The Continued Mercy of Christ

daily-devotionalsWe see here the greatness of Christ’s grace! One would think that Christ would have been so pre-occupied with the plight of His present condition, the sense of His Father’s desertion and the knowledge of His approaching suffering. And yet when He was overtaken in His own sorrow and weakness, He had time for the work of power on behalf of His disciple. The righteous justice of God and the unjust cruelty of His enemies were not able to drive Christ from the exercises of His mercy. He who came to suffer all this for men does in the midst of His own suffering remember men. He honours the scorn and buffeting of His judgement, with the restoration of a fallen disciple, and the nails and ignominy of the cross with the conversion of a reviling thief.

Dr. Edward Reynolds was born in 1599 in Southampton, England. He received his BA degree at Oxford in 1618. In 1622, before studying for his masters, Reynolds became a chaplain to the king and preacher at Lincoln’s Inn, London. The puritanical inclinations of Dr. Reynolds were well known; his character of piety and decorum were evident even in his college years. Edward Reynolds is known as the Bishop of Norfolk, but he was bishop for only the final fifteen years of his life and ministry. Prior to that he was the rector of Braunston, Northamptonshire, for almost thirty years. Although Reynolds was a Presbyterian by conviction, he had a reputation of moderation in his church polity. This was evidenced in his role in the Westminster Assembly. He was the only member to sit on all three of the major committees on the Confession of Faith, and with his moderate spirit provided balance in the discussions.
These devotions are taken from the works of Edward Reynolds. They have been edited for thinkgospel.com. © 2013 thinkgospel.