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I found this devotion in Spurgeon’s Evening by Evening on June 29 to be very challenging and true. I shared it on Sunday at RHC in my message on the Kingdom of God’s view of people, and thought I’d post the devotion here:
“How be it, in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to enquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart.” 2 Chronicles 32:31
Hezekiah was growing so inwardly great, and priding himself so much upon the favour of God, that self-righteousness crept in, and through his carnal security, the grace of God was for a time, in its more active operations, withdrawn. Here is quite enough to account with the Babylonians; for if the grace of God should leave the best Christian, there is enough of sin in his heart to make him the worst of transgressors. If left to yourselves, you who are warmest for Christ would cool down like Laodicea into sickening lukewarmness: you who are sound in the faith would be white with the leprosy of false doctrine; you who now walk before the Lord in excellency and integrity would reel to and fro, and stagger with a drunkenness of evil passion. Like the moon, we borrow our light; bright as we are when grace shines on us, we are darkness itself when the Sun of Righteousness withdraws himself. Therefore let us cry to God never to leave us. “Lord, take not thy Holy Spirit from us! Withdraw not from us thine indwelling grace! Hast thou not said, ‘I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day’? Lord, keep us everywhere. Keep us when in the valley, that we murmur not against thy humbling hand; keep us when on the mountain, that we wax not giddy through being lifted up; keep us in youth, when our passions are strong; keep us in old age, when becoming conceited of our wisdom, we may therefore prove greater fools than the young and giddy; keep us when we come to die, lest, at the very last, we should deny thee! Keep us living, keep us dying, keep us labouring, keep us suffering, keep us fighting, keep us resting, keep us everywhere, for everywhere we need thee, O our God!”
I have posted some notes that I took mainly from the abridged version of Richard Baxters book ‘The Reformed Pastor’ which is republished under the title ‘The Ministry We Need’. I make it a habit to read these notes regularly to remind me of the seriousness of the task and the dangers of treating my task as a career. Other great writings of a similar nature are John Piper’s book ‘Brothers we are not professionals’ and the chapter entitled ‘The ministers self watch’ by Charles Spurgeon from his book ‘Lectures to my students’.
Here are the notes I regularly read over:
In ministry, strategy and techniques, plans and changes can all be clutching at straws. What people need are shepherds whose own hearts have been warmed by the gospel, blazing for Christ. ‘Churches are dead because preachers are dead to the person of Christ’.
The Oversight of Ourselves
1. Be diligent to keep myself in a spiritually fit and healthy condition.
Preach your sermons to yourself first. Your people will notice if you have spent much time with God and they will benefit. Brethren, watch your hearts. Keep them free from lusts and passions and worldliness. Maintain your faith, love and zeal. Spend time with God. I think a minister should be especially careful of his heart before public ministry. Read some spiritually stimulating book, or consider the great importance of your message, or think of your people’s great spiritual needs.
2. Make sure your life agrees with your teaching.
One proud word, one flash of temper, one selfish action can soon destroy all your labours. How strange that some preach so carefully yet live so carelessly. Your lives should condemn sin and inspire godliness in every way. I urge you to be generous and compassionate. Use your material resources to meet the needs of others. Buy spiritual edifying books for your people. He is no true Christian who has anything he is not ready to give away, if Christ asks for it.
3. Make sure you have what it takes to be a good minister of Jesus Christ.
We have duties that are too difficult for many to do We have to warn people about many subtle temptations so that they escape them. We have much prejudice and obstinacy to overcome. Great skill is needed to make the truth plain to everyone’s conscience! Much ability is required to answer all the devious arguments against the truth.
The Motives for Watching Over Ourselves
You can preach about Christ and yet neglect him, about the Spirit and resist him, about faith and yet remain unbelieving, about conversion and stay unconverted, about heaven while remaining worldly. If you are not careful your treacherous heart will soon find an opportunity to deceive you. You will not even see the hook or line, much less the subtle angler, while he is tempting you with his bait.
Application: Section 1 – The Need for humiliation.
1. Pride
It afflicts even the best of us. Our speech, the company we keep and even our appearance. It follows us into our studies, God wants our message to be clear and simple for everyone to understand, but pride prompts us to be witty and clever. Pride makes us aim at impressing people rather than edifying them. In this way pride gains control over our ministry. The truth may be preached, but it’s manner may do more to advance Satan’s cause than God’s.
After pride has affected our preparation it then follows us into the pulpit. It affects our preaching style and prevents us from saying anything offensive no matter how necessary. Pride makes us please our audience, seeking our own glory rather than the glory of God. Pride then follows us down from the pulpit, making us eager to know what people thought of us. If they were pleased we are overjoyed, but if they are unimpressed we are dismayed. We hardly bother to know whether anyone was converted.
True godliness cannot exist unless pride is hated, mourned over and fought against. Pride is Satan’s main characteristic. No one lives more for self and less for God than a proud man. Therefore watch yourself and in all your studies – make sure you do not forget humility.
2. We do not give the Lord’s work all the energy it requires.
Speak as though people’s lives depended on it. We must reason from the scriptures so clearly that sinners must either accept the truth or deliberately reject it.
3. The worldliness amongst us.
Our excessive involvements in the ways of this life.
Our lack of generosity and failure to use all we have for Christ.
The management of personal work:
1. It is vital people are convinced of their pastors ability and love for them. If his ability is suspect they will not value his teaching. If the sincerity of his love is questionable they will not trust him. If ministers tried harder to win people’s affection their ministry would be more effective.
Buried then alive 