Spurgeon: April AM
* 04/10/AM
"The place which is called Calvary."
--Luke 23:33
The hill of comfort is the hill of Calvary; the house of
consolation is built with the wood of the cross; the temple of
heavenly blessing is founded upon the riven rock--riven by the
spear which pierced His side. No scene in sacred history ever
gladdens the soul like Calvary's tragedy.
"Is it not strange, the darkest hour
That ever dawned on sinful earth,
Should touch the heart with softer power,
For comfort, than an angel's mirth?
That to the Cross the mourner's eye should turn,
Sooner than where the stars of Bethlehem burn?"
Light springs from the midday-midnight of Golgotha, and every
herb of the field blooms sweetly beneath the shadow of the once
accursed tree. In that place of thirst, grace hath dug a
fountain which ever gusheth with waters pure as crystal, each
drop capable of alleviating the woes of mankind. You who have
had your seasons of conflict, will confess that it was not at
Olivet that you ever found comfort, not on the hill of Sinai,
nor on Tabor; but Gethsemane, Gabbatha, and Golgotha have been a
means of comfort to you. The bitter herbs of Gethsemane have
often taken away the bitters of your life; the scourge of
Gabbatha has often scourged away your cares, and the groans of
Calvary yields us comfort rare and rich. We never should have
known Christ's love in all its heights and depths if He had not
died; nor could we guess the Father's deep affection if He had
not given His Son to die. The common mercies we enjoy all sing
of love, just as the sea-shell, when we put it to our ears,
whispers of the deep sea whence it came; but if we desire to
hear the ocean itself, we must not look at every-day blessings,
but at the transactions of the crucifixion. He who would know
love, let him retire to Calvary and see the Man of sorrows die.