Evening and Morning
By Charles Haddon Spurgeon
January 25
Morning
"I will
mention the lovingkindnesses of the Lord, and the
praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord hath bestowed on
us."—Isaiah 63:7.
And canst thou not do this?
Are there no mercies which thou hast experienced?
What though thou art gloomy now, canst thou forget that blessed hour when Jesus
met thee, and said, "Come unto me"? Canst thou not remember that
rapturous moment when He snapped thy fetters, dashed thy chains to the earth,
and said, "I came to break thy bonds and set thee free"? Or if the
love of thine espousals be forgotten, there must
surely be some precious milestone along the road of life not quite grown over
with moss, on which thou canst read a happy memorial of His mercy towards thee?
What, didst thou never have a sickness like that which thou art suffering now,
and did He not restore thee? Wert thou never poor before, and did He not supply
thy wants? Wast thou never in straits before, and did
He not deliver thee? Arise, go to the river of thine
experience, and pull up a few bulrushes, and plait them into an ark, wherein thine infant-faith may float safely on the stream. Forget
not what thy God has done for thee; turn over the book of thy remembrance, and
consider the days of old. Canst thou not remember the hill Mizar?
Did the Lord never meet with thee at Hermon? Hast thou never climbed the
Delectable Mountains? Hast thou never been helped in time of need? Nay, I know
thou hast. Go back, then, a little way to the choice mercies of yesterday, and
though all may be dark now, light up the lamps of the past, they shall
glitter through the darkness, and thou shalt trust in the Lord till the day break and the shadows flee away. "Remember, O Lord,
thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses, for they
have been ever of old."
Evening
"Do we
then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the
law."—Romans 3:31.
When the believer is
adopted into the Lord's family, his relationship to old Adam and the law ceases
at once; but then he is under a new rule, and a new covenant. Believer, you are
God's child; it is your first duty to obey your heavenly Father. A servile
spirit you have nothing to do with: you are not a slave, but a child; and now,
inasmuch as you are a beloved child, you are bound to obey your Father's
faintest wish, the least intimation of His will. Does He bid you fulfil a sacred ordinance? It is at your peril that you
neglect it, for you will be disobeying your Father. Does He command you to seek
the image of Jesus? It is not your joy to do so? Does Jesus tell you, "Be
ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect"? Then not
because the law commands, but because your Saviour
enjoins, you will labour to be perfect in holiness.
Does He bid his saints love one another? Do it, not because the law says,
"Love thy neighbour," but because Jesus
says, "If ye love Me, keep My commandments;"
and this is the commandment that He has given unto you, "that ye love one
another." Are you told to distribute to the poor? Do it, not because
charity is a burden which you dare not shirk, but
because Jesus teaches, "Give to him that asketh
of thee." Does the Word say, "Love God with all your heart"?
Look at the commandment and reply, "Ah! commandment,
Christ hath fulfilled thee already—I have no need, therefore, to fulfill
thee for my salvation, but I rejoice to yield obedience to thee because God is
my Father now and He has a claim upon me, which I would not dispute." May
the Holy Ghost make your heart obedient to the constraining power of Christ's
love, that your prayer may be, "Make me to go in the path of Thy
commandments; for therein do I delight." Grace is the mother and nurse of
holiness, and not the apologist of sin.