God Our Continual Resort
(No. 1858)
A SERMON DELIVERED ON LORD'S-DAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 6, 1885,
BY C. H. SPURGEON,
AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON.
"Be You my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort."
Psalm 71:3.
DAVID, in his younger days, had been obliged to hide himself away with
his followers in the great caverns and rocks of his native land. In the
cave of Adullam, by the rocks of the wild goats, he had dwelt amid the
most stern surroundings of Nature. No doubt he had climbed aloft upon
the mountain's side and then had penetrated into one cave after another
and treated them as chambers of his house of rock. There he had spent
both nights and days, looking from on high upon the plains beneath,
often seeing his cruel pursuers passing by in eager hunt for him while
he was secure in his rocky fastness.
Nothing leaves a clearer impression upon the memory than a residence
amidst such scenes. You might live for an age in such a town as this
and forget it all. What is there to remember in this labyrinth of
bricks and mortar? But when you get into the clear bracing atmosphere
of the hills–when you tread their sublime heights, or descend into
their mysterious hollows–you cannot forget it! A day of leaping, like
the wild goats, from crag to crag, ended by a night amid the dread
seclusion of a mountain den makes a clear mark on the surface of life
which can never be erased–a man will carry such memories with him to
his grave.
This must have been especially the case with a genius so poetic as that
of David. I would not hesitate to place the King of Israel among the
first masters of song. If you take the whole company of the poets,
together, you cannot find one who did more for devotional prose than
David. All the altars of God in the world have been set alight by flame
from David's lamp. When men worship God in any language, they quote one
or other of the Psalms. What better expressions can they borrow or
invent? With such a soul as his, and such eyes, and such a tongue, and
such a harp, it was no wonder that, in his riper days, when he had
known the soft luxury of palaces, he could not refrain from rehearsing
the sublime memories of his earlier and more adventurous days–and
drawing inspiration from the wild and sublime scenery among which he
had been reared. The man, as full of Grace as of genius, as saturated
with the Spirit of God as with the spirit of poetry, could not but in
his loftiest songs speak of his God in language culled from the
cave–"Be You my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually
resort." Or, as some read it, "Be You to me a rock of repose." The deep
quiet of the enormous recesses in the lone rocks was remembered by the
Psalmist and worked into his prayer.
I shall want you to carry the thought of those rocks and those caves
with you, because it will form a background for our subject and help us
to illustrate it.
What a gracious heart David must have had, to speak like this of his
God! He desired to be upon the most intimate terms with the Lord, his
God. He wished to dwell not merely with God, but in God. He cries, "Be
You my strong habitation." Not merely did he long to dwell in the house
of the Lord forever, but he would have the Lord to be his house! He
would be surrounded by God and that not as with a dungeon, in which he
was forced to be, but as the habitation of his choice, for his pleasure
and rest. He would not merely live in God's world, but within God
Himself! He would realize the meaning of Moses, when he said, "Lord,
You have been our dwelling place in all generations." What a man of God
David must have been, despite his infirmities and sins! None but a mind
in harmony with God as to the great principles of truth and purity
would ever have desired such constant converse with God as that which
is implied in the words, "Whereunto I may continually resort."
The wicked say, "No God," but David sighed for none but God! The mere
pretender would have God on Sabbaths and high days and in times of
trouble. But David would have God all day and every day. The formalist
is satisfied with a
word with God in the morning and another at night. When he is either
hurried or sleepy, he forces from himself the tax of a minute or two in
prayer. But he that loves the Lord delights to walk with Him always!
Yes, to make his home with God and to abide in Him! Some would like a
Sabbath once in the month, but David would make all his days holiness
unto the Lord. Many would like to speak with the Lord from a distance,
but David would live and move and have his being in his God. By this,
the man after God's own heart, proved that his own heart was after God.
Judge yourselves, therefore, at the very outset, as to what your own
condition of heart is. If you can repeat the words of David from your
very soul, bless the Grace of God that has taught you to do so! And if
you cannot so pray, breathe a silent prayer to Heaven saying–Lord,
teach me to love You and long for You. I would gladly acquaint myself
with You and be at peace.
