Evening and Morning
By Charles Haddon Spurgeon
October 3
Morning
"Are
they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be
heirs of salvation?"—Hebrews 1:14.
Angels are the
unseen attendants of the saints of God; they bear us up in their hands, lest we
dash our foot against a stone. Loyalty to their Lord leads them to take a deep
interest in the children of His love; they rejoice over the return of the
prodigal to his father's house below, and they welcome the advent of the
believer to the King's palace above. In olden times the sons of God were favoured with their visible appearance, and at this day,
although unseen by us, heaven is still opened, and the angels of God ascend and
descend upon the Son of man, that they may visit the heirs of salvation.
Seraphim still fly with live coals from off the altar to touch the lips of men
greatly beloved. If our eyes could be opened, we should see horses of fire and
chariots of fire about the servants of the Lord; for we have come to an
innumerable company of angels, who are all watchers and protectors of the
seed-royal. Spenser's line is no poetic fiction, where he sings—
"How oft
do they with golden pinions cleave
The flitting
skies, like flying pursuivant
Against foul
fiends to aid us militant!"
To what dignity are the
chosen elevated when the brilliant courtiers of heaven become their willing
servitors! Into what communion are we raised since we have intercourse with
spotless celestials! How well are we defended since all the twenty-thousand
chariots of God are armed for our deliverance! To whom do we owe all this? Let
the Lord Jesus Christ be for ever endeared to us, for
through Him we are made to sit in heavenly places far above principalities and
powers. He it is whose camp is round about them that fear Him; He is the true
Michael whose foot is upon the dragon. All hail, Jesus! thou
Angel of Jehovah's presence, to Thee this family offers its morning vows.
Evening
"He Himself hath suffered being tempted."—Hebrews 2:18.
It is a common-place
thought, and yet it tastes like nectar to the weary heart—Jesus I was
tempted as I am. You have heard that truth many times: have you grasped it? He
was tempted to the very same sins into which we fall. Do not dissociate Jesus
from our common manhood. It is a dark room which you
are going through, but Jesus went through it before. It is a sharp fight which you are waging, but Jesus has stood foot to foot
with the same enemy. Let us be of good cheer, Christ has borne the load before
us, and the blood-stained footsteps of the King of
glory may be seen along the road which we traverse at this hour. There is
something sweeter yet—Jesus was tempted, but Jesus never sinned. Then, my
soul, it is not needful for thee to sin, for Jesus was a man, and if one man
endured these temptations and sinned not, then in His power His members may
also cease from sin. Some beginners in the divine life think that they cannot
be tempted without sinning, but they mistake; there is
no sin in being tempted, but there is sin in yielding to
temptation. Herein is comfort for the sorely tempted ones. There is still
more to encourage them if they reflect that the Lord Jesus, though tempted,
gloriously triumphed, and as He overcame, so surely shall His followers also,
for Jesus is the representative man for His people; the Head has triumphed, and
the members share in the victory. Fears are needless, for Christ is with us,
armed for our defence. Our place of safety is the
bosom of the Saviour. Perhaps we are tempted just
now, in order to drive us nearer to Him. Blessed be any wind that blows us into
the port of our Saviour's love! Happy wounds, which
make us seek the beloved Physician. Ye tempted ones,
come to your tempted Saviour, for He can be touched
with a feeling of your infirmities, and will succour
every tried and tempted one.