mm mm I MM ■ i; i- ii ■ lis m ■im 11 11 1 ui ill 1 ill MM i i :■• .«::«: ■;::•• : : . : W iff 1 Mi mm LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, S ^ ! UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, f s&tf- SCENES LIFE OF CHRIST, ADAPTED TO THE COMPREHENSION OF CHILDREN, AND DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR SABBATH SCHOOLS BY REV. G. A. NIXDORFF, A. M., M PASTOR OF THE EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH, OF GEORGETOWN, D. C. II LUTHERAN PUBLICATION SOCIETY, 42 North Ninth Street, Philadelphia. 1876. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1876, by the LUTHERAN PUBLICATION SOCIETY, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. FROM THE PRESS OF THE INQUIRER P. & P. CO., LANCASTER, PA. PREFACE To the children of the Sabbath-schools, this little volume is affectionately dedicated, with the very beautiful and encouraging words of the Divine Master: " Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me ; for of such is the kingdom of heaven. " Dear Children : — I made a promise, at the ear- nest solicitation of one of our Church agents, years ago, that I would write a book for the children of the Sabbath-school. I have not felt well satisfied in not having redeemed this promise; for, you know, we should try to fulfill all our engagements. I am not young any more, and life is uncertain; and I have therefore thought that one of the very best things I could do, would be, by the grace of God, to redeem, as soon as possible, this promise. I am aware, too, that it is not an easy thing to write a (v) VI PREFACE. book for children. One of the greatest, if not the greatest, difficulty with me has been to choose a subject which would be interesting and profitable to you. After having considered this part well, I find that I have fixed upon the subject that was first brought to my mind, and that is — " Scenes or Inci- dents in the Life of our Saviour." I would also state, that when I had first thought of writing for you on this interesting subject, some older heads made a very bad prophecy about you, and said to this effect : " Oh yes, it is a very good subject; but then, the children of the Sunday-schools nowadays don't want to read any book that is really and truly religious. They want story-books, and would much rather read about ' Robinson Crusoe/ than about anything the Lord Jesus has said or done." I told these people that I thought^ they were mistaken ; that I had a better opinion of you, and thought that a book of this kind could be written in such a way, that you would want to read it, and be pleased with it. Having this good opinion of you, and having PREFACE. Vll had considerable experience in the Sabbath-school, I now, in the fear of God, undertake to write for you. I would state, however, that this little volume does not by any means profess or undertake to give an account of all the wonderful doings of Christ, as written by the Evangelists. That would make a large volume, and defeat the object. We have taken the liberty to choose such incidents as could be made, according to our judgment, most interest- ing and profitable to children. It does not, either, profess to give these incidents in the order of time and place, as they occurred; but they have been se- lected, and in one or two instances, several of the same kind are thrown together (or grouped) under one general head: i. e. "Raising of the dead," where we have " The Son of the Widow of Nain," " Jairus' Daughter," and " Lazarus " taken together. The book, as all will understand, is intended for children, and arranged and written accordingly; and yet we at the same time trust that it may be read with profit by older persons also. Vlll PREFACE. Before you begin to read this book, however, I want you to pray this little prayer, which I have here written : O God, our Heavenly Father ! help me by Thy good Spirit to read and understand this book. It tells me about Jesus, my Saviour, and His wonder- ful doings. Grant, blessed Jesus, to open my young heart to receive its truths, and may I be en- abled to turn from sin and all evil, and seek to love, obey and follow Thee through life ; and after this short life shall have ended — as it must — receive me into Thy heavenly kingdom, to unite in serving Thee forever. Amen. I would herewith Acknowledge my obligations to my es- teemed friend, Mr. John L. Ried, of Georgetown, D. C, for having kindly transcribed the manuscript forme, and having thus aided greatly in preparing the work for the press. G. A. N. PAGE. CHAPTER I. THE BIRTH OF CHRIST, . . . 13 CHAPTER II. JESUS IN THE TEMPLE, . . . 1 9 CHAPTER III. TEMPTATION OF CHRIST, , , 25 CHAPTER IV. SERMON ON THE MOUNT, . . 32 CHAPTER V. CHRIST CLEANSES THE LEPER AND HEALS THE SICK, . . . -43 CHAPTER VI. CHRIST AND NICODEMUS, . . -51 CHAPTER VII. CHRIST AND THE WOMAN OF SAMARIA, . 57 CHAPTER VIII. JESUS CASTS OUT DEVILS, . . 65 CHAPTER IX. CHRIST STILLS THE TEMPEST, . . -74 CHAPTER X. JESUS OPENS THE EYES OF THE BLIND AND CAUSES THE DEAF AND THE DUMB TO HEAR AND TO SPEAK, . . .80 (ix) X CONTENTS. CHAPTER XL THE MIRACLE OF THE LOAVES AND FISHES, 86 CHAPTER XII. CHRIST RAISES THE DEAD, . . -93 CHAPTER XIII. THE TRANSFIGURATION OF CHRIST, . . IO3 'CHAPTER XIV. CHRIST BLESSES LITTLE CHILDREN, . .Ill CHAPTER XV. THE CALLING OF ZACCH^US, . . .121 CHAPTER XVI. CHRIST ANOINTED BY MARY, . . . 1 28 CHAPTER XVII. CHRIST ENTERS JERUSALEM IN TRIUMPH, . 1 34 CHAPTER XVIII. CHRIST INSTITUTES THE HOLY SUPPER, . 1 42 CHAPTER XIX. CHRIST'S AGONY IN THE GARDEN, . .149 CHAPTER XX. THE TRIAL OF CHRIST AND HIS DENIAL BY PETER, . . . . . 157 CHAPTER XXI. THE CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST, . . . 1 69 CHAPTER XXII. THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST, . .179 CHAPTER XXIII. THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST, . . . 1 93 SCENES IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST. CHAPTER I. THE BIRTH OF CHRIST.— MaM. ii ; Luke ii. 1-20. Golden Text. — Luke ii. 11. a For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour , which is Christ the Lord." f^HRISTMAS has come at last. Oh! how ^-^ long and earnestly we have waited for it, counting months, weeks and days. The nearer it has come the more anxious we have been, until at last we felt that .we could scarcely wait any longer. Now your anxiety, I fear — for I was a child too — arises too much from the pleasant time you expect to have, the presents you ex- pect to receive, and the nice things to eat, etc. (13) 14 LIFE OF CHRIST. Well, we are pleased to see you happy, and en- joy yourselves; for Christ came into the world to make people happy forever, by saving them from sin. Whilst, however, you enjoy your- selves and have so many good and nice things, you should remember about the birth of the dear Saviour, and how He came into the world and became a little helpless child, born in great poverty, that He might take upon Himself our nature, live here, and teach us, and then die to save us. Think how poor and helpless He was, as has been beautifully written : " On the long-expected morn He was in a stable born; Where the horned oxen fed, The straw and manger were his bed. ,, You know, children, that shepherds were out at night, keeping watch over their flocks, when it was made known thr f Christ was born. A light shone round about them, and although Christ had been expected, they were very much LIFE OF CHRIST. 1 5 frightened, or as is said in the Scripture "sore afraid." They did not know what the light meant — may perhaps have thought, at first, that it was a judgment, or something bad about to come upon them : but, you remember, the angel soon told them they should not fear, for said he, " Behold I bring you glad tidings of great joy, which shall be unto all people; for unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour which is Christ the Lord." He told them how they .would find the child and his mother, etc. There was also a star seen by the " wise men" in the east, that went before them until it came and stood over the place where Jesus lay. Some one has written very beauti- fully about it, after this manner: " Brightest and best of the sons of the morning, Dawn on our darkness and lend us thine aid : Star of the east, the horizon adorning, Guide where the infant Redeemer is laid." You know how they came and found Jesus 1 6 LIFE OF CHRIST. and His mother, as they had been told; and how glad they were when they had found Him, and how they opened their treasures, and gave Him "gold, frankincense and myrrh ;" you re- member, too, how Herod, a wicked king who lived at that time, sought to kill Jesus; and how His parents, "being warned of God in a dream," fled into Egypt, taking the young child with them, and thus saved His life. Now we may learn from this, dear children, that Christ the Saviour has come into the world, and therefore we may be saved. You see too how glad we should be, like the "wise men" when they saw the star, and found Jesus — so too, we should seek after Jesus by prayer, and reading and hearing of Him ; and we too should be glad when we find Him, that is, when we believe in Him and feel our sins for- given. If we love Jesus as these "wise men" seem to have done, we also will seek to do something for Him; give money — gold, if we LIFE OF CHRIST. 