LIBRARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 Mrs. SARAH P. WALS WORTH. 
 
 Received October , 1894. 
 Accessions No . 5~frQ 3* Cla&s No. 
 
LESSOIS FROM JESUS : 
 
 OB, 
 
 THE TEACHINGS OF DIVINE LOVE. 
 
 Br W. P. BALFERN, 
 
 14 
 
 AUTHOR OF "GLIMPSES OF JESUS." 
 
 ft 
 
 " And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD ; and great shall be the 
 peace of thy children." ISA. liv. 13. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 
 SHELDON & COMPANY. 
 
 BOSTON : GOULD & LINCOLN. 
 1859. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 IT is considered very wrong by many, to publish 
 a book which travels over a path marked by the 
 footprints of the illustrious dead ; and by others, 
 unless a work is possessed of so much power and 
 originality that it is likely to stand side by side, 
 in fraternal juxtaposition, with the intellectual 
 and spiritual treasures destined to live so long as 
 this world's literature shall last, it is thought to 
 be a crime to publish. In these sentiments the 
 writer does not share ; for however industriously 
 the greatest may have laboured in the field of 
 truth, their inferiors who follow them will fre- 
 quently find some few ears which it may be use- 
 ful to gather up ; or, to change the figure, it may 
 be their work to give another setting to the 
 thoughts of those who have departed, more 
 adapted to the wants of the age in which they 
 live. In this way, too, through inferior men, the 
 mighty dead reproduce themselves, and exert an 
 undying influence ; and the sweet and instructive 
 voices of the past, that would long have been 
 hushed in silence, are heard through the writings 
 and utterances of living men, ringing forth an 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 everlasting chime amid the discords and changes 
 ever attendant upon the growth of intellect and 
 the march of mind. 
 
 The object of the writer is to gain for the 
 whole Gospel a more extensive and affectionate 
 reception among those who may have appre- 
 hended it but partially, and to bring out its adap- 
 tation to the varied experiences both of the old 
 and the young, the decided and the undecided, 
 the believer and the sceptic : subsidiary to these 
 designs, also to raise a note of warning, as to the 
 designs of many, who either openly or covertly 
 are seeking to rob the Church of those doctrines 
 which have been, and must continue to be, the 
 only source of her spiritual strength, beauty, and 
 usefulness, while travelling through this wilder- 
 ness of time. 
 
 The reader will perceive that some of the most 
 beautiful poems in this work, are selected from a 
 series entitled " Lyra Germanica." Should the 
 liberty taken in extracting them be the means 
 of leading any to purchase the volumes them- 
 selves, it will afford great pleasure to the writer 
 of this book, as he is acquainted with no poetry 
 more fully equal to its high and holy aim, or 
 better adapted to strengthen and feed a devotional 
 spirit. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Mary at the Feet of Jesus ; or, the Model Disciple, . . 3 
 Fruitless Toil ; or, a Word to the Gay, the Guilty, and the 
 
 Wise, 13 
 
 The Midnight Disciple ; or, a Guide to Faith, . . .25 
 The Look of Christ ; or, How to Repent, . . . .35 
 A Desert Place ; or, the Test of Discipleship, . . .43 
 The Syrophenician Woman ; or, the Successful Applicant, . 55 
 The Silence of Jesus ; or, How to Meet False Accusations, . 69 
 Christ and the Demoniac ; or, Never Despair, . . .75 
 The Captive Loosened; or, Hope for the Bound, . .97 
 Jesus and the Blind Man ; or, a Guide for the Perplexed, . 107 
 Jesus and the Growing Corn ; or, the Progress of Divine 
 
 Life, 121 
 
 Kind Words; or, a Lesson for the Angry, . . . .135 
 The Weeping Disciples ; or, Consolation for the Parted, . 141 
 The Love of the Spirit ; or, the Church's Great Need, . . 149 
 
VI CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Disciple Admonished ; or, the Christian's Danger, . 171 
 Footsteps of Love ; or, Jesus Crucified : 
 
 The Agony in the Garden, 183 
 
 The Traitor's Kiss, 187 
 
 The False Charge, . .... 190 
 
 The Parted Garments, 194 
 
 The Scourge, 197 
 
 The Scarlet Robe, 200 
 
 The Crown of Thorns, 201 
 
 The Weary Journey, 204 
 
 The Cruel Death, 208 
 
 "Wells of Salvation ; or, the Joy of the Church, . . .221 
 The Solemn Admonition ; or, a Lesson for the Covetous, . 237 
 The One Offering; or, the Christian's Rest, . . .247 
 The Believer's Great Lesson; or, the Condition of Peace, . 259 
 Apostolic Preaching ; or, the Manifestation of the Truth to 
 
 the Conscience, 269 
 
 Positive Theology ; or, the Whole Counsel of God, . .287 
 A Right Motive ; or, a Sublime Life, . . . . . 305 
 
LESSONS FROM JESUS; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE TEACHINGS OF DIVINE LOVE. 
 
"At Thy through-pierced feet, 
 I'll humbly take my seat ; 
 
 There's heaven's enjoyment: 
 To give Thee thanks and praise 
 For all Thy love and grace 
 
 Be my employment." 
 
 Oh ! may we here in faith abide 
 At Jesus' feet, whate'er betide ; 
 May neither sin nor change remove 
 Our hearts from resting in His love ! 
 

 
 LESSONS FROM JESUS, 
 
 tag at tjftjirfof f; 
 
 OB, 
 
 THL MODEL DISCIPLE. 
 
 " Who also sat at Jesus' feet.' 11 Luke x. 39. 
 
 OF the author of the " Divina Commedia," a 
 certain celebrated writer has said, " I think that 
 the central man of all the world, as representing in 
 perfect balance the imaginative, moral, and intel- 
 lectual faculties, all at their highest, is Dante." 
 How much more sublimely true is this of HIM who 
 while He was really man with us was no less God ; 
 whose mind was a perfect mirror of God's law 
 irom the cradle to the tomb ; and who, indeed, 
 embodied in Himself all perfection both human 
 and divine. Of the great poet thus eloquently 
 eulogised, we are sure, that, though the powers of 
 his mind, like a majestic harp, gave forth sweet 
 and illustrious music, yet there were the discordant 
 notes incident to humanity; and the wonderful 
 
4 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 singer himself, in his latter days wrote, " I have 
 already written many times regarding love in the 
 sweetest, most beautiful, and graceful rhymes I 
 was able, and I exerted all my powers to refine 
 them. They no longer satisfy my desires, for I 
 know that I have vainly expended my labours, and 
 been ill repaid. I now withdraw my hand from 
 writing any longer on this false love, but will dis- 
 course on God as befits a Christian." Of this 
 false love he thus wrote : 
 
 " A slave before, Thou hast released me. Thou, 
 By every art and mode that could be tried, 
 
 Did'st win the freedom that I cherish now. 
 Continue Thy beneficence to me, 
 
 So that my soul, which Thou hast purified, 
 May lose its mortal bonds, approved by Thee." 
 
 How beautifully consistent and congruous would 
 this language be as applied to Him whose love is 
 the source of heaven's purity and joy, and whose 
 words proclaim liberty to the captive and the 
 opening of the prison to those who are bound. 
 Of One whom we can truly say, 
 
 " That, day by day, 
 
 Like one who never can be truly known, 
 His beauty grows ;" 
 
 and who, to the sanctified heart, must ever be 
 "the chiefest among ten thousand and the alto- 
 gether lovely." Strange that the lips of genius 
 
MAKY AT THE FEET OF JESUS. 5 
 
 have so little to say about Him! The vast 
 powers of Dante, and many other kindred minds, 
 excite our wonder, and there are many other 
 things in the world that perpetually call it forth. 
 Our own physical and moral constitution, the 
 flowers beneath our feet, and the stars above our 
 heads every object, indeed, which surrounds us, 
 whether great or small, presents to the contem- 
 plative mind elements of thought and astonish- 
 ment. Still there is nothing in this visible uni- 
 verse, with all its multitudinous objects, harmonies, 
 and adaptations, which excites so much sublime 
 and intelligent wonder in the mind of a Christian, 
 as the incarnation of the Son of God. 
 
 Here reason pales her wonted fires, 
 And mute with holy awe adores. 
 
 That He, who was God over all, should so iden- 
 tify Himself with us as to become bone of our 
 bone and flesh of our flesh, should so veil the 
 brightness of His face that sinful creatures could 
 gaze upon it and live, that He should come so 
 near 'to us, as that we could reach Him, yea, even 
 sit at His feet, that He should wear our nature, 
 use our words, and through them pour His great 
 and loving thoughts into our hearts, is wonderful 
 indeed. 
 
 "How beautiful upon the mountains are the 
 feet of those who bring glad tidings !" said one of 
 
6 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 old. How beautiful do the servants of Christ ap- 
 pear, as, constrained by faith and love, they stand 
 forth to make known to dying men the glories of 
 their Lord! How much more beautiful does He 
 appear, whose glorious deeds furnish them with 
 the glad tidings they proclaim ; who robed Him- 
 self in frailty, and came over the huge mountains 
 of our guilt, and through seas of suffering and 
 sorrow, to reach and to save us ! "Well may we, 
 indeed, sit at His feet who came to guide us to- 
 paths of purity and peace. Eeader, who is thy 
 teacher? with what school or sect dost thou stand 
 identified? We wish to direct thy attention to a 
 pleasing and instructive scene a woman sitting 
 at the feet of Jesus. It was a lowly place, but it 
 became her well, and in the temple of truth she 
 lives illustrious, a fair example to all, and thus 
 she shall appear to ages yet unborn. 
 
 At whose feet did she sit? At the feet of 
 Jesus. And who was He ? Isaiah gives His 
 name in full : " His name shall be called Won- 
 derful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlast- 
 ing Father, the Prince of peace." Wise was this 
 woman's choice : she stooped to take the highest 
 place; well might the angels envy her. Who 
 shall be great if she is not ; so near the King of 
 kings she sat, on terms of intimacy with the Lord 
 of all : this might be doubted, but it was even so, 
 such was the condescension of our God. What 
 can we say ? The reader may test this fact it 
 
MARY AT THE FEET OF JESUS. 7 
 
 is not impossible even now to sit at Jesus' s feet. 
 Dost thou inquire how ? by thinking over His 
 words in faith and prayer. Christ is not far from 
 any one of us, and to the humble, waiting spirit, 
 will make known His love, though now enthroned 
 above. We may be intimate with God ; although 
 so great, He calls us to His feet, He claims our 
 ear: "Hearken" (He says), "0 daughter, and 
 consider and incline thine ear ; forget also thine 
 own people and thy father's house : so shall the 
 King greatly desire thy beauty; for He is my 
 Lord, and worship thou Him." It is not His will 
 that we should wander through the universe like 
 orphans, uncertain, neglected, sad. There is a 
 place where He unveils His love, reveals His 
 face a father's heart and speaks in language we 
 can understand ; where His great mind spreads 
 out its ample stores to satisfy the longing soul. 
 The feet of Jesus is this place : reader, hast thou 
 been there? 'Thou hast climbed the summit of 
 some lofty mountain, it may be with toil and 
 pain, to gaze upon the outspread charms of Na- 
 ture's face : more at the feet of Jesus thou mayest 
 see, without the toil and weariness. 
 
 Hast thou not looked into His face? Thou 
 hast not seen much ; thou hast not seen the mir- 
 ror of His love who made thee, His wisdom, 
 beauty, grace. Look up from thence, and thou 
 wilt see more than the stars; the world a little 
 thing, and truths we all should know, but which 
 
8 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 on Nature's brow, however fair, we never should 
 read. 
 
 She sat at Jesus's feet. how humility ex- 
 alted her : it raised her to the bosom of her Lord, 
 brought commendation from the lips of God! 
 She meekly stooped to bear His mild and easy 
 yoke, too glad to receive instruction from His 
 lips. She sat she stayed, awhile, she waited on 
 His words. With open heart, like Lydia's, she 
 listened anxious to learn, and held, her memory, 
 like a golden vase, to catch each precious fragrant 
 drop of truth which came distilling from His lips. 
 Many rush into the presence of Christ with steeled 
 hearts, and ears half closed, attention fast asleep, 
 and reason's eye filmed o'er by prejudice, and rush 
 away again, and wonder they are not wise. 
 Eeader, if thou wouldst know the Lord, stay with 
 Him for a time ; ponder His words, until their 
 meaning makes them sweet to thee ; hide thou the 
 precious grain within, and give it time to fructify ; 
 upon the walls of the dark chamber, of vain ima- 
 gery within, let the words of Jesus shine like 
 stars, and gaze upon them until their light beams 
 cheerfully upon thee, and brings to thee intelli- 
 gence of things this godless, idle, thoughtless 
 world sees not, of joys, and peace, and rest, and 
 which lie far away beyond the reach of all its 
 noise, its teaching, and its praise. 
 
 "Who also sat at Jesus's feet." How comely 
 her position. Was it not right to bow to Him 
 
MAKY AT THE FEET OF JESUS. 9 
 
 who stooped from heaven to suffering and death 
 that He might lift her to a throne ? Comely 
 how beautiful to see .the creature's mind accord 
 with God's, to mark a soul stooping to slake its 
 thirst at life's own fountain ! How wise for frailty 
 to repose on everlasting strength; for conscious 
 ignorance to hang upon the lips which never err ; 
 a spotted soul to hide beneath His priestly vest, 
 who never sinned. 
 
 How great its advantages. It is here the whis- 
 pers of a Saviour's love are heard, the voice of 
 wisdom too often lost amid the din of life ; and 
 here His face is seen whose unveiled charms fill 
 heaven with bliss; here peace resides, and fills 
 the quiet heart with overflowing joy. And when 
 the universe shall reel, and nations wail responsive 
 to the archangel's blast, the meek disciple at the 
 feet of Christ shall lift his smiling face and say, 
 " My Saviour reigns." Reader, it is possible by 
 faith and prayer to sit at the feet of Jesus now ; 
 but self and pride must fall, the world must be 
 forsaken. 
 
 Art thou prepared for this ? 
 
 Remember that he who will not sit at the 
 feet of Jesus now, must come beneath His feet at 
 last. 
 
 A place there is where friends can meet, 
 Though death remove and seas divide ; 
 
 'Tis found in Christ, 'tis at His feet, 
 Hard by His cross and wounded side. 
 
10 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Here, freed from care, the poor rejoice, 
 Forget their toils and lose their grief; 
 
 The waiting heart hears mercy's voice, 
 And finds the balm which brings relief. 
 
 Here faith and love together dwell, 
 With weeping eyes here oft adore, 
 
 Record His triumph over hell, 
 
 Who all their sins and sorrows bore. 
 
 Here peace with outspread wings abides, 
 And folds her children to her breast, 
 
 And, while the scoffing world derides, 
 Dries up their tears and gives them rest 
 
" Alas, for man who hath no sense 
 Of gratefulness or confidence, 
 
 But still rejects and raves ; 
 That all God's love can hardly win 
 One soul from taking pride in sin, 
 
 And pleasure over graves." 
 
 " What is the dry and miscarrying hope of all them who are 
 not in Christ, but confusion and wind ? Oh, how pitifully and 
 miserably are the children of this world beguiled, whose wine 
 cometh home to them water, and their gold brass and tin I And 
 what wonder that hopes builded upon sand should fall and sink ! 
 It would be good for us all to abandon the forlorn and blasted 
 and withered hope, which we have had in the creature ; and let 
 us henceforth come and drink water out of our own well, even 
 the fountain of living waters, and build our hope upon Christ 
 our Rock. But, alas ! that that natural love which we have to 
 this borrowed home that we are born in, and that this clay city, 
 the vain earth, should have the largest share of our heart ! Our 
 poor, lean, and empty dreams of confidence in something besides 
 God are no further excursive than up and down the noughty 
 and feckless creatures. God may say of us as he said (Amos vi. 
 13), 'Ye rejoice in a thing of nought' Surely we spin our 
 spider's web with pain, and build our rotten and tottering house 
 upon a lie, and falsehood, and vanity." RUTHERFORD. 
 
A WORD TO THE GAY, THE 
 AND THE WISE. 
 
 " Simon Pder saith unto them, I $&> fishing, fhey sqy :l , 
 unto him. We also go with thee. Tk>Qy went forth, and en- 
 tered into <& ship immediately / atnj thqt t nig]it they caught ,, 
 nothing* But when the morning was now c_ome } Jesus stood 
 on the shore : but the disciples^ Jfnew not that it was Jesus. 
 Then Jesus saith unto them y (Children, have ye any meat?.' 
 They answered him. No. A<frd he said unto ., them, Cast the, 
 net on the right side of the s&ip, and ye shall jfmd. - They cast^ 
 therefore, and now they w.^e not able to draw- it for, 
 titude of fishes" John x^xi. 3 6. 
 
 THIS world is a^gjace of fruitless toil; for, 
 are not willing to be instructed. Like 
 ciples of old } they toil over the sea of life fc, 
 dark, fishing.. for happiness as they go, but gene- 
 rally in vain. Being unwilling to profit by the 
 wisdom of^those who have tolled over the sea be- 
 fore them % thfir net is mostly- >und on the 
 2 
 
14: LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 side of the vessel, while they are quite ready to 
 throw the blame of their numerous failures on 
 anything and everybody rather than themselves. 
 Let us, however, endeavour to gather from the 
 interesting narrative above recorded, those instruc- 
 tions which it is calculated to impart, and which, 
 through the Divine blessing, may save us from 
 some of those great mistakes which have trans- 
 formed the lives of many into one scene of disap- 
 pointment and sorrow. We will notice the fruit- 
 less toil, the Divine Teacher, and the miraculous 
 draught. 
 
 THE FRUITLESS TOIL. " / go a fishing" said 
 Peter. And, " Come," says the jovial man to his 
 boon companions, " Come, let us go and have 
 some sport to-night. Away with melancholy: 
 life is the time to be happy and gay ;" and so 
 away they go to fish for happiness upon the sea 
 of worldly pleasure. The night is dark, but their 
 minds are darker ; they have heard that this sea 
 has its rocks, and is liable to storms, and that 
 many a goodly ship has been wrecked there, but 
 what care they ; fish they will, and so they toil 
 all night. And when the morning comes, what 
 have they taken ? Answer, ye devotees of plea- 
 sure;; let conscience speak; must not your reply 
 be that of the disciples <of old, " We have toiled 
 all night and taken nothing;" or, worse, that the 
 dog-fish of weariness and a guilty conscience is 
 your only reward. 
 
FRUITLESS TOIL. 15 
 
 And "I go a fishing," says another. "Come, 
 friends." Alas ! one sinner makes many. Their 
 destination ? the sea of strong drink. And what 
 result? Answer, ye daring voyagers, ye storm- 
 tossed, weary labourers who have hitherto escaped 
 its boiling waves ; withered and blasted, it is true, 
 scarce men, yet speak. You will not; then 
 God shall] hear what He says your toil shall 
 bring: the sea can yield no more. "Who 
 hath woe ? who hath sorrow ? who hath conten- 
 tions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds 
 without cause ? who hath redness of eyes ? They 
 that tarry long at the wine ; they that go to seek 
 mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine 
 when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the 
 cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last it 
 kiteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder" 
 And is it for this serpent you will toil all night? 
 that it may sting thee to eternal death, and de- 
 stroy thee in body and soul ? And is it to catch 
 this, that wife and child, home and friends, are 
 forsaken ? Can it be ? is it possible ? what dread- 
 ful infatuation is this ? temerous voyager, flee 
 from this dreadful sea ; thy little bark once upset, 
 thou art lost, for ever lost ! open thine eyes, 
 look around thee : observe how swift the eddying 
 current flows toward yonder rocks that dread 
 abyss ! See, drifting all around thy course, the 
 wrecks of many a gallant vessel, which, like thy 
 own, once proudly danced o'er the surging waves, 
 
16 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 buoyant with life, and health, and joy, but now, 
 alas ! no longer seen. daring fisherman, take 
 heed ! Call now on God for help ! nor trust thy- 
 self upon the waves of this mad sea again. 
 
 And who is that with wan, pale face, and anx- 
 ious look a burden, too, 'tied to his back. He 
 sighs, and weeps, and labours on. Anon! he 
 stops and tries to shake his burden off, then starts 
 afresh ; but all in vain. The sea of error is his 
 goal ; and see, he has arrived ; and mark how 
 hard he toils to fish up mercy from the secret 
 deeps of that dark, gloomy, ever-heaving sea. 
 How anxiously he strives, all through his dismal 
 night of sorrow, for pardon and peace of con- 
 science rest. Alas! he finds them not. Num- 
 bers, with him, cast in their nets. The sea is 
 deep, but yields them nought. Poor man, his 
 constant draught is disappointment. He watches 
 other boats, and follows in their wake : they are 
 strong and confident, and seem to catch all they 
 require ; but he takes nought. Still from his lips 
 the doleful words oft fall, "I've toiled all night 
 and taken nothing." Yet, o'er the waters of that 
 troubled sea, the voice of mercy rolls : " Believe, 
 and peace is yours." It cannot be, he thinks, 
 Believe ! what, leave off my work ; do nothing ! 
 Have all I want for nothing ! what idle words 
 come on the breeze ! And so he bends his bur- 
 dened back down to his oar, " I will have peace," 
 {i I must have peace," he says, while from his eyes 
 
FRUITLESS TOIL. 17 
 
 the tears roll down. Poor man, the sea of error 
 cannot yield thee aught to feed thy soul ! 
 
 And mark yon toiling missionary as he stands 
 weeping in the midst of that degraded band of 
 heathens : why does he weep ? He has laboured 
 these many years, and taken nothing. It has been 
 a long, sad night of toil ; no solitary star of hope 
 has cheered him ; not one of those encompassed 
 by his toil and prayer has bowed to the sceptre of 
 the Prince of Peace, or opened his hard heart to 
 welcome His embrace. And why this failure? 
 He thought the people being so depraved, he had 
 better educate them first create a moral sense 
 and then make known to them the joyful tidings 
 of a Saviour's death ; and hence this disappoint- 
 ment. 
 
 How trying to the mind is fruitless toil ; but 
 how needful is it to show us our faults, and pre- 
 pare us to receive the blessing of the Lord when 
 it comes ! 
 
 THE DIVINE TEACHER. " But when the morn- 
 ing was now come, Jesus stood on the shore." It is 
 ever morning when Jesus visits His disciples. 
 However dark the night, when He appears the 
 light gets through the clouds, and the morning 
 breaks. what a bright morning broke upon 
 the dark night of human sorrow at the Incarna- 
 tion, when Jesus robed Himself in frailty, and for 
 the first time- placed His foot upon the shores of 
 this guilty, wrecked, and storm-tossed world! 
 
 o-x- 
 
18 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 And oh, what a bright morning will burst upon 
 the vision of the perfected just, when, standing 
 upon that sea of glass which John saw in Apoca- 
 jyptic vision, they behold their glorified Lord : 
 when, the full fruition of their hopes being real- 
 ised, their sun shall no more go down, the days 
 of their sorrow having for ever passed away. 
 
 u lie stood on the shore" He was not far from 
 them. And, ye toiling ones, who have long 
 been fishing for happiness upon the troubled sea 
 of worldly gain and pleasure, know that He who 
 can instruct you how to take the prize is not far 
 from you ; hear His voice, as He expostulates with 
 you: "Wherefore," saith He, "do ye spend 
 money for that which is not bread? and your 
 labour for that which satisfteth not? Hearken 
 diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is 
 good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness." 
 
 " But the disciples knew Him not" Their 
 greatest Friend was unknown to them. And be 
 assured of this, ye sons of fruitless toil, although 
 the world may smile upon the labour of your 
 hands, and praise your deeds, and laud your name, 
 as yet your best Friend is to you unknown. 
 
 But though the disciples knew Him not, He 
 knew them. The night was not too dark for Him 
 to see them, and mark their toil. And thus, even 
 now, His omniscient eye surveys the sea of life. 
 Each little bark He beholds' in which His disci- 
 ples ride, and struggle hard, with many a sigh 
 
FRUITLESS TOIL. 19 
 
 and tear, to take enough to meet their wants, un- 
 til, the voyage being over, they reach the haven 
 of their hopes. 
 
 " And He stood upon the shore, and He said, 
 Children, have ye any meal?" And thus from 
 the distant shores of eternity speaks the Great 
 Teacher now through His truth, and to each 
 anxious labourer on the sea of life He puts this 
 question, " Have ye any meat? " Answer, ye aged 
 men, who many years have toiled 'mid stormy seas, 
 to fill the ship with this world's merchandise, your 
 only aim : say, Have ye any meat? What! has the 
 soul been starved ? is there no crumb on board to 
 feed a better hope when storms and tempests 
 come? What! must you answer "No?" shame! 
 How long shall folly claim thy hoary locks, and 
 fruitless toil hold fast thy withered form, and point 
 thoughtless youth to thee as his patron, while death 
 stands by to snatch thee from thy oar, and hell im- 
 patient waits and opens wide her mouth to take 
 thee in ! 
 
 To you, young man, no less the Saviour speaks. 
 Your boat is gay the sea of pleasure bright your 
 sails well spread to catch the gale prosperity now 
 sends. And what have you ? Come, trifler, speak ! 
 God puts the question : you will not answer. You 
 must some day ; better speak now ; confess the 
 truth. There is much display : and is that all ? 
 what saith the soul? Your angling rod, your silver 
 line, and silken nets, have taken nought have 
 
20 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 really brought no satisfaction home. The mind 
 still craves for that you cannot take, with all your 
 sails outspread and nets employed. And so from 
 you a negative must come, " I have no food." 
 
 And thou, too, ancient man, with stooping gait 
 and thoughtful mien, and boat well laden too 
 with ancient " saws and modern instances," must 
 you confess at this late hour your cargo-emptiness? 
 no meat ! a shoal of doubts fished from the 
 abysses of scepticism, which now you doubt ? rich 
 dainty food, flourishing condition, wise man! 
 And can it be, sage philosopher, past now thy 
 threescore years and ten, that with thy nets of 
 metaphysical lore all logically devised, and all thy 
 toil, oft faint and weary, to drag them through the 
 sea of speculation, they bring thee this result 
 that now the eye is dim, the ears are nearly closed, 
 and o'er the sky dark clouds appear, while in the 
 dim uncertain distance looms the Jee-shore death 
 in answer to the question, put by lips infallible, if 
 thou hast aught on board to meet thy wants just 
 now, must even you reply, " I have no meat ; I 
 know not whence I come, or whither I go ! " Alas ! 
 poor man, and is this all that we can write upon 
 thy coffin lid, hast thou so laboured that if truth 
 wrote thy epitaph it must stand thus : 
 
 Here lies a learned fool, who toiled 
 All through his life to catch a negative, 
 And have the bliss of dying in the dark ? 
 
FRUITLESS TOIL. 21 
 
 THE MIRACULOUS DRAUGHT. "And Jesus said, 
 Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye 
 shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were 
 not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes" See 
 what faith in the words of Christ will do. They 
 had toiled all night in their own way, and taken 
 nothing; while in a few moments' labour, in 
 accordance with the instructions of Christ, and 
 lo ! the net breaks. And when Jesus speaks to the 
 guilty and self-condemned sinner, tells him what 
 to do, and gives him the power to do it, O what a 
 change transpires ! and how richly is he blessed ! 
 and what a shoal of blessings come pouring into 
 the soul, until the man so favoured is compelled to 
 exclaim, Lord, it is enough ! and his little bark 
 is liable to be wrecked, not upon the rocks of 
 despair, but of over-much joy. Then, indeed, is 
 fulfilled the gracious declaration, " In that day 
 thou shalt say, O Lord, I will praise thee, though 
 thou wast angry with me : thine anger is turned 
 away, and thou comfortest me." And the man so 
 favoured exclaims, " I will greatly rejoice in the 
 Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God ; for he 
 hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, 
 he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, 
 as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, 
 arid as a bride adorneth herself with jewels." And, 
 when Jesus teaches His servants how to throw in 
 the gospel net, how great is their success ! And 
 how speedily do those who have laboured for 
 
22 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 happiness in vain reach the spring-head of bliss 
 when made willing to take Him for their guide. 
 
 " Then come all ye weary, 
 
 And ye heavy laden, 
 Lend a glad ear to your Saviour's call : 
 
 Fearing or grieving, 
 
 Yet humbly believing, 
 Rest, rest to your souls He'll freely give all. 
 
 " How easy His yoke is ! 
 
 How light is His burden ! 
 But what He suffered no language can tell. 
 
 His grief in the garden, 
 
 To purchase our pardon, 
 His pangs on the cross to save us from hell." 
 
 From the whole we may learn, that all our 
 efforts in reference to this world and that which 
 is to come, without the blessing and presence of 
 Christ, will only issue in disappointment and 
 sorrow ; at the same time that our past failures 
 need not unduly discourage us if they do but 
 lead us to look more simply and exclusively to 
 Him who is ever ready to instruct and bless His 
 people, and whose word is sufficient to insure the 
 success of every enterprise. And while the fruit- 
 less toil of the past may well humble us, it should 
 also admonish us, and lead us not to look to our- 
 selves or our circumstances, not to speculate, but 
 obey Him who has said, " Look unto me, and be 
 ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am 
 God, and there is none else." 
 
FRUITLESS TOIL. 23 
 
 " Return, return, 
 Poor long-lost wanderer, home ! 
 
 With all thy bitter tears, 
 Thy heavy burdens, come ! 
 As thou art, all sin and pain, 
 Fear not to implore in vain : 
 See, the Father comes to meet thee, 
 
 Points to mercy's open door, 
 "Words of life and promise greet thee, 
 
 Oh, return, and weep no more I 
 
 "Return, return, 
 From all thy crooked ways ! 
 
 Jesus will save the lost, 
 The fallen He can raise. 
 Look to Him who beckons thee 
 From the cross so lovingly ; 
 See His gracious arm extended, 
 
 Fear not to seek shelter there, 
 Where no grief is unbefriended, 
 
 Where no sinner need despair. 
 
 "Return, return I 
 From all thy wanderings, home ! 
 
 From vanity and toil, 
 To rest and substance, come I 
 Come to truth from error's night, 
 Come from darkness unto light, 
 Come from death to life undying, 
 
 From a fallen earth to heaven, 
 Now, on Jesus' grace relying, 
 
 Haste to take what God has given 1" 
 
" Faith is the brightest evidence 
 Of things beyond our sight ; 
 Breaks through the clouds of flesh and sense, 
 And dwells in heavenly light." 
 
 He who believes the truth, shall realise the power of truth, 
 and, by the work which it does within, will ever be guided to 
 its source without : to HIM who is the way, and the truth, and 
 the life. 
 
 *' You rely on your instinctive sense of the beautiful, as a safe 
 and competent guide, when the question respects the beauty of 
 an object ; you rely on your instinctive sense of the right, as a fit 
 and adequate criterion, when the question relates to the morality 
 of an action : and why not equally trust to your instinctive feeling 
 of the true for a sound and reliable verdict in reference to the 
 credibility of a narrative ? That fine moral tact, by which we 
 distinguish between the genuine and spurious, has been styled 
 the antennce of the mind, and most aptly ; for, like antennce, it 
 possesses a nicety of discrimination, which often renders it a safer 
 and more certain guide than direct reasoning. In our reasonings ? 
 a false step at tne commencement sends us far astray ; but in 
 gathering up the inductions of the moral sense, we feel our path 
 as we proceed, and at every step get so much nearer to truth and 
 certainty." " The Life of Jesus its own Witness" By the Rev. 
 J. M. M'CuLLOCH, D.D. 
 
 " All the profoundest truths are felt out, the deep glances into 
 truth are got by LOVE." 
 
Kimj$i Jistijlt; 
 
 OR, 
 
 A GUIDE TO FAITH. 
 
 " The same came to Jesus by night" John iii. 2. 
 
 MANY centuries ago, a timid, half-doubting dis- 
 ciple, availing himself of the darkness of night, 
 issued forth from his dwelling-place to seek an 
 interview with the King of kings. The darkness 
 which surrounded his steps, as he pursued his way, 
 well symbolised the sable cloud which covered his 
 mind. Mysteries there were which excited his 
 anxious thoughts, and drew his tardy steps towards 
 the great but unknown Teacher of Israel. 
 
 A wonderful sight was presented to this visible 
 universe on the night that this inquiring man 
 found his way into the presence of the Son of God, 
 to give utterance to his perplexities, and fetch 
 wisdom from the lips of the despised Nazarene. 
 Strange that the Creator and the created should 
 thus be brought into visible converse with each 
 3 
 
26 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 other; that He who dwelleth in light which no 
 man can approach unto, whom no man hath 
 seen, nor can see, should so veil His glory be- 
 neath our nature, that a sinful man could gaze 
 upon His face, and receive instruction immediately 
 from His lips ; that, His greatness being equal 
 to our littleness, He should cover and yet reveal 
 Himself through our humanity, making it not 
 only the temple of His Godhead, but the infallible 
 oracle of those Divine communications which alone 
 can guide the mind to peace and rest. 
 
 What Christian mind is there which has not 
 gazed with intense interest upon this scene ! Here 
 we behold the great and self-existent Eternal, 
 that august Being whom the heaven of heavens 
 cannot contain, whose omnific word spoke all 
 things into existence, and who sustains them by 
 His almighty power, clothed in the robes of 
 human frailty, A MAN among the children of 
 men, and so completely one with us does He 
 appear, that a poor, guilty, erring- creature is not 
 afraid to approach Him. Who now shall say that 
 God is unwilling to commune with man, or that 
 He has left him, like an orphan, to wander through 
 His universe? that He has no concern for his intel- 
 lectual and moral manhood ? Behold the fountain 
 of heavenly wisdom now flows at his feet, and 
 pours forth its fruitful streams to purify and bless. 
 Through human lips God speaks to man, and 
 through our finite words His thoughts distil like 
 
THE MIDNIGHT DISCIPLE. 27 
 
 the descending dew upon the seeking heart. Oh, 
 favoured Nicodemus ! privileged to hear the voice 
 which never erred, to gaze upon that form which 
 heaven adores ; to mark that golden urn in which 
 God's mind lay hid, those moving lips from which 
 God's love distils in words more sweet than honey 
 from the melting comb. 
 
