Daily Devotional Readings
1. Every believer is eternally justified in the purpose of God. Paul, speaking of God's eternal decree in predestination, declares that all of God's elect were justified in his eternal purpose of grace: 'Whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.' From eternity God looked upon his Son as our Substitute, and as he looks upon us in his Son, we are, and always have been, righteous in his sight. Thomas Goodwin said, 'We may say of all spiritual blessings in Christ, what is said of Christ, that 'His goings forth are from everlasting.' In Christ we are blessed with all spiritual blessings. As we are blessed with all others, so with this also, that we were justified then in Christ!'
2. All of God's elect were justified at Calvary. Having lived in perfect obedience to the law of God as our Representative, establishing it perfect righteousness for us, the Lord Jesus Christ suffered and died as our Substitute at Calvary, satisfying the penalty of God's law and justice against us. In the person of our Substitute, we have satisfied the law's requirements and its penalty. And now God, in perfect consistency with his justice and holiness, declares that we are forgiven of all sin and justified: 'Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.'
3. Every believer receives justification by faith in Christ. Christ justified us by his great sin-atoning sacrifice and all who believe on Christ as Lord and Saviour receive all the many benefits of his finished work, one of which is justification. It is written that our Lord Jesus Christ 'was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. Therefore being justified, by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.' Faith does not cause God to justify us. The obedience of Christ has done that for us. But faith, resting upon Christ alone as Saviour, obtains peace with God, even the peace of perfect and complete justification.
What is the Church? The church is not a material building. The church is not a particular denomination of believers. The church is not a particular, individual congregation of believers. And the church is not a combination of all the various churches and denominations of the world. The church of our Lord Jesus Christ is made up of all true believers throughout all ages, both in heaven and upon the earth. It includes all who have repeated of sin and fled to Christ by faith and have been made new creatures in him by the grace of God. All who are truly saved by the grace of God, washed in the blood of Christ, clothed in the righteousness of Christ and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit are in the church of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is the body of Christ. This is the bride of Christ. This is the whole family of God, whose names are written in heaven. The members of this church all come to the throne of grace. They all worship with one heart. That are all children of the same Father, members of the same family and heirs of the same promises. This is the church that is in Christ and the church in which Christ dwells. This is what Paul says, concerning all true believers and the one true church of our Lord Jesus Christ: 'Ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant' (Heb. 12:22-24)
This is the church which Christ loved, the church he came to save, the church he purchased with his own blood, the church of which he is the Head, the church which he rules and governs all things. This is the church which the Lord Jesus Christ shall present before his Father in glory. 'Christ loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish' (Eph. 5:25-27).
Certainly it is not possible for me to state in a few brief lines all that took place when Jesus Christ suffered in our stead at Mount Calvary. But our Lord does tell us plainly that three things definitely occurred as the result of his death.
1. The cross of Christ was the judgement of the world. The world was judged for sin. The world was found guilty of hating God. When the pure, holy and spotless Son of God cane to the earth, the men of this world crucified the Lord of glory with wicked hands.
2. By his death upon the cross, our Lord spoiled Satan of his universal monarchy. The first Adam, by eating the fruit of the forbidden tree, was cast out of paradise. The second Adam, by dying upon the cursed tree, cast Satan out of his of usurped dominion. By virture of his death and resurrection, the Lord Jesus Christ has crushed the serpent's head. He no longer has power to accuse us, neither does he have power against us.
3. By his death upon the cross, Jesus Christ has become the centre of attraction and the object of faith for perishing sinners. The boundaries of God's kingdom have been enlarged to include Gentiles as well as Jews. Now the crucified, risen, exalted Christ draws sinners from the four corners of the earth, through the preaching of the gospel. He draws sinners who could not come and who would not come to himself. He draws sinners who would not come to himself. He draws them lovingly and tenderly. And, blessed be his name, he draws them effectually. It is the crucified Christ who conquers the heart and wills of men. The terrors of the law will alarm you. The fear of hell will torment your mind. But, if you ever get sight of the Son of God dying in your stead, he will break your heart and conquer your will.
As a believer, a man redeemed by the blood of Christ, saved, forgiven and justified by the grace of God, I purposefully endeavour to live in the habit of dying. I want to be able to say with Paul, 'I die daily.' Daily we must put down the passions of life in this world and die to it. A man who is dead to the world cannot be greatly charmed by it. My friend, you would be wise to hold everything in this world with a loose hand. Once a pastor was visiting one of the old men in his congregation. They were sitting in the man's garden. He had a large estate, a fine home and a good piece of property. His wife, his children and his grandchildren were all present. And the old man said to his pastor, 'These are the things that make it hard to die.' Indeed, they are! But all of these things are perishing. We must hold them very loosely. Child of God, you must be ready, at a moment's notice, to turn loose of anything in this world. For your soul's sake, for your happiness and peace, I urge you not to build your nest in any of the trees of this world. They will all be cut down and cast into the fire.
