youthvoices volume 12 issue 2 mar/apr 2016 2016 nov-dec.pdfprayer promotes the spirit of devotion,...

YouthVOICES Volume 12 Issue 2

Mar/Apr 2016

3

~Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of

Earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and Grace~

~ Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus – Helen Howarth Lemmel~

Volume 12 Issue 6 For Private Circulation only Nov/Dec 2016


Mar/Apr 2016

To Know Christ and to Make Him Known ----

Contents

Devotion: The Heart of Prayer By E.M. Bounds

Pg. 3

Sanctifying Power - and Films, Music and Leisure in the Christian Life By Dr. Peter Masters

Pg. 6

Phariseeism By Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Pg. 11

Law and Grace By Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Pg. 13

A Woman to Be Remembered By J.C. Ryle

Pg. 15

YFer Interview: Ruth and Rene Choo By Valerie Loh

Pg. 20


Mar/Apr 2016


Devotion: The Heart of Prayer By E.M. Bounds

Devotion is the particular frame of mind found in one entirely devoted to

God. It is the spirit of reverence, of awe, of godly fear. It is a state of heart

which appears before God in prayer and worship. It is foreign to everything like

lightness of spirit, and is opposed to levity and noise and bluster. Devotion

dwells in the realm of quietness and is still before God. It is serious, thoughtful,

meditative. Devotion belongs to the inner life and lives in the closet, but also

appears in the public services of the sanctuary. It is a part of the very spirit of

true worship and is of the nature of the spirit of prayer.

Devotion belongs to the devout man, whose thoughts and feelings are

devoted to God. Such a man has a mind given up wholly to the Christian life

and possesses a strong affection for God and an ardent love for his house.

Cornelius was "a devout man, one that feared God with all His house, which

gave much alms to the people, and prayed always."(Acts 10:1-2) "Devout men

carried Stephen to his burial." (Acts 8:2) "One Ananias, a devout man,

according to the law," (Acts 22:12) was sent unto Saul when he was blind, to

tell him what the Lord would have him do. God can wonderfully use such men,

for devout men are His chosen agents in carrying forward His plans.

Prayer promotes the spirit of devotion, while devotion is favourable to

the best praying. Devotion furthers prayer and helps to drive prayer home

to the object which it seeks. Prayer thrives in the atmosphere of true

devotion. It is easy to pray when in the spirit of devotion. The attitude of

mind and the state of heart implied in devotion make prayer effectual in

reaching the throne of grace. God dwells where the spirit of devotion resides.

All the graces of the Spirit are nourished and grow well in the environment

created by devotion. Indeed, these graces grow nowhere else but here. The

absence of a devotional spirit means death to the graces born in a renewed heart.

True worship finds congeniality in the atmosphere made by a spirit of devotion.

While prayer is helpful to devotion, at the same time devotion reacts on

prayer, and helps us to pray. Devotion engages the heart in prayer. It is not

an easy task for the lips to try to pray while the heart is absent from it. The

charge which God at one time made against his ancient Israel was that they

honoured him with their lips, while their hearts were far from him.

The very essence of prayer is the spirit of devotion. Without devotion

prayer is an empty form, a vain round of words. Sad to say, much of this kind

of prayer prevails, today, in the church. This is a busy age, bustling and active,


Mar/Apr 2016


and this bustling spirit has invaded the church of God. Its religious

performances are many. The church works at religion with the order, precision

and force of real machinery. But too often it works with the heartlessness of the

machine. There is much of the treadmill movement in our ceaseless round and

routine of religious doings. We pray without praying. We sing without singing

with the Spirit. We have music without the praise of God being in it. We go to

church by habit, and come home all too gladly when the benediction is

pronounced. We read our accustomed chapter in the Bible, and feel quite

relieved when the task is done. We say our prayers by rote, as a schoolboy

recites his lesson, and are not sorry when the Amen is uttered. Christianity has

to do with everything but our hearts. It engages our hands and feet; it takes hold

of our voices; it lays its hands on our money; it affects even the postures of our

bodies, but it does not take hold of our affections, our desires, our zeal, and

make us serious, desperately in earnest, and cause us to be quiet and

worshipful in the presence of God.

Why all these sad defects in our piety? Why this modern perversion of the

true nature of the religion of Jesus Christ? Why is the modern type of

Christianity so much like a jewel-case with the precious jewels gone? The

great lack of the modern Church is the spirit of devotion. We hear sermons

in the same spirit with which we listen to a lecture or hear a speech. We visit

the house of God just as if it were a common place, on a level with the theater,

the lecture-room or the forum. We handle sacred things just as if they were the

things of the world. We need to put the spirit of devotion into Monday's

business, as well as in Sunday's worship. We need the spirit of devotion to

remind us of the presence of God, to be always doing the will of God, to

direct all things always to the glory of God.

The spirit of devotion puts God in all things. It puts God not merely in

our praying and church-going, but in all the concerns of life. "Whether,

therefore, ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." (1

Cor 10:12) The spirit of devotion makes the common things of earth sacred

and the little things great. With this spirit of devotion, we go to business on

Monday directed by the very same influence and inspired by the same

influences by which we went to church on Sunday. The spirit of devotion

makes a Sabbath out of Saturday, and transforms the shop and the office

into a temple of God.

