And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up
​into an high mountain apart, 
And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun,
​and his raiment was white as the light. 
And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. 17;1-3
​Scenes on Mountains

How often the Bible brings us into mountain scenery. It was on a mountain that Abraham prepared to offer Isaac and that men received the law of Moses, and from a mountainside the law of Christ. The bitterest conflict between Elijah and the prophets of Baal was on Mount Carmel. John was on a great mountain when he saw the new Jerusalem descend; and on a mountain occurred the transfiguration. Do you think that choice of place is but an accident? I do not think so. For always, in the grandeur of the mountaintop, lifting its masses in silence toward heaven, have men perceived God's choice environment for the highest hours of holiest souls. The dullest of us knows the fuller life that stirs us on the hills. It is a fitting scene for the transfiguration.

The Transfiguration Was an Answer to Prayer
First, then, let us note that the transfiguration was an answer to prayer. Jesus took Peter and James and John, we read, and went up into a mountain to pray and as He prayed, the fashion of His countenance was altered (Luk_9:28-29). It may be we shall never grasp the mystery of the prayers of Jesus Christ. The simplest prayer you ever breathed raises a score of problems when you think on it, and these problems are multiplied a thousandfold when we are thinking on the prayers of our Redeemer. But the fact remains that Jesus prayed, intensely, passionately, resolutely, till the end; and if it is asked what He was praying for on this mountain, I think we may reverently give this reply. It was the thought of His sufferings that filled Him. It was the vision of His death that bowed Him down. Eight days before, Jesus had talked of that. He had told His disciples how He must suffer and die. And all the evangelists date this mountain scene from the memorable hour of that conversation. It was of His death, too, Moses and Elias spake. Now, these are hints of the inner life of Jesus. These are like far-off echoes of His cry. His hands were trembling as they grasped the cup. The shadow of the cross was on His soul. He went to the hill to agonise with God, and the transfiguration was the answer.
Thus, then, we reach the inner meaning of the scene. It was not a spectacle. It was not acted out for James and John. Its chief importance was for the heart of Jesus. Can we discover, then, its meaning for Christ? Can we see how it greatly strengthened Him for Calvary? That is to get to the marrow of the story. For the memory of this hour was music to Jesus, when all the daughters of music were brought low. It was song and strength to Him, when He went forth to die.

Jesus Received a Fresh Assurance of His Father's Love
Note first then, that the transfiguration gave to Jesus a fresh assurance of His Father's love, for there came a voice out of the cloud, "This is my beloved Son." There are times when we are sorely tempted to doubt the love of God; and if our Redeemer was tempted in all points like as we are, this sore temptation must have fallen on Him. And the one week, in His three-and-thirty years, when it would light on Him with most tremendous power, would be the week before the transfiguration. Till then, Christ had been climbing upward, amid the welcomes of an eager people. From then, He was to journey downwards to the Cross of Calvary and to the grave. The tides were turned. The crisis had been reached. With terrible clearness He realised His death. Oh, what a task, in the full sight of Calvary, still to believe in the changeless love of God! God saw, God understood. God strengthened and established the human soul of Jesus. And from that hour—come agony, come death, Jesus is still the well-beloved Son.

His Agony: Misunderstood on Earth, But Understood in Heaven
Again, the transfiguration assured Jesus that if His agony was not understood on earth, it was fully understood in heaven. In His sufferings and in His death Jesus was never understood on earth. Men understood the wisdom of His speech. They saw the power of His deeds of healing. But His sufferings they could not understand. The thought of crucifixion was intolerable to the disciples. Even Peter, who loved his Master so, out of his love would have kept Him from the Cross. But Moses and Elias understood what Peter and James and John quite failed to see. They spake of His decease (Luk_9:31). It was the theme of heaven whence they had come. There might be none to sympathise on earth; but the spirits of just men made perfect, in the home above, were following with unbounded love and wonder the progress of Jesus to the cross.

