February 9—Morning Devotion
“The Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them.”—Revelation 7:17
My soul thou hast not forgotten what thou wert so lately engaged in, a day or two since, at the call of God the Holy Ghost, to behold the Lamb of God. And art thou not still looking at him, gazing upon him, feasting thine eyes, thine heart, all thy affections, upon him, and following him, in the sweet contemplation, from his cross to his crown. Come then, my soul, harp again and again upon this blessed string; for sure it is most blessed. And remember, my soul, as thou lookest, thy Jesus is in the midst of the throne – that is, the very centre of it. “In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” For what is the Lamb of God, but God revealing himself in him, to thee, my soul, and all his people? And remember also, that the throne, in the midst of which thy Jesus is, in scripture, is called” the throne of God and the Lamb,” on purpose to shew thee that it is one and the same. And what is that throne, my soul, but a throne of grace – a mercy-seat, a place for the poor and the needy to approach, “to obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need?” Flee to it, my soul; haste! stay not; and remember, as Jesus is in the midst of it, it is accessible every way, and all around. The poor timid believer, that fears to go in front, may, like the woman in the gospel, who came behind, touch but Jeslis’ garment: efficacy from the Lamb is in every direction. If Jesus was not there, it might be alarming to approach; but, remember the Lamb is there— and he is tile Lamb of God. Sweet encouraging thought! Come then, my soul, look to the Lamb. See, by faith, how he feeds the church which is above. And will he not feed the church below? Oh, yes. “His flesh is meat indeed, and his blood is drink indeed.” He is the heavenly pelican, that feeds his young with his blood. And Oh, what spiritual food, what divine food, what suitable food, what soul-satisfying, soul. ravishing, soul-strengthening food! Precious Lamb of God! every thing in thee is food. Feed my hungry soul, Oh thou that art in the midst of the throne, and send me not empty away.
Robert Hawker (1753-1827) was an Anglican (High-Calvinist) preacher who served as Vicar of Charles Church, Plymouth. John Hazelton wrote of him:
“The prominent features…in Robert Hawker's testimony…was the Person of Christ….Dr. Hawker delighted to speak of his Lord as "My most glorious Christ.” What anxious heart but finds at times in the perusal of the doctor's writings a measure of relief, a softening, and a mellowing? an almost imperceptible yet secret and constraining power in leading out of self and off from the misery and bondage of the flesh into a contemplation of the Person and preciousness of Christ as "the chiefest among ten thousand and the altogether lovely." Christ and Him crucified was emphatically the burden of his song and the keynote of his ministry. He preached his last sermon in Charles Church on March 18th, 1827, and on April 6th he died, after being six years curate and forty-three years vicar of the parish. On the last day of his life he repeated a part of Ephesians 1, from the 6th to the 12th verses, and as he proceeded he enlarged on the verses, but dwelt more fully on these words: "To the praise of His glory Who first trusted in Christ." He paused and asked, "Who first trusted in Christ?" And then made this answer: "It was God the Father Who first trusted in Christ."
Robert Hawker on the Biblical Covenants (Complete)
Robert Hawker's Poor Man's Morning Portions
