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Saved and Kept
Originally published 1897The Rev. Frederick Brotherton Meyer (April 8, 1847 – March 28, 1929), a contemporary and friend of D. L. Moody was a Baptist pastor and evangelist in England involved in ministry and inner city mission work on both sides of the Atlantic. Author of numerous religious books and articles, many of which remain in print today, he has been described as The Archbishop of the Free Churches."Nothing between, Lord, nothing between."From this moment, I solemnly, and by thy grace, renounce and put away the evil things which have usurped an unholy supremacy with me-the companionships that lower the temperature of my inner life; the books and amusements which have cast a shadow on my hours of fellowship; the sin which so easily besets me; the soft yielding to sloth which has robbed me of so many seasons of hallowed communion; the desire to please men rather than Thee, and to succeed in this world rather than to be a humble servant in thy glorious household. All these I hereby steadfastly renounce and forsake. Other lords have had dominion over me; but henceforth by Thee only will I make mention of thy name. Especially do I steadfastly resolve by thy grace to renounce the devil and all his works; the world and all its vanity; the flesh and all its selfish and sinful desires; so that I may not follow or be led by them. In myself I cannot keep these resolutions-my will is like a bruised reed, my desires like smoking flax; but oh, keep me true! Thou hast kept my soul from death; wilt Thou not also keep my feet from falling, that I may walk before the Lord in the light of the living? Thou art able to keep me from stumbling, and present me faultless before the presence of thy glory with exceeding joy; into thy hands I commend my and I am persuaded that Thou dost accept and wilt keep what I commit to Thee against that day.And now, Lord, I yield myself to Thee-spirit, soul, and body-that as these were once filled and used by the Spirit of Evil, they may henceforth be filled and used by thy Holy Spirit, who is one with Thee and the Father in the mystery of the Holy Trinity. Never again, by thy dear help, shall sin reign in my mortal body, that I should obey the lusts thereof. It may tempt me by its suggestions; but it shall not reign, since I desire to present myself unto God as one alive from the dead, and my members as instruments of righteousness unto God.In my inner life, I desire to be kept absolutely pure and lovely. 0 Holy and Spotless One, be in me the crystal fountain of purity! 0 Lamb of God, be in me the source of absolute meekness and humility! 0 Lover of Men, be in me a fire of unwaning, all-subduing tenderness! Make me instantly sensitive to the least taint of impurity and uncharity. Before ever the suggestion has assumed a tangible shape, may I detect it, and shelter in Thee.In my home life, may I be made a blessing; its sunbeam when the days are dark; its inspiration when the days are sad and hopeless; its tender comfort when the days are full of pain and tears. Always thinking of others before myself; never imposing my private sorrows or moods; ever with the girt loin and the lighted torch; washing my face, and anointing my head, and confiding my griefs to Thee only, that I may ever have"A heart at leisure from itself,To soothe and "
126 pages, Paperback
First published March 20, 2011
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November 29, 2019
I was fooled by the title. I thought it was a book about eternal security or some aspect of the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. It isn’t. The subtitle is “Counsel for Young Christians.” It is best to think of this as a devotional book which might be particularly applicable for the young adult who had recently come to Christ or had begun to think more deeply about the things of God.
Meyer gives some solid advice, but it is just that, advice. Though he always starts with a verse it is something of a jumping off point. I don’t think there were more than two or three of the chapters which might be called an exposition. Still, this is the advice of an experienced pastor who has seen the wisdom of what he is talking about. I can heartily recommend this book, but it won’t appeal to many. The language is both too 19th century and too British. I am glad that I read this book. It did me spiritual good.
Meyer gives some solid advice, but it is just that, advice. Though he always starts with a verse it is something of a jumping off point. I don’t think there were more than two or three of the chapters which might be called an exposition. Still, this is the advice of an experienced pastor who has seen the wisdom of what he is talking about. I can heartily recommend this book, but it won’t appeal to many. The language is both too 19th century and too British. I am glad that I read this book. It did me spiritual good.