1 7 have any — to tell other people in heathenish darkness and who worship idols, about Christ, this loving Saviour. We should also remem- ber that Christ and His Church still have their enemies, who are opposed to Him and are seeking to hinder His kingdom. We should shun the society of wicked people, and pray that God would convert them unto Himself. O, Saviour! Thy kingdom cannot be de- stroyed: grant to send out missionaries; and may all people soon hear of Thee, and know that Thou hast come into the world, and art willing and able to save. CHAPTER II. THE LOST CHILD; OR, JESUS IN THE TEMPLE WITH THE DOCTORS.— Luke ii. 42-52. Golden Text. — Luke ii. 52. "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man" A CHILD lost! What an excitement the ^^ cry makes in any city, village, or section of country. The people leave their homes, and go forth cheerfully, with one accord, in search of the missing one. Every lane, nook and corner is carefully examined; the forest is searched, and if the dear one is not found, as a last resort the waters are dragged for the body. Now Jesus, at the age of twelve years, had gone up to Jerusalem with His parents to at- tend one of the great feasts, that of the Pass- over, celebrated in remembrance of the night in Egypt, in which the destroying angel passed (19) 20 LIFE OF CHRIST. over the homes of ancient Israel, because, at the command of God, these houses had been marked with blood. The parents of Jesus had spent a number of days at Jerusalem, attending this great feast, and had gone a day's journey from the city be- fore they missed Jesus. The reason why they did not miss Him earlier may have been that there were sometimes a number of families to- gether, who may also have had children; and knowing Jesus to be a loving and dutiful child, they may not have made themselves uneasy about Him. At the end of the first day's jour- ney, perhaps as they were about going to rest, or to partake of a frugal evening meal, they missed their son. Now, as you may well think, they felt very sad, when all at once they found that Jesus was not with them. They asked just as other parents would have done who love a child ; and after having searched for him among their "kinsfolk and acquaint- LIFE OF CHRIST. 21 ance" in vain, they then started back towards Jerusalem, as was very natural for them to do, and found Him, at length, at Jerusalem, in the temple with the doctors, " hearing and ask- ing them questions." It must certainly have surprised His parents very much, to find their little son thus engaged. Most children, if lost, would be found perhaps on the street, looking at the many pretty things to be seen; but Jesus was "in the tem- ple." Now it seems to me they must have thought " well, He is in a good place, at any rate ;" but then the idea of one so young sit- ting in the midst of aged, learned men, with perhaps their grey beards, must have struck them as very strange. When asked why He acted as He had done, He, we suppose, gives them to know for the first time something of His character, and replies : " Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business." He was more than a child, and He realized it. 22 LIFE OF CHRIST. This justifies His conduct to His parents in remaining. He was really far above His par- ents, the Lord of heaven and earth. Now, children, we see from this how Jesus increased in knowledge, as He grew in years; and this should urge you to learn too, espe- cially about God, and salvation, and this Saviour who was once a little child. For this purpose, to help you to learn of Christ, and to increase in this knowledge, have I written this book. You can learn much whilst young, and what you now learn well, will not soon be for- gotten ; and instead of spending all your spare time in play, for children should play some- times, try to read good books, especially your Bible ; and instead of being in the company of the ignorant and wicked, try to be in the soci- ety of good and wise people, remembering that God's word says that "a companion of wise men shall be wise, but a companion of fools shall be destroyed." If you want to know LIFE OF CHRIST. 23 anything about your lesson that you do not understand, ask your kind teachers politely, and they will try to answer your questions. Any one may, however, ask very hard ques- tions, which it is almost impossible to answer ; and, when this is the case, you must be satisfied with your teacher, or friend, doing the best for you they can. "Secret things belong unto God," and there is much that we will never know certainly in this world : strive to be wise and good. We too are in danger of being lost forever, for we have gone away from God and have sinned against him. God, our heavenly Father, like unto these parents of Jesus, comes after us, and seeks us by His good Spirit, and by the prayers and kind words of our Sabbath-school teachers, pastors, or other pious friends. As Jesus immediately obeyed His parents, and went back with them, and was " subject unto them at Nazareth," so 24 LIFE OF CHRIST. too should we in our young days, before we have gone off as far as many older persons have done in sin, seek to return unto our Heavenly Father, by repenting of sin, and be- lieving in Christ our Saviour, through whom alone we can be pardoned and become child- ren of God. CHAPTER III. CHRIST'S TEMPTATION IN THE WILDERNESS.— Matthew iv. i— ii. Mark i. 12, 13. Golden Text. — Hebrews ii. 18. "For in that he him- self hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted." A WILDERNESS, children, is, as you -^ ^- know, a wild place, where few if any peo- ple live; large trees, bushes and rocks all serve to give it a very wild look. I have traveled through such dreary places, especially when I was preaching in West Virginia. Now, I sup- pose many of you would be afraid to go into such a place alone ; and if you knew that you would probably meet a wild man, or a savage beast, you would be still more afraid. God's ways are wonderful. Here you see almost immediately after the baptism of Christ (*5) 26 LIFE OF CHRIST. He is " led up of the Spirit" into such a place, to meet Satan and be tempted. I have not, as you see, given you a chapter on the Saviour's baptism, although it was a great and important event, as I did not think that you would perhaps understand it as well, or be as much interested in it, as in some other things. It will be enough for me to state that Jesus came to Jordan, and desired John to baptize Him; and that John, knowing His exalted character, was slow at first to do it; but that after Jesus gave His reason — " for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness" — John then did as Christ desired him. You know, too, how that, after His baptism, "the heavens were opened," and the Spirit of God descended upon Him, and ^a voice from heaven" said, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." I have only to tell you here that baptism is an ordinance of God, and that we should all LIFE OF CHRIST. 