Give Me Christ, Or Else I Die

[Coconut]

Plead your necessity, your extreme need of Christ and of faith in him.

O man, there is not a starving man that needs food so much as you need Christ:

there is not a wounded man that needs a physician;

a shipwrecked man that needs a plank;

a dying man, with the death rattle in his throat, that needs breath so much, as you need Christ.

O then, cry, "Give me Christ, or else I die."

I may live without friends, without wealth, and honour, and pleasure; but I cannot live without Christ, and without faith.

Plead his power; how easy it is for him to help, saying, as Psalm 80:1 "you who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth!"

It will cost you no more pain to work faith in me, than it does the sun to shine forth. Yea, he can more easily put forth his power and grace, than the sun can dart out its beams. It is no trouble nor loss to the sun to shine forth, so neither will it be to him, to show his power and mercy: a look, or a touch, will do it; since he can so easily do it.

You may cry with hope; he will never miss an alms bestowed on a beggar, out of the ocean of his bounty. Nay, as the sun, the more it shines displays its glory the more; so will he gain glory by putting forth his power to help you.

(Ralph Erskine)

Psa 42:1 As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, "Where is your God?"

Psa 63:1 A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Psa 143:6 I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Selah Answer me quickly, O LORD! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.

Isa 55:1 "Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live;

Joh 4:13 Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

 

[jiggyfly]

It is difficult to remain unmoved or motivated by such passion from one who has experienced rivers of living water welling up and flowing out. Thank you Coconut for this post, oh how lovely are the feet of the one who brings good news! Hallelujah!!!!

Philippians 3:8
Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I may have Christ

 

[By His Grace]

Thank you Coconut for this awesome post...
I like the title of this post, it gives no other alternative but to give Christ... i like what David says in both psalms 42 and 63. This reminded me of Marty Nystrom's album "My hearts desire" We can do but nothing without Him, He's our all in all. Be blessed.

 

[ImmanuelWithUs]

Plead your necessity, your extreme need of Christ and of faith in him.

O man, there is not a starving man that needs food so much as you need Christ:

there is not a wounded man that needs a physician;

a shipwrecked man that needs a plank;

a dying man, with the death rattle in his throat, that needs breath so much, as you need Christ.

O then, cry, "Give me Christ, or else I die."

I may live without friends, without wealth, and honour, and pleasure; but I cannot live without Christ, and without faith.

Plead his power; how easy it is for him to help, saying, as Psalm 80:1 "you who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth!"

It will cost you no more pain to work faith in me, than it does the sun to shine forth. Yea, he can more easily put forth his power and grace, than the sun can dart out its beams. It is no trouble nor loss to the sun to shine forth, so neither will it be to him, to show his power and mercy: a look, or a touch, will do it; since he can so easily do it.

You may cry with hope; he will never miss an alms bestowed on a beggar, out of the ocean of his bounty. Nay, as the sun, the more it shines displays its glory the more; so will he gain glory by putting forth his power to help you.

(Ralph Erskine)

Psa 42:1 As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, "Where is your God?"

Psa 63:1 A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Psa 143:6 I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Selah Answer me quickly, O LORD! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.

Isa 55:1 "Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live;

Joh 4:13 Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

My gosh, this is so beautiful! Thank you for posting this!