The way of wisdom is not found in the noise of haste, nor in the schemes of men who think themselves wise; the fowler may lay his snare, but the bird of the air sees it not when the Divine Light has shone upon its path. Haste, too, is the author of a great deal of mischief in human life, and the enemies of your soul count upon your hurry to trip your feet. But remember that holiness is as near akin to perfect wisdom as sin is to insanity; walk therefore in the calm obedience that fears no surprise, for a grain of Divine Grace is worth more than a ton of knowledge.
As for this tangle of accusations and the record they have contrived against you, set your heart upon this: It is God that justifies. Who is he that condemns? You speak of having proven your case already, yet the only verdict that rings through eternity is the one spoken from the mercy-seat, where Christ’s blood silences every lying tongue. The honor of a Christian is when we have obeyed in detail, not forgetting any point of duty; leave the clearing of your name to Him who makes even the wrath of man to praise Him, and remember that the dry tree by divine grace shall flourish.
When you speak of all who are helping on this urgent matter, and your daughter among them, let this be your anchor: He exalteth the low tree. The Lord’s interpositions do not always come when we snap our fingers, but at the right moment He will bring forth some new and surprising stroke of wisdom, which He did but postpone so that the glory might redound more fully to His name. That insurance record, those false allegations, they are high trees indeed, but the axe of judgment is not wielded by your hand.
You pray that God would fight His enemies by fire, yet hear the Apostle weeping for the mischief done by the enemies of the cross. The arch-enemy will fly away confounded from you if you are able to resist him while darkness covers your soul; if you conquer him in your hour of grief, you conquer indeed. But what of the souls of those who have wronged you? Could any but a divine motive actuate the Divine Architect? He would have all men saved, even those who now rail against His justice. No convinced sinner ever rails against God’s justice; it is only the man who justifies himself that speaks harshly against Divine Grace. Trust your cause to Him who says, “It is God that justifies,” and let Him convict and save them as He will; your part is to bow with submission to the Divine will, for by that very fact you are furnished with unerring guidance.
The Lord’s voice crieth even now in this trial: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it. Divine interpositions come in deliverances full of wonder. How strikingly has God delivered some of us! Not miraculous, certainly, but full of wonder for all that. The snare may be intricate, but the hand that made the heavens can unthread it in a moment. We must trace Divine Sovereignty in all such cases, and learn to kiss the hand that permits the storm as well as the calm. If the Lord were to deal with you according to strict justice, where would you be? But you are not under law; you are under the blood that speaks better things. Death itself is an enemy to be destroyed, and this present trouble is but a shadow of that last enemy; if Christ has vanquished the greater, shall He not scatter the lesser? Let God arise, yes, and let all flesh be silent before Him. He owns no lord but His own conscience, and His purpose of love toward you is unchangeable. Go to the insurance, go to every earthly helper, with the quiet confidence of a child who knows that though the green tree seems to stand, it is the low tree that He exalts. Hallelujah, for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth; in Jesus’ name, Amen.