Without inventing any mechanical divisions, I would remark that the
text naturally suggests three things. The first is that God was to
David, a delightful repose–He was his habitation, or home. Secondly,
that David found in his God peaceful security–"Be You my strong
habitation." God was his fortress, his castle, his high tower, his rock
of defense. And then, thirdly, David had continual access to his
God–"Whereunto I may continually resort." Those five words are as a
musical box set to the most charming air–they discourse a quiet
harmony to my soul, such as one hears when listening to the brook which
warbles as it flows–"Whereunto I may continually resort."
I. Let us dwell on this for a few minutes. David found in his God,
DELIGHTFUL REPOSE. "Be You my strong habitation." That is, be my house
and home. David was one of those who had made the Most High his
habitation and, therefore, did God continually preserve him. He was one
of the favored ones who dwelt in the secret place of the tabernacles of
the Most High, abiding under the shadow of the Almighty.
Observe what wonderful condescension he had experienced from the Lord!
What infinite Grace, that God should allow His servants to think of Him
as their house! My God, You are the Glory of Heaven and the angels veil
their faces in Your Presence and yet I dare to say, "Be You my
habitation." My God, You are terrible in righteousness; You are a
consuming fire! All things perish at Your Presence when once You are
angry, yet You permit me to dwell in You and to find in You, not
destruction, but eternal life! Brothers and Sisters, we aspire not
merely to be reconciled to God, nor even to draw near unto Him, but to
enter into Him and to hide ourselves beneath Him! It is one of the
sublimities of Christian experience to be in God the Father and in
Christ Jesus. Do we understand this? We have never reached the sum of
our Grace-given privileges till we are more at home with God than with
anyone else in the universe! What a wonder that the eternal God is our
refuge! What condescension that the Infinite Jehovah should be the
abode of His saints!
David had realized in his God peculiar love. In a man's own home, he
expects to find love. Pity on the poor wretch who is disappointed
there. When we are abroad in the world, my Brothers and Sisters, we
reckon to meet with rough handling and to receive scant consideration.
But within our own doors we enter the sanctuary of love. If we receive
and return love anywhere, it is within the walls of our own habitation.
That is how David felt towards the Lord, his God. Abroad he had many
enemies and faithless friends not a few, but they were all outside of
his real life. When he came to his true life in God, he breathed an
atmosphere of love! He dwelt in One who loved him better than he loved
himself! Do you know what this means, dear Brothers and Sisters? Is God
the center of your repose because in Him is love? Are your affections
all set on Him? And do you know that He loves you and takes a Divine
delight in you? "He shall rest in His love"– do you rest in it? Oh,
that your heart may be filled to the brim with a sweet consciousness
that you are the object of infinite affection! May you say of the Lord
Jesus, "Who loved me and gave Himself for me" And may you hear the
Father say, "I have loved you with an everlasting love: therefore with
loving kindness have I drawn you." He that dwells in love dwells in
God, for God is Love! Oh blessed experience, to dwell in God as the
abode of love!
Moreover, home is the place of special rest. At home we are unloaded of
the world's huge load. The advocate takes off his gown and says, "Lie
there, Mr. Barrister, and let the father come to the front." The
tradesman takes off his apron, the warrior his harness, the bearer his
yoke, for they are at home. And if a man may rest anywhere on earth, it
must surely be in his own habitation! Is not our God our rest? O
Beloved, is there, indeed, beneath the sun, any repose for a poor soul
except in God? There remains a rest for the people of God and that rest
is God, Himself! "Return unto your rest, O my Soul; for the Lord has
dealt bountifully with you." When we know Jehovah's Truth, His
faithfulness, His power, His wisdom, His Grace, then we rest in Him!
When we see Him glorified in the majesty of His love in the Person of
the Well-Beloved Savior, who has redeemed us from death and Hell, then
we who have believed do enter into rest.
