Morning and Evening
by Charles Spurgeon
JUNE
June 1 — Morning"And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day." Genesis 1:5
Was it so even in the beginning? Did light and darkness divide the realm of time in the first day? Then little wonder is it—if I have also changes in my circumstances, from the sunshine of prosperity to the midnight of adversity. It will not always be the blaze of noon even in my soul concerns, I must expect at seasons to mourn the absence of my former joys, and seek my Beloved in the night. Nor am I alone in this, for all the Lord's beloved ones have had to sing the mingled song of judgment and of mercy, of trial and deliverance, of mourning and of delight.
It is one of the arrangements of Divine providence, that day and night shall not cease either in the spiritual or natural creation, until we reach the land of which it is written, "there is no night there." What our heavenly Father ordains is wise and good. What, then, my soul, is it best for you to do? Learn first to be content with this divine order, and be willing, with Job, to receive evil from the hand of the Lord as well as good. Study next, to make the outgoings of the morning and the evening to rejoice. Praise the Lord for the sun of joy when it rises, and for the gloom of evening as it falls. There is beauty both in sunrise and sunset, sing of it, and glorify the Lord. Like the nightingale, pour forth your notes at all hours. Believe that the night is as useful as the day. The dews of grace fall heavily in the night of sorrow. The stars of promise shine forth gloriously amid the darkness of grief.
Continue your service under all changes. If in the day your watchword be labor, at night exchange it for watch. Every hour has its duty, so continue in your calling as the Lord's servant until He shall suddenly appear in His glory. My soul, your evening of old age and death is drawing near—dread it not, for it is part of the day; and the Lord has said, "I will cover him all the day long."
June 1 — Evening
"He will make her wilderness like Eden." Isaiah 51:3
Methinks, I see in vision—a howling wilderness, a great and terrible desert, like to the Sahara. I perceive nothing in it to relieve the eye, all around I am wearied with a sight of hot and arid sand, strewn with ten thousand blanched skeletons of wretched men who have expired in anguish, having lost their way in the pitiless wasteland. What an appalling sight! How horrible! a sea of sand without a bound, and without an oasis, a cheerless graveyard for a race forlorn!
But behold and wonder! Suddenly, upspringing from the scorching sand—I see a plant of renown; and as it grows it buds, the bud expands—it is a rose, and at its side a lily bows its modest head; and, miracle of miracles! as the fragrance of those flowers is diffused—the wilderness is transformed into a fruitful field, and all around it blossoms exceedingly, the glory of Lebanon is given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon. Call it not Sahara, call it Paradise. Speak not of it any longer as the valley of deathshade, for where the skeletons lay blanching in the sun, behold a resurrection is proclaimed, and up spring the dead, a mighty army, full of life immortal.
Jesus is that plant of renown—and His presence makes all things new. Nor is the wonder less in each individual's salvation. Yonder I behold you, dear reader, cast out, an unwanted infant, unswathed, unwashed, defiled with your own blood, left to be food for beasts of prey. But lo, a jewel has been thrown into your bosom by a divine hand, and for its sake you have been pitied and tended by divine providence, you are washed and cleansed from your defilement, you are adopted into heaven's family, the fair seal of love is upon your forehead, and the ring of faithfulness is on your hand—you are now a prince unto God, though once an orphan, cast away. O prize exceedingly the matchless power and grace which changes deserts into gardens, and makes the barren heart to sing for joy!
June 2 — Morning
"For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh." Galatians 5:17
In every believer's heart there is a constant struggle between the old nature and the new. The old nature is very active, and loses no opportunity of plying all the weapons of its deadly armory against newborn grace; while on the other hand, the new nature is ever on the watch to resist and destroy its enemy. Grace within us will employ prayer, and faith, and hope, and love—to cast out the evil; it takes unto it the "whole armor of God," and wrestles earnestly.
These two opposing natures will never cease to struggle so long as we are in this world. The battle of "Christian" with "Apollyon" lasted three hours—but Christian's battle with himself lasted all the way from the Wicket Gate in the river Jordan. The enemy is so securely entrenched within us that he can never be driven out while we are in this body—but although we are often in sore conflict, we have an Almighty helper, even Jesus, the Captain of our salvation, who is ever with us, and who assures us that we shall eventually come off more than conquerors through Him. With such assistance, the new-born nature is more than a match for its foes.
Are you fighting with the adversary today? Are Satan, the world, and the flesh, all against you? Do not be discouraged nor dismayed. Fight on! For God Himself is with you; Jehovah Nissi is your banner, and Jehovah Rophi is the healer of your wounds. Fear not, you shall overcome, for who can defeat Omnipotence? Fight on, "looking unto Jesus"; and though long and stern is the conflict, sweet will be the victory, and glorious the promised reward.
"From strength to strength go on;
Wrestle, and fight, and pray,
Tread all the powers of darkness down,
And win the well-fought day."
June 2 — Evening
"Good Master." Matthew 19:16
If the young man in the gospel used this title in speaking to our Lord—how much more fitly may I thus address Him! He is indeed my Master in both senses, a ruling Master and a teaching Master. I delight to run upon His errands, and to sit at His feet. I am both His servant and His disciple, and count it my highest honor to own the double character. If He should ask me why I call Him "good," I should have a ready answer. It is true that "there is none good but one, that is, God," but then He is God, and all the goodness of Deity shines forth in Him. In my experience, I have found Him good, so good, indeed, that all the good I have has come to me through Him. He was good to me when I was dead in sin, for He raised me by His Spirit's power. He has been good to me in all my needs, trials, struggles, and sorrows. Never could there be a better Master, for His service is freedom, His rule is love—I wish I were one thousandth part as good a servant.
When He teaches me as my Rabbi, He is unspeakably good, His doctrine is divine, His manner is condescending, His spirit is gentleness itself. No error mingles with His instruction—pure is the golden truth which He brings forth, and all His teachings lead to goodness, sanctifying as well as edifying the disciple. Angels find Him a good Master and delight to pay their homage at His footstool. The ancient saints proved Him to be a good Master, and each of them rejoiced to sing, "I am Your servant, O Lord!" My own humble testimony must certainly be to the same effect. I will bear this witness before my friends and neighbors, for possibly they may be led by my testimony to seek my Lord Jesus as their Master. O that they would do so! They would never regret so wise a deed. If they would but take His easy yoke, they would find themselves in so royal a service that they would enlist in it forever.
June 3 — Morning
"These were potters, and those that dwelt among plants and hedges—lived there in the service of the king." 1 Chronicles 4:23
Potters were not the very highest grade of workers—but "the king" needed potters, and therefore they were in royal service, although the material upon which they worked was nothing but clay. We, too, may be engaged in the most menial part of the Lord's work—but it is a great privilege to do anything for "the king"; and therefore we will abide in our calling, hoping that, "although we have laid among the pots—yet shall we be as the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold."
The text tells us of those who dwelt among plants and hedges, having rough, rustic, hedging and ditching work to do. They may have desired to live in the city, amid its life, society, and refinement—but they kept their appointed places, for they also were doing the king's work. The place of our habitation is fixed, and we are not to remove from it out of whim and caprice—but seek to serve the Lord in it, by being a blessing to those among whom we reside.
These potters and gardeners had royal company, for they dwelt "with the king" and although among hedges and plants, they dwelt with the king there. No lawful place, or gracious occupation, however lowly, can debar us from communion with our divine Lord. In visiting hovels, swarming lodging-houses, workhouses, or jails—we may go with the king. In all works of faith we may count upon Jesus' fellowship. It is when we are in His work that we may reckon upon His smile.
You unknown workers who are occupied for your Lord amid the dirt and wretchedness of the lowest of the low, be of good cheer, for jewels have been found upon dunghills before now, earthen pots have been filled with heavenly treasure, and ill weeds have been transformed into precious flowers! Dwell with the King for His work, and when He writes His chronicles—your name shall be recorded.
June 3 — Evening
"He humbled Himself." Philippians 2:8
Jesus is the great teacher of lowliness of heart. We need daily to learn of Him. See the Master taking a towel and washing His disciples feet! Follower of Christ, will you not humble yourself? See Him as the Servant of servants—and surely you cannot be proud! Is not this sentence the compendium of His biography, "He humbled Himself"? Was He not on earth always stripping off first one robe of honor and then another—until, naked, He was fastened to the cross, and there did He not empty out His inmost self, pouring out His life-blood, giving up for all of us, until they laid Him penniless in a borrowed grave? How low was our dear Redeemer brought!
How then can we be proud? Stand at the foot of the cross, and count the purple drops by which you have been cleansed; see the thorn-crown; mark His scourged shoulders, still gushing with encrimsoned rills; see hands and feet given up to the rough iron, and His whole self to mockery and scorn; see the bitterness, and the pangs, and the throes of inward grief, showing themselves in His outward frame; hear the horrid shriek, "My God, my God, why have You forsaken Me!" If you do not lie prostrate on the ground before that cross—you have never seen it! If you are not humbled in the presence of Jesus—you do not know Him. You were so lost that nothing could save you—but the sacrifice of God's only begotten Son. Think of that, and as Jesus stooped for you—bow yourself in lowliness at His feet.
A sense of Christ's amazing love to us—has a greater tendency to humble us than even a consciousness of our own guilt. May the Lord bring us in contemplation, to Calvary, then our position will no longer be that of the pompous man of pride—but we shall take the humble place of one who loves much—because much has been forgiven him. Pride cannot live beneath the cross! Let us sit there and learn our lesson—and then rise and carry it into practice.
June 4 — Morning
"The kindness and love of God our Savior." Titus 3:4
How sweet it is to behold the Savior communing with His own beloved people! There can be nothing more delightful than, by the Divine Spirit, to be led into this fertile field of delight. Let the mind for an instant consider the history of the Redeemer's love—and a thousand enchanting acts of affection will suggest themselves, all of which have had for their design—the weaving of the heart into Christ, and the intertwisting of the thoughts and emotions of the renewed soul with the mind of Jesus.
When we meditate upon this amazing love, and behold the all-glorious Kinsman of the Church endowing her with all His ancient wealth, our souls may well faint for joy. Who is he who can endure such a weight of love? That partial sense of it which the Holy Spirit is sometimes pleased to afford, is more than the soul can contain; how transporting must be a complete view of it! When the soul shall have understanding to discern all the Savior's gifts, wisdom with which to estimate them, and time in which to meditate upon them—such as the world to come will afford us—we shall then commune with Jesus in a nearer manner than at present. But who can imagine the sweetness of such fellowship? It must be one of the things which have not entered into the heart of man—but which God has prepared for those who love Him. Oh, to burst open the door of our Joseph's granaries, and see the plenty which He has stored up for us! This will overwhelm us with love.
By faith we see, as in a glass darkly, the reflected image of His unbounded treasures—but when we shall actually see the heavenly things themselves, with our own eyes—how deep will be the stream of fellowship in which our soul shall bathe itself! Until then our loudest sonnets shall be reserved for our loving benefactor, Jesus Christ our Lord, whose love to us is wonderful, passing the love of women.
June 4 — Evening
"Received up into glory." 1 Timothy 3:16
We have seen our well-beloved Lord in the days of His flesh, humiliated and sore vexed; for He was "despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief." He whose brightness is as the morning, wore the sackcloth of sorrow as His daily dress—shame was His mantle, and reproach was His vesture. Yet now, inasmuch as He has triumphed over all the powers of darkness upon the bloody tree, our faith beholds our King returning with dyed garments from Edom, robed in the splendor of victory. How glorious must He have been in the eyes of seraphs, when a cloud received Him out of mortal sight, and He ascended up to heaven!