The spirit of devotion prevents Christianity from being a thin veneer

and puts it into the very life and being of our souls. It ceases to be doing a

mere work, and becomes a heart, sending its rich blood through every artery


Mar/Apr 2016


and beating with the pulsations of vigorous and radiant life. The ardour of

devotion is in prayer. In the fourth chapter of Revelation, verse eight, we read:

"And they rest not day nor night, saying, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty,

which was, and is, and is to come." The inspiration and centre of their rapturous

devotion is the holiness of God. That holiness of God claims their attention,

inflames their devotion. There is nothing cold, nothing dull, nothing wearisome

about them or their heavenly worship. "They rest not day nor night." What zeal!

What unfainting ardour and ceaseless rapture! The ministry of prayer, if it be

anything worthy of the name, is a ministry of ardour, a ministry of

unwearied and intense longing after God and after his holiness.

The spirit of devotion pervades the saints in heaven and characterizes the

worship of heaven's angelic intelligences. No devotionless creatures are in that

heavenly world. God is there, and His very presence begets the spirit of

reverence, of awe, and of real fear. If we would be partakers with them after

death, we must first learn the spirit of devotion on earth before we get there.

These living creatures, in their restless, tireless attitude after God and their

devotion to His holiness, are the perfect symbols and manifestations of true

prayer and its ardour. Prayer must be aflame. Its ardour must consume. Prayer

without fervour is as a sun without light or heat, or as a flower without beauty or

fragrance. A soul devoted to God is a fervent soul, and prayer is the creature of

that flame. He only can truly pray who is all aglow for holiness, for God,

and for heaven.

Activity is not strength. Work is not zeal. Moving about is not devotion.

Activity often is the unrecognized symptom of spiritual weakness. It may be

hurtful to piety when made the substitute for real devotion in worship. The colt

is much more active than its mother, but she is the wheel-horse of the team,

pulling the load without noise or bluster or show. The child is more active than

the father, who may be bearing the rule and burdens of an empire on his heart

and shoulders. Enthusiasm is more active than faith, though enthusiasm cannot

remove mountains nor call into action any of the omnipotent forces which faith

can command.

Activity is often at the expense of more solid, useful elements, and

generally to the total neglect of prayer. To be too busy with God's work to

commune with God, to be busy with doing church work without taking time to

talk to God about His work, is the highway to backsliding, and many people

have walked therein to the hurt of their immortal souls.

(Taken and edited from an article of the same name by E.M. Bounds)


Mar/Apr 2016


Sanctifying Power - and Films, Music and Leisure in the Christian Life By Dr. Peter Masters

Is our continuing sanctification impeded by worldliness? Has the ‘moral

resurrection’ of which Paul speaks come to a halt? Here is how we may

rediscover the secret power.

‘That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the

fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his

death;’ (Philippians 3:10).

Paul is not expressing his desire for martyrdom, but is speaking about knowing

resurrection power as a present experience in his life. In other words, he refers

to the continuing transformation of his own life to one of greater godliness,

and he describes this process as a moral and spiritual resurrection.

Newness of life

The very power by which Christ burst the bands of death is at work in his

people in sanctification. It began to operate at conversion, when resurrection

power emancipated the mind so that we grasped saving truths that previously

meant nothing to us.

By resurrection power, life-giving power, your eyes were opened and your view

changed. Resurrection power visited your mind, imparting a new understanding.

At the same time resurrection power transformed your character, giving you a

new nature, so that things that dominated you before no longer had the same

power over you. You were still a sinner, but sin became your enemy, and

you hated it, and longed to be free of it. New tastes, values and aspirations

were planted in you, all by the life-giving power of Christ.

May the operation of that resurrection power continue to work in every

believer’s life, so that whenever we are confronted by time-wasting and ungodly

television programmes, or any other unedifying, unproductive and even sinful

attraction, the renewed will (our deciding, determining, volitional faculty) will

turn our minds to better things.

Let us think for a moment about our different ‘leisure’ pursuits and interests.

What may we do in this world? There are many earthly interests, pursuits and

recreations which are not directly spiritual that are permissible to believers. In a

sense God has given us all things richly to enjoy. We may, for example, visit

places of beauty. If we are vigorous enough we may engage in physical and


Mar/Apr 2016


sporting activities. We may like to visit places of historic interest, or engage in

historical reading. Or we may have an interest in the way things work, and

triumphs of human discovery, observing them and learning about them.

Music and adventure

We may be interested and rewarded by good music and may even enjoy some

degree of illuminating fiction, but for all such things we have to be sure they are

wholesome. We would not bar the young from exposure to adventure, and even

the spectacular. There are many things which can legitimately appeal to our

minds and occupy and engage us. But whatever we do, we have to keep godly

standards, and apply tests.

Also, we must ration even legitimate things, otherwise they will replace Christ

and his service, and hinder the spiritual resurrection process going on in our

lives, ruining our tastes.