The Lord makes us partakers of His own Sabbatic rest! The peace of God
which passes all understanding keeps our hearts and minds by Christ
Jesus. Beloved, have you not sweet recollections of times when you had
been tossed with tempests and not comforted, but obtained access to God
and so entered into a deep calm? When wearied and bewildered, the
Presence of the Lord has brought you perfect peace and you have felt
yourself at home. Then have you sung–
"Let cares like a wild deluge come,
And storms of sorrow fall.
My soul has safely reached her home,
Her God, her Heaven, her All." We have not yet read all the meaning
that couches beneath this sweet word, "habitation," or home. Our
habitation is the place of joyful freedom and hearty naturalness. One
is not stiff and starched at home. You are not guarded, there, as to
what you say or do, for you are not exposed to criticism and
misrepresentation. Some of us cannot open our mouths without seeing a
reporter's pencil twinkling across his prepared paper. Our steps are
dogged by those who take notes and print them! We live under the
microscope. We can hardly think without being published, with this
addition, that what we do not think is often imputed to us! Do not
wonder if we walk somewhat under constraint. But at home, a man feels,
"Well, these dear children and the dear wife of my love, and these kind
friends–I am not afraid of them–they will not misjudge me."
Did you ever feel that with relation to God? Are you yourself when
alone with Him? Are you at ease in His Presence? Those firm, stately
prayers we sometimes hear, majestic and cold–we find no fault with
them except that there is nothing in them to suit rapt devotion or to
express the spirit of adoption. Do you pray after a more living, loving
fashion? God's children dare to be familiar with Him. God so knows our
hearts that it is of no use to be reserved before Him– therefore let
us unlock our hearts and talk with Him as a man talks with his friend.
Are there not a thousand things you could not tell to any but your God?
Have you not griefs, yes, sins, which it were wrong to reveal to any
but to Him? O our God, we have not to study our language while with
You! Our soul speaks to You without words; her thoughts and emotions
rise to You in their pure spirit, without the encumbering embodiment of
speech. Our heart leans against Your heart and You know what we mean,
even as You have made us to know what You mean, for "the secret of the
Lord is with them that fear Him and He will show them His Covenant."
Religious people sometimes start back from the prayers of a true saint
and say, "He is too familiar!" Of course a child is too familiar for
the imitation of a stranger–but have you ever blamed a child for
climbing his father's knee? And yet you would not think of copying him!
Boy, do you know what you are doing? You are playing with a learned
judge, before whom prisoners tremble and courts are hushed! Even wise
counselors speak to him as, "My lord." That urchin does not say, "My
lord." Look! He is plucking him by the beard! He is kissing his cheek!
What presumption! No! He is the judge's child–he who is judge to
others is, "father," to him! So the saints of God say, "Our Father
which are in Heaven," ever reverentially, but yet with sweet
familiarity! They are at home with Him. Beloved, may you know what that
means by the teachings of the Spirit of sonship, for only He can teach
us the blessed freedom of being at home with
God!
A man's habitation is also the place of his intimate knowledge. David
knew the Lord even as he knew the caves in which he had sheltered.
David could have served as guide to the great hollows of Adullam and
these, in their vastness and sublimity, may be likened to the mysteries
of God. There is a weird charm to my mind about caves–I like to visit
all that are in my way. One is pleased to pass from one subterranean
room to another and mark the secrets which are revealed by the glare of
the torches. Here there is a spring of water, there a grand
stalactite–here is an ascending staircase leading to another
hollow–and there you must go down by a ladder to a greater depth. This
is a fair allegory of the way in which the Spirit of God leads us into
all the Truths of God. In God, even in Christ Jesus, are hid all the
treasures of wisdom and knowledge and, within these hiding places we
find our habitations. David was so much at home with God that he
entered by earnest trust into one attribute after another and delighted
in them all! He knew the Lord. He could say, "My meditation of Him
shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord." He loved to dwell in the
rocky strongholds of eternal Love, unchanging Grace, almighty Wisdom,
unspotted Holiness, unerring Purpose and infinite Power. O Brothers and
Sisters, seek to have the same clear knowledge of the Lord as David
had, till you can say that you are at home with God, who is your
habitation!
