The Sum and Substance

[Thompson, Darryl]

The Sum and Substance 

     And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true
God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. John 17:3.  

     The sum and substance of the whole matter of Christian grace and
experience is contained in believing on Christ, in knowing God and His
Son whom He hath sent. But here is where many fail, for they lack faith
in God. Instead of desiring to be brought into fellowship with Christ in
His self-denial and humiliation, they are ever seeking for the supremacy
of self. . . . O if we did but appreciate the love of God, how our
hearts would be expanded, our limited sympathies would be enlarged, and
break away from the icy barriers of selfishness, and our comprehension
would be deeper than it now is. . . .  

     It is because we do not know God, we do not have faith in Christ,
that we are not deeply impressed with the humiliation He endured in our
behalf, that His abasement does not lead us to the humbling of self, to
the exalting of Jesus. . . . O if you loved Him as He has loved you, you
would not shun an experience in the dark chapters of the suffering of
the Son of God!  

     In order to be partakers with Christ in His sufferings, we must
behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. When we
contemplate the humiliation of Christ, beholding His self-denial and
self-sacrifice, we are filled with amazement at the manifestation of
divine love for guilty man. When for Christ's sake we are called to pass
through trials that are of a humiliating nature, if we have the mind of
Christ we shall suffer them with meekness, not resenting injury, or
resisting evil. We shall manifest the spirit that dwelt in Christ. . . .
We are to understand what the sacrifice, the labors, and the sufferings
of Christ are, in order that we may cooperate with Him in working out
the great scheme of redemption.  

     The knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ expressed in character is
the very highest education. It is the key that opens the portals of the
heavenly city. This knowledge it is God's purpose that all who put on
Christ shall possess.  

>From That I May Know Him - Page 104