Part 32
them some idea how rich he was, for he went over the list of his
possessions–his flocks and herds, his silver and gold, his camels
and asses, his menservants and maidservants. Thus did he
commend his master, as I would also seek to commend mine.
Language fails me to speak of His greatness! This world is His and
all the worlds that He has made. "The silver is Mine, and the gold
is Mine, says the Lord of Hosts." He lays claim to all things in the
earth, animate and inanimate. "Every beast of the forest is Mine,
and the cattle upon a thousand hills." None other can be mentioned
beside Him. "Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His
hand and meted out Heaven with the span, and comprehended the
dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in
scales, and the hills in a balance?" So great is He that all other
things are small compared with Him. "Behold, the nations are as a
drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance:
behold, He takes up the isles as every little thing." Is He not a
glorious Master to serve? "How great is His goodness and how
great is His beauty!"
Having first spoken of his master, he told them that his master's
son was his heir. That was a very important point in the business.
And he spoke about how his master had put all that he had into the
hands of his son–that the promises were his and that the inheritance
would come to him. He called the son, "master," equally with the
father. I also desire to glorify God and to magnify Christ Jesus, His
Only-Begotten and Well-Beloved Son. It is the Father's will "that
all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father." He is
His Father's heir–He claimed the title in His parable of the wicked
husbandmen. When we come on our Master's business, we seek
those who shall become "heirs of God, and jointheirs with Christ."
This is the third point with Eliezer–he wanted one who would
leave her home and go and be one with his master's son. He said
that his master's son needed a wife and he had come to seek one for
him. He needed one who would be willing to go on a long and
venturous journey and be a pilgrim in a strange land with her
husband. He would have no other than one who would give herself
up to the God of Israel and take a full share with Isaac in the
Covenant blessing. Well, now, that is my case, too. The Lord God,
the Creator of Heaven and earth, has all manner of good things to
bestow upon the sinful sons of men. There is no measuring the
Grace and love of God and He would have you to be His people
that He may be your God. He wants those who will be willing to
leave all and be united to His Only-Begotten Son, the Lord Jesus,
who for our salvation came down from Heaven and took our
nature, and lived in it–who took our sin and died for us–that we
might be pardoned and forever saved. The Son must see of the
travail of His soul. There must be souls that shall be eternally saved
through believing on Him. He cannot die in vain! He must have a
people who shall be to Him a bride, with whom He shall delight
Himself forever and ever. And the question is, are there any such
here? Are there any here who will yield themselves to His sweet
love, who will trust themselves with Him, as Rebekah trusted
herself with Isaac–who will come out of the world–and live the
separated life with Him? This is the errand on which we have
come.
And Eliezer added that he hoped that he had found the right
person. He believed that it was Rebekah, for he had put it before
God in prayer–and in answer to his prayer she had come. She had
done exactly as he had laid it down in prayer that she should do.
Now, I have a hope dancing in my heart that I have, on this
occasion, found the right person. I often wonder why some people
are here. There has come into the Tabernacle on the Lord's-Day,
many a time, a runaway from his father's house in the country. He
has come to London to sin and he has little thought that he came to
London to be saved–but here the Word of God has laid hold upon
him! There has dropped in here a sailor who had only been a day or
two in port, and the last thing that he ever thought was that he
should be converted! But here he came and found eternal life! Your
coming here in such numbers and your eyes, as you look at me,
encourage me, while your willingness to hear what I have to say
inspires me to fearlessly deliver my Master's message! Surely God
means to bless you! If He gives the hearing ear, will He not give
the broken heart? And if He has led you to be anxious to listen to
my message, are you not, many of you, the very persons whom He
has appointed to be forever united to His beloved Son?
The case being thus faithfully stated by Eliezer, he now pressed
for a reply. "If you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell
me. If Rebekah will go with me to be the wife of Isaac, tell me." So
I put it to you. If you are willing to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ
and are ready to leave the world and all its temptations and come to
Him, say so! Tell me. Let us know if you have now come to a
turning point. You remember how the Roman ambassadors
demanded of some who came to them that they should, on the spot,
decide whether they meant war with Rome or submission to it?
When they asked for time, the ambassadors drew a circle round
them, and said, "Before you exit that circle, you must settle
whether it is to be peace or war." I would draw, here, a circle round
some of you and say, "Your portion must be either salvation or
damnation. You have already been hesitating and halting too long.
Do not leave that seat till you have decided, one way or the other."
There is, just under the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral, a spot which
I once had pointed out to me–it must have been 40 years ago–
where a workman, busily engaged at the top of the dome, fell, and,
of course, was dashed to pieces on the floor. And I saw the mark of
his chisel on the place where he was killed. I wonder whether there
are any marks in these pews where souls were lost, where some
have parleyed with God, refused His Grace, resisted His Spirit and
gone thenceforth the downward road? I would to God that, instead
thereof, there might be some mark where the Grace of God has
worked effectual salvation! I believe there is not a single pew or
seat in the aisles in this place, that might not legitimately be
marked as a place where souls have been saved, for, time out of
mind, when friends come here and speak on Monday nights, you
must have noticed how one of them says, "The third seat from that
pillar over yonder was the place where I sat when the Light of God
came." And another says, "Christ found me in a back seat in the top
gallery," and so on, until they have pointed to almost every part of
the building as the place where God has called someone by His
Grace! I hope that some of you are now sitting in the very spot
where you are predestinated to be born again unto everlasting life!
II. In the second place, it is clearly set before us, that when
Eliezer had stated his case, HE WISHED TO HAVE A
FAVORABLE REPLY. I might almost say he expected it. After his
wonderful guidance and his hospitable reception, his hopes would
rise high that his quest would be speedily brought to a satisfactory
end.
If a favorable reply was given to him, it would enable him to
execute his errand. Whereas, if the answer was against him, he
could not, then, carry out his master's orders. If no soul gets saved
through this discourse, I cannot carry on my business. "Oh, well,"
says one, "a man may preach very faithfully and yet he may have
no souls saved." Yes, a fisherman may fish and never catch any
fish, but he is not much of a fisherman, and so, if there were no
souls saved, perhaps I might find some way of satisfying my
conscience, but it is unknown to me as yet! I have never sought
such a solace and hope I never shall. With me it is, "Give me
children, or else I die." If you are not saved and brought to Christ, I
feel as if I must give up my work of preaching to you. I cannot
stand here beating the air. If my hearers are not converted, I have
lost my time–I have lost the exercise of brain and heart! I feel as if
I had lost my hope and lost my life unless I find for my Lord some
of His blood-bought ones–and I must find some of them by this
sermon!
