Grace But an Earnest of Glory

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Ephesians 1:14

Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of his glory.

As old Master Durham says, "'Tis but a taste!" You have tasted that the Lord is gracious, but you do not know how good and how gracious He is. We have not yet rested beneath the vines of Canaan; we have only enjoyed the first fruits of the Spirit, and they have set us hungering and thirsting for the fulness of the heavenly heritage. We groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption. We are like David; we have had a draught of water from the well of Bethlehem, that is within the gate, brought to us through the valour of Christ Jesus; but we have not yet drank the clear, cool stream, in all its perfection, at the fountainhead. We are but beginners in spiritual education; we have learned the first letters of the alphabet; we cannot read words yet, much less can we read sentences; we are but infants now; we have not come to the stature of perfect men in Christ Jesus. As one says, "He that has been in heaven but five minutes, knows more than all the general assembly on earth, though they were all learned divines." We shall know more of Christ by one glimpse of Him in heaven, than we shall know by all our learning here. 'Tis but a taste here, and if a taste be so ravishing, what must it be to sit at the table and eat bread in the kingdom of God?

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