PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
Sovereign Grace: Its Source, Its Nature and Its Effects
Moody, Dwight Lyman, 1837-1899 · 33,973 words · 61 reading sections
Part 1
Produced by Keith G. Richardson _Sovereign Grace_ Its Source, Its Nature and Its Effects By D. L. Moody _"By Grace are ye saved."--Ephesians ii. 8_ With Three Gospel Dialogues Chicago New York Toronto…
35 wordsSECTION 2FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY
London and Edinburgh _Copyrighted 1891 by Fleming H. Revell Company._…
11 wordsSECTION 3PREFATORY NOTE.
IN the exercise of his high calling, the faithful ambassador of Christ must not scruple to declare the whole counsel of God--"rightly dividing the word of truth," to all classes of hearers. He must warn the openly wicked man that if he persists in his evil courses, the just judgments of God will inevitably overtake him…
310 wordsSECTION 4CONTENTS.
The Fountain of Grace Saved by Grace Alone Possessing, and "Working Out" Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners Law and Grace Grace for Living Grace for Service "A Chime of Gospel Bells"…
33 wordsSECTION 5GOSPEL DIALOGUES:
I. What It Is to be a Child of God II. How to Become a Christian III. What It Is to be Converted "Grace! 'tis a charming sound, Harmonious to the ear; Heaven with the echo shall resound, And all the earth shall hear. 'Twas grace that wrote my name In life's eternal book; 'Twas grace that gave me to the Lamb, Who al…
115 wordsSECTION 6THE FOUNTAIN OF GRACE.
THERE are some words with which we have been familiar from our infancy up, and probably there are few words in the English language that are so often used as this word "GRACE." Many of you at your table "say grace" three times a day. You seldom go into a church without hearing the word mentioned. You seldom read any pa…
357 wordsSECTION 7ITS SOURCE.
In the Gospel by John we read, "The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the Only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth . . . For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." Now you know that for many years men were constantly trying to fi…
264 wordsSECTION 8A FREE GIFT.
Notice, it is the free gift of God. "Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ." Paul wrote fourteen Epistles; and every one of them is closed with a prayer for grace. Paul calls it "Th…
599 wordsSECTION 9RESTRAINING GRACE.
It is grace which, at this moment, keeps us. We have often been a Peter--forsaking our Lord, but brought back to him again. Why not a Demas or a Judas? 'I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not.' Is not this our own comment and reflection on life's retrospect? 'Yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.' …
300 wordsSECTION 10SAVED BY GRACE ALONE.
I WANT to call your special attention to the fact that we are saved by grace alone, not by works _and_ grace. A great many people think that they can be saved by works. Others think that salvation may be attained by works and grace together. They need to have their eyes opened to see that the gift of God is free and ap…
404 wordsSECTION 11WHAT THE THIRTY-NINE ARTICLES SAY.
I find some people have accused me of teaching heresy, because I say salvation is all of grace. I remember once, a clergyman said I was teaching false doctrine because I said salvation was all of grace. He said that works had as much to do with our salvation as grace. At that time I had never read the Thirty-Nine Artic…
622 wordsSECTION 12PENANCE FOR SIN.
Would you insult the Almighty by offering Him the fruits of this frail body to atone for sin? Supposing your Queen were to send me a magnificent present, and I said to the royal messenger: "I certainly should not like to accept this from Her Majesty without giving her something in return." Suppose I should send her a p…
437 wordsSECTION 13A FREE PARDON.
I was preaching in the Southern States a few years ago; and the minister called my attention to one of the elders in his Church. He said: When the civil war broke out, that man was in one of the far Southern States, and he enlisted into the Southern army. He was selected by the Southern General as a spy, and sent to sp…
697 wordsSECTION 14YOU CAN BELIEVE.
A friend lately called my attention to the fact that God has put the offer of salvation in such a way that the whole world can lay hold of it. All men can believe. A lame man might not perhaps be able to visit the sick; but he can believe. A blind man by reason of his infirmity cannot do many things; but he can believe…
379 wordsSECTION 15POSSESSING, AND "WORKING OUT."
I CAN imagine some one asking: What does that passage mean--"Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling?" Well, I want you to emphasize the word _your:_ "Work out _your_ salvation." That is most important. You hear people talk of working out salvation, when all the time they have not got it. How can you work o…
944 wordsSECTION 16Part 16
I want to ask you this question: If sin needs forgiveness--and all sin is against God--how can you work out your own forgiveness? If I stole $100 from a friend, I could not forgive myself, could I? No act of mine would bring about forgiveness, unless my friend forgave me. And so, if I want forgiveness of sin, it must b…
970 wordsSECTION 17GRACE ABOUNDING TO THE CHIEF OF SINNERS.
