Christian Quotations of the Day
for June, 2000

June 1, 2000

Ascension
Feast of Justin, Martyr at Rome, c.165
Commemoration of Angela de'Merici, Founder of the Institute of St. Ursula, 1540
Jesus shall reign where'er the sun
Does its successive journeys run,
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.

For him shall endless prayer be made,
And princes throng to crown his head;
His name, like sweet perfume, shall rise
With every morning sacrifice.

People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on his love with sweetest song,
And infant-voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on his name.

Blessings abound where'er he reigns;
The prisoners leap to lose their chains;
The weary find eternal rest,
And all the sons of want are blest.

Let every creature rise and bring
Honors peculiar to our King;
Angels descend with songs again,
And earth repeat the loud amen.
         ... Isaac Watts, Psalms of David Imitated, Psalm 72

June 2, 2000


        Love always involves responsibility, and love always involves sacrifice. And we do not really love Christ unless we are prepared to face His task and to take up His Cross.
         ... William Barclay

June 3, 2000

Feast of Edward King, Bishop of Lincoln, Teacher, 1910
Commemoration of Martyrs of Uganda, 1886 & 1978

        Thoughtfulness is the beginning of great sanctity. If you learn this art of being thoughtful, you will become more and more Christ-like, for his heart was meek and he always thought of others. Our vocation, to be beautiful, must be full of thought for others.
         ... Mother Teresa of Calcutta

June 4, 2000


        Lord, I know not what I ought to ask of you.
         O, Father, give to your child what he himself knows not how to ask.
         Teach me to pray. Pray yourself in me.
         ... François Fenelon

June 5, 2000

Feast of Boniface (Wynfrith) of Crediton, Archbishop of Mainz, Apostle of Germany, Martyr, 754

        It is through dying to concern for self that we are born to new life with God and others; in such dying and rebirth, we find that life is lent to be spent; and in such spending of what we are lent, we find there is an infinite supply.
         ... Glenn Olds

June 6, 2000

Commemoration of Ini Kopuria, Founder of the Melanesian Brotherhood, 1945

        The Gospels do not explain the Resurrection -- the Resurrection explains the Gospels.
         ... John S. Whale

June 7, 2000


        This is the real Church of the Lord Jesus Christ -- not merely organisation, but a group of people, individually the children of God, drawn together by the Holy Spirit for a particular task, either in a local situation or over a wider area. The Church of the Lord Jesus should be a group of those who are redeemed and bound together on the basis of true doctrine. But subsequently they should show together a substantial "sociological healing" of the breaches between men, which have come about because of... man's sin. The Christian sociological position is that the sociological problems which we find... are a result of the separation that has come between men because of sin. (Continued tomorrow)
         ... Francis A. Schaeffer, The God Who Is There

June 8, 2000

Feast of Thomas Ken, Bishop of Bath & Wells, Hymnographer, 1711

        Now the world should be able to see in the Church those marks [which show] that there is a substantial sociological healing possible in the present generation. It is not enough for the Church to be engaged with the State in healing social ills, though this is important at times. But when the world can turn around and see a group of God's people exhibiting substantial healing in the area of human relationships in their present life, then the world will take notice. Each group of Christians is, as it were, a pilot plant, showing that something can be done in the present situation, if only we begin in the right way.
         ... Francis A. Schaeffer, The God Who Is There

June 9, 2000

Feast of Columba, Abbot of Iona, Missionary, 597
Commemoration of Ephrem of Syria, Deacon, Hymnographer, Teacher, 373

        Jesus was the representative of the Lord who forgives sins and heals all infirmities; the disciples acknowledged him as "Lord" and transferred to him the position ascribed to the "Lord" in the Old Testament. Whereas Jesus placed the penitent heart and the saving will of God higher than the pride of the godly and the letter of the Torah, so Paul preached faith in Christ as the only way to salvation and rejected striving after righteousness through the works of the Law. Above all, Jesus knew himself to be the Messiah and he acted in messianic authority; hence the risen and glorified Jesus was acknowledged as the king of the last days. It is still faith, not sight, that is demanded from men.
         ... Otto Betz, What Do We Know About Jesus?

June 10, 2000


        The loving service which God sends His people into the world to render includes both evangelism and social action, for each is in itself an authentic expression of love, and neither needs the other to justify it.
         ... John R. W. Stott

June 11, 2000

Pentecost
Feast of Barnabas the Apostle
Let songs of praises fill the sky!
        Christ, our ascended Lord,
Sends down his Spirit from on high,
        According to his word.

The Spirit by his heavenly breath,
        New life creates within:
He quickens sinners from the death
        Of trespasses and sin.

