BLESSED ARE THE MEEK

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 30
 
Matthew 5:5
Blessed are the meek: for
they shall inherit the earth.
 

Meekness is very different to weakness and yet the one is sometimes mistaken for the other.

 

The strongest minds are sometimes adorned with the grace of meekness. The meek quietly submit to the will of God, they reverence his word, and tremble at his rod.

 

Instead of the spirit rising against God, and murmuring at his dispensations, it bows like th yielding plant to the breeze, and says, “The will of the Lord be done.”

 

The meek silently receive God’s commands, patiently, copy the Saviour’s example, and wisely cherish the influences of the Holy Spirit.

 

They walk softly with God, and prudently with men; not seeking their own glory, but the honour of their God and Saviour. They are quiet lambs, not roaring lions; gentle doves, not destroying vultures. They benefit all around them, as the sheep, not bite and devour as the wolf.

 

Such are like Christ, and they are blessed with Christ.

 

They can claim but little now, but they shall inherit the earth by-and-by.

 

Their very state of mind is a blessing; they live above the storms that agitate others, or bow while others break. They are a blessing, while others are a curse.

 

Jesus, to my poor sinful heart
The grace of meekness now impart!
Fain would I, Lord, though poor and weak,
Be like thyself, in all things meek.
 

James Smith

THOU SAYEST, I AM RICH

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 29

 

Revelation 3:17

Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased 

with goods, and have need of nothing; and 

knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable,

 and poor and blind, and naked:

 
It is one thing for the Lord to assure his poor people that they are rich,
   on account of the provision he has made for them; and
   another for the conceited, lukewarm professor to say, “I am rich.”
 
Spiritual persons are always sensible of their poverty, and they are taught to live upon the fulness of Christ for all they need. It is always a bad sign when we begin to admire our graces, actions, or usefulness; for it is evident that we have taken our eye off the Lord Jesus Christ, and Satan will soon gain advantage over us.
 
We are never so safe, or so happy,
   as when we lie at the Saviour’s feet,
       sensible of our poverty, and
           seek from his fulness grace to perform every action,
               and to enjoy every privilege.
 
Those who fancy that they are rich,
   are declared by the Saviour to be poor,
   wretched, miserable, blind and naked;
   but he counsels them to buy of him gold tried in the fire,
   white raiment, and eye-salve that they may see.
 
Let us then beware of boasting of any attainments we fancy we have made.
 
“Blessed are ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven.”
 

Saviour! my misery I confess,

I deeply feel my want of grace,

A needy sinner I!

Wretched, and blind, and stript of all.

Save me, at thy feet I call,

Or else I pine and die.

 
James Smith

KEPT BY THE POWER OF GOD

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 28

 

1 Peter 1:5

Who are kept by the power of God through faith

unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

 

All the Lord’s people feel that they need keeping, and therefore they pray to be kept.
 
But it is not enough that we pray for keeping;
  we must believe the promises,
      expect their fulfillment, and
           seek for divine keeping in faith.
 
Believing, we grasp the promise,
   keep near the throne,
   walk with God, and are
   kept in dangers and death.
 
Unbelief departs from God, questions his promise,
wanders from the throne and we fall into folly and sin.
 
“Take heed, therefore, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called TO-DAY; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”
 
God will not keep you as brutes, but as rational beings; he will not hold you in with bit and bridle, as the diver does with horse or mule, but he will lead you as beloved children, and keep you as intelligent disciples. His power is necessary.
 
His power is pledged to you.
 
But it is only pledged to believers.
 
It is only pledged to believers as exercising faith, hope, and prayer.
 

See the power of God to save!

Jesu’s grace in me admire,

Kept, like Peter, on the wave,

Kept, like Shadrach in the fire.

Rescued from the lion’s teeth,

Safe within the jaws of death.

 
James Smith

ACCEPTED IN THE BELOVED

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 27

 

Ephesians 1:6

To the praise of the glory of his grace,

wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

 
Jesus is the BELOVED ONE.
 
HIs Father loved him infinitely and eternally. 

    All his people who know him, love him. 

    All that is loveable is found in him, and “he is altogether lovely.”
 
His person, his character and his conduct, are most lovely.
 
All his people approach God through him, placing their entire dependence upon him.
 
They are united to his person, and are viewed as one with him. Viewed in him they are pleasant, acceptable, and lovely in the sight of God. He calls them “all fair,” and pronounces them to be without “spot.”
 