Assurance of the True Greatness of His Mission
Mark, too, that the transfiguration assured Jesus of the true greatness of His mission. We never doubt the greatness of that work. We now know the value of His life and death. The centuries are but a commentary on His power. Yet we sometimes wonder if in the weary round of humble service, the greatness of His task was ever bedimmed for Jesus. We are amazed, as we read the Gospel story, at the seeming insignificance of many of the days and deeds of Christ. He lived in villages and companied with humble folk. He healed their sick; He preached to unlettered crowds. So day succeeded day, and the sun rose and set, and men could not see the splendor of His work. Was Jesus sometimes tempted to forget it too? If so, it was the very love of God that sent Moses and Elijah to the mount. For Moses and Elijah were the past. They were the spirits of the law and prophecy. And now the past hands on its work to Jesus. All that the law had vainly striven to do, and all that prophecy had seen afar, was to be crowned on Calvary. His, then, was no fragmentary life. It was the very crisis of the world. For all the past was centering in Him, and from Him the future was to stretch away.

The Transfiguration Encouraged Jesus
And lastly, note how the transfiguration encouraged Jesus because it gave Him a foretaste of His glory. His sufferings were near; His death was near; but on the mount Christ knew that heaven was nearer still. For the dazzling glow of heaven was on His face, and the saints of glory were standing by His side, and His Father's voice was music in His ear. Not that heaven was ever unreal to Jesus; but in view of the intensity of coming sorrow, there must be intense conviction of the joy beyond. It is this that was granted to Jesus on the mount. Is it not given to His children too? There is always the burning bush before the desert. There is ever the mountaintop before the garden. In the strength of the joy that is set before us, we endure the cross and despise the shame.

​Moses’ face shone after having absorbed the divine glory, as some diamonds burn with sunlight after being carried into a dark room. Stephen’s face shone because for a moment he had seen the Son of man. But the face of our Lord shone, not from without but from within. The shekinah of His heart was for the most part hidden, but here it burst through the frail veil of flesh, Joh_1:14.
Joh 1:14  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
​
The Apostle uses the same word when he says, “Be ye transfigured,” Rom_12:2.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

​He does not mean that for a brief moment we should see and reflect our Lord’s face. He wants us to enshrine Him in our hearts, and then to rid ourselves of all hindering veils, so that the light of the knowledge of the glory of God may make even the common garb of daily drudgery beautiful.
This was the great climax of our Lord’s earthly life, when He definitely turned away from the glory that was set before Him, to endure the Cross for our redemption.  (F.B. Meyer)

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon unto Jerusalem, and besieged it. And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God: which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god; and he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god. And the king spake unto Ashpenaz the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel, and of the king's seed, and of the princes; Children in whom was no blemish, but well favoured, and skilful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king's palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king's meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego. But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Dan 1:1-8
Daniel-A Man of Purpose

​The faith of Daniel and his three companions was soon to be put to the test. They were to be fed from the royal table; but the Jews were forbidden by the law of Moses to eat certain kinds of food, as well as food prepared in a certain way. Some animals were to be avoided as unclean, and none ware to be eaten with the blood in them. Besides, what the heathen used of animal food had been already offered in sacrifice to their idols, while a portion both of the meat and drink on their table was presented as an offering and acknowledgment to the same false deities. Daniel saw that to partake of the royal provision was thus to pollute himself by participation with idolatry and to transgress the law of God. His purpose was at once taken. Be the consequences what they might, he would neither defile himself nor apostatize from his God. Persuaded that man does not “live by bread alone, but by every word of God,” he would request the superintendent to substitute pulse and water for the royal viands.

He determined, says Matthew Henry, to let it be known from the first day of his residence in Babylon, that though but a young Jewish slave, he was the servant of the living God. If he could not preserve his dignity as a prince, he would preserve his purity as a child of the covenant. It was no small risk. The wrath of Nebuchadnezzar, as of all Oriental despots, was as the roaring of a lion. That wrath might well be apprehended for what must appear to him, if known, an act of disobedience, and even of contempt. Unless prevented by some remarkable interposition, the act may cost Daniel and his three friends their life. Daniel had indeed already gained the favour and affection of the chief or superintendent of the eunuchs, but for him to change the diet, or even allow or connive at such a change, must endanger his life also—with Daniel a considerable aggravation of the difficulty. Still he must obey the dictates of his conscience and do what he believes to be the will of God.