2J be baptized in the name of the Triune God — Father, Son and Holy Ghost ; but that, unless we repent of sin, and really believe in Jesus, baptism will not save us. It would seem that almost immediately after the baptism of Christ, He was "led up of the Spirit into the wilder- ness, to be tempted of the devil." Now, God, it is said, tempts no man; but He did so direct as to have His Son, our Saviour, go where He would be tempted. He knew that He could and would overcome the tempter, and that it was necessary that He should be tempted, that He might feel for us in our many and strong temptations. How cunning, powerful and per- severing Satan is in his temptations ! You see how he suited the temptations to Christ's situ- ation, and how strongly he sought to excite His ambition. He knew that Christ had been fasting and was hungry ; he knew that it was right to eat; and, therefore, he asks first that the Saviour 28 LIFE OF CHRIST. should show His power in commanding "that these stones be made bread ;" but Christ an- swered him from the Scriptures, " It is written that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." As though He had said, God can keep me alive without bread. He doubtless knew, too, that if He was hungry, and went to the door of some kind people, they would give Him something to eat; and that, therefore, it was not necessary that He should change the stones into bread to please Satan. He then tried another temptation, by taking Him # into Jerusalem (here called the " holy city") and setting Him on the high part of the temple (called here "pinnacle") and requesting Him to cast Himself down, as there was a pro- mise in the Scriptures that He should not be hurt, because the angels would watch over Him. The Saviour told him that it was also written that we were not to tempt God. That LIFE OF CHRIST. 29 is, that we are not to place ourselves in danger when it is not necessary. The devil having failed in his two temptations, tries a third or last one. He then takes Jesus up "into an exceeding high mountain, and shows Him all the king- doms of the world, and the glory of them ;" and says, "All these things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worship me." Then the Saviour told him to leave, and said : " It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." Now, my young friends, you know that Satan still lives, and will come after us, too, and seek to lead us to do wrong. You see, too, how cunning and persevering he is. He knows how to suit the temptation to our situa- tion, or rather, as he does not, like God, know all things, he judges from his past dealing with people, what will be likely to please them ; and if he fails with one temptation, as was the case 30 LIFE OF CHRIST. with the Saviour, he tries another, and tries like a general to find our weak point. One he tempts to steal ; another to get angry, and say bad words; another to be proud, etc. He tempts little children, too, and begins very early. This is one reason why you sometimes find it hard to do good. He tempts you to disobey your parents ; to get angry with each other ; to want what you should not have ; to be proud of your pretty clothes, and think that you, perhaps, are better than other child- ren, because you have finer and more costly clothes than they. He tempts you to stay away from Sabbath-school and from church; he tempts you to talk and be mischievous when there, not listening to what your kind teacher says, and making your dear superin- tendent trouble. Satan is ever busy, and we must watch him: we may always know that when we desire to do wrong, Satan, or our own wicked hearts, or both together, are LIFE OF CHRIST. 3 1 tempting us. He is a deceiver, and makes great promises— what he will do for us, and how pleasant it will be to sin — but as soon as we have done wrong, guilt and pain follow\ He promised our first parents in Eden much ; and deceived, and made them miserable. He promised Christ the world; but he never had a world to give, because the world does not be- long to him, but to God who made it. As Christ brought up Scripture to resist him, so should you; and you therefore see, too, how important it is that you commit to memory, or get it as we sometimes say "by heart." If we do this, and look to God in prayer, when we are tempted to do wrong, God can and will preserve and deliver us, and Satan, that wicked and miserable spirit, will go away from us, and we shall feel so happy that we obeyed God, and would not listen to his lies. CHAPTER IV. CHRIST'S SERMON ON THE MOUNT;— Matthew v.-vii. Golden Text. — John vii. 46, " Never man spake like this man" TT7E have here, children, an instance of Christ preaching. They had then no Christian churches as we have, but the Sa- viour sometimes went into the Jewish places of worship and took part in their services. In this instance, however, He prefers the open air for it may be that scarcely any house would have been large enough for the people. The expression here used, " and seeing the multitudes He went up into a mountain,'' seems to mean that Christ selected the mount on ac- count of the large number of people who were anxious to hear Him, and desired, doubtless, that all might have this opportunity. " Into (32) LIFE OF CHRIST. 33 the mount," away from the noise and bustle of the city, where, under His own heavens and shaded by the trees which He as God had caused to grow, they might hear His words and be taught in heavenly things without being disturbed. We should feel thankful that at this day we have good, convenient and com- fortable churches in which to worship God; and yet if we did not have them, or were com- pelled to give them up, as some have been in times of persecution, we could just as well worship God in the open air. The number of persons who wanted to hear Jesus on this occasion must have been quite large. Here, " on the mount," they could all be accommo- dated. The Saviour, we suppose, sat above them, and so they could all hear. I have stated that He sat, as the sacred re- cord informs us. Now this would seem strange to many of us who are not used to see the minister sit when preaching; but it was the 3 34 LIFE OF CHRIST. custom for the Jewish teachers to sit when in- structing the people, and therefore I do not suppose that they thought strange of that. It is here said " He opened His mouth and taught them," that is, began to preach or teach them. Now, I think I can imagine the scene. All the people are quietly seated around and below Christ, on a beautiful day ; the shade of the trees protects from the heat of the sun ; all is silent, and nothing heard, perhaps, but the occasional sweet notes of some little bird; the people are in breathless silence to hear this great Teacher. He begins by calling several classes of persons "blessed," whom a wicked world would never esteem thus. " The poor in spirit" are first called "blessed." By these the Saviour means the humble. He next says that those "who mourn" are "blessed," "for they shall be comforted." He refers chiefly, we suppose, to those who mourn on account of sin. God Himself will comfort all such. He next styles LIFE OF CHRIST. 35 "the meek," gentle, loving souls, "blessed" — this class of people stand opposed to the proud and ambitious. The Saviour says, "they shall inherit the earth." He next says those are "blessed" who "hunger and thirst after right- eousness, for they shall be filled." Now hun- ger and thirst are two of our most urgent wants. If you have not been hungry, and God has blessed you with good and kind parents, you should feel thankful ; for many little boys and girls in the large cities almost starve. Per- haps you have been thirsty, and you feel, Oh ! what would I not give for a drink of water ! especially if you have been sick and had some fever. Now the Saviour calls those "blessed" who desire to be good as earnestly as hungry and thirsty people do bread and water. The soul that once sees its lost and perishing condition, craves forgiveness and salvation as much as the hungry and thirsty do bread and water. The Saviour next calls the "merciful" "blessed;" 36 LIFE OF CHRIST. that is, persons who have tender and forgiving hearts, and who can feel for the sorrows of others. Some children, — and grown people too, — are very unmerciful to each other, and especially to dumb brutes, who can not speak and tell their troubles. It always shows me that the person or child that can do so, has a very hard and wicked heart. Jesus next tells us that "the pure in heart" are "blessed," "for they shall see God." Our hearts are naturally impure, and have many sinful thoughts and de- sires, but they must be made "pure" by God's Word and Spirit if we would "see God." Now children, all our outward works and doings will not help, unless our hearts are made "pure." It will be a great thing to see God. All will see the Saviour when He comes again, and at the judgment day; but to "see" Him here means to live with Him in heaven. Christ then calls "the peacemakers" "blessed," for, says He, " they shall be called the children of LIFE OF CHRIST. 