I think that Eliezer longed for a favorable reply because it would
be an answer to his prayer. Possibly you have not prayed for
yourself, but we have prayed for you–not that we know your name,
or your case–but we have often gone over in secret a case just like
yours, and we can say that we have brought you before God in
earnest supplication. And perhaps there are godly people at home
who are praying that as you are here, you may get a blessing. I
frequently see people who come to join the Church and they say,
"My husband is not converted," or, "My daughter is not
converted." "Do you get them to come and hear the Word?" I ask.
"Oh, yes, Sir, they come and hear!" "Well," I have said, "if you get
them into the battle, where the shots are flying, they are very likely
to be wounded." So we have often prayed that when some of you
have been persuaded to come and hear the Word of God, the Spirit
of God may get hold of you and that you may fall wounded beneath
His sharp sword, or receive an arrow between the joints of the
harness!
The principal reason, however, why this good man wanted to find
a willing response about Rebekah was because it would gladden his
master's son. "Oh," he thought, "what joy I shall give him if I take
back to him the right woman, the wife whom God has appointed
for him! He has lost his mother, Sarah, and he is pining and
grieving. But if I can take him back one who will fill her place in
his tender heart, I shall rejoice." As for us, our one business is to
make glad the heart of Christ! His heart was pierced with a spear
after having been broken with great anguish–and there is nothing
that will refresh Him like a soul yielding itself to His care. Who
will do that here? Are there any in this house who are now saying,
"I will belong to Christ from this time forth. I will trust Him, for
He loved me, and gave Himself for me"? Happy messenger, to
stand here and tell His story, and to say, "My Lord is waiting for
you in the far country. He has sent me to invite you to share with
Him all that He has! If your heart is willing to take Him, He gives
Himself to you."
His only complaint is, "You will not come unto Me that you
might have life." And His declaration is, "Him that comes to Me I
will in no wise cast out." Any, "him" that comes to Him, He will
receive and bless! Eliezer was quite sure his master would deal
tenderly and truly with Rebekah, therefore he asked her father and
brother to "deal kindly and truly" with him. I am quite sure that my
Master will deal "kindly and truly" with you–He could not do
otherwise! If you but knew His heart, or had a glimpse of His
beauty, you would hesitate no longer. Will you not give Him a
favorable answer, and say, "Yes, we will deal kindly and truly with
your Master, and will yield our hearts to Him at once and forever"?
I think, too, that Eliezer had begun to feel that it would be for
Rebekah's benefit to go to his master. He had seen her face at the
well. He liked the style of the young woman and he thought, "If I
can get her for Isaac, she will be settled in life; she will be the
mistress and queen of a great household; she will have a happy
husband and all that her heart can desire." As I think of some here
who have never found peace, I say to myself that if I could only get
you to Christ, how happy you would be! If you would come and
trust Him, your everlasting fortune would be made. If you would
yield yourselves to Him, there would be an end of sin, an end of
doubt, an end of fear and an end of terror. You would be saved!
Your morality, which is now so precarious, would rise into a solid
spirituality, for you would be made holy through the indwelling
Spirit. Seeing that this would be the case, could I do you a better
turn than to lead you to Jesus?
John B. Gough tells a story of how he was fetched from a railway
station to speak. one night, and the cab that was sent for him had a
broken window. He noticed that the man who came in the cab put a
handkerchief over his head as he sat close up against the hole in the
window–and then he observed that he put his head against the
window. Mr. Gough said, "Have you a cold in your head?" "No,"
he said, "but there is a nasty hole in this pane of glass and I am
afraid that you may take cold. I am sticking my head into the hole
to shield you, for you taught me to be a man and a Christian." Such
gratitude as that was most touching–and if we can bring any to
Christ, I am sure they will be very grateful to us. If we can lead
them to Jesus, they will feel as if they could not do too much for us.
therefore out of love to them, having so many who are now our
dear children in Christ, we would plead with them, and say, "Give
us a good answer and say 'Yes' to the overture of our Master's
Son."
III. But now the point of the text is that HE WAS DETERMINED
TO HAVE AN ANSWER. He says, "If you will deal kindly and
truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me." He would have
their answer, whether it was, "Yes," or, "No." "If not, tell me." May
I ask that everyone here will say, "Yes," or, "No," to the invitation
to give himself up to Christ? If you will do so, say, "I will." If you
will not do so, say deliberately, "I will not." I wish I could get hold
of an undecided man and, taking his hand, could say to him, "Now,
you must tell me which it will be." I can imagine some of you
would say, "Oh, give me time to consider!" and I would reply,
"You have had time to consider. Your hair is getting gray." In spite
of all our entreaties, people say, "Oh, but I do not like to decide so
suddenly!" If I asked you whether you would be honest, I hope that
you would not take many minutes to answer that! Why, then,
should you hesitate so long in giving your adherence to Christ? I
am like Abraham's servant–I must have an answer!
But can we rightly press men to decide if we fear that they will
answer, "No"? I think we may, because, from the nature of the
case, no answer means a denial. How many of our hearers have
thus, for years, turned their back upon Christ by the simple method
of giving no answer at all? "We hear what you say, Sir," they
murmur, "and thank you for saying it," but, nevertheless, they go
out and go on their way–and forget what manner of men they are!
Such a response is a refusal–and it is none the less a refusal
because you will probably retort, "But I did not say, 'No,' Sir.
Indeed, one of these days I may, perhaps, say, 'Yes.'" But,
meanwhile, you reject the proposal and refuse to give yourself up
to the Lord! The question is, Will you believe in the Lord Jesus
Christ? The absence of an affirmative answer means, "No, I will
not." I am sure that it does in every case. No argument can be
raised about that.
But if you will answer me, "No, I will not have Christ. I will not
believe on Him. I will not become a Christian. I will not leave my
old ways–I mean to go on in them," well, I thank you for the
answer, pained as I am, because now we can talk it over! This is
better than no response, for now we have something to work upon.
An ill answer can be considered, while no answer baffles all our
efforts to help you! It is far more hopeful to encounter opposition
than to meet with indifference. It is a great thing, when a ship is at
sea, for the captain to know whereabouts he is–and when we meet
with those who distinctly reject Christ–we at once know our
bearings. If you say, "No, I am not a Christian and I do not want to
be," so far you are honest and I need you, now, to think it over.
