Morning By Morning #358

Friend, move up to a better place.

Luke 14:10

From the pen of Charles Spurgeon:

When the life of grace first begins in the soul, we do indeed draw closer to God, but it is with great fear and trembling. A soul who has become aware of his guilt, and who truly has been humbled by it, is overwhelmed by the sacredness of his new position in God’s grace and is brought down to earth by an awareness of the grandeur of Jehovah in whose presence he now stands. Thus, with true humility, the soul seeks the lowest, or most humble, place.

Although true believers will never forget the sacredness of their new position and will never lose the sense of holy awe surrounding it, the ongoing walk with Christ causes the earlier feelings of fear and terror to subside. As a Christian grows in grace, the fear of being in the very presence of the God who can create or destroy becomes more of a holy reverence and is no longer an overshadowing dread. As believers mature, they are called “to a better place”—a place of greater access to God in Christ Jesus. As they begin their walk amid the glorious splendor of Deity as well as amid the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ, they veil their faces like heavenly cherubim do with their wings. As they reverently and submissively approach the Lord’s throne, they see a God of love, goodness, and mercy and more fully realize the covenant character of God. Rather than cowering in fear before the absolute Deity, they recognize more of God’s goodness as opposed to His greatness, and more of His love as opposed to His majesty.

At this point of Christian maturity, the soul, while still humbly bowing and continuing to prostrate itself before the glory of the infinite God, will enjoy a more sacred liberty of intercession and will be sustained by the refreshing awareness of being in the presence of limitless mercy, infinite love, and total acceptance “in the beloved” (Eph. 1:6 KJV).

Thus, the believer is invited “to a better place” and is enabled to exercise the privilege of rejoicing in God and drawing closer to Him in holy confidence, while saying, “Abba, Father” (Rom. 8:15).

So may we go from strength to strength,

And daily grow in grace,

Till in Your image raised at length,

We see You face to face.

Author unknown

From the pen of Jim Reimann:

The words of today’s poem, “So may we go from strength to strength,” are based on Psalm 84, which beautifully describes the believer’s pilgrimage that ultimately leads to the very throne of God. May these words be our prayer this morning:

“Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you. Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage… They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion…Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked” (Ps. 84:4 – 5, 7, 10).