Cornerstone

John 12:23-27 (25)

David Augsburger writes in Sticking My Neck Out that when James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the captain of the ship sought to turn him back. “You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages,” he cried. Calvert only replied, “We died before we came here.” (p. 154)

The paradox is that we must go down before we can go up. We must surrender before we can serve. If you would serve Jesus you must follow Him. His way led to a cross.

This type of commitment brought great men of God to express their heart desire:

Evangelist George Whitefield said, “O Lord, give me souls, or take my soul.”

Missionary Henry Martyn cried, “Here let me burn out for God.”

Missionary David Brainerd declared, “Lord, to Thee I dedicate myself. Oh, accept of me be Thine forever. Lord, I desire nothing else; I desire nothing more.”

Evangelist Dwight L. Moody implored, “Use me, then, my Savior, for whatever purpose and in whatever way Thou mayest require. Here is my poor heart, an empty vessel; fill it with Thy Grace.”

Reformer Martin Luther prayed, “Do Thou, my God, stand by me against all the world’s wisdom and reason. Oh, do it! Thou must do it. Stand by me, Thou true, eternal God!”

Missionary “Praying Hyde” pleaded, “Father, give me these souls, or I die.”

Dr. Gayle Woods

Psa 32:(1)-11

As I teenager I was riding with my friend in his dads car. He asked, “Would you like to drive?” Sure, I said. I was too young to drive but we were driving out in the field so it seemed to be harmless and legal. I was having a great time until I ran over the stump of an old tree. We got out and looked at the car and saw that the underside of the body was bent. I have no remembrance of the occasion following that. In fact it was not until years later that I was in chapel service at Kansas City College and Bible School that I even remembered the incident. God moved on the service and I went to the altar to pray for other students. While there God brought the incident to my mind and I knew that I needed to talk to my friend’s father. Later that day I saw him and told him what had happened. I asked how much money I owed him to make things right. He thanks me for my confession and told me that he no longer had the car. I was told that I owed nothing. God’s forgiveness is just as complete. When we confess our sins He totally forgives. His sacrifice on the cross was sufficient to appease the wrath of God and offset the judgment against our offense. We owe nothing except love to this One who freely forgives.

Dr. Gayle Woods