I WANT to lay emphasis on the fact that God desires to show mercy to all. Christ's last command to His disciples was, "Go ye into _all_ the world and preach the Gospel to _every_ creature." There may be some hearing me who have not received this grace, though it has often been pressed on their acceptance. One reason wh…
169 wordsSECTION 18THE TWO PRAYERS.
In the Gospel by Luke Christ brings two men before us. I do not know that we can get any two cases in Scripture that will give us more light on this subject than those of the Pharisee and the Publican, who went into the temple to pray. One went away as empty as he came. He was like the church described in Revelation, t…
875 wordsSECTION 19Part 19
The disciples did not understand how full of grace was the heart of Christ. This poor woman belonged to the far-off coasts of Tyre and Sidon. She was a poor Gentile, and they wanted to send her away. They thought she was not one of the elect; she did not belong to the house of Israel. So they said to the Master, "Send …
176 wordsSECTION 20A HUMBLE SPIRIT.
I am afraid if some of us had been in her place we would have answered somewhat in this fashion: "You call me a Gentile dog, do you? I would not take anything from you now if you were to give it to me. Why, I know a Jewish woman who lives in my town. Though she is a daughter of Abraham she is the meanest woman in the w…
309 wordsSECTION 21A FULL BLESSING.
This poor woman got all she wanted; and if we will come in the right spirit--if we are humble and poor in spirit--and call upon God for what we want, He will not disappoint us. She went right to the Son of God, and appealed to His great loving heart with the cry, "Lord help me!" and he helped her. Let that cry go up to…
124 wordsSECTION 22"WORTHINESS."
In the Gospel by Luke we read of the centurion who had a sick servant. He felt as though he were not worthy to go himself and ask Christ to come to his house; so he asked some of his friends to beseech the Master to come and heal his servant. They went and delivered the centurion's message, saying, "He is worthy for wh…
417 wordsSECTION 23GREAT FORGIVENESS.
I never noticed till lately an interesting fact about the story of the poor sinful woman mentioned in Luke's Gospel, who went into Simon's house. If you have not observed it before, it will be quite interesting for you to know it. The incident occurred immediately after Christ had uttered those memorable words we read …
771 wordsSECTION 24Part 24
You know what touched the heart of the father of the prodigal; it was the broken and contrite spirit of his returning son. Would not the same thing move the heart of any parent here? Suppose you had a son who had gone astray: the boy comes home; and when you meet him he begins to confess his sin. Would you not take him…
849 wordsSECTION 25Part 25
Do you say you are sinners? It is just to such as you that God's grace is given. There was a sailor whose mother had long been praying for him. I do think mothers' prayers are sure to be answered some day. One night the memory of his mother came home to this man; he thought of the days of his childhood, and made up his…
934 wordsSECTION 26Part 26
Now it is a solemn fact that every one who receives the offer of the Gospel can lock and bolt the door of his heart, and say to the Lord Jesus Christ he refuses to let Him in. But it is also a blessed truth that you can unlock that door and say to Him, "Welcome! thrice welcome, Son of God, into this heart of mine!" The…
263 wordsSECTION 27LAW AND GRACE.
IN his Epistle to the Romans, Paul writes "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of One shall many be made righteous. Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might gra…
796 wordsSECTION 28Part 28
I pity those who are always hanging around Sinai, hoping to get life there. I have an old friend in Chicago who is always lingering at Sinai. He is a very good man; but I think he will have a different story to tell when he gets home to heaven. He thinks I preach free grace too much; and I must confess I do like to spe…
335 wordsSECTION 29THE SOFTENING POWER OF GRACE.
So we see that the law cannot give life; all it can do is to bring us to Him who is the life. The law is said to be "a schoolmaster." Perhaps some of you do not know what a schoolmaster is. If you had been under the same schoolmaster as I was when a boy you would have known. He had a good cane and it was frequently in …
677 wordsSECTION 30PEACE, GRACE AND GLORY.
So there is a great deal of difference between law and grace. "Being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." There are three precious things here: peace for the past; grace f…
927 wordsSECTION 31Part 31
The Law declares--That as many as have sinned in the Law, shall be judged by the Law. Grace brings eternal peace to the troubled soul of every child of God, and proclaims _God's_ salvation in defiance of the accusations of the adversary. "He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath everlasting lif…
187 wordsSECTION 32GRACE FOR LIVING.