My dear friends, in ourselves we are deformed, loathsome, and most offensive to infinite purity; but in Jesus we are clean, righteous, and comely.
 
As clothed with his righteousness, 

   God pronounces us just; as filled with his Spirit, 

       God calls us lovely.
 
Never let us expect acceptance with God, but through Jesus; not let us doubt our acceptance if we come unto God by him; for Jehovah glorifies and commends his grace to universal admiration, by accepting us in “THE BELOVED.”
 
As believers, we are now accepted, nor shall we ever be more accepted.
 

Accepted in Jesus, and perfectly too,

I fain would in all things my gratitude show;

I’d live to his honour, and walk in his light,

Till perfectly holy I stand in his sight.

 
James Smith

HIS HEART WAS LIFTED UP

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 26

 

2 Chronicles 32:25

But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit

done unto him; for his heart was lifted up: therefore there

was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem.

 
It swelled with pride, and was lifted up with vanity.
 
Yet he was a good man, and had just received a remarkable proof of God’s distinguishing love.
 
We are by nature so proud, that we are always in danger of being unduly elevated if God favours us; or of taking offence at God’s dealings if he please to try us.
 
The strongest temptations often succeed the sweetest manifestations; therefore we ought to be on our guard.
 
There is nothing that God hates more than pride, he cannot tolerate it; and yet it is the very thing to which we are most prone.
 
A proud heart is sure to be unfruitful; only the humble bring forth the fruits of righteousness.
 
Pride generates fretfulness, discontent, envy, ill-will, hardness of heart, and a thousand other evils; let us beware lest our hearts be lifted up, for if they are, God will be sure to pull them down, and the means, as in Hezekiah’s case, may be very severe.
 
If Satan can make us proud, he will soon make us prayerless; if we become prayerless, we shall soon become careless; and if careless, we put ourselves into his power.
 
Let us consider what we were before we received grace, what we might have been but for grace.
 

Jesus, to us the grace impart.

Which alone shone so bright in thee;

The humble, meek, and lowly heart,

From pride and envy free.

 
James Smith

LOOKING FOR THAT BLESSED HOPE

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 25

 

Titus 2:13

Looking for that blessed hope, 

and the glorious appearing of the great God

 and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

 
The posture of the Christian should be that of expectation.
 
His best things are before him.
 
The promises refer to the glory which is to be revealed.
 
The Old Testament saints lived expecting Jesus to come; 

   he came, 

   he wrought, 

   he suffered, 

   he made atonement, 

   he prepared to depart, 

   he promised to come again in glory, 

   he went into the holiest, 

   he is now making intercession, 

   he will soon come out to impart the blessing.
 
Then, the dead in Christ will rise, 

   the living saints will be changed, 

        the adoption will be obtained, 

we shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, and 

so shall we ever be with the Lord.
 
This is the object of our hope. In expectation of this glory we should love.
 
Looking for this blessed hop we should labour.
 
Death is nowhere represented as the object of our hope; 

  we are not to live looking for death, but for the coming of Jesus.
 
Thus Enoch lived, walked with God and so pleased him that he was translated.
 
Thus the apostles and primitive Christians lived, and 

   therefore they were not so much affected as we are with present things.
 
 

Fill’d with the blessedness of hope,

And love which casts our fear,

Divinely taught my soul looks up,

To see my Lord appear;

Jesus, the one great God supreme,

My Saviour shall come down,

And find me gazing after him,

And with his glory crown.

 
 
James Smith
 

AM I A GOD AT HAND

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 24

 

Jeremiah 23:23

Am I a God at hand, saith the LORD,

and not a God afar off?

 
The Christian has never far to run for a friend. 

The Lord is always near unto him. 

He is a God at hand.
 
Ready to help. 

This fact we should endeavour to realize. 

It would cheer us in gloom.
 
Preserve us in temptation.
 
Support us in trouble.
 
Raise us above our fears.
 
Keep us back from sin.
 
Encourage us in duty.
 
Prove a stimulus to exertion when ready to decline.
 
Friends may be removed to a distance, but my God is at hand.
 
He is present with heaven and earth at command.
 
He is present to pity, to reprove, to counsel and to sustain.
 
But while he is near to us, 

   he is equally in everyplace; 

   he is with our friends in distant places, and 

   he is with our enemies in their most secret hiding-places; therefore 

   he will frustrate their designs, and overrule their opposition for our good.
 