Modern entertainment music of the worst kind is everywhere, intruding into life

constantly. In the past Christians ignored popular songs, regarding them as part

of this world and belonging to the old life. Around the mid 1950s pop-songs

took a steep dive, becoming even worse in moral content than they were before,

constituting an obvious, orchestrated campaign against God’s standards,

and promoting the very opposite conduct. The world of popular

entertainment music increasingly became an all-out assault against authority,

order and refinement, contending for unrestrained sexual indulgence, self-love

and self-gratification.

This culture became a powerful and dangerous message, opposed to everything

holy and noble. Amazingly, as it unfolded, many Christian people broke with

their tradition of standing aloof, and capitulated to its alluring rhythms and

lyrics. But it was a ‘propaganda’ culture designed to bring society away from

God and into rebellion against him. Christians have no business

accommodating what their forbears rejected.

Designed to enslave

Dear friends, this is of the world. This is the production of the prince of the

power of the air, channeled to society from drug-influenced groups of

notoriously ungodly and rebellious entertainers. It was created to capture people.

Delivered in powerful rhythmic form, it is emotional manipulation, euphoric

and designed to enslave. If we have succumbed to this in our church or home

lives, it is vital that we come before the Lord in deep regret and repentance, and

begin to practice discernment, and repudiate it. It is against all principles and


Mar/Apr 2016


order, not to mention reverence, and it will certainly eclipse the privilege of

knowing resurrection power in our lives.

I remember reading some years ago an article by a professing Christian young

man who had begun to indulge deeply in entertainment music. When he went to

church he began to find everything extremely dull and drab. It ceased to be to

his taste. He told of how hymns became empty and boring, and nothing could

uplift him.

Obviously, what ruled his private life had changed him and wrecked his

spiritual sensitivities and tastes. His spirit now looked for entertainment, for

the emotional impact provided by an audio-drug, and not for the blessings of

Truth. In the event this man became the founder of a group of charismatic rock-

music churches. The secular entertainment music captured his soul.

There are doubtless many things we can employ and enjoy in this present world.

But there are also things deeply stained by today’s depraved standards, such as

the world of films. There is not much that believers should want to see. We need

always to ask – Is it clean? Is it pure? Is it wholesome? Is it edifying? Could I

take the Lord there? Could I have him next to me?

We need to ask the questions, judge and weigh the matter conscientiously, or we

disrupt the ‘moral resurrection’ process in our lives, and dishonour the Lord.

Only if something is clean and wholesome should we watch it or listen to it, and

even then, we should ration our indulgence. Christian magazines and blogs that

review and approve entertainment films and videos show their contempt for an

authentic Christian life and the pursuit of holiness.

We may be able to watch some of what is on television, but the standards just

mentioned must always apply.

This brings us to the question – do we turn on the television on the Lord’s Day,

other, say, than for a news bulletin? Surely we should never do so! It is the

Lord’s Day, dear Christian friends! This is the day designated for him, and for

his worship and service. Consider Paul’s words – ‘That I may know him’. They

apply supremely to the Lord’s Day, our day of dedication, reflection and

fellowship, and our day to make him known. We cannot ‘know him’ and allow

entertainment media to take over our lives at the same time.

Christ has suffered not only to secure our salvation, but also to bring us on the

road of striving after holiness. Do we squander the blessing and neglect the


Mar/Apr 2016


process of moral resurrection? To be a partaker of his sufferings means we live

to honour them.

To change the illustration, someone buys us a home, not merely giving a deposit,

but the total sum, and we gamble it away. Unthinkable. This is a poor

illustration, but it is as though Christ suffered and died to make me righteous,

and I fritter away the benefit. I do not even try to live a righteous life, separate

from the tainted and corrupt culture of this world. I turn on the television and

watch anything, including scandalous things, even on the Lord’s Day. Christ

suffered and died not only to purchase my salvation, but to deliver me from

ongoing participation in smut, filth, material idolatry, and all other things that

are offensive to him.

Mood dependent

Perhaps someone is watching films that are utterly unsuitable for a believer, and

which taint him and bring him down. Also all day long he allows the world to

ram beat music into his head. He comes to depend on it to lift his mood. It really

dominates and rules him. It seems he cannot live without it. Such a believer is

not walking in fellowship with his Lord’s sufferings. He is not conforming to

their purpose.

Christ died to make me an altogether better person, and so I will strive by his

help to resist sin. That is fellowship with his sufferings. He made the sacrifice

so that I could live the life. What he died for, I will live for. That is ‘being made

conformable unto his death’.

We cannot fail to see the language of effort, concern, diligence, and

conscientious Christian living in Romans 6. Is this true of us? So important is

this ‘pursuit’ that Paul repeats himself (verses 13-14) – ‘Brethren, I count not

myself to have apprehended [grasped]: but this one thing I do, forgetting those

things which are behind [the old life, with its sinful delights and distractions

and unprofitable things], and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.’

What are we like? Are we casual in our spiritual lives? Do we just dream

through the days, or do we strain and stretch? Do we weigh things, asking – Is

this moral? Is this for Christ? Or is this promoting the world? Is this intoxicating?

(We remember Paul’s words, ‘I will not be brought under the power of any.’)

Am I living carelessly or carefully?