Would you like to die in this frame of mind? You may die where
you are sitting! Are you wise to come to this determination? Do
you think that this is a resolution which you can justify before the
judgement bar of God? You will certainly have to appear there!
After death you will rise again when the trumpet of the archangel
sounds and, as surely as you are here, you will have to stand before
the Great White Throne whereon Christ will sit as Judge! How will
the resolution which you have now made stand the light of that
tremendous Day? I pray you, think of it, and I hope that you will
alter your decision as many another man has done when he has
calmly considered the magnitude of the issues at stake and the
awful result which must come of rejecting Him who is now the
Savior, but who will one day sit as the Judge!
But we are the more determined to press you for some decision
because an ill answer will set us free to go to others. You see,
Eliezer says, "If not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to
the left." Do not suppose that if you refuse Christ, He will lose the
effect of His death! "He shall see of the travail of His soul and shall
be satisfied." If you will not come unto Him, others will. If you
reject Him, He has a people who will accept Him, by His almighty
Grace. O Sirs, if you that hear the Gospel will not have my Master,
we will go and bring in the publicans and harlots–and they shall
enter the Kingdom of Heaven before you! Sons of pious parents,
children of Sunday schools, if you believe not, you shall be cast
into "outer darkness" where shall be "weeping and gnashing of
teeth"–while the people whom you despise–infidels and
profligates, the very scum of society, shall accept the Savior and
live!
Oh, I charge you, think not that your refusal of the Gospel
invitation will leave any gaps in the ranks of the redeemed! Our
Savior, in His parable of the marriage of the king's son, foretold
what will happen. The king said to his servants, "The wedding is
ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy. Go you,
therefore, into the highways and as many as you shall find, bid to
the marriage. So those servants went out into the highways and
gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good:
and the wedding was furnished with guests." But I would urge you
to yield yourself unto the Lord, that you may be found at the
marriage supper of the Lamb. Do not trifle with eternal matters! If
you want to play the fool, do it with counters or with pebbles, but
not with your soul that shall live forever in bliss or in woe!
My importunity with you is strengthened when I think that,
perhaps, if you give me the answer straight out, "No, I am not a
Christian and I do not mean to be one," you may, in saying it, see
more clearly what a terrible decision you have arrived at. An ill
answer may startle you and ultimately lead you to repent of your
folly and reverse your decision! If you would write down–"I am
not a Christian and I never mean to be one," it might startle you
still more. I challenge you to do so! And when it is written, put it
over the mantelpiece and look at it. It will be far better to do that,
horrible as it is, than to continue in this state of wicked suspense,
indifferent as to whether you are lost or saved, undecided whether
you are for Christ or against Him and yet, in your heart of hearts,
dead in trespasses and sins! In this very place, I once urged those
who were undecided to go home and write down, either the word,
"Saved," or, "Lost," and sign their name to the paper. One man,
when he got into his house, asked for pen and paper. And when his
wife enquired why he wanted it, he said he was going to do what
the parson said and write down, "Lost." She refused to fetch him
the paper if he was going to do that.
So he got it himself and put down a capital L. At that time his
little girl climbed up in the chair behind him and said, "No, father,
you shan't do that! I'd rather die than you should do that"–and the
child's tears fell on his hand as she spoke. What my sermon had
failed to do, those tears accomplished! The strong man was bowed
and yielded himself to Christ–and when they got up from their
knees in that little room, he took the pen, and changing the L into
an S, wrote "Saved." He was saved because he came face to face
with the fact that he was lost! His ill answer startled both himself
and his child! May God work the same change in you, both for
your own sake and also for the sake of your loved ones!
I want to press you for some kind of answer because, like Eliezer,
I have promised my Master to make a search for you and an ill
answer will clear me of my oath. If I can get a, "No," from you as
your answer, and am certain that you will not go with me to my
Master's Son, I shall be clear. It was so with Abraham's servant–he
and his master agreed to that at the first. When men say, "No," and
entreaties are of no further use, and the preaching of the Gospel has
no power over them, then we must leave them and carry the glad
tidings to others, just as Paul and Barnabas of old said to the angry
Jews at Antioch, "It was necessary that the Word of God should
first have been spoken to you: but seeing you put it from you and
judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the
Gentiles." I beseech you, do not put Christ away from you! And I
press you for a definite answer. I say, as Eliezer said, "If you will
deal kindly and truly with my Master, tell me: and if not, tell me;
that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left."
Now I want to have a little talk with you over this matter. My
dear Friend, you are in peril of eternal death. While you are
hesitating, life is ebbing. During the past few months, how many of
our dear friends have been taken away by influenza and other
causes! This congregation has suffered from sickness, in family
after family, as I never knew it suffer before! May you not be
taken? I charge you, therefore, do not act as though you had plenty
of time. Possibly you have not another week to live! The clock, as
it ticks, seems to me to say, "Now, now, now, now, now, now." And
for some of you, there is an alarm in the clock, which, when it runs
down, utters this warning, "Now or never, now or never, now or
never."
After all, the matter that we have in hand is not one that requires
great debate! Whether I will believe the Truth of God or not should
not be a matter of discussion. Whether I will receive the gift of God
or not should not be a thing to be argued about if I am in my right
mind! Whether, being lost, I am willing to be saved–whether,
having the Gospel of eternal life proclaimed to me, I should accept
it by faith–well, I need not ask the sages as to what I shall answer,
nor need I go to the Law Courts to consult the judges as to my
reply! This is a thing so simple that it requires no argument! Who
will choose to be damned? Who will refuse eternal life? Surely
these are questions that should be decided at once!
Waiting and trifling have done you no good up to now. The
countryman, when he wanted to cross the river, and found it deep,
said that he would sit down and wait till the water was all gone by.
He waited, but the river was just as deep after all his waiting! And
with all your delay, the difficulties in the way of your accepting
Christ do not get any less. If you look at the matter rightly, you will
see that there are no great difficulties in the way, nor were there
ever such obstacles as your imagination pictures.
