December 15, Evening

C. H. Spurgeon · Modern retelling

"And lay thy foundations with sapphires." — Isaiah 54:11 · KJV

Not only what is seen of the church of God, but what is unseen, is fair and precious. Foundations are out of sight, and so long as they are firm, they are not expected to be valuable; but in Yahweh's work everything is of a piece — nothing slurred, nothing mean. The deep foundations of the work of grace are as sapphires for preciousness; no human mind can measure their glory. We build on the covenant of grace, which is firmer than adamant, and as enduring as jewels on which age spends itself in vain. Sapphire foundations are eternal, and the covenant abides throughout the lifetime of the Almighty. Another foundation is the person of the Lord Jesus, clear and spotless, everlasting and beautiful as the sapphire, blending in one the deep blue of earth's ever-rolling ocean and the azure of its all-embracing sky. Once might our Lord have been likened to the ruby, as He stood covered with His own blood; but now we see Him radiant with the soft blue of love — love abounding, deep, eternal. Our eternal hopes are built on the justice and faithfulness of God, which are clear and cloudless as the sapphire. We are not saved by a compromise, by mercy defeating justice, or law suspending its operation; no, we defy the eagle's eye to detect a flaw in the groundwork of our confidence — our foundation is of sapphire, and will endure the fire. The Lord Himself has laid the foundation of His people's hopes. It is a matter for grave inquiry whether our hopes are built on such a basis. Good works and ceremonies are not a foundation of sapphires, but of wood, hay, and stubble; nor are they laid by God, but by our own conceit. Foundations will all be tried before long; woe to him whose lofty tower shall come down with a crash, because it was based on quicksand. He who is built on sapphires may await storm or fire with calm, for he shall abide the test.