Mar/Apr 2016


Our daily pledge

Let us say – I determine to be conscientious, to honour my Lord. I desire the

resurrection process in my life. I want to know more of his power. I long for

more prayer, and more instrumentality in a ministry of intercession.

Many things are permissible to us, and we should take an interest in earthly

things, but we need strength of mind to ceaselessly assess and weigh them, and

strength to ration the things we engage in.

We have the help of Christ. We have all his mighty power. Think of the power

he exercised at the resurrection when his soul was united with his body, and he

broke the bands of death, re-infusing life into his own body, and rising from the

dead. That power is available to us from the living Christ to renew our minds,

our wills, our tastes, our desires, every part of us. It is that for which we must

long and pray.


Mar/Apr 2016


Phariseeism By Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

‘For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the

righteousness of the scribes and the Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the

kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 5:20)

The basic charge by our Lord against the Pharisees is that their religion was

entirely external and formal instead of being a religion of the heart. He turned to

them one day and said, ‘Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but

God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is

abomination in the sight of God’ (Luke 16:15). In Matthew 23, our Lord tells

the Pharisees that they are like whited sepulchres; the outside seeming to be all

right, but look at the inside! It is possible for us to be highly regular in our

attendance at the house of God and yet to be envious and spiteful. That is the

thing our Lord denounces in the Pharisees. And unless our righteousness

exceeds these external religious demands we do not belong to the kingdom of

God. The kingdom of God is concerned about the heart; it is not my external

actions, but what I am inside that is important. A man once said that the best

definition of religion was this: ‘Religion is that which a man does in his own

solitude.’ In other words, if you want to know what you really are, you can find

the answer when you are alone with your thoughts and desires and imaginations.

It is what you say to yourself that matters. How careful we are in what we say to

others; but what do we say to ourselves? What a man does with his own solitude

is what ultimately counts. The things that are within, which we hide from the

outside world because we are ashamed of them, these proclaim finally what we

really are.

Another charge which our Lord brings against them is that they were clearly

primarily concerned about themselves and their own righteousness, with the

result that they were almost invariably self-satisfied. In other words the ultimate

object of the Pharisee was to glorify not God, but himself. When he went about

his religious duties he was really considering himself and his performance of the

duty, not the glory and the honour of God. Our Lord shows, in that picture of

the Pharisee and the publican praying in the temple, that the Phraisee did and

said all without worshipping God at all. He said ‘I thank thee, that I am not as

other men are.’ It was an insult to God; there was no worship there. The man

was full of his own activity, his own religious life and of what he was doing. Of

course if you set out like that and you have your own standard, you select the

things you think ought to be done. And as long as you conform to that particular

list you are all right, you are satisfied. Now the Pharisees were self-satisfied and


Mar/Apr 2016


concentrated always upon their own achievements rather than on their

relationship to God. I wonder whether are not sometimes guilty of the same

attitude? Is it not one of the besetting sins of among us? We see other men

obviously denying the faith and living godless lives. How easy it is to become

self-satisfied because we are better than such people – ‘I thank God I am not as

other men’. The trouble with us is that we never look at ourselves in the sight of

God: we never remind ourselves of the character and the being and the nature of

God. Our religion consists of a certain number of things we have decided to

do; and having done them we think all is well. Smugness, glibness, self-

satisfaction are surely far too much in evidence among us. The test of sanctity

is your relationship to God, your attitude to Him and your love for Him. How do

you stand up to that particular test? To be holy does not just mean the mere

avoidance of certain things, or even not thinking certain things; it means the

ultimate attitude of the heart of man towards that holy, loving God, and,

secondly, our attitude towards our fellow men and women.

The trouble with the Pharisees was that they were interested in details rather

than principles, that they were interested in actions rather than in motives, and

that they were interested in doing rather than in being. Our Lord said to them in

effect, ‘You are pleased with yourselves because you do not commit adultery;

but if you even look with lust in your eyes, that is adultery’. It is the principle,

not the action only, that matters; it is what you think and desire, it is the state of

your heart that is important. You do not become Christian by just refraining

from some actions and doing others; the Christian is a man who is in a particular

relationship to God and whose supreme desire is to know Him better and to love

Him more truly. That is not a part-time job, if I may so put it, it is not achieved

by the religious observance of a part of Sunday; it demands all the time and

attention that we have. Read the lives of the great men of God and you will find

that that is the principle that always emerges.

(Article abridged and extracted from Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones’ book, Studies in

the Sermon on the Mount, from the sermon entitled Righteousness Exceeding

That of the Scribes and Pharisees)


Mar/Apr 2016


Law and Grace By Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

What is the relationship of the Christian to the law? The Christian is no longer

under the law in the sense that the law is a covenant of works. That is the whole

argument in Galatians 3. The Christian is not under the law in that respect; his

salvation does not depend upon his keeping of it. He has been delivered from

the curse of the law; he is no longer under the law as a covenant relationship

between himself and God. But that does not release him from it as a rule of

life. Now I think the whole trouble tends to arise because we become confused

in our minds as to the relationship between law and grace. Let me put it like this.