Home, also, has about it the thought of tender care. Where are we so
lovingly watched over as at home? Where else are there such soft
pillows for our aching heads, such gentle words for our wounded
spirits? "Take me home," says the sick child. I had the great sorrow,
yesterday, of speaking to a dear Brother whom I had hoped would be
spared for great usefulness in a distant land. But he had just
received, from the doctor's examination, the solemn information that he
was hopelessly diseased. We proposed that he should go to the seaside,
but I saw which way his heart went. He thought of his wife and his
habitation and he said, "Let me go home. If I must die, let it be in my
own house." He spoke as I would have done in like case. At home, one
might not have all the skill of the hospital at your command, but one
would be sure of a certain priceless tenderness which no nurse can
rival. Lord, You have been my dwelling place–I will die in Your arms!
When I am sick and weary there is none like You, my God! When my heart
breaks, none can bind it up but You, my God! I turn to You when in my
mortal sickness, like Hezekiah, I turn my face to the wall–"Into Your
hands I commit my spirit." Yes, my unrest is all over when I get to
You. The ship is in harbor. The bird is in its nest. My heart has found
the bosom on which it loves to recline. I have all things, my Lord,
when I have You! You say, "As one whom his mother comforts, so will I
comfort you."
There is much more in this first part of the verse than I can possibly
set before you. I have only opened the windows and I now invite you to
look out upon the landscape so full of beauty!
II. Secondly, David had realized in God, PEACEFUL SECURITY. "Be You my
strong habitation"–"My rock of habitation." Now, the child of God,
when he enters into the Lord by faith, feels himself perfectly safe.
Safe, first, from all risk of the Lord's changing or failing. God
Himself is strong, His Love is immutable, His Power is unfailing. This
is the solid ground of our security. When the winds are out in all
their fury, those of us whose habitations stand on the top of a hill
know the value of stability. There are periods in the rage of the storm
when our habitation shakes like a ship which trembles from stem to
stern–and though this is very exciting, it does not create a sense of
peaceful security! When once we enter into God, we do not shake or know
fear. Rise winds, roar waves, blow tempests, howl hurricanes! There is
no shaking our sure abode in God! David, in the rocks, had often defied
the storm, for he felt that though the earth should be removed and the
mountains be cast into the midst of the sea, he would not fear. Such is
the confidence of every child of God! God changes not, God's arm is not
shortened; God is not vanquished; no purpose of God shall be defeated;
no decree of His shall fail! Rocks may dissolve, but the eternal God
changes not and His people in Him shall have a sure abode!
But David also felt great safety from his enemies. When he climbed the
rocks and crept into his cavern, he knew that his enemies could not
follow him. Had Saul come with all Israel at his back, David's band
could have kept armies at bay. He must often have felt like the eagle
when it has flashed upward to its nest on the craggy rock and from
there looks down upon the hunters. He is almost out of sight, but he
can see all the movements of the foe. However long the range of the
rifle, the noble bird knows no fear, for he is beyond range. I think I
see him sitting there quietly, eying the enemy, of whom he knows no
dread. Thus may a child of God defy the great adversary!
"Let us sing," said Luther, "the 46th Psalm, and defy the devil." The
devil's restless nature is fretted by the serenity of the firm Believer
in God–and let him be fretted! His utmost rage is insufficient to hurt
a single hair of the head of a Believer! No adversary can carry by
storm our impregnable stronghold. Tyre stood a siege of 13 years, but
our fortress has been beleaguered throughout the ages and never
captured! Security, itself, is our portion for time and for eternity
when we trust in the Lord. I love to think of the child of God as
getting into God and resting secure beyond the evil designs of the
malicious hand, the crafty mind and the slanderous tongue. No stone
will be left unturned to do us ill and yet no stone of our rocky
habitation shall be dislodged! "No weapon that is formed against you
shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against you in
judgment, you shall condemn."
The trials of life shall not harm us. The bereavements of death shall
not cause us to despair. Sickness shall help on our sanctification.