Let us retire to-night impressed with the thought’

 “God is at hand;” 

   he will watch over me while I sleep;

      he will guard me; 

        nothing can happen but what he permits; and 

            he stands pledged to make all things work together for my good.
 
My soul, I charge thee never to forget that thy God is nigh at hand!
 

Lord, to my spirit’s gaze reveal

Thy perfect majesty and grace,

And let me heart thine influence feel,

Unworthy to behold thy face.

 
James Smith.
 

LET US DRAW NEAR WITH A TRUE HEART

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 23

 

Hebrews 10:22

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith,

having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and

our bodies washed with pure water.

 
Distance from God is an effect of unbelief. It is the cause of coldness and discomfort. 

God is in the holiest.
 
He is enthroned on the mercy seat.
 
He has accepted the atoning sacrifice.
 
Sin is for ever put away.
 
Jesus has rent the veil.
 
The way is open and free.
 
Our High Priest is there with the blood, and the incense is burning in the golden censer.
 
The heart of God towards us is true; it was no make-believe love that gave his Beloved Son. Jesus also is true-hearted towards us, or he had never died for our sins, or entered heaven to plead on our behalf.
 
Let us therefore be true-hearted towards God, with deep sincerity and childlike simplicity draw near to God.
 
We have liberty to tell out all our minds.
 
We should not stand silent as awe-stricken servants, but we should draw near as the child which runs into its father’s arms, and lays its head on its father’s bosom.
 
Let us not then stand trembling as before an angry God; but let us exercise unhesitating, unwavering trust in God.
 
He is not glorified by the fear of slaves, but by the peaceful confidence of children.
 

Trusting in our Redeemer’s blood,

Now let our souls draw near to God,

Upon the mercy-eat;

Boldly into the holiest come,

And feel ourselves with God at home,

Where truth and mercy meet.

 
James Smith
 

WHAT SHALL I RENDER UNTO THE LORD

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 22

 

Psalm 116:12

What shall I render unto the LORD 

for all his benefits toward me?

 

A very suitable inquiry after a day’s mercies.
 
But though we attempt to render praise to-night, 

     we ought not to confine our views to the day.
 
Rather let us ask, 

      What has the Lord conferred upon us? 

                                                BENEFITS.
 
Blessings without which we could neither be

   happy, 

        useful, or 

                  holy. 

 

He has given grace, 

   scattered fears, 

   wrought deliverances, 

   sent supplies, 

    confirmed our faith, 

     and promised glory.
 
Everything we receive is a benefit.
 
It springs from free grace, 

   flows to the undeserving, 

       suits our case, and 

           lays us under deep obligations. 

The Father has given us his Son.
 
The Son has given us his perfect work.
 
The Holy Spirit has given us life.
 
Then what shall we render? 

What are we willing to render? 

Have we gifts? Let us devote them to his service.
 
Have we time? Let us employ it to his praise.
 
Let us work in his vineyard, 

   suffer in his cause, and 

      give to his poor.
 
What will be acceptable to God? 

    That you walk closely with him.
 
Spread the gospel.
 
Visit his sick ones.
 
Relieve his poor people.
 
Shew gratitude to him as opportunity offers, and the life of a consecrated disciple.
 

What shall I render?   Render praise,

Walk close with God in love;

Observe his precepts, keep his ways,

And all his will approve.

 
James Smith
 

THAT HE MIGHT BRING US TO GOD

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 21

 

1 Peter 3:18

For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just

for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,

being quickened by the Spirit:

 
Such was the design of Jesus in all his engagements, labours, and sufferings for our sakes.
 
By nature we are afar from God, 

  opposed to God, 

  afraid of God; 

  consequently far from happiness and peace.

Jesus knew the blessedness of being with God, and being like God. 

His love to his people led him to desire for them the same blessedness.
 
His desire was so strong that he was willing to do or to suffer anything in order to put them in possession of it.
 
He therefore voluntarily suffered for our sins, and put them away by the sacrifice of himself.
 
His aim was to bring us to God honourably, and to keep us with God eternally.
 
He brings us to God on the throne of grace.
 
Here we receive pardon, obtain peace, and enjoy paternal love.
 
At this throne we obtain a supply for all our wants, 

   the fulfilment of great and precious promises, and 

      sweet manifestations of acceptance and favour. 

         He will bring us to God on the throne of glory.
 
Then we shall be perfectly holy, and eternally happy.
 