Try to live in this world is like a traveller, staying in a motel. I am only spending a few days and a few nights in this place. So the things here should not greatly disturb me. What does the price of tea in China matter to us? What does the price of a loaf of bread or a gallon of petrol matter to a man who lives in the prospect of eternity?
And I try to live each day as though I knew it would be my last. This is the day the Lord has given me. I have no promise of tomorrow. I must press as much work and service for the honour of Christ into this day as I possibly can. 'The time is short.' George Whitefield said, 'I try to keep all my affairs so arranged that, if I were to die at any time, they would be no trouble to those who come after me.' I am not suggesting that we live irresponsibly or neglectfully. But I am saying this: we must be ready to die at any time. We must be united to Christ by faith. We must live for the honour and glory of Christ. We must not live for this world.
What does the Bible teach about election? Any honest man who reads the Bible must recognize that the Word of God does teach the doctrine of divine election and that this doctrine is a prominent theme of the New Testament. You may not understand it, you may not be able to explain it, but you cannot deny that our Lord and his apostles taught election. You know it and I know it. But what is election? What does the Bible teach about election? These are the questions we must seek to understand.
Divine election is God's eternal choice of his people. It is God's eternal and gracious purpose to save all who in time are saved. Election is that eternal act of God's grace by which he separated and distinguished you who are saved, and all who ever will be saved, from the rest of mankind, saying, 'I will be their God and they shall be my people.' If you are saved, you know that your salvation is God's work. True, you do believe on Christ, but God enabled you to believe and caused you to believe. God has distinguished you from the rest of mankind. He has done something for you which he has not done for other men. Now all I am saying is this: election is God's eternal purpose to save you.
Listen to the Scriptures. Our Lord said, 'Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you' (John 15:16). Luke tells us that when Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel, 'As many as were ordained to eternal life believed' (Acts 13:48). Paul tells us that every blessing of grace comes to us from God the Father, through the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ: 'According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will' (Eph. 1:4-5). It is written that 'God hath saved us and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began' (2 Tim. 1:9).
Here are six things which the Word of God teaches about divine election, If you search the Scriptures, you will find that these six things are true.
1. God's election of his people is sovereign and eternal (Rom. 9:11-23). God chooses whom he will, and none can call him into account. Is it not right for God to do with his own what he will? Election is God's sovereign, eternal purpose to save a specific people.
2. Divine election is an act of God's free grace (Rom. 9:16). I know that God did not choose us arbitrarily. He had some wise and holy reason for doing so. But I know also that the reason does not lie in us. God chose us not because we were either good or evil, but simply because he would. 'Even so Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight' (Matt. 11:26). We can say no more.
3. God's purpose of election is also irreversible (Isa. 46:9-11). 'The gifts and calling of' God are without repentance' (Rom. 11:29). Election is God's unchangeable purpose of love. Having chosen his people, he will never go back on his word that is gone out of his mouth. The purpose of God in election is immutable. He is of one mind and who can turn him?
4. Divine election is effectual (Rom. 8:29-30). Every soul chosen by God in eternity was redeemed by Christ at Calvary and will be regenerated by the Holy Spirit at God's appointed time. In due time all of God's elect will believe on Christ and be brought to eternal glory. Not one of the elect will perish.
5. God's purpose of grace in election is personal (Jer. 1:5; 31:3). God calls his own children by name. He chose us, not as an indiscernible mass, but individually and personally. Yet he chose all his elect at once.
6. God's eternal purpose of election is in Christ (Eph. 1:4). Christ was chosen as the Head of an elect race, and we were chosen in him. God loved us eternally in Christ.
When Paul wrote to the Thessalonian believers he said, 'We are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth' (2 Thess. 2:13).
We know that the doctrine of divine, sovereign, eternal election is not contrary to all the promises of the gospel. You know the promises: 'Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.' 'Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved' 'He is able to save unto the uttermost, them that come unto God by him.' 'He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.' 'Him that cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out.' 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.' Election does not restrict the gospel invitation. It simply guarantees the fact that some will receive it. Election does not limit the promises of the gospel. It simply secures a people to enjoy those promises. The gospel of the grace of God says that any man in all the world who comes to Christ in faith will be saved. And the gospel also declares that there are some who most assuredly will come to Christ, because God has a chosen them in eternal election.