Now He wears the glory which He had with God before the earth was, and yet another glory above all—that which He has well earned in the fight against sin, death, and hell. As victor He wears the illustrious crown. Hark how the song swells high! It is a new and sweeter song, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, for He has redeemed us unto God by His blood!" He wears the glory of an Intercessor who can never fail, of a Prince who can never be defeated, of a Conqueror who has vanquished every foe, of a Lord who has the heart's allegiance of every subject. Jesus wears all the glory which the pomp of heaven can bestow upon Him, which ten thousand times ten thousand angels can minister to Him.
You cannot with your utmost stretch of imagination, conceive His exceeding greatness; yet there will be a further revelation of it when He shall descend from heaven in great power, with all the holy angels, "Then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory." Oh, the splendor of that glory! It will ravish His people's hearts. Nor is this the end, for eternity shall sound His praise, "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever!" Reader, if you would rejoice in Christ's glory hereafter, He must be glorious in your sight now. Is He so?
June 5 — Morning
"The Lord shut him in." Genesis 7:16
Noah was shut in away from all the world—by the hand of divine love. The door of electing purpose, interposes between us and the world which lies in the wicked one. We are not of the world even as our Lord Jesus was not of the world. Into the sin, the gaiety, the pursuits of the multitude—we cannot enter. We cannot play in the streets of Vanity Fair with the children of darkness, for our heavenly Father has shut us in.
Noah was shut in with his God. "Come into the ark," was the Lord's invitation, by which He clearly showed that He Himself intended to dwell in the ark with His servant and his family. Thus all the chosen dwell in God and God in them. Happy people to be enclosed in the same circle which contains God in the Trinity of His persons, Father, Son, and Spirit. Let us ever be attentive to that gracious call, "Come, my people, enter into your chambers, and shut your doors about you, and hide yourself as it were for a little moment until the indignation be overpast."
Noah was so shut in that no evil could reach him. Floods did but lift him heavenward, and winds did but waft him on his way. Outside of the ark, all was ruin—but inside, all was rest and peace. Without Christ we perish—but in Christ Jesus there is perfect safety. Noah was so shut in that he could not even desire to come out, and those who are in Christ Jesus are in Him forever. They shall go no more out forever, for eternal faithfulness has shut them in, and infernal malice cannot drag them out. The Prince of the house of David shuts—and no man opens; and when once in the last days as Master of the house He shall rise up and shut the door—it will be in vain for mere professors to knock, and cry ""Lord, Lord open unto us," for that same door which shuts in the wise virgins will shut out the foolish forever. Lord, shut me in by Your grace!
June 5 — Evening
"The one who does not love—does not know God, because God is love." 1 John 4:8
The distinguishing mark of a Christian is his confidence in the love of Christ—and the yielding of his affections to Christ in return. First, faith sets her seal upon the man by enabling the soul to say with the apostle, "Christ loved me—and gave Himself for me!" Then love gives the countersign, and stamps upon the heart gratitude and love to Jesus in return. "We love Him—because He first loved us."
In those grand old ages, which are the heroic period of the Christian religion, this double mark was clearly to be seen in all believers in Jesus; they were men who knew the love of Christ, and rested upon it as a man leans upon a staff whose trustiness he has tried. The love which they felt towards the Lord was not a quiet emotion which they hid within themselves in the secret chamber of their souls, and which they only spoke of in their private assemblies when they met on the first day of the week, and sang hymns in honor of Christ Jesus the crucified—but it was a passion with them of such a vehement and all-consuming energy, that it was visible in all their actions, spoke in their common talk, and looked out of their eyes even in their commonest glances. Love to Jesus was a flame which fed upon the core and heart of their being; and, therefore, from its own force—it burned its way into the outer man, and shone there. Zeal for the glory of King Jesus—was the seal and mark of all genuine Christians. Because of their dependence upon Christ's love—they dared much; and because of their love to Christ—they did much, and it is the same now.
The children of God are ruled in their inmost powers by love—the love of Christ constrains them; they rejoice that divine love is set upon them, they feel it shed abroad in their hearts by the Holy Spirit, who is given unto them, and then by force of gratitude they love the Savior with a pure heart, fervently. My reader, do you love Him? Before you sleep—give an honest answer to a weighty question!
June 6 — Morning
"Behold, I am vile!" Job 40:4
One cheering word, poor lost sinner, for you! You think you must not come to God because you are vile. Now, there is not a Christian living on earth—but has been made to feel that he is vile. If Job, and Isaiah, and Paul were all obliged to say "I am vile," oh, poor sinner, will you be ashamed to join in the same confession? If divine grace does not eradicate all sin from the believer, how do you hope to do it yourself? If God loves His people while they are yet vile—do you think your vileness will prevent His loving you? Believe on Jesus, you outcast of the world's society! Jesus calls you, and such as you are.
Even now say, "You have died for sinners; I am a sinner, Lord Jesus, sprinkle Your blood on me"; if you will confess your sin you shall find pardon. If, now, with all your heart, you will say, "I am vile, wash me," you shall be washed now. If the Holy Spirit shall enable you from your heart to cry
"Just as I am, without one plea
But that Your blood was shed for me,
And that you bidd'st me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come!"you shall rise from reading this morning's portion with all your sins pardoned; and though you did wake this morning with every sin that man has ever committed on your head, you shall rest tonight accepted in the Beloved; though once degraded with the rags of sin, you shall be adorned with a robe of righteousness, and appear white as the angels are! For "now," mark it, "Now is the accepted time." If you "Believe on Him—who justifies the ungodly, you are saved." Oh! may the Holy Spirit give you saving faith in Him who receives the vilest!
June 6 — Evening
"Are they Israelites? So am I!" 2 Corinthians 11:22
We have here a personal claim, and one that needs proof. The apostle knew that his claim was indisputable—but there are many people who have no right to the title—who yet claim to belong to the Israel of God. If we are with confidence declaring, "So am I also an Israelite," let us only say it after having searched our heart as in the presence of God. But if we can give proof that we are following Jesus, if we can from the heart say, "I trust Him wholly, trust Him only, trust Him simply, trust Him now, and trust Him ever," then the position which the saints of God hold, belongs to us—all their enjoyments are our possessions; we may be the very least in Israel, "less than the least of all saints," yet since the mercies of God belong to the saints AS SAINTS, and not as advanced saints, or well-taught saints—we may put in our plea, and say, "Are they Israelites? so am I! therefore the promises are mine, grace is mine, glory will be mine."
The claim, rightfully made, is one which will yield untold comfort. When God's people are rejoicing that they are His, what a happiness if they can say, "So am I!" When they speak of being pardoned, and justified, and accepted in the Beloved, how joyful to respond, "Through the grace of God, So am I."
But this claim not only has its enjoyments and privileges—but also its conditions and duties. We must share with God's people in cloud as well as in sunshine. When we hear them spoken of with contempt and ridicule for being Christians, we must come boldly forward and say, "So am I!" When we see them working for Christ, giving their time, their talent, their whole heart to Jesus, we must be able to say, "So do I!" O let us prove our gratitude by our devotion, and live as those who, having claimed a privilege, are willing to take the responsibility connected with it!
June 7 — Morning
"You who love the Lord—hate evil." Psalm 97:10
You have good reason to "hate evil," for only consider what harm it has already wrought you. Oh, what a world of mischief sin has brought into your heart! Sin blinded you so that you could not see the beauty of the Savior; it made you deaf so that you could not hear the Redeemer's tender invitations. Sin turned your feet into the way of death, and poured poison into the very fountain of your being; it tainted your heart, and made it "deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked." Oh, what a vile creature you were—when evil had done its utmost with you, before divine grace interposed! You were an heir of wrath even as others; you ran with the multitude to do evil. Such were all of us; but Paul reminds us, "but you are washed—but you are sanctified—but you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God."
We have good reason, indeed, for hating evil—when we look back and trace its deadly workings. Such mischief did evil do us, that our souls would have been lost—had not omnipotent love interfered to redeem us. Even now it is an active enemy, ever watching to do us hurt, and to drag us to perdition.
Therefore "hate evil," O Christians, unless you desire trouble. If you would strew your path with thorns, and plant nettles in your death-pillow, then neglect to "hate evil". But if you would live a happy life, and die a peaceful death—then walk in all the ways of holiness, hating evil, even unto the end. If you truly love your Savior, and would honor Him, then "hate evil." We know of no cure for the love of evil in a Christian, like abundant fellowship with the Lord Jesus. Dwell much with Him, and it is impossible for you to be at peace with sin.
"Order my footsteps by Your Word,
And make my heart sincere;
Let sin have no dominion, Lord—
but keep my conscience clear."
June 7 — Evening
"Be zealous!" Revelation 3:19
If you would see souls converted, if you would hear the cry that "the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord"; if you would place crowns upon the head of the Savior, and His throne lifted high—then be filled with zeal. For, under God, the way of the world's conversion must be by the zeal of the church. Every grace shall do exploits—but this shall be first. Prudence, knowledge, patience, and courage will follow in their places—but zeal must lead the van. It is not the extent of your knowledge, though that is useful; it is not the extent of your talent, though that is not to be despised; it is your zeal which shall do great exploits.
This zeal is the fruit of the Holy Spirit—it draws its vital force from the continued operations of the Holy Spirit in the soul. If our inner life dwindles, if our heart beats slowly before God—we shall not know zeal; but if all is strong and vigorous within, then we cannot but feel a loving anxiety to see the kingdom of Christ come, and His will done on earth, even as it is in heaven.
A deep sense of gratitude will nourish Christian zeal. Looking to the hole of the pit whence we were dug, we find abundant reason why we should spend and be spent for God. And zeal is also stimulated by the thought of the eternal future. It looks with tearful eyes down to the flames of hell—and it cannot slumber; it looks up with anxious gaze to the glories of heaven—and it cannot but bestir itself. It feels that time is short compared with the work to be done, and therefore it devotes all that it has to the cause of its Lord.
And it is ever strengthened by the remembrance of Christ's example. He was clothed with zeal as with a cloak. How swift the chariot-wheels of duty went with Him! He knew no loitering by the way. Let us prove that we are His disciples by manifesting the same spirit of zeal.
June 8 — Morning"Many of the Hagrites were killed in the battle—because God was fighting against them." 1 Chronicles 5:22
Warrior, fighting under the banner of the Lord Jesus, observe this verse with holy joy, for as it was in the days of old so is it now, if the war is of God—the victory is sure. The sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh could barely muster forty-five thousand fighting men, and yet in their war with the Hagrites, they slew "a hundred thousand men," "for they cried to God in the battle, and He was entreated of them, because they put their trust in Him."
The Lord saves not by many nor by few; it is ours to go forth in Jehovah's name if we be but a handful of men, for the Lord Almighty is with us for our Captain. They did not neglect shield, and sword, and bow, neither did they place their trust in these weapons; we must use all fitting means—but our confidence must rest in the Lord alone, for He is the sword and the shield of His people.
