When the Macedonian emperor sat for his portrait, the painter faced a difficulty. A sword-wound had left a terrible scar across the monarch's right temple—a mark of battle and suffering. Yet the master craftsman possessed wisdom. He positioned the emperor...

Hebrews 5:9Universalpastoral carecharitable judgment

Joseph S. Exell

236 words

Historical

Christian Zeal: Heat of Mind Directed Toward Good

Zeal itself is morally neutral—the heat or fervour of the mind prompting vehemence against evil and desire toward good.

Galatians 4:18Universaldevotion to Christpurposeful Christian living

Joseph S. Exell

227 words

Historical

The Hidden Fruit of the Spirit: Love as Evidence of Grace

The Holy Spirit Himself is the source of all spiritual fruit, and this fruit does not admit of exhaustive classification, though three groups emerge: Christian states of mind in their general aspect; qualities affecting intercourse with neighbours; and principles guiding...

Galatians 4:22Universalspiritual fruithidden transformation

Joseph S. Exell

248 words

Historical

The Authority of Jesus Over Human Hearts and Nature

This imperative cuts deeper than His miracles over wind and waves—it exercises mastery over the highest principles of human nature itself.

Matthew 5:44Universaldivine authoritytransformation of human nature

Joseph S. Exell

206 words

Historical

Love as Root, Stem, and Fruit of Christ's Kingdom

Love flows from three sources: the love of the Father as its hidden root, the love of Christ as its first manifestation, and the love of believers for each other as its full outpouring.

John 15:17Universallove as the foundation of Christian lifeChrist as the centre of brotherhood

Joseph S. Exell

219 words

Historical

Christ's Departure: Duty and Filial Love United

First, Christ was compelled by His supreme sense of duty.

John 10:31Universalfilial devotionduty motivated by love

Joseph S. Exell

218 words

Historical

Paul's Love: Sincere, Comprehensive, and Christian

Lyth, D.D., observed in *The Biblical Illustrator* (1887), this love possessed three essential marks.

1 Corinthians 16:24Universalapostolic affectionsincere correction

Joseph S. Exell

203 words

Historical

Love's Four-Fold Armor Against All Opposition

Within yourself, the old nature wars against the new life Elohim has implanted.

1 Corinthians 13:7Universalspiritual warfareperseverance through adversity

Joseph S. Exell

203 words

Historical

Love as God's Essence: The Weighing of All Gifts

Yet he strikes a decisive balance between head and heart.

1 Corinthians 13:2UniversalGod's essence is lovespiritual gifts without love are empty

Joseph S. Exell

219 words

Historical

Love Exceeds Knowledge: The Seraph's Choice Over Cherubim

When asked the meaning of *cherubim* (knowledge) and *seraphim* (flame), the boy recognized a hierarchy of grace: the cherubim excel in knowledge, the seraphim in loving God.

1 Corinthians 8:3Universalintimacy with Godsuperiority of love over knowledge

Joseph S. Exell

209 words

Historical

Christ's Love Demonstrated Through Sacrifice and Suffering

Second, in His assumption of human nature: He passed by the higher nature of angels and took our nature with all its poverty and trial.

John 10:36UniversalChrist's incarnation and sacrificeGod's merciful character

Joseph S. Exell

232 words

Historical

The Four Commandments That Secure Abiding in Christ's Love

Four categories of obedience sustain our *meno* (abiding) in His love.

John 15:10Universalabiding in Christspiritual communion

Joseph S. Exell

219 words

Historical

God's Furnace in Zion: Love's Paradox of Fire and Ice

Exell observes that in the Church, Elohim is present as a great reservoir of fervid love, a storehouse of blazing affection heated seventy times seven hotter than any creatural love, pouring out its ardours for the quickening of all who...

Isaiah 28:9Universaldivine love and human coldnessauthentic religious emotion

Joseph S. Exell

215 words

Historical

The Ivy's Grip: Cleaving to What Is Good

Consider the ivy clinging to wall and tree: it extends innumerable tendrils, each seeking adhesion, each striving to become one with its support.

Romans 11:16Universaldevoted attachment to Godmoral perseverance

Joseph S. Exell

189 words

Historical

The Olympian Who Gave Everything Away

By 1944, Eric Liddell — the Scottish sprinter who electrified the world by winning gold in the 400 meters at the 1924 Paris Olympics —...

Matthew 5:40-42Universalgenerosityhumility

246 words

Historical

Barefoot Gold

In the spring of 1944, behind the concrete walls of the Weihsien internment camp in Weifang, China, a gaunt Scottish missionary noticed a barefoot Chinese...

Luke 6:38Universalgenerosityhumility

225 words

Historical

The Last Hymns of Block 11

In late July 1941, after a prisoner escaped from Auschwitz, deputy commandant Karl Fritzsch lined up the men of Block 14 and selected ten to...

John 15:13Roman Catholicsacrificelove

250 words

Historical

Arms Linked on a Tilting Deck

At 12:55 a.m. on February 3, 1943, a German torpedo tore into the hull of the USAT Dorchester in the icy North Atlantic near Greenland....

1 John 3:16Universalsacrificeunity

265 words

Historical

The Priest Who Stepped Out of Line

In late July 1941, a prisoner escaped from Auschwitz. As retribution, deputy commander Karl Fritzsch lined up the men of Block 14 and selected ten...

1 John 3:16Universalsacrificelove

225 words

Historical

The Shepherd Who Would Not Run

On August 5, 1942, German soldiers arrived at the orphanage on Sienna Street in the Warsaw Ghetto with orders to empty it. Inside were roughly...

John 10:11-13Universalsacrificelove

255 words

Historical

A Love Greater Than Death

On a sweltering July day in 1941, ten men stood trembling in the yard of Auschwitz. A prisoner had escaped, and deputy commandant Karl Fritzsch...

John 15:13Universalsacrificelove

261 words

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