March 30, 2025
I took this book from my dad's library because it was small and I thought I could read it as an intermediary between two other books. Instead, I found I had difficulty reading it, and with two attempts have finally made it through.
The cover even says "A One Evening Condensed Book for Busy People." But I found that it has taken me weeks to read, from Christmas nearly through the end of March, rather than one evening.
I think there were three reasons I was so sluggish to get through a thin "one-evening" book. First, the language was more difficult to dissect and determine its meaning than most of my more modern reading. (And I consider myself an able, avid reader!) Secondly, the topics discussed are deeper and more nuanced than can be gleaned from a cursory glance. And thirdly, there are 20 devotions in this "one evening" book. I would rarely read 20 devotions in a single evening. I need more time to reflect on them and digest them.
As regarding the language, for example, during my first attempt to read this book, I came across this paragraph in the opening page:
"Nothing between, Lord, nothing between."
"From this moment, I solemnly, and by thy grace, renounce and put away the evil things which have usurped an unholy supremacy with me-the companionships that lower the temperature of my inner life; the books and amusements which have cast a shadow on my hours of fellowship; the sin which so easily besets me; the soft yielding to sloth which has robbed me of so many seasons of hallowed communion; the desire to please men rather than Thee, and to succeed in this world rather than to be a humble servant in thy glorious household. All these I hereby steadfastly renounce and forsake."
I had to slow down and ponder what each of those things meant before I could consider whether I would renounce and put them away. I had to dissect it with my mind, which was too tired, and so I put it away for a better time.
I did come back to it, to read it more slowly, each category of things, and as I did, certain things from my life came to mind. I don't mind being challenged. I would say this book is only for those who don't mind that, and intend to try to rise to the occasion, to try and grow.
Do I have friends who would "lower the temperature" of my love for Jesus? Certainly, and it is worth watching the effect of those friendships to discern the best path forward, with an eye toward caution. We do, however, also need to love and reach out to the world around us.
Do I have "books and amusements" which interfere with friendship and fellowship? Again, certainly, especially if you throw the internet in there with the other amusements.
Do I have the "sin that so easily besets me?" Although I wrestle it, yes, I do and I know how that feels.
Do I have "sloth that has robbed me of ... hallowed communion?" This one, I wasn't sure if it meant communion with God or with other people, and if it's with people then it's perhaps too akin to his earlier line about "books and amusements." I suspect he means are we so lazy that we don't spend time with God? I usually do spend time inn His presence, but I always wish I could sit there more.
Do I have "the desire to please men rather than Thee?" Usually in my life, I'm not easily swayed by others, but just now, faces come to my mind.
Do I desire "to succeed in this world rather than to be Thy humble servant?" The timing of that one is also interesting, as we are approaching retirement.
So, then, if this is the opening chapter, do we have to be willing to renounce these things from the start before we make headway into the rest of the book? That's a daunting prospect in its own right. Again, both my head and my heart had to be in the right place to consider it. I wanted to, and yet there is a certain amount of counting the cost.
Like another reviewer, I was mistaken about the purpose of the book because of its title. It was written to encourage younger believers in the faith, but the title made me think it would be a discourse on "the perseverance of the saints" or "eternal security of the believer." I have read books on both sides of that debate, and I was hoping for some amount of encouragement in those topics for myself about a floundering loved one.
That same reviewer noted (and I also agreed) that the messages were not expository. The preacher did not go through them and explain what they meant, but more used them as a jumping off point for his own thoughts. He did have some good thoughts, but they are not on the same level as scripture.
I would also add that like in other books of this era, the author sometimes quotes scripture without giving the reference or even telling you that it is scripture. I wrote the references in the margins when I had looked them up and found them. A lot of times, I recognized them although they were not even in quotes. So just be aware that not everything he says is on the order of his own thoughts. Some of it is the higher thought of scripture, although certainly not all or even most of it.
I also recognized references to John Bunyon's "Pilgrim's Progress" and "ManSoul", originally named "The Holy War," about the war within one's self between good and evil. There are different characters within the city of a person's soul, "ManSoul", that remind me of a much more serious version of the emotional characters in "Inside Out." The last gift that my dad ever got my kids was a CD of someone reading ManSoul.