We tend to have a wrong view of law and to think of it as something that is

opposed to grace. But it is not. Law is only opposed to grace in the sense that

there was once a covenant of law, and we are now under the covenant of grace.

Nor must the law be thought of as being identical with grace. It was never

meant to be something in and of itself. The law was never meant to save man,

because it could not. Some people tend to think that God said to the nation, ‘I

am giving you a law; you keep that law and it will save you.’ But that is

ridiculous because no man can save himself by keeping the law. No! The law

was ‘added because of transgressions’. It came in 430 years after the promise

was given to Abraham and his seed in order that it might show the true character

of God’s demands, and that it might show the ‘exceeding sinfulness of sin’. The

law was given, in a sense, to show men that they could never justify themselves

before God, and in order that we might be brought to Christ. In Paul’s words it

was meant to be our ‘schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ’.

We must realize, therefore, that all aspects of the law (moral, civil, and

ceremonial) are but our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, and we must beware

lest we fall into a false view of the law. In the same way, people have a false

view of grace. They think that grace is apart from law and has nothing to do

with it. That is what is called antinomianism, the attitude of people who abuse

the doctrine of grace in order to live a sinful, slack or indolent type of spiritual

life. They say, ‘I am not under the law, but under grace, and therefore it does

not matter what I do’. Paul wrote his sixth chapter of Romans to deal with that:

‘Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid’, says Paul. That

is an absolutely wrong and false view of grace. The whole purpose of grace, in a

sense, is just to enable us to keep the law. Let me put it this way. The trouble

with us is that we so often have a wrong view of holiness at this point. There is

nothing more fatal than to regard holiness and sanctification as experiences to

be received. No; holiness means being righteous, and being righteous means

keeping the law. Therefore if your so-called grace (which you say you have


Mar/Apr 2016


received) does not make you keep the law, you have not received grace. You

may have received a psychological experience, but you have never received the

grace of God. What is grace? It is that marvellous gift of God which, having

delivered a man from the curse of the law, enables him to keep it and to be

righteous as Christ was righteous, for He kept the law perfectly. Grace is that

which brings me to love God; and if I love God, I long to keep his

commandments. ‘He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them’, Christ

said, ‘he it is that loveth me.’

We must never separate these two things. Grace is not sentimental; holiness is

not an experience. We must have this new mind and disposition which leads us

to love the law and to desire to keep it; and by His power He enables us to fulfil

the law. That is why our Lord goes on to say in verse 19, ‘Whosoever therefore

shall break on of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be

called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach

them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.’ That was not

spoken only to the disciples for the three short years they were to be with Christ

until He died; it is permanent and everlasting. He enforces it again in Matthew 7,

where He says, ‘Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into

the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in

heaven.’ What is the will of the Father? The Ten Commandments and the moral

law. They have never been abrogated. He ‘gave himself for us,’ says Paul to

Titus, ‘that he might…purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good

works.’ ‘Yea,’ says our Lord, ‘except your righteousness shall exceed the

righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the

kingdom of heaven.’

(Article abridged and extracted from Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones’ book, Studies in

the Sermon on the Mount, from the sermon entitled Christ Fulfilling the Law

and the Prophets)


Mar/Apr 2016


A Woman to Be Remembered By J.C. Ryle

"Remember Lot’s wife." (Luke 17:32).

There are few warnings in Scripture more solemn than that which heads this

page. The Lord Jesus Christ says to us, "Remember Lot’s wife."

Lot’s wife was a professor of religion; her husband was a "righteous man" (2

Pet. 2:8). She left Sodom with him on the day when Sodom was destroyed; she

looked back toward the city from behind her husband, against God’s express

command; she was struck dead at once and turned into a pillar of salt. And the

Lord Jesus Christ holds her up as a beacon to His church; He says, "Remember

Lot’s wife."

It is a solemn warning, when we think of the person Jesus names. He does not

bid us remember Abraham or Isaac or Jacob or Sarah or Hannah or Ruth. No,

He singles out one whose soul was lost forever. He cries to us, "Remember

Lot’s wife."

It is a solemn warning, when we consider the subject Jesus is upon. He is

speaking of His own second coming to judge the world; He is describing the

dreadful state of unreadiness in which many will be found. The last days are on

His mind when He says, "Remember Lot’s wife."

It is a solemn warning, when we think of the person who gives it. The Lord

Jesus is full of love, mercy and compassion; He is one who will not break the

bruised reed nor quench the smoking flax. He could weep over unbelieving

Jerusalem and pray for the men that crucified Him; yet even He thinks it good to

remind us of lost souls. Even He says, "Remember Lot’s wife."

It is a solemn warning, when we think of the people to whom it was first given.

The Lord Jesus was speaking to His disciples; He was not addressing the scribes

and Pharisees, who hated Him, but Peter, James and John and many others who

loved Him; yet even to them He thinks it good to address a caution. Even to

them He says, "Remember Lot’s wife."

It is a solemn warning, when we consider the manner in which it was given. He

does not merely say, "Beware of following, take heed of imitating, do not be

like Lot’s wife." He uses a different word: He says, "Remember." He speaks as


Mar/Apr 2016


if we were all in danger of forgetting the subject; He stirs up our lazy memories;

He bids us keep the case before our minds. He cries, "Remember Lot’s wife."