The things of Christ the Spirit takes,
        And shows them unto men;
The fallen soul his temple makes,
        God's image stamps again

Come, Holy Spirit, from above,
        With thy celestial fire:
Come, and with flames of zeal and love
        Our hearts and tongues inspire.
         ... Thomas Cotterill

June 12, 2000


        The experiencing of divine sonship, of adoption, is the act of the Spirit in our hearts crying Abba, Father (Gal. 4:6; Rom. 8:15,16)... Liberty, peace, and joy are correlative factors in the same moment of experience, and they are all attributed to the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:2,6; 14:17; Gal. 5:22,23; 1 Thess. 1:6). In the allegory of Abraham's two sons, Paul contrasts the state of bondage under the Law with that of liberty under grace, and defines the one as being after the flesh, but the other after the Spirit (Gal. 4:21-29)... The first great moment of the new life, whether it be called justification by faith, the realization of sonship, or peace with God, is a work of the Holy Spirit, through the preaching of the Word. But [Paul] does not indicate... the exact logical or historical sequence of the various elements in the experience, and it may be doubted whether he would have entertained any idea of sequence within the complex experience of justification. (Continued tomorrow)
         ... Thomas Rees, The Holy Spirit in Thought and Experience

June 13, 2000


        That Paul regarded the subsequent development of Christian life and character as in its totality the work of the Spirit is not questioned. All the Christian virtues are the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22,23). He is the Spirit of holiness (Rom. 1:4), of sanctification (II Thess. 2:13), and of a new life (Rom. 7:6). Love, the greatest of the Christian graces, is the pre-eminent gift of the Spirit (I Cor. 13; Col. 1:8; Rom. 15:30), not only as the grace of character, but also as a principle of unity in the Church (Eph. 4:1-6; cf. 2:18, 22). The Spirit bestows wisdom and knowledge on the individual and in the Church. Paul spoke "God's wisdom in a mystery... through the Spirit, for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God" (I Cor. 2:7-10). "For to one is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom, and to another the word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit" (I Cor. 12:8). All Christian knowledge was derived from the Spirit, both by Paul and [the Apostle] John (Eph. 1:17, 23; 3:16-19; John 16:13; I John 2:20, 27; cf. James 1:5, 3:15, 17). (Continued tomorrow)
         ... Thomas Rees, The Holy Spirit in Thought and Experience

June 14, 2000

Commemoration of Richard Baxter, Priest, Hymnographer, Teacher, 1691

        The Spirit was the power manifested in the resurrection of Christ (Rom. 1:4), in the inner life of man (Rom. 15:13; Eph. 3:16), and in the preaching of the word (I Thess. 1:5; 1 Cor. 2:4). He is the Spirit of life, both now and hereafter (Gal. 6:8; I Cor. 15:45); and the Spirit of assurance, the guarantee of the new life, whereby man obtains confidence towards God and courage in the face of the world's evil (II Cor. 1:22; Rom. 5:5, 8:16, 23; Eph. 1:13, 4:30). Man, therefore, as the dwelling-place of the Spirit, is the inalienable possession of God (I Cor. 3:16, 17, 6:19). (Continued tomorrow)
         ... Thomas Rees, The Holy Spirit in Thought and Experience

June 15, 2000

Feast of Evelyn Underhill, Mystical Writer, 1941

        As the Christian life in the individual is the work of the Spirit, it follows that the corporate realization of that life, in the Church built upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, is also His creation... The great creative acts and significant turning-points were recognized, either by the Church or by its historian, as determined by the Spirit. The Spirit confirmed and preserved the community from the outset, by the descent at Pentecost (Acts 2:4). The extension of the Gospel beyond Judea and the first mission to the Gentiles were commanded and approved by the Spirit (Acts 8:29, 10:19, 44, 13:2, 4). Paul, on his journeys, was led by the Spirit (Acts 16:6, 7). He himself was especially conscious that his whole ministry was inspired by the Holy Ghost (Rom. 15:18,19). All the apostles were conspicuously men of the Spirit. (Continued tomorrow)
         ... Thomas Rees, The Holy Spirit in Thought and Experience

June 16, 2000

Feast of Richard of Chichester, Bishop, 1253
Commemoration of Joseph Butler, Bishop of Durham, Moral Philosopher, 1752

         The Spirit guided the Church in the creation of organization and officers (Acts 6:3, 20:28). The first three gifts of the Spirit which God had set in the Church were apostles, prophets, and teachers, in addition to which the whole Church had a gift of government (I Cor. 12:4, 28). The decisions of the first council of the Church were first of all decrees of the Spirit (Acts 15:28). Paul had preached and created churches by the power of the Spirit (I Cor. 2:4; 1 Thess. 1:5,6; Gal. 3:2). In one Spirit were all believers baptized into one body (I Cor. 12:13: cf. Phil. 1:27). The Spirit therefore dwells in the Church as the principle of its entire united and common life (Eph. 2:18, 22; cf. I Cor. 3:16).
         ... Thomas Rees, The Holy Spirit in Thought and Experience

June 17, 2000

Commemoration of Samuel & Henrietta Barnett, Social Reformers, 1913 & 1936

        I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I want to be. I am not what I hope to be. But still, I am not what I used to be. And by the grace of God, I am what I am.
         ... John Newton

June 18, 2000

Trinity Sunday

        The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is wholly practical; it is revealed to us, to discover to us our high origin and the greatness of our fall, and to show us the deep and profound operation of the triune God in the recovery of the divine life in our souls: that by the means of this mystery thus discovered, our piety may be rightly directed, our faith and prayer have their proper objects, [and] the workings and aspiring of our own hearts may cooperate and correspond with that triune life in the Deity, which is always desiring to manifest itself in us.
         ... William Law, An Appeal to All that Doubt

June 19, 2000

Commemoration of Sundar Singh of India, Sadhu, Evangelist, Teacher, 1929

        Many people despise those who spend their health, strength and money for the salvation of others, and call them mad. And yet it is they who will save many and be saved themselves.
         ... Sadhu Sundar Singh

June 20, 2000


        It makes a great difference in our feelings towards others if their needs and their joys are on our lips in prayer; as also it makes a vast difference in their feelings towards us if they know that we are in the habit of praying for them. There is no chasm in society that cannot be firmly and permanently bridged by intercession; there is no feud or dislike that cannot be healed by the same exercise of love.
         ... Charles H. Brent

June 21, 2000


        In Romans 7, St. Paul says, "The law is spiritual." What does that mean? If the law were physical, then it could be satisfied by works, but since it is spiritual, no one can satisfy it unless everything he does springs from the depths of the heart. But no one can give such a heart except the Spirit of God, who makes the person be like the law, so that he actually conceives a heartfelt longing for the law and henceforward does everything, not through fear or coercion, but from a free heart.
         ... Martin Luther, "Preface to the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans"
         ... Also see comments on this book in Bookworms

June 22, 2000

Feast of Alban, first Martyr of Britain, c.209

        We implore the mercy of God, not that He may leave us at peace in our vices, but that He may deliver us from them.
         ... Blaise Pascal

June 23, 2000

Feast of Etheldreda, Abbess of Ely, c.678

        See in the meantime that your faith bringeth forth obedience, and God in due time will cause it to bring forth peace.
         ... John Owen

June 24, 2000

Feast of the Birth of John the Baptist

        "Thou shalt not" is the beginning of wisdom. But the end of wisdom, the new law, is, "Thou shalt." To be Christian is to be old? Not a bit of it. To be Christian is to be reborn, and free, and unafraid, and immortally young.
         ... Joy Davidman, Smoke on the Mountain
         ... Also see comments on this book in Bookworms

June 25, 2000


        When you face the perils of weariness, carelessness, and confusion, don't pray for an easier life. Pray instead to be a stronger man or woman of God.
         ... Luis Palau

June 26, 2000


        Even in a day of overdone distinctions, one might point out that interpretations are not properly to be classified as historical or dogmatic, but as true or false. If they are false, it does not matter whether they be called dogmatic or historical; and if they are true, they may quite well be both.
         ... James Denney

June 27, 2000


        This is our Lord's will, ... that our prayer and our trust be, alike, large. For if we do not trust as much as we pray, we fail in full worship to our Lord in our prayer; and also we hinder and hurt ourselves. The reason is that we do not know truly that our Lord is the ground from which our prayer springeth; nor do we know that it is given us by his grace and his love. If we knew this, it would make us trust to have of our Lord's gifts all that we desire. For I am sure that no man asketh mercy and grace with sincerity, without mercy and grace being given to him first.
         ... Juliana of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love

June 28, 2000

Feast of Irenæus, Bishop of Lyons, Teacher, Martyr, c.200

        It is quite possible to perform very ordinary actions with so high an intention as to serve God therein better than in far more important things done with a less pure intention.
         ... Jean N. Grou

June 29, 2000

Feast of Peter & Paul, Apostles

        The unbelieving mind would not be convinced by any proof, and the worshiping heart needs none.
         ... A. W. Tozer

June 30, 2000


        Jesus will prevail. His Church will prevail. Everything else is just passing away. Our current leadership [of the Episcopal Church USA] will die one day, as will you and I. It is not for us to condemn others, but to witness to them of Him who is in our lives. Even now, the enemy is at work, but Jesus will prevail. I know a God whose mercy knows no limits and whose power has no restraints.
         ... Todd H. Wetzel, Steadfast Faith
         ... Also see comments on this book in Bookworms

Compilation Copyright, 1996-2008, by Robert McAnally Adams,

Curator, Christian Quotation of the Day.
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