Spurgeon knew how to warm your heart with one picture image, and terrify you with another. He speaks of the stillness and beauty after the storm, and how for Christians that is the reality for us: God sent the “storm” on his Son instead of on us. And even the rain that does fall on us comes from “clouds of mercy” – what an image! Even when sorrow hits us in this life, it is God’s mercy that sends it down, to sanctify us, bring us closer to him, and glorify his name in our lives.

Yet for the person who hasn’t come to Christ, the storm is yet to appear, and how terrifying will that storm be when they realize that are coming under it instead of Christ having taken it on their behalf! I’ve never heard the mercy and wrath of God put into “storm imagery”, but certainly grew in my understanding of both because of reading this morning’s reading. Thank you Lord

“Are we feeling hard? Let us think of covenant love, and then we shall leave sin, lament sin, and loathe sin; yea, we shall loathe ourselves for sinning against such infinite love.”

How true a statement…this brought to mind the words to the following song which is a favorite of mine…

Lyrics to “How Deep the Father’s Love For Us”

How deep the Father’s love for us,
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss,
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the chosen One,
Bring many sons to glory

Behold the Man upon a cross,
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,
Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection

Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom

“To be with Christ is to be in heaven, and to be in heaven is to be with Christ.”

I believe this is something we must teach kids from a young age. That JESUS is the treasure, He is the goal. Heaven is not just a place to be when we’re dead and gone, where we “get to go” because we don’t want to go to hell. A place that hurts our mind to think about eternity with no sadness, or hurt, but doing what for all that time? Oh the joy to pause and be affirmed in that if Christ is ENOUGH, that experiencing Him in such a real and true way WILL be heaven.

Sometimes I don’t really understand what that means, but something in my soul finally finds rest- and heaven is not so feared.

To know that every time I come across a verse like this in the bible, that I have the opportunity to stand in awe about “what kind of God” we’re talking about here… the pondering that Spurgeon does here breaks into me. … O, that I might stand in that wonder more daily. To come in reverence, every time we pray, realizing just how incredible it is that we can have a relationship with this God, our Provider, our Creator, and the One who saved us.

How cool that his everlasting covenant has no beginning or end! That saving mankind through Jesus- by way of a second covenant- was plan A, not plan B. The words of “Blessed Assurance” came to mind after reading of this sweet promise to us.

Spurgeon sums up the difference of the gospel and the law by saying, “The law was a dispensation of terror, which drove men before it as with a scourge; the gospel draws with bands of love.” Through the gospel of Jesus Christ we are drawn to see Him as Savior and Lord. While the law could only point to our flaws and drive us to fear-based obedience, once we realize Christ beckons us to “come” to him, our hearts are melted by his love and we follow him, instead of being pushed from behind by the law to obey. The motivation of the heart to obey God is totally reoriented and we are altogether satisfied with Christ. As John Piper says, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.”

First of all, I love the language Spurgeon uses! He is so eloquent in that old English kind of way, and even though it makes it more difficult to follow at times I still like it

I don’t think much about the “perseverance of the saints” and even when I do I usually think of MY role in persevering in order to obtain the inheritance of eternity with God. How foolish! If it is God’s work from beginning to end to bring me to repentance and a saving knowledge of him, of course it’s still his role to faithfully preserve me so that I may persevere. Sure we will work at it and decide to persevere in Christ, but all along it is truly he who holds us until the end. Praise God.