I propose to examine the lessons which Lot’s wife is meant to teach us. I am

sure that her history is full of useful instruction to the church. The last days are

upon us; the second coming of the Lord Jesus draws near; the danger of

worldliness is yearly increasing in the church. Let us be provided with

safeguards and antidotes against the disease that is around us and, not least, let

us become familiar with the story of Lot’s wife.

Let us consider now the religious privileges Lot’s wife enjoyed, the particular

sin she committed, and the judgement which God inflicted upon her.

1. The religious privileges which Lot’s wife enjoyed

In the days of Abraham and Lot, true saving religion was scarce upon earth:

there were no Bibles, no ministers, no churches, no tracts, no missionaries. The

knowledge of God was confined to a few favored families; the greater part of

the inhabitants of the world were living in darkness, ignorance, superstition and

sin. Not one in a hundred perhaps had such good example, such spiritual society,

such clear knowledge, such plain warnings as Lot’s wife. Compared with

millions of her fellow creatures in her time, Lot’s wife was a favored woman.

She had a godly man for her husband; she had Abraham, the father of the

faithful, for her uncle by marriage. The faith, the knowledge and the prayers of

these two righteous men could have been no secret to her. It is impossible that

she could have dwelt in tents with them for any length of time without knowing

whose they were and whom they served. Religion with them was no mere

formal business; it was the ruling principle of their lives and the mainspring of

all their actions. All this Lot’s wife must have seen and known. This was no

small privilege.

When Abram first received the promises, it is probable Lot’s wife was there.

When he built his altar by his tent between Hai and Bethel, it is probable she

was there. When her husband was taken captive by Chedorlaomer and delivered

by God’s interference, she was there. When Melchizedek, king of Salem, came

forth to meet Abraham with bread and wine, she was there. When the angels

came to Sodom and warned her husband to flee, she saw them; when they took

them by the hand and led them out of the city, she was one of those whom they

helped to escape. Once more, I say, these were no small privileges.


Mar/Apr 2016


Yet what good effect had all these privileges on the heart of Lot’s wife? None at

all. Notwithstanding all her opportunities and means of grace, notwithstanding

all her special warnings and messages from heaven, she lived and died graceless,

godless, impenitent and unbelieving. The eyes of her understanding were never

opened; her conscience was never really aroused and quickened; her will was

never really brought into a state of obedience to God; her affections were never

really set upon things above. The form of religion which she had was kept up

for fashion’s sake and not from feeling; it was a cloak worn for the sake of

pleasing her company, but not from any sense of its value. She did as others did

around her in Lot’s house; she conformed to her husband’s ways; she made no

opposition to his religion; she allowed herself to be passively towed along in his

wake; but all this time her heart was wrong in the sight of God. The world was

in her heart, and her heart was in the world. In this state she lived, and in this

state she died.

In all this there is much to be learned: I see a lesson here which is of the deepest

importance in the present day. You live in times when there are many people

just like Lot’s wife; come and hear the lesson which her case is meant to teach.

Learn, then, that the mere possession of religious privileges will save no one’s

soul. You may have spiritual advantages of every description; you may live in

the full sunshine of the richest opportunities and means of grace; you may enjoy

the best of preaching and the choicest instruction; you may dwell in the midst of

light, knowledge, holiness and good company. All this may be, and yet you

yourself may remain unconverted, and at last be lost forever.

I dare say this doctrine sounds hard to some readers. I know that many fancy

they want nothing but religious privileges in order to become decided Christians.

They are not what they ought to be at present, they allow; but their position is so

hard, they plead, and their difficulties are so many. Give them a godly husband

or a godly wife, give them godly companions, or a godly master, give them the

preaching of the gospel, give them privileges, and then they would walk with

God.

It is all a mistake. It is an entire delusion. It requires something more than

privileges to save souls. Joab was David’s captain; Gehazi was Elisha’s servant;

Demas was Paul’s companion; Judas Iscariot was Christ’s disciple, and Lot had

a worldly unbelieving wife. These all died in their sins. They went down to the

pit in spite of knowledge, warnings and opportunities; and they all teach us that

it is not privileges alone that men need. They need the grace of the Holy Spirit.


Mar/Apr 2016


Let us value religious privileges, but let us not rest entirely upon them. Let us

desire to have the benefit of them in all our movements in life, but let us not put

them in the place of Christ. Let us use them thankfully if God grants them to us,

but let us take care that they produce some fruit in our heart and life. If they do

not do good, they often do positive harm: they sear the conscience, they increase

responsibility, they aggravate condemnation. The same fire which melts the wax

hardens the clay; the same sun which makes the living tree grow dries up the

dead tree and prepares it for burning. Nothing so hardens the heart of man as

a barren familiarity with sacred things. Once more I say, it is not privileges

alone which make people Christians, but the grace of the Holy Spirit. Without

that no man will ever be saved.