Poverty shall increase our wealth of experience. When God blesses,
nothing curses! If God is for us, who can be against us? Under the
shadow of the Almighty we are out of harm's way. In God we dwell on
high and our place of defense is the munitions of rocks. What would be
a crushing disaster to us, apart from God, now turns to a benediction
with God to overrule it! O child of God, trust in God, for He is worthy
of all confidence! In Him you are secure in every sense. He that keeps
you does neither slumber nor sleep–who, then, can do you ill? You are
secure from the penalty of sin, for Christ has put it away from you,
bearing the chastisement of your peace. Hidden beneath His Atonement,
you are
secure from the wrath of God–your transgression is forgiven, your sin
is covered–thus the sting is taken from every evil.
You are secure against final overthrow by your own natural and
constitutional weaknesses, for the Lord will cleanse your blood which
He has not cleansed. He will purge you thoroughly and cleanse you from
all your idols–and write His Law upon your inward parts so that you
shall not depart from Him. You are secure against all the trials and
troubles of Providence, since these shall work together for your good!
The griefs and pangs of death you need not fear, since God is with you
and will raise you from the grave! The terrors of eternity are not for
you–immeasurable joys are your portion! Once safe in God, what is
there to fear? "Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect"?
Who shall "separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus
our Lord?"
A blessed sense of perfect security ought to be enjoyed by every
believing man and woman. You ought to be as serene as the glorified,
since around you there is a wall of fire and God is with you as a glory
and a defense. The enemies may gather together, but they only gather to
be scattered! Those that love God and are the called according to His
purpose are beloved of the Lord and He will interpose His eternal power
and Godhead between them and evil. When God is our Friend, the whole
universe is under bond to keep the peace towards us! The beasts of the
field are at peace with us and the stones of the field are in league
with us! The stars are our lights, the heavens are our curtains, angels
are our servitors, the elements are our providers, time is our
rehearsal and eternity is our anthem of joy! Be glad and rejoice in
God–and say with the Psalmist–"Be You my strong habitation."
III. We have now reached our last point, upon which we may be somewhat
more lengthy than upon the others. David's God was to him a place of
CONTINUAL RESORT. "Whereunto I may continually resort." I was talking,
the other day, with a man of God who has very much service and great
care upon him. And as we communed, the one with the other, he said to
me–"That expression of the Psalmist is very sweet to me, 'Whereunto I
may continually resort.' It rises frequently before my thoughts."
Indeed, I did not wonder, for it is an exceedingly choice expression.
Happy are we that the gate of communion with God is never locked! In
our pastoral cares, in our business trials, in our family afflictions,
in our personal conflicts there is this saving proviso, that we may
always flee unto God for succor! "Whereunto I may continually resort,"
said David while the veil was yet untorn–may we not say the same with
emphasis, today, now that we have access to the holiest by the blood of
Jesus?
There is joy in this thing in itself. Is it not a great bliss to have
the entree of Jehovah's palace day and night? Is it not Heaven below to
have access without ceasing to Father, Son and Holy Spirit? How blessed
to enter the golden gate unchallenged and remain unrebuked in the
pavilion of the King of Kings! O Believer, you may come when you will
to the Throne of Grace and never fear a repulse! You may come not only
into the King's palace, but what is infinitely more, into the King,
Himself, for He is your habitation, whereunto you may continually
resort! The Persian kings forbade anyone to come near them–and if any
ventured into the king's court and the monarch did not stretch out the
silver scepter, the guards cut them down at once. Yet there were
certain favored courtiers who, by special privilege, had the right to
approach the king at all times, guard or no guard. These were the
noblest in the king's dominions.
Such honor have all the saints! No cherub with flaming sword guards the
way of approach to God against any child of the great Father! You have
a privilege that is much greater than any dignity belonging to the
mightiest monarchs of earth–the privilege of perpetual converse with
God at whatever hour you will! It ought to make your heart leap for joy
to think of it! Come in the dewy morning, come at dusky night, come in
the midnight's dreariest hour–the Lord is always ready to receive
you–and you may speak freely with Him. This is His Word–"Ask, and it
shall be given you; seek, and you shall find." "Delight yourself, also,
in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart." Continual
access to the God of all Grace is a perpetual fountain of joy!
