Daily Devotionals

Spiritual Treasury For The Children of God

Devotional: May 3rd

Jesus said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.- John 11:4.

It frequently happens, that intervening occurrences seem to contradict the truths of God. Therefore if we judge from sight and appearance, we shall be often deceived. God’s word alone is the rule of faith; what he has declared shall certainly come to pass, however repugnant it may seem to carnal reason. Thus our Saviour declares of Lazarus, "This sickness is not unto death:" yet he afterwards told his disciples plainly, "Lazarus is dead:" and Jesus found him in the grave, where he had lain four days. But Jesus, who had power over death and the grave, knew his own intention of raising him, both for the glory of the Father, as well as glorifying himself. This was the great end of his coming into the world; therefore in the life, and by the death of Jesus, glory redounds "to God in the highest, peace on earth, and good-will to men."

Did Jesus love Lazarus? Did his compassionate eye drop a tear of affection over his friend’s grave? O what an innumerable company of poor sinners did his loving eyes behold, who, like Lazarus, were not only to all appearances past hope, but actually "dead in trespasses and sins!" but he says of them also, "This sickness is not unto death." Eternal death shall not have the dominion over them; but he would get glory to God, and glorify himself in quickening and raising all God’s chosen ones, all his dearly beloved members.

On the death of Lazarus "Jesus wept: he groaned within himself;" and he cried to his Father. How must the heart of Lazarus be inflamed with love to his dear Lord for giving him a second life! O believer! the raising thy soul from a death of sin to a life of righteousness, cost thy Saviour not only a sigh, a tear, a groan, a prayer; but agonies, sweats of blood, tortures beyond thought, sufferings beyond expression. His immaculate heart’s blood he freely poured forth for our sins, to procure the life, and to obtain the salvation of our souls. Canst thou think of this love without reflecting on thy misery? O hard heart! O cruel unbelief! How little affected with such love as none but God could shew! Is this thy pain and sickness? Come, then, that the Son of God may be yet more glorified in thee, bring thy hard heart to the feet of Jesus, and confess thy unbelief to him with this humble cry, "Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief."- Mark 9:24.

Come, happy souls, approach your God

With new melodious songs;

Come, tender to almighty grace

The tribute of your tongues.

So strange, so boundless was the love

That pity’d dying men,

The Father gent his equal Son

To give them life again.

With his stripes we are healed. Isaiah 53:5.

A great professor once said to me, “I can never conceive how one man can be made righteous, by the righteousness of another.” Thus his carnal reason led him to object against Christ’s righteousness being imputed to us. I replied, why then do you profess to believe, that your sins can be washed away by the blood of another? He was silent. “Without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness.” Too great a mystery for human reason to comprehend: but not too great for divine faith to receive, to the joy of godliness. Sin is a malignant and mortal disease. The soul must die eternally of it, unless healed. This healing the soul, is the pardoning of sin. This is obtained by the stripes of Christ. You feel the evil of sin; you mourn over the guilt of sin; you groan under the burden of indwelling sin, from day to day. The Spirit of truth, the Comforter, here holds forth a blessed remedy for you to look to, for pardon of sin, peace of conscience, and healing of soul: The Stripes of Jesus. Just as though the Lord proclaimed to a world of diseased sinners, “This is your only remedy, so sure as you are sinners, and feel sin in your nature; so truly did the Son of God take upon him the same nature-had all your sins laid upon, and imputed to him, and in that nature was cursed by the law as a malefactor, wounded, bruised, and put to death by divine justice, as the greatest sinner by imputation, that ever lived: that hereby your sins, all your sins, might be fully pardoned, and your souls as perfectly healed of the disease of sin, as though it had never infected you. Look to any thing but the stripes of Christ, and you will be miserable. Look to these, only and alone, and you shall find health, joy, and salvation.” Sin-sick soul, What sayest thou to this? “Lord, increase my faith.” This is a precious prayer. That dear Lord who suffered stripes for thy sin, that thou mightest be healed: that dear Spirit, who convinced thee of sin, and made thee sick of sin, will surely answer the prayer of faith, and give thee the joy of faith, and thou shalt say, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgiveth all thine iniquities, and healeth all thy diseases.” (Psalms 103:2-3.) O what a marvellous way is this of healing our souls! It is God’s way. Unconvinced sinners care not about it. Proud, self-righteous souls reject it. Licentious spirits abuse it. Believing, humble hearts rejoice in it, give Christ the glory of it, and walk worthy of the Lord, to all pleasing. Colossians 1:10.

Strict justice, Christ hath satisfied,

By pains, and stripes, and death:

By these our souls are justified,

And comforted in faith.

This is the faith which works by love

Of our dear suff’ring Lord:

It lifts our souls to joys above,

While it believes his word.