The great reason of their extraordinary success lay in the fact that "God was fighting against them." Beloved, in fighting with sin without and within, with error doctrinal or practical, with spiritual wickedness in high places or low places, with devils and the devil's allies—you are waging Jehovah's war, and unless He himself can be conquered, you need not fear defeat. Do not cringe before superior numbers, do not shrink from difficulties or impossibilities, do not flinch at wounds or death; smite with the two-edged sword of the Spirit, and the slain shall lie in heaps! The battle is the Lord's and He will deliver His enemies into our hands. With steadfast foot, strong hand, dauntless heart, and flaming zeal—rush to the conflict, and the armies of evil shall fly like chaff before the gale.
Stand up! stand up for Jesus!
The strife will not be long;
This day the noise of battle,
The next the victor's song—
To him who overcomes,
A crown of life shall be;
He with the King of glory
Shall reign eternally!
June 8 — Evening
"You shall now see whether My Word shall come to pass unto you, or not." Numbers 11:23
God had made a positive promise to Moses— that for the space of a whole month He would feed the vast multitude in the wilderness with flesh. Moses, being overtaken by a fit of unbelief, looks to the outward means, and is at a loss to know how the promise can be fulfilled. He looked to the creature instead of the Creator. But does the Creator expect the creature to fulfill His promise for Him? No! He who makes the promise—ever fulfils it by His own unaided omnipotence. If He speaks, it is done—done by Himself. His promises do not depend for their fulfillment, upon the cooperation of the puny strength of man.
We can at once perceive the mistake which Moses made. And yet how commonly we do the same! God has promised to supply our needs, and we look to the creature to do what God has promised to do; and then, because we perceive the creature to be weak and feeble, we indulge in unbelief. Why do we look to that quarter at all? Will you look to the north pole to gather fruits ripened in the sun? Truly, you would act no more foolishly if you did this—than when you look to the weak for strength, and to the creature to do the Creator's work.
Let us, then, put the question on the right footing. The ground of faith is not the sufficiency of the visible means for the performance of the promise—but the all-sufficiency of the invisible God, who will most surely do as He has said. If after clearly seeing that the onus lies with the Lord—and not with the creature, we dare to indulge in mistrust, the question of God comes home mightily to us, "Has the Lord's hand waxed short?" May it happen, too, in His mercy, that with the question there may flash upon our souls that blessed declaration, "You shall see now whether My Word shall come to pass unto you or not."
June 9 — Morning"The Lord has done great things for us, whereof we are glad!" Psalm 126:3
Some Christians are sadly prone to look on the dark side of everything, and to dwell more upon what they have gone through, than upon what God has done for them. Ask for their impression of the Christian life, and they will describe their continual conflicts, their deep afflictions, their sad adversities, and the sinfulness of their hearts—yet with scarcely any allusion to the mercy and help which God has vouchsafed them. But a Christian whose soul is in a healthy state, will come forward joyously, and say, "I will speak, not about myself—but to the honor of my God. He has brought me up out of an horrible pit, and out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings—and He has put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God. The Lord has done great things for me, whereof I am glad!"
Such an abstract of experience as this, is the very best that any child of God can present. It is true that we endure trials—but it is just as true that we are delivered out of them. It is true that we have our corruptions, and mournfully do we know this—but it is quite as true that we have an all-sufficient Savior, who overcomes these corruptions, and delivers us from their dominion.
In looking back, it would be wrong to deny that we have been in the Slough of Despond, and have crept along the Valley of Humiliation—but it would be equally wicked to forget that we have been through them safely and profitably; we have not remained in them, thanks to our Almighty Helper and Leader, who has brought us "out into a wealthy place." The deeper our troubles—the louder our thanks to God, who has led us through all, and preserved us until now. Our griefs cannot mar the melody of our praise, we reckon them to be the bass part of our life's song, "He has done great things for us, whereof we are glad!"
June 9 — Evening
"Search the Scriptures." John 5:39
The word here rendered "search" signifies a strict, close, assiduous, diligent search—such as men make when they are seeking gold—or hunters when they are in earnest after game. We must not rest content with having given a superficial reading to a chapter or two—but with the candle of the Spirit—we must deliberately seek out the hidden meaning of the Word.
Holy Scripture requires searching—much of it can only be learned by careful study. There is milk for babes—but also meat for strong men. The rabbis wisely say, that a mountain of matter hangs upon every word of Scripture. Tertullian exclaims, "I adore the fullness of the Scriptures." No man who merely skims the book of God—can profit thereby; we must dig and mine until we obtain the hid treasure. The door of the Word only opens to the key of diligence.
The Scriptures claim searching. They are the writings of God, bearing the divine stamp and imprimatur—who shall dare to treat them with levity? He who despises them—despises the God who wrote them! God forbid that any of us should leave our Bibles to become swift witnesses against us in the great day of account!
The Word of God will repay searching. God does not bid us sift a mountain of chaff with here and there a grain of wheat in it—but the Bible is winnowed grain—we have but to open the granary door, and find it. Scripture grows upon the student. It is full of surprises. Under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, to the searching eye—it glows with splendor of revelation, like a vast temple paved with wrought gold, and roofed with rubies, emeralds, and all manner of precious gems. No merchandise like the merchandise of Scripture truth.
Lastly, the Scriptures reveal Jesus, "The Scriptures point to Me!" No more powerful motive can be urged upon Bible readers than this—he who finds Jesus finds life, heaven, all things. Happy he who, searching his Bible, discovers his Savior!
June 10 — Morning
"We live unto the Lord." Romans 14:8
If God had willed it, each of us might have entered heaven at the moment of conversion. It was not absolutely necessary for our preparation for immortality—that we should tarry here on earth. It is possible for a man to be taken to heaven, and to be found fit to be a partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light, though he has but just believed in Jesus. It is true that our sanctification is a long and continued process, and we shall not be perfected until we lay aside our bodies and enter within the veil. But nevertheless, had the Lord so willed it, He might have changed us from imperfection to perfection, and have taken us to heaven at once!
Why then are we here one earth?
Would God keep His children out of paradise a single moment longer, than was necessary? Why is the army of the living God still on the battle-field, when one charge might give them the victory? Why are His children still wandering hither and there through a maze—when a solitary word from His lips would bring them into the center of their hopes in heaven? The answer is—they are here that they may "live unto the Lord," and may bring others to know His love. We remain on earth as sowers to scatter good seed; as ploughmen to break up the fallow ground; as heralds publishing salvation. We are here as the "salt of the earth," to be a blessing to the world. We are here to glorify Christ in our daily life. We are here as workers for Him, and as "workers together with Him."
Let us see that our life answers its end. Let us live earnest, useful, holy lives, to "the praise of the glory of His grace." Meanwhile we long to be with Him, and daily sing,
"My heart is with Him on His throne,
And ill can brook delay;
Each moment listening for the voice,
'Rise up, and come away!'"
June 10 — Evening
"The Scriptures point to Me!" John 5:39
Jesus Christ is the Alpha and Omega of the Bible. He is the constant theme of its sacred pages; from first to last—they testify of Him. At the creation, we at once discern Him as one of the sacred Trinity; we catch a glimpse of Him in the promise of the woman's seed; we see Him typified in the ark of Noah; we walk with Abraham, as He sees Messiah's day; we dwell in the tents of Isaac and Jacob, feeding upon the gracious promise; we hear the venerable Israel talking of Shiloh; and in the numerous types of the law, we find the Redeemer abundantly foreshadowed. Prophets and kings, priests and preachers, all look one way—they all stand as the cherubim did over the ark, desiring to look within, and to read the mystery of God's great propitiation.
Still more manifestly in the New Testament we find our Lord—the one pervading subject. It is not a gem here and there, or dust of gold thinly scattered—but here you stand upon a solid floor of gold; for the whole substance of the New Testament is Jesus crucified, and even its closing sentence is bejeweled with the Redeemer's name!
We should always read Scripture in this light; we should consider the Word to be as a mirror, into which Christ looks down from heaven; and then we, looking into it, see His face reflected as in a glass—darkly, it is true—but still in such a way as to be a blessed preparation for seeing Him—as we shall see Him face to face. This volume contains Christ's love letters to us, perfumed by His love. These pages are the garments of our King, and they all smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia. Scripture is the royal chariot in which Jesus rides, and it is paved with love for the daughters of Jerusalem. The Scriptures are the swaddling bands of the holy child Jesus—unroll them and you find your Savior The quintessence of the Word of God—is Christ!
June 11 — Morning
"We love Him—because He first loved us." 1 John 4:19
There is no light in the planet—but that which proceeds from the sun; and there is no true love to Jesus in the heart—but that which comes from the Lord Jesus himself. From this overflowing fountain of the infinite love of God—all our love to God must spring. This must ever be a great and certain truth—that we love Him for no other reason than because He first loved us. Our love to Him is the lovely offspring of His love to us. Cold admiration, when studying the works of God, anyone may have—but the warmth of love can only be kindled in the heart by God's Spirit. How great the wonder—that such as we should ever have been brought to love Jesus at all! How marvelous that when we had rebelled against Him—He should, by a display of such amazing love, seek to draw us back. No! never would we have had a grain of love towards God—unless it had been sown in us by the sweet seed of His love to us.
Love to Jesus, then, has for its parent—the love of God shed abroad in the heart—but after it is thus divinely born, it must be divinely nourished. Love is an exotic; it is not a plant which will flourish naturally in human soil, it must be watered from above. Love to Jesus is a flower of a delicate nature, and if it received no nourishment but that which could be drawn from the rock of our hearts—it would soon wither. As love comes from heaven—so it must feed on heavenly bread. It cannot exist in the wilderness, unless it be fed by manna from on high. Love must feed on love. The very soul and life of our love to God—is His love to us.
June 11 — Evening"There he broke the arrows of the enemy, the shields and swords and weapons of his foes." Psalm 76:3
Our Redeemer's glorious cry of "It is finished!" was the death-knell of all the adversaries of His people, the breaking of "the shields and swords and weapons of his foes." Behold the hero of Golgotha using His cross as an anvil, and His woes as a hammer, dashing to shivers bundle after bundle of our sins, those poisoned "arrows of the enemy"; trampling on every indictment, and destroying every accusation. What glorious blows the mighty Breaker gives with a hammer, far more ponderous than the fabled weapon of Thor! How the diabolical darts fly to fragments, and the infernal shields are broken like potters' vessels! Behold, He draws from its sheath of hellish workmanship, the dread sword of Satanic power! He snaps it across His knee, as a man breaks a dry stick, and casts it into the fire.
Beloved, no sin of a believer can now be an arrow mortally to wound him, no condemnation can now be a sword to kill him, for the punishment of our sin was borne by Christ, a full atonement was made for all our iniquities, by our blessed Substitute and Surety. Who now accuses? Who now condemns? Christ has died, yes rather, has risen again. Jesus has emptied the quivers of hell, has quenched every fiery dart, and broken off the head of every arrow of wrath! The ground is strewn with the splinters and relics of the weapons of hell's warfare, which are only visible to us to remind us of our former danger, and of our great deliverance. Sin has no more dominion over us! Jesus has made an end of it, and put it away forever. O enemy, your destructions are come to a perpetual end. Talk of all the wondrous works of the Lord, you who make mention of His name; keep not silence, neither by day, nor when the sun goes to his rest. Bless the Lord, O my soul.
June 12 — Morning
"You are weighed in the balances—and are found lacking." Daniel 5:27
It is well, to frequently weigh ourselves in the scale of God's Word. You will find it a holy exercise, to read some psalm of David, and, as you meditate upon each verse, to ask yourself, "Can I say this? Have I felt as David felt? Has my heart ever been broken on account of sin—as his was when he penned his penitential psalms? Has my soul been full of true confidence in the hour of difficulty—as his was when he sang of God's mercies in the cave of Adullam, or in the strongholds of Engedi? Do I take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord?"