37 God." Now my young friends, you may begin early to be "peacemakers;" for when you know that two of your little companions or playmates have had some difficulty, you can go kindly to them, and by speaking gently to them seek to bring them together again. This is one of the many ways in which we can do good in the world, and the Saviour here says that such "shall be called the children of God." One more class of persons is called "blessed" by the Saviour, and they are such as are per- secuted for righteousness* sake. This world is so wicked that if we seek to do right in all things, reprove sin, and do our duty, wicked people will hate us and persecute us. That is, they will say, perhaps, bad things about us, laugh at us, and seek to injure us. Christ and His Apostles and the first Christians were very much persecuted, and many of the early Chris- tians put to death for their love to the Saviour. Now Jesus says "for theirs is the kingdom of 38 LIFE OF CHRIST. heaven. " He then, in this connection, calls those "blessed" around Him who should thus suffer, and intends all who shall be persecuted for this cause. Christ, when He preached at this time, did not choose a particular text, and dwell on that, but, as you see, He instructs or teaches the people about many duties. He next styles His disciples "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world." As salt purifies and saves from putrefaction, so Christians are represented as purifying, and to some extent saving the world. Thus you remember that the Lord would have spared Sodom, if only ten righteous per- sons had been found in it. Christians are also to be "the light of the world." The world is in darkness, and needs light ; Chris- tians, by their example and influence, are to point to Christ, show what His religion has done for them, and thus, by pointing out the way to heaven, be " the light of the world." LIFE OF CHRIST. 39 The Saviour next teaches the duty of for- giveness; then, that all sin, no matter though it should be dear and profitable unto us, as a right eye or hand, must be given up, if we would be saved. He then proceeds to caution persons against swearing, and says, " let your communications be yea, yea, nay, nay." The Quaker Friends and others understand this to be directed against swearing of all kinds ; and, therefore, only affirm in courts. Our Divine Teacher next instructs us in regard to prayer and alms-giving, and teaches us that these things must not be done for show or vain glory, or to attract attention, and then in the Lord's prayer gives us an example of how we should pray. He teaches us next that we are to strive mainly after heavenly things, and "lay up our treasure" there y and tells us that we " cannot serve two masters ;" but that as His people, we should have a firm 40 LIFE OF CHRIST. trust in His providential care, and encour- ages this from two illustrations taken from the natural world. The first is, " the fowls of the air," how God takes care of them; and the second is, " the lilies of the field," and says, in reference to them, that " even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these!' The conclusion is, that if God takes care of these lower and frail things, He will also take care of us if we put our trust in Him. He next warns us against harsh and rash judgments in regard to our fellow men; warns us against "casting our pearls before swine ;" encourages us again to prayer, from the man- ner in which parents hear and usually grant the requests of their children ; warns us against "false prophets," and tells us that "by their fruits," or lives, we shall know them. In conclusion, He illustrates His whole ser- mon by two builders, and says that those who hear His sayings, and do them, " shall be LIFE OF CHRIST. 4 1 likened unto a wise man that built his house upon a rock ; and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock." Such as will not obey, he likened unto "a fool- ish man who built his house upon the sand ; and the rains descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and. beat upon that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it." Obe- dience to Christ's teachings is the foundation of rock. Have we, my young friends, built on this foundation ? If 'so, it will stand. CHAPTER V. CHRIST CLEANSES THE LEPER AND HEALS THE SICK.— Matthew viii. 1-17. Golden Text. — Matthew iv. 24: "And He healed them ." QICKNESS, suffering, and death, have en- tered our world, as you know, by sin. It was a sad hour, when our first parents disobeyed God their Maker, and listened to the voice of the tempter. I have little doubt that my young friends have often thought with me, in seeing so much sickness and death around us in the world, "Oh! that man had never sinned." But our wishes do not generally change things, and sickness and death go on. Now, when Jesus came into our world it was then as now full of sickness and suffering. There are, too, as you know, a great many kinds of ailments among people. All these forms of sickness were, (43) 44 LIFE OF CHRIST. however, subject to Christ. He had only to speak, and diseases fled at His Word. I sup- pose you think it must have been very good for the people of that time to have had such a person as Jesus with them. So it was,.and we may sometimes wish in our sickness and afflic- tion that Jesus could still in person be with us He was just such a Friend and Helper as the people needed ; of a tender and sympathizing heart, joined with power and willingness to re- lieve. Now sometimes persons may be willing to help, but they may not be able ; and they may on the other hand be able, but not willing; but Christ was both able and willing. It is said at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, about which you have read, that "when He was come down from the mountain great multitudes followed Him." This seems as though they must have been much interested in His preach- ing, and many perhaps thought that they should hear more, or see this great Teacher do some wonderful works. LIFE OF CHRIST. 45 Well, it would seem that He had scarcely- more than come down from teaching the people, when a poor afflicted person met Him, and asked Him most humbly and earnestly to cure him. This man is called "a leper." This may be a strange name to some of my young friends, as we have not this disease in our country. It is a most fearful disease, which was and is still in Eastern countries. It began commonly .on the face about the nose and eyes, showing itself at first in little pimples or spots. These increased in size, and gradually spread over the whole body. It was not a sickness that ended in death directly, but went on grow- ing worse and worse, until even the bones and marrow were reached by it, and in its last stage the joints of the body would be sepa- rated, and the body fall into pieces. A person with this sickness might live, it is said, twenty, thirty, or even for fifty years; but I suppose the time of suffering with many of them was 46 LIFE OF CHRIST. much shorter than this. No mere human power could cure this disease; and although they might linger a long time, yet death was their certain doom. This sickness was, it is supposed, regarded as contagious, and there- fore they were separated from other people, and they had to satisfy the priest, in olden times, that they were certainly healed, before they were allowed to go among the people again. Notice how humbly this poor man comes to Jesus, and yet with such full faith in the power of Christ to cleanse Him. It is stated here that he "worshiped" Jesus and said, "Lord, if Thou wilt Thou canst make me clean." Now my young friends, we are sinners, and sin is a worse sickness than even the leprosy ; for unless we are cleansed from it, our bodies and souls must perish forever. None can de- liver or save but Jesus, who shed His blood on the cross for us; and if we would be saved we too must come humbly and in faith to Him. LIFE OF CHRIST. 