Morning Bells; Or, Waking Thoughts for Little Ones

Excerpt

1. First Day.

Christ's Childhood.

"Thy holy child Jesus."--Acts iv. 30.

If I asked, "How old are you?" you would give an exact answer. "Eight and a half;" "Just turned ten;" "Eleven next month." Now you have thought of God's "holy child Jesus" as a little baby, and as twelve years old in the temple, but did you ever think of Him as being exactly your own age? that He was once really just as old as you are this very day? He knows what it is to be eight, and nine, and ten years old, or whatever you may be. God's word has only told us this one thing about those years, that He was a holy child.

What is "holy"? It is everything that is perfectly beautiful and good and lovable, without anything to spoil it. This is just what He was when He was your age. He was gentle and brave, and considerate and unselfish, noble and truthful, obedient and loving, kind and forgiving,--everything you can think of that you ever admired or loved in any one else was all found together in Him, and all this not only outside, but inside, for He was "holy."

Why did He live all these holy child-years on earth instead of staying in heaven till it was time to come and die for you? One reason was, that He might leave you a beautiful example, so that you might wish to be like Him, and ask for the Holy Spirit to make you like Him. But the other was even more gracious and wonderful, it was "that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." That is, that all this goodness and holiness might be reckoned to you, because you had not any of your own, and that God might smile on you for His sake, just as if you had been perfectly obedient, and truthful, and unselfish, and good, and give you Jesus Christ's reward, which you never deserved at all, but which He deserved for you.

He took your sins and gives you His righteousness; He took your punishment and gives you His reward; it is just changed over, if you will only accept the exchange!

"I'm glad my blessed Saviour
  Was once a child like me,
To show how pure and holy
  His little ones might be.
And if I try to follow
  His footsteps here below,
He never will forget me,
  Because He loves me so."

"Even Christ pleased not Himself."--Rom. xv. 3.

Do you really wish to follow the footsteps of the Holy Child Jesus? Have you asked God to make you more like Him? Are you ready to begin to-day? Then here is a motto for to-day, "Even Christ pleased not Himself." Will you take it, and try to imitate Him? You are sure to have plenty of opportunities of acting upon it, and thus proving not only to others, but to your dear Saviour Himself, that you mean what you say, and mean what you pray.

Perhaps it seems a rather melancholy "morning bell" to you, tolling instead of chiming! But if you really wish to be like Christ, you will soon find that its music is as sweet as any, and that its quiet chime will come to you again and again with a wonderful sweetness and power, helping you over all sorts of difficulties, and saving you from all sorts of sins and troubles....