Lectionary Calendar
Friday, March 29th, 2024
Good Friday
There are 2 days til Easter!
Attention!
Take your personal ministry to the Next Level by helping StudyLight build churches and supporting pastors in Uganda.
Click here to join the effort!

Daily Devotionals
Spiritual Treasury For The Children of God
Devotional: November 19th

Resource Toolbox
Morning Devotional

This is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life; and this life is in his Son: he that hath the Son hath life.- 1 John 5:11-12.

Sovereign power permits man to fall. Guilt fills the wretched pair with dread, and cuts off all hope in God, all claim upon him. Hence our first parents "fled from the presence of the Lord, and hid themselves." Sovereign love interposed, and the poor, guilty, trembling partners in woe were called before their highly-offended, justly provoked Lord. Was it to behold him clothed with vengeance? To hear the sentence of their eternal doom to destruction? To see hell opened to receive them? No; be astonished, O heavens! Rejoice, ye apostate children of hell-deserving parents! They were to hear a RECORD of what was transacted in the eternal court and counsel of heaven, published on earth. This, instead of wrath, brought mercy; instead of woe, blessing; instead of eternal death, everlasting life; instead of a hell of misery, a heaven of happiness to their trembling hearts.

Fallen man came not to meet God, to sue for pardon, and entreat grace, but fled his presence. But the Lord follows sinful man with love in his heart; not to propose terms of accommodation or conditions of peace, but to proclaim the joyful news of eternal life as the free gift of free favor, unmerited grace, unconditional mercy, in and by the seed of the woman, Jesus Christ. Glorious RECORD of eternal love! Blessed testimony of life! Joyful tidings of grace! Hast thou heard, known, and believed this RECORD? "Praise the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me praise his holy name."

Behold and admire the wisdom, as well as the love of thy God. In this rejoice always; be humble continually. Life, eternal life, is given us. This life is in God’s beloved Son, therefore can never be lost and forfeited. "Our life is hid with Christ in God." O, if Jesus dwells in our hearts by faith, we have God’s beloved Son, we have eternal life. The report of this is joyful to our ears. The enjoyment of this enters our hearts, creates our present heaven, and fills us with joyful hopes of future glory. We have the strongest confidence, the fullest assurance to animate our souls, "Because I live, saith the head, ye (my members) shall live also."- John 14:19. God hath GIVEN us eternal life. He is faithful, he will not revoke his own precious free gift. Jesus hath overcome every enemy and opposer that might prevent our enjoyment of eternal life. The Holy Spirit hath effected such an union to Jesus, as can never be broken. "We are joined unto the Lord, and are one spirit."- 1 Corinthians 6:17.

Look up, my soul, to him,

Whose death was thy desert;

And humbly view the living stream

Flow from his pierced heart.

Evening Devotional

Good and upright is the LORD, therefore will he teach sinners in the way. Psalms 25:8.

Here are two characters the most opposite: a good and upright Lord-wicked and perverse sinners. Good and upright as the Lord is, he might justly damn sinners. But no, O condescending grace! He will not leave sinners to perish, in their ignorance and obstinacy: he will teach them. It is said of one, that after his conversion, he could scarcely mention the name of JESUS, without a tear. O had it not been for his redemption, no sinner would have had divine teaching! but all whom Christ has redeemed by his blood, the Spirit teaches by his power. This is his office in the covenant of grace. This implies, that so ignorant are sinners of divine truths, that no teaching besides the Lord the Spirit, can instruct and make them wise unto salvation. Come sinner, come down from the altitudes of thy fancied wisdom and boasted knowledge, and learn this humbling truth to-night. If thou seest thy own ignorance, and thy want of being divinely taught, rejoice at this declaration. Cry to the Spirit, Lord teach me. He will teach. Whom? Only such as are good and upright like himself? No, but such as are of a contrary character, Sinners: whose carnal minds are enmity against his holy law, who “are sold under sin, and in whose flesh dwelleth no good thing.” Is this thy character? The Lord will teach such. In the way. What way? Not in the way of sin, that is contrary to his holiness. Not in the way of self-righteousness, that is contrary to his truth. But in the knowledge of Christ, who is the way: the way of access to God, acceptance with God, justification before God, and everlasting life as the free gift of God, according to the covenant-grace and everlasting love of God. By repentance unto life in this way of peace, in this walk of faith, in this path of love, truth and holiness, the Spirit will teach redeemed sinners on earth, till he brings them to glory. His teaching shall be as effectual to their glorification, as the death of Christ for their salvation. Poor sinner, who like me, art often distressed and dejected with thy wicked nature, take comfort to-night from these two truths. Till Satan can blot them out of God’s book, or make us worse than sinners, they stand on record for our comfort: “Christ Jesus came to save sinners.” God will teach sinners, Look then to the finished salvation of Jesus. Look to the Spirit to teach thee the glory of it, to bear witness to thy soul of interest in it, and to fill thee with joy and peace by it.

When we consult with flesh and blood,

We quit the pow’r of faith,

And cry, the news of truth’s too good!

Rejecting what God saith.

Saints, if you’d live and walk in peace,

Your reas’ning pride forego;

Look simply to the God of grace,

Whose pow’r can all things do.

Subscribe …
Get the latest devotional delivered straight to your inbox every week by signing up for the "Spiritual Treasury For The Children of God" subscription list. Simply provide your email address below, click on "Subscribe!", and you'll receive a confirmation email from us. Follow the instructions in the email to confirm your subscription to this list.
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile