June 12 Daily Devotional

Bible Text:

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. —Isaiah 40:31

Devotional:

"They shall run and not be weary." It is as if he had said that the Lord will assist them, so that they shall pursue their course without any molestation. It is a figurative expression, by which he suggests that believers will always be ready to perform their duty with cheerfulness.

But it will be said, "There are so many troubles which we must endure in this life; how then does he say that we shall be free from weariness?" I reply, believers are indeed distressed and wearied, but they are at length delivered from their distresses, and feel that they have been restored by the power of God; for it happens to them according to the saying of Paul, "While we are troubled on every side, we are not overwhelmed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; we suffer persecution, but are not forsaken; we are cast down, but are not destroyed."

Let us therefore learn to flee to the Lord, who, after we have encountered many storms, will at length conduct us to the harbor; for he who has opened up a path, and has commanded us to advance in that course in which he has placed us, does not intend to assist us only for a single day and to forsake us in the middle of our course, but will conduct us to the goal. —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.

Dr. Joel Beeke, who is editorial director of Reformation Heritage Books, has this to say:

"Calvin shows us the piety of a Reformed theologian who speaks from the heart. Having tasted the goodness and grace of God in Jesus Christ, he pursued piety by seeking to know and do God’s will every day. He communed with Christ, practicing repentance, self-denial, and cross-bearing. Moreover, his theology worked itself out in heart-felt, Christ-honoring piety. The selections of this devotional bear this out, and hopefully will be used by God to direct pious hearts in our own day."

These devotional readings from John Calvin were compiled by John H. Kromminga. Be sure to read his "Introduction" to John Calvin's Thine Is My Heart.