Daily Bible Notes: March, 24th
The following daily bible notes for every day of the year, are taken from six public domain sources:
- "Morning and Evening" by Charles H.Spurgeon
- "My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year" by John H.Jowett
- "Yet Another Day - A Prayer for Every Day of the Year" by John H.Jowett
- "The Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith" by Charles H.Spurgeon
- "The Morning Message" by G.Campbell Morgan
- An Evening Meditation from "Searchlights from the Word" by G. Campbell Morgan
1. "Morning and Evening" by C.H.Spurgeon
Morning
He was heard in that he feared.
Hebrews 5:7
Did this fear arise from the infernal suggestion that He was utterly forsaken . There may be sterner trials than this, but surely it is one of the worst to be utterly forsaken? "See," said Satan, "thou hast a friend nowhere! Thy Father hath shut up the bowels of His compassion against thee. Not an angel in His courts will stretch out his hand to help thee. All heaven is alienated from Thee; Thou art left alone. See the companions with whom Thou hast taken sweet counsel, what are they worth? Son of Mary, see there Thy brother James, see there Thy loved disciple John, and Thy bold apostle Peter, how the cowards sleep when Thou art in Thy sufferings! Lo! Thou hast no friend left in heaven or earth. All hell is against Thee. I have stirred up mine infernal den. I have sent my missives throughout all regions summoning every prince of darkness to set upon Thee this night, and we will spare no arrows, we will use all our infernal might to overwhelm Thee: and what wilt Thou do, Thou solitary one?" It may be, this was the temptation; we think it was, because the appearance of an angel unto Him strengthening Him removed that fear. He was heard in that He feared; He was no more alone, but heaven was with Him. It may be that this is the reason of His coming three times to His disciples - as Hart puts it - "Backwards and forwards thrice He ran, As if He sought some help from man."
He would see for Himself whether it were really true that all men had forsaken Him; He found them all asleep; but perhaps He gained some faint comfort from the thought that they were sleeping, not from treachery, but from sorrow, the spirit indeed was willing, but the flesh was weak. At any rate, He was heard in that He feared. Jesus was heard in His deepest woe; my soul, thou shalt be heard also.
Evening
In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit.
Luke 10:21
The Saviour was "a man of sorrows," but every thoughtful mind has discovered the fact that down deep in His innermost soul He carried an inexhaustible treasury of refined and heavenly joy. Of all the human race, there was never a man who had a deeper, purer, or more abiding peace than our Lord Jesus Christ. "He was anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows." His vast benevolence must, from the very nature of things, have afforded Him the deepest possible delight, for benevolence is joy.
There were a few remarkable seasons when this joy manifested itself. "At that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth." Christ had His songs, though it was night with Him; though His face was marred, and His countenance had lost the lustre of earthly happiness, yet sometimes it was lit up with a matchless splendour of unparalleled satisfaction, as He thought upon the recompense of the reward, and in the midst of the congregation sang His praise unto God. In this, the Lord Jesus is a blessed picture of His church on earth. At this hour the church expects to walk in sympathy with her Lord along a thorny road; through much tribulation she is forcing her way to the crown. To bear the cross is her office, and to be scorned and counted an alien by her mother’s children is her lot; and yet the church has a deep well of joy, of which none can drink but her own children. There are stores of wine, and oil, and corn, hidden in the midst of our Jerusalem, upon which the saints of God are evermore sustained and nurtured; and sometimes, as in our Saviour’s case, we have our seasons of intense delight, for "There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of our God." Exiles though we be, we rejoice in our King; yea, in Him we exceedingly rejoice, while in His name we set up our banners.
2. "My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year" by J.H.Jowett
Luke 22:39-46
39 He came out and went, as his custom was, to the Mount of Olives. His disciples also followed him.
40 When he was at the place, he said to them, "Pray that you don't enter into temptation."
41 He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and he knelt down and prayed,
42 saying, "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done."
43 An angel from heaven appeared to him, strengthening him.
44 Being in agony he prayed more earnestly. His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.
45 When he rose up from his prayer, he came to the disciples, and found them sleeping because of grief,
46 and said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation."