 And yet this man came to Christ by night ; he 
 skulked into His presence like a thief; he fain 
 would steal instruction from His lips, and take 
 the bread of life by stealth. Oh, shame ! me- 
 thinks his echoing steps might well have waked 
 the dead to frown upon him as he passed along, 
 the shadows of the night refuse their aid, and 
 heaven's own sun shoot forth his rays to spread 
 his shame. Ashamed of Him who left His throne 
 to reach his heart, to take the veil of darkness 
 from his mind, and pour the balm of heaven into 
 his bleeding wounds ! And yet this man was not 
 despised, he did not seek in vain. He was not 
 harshly spurned away ; his cowardice called forth no 
 frown upon the Saviour's brow, nor did his igno- 
 rance excite a laugh. The Teacher whom he sought 
 was great, and wise, and holy, and infallible, 
 and because He was all this, this timid scholar 
 found a Friend, and for the first time heard the 
 greatest truths which ever fell from mortal lips. 
 Like as a little child with trembling and uncertain 
 steps strives to reach its parent's knees, or strug- 
 gles to pronounce its parent's name, so doubting 
 
28 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 and uncertain Nicodemus ventured forth to reach 
 the fountain of Eternal Truth. He did not find 
 that fountain closed because he staggered towards 
 it in the dark. He was not sent away without 
 one drop to cool his feverish thirst. He asked, 
 and he received more than his prayers embraced, 
 or his poor finite mind could grasp. Of the great 
 Prophet of his people it had been written, " He 
 shall not break the bruised reed, nor quench the 
 smoking flax." ISTicodemus proved this promise 
 true, and by his very fears and doubts instructs 
 us, his timid steps may guide us to the Truth. 
 It is better to come to Christ in darkness than not at 
 all. It is sad to be ashamed of that which fills 
 the angels with joy, to fear it should be known 
 we sit at Jesus's feet. The argosy that would 
 return freighted with rich treasures from the East 
 must pass through many storms, and plough her 
 way through surging seas, not only when the light 
 of day falls on her prow, and gentle zephyrs fill 
 her sails, but when the night hangs up her sable 
 curtains o'er the sky, and the straining eye in vain 
 would catch the smallest ray to cheer the dark 
 void, to guide the uncertain course over the vast, 
 mysterious waste of waters. Would she reach 
 the port of safety, " Onwards," must be the cry, 
 mid storm and sunshine, by day and night ; and 
 so the soul in quest of truth, though often hard 
 beset by sin, darkness, and temptation, by diffi- 
 culties which, like an adamantine chain, threaten 
 
THE MIDNIGHT DISCIPLE. 29 
 
 to bind the soul to the bleak, barren rock of un- 
 belief, must still cry "Onwards," in faith and 
 prayer, coming to God, crying to Him for light ; 
 must still press forwards to the great central 
 luminary of eternal truth, the Christ of God, 
 the haven's mouth of Deity, through which the 
 ocean of truth pours itself forth, to fertilise and 
 bless the soul ; the great Light fixed in the steady 
 heavens of God's Word, the Christ of God ; He 
 who is God, and therefore can understand thee, 
 seeker after truth, and succour thee, benighted 
 traveller, seeking for this gem ; despair not, for He 
 is equal to all the strange, mysterious wants of thy 
 strangely disordered, guilty, and necessitous soul, 
 thy subtle thoughts, the intricate coil of reason- 
 ing which draws thy soul hither and thither, until 
 thy mind, like the troubled sea, can get no rest. 
 And He is man; mysterious truth, but true; and 
 He can feel for the struggling soul, its pains and 
 weakness, its hopes and fears. Oh, let thy soul 
 cry after Him, as cries the helpless infant for its 
 mother's breast, come thou to Him in prayer, 
 be willing to be taught : in coming to Him thou 
 wilt find thy doubts forsake thee, the night of 
 unbelief will pass away; each prayer, like the 
 steps of Nicodemus when he w ; ent forth to seek 
 Christ, will bring thee nearer to peace and 
 rest. 
 
 The very exercise of faith and prayer will bring 
 thee sublimest evidence of the divinity of Him at 
 3* 
 
SO LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 whose feet thou dost sit; " For whosoever doeth 
 the doctrine shall know that it is of God." " To 
 him that overeometh, will I give to eat of the 
 hidden manna;" give to eat, thus conquering 
 thyself by coming to Jesus the hidden elements 
 of thy moral constitution, beneath the touch of 
 God's omnipotent Spirit, shall develop themselves, 
 and thou shalt rejoice with joy unspeakable and 
 full of glory. While pride and self are thus 
 placed beneath thy feet, the Holy Comforter will 
 fill thy heart with the honey of God's love, and 
 this initial victory of thy infant faith shall be but 
 the first of a series which shall bring incontro- 
 vertible evidence of the Truth to thee, and lift 
 thee higher and higher, even to the very throne of 
 God ; where, crowned with His loving-kindness, a 
 son thyself, among His sons and daughters, thou 
 shalt sing with them, " Victory, through the blood 
 of the Lamb ! " Then, in the clear sunlight of 
 eternity, with eye undimmed by prejudice or sin, 
 thou shalt see the spreading lines of Truth, no 
 longer dark, broken, intricate, but converging each 
 to one bright centre Christ ; in whose glorious 
 face wisdom shall still unveil herself, and still 
 enchain and ravish thine unwearied spirit, and 
 conduct thee to still loftier flights, while in all the 
 soaring grandeur of thy blissful and exalted des- 
 tiny thou shalt thyself appear as a ray flung off 
 from the great centre of Eternal Truth, a marvel- 
 lous exponent of the divine perfections, upon 
 
THE MIDNIGHT DISCIPLE. 31 
 
 which even the intelligences of heaven shall look 
 with wonder, instruction, and delight. 
 
 Art thou, then, reader, willing thus to lose thy- 
 self at the feet of Christ, that thou mayest be truly 
 found willing to try God's method to love the 
 truth that thou mayest learn the truth ? God 
 commands thee thus to learn it, thus to be satis- 
 fied convinced. Wilt thou pronounce an opi- 
 nion before thou hast tried His prescription ? 
 What wouldst thou think of one who, while refus- 
 ing properly to adjust an optical instrument to the 
 required focus, declared the instrument to be 
 worthless and incapable of manifesting the objects 
 which he desired to behold? And what are we 
 to think of the honesty of those who, while pro- 
 fessing to be anxious to know the truth, will not 
 obey those instructions, through the observance of 
 which it is made to appear ? A poor man, well 
 known to us, who had wandered for many years 
 in the mazes of infidelity, on returning home one 
 night, by chance opened his Bible ; his eye fell 
 upon the passage, " If any man lack wisdom, let 
 him ask of God, who giveth liberally, and up- 
 braideth not." The thought struck him that he 
 had never complied with this command, and he 
 thought he would try it ; he prayed, he adjusted 
 the instrument before he looked at the object ; the 
 result was conviction, rest, peace, he became a 
 Christian. 
 
 ts the reader perplexed as to the truth ? turn, 
 
32 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 then, for a time, from the schools of disputation : 
 see here a more excellent way ; practise the truth 
 and believe it, believe it, and thou wilt love it. 
 A poor, illiterate countryman knows more of 
 natural life, by the regular performance of the 
 functions of life, than the angels who are not so 
 incarnated in flesh and blood, however great 
 their reasoning powers, or transcendent their 
 celestial logic. And so, reader, in coming by 
 prayer to the feet of Jesus, and seeking for di- 
 vine help to conform thyself to His words, thy 
 mind will gain more light, and thy heart more 
 rest, than all thy reasoning can bring. Be mo- 
 dest, then rise and obey. 
 
 In Thee my heart, Jesus, finds repose ; 
 
 Thou bringest rest to all that weary are. 
 Until that day-spring from on high arose, 
 I wandered through a night without a star 
 My feet had gone astray 
 Upon a lonely way : 
 
 Each guide I followed failed me in my need ; 
 Each staff I leaned on proved a broken reed. 
 
 Then, when in mine extremity to Thee 
 
 I turned. Thy pity did prevent my prayer ; 
 From that entangling maze it set me free, 
 And quickly loosed my heavy load of care ; 
 Gave me the lofty scope 
 Of a heaven-centred hope, 
 And led me on with Thee, a gentle guide, 
 Thither, where pure immortal joys abide. 
 
 Thou art the great completion of my soul, 
 The blest fulfilment of its deepest need ; 
 
THE MIDNIGHT DISCIPLE. 33 
 
 "When self-surrendered to Thy mild control, 
 It enters into liberty indeed : 
 
 Thy love, a genial law, 
 
 Its every aim doth draw 
 Within its holy range, and sweetly lure 
 Its longings toward the beautiful and pure. 
 
 Thy presence is the never-failing spring 
 
 Of life and comfort in each darker hour ; 
 And, through Thy grace benignly ministering, 
 Grief wields a secret, purifying power. 
 'Tis sweet, Lord, to know 
 Thy kindredness with woe ; 
 ' Sweeter to walk with Thee on ways apart, 
 Than with the world, where heart is shut to heart. 
 
 For Thee eternity reserves her hymn ; 
 
 For Thee earth has her prayers, and heaven her vows 
 Thy saints adore Thee, and the seraphim, 
 Under Thy glory, stoop their starry brows. 
 Oh, may that light divine 
 On me still clearer shine 
 A power, an inspiration from above, 
 Lifting me higher to Thy perfect love ! 
 
 JAMES D. BURNS. 
 
11 Saviour Prince 1 enthroned above, 
 
 Repentance to impart ; 
 Give me, through Thy dying love, 
 
 The humble contrite heart. 
 Give, what I have long implored, 
 
 A portion of Thy love unknown : 
 Turn and look upon me, Lord, 
 
 And break my heart of stone." 
 
 " How adorable is that grace of God in Jesus Christ, which 
 hath not only given us the doctrine of repentance, but by His 
 Spirit gives the very grace itself! He puts no trust in our own 
 powers of understanding, will, affections, natural conscience, 
 reason, or morality ; but only in His own Spirit and grace in 
 His Son. Nor doth He accept our repentance upon its worth, 
 value, and perfection ; but wraps it up in the rich robes of the 
 righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ, and so it is pleasing in 
 His sight. So He does not lessen or derogate from the gracious- 
 ness of His Gospel in imposing such a duty, but He magnifies it, 
 by giving so high and admirable a grace and divine power 
 within us." Psa. Ixxx. 3; Job xv. 15; Jer. xxxi. 18, 19. 
 
 BBVEELEY. 
 
fjrefaok of tfjrist; 
 
 OB, 
 
 HOW TO KEPENT. 
 
 " And the Lord turned and looked upon Peter. And 
 Peter went out and wept bitterly." Luke xxii. 61, 62. 
 
 what a look was that ! The eye has told 
 much, eloquently, and well; but never, amid all 
 the tragic scenes of this world's history, did it 
 ever tell out a tale so full of love and sorrow as 
 now. No words could ever have uttered half so 
 well what the eye of Christ so silently looked into 
 the heart of his faithless but still loving disciple. 
 This impulsive man had once asked leave of his 
 Lord to walk towards Him on the bosom of the 
 sea, and but for the strong hand of the Saviour 
 would have been drowned; and now, like a 
 loving but inexperienced child, he has followed 
 the Redeemer to the very margin of the dreadful 
 storm about to burst upon his head, and a few of 
 its drops having fallen upon His spirit, under the 
 
36 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 influence of terror and with oaths and curses he 
 denies his Lord. 
 
 And what will the Saviour do ? He stands in 
 the midst of an infuriated throng ; His body is 
 still crimsoned over with the bloody sweat which 
 His anguish in the garden had pressed from His 
 pores; He is gradually approaching the dread 
 climax of His grief; the savage yells of men 
 thirsting for His blood fill His ears ; the crown 
 of thorns is near ; His spirit is already crucified ; 
 a dark cloud is coming over the face of His God, 
 as He is about to pay into the hands of divine 
 Justice the dread price which is to secure the 
 salvation of myriads. Under such circumstances, 
 can anything but His great work arrest His atten- 
 tion ? "With a heart thus surcharged with grief, 
 at such a time, can He even for a moment turn 
 away from Himself? Sinking in deep waters, 
 can He look away from them ? Yes. He hears a 
 voice, oaths, and curses! He sees a timid sheep 
 rushing towards the burning lake, and, with the 
 very dogs of hell seeking to tear His flesh, He 
 goes forth to the rescue "He turned and looked 
 upon Peter" Well, what of that? He looked 
 upon others ; yes, but they saw nothing. There 
 was meaning in His look. Peter had seen those 
 eyes before ; he had beheld them beaming love 
 and mercy upon the poor and wretched, and 
 filled with tears by the unbelief of His people ; 
 he knew they had watched for him when he 
 
THE LOOK OF CHRIST. 37 
 
 slept; he had studied their utterances through 
 many a changing scene ; they had been welcome 
 to him as the light of heaven, and he had never 
 seen them reflect aught but purity and love ; and 
 hence their influence over his soul, he wept. 
 Ah ! well he might ; the eyes of Jesus filled his 
 eyes with tears; oh, what a tale of ill-requited 
 love they poured into his bursting heart ! 
 
 But Jesus " turned and looked." Ah Peter ! 
 thou didst sadly fall ; but, bad as thou wast, thou 
 couldst not deny thy Lord to His face. His back 
 was towards thee doubtless, but not His heart ; 
 and hence when He hears thy voice, though but to 
 deny Him, He will turn and look. He knew it 
 would be enough ; He had but to look, and thou 
 must weep. He felt thy heart was near to His, 
 though oaths were upon thy lips. He knew the 
 pangs which thy words brought to His heart 
 would seize upon thy own, and He had only to 
 look to bring them forth. Peter had heard the 
 lips of Christ speak eloquently ; but oh, the mean- 
 ing this look of Christ brought to his heart now 
 that he had proved false to his better self and his 
 Lord! 
 
 "He wept." Ah, yes, those eyes brought to 
 his mind the day when first they smiled a wel- 
 come as he forsook all to follow Christ, and quick- 
 ened memory to think of what he had said : 
 "Lord, I am willing to go with Thee both to 
 prison and to death." 
 
 1 
 
38 LESSONS FHOM JESUS. 
 
 He " wept bitterly. " Ah, well he might. Those 
 eyes, oh, what reproof, what cowardice, what 
 base ingratitude, he saw reflected there ; him- 
 self! what more could he need to add bitters to 
 his tears ? He thought upon the past, oh, what 
 a past ! what numerous kindnesses ! what proofs 
 of love ! what pity and patience ! Yet there he 
 stands, that loving, faithful Friend ; lone, sad, 
 neglected, and despised ; and, alas ! denied by 
 him ! memory ! awaked by the hand of love, 
 how many and how bitter are the griefs thou 
 bringest to a sinner's heart ! How painful to 
 count up the favours of a Friend despised ! 
 
 "He looked" Yes, and there was sorrow in 
 his eyes, ah, how deep ! They seemed to speak 
 and say, Is this thy kindness to thy friend ? My 
 heart is deeply pierced just now ; must you too 
 make a wound ? My foes are strong and many ; 
 will you too lend them aid ? They are about to 
 crucify me ; will you too drive the nails ? See, 
 here's my brow ; must it have thorns from you ? 
 and " Peter wept." That look made him a man 
 of sorrows, and in the secret chambers of his soul, 
 henceforth, whenever he shall look within, he 
 will see that Man whom he denied. who in the 
 silent majesty of His awful grief, as there He 
 stands, still looks upon him, and, as often as He 
 looks, bids him to weep. 
 
 And there was love, too, in this look. Ah! 
 :.but for this poor Peter must have died. It was 
 
THE LOOK OF CHRIST. 39 
 
 as though the eyes of Jesus said, " What ! is this 
 from thee ? Peter my child from thee ? What, 
 thou, my own Peter ! Ah, well, I hate thy sin, 
 but love thee still ; and still to save thee. I will 
 die." Oh, had there not been love in the heart 
 of Jesus, He would not have looked ; and had not 
 Peter perceived that gaze, he never would have 
 wept. The eyes of Jesus looked into his soul, 
 and from its secret depths welled forth the fruitful 
 streams of tenderness and sorrow for his sin. 
 
 And nothing but the love of Christ will melt 
 the heart. Eepentance gushes from the heart of 
 Christ, lives neath the beamings of His eyes, and 
 grows beneath the shadow of His cross. Eeader, 
 is repentance thine ? remember that without it all 
 must perish. How important, then, that thou 
 shouldst look upon Him whom thou hast pierced, 
 and mourn ; but let us not forget that the love of 
 Christ will single out its own, though in a crowd 
 and bound by sin. If, therefore, thou hast been 
 led to mourn over and forsake thy sin, then be 
 encouraged, Jesus has looked upon thee, even 
 as He did upon Peter; and be admonished by 
 the fall of this great Apostle. Beware of leaning 
 to thy own strength, and look constantly to Jesus 
 to finish the work which His own grace has com- 
 menced. 
 
40 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Jesus have I ever wept ? 
 
 Has my heart Thy sorrows felt ? 
 Has indeed Thy love revealed 
 
 Made this selfish heart to melt ? 
 Have I ever gazed on Thee, 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane ? 
 
 Gazed, Lord, I often have, 
 Cold and lifeless, I must own ; 
 
 But, Lord, Thy word declares, 
 
 All thy saints shall gaze and mourn, - 
 
 Mourn and weep while viewing Thee, 
 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane. 
 
 True it is I often weep, 
 
 And as oft miptrust each tear, 
 
 So deceitful is my heart, 
 That, Jesus, oft I fear 
 
 I have ne'er by faith viewed Thee 
 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane. 
 
 Here I would not be deceived, 
 Lord, my life is in this plea ; 
 
 For I know Thy saints redeemed, 
 Each and all in this agree, 
 
 Fellowship they have with Thee, 
 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane. 
 
 Knowledge merely, too, is vain ; 
 
 All Thy chosen people sip 
 From thy dolorous cup of woe, 
 
 That they may esteem the bliss 
 Flowing, holy Lord, from Thee, 
 Sorrowing in Gethsenume. 
 
THE LOOK OF CHRIST. 
 
 'Tis for this, Lord, I seek ; 
 
 Short of this I would not rest ; 
 This, arid this alone, can prove 
 
 That my soul in Thee is blest, 
 Chosen, known, and loved of Thee, 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane. 
 
 Many sights men love below 
 
 Grieve, pollute, and pain the eye ; 
 
 But there is a sight I know, 
 Which can raise and purify, 
 
 'Tis to gaze, Lord, on Thee, 
 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane. 
 
 Here it is my soul would dwell, 
 Gaze, and wonder, and adore, 
 
 Lost as in a sea of love, 
 
 Bottomless, without a shore, 
 
 Weeping, gazing, Lord, on Thee, 
 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane. 
 
 This alone I know can break, 
 Thaw, and melt the rocky heart, 
 
 Free me from the reign of sin, 
 Holy peace and joy impart, 
 
 Sealed by faith as one with Thee, 
 
 Sorrowing in Gethsemane. 
 
4 He that lacks time to mourn, lacks time to mend : 
 Eternity mourns that. 'Tis an ill cure 
 For life's worst ills to have no time to feel them. 
 Where sorrow's held intrusive, and turned out. 
 There wisdom will not enter, nor true power, 
 Nor aught that dignifies humanity." 
 
nsert f to ; 
 
 OB, 
 
 THE TEST OF DISCIPLESHIP. 
 
 " And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a 
 desert place, and rest awhile : for there were many coming and 
 going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat." Mark 
 vi. 31. 
 
 ALL the incidents in the life of Christ are preg- 
 nant with instruction. His whole life is, indeed, 
 a beautiful panorama of moral beauty and spiritual 
 loveliness. He speaks, and we are enlightened ; 
 He moves, and we are instructed. No life like 
 His ; and happy the man who is so familiar with 
 it, that each scene of which He is the centre object 
 has been photographed upon his mind by the 
 Spirit of God, whose memory has become a 
 chamber, the walls of which are overspread with 
 pictures from the life of Jesus, hung up by the 
 fingers of omnipotent Love, for the purification of 
 the affections, and the illustration of important 
 
44 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 principles. Well would it be for us to imitate the 
 enthusiastic connoisseur, who spares neither labour 
 nor money to procure all the paintings of his 
 favourite master ; and seek to have our minds so 
 impressed with every incident in the history of 
 Christ, that wherever we sojourn, there might be 
 within us a spiritual gallery of illustration, to 
 which we could constantly repair for meditation. 
 Observe, believer, the man of taste, the lover of 
 art, how carefully he selects those articles of vertu 
 to which his predilections attach value ; the anti- 
 quary, too, see how he burrows among rubbish, 
 both by night and day, hoping to discover some 
 relic which may illustrate his lore, and assist his 
 inquiries after truth. Let us imitate them ; and 
 let our spiritual taste and education appear in a 
 constant study of the inspired biography of Him 
 who is " the altogether lovely." From it may we 
 get materials to adorn our conduct, and facts for 
 the confirmation of our faith. May we ever 
 remember, that Christ is the diamond stone of 
 truth, upon which the law is engraven ; and seek to 
 have it set permanently in our affections, that we 
 may walk correctly in the light which it emits, 
 and our lives become attractive exponents of its 
 beauty and power. 
 
 We need not dwell upon the literal bearing of 
 the fact above recorded, but shall proceed to make 
 use of it to our spiritual advantage. 
 
 The religion of Christ is altogether a practical 
 
A DESERT PLACE. 45 
 
 religion a religion of life and influence. The 
 very first step we take under its direction in- 
 volves an act of Divine power, and is expressive 
 of spiritual perception, feeling, and decision on 
 the part of ourselves. Had our Saviour taught 
 men that they could follow Him in silver slippers 
 and gay attire, retaining the friendship of the 
 world, and leaning upon its help as well as his 
 own, He would have had many disciples; but 
 because He pointed them to a desert, lying be- 
 tween this world arid that which is to come, held 
 out to them but little to encourage them which 
 perverted reason could approve, and called upon 
 them to count the cost before they commenced 
 the journey, numbers are driven back, and there 
 are but few of whom He could say, " Ye are 
 they which have continued with Me in My temp- 
 tation." And as it was in the days of Christ, so 
 is it now ; many would like to reach the pro- 
 mised land above, and to eat of its delectable 
 fruits, but the wilderness which must be passed 
 turns them aside ; nor is the promise that Jesus 
 will accompany them, and give them the victory, 
 sufficient to induce them to go forward. The 
 words of Christ never fail, but they cannot 
 simply venture upon them ; and their faith is 
 shown to be worthless, by its being conquered by 
 sense. Thus all who hear the Gospel of Christ 
 are by Him tried, and their true state declared. 
 His language is too simple to be misunderstood ; 
 
46 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 He deceives not by fair speeches, nor hides the 
 rough features of the path of life in a blaze of 
 rhetorical splendour. To all who essay to follow 
 Him, He says, "If any man will come after Me, 
 let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily 
 and follow Me." True it is, He also points to a 
 throne and a crown ; but the dreaded cross hides 
 their lustre, and the fear of a desert place in their 
 circumstances drives many back again to the 
 world, who, for a time, seemed to promise well 
 for the kingdom of God. And this, indeed, will 
 ever be the course pursued by those whose first 
 movements towards heaven proceed from mere 
 excitement or impulse, and not from that faith 
 which works by love, and leads those in whom 
 it is implanted to cleave to Christ as their portion, ^ 
 and to follow Him through evil report and good 
 report, whithersoever He may lead. 
 
 But does this meet the eye of one who has thus 
 turned His back on Jesus, and refused to follow 
 Him, because it was feared the path might lead to 
 a desert place ? What ! and is this desert place, 
 which, perhaps, after all, may be but the creation ' 
 of thy fears, more dreadful than the frown of 
 God? Is it more bleak than the confines of 
 despair ? more terrible than His wrath who has 
 said, " But if smy man draw back, My soul shall 
 have no pleasure in him ?" Is it, indeed, more 
 barren than the burning lava of hell, less prolific 
 in comfort than the stings of a guilty conscience, 
 
A DESERT PLACE. 47 
 
 the death-bed of an apostate, or the regions of 
 darkness destined to be the final dwelling-place 
 of all who are ashamed of Christ, and who, 
 while they would have the crown He gives, 
 despise His cross ? Oh, think again before you 
 forsake Him of whose people it is written, " That 
 the wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad 
 f6r them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom 
 as the rose." What! shun a desert place with 
 Him of whom it is written, that His smile turns 
 " the shadow of death into the morning !" What ! 
 refuse to follow Him who forsook the paradise 
 above, to traverse the cold desert of this world, 
 to seek and to save His wandering sheep ; who 
 watered His path with His tears, and, that we 
 might not perish, marked out the path of safety 
 with His own blood ! Oh, blush for shame, ye 
 timid disciples, who, like Peter, often follow the 
 Lord "afar off;" and ye who have turned your 
 backs upon Him, oh, return ! Hear the kind 
 accents of His voice once more, oh, ye wander- 
 ers ! " Return, thou backsliding Israel," said the 
 Lord, " and I will not cause mine anger to fall on 
 you ; for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I 
 will not keep anger for ever." 
 
 Jesus, then, invites His disciples occasionally to 
 accompany Him into a desert. And how much 
 better to be in a desert place with Him, than in 
 a palace without Him ; to have a poor table with 
 Him for a guest, than a rich one if Pie is absent. 
 
48 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 But if Jesus invites His disciples to follow Him 
 into a desert place, He ever leads the way ; and 
 why does He conduct His disciples into such a 
 locality ? 
 
 " There were many coming and going, and they 
 had not leisure so much as to eat" Ah, this is it ; 
 there are so many coming and going around us 
 too frequently such a crowd of worldly persons 
 and things that the still small voice of Jesus 
 cannot be heard for the noise ; and hence it is, 
 that the disciple often finds a a desert place" in a 
 chamber of sickness and sorrow. Why, it was 
 needful : we could not find time, so Jesus would 
 make time for us ; for there must be a cessation 
 from worldly toil, sufficient at least to eat and 
 digest our spiritual provisions to think, to medi- 
 tate, to pray. There must be times of separation 
 from the world; periods of holy solitude, when 
 the truth of the gracious declaration is realised :. 
 "If a man love Me, he will keep my words, and 
 my Father will love him, and We will come to 
 him, and make our abode with him." 
 
 Thus the solitude of the desert is required by 
 the true disciple that he may eat and drink with 
 Christ ; that he may enjoy sweet and holy inter- 
 course with Him ; that he may receive especial 
 tokens of His love; and that his faith may be 
 increased in His all-sufficiency, faithfulness, and 
 care. For while false faith, like an exotic, dies 
 amid the pinching blasts of adversity, true faith 
 
A DESERT PLACE. 49 
 
 is often nourished by the storms which beat upon 
 it, and never appears more green and strong than 
 when it shoots forth amid the winter of tribula- 
 tion. In the desolation, too, of a desert place, 
 how sweet are the words of Jesus : words which, 
 in times of prosperity and ease, have been over- 
 looked, are now pondered over, again and again, 
 until their important lessons become engraven on 
 the memory. The promises which before seemed 
 to be closed against the soul's embrace, now open 
 their breasts of consolation, for, the mind being 
 sufficiently humbled, consolation can now be 
 safely imparted. Oh, how, in the midst of the 
 thick darkness of a desert place, do 'the precious 
 promises of Jesus sparkle like jewels before the 
 eye of faith ; and the Word of God, which 
 seemed so barren before, now appears like an 
 orchard full of delectable fruits. But not only 
 are the words of Christ seen, redolent with mean- 
 ing, nourishment, and beauty, but Christ Himself. 
 When surrounded by the gay flowers of pros- 
 perity, luxury, and pride, the rose of Sharon 
 attracts but a passing glance. It is in the solitude 
 and silence of a desert place, that it commands 
 the closest attention; and when its hidden beau- 
 ties are discovered, how welcome is its sweet fra- 
 grance to revive and invigorate the soul. It is 
 said of a certain great orator, that he dug a hole ' 
 in the earth in which to study, that his attention 
 might not be distracted from the object of his 
 5 
 
50 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 pursuit by external objects. And though the 
 Lord does not communicate grace to His disciples 
 to make them anchorites, yet does He often iso- 
 late His people that He may impart such instruc- 
 tion as they will not easily forget. A desert \ 
 place, of itself, however, is of no service to the \ 
 believer. The presence of Jesus must light up 
 the scene, and His words must fall like dew upon 
 the heart, through the gracious influence of the 
 Holy Comforter, in order to the soul's being pro- 
 fited. In every desert spo.t, therefore, in our 
 experience, may we ever seek for the presence of 
 Christ a favour never denied to those who 
 seek earnestly and in faith. This realised, good 
 will be accomplished in us and by us; for no 
 place is so barren but that we may be blessed, 
 and made a blessing. Pride will be more com- 
 pletely subdued ; self increasingly crucified ; fel- 
 lowship with a suffering Saviour realised ; His 
 tender and loving spirit will be imparted ; while 
 from these lowlands of famine and spiritual desti- 
 tution, our steps will be quickened towards our 
 Father's house, where there is ever bread enough 
 and to spare where our sun shall no more go 
 down, and the days of our sorrow will cease. 
 
 Let not, then, the believer be surprised should \ 
 his Lord conduct him into a desert place to test 1 
 his integrit}^ and prove his love ; for thus it was 
 that the Lord led His disciples of old; and of. 
 Abraham it is written, that " after he was tried h'e 
 
A DESERT PLACE. 51 
 
 received the promise." And let not the disciple 
 who may be occupying a desert place now, forget 
 that the Lord can make even it a fruitful spot: 
 fraught with the most hallowed enjoyment of 
 Himself, and pregnant with the most divine in- 
 structions which sanctify the soul and fit it for a 
 paradise above. And let those from whose path, 
 in temporal things, at least, a desert place seems 
 at present to be far away, remember, that if the 
 heart becomes cold, and the Lord forgotten ; that 
 if their engagements become so multiplied that 
 they have but little time and less disposition to 
 find a secret place for communion with Him whom 
 they profess to love and serve, that the Lord, who 
 is jealous of His glory, and concerned for their 
 welfare, will be sure, sooner or later, to make a 
 desert place for them, where they shall have to 
 mourn their folly, and find time for those acts of 
 devotion which are essential to their spiritual 
 health and comfort: for still it is a truth, " That 
 whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth 
 every son whom He receiveth." And ye secret 
 disciples, whom wealth and respectability, it may 
 be, have held back from a public profession of 
 the Lord, and a visible identification of yourselves 
 with His humble people, beware, lest He who led 
 His disciples into a desert place of old, should send 
 a rough blast from the wilderness of tribulation to 
 remove your golden impediments, to sweep away 
 your conventional difficulties, and td make you 
 
52 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 as unmistakable in the public exhibition of your 
 love to Him, as is His determination to be glori- 
 fied in the conduct of all whom He saves. 
 
 BY THE EEY. HORATIUS BONAR, D.D. 
 
 " Far down the ages, now, her journey well-nigh done, 
 The pilgrim Church pursues her way, in haste to reach the 
 
 crown. ' 
 
 The story of the past comes up* before her view; 
 How well it seems to' suit her still old, and yet ever new. 
 
 'Tis the same story still of sin and weariness, 
 
 Of grace and love still flowing down to pardon and to bless ; 
 
 'Tis the old sorrow still the briar and the thorn 
 
 And 'tis the same old solace yet the hope of coming morn. 
 
 No wider is the gate, no broader is the way, 
 
 No smoother is the ancient path that leads to light and day, 
 
 No lighter is the load beneath whose weight we cry, 
 
 No tamer grows the rebel flesh, nor less our enemy. 
 
 No sweeter is the cup, 'nor less our lot of ill ; 
 'Twas tribulation ages since, 'tis tribulation still; 
 No greener are the rocks, no fresher flow the rills, 
 No roses in the wilds appear, no vines ypon the hills. 
 
 Still dark the sky above, and sharp the desert air ; 
 'Tis wide, bleak desolation round, and shadow everywhere ; 
 Dawn lingers on yon cliff, but 0, how slow to spring ! 
 Morning still nestles on yon wave, afraid to try its wing. 
 
 No slacker grows the fight, no feebler is the foe, 
 
 Nor less the need of armour tried, of shield, and spear, and 
 
 bow; 
 
 Nor less we feel the blank of earth's still absent King, 
 "Whose presence is of all our bliss the everlasting spring. 
 
A DESERT PLACE. 53 
 
 Thus onward still we press, through evil and through good 
 Through pain and povert} 7 -, and want through peril and 
 
 through blood; 
 
 Still faithful to our God, and to our Captain true ; 
 We follow where He leads the way, the kingdom in our view." 
 
 5* 
 
Take no denial from the lips of love, 
 Nor think that silence is a proof of hate, 
 
 For Jesus tries the faith he means to bless; 
 Be patient, then, and at His feet still wait. 
 
 "But what, on second thought, are these merits? Jeremy 
 Taylor tells us, in his life of Christ : Nothing but the innumer- 
 able sins which we have added to what we have received. For 
 we can call nothing ours, but such things as we are ashamed to 
 own, and such things as are apt to ruin us. Everything besides 
 is the gift of God ; and for a man to exalt himself thereon is just 
 as if a wall on which the sun reflects should boast itself against 
 another that stands in the shadow." 
 
 "All that Antinomianism which the orthodox preachers of 
 free grace are falsely charged with lies here, because they main- 
 tain that the first thing a convinced sinner is to eye, on his 
 turning to God, is the free grace and mercy of God in Christ 
 for the pardon of sin. Evangelical conviction leads hiiri to a 
 reliance upon Christ, in some degree, of saving faith for the par- 
 don of all his sins ; and this faith begets in him a secret hope 
 of pardon, and is the spring of all after sanctification, namely, of 
 mortification, of sin, of repentance, and of all new obedience. Let 
 this be remembered, as the main thing we contend about, that 
 we begin our religion at the grace of God, and do not think to 
 ground our faith in Christ upon any legal preparations or works 
 of our own." (Tit. iii. 5, 6.) COLE. 
 
oro; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE SUCCESSFUL APPLICANT. 
 
 " And she said, Truth, Lord : Yet the dogs eat of the crumbs 
 which fall from their masters 1 table" Matt. xv. 27. 
 
 WE have often been struck with the love and 
 courage of Dr. Kane and his party, as recorded in 
 his arctic explorations : travelling mile after mile, 
 dragging a sledge with them over wastes of snow, 
 that they might plant their caches of pemmican 
 and other provisions ; that so, if the poor wan- 
 derers they were seeking should pass that way, 
 they might be kept from starvation. But how 
 much more affecting is it to contemplate Christ, 
 in the midst of the arctic regions of this world's 
 desolations, travelling hither and thither to deposit 
 by word and example the bread of life. Here and 
 there, now and again, a child of faith would meet 
 Him, like a solitary hesperis, amid the snows of 
 our moral winter, whose beauty and fragrance 
 
56 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 refreshed him; and such, no doubt, was His 
 experience on meeting with the Syrophenician, 
 whose memorable reply we have cited above ; 
 and whose spirit and conduct we would seek to 
 subordinate to our spiritual profit. And we would 
 first notice 
 
 HER ZEAL. She "came out 11 to meet Christ; 
 she was willing to exert herself; she did not wait 
 for Christ to come to her she went to Him ; but 
 how many professing Christians are there who 
 appear too slothful to seek a blessing, even from 
 the hand of God. Through the public ministra- 
 tions of His Word He showers down His favours; 
 but they are not prepared to make any effort to 
 reach the place where they are so richly and 
 freely vouchsafed; the pearls of truth literally 
 cover their path, but it appears almost too much 
 trouble for them to stoop and pick them up. Alas ! 
 for the condition of such ; and who can wonder at 
 their poverty ? but the day will come when they 
 shall mourn for those privileges which they now 
 despise. This poor woman "came out;" she left 
 her home. She had doubtless heard of the fame 
 of Christ, and was willing to put Him to the test. 
 If we would receive a blessing from Christ, we 
 must not be content with simply hearing of Him, 
 we must come to Him : we must be willing to 
 forsake the world to be singular, if need be ; to 
 part with our prejudices, our crude notions, tradi- 
 tional creeds, darling sins indeed, with every- 
 
THE SYROPHENICIAN WOMAN. 57 
 
 thing which we discover to be opposed to our 
 spiritual progress. For thus speak the lips of 
 love : " Come ye out from among them, and be 
 ye separate, saith the Lord ; and touch not the 
 unclean thing ; and I will receive you, and I will 
 be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my daughters, 
 saith the Lord Almighty." 
 
 Observe, further, that this woman did not come 
 to Christ under the influence of a mere vague 
 curiosity ; but to seek a favour from Him. She 
 came intelligently to accomplish a certain object ; 
 and were the thousands who go forth merely to 
 hear a preacher's voice year after year, from cus- 
 tom or from habit, but moved to seek an interview 
 with Christ, how soon would our moral petrefac- 
 tions begin to melt, and the wastes of Zion begin 
 to rejoice and blossom as the rose. 
 
