Positive Words Newsletter
#158 / 11th July 2008
Expanding your awareness of
"the simplicity that is in Christ"
(II Corinthians 11:3)
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Blessings and greetings to all the saints "in Christ... in every place" (I Corinthians 1:2). In this issue: - With All Blessing by Thomas Goodwin
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- Currently at newcreationrealities.com
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With all blessings -- Ephesians 1:3.
In that old dispensation, when Jacob blessed his twelve sons, and in them their posterity, the twelve tribes, in the conclusion of his blessing it is said, "These are the twelve tribes, and every man, according to his blessing, he blessed them." That is, Joseph had some one eminent earthly blessing bestowed on his tribe, Reuben another, and Naphtali a third, and so the rest. None there are said to be blessed with all blessings. But when God comes to open his treasures of blessings in Christ, and to profess to bless indeed and altogether, he blesseth with all blessings. Every child of his he blesseth, even "with the fulness of the blessing of the gospel," as, Romans 15:29, it is called. For when God gives us Christ, and blesseth us in him, "how shall he not with him freely give us all things?" Having given you my Son, nay then take all else, and take all freely; having given the greater so willingly, sure you shall have all the rest, which are the lesser, more willingly.
It is observable that when Esau approached his father, to ask the blessing like one that came to glean after another's harvest already reaped, Jacob having been bofore him, how hard, how difficult he found his father to be, and upon what low terms is Esau fain to beg something, anything of him. "Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?" that is, hast thou given all away? And verse 38, "Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, me also, 0 my father. And how doth Isaac his father speak? As having nothing now left he could think of to bestow; with these, and these things, says he, have I blessed him, "and what shall I do now unto thee, my son?" He casts about with himself to think? what should be left ungiven away. This had not been if Jacob had not gone away with all.
Now, as our Apostle says in the Epistle to the Galatians, of Ishmael and Isaac, "these things are an allegory;" so expressly the same Apostle affirmeth these also to have been, Hebrews 12:17. The father is God, whom in this dispensation Isaac the father represented; the elect, the "us" here, are Jacob or Israel, as frequently they are called; whom God endues with all blessings, at once makes over all to them alone, as their inheritance; so as for the rest there is not anything left, but things earthly and carnal, which is the superfluity and redundancy of that fullness bestowed on his own, and which they may well spare. Hast thou not reserved one blessing? No, not one. God hath blessed us with all. Oh, infinite goodness and special grace.
With all -- Even each saint with all. If with any one blessing, then with all; they hang together and go in a cluster. "Whom he hath predestinated, them he hath called; whom he hath justified, them he hath glorified," and not one is wanting. If thou hast one grace, thou hast all, and all gracious privileges together therewith ; even all the things that belong to life and godliness; all the promises of this life and that to come.
Thomas Goodwin (1600-80) was a great English preacher in the Puritan tradition. The above extract is taken from his sermons on the book of Ephesians.
Our Home Page in recent weeks have featured articles by the great preachers of the past. If you missed them, you can still read them in our Articles section:
The Presence of Christ by Andrew Murray
At This Moment by Andrew Murray
and currently... "Is"-- the Key to Victory by Charles Trumble)
Our new subscription system. We believe we have ironed out any problems, and this newsletter is coming to you via our new system. If we do not have your first name in the greeting at the top of this newsletter, please consider going to our Subscription Update page and adding it there. We love to thank God for you by name!
There's been two new postings since our last newsletter. Go to the site to read the articles in full -- a summary appears below. You are welcome to leave your comments on the site... this is a interactive blog.
Out of and Into
"Out of my bondage, sorrow and night; Jesus, I come; Jesus, I come; Into Thy freedom, gladness and light, Jesus I come to Thee". So reads the first verse of the popular invitational hymn by William Sleeper. It is based on a solid biblical foundation. Read the complete posting
here.
Always in triumph
"But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere" (II Corinthians 2:14). It amazes me how many who teach "in Christ" truths emphasize a conditional or negative slant to what is in reality the most positive thing in the world. Read the complete posting
here.
inchristclassics.com
This site, devoted to the book "In Christ: The Classics", continues to bless believers around the world. You can read many articles on "In Christ" by various teachers of this great truth.
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