I ask the members of evangelical congregations in the present day to mark well

what I am saying. You go to Mr. A’s, or Mr. B’s church; you think him an

excellent preacher; you delight in his sermons; you cannot hear anyone else

with the same comfort; you have learned many things since you attended his

ministry; you consider it a great privilege to be one of his hearers! All this is

very good. It is a privilege. I should be thankful if ministers like yours were

multiplied a thousandfold. But after all, what have you got in your heart? Have

you yet received the Holy Spirit? If not, you are no better than Lot’s wife.

I ask the servants of religious families to mark well what I am saying. It is a

great privilege to live in a house where the fear of God reigns. It is a privilege to

hear family prayers morning and evening, to hear the Word of God regularly

expounded, to have a quiet Sunday, and to be able always to go to church.

These are the things that you ought to seek after when you try to get a situation;

these are the things which make a really good place. High wages and light work

will never make up for a constant round of worldliness, Sabbath–breaking and

sin. But take heed that you do not rest content with these things; do not suppose

because you have all these spiritual advantages that you will of course go to

heaven. You must have grace in your own heart, as well as attend family

prayers. If not, you are at present no better than Lot’s wife.

I ask the children of religious parents to mark well what I am saying. It is

the highest privilege to be the child of a godly father and mother and to be

brought up in the midst of many prayers. It is a blessed thing indeed to be taught

the gospel from our earliest infancy and to hear of sin and Jesus and the Holy

Spirit and holiness and heaven from the first moment we can remember

anything. But, oh, take heed that you do not remain barren and unfruitful in the

sunshine of all these privileges; beware lest your heart remains hard, impenitent

and worldly, notwithstanding the many advantages you enjoy. You cannot enter

the kingdom of God on the credit of your parents’ religion. You must eat the


Mar/Apr 2016


bread of life for yourself and have the witness of the Spirit in your own heart.

You must have repentance of your own, faith of your own and sanctification of

your own. If not, you are no better than Lot’s wife.

I pray God that all professing Christians in these days may lay these things to

heart. May we never forget that privileges alone cannot save us. Light and

knowledge and faithful preaching and abundant means of grace and the

company of holy people are all great blessings and advantages. Happy are those

who have them! But, after all, there is one thing without which privileges are

useless: that one thing is the grace of the Holy Spirit. Lot’s wife had many

privileges; but Lot’s wife had no grace.

(To be continued in the next issue of the CYV. If you would like to read ahead,

the full article can be obtained at:

http://www.sermonindex.net/modules/articles/index.php?view=article&aid=3609)

http://www.sermonindex.net/modules/articles/index.php?view=article&aid=3609


Mar/Apr 2016


Up close and personal with: Ruth and Rene Choo Interviewed by: Valerie Loh

The ‘R’ sisters, Ruth & Rene (together with their sisters, Rachel and Rita)

recently attended our YF and (thank God) have been coming regularly! As they

are still quite new in YF, let us get to know the twins more. They are both in

Secondary 1, studying in Dunearn Secondary School.

1) So… Tell me something unique about each of you that tells you apart

from each other!

Ruth & Rene: You can tell us apart by looking at our glasses (purple frames –

Ruth, black frames – Rene) or where our mole is. Rene’s mole is on the left

while Ruth’s mole is on the right. When it comes to our personalities, you can

tell that Rene is stronger/fiercer (because she plays basketball) but Ruth is

relatively weaker. When it comes to food, Ruth is greedier – especially when it

comes to ice-cream!

2) It’s rare to have a twin. What’s it like having one? Do you girls pair up

to trick people sometimes?

Rene: There are advantages and disadvantages of having a twin. Well, at least

there is someone I already know when I enter secondary school. However,

there are times when my twin is very stubborn and she doesn’t want to give in.

Also, you cannot have your own birthday as you have to share it with someone.

Ruth: I’m okay with having a twin. We usually fight and argue over small

matters. Sometimes we do pair up to hide from people, plus our voice is about

the same tone too! We don’t really trick people, but it is usually the case that

people mix us up instead.

3) Cool, I guess it happens especially when both of you attend the same

school! What’s your school life like? Do you see some of the ways God

have been blessing both of you thus far?

Rene: School life has been okay; I am currently still in basketball although I’m

thinking of changing my CCA. God has been blessing me through the years

from Primary one till now. I really thank God for that, for giving me wisdom

and guidance, especially throughout my exams, although I failed math. I thank


Mar/Apr 2016


God for new friends to talk to and hang out together with in school. Thank God

for keeping my parents safe from harm, keeping them healthy and strong. I also

thank God for my siblings and for keeping me company when I am sad. Ruth

will understand me more because she is also going through secondary school

life.

Ruth: We attend different classes and CCAs. I play table tennis while Rene

plays basketball. My school life is sometimes boring (because my friends don’t

talk with me much sometimes). Sometimes school is fun, interesting and

exciting. In any case, God has been blessing me with His guidance through

schoolwork and projects. Also, thank God for blessing me with siblings,

cousins and family, for keeping them safe from harm. He guides me to go to

church, and gives me wisdom and strength to learn His word. He gives me the

courage to make new friends when I first attended YF, and through bible

conference – I got to know more Young Teens and the leaders.

4) Wow, thank God for His many blessings! Speaking about church, what/

who brought both of you to YF?

Ruth: My cousins and the Young Teens teachers, friends like Priscilla and

Melissa. Through bible conference this year, we have started to join the Young

Teens Programme.

Rene: At first I was very nervous because I knew no one except Phoebe,

Cassidy, Gwen, and finally, Rachel and Renee Lim. I would like to thank my

friends in Young Teens especially Priscilla & Jiaen, Rachel and Renee (they

attend Awana). I would like to thank my aunt (Auntie Joan) the most – if it

wasn’t for her, we won’t be able to attend Bible Conference. She helped to ask

our mum to convey the message to us, and our parents did not reject the idea.

5) Was it only recently that both of you have come to know about

Christianity and God? Share more with us!

Ruth & Rene: From when we were young, we learnt about Christianity a long

time ago when we were Cubbies in the Awana Club. We attended the JCK too.

When we were young, we didn’t know much about God, and we also didn’t

remember much (other than the famous bible stories like Adam and Eve). We

cannot remember if we attended church then, but we can recall when we were in

the Primary Department.


Mar/Apr 2016


6) It’s great to see both of you (along with Rita & Rachel) coming so

regularly for YF and Sunday Service! What do you enjoy about YF and

is there anything you’d like to see more in YF?

Ruth: I enjoyed the group time, discussion, messages, making new friends, and

lastly, I love the YFers! Ever since I entered YF, they have been treating me

with care and kindness :P. What I like to see more in YF is that we will have

more fun and exciting games, and also fun activities like arts and craft,

werewolf and more bonding time.

Rene: When I first attended, I felt quite nervous, as I didn’t know about the

activities, what we were going to do etc. After attending for some time, I

started to enjoy learning about God, as I normally don’t do devotion at home,

now I’m thankful that YF has encouraged me to read the bible more, listen to

God’s word, and also fellowship/ bonding time with others. This is my second

time doing sheep and shepherd after bible conference! I would also like to see

more bonding sessions and games.

7) Truly, thank God that both of you are now even serving the Lord in YF

& doing singspiration already! What’s your favourite hymn and why?

Rene: I have a lot of favorite hymns! If I have to choose one, my favourite

song is ‘His Sheep am I’. I have liked it since I was a little Cubbie as the words

of this song are meaningful and the tune & music is nice. It speaks about how

we are the sheep, and God is our shepherd. My other favourite song is ‘Where

your Heart is’. I learnt it at the Awana Club – where your treasures are, your

heart will be there too. Other favorite songs include ‘Count your Blessings’ – it

reminds us to count the blessings that God has given us.

Ruth: My recent favourite hymn is ‘Count your Blessings’. This song tells us

to count our blessings everyday, and name them one by one. This is a

meaningful song and it’s easy to sing, I love the tune of this song. God gave us

so many blessings and we can count them one by one.

8) Indeed! I pray you’ll continue to reflect and think about the lyrics in the

songs we sing. Do you have any words of encouragement for the YFers?

Ruth: Hello YFers! I hope that those of you who are still studying, STUDY

HARD and keep up the good work! Jia You for the upcoming exams! Don’t

stress yourselves out, and also those of you who need help, pray to God, ask

Him to give you guys the knowledge, wisdom and strength. All the best in your


Mar/Apr 2016


upcoming exams! And also, don’t forget to do QT! :P Take care and drink lots

of water as the weather is hot. :P

Rene: Hi YFers! I want to encourage those who don’t come to YF often – to

come more often. We need to learn about God’s word in His house. Also, I

would like to encourage those who are facing difficulties in your work/studies,

pray to God if you need help/ask any close people/parents to help you. But

most importantly, pray to God, read His word and do more devotion everyday –

it will help you through.

Thank you for your sharings!


Mar/Apr 2016

Youth Fellowship Calendar (2016)

Date Message Speaker Chairing

5-Nov-16 Book Study: 1 Peter 5 (Part 1) Pastor Frank Graciousness

12-Nov-16 Book Study: 1 Peter 5 (Part 2) Pastor Frank Righteousness

19-Nov-16 Cottage Meeting @ The Siew's – Attributes of God:

Omnipotence Dn Kenny Pistos

26-Nov-16 Attributes of God: Omniscience Preacher Bendick Sovereign

3-Dec-16 Attributes of God: Omnipresence Rev Ho Chee Lai Graciousness

10-Dec-16 Carols Alive

17-Dec-16 YF Camp Rev Ho Chee Lai

24-Dec-16 Christmas Praise Service

31-Dec-16 Combined Year End Service

The Calvary Youth Fellowship meets every Saturday at

7.00pm in the Studio on Level 4.

November December May your

birthday

be blessed by

God’s

goodness…

Filled with His

joy…

Warmed by His

love…

4 Leta Chan 4 Siew Tser Ying

6 Leong Yan Kai 12 Jeniece Oon

17 Gwen Cheng 15 Gareth Cheng

17 Grace Chen

22 Amelia Yeo 23 Andy Tan 27 Michelle Oon

CALVARY BIBLE-PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 101 Yuan Ching Road Singapore 618653

Tel: 6265 4295 Fax: 6266 1667 Website: http://www.calvaryjurong.com

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