 HER FAITH. She came to CHRIST she did 
 not go first to His disciples, but came direct to 
 Him, and let all who are just beginning to enquire 
 after truth imitate her example : let such, with 
 prayer and supplication, go at once to the great 
 Teacher Himself. He invites such. " Take my 
 yoke upon you, and LEARN OF ME," He says, 
 " for I am meek and lowly in heart." Oh, what 
 trouble and perplexities would many have escaped 
 if, at the commencement of their religious career, 
 they had but gone direct to Christ as the great 
 Teacher of His people ! But they went first to 
 the disciples, forgetful of their Lord, and from 
 
58 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 f trusting to the judgment of those who were not 
 competent to guide them, were led from the truth, 
 as well as kept from the enjoyment of that par- 
 don and peace they were so anxious to possess. 
 Let the sincere inquirer, therefore, take heed, and 
 not put the servant in the place of the Master ; but 
 search the Scriptures for himself, and pray for the 
 teaching of that gracious Spirit whose especial 
 work it is to take of the things of Christ and 
 show them to His disciples. 
 
 Observe, too, how this woman came. We are 
 not aware that she had either precept, promise, or 
 example to encourage her : she was " a woman of 
 Canaan;' 7 she had no legal claim to the favour 
 she sought ; literally she was not a child of Abra- 
 ham, yet she came. 0, what an example to many 
 more favourably circumstanced; and how does 
 her faith reprove their unbelief! Who among 
 those who hear the gospel can say that they have 
 neither precept, promise, nor example to encou- 
 rage them to come to Christ ; and yet how doubts 
 and fears perpetually rob many of them of their 
 joy. We have no right to go to Christ, say they : 
 His precepts, promises, and commands refer to 
 saints ; we are not such. Then go as sinners 
 go as the poor woman determine with the 
 poet 
 
 " I can but perish if I go, 
 I am resolved to try ; 
 For if I stay away, I know 
 I must for ever die." 
 
THE SYROPIIENICIAN WOMAN". 59 
 
 HER PRAYER. She cried, "Have mercy on 
 me, Lord, Thou Son of David" She recognised 
 His dominion and dignity,, by calling Him LORD ; 
 and also His authority to save as the Messiah of 
 His people. She had learned something of His 
 character, and her trouble furnished her with a 
 prayer ; she prayed earnestly, too, because her 
 trouble pressed heavily. Real prayer is the off- 
 spring of necessity, the child of penury and want. 
 Many come to God's house, and where Christ is 
 preached and dispenses His favours, but are not 
 blessed because they do not pray; they receive 
 not because they ask not ; or ask under the in- 
 fluence of mere formality. This poor woman 
 cried unto the Lord ; she was earnest. " I cried 
 unto the Lord," says the psalmist: many pray 
 who do not cry to the Lord. " Have mercy upon 
 me," she exclaimed ; no doubt her neighbours 
 had heard of the Saviour as well as herself, but 
 perhaps they had no sorrow in their dwellings, as 
 certainly they had no faith in their hearts ; and 
 hence they came not to Him who only can save. 
 It is a sense of their need of mercy which makes 
 men cry to the Lord, which gives eloquence to 
 their words, and dictates those petitions which 
 move the heart, and command the help of Christ. 
 
 HER IMPORTUNITY. " Jesus answered not a 
 word;" but she did not despair, but went to His 
 disciples to get them to intercede with their Lord 
 and in our distresses it is well to seek the 
 
60 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 prayer of our brethren ; delay, however, is not 
 denial with the Lord. "Our time," He tells us, 
 "is always ready ;" but He will try the faith of 
 His people ; " The Lord trieth the righteous" If we 
 would be really blessed of the Lord, the determi- 
 nation of Job must be ours, " Though he slay me 
 yet will I trust Him.' 1 '' Though our trials should 
 be severe, and our prayers remain unanswered, 
 we must continue to pray. We must imitate the 
 poor woman who came back again and worshipped 
 Him, saying, " Lord, help me /" Let not the 
 silence of Jesus discourage us, for thus He fre- 
 quently deals with His people, to constrain them 
 to more importunity with Him ; He delights to 
 help them, but He loves them to seek His aid, 
 and to take no denial. 
 
 HER HUMILITY AND ARGUMENT. "It is not meet 
 to take the children's bread and cast it to dogs!" 
 Why this is worse than silence ; surely, the poor 
 woman must have thought this a hard Speech 
 from the lips of LOVE. Our Saviour was not 
 content simply to call her a dog, but in order 
 to give fall force to His rebuff, and to test her 
 faith, He says, "It is not meet to take the chil- 
 dren's bread and to cast it to dogs." She would 
 understand this, however poor and illiterate, for 
 she was a mother. She knew how she felt when 
 she looked upon a dog, and what were her feel- 
 ings when she gazed upon her child. She could 
 appreciate, therefore, the full force of our Sa- 
 
THE SYROPHENICIAN WOMAN. > 61 
 
 viour's words. " There are some upon whom 
 He looks as I look upon my child ; there are 
 others upon whom He looks as I do upon a dog ; 
 most assuredly I am among the latter. l It is not 
 meet to take the children's bread and cast it to 
 dogs.' No, it is not meet ; how could I bear to 
 see my child's bread taken from her to be given 
 to a dog !" What will she do? She understands 
 Him well. " TRUTH, Lord! I am all thy words 
 imply a sinful creature I deserve thy scorn I 
 have no claim upon Thy love I am not a child, 
 nor have I any right to participate in the bless- 
 ings of thy chosen. Truth, Lord ! although thy 
 words condemn, and all but quench my hope, 
 still Thou art LORD, and hast a right thus to 
 address me, and to reject my plea : for known to 
 Thee are all my ways ; and all Thy words are 
 truth. I am a dog be this admitted ; wilt Thou 
 not permit me to use my misery as an argument 
 with Thee ? Do not the dogs eat of the crumbs 
 which fall from their masters' table ?" misery, 
 how ingenious art thou ! necessity, thou hast 
 an eloquence no artifice can counterfeit! For- 
 mality never pleaded thus with Christ : hunger 
 will eat its way through stone walls, and put a 
 plea into the lips of ignorance itself; want makes 
 the poor speak well, and gives grace and vigour 
 to their words. It is said, this woman's country- 
 men were celebrated for their wit ; her daughter's 
 sufferings doubtless stimulated hers, and taught 
 6 
 
62 LESSONS FROM J2SUS. 
 
 her how to make an ugly proverb plead her 
 cause. A burdened heart will frequently brighten 
 up the mind, and make even the lips of utter 
 helplessness grow bold. " Even l the dogs eat of 
 the crumbs which fall from their masters 1 table.' 
 Wilt Thou let this privilege be mine ? I do not 
 ask a loaf, but a crumb ; what, then, wilt Thou 
 deny me this ? It is but the refuse of thy mercy 
 I implore : I will not rob thy children, nor will I 
 take their place ; I will sit beneath thy table, 
 Lord, if I may have a crumb. Most gladly will 
 I take the dog's place ; with joy I'll sit with 
 them, if I may have their fare ' a crumb.' I 
 know it is more than I deserve, but oh, a crumb 
 is life ! Mere sinful men will let their dogs have 
 these ; and wilt thou let thy mercy be outdone 
 by such ?" Sweet eloquence of want ! Humility, 
 how forcible thy words ! This woman will pre- 
 vail ; have we her spirit ? How many a profess- 
 ing Christian would be offended with the lan- 
 guage addressed to her, though from the lips of 
 Christ ! What, call us dogs ! we are no worse 
 than others! Header, be not deceived. What 
 saith the Word ? " But we are all as an unclean 
 thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags ; 
 and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, 
 like the wind, have taken us away." Does this 
 declaration agree with thy experience? Did 
 Christ call thee a dog, would'st thou respond, 
 " Truth, Lord ?" Hast thou so deep a conscious- 
 
THE SYROPHENICIAN WOMAN. 63 
 
 ness of thy depravity, that it would not offend 
 thee, but rather lead thee to turn thy misery into 
 a plea with the Lord, that the crumbs of His 
 mercy might be thine ? Oh, remember it is writ- 
 ten, that the " poor shall be filled, but the rich 
 sent empty away !" Learn the secret of success 
 with the Lord from the distressed Syrophenician ; 
 truly confess thy depravity and guilt, and throw 
 thyself entirely on His unmerited favour alone. 
 
 HER SUCCESS. " woman, great is thy faith!" 
 Scarcely was the admission made when the answer 
 came. And why is the answer to our prayers so 
 frequently delayed ? Is it not because the heart 
 is too proud to admit the truth of our condition? 
 The silence of Jesus is the silence of love; He sees 
 that a speedy answer would spoil His work. The 
 heart frequently requires more bruising than we 
 imagine, in order that the truth in open acknow- 
 ledgment may come freely from our lips. 
 
 " woman, great is thy faith ! " His rough 
 reply only added to its vigour ; His discipline did 
 but develop its latent strength. He knew that it 
 would : the character of her faith was well known 
 to Him when first her cry fell upon His ears ; but 
 He would have this appear, that others might be 
 profited by her example. He commended the 
 faith that would not take a refusal. Jesus loves 
 the faith which cleaves to Him in the storm, that 
 strives to grasp His hand when the waves of 
 guilt and sorrow strive to loosen the soul from its 
 
64 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 anchor ; that will rest upon His word when reason 
 declares there is no hope, and unbelief gives up all 
 for lost ; a faith that the changes of life cannot 
 wither, nor despair overcome ; that ever exclaims, 
 " Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him." 
 
 " Great is thy faith.' 1 ' 1 And what was the 
 character of the faith which Jesus commended ? 
 It stood connected with zeal, childlike simplicity, 
 importunate prayer, profound humility, and un- 
 wavering confidence in the ability of Christ to 
 grant what was sought. If we have such a faith, 
 though we have not the assurance of faith, and 
 though we cannot say positively that Christ is ours, 
 let us take heed that we properly estimate its value, 
 nor look upon that as a common thing which 
 brings commendation from the lips of its great 
 Author. 
 
 "Be it unto thee as thou wilt" What a god- 
 like declaration is this ! Her faith had entreated 
 him as LORD, and He now addresses her as such. 
 "Beit unto thee as thou wilt" "Satan shall be 
 dethroned, and thy daughter shall be healed. I 
 am overcome by thy faith ; thy will is mine own, 
 I throw the reins into thy own hands ; my love 
 grants thy request. saint, what a God thou dost 
 serve! sinner, what a Saviour thou dost despise !" 
 " Be, it unto thee as thou wilt." " Thy faith can 
 be trusted; it will dictate that which is right." 
 Illustrious woman ! she has conquered the King 
 of kings and Lord of lords ; all the perfections of 
 
THE SYROPHENICIAN WOMAN. 65 
 
 Deity now come forth to her help ; Omnipotence 
 moves at her bidding to effect her desire, and her 
 will for a time is as the will of God. Even so shall 
 it be with all who come to the Lord possessed of 
 the same faith, and clothed with the same humility ; 
 who plead with the same importunity, and wait 
 upon Christ in the exercise of the same grace. 
 
 " One Priest alone can pardon me, 
 
 Or bid me ' Go in peace ;' 
 Can breathe that word, * Absolvo te,'* 
 
 And make these heart-throbs cease. 
 My soul has heard His priestly voice ; 
 It said, * I bore thy sins rejoice ! ' 1 Pet. ii. 2 i. 
 
 He showed the spear-mark in his side, 
 
 The nail-print on His palm : 
 Said, * Look on Me, the crucified. 
 
 Why tremble thus ? Be calm ! 
 All power is Mine I set thee free. 
 Be not afraid Absolvo te.' Isa. xlv. 22. 
 
 In chains of sin once tied and bound, 
 
 I walk in life and light ; 
 Each spot I tread is hallowed ground, 
 
 Whilst Him I keep in sight, 
 
 Who died a victim on the tree, 
 
 That He might say, 'Absolvo te.' 1 John i. 7. 
 
 By Him my soul is purified, 
 
 Once leprous and defiled ; 
 Cleansed by the water from His side, 
 
 God sees me as a child. 
 No priest can heal or cleanse but He ; 
 No other say, Absolvo to.' Matt. viii. 3. 
 
 * I pardon thee. 
 
 6* 
 
66 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 He robed me in a priestly dress 
 
 That I might incense bring 
 Of prayer, and praise, and righteousness, 
 
 To heaven's eternal King. 
 And when He gave this robe to me, 
 He smiled and said, ' Absolvo te.' Zech. iii. 4, 5. 
 
 In heaven He stands before the throne, 
 
 The great High Priest above, 
 MELCHISEDEC ' that name alone 
 
 Can sin's dark stain remove. 
 To Him I look on bended knee, 
 And hear that sweet ' Absolvo te.' Heb. viii. 1. 
 
 A girded Levite here below, 
 
 I willing service bring ; 
 Arid fain would tell to all I know 
 
 Of Christ the Priestly King ; 
 "Would win all hearts from sin to flee, 
 And hear him say, ' Absolvo te.' 1 John ii. 1. 
 
 'A little while,' and He shall come 
 
 Forth from the inner shrine, 
 To call his pardon'd brethren home : 
 
 bliss supreme, divine ! 
 When every blood-bought child shall see 
 The PRIEST who said, ' Absolvo te.' " Heb. ix. 28. 
 
" And I will study to adorn 
 My heart with meekness under scorn, 
 
 With gentle patience in distress, 
 With faithful love, that yearning cleaves 
 To those o'er whom to death it grieves, 
 
 Whose sins its very soul oppress. 
 
 When evil tongues, with stinging blame, 
 Would cast dishonour on my name, 
 
 I'll curb the passions that upstart, 
 And take injustice patiently, 
 And pardon, as Thou pardon'st me, 
 
 With an ungrudging, generous heart." 
 
 PAUL GERHARDT. 
 
fthnrc of f esus; 
 
 OB, 
 
 HOW TO MEET FALSE ACCUSATIONS. 
 
 " But He answered him not to one word" Matt, xxvii. 
 14. (Old Translation.) 
 
 How expressive is silence "the silence of old 
 ocean resting after storms;" when its hoary 
 heaving bosom is lulled to sleep, its boisterous 
 pealing anthem hushed, and placid and quiet it 
 spreads before the eye a striking picture of qui- 
 escent omnipotence and infinite repose. The 
 silence of night, too, is not less potent in its influ- 
 ence; when the many strings of nature's harp 
 cease their vibrations, and the stars looking down 
 quietly upon us, so soft and subdued in their 
 lustre, seem to invite us for a time to throw aside 
 the depressive cerecloths of mortality, and join 
 with them in sublime and silent awe to muse His 
 praise who made them all. And we read also 
 that there was once " silence in heaven about the 
 
70 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 space of half an hour;" a period when even the 
 orchestra of glory ceased to yield its notes, and 
 angels' fingers faltered on the strings of harps 
 which had never ceased to praise. That silence 
 must have been felt : it was something new ; the 
 sudden stop in the grand chorus of heaven's vast 
 choir, its myriad harps and voices ; how impres- 
 sive! The angelic tongues all mute; the holy 
 worshippers filled with expectation, waiting to 
 learn why they must suspend their sweet employ ; 
 what solemn mandate from the eternal throne ia 
 this? what does it mean? How" heaven's vast 
 silence must have startled them! But not the 
 silence of the slumbering deep beneath its myriad 
 waves, the voiceless night, or heaven's vast 
 temple, is so affecting or instructive as the silence 
 of Him of whom it is written, "But He answered 
 not a word" He had listened to many, and such 
 words ! He was pure, but they made Him vile ; 
 He was true, but they made Him false ; He was 
 God, but they made Him man. But He answered 
 not a word ! The charges cannot affect Him per- 
 haps ? He stands impeached for His life : should 
 His accusers accomplish their purpose, His doom 
 will be sealed ; there are cruel men standing by, 
 eager to buffet Him ; there is a crown of thorns 
 and a purple robe ; a weary journey and a heavy 
 cross; the rugged nails, and a fearful death! 
 Yet He utters not a word; perhaps He cannot 
 speak has no skill to plead ? None so eloquent 
 
THE SILENCE OF JESUS. 71 
 
 as He. Perhaps He knows not how to meet the 
 rude falsehoods of hell ? He is the wisdom of 
 God. Then why is He silent ? Does He not feel 
 the indictment? More than words can express. 
 Does He perceive His danger? More clearly 
 than His persecutors. But He sees also what 
 they do not those words of His servant which 
 they do not understand: " He was oppressed, and 
 He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth : 
 He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as 
 a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opened 
 not His mouth." 
 
 It is this seals His lips ; love has brought Him 
 here to die; love will not let Him speak. In 
 vain you taunt Him, cruel men ; in vain you con- 
 demn Him, venal judge ! His love will baffle all 
 your efforts; you may threaten and reproach, 
 hold up His name to scorn, and even rob Him of 
 life ; but you will hear no complaint, you will get 
 no reply. He stands before you to suffer, for this 
 He is prepared ; He has counted the cost ; He has 
 come to plead through His deeds, but not for 
 Himself; to give emphasis to His words, though 
 not in the vindication of His fame, but in the 
 salvation of His Church. He will speak for His 
 people, but He has no words for Himself; He is 
 dumb in His own cause, though so eloquent in 
 theirs; and that His words may avail for them 
 He will give His own blood. Hence, now, He 
 will not speak, it is His intention to die. He 
 
72 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 knows the charges are untrue, but He has pre- 
 pared no defence. He could defeat His accusers, 
 but His Church must be saved. 
 
 Ah! this is why those lips, so eloquent to 
 plead the sinner's cause, are silent now; the 
 tongue of slander cannot make Him speak, for 
 He will save -His Church, and teach her how to 
 stand unmoved amid the strife of tongues. 
 
 " He uttered not a word" Can we forget this? 
 Yes, we can. But let us not : and when the fang 
 of envy, anxious to wound, gives forth perpetu- 
 ally the poison of misrepresentation ; when pre- 
 judice, intent to spy defects, pores over each act 
 and word; when slander makes a target of our 
 reputation, her darling aim to hold us up to 
 scorn, then let the silence of those lips which 
 plead our cause admonish us ; and let us strive 
 to imitate Him, who, though falsely accused, 
 uttered no angry word ; let us seek for grace to 
 keep, subdue, and guide; so shall our deeds be 
 our defence, and form a shield malicious words 
 shall never pierce. While in the ears of ca- 
 lumny, anxious for our ruin, we shall be pro- 
 claimed disciples of Him, " who, when He was 
 reviled, reviled not again ; when He suffered, He 
 threatened not; but submitted Himself to Him 
 who judgeth righteously." 
 
 " Should envious tongues some malice frame, 
 To soil and tarnish your good name, 
 Live it down 1 
 
THE SILENCE OF JESUS. 73 
 
 Grow not dishearten'd ; 'tis the lot 
 Of all men, whether good or not : 
 Live it down ! 
 
 Rail not in answer, but be calm ; 
 For silence yields a rapid balm : 
 
 Live it down I 
 
 Go not among you friends and say, 
 Evil hath fallen on my way : 
 
 Live it down ! 
 
 Far better thus yourself alone 
 To suffer, than with friends bemoan 
 The trouble that is all your own : 
 Live it down ! 
 
 What though men evil call your good ! 
 So CHRIST himself, misunderstood, 
 Was nail'd unto a cross of wood ! 
 And now shall you, for lesser pain, 
 Your inmost soul for ever stain, 
 By rendering evil back again ? 
 
 Live it down ! 
 
 Oh ! if you look to be forgiven, 
 Love your own foes, the bitterest even, 
 And love to you shall glide from heaven ; 
 And when shall come the poison'd lie, 
 Swift from the bow of calumny, 
 If you would turn it harmless by, 
 And make the venom'd falsehood lie, 
 Live it down!" 
 
" "When we look at our great High Priest in faith, we may 
 look at ourselves (bad as we are) without despair, at our ene- 
 mies (however many) without fear, at our trials (however great) 
 without repining, and at our duties (however difficult) without 
 discouragement." Our Great High Priest, by JOHN Cox. 
 
 " Sinners can do nothing but make wounds that Christ may 
 heal them, and make debts that He may pay them, and make 
 falls that He may raise them, and make deaths that He may 
 quicken them, and spin out and dig hells for themselves that 
 He may ransom them. Now I will bless the Lord that ever 
 there was such a thing as the free grace of God, and a free 
 ransom given for sold souls: only, alas! guiltiness maketh me 
 ashamed to apply to Christ, and to think it pride in me to put 
 out my unclean and withered hand to such a Saviour ! But it 
 is neither shame nor pride for a drowning man to swim to a 
 rock, nor for a ship-broken soul to run himself ashore upon 
 Christ." RUTHERFORD. 
 
 " He lives, he lives ! and sits above, 
 
 For ever interceding there. 
 "Who shall divide us from His love, 
 Or what should tempt us to despair I" 
 
Cjjrfet ani 
 
 OB, 
 
 NEVER DESPAIR. 
 
 ey come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed 
 with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in 
 his right mind : and they were a/raid." Mark v. 15. 
 
 THIS world is but a huge necropolis, a city of 
 the dead ; it is filled with tombs, among which 
 men wander like the demoniac of old, the sport 
 of sin, and slaves of Satan. Their condition, in- 
 deed, is so bad, that it finds but a faint illustration 
 in the history of the poor Gadarene, as above re- 
 corded. 
 
 This poor creature, it seems, was possessed by 
 a legion of devils : other spirits besides his own 
 had mastered him, and he was their wretched 
 vassal, and compelled to obey. He might have 
 been conscious of his bondage, and frequently 
 have mourned over the fearful servitude by which 
 he was held, without being able to escape from 
 
76 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 his thraldom, or to eject his foes. He had also a 
 companion in misery ; so that, if ever he had a 
 lucid interval, he could fully contemplate himself 
 as thus reflected, and fully appreciate all the hor- 
 rors of his condition. And as thus situated, in 
 his position and conduct, he most forcibly illus- 
 trates the condition of many morally before God. 
 True it is, men are not literally possessed of de- 
 vils ; but all are by nature the slaves of sin, and 
 led captive by the great adversary at his will. 
 Of man} 7 , too, who boast of their liberty, it is but, 
 too evident that they are the slaves of corrup- 
 tion : certain evil tendencies, which they should 
 have checked, have been fostered until they have 
 issued in inveterate habits, through the medium 
 of which, as with so many strong cords, the great 
 Evil One binds them to 'his chariot wheels, and 
 drags or guides them whithersoever it pleases 
 him. Some of them laugh and sing on their way, 
 like so many demoniacs, making great and noisy 
 pretensions to freedom ; -while others, conscious 
 of their degradation, savagely snap at their bonds, 
 but cannot get free. 
 
 Nor was it enough that the demons took pos- 
 session of these Gadarenes, but they carried them 
 away from their homes and all the pleasures of 
 social life. Their friends smiled upon them, but 
 they smiled not again ; they addressed words of 
 love to them, but they met with no response. 
 And how frequently does sin cut off men from 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 77 
 
 social happiness and God ! Their Maker smiles 
 upon them through His works, but they smile not 
 again ; He speaks to them in accents of love 
 through His Word, but they obey not His voice. 
 
 Nor was this all : these poor creatures made 
 their home among the tombs. And oh, how 
 many are there, who, although they live in the 
 midst of a moral paradise, where streams of pure 
 and innocent pleasures ripple at their feet, and 
 invite their lips to drink, live encompassed with 
 the sweet flowers of every saintly virtue, the rich 
 odours of which rise perpetually around them, 
 nevertheless forsake all to wander amid the paths 
 of vice, and live comparatively alone amid the 
 exhalations of moral pestilence and death. 
 dreadful solitude ! well symbolized by the tombs 
 among which the poor Gradarene dwelt. 
 
 He sometimes changed his position, but it was 
 ever for a tomb the cold sepulchre, death be- 
 neath him, and corruption around him. Well 
 did his cold prison-house of the grave shadow 
 forth the icy desolation of those upon whose 
 spirits the sweet sun of hope and joy never shines, 
 and whose eyes are never gladdened by the sweet 
 flowers of warm-hearted benevolence, cheerful- 
 ness, and peace. 
 
 It was meet that he should dwell in a charnel- 
 house whose dead, cold, apathetic heart never 
 beat responsive to human joy or nature's charms. 
 
 Summer came, and threw her smiling progeny 
 
 7 * 
 
78 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 around his path, and Winter beat his icy morsels 
 in his face, but still he heeded not. He was a 
 demoniac. 
 
 And in the cold, dreary sepulchre of this de- 
 moniac, who does not see the home of dark mis- 
 anthropy the arctic regions occupied by those 
 who live for self and sin : cold, cold in heart to 
 God and Christ, and purity and peace? A palace 
 sometimes their home, a sepulchre it is found, for 
 selfishness, has bound them to themselves, a 
 spot of vile corruption, on which the sun of 
 Jesu's love never shines, and where moral winter 
 ever throws its icy chains around all. 
 
 And others, too, hemmed in by deeds of moral 
 turpitude, live on, shut out from heaven's own 
 joys. The slaves of vicious habits, a moral fever 
 spreads around their path, and carries death to 
 all that is good, wherever they come ; a walking 
 lazar-house, their moral leprosy shuts them up in 
 dens of infamy, amid the vile. Their home is 
 but a tomb a dark, cold place, though songs and 
 revelry and thoughtless mirth are often found 
 within. No ray of heavenly light relieves the 
 gloom ; no vernal sun of grace appears to make 
 another spring, and cause the vital sap of love to 
 God and holiness to spring forth, or streams of 
 calm domestic joys and filial love and charity to 
 flow. Say now, ye jaded devotees of pleasure, is 
 not all this true ? is not your heart a sepulchre, 
 your home a grave? and happiness and peace, are 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 79 
 
 they not far away ? Naked of that which gives 
 real joy, is not your path, a place of death, vile 
 and corrupt of blighted hopes, and pain, and 
 fruitless toil, and disappointment ? Are you not 
 sad and cheerless, though you laugh? and does 
 not the cold hand of desolation oft unbidden press 
 your spirit down, even when it strives to rise? 
 And, though you turn your head aside, do not the 
 grave-^ard and the tomb too frequently present 
 themselves, and look you in the face? and the 
 coffin-lid, the shroud, the gloomy pall, and the 
 crawling worm, come creeping in between the in- 
 terludes of your wild mirth, refusing to move at 
 your behest? and when at night sleep flies the 
 burning brow, does not the dreaded bar, the awful 
 Judge, appear? Ye know 'tis even so: your 
 home is with the dead, ye dwell among the tombs. 
 And ye, too, who, with look demure and down- 
 cast eyes, so shake your head as though your 
 garments were so white that an angel's ringers 
 would defile them, are you among the tombs ? 
 " You never did any harm !" What, have you 
 never sinned? Is not this world your home? 
 You are respectable ; you pay your way, and go 
 to church ; your neighbours praise you, for you 
 have done well for yourself; your moral cloak 
 and Sunday principles have helped you- on, and 
 brought you many customers, and so you think it 
 well to keep to them, and to abstain from outward 
 sin. You are a prudent man. Yes ; but what of 
 
80 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 faith in Christ, His blood and righteousness, inter- 
 nal purity, and hungering after truth ? What of 
 love to Christ, His Gospel and people for His sake ? 
 What of a daily cross, through sin and self-denying 
 labour to make known the fame of Him who died 
 to save the lost? What of delight in prayer, and 
 holy fellowship with Christ, and constant sorrow 
 on account of sins against His love ? You know 
 these things are strange to you. Most prudent 
 man, prudent to bless yourself, and flee the re- 
 proach of Christ, while yet you mourn the follies 
 of the world ! Your heart is like a stone to Christ 
 from it no spring of love wells forth to God and 
 man ; the fruits of holy intercourse with Him, 
 through Christ, you never taste ; the flowers of 
 faith, and hope, and love throw not their fragrance 
 round your path. Outwardly correct your con- 
 duct, it is true, your heart is yet a sepulchre, 
 within which a mass of moral putrefaction lives, 
 with bones of worldly pride and care, and love of 
 self, and ease, and fame, and gold. Mourn for 
 yourself, man ! the plague-spot is within ; the 
 man among the tombs is even still your archetype. 
 The Gadarene was cruel to himself, too, fond 
 of cutting himself with stones. How cruel is 
 Satan, and how cruel he makes men to them- 
 selves ! How favoured those whom grace makes 
 friendly to themselves ! With the sharp stones 
 of their own darling sins how frequently do men 
 cut themselves. Well may they exclaim, " My 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 81 
 
 wounds stink and are corrupt, by reason of my 
 foolishness." Could we have seen the poor crea- 
 ture thus wounding his body, how we should 
 have wept, and have entreated him to have had 
 mercy upon himself; and yet with what insensi- 
 bility do we behold men from day to day busily 
 employed in wounding the soul, the nobler part. 
 How seldom do we mourn over their self-inflicted 
 wounds, although we are persuaded they are bleed- 
 ing them down to eternal death. May the Lord 
 forgive us, and take away these hearts of stone, 
 and, in mercy to ourselves and others, impart to 
 us more spiritual sensibility and love ! 
 
 This poor man was also incorrigible in his 
 folly. He had been bound, but it was of no use, 
 he burst the chains; no man could tame him. 
 How obstinate is man, frequently in the perpe- 
 tration of that which must issue in his own ruin. 
 Down, down to the very marl of hell he will rush, 
 though he tread upon burning embers with naked 
 feet at every step. To the fire which is never to 
 be quenched, and the worm which never dies, he 
 will pass on, though a burning thirst feeds upon 
 his strength, and racks his limbs with pain. To 
 disease and sickness, to days of sorrow, and lone, 
 sad nights, to poverty and pain, to prison and 
 nakedness, the grave, the bar of God, the awful 
 pit, the wailings of the damned, he hastens on. 
 In vain the law .puts forth its iron hand and binds 
 its manacles about his limbs, until they fester in 
 
82 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 their embrace. In vain it holds up to his view 
 the prison, the gallows, the grave. In vain his 
 friends, yea, his own flesh, and sometimes dearly 
 loved, attempt to hold him back, with cries and 
 tears entreat him to return, to stop; but all in 
 vain! On, on, 'mid blasted hopes and broken 
 vows, mid open graves and lowering clouds, like 
 the wild hurricane he passes by. The thunders 
 of a broken law fall on his ears, the distant mut- 
 terings of Almighty wrath ; the vivid flash of 
 hell's own fire darts ever and anon across his 
 path, and seems to burn his very clothes he 
 heeds not ; but still 'tis on, on, until, if mercy 
 stay not, in one dread moment, with one dread 
 shriek, he disappears like as a spark falls into the 
 surging ocean and is gone ! incorrigible sinner ! 
 see here thy destiny, if still thou spurn the warn- 
 ing voice of God. And wilt thou not tremble? 
 Oh, why this dreadful haste to die? Is hell in- 
 deed a place so dear to thee, that thou wilt break 
 the laws of God and man to reach it ? Oh, why 
 this suicidal toil to curse thyself? Is sin so sweet 
 a draught to thee, that thou wilt sell all present 
 joy, and face an angry God to get it to thy lips? 
 Oh, from the depths of thy dark heart now cry 
 to God ! Steel not thy soul against Omnipotence. 
 True, thou hast laid thy head upon the lap of sin, 
 and she has sold thee to thy foes, to make them 
 cruel sport ; still heed not, but in the hour of this 
 thy dread necessity look up, and seek by prayer 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 83 
 
 to grasp His strength whose word omnipotent 
 loosened the Gadarene, and He will hear and 
 save. 
 
 Of the appearance of this poor demoniac we 
 can form but a very feeble conception. Imagine 
 a creature in a state of shameful nudity his 
 flesh all lacerated and torn, his skin covered with 
 dirt, while his flowing blood declares his wounds 
 but recently made his hair, all wild and dis- 
 hevelled, floating on the breeze his beard hang- 
 ing matted and filthy upon his breast his clenched 
 teeth and staring eyes expressing the most savage 
 determination. Imagine you see him rushing 
 hither and thither, that you hear his loud yells 
 as he cuts himself with stones, or pursues some 
 imaginary form, upon whom he hopes to expend 
 his rage; failing in his design, observe how he 
 casts himself upon the ground, foaming with 
 anger, and uttering the most horrid imprecations, 
 or exhausted by the violence of his feelings ; 
 mark his wan, worn face, as in hopeless agony he 
 wanders up and down, wringing his hands and 
 weeping over his hapless destiny. What a sight ! 
 and how gladly we turn from so offensive an ob- 
 ject. But not half so offensive to your eye is 
 such a one, as is the man who is living under the 
 influence of sin, and fully conformed to Satan. 
 Such is said to be wretched, and miserable, and 
 poor, and blind, and naked. The state of man 
 by nature, indeed, is such, that the condition of 
 
84: LESSORS FROM JESUS. 
 
 tliis poor Gadarene literally is but a faint picture 
 of his state spiritually ; and hence he is said to be 
 a child of wrath and slave of Satan. 
 
 But even of this poor Gadarene we read, that 
 he was observed sitting at the feet of Jesus, 
 clothed, and in his right mind. Well might 
 those who saw him be astonished. Why, what 
 mysterious power has mastered his foes ? How 
 came he there? what did it involve? A visit 
 from Jesus, of whom it is recorded, that He went 
 into the coast of Gadara, though infested by sucli 
 characters. He was not afraid to do so, though 
 He knew that Satan had his strongholds there, 
 and that some whom he had mastered were very 
 fierce. How encouraging the thought, that Jesus 
 seeks His people at their worst, and has a perfect 
 control over them and their adversaries. He did 
 not simply look at this poor man at a distance, 
 but went to where he was; and thus, by His 
 Word, and Spirit, He visits His people now. Did 
 He wait for a lucid interval, they would never be 
 saved. 
 
 "But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and 
 worshipped him, and cried with a loud voice, and 
 said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son 
 of the most high God ? I adjure thee by God, 
 that thou torment me not." 
 
 He ran towards Jesus. The servants of Satan 
 knew their Master, though in the distance. Their 
 faith was strong, for they had already felt the 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 85 
 
 weight of His foot and the power of His arm. 
 He whose omnific word hurled them from the 
 battlements of heaven, and but recently conquered 
 their king in the wilderness, was no stranger to 
 them. The man ran towards a Friend this time ; 
 what a mercy, were it ever the case with the slaves 
 of Satan! But Jesus came towards him first; 
 and the sound of this poor man's steps were but 
 the echo of Christ's seeking to save His own, 
 though led captive of hell. The movement of 
 Jesus produced this. The sinner is sought, and 
 then he comes to his Lord. Grace takes the lead, 
 or who would be saved ? " / adjure thee by God;" 
 Jesus is a torment to the devil ; He puts but a 
 finger upon him, and he shrieks. What will he 
 feel by-and-by, when the full weight of His hand 
 falls upon his neck, and His fingers shall rivet 
 eternally the bars of his cell ? " That thou torment 
 me not" How anxious is ignorance to be cursed ; 
 and what strange mistakes does sin put into the 
 heart, and bring from the lips. The poor man 
 expected torture from the lips of Him who came 
 to bring him release. Satanic influence puts forth 
 strange prayers. Poor Gadarene ! Jesus will not 
 torment thee, but thy foes. The presence of 
 Jesus ever spoils His adversaries, and they dread 
 His approach. The very abysses of hell tremble 
 at the word of the despised ISTazarene. Amid the 
 darkness of that dreadful pit, His eye flashes fire 
 as He reads the secret thoughts of the damned. 
 