"Always thinking of others before myself, never imposing my private sorrows or moods." There is a certain value in authenticity making us relatable to others. Past generations hid their sorrows more, which can grow to the point of hypocrisy, pretending things are better than they are. Authenticity has its own, opposite risks, however - refusal to change what's wrong because "I'm just being authentic about who I am" or being too open about others' struggles, particularly loved ones, in our lives. There should be some protection of privacy, too.
"Are you willing to be made whole - though it should involve you in obloquy [strong public criticism] and scorn; though it mean the loss of companionships that have been as the apple of your eye, and the forsaking of those scenes which are familiar ..." There is the question of this moment in history. Are we willing to be scorned for Jesus?
"When once unconverted persons become dubbed as Christians, it is the hardest matter possible to convince them of their need of the Gospel." I see that and it frightens me. So few people who say they are Christian actually have an understanding that Jesus died to save us from sin, and are trying to live well as a result.
"Indulge suspicious or evil thoughts and you cannot hope to prevail in the [inner] conflict against sin."
"The secret working of evil thoughts will inevitably show itself."
"You should label it [evil thoughts within], stamp it with the brand of your moral censure and disapprobation. Say, 'This is an evil, hell-born thought.'"
I am not convinced by his mingling of God's commendation to David for wanting to build a temple, and Jesus' parable of the Master returning and declaring some of his servants could enter his joy. The reason is that in the parable, those servants had done good works, not just had good intentions about them as David had. I do not think that we earn salvation by our works, but I do think that we reveal our faith by what we do... David had plenty of other ways where he revealed his faith.
Favorite quotes:
"There is no better way of nurturing faith than by looking away from it to its object. When you believe not, He remains faithful. Give up estimating the force of your faith, or searching for the roots of it, or analyzing its component parts. Begin to consider the impossibility of God denying Himself, and as you do so, the true faith will stir within you; by considering God's faith, your faith will grow strong to remove mountains."
"Repentance is the forsaking of sin; penitence the abhorring and grieving for it."
"The nearer we come to Christ, the more we grieve for the sorrow we have given Him."
"If you have not faith, or fear that your faith is wrong, do not despair or give way to introspection. Look away to Jesus. Open your heart, that God may put into it the gift of true faith."
On the verse "Therefore will the Lord wait, that He may be gracious unto you ... Blessed are all they that wait for Him." - Isaiah 30:18, comment below:
"Cease from self; from your own endeavors after rest; from going after this teacher and the other; sink down like a tired child on the pillow of God's loving care. Lean back on God. God loves; God cares; God will interpose when the right moment is come. God will do the very best that can be done... Trust and rest."
"Christ comes through the night and storm, when the wind is contrary and the strength giving out, when the sky is black with the hurrying clouds, and the wind churns the water into a yeasty form; when the hopes of former years have been disappointed, and the light that shone so brightly has faded; when ill-health oppresses, when heart and flesh fail, when our days are bereft of the souls that made them speed quick as a meteor flash; when the fire burns low in the grate, when sin and sorrow have played sad havoc with us - then our troubles and losses make the pavement of his feet, and through the storm, nay, by means of the storm, the Master says, 'I have come.'"
"The most trying temperament with which you may be yoked will only bring out your noblest traits by giving them abundant exercise."
"Like David, we must sit before the Lord. It is impossible to rush into God's presence, catch up anything we fancy and run off with it. Nature will not unveil her rarest beauty to the chance tourist. And God's best cannot be ours apart from patient waiting in his holy presence."
"Because things which have seemed the best course possible to our poor human judgment are put aside by the wise love of God."
"The world has been enriched more through the poverty of its saints than by the wealth of its millionaires."
"Or will you pick up the lame beggars as you pass by, lifting them up, and leading them in with you - your joy being doubled by theirs."
The cover even says "A One Evening Condensed Book for Busy People." But I found that it has taken me weeks to read, from Christmas nearly through the end of March, rather than one evening.
