“Praise and thankfulness be the only heavenly work that can be done on earth; the only joyful employment that shall last to all eternity in another life; a work that should…continually glorify God; yet how unthankful are most professors?”
“Are not we unmindful of the gracious dealings of God with us? Have not we forgotten the God of our salvation, and been “unmindful of the rock of our strength?’”
“I wonder not that many complain of their decays of love to God, while they forget his wonders of grace and love to their souls.”
“And did we oftener recount the mercies of God, they would work endearments betwixt God and our souls: did we consider what a wonder it is that God should draw us out of nothing; that he who stoops to “behold the things of heaven” should put his finger to our workmanship: that he should curiously work us, as needle work, in the dark vaults of nature; and that when we were fuller of sin than the toad of poison, that yet he should feed a toad and clothe a cockatrice: the fire of love to God would burn within our breasts. How is God provoked by this sin?
“God took it ill at the hands of the Israelites that they “remembered not his hand; nor the day in which he delivered them:” how much more do we grieve the Lord, who remember not the goodness and salvation of the Lord in Canaan, yea, in Zion? How have we forgot the God that bridled nature’s proud waves and said, “Hither to ye shall go and no further?” When we were ripe for judgment then mercy stepped in, and yet how slow to give thanks?”
“Did not he present the face of Christ as lovely to thy soul, who before was “despised and rejected?” And hath not Christ fed thee with fresh supplies of free grace that have watered thy soul every moment so that you have been “Kept through his mighty power?” And yet, O wretched heart! How unthankful hast thou been? “Thou hast forgotten all his benefits.”
The above quote comes from “A Gospel Glass”, by Lewis Stuckley. While reading, my mind was filled with the many scriptures where God had commanded that His people remember, that they be careful to diligently pass all God had entrusted to them down to their children. The Psalms rehearsed over and over the greatness, goodness, and loving kindnesses of God. The prophets time and time again lamented that the people had forgotten, they did not consider, somewhere along the way they neglected to set their mind on the things of God, they became indifferent to the God of their salvation. They no longer talked with their children of the things of God as commanded. They no longer retained God in their minds, and eventually, they were “destroyed for a lack of knowledge.”
I wanted to end the post with the words “Thou hast forgotten all his benefits,” for those are truly heartbreaking words. How could we forget Christ? What loathsome, wicked and ungrateful creatures we are. For the words are true, our Beloved puts His hand on the latch, yet we are too comfortable and drowsy (our minds filled with what?), to arouse ourselves and go to Him. And even after we have so sorely mistreated Him, He doesn’t forsake us, but stands behind the lattice to allure us back to Him, then we remember His beauty and worth, we sing His praises and search for Him, no longer resting content in the fog of forgetfulness. And yet, we forget.
But, that is not where Mr. Stuckley stopped. Like the prophets of old, he felt obligated to warn his readers of the consequences of such ungrateful forgetfulness.
“A man would think it were impossible that every unpleasing providence should make us so forgetful of all the mighty works that have been done within doors upon our souls. How just is it with God to plague us for this our unkindness unto him? “because thou hast forgotten,” “therefore the harvest shall be all an heap.” In the beginning all succeeded well according to our desire: “In the day the plant grew, and in the morning the seed flourished;” but because of unthankfulness extreme misery followed. Wonder not that the showers are withheld; that the Lord causeth the sun to set on the prophets at noon-day; that the manna falls not at your doors; that the “hidden manna” and “white stone” are denied you; you have been unthankful – you have “not taken care for the fragments that nothing be lost.”
May we be brought to repentance before the warning of this dear saint becomes our reality.
“God knows what a controversy there is with the land for the unthankfulness of them that dwell therein. Because you have not served God with joy and praise in the days of plenty, therefore it is but a righteous thing that you serve in scarcity and famine of bread – of the word of the Lord.”
