May 8 Daily Devotional

"This was my life—was it a life?"
(Augustine)

I remember very well the case of a man who was an out­standing surgeon in London and in great prominence. Suddenly to the amazement and astonishment of all who knew him it was announced that he had given it all up and had become a ship's doctor. What had happened to that man was this.

He was a great man in his profession, and he had legitimate ambi­tions with respect to certain honors in the profession. But disappointment in that respect suddenly opened his eyes to the whole situation. He arrived at the conclusion that there was no abiding satisfaction in the life he was living. He saw through it all, but he did not become a Christian. He just became cynical and left it all.

There have been many other notable examples of men who have given up everything and have gone into some isolated position where they have found a measure of peace and happiness without becoming Christians. That is one possibility.

But they may even go further; they may see the excellences of the Christian life as indicated in the Sermon on the Mount. They say, "There is no question at all about it; the Christian life is the life, if only everyone lived like that!"

They may also have read the lives of the saints and have recognized that these were men who had something wonderful about them. There was a time when they were not interested, but now they have come to see that the life depicted in the Sermon on the Mount is real life and living; and again, seeing life as portrayed in 1 Corin­thians chapter 13, they say, "If only we all lived like that, the world would be Paradise." They have come to see that much very clearly.

Spiritual Depression, p. 41

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“Text reproduced from ‘A First Book of Daily Readings’ by Martyn Lloyd-Jones, published by Epworth Press 1970 & 1977 © Trustees for Methodist Church Purposes. Used with permission.”

Comments on D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, A First Book of Daily Readings

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