86 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 O'er the surging billows of eternal torment He 
 walks, while legions of the lost gather together in 
 groups and tremble as He passes by. In Him 
 they see but the face of a Judge, and not a 
 Saviour. Those who had taken possession of the 
 Gadarene knew they had usurped His place, and 
 would deprecate His wrath. Jesus brings terror 
 to the ungodly, for they know He hates their sins, 
 and has forbidden the pleasures they love ; hence 
 they ignore His authority, and deem His yoke a 
 torment and a grief. Men would not be exorcised 
 of their sins, though the pit of hell were their 
 doom. Dreadful infatuation ! Sinner, if Jesus is 
 not the destruction of thy sins here, He will tor- 
 ment thy soul hereafter. 
 
 " For he said unto him, Come out of the man, tliou 
 unclean spirit." Surely these words should have 
 been received with joy ; but how unwilling is 
 man to be blessed. The hand that would loosen 
 his bonds he spurns aside. In love with the sins 
 which have mastered him, he deems it torment to 
 be delivered from them, and hates the efforts of 
 those who would snatch him from his doom. But 
 Jesus heeded not the ravings of the demoniac, 
 He knew who dictated his prayer. He will spoil 
 the works of the devil, without asking the per- 
 mission of his slaves. And observe how potent 
 is His word. Hell comes weeping to his feet: 
 " And he besought," &c. (verses 10, 11, 12.) The 
 devils were united in their prayer : they preferred 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 87 
 
 the swine to their native pit. " Oh, send us not 
 to it," said they ; " turn not the bolts and bars of 
 that dread prison-house upon us before our time ; 
 hurl us not into that sea of wrath. We know 
 Thou art the Son of God ; we know Thy voice, 
 and have felt Thy power before that Thou hast 
 the keys of David that the door of our prison 
 swings backwards and forwards at Thy command. 
 Oh, permit us to go at large for at least a little 
 time longer." 
 
 "And forthwith Jesus gave them leave" &c. 
 The swine were His property, and it was more 
 important that His power should be displayed, 
 than that they should be preserved, that the de- 
 moniac should be delivered, than that they should 
 live. He "gave them leave" He did not com- 
 mand them, but left them simply to take their 
 own course. He granted their request. " Oh," 
 say some, " we are too sinful to pray, too depraved 
 for Christ to answer us." What, are you worse 
 than these devils? They cried, and Jesus an- 
 swered them ; and will He not answer those who 
 plead His own words ? But will not the conduct 
 of these devils condemn the prayerless one? 
 They had no promise to plead, yet they prayed ; 
 thou hast many, but thy voice is never heard. 
 
 Thus, then, the incurable was cured, and the 
 demoniac of the tombs became a trophy of Divine 
 power and an epistle of Divine love. The deliv- 
 erance was miraculous, and it was free; and 
 
88 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 how free is that grace which brings us from the 
 bondage of Satan and the slavery of sin ! It was 
 complete also, the entire legion was driven out 
 of the man ; and Jesus will carry on His work 
 until sin is completely destroyed in His people ; 
 and the period will come when He who saved the 
 poor Gadarene from his foes, will loosen us finally 
 and for ever from the bonds of mortality and sin, 
 to gather us around His throne, to serve Him 
 without molestation for ever. 
 
 And the poor Gadarene, that was so delivered, 
 was beheld sitting at the feet of Jesus, " clothed 
 and in his right mind.' 1 ' 1 The mercy of Jesus is 
 the only medicine of the soul. When He heals 
 the conscience, He enlightens the mind. The 
 Gadarene came to himself when he came to Jesus. 
 A right mind brought him to a right place to 
 sit in humility and love at the feet of his Saviour. 
 And when Jesus forgives a man his sins, he will 
 ever take the lowest place, while his chief anxiety 
 will be to put the crown upon the head of his re- 
 deeming Lord. 
 
 And He who gave mental vigour to the de- 
 moniac's mind, gave decent clothing to his back ; 
 and when Jesus pardons the soul, He clothes it 
 with righteousness a righteousness which His 
 own hands have wrought, which outshines the 
 heavens in their brightness, and which shall never 
 decay. And when this transpires, " the lame 
 man leaps as the hart, while the tongue of the 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 89 
 
 dumb is made to sing ;" the heart is made glad, 
 while the lips exclaim, with the church of old, 
 " I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall 
 be joyful in my God ; for he hath clothed me 
 with the garments of salvation, he hath covered 
 me with the robe of righteousness, as a bride- 
 groom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a 
 bride adorneth herself with her jewels." 
 
 How dignified was the position, now, of the de- 
 spised demoniac. favoured Gadarene ! brought 
 from thy dwelling among the tombs to the feet 
 of Jesus from frenzy and despair, to reason, 
 happiness, and peace ! Thy soul, once a chamber 
 of devils, now a temple for God, the home of His 
 Spirit, and the throne of His Son ; once a lodge 
 of desolation, now a palace of joy ; once a waste 
 howling wilderness, now a very Carmel of fruit- 
 fulness and joy ! And when the redeemed shall 
 have reached the presence of Jesus above, all 
 clothed in their spotless robes, and all their men- 
 tal powers attuned to the harmonies of heaven, 
 freed for ever from the guilt and frenzy of sin, 
 oh, what a picture of purity and joy will appear 
 for ever, to mirror forth the love of God's heart ! 
 And when those so favoured, looking down from 
 the heights of glory to the regions of death they 
 once inhabited, the city of tombs in which they 
 once dwelt ; and where, clothed in the raiment 
 of corruption and habiliments of sorrow and 
 shame, like the poor Gadarene, they once wan- 
 
90 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 dered, the very pictures of ruin and vocal epi- 
 taphs of despair, how will the song of grateful 
 adoration for ever ascend to Him who cast off 
 the shining robes of glory, and forsook the realms 
 of light, to visit and to save them from them- 
 selves and their foes ; to transform them from the 
 frenzied maniacs of sin, and demons of darkness, 
 into children of light and heirs of a blissful im- 
 mortality. To lift them from a moral charnel- 
 house, and the gates of perdition, to a mansion of 
 glory and the presence of the King of kings and 
 Lord of lords. 
 
 " And when he was come into the ship, he that had 
 been possessed with the devil prayed him that he might 
 be with him" 
 
 The wounded patient desires to keep near to 
 the friendly hand which binds up his wounds. 
 The timid lamb, which has been exposed to the 
 storm, loves to nestle in the shepherd's bosom, 
 where it found shelter from the blast. The heart 
 that has been wounded by sin seeks to keep near 
 to the physician who heals; and he who has 
 passed through the deep waters of soul tribulation, 
 would ever abide with Him whose Almighty hand 
 plucked him from its waves. 
 
 " And he departed, and began to publish in Deca- 
 polis how great things Jesus had done for him : and 
 all men did marvel" And who can wonder at 
 this? had he remained silent the very stones of 
 the streets would have cried out against him. 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 91 
 
 And who better qualified to preach than he ? He 
 had been in Satan's service, and could expose his 
 tyranny : he could not only speak of his chains, 
 but show the scars in his flesh; his wounds 
 would give force to his language, and make his 
 words understood. His lips have poured forth 
 blasphemies ; they shall now utter truth ; Hell 
 had made his voice the organ of despair; Jesus 
 will make it the trumpet of his fame, through 
 which he will proclaim liberty to the captive and 
 the discomfiture of Satan. His savage yells have 
 alarmed and annoyed many ; but Christ has se- 
 lected that bruised reed, and the Spirit of God will 
 now breathe' through it strains of sweetest music. 
 And this is the way that Jesus makes all his 
 preachers. He sends them not to make known 
 their own inventions, nor to proclaim human 
 systems, but to tell what he has done for them. 
 The heart must teach the lip, if the Word is to 
 fall with power : real eloquence has its basis in 
 sincerity, and gathers its arguments from love. 
 
 This poor Gadarene wandered among the tombs, 
 and was the sport of Satan ; but still he was a 
 man, and Jesus visited him ; and hence we may 
 gather lessons from his life. Let us never despise 
 the worst of our fellow-creatures, much less treat 
 them with contempt and scorn. 
 
 Let us remember we are all implicated in the 
 same condemnation, and that if we have not gone 
 to the same lengths of sin, or been mastered by 
 
92 LESSONS FROM JESUS.' 
 
 precisely the same spiritual adversaries, we have 
 all been enslaved, and thus we should have con- 
 tinued but for the grace of him who liberated the 
 poor Gadarene. And let us imitate this poor man, 
 who not only sat at the feet of his great Deliverer 
 in faith, humility, and love, to learn more of His 
 grace, but went forth to publish His fame. Oh, 
 who should make known the power of Jesus, but 
 those whom he has freed ? Who should speak of 
 His mercy, but those whose wounds it has healed ? 
 Who should exalt His love, but those who have 
 tasted its sweetness ? or magnify His grace, but 
 those who have proved its efficacy to sanctify and 
 save ? And seeing that it is more than equal to 
 the wants and woes of the worst, let us aim to 
 make it known to the worst, and let it be our 
 delight and joy to imitate our Lord, and proclaim 
 liberty to the captive and the opening of the pri- 
 son to the bound. 
 
 Does this meet the eye of one who has found 
 the service of sin to be hard and the yoke of 
 Satan to be heavy; who has tried to break 
 asunder the chains by which bound, again and 
 again, but has failed; whose efforts have only 
 seemed to add to their weight, and who has set- 
 tled down in despair, giving up all for lost. Give 
 up all for lost, while He lives whose word drove 
 out a legion of devils from the soul of the poor 
 Gadarene ! Give up all for lost while He lives 
 who heard even the prayer of devils ; who saved 
 
CHRIST AND THE DEMONIAC. 93 
 
 the dying thief, even at the last hour, and who 
 has said that all who seek shall find! What 
 madness is this ! Why, thou hast been mad so to 
 yield to sin as to become thus bound ; mad thus 
 to cut and wound thyself; but thy despair this 
 is the crowning- act of thy madness. There is a 
 hand that can loosen thee, a voice that can free 
 thee, mercy that can heal thee, blood that can 
 cleanse thee, a robe which can clothe thee, grace 
 which can renew thee, a present, living and Al- 
 mighty Friend that can save thee. Thou knowest 
 his name Jesus, the Sinner's Friend. Cease thy 
 own labours then, and look to Him. Go to Him 
 again and again ; though thou fallest seven times 
 a-day still go still cry, cease not plead His 
 merits, hide not thy sins nor thy fears ; and be 
 assured that in the end He will come forth to thy 
 deliverance and joy. 
 
 " Desponding soul, 
 
 Thy grief control, 
 One true Friend is near thee ; 
 
 Thy heart may ache, 
 
 Yet comfort take, 
 Jesus will not leave thee. 
 
 He knows thy fears 
 He counts thy tears 
 'He riseth at thy sigh;' 
 And from above 
 His look of love 
 Meets thine uplifted eye. 
 
94 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Thy sorrows great 
 
 He will abate ; 
 Not long does He contend : 
 
 Let patient faith 
 
 Rest where He saith, 
 ' There surely is an end.' 
 
 ' The Lord with you,' 
 Thy foes pursue, 
 ' Go forth in this thy might :' 
 Thy own strength small, 
 Yet they shall faU, 
 Or make a speedy flight. 
 
 Now grasp thy shield, 
 
 And never yield, 
 Thou wounded, weary saint ; 
 
 God cannot lie 
 
 Oh, to Him fly, 
 And thou shalt never faint." 
 
 H. W. 
 
" Hope, ye broken hearts, at last 1 
 
 The King comes on in might ! 
 He loved us in the ages past, 
 
 When we sat wrapp'd in night. 
 
 Now are our sorrows o'er, 
 And fear and wrath to joy give place, 
 Since God hath made us in His grace, 
 
 His children evermore. 
 
 rich the gifts thou bring'st to us, 
 
 Thyself made poor and weak ; 
 love beyond compare that thus 
 
 Can foes and sinners seek I 
 
 For this to Thee alone 
 "We raise on high a gladsome voice, 
 And evermore with thanks rejoice, 
 
 Before Thy glorious throne." 
 
 RiST. 
 
 "How wonderful the counsels of thy power! 
 How excellent Thy working! How divine 
 That energy, which will ere long conform 
 All thine to Thee ! Omnipotently raise 
 Meanness to beauty : helplessness to strength : 
 Dishonour to the splendour of Thy throne : 
 And destitution to the wealth of heaven." 
 
 SHEPHAED. 
 
n Cajjtito f aosenti ; 
 
 OB, 
 
 HOPE FOR THE BOUND. 
 
 " Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity" Luke xiii. 12. 
 
 THERE are many things in this sad world which 
 make the heart of man to stoop, tinge his head 
 with grey, and cause his body prematurely to 
 bend towards that kindred earth, where, sooner or 
 later, he must find for a time his last home. To 
 the many evils which sin has entailed upon man, 
 and by which he is frequently oppressed, must 
 also be added those which are brought upon him 
 through the influence of Satanic agency. Of 
 that influence, as exerted upon the body at least, 
 we hear but little in these modern times. That 
 our Saviour may have gathered in some few links 
 of Apollyon's chain, in this particular, is not 
 improbable ; but that he had power, in by-gone 
 ages grievously to afflict the body, as well as the 
 mind, is abundantly evident from the Gospel nar- 
 rative. 
 
 9 
 
98 LESSONS FftOM JESUS. 
 
 The evangelist Luke brings before us a woman 
 whom a " spirit of infirmity " had bound for many 
 years ; and the Great Teacher tells us that Satanic 
 agency was the source of her disease that the 
 same hand which ravished the temple of man's 
 soul at the beginning, and robbed it of all its 
 celestial furniture, with infernal malice, had so 
 maltreated the frail tenement in which she dwelt, 
 that for eighteen years she had never stood 'erect. 
 During all these years had the great Adversary 
 been tightening his cords about her, and fre- 
 quently, no doubt, under the influence of that 
 spirit of cruelty which ever lives in his heart, 
 rejoiced at the thought that he should hold her 
 body in misery to the end of her days. Of the 
 intensity of diabolical hate we can scarcely form 
 an adequate idea ; but who can doubt its existence 
 in the mind of him who felt a malicious delight in 
 the fearful agonies of the Son of God ? His meat 
 and his drink is to oppose the Almighty, while the 
 sufferings of God's creatures ever add additional 
 relish to his infernal repast. Misery' into the 
 heart of Christ he cannot now introduce, or he 
 would. But as he cannot reach the Master, he 
 will, if possible, wound Him through those who 
 love and obey Him. Could he accomplish his will, 
 he would fill God's creation to overflowing with 
 the same hatred, bitterness, and despair, which 
 dwell in himself without diminution or vent. 
 
 This being the temper of man's great foe, the 
 
 / 
 
THE CAPTIVE LOOSENED. 99 
 
 sighs of this " daughter of Abraham," whom he 
 had smitten, were music to his ears, while her 
 tears had been his solace, as he gazed upon her 
 tottering steps and drooping form. He had seen 
 her brow furrowed with care, and marked her 
 fruitless attempts to break his bonds. She, poor 
 creature, had often thought the hour seemed long, 
 and with her the days rolled wearily away. Into 
 the bosom of paternal love she had often poured 
 out her grief; and, like Paul, besought the Lord 
 many times to remove "the thorn" from the flesh. 
 Again, and again, had she cried to the Lord for 
 that help which she could not find in herself or 
 her friends ; and which all the skill of this world 
 failed to bring. But the answer was delayed; the 
 cloud still hung upon her path, and her foe revelled 
 in her grief. The summer came, and the earth 
 rejoiced in its fresh mantle of beauty; the birds 
 sang with joy, and all around her appeared happy ; 
 but her burden remained : the summer departed, 
 and in the lap of winter nature slept to regain her 
 strength ; but her body remained weak. The sun 
 gilded her path by day, and the stars smiled upon 
 her by night, but she could not look up. Her 
 neighbours tripped gaily along, and the sons of 
 Belial walked proudly erect by her side, and some- 
 times, it may be, she did think it hard that the 
 God of her fathers appeared to shut out her pray- 
 ers, and her body still pressed towards the earth. 
 But the day of her deliverance came. " And 
 
100 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 , 
 
 when Jesus. saw her;" what, had He not seen 
 her before ? Yes, doubtless, her history was well 
 known to Him. " Behold, these eighteen years she 
 hath been bound" said he ; while these years passed 
 tediously along, she could scarcely help thinking 
 that her sorrows were entirely overlooked ; but the 
 
 > days of her affliction were numbered, and the time 
 appointed when they should cease had now arrived. 
 He who counted the stars will not be too late, 
 either to confound her adversary, or loosen her 
 bonds. Satan had not had the house entirely to 
 himself. Could he have pulled down its walls he 
 would have done so with fiendish glee ; but Christ 
 held them up. She was a " daughter of Abraham" 
 and that stooping and oft weary body was His 
 temple ; He knew the place well, and it had long 
 been determined that Satan's cruel work should all 
 be undone. 
 
 And now the eye of Christ is upon her; yes, He 
 looks upon the poor, and despises not the weak. 
 
 * a He saw her;" did her beauty attract Him? 
 Alas, no : she was deformed and bound. Still He 
 looked upon her, and mercy beams from His eye, 
 while love moves His heart. favoured woman, 
 to excite the attention of Him whom angels obey ; 
 to command His regard, whose favour is life. 
 Upon her deformed body the curious had often 
 gazed, and ignorant mirth had sometimes pointed 
 the finger of scorn ; the wise had pondered the 
 cause of her infirmity, and the benevolent expressed 
 
THE CAPTIVE LOOSENED. 101 
 
 a passing regret. But now ONE sees her who will 
 not only look, but help ; not only speak, but cure; 
 " Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity!" 
 Oh, what a surprise, what a deliverance was this ! 
 How unexpected, how free ! Her only merit was 
 disease, but one word brings her cure. She now 
 stands erect, and her lips pour forth praise. Oh, 
 how easily the sinner conquers when Jesus gives 
 him strength ! while he struggles alone with his 
 sin, how vain his efforts to rise ; but when Christ 
 speaks the word, the conscience goes free ; then 
 faith finds a refuge, and Christ makes a friend. 
 sinner, would'st thou be free ? take thy bonds 
 to Christ ; look to His blood for thy pardon, and 
 to His grace to subdue all thy sins. 
 
 The woman is free, and He who has released her 
 body has loosened her tongue. And will she praise 
 a man? "And she glorified GOD!" Who but 
 God could have loosed her ? And can she be 
 silent ? All her movements are vocal every step 
 utters praise. The broken' harp is retuned, all its 
 strings are awake, and in the man who has healed 
 her, she finds the God whom she adores. On that 
 once infirm body Christ has now written His name, 
 and men while they read it, shall exclaim, u This 
 is the Lord's doing!" Satan, thine eighteen 
 years' labour has glorified Christ ! was this thine 
 intention ? Where once thy malice was seen, now 
 the grace of the Lord : will this serve thy cause? 
 Men now see thou art cruel, and Jesus is love ; 
 
102 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 that thou art weak, and Jesus is strong ; that thou 
 art foolish and Jesus is wise. A weak woman is 
 thy master, and what can'st thou say ? Thou 
 did'st pull down her body it now pulls down 
 thee; through her weakness thou did'st wound her 
 her weakness now wounds thee ; her frail body 
 shall bruise thee the body thou did'st bruise. 
 See the woman walks erect ! Try, now, can'st 
 thou make her stoop ? Come, now, scheme, labour, 
 toil speak ! Ah, 'tis vain ! mercy has lifted her 
 up to proclaim thy defeat, and to exhibit His 
 power, which thou art ever seeking to hide. 
 Thus the Captain of Salvation spoils the works 
 of the devil, plucks from his hands the heralds 
 of his fame, and makes his malice but the foil of 
 His love. 
 
 Let us rejoice in these truths ; but let us not 
 forget that we have drooping souls now, who stoop 
 by the way, and who in bondage through fear, can 
 scarcely look up ; who feel their bonds, and sigh 
 for relief; who carry their chains, and cannot get 
 free. Let us point such to Christ ; let us speak 
 of His blood ; let us tell them of His grace, and 
 of His power to save. Has Christ made us free ? 
 Has His love melted our chains ? And shall we be 
 silent among the captives of hell ? God forbid ! 
 may all our movements declare, all our words 
 loudly proclaim, that Christ has redeemed us, and 
 lives to loosen the bound. Can we expect to enjoy 
 Christ if we serve not His cause? Why passes 
 
THE CAPTIVE LOOSENED. 103 
 
 the church homewards through the world's high- 
 way so frequently like a decrepit woman whom 
 Satan has bound ? Because she lives so much to 
 herself, and so little to her Lord ; looks so much 
 at her burdens, and so seldom to Him. And what 
 must arouse her, and quicken her movements on- 
 . wards and upwards ? The voice of her Beloved. 
 And how is she to hear it ? Through the Gospel 
 of His grace, and the breath of His Spirit. Then 
 let us cleave to the former, and pray for the latter ; 
 and let us anticipate the period, when the voice of 
 Christ again shall be heard, and when, spreading 
 His hands over the dust of His sleeping Church, 
 she shall arise, and standing upon the shining 
 summit of everlasting day, shall no longer appear 
 like a stooping woman whom Satan has bound, 
 but like a youthful bride adorned for her husband, 
 to exhibit His glory and laud His name. 
 
 " Thou who breakest every chain, 
 
 Thou who still art ever near, 
 Thou with whom disgrace and paia, 
 
 Turn to joy and heaven, e'en here ; 
 Let thy further judgments fall 
 
 On the Adam strong within, 
 Till Thy grace hath freed us all 
 
 From the prison house of sin. 
 
 'Tis Thy Father's will toward us, 
 
 Thou should'st end Thy work at length ; 
 
 Hence in thee are centred thus, 
 Perfect wisdom, love, and strength, 
 
104 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 That Thou none should'st lose of those 
 Whom He gave Thee, though they roam 
 
 'Wilder 1 d here amid their foes, 
 
 Thou should'st bring them safely home. 
 
 Ah, Thou wilt, Thou can'st not cease, 
 
 Till Thy perfect work be done ; 
 In Thy hands we lie at peace, 
 
 Knowing all Thy love hath won. 
 Though the world may blindly dream 
 
 "We are captives, poor and base, 
 And the cross's yoke may deem 
 
 Sign of meanness and disgrace. 
 
 Look upon our bonds, and see 
 
 How doth all creation groan 
 'Neath the yoke of vanity ; 
 
 Make Thy full redemption known ; 
 Still we wrestle, cry, and pray ; 
 
 Held in bitter bondage fast, 
 Though the soul would break away 
 
 Into higher things at last. 
 
 Lord we do not ask for rest 
 
 For the flesh ; we only pray 
 Thou would'st do as seems Thee best, 
 
 Ere yet comes our parting day ; 
 But our Spirit clings to Thee ; 
 
 Will not, dare not, let Thee go, 
 Until Thou have set her free 
 
 From the bonds that cause her woe. 
 
 Ruler come, and Conqueror conquer ; 
 
 King assert Thy sovereign right, 
 Till there be no slavery longer. 
 
 Spread the kingdom of Thy might! 
 
THE CAPTIVE LOOSENED. 105 
 
 Lead the captive freely out, 
 
 Through the covenant of Thy blood, 
 From our dark remorse and doubt, 
 
 For Thou wilt alone our good. 
 
 'Tis of our own fault we own ; 
 
 We are slaves to self and sloth ; 
 Yet, oh, leave us not alone 
 
 In the living death we loathe ! 
 Crush'd beneath our burden's weight, 
 
 Crying at Thy feet we fall ; 
 Point the path, though steep and straight, 
 
 Thou did'st open once for all. 
 
 Ah ! how dearly were we bought, 
 
 Not to serve the world or sin ; 
 By the work that Thou hast wrought 
 
 Must Thou make us pure within, 
 Wholly pure and free, in us 
 
 Be thine image now restored : 
 Fill'd from out Thy fulness thus 
 
 Grace for grace is on us pour'd. 
 
 Draw us to Thy cross ; Love, 
 
 Crucify with Thee whate'er 
 Cannot dwell with Thee above, 
 
 Lead us to those regions fair I 
 Courage ! long the time may seem, 
 
 Yet His day is coming fast ; 
 We shall be like them that dream, 
 
 When our freedom dawns at last." 
 
 GOTTFRIED ARNOLD, 1697. 
 Lyra Germanica. 
 
 5* 
 
" Father-eye, that hath so truly watched, 
 Father-hand, that hath so gently led, 
 Father-heart, that by my prayer is touched, 
 
 That loved me first when I was cold and dead : 
 Still do Thou lead me on with faithful care 
 
 The narrow path to heaven, where I would go, 
 And train me for the life that waits me there, 
 
 Alike through love and loss, through weal and woe." 
 
 SPITTA. 
 
 "It is a sign some beam of heavenly wisdom hath sinned into 
 that soul, which findeth itself empty of true saving wisdom." 
 * John xvi. 8, 9. 2 Cor. iv. 6. 
 BAIN. 
 
anir Ijjt glhrtr U 
 
 OR, 
 
 A GUIDE FOR THE PERPLEXED. 
 
 " And Tie took the blind man by the hand, and led "kirn out 
 of the town." Mark viii. 23. 
 
 As the lover of art, when passing through those 
 galleries which are filled with the works of the 
 great masters, frequently has his attention excited 
 and his admiration called forth by the discovery 
 of some new beauty springing forth from that 
 force and freshness which ever mark the produc- 
 tions of genius, so the believer, as in meditation 
 he passes through the gallery of Divine Revela- 
 tion, frequently meets with pictures so full of 
 grace, and pregnant with spiritual instruction, that 
 with the poet he is compelled to exclaim : 
 
 " Father of mercies ! in Thy word 
 
 What endless glory shines ! 
 For ever be Thy name adored, 
 For these celestial lines." 
 
108 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. ^ 
 
 Among tke choicest gems of the Cabinet of 
 Truth, perhaps none is more attractive than that 
 presented by the divine historian above, Jesus 
 leading the blind man forth from the town of 
 Bethsaida. 
 
 How marvellous the grouping ; how striking 
 the contrast! Here we see mercy and misery, 
 darkness and light, health and disease, omnipo- 
 tence and frailty, locked hand in hand, and walk- 
 ing through the streets together. Hundreds of 
 years before, this interesting scene had filled the 
 prophetic eye of the seraphic Isaiah, when he 
 wrote thus of the Shiloh of his people : " He shall 
 lead the blind by a way that they know not, and 
 in paths which they have not known." There we 
 have the seed, here the flower in full bloom; 
 there the prophetic sketch, here the picture com- 
 pleted and filled in by the hand of the Master 
 Himself ; and should it not be prized by us, espe- 
 cially as it so richly portrays His dealings with 
 ourselves ? Believing that the life of Christ illus- 
 trated His doctrine, and not only embodies the 
 substance of His. teaching, but is its most vivid 
 exponent, let us look at our Lord as He traverses 
 the streets of Bethsaida. May the Holy Spirit 
 instruct us, as we follow Him in His pilgrimage 
 of mercy, and may our hearts be deeply affected 
 by our contemplations. 
 
 " And he took the blind man by the hand" Let 
 us look at this poor man awhile ; he claimed the 
 
JESUS AND THE BLIND MAN. 109 
 
 attention of Christ, why should lie not have ours ; 
 he cannot see, but he may exhibit ourselves. He 
 is in the midst of the town, and surrounded with 
 objects, but he sees them not. Art may exhibit 
 her stores, and Nature her charms, but they affect 
 him not. Spring throws her flowers beneath his 
 feet, Summer spreads her varied glories, and Au- 
 tumn her richest tints, but he heeds them not; 
 all around him rejoices with an exuberance of joy, 
 but he rejoices not. The sun falls upon his path, 
 but nature is ever clothed in sackcloth to him ; 
 the ebon curtains of a perpetual night enfold him 
 in their embrace without one solitary star to 
 relieve the gloom. He sleeps, but it is night ; he 
 awakes, but there is no morning. Sad condition : 
 still sadder that of which it is but a faint type : 
 " Ye were darkness" says the Apostle ; not in the 
 dark, but darkness. We were in the midst of 
 light, but it reached not the mind ; the cataract 
 of sin permitted no single ray to pass; and so 
 deep was the darkness, that though we stood in 
 the midst of this fair creation, yet we perceived 
 not its great Author, or, if we perceived Him, our 
 language was, u Depart from us, for we desire not 
 the knowledge of thy ways" We sometimes, too, 
 went into the field of Divine Kevelation, but 
 beheld not its chief glory ; or, when our eye fell 
 upon Him to whom all the prophets gave witness, 
 we declared Him to be "a root out of a dry 
 10 
 
110 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 ground, having no form nor comeliness that we 
 should desire him." 
 
 Of this poor blind man we observe : He was 
 exposed to great danger, he was in the midst of a 
 town, liable at any moment to be injured or de- 
 stroyed. And how great is our danger as blinded 
 by sin ; foes within us and foes without us, yet 
 insensible to our condition ; encompassed by. the 
 snares of Hell, exposed to the curse of God, and 
 liable at any moment to be struck down by death, 
 and hurried to the bar of God. 
 
 He was past human help. His friends took him 
 to Jesus ; they had, no doubt, exhausted all their 
 skill, and this was their last resource. Possibly 
 they belonged to the literati of their country; 
 were educated and polite, philosophical as well as 
 kind, but they could not restore his sight, they 
 could not give eyes to the blind. And who can 
 break in upon the gloom and darkness of the sin- 
 imprisoned mind ; who can cast into its deep re- 
 cesses that vivid ray which dispels the dark night 
 of prejudice, ignorance, and enmity so that Jesus 
 is seen as He is ? Philosophy here is foiled ; edu- 
 cation labours in vain ; science and art pour forth 
 their gentle, humanising radiance in vain ; clothed 
 in more than Cimmerian darkness, the soul still 
 toils on in the midst of its desolation, and God 
 still remains unloved, because unknown. " God 
 who commandeth the light to shine out of dark- 
 ness, must shine into our hearts to give us the light 
 
JESUS AND THE BLIND MAN. Ill 
 
 of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face 
 of Jesus Christ." 
 
 "He took him by the hand" Did He forget He 
 was the Son of God ? Oh, no ! nor was it need- 
 ful he should ; for never are the great so exalted 
 as when they stoop to the help of misery, and 
 endeavour to raise those who but for their aid 
 must be for ever fallen. He was not ashamed to 
 do good, or too great to be useful. Are we 
 ashamed to grasp the hand of honest poverty, or 
 to be seen identified with misery ? If so, let us 
 not call ourselves the disciples of Him who led 
 the blind man, through the town of Bethsaida; 
 but let us seek to have this scene painted upon 
 the walls of our memory, and engraven upon our 
 hearts, until, constrained by the love of Jesus, 
 and following His example, we are declared to be 
 one in spirit with Him who said, " If any man 
 will be my disciple, let him deny himself, and 
 take up his cross and follow me." 
 
 "He took him by the hand." He was sufficiently 
 familiar to be useful. "Oh," say the rich, "we 
 wish we could serve the poor;" then do not visit 
 them in state: say the educated, "We desire to 
 instruct the ignorant;" then address them in 
 their own language. 
 
 " Jesus took him by the hand" He did not say, 
 " Do you take hold of my hand," or " Keep by my 
 side, and I will conduct you out of the city." 
 No; but "He took him by the hand" Neither 
 
112 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 does Jesus say to the dark, the guilty, and the 
 self-condemned, " Now, do you do such and such 
 things, and then I will help you; get you so 
 much light, and then I will shine upon you; 
 make yourselves so far righteous, and I will sup- 
 ply that which you lack.' 7 No ; but He shines 
 upon the soul freely, reveals His glory, and gives 
 faith to the soul, while he exclaims, "Believe, and 
 live." 
 
 " He took him by the hand.'' 1 Yes, though the 
 blind man saw Him not, and knew not the cha- 
 racter of Him who led him through the town. 
 And what knew we of Jesus when Pie first visited 
 us ? Little thought we that the truths which so 
 deeply affected our minds at first, and from the 
 influence of which we could not escape, were but 
 the omnipotent fingers of Jesus, grasping our 
 immortal spirits, and seeking to draw us to Him- 
 self. Had He consulted us ere He thus led us, 
 we should, it may be, have repelled His advances; 
 but He drew us with the cords of love and the 
 bands of a man, and thus fulfilled his own decla- 
 ration: "I taught Ephraim also to go, leading 
 them by their arms ; and they knew not that I 
 healed them." 
 
 "He led him" The blind man was willing to 
 be led most blind men are ; and when men are 
 conscious of their own ignorance arid liability to 
 err, to mistake the way which leads to heaven, 
 they are glad to take Christ for their guide. 
 
JESUS AND THE BLIND MAN. 113 
 
 While men vainly deem their own wit and wis- 
 dom sufficient to conduct them safely through the 
 mazes of life, and to the home of the blest, they 
 will never seek the direction of Him who has 
 promised " to guide His people with His eye, and 
 to counsel them in the way they should go." 
 
 " Pie LED Azm." He did not forget He was 
 leading a blind man, and accommodated His pace 
 to the condition of His patient. Had he moved 
 too quickly, the man might have fallen. Some are 
 too quick of understanding to be of much service 
 to others ; their minds move too rapidly for the 
 multitude to follow them. Observe yonder 
 young man in the city of error ; he is bewildered 
 and astonished with its numberless streets and 
 multitudinous turnings some this way and some 
 that. A palace now attracts his attention ; 
 "What a magnificent pile of architecture!" he 
 exclaims. " Nonsense !" replies a person hastily 
 passing by ; and seeking to drag him after him, 
 as he hurries on. " What, admire that?" "Yes, 
 I do," exclaims the young man, resisting the 
 attempt to move him ; "I never saw a building 
 more worthy of admiration." Another person 
 arrives, like unto Him who led the blind man 
 through the town of Bethsaida, and, gently taking- 
 him by the hand, kindly asks him to accompany 
 Him into the interior; and, as they gaze upon 
 the inmates, the young man grasps the hand of 
 his guide more closely, and follows Him slowly 
 10* 
 
114 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 to other parts of the town. From the gay tho- 
 roughfares and brilliant streets, he is led into the 
 dark alleys and squalid courts. Still more tightly 
 does he grasp the friendly hand which guides 
 him, until at last, and step by step, he is con- 
 ducted beyond the precincts of that which he 
 once deemed to be an illustrious city. Is not the 
 moral plain? Through how many mental mazes, 
 streets of error, and dark alleys of moral death, 
 has not Jesus guided our often faltering and un- 
 decided feet, nor left us until brought safely into 
 the field of revealed truth, and clear sunshine of 
 divine favour? How has He cleared up our 
 skies again and again ; removed our perplexities, 
 and said to us, u This is the way, walk ye in itf 
 When we could not see our way either to pardon 
 or peace, how kindly did He show it. He took us 
 by the hand when no one else did, or could; 
 when we must have perished, he came to our 
 rescue. " When no eye did pity, and when no 
 arm could save, then it was that His eye pitied 
 and His arm saved." 
 
 " Oh for such love let rocks and hills 
 
 Their lasting silence break ; 
 And all harmonious human tongues 
 The Saviour's praises speak !" 
 
 " He led him out of the town" Jesus always 
 leads from danger. Oh, what numberless dangers 
 
JESUS AND THE BLIND MAN. 115 
 
 we should escape if we were always willing for 
 Him to lead us ! 
 