​Prayer was no doubt his refuge. The God of Abraham would open up a way of deliverance. “On the Mount the Lord will be seen.” Man’s extremity is God’s opportunity. Isaac was saved at the last hour, The Lord will provide. Jehovah-Jireh still lives. To the chief officer, therefore, Daniel communicates his difficulty and his purpose. The worthy heathen expressed his distress, and his fear for the consequences, even to himself. Daniel only requests a trial. Ashpenaz can do nothing but commend him to the good graces of the subordinate whose duty it was to attend immediately upon the young men, and whose responsibility was less than his own.  (Preacher's Homiletical)

​These young men of noble Jewish families were brought to Babylon to receive education for the civil service. Their names were altered to break, so far as possible, their connection with the past. The food provided probably contravened Lev_3:17. According to the usual custom it had been presented before an idol, 1Co_8:10. Note those words: Daniel purposed in his heart. It is all important to resolve in one’s heart that certain things are not possible for us. Too many of us have a secret reserve. We barricade the front door but leave the back door on the latch. We ought to realize the extent to which Paul referred when he said, “dead to sin.” God always cooperates with His servants when they are true to Him. He brought Daniel into favor; He gave him skill; He caused his face and that of his three friends, to bear the hue of health. Let us trust Him to do His part! This is the secret of continuance, Dan_1:21. (F.B. Meyer)

It was no new thing for Daniel to pray; he did not do it out of bravado, he did not do it from ostentation; it was his habit thus to pray; he prayed "as he did aforetime." Those words give us the secret of his life. It was a consistent life. It was a life built throughout on the fear of God. It was a life every stone of which was a prayer. His worst enemies could find no fault in him, they acknowledged, except as touching the law of his God. They might taunt him for his religion; they might mock his faith; they could not deny the nobleness of his character, his uncorrupt integrity, his sterling worth, the wisdom as well as the uprightness which marked his conduct. The purity of his life they could not assail; it was a consistent life, a life based and built upon the fear of God.

But if the secret of Daniel’s success and courage was his consistency, what was the secret of his consistency? It was this: that he was a man of prayer. He kneeled three times a day in his chamber, and prayed and gave thanks to his God, as he did aforetime.
​
(1) These words remind us beautifully and touchingly how, through all that long life, and though he had left Jerusalem only as a boy, the heart of the captive still turned towards the home of his fathers and the city of his God.
(2) Notice how, anticipating by centuries the injunction of the Apostle—in everything by prayer and thanksgiving to make known our requests unto God—he who had just heard what he knew to be his own sentence of death, not only prayed, but gave thanks before his God as he did aforetime. There was no fear in that heart, there was no doubt of God’s mercy, there was no questioning of God’s providence, because he knew that the den of lions awaited him. He gave thanks now as he had done aforetime.
​(3) The man of prayer may not always be the successful man, judged by the world’s rules, but he is the strong man, the calm man, the brave man, the man against whom his worst enemies can find nothing to accuse him, except it be as touching the law of his God.  (J. J. S. Perowne, Sermons, p. 17)
See references: 
Php 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
Act 6:4  But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. 
​1Th 5:17  Pray without ceasing. 
1Th 5:18  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 
​Eph 6:18  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
​++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
​​Daniel 1: The Captive
https://youtu.be/Iq3vDt2QKps?si=x_ic_mdCZdC9s-cD

​Life goes in cycles, I'm finding this fact goes for many things within life. A couple of years ago, I posted a blog, which I'll re-post here again, "Used Goods". In it, I talk about my faults, failures, and sins- which are many. It will answer those who are again making the same accusations, and finger pointing. The devil never forgets nor forgives.

Many people never do either, I'm glad they are not Jesus.