There is a great comfort in it as an outlook. "Whereunto I may
continually resort." Throughout all future time, I may draw near unto
God! The day may come when I shall be sorely sick and be compelled to
stay in my bed. And then I may resort unto God! I shall not be able to
go up to the House of the Lord, but still, I may resort to God, who is
more than house and home! No form of disease shall shut me out from my
heavenly Father! I may lie on my bed and sleep–and when I awake I
shall still be with Him. Old age steals on apace and, perhaps, my feet
will not be able to bear me to the place of the assembly–but even then
I may resort to God. When my ears shall grow dull of hearing and I
shall not enjoy the preaching of the Word of God–even then I shall
hear the still small voice of the Spirit in my heart! When I am so far
gone with age that my bed will become the best place for me, I shall
still enjoy His Presence and sing His praises! O Brothers and Sisters,
fear not the future, for the Lord says, "I will never leave you nor
forsake you."
"Should fate command you to the utmost verge of the green earth, rivers
unknown to song," yet may you continually resort to God. If you should
be a castaway upon the salt sea, the Lord sits upon the floods and you
shall resort to Him there. If you were like Alexander Selkirk, out of
humanity's reach, yet you would not be out of reach of Divinity! Oh no,
even in the dreariest solitude you may continually resort to Him whose
company is better than that of all mankind! In death and in eternity
this is the perpetual privilege of every Believer in Christ–he may
still draw near unto God.
Now, this continual resorting to God is not only a joy in itself and in
its outlook, but it is a joy which answers so many blessed purposes. I
wish you would read this 71st Psalm quietly at home in the light of my
text–then you will see that David found, in coming to God, everything
that he needed.
First, he found an escape from present ills–"Deliver me in Your
righteousness and cause me to escape." As the cony does not fight its
foe, but hides itself in the rock, so you, in your time of trouble,
need not go forth to conflict, but may resort continually to your God.
Stop up the rabbit's burrow and you might soon take him–keep a
Believer from his God and you would soon destroy him–but so long as he
can reach his hiding place, no enemy can wreak vengeance on him.
David also looked upon God as the place of his prayer, for he says,
"Incline Your ear unto me and save me." We may always pray and when our
prayer is too weak to rise to Heaven, we may expect the Lord to bow His
ear to hear our groans. Prayer is never out of season–it is a tree
which yields its fruit every day! Whenever a trouble drives you to your
knees, the Lord waits to be gracious. There are certain hours during
which it is difficult to send a telegram to a friend, but we can, at
all times, speak with God by the telephone ofprayer. No grief is too
little, no trial too heavy, no hour too early, no moment too late for
prayer! "Whereunto I may continually resort." The Mercy Seat abides in
its place, the veil remains torn and whoever has faith in God may come
to the Throne of Grace whenever he pleases.
David, by resorting to the Lord, received upholding. "By You have I
been held up from the womb…I am as a wonder unto many, but you are my
strong Refuge." He had kept his footing in slippery places by keeping
close to God. He had surprised his enemies by the way in which he
avoided their snares. When he was tempted, he overcame the temptation
by resorting to God. When he did not resort to God, he fell, as others
have done.
David also resorted to God for strength. "Cast me not off in the time
of old age; forsake me not when my strength fails." He looked beyond
himself to the unfailing power of the Almighty and expected to be
strengthened when infirmities crept over him. Do you need more power
for service, more patience for suffering? Resort to God. They that wait
upon the Lord shall renew their strength. Go to the Strong for
strength! By prayer and faith gird yourself with Omnipotence! When you
need renewing, run to Him who sustains all things. Go and draw water
from the well of strength! Let down your bucket–drain it dry and let
it down again–for to this fountain you may "continually resort." If
you lack strength, you are not straitened in Him–you are straitened in
your own heart. Believe in God and be strong according to your faith.
See how David went to God continually in holy praise. Every hour is
canonical for a man who is ready to praise God. "Let my mouth," he
says, "be filled with Your praise and with Your honor all the day." We
may sing unto the Lord even when the voice is cracked and the lungs
have failed! We need never be afraid that He will reject our praises on
account of age or infirmity! We may sing to Him in any place, from the
cellar to the attic! We may sing at our work and sing in our rest, yes,
sing aloud upon our beds!