Another countryman, having to cross Cheapside one morning,
was so confused by the traffic of omnibuses and cabs and foot
passengers that he said he felt sure he could not get across the road
and would wait till the people thinned out a little. But all day long
they never did thin out. Unless he had waited till the evening, he
would have found little difference in that perpetual stream of
hurrying people. O Friends, you have waited until you can get "a
convenient season" to become a Christian and, after all your delay,
the way is not any clearer! Twenty years ago some of you were as
near decisions for Christ as you are now. No, you seemed nearer! I
then thought, "Oh, some of them will soon believe in Jesus and
yield their hearts to Him!" But you said, then, that it was not quite
time. Is it time now? Is the day without difficulty any nearer? Is the
season any more suitable? No, indeed, there is no improvement!
Let me say that I believe that your waiting has not only done you
no good, but has positively done you great harm! There were times
when it seemed easy for you to yield to the pressure of the Divine
Spirit. It certainly is not easier now. Indeed, it is more difficult. I
think sometimes God treats men as Benjamin Franklin treated the
man who stood loafing in his bookshop and, at last took up a book
and asked, "How much is this?" Franklin replied, "A shilling." "A
shilling?" Franklin said, "a shilling." And he would not give the
price. After staying about 10 minutes, he said, "Come, Mr.
Franklin, now what will you take for it?" Franklin answered, "Two
shillings." "No," he said, "you are joking!" "I am not joking," said
Franklin, "the price is two shillings." The man waited and sat a
while, thinking. "I want the book," he drawled out, "still, I will not
give two shillings. What will you take for it?" Franklin said, "Three
shillings." "Well," the man said, "why do you raise your price?" To
which Franklin responded, "You see, you have wasted so much of
my time that I could better have afforded to take one shilling at first
than three shillings now."
Sometimes, if men come to Christ at the very first invitation, it is
a sweet and easy coming. See how dear young children often yield
themselves to Christ and how peaceful is their entrance into the rest
of faith! But when people wait. When they postpone believing.
When they violate conscience. When they tread down all the
uprising of holy thoughts within them, it becomes much harder for
them to trust in Christ than it would have been when He was first
preached to them. I come, therefore, to you, again, and say, "If you
will deal kindly and truly with my Master, tell me. And if not, tell
me, and tell me now."
"Well," says one, "I am glad you have spoken to us. I will think it
over." No, Friend, I do not mean that. I do not want you to think it
over. You have had enough of thinking! I pray that God's Spirit
may lead you to an immediate decision. "Well, suppose that we
consider it during the week?" you ask. No, that will not suit either
my Master or myself. I want the answer now. I am like a messenger
carrying a letter on which is written, "The bearer will wait for a
reply." I was once in a country town and I said to my host, when I
went to bed, "I have to be in London tomorrow and I cannot get up
in time for my work unless I leave by a train which I can catch
readily enough if you wake me at six o'clock." Well, my host was
an Irishman, so he woke me at five o'clock. And when I sat up in
bed, I said, "What time is it?" He said, "You have only another
hour to sleep."
The consequence was that I missed my train. If He had only
wakened me at the proper time and said, "Now you must get up," I
would have dressed at once, but as he said, "You have only another
hour to sleep," of course I slept that hour and another one as well,
for I was weary. The same principle applies to you. If I say to you,
"Go home and think it over all the week," I shall be giving you a
week in which to remain in rebellion against God! And I have no
right to do that. I shall be giving you a week in which you are to
continue an unbeliever–and he that is an unbeliever is in peril of
eternal ruin, for, "He that believes not shall be damned." Worse
than all, the week may lead to many other weeks–to months,
perhaps, and years–perhaps to a whole eternity of woe! I cannot
give you five minutes! God the Holy Spirit speaks by me, now, to
souls whom God has chosen from before the foundation of the
world! And He says, "Today, if you will hear His voice, harden not
your hearts." The Holy Spirit says, "Today, even today." "Turn you,
turn you from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of
Israel?" The question comes to you, Will you be Christ's? "If you
will deal kindly and truly with my Master, tell me: and if not, tell
me."
The best answer you can give is in the verses that follow the text.
"Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceeds from
the Lord: we cannot speak unto you bad or good. Behold, Rebekah
is before you; take her." Oh I wish some of you would thus respond
to my appeal this day! This thing is also from the Lord–it was He
who gave me this message–it was He who brought you to hear it!
Surely you will not be found fighting against God! Your heart is
open to Him–He sees the faintest desire that you have toward Him.
Breathe out your wish, now, and say, "My heart is before You–take
it."–
"Take my poor heart, and let it be
Forever closed to all but Thee!
Seal You my breast and let me wear
That pledge of love forever there."
He will not be slow to accept that which is offered to Him! He
will take you now and He will keep you forever!
"How is it to be done?" says one. The plan is very simple. Jesus
Christ took upon Himself the sins of all who ever will trust Him.
Come and rest upon His atoning Sacrifice. Give yourself up to Him
wholly and unreservedly and He will save Christ to save me. I
believe that the act of faith was very well set forth in the statement
of a poor imbecile. They said that he was an idiot, but I think that
he had more real sense than many a man who boasts of his
intellect. Someone said to him, "John, have you got a soul? "No,"
he said, "I ain't got no soul." "Why, John, how is that?" He replied,
"I had a soul once, but I lost it, and Jesus Christ found it, so I have
just let Him keep it." There is the whole philosophy of salvation.
You have lost your soul. Christ has found it! Let Him keep it! God
bless you! Amen. PORTION OF SCRIPTURE READ BEFORE
SERMON–Genesis 24.HYMNS FROM "OUR OWN HYMN
BOOK"–508, 670, 568, 658.LETTER FROM MR. SPURGEON:
DEAR READER–This sermon is an urgent appeal to the
undecided. And if you are in that condition, I would by this letter
press the suit home in the most personal manner. I am a sick man
who has narrowly escaped the hand of death and I feel that the
things of eternity ought not to be trifled with. To be saved at the
last, our wisdom is to be saved at once. If I had left my soul's
matters for a sick bed, I could not have attended to them there, for I
was delirious and the mind could not fix itself sensibly upon any
subject. Before the cloud lowers over your mind, give your best
attention to the Word of the Lord. I beseech you, dear Reader, to do
this, for you cannot tell how soon the hour of life may end.
It has been life to me to hear of souls saved by God's Grace
through these sermons and I am praying the Lord to give me a deep
and long draught of this heart-reviving joy, by causing me to hear
that this discourse is made to thousands the means of life from the
dead! It is a large request, but the Lord has said, "Open your mouth
wide and I will fill it." Thus would I open my mouth in prayer for
you, dear Reader, and thousands like you. Do you not, in your heart
of hearts, desire that the Lord would hear His servant's petition?