No one would have to look very far into my life to see my failures, weaknesses, and faults. I have no idea why God would pay attention to me at all, but He has, many times. The only thing I can say about my life, is it's a prime example of the ability of a great God, to forgive, and restore a lost sinner; and make something out of them. I can relate to David, Peter, Paul and other's in the Bible, who have fallen on their face, committed great sins, and still found God's call on their life remained. He didn't reject them, He disciplined them, picked them back up, and they continued to do His will, in spite of their imperfections. They repented, turned from their sins, and walked on with God. David didn't stop being the king of Israel after he fell with Bathsheba-he repented, got up and kept on serving God, That's what we are supposed to do, when we fail. Some don't, for many reasons- one of which is not being able to overcome the never-ending accusations from so called brethren-who are only servants of Satan.

Pro 24:16  For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief. 

Yes, we are supposed to admit our sins, confess them, and move on. But many religious folk would like to see you wallow in guilt, and condemnation. Once you've repented, and turned away from the sin- God has forgotten it. His blood covers that sin, and now you stand righteous in Him. There is no condemnation to the believer who now stands forgiven.

After salvation, the attacks of the devil do not get easier, they get harder, and more deadly. I have no desire to accuse those who have fallen as I have at times, I just pray for them, and keep my mouth shut unless it's absolutely necessary to say anything. God loves the one who falls as much as those on their pedestals, and platforms. I've learned that many of them are living a false front too-and hiding their problems well, for now.

So, for those who have fingers to point, or insinuations that I'm a deceiver, trying to be somebody I'm not- read "Used Goods" posted below again. I can assure you, I do not see myself as anything but a saved sinner; and one who still is apt to fall, and fail-but for the grace of God.

I'm walking in righteousness, on the psalm 51 road, and have been for many years. With the Lord's help and strength, I intend to continue to walk on the right path, until I'm gone out of this world of sin, and standing on heaven's shores.

Now, read "Used Goods"- it's my open confession again to my accuser's, the devil, and the Lord; who knows all my sins, and still calls me His own.

USED GOODS
3/4/2016 -(original date of post)
There is a lot said in ministry these days about being transparent. I agree with the principle of it, but I do wonder sometimes why it seems we must know every detail of someone’s imperfections, and mistakes. It’s the evidence of the our fallen nature. I’ve known of stories and rumors concerning me for some time. This is going to address those issues.

When I accepted Christ in 1978, I had already been married twice. My first husband had been very irresponsible, he could not keep a job for more than about six months at a time, before he would quit. He moved us over 12 times in less than 3 years. He left my daughter and I 13 times, and finally left permanently the 4th time in 1974.

My second husband and I had lived together first, and married a little over a year after we met, and built a house together. We were married in that house on November 27, 1976. Neither one of us were innocent people, we both had had past relationships. He was very open with me about his past women, including those he had relations with while he was in the Air Force in Vietnam, and afterwards. As an over-the-road truck driver, I knew he had been involved numerous times with casual relationships with others. We both accepted each other as we were, and resolved to marry each other without judgment.  We both were what the world would term “used goods”.

When I was saved that day in my house in March of 1978, I made a total commitment to Christ, and clung to Jesus and the word of God for the next 30+ yrs., no matter what happened. I knew beyond any doubt that the Lord had forgiven me, cleansed me, delivered me from alcoholism, and I wanted nothing but to live for him, and turned completely away from my past life.

Shortly after my salvation I began working in health care as a home health care worker, caring for the elderly in my community, and a local nursing home. I was 25, and continued in home health care and hospice care for the many years.

Lynn told me I had to leave shortly after my salvation, saying I’d have to choose him, or the Lord. I chose the Lord. We were divorced for two years, and during that time several pastor’s told me to give up, and move on in life. But, when I prayed about it, the Lord prompted me to keep praying and believing for a reconciliation. I did, and we were re-married Jan. 2, 1982, in Saratoga N.Y. in an Assembly of God church. I remained faithful to him throughout our marriage. 