47 This sickness became worse and worse every- day, week and month. So too the longer we stay away from Christ, our Saviour, the greater is our sin, guilt and danger. We should seek to come early to this loving Redeemer, before our hearts are hardened. I have no doubt you have seen some very wicked old people. I attended the funeral of an old man, who died at the table whilst eating, and it was said that the last word he uttered was an oath. How fearful to live and die in sin, when you have such a kind and almighty Saviour! The language of our hearts should be : "I'll go to Jesus, though my sin Hath like a mountain rose ; I know His courts, I'll enter in, Whatever may oppose." We have an account next of the Saviour en- tering into Capernaum, and healing "the cen- turion's servant." Capernaum was a town on the western 48 LIFE OF CHRIST. coast of the Sea of Tiberias, and was a place in which Jesus did many wonderful works ; and because they repented not after having seen and heard so much, Jesus threatened them with some of His heaviest judgments. This centurion, however, unlike many others of this town, believed in the power of Christ. He was an officer in the Roman army, and, as his name means, had a hundred soldiers under him. He not only showed that he had faith in Jesus, but was a kind-hearted man, for he felt for his sick servant, and came to Christ desiring that He should heal him. The Saviour proposed to come to his house, and heal his servant; but this man had so much faith in the power of Christ, and such a sense of his unworthiness, that he told Him it was not necessary that He should come, but that He should only " speak the word," and his ser- vant would be cured. He reasoned, too, very beautifully from his own situation or position LIFE OF CHRIST. 49 as an officer. He said he was a man under authority, and had soldiers under him, " and I say to this man, go, and he goeth ; and to another, come, and he cometh ; and to my servant, do this, and he doeth it." Now he meant to say to Jesus, you have just as much and far greater power over sickness. You can just stand here, and " speak the word," "and my servant shall be healed." The Saviour said he was a man of great faith, and that He had not found so great faith "in Israel" — that is, among His own, or the Jew- ish people. This man's servant was healed, as you know, and that without Christ going to his house. Now if we would be saved ourselves, or desir^ that Jesus should deliver our friends from sin and save them, we must come unto Him in faith, and in prayer, as this man did. If your friends were sick, you would desire very much to have a doctor, and long to see 4 SO LIFE OF CHRIST. them well. How much more should you feel concerned about them, when you know that they are living in sin, and that unless they repent they will lose their precious souls. My young friends, you have only one refuge for yourselves and others; go to Jesus in prayer, and ask him to convert and save them ; and oh ! how glad you will be when you see them rejoicing in Christ as their Redeemer. CHAPTER VI. THE CONVERSATION OF CHRIST WITH NICO- DEMUS.— John iii. Golden Text. — John iii. f : " Ye must be born again." r I ^HE sun had set, and the mantle of dark- ■*• ness covered the earth, when rather a remarkable and interesting person visited Jesus. The Divine Master was not only engaged during the busy hours of the day, but * also during the silent hours of the night. This man occupied quite a high place among the Jewish people, being a member of the great council of the nation. Various reasons have been given for his coming to Christ by night. Some have supposed that as the Di- vine Master was so much engaged during the day, this man thought that the night would afford him the best opportunity to have a calm, (50 • 52 LIFE OF CHRIST. personal talk with the Lord Jesus Christ : others, that as Nicodemus was a ruler of the Jews, he was, perhaps, so much engaged him- self during the day, as scarcely to be able to find time for this conversation ; others still have supposed, and I think, perhaps, most cor- rectly, that it was through fear of the Jews — because, you know, they hated and opposed Christ and His cause. It was also considered a sufficient reason for persecution on their part, if any one showed a disposition to become a disciple of Christ. As the danger was so great, I have little doubt that this man came at first somewhat timidly to the Saviour. You should feel very thankful to God, my young friends, that you live in another age and land. Here there is not only no law against Chris- tianity, but the laws protect you, and great exertions are put forth in the Sabbath-school and elsewhere to bring you to Christ. Oh ! ' how different it is with us, to what it was with Nicodemus, LIFE OF CHRIST. 53 This man, as soon as he came to Jesus, began to speak very well of Him, and said, as you may remember: " Rabbi (or master), we know that Thou art a Teacher come from God ; for no man can do these miracles that Thou doest, except God be with him." The Saviour immediately brought to his attention the great doctrine of His kingdom, as though he had said, You are convinced that I am a teacher from God, and I will now teach you at once the great doctrine of My kingdom ; and said unto him : " Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of heaven." This man was quite astonished at the doctrine of Jesus, and did not understand it at all, and asked a strange question about it. The Saviour told him again most positively that this change must take place in us, if we would be saved. He tried to explain to him that as we came into the world with sinful natures, through 54 LIFE OF CHRIST. the fall of our First Parents, this change was necessary to fit us for heaven. The Saviour told him further that this was a mysterious change, such as we cannot fully understand, saying, " the wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh or whither it goeth ; so is every one that is born of the spirit. ,, Nicodemus did not still understand Jesus, and he then said unto Him in language somewhat reproving, " Art Thou a master in Israel, and knowest not these things ?" Now, my young friends, many well-educated people, and some that have attended preaching and Sabbath- school for years, seem to know little and care less about this great doctrine ; and yet Jesus teaches that unless we are thus changed, we cannot enter heaven. This change consists of two parts — repent- ance of sin and faith in Christ. We can never be truly said to "be born again," or the second LIFE OF CHRIST. 55 time, until through repentance we are led to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Redeemer. The moment however we do thus believe, whether we know it or not, is the time in which we are born again. This too is the time when we begin really to love and serve God. Now, whether we do know the precise time or not, is not a matter of great import- ance, but the thing itself we should know. We know that there has been a strong wind passing over the country when we see large trees torn up by the roots; and so too when we find our hearts are changed, sinful habits broken up, and find that we now really love God and de- light in His ways, we may know that a great change has taken place in our hearts. The blind man of whom we read could not tell much about the way in which his eyes were opened ; but one thing he did know, that whereas he had been blind, now he saw. We have reason to believe too, that some are con- $6 LIFE OF CHRIST. verted or thus changed very young; and you should not therefore wait until you become grown in order to become Christians. From what we read afterwards about this man Nicodemus, we learn that he became a warm friend of Jesus: see John vii. 49-53; also, John xix. 39; and we think that his con- versation with Christ must have done him much good. I sincerely hope that none of you who read this little book will rest satisfied until you know that by true repentance and humble faith in Jesus as your Saviour, you have been born again into His kingdom, and then, as we shall see in another chapter, if we really have thus become Christians ourselves, we will go earnestly to work and seek to bring others to this Saviour who has become so precious unto our own souls. CHAPTER VII. CHRIST'S CONVERSATION WITH THE WOMAN OF SAMARIA— John iv. 1-30. Golden Text. — John ix. 4, "I must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day ; the night cometh when no man can work" TT7E have in this chapter another instance * * of the busy life of Jesus. He was here traveling from one part of the Holy Land to another, or from the southern great division called Judea. He was journeying northward to Galilee. In going from the southern to the northern division, unless He would go consid- erably out of His way, by crossing the Jordan and going up on the east side, He was com- pelled to go through Samaria, the middle great division. He had now got into Sama- ria, in His journey northward, and reached a (57) 58 LIFE OF CHRIST. city called Sychar. It was about the sixth hour, or according to our way of counting twelve o'clock in the day, which was also the time for one of the Jewish meals. Jesus being wearied with His journey, for He was true man as well as true God, sat on the well to rest. It may have been a pretty place, shaded and suited for a weary traveler to rest. Whilst seated here, tired and thirsty, " there cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water." Jesus asked her to give Him a drink, both, we sup- pose, because He really was thirsty, and because He desired to have some conversation with her. We would not be surprised if a weary traveler should ask a drink of any of us, no matter to what nation he might belong. But this poor woman thought it very strange that Christ, being a Jew, should ask such a favor from her, as the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans. These Samaritans were a people composed of a few of the ten tribes LIFE OF CHRIST. 