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

Job 38:4-8, 22-29; 42:1-3

No person has lived without wondering how all that is created came into existence. Job’s description may seem simplistic to the sophisticated. It is a statement of fact and of faith. The Christian knows that it is an inspired and accurate record of actuality. Even those who are Christians will at times tamper with the sacred truth of God’s creation.

Job is considered to be the oldest book of the Old Testament. It is interesting, therefore, to notice his apologetic for the creation of the earth and all other creation by God. In a poetic manner the author chides the reader reminding him that God has been here much longer that the oldest of creation and is actually the author of all that “lives, or moves, or has its being.” He says, “Where was thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?” The word for foundation is musada. Its primary meaning is “to found or to fix firmly” and it came to mean foundation. At times it is translated “to establish.” It means in a metaphorical sense, “that which cannot be moved.”

In addition the question is asked, “Who hath laid the measures thereof if thou knowest?” The Hebrew word for measure is madad. It occurs fifty-three times and refers to measuring lengths or distances. Does God have a big tape measure by which he measures the size of the earth, stars and planets? No. The word is used in a symbolic manner to refer to the careful and correct design of God’s creation. God measures the oceans of the earth (Isa 40:12), the multitudes of future Israelites (Hos 1:10), the stars of heaven (Jer 33:22; 31:27), the territories of the earth for His chosen people (Psa 60:6), and the people that He will judge (Hab 3:6). Thus this term turns from the picture of a measuring rod or rule to that of a calculator but all the while refers to His exact knowledge of His creation and His supervision of the same.

Dr. Gayle Woods