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Joseph Charles Philpot J.C. Philpot Bevindelijke geschriften & prediking
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All thy children shall be taught of the LORD.
Isaiah 54:13

The teaching of God can only be known and realized by those who have seen an end of all creature perfection, and who are completely and experimentally destitute of all wisdom in the flesh. And God’s teaching does not leave a man where it found him—dead, stupified, worldly, unfeeling, and carnal. If he is in distress, it does not leave him in distress; if he feels guilty, it does not leave him guilty; if he is in darkness, it does not leave him in darkness; but it lifts him out of these evils. Thus God’s people are continually led to come unto Him for His instruction, because they feel that without His special teaching they can know nothing as they ought to know.

No, the more they have, the more they want to have; for no sooner is the light withdrawn, than the darkness is more sensibly felt. If any text of Scripture has been opened up to them, it makes them want to have others made known in a similar way; if they have had any consolation, and it is taken away, it makes them want it again. So that the more wise and spiritual God’s people become, the more foolish and carnal they appear in their own eyes; the stronger they are in the Lord and in the power of His might, the more sensibly do they feel the weakness of their flesh; and the more they are enabled to walk closely with the Lord, the more they discover the wretched wanderings of their base and sinful hearts.

To the reader…

Do you sometimes seem to yourself more foolish and carnal than ever, and do you discover, the further you go, more of the wanderings of your heart? Do not let that alarm you too much. It is the very mark of those who are taught by the Lord that they see an end of their own wisdom and strength. His teaching does not leave a person where it found him: it does not leave the guilty guilty, nor the one in darkness in the darkness.

Has a word once been opened to you or a consolation enjoyed, and has it been taken from you again? Then it is no wonder that you long for it again. The more God’s children have, the more they want to have. So go to Him again and again to be taught, for without Him you can know nothing as you ought to know it. He has promised it: “All thy children shall be taught of the LORD.”

With warm regards,
The compilers of jcphilpot.nl