59 and a mixture of foreigners. After the return of the Jews from Babylon, whither they had been carried captives, they set to work to rebuild the temple. The Samaritans wanted to aid them, but as the Jews thought they were not doing it from love to God, they refused their help. This, among other things, made them angry with their Jewish neighbors, and even went so far as to lead them, as we have seen, to have no dealings with each other. This woman may have known that Jesus was a Jew, either from His way of speaking or mode of dress ; at any rate, she seems to have had no difficulty in this respect. Now, not- withstanding Jesus was weary and thirsty, yet so great was His love to the souls of people, that He began directly to seek to teach her the way of salvation. Jesus knew the worth of a soul, for it was to save the souls of men that He came down from heaven to earth. Now see in what a beautiful and natural way 60 LIFE OF CHRIST/ Christ speaks to this poor woman in regard to matters of religion. They were both at the well (Jacob's well, of old and pleasant memo- ries). He had asked a drink of water from this old, deep well, where Jacob, his children and cattle had slaked their thirst. This woman is surprised that Jesus, being a Jew, should ask this favor of her, and the Saviour then begins by saying, " If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink ; thou wouldst have asked, of Him, and He would have given thee living water." The woman, not at all understanding Jesus — and unconverted people do not under- stand spiritual things-r-told the Saviour that the well was deep, and that He had nothing to draw with. Oh ! my young friends, in how great darkness we are by nature ! Christ was speaking of giving the water of salvation, and this woman supposed that He meant natural water ; but Jesus still went on, saying, " Who- LIFE OF CHRIST. 6 1 soever drinketh of this (natural) water (or from the well), shall thirst again ; but whoso- ever drinketh of the water that I shall give him, shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water spring- ing up into everlasting life." The poor woman did not yet understand Christ in anything of a spiritual way, but showed her utter ignorance by asking Jesus to give her of this water, that she might be saved trouble and labor, and that she might have no need to come to this well "to draw." The Saviour now drops all figura- tive language, and by asking her to go and call her husband (for He was omniscient), designed at once to touch her conscience, and bring her sin of adultery to view. She then said He was a a prophet," but sought, as un- converted people frequently do, when pressed strongly to seek the salvation of their souls, to draw the Saviour's attention to something else, and change the subject, saying, " Our 62 LIFE OF CHRIST. fathers worshiped in this mountain, and ye say that Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship." Now many, if not all, of the Jews held this doctrine, but Jesus never preached it, so that it could not be truthfully charged to Him. He then makes Himself known to this woman as the promised Mes- sias, whom they were expecting, and the Sa- viour of the world, saying, " I that speak unto thee am He." This seems to have excited her very much, and I suppose made her feel glad, so that she " left her water-pot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, Come and see a man which told me all things that I ever did. Is not this the Christ ?" It is not positively said that this woman became a Christian, but we suppose that she was led to believe in Jesus as her Saviour. Now, my young friends, the great lesson I desire to impress on your minds, and the minds of all who may read this book, is that LIFE OF CHRIST. 63 if we love Jesus ourselves, we must all work for Him, in a natural way, as He did, by seek- ing to bring others to Him. Our time is short ; life is uncertain ; the souls of men are valuable above everything else. They or we may be taken away suddenly. " Oh ! speak a word for Jesus, your dearest friend so true." Do it, too, as Christ did ; begin in a pleasant, natural way, with your little playmates, broth- ers, sisters, or friends. Here God's works, and providence, and the scenes of everyday life, all come to our help ; the setting sun, the beautiful pale moon, the stream of water, the funeral procession, the bed of sickness and suffering; in short, all the bright and dark scenes in this world, may be used in leading the mind to Christ; and here, as in every other thing, practice makes perfect, and if you never begin, you will never succeed. I know you would not desire to be saved alone, or " wear a starless crown." Oh ! then, begin ! 64 LIFE OF CHRIST. Do it prudently, lovingly, prayerfully, and per- severingly, and God will bless and honor your efforts to win souls to Himself. I have only to add, in the language of that beautiful hymn which we sometimes sing : " Work, for the night is coming ; Work through the morning hours, Work while the dew is falling, Work 'mid springing flowers, Work when the day grows brighter, Work in the glowing sun : Work, for the night is coming When man's work is done." CHAPTER VIII. JESUS CASTETH OUT DEVILS.— Mark v. 1-19 ; ■ Matthew viii. 28-34. Golden Text. — Luke xi. 20.: " But if I, with the finger of God, cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you" npHIS is another of the wonderful works ^ which Jesus did when on earth. We read that persons really were possessed of devils, and according to the account given us, especially by Mark, the condition of this poor man for whom Christ did this great kindness must have been distressing in the highest degree. Some learned men have desired to teach us that what is here spoken of as being a possession by an evil spirit, was only a severe form of disease, or derangement of the mind. But these men are very much mis- 5 (65) 66 LIFE OF CHRIST. taken; for these evil spirits conversed with Jesus, and one of them gave his name, and they also came out at the command of Christ, and in this instance entered into a herd of swine, and caused the swine to destroy them- selves. But notice the condition, sad condi- tion, of this man, when he was thus possessed by evil spirits. It is here stated of him that " he had his dwelling among the tombs," and further, that he was " always day and night in the mountains and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones." Now, my young friends, I think you will agree with me, that it would be hard to describe a human being in a worse and more pitiable situation than this poor unfortunate man was. It may be that he did not look much any more like a human being, and I suppose we should all have been frightened if we had met him. It was a mercy that he had withdrawn himself from human society, and seemed to be better satisfied to be LIFE OF CHRIST. 