Daily Readings in the Life of Christ - J.R. Miller (1890)

October 4. Acceptable Offerings

"She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying." Mark 14:8

This was a wonderful commendation to come from the lips of Jesus. Mary could not have done better than this — if she had been a thousand times as gifted. We get two lessons here:

One is, that all Christ wants — is what we have ability and opportunity to do. He asks no impossibilities. The poorest things, the smallest offerings, are acceptable — if they are really our best in the circumstances.

A child in a mission school offered her teacher a handful of weeds and grasses, wilted and soiled — which she called a bouquet. Did the teacher refuse the gift, and criticize the poor withered weeds? No, she accepted them with as sincere gratitude and as many thanks as if some wealthy friend had offered her an elegant bouquet of flowers. The child did what she could; and the teacher looking behind the gift — saw the love in the little heart, and that transfigured her poor gift. Just so, Christ accepts our poorest work, or our plainest offering — if it is our best.

But the lesson has another side. "She did what she could." It is this, then, which pleases Christ. Are we doing what we could do? Do we always bring to Him our very best gifts? Do we never put Him off with the faded flowers — keeping the fresh and fragrant ones for ourselves? Do we do for Him our very best work? Are we faithful?

If we are only doing half of what we might, we cannot take the comfort of this commendation. The widow's two mites were very acceptable coming from her, because they were all she had; but they would not have elicited any such commendation if one of the rich men had given them. A little child's ministry is very beautiful for a child — but it would not be as fitting in the father or mother. We must really do the very best we can — if we would have this commendation

TESTIMONY OF A GREAT SCIENTIST! 

GIVING TO GOD

 THE FAMILY ALTAR - Hertzberger

"October 3.

"Behold, thou art made whole; sin no more, lest a worse thing

come unto thee." John 5:14"

What worse thing could come to the impotent man who had

been sick thirty-eight years as a result of his sin and whom the

Lord had so graciously cured at the pool of Bethesda? Thirty-

eight years of pain, of restless days and often sleepless nights, is

that not enough of misery, not enough of punishment? It ought

to be ; but when former patients fall back into their old evil habits,

their last state is worse than the first. Not only does their bodily

health suffer a dangerous relapse, but their immortal soul is in

greatest danger. By relapsing into sin these people lose the faith

they had perhaps found on their sickbed, lose God's grace, and if

they persist in their godless ways and finally reach the brink of

the grave, then comes the worst thing of all — in death they are cast

by the wrath of the just God into outer darkness where weeping,

and wailing, and gnashing of teeth will be their lot forever. Damna-

tion, eternal damnation, where their worm dieth not, and the fire

is not quenched, and the smoke of their torment goeth up forever

and ever — that is the worse thing against which the Savior here

warns the impotent man whom He had cured, and also all former

patients. Let none of them forget that the goodness of God in

which He restored them to health is a continual call to repentance.

They owe it to their merciful Savior to spend the remaining years

of their life in His service and not in the service of sin. May all

the sick who sought and found God's mercy on their sickbed and

vowed to give Him their life keep their sacred promise after their

return to health and sin no more, lest a worse thing come to them.

He has made our sin-sick souls whole through His saving grace

in Jesus' blood. Oh, may He help us never to forget His great

mercy toward us, but to thank and praise Him as long as we live !