Milo

March 2nd

Have you felt the hurt of the Lord?

Jesus said unto him the third time, Lovest thou Me? John 21:17.

Have you felt the hurt of the Lord to the uncovered quick, the place where the real sensitiveness of your life is lodged? The devil never hurts there, neither sin nor human affection hurts there, nothing goes through to that place but the word of God. “Peter was grieved, because Jesus said unto him the third time.…” He was awakening to the fact that in the real true centre of his personal life he was devoted to Jesus, and he began to see what the patient questioning meant. There was not the slightest strand of delusion left in Peter’s mind, he never could be deluded again. There was no room for passionate utterance, no room for exhilaration or sentiment. It was a revelation to him to realize how much he did love the Lord, and with amazement he said—“Lord, Thou knowest all things.” Peter began to see how much he did love Jesus; but he did not say—‘Look at this or that to confirm it.’ Peter was beginning to discover to himself how much he did love the Lord, that there was no one in heaven above or upon earth beneath beside Jesus Christ; but he did not know it until the probing, hurting questions of the Lord came. The Lord’s questions always reveal me to myself.
The patient directness and skill of Jesus Christ with Peter! Our Lord never asks questions until the right time. Rarely, but probably once, He will get us into a corner where He will hurt us with His undeviating questions, and we will realize that we do love Him far more deeply than any profession can ever show.

March 1st

The undeviating question

Lovest thou Me? John 21:17.

Peter declares nothing now (cf. Matthew 26:33–35 ). Natural individuality professes and declares; the love of the personality is only discovered by the hurt of the question of Jesus Christ. Peter loved Jesus in the way in which any natural man loves a good man. That is temperamental love; it may go deep into the individuality, but it does not touch the centre of the person. True love never professes anything. Jesus said—“Whosoever shall confess Me before men,” i.e., confess his love not merely by his words, but by everything he does.
Unless we get hurt right out of every deception about ourselves, the word of God is not having its way with us. The word of God hurts as no sin can ever hurt, because sin blunts feeling. The question of the Lord intensifies feeling, until to be hurt by Jesus is the most exquisite hurt conceivable. It hurts not only in the natural way but in the profound personal way. The word of the Lord pierces even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, there is no deception left. There is no possibility of being sentimental with the Lord’s question; you cannot say nice things when the Lord speaks directly to you, the hurt is too terrific. It is such a hurt that it stings every other concern out of account. There never can be any mistake about the hurt of the Lord’s word when it comes to his child; but the point of the hurt is the great point of revelation.

5 MARCH

God’s commands are perfect

‘And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.’ Genesis 3:2–3
SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: Psalm 119:89–104

Observe Satan will not be afraid of those who have much light in their heads, if their hearts are insincere before God. It is not talking about Christ and grace and holiness that will preserve you from the power of temptation, if your hearts desire the forbidden thing. But it is a high aggravation to sin against such light. It is the case of many amongst us. You do it not ignorant—you know the judgements of God. Satan can hardly be said to cheat you, for you obey him with your eyes open. Eve seems to add to God’s word. He said not eat—she puts in not touch. Perhaps Satan used this to advantage against her, and when she found she did not die for touching it, she might venture more boldly to eat it. However, men are very prone to add their own inventions to the Word of God, which in many ways becomes a snare to them. The commands of God are perfect and cannot be amended. And they are so broad as to call for all our strength and time to observe them. If we do more than we are commanded we shall infallibly leave something unattended to that he has made our duty.
FOR MEDITATION:
When the cross I view by faith,
What before excited fears,
Sin is madness, poison, death;
Rather pleasing now appears;
Tempt me not, ’tis all in vain,
If a sin, it seems so small,
Sure I ne’er can yield again.
Or, perhaps, no sin at all.

Satan, for a while debarred,
Often thus, through sin’s deceit,
When he finds me off my guard,
Grief and shame, and loss I meet;
Puts his glass before my eyes,
Like a fish, my soul mistook,
Quickly other thoughts arise.
Saw the bait, but not the hook.

Made, by past experience, wise, Let me learn thy word to prize;
Taught by what I’ve felt before, Let me Satan’s glass abhor.

SERMON SERIES: GENESIS, NO. 7 [2/4], GENESIS 3:2–5

4 MARCH

Sinning with our eyes open

‘And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.’ Genesis 3:2–3
SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: Proverbs 2:1–22

If the enemy of our souls can seduce us so far as to parley with him, we seldom come off unhurt. Something there was, in his appearance and in the manner of his speaking, that drew the attention of Eve. She might have been upon her guard, for had he meant well, he would rather have commended the goodness of God to her than have started a doubt concerning his command.
Her answer includes an acknowledgment of the bounty and blessings she enjoyed. This heightens the ingratitude and folly of her compliance afterwards and left her without excuse. How unreasonable, as well as rebellious, to disobey a good God who had given all things richly to enjoy. The devil tempts poor sinners to think God a hard master, but if you will be his servants you will find nothing is forbidden you but what hurts you and what it would be your interest to avoid, even if you were not to give an account of yourself to God.
She owns the prohibition, and therefore sinned with her eyes open. Why was not Satan discouraged when he found she had the precept in mind? Probably he saw, or judged, she was beginning to yield—that though she remembered the precept she wished it was otherwise.
FOR MEDITATION:
Sin, when viewed by Scripture light,
When the gospel trumpet sounds,
Is a horrid, hateful sight;
When I think how grace abounds,
But when seen in Satan’s glass,
When I feel sweet peace within,
Then it wears a pleasing face.
Then I’d rather die than sin.

SERMON SERIES: GENESIS, NO. 7 [1/4], GENESIS 3:2–5

3 MARCH

Don’t doubt the sure word of God

‘Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?’ Genesis 3:1
SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: Psalm 119:9–24

Satan’s arguments. We shall find a train of Satan’s subtleties in his discourse with the woman, and in her answers we shall see how he prevails by degrees, when he can get us to listen to his reasonings. He does not show all his design, but begins with starting a doubt.… ‘Is it possible?—I can hardly believe it’ … and this he expresses ambiguously—of every tree?—as if he asked for information. Such questioning, where the command of God was concerned, the woman ought not to have indulged. Here seems to have been the beginning of sin and we are often endangered the same way. Satan’s doubt respected:
(i) the reality of the command. And so still he prevails, persuading many that the precepts and threatenings in the Bible are not the sure word of God. Yea, he would sometimes force such doubts even upon believers.
(ii) the reasonableness of it. Why should God say so? Thus he teaches sinners to reason: ‘If God has threatened, he will not make his threatenings good; sure he will not punish me with everlasting misery for taking my pleasures here a few years.’
So there are many points of doctrine as plainly expressed as words can express them, yet Satan teaches men to reason about them till they deny and disbelieve them totally. Even some of God’s dear children are kept in suspense to their hurt.

FOR MEDITATION: But I must stop for the present, adding a word concerning Jesus, who was revealed to destroy the works of the devil. In him there is pardon for all transgressions and wisdom to enable us to withstand Satan. Without him sinners must perish—but those who believe in him shall be made more than conquerors and placed out of Satan’s reach for ever. Seek his face therefore and your souls shall live.

SERMON SERIES: GENESIS, NO. 6 [3/3], GENESIS 3:1