Yours to serve as strength returns, Mentone, November 14, 1891 C.
H. SPURGEON.
Ge 24:55 • Delay is Dangerous
ERMON 0772
Delay Is Dangerous
"And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with
us a few days, at least ten; after that she shall go."
Genesis 24:55
You know the story of which these words form a part. Abraham
was anxious to secure a wife for his son, Isaac. He sends, therefore,
his well-tried servant to the land of their forefathers and takes an
oath of him that he will bring a maiden from there who should be,
by her birth and character, suitable to her future destiny. The
venerable servant departs on his delicate and difficult errand. He
took all precautions and then commended his case to the wise
disposal of his own and his master's God. Success, which was in
perfect harmony with his faith and with the Divine promises, at
once crowned his efforts. The maiden best adapted above all others
to be the spouse of Isaac is sent to meet him. She immediately
responded to his wishes and conducted him to the house of her
brother.
The aged man was wise in his generation, and knew that a key of
gold has the power to open the heart most tightly locked either by
prejudice or pride–everything gives way before its subtle influence.
He had calculated wisely and his plans are matured at once into all
he had fervently desired and prayed for. No sooner had Abraham's
servant exhibited his offerings–jewels of silver and gold, with
earrings and bracelets of precious metal–then he at once won the
consent of Laban, Rebekah's brother, and of her mother. For what
would not Laban have agreed to do for the sake of such valuable
things?
The good servant, therefore, when he went to his bed that night,
might well have slept soundly, congratulating himself that he had
found in his anxious mission an easy task–that he should be able to
go back the next morning to his master, taking Rebekah with him–
and that the whole matter would be carried through with surprising
speed. Judge of his surprise when, the first thing Laban said in
answer to the good man's request, "Send me away," was, "Oh no,
we cannot afford to let you go just yet. We must have the damsel
here a little while longer, ten days at least."
I do not know what may have been Laban's particular reason, but
I suspect his motives were in keeping with his character. If you
observe his subsequent conduct with regard to Jacob, you may rest
assured that there was something in the background. He thought,
perhaps, that there were more golden bracelets to be had–that he
was parting with his sister rather too cheaply, that he must not let
the priceless gems go out of his hands too soon–therefore he would
keep the account open and bargain some more.
Or, if he could not get more out of the servant, he might at least
get ten days more service from the maiden, for she appears to have
been the keeper of the sheep of the household, and to have
performed the usual menial duties attended to by the young women
of the family in the East. So Laban may have thought he might as
well have her for ten days longer. It was just like he–he would have
as much as he ought to have, and as much more as he could get–
that was his honesty. He would get all that it was possible to
squeeze out of everybody–that was his generosity. We shall not,
however, have anything more to do with Laban tonight than to use
his desire to retain his good sister, Rebekah, as an illustration of the
way in which this wicked world endeavors to meet the invitations
of the Gospel–by trying to retain the awakened sinner a little longer
in its grasp.
I believe there are many here who have a hope that one day or
other they will be saved. They have consented, in their judgment,
that it is a right thing to be converted, but not yet. The world says,
"Yes, these are weighty considerations. You shall go with that Man.
You shall have Christ–you shall put your trust in Him–but not yet!
Stop just a little while." Satan's last counsel to his servants seems
to have been, "Do not openly oppose the Gospel. Give way to it,
but suggest delay–do not set men's consciences in opposition to
Gospel Truth, for that is a hammer, and perhaps it will break their
rocky hearts to pieces–but tell them to yield to the hammer. Tell
them to say, 'Yes, yes, it is all true, quite correct. But we must wait
a little longer, at least ten days. There is plenty of time. There is no
need to hurry. Let the damsel wait a little while, ten days at least.' "
I want to draw your attention, first of all, to the world's pretext
for this delay. I stand knocking tonight at the world's door, and I
say, "There is a young heart here I want for Christ." The world
replies, "All right, you shall have it one of these days, but there is
time enough, yet." I say of another, "Here is a man whose strength
and vigor I want for the Savior." "All right," says the world, "do
not be in such a fever about it. We are all agreed with you–we all
think as you do, that religion is important–but wait awhile, put it
off, take your time, tarry a little! There is no cause for all this hurry
and this fuss."
If I ask the world what it means by talking like this, it says, "Well,
you see, some of these people are so young. It is too soon for them
to think of giving their hearts to Christ–would you have all the
boys and girls turn saints? Would you have all the young men and
women walking in the ways of Christ, and following in the
footsteps of the Crucified?" I answer, "Yes, indeed, I would!" But I
wonder at the world's impudence in putting such a question as this
concerning some of you, for some of you are not young. You have
passed the period of youth years ago, and yet you are unconverted!
And if I might hold parley with the world about some of the
youngsters, I cannot about you.
Why, surely, the world cannot have the gall to tell me that you
who are 30, 40, 50, or even 60 years of age are still too young! I
should not wonder, indeed, but that it will turn around and tell me
that you are too old, and that your time of mercy is past and I am
too late! At any rate, Satan often does play both tunes, and while
today he says, "Too soon," tomorrow he cries, "Too late." Too
young to be saved? Is anyone too young to be happy? Too young to
be a Christian? Is anyone too young to get the richest treasure that
can make human hearts glad?
O young people, do not let the lying world tell you that you are
too young! When our Lord was on earth, He said, "Let the little
ones come unto Me, and forbid them not: for of such is the
kingdom of God." Do not believe that it is too soon for Christ to
welcome you! Your need of Him begins with your birth–for you are
born in sin and shaped in iniquity. As soon as ever you begin to act,
you begin to sin in acting. Your first tendency is to fall as soon as
ever you are on your feet. It is never too soon to have the strong
arm of a Savior put around you to hold you up, that you may be
safe.
Then the world says, "O wait a little longer! We should like these
young people to know something about life." Well, but, base world,
what do you mean by that? What have you to do with life? We, too,
want the young people to know something about life–but what is
life? Why, true life is to be found only in the followers of Christ in
whom is Life! "Well," says the world, "but we mean the life"–I
know what you mean! You mean the death. You want the young
people to know something about life, you say. I hear you. It is the
voice of the same hissing serpent that said, "You shall be as gods,
knowing good and evil."
