Morning & Evening Devotional Reading–

July 17– Evening

by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and edited by W. C. Neff

“Don’t let one of [the priests of Baal] escape.”

—1 Kings 18:40

When the prophet Elijah had received the answer to his prayer and fire from heaven fell to consume the sacrifice in the presence of all the people, he called upon the assembled Israelites to seize the priests of Baal. He sternly commanded, “Don’t let one of them escape.” He took them all down to the brook Kishon and there put them to death.

This is exactly what we must do with our sins: they all must be put to death, and not one of them can be allowed to escape. Our darling sin must die. You might be tempted to spare it due to its whimpering, but strike it, nonetheless. God struck at sin when it was laid upon his own Son. With unwavering purpose, you must condemn to death that sin which was once the idol of your heart.

Do you wonder how you are to accomplish this? Jesus will be your power. You have grace to overcome sin; it was given to you in the covenant of grace. You can win the victory in the battle against inward lusts because Christ Jesus has promised to be with you even unto the end. If you intend to triumph over darkness, then set yourself in the presence of the Sun of Righteousness. There is no better place to discover sin and recover from its power and guilt than the presence of God. When Job encountered God, he abhorred himself and repented of his sin in dust and ashes.

The fine gold of the Christian too often becomes dim. We need the sacred fire to purify and make us glow. So, let us fly to our God, for He is a consuming fire. He will not consume our spirit but our sins. His goodness will cause us to acquire a sacred jealousy and a holy revenge against sins which are hateful in his sight. Battle in his strength, and destroy the accursed opponents. Do not let one of them escape. [M&E]