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Posted by Alister Begg for “Truth for Life” @ http://info.truthforlife.org
Original post @ http://info.truthforlife.org/devo-june18-2018?ecid=ACsprvsCNC2-3n7DTsL0XVAkbwZg9vwPktGHL69UvAk-VbO87YbgM1BubZTTg92SQ5SaycvryIrj&utm_campaign=Daily%20Devotion%20Emails&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=63790473&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9Knudkc8SrFPxqEZER8p6WXR3do65sGemi3Frp30GIaRnDmMzRRNKK1CcHgnvRriOv4hgYCqAETbMsZm49tLB6MouKp5Q0g0csLOHtOWguV-bpSTQ&_hsmi=63790473
DAILY DEVOTIONAL JUNE 18, 2018
The Garden of Christ
I came to my garden, my sister, my bride.
Song of Songs 5:1
The heart of the believer is Christ’s garden. He bought it with His precious blood, and He enters it and claims it as His own. A garden implies separation. It is not the open field; it is not a wilderness; it is walled around or hedged in. If only we could see the wall of separation between the church and the world made broader and stronger. It is sad to hear Christians saying, “Well, there is no harm in this; there is no harm in that,” and by this approach getting as near to the world as possible. Grace is at a low ebb in the soul that is always inquiring about how far it may go in worldly conformity.
A garden is a place of beauty; it far surpasses the wild uncultivated lands. The genuine Christian must seek to be more excellent in his life than the best moralist, because Christ’s garden ought to produce the best flowers in all the world. Even the best is poor compared with what Christ deserves; let us not disappoint Him with withering and feeble plants. The rarest, richest, choicest lilies and roses ought to bloom in the place that Jesus calls His own.
The garden is a place of growth. The believer must not remain undeveloped, just mere buds and blossoms. We should grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Growth should be rapid where Jesus is the gardener and the Holy Spirit the dew from heaven.
A garden is a place of retirement. So the Lord Jesus Christ would have us reserve our souls as a place in which He can show Himself, in a way that He does not to the world. As Christians we should be far keener to keep our hearts closely shut up for Christ! We often worry and trouble ourselves, like Martha, with much serving, and like her we do not have the room for Christ that Mary had, and we do not sit at His feet as we ought. May the Lord grant the sweet showers of His grace to water His garden today.
One-Year Bible Reading Plan
Devotional material is taken from “Morning and Evening,” written by C.H. Spurgeon, revised and updated by Alistair Begg. Copyright © 2003, Good News Publishers and used by Truth For Life with written permission.
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P.S. (from bruce) If you are not a “born again” Christian, is the Holy Spirit urging you to open this link ?? Here is the truth for this most important days writing, about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes. This, after the Holy Spirit changes our will to understand and then obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ… https://godsmanforever.com/2016/12/19/the-gospel-of-our-lord-jesus-christ-12182016-written-by-bruce-r-mills/
To my brothers and sisters in Christ, please feel free to share this message of the cross with those in need…