When God Calls Us to Suffer, He Gives Us More of Christ – Samuel Rutherford

Found on Facebook. Do not know original source.

“If your Lord calls you to suffering, do not be dismayed, for He will provide a deeper portion of Christ in your suffering. The softest pillow will be placed under your head though you must set your bare feet among thorns. Do not be afraid at suffering for Christ, for He has a sweet peace for a sufferer. God has called you to Christ’s side, and if the wind is now in His face, you cannot expect to rest on the sheltered side of the hill. You cannot be above your Master who received many an innocent stroke. The greatest temptation out of hell is to live without trials. A pool of standing water will turn stagnant. Faith grows more with the sharp winter storm in its face. Grace withers without adversity. You cannot sneak quietly into heaven without a cross. Crosses form us into His image. They cut away the pieces of our corruption. Lord cut, carve, wound; Lord do anything to perfect Your image in us and make us fit for glory! We need winnowing before we enter the kingdom of God. O what I owe to the file, hammer, and furnace! Why should I be surprised at the plough that makes such deep furrows in my soul? Whatever direction the wind blows, it will blow us to the Lord. His hand will direct us safely to the heavenly shore to find the weight of eternal glory. As we look back to our pains and suffering, we shall see that suffering is not worthy to be compared to our first night’s welcome home in heaven. If we could smell of heaven and our country above, our crosses would not bite us. Lay all your loads by faith on Christ, ease yourself, and let Him bear all. He can, He does, and He will bear you. Whether God comes with a rod or a crown, He comes with Himself. ‘Have courage, I am your salvation!’ Welcome, welcome Jesus!”

—Samuel Rutherford

Christ Ministers To All, Whether They Are in Conditions Glorious or Humiliating – C.H. Spurgeon

“The kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, while on earth, was so extensive as to touch the confines both of heaven and hell. We see him at one moment discoursing with Moses and Elias in his glory, as though at heaven’s gates, and lo, in a few hours, we see him confronting a foul spirit, as though defying the infernal pit. There is a long journey from patriarchs to demons, from prophets to dumb devils; yet mercy prompts him and power supports him, so that he is equally glorious in either place. What a glorious Lord he was even while in his humiliation! How glorious is he now! How far his goodness reaches! Truly he hath dominion from sea to sea; to the extremes of human condition his empire reaches. Our Lord and Master hears with joy the shout of a believer, who has vanquished his foe, and, at the same hour, he bows his ear to the despairing wail of a sinner, who has given up all confidence in self, and is desirous to be saved by him. At one moment he is accepting the crown which the warrior brings him from the wellfought fight, at another moment he is healing the broken in heart, and binding up their wounds. There is a notable difference between the dying scene of the triumphant believer as he enters into rest, and the first weeping repentance of a Saul of Tarsus as he seeks mercy of the Saviour whom he has persecuted; and yet the Lord’s heart and eye are with both. Our Lord’s transfiguration did not disqualify him for casting out the devils, nor did it make him feel too sublime and spiritual to grapple with human ills, and so at this hour the glories of heaven do not take him off from the miseries of earth, nor do they make him forget the cries and tears of the feeble ones who are seeking him in this valley of tears.”

– C.H. Spurgeon, “Hope in Hopeless Cases.” Preached July 18,1868

From http://www.spurgeon.org, taken 2019/10/05