The Jewels of God. From The Night
Watches by John McDuff. And they shall be mine says the
Lord Almighty in that day when I make up my jewels. Malachi
chapter 3 verse 17. My jewels or my special treasure. Of what favored creature does
Jehovah thus speak? Is it of seraphs? Is it of angels? Let me think that such a title
even they would take the dust of a basement. Unveiling their
faces cry, unclean, unclean. But, marvel of marvels, it is
redeemed sinners of the earth, once crude unshapely stones,
lying in the horrible pit and the miry clay, amid the rubbish
of corruption, who are thus sought out by divine grace, purchased
by divine love, destined through eternity to be set as jewels
in the crown of the Eternal God. The Lord's portion is His people. There is a surpassing revelation
of love here. Great, unspeakably great, is
the privilege of the believer to be able to look up to the
everlasting Jehovah and say, You are my portion, O Lord. But
what is this in comparison with the response of omnipotence to
the child of dust? You are mine. Frieder, have you
learned to lisp your part in this wondrous interchange of
covenant love? My beloved is mine, and I am
his. What an array of wondrous titles
belong to the saints of God, and given to by God himself in
his own word. He calls them sons, brethren,
princess, friends, heirs, jewels, my portion, mine. And when is the time when they
become thus dear to Him? Sinner, when you wept at the
cross of Jesus and joined yourself in covenant with God, you became
His jewel? No. From eternity past, He has
loved you with an everlasting love. True, you're not yet set
in His crown. You are yet undergoing the process
of polishing. Affliction is preparing you.
Trial is needed to remove all the roughness and blemishes of
nature and make you fit for your Master's use. But blessed thought,
now it is God who has made us, literally chiseled or polished
us, for this very purpose and has given us the spirit as a
deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. Yes, God himself the
possessor who prized that earthly jewel so much as to give in exchange
for it heaven's pearl of great price. He has the polishing in
his own hand. He will not deal too rashly or
roughly. And where, meanwhile, is the
casket in which these jewels are kept until the coronation
day arrives, when the crown of his church triumphant, every
saint a gem, will be placed on the head of Jesus? It is he,
their purchaser, their proprietor, who preserves them. They are
kept by the power of God. Our great high priest, the true
Aaron, has set them in his breastplate. He bears them on his heart on
his every approach to the throne. They are the precious stones
set in gold upon the ephod. And though the sins of his people
and the schemes of Satan combine in doing what they can do to
destroy them, he declares that none shall ever pluck them out
of his hand or from his heart. a jewel in Emmanuel's crown,
not only raised from the ash heap to be set among princes,
but to gem through eternity the forehead that for me was once
wreathed with thorns. Shall I, can I murmur at any
way my Savior sees fit to polish and prepare me for such an honor
as this? let me sink down on my nightly
pillow, overpowered with the thought. And as I hear my covenant
God whispering in my ear the astounding ascents, You are mine. I may well reply, I will both
lie down and sleep in peace. For You alone, O Lord, make me
live in safety. Psalm 4 verse 8