And our mother Eve, in order to know evil as well as to know
good, has destroyed this race! And many a young man and young
woman, in trying to know good and to know evil, has come to
know that which has made the head to ache, and the heart to
palpitate, and the nerves to tingle with exquisite pain! That pain
which has brought the frail body to an early grave and the doomed
soul down to the lowest Hell! I pray God that our young people
may not know life in that aspect, but that they may know life in the
true sense, and search for it where only it is to be found–
"There is life for a look at the Crucified One,
There is life at this moment for you."
"Ah, then," says the world, putting on its best smiles, "it is all
very well for you to talk, but we do not want ouryoung people to
give up all their pleasure." And what have you to do with pleasure,
you painted Jezebel? What have you to do with happiness, false
deluder of souls? The world–this canting, hypocritical world–dares
to utter and dwell upon that word, "pleasure." But it does not know
what it means–ask those who have tried its joys–its princely minds
such as Byron, who, like an angel, flew through the Hell of this
world's pleasures. Ask them what they have made of it all, and
their only answer is in a groan and with a sigh, deeply heaving
from their inmost spirits. They join in modern times with the
verdict of the ancient royal philosopher who said, "Vanity of
vanity, all is vanity!"
Pleasure, indeed! Happiness, indeed! You base world, what do
you know about it? It is because we would have these people
possessed of pleasure that we wish them to be converted and that
we desire to see them joined to Christ! It is false, as false as God is
true, that religion makes men miserable. Spurious religion may do
so. They who worship Moloch may adore him with shrieks and
cries! But the worshipers of Jehovah bow before their God with
gladness! They come into His Presence with thanksgiving, and into
His courts with joy! The richest joy, the noblest festivities, the most
enchanting mirth that hearts can know is that which we find at our
Father's Throne when we adoringly worship Him and do Him
active service.
When the prodigal came trembling back from the far-off land to
his father's house, his misery ceased and his joy began as soon as
his father had spoken. What bliss must have thrilled him with the
word of his gracious parent's lips! The best robe! The precious
ring! The costly shoes! The fatted calf! All for me? Why, it seems
too good to be true! But so it is to be–and not only in his case, but
with us all! "Religion's ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her
paths are peace." Our cup has joy's quintessence distilled into it
and it is filled to the brim. "That your joy may be full," said the
Master. And it is full–as full as God's eternal love, as Christ's most
precious Grace and the Spirit's blest communion can make it! Yes,
as full as Heaven and eternal bliss can fill it.
Now I wonder what else the world has to say by way of wishing
to keep these people a few more days? Oh, yes! Oh, yes–I know–it
brings out the ledger and puts the pen behind its ear and it says, "A
young man ought to mind the main chance. He should get on in
business and then, when he has made a competence, he may sit
down and think about the world to come. But his first object should
be to make money." Yes, my good Sir, and if you would but speak
the whole of your mind, you would say that he ought, in the last
place, to make money, too. I knew your father well! He began life
as you would have these young people begin, and he plodded on,
and plodded on to the end of his allotted term–never having had
time to think about religion.
He was such a rare sensible old gentleman, such a wise man!
"What I want, are facts and figures," he said, "none of your
nonsense! Do not tell me about your opinions! I cast my books up
on Sunday–that is the way to spend your Sunday. I dare say when I
have nothing else to do I shall have time to think about my soul."
He was a rare "fine old English gentleman." A very wise old man.
But one night he lifted up his eyes in Hell, and with all his accurate
bookkeeping and balance of accounts, he had to sum it up–"No
profits! I have gained my wealth, but lost my soul!"
And oh, if he could come back again, he would say to his son,
"My son, you have better begin business at the right end. Make the
soul sure, first, and then look after the body. Hook yourself fast to
eternity and make that right–and then see after the slippery things
of time as best you can in subservience to that." At any rate, let Mr.
Worldly-Wiseman say what he may. God, who knows more about
us than we do about ourselves, says, "Seek you first the kingdom of
God and His righteousness, and all other things shall be added unto
you."
What is the drift of all this waiting? What the world means is just
this, "Ah," says Madam Bubble, "here is a young person
impressed–if we laugh at him it will deepen the impression. But we
will say to him, 'Come, come, let the impression go for a little
while. This is not the fit time. When you have a more convenient
season you can bring it on again.' " This game the old Tempter
keeps on playing over and over again. He does it very blandly–he
does not oppose religion, but "everything in its proper place," says
he–"and this is not just the time for it. Wait a little longer." He said
this to some of you ten years ago, and he is saying the same to you
tonight. And if you live he will say the same ten years from now,
and again when you are on your dying bed!
And so with this cunning he will cheat you out of your soul! The
world says, again, to itself, "Every time we get this impression put
off, we get the conscience more unlikely to receive it again, for no
man cripples his conscience without suffering injury." If I say to
my awakened conscience, "No, I will not hear you," my ears get
less retentive of the sound, and Mr. Conscience himself grows less
able to speak. When the knocking at the door has been heard for a
long time and not answered, a man gets to be so in the habit of
hearing the alarm that he could go to sleep and let a man knock all
night.
Moreover, the world says, "Well, if they do go at last, yet we will
exact from them as long a time of service as we can. Suppose they
do leave us and engage in the service of Christ, yet we shall have
had their help in the work of the devil for a good long time, and
they will be poor old lame things when they go limping into
Christ's service. They will not be good for much, then." The devil
knows that Christ loves the young, and therefore he tries to keep
the young from going to Him. "No," Satan says, "if He will have
that flower, I will not let Him have it in the bud if I can help it. He
shall have it when it gets full blown and much of its beauty has
gone from it. I will keep it with me while in its prime as long as I
can.
"Yes, and there is this thing in addition, that while I have it in my
power, I can do that to it which it can never get rid of in this life–I
will lead it into sins that shall cleave to its memory. I will teach that
young man vile songs that shall someday come up in his mind
when he begins to pray. I will show him scenes that shall stagger
him when he grows old, and make him cry as though his very
bones were broken." That is what the devil says! He wants to have
you altogether, or if he cannot do that he would have you wait a
little while.
