Spurgeon: April PM
* 04/12/PM
"The king's garden."
--Nehemiah 3:15
Mention of the king's garden by Nehemiah brings to mind the
paradise which the King of kings prepared for Adam. Sin has
utterly ruined that fair abode of all delights, and driven forth
the children of men to till the ground, which yields thorns and
briers unto them. My soul, remember the fall, for it was thy
fall. Weep much because the Lord of love was so shamefully
ill-treated by the head of the human race, of which thou art a
member, as undeserving as any. Behold how dragons and demons
dwell on this fair earth, which once was a garden of delights.
See yonder another King's garden, which the King waters with
His bloody sweat-- Gethsemane , whose bitter herbs are sweeter
far to renewed souls than even Eden's luscious fruits. There the
mischief of the serpent in the first garden was undone: there
the curse was lifted from earth, and borne by the woman's
promised seed. My soul, bethink thee much of the agony and the
passion; resort to the garden of the olive-press, and view thy
great Redeemer rescuing thee from thy lost estate. This is the
garden of gardens indeed, wherein the soul may see the guilt of
sin and the power of love, two sights which surpass all others.
Is there no other King's garden? Yes, my heart , thou art,
or shouldst be such. How do the flowers flourish? Do any choice
fruits appear? Does the King walk within, and rest in the bowers
of my spirit? Let me see that the plants are trimmed and
watered, and the mischievous foxes hunted out. Come, Lord, and
let the heavenly wind blow at Thy coming, that the spices of Thy
garden may flow abroad. Nor must I forget the King's garden of
the church . O Lord, send prosperity unto it. Rebuild her
walls, nourish her plants, ripen her fruits, and from the huge
wilderness, reclaim the barren waste, and make thereof "a King's
garden."