NOW we come to a very important part of our subject--Grace for living. One of the saddest things in the present day is the fact that so many professed Christians have no spiritual power. They bear no testimony for Christ. There are so few who can go to the homes of the sick and read the Bible to them, pray with them, a…
805 wordsSECTION 33Part 33
Hear what the Apostle says: "My God shall supply _all_ your need." Look at these words carefully. It does not say He will supply all your _wants_. There are many things we want that God has not promised to give. It is "your _need_" and "_all_ your need." My children often want many things they do not get; but I supply …
782 wordsSECTION 34Part 34
Elisha told her to go home and borrow all the vessels she could. His command was: "Borrow not a few." I like that. She took him at his word, and borrowed all the vessels her neighbors would lend to her. I can imagine I see the woman and her two sons going from house to house asking the loan of their vessels. No doubt t…
602 wordsSECTION 35GRACE FOR SERVICE.
"FOR the grace of God that bringeth salvation to all men hath appeared; teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ, who gave Himsel…
894 wordsSECTION 36Part 36
If we always came to meetings desiring to get strength, then we should be able to go out to work and speak for Christ. There are a great many who would be used of God, if they would only come boldly to His throne of grace, and "find grace to help in time of need." Is it not a time of need now? God has said, "I will pou…
977 wordsSECTION 37Part 37
Let us remember that if we have not grace enough for service, we have no one to blame but ourselves. We are not straitened in God: He has abundance of grace to qualify us to work for Him.…
38 wordsSECTION 38MORE TO FOLLOW.
I heard a story about two members of a Church: one was a wealthy man, and the other was one of those who cannot take care of their finances--he was always in debt. The rich brother had compassion on his poor brother. He wanted to give him some money; but he would not give it to the man all at once: he knew he would not…
630 wordsSECTION 39A CHIME OF GOSPEL BELLS.
IN Baltimore, a few years ago, we held a number of meetings for men. I am very fond of this hymn; and we used to let the choir sing the chorus over and over again, till all could sing it. "Oh, word of words the sweetest, Oh, word in which there lie All promise, all fulfillment, And end of mystery! Lamenting or rejoici…
661 wordsSECTION 40COME AND HEAR!
"Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David." "Incline your ear," God says. You have sometimes seen a man who is a little deaf, and cannot catch every word, put his hand up to his ear and lean forward. I have seen …
700 wordsSECTION 41COME AND SEE!
Scripture not only uses the ear, but the eye, in illustrating the way of salvation. When a man both hears and sees a thing, he remembers it twice as long as if he only heard it. You remember what Philip said to Nathanael: "Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, we have found Him of whom Moses in the Law, and the…
829 wordsSECTION 42COME AND DRINK!
"Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters: and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat: yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price." If you will come and drink at this fountain, Christ says you shall never thirst again. He has promised to quench your thirst. "If any man thirst," He say…
742 wordsSECTION 43COME AND DINE!
My brother, my sister--are you hungry? Then come along and dine. Some people are afraid of being converted, because they think they will not hold out. Mr. Rainsford once said, "If the Lord gives us eternal life, He will surely give us all that is needful to preserve it." He not only gives life; but He gives us our dail…
432 wordsSECTION 44COME AND REST!
Dear friend, do you not need rest? There is a restlessness all over the world to-day. Men are sighing and struggling after rest. The cry of the world is, "Where can rest be found?" The rich man that we read of in the parable pulled down his barns, that he might build greater; and said to his soul, "Take thine ease." He…
374 wordsSECTION 45COME AND REASON!
Perhaps there are some infidels reading this. They are fond of saying to us, "Come and reason." But I want to draw their attention to the verses that go before this one in the first chapter of Isaiah. The trouble with a good many skeptics is this--they take a sentence here and there from Scripture without reference to …
428 wordsSECTION 46COME TO THE MARRIAGE!
"Behold, I have prepared my dinner: . . . all things are ready; come unto the marriage." Who would not feel highly honored if they were invited to some fine residence, to the wedding of one of the members of the President's family? I can imagine you would feel rather proud of having received such an invitation. You wou…
398 wordsSECTION 47"COME, INHERIT THE KINGDOM!"
"Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." A kingdom!--think of that! Think of a poor man in this world, struggling with poverty and want, invited to become possessor of a kingdom! It is no fiction; it is d…
142 wordsSECTION 48"COME UP HITHER!"
In the Revelation we find that the two witnesses were called up to heaven when their testimony was ended. So if we are faithful in the service of our King, we shall by and by hear a voice saying, "Come up hither!" There is going to be a separation one day. The man who has been persecuting his godly wife will some day f…
155 wordsSECTION 49"WHOSOEVER WILL, LET HIM COME!"
It is the last time that the word "Come" appears in the Bible; and it occurs there over one thousand nine hundred times. We find it away back in Genesis, "Come, thou and all thy house, into the ark"; and it goes right along through Scripture. Prophets, apostles, and preachers, have been ringing it out all through the a…
965 wordsSECTION 50Part 50
I heard the voice of Jesus say, 'Behold, I freely give The living water--thirsty one, Stoop down, and drink, and live.' I came to Jesus, and I drank Of that life-giving stream; My thirst was quenched, my soul revived, And now I live in Him. I heard the voice of Jesus say, 'I am this dark world's Light: Look unto Me, t…
100 wordsSECTION 51WHAT IT IS TO BE A CHILD OF GOD.
MR. MOODY--What is it to be a child of God? What is the first step? Rev. M. Rainsford--Well, sir, I am a child of God when I become united to the Son of God. The Son of God prayed that all who believed upon Him should be one with Him, as He was one with the Father. Believing on Jesus, I receive Him, and become united …
962 wordsSECTION 52Part 52
Justification has reference to a court of justice. Suppose a sinner standing at the bar of God, the bar of conscience, and the bar of his fellow-men, charged with a thousand crimes. (1) There is the Judge: that is God, who alone can condemn or justify: "It is God that justifieth." That is justification by God. (2) Th…
908 wordsSECTION 53Part 53
Mr. R.--God wants no man to "try." Jesus has already tried. He has not only tried, but He has succeeded. "It is finished." Believe in Him who has "made an end of sins, making reconciliation for iniquity, finishing transgression, and bringing in everlasting righteousness." Mr. M.--If people say they are "going to try,"…
920 wordsSECTION 54Part 54
Mr. R.--When you were little babes, if you had had no milk, no clothing, and no rest, you would not have lived very long. You are now the result of your fathers' and mothers' care. When a man is born in the family of God he has life; but he needs food. "Man doth not live by bread alone." If you do not feed upon God's p…
677 wordsSECTION 55HOW TO BECOME A CHRISTIAN.
MR. MOODY.--Mr. Rainsford, how can one make room in their heart for Christ? Rev. M. Rainsford.--First, do we really want Christ to be in our hearts? If we do, the best thing will be to ask Him to come and make room for Himself. He will surely come and do so. "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."…
815 wordsSECTION 56Part 56
Mr. R.--Yes. Paul wrote it in his Epistle to the Hebrews. Some of them were trifling with the blood of Christ, reverting to the types and shadows of the Levitical Law, and trusting to a fulfilled ritual for salvation. He is not referring to _ordinary acts of sin_. By sinning willfully he means, as he explains it, a "_t…
963 wordsSECTION 57Part 57
Mr. R.--By receiving Him. "As many as received Him, to them gave He authority to become the sons of God, even to them that believed on His name." Mr. M.--What is your meetness for heaven? Mr. R.--The Holy Ghost dwelling in my heart is my fitness for heaven. I have only to get there; and I have, by this great gift, al…
1,003 wordsSECTION 58Part 58
Mr. R.--He is judging himself unworthy, while God does not so consider him. God says you are welcome to eternal life. Mr. M.--If any one here wants to please God to-night, how can he do it? Mr. R.--God delights in mercy. Come to God and claim His mercy in Christ; and you will delight His heart. Mr. M.--Suppose a man…
978 wordsSECTION 59Part 59
Mr. M.--How may a man know if he has eternal life? Mr. R.--By not treating God as if He were a liar, when He tells us He has given us eternal life in His Son. Mr. M.--What is the means by which the New Birth we were speaking of is effected? Mr. R.--"Of His own will begat He us with the _word of truth_." "Being _born…
195 wordsSECTION 60WHAT IT IS TO BE CONVERTED.
MR. MOODY: Christ says, "Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." What is it to be converted? Mr. Radstock: To be "converted" is to turn to God, who is the only one that can save. We cannot save ourselves even by our religion. Therefore, in order to salvati…
965 wordsSource & rights
Public domain in the USA; original historical text digitized by Project Gutenberg.
Project Gutenberg source record →
Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.