 " Out of the tovm." He meant to cure him ; 
 but He did not want fame the applause of the 
 multitude. His object was simply to open his 
 eyes ; hence he conducted him into privacy. Be 
 assured of this, dear reader, that if Jesus opens 
 the eyes of your mind, he will draw you away 
 from the world. * 
 
 " And when he had spit on his eyes, and put his 
 hands upon him, he asked him if he saiu aught" 
 Very unlikely instrumentality, many would have 
 thought, to open the eyes ; but thus it is that 
 Jesus is pleased to work, that He may have the 
 glory due to His name, for God hath chosen "the 
 foolish things of the world to confound the wise, 
 and God hath chosen the weak things of the world 
 to confound the things which are mighty; and 
 base things of the world, and things which are 
 despised, hath God chosen ; yea, and things which 
 are not, to bring to nought things that are." 
 
 "And he looked up." Whenever Jesus savingly 
 enlightens the mind, the character is sure to be 
 elevated. No matter how debased we may have 
 been, our affections will no longer cleave to the 
 earth. It will no longer be true of us that we 
 resemble him of whom it is written, that when in 
 heaven his eyes were fixed more upon its golden 
 pavement than upon Him who sat on the throne. 
 
 " And he said, I see men as trees, walking" A 
 
116 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 misty morning has frequently ushered in a glorious 
 day ; and as in nature, so in grace. Where light 
 from Jesus breaks in upon us, we see many objects, 
 but none clearly ; let not, therefore, the perplexed 
 seeker after truth be discouraged, but wait upon 
 the Lord, who will ever bring His own work to a 
 happy completion. 
 
 " After that he put his hands again upon his eyes" 
 What a mercy Jesus puts His hands upon our 
 eyes again and again, and does not despise us on 
 account of our ignorance and slowness to learn ! 
 He could have opened the poor man's eyes at once 
 had it pleased Him, but He did not ; and He could 
 bring all His people into the light and liberty of 
 the Gospel at once were it His will to do so ; but 
 He is pleased rather to lead many of them pro- 
 gressively, step by step,- teaching them here a 
 little, and there a little, as they are able to bear 
 it. Let us praise Him for His grace, and take 
 heed of limiting the operations of His Spirit. 
 
 " And he was restored, and saw every man 
 clearly." He who begins a good work in us will 
 carry it on until it is perfected above. However 
 dubious our perceptions of the truth may be at 
 first, if we are willing and anxious to be taught, 
 Jesus will scatter our darkness, nor leave us \intil 
 our hearts are established in those truths which 
 are essential to our safety and peace. " The path 
 of the just is as the morning light, which increaseth 
 unto the perfect day" 
 
JESUS AND THE BLIND MAN. 117 
 
 Perhaps some who have perused these thoughts 
 may be much distressed in reference to their path. 
 Be encouraged, dear reader, to trust jour way in 
 the hands of Him who led the poor blind man 
 through the town of Bethsaida ; or is the reader 
 perplexed as to what is the truth ? If so, seek the 
 teaching of Him who opened the blind man's eyes, 
 and He will guide you to establishment and rest. 
 
 Are we troubled by those whom we have often 
 sought to lead in the right way, but in vain, and 
 who seem intent on their own destruction ? Let 
 us take them to Him who took the blind man by 
 the hand, and who is able to preserve them from 
 the dangers which surround them. Are we con- 
 scious that the Lord has opened our eyes? What 
 humility arid gratitude become us! How un- 
 seemly it would have been for the blind man to 
 boast of his sight. How offensive to the Lord must 
 spiritual pride be in those who are indebted to 
 Him for both their knowledge and faith. Let us 
 cultivate deep self-abasement of spirit, and strive 
 to imitate Jesus in seeking to lead the ignorant 
 from danger to the paths of purity and peace. 
 
 Does the reader imagine he has sufficient wis : 
 dom to guide himself safely through life, and even 
 to the kingdom of glory above? Hear the word 
 of God: "It is not in man to direct his steps." 
 The fact that God has promised to guide His 
 people with His eye, is sufficient to prove that 
 they cannot guide themselves. Be assured of this, 
 
118 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 dear reader, that if you do not seek the guidance 
 of Him, who in the days of His flesh, took the 
 blind man by the hand to lead him from the town 
 of Bethsaida, Satan, his great adversary, will 
 ensnare your soul, and finally drag you down to 
 eternal perdition. Wilt thou not, therefore, from 
 this time cry to the Lord, and say, " My Father, 
 be thou the guide of my youth ?" 
 
 " Christ, our true and only light, 
 Illumine those who sit in night ; 
 Let those afar now hear Thy voice, 
 And in Thy fold with us rejoice. 
 
 Fill with the radiance of Thy grace, 
 The souls now lost in error's maze, 
 And all whom in their secret minds 
 Some dark delusion hurts and blinds. 
 
 And all who else have strayed from Thee, 
 Oh gently seek ! Thy healing be 
 To every wounc^d conscience given, 
 And let them also share Thy heaven. 
 
 Oh make the deaf to hear Thy word, 
 And teach the dumb to speak, dear Lord, 
 Who dare not yet the faith avow, 
 Though secretly they hold it now. 
 
 Shine on the darkened and the cold, 
 Recall the wanderers from Thy fold, 
 Unite those now who walk apart, 
 Confirm the weak and doubting heart ; 
 
JESUS AND THE BLIND MAN. 119 
 
 So they with us may evermore 
 Such grace with wondering thanks adore, 
 And endless praise to Thee be given 
 By all Thy church in earth and heaven." 
 
 J. HEERMAN. 1630. 
 
 Lyra Germanica. 
 
" Let those that sow in sadness wait 
 
 Till the fair harvest come ! 
 They shall confess their sheaves are great, 
 And shout the blessings home. 
 
 The seed, though buried long in dust, 
 
 Shall not deceive their hope : 
 The precious grain can ne'er be lost, 
 
 For grace ensures the crop." 
 
 " Observe, that God conveys truths into the hearts of His people 
 unawares. As they often expect and wait long for knowledge, 
 so they sometimes know before they expect. A truth, either in 
 whole or in part, in the matter or clearer light of it, comes like a 
 thief into the heart, suddenly, secretly, unlocked for : in which 
 case it is ever true, that truth unexpected is doubly welcomed. 
 The way of the Spirit of God is always undiscernible to flesh 
 and blood. The soul receives a thing, and the man knows not 
 how ; he can (scarce possibly, not at all) tell where, by whom, 
 or which way it came to him ; it was brought, and with a most 
 blessed, gracious sleight of hand, conveyed into his heart. Yet 
 sometimes truth enters in state ; and it may be said to make its 
 passage visibly, into the heart of the man. The word comes 
 not as a company of thieves, but as a band of soldiers, with 
 weapons drawn, and terrible shouts, tearing open the soul and 
 breaking open the iron gate of the heart, locked and barred by 
 unbelief, to secure that cursed crew of lusts garrisoned within 
 it. The weapons of our warfare (saith the apostle) are mighty 
 through Clod; the word is mighty, wonderful in strength; it 
 comes upon the soul as an armed man, to spoil it of all sinful 
 treasures, yea, of the very life of sin. Sometimes the Lord 
 proclaims war, as by an herald of arms against a man, and 
 openly prepares for his siege and battery. He surprises another, 
 and steals him into a happy captivity to Himself.' 1 '' CARYL. 
 
aid % (grototug Corn; 
 
 OB, 
 
 THE PROGRESS OF DIVINE LIFE. 
 
 u For the earth "bring eth forth fruit of herself ; first the 
 blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear." 
 Mark iv. 28. 
 
 THIS world is a pregnant symbol of divine things 
 a vast temple full of sublime and beautiful 
 forms, all of which point to something beyond 
 themselves. It is a book upon which God has 
 written His name, in varied characters it is true, 
 but plain enough to all who wish to read it. And 
 as we descend below the surface of the earth we 
 turn over many leaves, all of which are^ instruc- 
 tive; though it may still be affirmed that this 
 book, like another of which we read, is compara- 
 tively a sealed book. We have seen but a few 
 of its pages ; the table of its contents who can 
 bring before us, or when will it be fully read ? 
 A glorious and gifted man, too, but recently de- 
 ll 
 
122 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 parted, has pointed us to the " testimony of the 
 
 rocks." Yes, and they speak well, and eloquently 
 
 too, for God and truth. Men viewed them as 
 
 dry and barren things. Not so; instinct with 
 
 life, they have a voice for God. Men would have 
 
 made them fight against their Maker, and have 
 
 forced their pointed summits through the heart 
 
 of Truth ; but they could not, for even now she 
 
 lives, and laughs, and claps her hands upon the 
 
 rocks. "See here," she says, pointing to them; 
 
 " behold God's cabinet, in which His wisdom has 
 
 sealed up the most ancient records of this world's 
 
 history, and all confirmatory of the sacred page. 
 
 I speak, and Nature speaks; we both agree." 
 
 We turn to these ancient records, and learn that 
 
 God has ever made use of the surface of the earth 
 
 as a tablet on which to write His name. And 
 
 while this planet at various periods has presented 
 
 many such tablets to the sun, none of them were 
 
 blanks ; the same hand which wrote Belshazzar's 
 
 doom upon his palace walls was ever present 
 
 to incribe upon them the lines of wisdom and 
 
 of power, and intimations of a crowning design 
 
 more richly pregnant with the varied forms of 
 
 Almighty and unwearied love. Never, however, 
 
 did the earth present so bright a surface to the 
 
 sun as that on which we dwell, or so filled with 
 
 the beautiful and highly-finished illustrations of 
 
 the perfections of its great Creator. The preceding 
 
 surfaces were touched by the finger of God ; the 
 
JESUS AND THE GROWING CORN. 123 
 
 present bears the footprints of His Son, and its 
 dust formed part of that holy temple in which He 
 dwelt during His weary pilgrimage below. On the 
 preceding tablets we mark the seal of wisdom and 
 power, while now, aided by other light than that 
 which comes from the sun, we behold spreading 
 around us so many pictorial representations of 
 grace, and the whole of Nature's progeny blending 
 their colours harmoniously together to paint forth 
 the glory of that kingdom of which Christ is the 
 centre and head. Hence we view the present 
 surface of this planet as more honoured of God 
 than any other which has preceded ; all its varied 
 products being brought under tribute more im- 
 mediately to Christ. Its flowers form His garland, 
 its precious stones the ornaments of His crown. 
 There might have been other roses before, but they 
 did not point to the Rose of Sharon ; other plants, 
 but they were not representative of u the Plant of 
 Renown." Instructed, therefore, by God's book, 
 it is pleasant to contemplate the teachings of 
 Nature, to listen to her voice ; and how much 
 rather would we listen to her sometimes than to 
 the lords of creation, for she is not lordly. Here 
 is a tree* really a great tree how many are its 
 branches, how numberless its leaves ! now, if we 
 venture to speak of it, to notice or pass our opinion 
 upon it, it will not throw its heavy branches upon 
 us, or twist its great arms around us to drag us to 
 the earth, much less destroy us, but it will spread 
 
124 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 its green mantle over us to screen us from the sun, 
 yield us its fruit, and incite us to muse or speak as 
 we please. Now, mark yon self-important theo- 
 logian, whose opinions are as numberless as the 
 leaves of this tree, but altogether destitute, how- 
 ever, of that sap of life which makes them green 
 and useful ; and venture a word upon the value of 
 this leafy greatness ah ! down you go, a rotten 
 branch ; the fire must have you. Ye sons of power 
 and peace, who would not rather talk to a tree 
 than a man ? Why, Nature, thy brambles are not 
 so cruel as some saints ; thou hast no thorns to 
 pierce as do their words, even when our violent 
 hands do most rudely grasp thee. We may safely 
 wander in the fields, then. Yes, and Jesus will 
 accompany us ; and, walking with Him, they will 
 yield us more than logic ever did, or human art, or 
 seats of learning, so called ; the flowers will teach 
 us more than some men, while Christ bids them 
 preach to us the life of simple faith in God. 
 The corn-fields, too, must yield us more than tem- 
 poral bread, for, said Christ, " So is the kingdom 
 of God, as if a man should cast seed into the 
 ground ; and should sleep, and rise night and day, 
 and the seed should spring and grow up, he know- 
 eth not how. For the earth bringeth forth fruit 
 of herself ; first the blade, then the ear, after that 
 the full corn in the ear." Without going very 
 minutely into the meaning of our Saviour's lan- 
 guage, or the specific object He had in view in 
 
JESUS AND THE GROWING CORN. 125 
 
 uttering it, we shall make use of the figure it pre- 
 sents to us to illustrate the work of divine grace 
 in the heart in its commencement, progress, and 
 maturity. 
 
 The green blade. How beautiful it appears in 
 the midst of the melting snow, and after the 
 winter's storms are hushed into quiet and repose ! 
 And how beautiful does the green blade of godly 
 fear appear as it springs forth in the life of one 
 whose whole life has been one continued storm of 
 reckless pride and passion ! 
 
 How beautiful does the green blade appear in 
 the midst of the putrefaction which frequently 
 surrounds it ! And how attractive is true religion 
 as it springs forth and developes itself in the life 
 and conduct of the young, who, notwithstanding 
 that they are surrounded by all the blandishments 
 of sense and the corruptions of a vile and apostate 
 world, still grow up in conformity to Christ ! How 
 lovely to see such maintaining their integrity, 
 keeping their garments white and unspotted from 
 the world, and shedding on all around the purifying 
 and elevating influence of their holy life ! 
 
 How beautiful does the green blade appear in 
 the midst of decay and death ! And oh, how plea- 
 sant to see the green blade of faith springing forth 
 in the prayers, tears, and godly sorrow of the 
 aged, even in the midst of death ! to mark these 
 wanderers even at the eleventh hour come back to 
 that God and Saviour so long forgotten and de- 
 ll* 
 
126 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 spised. Oh, we say, thanks to God that in the 
 midst of the winter of death the green blade of 
 hope lifts up its head to chase away the dark cloud 
 of despair! 
 
 How silently does the green blade come forth 
 from the bosom of the earth were you to place 
 your ear close to the virgin soil, it would bring you 
 no intelligence of the life springing up. And with 
 what noiseless steps does divine mercy come to the 
 sinner's heart to make way for the sinner's Friend; 
 how gently does the hand of love remove our 
 chains ofttimes ; how softly does the dew of hea- 
 ven steal into the heart to cause the seed of truth 
 to germinate and grow. 
 
 How gradually does the green blade show itself: 
 though the eye were fixed upon the earth both 
 night and day, the exact moment when it appeared 
 could not be ascertained. And who can tell the 
 precise hour when the omnipotent finger of God's 
 Spirit first touched the heart, the first dewdrop of 
 heaven's mercy distilled upon the spirit? Does this 
 perplex thee, reader ? mind not the moment. Does 
 the husbandman refuse to rejoice as he beholds the 
 growing corn because he cannot tell the time 
 when it pierced the sod ? and why shouldst thou 
 distress thyself about the time when thou wast 
 blessed ? Hast thou the blade of faith the plant 
 of godly fear? Eejoice, the hand of God bade it 
 take root within thy heart ; let it be thy concern to 
 have its leaves kept green by heavenly influences. 
 
JESUS AND THE GROWING CORN. 127 
 
 Forget not that prayer has often made the heavens 
 drop fatness on our path, and the everlasting hills 
 to pour their fructifying streams. 
 
 With what a mysterious yet invincible power 
 does the green blade force its way through the 
 heavy clods which cover it, and hide it from 
 riew ! So frail is it that the slighest bruise 
 threatens to beat it to the earth, while yet so om- 
 nipotent is it that it will spring forth to the light, 
 however great the weight which may be cast upon 
 it and how strikingly this energy of vegetable 
 life illustrates that life which is divine. The 
 plants of righteousness, though they may be hea- 
 vily weighed by a body of sin and death by 
 manifold sorrows, temptations, and fears will 
 nevertheless grow upwards towards the great 
 Source of eternal day. Satan maj 7 place the heavy 
 foot of persecution upon the growing kingdom of 
 Christ, but he cannot press out its life, for its roots 
 are divine ; he may endeavour to put his finger 
 upon the rising sap in the true vine that so the 
 branches may not appear, but he cannot he may 
 cut them off, but they bud forth again. The life 
 which Christ imparts to the soul will rise and rise 
 until, overflowing the bounds of sinful fear and 
 the conventionalisms of the world, it bursts into 
 the life bearing down all opposition, and compel- 
 ling even the ungodly to admit that Christ has 
 gained another friend. Eeader dost thou enter- 
 tain the hope that thou hast received life from 
 
128 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Christ? Take heed, examine; life will manifest 
 itself. Wouldst thou prevent this ; and, listening 
 to thy own timid heart and the suggestions of 
 Satan, hast thou sought to hide the expressions of 
 life beneath the cold, damp soil of worldly policy ? 
 foolish sexton ! thus to bury thy hope. What 
 evidence hast thou that thou hast life at all? 
 Hast thou not read that there is first the blade ? 
 it must come forth it will declare itself. Art 
 thou not afraid? Hast thou pondered the words 
 of Christ, " Whosoever, therefore, shall be ashamed 
 of Me, and of My words, in this adulterous and 
 sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man 
 be ashamed, when He cometh in the glory of His 
 Father with the holy angels?" Awake, arouse 
 thyself, and let thy love display itself in keeping 
 the commandments of Christ. 
 
 The green blade. How it flourishes apparently 
 without human care, for " so is the kingdom of 
 God," said Christ, " as if a man should cast seed 
 in the ground ; and should sleep, and rise night 
 and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, 
 he knoweth not how." And how wise and bene- 
 ficent are these arrangements. How small would 
 be the quantity of bread we should have did it 
 depend entirely upon the husbandman's care ; but 
 having taken a certain course with his seed, he 
 eats, drinks, and sleeps, and waits the issue ; and 
 God Himself, too frequently unsolicited, and with- 
 out receiving even the pepper-corn-rent of grati- 
 
JESUS AND THE GROWING CORN. 129 
 
 tude or praise, watches over the buried grain, and 
 brings it to a joyful maturity in the full harvest- 
 home. So frequently does the servant of Jesus 
 go forth and scatter with no sparing hand the pre- 
 cious seed of truth; sometimes he too fails to 
 water it as he should with his prayers and tears. 
 The seed and the place where scattered are for- 
 gotten ; and frequently, even when the green 
 blade is seen, it is overlooked. But not so with 
 God ; He marked each golden grain of truth, and 
 the heart opened by Himself to receive it was well 
 known to Him ; and without even the thought, 
 care, or prayers of His servant, in many instances 
 the work is brought to perfection. The salvation 
 of the people He loves, redeemed by the precious 
 blood of His Son, and destined to be His crown 
 of rejoicing, is far too important to hang upon the 
 faithfulness or prayers of even His most devoted 
 servants ; and who is there, however he may have 
 laboured, watched, and prayed, who does not re- 
 joice that it is so, and who will not with tears of 
 gratitude, confess that while he has been all but 
 comparatively careless, and has all but slept, God 
 has carried on His own work, and saved many 
 through efforts which we could not have dared to 
 have thought worthy of His recognition, on ac- 
 count of the spirit in which they were made ? 
 But thus it is that God humbles His servants, 
 while by His most gratuitous blessings He shows 
 them what they are, and while thus extorting 
 
130 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 praise from their lips, demonstrates to their hearts 
 that the salvation of those over whom they rejoice 
 is "not of him that willeth, nor of him that run- 
 neth, but of God that showeth mercy." And 
 because God is thus faithful to His work, and 
 watches over it with an unslumbering care, how 
 frequently are His children found in most unlikely 
 places, and growing and thriving under the most 
 unpropitious circumstances. The Church ex- 
 claims as of old, " Where have these been ?" The 
 secret is this ; that He who watches over the little 
 flower as it bends its head in the valley, crowning 
 its head, morning by morning, with a coronal of 
 dewdrops, watches over His people, and fre- 
 quently, without any human instrumentality, per- 
 fects His love in their hearts, and brings them to 
 Zion : and why should those who have been thus 
 dealt with distress themselves because they cannot 
 tell how the work was accomplished, Be it suffi- 
 cient for thee to know, dear reader, that if thou 
 hast found thy way to the feet of Jesus, the gentle 
 hand of God's Spirit has conducted thee, that if 
 thine eyes are opened to the beauties of holiness, 
 the same hand has opened them. Leave the 
 method with God, rejoice over the result, remem- 
 bering who has said, " For so is the kingdom of 
 God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground ; 
 and should sleep, and rise night and day, and the 
 seed should spring arid grow up, he knoweth not 
 how."' 
 
JESUS AND THE GROWING CORN. 131 
 
 And after the blade comes the ear pregnant 
 with hope. On the first appearance of the blade, 
 its true character might have been doubted by 
 the uneducated eye ; but now the rounded bulbs 
 at once declare its worth to man, and wherever 
 the green blade of earnest prayer shows itself 
 with sorrow for sin, there, sooner or later, the 
 other Christian graces will come forth ; the know- 
 lege imparted will become clearer, the character 
 will become consolidated, and the young man in 
 Christ will appear strong to bear and do the will 
 of God. 
 
 Then comes the full corn in the ear, and this, 
 matured and ripened, meekly bending its head 
 with the weight of its own glory, stands before 
 us, a beautiful symbol of the aged saint, who, 
 with his graces mellowed and matured, awaits 
 the hand of love to gather him into the garner 
 above. 
 
 Corn, however, to be seen to perfection, must 
 be viewed as ripened beneath the light of the 
 sun ; and of the saint it may be said, that while 
 in every stage of the divine life his character 
 appears lovely, this is pre-eminently the case as 
 it is matured and fitted for the mansions above. 
 Still, after all, it must be affirmed that the grow- 
 ing corn of which Jesus speaks will never be seen 
 in all its perfection and beauty, until it is beheld 
 waving upon the everlasting hills, and beneath 
 the light of that sun which shall never set. 
 
132 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 May we be numbered among those whose cha- 
 racter divine grace will thus perfect here, and 
 crown with felicity hereafter. 
 
 " Sow in the morn thy seed, 
 
 At eve hold not thy hand ; 
 To doubt and fear give thou no heed, 
 Broadcast it round the land. 
 
 Beside all waters sow, 
 
 The highway furrows stock : 
 Drop it where thorns and thistles grow ; 
 
 Scatter it on the rock. 
 
 The good, the fruitful ground 
 
 Expect not here nor there ;' 
 Air, hill, and dale, by plots 'tis found ; 
 
 Gro forth, then, everywhere. 
 
 Thou know'st not which may thrive, 
 
 The late or early sown ; 
 Grace keeps the precious germ alive, 
 
 When and wherever shown. 
 
 And duly shall appear, 
 
 In verdure beauty, strength, 
 The tender blade, the stalk, the ear, 
 
 And one full corn at length. 
 
 Thou canst not toil in vain ; 
 
 Cold, heat, and moist, and dry, 
 Shall foster and mature the grain 
 
 For garners in the sky." 
 
 MONTGOMERY. 
 
" Despise not thou a small thing, either for evil or good ; 
 For a look may work thy ruin, or a word create thy wealth. 
 That which vexeth thee now, provoking thee to hate thy 
 
 brother, 
 Bear with it ; the annoyance passeth, and may not return for 
 
 ever. 
 A little explained a little endured a little passed over as a 
 
 foible, 
 And lo ! the jagged atoms fit like smooth mosaic." 
 
 PROVERBIAL PHILOSOPHY. 
 
 " He that never changed any of his opinions, never corrected 
 any of his mistakes ; and he who was never wise enough to find 
 out any mistakes in himself, will not be charitable enough to 
 excuse what he reckons mistakes in others." DR. WHICHCOTE. 
 
 " Advice, like snow, the softer it falls, the longer it dwells 
 upon, and the deeper it sinks into the mind." COLERIDGE. 
 
 " Trust him little who praises all, him less who censures all, 
 and him least who is indifferent about all." LAVATER. 
 
lin& Itete; 
 
 OB, 
 
 A LESSON FOR THE ANGRY. 
 
 " Speaking the truth in love." Eph. iv. 15. 
 
 LOVE is said to be an omnipotent law, and kind- 
 ness is certainly the child of love, and partakes 
 of the strength of its parent. The injury done by 
 harsh words can never be properly estimated, the 
 holy victories gained by kind words can never be 
 properly numbered. Harsh words have stumbled 
 many a weary traveller, and broken many a down- 
 cast one ; they carry anger to the soul, prejudice 
 to the mind, remorse to the conscience, despair to 
 the heart, vicious decisions to the will, and the 
 blindness of passion and fury of destruction to the 
 entire man. Harsh words are the arrows of anger, 
 and the vehicles of death ; the weapons of hell, and 
 ebullitions of superficial and unreflective men; 
 they are the scum of malicious and vindictive 
 
136 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 minds; mark their path, like the lightning, by 
 destruction ; goad men to forbidden paths, and are 
 provocative of all kinds of evil ; hence, u an angry 
 man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth 
 in transgression." 
 
 Kind words are winged messengers of mercy ; 
 the balm of the weary spirit, and incentives to holy 
 deeds ; they pass through the waste places of man's 
 soul, like living waters, ever carrying with them 
 both fruitfulness and joy. They are the servants 
 of divine love, who go out into the highway's and 
 byways of life to fetch home poor wanderers to 
 partake of the feast of fat things which mercy 
 has provided. Kind words are full of strength to 
 the weak in the battle of life, and of hope to the 
 hopeless on the borders of despair. It is by kind 
 words that the Great Teacher carries light to the 
 dark, joy to the sad, healing to the wounded, 
 courage to the timid, decision to the wavering, and 
 puts weapons into the hands of His disciples, by 
 which they are enabled to conquer both themselves 
 and the world. Kind words have done more to 
 elevate men than science or art, and to preserve 
 them from sin than prisons or gibbets. Kind 
 words are the storehouses of thought, the honey- 
 comb of wisdom, the offspring of self-knowledge, 
 the companion of the chastened and subdued ; the 
 wealth, power, and beauty of the poor in spirit; 
 the language of heaven's own children, who, hav- 
 ing received mercy, have learnt to be merciful. 
 
KIND WORDS. 137 
 
 Kind words, in the hand of God's Spirit, form, 
 indeed, the bread-seed of heaven's harvest ; and, 
 while they impart grace to the lips that utter 
 them, should especially date their birth and pa- 
 rentage from those of the Christian. Let all, 
 therefore, who profess to be such, and especially 
 those who frequently find it difficult to give 
 utterance to words of love, reflect upon what 
 they once were, and would have continued to be, 
 but for the kindness of their great Friend. Let 
 them think of their past conduct, their number- 
 less sins, and forgetfulness of God ; the base in- 
 gratitude, pride, prejudice, ignorance, and per- 
 verseness their Saviour has frequently witnessed 
 in them ; how often even now they forsake their 
 own mercy, turn aside from the paths of wisdom, 
 and grieve the Saviour whom they profess to love. 
 Above all, let the disciple of Christ ever remember 
 the unmerited kindness of his Lord ; how He met 
 him in love, and taught him in mercy ; how He 
 bore with his ignorance, and bound up his wounds; 
 how, through ^words of kindness, he removed his 
 prejudice, softened his heart, enlightened his con- 
 science, loosened his bonds, and conducted his 
 .mind to peace and rest. Thus musing upon the 
 love of Him whose lips drop as the honeycomb, 
 whose words are as a springing well and a flowing 
 brook, the sincere Christian will seek for grace to 
 imitate his Lord, and pray that the law of kind- 
 ness may so rule his lips that he may be a child 
 12* 
 
138 LESSONS FKOM ,JESUS. 
 
 of mercy in the midst of a merciless but sinful 
 and erring world. 
 
 Speak kindly to the broken heart, 
 
 Wrath ne'er the will can bend ; 
 And gentle words have ever proved 
 
 To virtue's cause a friend. 
 
 The heavy rain that loudly falls, 
 
 Makes Nature droop her head ; 
 The gentle dew bids her look up, 
 
 And smile as from the dead. 
 
 A skilful hand he needs must have, 
 
 Who plays a broken harp ; 
 And Jesus' love must rule the words 
 
 Which heal the stricken heart. 
 
 Because our griefs so righteous come, 
 
 And pain the heart must feel, 
 Should Christians' lips our wounds inflame, 
 
 And say they .ne'er shall heal? 
 
 Some things our want of skill make hard, 
 
 And all our patience prove ; 
 But hard to Christians should it be, 
 
 To speak the truth in love ? 
 
 Helpless, though strong, is man at best, 
 
 Oft wrecked on misery's shore ; 
 One unkind word his hope may quench, 
 
 And he is seen no more. 
 
 Oh, who that knows himself, and mourns 
 
 His feet oft turned aside ; 
 Who would not pray, if he must speak, 
 
 In gentlest terms to chide ? 
 
KIND WORDS. 139 
 
 Oh, who that knows a Saviour's love, 
 
 And joy of sin forgiven ; 
 Who would not seek by words of love, 
 
 To guide a soul to heaven ? 
 
 Speak kindly to the ear of man, 
 
 He will not turn away ; 
 And thou, some wanderer yet mayst lead 
 
 To realms of endless day ! 
 
" There are who mourn for dear ones reft and riven 
 
 From out the inmost shrine of loving hearts ; 
 Now shining far perchance like stars of heaven, 
 
 But yet the tie, though parted, ever parts ; 
 There^are who sorrows weep more drear than this: 
 Oh, hush, that depth unknown, unsounded is." 
 
 REV. E. H. BlCKERSTETH. 
 
 " Lay thy hand upon thy mouth, brother, 
 
 Lay thy hand upon thy mouth ; 
 One word thou hast spoken ; but another 
 
 Were perhaps too much for truth. 
 Home is left oh ! yes, if leaving 
 
 Be when home is in the heart : 
 Grieving yes, 'tis grief, if grieving 
 
 Be for those who cannot part. 
 We are one, brother, we are one. 
 Since first the golden cloud was spun : 
 It may lengthen, but it cannot sever, 
 For, brother, it is twined and twined for ever." 
 
 Ibid. 
 
OK, 
 
 CONSOLATION FOR THE PARTED. 
 
 " And they all wept sore, fell on PauTs neck, and kissed 
 Mm." Acts xx. 37. 
 
 IT appears needful that the heart of man should 
 be well furrowed by sorrow, in order that the 
 precious seeds of truth may take deep root within, 
 and bear fruit to the praise of his great Creator. 
 It is a cheering thought, however, that the April 
 days of our grief, when sanctified, do but prepare 
 us for a spring-time of joy, and a ripe autumn of 
 spiritual fruitfulness and beauty. Arising out 
 of the nature of things, therefore, it is impossible 
 for those who despise the rod of affliction ever to 
 be wise, or for those who simply weep without 
 God, to be possessed of that holy and sublime 
 hope which is the especial heritage of those who 
 are chastened and subdued by Divine mercy. 
 
142 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Among the many things which sadden the heart 
 and fill the eyes with tears, is that of separation 
 from those made dear to us by the ties of natural 
 and spiritual love. The inspired evangelist, in 
 describing the departure of the Apostle Paul from 
 the brethren at Miletus, presents us with an inter- 
 esting and deeply affecting illustration of this. 
 It is not our intention, however, to dwell upon 
 this incident in the life of this great man, but just 
 briefly to state some few things which may tend 
 to console the Christian under such circumstances. 
 Let him, then, consider that those from whom he 
 is parted belong to God, that they are His especial 
 property, and that, redeemed by the blood of His 
 Son and sanctified by His Spirit, He has a greater 
 interest in their well-being and all that concerns 
 them, than any one else, however near and dear 
 to them; and has a right, therefore, to fix the 
 bounds of their habitation, and to determine 
 whether they shall dwell upon the land or the 
 sea, in the solitary and uncultivated wilderness, or 
 the crowded city. Whatever, therefore, our feel- 
 ings may be, it is our duty to bow to the will 
 of God, and cheerfully to acknowledge that He 
 has a right to do with His own as it may please 
 Him. 
 
 It behoves us, therefore, to remember, that 
 whatever we may be called upon to suffer from 
 the absence of those whom we love, it is the 
 mercy and privilege of each child of faith, to have 
 
THE WEEPING DISCIPLES. 143 
 
 his path, place, and portion below assigned him 
 by his Father's hand. It must be wrong, there- 
 fore, to sorrow over those from whom we are 
 parted in the faith, as though the hand of an 
 enemy had torn us asunder, or invincible neces- 
 sity or blind chance had effected our separation. 
 When called upon, therefore, to part from those 
 dear to us in the Lord, let us not view their law- 
 ful avocations, simply as calling them from us, 
 but let us recognise the hand of their God and 
 Father upon them, just selecting them, and guid- 
 ing them to the place and the work he means 
 them to accomplish. Beholding thus the love 
 which severs, it will mitigate our sorrow, and we 
 shall not dare to oppose its decision. Nor should 
 we forget that the absence of an endeared friend 
 may be sanctified to the bringing our hearts 
 nearer to One who is present at all times, and 
 who by every trial He appoints us, perpetually 
 exclaims,. " My son, give me thy heart." 
 
 The believer, too, should consider that as his 
 Christian relatives and friends belong to God, 
 they have an especial interest in His love and 
 care ; that He has promised to be a wall of fire 
 round about them, and the glory in their midst ; 
 that Jesus Himself will be a sanctuary to all who 
 love Him, and that it is declared that nothing 
 shall harm those who are "followers of that which 
 is good." Upon the words of a covenant-keeping 
 God the Christian may therefore rely in peace, 
 
144 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 when called upon to surrender those whom he 
 loves to a perilous path or a strange country. 
 
 The Christian should also bear in mii*d, that 
 his friends are witnesses for God, lights enkindled 
 by His love to dispel the darkness of men ; that 
 wherever they go their example may elevate 
 their fellows, and the seed of truth which they 
 scatter yield a rich fruitage to the glory of their 
 Lord. To accomplish these designs of Divine 
 mercy, many must constantly sail upon the 
 mighty deep and others wander in distant lands. 
 Christian hearts may weep over the inexorable 
 influence of the bread which perisheth, while yet 
 the purposes of God's love are accomplished by 
 His all but homeless children, who are compelled, 
 as it is sometimes said, to travel hither and 
 thither, in obedience to the call of a secular avo- 
 cation. But oh, Christian! reflect that the one 
 over whose wanderings thou dost mourn so fre- 
 quently, whose absence thou dost deplore, is an 
 apostle of God's love, and it may be the will 
 of thy Father that he should be frequently 
 taken from thee, to exhibit the truth in the 
 midst of thick darkness, and to bring many 
 wanderers to the feet of his Lord. Should not 
 this mitigate thy sorrow, and constrain thee to 
 pray tjiat each step taken from thee, by those 
 thou dost love, may be but a step towards some 
 poor benighted heart, destined to be the temple 
 of truth and the throne of Jesus. 
 
THE WEEPING DISCIPLES. 145 
 
 There is the mercy -seat too, Christian, to which 
 thou canst perpetually go and commune with thine 
 absent one. Neither wind nor wave, storm nor 
 tempest, nearness nor distance, can affect this: 
 here thou wilt ever find One who can help and 
 sympathise with thee, and whose love, stronger 
 than death, still binds thy heart to thy absent 
 friend, with a cord no change can break, and 
 whose spirit enkindles in thy heart the immortal 
 hope, that when death shall remove thy frail 
 tabernacle, thou wilt meet with the endeared ob- 
 ject of thy Christian love in that holy world where 
 sorrow and parting are unknown. 
 