Then turn to the life of Christ, and as you read, ask yourselves how far you are conformed to His likeness. Endeavor to discover whether you have the meekness, the humility, the lovely spirit which He constantly inculcated and displayed.
Take, then, the epistles, and see whether you can go with the apostle in what he said of his experience. Have you ever cried out as he did, "O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death"? Have you ever felt his self-abasement? Have you seemed to yourself the chief of sinners, and less than the least of all saints? Have you known anything of his devotion? Could you join with him and say, "For me to live is Christ—and to die is gain"?
If we thus read God's Word as a test of our spiritual condition, we shall have good reason to stop many a time and say, "Lord, I feel I have never yet been here, O bring me here! give me true penitence, such as this I read of. Give me real faith; give me warmer zeal; inflame me with more fervent love; grant me the grace of meekness; make me more like Jesus. Let me no longer be 'found lacking,' when weighed in the balances of the sanctuary, lest I be found lacking in the scales of judgment." "Judge yourselves—that you be not judged."
June 12 — Evening
"Who has saved us, and called us with a holy calling." 2 Timothy 1:9
The apostle uses the perfect tense and says, "Who has saved us." Believers in Christ Jesus are saved. They are not looked upon as people who are in a hopeful state, and may ultimately be saved—but they are already saved. Salvation is not a blessing to be enjoyed upon the dying bed, and to be sung of in a future state above—but a matter to be obtained, received, promised, and enjoyed now.
The Christian is perfectly saved in God's purpose; God has ordained him unto salvation, and that purpose is complete. He is saved also as to the price which has been paid for him, "It is finished" was the cry of the Savior before He died. The believer is also perfectly saved in His covenant head—for as he fell in Adam—so he lives in Christ.
This complete salvation is accompanied by a holy calling. Those whom the Savior saved upon the cross—are in due time effectually called by the power of God the Holy Spirit unto holiness. They leave their sins; they endeavor to be like Christ; they choose holiness, not out of any compulsion—but from the compulsion of a new nature, which leads them to rejoice in holiness—just as naturally as aforetime they delighted in sin.
God neither chose them nor called them because they were holy—but He called them that they would be holy; and holiness is the beauty produced by His workmanship in them. The graces which we see in a believer are as much the work of God—as the atonement itself. Thus the fullness of the grace of God is brought out very sweetly. Salvation must be of grace, because the Lord is the author of it—and what motive but grace could move Him to save the guilty? Salvation must be of grace, because the Lord works in such a manner that our righteousness is forever excluded. Such is the believer's privilege—a present salvation; such is the evidence that he is called to it—a holy life.
June 13 — Morning
"Whoever will, let him take the water of life freely." Revelation 22:17
Jesus says, "take freely." He wants no payment or preparation. He seeks no recommendation from our virtuous emotions. If you have no holy feelings—if you be but willing, you are invited; therefore come! You have no belief and no repentance—come to Him, and He will give them to you. Come just as you are, and take "Freely," without money and without price. He gives Himself to needy ones.
The drinking fountains at the corners of our streets are valuable institutions; and we can hardly imagine anyone so foolish as to feel for his purse, when he stands before one of them, and to cry, "I cannot drink because I have not five cents in my pocket." However poor the man is, there is the fountain—and just as he is, he may drink of it. Thirsty people, as they walk by, whether they are dressed in scarlet or in broadcloth, do not look for any warrant for drinking; its being there is their warrant for taking its water freely. The liberality of some good friends has put the refreshing crystal there—and we take it, and ask no questions. Perhaps the only people who need go thirsty through the street where there is a drinking fountain, are the fine ladies and gentlemen who are in their carriages. They are very thirsty—but cannot think of being so vulgar as to get out to drink. It would demean them, they think, to drink at a common drinking fountain—so they ride by with parched lips.
Oh, how many there are who are rich in their own good works and cannot therefore come to Christ! "I will not be saved," they say, "in the same way as the harlot or the drunkard." What! go to heaven in the same way as a chimney sweep. Is there no pathway to glory but the path which led the thief there? I will not be saved that way. Such proud boasters must remain without the living water! But, "Whoever will—let him take the water of life freely!"
June 13 — Evening
"Remove vanity and lies far from me." Proverbs 30:8
"O my God, do not be far from me." Psalm 38:21
Here we have two great lessons—what to deprecate and what to supplicate. The happiest state of a Christian is the holiest state. As there is the most heat nearest to the sun—so there is the most happiness nearest to Christ. No Christian enjoys comfort when his eyes are fixed on vanity—he finds no satisfaction unless his soul is quickened in the ways of God. The world may win happiness elsewhere—but the Christian cannot. I do not blame ungodly men for rushing to their pleasures. Why should I? Let them have their fill. That is all they have to enjoy. A converted wife who despaired of her husband was always very kind to him, for she said, "I fear that this is the only world in which he will be happy—and therefore I have made up my mind to make him as happy as I can in it."
Christians must seek their delights in a higher sphere—than the insipid frivolities or sinful enjoyments of the world. Vain amusements are dangerous to renewed souls. We have heard of a philosopher who, while he looked up to the stars, fell into a pit; but how deeply do they fall—who look down to the earth. Their fall is fatal. No Christian is safe when his soul is slothful, and his God is far from him. Every Christian is always safe as to the great matter of his standing in Christ—but he is not safe as regards his experience in holiness, and communion with Jesus in this life. Satan does not often attack a Christian who is living near to God. It is when the Christian departs from his God, becomes spiritually starved, and endeavors to feed on vanities, that the devil discovers his vantage hour. He may sometimes stand foot to foot with the child of God who is active in his Master's service—but the battle is generally short. He who slips as he goes down into the Valley of Humiliation, every time he takes a false step invites Apollyon to assail him. O for grace to walk humbly with our God!
June 14 — Morning
"Delight yourself in the Lord." Psalm 37:4
The teaching of these words must seem very surprising to those who are strangers to vital godliness—but to the sincere believer it is only the inculcation of a recognized truth. The life of the believer is here described as a delight in God—and we are thus certified of the great fact that true religion overflows with happiness and joy. Ungodly people and mere professors never look upon godliness as a joyful thing; to them it is service, duty, or necessity—but never pleasure or delight. If they attend to religion at all, it is either that they may gain thereby, or else because they dare not do otherwise. The thought of delight in Christ is so strange to most men, that no two words in their language stand further apart than "holiness" and "delight." But believers who know Christ, understand that delight and faith are so blessedly united, that the gates of hell cannot prevail to separate them. Those who love God with all their hearts, find that His ways are ways of pleasantness, and all His paths are peace.
Such joys, such brimful delights, such overflowing blessednesses, do the saints discover in their Lord, that so far from serving Him from custom, they would follow Him though all the world casts out His name as evil. We do not love God because of any compulsion; our faith is no fetter, our profession is no bondage, we are not dragged to holiness, nor driven to Christian duty. No, our piety is our pleasure, our hope is our happiness, our duty is our delight!
Holiness and delight are as allied—as root and flower; they are, in fact, two precious jewels glittering side by side in a setting of gold!
June 14 — Evening
"O Lord, we are covered with shame—because we have sinned against You!" Daniel 9:8
A deep sense and clear sight of sin—its heinousness and the punishment which it deserves—should make us lie low before God's throne. As Christians—we have sinned! Alas! that it should be so. Favored as we have been—we have yet been ungrateful. Privileged beyond most—we have not brought forth fruit in proportion. What Christian is there—who will not blush when he looks back upon his past sins?
As for our days before we were regenerated, may they be forgiven and forgotten; but since then, though we have not sinned as before, yet we have sinned against light and against love—spiritual light which has really penetrated our minds, and the love of Jesus which we have experienced.
Oh, the atrocity of the sin of a pardoned soul! An unpardoned sinner sins cheaply—when compared with the sin of one of God's redeemed ones, who has had communion with Christ and leaned his head upon Jesus' bosom.
Look at David! Many will talk of his sin—but I beg you to look at his repentance, and hear his broken bones, as each one of them moans out its dolorous confession! Mark his tears, as they fall upon the ground, and the deep sighs with which he accompanies the softened music of his harp! We have erred—let us, therefore, seek the spirit of penitence.
Look, again, at Peter! We speak much of Peter's denying his Master. But remember that it is written, "He wept bitterly!" Have we no denials of our Lord to be lamented with tears?
Alas! these sins of ours would consign us to the place of inextinguishable fire—if it were not for God's sovereign mercy which has made us to differ, snatching us like brands from the burning! My soul, bow down in humility under a sense of your natural sinfulness, and worship your God. Admire . . .
His grace which saves you;
His mercy which spares you;
His love which pardons you!
June 15 — Morning
"And Sarah said—God has made me laugh, so that all who hear will laugh with me." Genesis 21:6
It was far above the power of nature, and even contrary to its laws—that the aged Sarah should be honored with a son. Just so, it is beyond all ordinary rules that I, a poor, helpless, undone sinner—should find grace to bear about in my soul the indwelling Spirit of the Lord Jesus. I, who once despaired, as well I might, for my nature was as dry, and withered, and barren, and accursed as a howling wilderness—even I have been made to bring forth fruit unto holiness! Well may my mouth be filled with joyous laughter, because of the remarkable, surprising grace which I have received from the Lord, for I have found Jesus, the promised seed, and He is mine forever!
This day will I lift up psalms of triumph unto the Lord who has remembered my low estate, for "my heart rejoices in the Lord; my horn is exalted in the Lord; my mouth is enlarged over my enemies, because I rejoice in Your salvation." I would have all those who hear of my great deliverance from hell, and my most blessed visitation from on high, laugh for joy with me. I would surprise my family with my abundant peace. I would delight my friends with my ever-increasing happiness. I would edify the Church with my grateful confessions—and even impress the world with the cheerfulness of my daily conversation.
Bunyan tells us that Mercy laughed in her sleep, and no wonder—when she dreamed of Jesus; my joy shall not stop short of hers while my Beloved is the theme of my daily thoughts. The Lord Jesus is a deep sea of joy—my soul shall dive therein, shall be swallowed up in the delights of His society. Sarah looked on her Isaac, and laughed with excess of rapture, and all her friends laughed with her; and you, my soul, look on your Jesus, and bid heaven and earth unite in your unspeakable joy.
June 15 — Evening
"These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens—no one can shut; and what He shuts—no one can open!" Revelation 3:7
Jesus is the keeper of the gates of paradise, and before every believing soul He sets an open door, which no man or devil shall be able to close against it. What joy it will be to find that faith in Him is the golden key to the everlasting doors. My soul, do you carry this key in your bosom, or are you trusting to some deceitful pick-lock, which will fail you at last? Hear this parable of the preacher, and remember it.
The great King has made a banquet, and He has proclaimed to all the world that none shall enter but those who bring with them the fairest flower that blooms. The men advance to the gate by thousands, and they bring each one the flower which he esteems the queen of the garden; but in crowds they are driven from the royal presence, and do not enter into the festive halls. Some bear in their hand the deadly nightshade of superstition, or the flaunting poppies of Rome, or the hemlock of self- righteousness—but these are not dear to the King, the bearers are shut out of the pearly gates. My soul, have you gathered the rose of Sharon? Do you wear the lily of the valley in your bosom constantly? If so, when you come up to the gates of heave— you will know its value, for you have only to show this choicest of flowers, and the Porter will open—not for a moment will He deny you admission, for to that rose, the Porter always opens. You shall find your way with the rose of Sharon in your hand up to the throne of God Himself, for heaven itself possesses nothing that excels its radiant beauty; and of all the flowers that bloom in paradise—there is none that can rival the lily of the valley.