When we have done singing and wish for matter for instructive
conversation, we shall find abundance of it in the Lord. "My mouth
shall show forth Your righteousness and Your salvation all the day; for
I know not the numbers thereof." We shall always find fresh matter in
the Lord. No fear, you preachers, of running dry, if the Lord is your
subject! Who can exhaust the Infinite? Who can come to a standstill for
lack of themes when the Triune God is the Object of his continual
meditation? O you servants of the Lord, fill your seed baskets from
this granary, whereunto you may continually resort!
David also continually resorted to God for quickening. Notice how he
puts it in the 20th verse–"You, who have showed me great and sore
troubles, shall quicken me, again, and shall bring me up, again, from
the depths of the earth." Have any of you got down there? Do you want
to rise out of them? Those depths of the earth are not pretty places,
but we
stumble into them, sometimes, by careless walking–would you rise from
them into newness of life? Then resort to God and He will bring you up
from the lowest deeps! He will raise you from death to life, more
fitted for holy service than ever!
The fact is, whatever you need, you have only to go to God for it, and
whenever you need it, you may go. Whatever your condition, you may
still resort to the Lord. If you cannot come as a saint, you may come
as a sinner. If you cannot come boldly, you may come trembling! When
you feel most unfit to resort to God, you may still go to Him, for He
is your Fitness and your Physician. When you feel that you dare not go,
you may still go to Him–"Whereunto I may continually resort."
There is a blessed positiveness about my text. "I may continually
resort." I may, I am sure I may! Just now, in the courts of law, it is
the Long Vacation–nothing can be done in Chancery this month, for the
poor lawyers must rest– but there is no Long Vacation in the courts of
King's Bench above! You may plead your suit and urge your case with God
every day in the year. The Lord allows, permits, invites, commands you
to plead with Him! "Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver
you and you shall glorify Me."
I may continually resort to God, that is to say, He prompts me to do
so–His Spirit helps my infirmities–He teaches me how to pray. Is not
this sweet? What more can you desire? You know the way, for Christ is
the Way–that way is always accessible, for Christ is always with us
unto the end of the world. Come, tried Believer, ring the night bell
and call up the great Physician! You have only to call upon Him and He
will be with you in an instant. Yes, before you call, He will answer
you! Why, then, do you resort to man so often and to God so seldom? Why
drink so far down the stream, where it is muddy and polluted, when the
pure fountainhead may be reached? Men will grow weary of you, but you
cannot weary God. You may come to the Lord even though conscious of sin
and backsliding. You may come to Him though your soul is sick and
faint. He will restore you while you are yet coming! Before you are
aware, He can fill you with Divine Love. You have but to turn the helm
towards the harbor of His Love and the wind will turn, too, and you
shall be happy in the Lord! Come, then, at once, to God in Christ
Jesus, just as you are! In all your backsliding and coldness of heart
come to Him for renewal! The Lord has not grown indifferent, nor has He
shut His door against petitioners.
You may continually resort to God, for He is never like Baal, on a
journey, or asleep–He waits to be gracious–He listens for His
people's cry. You may continually resort to Him with confidence that
you shall not seek His face in vain, for the Lord is never unable to
help His people. Whatever the form of their trial, He is prompt to come
to their rescue. One of old exclaimed, "The Lord was ready to save me."
All the day long, all the night long and all the year long, in every
case, and in every place, the Lord sits at receipt of supplication and
holds Himself in readiness to commune with His people!
Listen to a parable–A certain young man traded and in all things he
prospered for a while. In all his dealings he was wise and prudent and
none were able to overreach him. The cause of his wisdom was that he
had a father, a man of amazing knowledge, of great experience, of large
wealth and great influence. His son never entered upon a transaction
without consulting his father. Whenever he felt himself at all in
difficulty, he hastened to ask counsel of his father. Whenever he
needed money to meet a sudden demand, he drew upon his father. Their
love to each other was more and more manifest as the one trusted and
the other helped. Does anybody wonder that the young man grew rich?