Through many trials and difficult circumstances, we stayed together, and I kept praying for his salvation. We had our troubles, but we loved each other, there was never anyone else in my life, and I know he was faithful to me as well. We just kept forgiving each other, and making it work. Some who read this, will be able to relate to what I’m saying. Six months after our remarriage he had a massive heart attack at 36 yrs of age. He had heart damage the rest of his life. We tried for ten years to have more children, but the heart attack and his being exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam, caused too much damage to Lynn's health. After two miscarriages we stopped trying.

He did receive Christ 9 month’s before he died. After his death, many other losses had to be faced. Selling our farm, ending our businesses, the death of my mother, oldest brother, and sister. God kept me through all of this. I was not involved with anyone during any of these instances, sex was the last thing I cared about, with anyone.

When I became a member of an Assembly of God church in a local town, in 2006, the pastor approached me and said he felt I was called to be a leader, and wanted me to allow him to disciple me to become an assistant Pastor. At this same time, I was teaching at a Teen Challenge complex in my area as well. I am a spirit filled believer, and in the Pentecostal gifts of the Holy Spirit. The church I attended was also Pentecostal. God had given me prophetic messages that he wanted to be spoken to the congregation. I would go to the pastor and ask for permission to give them. Some of them he allowed me to speak, but some of the members objected, so he told me I would have to stop. (Over the years, I've sat and watched several of the prophetic messages given to me by the Holy Spirit as they transpired, on the news.)

I accepted what he said, but then he would come to me privately and tell me to give the messages to him, so he could speak them to the people. When I prayed about this, the Lord said, “No, don’t allow him to speak them, I gave them to you to speak.” When I told this to him, he became very angry, and started to belittle me in public during the services. I knew things were not going to go well for me, but didn’t know how bad they were really going to get.

In May of 2011, this pastor was found to be involved with a foreign exchange student that was staying with him and his wife. He had taken her to Boston and stayed there alone with her for 3 days. On his way back home, he had hit a moose, and had to be helped to get back home. His wife had to do the service that Sunday morning, because he was still in this situation, she had not been with them on the trip.

When I made a statement to some of the board members that he never should have been there with her alone, the members of the church turned on me and stood with the pastor. I was given the left foot of fellowship and a certified letter dismissing me from membership of their church. 

The many years of trials, my husbands death, and the death of my loved ones, and this last event, caused me to become so weary and emotionally exhausted, I fell of the cliff of discouragement. I have no excuses, this is simply the truth. From this point on, I went through a tunnel of defeat and failure. I didn’t care about anything anymore. I loved the Lord, but wanted to die. This episode with this pastor destroyed my confidence in every church or organization. After years of watching the unethical actions of pastors and leaders in ministry, I had enough. I gave up on all of it.

At this time I was a member of a Christian forum on the internet that was monitored by two webmasters, but still, when I’d go to the site to interact with the members; out would pop nude pictures of men, and pornographic images that the webmasters would miss, or not delete. This is what the devil used to get me enticed to go to pornographic sites, it wore my resistance down. I was already in a depressed state of mind, and it caused me to fall completely off the cliff, into despair.

If I had prayed, and cried out to God to help me, if I had turned off the computer and walked away, if I had told someone else, and asked for help in prayer; it would not have happened, but I didn’t. And, I didn’t realize then that other’s would have access to my private computer usage, and what sites I chose to look at, I know now. I was wrong in what I did, but I have to wonder how God looks at someone who does something wrong out of despair, and the ones who make it their business to try to dig up dirt about someone, simply to destroy them. The motives and reasons people do things is as important as the wrong done. Today’s TV sitcoms are a revealing picture of what the world is like. When you fall, it becomes another source of mocking satire, with no regard to the broken lives they leave in their path.

Another aspect of this is, as a person who worked in health care, I have washed many naked people, men and women. During those 30+ years I’ve seen and been exposed to just about everything, including being cursed and ridiculed by men who had nothing but lust on their minds. Does God take into account the things we have to go through in life, and the level of attacks that come against us? Does he take into account the loneliness, losses, tragedies, and human frailties we deal with on a daily basis?  I believe he does.

There has been no illicit sex, no sex of any kind, period. I’ve been a widow for 20 years, and am seeing no one, nor have I ever been involved with anyone. I love God, am a minister, but I’m also a human being, with weaknesses, and challenges like everyone else.

I have repented of the involvement with pornography, and asked the Lord’s forgiveness, and the power of the Holy Spirit to not repeat these sins. I’ve been free from it for quite a while now, and I’m very thankful for his mercy; He has not left me. I know I am forgiven, once again. With Gods’ help I intend to stay free, and his word is going to be my first line of defense in every situation from this point on. This has taught me much, and the strength I’ve regained is now enhanced with greater wisdom. When someone trusts me enough to tell me the truth about their failures, I take into account my own failures, and look at them and listen to them through the lens of compassion. God has stripped me of self-righteousness, and false pride. My feet are made of clay also. I can listen, and pray with them, and not condemn. But, point them to the One who can forgive, and restore them, give them renewed strength and get them started on the right road again. 

This is a post with transparency, and simple honesty. As a minister, it may mean I never have much of what the world would term success. It may mean a lot of ridicule, judgment, condemnation from the world. I’ve surrendered all of this to God. In God’s eyes, the thing that matters is just “come as you are”. He does not refuse used goods.
Lorna Couillard
“What can wash away my sin, nothing but the blood of Jesus.”
​
https://www.twosparrowsministry.org/home/used-goods
Below are some photos of our life together-If anyone is ever interested, and took the time to come and see me, I'd sit down with them and show them our marriage certificate, and many albums of photos of our lives, and the two homes we built and lived in. Lynn passed away on July 11, 2004, it was a Sunday, at almost 3:00 p.m., in my arms.
Our life together is recorded also in the book I wrote The NightWatchman, the entire book is at the top of this page in e-book form for anyone to read for free.
So, for those who continue to spread stories and lies-this is my response, your welcome to come and see me anytime, if you want to talk face to face.

Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, And said
unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? 
Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he,
​whosoever shall not be offended in me. Matt 11:2-6
Jesus' Response to Doubt

It is not at all clear who doubted, whether John or his disciples, or indeed whether they all did. The stoutest faith has often failed before now; ours has often failed us in circumstances far less grievous than these. John was indeed a prophet, but he did not cease to be human on that account. He had done his work before his imprisonment. The movement was too advanced to be determined henceforth by any influences which might proceed from John’s life. If his faith should for the time be unequal to the dampness and dimness of the dungeon, it had been equal to the warmth and the light of the open day. Whatever be the condition of mind his words here disclose, the question is formulated by one who can trust the Christ for telling the truth of the matter, and that when he had no confidence in the mood of his own mind or in the suggestion of his circumstances.

How the doubt was dealt with by the doubters. John did not wish to hear more about Christ, but something from Him. He might have called for the books of the prophets, to see again whether the anticipation there corresponded with the reality here; or have asked very helplessly, as we do, for a symposium of his disciples’ opinions, and tested the merits of the Christ by their vote. To his honour be it said, he did nothing of the kind, but sent two of his disciples to ask Him, "Art Thou He that should come?"
​
How Christ treated the doubters. He seems to have received them with great deference, and thought apparently no less of them and of John than He had done before. The messengers were commanded to go and tell John, and they would be able to use words in their true meaning now that they had heard Christ. It had been a tale of general beneficence and of universal kindness, and told by one who felt the power of its every word. It carried with it its own evidence.
(J. O. Davies, Sunrise on the Soul, p. 171)

The Finality of Our Christian Faith
I wish to say a few words on the finality of our Christian faith, and there could be no better approach to that than the experience of John the Baptist. When John cried "Behold the Lamb of God," he was asserting the finality of Christ. All the lambs slain on Jewish altars were but prophecies and presages of Christ's sacrifice. He was the completion and the crown of the long and chequered history of Israel, and beyond Him there could never be another. Then doubts began to assail the mind of John. All was so contrary to expectation. This lowly Savior, moving about the villages, was so different from the Messiah of his dreams. And then, as in a torturing agony, John sent his disciples to the Lord, saying, "Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?"

Is There Going to Be Another One?
Now that question, if I am not mistaken, is in many earnest minds today. Many are asking, secretly or openly, if Christ be the final Word of God. Partly through the comparative study of religions, with its appreciation of what is beautiful in all, partly through the slowness of our faith to bring the Kingdom into our teeming cities, partly through the supineness of the Church in answering the challenge of our social problems, that question is being widely asked today. Is Christ the final Word of God? Is a new world-teacher still to be revealed? Or, in the abstract language of the West, is our Christian faith the final faith? That is being discussed more widely than many of the orthodox imagine.

The Universality and Completeness of the Christian Faith
That our faith (like polytheism) will die a natural death is a thought that may be at once rejected. Heaven and earth have passed away, and His word has not passed away. Much more conceivable is the thought of certain circles that our Christian faith will be absorbed in some synthesis of what is best in all religions. That, we are told, is what has happened with Judaism. All that is best in it was absorbed in Christianity—its sense of guilt, its craving for atonement, its profound sense of the holiness of God. And if this has been the fate of Judaism, itself one of the revealed religions, may it not be so with that which has replaced it? But there is this profound difference to be noted—Judaism could never satisfy. Paul, who embraced it with passionate intensity, found himself thirsty and hungry at the end. Whereas the wonderful thing about our faith is this, that, take it where you will throughout the world, it absolutely satisfies the heart. Take it to India, and that is true. Take it to Africa, and that is true. Take it to the cultured or the ignorant, and when they find its secret that is true. Paul needed Judaism and something else if he was to win perfect satisfaction. Nobody needs Christ and something else. That infinite satisfaction which our faith gives, that profound sense of being complete in Christ, that song which rises from the believing heart, "Thou, O Christ, art all I want," that distinguishes our faith decisively from Judaism and every other faith. It is the mark of its absolute finality.

Because Christianity Is Final It Demands Unconditional Surrender
To some this may seem a theoretical question, but in reality it is far from being that. For example, unless our faith be final it cannot demand unconditional surrender—and that is exactly what it does demand. No one would cast himself upon another if he knew that the other's friendship were but temporary. Love demands finality, if it is to give itself in utter unreserve. And the utter unreserve our faith demands could not be asked, and never could be given, were our faith destined to be superseded. Religion is nothing unless it can be everything, unless it deserves unconditional surrender, unless we can rest ourselves upon it, unreservedly, in life and trial and suffering and death. And that is what nobody can ever do, anymore than he can give his love or friendship, if what claims his heart be only temporary.

A Missionary Faith Because of Its Finality
Again, one remembers that our Christian faith is in its essence a missionary faith. Whenever it ceases to be that, it ceases to be Christianity. From the first it has evangelized the world simply because it could not help it. It could no more help it than the river can help flowing, or the rain coming down on the mown grass. But the instant you cease to believe our faith is final, and that Christ is the last Word of God, you "cut the nerve" of missionary effort. To what purpose is this waste—this lavish expenditure of men and money, if the message of the Cross is to grow obsolete and Christ be replaced by any other teacher? Do you think our Lord, who was always sweetly reasonable, would ever have said "Go into all the world," had He foreseen a prospect such as that? The genius of Christianity is missionary, and all missionaries believe that Christ is final. Men who hold Him one teacher among many have never lifted a finger to evangelize the nations. Thus this question, seemingly theoretic, has the mightiest influence on personal response, and on the coming of the Kingdom in the world.

The Finality of the Christian Faith Gives Direction
And then we remember how right through the New Testament that is the unvarying attitude—and when we cut ourselves adrift from the New Testament we are sailing on an uncharted sea. Paul never doubted that his faith was final through all the magnificent expansions of his thought. To John, Christ was the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. The majestic argument of the Epistle to the Hebrews is an argument for the finality of Christ—God has at last spoken by a Son. Best of all, our Savior never doubted it—it was part and parcel of His consciousness. I am the Bread of Life. I am the Light of the World. My words shall never pass away. No one has had even a glimpse of Christianity who cannot sing with the profoundest faith.