O may God's eternal mercy come to your rescue and may you be
saved from Satan without waiting the ten days! May your hearts be
brought to Jesus now! And how sad the thought that Satan is
getting service out of some who will have to spend much of their
afterlife in trying to undo what they have, in their blindness, been
led to perform for the god of this world! What a waste of time and
talent to build up in misery today what you will wish, for very
shame, to pull down tomorrow! Some men have written books, or
done deeds in early life which will meet them as long as they live–
confronting them in the path of service and proving to be their
direst foes. It will be a source of ever recurring grief to find
yourself wounded by an arrow feathered thus out of your own
wing–to feel yourself crushed by stones your own heads set a
rolling in days gone by.
Thirdly, having exposed the pretexts of the world, and tried to
show its cruel designs, our real object is to have our hearers saved–
and to have them saved now. I never did come upon this platform
desiring that my ministry might be blessed to you months after you
had heard the sermon! I trust I have prayed times without number
that it might be blessed at once to the salvation of souls. It is an
immediate result that we must look for and labor to achieve. There
were three reasons why Abraham's servant wished Rebekah to go
with him at once–and these move me to desire your conversion
tonight.
First, he desired it for his Master's sake. He knew that Isaac was
looking forward to the happy day when he should be married to his
chosen bride. And oh, the heart of Jesus is longing after sinners. It
is a happy day for the Savior when He welcomes the lost ones. It is
one of Christ's wedding days when He gets a soul to come to Him.
Oh how the bells of Jesus' heart ring when He hears a soul say,
"God be merciful to me a sinner!" You know how He suffered! See
Him fastened to the tree! What is to pay Him for all His pangs?
Nothing–nothing but the love of your hearts when you come to
Him with all your sins, and say, "Jesus, forgive me!" May you,
then, come and trust Him now, saying–
"Just as I am, without one plea,
But that Your blood was shed for me,
And that You bid me come to You,
O Lamb of God, I come!"
Our Lord, for the "joy set before Him, endured the Cross,
despising the shame." It is written that He rejoices over us with joy
and singing, so that He reaps the fruit of His pains and groans in
our salvation.
When the shepherd lays the sheep on his shoulders, he returns
home rejoicing for he has found the sheep which was lost. The joy
of finding the strayed one compensates him for all his toil. He
forgets the length of the road, the toilsome climb up the mountains
in search of it. It is found! It is found! That is enough–that one
joyful cry embodies the measure of his satisfaction and rewards.
How Christ delights to save! This is how Christ is rewarded for His
soul's travail. Abraham's servant, too, desired it for his own sake
because he was a faithful steward, and wanted to do his business
well.
And how we desire your conversion for our sake! It will make us
so happy! There is no bliss that can come to the soul of the
Christian minister like the bliss of knowing that he has been made
the means of bringing some to Christ. It is in this way that we
receive at once the fulfillment of the Scripture, "In keeping His
commandments there is exceedingly great reward." We get our
reward while we are obeying His precept, "Go into all the world,
and preach the Gospel unto every creature." Our chief reward is in
Heaven, but even now, whenever a lost sheep is found or a prodigal
restored by Sovereign Grace through us, we immediately receive a
recompense.
My dear Brothers and Sisters in the Sunday school, your reward
is on high, but do you know what it is to have a crown of rejoicing
even here? I am sure you do, if ever you have seen that some young
spirits have been led by you to the Savior! Your hearts, full weary
before, have been refreshed and you have gone back to your labor
with more zeal than ever. Your desire has been increased and you
long more intensely after souls. Ask our Brothers, the city
missionaries, and our Sisters, the Bible-women, "What is your
encouragement in your arduous work?"
They would reply that next to the Master's Presence and the hope
of His commendation at last, they placed the joy of doing good and
seeing men, once as heathenish as any found in foreign lands,
sitting at the feet of Jesus, all their nature changed, a legion of
demons expelled, and now clothed and in their right mind–these
once lost ones are found–the
But the principal reason that the man wished it was for Rebekah's
sake. He knew that Isaac would make a good husband for her. And
we know that Jesus Christ will make a blessed Husband to your
souls. He will enrich you with all the treasure of His Grace. He will
clothe you with His robe of righteousness. He will comfort you
with His love. He will cheer you in this world. He will take you
Home to dwell with Him in the many mansions above. You will
find Him to be a precious Christ to you, and when you get to Him
you will say, "I never knew what happiness meant till I found You."
You will be grateful to think that you are saved, and therefore, for
your own sakes, we desire that this very night you may give up
your sins and that the Spirit of God may draw you, by His Grace, to
cast yourselves upon the finished work of the Lord Jesus, trusting
in Him to save you, as He will do if you put your faith in Him!
Think for a while, I beseech you, how much is to be gained by
your immediately seeking the Savior! You at once are free from the
guilt and condemnation of sin. You are at once clothed with a
peerless robe of righteousness. Immediately "all things are yours"–
that very moment–"all things begin to work together for your
good." You have Heaven, then, for your home and your citizenship
is in the kingdom of Glory. You shall never more lack any good
thing. No evil can befall you or any plague come near your
dwelling. Time would fail me to try to calculate your immediate
blessedness.
And then you make eternal life sure and certain, whereas you may
delay and delay till you lose the life which now is and that which is
to come! For your sakes we desire your immediate salvation! Our
hearts are filled with joy and gladness as we sit at the King's table
in His banqueting house and His banner over us is love! But we
remember our friends outside, in darkness, poverty, and need and
we would gladly call them in to our feast. There is room enough–
and our hearts would be yet more filled with joy if we could see the
edging completely filled with guests! O all you hungry ones, come
and eat with us of angels' food, and drink with us of cups of
salvation! Here is a royal feast–oxen and fatlings are killed! All
things are ready–come to the wedding–the Master bids you come at
once! Why remain in hunger and fear outside? Enter freely!
Now, lastly, we believe that this desire of ours is a very
reasonable one and we think we can prove it without the necessity
of entering upon a long argument. We will put before you, with this
view, two or three little pictures. Alexander conquered the world
and we should like you to do so, in the best of senses. We will ask
Alexander his secret. "Alexander, you have overcome Darius. You
have driven the Persians before you as a lion drives a herd of
sheep. How have you done it?" The very question was once asked
of him personally, and his answer was this–"I never delayed."
Everybody admits that, in his way, Alexander was a worldly-wise
man and eminently successful–and here was the secret of it–"I
never delayed." Do you hear that, young man? You want to be
great? You want to be happy? What is your ambition? Learn from
Alexander! I think that a greater than he could have said that in his
life–I mean the Apostle Paul. How was it that he was able to do so
much during that latter part of his life in which God blessed him?