 " Now we must leave our fatherland, 
 
 And wander far o'er ocean's foam ; 
 Broken is kinship's dearest band, 
 
 Forsaken stands our ancient home ; 
 But One will ever with us go 
 
 Through busiest day and stillest night ; 
 The heavens above, the deeps below, 
 
 Shrink back abashed before His sight. 
 
 Then be the issue life or death ; 
 
 Let Him do as it seems Him best. 
 The messenger of Christian faith 
 
 Looks not in this world for his rest. 
 If but His hand still hold us fast, 
 
 His presence hourly fold us round, 
 The anchor of our souls is cast 
 
 Firm in the one eternal ground. 
 
 The voice of everlasting love 
 That rang with living power through us, 
 
 13 
 
146 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Is worthy thus our souls to move, 
 
 Worthy to fill a lifetime thus ; 
 Here none was e'er deceived or lost, 
 
 Howe'er his earthly hopes might fade ; 
 Then well for him who weighs the cost 
 
 Ere yet his final choice is made. 
 
 Yes, scattered are our brothers now 
 
 O'er land and ocean far apart, 
 Yet to one Master still they bow, 
 
 In Him they still are one in heart ; 
 For as one sin, one poison ran 
 
 Through all our race since Adam's fall ; % 
 There is one hope, one life for man 
 
 In Him who bore the sins of all. 
 
 Sweet for each other oft to plead, 
 
 And feel our oneness in the Son ; 
 And then we daily meet indeed 
 
 In spirit at our Father's throne ! 
 Our bodies are but parted here, 
 
 And fade in this dark land away. 
 The earthly shadows disappear, 
 
 The harvest ripens for that day. 
 
 Soon Time for us shall cease to reign, 
 
 The Saviour calls us home in peace; 
 At last we all shall meet again, 
 
 And dwell together all in bliss, 
 Where faith to'clearest vision yields, 
 
 Triumphant light for sorrowing gloom, 
 For desert wastes fair Eden's fields, 
 
 For tearful paths a blessed home !" 
 
 ALBERT KNAPP, 
 Lyra Germanica. 
 
" Exhaustless Treasure ! Being limitless ! 
 What gaze has ever pierced Thy deep abyss ? 
 Deep Fount of life ! Light inaccessible ! 
 How great Thy power, God, what tongue can tell ? 
 
 Thy Christendom is singing night and day, 
 
 ' Glory to Him, the mighty God, for aye, 
 
 By Whom, through Whom, in Whom, all beings are !' 
 
 Grant us to echo on this song afar." 
 
 J. FRANK. 
 
 " But how the fallen creature man needs the interior light of 
 God to strengthen his soul, and the promises of God to sustain 
 his hope, in every step of his pilgrimage." 
 
 M. A. SCHIMMELPENNINCK. 
 
 " Who has not seen the sun on a fine spring morning pouring 
 his rays through a transparent white cloud, filling all places with 
 the purity of his presence, and kindling the woods into joy and 
 song. Such, I conceive, would be the constant effects of the 
 Holy Spirit on the soul, were there no evil in the world. As it 
 is, the moral sun, like the natural, though it always makes a da} r , 
 is often clouded over." Guesses at Truth. 
 
 If all our definitions were drawn through our hearts and 
 steeped in the blood of our own spiritual life, we should be saved 
 from many mistakes ; the hearts of the people would be more 
 deeply affected, and God's Spirit more abundantly honoured. 
 
jt f oto of ijt Spirit; 
 
 THE CHURCHES' GREAT NEED. 
 
 " 2%e ?ove o/ ^e Spirit" Rom. xv. 30. 
 
 THE vast temple of the universe is but the whis- 
 pering gallery of God's Spirit, but the framework 
 to the costly embroidery of His love. There is no 
 spot below where His voice cannot be heard : no 
 place where the finished creations of His presence 
 and love cannot be seen. Men, however, for the 
 most part, admire the work, but will not see the 
 hand by which it is accomplished ; and hear the 
 voice, but pay no regard to the LOVE of which it 
 is the echo. We purpose noticing some few things 
 through which the love of God's Spirit displays 
 itself. 
 
 THE COVENANT. This word has become almost 
 obsolete in modern theologv. To our fathers it 
 
 Ot/ 
 
 meant a good deal, to us it means little or nothing. 
 13* 
 
150 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 " This cup is the New Testament in my blood," 
 said the Saviour. " The New Testament, sealed and 
 ratified by the precious blood of Christ, is but a 
 verbal amplification of the covenant of grace. But 
 this book mentioned by our Saviour, with all its 
 provisions and determinations, its doctrines and 
 precepts, must have been in the heart of God before 
 it was drawn out before us through the medium of 
 so many characters and words. The covenant of 
 grace must have been in the infinite mind of the 
 Trinity in Unity before it was told out to us 
 through our finite language ; and hence this cove- 
 nant must be very ancient yea, co-existent with 
 the very being of God Himself; and long before 
 the love of God's Spirit imprinted itself upon this 
 visible universe, it was displayed in connection 
 with that covenant which had for its object the 
 salvation of the countless host of God's elect. In 
 answer to the requirements or determinations of 
 that covenant, God's Spirit agreed to become the 
 Quickener and sanctifier of all those embraced by 
 it ; to bring them to a knowledge of the Saviour ; 
 in a word, to bring together and place upon the 
 one foundation Christ Jesus, all the living stones 
 of that wondrous temple of mercy of which Christ 
 is to be the light and beauty for ever and ever." 
 "For I have said, mercy shall be built up for 
 ever ; thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the 
 very heavens." When we reflect upon the cha- 
 racter of those who compose this edifice of mercy, 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 151 
 
 how wonderful the love of God's Spirit, that 
 He should deign to teach and work with such 
 materials. 
 
 CREATION. " By the breath or Spirit of the 
 Lord, the heavens were made, and all the host of 
 them by the breath of His mouth. 7 ' He made 
 the sun and the moon, and spangled the heavens 
 with stars ; and though the constellations which 
 shine so brightly above us may appear confused, 
 it is only in appearance. Order reigns supreme ; 
 and every point of light which meets the eye 
 streaming forth from the vast abysses of space, is 
 but a shining letter in the name of Jehovah writ- 
 ten by the omnipotent finger of God's Spirit. The 
 visible heavens may be viewed as the vesture of 
 the Almighty, woven in the loom of infinite wis- 
 dom and love by Him who is emphatically the 
 COMFORTER of the church. " He healeth the 
 broken in heart, and bindeth up their griefs. He 
 telleth the number of the stars ; he calleth them all 
 by their names. Great is our Lord, and of great 
 power : his understanding is infinite." 
 
 This world exhibits the love of God's Spirit 
 also. He it was who originally with outstretched 
 wings, dove-like, brooded over the chaotic ele- 
 ments of this forming world to impregnate them 
 with every form of life, beauty, and beneficence ; 
 and so exquisite was His work, that His all-em- 
 bracing love can be traced in the beating heart of 
 the animalcule as well as the giant limbs of the 
 
152 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 elephant. Nor is the love of God's Spirit less 
 apparent in man : we behold it in the frail but 
 exquisitely formed temple of his humanity, and 
 in the immortal inmate within ; the earthly but 
 curiously wrought and elaborated cabinet, with its 
 hidden jewel, speak eloquently of His love, while 
 the rnind, with all its god-like powers, in various 
 forms, perpetually and universally repeats the same 
 tale. The love of God's Spirit, then, streams down 
 upon us from the heavens above us; is reflected 
 from every part of the vast temple of the universe 
 around us ; and is pre-eminently exhibited by man 
 its great High Priest the marvellous balance 
 and ceaseless activity of whose powers were in- 
 tended perpetually to hymn forth its praise. As, 
 therefore, all things below exhibit the love of 
 God's Spirit, all are called upon to praise Him. 
 "Praise the Lord," says the Psalmist, a from the 
 earth, ye dragons, and all deeps ; fire, and hail ; 
 snow, and vapours ; stormy wind fulfilling His 
 word ; mountains, and all hills ; fruitful trees, and 
 all cedars ; beasts, and all cattle ; creeping things, 
 and flying fowl ; kings of the earth, and all people; 
 princes, and all judges of the earth. Both young 
 men and maidens ; old men .and children : let 
 them praise the name of the Lord : for His name 
 alone is excellent ; His glory is above the earth 
 and heaven." 
 
 PROVIDENCE. As God's Spirit is above the 
 world of matter, so He is also above the world of 
 
THE LOVE- OF THE SPIRIT. 153 
 
 mind ; and His love is seen sustaining and direct- 
 ing the former, ^nd in ruling and restraining the 
 latter. God's Spirit is more than equal to all the 
 designs of men. Could but one thought get from 
 beneath his fingers, or slip from the tongue, or get 
 into a book without His knowledge or the control 
 of His love, what a hell of misery the world 
 would speedily becoitie ! But earth and hell per- 
 petually recognise His supremacy and control. 
 
 KEDEMPTION. 1. Incarnation of Christ. To 
 the Spirit of God was entrusted the formation of 
 the sacred temple of our Saviour's humanity. Oh, 
 what a temple was this ! And not only so, but 
 that immortal spirit, which was a lucid mirror of 
 the moral perfections of God from the cradle to 
 the tomb, with all its costly furniture, its moral 
 beauty and mental opulence. Talk they of the mu- 
 sic of the soul, what a hymn of delight, a strain of 
 pure, harmonious, ravishing music must the Spirit 
 of Jesus perpetually have sent forth to God ! the 
 centre of moral force and power ; the conscience 
 never darkened or crippled by sin ; the will and 
 affections never at variance ; so perfect and infal- 
 lible a balance of all the powers maintained, that 
 however dark, confused, and disturbed the out- 
 ward life might be yea, dark as that which fell 
 upon the land of Egypt when God smote their 
 first-born, there was ever the light of purity, 
 peace, and full conformity to God's law within 
 a light which all the waves of tribulation could 
 
154 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 not dim, much less put out ; but which burnt 
 brightest beneath the hidings of His Father's face, 
 and the floods of indescribable anguish and death 
 which closed His earthly career. That the Spirit 
 of God should thus, for our sakes, have formed 
 the man Christ Jesus, and so wondrously and 
 mysteriously have veiled the glories of His divi- 
 nity beneath the vesture of* our perfected huma- 
 nity, that so, though fallen, we might have some 
 faint idea of what truly belongs to us as made by 
 God, and of what that God is to whom we are 
 indebted for our existence, and by whose grace 
 alone we can be restored again to His image and 
 love, abundantly declares the love of God's Spirit. 
 In the person Christ, then, we see that the Spirit 
 of God could make an intellect which should 
 never err a will whose volitions should ever 
 command the approbation of God a conscience 
 without self-rebuke -a heart that should never 
 embrace sin a memory which should never pre- 
 sent a stain of personal defilement for all these 
 were found in Him who was despised of men 
 the most perfect human sympathies with the very 
 perfections of God. How great the love of God's 
 Spirit thus to work for our redemption! 
 
 2. The Anointing of Christ. Our Saviour was 
 anointed of the Spirit, to preach the Gospel to the 
 meek. Isa. Ixi. 1. And from the same Almighty 
 source " The tongue of the learned was given to 
 Him, that he might know how to speak a word in 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 155 
 
 season to the weary;" and as the High Priest 
 under the law was known by his unction, which 
 was not to be imitated, so Jesus is known to the 
 contrite and broken in spirit by the unctious words 
 of divine peace and consolation which He only 
 can speak to the heart. Oh, what love of the 
 Spirit, thus to anoint Him to minister to our 
 woes ! 
 
 Of our Saviour, too, it was declared that " He 
 was anointed with the oil of gladness above His 
 fellows;" and this oil of gladness or joy of the 
 Lord was His strength. It was the Spirit of God 
 who comforted and supported Him beneath all 
 His sorrows, and led Him forth to all His terrible 
 conflicts with the powers of darkness, and hence 
 we read, u Then was Jesus led of the Spirit into 
 the "wilderness to be tempted of the devil;" and 
 the same loving and Almighty friend who led 
 Him forth to this great conflict with the powers 
 of darkness, was with Him to sustain and crown 
 Him with final victory. Yes, even the man Christ 
 Jesus was clothed in celestial panoply by God's 
 Spirit, who put the sword of truth into His hand, 
 and so anointed the shield of His faith, that all 
 the fiery darts of Satan glanced off and fell at His 
 feet. 
 
 3. The Sufferings and Death of Christ. All 
 through the strange and varied sorrows of His life 
 Christ had a secret and abiding source of strength 
 and joy in the anointing of God's Spirit ; Urn He 
 
156 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 could not lose ; alas, for us. had it been possible. 
 The covenant of grace ensured it to Him in His 
 complex character, and hence, though deserted by 
 His disciples in the midst of His great and sore 
 travail, He was never utterly forsaken. The 
 Spirit of God, His companion through life, was 
 still with Him to cheer and sustain. And when 
 the dread moment came that His sacred humanity 
 upheld by his Godhead must bear and exhaust all 
 the bitter elements of that curse which our sins 
 had entailed, in the midst of all the darkness, and 
 wounds, and agony, and blood, and exhaustion, 
 and woe, and weariness, and sighs, and cries, and 
 tears, and fainting, and death, God's Spirit was 
 there to whisper words of consolation, and to 
 enable Him to say in peace at last, "It is 
 finished !" 
 
 4. The Resurrection of Christ. " Thou wilt not 
 leave my soul in Ades, neither wilt Thou suffer 
 Thine Holy One to see corruption." The same 
 Almighty Spirit who anointed Christ, and watched 
 over Him with an unslumbering eye all through 
 the various scenes of His life, with sleepless vigi- 
 lance watched over the sacred temple of His 
 humanity when hanging on the Cross, and when 
 placed in the tomb. Oh, with what love did He 
 look upon that frail but exquisitely wrought ves- 
 sel of shell through which the hidden treasure of 
 God's love, mercy, wisdom, and power had been 
 put forth for the salvation of myriads ; and with 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIKIT. 157 
 
 what joy when the predicted moment came would 
 He raise it from the tomb ! What a sight through 
 the love of God's Spirit would burst upon the 
 vision of the glorified, when Jesus, through the 
 Eternal Spirit, took possession of His throne, 
 robed in the garments of light and immortality, 
 to fill heaven with His redeemed, and their hearts 
 with bliss and blessedness for ever and ever ! 
 
 " mighty Spirit ! source whence all things spring!. 
 
 glorious Majesty of perfect light ! 
 Hath ever worthy praise to Thee been sung, 
 Or mortal heart endured to meet thy sight ? 
 If they who sin have never known 
 Must veil their faces at Thy throne, 
 Oh, how shall I, who am but sin and dust, 
 Approach untrembling to the Pure and Just ?" 
 
 We have hitherto dwelt upon the love of the 
 Spirit as displayed without the church, and how 
 feeble have been our attempts to set forth some 
 of its wonderful and manifold expressions ; it 
 remains for us now to notice His love as it shines 
 resplendent within the church, and is made known 
 
 IN THE EXPERIENCE OF THE BELIEVER. To 
 
 the love of God's Spirit the believer owes that he 
 is called to a knowledge of Christ, of himself,. and 
 the truth. By nature he is a child of wrath, even 
 as others, ignorant of God and at enmity with 
 Him, and in this state he would live and die were 
 it not that in due time the Spirit in love clothes 
 14 
 
158 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 the word with divine power, throws light into the 
 dark mind, slays the enmity and pride which reign 
 within, and brings the convicted mind with weep- 
 ing and supplication to the footstool of mercy. 
 Hence, says the Apostle, " Knowing, brethren be- 
 loved, your election of God, for our gospel came 
 not unto you in word only, but in power and in 
 the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance." The 
 voice of God's Spirit, therefore, is a mighty voice, 
 but full of love, for it is intended to sever from 
 sin, and to guide the arrested spirit to heaven. 
 The call of God's Spirit, therefore, is spoken of 
 as " high and holy ;" it confers great dignity and 
 elevation of character, leads to the most high 
 God, and to love of holiness. 
 
 And the voice of God's Spirit which calls, 
 brings life: "I give unto my sheep eternal life," 
 said Christ, but He gives this life by His Spirit ; 
 "and you hath he quickened," says the Apostle, 
 "who were dead in trespasses and sins;" this life 
 shows itself in conviction of sin, under the influ- 
 ence of which the mind turns to the light which 
 manifests its darkness and condemns it, and spi- 
 ritual sensibility, under the influence of which 
 godly sorrow for sin is produced. Thus, by the 
 love of God's Spirit, the ancient promise becomes 
 a verity in the experience; "I will take away 
 the heart of stone, and give a heart of flesh." 
 
 The manner also in which the Spirit does this 
 work displays His love ; kindly and gently and 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 159 
 
 progressively does he remove our darkness, and 
 discover to our astonished gaze the secrets of the 
 charnel-house within ; enabling us by degrees to 
 decipher the manifold characters of death inscribed 
 by sin upon the chambers of imagery, and con- 
 temporaneously imparting a knowledge of Him 
 who came to seek and to save, so that the mind 
 is kept from despair. Those, therefore, who have 
 been wounded by God's Spirit know that He 
 wounds but to heal, and reveals our moral malady 
 but to lead to the Great Physician. 
 
 To the same Almighty source and wondrous 
 love we owe our pardon ; for although this is pro- 
 cured by "Jesus, in whom we have redemption 
 through His blood, the forgiveness of sins accord- 
 ing to the riches of His grace," it is the Spirit 
 who brings this precious jewel from the heart of 
 Jesus, and makes it ours by giving us faith to 
 believe. To the same love also we owe our justifi- 
 cation and adoption, for the hand which by faith 
 sprinkles the blood upon the conscience brings us 
 that righteousness on the ground of which we are 
 accounted just before God;- a righteousness so 
 pure " that an angel's tear would stain it, and the 
 blood of the holiest martyrs would defile it;" so 
 perfect that even God himself, beholding His 
 people in it, declares them to be faultless, without 
 spot or wrinkle, or any such thing ; a righteous- 
 ness more glorious than that of the highest arch- 
 angel for his is but a creature righteousness, 
 
160 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 while this is indeed the RIGHTEOUSNESS OF 
 GOD! 
 
 But not only does God's Spirit reveal these 
 precious things to us, but Christ Himself, in 
 whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and 
 knowledge. Hence the Apostle prayed for his 
 brethren that "the spirit of wisdom and revela- 
 tion" might be given to them, "in the knowledge 
 of Him.' 7 This is the highest of all knowledge we 
 can seeek or have from the love of God's Spirit. 
 Christ is the mirror of the Godhead, and embodies 
 all created and uncreated glory in Himself; and 
 when the Spirit enlightens the mind, He ever 
 throws the rays of truth upon the face of Him 
 who is the fairest of the fair, the brightness of the 
 divine glory, and the express image of His person. 
 It is not sufficient that Christ is in the word ; He 
 must be revealed to and enthroned in the hearts 
 of those whom He saves, and until He is seen in 
 the light of the Spirit He will never be embraced, 
 and unless thus embraced there can never be 
 peace. For every glimpse of Christ's glory, for 
 every taste of His love, for every perception of 
 His varied excellences, we are indebted to the 
 love of God's Spirit. Oh, think of what He is, 
 believer; of the precious truths and promises 
 which centre in Him, of His personal glories, His 
 unsearchable riches, and acquired dominion ; and 
 then remember that thou wouldst never have 
 known Him or called Him thine but for the love 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 161 
 
 of God's Spirit. Oh, think that but for the love 
 of God's Spirit, this sun might have shone while 
 yet your spirit had never rejoiced in its light; 
 this rose might have bloomed while yet its fra- 
 grance had never reached you; this fountain 
 might have flowed, while yet its living waters 
 slaked not your thirst : with what adoration and 
 love, therefore, ought we to yield ourselves to the 
 influence of God's Spirit ! 
 
 Our sanctificatwn, too, we owe to God's Spirit ; 
 He who brings pardon and righteousness from 
 Jesus conforms us to Jesus; and oh, what love 
 shines in this work ! He does li purge away our 
 dross and take away our sin," but how kindly 
 does He accomplish it. We should wonder at and 
 admire the lapidary who could handle with such 
 exquisite tenderness and skill those minute but 
 beautiful shells which the microscope reveals so 
 as to bring out their latent colours and beauties; 
 how much more should we admire the work of 
 the Great Sanctifier, who, although He fastened 
 the pillars of the universe, preserves unbroken in 
 His hands the frail vessels of mercy, yea, even 
 polishes and beautifies them. Strange that He 
 should write the great name of Christ upon such 
 little things. "We marvel at the light which, flying 
 through the regions of space, brings the pictures of 
 such vast bodies to paint them upon the eye ; how 
 much more marvellous is that light which God's 
 Spirit in love transmits to the soul to restore the 
 
162 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 smage of heaven's King and Lord of all worlds. 
 But, oh, the wisdom, patience, and long-suffering 
 of God's Spirit, developed in bringing out the 
 image of Christ upon the soul ! What ignorance, 
 stupidity, impatience, and rebellion He has to con- 
 tend with in the prosecution of His loving work ! 
 With what exquisite yet invincible tenderness 
 does He wrench the mind from its idols, scatter its 
 prejudices, and bring it by degrees to embrace the 
 humbling doctrines of the Cross ! How con- 
 stantly does He watch over the graces which He 
 implants, preserving them lively and active amid 
 the moral contagion of the world, the nipping 
 frosts of affliction, the cold blasts of persecution, 
 poverty, bereavement, and pain ; enabling the 
 believer to glory even in tribulation, " knowing 
 that tribulation worketh. patience, and patience 
 experience, and experience hope." Blessed 
 Spirit, in Thy great LOVE sanctify us wholly ! 
 amid the atmosphere of Atheism which surrounds 
 us help us to breathe after God ; and when en- 
 compassed by corruption, oh grant us strength to 
 maintain our purity ! While passing through the 
 vanity fair of this world, enable us to walk as 
 kings and priests unto God, to exhibit the fair 
 mitre of holiness, and to manifest a faithful and 
 right loyal spirit to our Lord. When Satan, too, 
 assaults us, clothe Thou us in celestial panoply, 
 and by the weapons Thou hast provided for us 
 help us to put him to flight. teach us how to 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 163 
 
 war a good warfare, to fight the fight of faith ? to 
 perfect holiness, to lay hold on eternal life ! 
 
 Perseverance. It is to the love of God's Spirit 
 we owe that all the epistles of His mercy are not 
 destroyed, or the truths which they are intended 
 to exhibit so obliterated as to answer no purpose 
 but to puzzle and bewilder poor erring men. It 
 is the love of God's Spirit which lights all the 
 lamps of his temple, and it is the same love which 
 prevents their being extinguished by Satan. It 
 is the love of God's Spirit which starts the 
 Christian on his journey, and preserves him to 
 the end. He it is who strengthens him when 
 weak, comforts him when sad, and restores his 
 soul again and again. O believer, thy faith had 
 long ere this been paralysed, despair had seized 
 thee, Satan had spoiled thee, but for the love of 
 God's Spirit. To Him thou dost owe every good 
 thought, every heart- cheering visitation from God, 
 thy assurance of interest in His love, and joy in 
 thy Lord. Thou wast once an alien, He made 
 thee a child ; once a slave, He made thee a son ; 
 once a rebel, He transformed thee to a friend. 
 He made thy body His temple, thy heart the 
 throne of Christ, thy memory the storehouse of 
 His love, thy intellect the home of heavenly wis- 
 dom, and thy tongue the instrument of His 
 praise ; and yet thou hast frequently grieved, 
 slighted, and resisted Him. Oh, how great the 
 love which has borne with thee, reclaimed thee, 
 
164 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 renewed thee ; and notwithstanding all thy pro- 
 vocations, forgetfulness, and ingratitude, would 
 not forsake thee ! Oh, if thou canst contemplate 
 this love without weeping eyes, how hard thy 
 heart ; if this love does not beget love in thee, 
 how desperate thy condition ! Spirit of Love, 
 increase our obligations again to Thee, arid 
 
 " Shed abroad a Saviour's love, and that shall kindle ours." 
 
 Glorification. The gems polished by 'the hand 
 of God's Spirit, He will set in the Saviour's crown ; 
 the vessel of mercy moulded and elaborated by 
 Him, He will place in the palace of heaven's King. 
 He who in love raised the sacred humanity of 
 Christ from the tomb to a throne of glory, will 
 accomplish the same work for all for whom Christ 
 has died. Seest thou, believer, the Sun of Kight- 
 eousness in heaven, and the bright mirrors which 
 perpetually catch and reflect its rays ; think then 
 of the love which brightened and placed them 
 there ! Dost thou behold the innumerable host 
 redeemed in shining raiment, faultless before the 
 throne of God, and dost thou hear the mighty 
 song they raise, like the sound of many waters, 
 and which perpetually fills the ears of Him, who 
 thus for ever shall inhabit the praises of eternity ; 
 then while thy heart exalts the Lamb, whose 
 death procured the life of myriads, and peopled 
 the vast plains of heaven with the victorious co- 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 165 
 
 horts of the redeemed from every nation, and 
 kingdom, and tongue, the realms of desolation, 
 sin, and sorrow, forget not the love of God's 
 Spirit, displayed in the life, the triumph, the per- 
 fection, and exaltation of them all, and magnify 
 Him for so glorious, visible, everlasting, and tri- 
 umphant a consummation of the gracious, godlike 
 determination, " AND ALL THY CHILDREN SHALL 
 
 BE TAUGHT OF JEHOVAH, AND GREAT SHALL BE 
 THE PEACE OF THY CHILDREN I" It has been 
 
 said, that in all God gives, He forgives ; and may 
 He forgive us, that while He has given unto us 
 these perceptions of the love of His Spirit, our 
 love is so feeble, and our praise so faint. But 
 seeing we are so indebted to the love of His 
 Spirit, let us now contemplate the influence it 
 should exert upon us; and should it not con- 
 strain us to reciprocate His love, by holy and 
 constant obedience, by childlike confidence, by 
 listening to His voice, His gentle admonitions, 
 and the corrections of His faithful love through 
 the word; by yielding ourselves to His in- 
 fluence, and glorying in our weakness that His 
 power may rest upon us ; by taking heed that 
 we grieve Him not by vain thoughts, evil 
 tempers, or sinful imaginations ; by prizing every 
 truth He makes known, every ray of light He 
 transmits, and, above all, by cleaving to that 
 Saviour whom He loves to exalt ; by seeking to 
 discover and by treasuring up in our minds all 
 
166 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 the various pledges of His love, each holy thought 
 and hallowed hour, and by aiming perpetually to 
 turn them into occasions for adoring gratitude 
 and praise ; by seeking to have His wisdom incar- 
 nate in our thoughts and words, and His sweet 
 refreshing influence like the morning dew perpe- 
 tually upon our hearts ; by aiming to exhibit that 
 Saviour whom He loves to reveal, and whose words 
 form the seed of eternal life which lie perpetually 
 waters ; by seeking His help and teaching at all 
 times and under all circumstances, at home and 
 abroad, especially when engaged in secret or 
 public prayer, searching the Scriptures, preaching 
 or listening to the proclamation of the Gospel ; by 
 watching the unfoldings of His love in the spiritual 
 experience of which He is the Author, and by 
 treating with holy reverence His work, both in 
 ourselves and others. Oh that we may be jealous 
 for His glory, and never ashamed to confess our 
 dependence upon His teaching and help ! How 
 sad it is to hear men who profess to owe all that 
 they are spiritually to the love of God's Spirit, 
 indulging in such a style of phraseology as com- 
 pletely hides His person and the glory of His 
 work ; oh that the love of God's Spirit may so 
 constrain His servants, that they may cease to hide 
 God's living Spirit beneath their cold, vague, 
 abstract, philosophic terms, and study with an 
 agony of love to find out such words as shall exalt 
 His divine personality and most glorious work ! 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 167 
 
 Let us Dear in mind that He can constantly 
 make the Bible a new book, and cause the truth 
 He makes known to us to grow in us, and expand 
 like a living and fruitful tree ; while mere intel- 
 lectual power and resources are soon exhausted 
 and run themselves dry. In the service of the 
 sanctuary, God's Spirit is the only well-spring of 
 spiritual power, freshness, variety, wisdom, beauty, 
 and truth ; and as Nature requires the baptism of 
 the clouds, and the morning dews, in order to her 
 life and fruitfulness, so the servant of Christ needs 
 to have his mind bathed again and again in the 
 living waters of God's Spirit, and for the healing, 
 vivifying, and refreshing dew of His love to 
 freshen all his mental powers, and invigorate his 
 faith, or he will soon stand like a barren tree in the 
 garden of God ; for unless our gifts are fed by the 
 Spirit of God, they will soon wither like leaves 
 severed from the tree on which they grew. We 
 live in a day of much excitement, and knowledge 
 is greatly on the increase ; but let us not deceive 
 ourselves, unless there is a more practical faith 
 in the presence and power' of God's Spirit, and 
 earnest prayer for His blessing, the wilderness 
 of this world will never be made to rejoice and 
 blossom as the rose. 
 
 " Sweetest joy the soul can know 
 
 Fairest light was ever shed, 
 "Who alike in joy or woe 
 Leavest none unvisited ; 
 
168 LESSONS FEOM JESUS. 
 
 Spirit of the highest God, 
 Lord, from whom is life bestow'd, 
 Who upholdest everything, 
 Hear me, hear me while I sing ! 
 
 For the noblest gift Thou art 
 
 That a soul e'er sought or won 
 Have I wish'd Thee to my heart, 
 
 Then my wishing all is done. 
 Ah ! then yield Thee, nor refuse 
 Here to dwell, for thou didst choose 
 This my heart, from e'en its birth, 
 For Thy temple here on earth. 
 
 Thou art shed like gentlest showers 
 
 From the Father and the Son, 
 Bringest to this earth of ours 
 
 Purest blessing from their throne. 
 Suffer then, noble Guest, 
 That rich gift by Thee possesst, 
 That Thou givest at Thy will 
 All my soul and flesh to fill. 
 
 Thou art wise, before Thee stand 
 Hidden things unveil'd to Thee, 
 Countest up the grains of sand, 
 
 Fathomest the deepest sea. 
 And Thou knowest well how blind, 
 Dark, and crooked is my mind. 
 Give me wisdom in Thy light, 
 Let me please my God aright. 
 
 Thou art holy ; enterest in 
 
 "Where pure hearts Thy coming wait ; 
 But Thou flee'st shame and sin, 
 
 Craft and falsehood Thou dost hate. 
 
THE LOVE OF THE SPIRIT. 169 
 
 Wash me then, Well of Grace, 
 Every stain and spot efface ; 
 Let me flee what Thou dost flee, 
 Grant me what Thou lov'st to see. 
 
 Thou art loving, hatest strife ; 
 
 As a lamb of patient mood, 
 Calm through all our restless life, 
 
 Even to sinners kind and good. 
 Grant me, too, this noble mind, 
 To be calm, and true, and kind, 
 Loving eve*ry friend or foe, 
 Grieving none whom Thou dost know. 
 
 Well contented is my heart, 
 
 If but Thou reject me not ; 
 If but Thou wilt ne'er depart, 
 
 I am blest whate'er my lot. 
 Thine for ever make me now, 
 And to Thee, my Lord, I vow, 
 Here and yonder to employ 
 Every power for Thee with joy. 
 
 Be my help when danger's nigh ; 
 
 When I sink hold Thou me up ; 
 Be my life when I must die, 
 
 In the grave be Thou my hope. 
 Bring me when I rise again 
 To the land that knows no pain, 
 Where Thy followers from Thy stream 
 Drink for ever joys supreme." 
 
 PAUL GERHARDT. 1635. 
 Lyra Germanica. 
 
 15 
 
" Still nigh me, my Saviour, stand, 
 
 And guard in fierce temptation's hour , 
 Hide in the hollow of Thy hand, 
 
 Show forth in me Thy saving power ; 
 Still be Thine arm my sure defence, 
 Nor earth nor hell shall pluck me thence. 
 
 In suffering, be Thy love my peace ; 
 
 In weakness, be Thy love my power. 
 And when the storms of life shall cease, 
 
 Jesus, in that important hour, 
 In death, as life, be Thou my guide, 
 And save me, who for me hath died." 
 
 "Satan, in his temptations, strikes principally at the faith of 
 God's people, that being the grace which gives most glory to God, 
 and in the exercise of which believers have much peace, joy, and 
 comfort ; and it is also a shield which keeps off and quenches his 
 fiery darts, and therefore he endeavours all he can to weaken and 
 destroy it, or wrest it out of their hands." DR. GILL. 
 
OR, 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S DANGER. 
 
 " And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath 
 desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat : but I have 
 prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art 
 converted, strengthen thy brethren" Luke xxii. 31, 32. 
 
 THESE words must have fallen with terrible em- 
 phasis upon the ears of Peter. In the present 
 pseudo -philosophical age, the doctrine of Satanic 
 influence is either altogether ignored or referred 
 to as a myth belonging to the dark ages of the 
 world's history. With what awful solemnity, 
 however, does our Saviour refer to it, and how 
 the heart of Peter must have quailed before His 
 words ; to be told by the lips that never err that 
 the great adversary had an especial desire for his 
 destruction, how fearful, how awful! Why, it 
 was like telling him that he stood upon the mouth 
 of hell, and that the flames of the bottomless pit 
 were spreading around him ; and had not the Lord 
 
172 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 added the consolatory words, " but I have prayed 
 for thee," the dreadful intelligence would doubt- 
 less have pressed him down to despair. And 
 what, reader, would be your feelings were such 
 language addressed to you ? Would it not make 
 you tremble to be told by the God who made you, 
 that the Lion of hell was watching you, especially 
 with a view to your present and everlasting 
 destruction ? Be it known to you, then, that thus 
 you are addressed ; for does not His book inform 
 us that the " great Evil One" " goeth about as a 
 roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour?" 
 And who can tell how soon he may cross your 
 path, and you may be crushed in his awful em- 
 brace? No doubt Satan's thoughts have em- 
 braced you in common with others,, though as yet 
 you have not felt the sting of his perfected 
 designs. Let us, therefore, prayerfully contem- 
 plate some few of the truths presented to our view 
 by this solemn admonition from the lips of the 
 Great Teacher. 
 
