DAILY PRAYER (BY SPURGEON)
Oh Lord and Master, you who did wash your disciples’ feet of old, still be very patient toward us, very condescending towards our provoking faults, and go on with us, we pray, until your great work shall be completed, and we shall be brethren of the firstborn, we shall be like him.
Gracious Master, we wish to conquer self in every respect; we desire to live for the glory of God and the good of our fellow men. We would have it true of us as of our Master, “He saved others, but he cannot save himself” (Matthew 27:42) Will you enable us, especially, to overcome the flesh with all its affections and lusts; may the flesh be kept under; let no appetite of any kind, of the grosser sort, prevail against our manhood, lest we be dishonored and unclean. And let not, even, the most refined power of the natural mind, be permitted to come so forward, as to mar the dominion of the Spirit of God within us.
Amen.
VERSE OF THE DAY (COMMENTARY BY SPURGEON)
“How joyful is a person whom the LORD does not charge with iniquity and in whose spirit is no deceit!” (Psalm 32:2)
He had a thousand iniquities; he transgressed in all sorts of ways. The Lord does not impute these things to him. He has set them down to the account of another, who has ventured to stand in the sinner’s stead, and be made sin in the sinner’s place, but to this man, this blessed man, God does not impute iniquity, and in his spirit there is no guile—he confesses his sin with honesty, he is pardoned with certainty, and in his spirit there is no cunning concealment.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCE
God is patient. It’s time to learn why.
Today we prayed that the God who redeemed us would continue to show patience to us. Friends, I have remarkably good news: the Christ who washed his disciples’ feet is still washing feet today. He is always a patient, loving redeemer.
One book that has reminded me afresh of the beauty and the freeness of God’s love is Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund. This book is an absolutely stunning picture of God’s grace to us in Christ. It will fill you up with confidence to know that God will always be patient, because that’s who he is.
I’ve been moved to tears several times while reading this book and seeing the stunningly beautiful and thoroughly biblical picture of Christ’s love for his people. The book is great reading for any sinning and suffering Christian (which is all of us!)
I hope you’ll grab a copy and read it this fall. I promise that you won’t regret it!