Morning & Evening Devotional Reading–

May 2– Evening

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

“[Father], I do not ask you to take them out of the world.” 

—John 17:15

It is a sweet and blessed thing to know that all believers in God’s own time will go to be with Jesus. The Lord’s soldiers who are now fighting “the good fight of faith” will be done with conflict and will enter into the joy of their Lord. But even though Christ prays that his people may eventually be with him where he is, he does not ask for them to be taken immediately away from this world to heaven but, in fact, to stay here.

Yet how frequently does the wearied traveler pray, “(O Lord), if I could fly away and be at rest!” But Christ does not pray like that! He leaves us in his Father’s hands until, like shocks of corn fully ripe, we will be harvested by our Master. Jesus does not plead for our instant removal by death because living on here is necessary for others and profitable for ourselves. Christians often want to die when they have any trouble. They may say that they long to be with the Lord, but their real motivation is simply to be rid of their troubles.

Of course, it is quite right to desire to be with Christ, as the Apostle Paul did, because to be with Christ is far better, but the wish to escape from trouble is a selfish one. Instead, let your concern and desire be to glorify God by your life here as long as he pleases even though it may be filled with days of hard work, conflict, and suffering. And leave it up to him to say when “it is enough.” [M&E]