Daily Bible Notes: September, 4th
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
I will; be thou clean.
Mark 1:41
Primeval darkness heard the Almighty fiat, "light be," and straightway light was, and the word of the Lord Jesus is equal in majesty to that ancient word of power. Redemption like Creation has its word of might.
Jesus speaks and it is done. Leprosy yielded to no human remedies, but it fled at once at the Lord’s "I will." The disease exhibited no hopeful signs or tokens of recovery, nature contributed nothing to its own healing, but the unaided word effected the entire work on the spot and for ever. The sinner is in a plight more miserable than the leper; let him imitate his example and go to Jesus, "beseeching Him and kneeling down to Him." Let him exercise what little faith he has, even though it should go no further than "Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean"; and there need be no doubt as to the result of the application. Jesus heals all who come, and casts out none. In reading the narrative in which our morning’s text occurs, it is worthy of devout notice that Jesus touched the leper. This unclean person had broken through the regulations of the ceremonial law and pressed into the house, but Jesus so far from chiding him broke through the law Himself in order to meet him. He made an interchange with the leper, for while He cleansed him, He contracted by that touch a Levitical defilement. Even so Jesus Christ was made sin for us, although in Himself He knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
O that poor sinners would go to Jesus, believing in the power of His blessed substitutionary work, and they would soon learn the power of His gracious touch. That hand which multiplied the loaves, which saved sinking Peter, which upholds afflicted saints, which crowns believers, that same hand will touch every seeking sinner, and in a moment make him clean. The love of Jesus is the source of salvation. He loves, He looks, He touches us, WE LIVE.
Evening
Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have.
Leviticus 19:36
Weights, and scales, and measures were to be all according to the standard of justice. Surely no Christian man will need to be reminded of this in his business, for if righteousness were banished from all the world beside, it should find a shelter in believing hearts. There are, however, other balances which weigh moral and spiritual things, and these often need examining.
We will call in the officer to-night.
The balances in which we weigh our own and other men’s characters, are they quite accurate? Do we not turn our own ounces of goodness into pounds, and other persons’ bushels of excellence into pecks? See to weights and measures here, Christian. The scales in which we measure our trials and troubles, are they according to standard? Paul, who had more to suffer than we have, called his afflictions light, and yet we often consider ours to be heavy - surely something must be amiss with the weights! We must see to this matter, lest we get reported to the court above for unjust dealing. Those weights with which we measure our doctrinal belief, are they quite fair? The doctrines of grace should have the same weight with us as the precepts of the word, no more and no less; but it is to be feared that with many one scale or the other is unfairly weighted. It is a grand matter to give just measure in truth. Christian, be careful here. Those measures in which we estimate our obligations and responsibilities look rather small. When a rich man gives no more to the cause of God than the poor contribute, is that a just ephah and a just hin? When ministers are half starved, is that honest dealing? When the poor are despised, while ungodly rich men are held in admiration, is that a just balance? Reader, we might lengthen the list, but we prefer to leave it as your evening’s work to find out and destroy all unrighteous balances, weights, and measures.
2. "My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year" by J.H.Jowett
Matthew 8:5-13
5 When he came into Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking him,
6 and saying, "Lord, my servant lies in the house paralysed, grievously tormented."
7 Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him."
8 The centurion answered, "Lord, I'm not worthy for you to come under my roof. Just say the word, and my servant will be healed.
9 For I am also a man under authority, having under myself soldiers. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and tell another, 'Come,' and he comes; and tell my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."
10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to those who followed, "Most certainly I tell you, I haven't found so great a faith, not even in Israel.
11 I tell you that many will come from the east and the west, and will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven,
12 but the children of the Kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
13 Jesus said to the centurion, "Go your way. Let it be done for you as you have believed." His servant was healed in that hour.
A PORTRAIT OF A GREAT SUPPLIANT
Here we have the grace of sympathy; one man troubled about the sickness of another. We are drawing very near to the Lord when our soul vibrates responsively to another man's need. We can measure our likeness to the Lord by the range of our sensitiveness to the world's sorrow and pain. Our God is the "Father of pities"; He is sensitive in every direction, no side is numb, and we are putting on His likeness in proportion as we attain an all-round responsiveness to the cries of human need.