67 in among the dead. His situation, however, was not only thus lonely and gloomy, but he made the place terrible by his cries and noise. Now graveyards are usually very lonely places and have gloomy associations, but these were made much more so by the presence and cries of this man. Some persons, and especially the young, are apt to think that religion is calculated to rob them of their joy, and make them gloomy, and unhappy. This is no doubt a snare of the evil spirit, to keep them from the enjoyment of true happiness, which flows only from a sense of pardoned sin. Satan, sin, and guilt, make us really unhappy. See how wretched and mis- erable this man was, whilst the evil spirits reigned within ; living among tombs, and roaming in the mountains, crying and " cut- ting himself with stones." There are many inward cries of the wicked that are known only to God Himself, and very much of their 68 LIFE OF CHRIST. misery is known also to man. Thus, if I mistake not, it was Colonel Gardiner, who before his conversion, envied even the happi- ness of a dog. Then, too, they know not what moment they may be cut down, and go to the world of despair. The Word of God says beautifully of true religion, " Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are paths of peace." Strange to tell, also, about this man, that when he saw Jesus, " he ran and worshiped Him." So you see that even devils have to acknowledge Jesus and His right to reign over them. Now we do not, of course, suppose that it was an act of real heart- felt devotion, or had in it anything of love to Jesus, for we see that almost immediately afterward, he used what we would term hard language to the Saviour ; for he said, " What have I to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of the most high God ?" He feared, as we see, the power of Jesus, and well he might. For LIFE OF CHRIST. 69 Christ soon cast these evil spirits, speaking in the man, out. Now sin reigning in us, my young friends, still makes us fierce and ugly. We hear much said about lovely and amiable people, who are not Christians, but there is very little reliable in all this without the grace of God. True, some people, not unlike the lower animals, have better tempers and dispo- sitions than others. But the evil of sin in the heart, unless subdued by the power of God, will manifest itself at times in pride, selfish- ness, anger, ambition, or something of the kind. Thus some of these so-called amiable people are very proud, and as long as they can get everything they want, may seem very amiable, but when they are crossed, and -their wishes not gratified, they frequently become very angry. They remind me very much of a well-fed lion lying in his cage. You would scarcely suppose, as you see him lying there, perhaps sleeping peacefully, that there was yO LIFE OF CHRIST. anything very savage or terrific about him, but let him be aroused by the presence of flesh when hungry, and you then see the sav- age beast in all his ferocity. Thus, too, child- ren may sometimes, and frequently, be very loving and friendly towards each other, but let one of them say something or do some- thing that provokes the other, and then the ugly passion of anger shows itself. Sometimes even little brothers and sisters become very angry with each other, and it may be, c&ll each other hard names. All these should remember those beautiful lines on this subject: " Birds in their little nests agree, And 'tis a painful sight When children of one family Fall out, and chide, and fight." This poor man was, I suppose, a terror to the whole neighborhood, to grown people and children. So, too, people yet become so wicked and sinful by profane swearing, drunk- LIFE OF CHRIST. J\ enness, etc., as to become a terror to all. I suppose there are very few grown people but can remember some such person whom they feared and shunned when children, and I have little doubt that some of you know people of this kind, and I do not wonder that you are afraid of them, for we cannot say what they might do when excited. I have also seen boys running after drunken men, and crazy people, and making sport of them. Now, my young friends, I need not tell you that all this is not only generally dan- gerous, but very sinful It is said of this man also, that he was unmanageable, he would even break the chains and fetters by which he was bound. So sin and Satan still make children and grown peo- ple hard to be managed. They disregard the kind words and entreaties of their friends and parents, and when these friends insist on their doing right, they sometimes become very 72 LIFE OF CHRIST. angry, and oppose them, and break through all their rules. Now, the right way is for us to become Christians when young, and try to have our hearts, before sin and Satan have be- come so strong in us, renewed and sanctified by the grace of God. There is, too, one other point to which I desire to call your attention. This man, when once these evil spirits were cast out, became very much changed, as you will see by reading the account. He then loved the Saviour, and wanted to be with Jesus in the ship. So when we love Jesus, we shall desire to be with Him in the Sabbath- school, the prayer-meeting, and the regular public worship of God. Now I heard quite recently of a little girl who was converted, and did not want to leave the Church, and when asked why, she said, "This place I love so much, because here I found Jesus." The Saviour told this man that instead of sitting with Him in the ship ( although that would be LIFE OF CHRIST. 73 very pleasant), he should " go home to his friends, and tell them how great things the Lord had done for" him. So, too, the gentle- man and Christian who addressed the little girl to whom I have referred, asked if her father, mother, brothers and sisters loved Jesus, and requested her to bring these dear friends to the Church, where they, too, might hear of the Saviour and His dying love. Now there are too many people who seem as though they just wanted to enjoy religion themselves, and do not have much disposition to. go forth and work for Christ; but this, as you know, my young friend, and as I have been endeav- oring to show you, is not right. We should feel, and be ready to say : " I'll tell to all poor sinners round What a dear Saviour I have found ; I'll point to Thy atoning blood, And say, Behold the way to God." Love to Jesus must be the great prompting power in all our endeavors to work for Him. CHAPTER IX. CHRIST STILLETH THE TEMPEST.— Matthew xiii. 18-27; Mark iv. 35-41. Golden Text. — Matthew viii. 27 ; " What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him ?" QTORMS are sometimes very terrific, and ^ calculated to alarm most persons. How- ever fearful a storm on land may be, a storm on the sea must be much more so, for we have nothing between us and the raging sea but the vessel in which we are sailing. Jesus, after having healed the centurion's servant, an account of which we have had, left Capernaum, and took a ship or small vessel with His disciples, in the evening, for the pur- pose of going over to the eastern side. It may have been a calm and beautiful evening, with, perhaps, a clear sunset, and no indica- (74) LIFE OF CHRIST. 75 tions of a storm. This sea, although only about twenty miles long, and six or eight miles wide, was subject to violent squalls. It is supposed that the vessel here called a ship was a small open boat, such as was com- monly used for fishing purposes. Some time during the night, after Jesus had fallen asleep in the hinder part of the ship, perhaps wearied from the labors of the day, there arose a vio- lent storm. The ship, it is said, was "covered with waves," and the lives of all in it seemed in great danger. The disciples became much frightened, and came to the Saviour; and hav- ing awakened him out of sleep, said, in all the earnestness of people realizing their danger, "Lord, save us; we perish." The Saviour asked them why they were so "fearful," and having gently reproved them for their want of faith, " arose and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm." The result was, that the men marveled, saying, "What ?6 LIFE OF CHRIST. manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him ?" Now this whole scene, my young friends, as you may well suppose, must have been one of great grandeur. The darkness of the night, the stormy winds, the dashing waves, the creaking, tossing ship, con- nected with the great alarm of the disciples, and the calm action of the Saviour, and mani- festation of His power as God over these stormy elements, all served to make it such. You may be ready to say, Oh! if Jesus had been with me in the vessel, I should not have been alarmed, no matter how great the danger might have seemed to be, because I know that He has power over the winds and the sea. But stop, and think for a moment. Jesus, your Saviour, lives still, and has as much power, and loves His people just as much as when He was on earth. Well, are you never afraid when the angry winds blow, and thunders roll, and lightnings flash ? Why LIFE OF CHRIST. ?? should you be ? Jesus, the Almighty Saviour, lives, and reigns, and can take care of you, and preserve you, just as well as if He were with you in the ship. He is certainly near His people. Ah ! but, you say, I have doubts, and then fears. Exactly so; thus, too, it was with these alarmed disciples ; they had doubts, and therefore fears. If they had only reasoned for a moment, and sought to* exercise their faith in Jesus, as they should have done, they might have said in triumph, We cannot perish, for Christ is with us in the ship, and He need only speak, and the winds and sea will obey Him. It is said that Caesar could not endure , to see his pilot tremble in a furious tempest at sea, because he was in the boat. " How much less reason have we to be afraid," as one has beautifully written, " who carry in our hearts the great emperor of the world." Jesus, however, knew the weakness of His disciples, their small measure of faith; and in LIFE OF CHRIST. His love, He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea. So, too, He still loves most ten- derly all who love Him, and are seeking to obey Him. He knows our weakness, our dangers, and also the unbelief of our hearts. Storms, that is, afflictions, temptations, and trials, will come even where Jesus is, for we are informed, "whom the Lord loveth, He chasteneth ;" but we should not yield to unbe- lief and fear, but feel that if we love the Saviour sincerely, all is well, and He can pro- tect and deliver us. He has permitted these storms to come down, too, upon His Church, so that sometimes they threaten to destroy everything ; and yet He has raised up deliv- erers in the persons of Luther and those other great reformers, and has delivered His Church and preserved His servants. Thus, too, when we feel guilty, and our sin is pressing hard upon our hearts, and we see nothing but the wrath of God, we should, in the exercise of LIFE OF CHRIST. 79 prayer and faith, fly to Jesus as our refuge and strength. Remember that we must not neg- lect to pray, and pray earnestly, as these disci- ples did, and feel as they did that none but Jesus can help us. If we do thus, this Saviour who still lives, and loves, and cares for us, will come to our help, and the same power that rebuked the " winds and the sea" for the dis- ciples, will calm our fears, and by leading us to trust in Him for pardon and salvation, bring peace and calmness into our troubled hearts. We may say, in the language of that beautiful hymn : " Courage my soul, for God is near, What enemy hast thou to fear ? How canst thou want a sure defence Whose refuge is omnipotence ? i( Though billows after billows roll To overwhelm my sinking soul ; Firm as a rock my soul shall stand Upheld by God's almighty hand," CHAPTER X. JESUS OPENS THE EYES OF THE BLIND, AND CAUSES THE DEAF AND DUMB TO HEAR AND SPEAK.— John ix.; Luke xviii. 35-43; Mark ix. 17-29. Golden text. — Isaiah xxxv. 5, 6 : " Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing" • r I A HE afflictions referred to in this chapter ■*• are, we think, the greatest which human beings can suffer in this life. There may not be, and there generally is not, much if any pain, but they are constant afflictions, cutting us off from so much of the real enjoyment of this world, and making life dark and lonely. If there is a human being that should move our hearts, and gain our sympathy, more than others, it is, we think, the man, woman, or child, who has either been born blind, or (80) LIFE OF CHRIST. 8 1 has afterwards been deprived of sight. To such as have been born blind, ail has ever been a scene of constant and abiding darkness around them. They have never seen the heavens above, which the Psalmist says, " de- clare the glory of God," the sun, moon, or stars, or beautiful many-colored clouds. Nor have they seen the earth on which they tread, with its animals, fruits, and flowers. They have never seen the smiling faces of their friends, nor traced the difference in their appearance. I have often asked myself, what are the views and feelings of such a person ? Have they any conception at all of things around them as they are ? Nor is the situa- tion of one who has been deprived of sight much if any better. I have at^imes thought that it was even worse; for they know, and can appreciate, the greatness of their loss. They had been accustomed to look out upon the beautiful heavens, and earth, and behold 6 82 LIFE OF CHRIST. things created by God in their variety, beauty, and grandeur; but now they have been deprived of this great privilege. So, too, as regards other afflictions, to which reference is made, and of which we have an account in this scripture. The mute, or deaf and dumb per- son, is also much afflicted, and highly deserv- ing of our sympathy. Christian kindness or charity has, however, done so much for this class of persons, and we have seen them so contented and cheerful, as to take away much of the gloom and affliction of their condition. It is true, also, that the Christian charity of the present age has done much to lighten the affliction of the blind, by teaching them to read. I have been considerably in the society of educated mutes, and must say, that I have found them cheerful and happy. To bring this affliction, however, home to ourselves, with all the relief that Christianity has afforded, who of us would be willing to exchange situa- LIFE OF CHRIST. 83 tions with them? So that it remains true that it is even under these favorable circumstances a great affliction. I need not now tell you that Jesus had a tender and sympathizing heart, and that the suffering condition of the people led Him to exert His power for their deliverance. We read, therefore, that He heard the cries of the blind, and opened their eyes, and unstopped the ears of the deaf, and caused the dumb to speak. Oh ! how these afflicted people must have loved Him, and hailed His approach with joy. I hope, my young friends, that you never see persons thus afflicted, but that you pity them. Many of them now, especially the blind, as in time past, live by begging, and it is hard to refuse to give to such persons. You should remember, however, that there is another kind of blindness, and that we are all by nature spiritually blind. We do not see God, or His law, or our condition as sinners 84 LIFE OF CHRIST. before Him as we should, and are in danger of perishing forever. Now a blind person, if he is a Christian, having the light of God's spirit in his heart, may still be happy, for he enjoys the presence and friendship of his Saviour here, and feels that he is going to a world where his eyes shall be forever opened to behold the rich glories of heaven. So, too, the mute may feel th^t there his ears will be forever opened to hear the beautiful music that shall delight his soul; and his tongue forever unloosed to praise his God. How sad for us to remain in this state of blindness, and when Jesus the Saviour lives and can open our eyes, unstop our ears, and cause our tongues to sing His praises. Oh ! how many of these spiritually blind and mutes are there not in the world ! They walk on from day to day constantly exposed to the wrath of God, and yet realize not their sin and danger. They live here and enjoy His mercies, and are fed on His rich bounty, and yet do not hear His LIFE OF CHRIST. 85 voice calling them to repentance and to faith in this Saviour. Nor do they, with their tongues, praise this Saviour, but many, per- haps, profane the name of the blessed Jesus. Oh ! my yo*ung friends, go to Jesus and ask Him, that by His good spirit He would open your eyes, unstop your ears, and loose your tongues to sing His praise. These people, for whom Jesus did these great things, followed Him ; so, too, should you, devoting yourselves body and soul to His service forever, and say- ing in the language of one of old, " O, Lord, I will praise Thee ; though Thou wast angry with me, Thine anger is turned away, and Thou comfortedst me." Our language, too, should be after we have been led to this Saviour, and our eyes opened to see His love- liness : « Oh, that all the blind but knew Him, And would be advised by me ; Surely they would hasten to Him, He would cause them all to see.". CHAPTER XI. THE MIRACLE OF THE LOAVES AND FISHES.— Matthew xiv. 15-21 ; Mark vi. 35-44; Luke ix. 12-17; John vi. 1-21. Golden Text — Matthew xiv. 16. But Jesus said unto them, " Z#^/ /z