Anything better than Hell, is sheer mercy!
Charles Spurgeon, et al.
(You will find it helpful to
LISTEN to the Audio, as you READ
the text below.)
Proverbs 3:11-12, "My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline and do
not resent His rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those He loves!"
Knowing that each of us as sinners, deserve eternal damnation--
Every hour outside of eternal torment, is mercy.
And every drop of suffering in this life,
though painful, is far lighter than the cup of divine wrath which Jesus drained
for us on the cross!
If we were to lie in pain for fifty years, unable to find even a moment's
relief--yet had the Lord pardoned our sins and made us His redeemed
people--would we not still be infinitely more blessed than we deserve? Yet God
has not only spared us from Hell, but He has given us His Son, adopted us into
His family, and prepared for us an eternal inheritance that can never perish,
spoil, or fade.
Therefore, let us never complain under God's chastening rod, nor grow bitter in
the furnace of affliction. For these light and momentary troubles are not
punishments, but purifying fires. They come from a Father's hand--not to destroy
us, but to refine us into the image of His beloved Son.
Therefore, as sinners deserving divine wrath, we are bound to humbly submit to
the chastenings of the Lord. Let us confess that we are sinners, and that every
sorrow we endure is mingled with mercy. Let us accept His chastisements with
reverence--acknowledging that our worst days on earth, are still infinitely
better than the Hell we've been rescued from.
"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood
the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who
love Him!" James 1:12