Daily Devotional
July 20
Thine Is My Heart: Devotional Readings from the Writings of John Calvin
by John Calvin (compiled by John H. Kromminga)Republished from the OPC Website
Bible Text:
Rivers of waters run down mine eyes, because they keep not thy law. —Psalm 119:136
Devotional:
Wherever the Spirit of God reigns, he excites this ardent zeal, which burns the hearts of the godly when they see the commandment of the Most High accounted as a thing of nought. It is not enough that each of us endeavor to please God. We must also desire that his law may be held in estimation by all men. In this way holy Lot, as the Apostle Peter testifies, vexed his soul when he beheld Sodom a sink of all kinds of wickedness.
If, in former times, the ungodliness of the world extorted from the children of God such bitter grief; so great is the corruption into which we at this day are fallen, that those who can look upon the present state of things unconcerned and without tears are thrice, yea four times insensible. How great in our day is the frenzy of the world in despising God and neglecting his doctrine! A few, no doubt, are to be found who with the mouth profess their willingness to receive it, but scarcely one in ten proves the sincerity of his profession by his life.
Meanwhile countless multitudes are hurried away to the impostures of Satan and to the Pope; others are as thoughtless and indifferent about their salvation as the lower animals; and many Epicureans openly mock at all religion.
If there is, then, the smallest portion of piety remaining in us, full rivers of tears, and not merely small drops, will flow from our eyes. But if we would give evidence of pure and uncorrupted zeal, let our grief begin at ourselves—at our seeing that we are yet far from having attained to a perfect observance of the law, yea, that the depraved lusts of our carnal nature are often rising up against the righteousness of God. —Commentaries
John Calvin was the premier theologian of the Reformation, but also a pious and godly Christian pastor who endeavored throughout his life to point men and women to Christ. We are grateful to Reformation Heritage Books for permission to use John Calvin's Thine Is My Heart as our daily devotional for 2013 on the OPC Web site. You can currently obtain a printed copy of that book from Reformation Heritage Books.
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