The New Life

Undivided Consecration.
them to be His possession.^ Let us see what this
implies.
There is personal attachment to JesuSy and intercourse
with Him in secret.
He will be, He must be,
the beloved, the desire, the joy of our souls. It is
not, in the first instance, to the service of God, but to
Jesus as our Friend and King, our Redeemer and
God, that we are to be consecrated.^ It is only the
spiritual impulse of a personal cordial love that can
set us in a condition for a life of complete consecration.
Continually did Jesus use the words :
" For
My sake," " Follow Me," My *' disciple : " He Himself
must be the central point. ^ He gave Himself: to
desire to have Him, to love, to depend on Him, is the
characteristic of a disciple.
Then there is public confession. "What has been
given to any one, that he will have acknowledged by
all as his property. His possessions are his glory.
When the Lord Jesus manifests His great grace to a
soul in redeeming it. He desires that the world should
see and know it : He would be known and honored
as its proprietor. He desires that every one that belongs
to Him should confess Him, and that it should
come out that Jesus is King.* Apart from this public
confession, the surrender is but a half-hearted
one. As a part of this public confession, it is also
required that we should join His people and acknow-
1 Ex. xix. 4, 5 ; I^ev. i. 8, 9; Deut. vii. 6 ; Rom. xii. i ; i Cor. HL
16, 17.
'John xiv. 21, XV. 14, 15, xxi. 17 ;
Gal. ii. 10.
'Matt. x. 32, 33, 37, 38, 40 ; L,uke xiv. 26, 27, 33, xviii. 23.