Daily devotionals - September 30th

[AY Angel Bot]

Morning Meditation

"Sing forth the honour of his name, make his praise glorious."
Psalms 66:2

It is not left to our ownoption whether we shall praise God or not. Praise is God's mostrighteous due, and every Christian, as the recipient of his grace, isbound to praise God from day to day. It is true we have noauthoritative rubric for daily praise; we have no commandmentprescribing certain hours of song and thanksgiving: but the law writtenupon the heart teaches us that it is right to praise God; and theunwritten mandate comes to us with as much force as if it had beenrecorded on the tables of stone, or handed to us from the top ofthundering Sinai. Yes, it is the Christian's duty to praise God. It isnot only a pleasurable exercise, but it is the absolute obligation ofhis life. Think not ye who are always mourning, that ye are guiltlessin this respect, or imagine that ye can discharge your duty to your Godwithout songs of praise. You are bound by the bonds of his love tobless his name so long as you live, and his praise should continuallybe in your mouth, for you are blessed, in order that you may bless him;"this people have I formed for myself, they shall show forth mypraise"; and if you do not praise God, you are not bringing forth thefruit which he, as the Divine Husbandman, has a right to expect at yourhands. Let not your harp then hang upon the willows, but take it down,and strive, with a grateful heart, to bring forth its loudest music.Arise and chant his praise. With every morning's dawn, lift up yournotes of thanksgiving, and let every setting sun be followed with yoursong. Girdle the earth with your praises; surround it with anatmosphere of melody, and God himself will hearken from heaven andaccept your music.
"E'en so I love thee, and will love,
And in thy praise will sing,
Because thou art my loving God,
And my redeeming King."
Evening Meditation

"A living dog is better than a dead lion."
Ecclesiastes 9:4

Life is a precious thing,and in its humblest form it is superior to death. This truth iseminently certain in spiritual things. It is better to be the least inthe kingdom of heaven than the greatest out of it. The lowest degree ofgrace is superior to the noblest development of unregenerate nature.Where the Holy Ghost implants divine life in the soul, there is aprecious deposit which none of the refinements of education can equal.The thief on the cross excels Caesar on his throne; Lazarus among thedogs is better than Cicero among the senators; and the most unletteredChristian is in the sight of God superior to Plato. Life is the badgeof nobility in the realm of spiritual things, and men without it areonly coarser or finer specimens of the same lifeless material, needingto be quickened, for they are dead in trespasses and sins.
A living, loving, gospel sermon,however unlearned in matter and uncouth in style, is better than thefinest discourse devoid of unction and power. A living dog keeps betterwatch than a dead lion, and is of more service to his master; and sothe poorest spiritual preacher is infinitely to be preferred to theexquisite orator who has no wisdom but that of words, no energy butthat of sound. The like holds good of our prayers and other religiousexercises; if we are quickened in them by the Holy Spirit, they areacceptable to God through Jesus Christ, though we may think them to beworthless things; while our grand performances in which our hearts wereabsent, like dead lions, are mere carrion in the sight of the livingGod. O for living groans, living sighs, living despondencies, ratherthan lifeless songs and dead calms. Better anything than death. Thesnarlings of the dog of hell will at least keep us awake, but deadfaith and dead profession, what greater curses can a man have? Quickenus, quicken us, O Lord!


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