 The Omniscience of Christ. It is interesting to s 
 contemplate Christ gazing upon the material 
 world as it spread around him, and exhorting His 
 disciples to consider the lilies of the field, and to 
 listen to the good news they proclaimed ; to hear 
 His voice giving utterance to the language of 
 flowers, and to behold Him spreading them before 
 His disciples as the mute expositors of His Fa- 
 ther's love : but He appears more sublime and 
 
THE DISCIPLE ADMONISHED. 173 
 
 impressive as we behold Him looking into tlio 
 invisible world and marking the movements of 
 man's terrible adversary gazing upon that fallen 
 spirit whose footsteps though so noiseless, are ever 
 attended by so much mischief and desolation to 
 men. Yes, not only did the panorama of this 
 world paint itself upon the eye of Christ, but the 
 persons and doings of an unseen world were 
 reflected there. He looked upon Satan, He held 
 his chain, and marked his every step ; the heaving 
 of his heart, the beating of his pulse, as by an 
 electric chord, was communicated to His hand, 
 and He knew how and when to loosen or to 
 tighten his bonds ; for while the hand was frail 
 the power was divine. Christ looked upon Satan, 
 did we say ? more, He looked within him ; the 
 very heart of the Devil was open to his eye all 
 the dark chambers of that infernal palace were 
 open to Him, He walked through them at His 
 pleasure all the wards of that intricate and mys- 
 terious lock were perceived by Him, and He could 
 fit a key to them at His pleasure ; deep as was the 
 fountain of evil within that dark heart, He could 
 fathom its secret depths ; desperately wicked as 
 was that heart, He knew its every device, could 
 unravel all those subtle and ingenious threads, 
 intended to entangle the feet of His saints ; He 
 watched their painful and elaborate production in 
 that prolific house of misery and sin, and, as often 
 as it pleased Him, put His fingers upon the cocoons 
 15* 
 
174 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 of hell before the objects to be accomplished by 
 them were effected. The nets intended for the 
 birds of paradise He frequently destroyed, and 
 many half-formed purposes of ill to His church 
 He crushed in their birth. Beneath piles of Sata- 
 nic produce, hidden in the most secret recesses of 
 Satan's bosom, He saw coiled up the viper of 
 burning hatred, whose especial vocation was to be 
 the ruin of His servant Peter, and He put His 
 foot upon its head at once. " I have prayed for 
 thee." Here was the dart that touched its life, 
 and placed it beneath the feet of the impulsive 
 but loving disciple. Oh, to be surrounded by 
 such a wall of fire, to be shielded by the breath of 
 Omnipotence, and made invulnerable by the cries 
 and tears of the Son of God ! And let us not 
 forget that what Jesus did for His servant in days 
 that are passed, He does for His disciples in every 
 age ; all are embraced in His petitions, and pro-' 
 served by His prayers ; like, as the earth is sur- 
 rounded by the air which ministers to the life of 
 every living thing, so the intercession of Jesus 
 perpetually embraces His -church, and brings to 
 her all those elements of truth, succour, and con- 
 solation which are essential to her spiritual life 
 and preservation. 
 
 THE DANGER PERCEIVED." Satan has desired 
 to have thee" The desires of Satan are vast and 
 destructive ; he desires to have all men, but espe- 
 cially the saints. These are the flowers of God's 
 
THE DISCIPLE ADMONISHED. 175 
 
 garden, and he loves to pull them up ; the lamps 
 of God's temple, and he would fain blow them out; 
 the epistles of divine truth, and he is ever anxious 
 to tear them to pieces ; the golden vessels of the 
 upper sanctuary, destined for ever to reflect God's 
 praise and his disgrace, and hence he seeks per- 
 petually to mar their beauty. Mere professors 
 cost Satan but little trouble and seldom excite his 
 ire ; they mostly sleep in his arms, and he carries 
 them where he pleases without trouble ; their 
 words, for the most part, accord with his will, and 
 their lamp has no light to expose his designs; 
 but all true Christians he hates, because they 
 belong to Christ, love Christ, exhibit Christ, and 
 fight for Christ ; because they expose his designs, 
 pierce him with the truth, and frequently con- 
 quer him by their prayers. Now the danger of 
 Christians, as arising from their great^adversary, 
 is to be traced chiefly to two things; the character 
 of their foe, and the failure of their faith. 
 
 The character of their foe. Satan is not omnis- 
 cient, but he has great knowledge ; our acquaint- 
 ance with ourselves may be very superficial, but 
 it is not so with Satan. There may be but very 
 little introspection with him, for what can he see 
 within himself but misery? But he has a peculiar 
 desire to look into man has made him his espe- 
 cial study, and age after age has accumulated all 
 kinds of information respecting him ; and as the 
 result, most men are better known to their great 
 
176 'LESSONS FEOM JESUS. 
 
 adversary than to themselves. This might well fill 
 them with terror, and would, if they fully believed 
 it. Most men, however, laugh at Satan's chains 
 while they wear them. Philosophic pride may 
 think itself quite able to fortify the soul against 
 all danger, while Satan laughs at its efforts, and 
 sits smiling in the midst of its fruitless labours. 
 Living age after age, man's great foe seldom 
 witnesses anything new, whilst his vast memory, 
 with the experience of the past, can supply him 
 in a moment with a suitable weapon, wherewith 
 to bring down any foe. The heart of man may 
 be deep, but he can find his way into its most 
 secret recesses, and is perfectly at home amid all 
 its unfoldings : hence, while man is often an enigma 
 to himself, his arch enemy reads him with the 
 greatest ease, and will ever present the right bait 
 at the right time ; and while his knowledge is 
 ever accurate, practical, profound, and present, it 
 does not terrify him. He has but to look within 
 for the darkest and most bloody episodes of this 
 world's history ; but the sight of it does not un- 
 nerve him or divert him from his purpose. He 
 has been accumulating wrath against the day of 
 wrath, age after age, but still he works on, nor 
 does the awful mound paralyse him. He delights 
 in cruelty; and hence with the arrows of the 
 Almighty in him, he loves to inflict pain. He 
 has witnessed the tears, the cries, and despairing 
 and dying agonies of myriads, not only without 
 
THE DISCIPLE ADMONISHED. 177 
 
 pain, but with joy. He is persevering, too, in 
 the accomplishment of his designs ; whoever may 
 sleep, he never does, but by night and day, at all 
 times, and under all circumstances, he works on 
 for the destruction of men. Arising out of his 
 knowledge, cruelty, and perseverance, he has 
 great power ; so that even those who have been 
 helped to conquer him, have mostly had to feel 
 and to acknowledge the weight of his hand. This 
 fact our Saviour brings before us, in the figure he 
 employs. " Satan has desired to have thee, that 
 he may sift thee as wheat." Just as easily as a 
 strong man tosses about wheat in a sieve, so easily 
 does Satan toss men about under the influence of 
 temptation. What a forcible illustration we have 
 of this in the life of Peter ; had not the interces- 
 sion of his Lord grasped the hand of his great 
 adversary, with what ease would he have tossed 
 him into hell, as he has done numbers even while 
 in the very act of denying his power. While 
 thus contemplating man's weakness in contrast 
 with Satanic power, with what a solemn emphasis 
 do the words of Christ fall upon the ear, " Sirnon, 
 Simon, behold Satan hath desired to have thee, 
 that he may sift thee as wheat." 
 
 "Ah, Simon, thou art full of love, and zeal, and 
 self-confidence, but alas ! alas ! shouldst thou be 
 left for a single moment, did my prayers cease to 
 embrace thee, thy weakness would soon appear, 
 and thy soul would be lost. The enemy would 
 
178 LESSONS FHOM JESUS. 
 
 put his hand upon thee, and thy ruin would be 
 sealed." Dear reader, does not thy soul shrink 
 within thee lest thou shouldst be so left? Oh, 
 think of the numbers who have fallen in a moment, 
 and that to rise no more. Oh, think of their tears 
 and confessions ; they meditated not the deed 
 which destroyed them, but Satan was at hand, 
 and they believed it not, and down they went. 
 Trifle not with temptation ; fly for thy life at 
 once, reader, to the strong for strength. 
 
 But, after all, our great danger arises from ano- 
 ther source, the failure of our faith. ' ' I have prayed 
 for thee," said Christ, " that thy faith fail not." 
 While the hand of faith grasps its shield we are 
 safe, the fiery darts of our great enemy fall harm- 
 less at our feet ; but this hand, it seems, may, for 
 a time be paralysed, and so leave us open and 
 exposed to the assaults of our dreaded foe. Here, 
 then, we have that which is more to be feared than 
 Satan himself. Oh, ye who have no faith, what will 
 ye do in the day of battle ? do ye not perceive how 
 certain it is, that unless this shield is thine the 
 battle must prevail against thee ? " Fight the good 
 fight of faith," said a good soldier of the Cross; but 
 if thou hast not faith, how canst thou fight? Here 
 is thy weakness, reader ; for it is faith that saves 
 us. Dost thou inquire how ? By teaching us to 
 have no confidence in ourselves, but great confi- 
 dence in God ; by tdking us to the blood of Christ 
 for the forgiveness of our sins ; and His righteous- 
 
THE DISCIPLE ADMONISHED. 179 
 
 ness for the justification of our persons ; by helping 
 us to realize the presence of God and who can sin 
 in His presence ? by fetching in fresh strength, 
 and enabling us to watch, wait, and pray. But 
 now mark, dear reader, while faith through these 
 means bruises Satan beneath thy feet, thou may- 
 est not praise thy faith, deify thy faith, attach 
 merit to thy faith; thy faith saves thee because 
 Christ prays and prevails, because He lives. " I 
 have prayed that thy faith fail not." We can- 
 not be saved without faith, but Christ gives it, 
 and His intercession is the root of its strength. 
 Faith works, but works by love, and Jesus finds 
 this and keeps it alive. Like Peter, we sometimes 
 forget to pray, forget to watch ; but oh, what a 
 mercy Jesus does not ! His eye never sleeps, His 
 arm never grows weary, His lips never falter, but 
 the sweet incense of His adorable intercession con- 
 stantly ascends before the throne, and hence His 
 people live. This explains how it is, believer, 
 that thou hast been helped to persevere, and in- 
 forms thee why thy faith has not become a with- 
 ered blasted thing, and thy life as barren as thy 
 faith ; how, though often cast down, thou hast not 
 been destroyed, though often wounded thou hast 
 not been killed. Oh, then, while you watch and 
 pray, and seek as for your life that your faith fail 
 not, see to it that the praise of its strength and its 
 victories be given to Him who is its great Author 
 and Finisher ! 
 
180 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Bat, dear reader, what if thou hast not faith? 
 Then thou hast no Intercessor ? What words can 
 describe thy danger; art thou not afraid, dost 
 thou not tremble at the thought of being left in 
 the hands of him who has ruined myriads ? Art 
 thou a match for him who is the prince of the 
 power of the air ? art thou equal to his knowledge, 
 power, cruelty, and perseverance ? Oh, let him bat 
 loosen upon thee the full blast of temptation, and, 
 unaided of God, all thy fancied strength, wisdom, 
 and courage will be torn to pieces, and fly like a 
 spider's web before the whirlwind. Fly thou to 
 Christ, let Him be thy shield and buckler, and 
 teach thee how to conquer him who otherwise 
 inust be thy victor and lord. 
 
 But if we have learnt these truths for ourselves, 
 there is a duty incumbent upon us. " And when 
 thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren," said 
 Christ ; " tell them never to despair, that I can 
 subdue their temptations, and preserve them from 
 the tempter ; proclaim my love and faithfulness ; 
 let the weak, the timid, and the doubting hear 
 how I saved thee from the hand of the spoiler ; 
 I have restored thee, go thou and restore others ; 
 I have bound up thy wounds, go thou and bind 
 up the wounds of others. Dost thou see men 
 rushing forth like moths towards the fire of hell, 
 warn them of their danger, and inform them of 
 your escape." Thus Jesus teaches and exhorts 
 His servants, especially those whose backslidings 
 
THE DISCIPLE ADMONISHED. 181 
 
 He heals, and who are restored by His grace. 
 Our plan is to keep the gold from the fire ; His 
 plan is to bring it through the furnace that it maj 
 the more abundantly reflect His praise. Our plan 
 is to fill the mouth with words; His to fill the 
 mind with thoughts and the heart with love. 
 "Prayer, temptation, and meditation," still make 
 the ministers of Christ; let us pray, therefore, 
 for such, and entreat the Lord to send forth men 
 who, being thus qualified of Himself, shall be 
 able to speak to the hearts of both saint and sin- 
 ner, that so both may be profited and saved. 
 
 "Thou seest my feebleness; 
 
 Jesus, be Thou my power, 
 
 My help and refuge in distress, 
 
 My fortress and my tower 
 
 Give me to trust in Thee ; 
 
 Be Thou my sure abode ; 
 My horn, and rock, and buckler be, 
 
 My Saviour and my G-od. 
 
 Myself I cannot love, 
 
 Myself I cannot keep, 
 But strength in Thee I surely have, 
 
 Whose eyelids never sleep. 
 
 My soul, to Thee alone 
 
 Now, therefore, I commend ; 
 
 Thou, Jesus, love me as Thine own, 
 And love me to the end." 
 
 16 
 
" Cling to the Crucified : 
 His death is life to thee 
 Life for eternity ! 
 His pains thy pardon seal ; 
 His stripes thy bruises heal ; 
 His cross proclaims thy peace, 
 Bids every sorrow cease. 
 His blood is all to thee, 
 It purges thee from sin ; 
 It sets thy spirit free, 
 It keeps thy conscience clean. 
 Cling to the Crucified I 
 
 Cling to the Crucified : 
 His is a heart of love, 
 Full as the hearts above ; 
 Its depths of sympathy 
 Are all awake for thee. 
 His countenance is light, 
 Even in the darkest night. 
 That love shall never change, 
 That light shall ne'er grow dim. 
 Charge thou thy faithless heart 
 To find its all in Him. 
 Cling to the Crucified!" 
 
 "Meditate much and often on the sufferings of your Lord. 
 You may thus need less personal suffering to teach you to hate 
 the sin that caused them. In all His afflictions be thou afflicted. 
 Be not estranged in sympathy from the best friend of your soul. 
 Live only to be like Him. Let the first desire of your heart be 
 fixed on the attainment of holiness." Christ on the Cross. 
 
Jwtetcys of 
 
 OR, 
 
 JESUS CRUCIFIED. 
 
 in 
 
 aw agony he prayed more earnestly : and 
 his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down 
 to the ground." Luke xxii. 44. 
 
 How little can we understand of the sufferings of 
 Jesus ! Into the sacred sanctuary of His sorrows 
 who dares to enter ? Our best attemps to come 
 near to Him leave us standing at a distance, gaz- 
 ing upon Him afar off. The sea of His grief was 
 deep, and we behold Him tossed to and fro as by 
 an unseen hand, but we hear very little of the 
 fury of the storm. A shallow, superficial nature 
 heaves and roars beneath the slightest breeze of 
 affliction ; but the holy nature of Jesus, calm and 
 deep at all times, scarcely utters a moan amid the 
 terrors of the most dreadful storm. Very few 
 
184 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 and slight are the intimations of His sorrows, who 
 was most emphatically "a man of sorrows, and 
 acquainted with grief." From His own lips we 
 can gather but little to guide us over the dark 
 and dreadful sea where for a time He appeared to 
 drift, forsaken, naked, desolate, and alone. The 
 great ocean of His anguish was too deep to utter 
 its voice. Its great waves heave and roll on 
 beneath the eye in awful majesty and silence. 
 Jesus seldom spoke while all the waves and 
 billows of God's wrath were passing over Him, 
 and of the meaning of the few words which He 
 did utter we can apprehend but little. His grief 
 was too deep for tears, too great for words. 
 " Behold," said one of old, "and see if there be 
 any sorrows like unto my sorrow." No doubt 
 the sorrows of this good man were great ; still 
 we could have understood them, and felt for him, 
 for he was a man, like unto ourselves. But Jesus 
 the holy, the pure, the unselfish Jesus how 
 can we appreciate His ? And yet it is right that 
 we should strive to apprehend at least a little of 
 His sorrows, for they were the sorrows of huma- 
 nity, and most emphatically our own. He bore 
 our griefs and carried our sorrows; "the chas- 
 tisement of our peace was upon him ; and with 
 his stripes we are healed." May the Holy Spirit 
 guide our meditations ! 
 
 "And being in an agony lie prayed more fer- 
 vently}' 1 What could be the cause of His an- 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 185 
 
 guish ? As yet His back was not given to the 
 scourge, nor His sacred temples to the thorns. 
 His quivering flesh shrunk not as yet from the 
 rugged nails ; nor was His body oppressed by 
 His weighty cross. What could it be, then? 
 Ah, there was a Hand present, administering the 
 elements of a bitter cup, which no human eye 
 could perceive. There was a pressure from the 
 hand of God which no soul could feel but His 
 own. "It pleased the Father to bruise him." 
 Jesus suffered not simply as a man, but as the 
 Surety of His people. Their sins were upon 
 Him by imputation, and the hand of His Father's 
 justice must inflict the penalty. Already some 
 few drops of the coming storm have fallen upon 
 His holy soul, and amazed, and prostrate, and 
 full of agony unutterable, He falls to the ground. 
 His very pores weep blood. sin, sin, sin! 
 what hast thou done? This is thy dreadful 
 work; -'twas thou, my soul thy sins which 
 brought the Father's hand upon His Son, until 
 He weeps and cries, "If it be possible, let this 
 cup pass away." He saw in the distance the 
 cruel soldiery, the purple robe, the crown of 
 thorns, the weary journey, the infuriated crowd, 
 the lingering, protracted death; but it was not 
 the apprehension of these which filled His soul 
 with agony, there were deeper wounds than 
 these, and even now He felt their smart. His 
 Father's hand must smite Him, and from the en- 
 16* 
 
186 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 joyment of His love He must for a time be cut 
 off. This was the dread penalty He must endure, 
 and it was this which 
 
 " Made the sacred drops of anguish fall " 
 
 and drew such importunate cries from His lips. 
 Think of this, my soul ! and learn to hate those 
 sins which placed a gulf between even the soul 
 of the holy Jesus and that Father whom He so 
 loved. 
 
 But deep as was the agony of Jesus, it sealed 
 not up His lips, nor prevented the access of His 
 spirit to God. He still embraced the Hand which 
 smote Him. The storm was severe, but still His 
 simple, confiding, and child-like faith pointed to 
 His Father in heaven. His God had said, " He 
 would hold His hand ;" and now that the deep 
 waters have come into His soul, and He sinks 
 where there is no standing, He pleads and rests 
 upon the promise. It is deeply affecting to con- 
 template the soul of man struggling amid the 
 storms of life to reach upward towards God, the 
 source of its strength. How much more so to 
 contemplate the struggles of His soul, who, single- 
 handed and alone, had to grapple with all our 
 foes, and to stand beneath all our accumulated 
 sorrows. And yet our Saviour failed not: no, 
 He prayed " more fervently.' 1 ' 1 The storm was 
 loud, but His voice was louder than the storm ; 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 187 
 
 His anguish was great, but His prayers were 
 greater. Oh, reader, what an example to thee 
 amid the battle of life, the temptations of Satan, 
 the sophistries of reason, the mysteries of provi- 
 dence, and the dark shadows of the grave, to pray 
 on and on, and still more fervently ; the darker 
 the night, the heavier the cross ! This will help 
 us to stand in the trying day, to hope against 
 hope, to battle with all our foes; and however 
 rudely the winds of trial, and temptation, and 
 affliction may blow, will keep us from making 
 shipwreck of faith amid the storms of life. 
 
 ^niter's m. 
 
 " But Jesus said unto him, Judas, letrayest tJiou the Son of 
 man with a kiss?" Luke xxii. 48. 
 
 WITH what a holy calm and divine serenity 
 does Christ go forth to meet the traitor who was 
 to betray Him into the hands of sinners ; with 
 what a sweet and holy dignity from the knee of 
 prayer does He now gird himself for the terrible 
 conflict ! 
 
 The very atmosphere of heaven and peace 
 seems to clothe Him; already His dreadful an- 
 
188 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 guish had pressed blood from His pores, and weak 
 and exhausted He goes on His way to meet the 
 men whom He knew were seeking His life, and, 
 self-possessed and unmoved, He fronts His foes. 
 The traitor's kiss excites no anger nor surprise ; 
 in meek and lowly grandeur He simply says : 
 " Judas, betray est thou the Son of man with a 
 kiss ?'! And yet, oh what a heart that kiss be- 
 trayed ! Judas had seen the bright unveiling of 
 His face whom he thus betrayed ; he had beheld 
 His glory as of the only begotten of the Father, 
 full of grace and truth ; he had witnessed His 
 miracles, heard the words of wisdom which fell 
 from his lips, followed Him into the charmed 
 circle of private life, and seen His mild glory 
 there ; and yet he could sell Him for thirty 
 pieces of silver, and hand Him over to death with 
 a kiss ! Surely, if ever hypocrisy was incarnate, 
 and cruelty and insensibilty ever surpassed them- 
 selves in utmost wickedness, it was when a dis- 
 ciple's kiss handed over immaculate purity to a 
 felon's death and yet this kiss excites no start 
 of horror, no elaborate comment from the lips of 
 love. And it was well : Christ left the thing to 
 preach itself; He knew that nryriads of loving 
 hearts would shrink from it if He did not ; that 
 the thing itself was its own execration. It wanted 
 not His words to seal its character on the page 
 of time : it had imprc ssed itself never to be 
 effaced. Judas may weep and shed his blood, 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 189 
 
 but still the kiss remains, a scar upon the face of 
 this world's fame, never to be removed; a dark, 
 deep, awful blot upon its vaunted purity and 
 virtue ; a witness of the state of man left to him- 
 self, and of the desperate wickedness of the human 
 heart. 
 
 Strange that the lips of purity should be thus 
 defiled. Satan himself might well have blushed to 
 witness such a deed, and all hell have shrieked 
 an execration ; but Jesus simply says, " Betray est 
 thou the Son of man with a kiss ?" Ah, there 
 were deeper wounds within than it could make ; 
 and deeper to be made. The traitor's kiss could 
 scarcely turn the skin ; deep sorrow had already 
 seized His heart, and there was scarcely room for 
 more. The man whose body is stretched upon a 
 rack, w r ill hardly mark an insect's sting. And 
 perhaps, dear reader, were some heavy sorrow 
 now to roll upon thy soul, thou then wouldst see 
 that thou hadst made too much of passing grief. 
 Bethink thee of thy Saviour's heavy heart, and 
 learn to bear the lighter ills of life unmoved. And 
 should thy wrongs be great, fret not thyself in any 
 wise to do evil ; remember thy Saviour and the 
 traitor's kiss, and leave the bad deeds of thy .foes 
 to proclaim themselves, and God shall vindicate 
 thy name. The kiss of Judas was the foil of 
 Jesus's love ; and evil words and deeds shall but 
 beget thee fame if thou wilt strive to imitate thy 
 Lord. But why have we dwelt upon the traitor's 
 
190 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 kiss ? to hold him up to scorn ? Oh, no ; he 
 was a man, we are not more ; he followed Jesus, 
 so may we ; he listened to Jesus, so may we ; he 
 prayed with Jesus, so may we ; professed to love 
 Jesus, so may we: but he betrayed Jesus, so may 
 we. Let, then, the traitor's kiss admonish us ; 
 and, while we much profess with the lip, let us 
 pray to God for a honest heart, and to keep us 
 from ourselves and our foes. 
 
 e 1 false Cfeargt. 
 
 " And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this 
 fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute 
 to Ccesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King. 1 ' Luke 
 xxiii. 2. 
 
 the heart of man has determined upon a 
 crime, it will ever furnish him with sophistries 
 wherewith to justify its perpetration. The Phari- 
 sees desired to get rid of Christ ; and the enmity 
 from which the desire sprang, found plenty of 
 reasons why He ought to die. And if the heart of 
 man was bad enough to originate these, what is 
 there that it will not produce ? It is not sufficient 
 that Jesus die simply ; the malice of the false reli- 
 gionists of His day must have more. The very 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 191 
 
 name of Christ must be a bye-word and reproach. 
 He must be made an execration and a curse. 
 He must be numbered with transgressors and die 
 a felon's death. He who never sinned must die 
 as a. sinner ; He who embodied His father's law in 
 his heart and life, must perish as a lawless one. 
 He vindicated the truth from the false glosses of 
 the Pharisees ; and they declared He had per- 
 verted the nation. He said, u 'Bender to Caesar 
 the things that are Caesar's;' 7 and they declared 
 He had instructed the people to withhold tribute 
 from Caesar. He had fled from the people when 
 they would have taken Him by force and made 
 Him a king ; yet they affirmed that He sought to 
 subvert the throne of the Eoman Emperor. By 
 these falsehoods they sought to build a slaughter- 
 house for God's Son : to bring His spotless lamb 
 to the knife, that they might gaze upon His 
 agonies and death. foolish men ! their moral 
 abattoir still remains, a monument of their perfidy ; 
 but their victim has escaped, and the crown of 
 moral turpitude with which they sought to encircle 
 His head, for ever rests upon their own. But why 
 this hatred of goodness, purity, and love ? Why 
 these savage efforts to crucify their king ? Why 
 this exposure of their malice, even in the eyes of 
 a stranger and a foe ? Jesus had told them the 
 truth ; He had exposed their hypocrisy, and 
 humbled their pride. This could not be for- 
 given. Light reached them from heaven ; but 
 
192 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 their deeds were evil, and the)' hated it because 
 it made them manifest. They were not willing 
 to believe, because they must forsake their sins. 
 They must cease to be the heroes of the people, 
 and worship God. Yea, the despised Nazarene 
 Himself: rather than be judged of God, they will 
 judge Him; rather than condemn themselves, 
 they will condemn Him. And hence, oh hideous 
 perversion of reason and justice ! these men, 
 clothed in sin, hypocrisy, and crime, will drag 
 God to their bar, and declare that Goodness itself 
 is not fit to live! Ah! and how often has the 
 Son of God thus been made to stand a trembling 
 culprit before the bar of human reason ; while 
 prejudice and pride, unwilling to receive or under- 
 stand His words through love of sin, have per- 
 verted His doctrines, and declared that as an 
 impostor and a knave He ought to die. reader ! 
 take heed that you emulate not the conduct of 
 these Jews ; and before you pronounce your 
 verdict on the Son of God, see to it that it is 
 built upon truth and righteousness, and a fair 
 examination of his deeds and words. Should ye 
 be found, like those of old, who sought to brand 
 His name with infamy without a cause, except 
 that which is furnished by your own prejudice, 
 ignorance, and enmity, be assured of this, that 
 God will one day call you to a terrible account, 
 and bring upon thy head a retribution as terrible 
 as it is righteous. God may permit thee to go on 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 193 
 
 for many years, heaping false accusations on the 
 head of His Son ; but the day will come when He 
 will vindicate His holiness to thy everlasting con- 
 fusion. Pause, then ; cease to revile, and let not 
 thy prejudice urge thee on to ruin; think, exa- 
 mine, pray. 
 
 But Jesus was not moved by the false accu- 
 sation of those who were seeking His life. He 
 calmly admitted what was true ; He declared He 
 was a King, though not in the sense His adversa- 
 ries affirmed. He was the faithful and true wit- 
 ness, and would make known the truth though its 
 proclamation cost Him His life. He was prepared 
 to seal His testimony with His blood. The truth 
 with Him was not a common thing ; it was His 
 meat and His drink, His joy and His crown. Men 
 may falsety accuse Him, threaten, persecute, re- 
 vile, and exhaust their ingenuity to torture and 
 destroy Him ; but still truth shall dwell in His 
 heart, indite His words, and shine in His life. 
 Mountains of sorrow may be cast upon His soul, 
 but they shall not press error from His lips, nor 
 cause His mind to embrace a lie. What an ex- 
 ample to us ! May we never be ashamed of the 
 truth, but in the face of all opposition, cost us 
 what it may, let us hold it fast, and seek to make 
 it known ! May we think of Him who has be- 
 queathed it to us, a precious legacy sealed with 
 His blood, and rather die than permit it to be 
 plucked from our grasp. But let us not forget, 
 17 
 
194 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 that, if thus we are helped to cleave to Christ, re- 
 proach and misrepresentation may come upon us 
 even as they did upon Him ; and let us strive to 
 learn in patience to commit our cause to God. 
 
 Ilje 
 
 " And when they had crucified him, they parted his gar- 
 ments, casting lots upon them, what every man shoidd take." 
 Mark xv. 24. 
 
 MANY precious things have been torn asunder 
 by the rude hand of ignorance and cruelty, over 
 which both science and art have sorely wept: 
 but there are few things, the destruction of which 
 has caused more sorrow to some, than that of the 
 sacred vesture of the Son of God. And yet it 
 was well it should be so, for many might have 
 worshipped the robe, who would have despised 
 the wearer ; and such is the spirit of Kome. She 
 will exhibit the clothing of Christ, but not Christ 
 Himself. She will hold up the crown of thorns, 
 but not His sacred temples the spear which 
 pierced Him, but not His bleeding heart. Over 
 His garments she will weep, but not over His torn 
 and bleeding body. It was a crime with her to 
 separate His robe, but none to separate His words. 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 195 
 
 His external man shall appear, but the inner glory 
 must be veiled. She will make a sacred drama 
 of His death, and seek to act out the dread scene 
 afresh ; but the great truths it embodies she nei- 
 ther perceives herself, nor will she permit them to 
 be exhibited to others. proud, pretentious, but 
 ignorant church 1 like the rude soldiery, thou wilt 
 receive the clothes of Christ, but deny His words ; 
 thou wilt part His garments among thy children, 
 but keep back the truth by which alone they can 
 be made free. 
 
 The temporal and fading, vain harlot ! thou 
 wilt grasp, but the spiritual and enduring has no 
 value in thy eyes. To gaze upon the relics of the 
 Saviour thou wilt travel many miles ; but thou 
 wilt not look at Him as He stands by thy side, 
 exhibiting His glory to the eye of faith. His gar- 
 ments thou wilt receive, seeking to make money 
 by His apparel, while the doctrines He proclaimed 
 thou hearest but to despise. Oh, how many 
 follow thy example, and profess Christ for a crust, 
 while they spurn His cross, and view His word 
 but as the duplicates of pence ! How many cleave 
 to the outward form, to the extrinsics of a living 
 Christ, to the exclusion of the spiritual life, and 
 miserably perish, grasping the mere symbols 
 through which it was intended to flow. 
 
 " And the soldiers parted his garments" Well, 
 Eome will weep over these ; but let the believer 
 reserve his tears for a divided church and the fair 
 
196 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 body of truth so frequently torn and mangled, not 
 only by the proud and unhumbled, but by those 
 whose work it is to maintain its unity and strength. 
 And with our tears let us blend our earnest 
 prayer, that the wounds of Zion "may be speedily 
 healed, and soon before the eyes of the world but 
 one fold may appear, even as there is but one 
 Shepherd. 
 
 " And they parted his garments." Our Saviour 
 had not much to leave ; how affectingly His po- 
 verty appears at His death. It was but His gar- 
 ments the soldiers could divide : there was nothing 
 more. They might have been woven by the 
 fingers of love, but they were all that He had. 
 They had covered His sacred body through many 
 a weary journey, but ttiey will not be wanted 
 again. And it may be, believer, that thou hast 
 reached the end of life's journey, with little else 
 than the clothes that cover thee. Thou hast 
 worked hard, it may be, but this is all thou hast 
 a scanty wardrobe well soiled by many a hard 
 day's toil. A will thou needest not make, for 
 thou hast nothing to leave. Well, it was so with 
 thy Lord. 
 
 Thou art as rich as He was, and hast as much to 
 leave. He worked as hard as thou hast, and 
 shed more tears, both by night and day ; so thou 
 canst not complain, nor from thy poverty draw 
 an argument against the love of thy God. Yea, 
 it is possible that the garments the soldiers parted 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 197 
 
 were received from the hand of charity ; and so, 
 perhaps, are thine ; so that thy poverty does but 
 furnish thee, after all, with another feature of re- 
 semblance to thy Lord. But think not of the 
 poor clothing which now covers thee, and which 
 thou must soon leave behind, but of the shining 
 raiment thou art speedily to receive from the 
 hand of Him who, though He was rich, yet for 
 thy sake became poor, that we through His po- 
 verty might be made rich ; who wandered here 
 in nakedness and sorrow, a forlorn outcast, that 
 we might reach a mansion of bliss and be clothed 
 in a robe of righteousness, by which we should 
 be qualified for the very presence of God, and the 
 enjoyment of His love for ever. 
 
 Snrarp, 
 
 " And when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be 
 crucified." Matt, xxvii. 26. 
 
 How clearly did our Saviour perceive every 
 element in that bitter cup of suffering and sorrow 
 which our sins placed in His hands to drink ! 
 Long before the whip tore and lacerated His back 
 He referred to it, and said, " Behold, we go up to 
 Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be betniveJ 
 
198 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes, and 
 they shall condemn him to death, and shall de- 
 liver him to the Gentiles, to rnock, and to scourge, 
 and to crucify Him." And the Jews themselves 
 own to the eternal obloquy and shame which this 
 act entails, in the following words : u And the 
 elders of Jerusalem took Jesus and brought .him 
 to the city, and bound him to a marble pillar in 
 the city, and smote him with whips, or whipped 
 him; and said unto him, Where are all thy 
 miracles which thou hast done ?" Poor benighted 
 Jew, how strangely didst thou forget the words 
 of thy own prophet which declared, that thy 
 Messiah should be " a man of sorrows and ac- 
 quainted with grief;" that "he should be led as 
 a lamb to the slaughter ; that the chastisement 
 of thy peace was to be upon him, and that by his 
 stripes thou wert to be healed." Ah ! little 
 thought our Saviour's tormentors that His weep- 
 ing back proclaimed their blindness. The Son 
 of God bound to a marble pillar ! whipped ! 
 Well might the stone have wept at such indig- 
 nity, have blushed beneath the purple tide those 
 cruel thongs drew forth. wondrous love! 
 which led the Saviour thus to give His back to 
 the smiters, and His cheeks to those who plucked 
 off the hair ! Mark now, believer, and see that 
 patient Man, gored by the savage whip He 
 shrinks not, He utters no murmuring word : 'tis 
 but the beginning of His sacred woe, there are 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 199 
 
 wounds even now more deeply ploughed upon 
 His soul, through which the burning wrath of 
 God must run to quench itself in agony more 
 deep. Yet not in fury shall that tide flow forth, 
 but in righteousness, to spare the lost. And shall 
 we faint beneath the strokes of love, or fly the 
 chastisement which seeks our peace ? A scourged 
 Saviour holds the rod the strokes of which oft 
 make us droop our heads. He has no pleasure in 
 our tears, but seeks to drive us from those sins 
 which tore His flesh and gave him to the hands 
 of cruel men. And let us not forget that in this 
 world the Saviour still is scourged. Bound hand 
 and foot, He scarcely can be heard for mocking 
 tongues. To the cold marble column of phi- 
 losophy, so called, oft found in colleges and 
 schools, Reason has often tied Him, while the 
 learned rabble and unbelieving herd have put 
 their thoughts together to form a thong with 
 which to whip His life away. One central spot 
 of scorn the world has known in every age a 
 scourged Saviour. Still does the cold critic 
 weave his words to bite His flesh, and still it 
 seems to yield in quivering impotence. Ah! 
 but the scourged Man one day will show 
 His strength, nor yield His back to infamy for 
 ever ; and for each subtle thought and lying 
 word, which brought a cord to bind or scourge 
 His truth, will He bring men to judgment. And 
 thou, too, Eespectability ! that often scourged 
 
200 LESSONS FEOM JESUS. 
 
 Him, by polite and gentle usage who would have 
 His words kept back, and thoughts attenuated by 
 the rack of carnal policy even thou shalt one day 
 find the hand of Christ too strong upon thee, and 
 the despised ISTazarene shall reward thee according 
 to thy deeds. Oh that we may seek earnestly for 
 grace, that so neither by our words nor deeds we 
 may be left to scourge the Saviour again, or put 
 Him to an open shame ! 
 
 f It* Scarlet $ofoe. 
 
 " And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet role." 
 Matt, xxvii. 28. 
 
