Tozer in the Morning – The Revelatory Light of Scripture
Among men, questions usually have more than one side; sometimes they have many. Pros and cons are often balanced so finely against each other that it is virtually impossible to know where the right lies. But with God there is only one side. God’s side is good and holy and all other sides are wrong, the degree and seriousness of the wrong increasing as we move away from the center of God’s will.
Our desire for moral self-preservation should dictate that we come over immediately onto God’s side and stay there even if (as is likely) it may result in our being out of accord with man’s philosophies and man’s moral codes. We cannot win when we work against God, and we cannot lose when we work with Him.
Now, how can we know for certain which side is God’s side? No one in this late day should need to ask that question, but since it is being asked in all sincerity by many, we are glad to give the answer. There is a Book which says of itself, “And God spoke all these words,” and about which it is said, “Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up to glory” (1 Timothy 3:16). Acquaintance with this Book will bring light to all dark paths and show us the right side of all questions. Of course, that Book is the Bible.
What glory gilds the sacred page, Majestic like the sun! It gives a light to every age; It gives, but borrows none.
Tozer in the Evening – Living in Joy and Peace
There are areas in our lives where in our effort to be right we may go wrong, so wrong as to lead to spiritual deformity. To be specific let me name a few: 4. When we seek to be serious and become somber. The saints have always been serious, but gloominess is a defect of character and should never be equated with godliness. Religious melancholy may indicate the presence of unbelief or sin and if long continued may lead to serious mental disturbance. Joy is a great therapeutic for the mind. “Rejoice in the Lord alway” (Philippians 4:4). 5. When we mean to be conscientious and become overscrupulous. If the devil cannot succeed in destroying the conscience he will settle for making it sick. I know Christians who live in a state of constant distress, fearing that they may displease God. Their world of permitted acts becomes narrower year by year till at last they fear to engage in the common pursuits of life. They believe this self-torture to be a proof of godliness, but how wrong they are. These are but a few examples of serious imbalance in the Christian life. I trust the remedy has been suggested as we went along.