Then he will be satisfied, and we shall be satisfied too.
 
That which satisfies him, will satisfy us, and in our satisfaction he will rejoice.
 

Yes, Jesus left the realms of day,

Suffer’d and shed his blood;

The awful ransom price to pay,

And bring our souls to God!

 
James Smith
 

THE LORD SEARCHETH ALL HEARTS,

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 20

 

1 Chronicles 28:9

And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father,

and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind:

for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all

the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will

be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever.

 
Solemn thought!
 
Does he search my heart?
 
What does he find there?
 
Evil thoughts, foul corruptions, fearful depravity.
 
But is this all?
 
I trust not.
 
There are some good things toward the Lord God of Israel.
 
All my thoughts are not evil, and those which are - I hate.
 
It is not all corruption, there is a little correcting truth.
 
Especially when the Lord says, “Take heed to yourselves that your heart be not deceived.”
 
Satan will deceive us if he can.
 
Satan will try to conceal our defects, that he may lead us to presumption; and he will obscure our evidences, that he may drive us to despair.
 
If the Lord searches all hearts, hypocrisy must be the height of folly. It is impossible to deceive him.
 
We may provoke his wrath, but we can-not impose upon his mercy.
 
Let us then lay open our hearts before God.
 
Let us daily seek the renewings of the Holy Spirit.
 
Let us fly to the open fountain of a Saviour’s blood, and daily wash in the laver of God’s holy word.
 
Often let us cry with the Psalmist, “Examine me, O Lord,” And let us be sincere in all we profess, in all we say and in all we do.
 

In all my vast concerns with thee,

In vain my soul would try

To shun thy presence, Lord, or flee

The notice of thine eye.

 
James Smith

LORD, HELP ME.

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 19

 

Matthew 15:25

Then came she and worshipped him, saying, 

Lord, help me.

 
This prayer came from the heart of a poor woman, and it went to the heart of Jesus. It is brief, but comprehensive.
 
It is always suitable, but at times especially so. It is a mercy to know and feel our weakness, for it is only then that we heartily cry to the Lord for strength.
 
In every duty we have to perform, in every trail we have to meet, in every trouble through which we pass, under all the pains and sorrows we have to endure, we may consistently cry, “Lord, help me.”
 
We need the help of God, he has freely promised it, let us therefore seek and receive it.
 
Let this be our daily prayer-
   Help me to cleave to Jesus with full purpose of heart;
   help me to do thy will, cheerfully and constantly;
   help me to persevere through all difficulties, and
   press towards the mark for the prize of my high calling;
   help me gratefully to acknowledge thy hand in prosperity, and
   meekly to submit to thy will in adversity;
   help me to conquer my foes, master the corruptions of my own heart,
   resist all the temptations presented to me.
 
If such petitions are presented in faith, if they are the language of the soul, we may daily say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not fear what man can do unto me.”
 
 

Lord, assist me with thy grace,

Helpless at thy feet to lie,

Well to close my various race,

Well to suffer, and to die.

 
 
James Smith

WHERE IS MINE HONOUR.

 

EVENING DEVOTION by James Smith

APRIL 18

 

Malachi 1:6

A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master:

if then I be a father, where is mine honour? And if I be

a master, where is my fear? Saith the LORD of hosts

unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say

Wherein have we despised thy name?

 
The Lord expects to be honoured by his people; but how often do we lose sight of this important duty.
 
We should honour him by prompt obedience, as Matthew did—by active faith, as Abraham did—by patient sufferings, as Job did—by an honest testimony, as Peter did—by glowing love, as John did—by fervent zeal, as Paul and the holy martyrs did.
 
Beloved, would you honour God?
 
Then trust his providence.
 
Always act as under his eye. Prefer his children to all others.
 
Assist to promote the extension of his cause. Diligently attend to his ordinances.
 
Seek above all things to advance his declarative glory.
 
If you do not, he may well ask, “Where is mine honour?”
 
But if you would honour God as he requires, you must know his character.
 
You must be reconciled to him through Jesus.
 
You must daily realize his presence.
 
You must acknowledge his authority.
 
You must believe his love to you.
 
You must consult his revealed will.
 
You must make it your aim and study to please him.
 
If you honour him, he will honour you, by giving you solid peace, and final victory over every foe.
 
 

Is God my Father?—will he claim

So mean a sinner for his son?

Then let his honour be my aim,

IN me, BY me, his will be done.

 
 
James Smith