Morning and Evening Podcast

“And it came to pass in an evening-tide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house.” — 2 Samuel 11:2

At that hour David saw Bathsheba. We are never out of the reach of temptation. Both at home and abroad we are liable to meet with allurements to evil; the morning opens with peril, and the shades of evening find us still in jeopardy. They are well kept whom God keeps, but woe unto those who go forth into the world, or even dare to walk their own house unarmed. Those who think themselves secure are more exposed to danger than any others. The armour-bearer of Sin is Self-confidence.
David should have been engaged in fighting the Lord’s battles, instead of which he tarried at Jerusalem, and gave himself up to luxurious repose, for he arose from his bed at eventide. Idleness and luxury are the devil’s jackals, and find him abundant prey. In stagnant waters noxious creatures swarm, and neglected soil soon yields a dense tangle of weeds and briars. Oh for the constraining love of Jesus to keep us active and useful!

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“And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion.” — Rev. 14:1

The apostle John was privileged to look within the gates of heaven, and in describing what he saw, he begins by saying, “I looked, and, lo, a Lamb!” This teaches us that the chief object of contemplation in the heavenly state is “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world.” Nothing else attracted the apostle’s attention so much as the person of that Divine Being, who hath redeemed us by His blood. He is the theme of the songs of all glorified spirits and holy angels. Christian, here is joy for thee; thou hast looked, and thou hast seen the Lamb. Through thy tears thine eyes have seen the Lamb of God taking away thy sins. Rejoice, then. In a little while, when thine eyes shall have been wiped from tears, thou wilt see the same Lamb exalted on His throne. It is the joy of thy heart to hold daily fellowship with Jesus;

[Read more…] about January 17th Morning

“The Messiah shall be cut off, but not for himself.” — Daniel 9:26

Blessed be His name, there was no cause of death in Him. Neither original
nor actual sin had defiled Him, and therefore death had no claim upon Him. No man could have taken His life from Him justly, for He had done no
man wrong, and no man could even have lain Him by force unless He had
been pleased to yield Himself to die. But lo, one sins and another suffers.
Justice was offended by us, but found its satisfaction in Him. Rivers of
tears, mountains of offerings, seas of the blood of bullocks, and hills of
frankincense, could not have availed for the removal of sin; but Jesus was
cut off for us, and the cause of wrath was cut off at once, for sin was put
away for ever. Herein is wisdom, whereby substitution, the sure and
speedy way of atonement, was devised! Herein is condescension, which
brought Messiah, the Prince, to wear a crown of thorns, and die upon the
cross! Herein is love, which led the Redeemer to lay down His life for His
enemies!

[Read more…] about January 16th Evening

“I will help thee, saith the Lord.” — Isaiah 41:14

This morning let us hear the Lord Jesus speak to each one of us: “I will
help thee.” “It is but a small thing for Me, thy God, to help thee. Consider
what I have done already. What! not help thee? Why, I bought thee with
My blood. What! not help thee? I have died for thee; and if I have done the
greater, will I not do the less? Help thee! It is the least thing I will ever do
for thee; I have done more, and will do more. Before the world began I
chose thee. I made the covenant for thee. I laid aside My glory and became
a man for thee; I gave up My life for thee; and if I did all this, I will surely
help thee now. In helping thee, I am giving thee what I have bought for
thee already. If thou hadst need of a thousand times as much help, I would
give it thee; thou requirest little compared with what I am ready to give.
‘Tis much for thee to need, but it is nothing for me to bestow. ‘Help thee?’
Fear not! If there were an ant at the door of thy granary asking for help, it
would not ruin thee to give him a handful of thy wheat; and thou art
nothing but a tiny insect at the door of My all-sufficiency. ‘I will help
thee.’”

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“But I give myself unto prayer.” — Psalm 109:4

Lying tongues were busy against the reputation of David, but he did not
defend himself; he moved the case into a higher court, and pleaded before
the great King Himself. Prayer is the safest method of replying to words of
hatred. The Psalmist prayed in no cold-hearted manner, he gave himself to
the exercise — threw his whole soul and heart into it — straining every
sinew and muscle, as Jacob did when wrestling with the angel. Thus, and
thus only, shall any of us speed at the throne of grace. As a shadow has no
power because there is no substance in it, even so that supplication, in
which a man’s proper self is not thoroughly present in agonizing
earnestness and vehement desire, is utterly ineffectual, for it lacks that
which would give it force. “Fervent prayer,” says an old divine, “like a
cannon planted at the gates of heaven, makes them fly open.” The common
fault with the most of us is our readiness to yield to distractions.

[Read more…] about January 15th Evening

“Do as thou hast said.” — 2 Samuel 7:25

God’s promises were never meant to be thrown aside as waste paper; He
intended that they should be used. God’s gold is not miser’s money, but is
minted to be traded with. Nothing pleases our Lord better than to see His
promises put in circulation; He loves to see His children bring them up to
Him, and say, “Lord, do as Thou hast said.” We glorify God when we
plead His promises. Do you think that God will be any the poorer for
giving you the riches He has promised? Do you dream that He will be any
the less holy for giving holiness to you? Do you imagine He will be any
the less pure for washing you from your sins? He has said “Come now,
and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall
be as wool.” Faith lays hold upon the promise of pardon, and it does not
delay, saying,

[Read more…] about January 15th Morning