IN GETHSEMANE
Surely this is the very Holy of Holies! It were well for us to fall on our knees and "be silent unto the Lord." I would quietly listen to the awful words, "Remove this cup from Me!" and I would listen again and again until never again do I hold a cheap religion. It is in this garden that we learn the real values of things, and come to know the price at which our redemption was bought. No one can remain in Gethsemane and retain a frivolous and flippant spirit.
"And there appeared unto Him an angel from heaven, strengthening Him." I know that angel! He has been to me. He has brought me angel's food, even heavenly manna. Always and everywhere, when my soul has surrendered itself to the Divine will, the angel comes, and my soul is refreshed. The laying down of self is the taking up of God. When I lose my will I gain the Infinite. The moment of surrender is also the moment of conquest. When I consecrate my weakness I put on strength and majesty like a robe.
"And when He rose up from His prayer" - what then? Just this, He was quietly ready for anything, ready for the betraying kiss, ready for crucifixion. "Arise, let us be going."
3. "Yet Another Day - A Prayer for Every Day of the Year" by John H.Jowett
March 24th.
Gracious Lord, may the marks of discipleship be upon me to-day! May my fellow-men behold the fruits of my communion with Thee!
By my gentleness, my pity, my fairness, my holiness, may they know that I am Thine!
4. "The Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith" by C.H.Spurgeon.
But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.
2 Thessalonians 3:3
Men are often as devoid of reason as of faith. There are with us still "unreasonable and wicked men." There is no use in arguing with them or trying to be at peace with them: they are false at heart, and deceitful in speech. Well, what of this? Shall we worry ourselves with them? No; let us turn to the Lord, for he is faithful. No promise from his word will ever be broken. He is neither unreasonable in his demands upon us, nor unfaithful to our claims upon him. We have a faithful God. Be this our joy.
He will stablish us so that wicked men shall not cause our downfall, and he will keep us so that none of the evils which now assail us shall really do us damage. What a blessing for us that we need not contend with men, but are allowed to shelter ourselves in the Lord Jesus, who is in truest sympathy with us. There is one true heart, one faithful mind, one never changing Love; there let us repose. The Lord will fulfil the purpose of his grace to us, his servants, and we need not allow a shadow of a fear to fall upon our spirits. Not all that men or devils can do can hinder us of the divine protection and provision. This day let us pray the Lord to stablish and keep us.
5. "The Morning Message" by G.Campbell Morgan.
If I bestow all my goods to feed the poor ... but have not love, it profiteth me nothing.
1 Corinthians 13:3
If our gifts are bestowed that we may be kept square with duty, they are utterly refused in heaven. But if they express a sacrifice and a sympathy, though they be but small according to the arithmetic of men, they are counted of great worth in that temple where gifts are valued according to the giver.
6. "An Evening Meditation" taken from "Searchlights from the Word" by G.Campbell Morgan.
He saved others; Himself He cannot save.
Mark 15:31
This is one of the instances of which there are a number, when the enemies of our Lord, in hatred or in mockery, said things about Him which were profoundly true. That may be said to be the whole truth concerning His dying. In order to save others He could not save Himself. His inability was not, as His enemies suggested, the inability of weakness. It was the inability of eternal strength. It was not that He was unable to save Himself; but rather that He was able not to save Himself. Therefore He is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God through Him. While the great fact is supreme, and in all highest senses lonely in the Person of the Son of God, the principle has perpetual application in the case of those who share His life, and are called into fellowship with Him in the work of saving men. We have no power to save others, save as we have power not to save ourselves. The claims and desires of the self-life are very insistent. They may be perfectly proper within the limits of personality. It is only when we have the ability to deny them, in our determination to serve others, that we are approaching the region of saving strength. This is the real Christian secret. When at Caesarea Philippi, Peter said to his Master, "Spare Thyself," he was uttering the words of worldly wisdom - he was minding the things of men. That was why he was so sternly rebuked by Him Who, minding the things of God, actuated by the heavenly wisdom, could not spare or save Himself, because He desired to save others.
Note: To the best of our knowledge we are of the understanding that the above material, all published before 1926 and freely available elsewhere on the internet in various formats, is in the public domain.