God doth not govern the world only by his will as an absolute monarch, but by his wisdom and goodness as a tender father. It is not his greatest pleasure to show his sovereign power, or his inconceivable wisdom, but his immense goodness, to which he makes the other attributes subservient.

Stephen Charnock

Categorized in : World Father God

When we believe that we should be satisfied rather than God glorified in our worship, then we put God below ourselves as though He had been made for us rather than that we had been made for Him.

Stephen Charnock

christian faith god

Power is God's hand or arm, omniscience is God's eye, mercy is God's delight, eternity is God's duration, but holiness is God's beauty!

Stephen Charnock

delight eye hands

Let us look upon a crucified Christ, the remedy of all our miseries. His cross hath procured a crown, his passion hath expiated our transgression. His death hath disarmed the law, his blood hath washed a believer's soul. This death is the destruction of our enemies, the spring of our happiness, and the eternal testimony of divine love.

Stephen Charnock

christian happiness death

We often learn more of God under the rod that strikes us than under the staff that comforts us.

Stephen Charnock

staff strikes comfort

Our ignorance of God is too great, because our estimations of God are too little.

Stephen Charnock

estimation ignorance littles

God knows all that is done in the most secret caverns of the heart. No place is deprived of his presence.

Stephen Charnock

caverns secret heart

A man may be theologically knowing and spiritually ignorant.

Stephen Charnock

ignorant knowing men

Pride is self contending with God for preeminence.

Stephen Charnock

contending pride self

How comfortable it is to have One, day and night, before the throne to control the charge of our enemy, and the despondencies of our souls.

Stephen Charnock

soul night enemy

How worthy it is to remember former benefits when we come to beg for new.

Stephen Charnock

benefits worthy remember

Without the heart it is no worship; it is a stage play; an acting a part without being that person really which is acted by us: a hypocrite, in the notion of the word, is a stageplayer.

Stephen Charnock

hypocrite play heart

Adoption gives us the privilege of sons, regeneration the nature of sons.

Stephen Charnock

nature religious son

Self is the great antichrist and anti-God in the world, that sets up itself above all else.

Stephen Charnock

anti-god self world

In regard of God, patience is a submission to His sovereignty. To endure a trial, simply because we cannot avoid or resist it, is not Christian patience. But to humbly submit because it is the will of God to inflict the trial, to be silent because the sovereignty of God orders it - is true godly patience.

Stephen Charnock

godly christian order

We may be truly said to worship God, though we lack perfection; but we cannot be said to worship Him if we lack sincerity.

Stephen Charnock

worship perfection may

Paul was so much taken with Christ, that nothing sweeter than Jesus could drop from his lips and pen.

Stephen Charnock

lips taken jesus

A proud faith is as much a contradiction as a humble devil.

Stephen Charnock

devil proud humble

Works make not the heart good, but a good heart makes the works good.

Stephen Charnock

good-heart heart

Assurance is the fruit that grows out of the root of faith.

Stephen Charnock

assurance fruit roots

Frequently renew settled and holy resolutions. A soldier unresolved to fight may be easily defeated...The weakness of our graces, the strength of our temptations, and the diligence of our spiritual enemies, require strong resolutions.

Stephen Charnock

fighting strong spiritual