My soul, get Calvary's blood-red rose into your hand by faith, by love wear it, by communion preserve it, by daily watchfulness make it your all in all—and you shall be blessed beyond all bliss, happy beyond any dream! Jesus, be mine forever, my God, my heaven, my all.
June 16 — Morning
"And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish." John 10:28
The Christian should never think or speak lightly of unbelief. For a child of God to mistrust God's love, His truth, His faithfulness, must be greatly displeasing to Him. How can we ever grieve Him—by doubting His upholding grace? Christian! it is contrary to every promise of God's precious Word that you should ever be forgotten or left to perish. If it could be so, how could He be true who has said, "Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, they may forget—yet will I never forget you." What were the value of that promise, "The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from you, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, says the Lord who has mercy on you." Where were the truth of Christ's words, "I give unto My sheep eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand. My Father, who gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father's hand." Where were the doctrines of grace? They would be all disproved—if one child of God would perish. Where were the veracity of God, His honor, His power, His grace, His covenant, His oath—if any of those for whom Christ has died, and who have put their trust in Him, should nevertheless be cast away?
Banish those unbelieving fears which so dishonor God. Arise, shake yourself from the dust, and put on your beautiful garments.
Remember that it is sinful to doubt His Word wherein He has promised you that you shall never perish. Let the eternal life within you express itself in confident rejoicing.
June 16 — Evening
"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 27:1
Here is personal interest—"my light," "my salvation"; the soul is assured of it, and therefore declares it boldly. Into the soul at the new birth divine light is poured as the precursor of salvation; where there is not enough light to reveal our own darkness and to make us long for the Lord Jesus, there is no evidence of salvation. After conversion our God is our joy, comfort, guide, teacher, and in every sense our light—He is light within, light around, light reflected from us, and light to be revealed to us.
Note, it is not said merely that the Lord gives light—but that He is light; nor that He gives salvation—but that He is salvation. He, then, who by faith has laid hold upon God, has all covenant blessings in his possession. This being made sure as a fact, the argument drawn from it is put in the form of a question, "Whom shall I fear?" A question which is its own answer. The powers of darkness are not to be feared, for the Lord, our light, destroys them; and the damnation of hell is not to be dreaded by us, for the Lord is our salvation.
This is a very different challenge from that of boastful Goliath, for it rests, not upon the conceited vigor of an arm of flesh—but upon the real power of the omnipotent I AM.
"The Lord is the strength of my life." Here is a third glowing epithet, to show that the writer's hope was fastened with a threefold cord which could not be broken. We may well accumulate words of praise where the Lord lavishes deeds of grace. Our life derives all its strength from God; and if He deigns to make us strong, we cannot be weakened by all the machinations of the adversary.
"Of whom shall I be afraid?" The bold question looks into the future as well as the present. "If God is for us," who can be against us, either now or in time to come?
June 17 — Morning
"Help, Lord!" Psalm 12:1
"Help, Lord! For the godly are no more." Psalm 12:1
The prayer itself is remarkable, for it is short, seasonable, pithy, and suggestive. David mourned the fewness of godly men, and therefore lifted up his heart in supplication. When the creature failed, he flew to the Creator! He evidently felt his own weakness—or he would not have cried for help.
There is much of directness, clearness of perception, and distinctness of utterance in this petition of two words; much more, indeed, than in the long rambling outpourings of certain professors. The Psalmist runs straight-forward to his God, with a well-considered prayer; he knows what he is seeking, and where to seek it. Lord, teach us to pray in the same blessed manner.
The occasions for the use of this prayer are frequent:In providential afflictions, how suitable it is for tried believers who find all helpers failing them.
In doctrinal difficulties, may often obtain aid by lifting up this cry of "Help, Lord!" to the Holy Spirit, the great Teacher.
Spiritual warriors in inward conflicts may send to the throne for reinforcements, and this will be a model for their request.
Workers in heavenly labor may thus obtain grace in time of need.
Seeking sinners, in doubts and alarms, may offer up the same weighty supplication.
In fact, in all cases, times, and places, this prayer will serve the turn of needy souls."Help, Lord!" will suit us . . .
living and dying,
suffering or laboring,
rejoicing or sorrowing.In Him our help is found—let us not be slack to cry to Him.
The answer to the prayer is certain, if it is sincerely offered through Jesus. The Lord's character assures us that He will not leave His redeemed people; His gift of Jesus is a pledge of every good thing. His promise stands sure, "Fear not—I will help you!" Isaiah 41:13
"I cry to you for help, O Lord; in the morning my prayer comes before you!" Psalm 88:13
June 17 — Evening
"The Israelites sang this song—Spring up, O well! Yes, sing about it!" Numbers 21:17
Famous was the well of Beer in the wilderness, because it was the subject of a promise, "That is the well where the Lord said to Moses—Gather the people together and I will give them water." The people needed water, and it was promised by their gracious God. We need fresh supplies of heavenly grace, and in the covenant the Lord has pledged Himself to give us all we require.
The well next became the cause of a song. Before the water gushed forth, cheerful faith prompted the people to sing; and as they saw the crystal fount bubbling up, the music grew yet more joyous. In like manner, we who believe the promise of God should rejoice in the prospect of divine revivals in our souls, and as we experience them our holy joy should overflow. Are we thirsting? Let us not murmur—but sing. Spiritual thirst is bitter to bear—but we need not bear it—the promise indicates a well; let us be of good heart, and look for it.
Moreover, the well was the center of prayer. "Spring up, O well." What God has engaged to give—we must enquire after, or we manifest that we have neither desire nor faith. This evening let us ask that the Scripture we have read, and our devotional exercises, may not be an empty formality—but a channel of grace to our souls. O that God the Holy Spirit would work in us with all His mighty power, filling us with all the fullness of God.
Lastly, the well was the object of effort. "This well, which princes dug, which great leaders hollowed out with their scepters and staffs." The Lord would have us active in obtaining grace. Our swords are ill adapted for digging in the sand—but we must use them to the utmost of our ability. Prayer must not be neglected; the assembling of ourselves together must not be forsaken; ordinances must not be slighted. The Lord will give us His peace most plenteously—but not in a way of idleness. Let us, then, bestir ourselves to seek Him in whom are all our fresh springs.
June 18 — Morning
"Your Redeemer." Isaiah 54:5
Jesus, the Redeemer, is altogether ours—and ours forever. All the offices of Christ are held on our behalf. He is king for us, priest for us, and prophet for us. Whenever we read a new title of the Redeemer, let us appropriate Him as ours under that name—as much as under any other. The shepherd's staff, the father's rod, the captain's sword, the priest's mitre, the prince's scepter, the prophet's mantle—all are ours! Jesus has no dignity which He will not employ for our exaltation, and no prerogative which He will not exercise for our defense. His fullness of Godhead is our unfailing, inexhaustible treasure-house. His manhood also, which he took upon him for us, is ours in all its perfection. To us our gracious Lord communicates the spotless virtue of His stainless character; to us he gives the meritorious efficacy of His devoted life; on us he bestows the reward procured by His obedient submission and incessant service. He makes the unsullied garment of His life—our covering beauty; the glittering virtues of His character—our ornaments and jewels; and the superhuman meekness of His death—our glory. He bequeaths us his manger, from which to learn how God came down to man; and his Cross to teach us how man may go up to God.
All His thoughts, emotions, actions, utterances, miracles, and intercessions, were for us. He trod the road of sorrow on our behalf, and has made over to us as his heavenly legacy the full results of all the labors of his life. He is now as much ours as heretofore; and he blushes not to acknowledge himself "our Lord Jesus Christ," though he is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords. Christ everywhere and every way is our Christ, forever and ever most richly to enjoy. O my soul, by the power of the Holy Spirit! call him this morning, "your Redeemer."
June 18 — Evening
"I have come into My garden—My sister, My bride!" Song of Solomon 5:1
The heart of the believer is Christ's garden. He bought it with His precious blood, and He enters it and claims it as His own.
A garden implies separation. It is not the open common; it is not a wilderness; it is walled around, or hedged in. Would that we could see the wall of separation between the Christian and the world made broader and stronger. It makes one sad to hear Christians saying, "Well, there is no harm in this; there is no harm in that," thus getting as near to the world as possible. Grace is at a low ebb in that soul, which can even raise the question of how far it may go in worldly conformity.
A garden is a place of beauty, it far surpasses the wild uncultivated fields. The genuine Christian must seek to be more excellent in his life than the best moralist, because Christ's garden ought to produce the best flowers in all the world. Even the best is poor—compared with Christ's deservings; let us not put Him off with withered and dwarf plants. The rarest, richest, choicest lilies and roses—ought to bloom in Christ's own garden.
The garden is a place of growth. The saints are not to remain undeveloped, always mere buds and blossoms. We should grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Growth should be rapid where Jesus is the Gardener, and the Holy Spirit the dew from above.
A garden is a place of retirement. So the Lord Jesus Christ would have us reserve our hearts as a place in which He can manifest Himself, as He does not unto the world. O that Christians were more retired, that they kept their hearts more closely shut up for Christ! We often worry and trouble ourselves, like Martha, with much serving—so that we have not the room for Christ that Mary had, and do not sit at His feet as we should.
May the Lord grant the sweet showers of His grace to water His garden this day!
June 19 — Morning
"Be filled with the Spirit." Ephesians 5:18
"Walk in the Spirit (let your steps be guided by the Spirit,) and you will not gratify the evil desires of the flesh." Galatians 5:16
Rich would the blessings of this day be, if we were filled with the Holy Spirit. The consequences of this sacred filling of the soul, would be impossible to overestimate. Life, comfort, light, purity, power, peace; and many other precious blessings are inseparable from the Spirit's gracious presence.
As sacred oil—He anoints the head of the believer, sets him apart to the priesthood of saints, and gives him grace to execute his duties aright.
As the only truly purifying water—He cleanses us from the power of sin and sanctifies us unto holiness, working in us to will and to do of the Lord's good pleasure.
As the holy light—He reveals the Lord Jesus to us, and guides us in the way of righteousness. Enlightened by His pure celestial ray, we are no longer walk in darkness—but in the light of Scripture truth.
As purifying fire—He both purges us from dross, and sets our consecrated nature ablaze. He is the sacrificial flame by which we are enabled to offer our whole souls as a living sacrifice unto God.
As heavenly dew—He removes our barrenness and nourishes our lives. O that He would drop from above upon us at this early hour! Such morning dew would be a sweet commencement for the day.
As the heavenly Dove, with wings of peaceful love—He broods over the souls of believers; and as a Comforter He dispels the cares and doubts which mar the peace of His beloved ones. He descends upon His chosen people, and bears witness to their sonship by working in them a filial spirit by which they cry Abba, Father!
As the wind—He brings the breath of spiritual life to men. He performs the quickening operations by which the spiritual creation is animated and sustained.
O that we might feel the Spirit's presence and influence this day and every day!
June 19 — Evening
"My Beloved is mine, and I am His—He feeds among the lilies. Until the day breaks, and the shadows flee away, turn, my Beloved, and be You like a roe or a young deer upon the mountains of Bether." Song of Solomon 2:16, 17
Surely if there be a happy verse in the Bible, it is this, "My Beloved is mine, and I am His." So peaceful, so full of assurance, so overrunning with happiness and contentment is it, that it might well have been written by the same hand which penned the twenty-third Psalm. Yet though the prospect is exceeding fair and lovely—earth cannot show its superior—it is not entirely a sunlit landscape.
There is a cloud in the sky which casts a shadow over the scene. Listen, "Until the day breaks, and the shadows flee away." There is a word, too, about the "mountains of Bether," or, "the mountains of division," and to our love, anything like division is bitterness. Beloved, this may be your present state of mind; you do not doubt your salvation; you know that Christ is yours—but you are not feasting with Him. You understand your vital interest in Him, so that you have no shadow of a doubt of your being His, and of His being yours—but still His left hand is not under your head, nor does His right hand embrace you. A shadow of sadness is cast over your heart, perhaps by affliction, certainly by the temporary absence of your Lord, so even while exclaiming, "I am His," you are forced to take to your knees, and to pray, "Until the day breaks, and the shadows flee away, turn, my Beloved." "Where is He?" asks the soul. And the answer comes, "He feeds among the lilies." If we would find Christ, we must get into communion with His people, we must come to the ordinances with His saints. Oh, for an evening glimpse of Him! Oh, to sup with Him tonight!
June 20 — Morning
"For I will give the command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as grain is sifted in a sieve—yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth." Amos 9:9
Every sifting comes by divine command and permission. Satan must ask permission before he can lay a finger upon Job. Nay, more, in some sense our siftings are directly the work of heaven, for the text says, "I will sift the house of Israel." Satan, like a drudge, may hold the sieve, hoping to destroy the grain; but the overruling hand of the Master is accomplishing the purity of the grain by the very process which the enemy intended to be destructive.
Precious—but much sifted grain of the Lord's floor—be comforted by the blessed fact that the Lord directs both flail and sieve to His own glory, and to your eternal profit. The Lord Jesus will surely use the fan which is in His hand, and will divide the precious from the vile. All are not Israel that are of Israel; the heap on the barn floor is not clean provender, and hence the winnowing process must be performed. In the sieve true weight alone has power. Husks and chaff being devoid of substance, must fly before the wind—and only solid grain will remain.
Observe the complete safety of the Lord's wheat; even the least grain has a promise of preservation. God Himself sifts, and therefore it is just and effectual work; He sifts them in all places, "among all nations"; He sifts them in the most effectual manner, "like as grain is sifted in a sieve"; and yet for all this, not the smallest, lightest, or most shriveled grain, is permitted to fall to the ground.
Every individual believer is precious in the sight of the Lord, a shepherd would not lose one sheep, nor a jeweler one diamond, nor a mother one child, nor a man one limb of his body, nor will the Lord lose one of His redeemed people. However little we may be, if we are the Lord's—we may rejoice that we are preserved in Christ Jesus.
June 20 — Evening
"Immediately they forsook their nets, and followed Him." Mark 1:18
When Simon and Andrew heard the call of Jesus, they obeyed immediately and without hesitation.
In the same way, if we would always punctually and with resolute zeal put in practice what we hear—then our attendance at the means of grace, and our reading of good books, could not fail to enrich us spiritually.
He will not lose his bread, who has taken care at once to eat it. Neither can you be deprived of the benefit of the teaching you read or hear, if you immediately put it into practice.Most readers and hearers become moved so far as to purpose to amend. But, alas! their resolution is a blossom which never buds, and therefore no fruit comes of it. They wait, they waver, and then they forget.
That fatal tomorrow is blood-red with the murder of fair resolutions!
We are very concerned that our little book of devotions should not be fruitless, and therefore we pray that readers may not be readers only—but doers, of the Word.
The practice of truth is the most profitable reading of it! Should the reader be impressed with any duty while perusing these pages, let him hasten to fulfill it before the holy glow has departed from his soul. Do not give place to the devil by delay! Hasten while opportunity and desire are in happy conjunction. Happy is the writer who shall meet with readers resolved to carry out his teachings—his harvest shall be a hundredfold, and his Master shall have great honor. Would to God that such might be our reward upon these brief meditations and hurried hints. Grant it, O Lord, unto your servant!
"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says!" James 1:22
June 21 — Morning
"You are fairer than the children of men." Psalm 45:2
The entire person of Jesus is but as one gem, and His life is all along but one impression of the seal. He is altogether complete; not only in His several parts—but as a gracious all-glorious whole. His character is not a mass of fair colors mixed confusedly, nor a heap of precious stones laid carelessly one upon another; He is a picture of beauty and a breastplate of glory. In Him, all the "good things" are in their proper places, and assist in adorning each other. Not one feature in His glorious person attracts attention, at the expense of others; but He is perfectly and altogether lovely.
Oh, Jesus! Your power, Your grace, Your justice, Your tenderness, Your truth, Your majesty, and Your immutability make up such a man, or rather such a God-man, as neither heaven nor earth has seen elsewhere! Your infancy, Your eternity, Your sufferings, Your triumphs, Your death, and Your immortality, are all woven in one gorgeous tapestry, without seam or flaw. You are music without discord; You are many, and yet not divided; You are all things, and yet not diverse. As all the colors blend into one resplendent rainbow—so all the glories of heaven and earth meet in You, and unite so wondrously, that there is none like You in all things; nay, if all the virtues of the most excellent were bound in one bundle, they could not rival You, O mirror of all perfection! You have been anointed with the holy oil of myrrh and cassia, which Your God has reserved for You alone! As for Your fragrance, it is as the holy perfume, the like of which none other can ever mingle, even with the art of the apothecary; each spice is fragrant—but the compound is divine.
"Oh, sacred symmetry! Oh, rare combination
Of many perfects—to make one perfection!
Oh, heavenly music, where all parts do meet
In one sweet strain—to make one perfect sweet!"
June 21 — Evening
"The foundation of God stands sure." 2 Timothy 2:19
The foundation upon which our faith rests is this, that "God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them." The great fact on which genuine faith relies is, that "the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us," and that "Christ has suffered for sin, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God"; "Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree"; "For the chastisement of our peace was upon Him—and by His stripes we are healed." In one word, the great pillar of the Christian's hope, is the substitutionary atonement of Christ. The vicarious sacrifice of Christ for the guilty; Christ being made sin for us—that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him; Christ offering up a true and proper expiatory and substitutionary sacrifice in the room, place, and stead of as many as the Father gave Him, who are known to God by name, and are recognized in their own hearts by their trusting in Jesus—this is the cardinal fact of the gospel.
If this foundation were removed, what could we do? But it stands as firm as the throne of God. We know it; we rest on it; we rejoice in it; and our delight is to hold it, to meditate upon it, and to proclaim it, while we desire to be actuated and moved by gratitude for it in every part of our life and conversation. In these days a direct attack is made upon the doctrine of the substitutionary atonement. Men cannot bear substitution. They gnash their teeth at the thought of the Lamb of God, bearing the sin of man. But we, who know by experience the preciousness of this truth, will proclaim it in defiance of them, confidently and unceasingly. We will neither dilute it nor change it, nor fritter it away in any shape or fashion. It shall still be Christ, an atoning substitute, bearing human guilt and suffering, in the stead of men. We cannot, dare not, give it up, for it is our life, and despite every controversy we feel that "Nevertheless the foundation of God stands sure."
June 22 — Morning
"He shall build the temple of the Lord; and He shall bear the glory." Zechariah 6:13
Christ Himself is the builder of His spiritual temple, and He has built it on the mountains of His unchangeable love, His omnipotent grace, and His infallible truthfulness. But as it was in Solomon's temple, so in this; the materials need making ready. There are the "Cedars of Lebanon," but they are not framed for the building; they are not cut down, and shaped, and made into those planks of cedar, whose odoriferous beauty shall make glad the courts of the Lord's house in Paradise. There are also the rough stones still in the quarry, they must be hewn thence, and squared. All this is Christ's own work. Each individual believer is being prepared, and polished, and made ready for his place in the temple; but Christ's own hand performs the preparation-work.
Afflictions cannot sanctify, excepting as they are used by Him to this end. Our prayers and efforts cannot make us ready for heaven, apart from the hand of Jesus, who fashions our hearts aright. As in the building of Solomon's temple, "there was neither hammer, nor axe, nor any tool of iron, heard in the house," because all was brought perfectly ready for the exact spot it was to occupy—so is it with the temple which Jesus builds; the making ready is all done on earth. When we reach heaven, there will be no sanctifying us there, no squaring us with affliction, no planing us with suffering. No, we must be made fit here—all that Christ will do beforehand; and when He has done it, we shall be ferried by a loving hand across the stream of death, and brought to the heavenly Jerusalem, to abide as eternal pillars in the temple of our Lord.
"Beneath His eye and care,
The edifice shall rise,
Majestic, strong, and fair,
And shine above the skies."
June 22 — Evening
"That those things which cannot be shaken may remain." Hebrews 12:27
We have many things in our possession at the present moment, which can be shaken—and it ill becomes a Christian man to set much store by them, for there is nothing stable beneath these rolling skies; change is written upon all things. Yet, we have certain "things which cannot be shaken," and I invite you this evening to think of them, that if the things which can be shaken should all be taken away, you may derive real comfort from the things that cannot be shaken, which will remain.
Whatever your losses have been, or may be, you enjoy present salvation. You are standing at the foot of His cross, trusting alone in the merit of Jesus' precious blood, and no rise or fall of the markets can interfere with your salvation in Him; no breaking of banks, no failures and bankruptcies can touch that!
You are also a child of God this evening. God is your Father. No change of circumstances can ever rob you of that. Although by losses brought to poverty, and stripped bare—you can say, "He is my Father still. In my Father's house are many mansions; therefore I will not be troubled."
You have another permanent blessing, namely, the love of Jesus Christ. He who is God and Man, loves you with all the strength of His affectionate nature—nothing can affect that. The fig tree may not blossom, and the flocks may cease from the field—but it matters not to the man who can sing, "My Beloved is mine—and I am His!" Our best portion and richest heritage—we cannot lose. Whatever troubles come, let us play the man; let us show that we are not such little children as to be cast down by what may happen in this poor fleeting state of time. Our real country is Immanuel's land, our real hope is above the sky, and therefore, as calm as the summer's ocean; we will see the wreck of everything earthborn, and yet rejoice in the God of our salvation!
June 23 — Morning
"Ephraim is a cake not turned." Hosea 7:8
A cake not turned—is uncooked on one side; and so Ephraim was, in many respects, untouched by divine grace—though there was some partial obedience, there was very much rebellion left. My soul, I charge you, see whether this be your case. Are you thorough in the things of God? Has grace gone through the very center of your being—so as to be felt in its divine operations in all your powers, your actions, your words, and your thoughts? To be sanctified, spirit, soul, and body—should be your aim and prayer; and although sanctification may not be perfect in you anywhere in degree—yet it must be universal in its action; there must not be the appearance of holiness in one place—and reigning sin in another, else you, too, will be a cake not turned.
A cake not turned is soon burnt on the side nearest the fire, and although no man can have too much religion, there are some who seem burnt black with bigoted zeal for that part of truth which they have received, or are charred to a cinder with a vain-glorious Pharisaic ostentation of those religious performances which suit their humor. The assumed appearance of superior sanctity, frequently accompanies a total absence of all vital godliness. The saint in public—may be a devil in private. He deals in flour by day—and in soot by night. The cake which is burned on one side, is dough on the other. If it be so with me, O Lord, turn me! Turn my unsanctified nature to the fire of Your love and let it feel the sacred glow, and let my burnt side cool a little while I learn my own weakness and lack of heat when I am removed from Your heavenly flame. Let me not be found a double-minded man—but one entirely under the powerful influence of reigning grace; for well I know if I am left like a cake unturned, and am not on both sides the subject of Your grace—I must be consumed forever amid everlasting burnings!
June 23 — Evening
"Waiting for the adoption." Romans 8:23
Even in this world, saints are God's children—but others cannot discover them to be so, except by certain moral characteristics. The adoption is not manifested, the children are not yet openly declared. Among the Romans a man might adopt a child, and keep it private for a long time—but there was a second adoption in public; when the child was brought before the constituted authorities, its former garments were taken off, and the father who took it to be his child gave it clothing suitable to its new condition of life.
"Beloved, now are we the sons of God—and it does not yet appear what we shall be." We are not yet arrayed in the apparel which befits the royal family of heaven; we are wearing—just what we wore as the sons of Adam; but we know that "when He shall appear" who is the "first-born among many brethren," we shall be like Him, we shall see Him as He is. You can imagine that a child taken from the lowest ranks of society, and adopted by a Roman senator, would say to himself, "I long for the day when I shall be publicly adopted. Then I shall leave off these plebeian garments, and be robed as becomes my senatorial rank". Happy in what he has received, for that very reason he groans to get the fullness of what is promised him. So it is with us today.
We are waiting until we shall put on our proper garments, and shall be manifested as the children of God. We are young nobles, and have not yet worn our coronets. We are young brides, and the marriage day is not yet come, and by the love our Spouse bears us, we are led to long and sigh for the bridal morning. Our very happiness makes us groan after more; our joy, like a swollen spring, longs to well up like an Iceland geyser, leaping to the skies, and it heaves and groans within our spirit for lack of space and room by which to manifest itself to men.
June 24 — Morning
"As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you." He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." Luke 11:27, 28
It is fondly imagined by some, that it must have involved very special privileges to have been the mother of our Lord, because they supposed that she had the benefit of looking into His very heart in a way in which we cannot hope to do. There may be an appearance of plausibility in the supposition—but not much. We do not know that Mary knew more than others; what she did know—she did well to lay up in her heart. But she does not appear from anything we read in the Evangelists, to have been a better-instructed believer than any other of Christ's disciples. All that she knew—we also may discover. Do you wonder that we should say so? Here is a text to prove it, "The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant."
Remember the Master's words, "I do not call you slaves anymore, because a slave doesn’t know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from My Father." So blessedly does this Divine Revealer of secrets tell us His heart, that He keeps back nothing which is profitable to us; His own assurance is, "If it were not so—I would have told you." Does He not this day manifest Himself unto us—as He does not unto the world? It is even so; and therefore we will not ignorantly cry out, "Blessed is the womb that bore you," but we will intelligently bless God that, having heard the Word and kept it, we have first of all—as true a communion with the Savior as Mary had; and in the second place—as true an acquaintance with the secrets of His heart as she can be supposed to have obtained. Happy soul to be thus privileged!
June 24 — Evening
"Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said... Be it known unto you, O king—that we will not serve your gods!" Daniel 3:16, 18
The narrative of the manly courage and marvelous deliverance of the three holy children, or rather champions, is well calculated to excite in the minds of believers firmness and steadfastness in upholding the truth in the teeth of tyranny, and in the very jaws of death. Let young Christians especially learn from their example, both in matters of faith in religion, and matters of uprightness in business—never to sacrifice their consciences. Lose all rather than lose your integrity, and when all else is gone, still hold fast a clear conscience as the rarest jewel which can adorn the bosom of a mortal.
Do not be guided by the will-o'-the-wisp of policy—but by the pole-star of divine authority. Follow the right at all hazards. When you see no present advantage, walk by faith and not by sight. Do God the honor to trust Him when it comes to matters of loss for the sake of principle. See whether He will be your debtor! See if He does not even in this life prove His Word, that "Godliness, with contentment, is great gain," and that those who "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, shall have all these things added unto them."
Should it happen that, in the providence of God, you are a loser by conscience, you shall find that if the Lord does not pay you back in the silver of earthly prosperity, He will discharge His promise in the gold of spiritual joy. Remember that a man's life does not consist in the abundance of that which he possesses. To be a person of integrity, to have a heart void of offence, to have the favor and smile of God, is greater riches than the mines of Ophir could yield, or the traffic of Tyre could win. "Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and inward contention therewith." An ounce of heart's-ease, is worth a ton of gold.
June 25 — Morning
"Get up into the high mountain." Isaiah 40:9
Our knowledge of Christ is somewhat like climbing one of our Welsh mountains. When you are at the base, you see but little—the mountain itself appears to be but one-half as high as it really is. Confined in a little valley, you discover scarcely anything but the rippling brooks as they descend into the stream at the foot of the mountain. Climb the first rising knoll, and the valley lengthens and widens beneath your feet. Go higher, and you see the country for four or five miles round, and you are delighted with the widening prospect. Mount still, and the scene enlarges; until at last, when you are on the summit, and look east, west, north, and south—you see almost all England lying before you. Yonder is a forest in some distant county, perhaps two hundred miles away, and here the sea, and there a shining river and the smoking chimneys of a manufacturing town, or the masts of the ships in a busy port. All these things please and delight you, and you say, "I could not have imagined that so much could be seen at this elevation."
Now, the Christian life is of the same order. When we first believe in Christ—we see but little of Him. The higher we climb—the more we discover of His beauties. But who has ever gained the summit? Who has known all the heights and depths of the love of Christ, which passes knowledge? Paul, when grown old, sitting grey-haired, shivering in a dungeon in Rome, could say with greater emphasis than we can, "I know whom I have believed," for each experience had been like the climbing of a hill, each trial had been like ascending another summit, and his death seemed like gaining the top of the mountain, from which he could see the whole of the faithfulness and the love of Him to whom he had committed his soul. Get up, dear friend, into the high mountain!
June 25 — Evening
"The dove found no rest for the sole of her foot." Genesis 8:9
Reader, can you find rest apart from the ark, Christ Jesus? Then be assured, that your religion is vain. Are you satisfied with anything short of a conscious knowledge of your union and interest in Christ? Then woe unto you. If you profess to be a Christian—yet find full satisfaction in worldly pleasures and pursuits, your profession is false. If your soul can stretch herself at rest, and find the bed long enough, and the coverlet broad enough to cover her in the chambers of sin—then you are a hypocrite, and far enough from any right thoughts of Christ or perception of His preciousness.
But if, on the other hand, you feel that if you could indulge in sin without punishment—yet it would be a punishment of itself; and that if you could have the whole world, and abide in it forever, it would be quite enough misery not to be parted from it; for your God—your God—is what your soul craves after; then be of good courage, you are a child of God. With all your sins and imperfections, take this to your comfort—if your soul has no rest in sin—you are not as the sinner is! If you are still crying after and craving after something better, Christ has not forgotten you, for you have not quite forgotten Him.
The believer cannot do without his Lord; words are inadequate to express his thoughts of Him. We cannot live on the sands of the wilderness, we need the manna which drops from on high; our skin bottles of creature confidence cannot yield us a drop of moisture—but we drink of the rock which follows us, and that rock is Christ. When you feed on Him your soul can sing, "He has satisfied my mouth with good things, so that my youth is renewed like the eagle's," but if you have Him not, your bursting wine vat and well-filled barn can give you no sort of satisfaction—rather lament over them in the words of wisdom, "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity!"
June 26 — Morning
"Have you become like us?" Isaiah 14:10
What must be the apostate professor's doom when his naked soul appears before God? How will he bear that voice, "Depart, you cursed; you have rejected me, and I reject you; you have played the harlot, and departed from Me—I also have banished you forever from my presence, and will not have mercy upon you!" What will be this wretch's shame at the last great day when, before assembled multitudes, the apostate shall be unmasked? See the profane, and sinners who never professed religion, lifting themselves up from their beds of fire to point at him, "There he is," says one, "will he preach the gospel in hell?" "There he is," says another, "he rebuked me for cursing, and was a hypocrite himself!" "Aha!" says another, "here comes a psalm-singing Methodist—one who was always at his meeting; he is the man who boasted of his being sure of everlasting life—and here he is!"
No greater eagerness will ever be seen among Satanic tormentors, than in that day when devils drag the hypocrite's soul down to perdition. Bunyan pictures this with the solemn grandeur of poetry, when he speaks of the back-way to hell. Seven devils bound the wretch with nine cords, and dragged him from the road to heaven, in which he had professed to walk, and thrust him through the back-door into hell. Mind that back-way to hell, professors!
"Examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith." Look well to your state; see whether you are in Christ, or not. It is the easiest thing in the world to give a lenient verdict when oneself is to be tried; but O, be just and true here. Be just to all—but be rigorous in judging yourself. Remember if it is not a rock on which you build, when the house shall fall—and great will be the fall of it. O may the Lord give you sincerity, constancy, and firmness; and in no day, however evil, may you be led to turn aside.
June 26 — Evening
"Having escaped the corruption which is in the world through lust." 2 Peter 1:4
Vanish forever all thought of indulging the flesh—if you would live in the power of your risen Lord. It were ill that a man who is alive in Christ—should dwell in the corruption of sin. "Why do seek the living, among the dead?" said the angel to Magdalene. Should the living dwell in the sepulcher? Should divine life be immured in the charnel house of fleshly lust? How can we partake of the cup of the Lord—and yet drink the cup of Belial? Surely, believer, from open lusts and sins, you are delivered—have you also escaped from the more secret and delusive lime-twigs of the Satanic fowler? Have you come forth from the lust of pride? Have you escaped from slothfulness? Have you clean escaped from carnal security? Are you seeking day by day to live above worldliness, the pride of life, and the ensnaring vice of avarice? Remember, it is for this that you have been enriched with the treasures of God.
If you are indeed the chosen of God, and beloved by Him, do not allow all the lavish treasure of grace to be wasted upon you. Follow after holiness; it is the Christian's crown and glory. An unholy church! it is useless to the world, and of no esteem among men. It is an abomination, hell's laughter, heaven's abhorrence. The worst evils which have ever come upon the world—have been brought upon her by an unholy church. O Christian, the vows of God are upon you. You are God's priest—act as such. You are God's king—reign over your lusts. You are God's chosen one—do not associate with Belial. Heaven is your portion—live like a heavenly spirit, so shall you prove that you have true faith in Jesus, for there cannot be faith in the heart unless there be holiness in the life.
June 27 — Morning
"Only you shall not go very far away." Exodus 8:28
This is a crafty word from the lip of the arch-tyrant Pharaoh. If the poor bondaged Israelites must go out of Egypt—then he bargains with them that it shall not be very far away; not too far for them to escape the terror of his arms, and the observation of his spies. After the same fashion, the world does not like the non-conformity of nonconformity, or the dissidence of dissent—it would have us be more charitable and not carry matters with too severe a hand. Death to the world, and burial with Christ, are experiences which carnal minds treat with ridicule, and hence the ordinance which sets them forth is almost universally neglected, and even despised.
Worldly wisdom recommends the path of compromise, and talks of "moderation." According to this carnal policy, purity is admitted to be very desirable—but we are warned against being too precise; truth is of course to be followed—but error is not to be severely denounced. "Yes," says the world, "be spiritually minded by all means—but do not deny yourself a little mirthful society, an occasional ball, and a Christmas visit to a theater. What's the good of crying down a thing when it is so fashionable, and everybody does it?" Multitudes of professors yield to this cunning advice—to their own eternal ruin.
If we would follow the Lord wholly, we must go far away into the wilderness of separation, and leave the Egypt of the carnal world behind us. We must leave its maxims, its pleasures, and its religion too, and go far away to the place where the Lord calls His sanctified ones. When the town is on fire, our house cannot be too far from the flames. When the plague is abroad, a man cannot be too far from its haunts. The further from a viper the better, and the further from worldly conformity the better. To all true believers let the trumpet-call be sounded, "Therefore, come out from them and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord. Do not touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you. And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty." 2 Corinthians 6:17-18
June 27 — Evening
"Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called." 1 Corinthians 7:20
Some people have the foolish notion that the only way in which they can live for God is by becoming ministers, missionaries, or Bible teachers. Alas! how many would be shut out from any opportunity of magnifying God—if this were the case. Beloved, it is not office—it is earnestness; it is not position—it is grace which will enable us to glorify God.
God is most surely glorified in that cobbler's stall, where the godly worker, as he plies the awl, sings of the Savior's love; yes, glorified far more than in many a pulpit where official religiousness performs its scanty duties. The name of Jesus is glorified by the poor unlearned carter as he drives his horse, and blesses his God, or speaks to his fellow laborer by the roadside, as much as by the popular divine who, throughout the country, like Boanerges, is thundering out the gospel. God is glorified by our serving Him in our proper vocations.
Take care, dear reader, that you do not forsake the path of duty by leaving your occupation, and take care you do not dishonor your profession while in it. Think little of yourselves—but do not think too little of your callings. Every lawful trade may be sanctified by the gospel to noblest ends. Turn to the Bible, and you will find the most menial forms of labor connected either with most daring deeds of faith, or with people whose lives have been illustrious for holiness. Therefore do not be discontented with your calling. Whatever God has made your position, or your work—abide in that, unless you are quite sure that he calls you to something else. Let your first care be to glorify God to the utmost of your power where you are. Fill your present sphere to His praise, and if He needs you in another—He will show it to you. This evening lay aside vexatious ambition—and embrace peaceful content.
June 28 — Morning
"Looking unto Jesus." Hebrews 12:2
It is ever the Holy Spirit's work, to turn our eyes away from self—to Jesus. But Satan's work is just the opposite of this, for he is constantly trying to make us regard ourselves instead of Christ. He insinuates, "Your sins are too great for pardon; you have no faith; you do not repent enough; you will never be able to continue to the end; you have not the joy of His children; you have such a wavering hold of Jesus." All these are thoughts about self—and we shall never find comfort or assurance by looking within.
But the Holy Spirit turns our eyes entirely away from self—He tells us that we are nothing—but that "Christ is all in all." Remember, therefore, it is not your hold of Christ that saves you—it is Christ; it is not your joy in Christ that saves you—it is Christ; it is not even faith in Christ, though faith is the instrument—it is Christ's blood and merits. Therefore, look not so much to your hand with which you are grasping Christ—as to Christ. Look not to your hope—but to Jesus, the source of your hope. Look not to your faith—but to Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith. We shall never find happiness by looking at our prayers, our doings, or our feelings; it is what Jesus is, not what we are, that gives rest to the soul.
If we would at once overcome Satan and have peace with God, it must be by "looking unto Jesus." Keep your eye simply on Him; let His death, His sufferings, His merits, His glories, His intercession, be fresh upon your mind; when you wake in the morning—look to Him; when you lie down at night—look to Him. Oh! let not your hopes or fears come between you and Jesus; follow hard after Him, and He will never fail you.
"My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame—
but wholly lean on Jesus' name."
June 28 — Evening
"But Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods." Exodus 7:12
This incident is an instructive emblem of the sure victory of the divine handiwork over all opposition. Whenever a divine principle is cast into the heart, though the devil may fashion a counterfeit, and produce swarms of opponents, as sure as ever God is in the work, it will swallow up all its foes. If God's grace takes possession of a man, the world's magicians may throw down all their rods; and every rod may be as cunning and poisonous as a serpent—but Aaron's rod will swallow up their rods.
The sweet attractions of the cross will woo and win the man's heart, and he who lived only for this deceitful earth will now have an eye for the upper spheres, and a wing to mount into celestial heights. When grace has won the day—the worldling seeks the world to come.
The same fact is to be observed in the life of the believer. What multitudes of foes has our faith had to meet! Our old sins—the devil threw them down before us, and they turned to serpents. What hosts of them! Ah—but the cross of Jesus destroys them all. Faith in Christ, makes short work of all our sins. Then the devil has launched forth another host of serpents in the form of worldly trials, temptations, unbelief; but faith in Jesus is more than a match for them, and overcomes them all.
The same absorbing principle shines in the faithful service of God! With an enthusiastic love for Jesus, difficulties are surmounted, sacrifices become pleasures, sufferings are honors. But if religion is thus a consuming passion in the heart, then it follows that there are many people who profess religion—but have it not; for what they have will not bear this test. Examine yourself, my reader, on this point. Aaron's rod proved its heaven-given power. Is your religion doing so? If Christ is anything to you—He must be everything to you. O rest not, until love and faith in Jesus are the master passions of your soul!
June 29 — Morning
"Those who sleep in Jesus—will God bring with Him." 1 Thessalonians 4:14
Let us not imagine that the soul sleeps in insensibility. "Today shall you be with me in paradise," is the whisper of Christ to every dying saint. They "sleep in Jesus," but their souls are before the throne of God, praising Him day and night in His temple, singing hallelujahs to Him who washed them from their sins in His blood.
The body sleeps in its lonely bed of earth, beneath the coverlet of grass. But what is this sleep? The idea connected with sleep is "rest," and that is the thought which the Spirit of God would convey to us. Sleep makes each night a rest for the day. Sleep shuts fast the door of the soul, and bids all intruders tarry for a while, that the life within may enter its summer garden of ease. The toil-worn believer quietly sleeps, as does the weary child when it slumbers on its mother's breast.
Oh! happy they who die in the Lord; they rest from their labors, and their works do follow them. Their quiet repose shall never be broken, until God shall rouse them to give them their full reward. Guarded by angel watchers, curtained by eternal mysteries, they sleep on, the inheritors of glory, until the fullness of time shall bring the fullness of redemption. What an awaking shall be theirs! They were laid in their last resting place, weary and worn—but such they shall not rise. They went to their rest with the furrowed brow, and the wasted features—but they wake up in beauty and glory. The shriveled seed, so destitute of form and loveliness, rises from the dust—a beauteous flower. The winter of the grave—gives way to the spring of redemption, and the summer of glory. Blessed is death, since it, through the divine power, disrobes us of this work-day garment, to clothe us with the wedding garment of incorruption. Blessed are those who "sleep in Jesus!"
June 29 — Evening
"However, when ambassadors arrived from Babylon to ask about the remarkable events that had taken place in the land, God withdrew from Hezekiah in order to test him and to see what was really in his heart." 2 Chronicles 32:31
Hezekiah was growing so inwardly great, and priding himself so much upon the favor of God, that self-righteousness crept in, and through his carnal security, the grace of God was for a time, in its more active operations, withdrawn.
If the grace of God should leave the best Christian, there is enough of sin in his heart to make him the worst of transgressors. If left to yourselves, you who are warmest for Christ—would cool down like Laodicea into sickening lukewarmness! You who are sound in the faith—would be white with the leprosy of false doctrine! You who now walk before the Lord in excellency and integrity—would reel to and fro, and stagger with a drunkenness of evil passion.
Like the moon, we borrow our light; bright as we are when grace shines on us, we are darkness itself when the Sun of Righteousness withdraws Himself. Therefore let us cry to God never to leave us. "Lord, take not your Holy Spirit from us! Withdraw not from us Your indwelling grace! Have You not said, 'I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every moment—lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day'? Lord, keep us everywhere. Keep us when in the valley—that we murmur not against Your humbling hand. Keep us when on the mountain—that we wax not giddy through being lifted up. Keep us in youth—when our passions are strong. Keep us in old age—when becoming conceited of our wisdom, we may therefore prove greater fools than the young and giddy. Keep us when we come to die—lest, at the very last, we should deny You! Keep us living, keep us dying, keep us laboring, keep us suffering, keep us fighting, keep us resting, keep us everywhere, for everywhere we need You, O our God!"
June 30 — Morning
"And the glory which You gave me—I have given them." John 17:22
Behold the superlative liberality of the Lord Jesus, for He has given us His all. Although a pittance of His possessions would have made a universe of angels rich beyond all thought—yet He was not content until He had given us all that He had. It would have been surprising grace—if He had allowed us to eat the crumbs of His bounty beneath the table of His mercy; but He will do nothing by halves, He makes us sit with Him and share the feast! Had He given us some small pension from His royal coffers, we would have had cause to love Him eternally; but no—He will have His bride as rich as Himself, and He will not have a glory or a grace in which she shall not share. He has not been content with less than making us joint-heirs with Himself, so that we might have equal possessions. He has emptied all His estate into the coffers of the Church, and has all things common with His redeemed.
There is not one room in His house, the key of which He will withhold from His people. He gives them full liberty to take all that He has to be their own. He loves them to take freely of His treasure, and appropriate as much as they can possibly carry. The boundless fullness of His all-sufficiency is as free to the believer—as the air he breathes. Christ has put the flagon of His love and grace to the believer's lip, and bidden him drink on forever; for could he drain it, he is welcome to do so, and as he cannot exhaust it, he is bidden to drink abundantly, for it is all his own! What truer proof of fellowship can heaven or earth afford?
"When I stand before the throne
Dressed in beauty not my own;
When I see You as You are,
Love You with unsinning heart;
Then, Lord, shall I fully know—
Not until then—how much I owe!"
June 30 — Evening
"Ah Lord God, behold, You have made the heaven and the earth by your great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for You." Jeremiah 32:17
At the very time when the Chaldeans surrounded Jerusalem, and when the sword, famine and pestilence had desolated the land, Jeremiah was commanded by God to purchase a field, and have the deed of transfer legally sealed and witnessed. This was a strange purchase for a rational man to make. Prudence could not justify it, for it was buying with scarcely a probability that the person purchasing could ever enjoy the possession. But it was enough for Jeremiah that his God had bidden him, for well he knew that God will be justified of all His children.
He reasoned thus, "Ah, Lord God! You can make this plot of ground of use to me; You can rid this land of these oppressors; You can make me yet sit under my vine and my fig-tree in the heritage which I have bought; for You did make the heavens and the earth, and there is nothing too hard for You."
This gave a majesty to the early saints, that they dared to do at God's command, things which carnal reason would condemn. Whether it is a Noah who is to build a ship on dry land, an Abraham who is to offer up his only son, or a Moses who is to despise the treasures of Egypt, or a Joshua who is to besiege Jericho seven days, using no weapons but the blasts of rams' horns—they all act upon God's command, contrary to the dictates of carnal reason; and the Lord gives them a rich reward as the result of their obedient faith. Would to God we had in the religion of these modern times, a more potent infusion of this heroic faith in God. If we would venture more upon the naked promise of God, we would enter a world of wonders to which as yet we are strangers. Let Jeremiah's place of confidence be ours—nothing is too hard for the God who created the heavens and the earth!