Jesus shall reign where'er the sun
Doth his successive journeys run.
(Devotional Sermons)

But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof
in the day of judgment.
​For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. 
Mat 12:36-37

Idle words may, in a very general way, be defined as words that issue out of a condition of idleness—fruitless, useless hours. The care of speech is eminently a fit training which the Gospel ordains.
​
There are a great many words that are like dust-cloths. They remove grime; they drive away unpleasant thought and feeling; they change the temperament. There are a great many things in conversation that tend to make men cheerful, that tend to put springs under the waggon of life to make it go easier along in the rough road. All these things are edifying in their own way. They polish, they brighten, they comfort, they cheer; they keep people above melancholy and gloom, and that itself is very desirable.

One kind of idle words is tattling. It is a kind of gay frivolity upon a line of things which require sobriety and charity. It proceeds neither from wit nor from humour, nor from rectitude; but it is amusing ourselves with the thousand little scraps that relate to men and their affairs. Not only is it of no benefit to them, but it is bad for us and bad for them.

Boasting is another form of idle speech. There is a vast amount of it which springs up in youth and does not die out in manhood. It is a sort of bidding one’s self up in the market. It indicates the want of any high self-measuring, and is very foolish and idle.

Profane swearing is an utterance of sacred names or of sacred things in a light, trifling, and, worse still, in a malicious and angry mood. Swearing is some men’s idea of boldness. But God forbid that any man who values aught that is noble and sweet and pure in men, in angels, and in God should indulge in this most demoralizing habit! There is the best reason in the world, in philosophy, in politeness, in neighbourly charity, why one’s mouth should be kept free and clean from all profanity. It is the violation of decency and honour; it is the violation of every noble instinct.
(H. W. Beecher, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxi., p. 268)

Note: In posting this, I am looking into myself, and confessing my own battles with this evil conduct. Perhaps like me, you live in a situation, and find that in society today, that these poisons of the mouth have invaded your life, and corrupted you in ways you don't want to admit to yourself. People in every area of life today use sarcasm, talebearing, and swearing as everyday language, it flows like an open overflowing sewer from their mouths. In recent years, I've allowed it to contaminate my own life, and what comes out of my mouth. I don't condone myself, I battle it, and go to God and confess it, and once again ask for the Lord's strength to stop this behavior, to forgive me, and once again wash me in the blood of Christ that cleanses from all sin. Living in this world today is an ongoing battle, and beleiver's not exempt from the contamination that's rampant in the world today. If it were not for Jesus in us, and the Holy Spirit within, none of us would have a chance. For Him, I'm eternally thankful. If we confess our sins, and failures, He's faithful to forgive, and the Holy Spirit comes, and strengthens us again to stand against the evil forces that come at us from every direction. But, we must also be mindful of the company we keep, those who we allow in our lives, and what we spend our time doing.

There are some Christians who do not examine themselves, and don't want to allow the Holy Spirit to convict them if they begin to stray into ways of the world, and use their mouths for evil. They are delusional, and walking in pride. If they continue, they will fall. God's hand of protection and blessing will remove, and He will leave them to themselves. I do not want this to ever happen in my life.
​Lorna Couillard

Spite and hatred absolutely blind the eyes and distort the judgment. They reached their climax in this effort of the Pharisees to discredit Christ. They could not deny His miracles, so they imputed them to a collusion between Him and Satan. On the face of it, this charge was absurd. But our Lord showed clearly that in making the allegation, His enemies were violating their spiritual sense and deliberately blinding their eyes and dulling their ears to God’s Spirit. This is the sin that hath never forgiveness, because the soul that acts thus ceases to wish for or seek it.

What a glimpse is given of our Savior’s sore temptations and glorious victory in Mat_12:29! He had already bound the strong man, and for this reason was able to spoil his house and deliver his captives. Let Jesus into your heart, and no foe, though he may batter the door, shall break in to destroy.
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The one test that Jesus proposes is fruit. The nature of a man or doctrine or movement can be rightly estimated only when the results have had time to develop. How splendidly Christianity has stood this test.  (F.B. Meyer)