Morning & Evening Devotional Reading–
November 1– Evening
by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and edited by W. C. Neff
“[The people in Noah’s day] were unaware until the flood came and took them all away; so too will be the coming of the Son of man.”
—Matthew 24:39
The doom of the flood was universal. Neither rich nor poor escaped. The learned and the illiterate, the admired and the abhorred, the religious and the profane, the old and the young, all sank in one common ruin.
Some had ridiculed Noah, but where is their joking now? Others had made fun of his zeal, which they counted as madness; but where are their boastings and biting speeches now? The critic who judged the old man’s work is drowned in the same sea which covers his sneering companions. Some spoke patronizingly of the good man’s fidelity to his convictions but did not share in them; they too have sunk to rise no more. And the workers who were paid to help build the wondrous ark are also lost. The flood swept them all away and made not a single exception.
In the same way, outside of Christ, final destruction is sure to come to all men. No rank, possession, or character is sufficient to save a single soul who has not believed in the Lord Jesus. Take a moment to behold this wide-spread judgment, and tremble at it.
How incredible was the people’s apathy! They were all eating and drinking—going about life as they knew it– until the awful morning dawned. There wasn’t a single wise man outside the ark. Foolishness duped the whole human race! They were foolish even when it came to saving their own lives. They were foolish in doubting the true God– the most malignant of all fooleries. Isn’t it strange that all men are negligent of their souls until grace brings them to their senses? Only then do they leave their madness and act like rational beings.
Thank God, all were safe inside the ark. From the huge elephant down to the tiny mouse all were safe. The timid rabbit was equally secure with the courageous lion. And all are safe in Jesus. O, my soul, are you safe in him? [M&E]
