God -- Sermons; Jesus Christ -- Sermons; Sermons, English -- 20th century
During the present European war I was much impressed by the words of one
of our soldiers who writes from the front: "After all that is being done
there still remains one supreme necessity without which neither arms or
munitions can be decisive, namely, the spiritual outlook of the whole
nation. When I returned home after ten months in Flanders, I was amazed at
the lack of spirituality of the people as a whole. The simple faith and
dependence upon God which characterised our country in her past struggles
seem lost to sight. 'They trusted in Thee and Thou didst deliver them'
implied no disregard for military efficiency; it was the real and vital
accompaniment to armed force. Can it be that the hellishness of battle,
the wearing down of the spirit induced by trench warfare, moments of utter
loneliness which every soldier has to bear, strike right at the soul and
enable him to realise the nearness of the spiritual world? 'Prayer is the
foundation of all grace' were the words of a dying soldier who had
deliberately returned to the area of poisonous gas and had brought back
the machine gun on his shoulders. Some of us have realised what individual
prayer at home has done for us, but we should all like to feel that the
whole nation is also testing the value of spiritual power."
We read in God's Word that "The children of Judah prevailed, because they
relied upon the Lord God"; [Footnote: 2 Chron. xiii. 18.] and when King
Asa was defeated the prophet said to him, "Because thou hast relied on the
King of Syria, and not relied on the Lord thy God, therefore is the host
of the King of Syria escaped out of thine hand." [Footnote: 2 Chron. xvi.
7.]
To have faith in God we must put God first in everything. He must be first
when we awake in the morning. How blessed it is to be able to feel, "When
I awake I am still with Thee." A working man said to me once, "I make
myself happy in God the first thing in the morning." David says, "In the
morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee and will look up." [Footnote:
Ps. v. 3.] "When I awake I am still with Thee." [Footnote: Ps. cxxxix.
18.]
"In my morning prayer," said a Christian man, "instead of thinking of my
own needs first, I like to think of the fulness there is in Christ for
me." Let us resolve to put "God _first_," even if we have only time for
one text of Scripture. "God _first_," even if it is only a minute or two
for prayer. A Christian said once, "I must see the face of God before I
see the face of man." The manna was gathered early every morning. Another
said, "Unless I meet with God first, I cannot meet the difficulties of the
day in a prepared spirit." If you put "God first," you will find this will
make all the difference as to how you do your work and how you deal with
others. "Little is much if God is in it."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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