I think there were three reasons I was so sluggish to get through a thin "one-evening" book. First, the language was more difficult to dissect and determine its meaning than most of my more modern reading. (And I consider myself an able, avid reader!) Secondly, the topics discussed are deeper and more nuanced than can be gleaned from a cursory glance. And thirdly, there are 20 devotions in this "one evening" book. I would rarely read 20 devotions in a single evening. I need more time to reflect on them and digest them.
As regarding the language, for example, during my first attempt to read this book, I came across this paragraph in the opening page:
"Nothing between, Lord, nothing between."
"From this moment, I solemnly, and by thy grace, renounce and put away the evil things which have usurped an unholy supremacy with me-the companionships that lower the temperature of my inner life; the books and amusements which have cast a shadow on my hours of fellowship; the sin which so easily besets me; the soft yielding to sloth which has robbed me of so many seasons of hallowed communion; the desire to please men rather than Thee, and to succeed in this world rather than to be a humble servant in thy glorious household. All these I hereby steadfastly renounce and forsake."
I had to slow down and ponder what each of those things meant before I could consider whether I would renounce and put them away. I had to dissect it with my mind, which was too tired, and so I put it away for a better time.
I did come back to it, to read it more slowly, each category of things, and as I did, certain things from my life came to mind. I don't mind being challenged. I would say this book is only for those who don't mind that, and intend to try to rise to the occasion, to try and grow.
Do I have friends who would "lower the temperature" of my love for Jesus? Certainly, and it is worth watching the effect of those friendships to discern the best path forward, with an eye toward caution. We do, however, also need to love and reach out to the world around us.
Do I have "books and amusements" which interfere with friendship and fellowship? Again, certainly, especially if you throw the internet in there with the other amusements.
Do I have the "sin that so easily besets me?" Although I wrestle it, yes, I do and I know how that feels.
Do I have "sloth that has robbed me of ... hallowed communion?" This one, I wasn't sure if it meant communion with God or with other people, and if it's with people then it's perhaps too akin to his earlier line about "books and amusements." I suspect he means are we so lazy that we don't spend time with God? I usually do spend time inn His presence, but I always wish I could sit there more.
Do I have "the desire to please men rather than Thee?" Usually in my life, I'm not easily swayed by others, but just now, faces come to my mind.
Do I desire "to succeed in this world rather than to be Thy humble servant?" The timing of that one is also interesting, as we are approaching retirement.
So, then, if this is the opening chapter, do we have to be willing to renounce these things from the start before we make headway into the rest of the book? That's a daunting prospect in its own right. Again, both my head and my heart had to be in the right place to consider it. I wanted to, and yet there is a certain amount of counting the cost.
Like another reviewer, I was mistaken about the purpose of the book because of its title. It was written to encourage younger believers in the faith, but the title made me think it would be a discourse on "the perseverance of the saints" or "eternal security of the believer." I have read books on both sides of that debate, and I was hoping for some amount of encouragement in those topics for myself about a floundering loved one.
That same reviewer noted (and I also agreed) that the messages were not expository. The preacher did not go through them and explain what they meant, but more used them as a jumping off point for his own thoughts. He did have some good thoughts, but they are not on the same level as scripture.
I would also add that like in other books of this era, the author sometimes quotes scripture without giving the reference or even telling you that it is scripture. I wrote the references in the margins when I had looked them up and found them. A lot of times, I recognized them although they were not even in quotes. So just be aware that not everything he says is on the order of his own thoughts. Some of it is the higher thought of scripture, although certainly not all or even most of it.
I also recognized references to John Bunyon's "Pilgrim's Progress" and "ManSoul", originally named "The Holy War," about the war within one's self between good and evil. There are different characters within the city of a person's soul, "ManSoul", that remind me of a much more serious version of the emotional characters in "Inside Out." The last gift that my dad ever got my kids was a CD of someone reading ManSoul.
