22 OCTOBER (1876)
Rest for the labouring
‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.’ Matthew 11:28–29
SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: Ecclesiastes 1:12–2:11
Some of you are labouring after happiness. You think to find it in gain, hoarding up your pounds and seeking for rest in the abundance of your beloved wealth. You will never have enough till you get Christ, but then you will be full to the brim. Contentment is the peculiar jewel of the beloved of the Lord Jesus. All the Indies could not fill a human heart: the soul is insatiable till it finds the Saviour; then it leans on him and enters into perfect peace.
Perhaps you are labouring after fame. You despise gold, but long to obtain a great name. Alas, ambition’s ways are very weary, and he who climbs to the loftiest peak of honour finds that it is a slippery place where rest is quite unknown. Take a friend’s advice and care no longer for man’s praise, for it is mere wind. If you would rise to a great name, become a Christian, for the name of Christ is the ‘name which is above every name’, and it is bliss to be hidden beneath it and overshadowed by it. Christ will not make you great among men, but he will make you so little in your own esteem that the lowest place at his table will more than satisfy you. He will give you rest from that delirious dream of ambition, and fire you with a higher ambition than ever.
What are you labouring for? Is it knowledge? I commend you: it is a good possession and a choice treasure. Search for it as for silver. But all the knowledge that is to be had from the zenith to the centre of the earth will never satisfy your understanding, till you know Christ and are found in him. He can give rest to your soul by giving you the knowledge of God and a sense of his love. Whatever it is you labour after, come to Jesus and he will give you rest.
FOR MEDITATION: No one had as much happiness, fame and knowledge as Solomon (1 Kings 4:29–34; 10:1–8), but he received earthly blessings for seeking God and his wisdom instead of them (1 Kings 3:7–14). In Proverbs 3 he tells us to admit the lack of wisdom (vv. 5 & 7), approach the Lord of wisdom (vv. 5–7, 19) and avoid the loss of wisdom (v. 21). This will bring true happiness, gain and honour (vv. 13–18).
C. H. Spurgeon and Terence Peter Crosby, 365 Days with Spurgeon (Volume 4), (Leominster, UK: Day One Publications, 2007), 306.
22 OCTOBER (1876)
Rest for the labouring
‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.’ Matthew 11:28–29
SUGGESTED FURTHER READING: Ecclesiastes 1:12–2:11
Some of you are labouring after happiness. You think to find it in gain, hoarding up your pounds and seeking for rest in the abundance of your beloved wealth. You will never have enough till you get Christ, but then you will be full to the brim. Contentment is the peculiar jewel of the beloved of the Lord Jesus. All the Indies could not fill a human heart: the soul is insatiable till it finds the Saviour; then it leans on him and enters into perfect peace.
Perhaps you are labouring after fame. You despise gold, but long to obtain a great name. Alas, ambition’s ways are very weary, and he who climbs to the loftiest peak of honour finds that it is a slippery place where rest is quite unknown. Take a friend’s advice and care no longer for man’s praise, for it is mere wind. If you would rise to a great name, become a Christian, for the name of Christ is the ‘name which is above every name’, and it is bliss to be hidden beneath it and overshadowed by it. Christ will not make you great among men, but he will make you so little in your own esteem that the lowest place at his table will more than satisfy you. He will give you rest from that delirious dream of ambition, and fire you with a higher ambition than ever.
What are you labouring for? Is it knowledge? I commend you: it is a good possession and a choice treasure. Search for it as for silver. But all the knowledge that is to be had from the zenith to the centre of the earth will never satisfy your understanding, till you know Christ and are found in him. He can give rest to your soul by giving you the knowledge of God and a sense of his love. Whatever it is you labour after, come to Jesus and he will give you rest.
FOR MEDITATION: No one had as much happiness, fame and knowledge as Solomon (1 Kings 4:29–34; 10:1–8), but he received earthly blessings for seeking God and his wisdom instead of them (1 Kings 3:7–14). In Proverbs 3 he tells us to admit the lack of wisdom (vv. 5 & 7), approach the Lord of wisdom (vv. 5–7, 19) and avoid the loss of wisdom (v. 21). This will bring true happiness, gain and honour (vv. 13–18).
C. H. Spurgeon and Terence Peter Crosby, 365 Days with Spurgeon (Volume 4), (Leominster, UK: Day One Publications, 2007), 306.
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