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  RISING UP BETIMES.
  by F.B. Meyer
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Summary: God's eagerness for men's salvation should teach us to rise up
betimes and seek their eternal interests.

Topics: "Seeking God", "Urgency in Salvation"
Scripture References: 2 Chronicles 36:15, Matthew 5:14

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F.B. Meyer emphasizes God's deep yearning for the salvation of humanity,
illustrated by His eagerness to send messengers early to call the sinful
city to repentance. He challenges believers to reflect on their own
urgency in seeking the souls of others, urging them to rise early and
prioritize spiritual pursuits just as God does. Meyer draws parallels
between God's actions and the need for individuals to actively seek Him,
highlighting the importance of overcoming slothfulness in favor of
spiritual diligence. He encourages believers to be proactive in their
faith, akin to historical figures like Sir Henry Havelock, who
prioritized prayer and Bible study before daily endeavors.

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CONTENT
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Rising up betimes. 2 Chron. xxxvi. 15.

WHAT a touching and graphic phrase! How did God yearn over that sinful
and rebellious city! Sending his messengers, "rising up betimes, and
sending " ‑‑ like a man who has had a sleepless night of
anxiety for his friend or child, and rises with the dawn to send a
servant on a mission of inquiry, or a message of love. How eager God is
for men's salvation!

From God's eagerness, may we not learn a lesson of anxiety for the souls
of men? We do not long after them enough, or rise betimes to urge them
to repent. Did we realize what heaven is, or hell, what men are missing
or incurring, what our duty is, as saved ourselves, we should rise up
betimes to seek their eternal interests.

But if God rises betimes to seek men, should they not do the same to
seek Him? Think you not, that when Adam heard the voice of the Lord God
walking in the garden at morning prime, he would be up and away to meet
Him on the upland lawns of Paradise? Can we wonder that our Master would
rise up a great while before day, to meet his Father on some
unfrequented height? Let us not cling to beds of sloth when God is
awaiting us; let us heed his loving remonstrances, that we may be saved
in the overthrow of the world; and let us, like Lot, pass on the word to
others enwrapt in fatal slumber around us, bidding them to escape to the
mountains, before the sun rise on the earth, lest they be consumed.

It was the practice of Sir Henry Havelock, during his campaigns in
India, always to have two hours for prayer and Bible study before the
march. If the camp was struck at 6.0 a.m., he would rise at 4. O.

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Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/fb-meyer/rising-up-betimes/
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