By the pen of Charles Spurgeon:

This is an example of God’s sovereignty. Impatient souls may fret and fume because they are not called to the highest places of ministry, but dear reader, let your heart rejoice that Jesus calls whom He wills. If He asks you to be only “a doorkeeper in [His] house” (Ps. 84:10), cheerfully bless Him for His grace in allowing you to do anything in His service.

The call of Christ’s servants comes from above. Jesus stands on His mountain, eternally higher than the world in holiness, sincerity, love, and power. Those whom He calls must go up the mountain to Him and must seek to rise to His level by living in constant communion with Him. They may not be able to rise to the highest positions of all or attain the greatest level of knowledge, but like Moses, they must climb “the mountain of God” (Ex. 24:13) and have intimate communion with the unseen God or else they will never be fit to proclaim “the gospel of peace” (Eph. 6:15). Jesus “went up on a mountainside by himself” (Matt. 14:23) to have holy fellowship with the Father, and we must enter into the same divine companionship if we hope to be a blessing to our fellow man. No wonder the apostles were clothed with power as soon as they returned from the mountain where Jesus was. (See Matt. 28:16 – 20.)

This morning we must endeavor to ascend the mountain of communion so we may be ordained for the calling for which we have been set apart by God. May we not see the face of another person today until we have seen Jesus, for time spent with Him is the most blessed use of our time. We too will cast out demons and work miracles if we descend to the world strengthened with the divine power that only Christ can give. There is no use to even go to the Lord’s battle until we are armed with heavenly weapons. It is essential we see Jesus. We must linger at His “mercy seat” (Ex. 25:17 KJV) until He reveals Himself to us in ways He does not reveal Himself to the world and until we can truthfully say, “We were with him on the sacred mountain” (2 Peter 1:18).

By the pen of Jim Reimann:

Everyone loves the view from the mountaintop, and in the Scriptures mountains are often connected to the very presence of God and time alone with Him. Many major biblical events took place on mountains, but unless we are careful we will revere the mountain itself, rather than God. Notice that nearly every time Israel turned away from God they set up “high places” with altars to pagan gods, but the Lord warned, “If you do not listen to me . . . I will destroy your high places” (Lev. 26:27, 30).

And consider Jesus’ conversation with the woman at the well:

Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. . . . A time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”

John 4:21, 23 – 24

Lord, may my heart long for daily time with You on Your mountain, and may I faithfully serve and worship You in the calling You gave me while there.