Bowen's Daily Meditations

There is much evidence given anterior to faith; abundant evidence; far more than men care to gather up, concerning anything of worldly interest. Yet the greatest and most surprising testimonies are reserved for the satisfaction of believers. If unbelief has its necessities, faith has its privileges. Some would like to have, without any figure, a white stone thrown down to them from heaven, with their name upon it, beside the name of God - something that they can clutch in their hand. But...

Unto them that stand in awe of God and are conversant with the divine perfections, the Sun of righteousness makes haste to arise. There has been a fulfilling of this truth ever since the day of Pentecost. To one individual here, to an other there, it is given to behold his rising. Here is one that has been enabled to look upon Christ as the sacrifice for sin, to approach God through him, and to rejoice in the goodly prospects opening up before him. But soon he becomes conscious, of a great...

Hold fast what thou hast, because it is only for a little while that thou must hold it under the pressure of adverse circumstances; and hold it fast because everlasting victory and dominion and blessedness shall reward thy fidelity. So might a captain speak to a little band assaulted by a mighty host, when in the distance a relieving force is seen approaching; a nation's destiny depends upon their holding their own.

It is only for a little while, because the day of our salvation is...

Men are fully aware of many of the advantages of partnerships. They even form partnerships for the prosecution of some labors that would seem most likely to be well performed by a single individual; as for instance, the labors of authorship. But they are not aware that any gain would result from entering into partnership, with the promises of God as their capital, and the throne of grace as their place of business.

The encouragement of the text does not address itself merely to an...

The Jews were accustomed to regard themselves as a fountain of righteousness, the only one in the earth; their country an oasis made glad by these beneficent and hallowed waters, while all the rest of the world was a wilderness; and Jerusalem as the blessed spot where heaven and earth met together and held one another in a fond embrace. At no time were they more tenacious of these views than when the Son of God dwelt among them, drinking his daily cup of ignominy. His credentials showed that...

Is there not reason to apprehend that we presume upon a great deal of mercy that is not really accorded? We know that the world takes for granted that God forgives it, and reserves all its anxiety for matters that seem to it invested with much more difficulty. But may it not be that we, who consider ourselves, on apparently good grounds, as God's real children, that we are daily presuming on God's forgiveness when that forgiveness is not really pronounced? We are not notified of forgiveness...

Think not that they who were personally concerned in the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, were sinners above all the sinners of the world. Christ on the cross, the righteous Advocate, was able to find something extenuating in their conduct. " They know not what they do." Afterwards, when they saw what they had done, when the Spirit of Pentecost made him known as the Prince of life, many of them repented of their sin, and made haste to believe upon him. The measure of knowledge is an...

Most pitiable was the condition of the Israelites in Egypt. Pharaoh seemed to delight in eliciting the most incredible proofs of their subjection to his rod. There is ordinarily a limit beyond which masters dare not go in trifling with the lives and feelings of even the most abject slaves; but there seemed to be no limit to Pharaoh's power to oppress. The sacred sentiment of paternity he trampled on; and seemed to feel that the Israelites were the very impersonation of helplessness. But soon...

The world with all its wisdom has not yet reached the platform where this humble servant of God stood more than two thousand years ago. But indeed, others had stood there before him. Isaiah had stood there and heard the song of the seraphim. Moses had stood there nearly a thousand years before, and heard the asseveration of the divine majesty, " As I live, all the earth shall be filled with my glory." It is the fashion with many to despise the stand-point of the ancient Israelites;...

Thou art indeed the good shepherd; but we must acknowledge that there often appears in us something that looks very much like a denial of this truth. Believing thee to be the good shepherd, why are we sometimes so slow to follow thee? Why do we ever doubt that thy commandments are better than our own conceits? Why murmur at the ruggedness of thy path? Why look with wistful eyes at the pastures which thou forbiddest? We name thee the good shepherd; but is there not some hypocrisy in the joy...

Because the Lord is slow to anger, men suppose that they have nothing to apprehend from his anger. But, indeed, his anger is only the more terrible, because it is slow. He is slow to anger; this shows that his anger is something different from what we call anger. It is not an impulse; but moves with the utmost possible deliberation.

It would be of the greatest advantage to men if they would just take knowledge that the goodness of God expressed in the innumerable gifts of Providence...

Having had a taste of the power of these our enemies, we look disconsolately around, much desiring, but little hoping, that a deliverer may appear. We discover some, perhaps, who excel in virtue. But we see at once that they can never medicine us to that sweet peace which they themselves possess. They may instruct; but we need something more than instruction; there is that within us which laughs at instruction, human or divine. If some angels would only come and tarry with us for a season;...

As many as I love. Is this the voice which has just been giving expression to such intensity of holy disgust? "Well may we marvel at the modulations of which it is susceptible. Ah, if there had not been love somewhere in thy heart, thou wouldst not have threatened the Laodiceans with ignominious ejection, but wouldst have cast them forth without any words of condescending reproach. Thou sawest how that confusion and alarm were being borne by thy words to their hearts, and how they began to...

Temptation is not of God. What constitutes a thing tempting is something in the man or woman that looks upon it, namely, a disposition more or less active to transgress, and take what is forbidden. The fruit is suspended on the tree for an admirable purpose; namely that men may have an opportunity of evincing their fidelity towards God, and thus may obtain a crown of life. The same thing is to one man a temptation, to another a good gift of God, by means of which his walk of righteousness is...