August 16

Morning

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name; worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness. — Ps 29:2 BSB

God’s glory flows from His nature and actions. He is glorious in His character, for He possesses an abundance of all that is holy, good, and lovely. His actions, which flow from His character, are also glorious. While these actions reveal His goodness, mercy, and justice to His creatures, He is just as concerned that the glory of these actions is given entirely to Himself.

There is nothing in ourselves that we can boast about. Who made us different from others? What do we have that we didn’t receive from the God of all grace? This should make us careful to walk humbly before the Lord. The moment we glorify ourselves, we set ourselves up as rivals to the Most High. Shall a tiny insect exalt itself against the sun that gave it life? Shall a clay pot boast over the potter who formed it? Shall dust challenge the whirlwind, or drops of water contend with the mighty ocean? Give unto the Lord, all you righteous, the glory and strength due to His name!

It is one of the hardest lessons in the Christian life to learn the words, “Not unto us, not unto us but to Your name be glory!” God is continually teaching us this, sometimes through painful discipline. Let a Christian begin to boast, “I can do all things,” without adding, “through Christ who strengthens me,” and soon he will be groaning, “I can do nothing,” and lamenting his weakness in the dust. When we do something for the Lord and He is pleased to accept our efforts, let us humbly lay our crowns at His feet and declare, “Not I but the grace of God within me!”

Evening

Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. — Rom 8:23 BSB

Present possession is the focus here. Right now, we have the first fruits of the Spirit. We already possess repentance, that precious gem; faith, that priceless pearl; hope, the heavenly emerald; and love, the glorious ruby. By the powerful work of the Holy Spirit, we are made “new creatures in Christ Jesus.” These graces are the first fruits because they come first, like the wave offering that Israel presented as the first of the harvest. Just as the first fruits signaled the fullness of the harvest to come, the work of the Spirit in our lives is a pledge of the coming glory.

The first fruits were always holy to the Lord, and so is our new nature, with all its gifts and graces. This new life is not our own; it is the work of Christ, created in us for His glory. Yet the first fruits are not the full harvest. The work of the Spirit in us now is not the final result—the full harvest is yet to come. We must not boast that we have reached perfection, thinking the wave offering is the entire crop. Instead, we should hunger and thirst for more righteousness and eagerly await the day of our complete redemption.

Dear reader, tonight open your heart wide, and God will fill it. Let the blessings you already possess stir up in you a holy desire for even more grace. Long for deeper consecration, and your Lord will grant it, for He is able to do exceedingly more than we ask or imagine!