Christian Living

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Larry Lilly's Letter Wednesday April 13, 2011

I love to use interesting quotes as thought starters, ideas that may help my readers to think, feel or act, and usually all three. Most actions without feeling are at best worthless motion, and many actions with feeling are not well thought out and can be horrific in their impact.

In a series of articles that I wrote for another group I quoted the Scotsman, Samuel Rutherford and one of my Baptist friends took me to task, and the tone of his comments suggested that now that he, a supposed Baptist Pope had spoken, I would began doing the right thing and quote only Baptists and the Bible else I would suffer under the force of his mighty pen. I certainly agree with the Lesser Pope's ideas on Rutherford's concept of the church being worlds apart from the truth, but Sam's writings about Christ enabling mere humans to overcome the painful events of life, his devotional writings are priceless to say nothing of his "Lex, Rex" which insisted that the Law is above even the King. Concerning the devotional writings of Rutherford, consider this praise from a Baptist who actually wielded a "mighty pen." Charles Spurgeon wrote:

"When we are dead and gone let the world know that Spurgeon held Rutherford's Letters to be the nearest thing to inspiration which can be found in all the writings of mere men."

I was commenting on the inner power of Rutherford as when he was imprisoned for religious reasons in the prison at Aberdeen. Rutherford experienced the keeping power of Christ and expressed his understanding of the love of Christ that does not forsake us when things are less than ideal by signing his letters from the prison; "From the Lord's Palace at Aberdeen."

I often sing lyrics to enhance my spirit. One such is "A tent or a cottage why should I care, their building a palace for me over there," but even as I sing the lyrics I know a higher truth than the one suggested by the song; "If Christ is with me and He is, then wherever I may be He is with me, and His presence transforms even a prison cell into a 'palace.'"

Notice this phrase used by Paul the gifted man who suffered as he served Christ as He intervenes for a converted felon/fugitive in Philemon 1:9

Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ.

That I know something of suffering is witnessed by the fact that I live with four hairy crumb snatchers and The Great Blonde, so, "From the Lord's palace at Cemar,"

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2011 Use with Credit

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