not a bow blood-red with slaughter or black with anger. Let us be of good courage. Never does God so darken our sky as to leave His covenant without a witness, and even if He did, we would trust Him since He cannot change or lie or in any other way fail to keep His covenant of peace. Until the waters go over the earth again, we shall have no reason for doubting our God.

[from Faith’s Checkbook by Charles H. Spurgeon]

Scripture at Sunrise 12.27.2021

“Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.” -1 Peter 1:6-9

“With God as our help, we must finish our journey with a great love for Christ and a joy that is inexpressible, even in the hardest times of suffering in life, knowing that God is sovereign and on the throne, and that He’s working all things together for our good and His glory.” -Pastor Steve Wainright (excerpt from Sunday Morning Sermon from 1 Peter 1:6-9)

Scripture at Sunrise 07.13.2021

“For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in Me, saith the Lord.” -Jeremiah 39:18

Behold the protecting power of trust in God. The great men of Jerusalem fell by the sword, but poor Ebed-melech was secure, for his confidence was in Jehovah. Where else should a man trust but in his Maker? We are foolish when we prefer the creature to the Creator. Oh, that we could in all things live by faith, then should we be delivered in all time of danger! No one ever did trust in the Lord in vain, and no one ever shall.

The Lord saith, “I will surely deliver thee,” Mark the divine “surely.” Whatever else may be uncertain, God’s care of believers is sure. God Himself is the guardian of the gracious, Under His sacred wing there is safety even when every danger is abroad. Can we accept this promise as sure? Then in our present emergency we shall find that it stands fast. We hope to be delivered because we have friends, or because we are prudent, or because we can see hopeful signs; but none of these things are one-half so good as God’s simple “because thou hast put thy trust in me.” Dear reader, try this way, and, trying it, you will keep to it all your life. It is as sweet as it is sure. 

[from Faith’s Checkbook by Charles H. Spurgeon]

Scripture at Sunrise 04.26.2021

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” -James 1:2-4

The more you are tested, if your faith is genuine, the more your trust in the Lord grows. -Pastor Steve Wainright (excerpt from Sunday Morning Sermon “Sovereignty in Trials” from James 1:1-5)

Scripture at Sunrise 04.20.2021

“The just shall live by faith.” -Romans 1:17

I shall not die, I can, I do, believe in the Lord my God, and this faith will keep me alive. I would be numbered among those who in their lives are just; but even if I were perfect I would not try to live by my righteousness; I would cling to the work of the Lord Jesus and still live by faith in Him and by nothing else. If I were able to give my body to be burned for my Lord Jesus, yet I would not trust in my own courage and constancy, but still would live by faith.

Were I a martyr at the stake
I’d plead my Saviour’s name;
Intreat a pardon for His sake,
And urge no other claim.

To live by faith is a far surer and happier thing than to live by feelings or by works, The branch, by living in the vine, lives a better life than it would live by itself, even if it were possible for it to live at all apart from the stem. To live by clinging to Jesus, by deriving all from Him, is a sweet and sacred thing. If even the most just must live in this fashion, how much more must I who am a poor sinner! Lord, I believe. I must trust Thee wholly. What else can I do? Trusting Thee is my life….

[from Faith’s Checkbook by Charles H. Spurgeon]