And here we have the grace of humility. "I am not worthy!" Our pride always blocks "the way of the Lord." Our humility makes us porous to the Divine. The "poor in spirit" are already in the kingdom, and the gracious powers of the kingdom are commanded to attend their bidding.
And here we have the grace of faith. "Only say the word!" The centurion conceives the Lord's words as soldiers attending on the Lord's will. Let one be spoken, and at once the mission is executed. And so it is. "The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life." His words are vehicles of power, and when they are spoken, miracles are always wrought. "The entrance of Thy word giveth light."
3. "Yet Another Day - A Prayer for Every Day of the Year" by John H.Jowett
September 4th.
My God, help me to renew my vows. If I am oppressed with my failures, may the pain make me wiser! Save me from despair.
Light up my hope. Kindle anew my zeal. Help me to lean upon Thee!
4. "The Cheque Book of the Bank of Faith" by C.H.Spurgeon.
But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the Lord their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword,
nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.
Hosea 1:7
Precious word! Jehovah himself will deliver his people in the greatness of his mercy, but he will not do it by the ordinary means. Men are slow to render to God the glory due unto his name. If they go to battle with sword and bow, and win the victory, they ought to praise their God; yet they do not, but begin to magnify their own right arm, and glory in their horses and horsemen. For this reason our Jehovah often determines to save his people without second means, that all the honour may be to himself alone.
Look, then, my heart, to the Lord alone, and not to man. Expect to see God all the more clearly when there is no one else to look to. If I have no friend, no adviser, no one at my back, let me be none the less confident if I can feel that the Lord himself is on my side; yea, let me be glad if he gives victory without battle, as the text seems to imply. Why do I ask for horses and horsemen if Jehovah himself has mercy upon me, and lifts up his arm for my defence? Why need I bow or sword if God will save? Let me trust, and not be afraid, from this day forth and for evermore. Amen.
5. "The Morning Message" by G.Campbell Morgan.
If Christ be in you the body is dead because of sin; but the spirit is life because of righteousness.
Romans 8:10
Notice where the apostle places the emphasis of personality. It is not upon the body, but upon the spirit. The worshipper is man as a spirit. The sacrificial symbol of worship is his own body. This he is called upon to present to God, and the apostle declares that this act is of the nature of spiritual worship.
6. "An Evening Meditation" taken from "Searchlights from the Word" by G.Campbell Morgan.
Surely the wrath of man shall praise Thee; the residue of wrath shalt Thou gird upon Thee.
Psalms 76:10
The theme of this Psalm is the same as that of the previous one. It celebrates a victory which God had won on behalf of His people. The singer's chief joy in this victory was caused by the fact that therein God had been made known, and the greatness of His Name proclaimed. This is made clear in the opening stanzas, and it runs through the whole song as the mastertone of the music. In these particular words we have a poetical statement of a great principle. It is a wonderful revelation of God's overruling of evil. The phrase, "The wrath of man," here stands for all that is evil. It refers to the fierce passion of revolt, expressing itself in definite rebellion. Its appalling power has been seen in all the dire conflicts, inspired by evil desire, and unrighteous lust. This singer of the olden time had seen the wrath of man working havoc in human affairs, as we also have seen it. But he had watched closely, and he had seen God, surrounding all its activity by His Own presence and holding it within His Own grasp, and so compelling it at last to work out His Own purpose, and thus to work towards His praise. Then he had seen God, when the limit was reached, restrain this wrath, in the pictorial language of the singer, girding it upon Himself, and so preventing its further action under the will of man. The declaration of this Hebrew singer, from what he saw in his own day, may be applied to all human history. Thus God has ever compelled the wrath of man to praise Him; and this will He do, until He finally gird it upon Himself, a trophy of His victory, a sure sign at once of His power and His love.
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.