DAILY PRAYER (BY SPURGEON)
Oh, that you would have mercy upon us and blot out all our sins. Father, we do not love these things, our souls strive against them; and though we do not fight with the powers of darkness as we ought, neither are we adversaries as we should be, yet there is something within us which pants after holiness. The divine spark which we have within us cannot be content until it has burned up sin.
You have been pleased to quicken us by your grace, and to make us your children; and nothing ever will content our spirits until we are wholly given up to your service; until the very being and power of sin shall be cut out root and branch, and we shall be made in all things like yourself. This is our longing desire; and we feel that we shall never have any rest until we attain to it; and since we know we shall never attain to it on earth, we are convinced that there remaines a rest for the people of God, and towards that rest we would push forward with earnestness of desire.
Amen.
VERSE OF THE DAY (COMMENTARY BY SPURGEON)
“Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when he appears, we will be like him because we will see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2)
Have the eyes of your spiritual understanding or sanctified imagination ever looked upon Christ’s spotless, perfectly developed soul—that perfectly adjusted spirit in which no one power or passion was too prominent or predominant, but in which his whole being was beautifully molded and rounded according to the perfect pattern of moral excellence and beauty? You are to be just like that—not quick in temper, as perhaps you now are, but meek and lowly as he was; not haughty and prone to pride, but humble and gentle as he was; not selfish and self-seeking, but as disinterested and as tender to others as he was; in fact, perfection’s own self.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCE
Pursue holiness like your life depends on it.
Today we prayed that God would help us be fully dead to sin — holy in thought, deed, and word. In this pursuit of holiness, we need a lot of help along the way, don’t we?
One of the most motivating and empowering books on personal holiness that I have ever read is The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges. This book will show you the high calling of holiness that God has laid on all of his people (and why it’s so important) while also giving grace-fueled practical guidance on actually pursuing holiness in your own life.
Jerry Bridges is one of my all-time favorite authors. All of his books are worth reading — he does an excellent job at applying the truths of the gospel to the problems we face in life.
This book will equip you and empower you to pursue holiness. I hope you’ll grab a copy and be blessed by it.