"Always thinking of others before myself, never imposing my private sorrows or moods." There is a certain value in authenticity making us relatable to others. Past generations hid their sorrows more, which can grow to the point of hypocrisy, pretending things are better than they are. Authenticity has its own, opposite risks, however - refusal to change what's wrong because "I'm just being authentic about who I am" or being too open about others' struggles, particularly loved ones, in our lives. There should be some protection of privacy, too.
"Are you willing to be made whole - though it should involve you in obloquy [strong public criticism] and scorn; though it mean the loss of companionships that have been as the apple of your eye, and the forsaking of those scenes which are familiar ..." There is the question of this moment in history. Are we willing to be scorned for Jesus?
"When once unconverted persons become dubbed as Christians, it is the hardest matter possible to convince them of their need of the Gospel." I see that and it frightens me. So few people who say they are Christian actually have an understanding that Jesus died to save us from sin, and are trying to live well as a result.
"Indulge suspicious or evil thoughts and you cannot hope to prevail in the [inner] conflict against sin."
"The secret working of evil thoughts will inevitably show itself."
"You should label it [evil thoughts within], stamp it with the brand of your moral censure and disapprobation. Say, 'This is an evil, hell-born thought.'"
I am not convinced by his mingling of God's commendation to David for wanting to build a temple, and Jesus' parable of the Master returning and declaring some of his servants could enter his joy. The reason is that in the parable, those servants had done good works, not just had good intentions about them as David had. I do not think that we earn salvation by our works, but I do think that we reveal our faith by what we do... David had plenty of other ways where he revealed his faith.
Favorite quotes:
"There is no better way of nurturing faith than by looking away from it to its object. When you believe not, He remains faithful. Give up estimating the force of your faith, or searching for the roots of it, or analyzing its component parts. Begin to consider the impossibility of God denying Himself, and as you do so, the true faith will stir within you; by considering God's faith, your faith will grow strong to remove mountains."
"Repentance is the forsaking of sin; penitence the abhorring and grieving for it."
"The nearer we come to Christ, the more we grieve for the sorrow we have given Him."
"If you have not faith, or fear that your faith is wrong, do not despair or give way to introspection. Look away to Jesus. Open your heart, that God may put into it the gift of true faith."
On the verse "Therefore will the Lord wait, that He may be gracious unto you ... Blessed are all they that wait for Him." - Isaiah 30:18, comment below:
"Cease from self; from your own endeavors after rest; from going after this teacher and the other; sink down like a tired child on the pillow of God's loving care. Lean back on God. God loves; God cares; God will interpose when the right moment is come. God will do the very best that can be done... Trust and rest."
"Christ comes through the night and storm, when the wind is contrary and the strength giving out, when the sky is black with the hurrying clouds, and the wind churns the water into a yeasty form; when the hopes of former years have been disappointed, and the light that shone so brightly has faded; when ill-health oppresses, when heart and flesh fail, when our days are bereft of the souls that made them speed quick as a meteor flash; when the fire burns low in the grate, when sin and sorrow have played sad havoc with us - then our troubles and losses make the pavement of his feet, and through the storm, nay, by means of the storm, the Master says, 'I have come.'"
"The most trying temperament with which you may be yoked will only bring out your noblest traits by giving them abundant exercise."
"Like David, we must sit before the Lord. It is impossible to rush into God's presence, catch up anything we fancy and run off with it. Nature will not unveil her rarest beauty to the chance tourist. And God's best cannot be ours apart from patient waiting in his holy presence."
"Because things which have seemed the best course possible to our poor human judgment are put aside by the wise love of God."
"The world has been enriched more through the poverty of its saints than by the wealth of its millionaires."
"Or will you pick up the lame beggars as you pass by, lifting them up, and leading them in with you - your joy being doubled by theirs."
May 17, 2024
Meyer Mission #13
A baker's dozen for Meyer and more pragmatic theology, this time it says to young believers, and that is true, but it also handy for believers of all ages.
Another great read from FB!
A baker's dozen for Meyer and more pragmatic theology, this time it says to young believers, and that is true, but it also handy for believers of all ages.
Another great read from FB!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews