Evening and Morning
By Charles Haddon Spurgeon
December 29
Morning
"Hitherto hath the Lord helped us."—1 Samuel
7:12.
The word
"hitherto" seems like a hand pointing in the direction of the past.
Twenty years or seventy, and yet, "hitherto the Lord hath helped!"
Through poverty, through wealth, through sickness, through health, at home, abroad,
on the land, on the sea, in honour, in dishonour, in perplexity, in joy, in trial, in triumph, in
prayer, in temptation, "hitherto hath the Lord helped us!" We delight to look down a long avenue of trees. It is
delightful to gaze from end to end of the long vista, a sort of verdant temple,
with its branching pillars and its arches of leaves; even so look down the long
aisles of your years, at the green boughs of mercy overhead, and the strong
pillars of lovingkindness and faithfulness which bear
up your joys. Are there no birds in yonder branches singing? Surely there must
be many, and they all sing of mercy received "hitherto."
But the
word also points forward. For when a man gets up to a certain mark and
writes "hitherto," he is not yet at the end, there is still a
distance to be traversed. More trials, more joys; more temptations, more
triumphs; more prayers, more answers; more toils, more strength; more fights,
more victories; and then come sickness, old age, disease, death. Is it over
now? No! there is more yet-awakening in Jesu's likeness, thrones, harps, songs, psalms, white
raiment, the face of Jesus, the society of saints, the glory of God, the fulness of eternity, the infinity of bliss. O be of good
courage, believer, and with grateful confidence raise thy "Ebenezer,"
for—
He who hath helped thee hitherto Will help thee all thy journey through.
When read
in heaven's light how glorious and marvellous a
prospect will thy "hitherto" unfold to thy grateful eye!
Evening
"What think ye of Christ?"—Matthew
22:42.
The great test of your soul's health is, What
think you of Christ? Is He to you "fairer than the children of men"—"the
chief among ten thousand"—the "altogether lovely"?
Wherever Christ is thus esteemed, all the faculties of the spiritual man
exercise themselves with energy. I will judge of your piety by this barometer:
does Christ stand high or low with you? If you have thought little of Christ,
if you have been content to live without His presence, if you have cared little
for His honour, if you have been neglectful of His
laws, then I know that your soul is sick—God grant that it may not be
sick unto death! But if the first thought of your spirit has been, How can I honour Jesus? If the
daily desire of your soul has been, "O that I knew where I might find
Him!" I tell you that you may have a thousand infirmities, and even
scarcely know whether you are a child of God at all, and yet I am persuaded,
beyond a doubt, that you are safe, since Jesus is great in your esteem. I care
not for thy rags, what thinkest thou of His
royal apparel? I care not for thy wounds, though they bleed in torrents, what thinkest thou of His wounds? are
they like glittering rubies in thine esteem? I think
none the less of thee, though thou liest like Lazarus
on the dunghill, and the dogs do lick thee—I judge thee not by thy
poverty: what thinkest thou of the King in His
beauty? Has He a glorious high throne in thy heart? Wouldst thou set Him higher
if thou couldst? Wouldst thou be willing to die if
thou couldst but add another trumpet to the strain which proclaims His praise? Ah! then
it is well with thee. Whatever thou mayst think of
thyself, if Christ be great to thee, thou shalt be
with Him ere long.
"Though all the world my
choice deride,
Yet Jesus shall my portion be;
For I am pleased with none
beside,
The
fairest of the fair is He"