HH, Sir Godfrey Gregg D.Div

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.” John 12:24

Out in the fields, Christ finds for me the pattern of the highest consecration. Except a kernel of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone.

Of Himself, He speaks. He is the kernel soon to be buried in the earth. For Him, there is no highway to glory, no path to harvest and power, no gate into vitalizing and quickening energy — but the gate and the path and the highway of death! So Jesus dedicates Himself to the mournful cross and the gloomy sepulchre.

But to me, He speaks also. I must learn to die daily. I must be crucified, not only in what is sinful — but in desires and habits which seem harmless and innocent. If I would bless men — I must enter Gethsemane with its shadows, and must climb Golgotha with its reproach. If I would fill the world with the fragrance of the precious ointment — I must be content to be a shattered alabaster vial.

Yes, though the knife is sharp,
though the fire burns,
though the draught is bitter —
let me be of good comfort. Christ’s Calvary has budded into wondrous fertility; His death has given life to a great multitude which no man can number. When I drink from His cup of suffering, He makes me fruitful. There is a winning power about disciples who have fallen into the ground and died and risen again. It is the humblest, who is strongest. It is those who most deny themselves, who are crowned most with influence. Flowers out of the frost, and plenty out of pain — this is His rule for me, no less than for Himself.