But, after a while, the son grew cold towards his father and seldom
sought his advice. There was no quarrel, but the young man was growing
independent of his father and preferred to act upon his own judgement.
He failed to ask and to receive substantial help–which would have been
freely given–and he fell into great losses which might readily have
been avoided. The young man became weak as others! He was the prey of
deceivers. He spent labor and thought and substance upon matters which
ended in failure. He grew poorer and poorer, till he trembled on the
verge of bankruptcy. Do you wonder? Do you pity him? Do you see in him
your own portrait? If so, change it all and say of your heavenly
Father–He is my Friend and Counselor and, to Him I do continually
resort. This will be your wisdom, your strength, your happiness and
your spiritual wealth!
Multiply your approaches to God. Let them become incessant, constant,
continual! No man ever resorted to God to excess. It might be possible
to spend too much time in the posture of devotion, but you can be in
the spirit of prayer and praise all day long and yet never run to
extravagance. "Pray without ceasing" is the command of our Infallible
Lord. Towards men there is a limit of resort, but to God there is none.
By your continual coming, you will not weary the Lord.
Through your importunity, you will prevail with Him. I had a dear
friend whose company I esteemed, but all of a sudden he did not come to
see me. He stayed away and, as I knew he had not ceased to love me, I
wondered why. At last I found that the good Brother had taken it into
his head that he might outrun his welcome–he had read those words of
Solomon, "withdraw your foot from your neighbor's house; lest he be
weary of you, and so hate you."
I admired my friend's prudence, but I labored hard to make him see that
Solomon knew nothing of me and that I was more wearied when he stayed
away than when he came! I hope he made me an exception to a very
sensible rule. But never get that thought into your head concerning
your God! Will you weary my God, also? You may weary Him by withdrawing
prayer, but never by abounding in supplication! Abide with your God and
cry to Him day and night–and let this be the music of your whole life,
"whereunto I may continually resort."
Our immediate practical conclusion is this–If we may continually
resort to God, let us go to Him at once. Let us come before His
Presence with thanksgiving and prayer even now! Here are several
thousands of us who profess to have come here to worship–let us all
draw near unto God, this morning. Let each one hasten to his footstool
for himself, individually. Forget the vast congregation! Forget
everything but that which is holy and spiritual–and come unto your God
who, at this moment, calls you to His footstool. "Alas, I have been so
worldly all the week"! This is to be confessed and repented of, but it
must not, now, keep you from God. "But I feel dull and dead." I know it
and the Lord knows it, too! But you may still approach Him. You
remember what our Lord Jesus said of the Laodicean Church? That He
would spue it out of His mouth–but what does He say afterwards?
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock." He says to the same Church,
"If any man opens the door, I will enter in"–enter into the same
Church which had so disgusted Him– "and will sup with Him"–sup with
that Church of which, just now, He was so sick!
Come, then, you lukewarm ones and, in coming to Jesus, you will cease
to be disgusting to Him! Come, you whose spiritual state would make
Jesus, Himself, sick. He stands at your door and knocks! Open to Him
and He will enter in, and He will have no distaste of you, but He will
delight in you! You have returned from your health resorts–now come to
a still healthier resort! Come, see how graciously Jesus can restore
your souls and make you full of His life and joy! He will forget your
sins and, instead of His being sick of you, He will make you glad in
Him until you shall cry out with the spouse, "Stay me with flagons,
comfort me with apples; for I am sick of love!" Blessed love sickness!
If you never have come to Jesus before, come, you chief of sinners,
now! Come, you that have but little spiritual feeling! Come just as you
are, since Jesus, from this platform, says, "Come unto Me, all you that
labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." "The Spirit and
the bride say, Come." "Whoever will, let him take the Water of Life
freely." That God who is the house of His people, sets wide His doors
and writes over them in letters of light, "Whoever will, let him come."
Jesus comes to the door! He beckons to you and persuades you to enter,
saying, "Him that comes to Me I will in no wise cast out." The Lord
enable you to come, for His dear mercy's sake. Amen.
PORTION OF SCRIPTURE READ BEFORE SERMON–Psalm 71.
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