God wants something more and something higher. God wants us to seek for the Holy Spirit as a Spirit of power in our own heart and life, to conquer self and cast out sin, and to work the blessed and beautiful image of Jesus into us.
– Andrew Murray –
from Absolute Surrender
In conquering of those enemies that be within, you make a conquest over the devil and hell itself. … And as this is the most noble conquest, so it is the most necessary conquest. You must be the death of your sins, or they will be the death of your souls. Sin is a viper, that does always kill where it is not killed.
– Thomas Brooks –
Oh, If only once we could be convinced of God’s goodness towards His children and of His desire to reveal Himself to them! We would no longer seek out own selfish desires. We would not be so quickly discouraged from pursuing what He is so long to give us:
Romans 8:32 – “He who spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not, with Him, also freely give us all things?”
We only need a little courage and perseverance. Actually, we have enough of both in our earthly affairs, but none at all in the only thing that really matters (Luke 10:42).
– Jeanne Guyon –
Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act
– Dietrich Bonhoeffer –
I consider that the chief dangers which will confront the twentieth century will be: Religion without the Holy Spirit; Christianity without Christ; Forgiveness without regeneration; Morality without God and Heaven without Hell.
– William Booth –
He thinks great folly child,’ said Aslan. ‘This world is bursting with life for these few days because the song with which I called it into life still hangs in the air and rumbles the ground. It will not be so for long. But I cannot tell that to this old sinner, and I cannot comfort him either; he has made himself unable to hear my voice. If I spoke to him, he would hear only growling’s and roaring’s. Oh Adam’s sons, how cleverly you defend yourselves against all that might do you good! …
– CS Lewis –
The Lord concludes: “for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matt 6:21) Where should the heart of the disciple of the Lord Jesus be, but in heaven? Our calling is a heavenly calling, our inheritance is a heavenly inheritance, and our citizenship is in heaven.
But if we believers in the Lord Jesus lay up treasures on earth, than our hearts will be on earth.
Laying up treasures in heaven will draw the heart heavenward. It brings along with it, even in this life, precious spiritual blessings as a reward of obedience to the commandment of our Lord.
– George Müller –
from The Autobiography of George Muller
Self is the root, the tree, and the branches of all the evils of our fallen state.
– William Law –
[Amy Carmichael’s] great longing was to have a “single eye” for the glory of God. Whatever might blur the vision God had give her of His work, whatever could distract or deceive or tempt other to seek anything but the Lord Jesus Himself she tried to eliminate.
– Elisabeth Elliot –