And divine election is in no way contrary to the plain statements of Holy Scripture about man's responsibility. What does God require of you? 'This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent' (John 6:29). You cannot believe, unless God the Holy Spirit creates faith in you and causes you to believe. Yet it is your responsibility to believe. You must repent. You must believe the gospel. You must trust Christ. You cannot save yourself. The Son of God alone can save you. But there are some things you can do. You can pray. You can read the Bible. You can go to hear God's servant preach the gospel. You can confess your sin. You can seek the Lord. You can sue for mercy, crying, 'God be merciful to me a sinner.' If you do seek the Lord with a sincere, believing heart, it is because he has chosen you and caused you to believe.
True faith is something more than learning doctrine. Doctrine is important. It is essential. No man call be well-grounded without sound doctrine. It is not possible for a man to receive Christ and reject his doctrine. But many rejoice in the doctrine of Christ who do not have faith in Christ. True faith is much more than personal morality. The Pharisee was rigidly moral in his outward conduct (Luke 18:11-12), but he did not have the faith of God's elect. True faith will make a man honest. It will produce a heart that seeks after holiness and true godliness. But many who are personally moral have no faith in Christ. True faith is something far beyond mere lip service to Christ. It is one thing to profess Christ, and another thing to possess Christ. It is one thing to talk about faith and another thing to live by faith. It is one thing to call Jesus 'Lord' with your lips and something else altogether to submit to Lord Jesus Christ in your heart (Matt. 15:8-9). True faith is something more than all the endless activities, ceremonies, rituals and programs of religion.
The opinion of modern religion is that faith produces a life of health, wealth, happiness and prosperity. But the faith of God's elect, that faith which brings salvation, is a faith that brings about a living union with the living Redeemer! Faith does more than walk down an aisle and accept Jesus as a Saviour from hell. Saving faith does more than give God one day in seven in which to act pious and religious. Saving Faith does more than set aside ten per cent of my income for the work of the Lord. Faith does more than quit a few outward habits, while breeding inward contempt, rebellion and malice. True saving faith, the faith of God's elect, is the complete trust and confidence of the heart upon Christ for acceptance with God. It involves total submission and unreserved commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ.
This faith is a gift of God. It is not mentally accepting a creed, or believing certain facts about the Lord Jesus Christ. It is an inward disposition and active principle of the heart created in us by the sovereign power and irresistible grace of God the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:8-9; Col. 2:12; John 1: 12-13).
Children of God, rejoice in and give thanks for the love of God in Christ. None of us deserves to be loved by God. There is nothing in us by nature, either actually or potentially, that could have caused God to love us. He is holy; we are evil. He is pure; we are defiled. He is righteous; we are sinful. He is the glorious God of heaven; we are the filthy worms of the earth. Yet the infinite, eternal God loved us! He loved us freely! There is no cause to be found for the love of God for us except in himself'. He says, 'I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.'
The love of God for our souls is sovereign. I cannot explain the sovereignty of God's love for his own elect, but I can rejoice in his love. He did not love Esau or Judas, but he did love, Jacob and John, He did not choose to love many of my friends and companions or many of my own kinsmen, but blessed be his name, he did choose to love me! I was more undeserving of his love than all the others combined; nevertheless he loved me. Shall I not rejoice in his love?
The love of God for his own elect is eternal. His love for us, like himself, is without beginning. The Lord God loves us with an everlasting love. Before angel loved angel, before man loved man, before either angels or men were created, Jehovah loved us, and said, 'I will be their God, and they shall be my people.'
The proof of God's love for us is in the sacrifice of his own Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to save us. 'God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us' (Rom. 5:8). God so greatly loved us that, though the price of our redemption must be the blood of his own Son, he willingly made the sacrifice!
And God's love for his own is an immutable love. It changes not. The Lord God will never cease to cherish his own. His love will never come to an end. It can never be exhausted. It never even diminishes or becomes cold. God loves us perfectly and without end. No, not even our many sins affect his love. 'Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us!'
Why do we worry so much? I know that we all live with a great deal of stress. We have families to feed, children to clothe, train and educate and bills to pay. These are all things about which we are and should be concerned. I do not suggest that we should be careless and irresponsible. That would be contrary to the gospel of Christ. But I do say that we should not worry. Our concern for these things should not make us anxious, fretful and irritable.
Worrying is a fruitless, futile exercise. What did you ever get by worrying, except headaches and ulcers? We only worry about those things that are beyond our control. We worry about things that happened yesterday. We worry about what might happen tomorrow. We worry about what other people may say, or think, or do. We never worry about things that we can control. It is a futile, pointless thing to worry. Not one of us has ever accomplished a single thing by all of our worrying combined.
