C.H. Spurgeon – Words of Warning for Daily Living

By brucesbiblepage on August 27, 2024

On Halting Between Two Opinions
The prophet cries, "If the Lord be God, follow Him; if Baal, then follow him," and in so
doing, he states the ground of his practical claim. Let your conduct be consistent with
your opinions. There is another objection raised by the crowd. "Prophet," says one,
"you come to demand a practical proof of our affection; you say, Follow God. Now, if I
believe God to be God, and that is my opinion, yet I do not see what claim He has to
my opinions." Now, mark how the prophet puts it: he says, "If God be God follow
Him." The reason why I claim that you should follow out your opinion concerning God
is, that God is God! God has a claim upon you, as creatures, for your devout
obedience. One person replies, "What profit should I have, if I served God
thoroughly? Should I be more happy? Should I get on better in this world? Should I
have more peace of mind?" Nay, nay, that is a secondary consideration. The only
question for you is, "If God be God follow Him." Not if it be more advantageous to
you; but "if God be God follow Him." The Secularist would plead for religion on the
ground that religion might be the best for this world, and best for the world to come.
Not so with the prophet; he says, "I do not put it on that ground, I insist that it is your
bounden duty, if you believe in God, simply because He is God, to serve Him and
obey Him. I do not tell you it is for your advantage — it may be, I believe it is — but
that I put aside from the question; I demand of you that you follow God, if you believe
Him to be God. If you do not think He is God; if you really think that the devil is God,
then follow him; his pretended godhead shall be your plea, and you shall be
consistent; but if God be God, if He made you, I demand that you serve Him; if it is
He who puts the breath into your nostrils, I demand that you obey him. If God be
really worthy of worship, and you really think so, I demand that you either follow Him,
or else deny that He is God at all."