"They did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year." --Joshua 5:12
Israel's weary wanderings were all over, and the promised rest was attained.
No more moving tents, fiery serpents, fierce Amalekites, and howling
wildernesses: they came to the land which flowed with milk and honey, and they
ate the old corn of the land. Perhaps this year, beloved Christian reader, this
may be thy case or mine. Joyful is the prospect, and if faith be in active
exercise, it will yield unalloyed delight. To be with Jesus in the rest which
remaineth for the people of God, is a cheering hope indeed, and to expect this
glory so soon is a double bliss. Unbelief shudders at the Jordan which still
rolls between us and the goodly land, but let us rest assured that we have
already experienced more ills than death at its worst can cause us. Let us
banish every fearful thought, and rejoice with exceeding great joy, in the
prospect that this year we shall begin to be "for ever with the Lord."
A part of the host will this year tarry on earth, to do service for their
Lord. If this should fall to our lot, there is no reason why the New Year's text
should not still be true. "We who have believed do enter into rest." The Holy
Spirit is the earnest of our inheritance; He gives us "glory begun below." In
heaven they are secure, and so are we preserve in Christ Jesus; there they
triumph over their enemies, and we have victories too. Celestial spirits enjoy
communion with their Lord, and this is not denied to us; they rest in His love,
and we have perfect peace in Him: they hymn His praise, and it is our privilege
to bless Him too. We will this year gather celestial fruits on earthly ground,
where faith and hope have made the desert like the garden of the Lord. Man did
eat angels' food of old, and why not now ? O for grace to feed on Jesus, and so
to eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan this year!
Morning and Evening Index