Why, he could have said, "I never delayed."
A number of men are upstairs in a house, amusing themselves
with a game of cards. What is that? The window is red! What is
that cry in the streets? "The house is on fire!" says one. "Oh!"
answers another, "Shuffle the cards again, let us finish the game.
We have plenty of time." "Fire! Fire! Fire!" The cry rises more
sharply from the streets, but they keep on. One of them says, "It is
all right, I have the key of the door on the roof, and we can get out
at the last minute. I know the way over the leads–it is all right."
Presently one of them says, "Are you sure we can get through that
door?" and he goes to try, but finds it locked. "Never mind," is the
answer, "I have the key." "But are you sure you have the key?"
"Oh, yes! I am sure I have–here it is, try it for yourself–do not be
such a coward, man, try it." The man tries the key. "It will not
turn!" he says. "Let me try," says his friend. He comes and tries,
and puts it in the lock, "O God!" he shrieks, "it's the wrong key!"
Now, Sirs, will you go back to your game again? No, now they
will strain every nerve and labor to open the door, only to find,
possibly, that it is all too late for them to escape! So, some of you
are saying, "Oh, yes! What the man says is well enough, but you
know, we can repent whenever we like. We have a key that can turn
the Grace of God whenever we please. We know the way–has he
not told us tonight it is just? Trust Christ, and we can do that
whenever we please–we shall get out." Ah, but suppose you cannot
do that whenever you please? Suppose the day comes when you
shall call and He will not answer–when you shall stretch out your
hands–but no man shall regard?
Suppose, suppose you should cry, "Lord, Lord, open to us," and
the answer should be, "I never knew you! Depart, you cursed!"
Besides, if you think that key will open the door, and you can
repent now, why not repent now? You believe that you have full
power to do so! O do it, do it, and do not trifle with that power, lest
when the power is gone, you find too late that in one sense it never
was there! Do you want one other picture of the folly of delay? Ah,
you heard of it some time back last winter, and I should think you
must have heard of it with tears in your eyes–I mean that terrible
accident on the ice in Regent's Park.
Why didn't the people get off the ice when they could see it was
rotten? Why did they not leave it when it was beginning to be cut
up into such small pieces as to be scarcely larger than paving
stones? It was all very well to be on it when it was a solid cake–but
why did they not flee at once when there was danger? Nobody can
now answer that question, and there is only this to be said–it is
most probable that all those who were there meant to get off very
soon. Probably nine out of ten of them may have thought to
themselves– "Well, it is getting rather dangerous, and it is not quite
the thing to be here, but just one more merry ring–let us just cut
one more 'figure eight' and have just one more dash up and down
the slide! It will be firm enough for that–let us stand here for two or
three minutes at any rate."
They were all going to get off, but, ah, there is the end of the
story–except that it is, even till this day, continued by other people
with the sighs, and cries, and lamentations of husbands and of
wives, of children and of parents who can now only regret the fatal
delay–but can do nothing to make amends. Ah, some of you are on
the rotten ice of the world's pleasures and of your own confidence.
It is all rotten–why don't you get off?
"Oh," you say, "I shall get off by and by." Oh, I see you–there is
something fascinating in your pleasures, and a man likes to see his
neighbors happy. I see you skating over that dangerous ice, but why
don't you get off? With some of you life is getting very frail. Ah,
those lungs are hardly sound–you are spitting blood. The gray hairs
are getting pretty plentiful on your heard. You have had a warning–
you have had one seizure and the doctor has told you what will be
the consequences of another. Why don't you get off when the ice is
breaking up like this? You may get off–you may get off tonight.
If you perish it will not be the fault of one who would act the part
of a Humane Society man and say to you, "Now, before the last
breakup comes–now, before the rising of tomorrow's sun which
may bring the final breakup–escape for your life! Look not behind
you! Stay not until you have reached the Savior, and found mercy
in Him!"
Ge 26:29 • Thou Art Now the Blessed of the Lord
ERMON 2238
"You Are Now The Blessed Of The Lord"
"You are now the blessed of the Lord."
Genesis 26:29
THESE words truly describe the position of many whom I
address at this time. There are hundreds here upon whom my eyes
can rest and to any one of whom I might point with this finger, or
rather, to whom I might extend this hand, to give a hearty shake,
and say, "You are now the blessed of the Lord." I need not say it in
the same spirit, nor for the same reason that the Philistines did.
They had behaved basely towards Isaac and now that he had
prospered, they urged him to forget the past. They meant, "This is
why we trust that you will deal kindly with us and overlook our
harsh conduct, for, in spite of all, God has so blessed you that you
need not be fretful and pettish and remember what we have done."
I am glad that I am under no necessity to strive to make up a
quarrel in this way! These many years we have dwelt in peace and
have enjoyed sweet fellowship together. You have often borne with
my weaknesses and bestowed upon me a wealth of affection which
I am sure I do not deserve. So, though I use the language of
Abimelech and his friends, my motive is a very different one! Yet
the truth is the same concerning many a one here–"You are now the
blessed of the Lord."
There is, however, much force in the argument which these
Philistines used. If God has richly blessed us, notwithstanding all
our faults and failures, surely we should learn to forgive many
injuries done to ourselves. If the Lord forgives us our debt of
10,000 talents, we must be willing to forgive our fellow servant his
debt of 100 pence! Child of God, if you are now the blessed of the
Lord, you will often turn a blind eye towards the offenses of your
fellow men. You will say, "God has so blessed me that I can well
overlook any wrongs that you have inflicted; any harsh words that
you have said. I am now blessed of the Lord, so let bygones be
bygones." May you have Grace given to you to do that, now, if any
of you have had a little squabble with any other! If there have been
any difficulties between any of you, I would hope that before I
really get into my subject–while with my finger I point you out and
say to each one of you–"You are now the blessed of the Lord," you
will immediately say, "As surely as that is true, I do, from my very
heart, forgive all who have offended me, whether Philistine, or
Israelite, or Gentile. How can I do otherwise who, myself, have
received such Grace while so unworthy?"
Remember that that this was spoken by the Philistine king as a
reason why he wished to have Isaac for a friend. In your choice of
friends, choose those who are the friends of God. If you would
have a blessing upon your friendship, select a man whom God has
blessed! Look out for one who is a disciple of Christ and say, "You
are now the blessed of the Lord; therefore I seek your