(Horatius Bonar, "Self-Denial Christianity")

"Woe to those who are at ease in Zion!"
Amos 6:1

What do we say to . . .
our self-indulgence,
our sloth,
our love of ease,
our avoidance of hardship,
our luxury,
our pampering of the body,
our costly feasts,
our silken couches,
our brilliant furniture,
our gay attire,
our braided hair,
our jeweled fingers,
our idle mirth,
our voluptuous music,
our jovial tables, loaded with every variety of rich viands?

Are we Christians? Or are we worldlings?

Where is the self-denial of the New Testament days?

Where is the separation from a self-pleasing luxurious
world? Where is the cross, the true badge of discipleship,
to be seen--except in useless religious ornaments for the
body, or worse than useless decorations for the sanctuary?

"Woe to those who are at ease in Zion!" Is not this
the description of multitudes who name the name of
Christ? They may not always be "living in debauchery,
lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable
idolatry." But even where these are absent, there is
'high living'--luxury of the table or the wardrobe--
in conformity to 'this present evil world.'

'At ease in Zion!' Yes! there is the shrinking . . .
from hard service;
from 'spending and being spent;'
from toil and burden-bearing and conflict;
from self-sacrifice and noble adventure,
for the Master's sake.

There is conformity to the world, instead of conformity
to Christ! There is a laying down, instead of a taking up
of the cross. Or there is a lining of the cross with velvet,
lest it should gall our shoulders as we carry it! Or there
is an adorning of the cross, that it may suite the taste
and the manners of our refined and intellectual age.

Anything but the bare, rugged and simple cross!

We think that we can make the strait gate wider, and
the narrow way broader, so as to be able to walk more
comfortably to the heavenly kingdom. We try to prove
that 'modern enlightenment' has so elevated the race,
that there is no longer the battle or the burden or the
discipline; or has so refined 'the world and its pleasures',
that we may safely drink the poisoned cup, and give
ourselves up to the inebriation of the Siren song.

'At ease in Zion!' Even when the walls of our city are
besieged, and the citadel is being stormed! Instead of
grasping our weapons, we lie down upon our couches!

Instead of the armor, we put on the silken robe!

We are cowards, when we should be brave!

We are faint-hearted, when we should be bold!

We are lukewarm, when we should be fervent!

We are cold, when we should be full of zeal!

We compromise and shuffle and apologize, when
we should lift up our voice like a trumpet! We pare
down truth, or palliate error, or extenuate sin--in
order to placate the world, or suit the spirit of the
age, or 'unify' the Church.

Learn self-denying Christianity. Not the form or name,
but the living thing. Let us renounce the lazy, luxurious,
self-pleasing, fashionable religion of the present day!

A self-indulgent religion has nothing in common with
the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ; or with that cross of
ours which He has commanded us to take up and carry
after Him--renouncing ease and denying self.

Our time,
our gifts,
our money,
our strength,
are all to be laid upon the altar.

"Woe to those who are at ease in Zion!" Amos 6:1

__________________
1689 Baptist Confession

Psa 55:16 As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me.
Psa 55:17 Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.
James Farley, Wilderness Road Baptist Assembly.
Husband of Melissa and father of Ann.
www.wildernessroadbaptist.org

I've not been sure if we are to respond to the posts in Devotional Forum -- this one has prompted me because I have been thinking exactly along the lines of the questions posed in this thread.

When we read these earlier writers, it is so obvious that all of their lives were saturated by God's word and direction. I've been trying to discern between what was cultural and what is directed by God's word. We live in a post-60s, post-feminist time and likely were reared with the fuzzy middle-class mores. How do we get outside of this mindset and really see what God demands of us?

BTW, the recommendation on another thread for Mr. Henry Scudder's "The Christian's Daily Walk" has been very helpful, but at the same time, raised even more of these questions for me.

__________________
JWithnell
Member Bethel OPC
Virginia

Absolutely we are to respond to and discuss these devotionals brother. I believe that discussion of these help us in our sanctification and daily walk. I share your concern as well with the worldly mindset of todays christianity that affects us all to some degree. It seems that many are afraid of the word "holiness" this day and time and equate the mention of it as "legalism".

The legalism is part of my dilemma. It would be so easy to slide into a list of do-s and don't-s. We have the other possibility of sliding into a Wesleyan piety or worse, a Victorian Christian fashion where even the use of the proper fork was a moral issue.

To give you an idea how far our moorings have loosed read this piece by Spurgeon. Our thinking has changed greatly about this imo.






(Charles Spurgeon, "The Soul Winner")

"So that you may become blameless and pure,
children of God without fault in a crooked and
depraved generation, in which you shine like
stars in the universe." Philippians 2:15

I believe that one reason why the church at this
present moment has so little influence over the world,
is because the world has so much influence over the
church! Nowadays, we hear professors pleading that
they may do this, and do that—that they may live like
worldlings. My sad answer to them, when they crave
this liberty is, "Do it if you dare. It may not cost you
much hurt, for you are so bad already. Your cravings
show how rotten your hearts are. If you are hungering
after such dogs food—go dogs, and eat the garbage!

Worldly amusements are fit food for pretenders and
hypocrites. If you were God's children, you would loathe
the thought of the world's evil joys. Your question would
not be, "How far may we be like the world?" but your cry
would be, "How can we get away from the world? How
can we come out of it?"

"Whatever is true,
whatever is noble,
whatever is right,
whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable,
if anything is excellent or praiseworthy
—think about such things." Philippians 4:8

If you have not listened to this sermon then I would commend it to you

__________________
Richard
CofE
UK

Just downloaded the sermon -- thanks.

Richard, was your sermon recommendation based on the idea that we free ourselves as much as possible from the deleterious influences of our culture? A worthwhile warning, to be sure.

Part of what I am dealing with is discerning the differences between what is cultural and what truly reflects what God's word teaches. For example, there was a time when most children were taught to rise as soon as an adult entered the room -- is that a good example of children observing the fifth commandment and recommended for now or was that just an outmoded cultural norm? And what principles do we follow when making these distinctions, particularly if we are to avoid the trappings of legalism.