But what is more important, worrying is a very evil thing that dishonours our God. I speak to you who are believers, to you who seek the glory of God. Our worrying is sinful. It reveals a lack of faith. When I worry about something, it reveals that I do not trust the wisdom and goodness of God's providence. I only worry when I am discontent and dissatisfied with what God is doing for me, or because I do not truly trust him to do what is best. In other words, to worry is to murmur against the Lord my God!
Let us understand the words of our Lord and stop worrying. He is telling us that there is no need for any believer ever to worry. Our heavenly Father will provide for us everything that is needful and protect us from everything that is harmful. Let us not concern ourselves about the affairs of this world, but only about those things that concern the kingdom of God and his righteousness. He is saying, 'Don't worry.' Trust the Lord, 'Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you' (I Peter 5:7).
One of the great texts on salvation by the grace of God is Ephesians 2:8-10. The apostle Paul, writing under divine inspiration, says, 'For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.' In these three verses of Scripture Paul tells us how God saves sinners, why he save sinners the way he does and what the sure results of God's saving grace is.
How does God save sinners? 'By grace are ye saved through faith.' Salvation, front start to finish, is the work of God's free grace in Christ. Grace planned the way of salvation by the substitutionary sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace chose those who would be saved in eternal election. Grace brought the Lord Jesus Christ down from heaven to die in our place at Calvary. Grace call sinners to Christ by irresistible power. Grace gives us life. Grace preserves us in life. And grace will present us holy and without blame before the presence of his glory in heaven. All the many blessings of grace in salvation come to all of God's elect 'through faith'. Faith is not our saviour. Christ alone is the saviour of his people. But faith in Christ is essential to salvation. Each of God's elect look to Christ in faith and receive salvation. Each of God's elect look to Christ in faith and receive salvation from him. Faith is the channel through which salvation comes. 'And that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.' Paul is telling us that grace is the gift of God, salvation is the gift of God and faith is the gift of God. None of these things are to be attributed to us. We believe according to the working of God's mighty power within us. Faith is not the work of the sinner. It is the work of God in the sinner.
Why does God save sinners by grace alone, apart from any works performed by us? It is God's purpose 'that no flesh should glory in his presence ... He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.' Therefore Paul emphasizes this point, that salvation is 'not of works, lest any man should boast'. If there was anything which the sinner could do that would contribute anything towards his salvation, then at least a part of the glory of salvation must be attributed to man. God will not allow that. He will not share his glory with another. Salvation is by grace alone, without works. Salvation is not the work of man; neither is it a co-operative work of God and man together, God doing his part and man doing his part. Salvation is the work of God and the work of God alone. 'We are his workmanship.' God has created us new creatures in Christ Jesus by the mighty power of his sovereign grace. Let all proud, foolish thoughts of self-salvation by the works of the flesh be for ever put out of your heart and mind. 'Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.' We will praise the God of heaven for his great grace, because he has saved us and not we ourselves.
What is the sure result of God's saving grace? 'We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.' Good works will not save anyone. But you may be sure of this: whenever the grace of God comes, bringing salvation to the heart, good works will follow. When grace reigns in the heart it produces good works. The good works which grace produces are the works of faith and love, righteousness and peace, patience and goodness.
Salvation is accomplished by the grace of God, without works. Salvation is given through faith in Christ. And salvation produces good works.
When our Lord spoke of his death, he said, 'As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up.' Why? Why must he die?
It will not suffice to say, 'God loves us so greatly that he wants us to live with him for ever in heaven.' My wife lives with me in my home. I love her so much that I want her to live with me in my home for ever. But I have not died for her. Why did Jesus have to die? The answer to that question is vital. Learn the answer to that question and you will learn the gospel.
The apostle Paul gives us the answer to that question. Being inspired by God the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote this answer: the Lord Jesus Christ died upon the cross, so that God 'might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus'. You see, we are guilty sinners. God is holy, righteous, just and true. And a perfectly holy and just God could never save, justify and accept any sinner until atonement is made for his sin. A holy God must punish sin. Before the sinner can go free, God's holy, infinite wrath and justice against the guilty sinner must be satisfied. The Lord Jesus Christ died upon the cross to satisfy God's infinite wrath and justice against the sins of his elect, so that God in perfect justice might justify the ungodly. This is the gospel. This is the doctrine of Holy Scripture. The Lord Jesus Christ, the incarnate God-man, is that one 'whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation [a satisfactory sacrifice] through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus' (Romans 3:25-26). The Lord Jesus Christ died upon the cross to make an all-sufficient, satisfactory sacrifice for sin. 'Now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself' (Heb. 9:26).
To say that salvation is of the Lord is to say that salvation is in no way dependent upon or determined by man's works and man's will.
Salvation is not the work of man, nor is it a co-operative effort between God and God doing his part and man doing his part. Salvation is the work of God alone. It is altogether the work of his grace. Human works and human merit do not even enter into the picture. It is all of grace - not grace plus baptism, not grace plus church membership, not grace plus works. Grace alone accomplishes salvation. Grace plus anything ceases to be grace. 'If by grace, then it is no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work' (Rom. 11:6). Man's works can never merit salvation.
And it is not man's will that determines who will be saved. Your salvation is not dependent upon your sinful will; it is dependent upon God's sovereign will. God alone determines whom he will save. He does not even consult, or ask the opinion of man. You are subject to God's will. God is not subject to your will. He says, 'I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy' (Rom. 9:15-16). If God has determined to save you by his matchless grace in Christ, you will be saved. He will give you a new heart, a new nature and a new will. You will delightfully come to Christ in true faith in the day of his gracious, saving power. If God has not determined to save you, if he does not send his Spirit to quicken you, give you truth and bring you to Christ, you will never come to Christ, because you will never desire him. My friend, 'Salvation is of the Lord.' He can be gracious to you, or he can pass you by. He can save you, or he can damn you. It is entirely up to him. You have no claim upon God and you have no control over him.
Here are three vital truths revealed in the Word of God. I say that these truths are vital, because those who are in error, concerning these three truths have not yet learned the gospel.
1. God will by no means clear the guilty. He said that he would not in Exodus 34:7. 'The soul that sinneth, it shall die' (Ezek. 18:20). There is no means whereby a holy, righteous, just and true God can clear the guilty men and women. God demands holiness, absolute perfection. Any devitation, in thought, word, or deed, from perfect holiness God will not accept. A holy God must punish sin. A just God cannot clear the guilty. God will not clear the guilty upon the basis of their repentance. God will not clear the guilty upon the basis of their sacrifices. God will not clear the guilty upon the basis of their moral reformation. Be sure you know and understand this truth. A holy God cannot and will not clear the guilty.
2. Now be sure that you understand this also: You are guilty (Rom. 3:10-12,19,23; 5: 12,18,19). Every son of Adam, by nature, is guilty before God. You are guilty. You are guilty of Adam's sin. You are guilty of inward sin. You are guilty of outward sin. Judgement is passed. God declares that you are guilty. God will by no means clear the guilty; and you are guilty.
3. Yet. there is hope, because God has found a way to make the guilty not guilty. Through the substitutionary sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, God's own Son, in the place of sinners upon the cross, God makes the guilty not guilty. God made his Son to be sin for all who believe on him, imputing our sins to his Son. And God made every believer to be righteous, innocent, not guilty, imputing the righteousness of his Son to us. 'He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him' (2 Cor. 5:21). This is the vital truth of the gospel.
Children of God, don't be afraid of death and don't weep for those who have died in the Lord. For us, 'to die is gain'.
Death will bring us into the presence of many friends. Death takes the wife from the husband, the child from its mother, the father from his family, but we cheer ourselves with the prospect of glorious reunion (I Thess. 4:13-18). It is true, above all else, we shall see Christ and be with him, but it is also promised that we shall sit down with Abraham, Issac and Jacob. Yes, we shall know on another in heaven.
Death will bring an answer to our prayers. How often have you prayed that you might be delivered from your trials, temptations and troubles? We shall be delivered from them then. 'God shall wipe away all tears from our eyes.' How often have you prayed that you might be freed from sin? When this body is in the grave, 'There shall be no more sin. 'Many, many times you have prayed that you might be more like Christ, in love, in purity, in conduct. When we have laid aside this robe of flesh, we shall awake in his likeness. We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
But most of all, 'To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.' This is our chief concern. This is our noblest ambition. This is the happiness and glory of heaven. This is heaven! We shall be with Christ, for ever with the Lord! 'There cannot be heaven without Christ. He is the sum total of bliss; the fountain from which heaven flows, The element of which heaven is composed. Christ is heaven and heaven is Christ...Just to be with Christ is all the heaven a believer wants. The angels may be there or not, as they will, and the golden crowns and harps present or absent, as may be, but if I am to be where Jesus is, I will find angels in his eyes, and crowns in every lock of his hair; to me the golden streets shall be my fellowship with him, and the harpings of the harpers shall be the sound of his voice. Only to be near him, to be with him - this is all I want' (C.H. Spurgeon). This is heaven: 'To die is gain!'
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