 THEY would make their derision to be notorious, 
 and cover Christ with the most flagrant shame. 
 To this end they took from Him what was His 
 own, and gave to Him what did not belong to Him. 
 And how frequently have we done the same; 
 withholding from Him the homage due to His 
 name, and putting Him to shame by our lives. We 
 now execrate the conduct of those who thus mock- 
 ed the Son of God ; but have we not done worse? 
 They put upon Him a scarlet robe: our sins bap- 
 tized Him in His blood. How naked would our 
 souls have been had not the body of Christ been 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 201 
 
 thus clothed in the garb of apparent infamy and 
 death ! He deserved not the shame which they 
 would fain have put upon Him ; and had He not 
 robed Himself in our nature that He might bring 
 us shining raiment from heaven, the scarlet robe 
 had never been His. He clothed the heavens in 
 light as a garment, the earth in beauty and joy, 
 and men's souls with purity and righteousness ; 
 while yet, when He appeared below, all that the 
 world could afford Him was a vesture of scorn 
 and reproach. 
 
 toton 0f 
 
 " And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it 
 upon his head, and a reed in his right hand : and they bowed 
 the knee be/ore him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of 
 the Jews!" Matt, xxvii. 29. 
 
 AND King of the Jews He was, and never more 
 glorious than now, notwithstanding the scarlet 
 robe and crown of thorns they had placed upon 
 Him. He stands now before them the King of 
 the curse, although they perceived it not. It was 
 meet and right that He who was made a curse for 
 us, who came to absorb all its bitter elements in 
 Himself, should be crowned with thorns. Well 
 
202 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 did they symbolise our sins, and the piercing 
 wounds they give. Place them, too, on His head, 
 and let them form a crown, for still He is a King, 
 although despised. The thorns, too, on his brow 
 will blossom into bliss, and yield sweet fruit. No 
 other way can Nature lose her stings. Oh, fruit- 
 ful soil of Jesus' temples, that even thorns can 
 flourish there, and yield sweet honey to the soul ! 
 Strange that the Son of God should be thus 
 crowned ; but what else could man bring, himself 
 a thorn ? Oh, coronation-day of heaven's own 
 King ! how poor this world to yield Thee nought 
 but thorns ! It brought its own, and Thou in 
 love didst take and wear its scornful gift, to hide 
 its poverty and bear its griefs away. The curse 
 enwrapped around thy sacred head Ah, yes ! 
 and even from Thy feet it spread, but spread itself 
 to die, to perish ; for Thou shalt live and never 
 die. 'Twas meet that they should bring Thee 
 thorns who made the curse. In heaven, Lord, 
 Thou hadst no thorns; it was from this world 
 that Thou wouldst pluck the chaplet of Thy griefs, 
 and by the circle of Thy sorrows for ever rob 
 Thy Church of all her woes. Who ever saw so 
 fair a head, despite the weighty burden of its 
 wounds ? Thorns, thorns ; ah ! what but thorns 
 could clasp His temples in this world where all 
 had sinned ? But see they spring forth into fame, 
 and for His thorns this King shall reign, and live 
 enthroned in wounded hearts for evermore. All 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 203 
 
 hail, despised King! Thy crown shall flourish 
 when all others fade. Faith sees Thy head no 
 more in sorrow bowed, but, far above the clouds 
 of time, the thorns all gone, transformed into a 
 starry crown of bliss, and feels the hand of Mercy 
 place upon her head while gazing thus, a circlet, 
 too, of joy, lined with the costly ermine of a 
 Saviour's love, and weeps and sings His praise 
 who were a crown of thorns. 
 
 wondrous crown ! each piercing thorn points 
 to Thy inmost love, Thou Saviour of the lost ! No 
 other head was ever adorned like Thine. The 
 sacred beauty of Thy face abides, the awful majesty 
 of Thy kingly brow can suffer no eclipse, though 
 weighed down by grief. ISTo barbaric pomp, nor 
 gold, nor precious stones, could bring to the sacred 
 arches of Thy thought one single ray of glory. 
 And where, too, are the crowned monarchs of the 
 earth ? The world perceives them not ; but, lo ! 
 amid the wrecks of time, one King appears ! His 
 thorny chaplet drinks the light of heaven, and 
 men of every age, kingdom, and tongue bow down 
 and worship. marvellous crown ! divine su- 
 premacy! sacred head! that pillared up the 
 weight of human guilt, and while it held it up to 
 view put it away. For ever dear to us, then, be 
 this crown of thorns; and amid the pomp and 
 pageantry of life, the passing blaze of human 
 glory, oh may the sacred head of Christ appear to 
 pale its fires, and may we never forget those sacred 
 
204: LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 griefs which bought our freedom from the dread- 
 ful curse ! 
 
 IOWIUJT, 
 
 "And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called 
 the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha." 
 John xix. 17. 
 
 WHAT a panorama of divine love is the life of 
 Christ ! each scene becoming more touching, more 
 pregnant with sorrow, to the closing one, present- 
 ing us with His death. Our Saviour had been a 
 cross-bearer from his earliest youth. From the 
 first dawn of reason, His clear perception of what 
 man was, and of what He came to do and to bear, 
 must have placed a load of sorrow upon His heart, 
 such as was never carried and never could have 
 been borne by any one but himself. But now, in 
 addition to this secret cross upon His weary 
 spirit, there is also another, placed by cruel men 
 upon His back. It is not sufficient that His heart 
 labours with its grief and the heavy hand of jus- 
 tice pressing down His spirit, His body also must 
 have its load; and how affecting to the eye of 
 faith thus to contemplate him staggering on be- 
 neath His heavy cross, lone and sad, in the midst 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 205 
 
 of that infuriated throng ! No hand of friendship 
 ministers to His woes, no voice of love cheers His 
 heart. His had been a weary journey for many 
 years, and His path had grown more rugged as it 
 approached the Golgotha of His griefs ; and yet 
 no murmuring word escaped Him. His was a 
 solitary path at all times, but especially was it so 
 now. The swelling tide of His sorrow is now 
 rising too high for any human being to accom- 
 pany Him. A desert had spread around Him 
 from His earliest days, but it now grows more 
 bleak and bare, and it was needful that it should 
 be so, or our wilderness would never have re- 
 joiced and blossomed as the rose. In hunger 
 and nakedness, in weariness and watching, in 
 loneliness and desolation, He came to identify 
 Himself with His own. Of His people of old it 
 was recorded, that they " wandered in the wilder- 
 ness in a solitary way; they found no city to 
 dwell in ; hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted 
 in them." 
 
 And with this path many of His children are 
 familiar now. Is it so with thee, reader ? And 
 art thou ready to say, " that thy way is hidden 
 from the Lord?" Look at thy Saviour; mark 
 His weary steps, as He staggers on in the midst 
 of cruelty and scorn, faint and weary, beneath the 
 heavy load of thy guilt. Think of His love, 
 purity, and obedience. Yet mark His path : 
 might not He have concluded that truly He was 
 18 
 
206 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 forsaken, and that His God and Father had for 
 gotten to be gracious ? Oh, how weary must He 
 have been in heart, in head, in hands and feet ; 
 His back torn to pieces by the whip ; His ears 
 filled with the cruel rnockings of His foes; His 
 friends far from Him ; and a horrible death be- 
 neath the hidings of His Father's face near at 
 hand! Oh, what a" path was His! Say now, 
 believer, let thy sorrowful heart have full vent ; 
 repeat thou all thy griefs, and try if thou canst 
 make thy path like His. Is thy body wearied as 
 was His thy hands and feet? Does thy heart 
 and head ache as did His ? Is thy body goaded 
 and torn, and filled with pain as was His ? Art 
 thou forsaken of thy friends as He was ? Hast 
 thou as heavy a cross upon thy back ? Is thy 
 character slandered as was His? Are thy ears 
 as filled with the yells of cruelty, arid the voices 
 of those who are about to take thy life? Hast 
 thou the prospect of the same death. Great as 
 may be thy afflictions, wilt thou not admit, that 
 to compare them with the sufferings of Christ 
 were sacrilege indeed? Thy path, it may be, is 
 rugged ; but in thy darkest night hast thou not 
 the star of hope ? 
 
 Thy cross is heavy ; but hast thou not a mighty 
 Saviour upon whom thou canst lean, and who in- 
 vites thee ever to find peace and rest in His love? 
 Hast thou not His precious words to gird thee 
 with strength? and, however solitary thy path, 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 207 
 
 hast thou not the promise of His presence, and 
 the whispers of His love through the sacred 
 ministrations of His Divine Spirit? Oh, how 
 rich art thou in all the extremities of thy grief 
 compared with thy Lord ! Oh ! lose not thy 
 peace, the quiet and rest of thy spirit, by looking 
 too much to thy trouble ; by fixing thy eyes upon 
 the briars and thorns of thy way. But let thy 
 faith stedfastly eye Him who with His chaplet 
 of thorns, His bleeding back, His weary feet, and 
 wounded, fainting spirit still meekly and silently, 
 and without a murmuring word, amid blasphemy 
 and contempt, moved on to the accomplishment 
 of that death by which thy sins were to be expi- 
 ated thy soul redeemed a cordial of love pre- 
 pared for all ihj sorrows and a right and title 
 to a mansion of bliss and a crown of glory which 
 fadeth not away. Thus musing upon the sorrows 
 of Jesus, thou shalt forget thy own, and receive 
 from Him that grace which shall rob them of 
 their sting, and enable thee to pluck from them 
 occasions for present and everlasting praise. 
 
208 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 ij}* Cruel )IB% 
 
 e?/ crucified him" Mark xv. 25. 
 
 THE weary steps of Christ at length came to 
 a pause ; but it was at the brink of the grave 
 a shameful and ignominious death. At length, 
 through scenes of manifold temptations, suffer- 
 ings, and sorrows, He has reached the dreadful 
 goal to which, with the undying constancy of 
 love, He has pressed on from His very birth, and 
 where He will bring to a glorious consummation 
 the great work which His Father gave him to do, 
 and which was to ensure the undying bliss of the 
 myriads He came to redeem. 
 
 " And there they crucified him" The meek and 
 lowly Man who permitted them to place the cross 
 upon His back, permitted them also to stretch 
 His hands and feet upon it, and with the hammer 
 and rugged nails to fix them there. O myste- 
 rious lovei meek yet Almighty Saviour ! how 
 was it that no ray of thy Godhead escaped in the 
 midst of such cruelty, to wither and to blast for 
 ever the wicked hands which sought Thy death ? 
 wondrous love! which held Thy power in 
 check, and kept Thee passive as a lamb beneath 
 the wounds which drained Thy life away ! 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 209 
 
 holiness! how dear wast thou to the heart of 
 Jesus! Rather than see thy garments stained by 
 sin, He gives His blood! O justiee! how pre- 
 cious to the Lamb of God wast thou ! Rather 
 than thou shouldst waive thy righteous claims, 
 unholy men shall nail His body to the tree ; and 
 inch by inch He will die; and calmly, slowly, 
 'mid sweat, and wounds, and blood, and darkness, 
 and agonies unutterable, and death, He will pay 
 into thy hands the utmost which thy law de- 
 mands. And thou, too, Mercy, how closely to 
 the heart of Jesus didst thou cleave ; rather than 
 part with thee, His heart shall bleed, that with 
 the purple tide thy hand might blend a balm to 
 heal the wounds of men. 
 
 "And there they crucified Him" To this end, 
 earth and hell had watched Him from the cradle 
 to the grave. They had hung upon His steps 
 like dogs; they had followed Him, and at last 
 enclosed Him. They came nearer and nearer 
 until they put their savage hands upon Him, and 
 with yells of fury sought His destruction. It was 
 a lingering and awful death Christ died. His 
 bodily pains no words can reach. He could say, 
 " I am poured out like water, and all my bones 
 are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is 
 melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength 
 is dried up like a potsherd ; and my tongue 
 cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me 
 into the dust of death." Through His great pain 
 18* 
 
210 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 and anguish of mind, a burning fever seized upon 
 Him, and made Him exclaim, I "thirst!' 7 This 
 speedily robbed Him of His strength and His 
 flesh, so that casting a sorrowful look upon His 
 emaciated body, He exclaimed, "I may tell all 
 my bones : they look and stare upon me !" Well 
 might He exclaim to His God, " But be not thou 
 far from me, Lord : 0, my strength, haste thee 
 to help me I" 
 
 But, after all, the pains of our Redeemer were 
 not mere bodily pains. There was a cross upon 
 which the mind was stretched as well as the 
 body. The sensibilities of His body were great; 
 but those of His soul were greater. To what 
 extent the soul of man is capacitated for suffer- 
 ing, is a dread secret never fully realized in this 
 world; though sometimes, from the trouble and 
 anguish produced when but a few drops of Di- 
 vine wrath fall upon it, we may form some little 
 idea. In this respect, all the powers of Christ's 
 soul were peculiarly sensitive ; and, upheld and 
 supported by His Divine nature, no doubt they 
 could, and did, drink in an amount of anguish 
 beyond all human or angelic comprehension. 
 The hand of God, as a righteous judge, brought 
 all the elements of the penalty attached to sin 
 into His experience ; and in suffering and sorrow 
 He exhausted them all. And He could exhaust 
 them ; for, while His nature was finite, it was no 
 less infinite. To what extent the soul can suffer, 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE* 211 
 
 who can say ? but as united to the Divine nature, 
 who will dare to declare ? From the mouth of 
 His servant David we learn that He sank in deep 
 waters where there was no standing ; that the 
 wrath of God lay hard upon Him; "and thou," 
 said He, "hast afflicted me with all thy waves}' 1 
 Both the superior and inferior natures were both 
 engaged in that last terrible conflict of the Ke- 
 deemer, by which the sins of His people were at 
 once and for ever expiated, and the power of hell 
 overthrown. Let us ever approach the conflict 
 with holy awe. Let us ever gaze with love and 
 reverence upon those sorrows by which our griefs 
 are healed ; and may the simple statements of the 
 Word of God ever be the resting-place of our 
 faith. He who has felt but a little of the terrors 
 of God's law, and of the hidings of God's face, 
 will ever look with profound reverence upon the 
 travail of His soul, who stood solitary and alone 
 in the midst of penal darkness, to endure in body 
 and soul the utmost penalty of that holy law 
 which has righteously consigned myriads to a re- 
 tribution which stretches itself through the count- 
 less ages which are past, and into countless ages 
 which are yet to corne. 
 
 But why must Jesus die? His death was a 
 matter of Divine purpose. Long before He came 
 into this world, He had declared by the mouth of 
 the inspired Psalmist, " A body hast thou prepared 
 me. In the volume of the book it is written of me, 
 
212 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 I delight to do thy will, yea, thy law is within my 
 heart." The Divine Father perceiving, from the 
 most distant ages of eternity, how all His creatures 
 would sin arid break His law, thus exposing 
 themselves to its penalty, determined to spoil the 
 designs of Satan, and to save a number which no 
 man can number, by sending His Son to bear the 
 punishment due to their sins. Jesus also volun- 
 tarily became the surety of those whom the 
 Father purposed to save ; and hence, speaking to 
 His Father, in His intercessory prayer, He says, 
 " Thine they were, and thou gavest them to me." 
 It being, therefore, a matter of Divine purpose, 
 that the people of God should be saved by the 
 substitution and vicarious death of the Son of 
 God, the Divine mystery was set forth in t^he pro- 
 phetic page. The prophets were employed by 
 the Spirit of God to portray the glory of that 
 Saviour, who was to come, "a light to lighten 
 the Gentiles, and the glory of His people Israel." 
 A suffering Saviour was the centre object of all 
 their representations; and hence, Jesus must die 
 in fulfilment of the word. 
 
 The attributes of God also demanded it. The 
 people of God had by their own sins, in common 
 with others, exposed themselves to the penalty 
 of the law, that penalty being righteous ; and that 
 the justice of God might not become a common 
 thing in the universe, it must have been endured 
 by them or some one else. Christ came to bear 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 213 
 
 it, and did bear it, so that the sinner can escape 
 while yet righteousness is exalted, both in God 
 and in the sinner's heart. In God, inasmuch as 
 He receives, at the hands of Christ, a satisfaction 
 for sin which no creature could have given ; while 
 the sinner, perceiving the inflexibility of law in 
 the sufferings of Christ, learns to revere the jus- 
 tice of God, while He exults in the love which 
 provides a ransom for his soul. On these grounds 
 we have the recorded fact of our Saviour's death. 
 No finite hand could have touched Him, but for 
 the fulfilment of these gracious designs. 
 
 "And they crucified Him.' 1 '' An awful blot is 
 this upon the page of the world's history, an ever- 
 lasting stain upon its pride; and well for thee, 
 my soul, that thou shouldst cease to embrace a 
 world, whose archives are thus defiled. Yet, in 
 this fact, our hope of pardon, and peace, and 
 purity, and heaven, has its birth. And hence 
 the Christian must ever love to contemplate the 
 crucified One. Jesus on the cross, the cross of 
 Christ, a theme for present and for future bliss. 
 The spot most sacred to the renewed heart. The 
 home where all the Christian graces dwell and 
 thrive. The meeting place of God and man. 
 The mirror of God's love. The apocalypse of 
 all His perfections, united in the most sweet and 
 exalted harmony for the salvation of men. The 
 point where all the rays of truth most brilliantly 
 converge to show how sin can be put away, the 
 
214 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 soul be renewed, and more than paradise be re- 
 gained. Here God's most sacred thoughts and 
 choicest forms of wisdom show themselves to 
 instruct and bless mankind. To this point, the 
 returning wanderer turns his eye, and here the 
 weary heart finds rest. Here all heaven's richest 
 blessings grow in clusters, and Omnipotence 
 reaches forth its hand, through frailty, to save 
 and elevate the lost. 
 
 In the wounds of Jesus faith discovers the 
 honey of God's love, and learns a secret hidden 
 from the wise. The dove of peace dwells here, 
 perpetually shedding, from its outstretched wings, 
 the dew of heaven to fertilize the barren mind. 
 Here Mercy gathers all her children to heal their 
 wounds, to teach them the lessons of -eternal love, 
 as they are written on the broken body of her 
 bleeding Lord ; and the first notes of that ever- 
 lasting hymn the redeemed shall sing for ever- 
 more. Here death, too, loses its sting, and hell 
 its prey. Here to the eye of faith light breaks 
 forth brighter than the sun, with healing on its 
 wings : a light which pales all human glory, and 
 spreads and flies, and flies and spreads, until the 
 entire universe, bathed in heaven's own beauty, 
 reflects the praise of God. Cross of Christ! 
 the sun, the moon, and stars, the flowers, the 
 trees, the fields, in one perpetual hymn tell much 
 but thou, infinitely more! No other world 
 has known thy charms ; grasped by the hand of 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 215 
 
 Love, thou touchest this, and dost transmute its 
 base alloy to gold. The pall of sorrow death has 
 thrown upon it : as it sighs and moans along its 
 silent way, a gloomy sepulchre, thou dost remove, 
 and clothe it in the garments of perpetual joy, 
 the bridal raiment of a king. The dark enigmas 
 reason cannot solve, thou makest plain. The long 
 sad night of sorrow at thy presence leaves the 
 earth, which, now transformed like some pellucid 
 sea, so brightly shines, that angels, as thej r fly, 
 look down and see themselves reflected from 
 beneath, and gaze upon the very smile of God. 
 The church through thee shall wear a beauty 
 which shall never die; and nature, too, shall 
 hear the voice of God, and hearing shall obey, 
 and learn the mighty meaning of those words, 
 " Behold, I make all things new." 
 
 Sad day, then, for this world, when men by 
 misty statements hide the cross the Church's 
 hope, and burden of her bliss; the perennial 
 fountain of her joy, her purity, and peace. Dark 
 is the night that soon will overshadow us ; the 
 sweet dove of peace will soon withdraw, and uni- 
 versal discord reign. Let but the tidings of a 
 Saviour's death cease to be proclaimed, and uni- 
 versal death will speedily seize us all. Let His 
 broken body be but entombed in human specula- 
 tions, or philosophic pride, and soon the melting, 
 fertilizing rays of heaven's own sun will cease to 
 shine, and moral desolation spread on all around; 
 
216 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 the barren winter of worldliness, selfishness^ and 
 pride will reign ; the arid sands of human specu- 
 lation encompass all a dreary waste over which 
 the aching eye seeks often for the footsteps of 
 eternal love, but finds them not ; and where the 
 weary, thirsty heart cries out in vain for the liv- 
 ing waters of revealed truth, and in despair at 
 last lies down to die. 
 
 Oh, then, my soul, dwell near the cross ; and 
 while others wander over the classic page, or seek 
 an hiding-place beneath the spreading branches of 
 scholastic lore, or art, or taste, make this thy joy! 
 View every form of truth and beauty as thy friend ; 
 but let the cross of Jesus be thy home ; here dwell, 
 thou sublimely lost, yet truly found ; and let the 
 truths which grow and cluster here, be ever to thee 
 the sweet, the sacred ambrosia of thy soul, and 
 live to make them known. 
 
 Beader, come to the cross the culminating 
 point of this world's sorrows, it is true ; still, if 
 thou wilt but come, it shall not be to thee a 
 gloomy place. Here thou shalt find happiness 
 like a star upon the brow of night ; and while 
 gazing upon the death of Jesus, the bloom and 
 freshness of immortal youth shall come upon thee. 
 From His precious blood thy faith shall fetch in 
 pardon for all thy sins, and gather honey from 
 the flower of hope, which blossoms here, and 
 never fades. The holy fragrance of Almighty 
 love will steep thy heart in bliss. Here the Spirit 
 
FOOTSTEPS OF LOVE. 217 
 
 of God will meet with thee, and claim affinity 
 again with thy spirit, and dwell with thee a foun- 
 tain of wisdom and perpetual peace. Here all 
 thy powers shall be harmonised, and thy self-will 
 shall be slain ; 
 
 " The life-long bleeding of the heart be o'er." 
 
 For it shall beat responsive to God's love, and thy 
 will shall move in accordance with the eternal law 
 of happiness and peace. Wrong not, then, thy 
 spirit, reader, of its balm and rest. Come to 
 love's sanctuary for the weary. Consent thou to 
 be blessed. Let thy soul become the temple of 
 Jesus, thy heart His throne, then shall thy life 
 become a book of wonders ; thy lips an oracle 
 of truth ; thy tongue an instrument whose melody 
 heaven shall approve ; thy intellect the palace of 
 its king ; while thy memory shall be inlaid with 
 the most costly tokens of God's love ; and, thus 
 beautified and blessed, thou shalt embody and 
 exhibit diviner mysteries, and more of God than 
 all the universe besides, and commence a jubilee 
 of joy and never-ending praise. 
 
 " Him on yonder cross I love, 
 
 Nought on earth I else count dear. 
 
 May He mine for ever prove 
 Who is now so inly near. 
 
 Here I stand ; whate'er may come, 
 
 Days of sunshine or of gloom, 
 
 From this word I will not move ; 
 
 Him upon the cross I love 1 
 
 19 
 
218 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 'Tis not hidden from my heart, 
 What true love must often bring; 
 
 Want and grief have sorest smart, 
 Care and scorn can sharply sting. 
 
 Nay, but if Thy will were such, 
 
 Bitterest death were not too much. 
 
 Dark though here my course may prove, 
 
 Him upon the cross I love! 
 
 Rather sorrows such as these, 
 
 Rather love's acutest pain, 
 Than without Him days of ease, 
 
 Riches false and honours vain. 
 Count me strange when I am true, 
 What He hates I will not do ; 
 Sneers no more ray heart can move ; 
 Him upon the cross I love ! 
 
 Know ye whence my strength is drawn, 
 Fearless thus the fight to wage ? 
 
 Why my heart can laugh to scorn 
 Fleshly weakness, Satan's rage ? 
 
 'Tis, I know the love of Christ ; 
 
 Mighty is that love unpriced. 
 
 What can grieve me, what can move ? 
 
 Him upon the cross I love ! 
 
 Once the eyes that now are dim 
 
 Shall discern the changeless love, 
 That hath led us home to Him, 
 
 That hath crown'd us far above. 
 Would to God that all below 
 What that love is now might know, 
 And their hearts this word approve : 
 Him upon the cross I love I" 
 
 GREDING. (Born 1676.) 
 Lyra Germanica. 
 
" To God's blessing upon the bold and faithful assertion of 
 such noble truths as election, justification, sanctification, and 
 perseverance, we owe our reformation from Popery. So nothing 
 will finally preserve us from being carried captive into the 
 Popish Egypt again, but the revival- and preaching of those 
 same noble truths." LUTHER. 
 
 " Each day brings its trials ; but their bitterness passes away, 
 while the sweetness of its blessings remains, like the rose scent 
 in the vase. The unnumbered kindnesses of God, the countless 
 small pleasures which mark His unslumbering thoughtfulness for 
 us, are like bright ears of corn scattered along our path to tell 
 us of the golden harvest-field from whence they come, and 
 towards which we are journeying ; crystal drops from the river 
 of life, which maketh glad the city of God. Such things cheer 
 us on in this earth, but should not bind us to it ; rather should 
 they send us onward with joyfulness, eager for the bliss that 
 God has prepared for us on high, and longing for those pleasures 
 which are at his right hand for evermore." 
 
 Man's best thoughts in times of trial are often found to be but 
 broken cisterns, which refuse a single drop of consolation to the 
 weary soul; but God's thoughts, like wells fed by a living spring, 
 perpetually give forth the enlivening and refreshing streams of 
 spiritual peace and joy. 
 
 "We cannot expect spiritual thoughts and affections from 
 truths which are but imperfectly understood, or doubtfully and 
 feebly believed." J. A. JAMES, of Birmingham. 
 
Sttclto of jSalbatioii; 
 
 OB, 
 
 THE JOY OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 " Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of 
 salvation" Isa. xii. 3. 
 
 THE seraphic prophet commences his sweet gospel 
 sonnet by directing the attention to a certain day 
 a period of time "in that day," he says; " a 
 glorious day is this, the light and splendour of 
 which shall never decline, for Christ is its sun, a 
 sun that shall never set, but continue to throw 
 forth its light and beauty through the countless 
 ages of eternity." And in connexion with this 
 divine period the prophet also brings before us 
 the employment of the redeemed u In that day 
 thou shalt say, Lord, I will praise Thee," &c. 
 
 The people, it seems, shall talk; and what is 
 
 easier than to use the tongue ? But they shall use 
 
 theirs to a good purpose : in their case it shall be 
 
 their glory, and not their shame; grace shall 
 
 19* 
 
222 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 teach their hearts and make their lips discourse 
 sweet music ; they shall talk well, for they shall 
 be instructed ; they shall not be left to say any- 
 thing, or desire to speak at random ; God's deeds 
 and not their own shall form their theme ; they 
 shall give utterance to His thoughts, and not their 
 own ; they shall praise Him, and not themselves; 
 His mercy shall be the key-note of their song, 
 and they shall lead off every strain which arises 
 from this sin-stricken world, having for its object, 
 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, 
 good will towards men." 
 
 Their song shall be constant; there shall be the 
 ringing forth of an everlasting chime through every 
 age ; amid the chaos of strange sounds, the storm 
 music of this lower world, the spiritually-educated 
 ear shall detect it, as the soft, sweet, melodious 
 theme which ever pervades it, giving meaning to 
 its discords, rising and falling, but never entirely 
 lost. 
 
 The various phases of human thought ebb and 
 flow, different systems of philosophy rise and fall, 
 but in the midst of the ever-floating and shifting 
 debris of sentiment and feeling, God's thoughts 
 shall continue. God has determined that they 
 shall live in men's hearts, and find an intelligent 
 utterance in their lives. Generation after gene- 
 ration comes and goes, but in the midst of each 
 God ever places His sweet singers to give the key- 
 notes to the coming ages of all that is truly good 
 
WELLS OF SALVATION. 223 
 
 and great. It is a simple and sublime song which 
 the redeemed ever sing, for it is not built upon the 
 theories of men, the wild vagaries of theological 
 dreamers, the empty conceits of doctors of divinity, 
 the semi-rationalistic teaching of initiative theolo- 
 gians, but upon the eternal and immutable WORD 
 OF GOD ; the truth as realised in their own living 
 experience, and the great things which God has 
 done for their salvation. And hence, notwith- 
 standing the contempt and scorn with which these 
 simple and illiterate songsters are frequently 
 treated by the wise and prudent in their own 
 eyes, they continue to live, and to give utterance 
 to thoughts which shall live and burn, and con- 
 tinue to cheer and guide the living host of God's 
 elect over the barren sands of this wilderness, and 
 upwards and onwards far above the clouds of 
 human speculation to the very throne of God and 
 the Lamb. 
 
 The prophet having referred to a period, and 
 declared what the redeemed should say, and the 
 holy and divine assurance which should mark 
 their speech, next proceeds to make known what 
 they should do, and says, " Therefore with joy 
 shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation." 
 We will notice these wells, and the employment 
 of the people of God in connexion therewith. 
 
 The wells of salvation. It is said, that while the 
 French engineers were boring for water in the 
 African desert, the Arabs looked on in silent won- 
 
224: LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 der, until they saw the precious stream actually 
 gushing forth, and then their joy knew no bounds ; 
 and sweet and precious as the cooling waters are 
 now to the weary, labouring child of the desert, 
 so precious were they to the people to whom the 
 words of the prophet were originally addressed ; 
 and the promise to them of an indefinite supply 
 of that element which is so essential to natural 
 life, would be highly appreciated by them, and 
 well calculated to inspire their gratitude and joy. 
 But there can be no doubt but that these words refer 
 to the mind more than the body, and to spiritual 
 rather than natural life. And we have here a pro- 
 mise to the people of God, that for them there 
 shall ever be mediums of divine deliverance and 
 spiritual refreshment in the desert of time, until 
 the gospel day shall lose itself in the brightness 
 and beauty of eternity's morning. 
 
 We may apply the figure to the persons of 
 Deity. In the Scriptures, God the Father is ever 
 brought before us as the great original spring- 
 head, and source of salvation to His people : and 
 hence we find Him reproving them for "forsaking 
 Him, the fountain of living waters, to hew out to 
 themselves broken cisterns which could hold no 
 water." 
 
 God the Son also may be viewed as a well of 
 salvation. "If any man thirst/' said He, "let 
 him come unto me, and drink;" and on another 
 occasion, " Whosoever shall drink of the water 
 
WELLS OF SALVATION. 225 
 
 which I shall give him shall never thirst; but 
 the water that I shall give him shall be in him, a 
 well of water springing up into everlasting life;" 
 while the Holy Spirit is represented by the same 
 divine Teacher, as being the medium through 
 which these living waters flow; "for," says the 
 inspired apostle, "the kingdom of God is not in 
 meat nor drink, but righteousness and peace and 
 joy in the holy Ghost." 
 
 The doctrines of divine grace may also be 
 viewed as so many wells of salvation to the soul, 
 for "Ye shall know the truth," said our Saviour, 
 " and the truth shall make you free," and " Sanc- 
 tify them by thy truth ; thy word is truth." 
 
 1. A covenant ordered in all things and sure. 
 This eternal and immutable covenant, which has 
 for its object the salvation of all God's people, has 
 been a source of strong consolation to the spiritu- 
 ally-educated but afflicted pilgrims of Zion in 
 every age, and hence such have been wont to say, 
 "that it is all their salvation and all their desire." 
 Some Christians cannot see this covenant as re- 
 vealed of God ; the New Testament, is, however, 
 but an amplification of it in so many words ; and 
 as a book exists in the mind of an author before 
 it has a visible incarnation through the medium 
 of ink and paper, so the covenant of grace existed 
 in the mind and purpose of God long before it 
 had an intelligent expression in the language of 
 men upon the sacred page. 
 
226 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 2. Electing love. This is a deep well, bringing 
 its sweet waters from the very depths of eternity. 
 True it is, some either through ignorance or pre- 
 judice, refuse to drink at this well ; but oh, with 
 what joy did the Apostle drink of its waters ! 
 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual 
 blessings in heavenly places in Christ, according 
 as He hath chosen us in him before the foundation 
 of the world, that we should be holy and without 
 blame before Him in love." Those who are indif- 
 ferent to religion, ought not to be offended by 
 that which they practically declare does not con- 
 cern them, and of which they can have no com- 
 petent knowlege ; while surely it should give no 
 offence to those who love Jesus to be told, that 
 their love to Him declares them to be the especial 
 objects of His eternal and peculiar love. 
 
 3. Particular redemption. This is a well, the 
 flow of whose deep and crimsoned waters removes 
 all obstructions from the path of divine mercy, as 
 she comes forth to the help and succour of the 
 wretched and lost. By the side of this well the 
 redeemed have been wont to si^ in every age, to 
 muse upon the love of God, while the wonders it 
 has accomplished ever form the theme of their 
 most sweet and exalted song. 
 
 4. Divine calling. Through this well the water 
 of divine grace first flows into the soul. " And 
 in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the 
 
WELLS OF SALVATION. 227 
 
 book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of 
 obscurity, and out of darkness." " Who hath 
 saved us,' 7 says the Apostle, " and called us with 
 an holy calling, not according to our works, but 
 according to His own purpose and grace, which 
 was given us in Christ Jesus before the world 
 began." 
 
 Pardon. This is a well much frequented by the 
 guilty in quest of mercy ; and oh ! how sweet are 
 its waters to the soul when all but fainting beneath 
 the burning heat of divine displeasure and the 
 burden of sin ! 
 
 Justification. This well ever yields a rich and 
 constant supply of the deep waters of peace ; 
 "Being justified by faith, we have peace with 
 God." 
 
 Sanctification. "To be carnally minded is death : 
 to be spiritually minded is life and peace." The 
 most corrupt and depraved are cleansed by the 
 waters of this well. 
 
 Perseverance. u I give unto them eternal life, 
 and they shall never perish, neither shall any 
 pluck them out of my hand." Oh ! how many of 
 the sheep of mercy's pasture would have perished 
 but for this well ! how frequently has its reviving 
 streams restored their drooping faith ! " He re- 
 storeth my soul." 
 
 Glorification. This may be spoken of as a well 
 of delight to the earnest pilgrim, especially when 
 the wilderness is cold and bleak, and yields no 
 
228 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 green thing to refresh the eye ; its ever-flowing 
 waters frequently make a paradise in the soul. 
 Sitting by its side, the weary spirit gathers 
 strength, the sad heart loses the burden of its sor- 
 rows, while faith wipes the tear from the eye, and 
 points to the land of the blest. 
 
 The precious and adapted promises of the Gospel, 
 also, may be viewed as so many wells of salvation 
 to the soul ; and, however barren and desolate the 
 path of the travelling church, it is ever fringed 
 with these wells, whose waters fail not ; although, 
 like Hagar of old, she frequently perceives them 
 not until God opens her eyes. And hence it is 
 written, " The wilderness and solitary place shall 
 be glad for them ; and the desert shall rejoice and 
 blossom as the rose." Wherever the redeemed go, 
 the river-tide of Divine mercy follows them, ever 
 singing as it flows, to bless them and make them 
 blessings. The promises of God never spread 
 themselves before the eye of faith as a deceitful 
 mirage, but as a sea of love from which the waters 
 of peace ever flow. 
 
 The precepts of Christ, also, are frequently 
 proved to be so many wells of salvation to the real 
 Christian. Hence said the Psalmist, " I will not for- 
 get thy precepts, for by them thou hast quickened 
 me;" and, "by the words of thy mouth have I 
 kept myself from the paths of the destroyer." 
 
 All the relative names and offices of Christ are 
 so many wells of salvation. Oh, how precious to 
 
WELLS OF SALVATION. 229 
 
 those who know and love Him ! The ordinances 
 of God's house, when filled with His blessing, are 
 also wells of salvation to those who are seeking 
 the favour of the Most High. The Lord was with 
 His disciples of old in the breaking of bread and 
 prayer; and it was when baptized in the river 
 Jordan, that the dove of peace descended upon the 
 head of Christ, and the voice of His Father was 
 heard, saying, " This is my beloved Son, in whom 
 I am well pleased : hear ye him." 
 
 Nor should we forget that by the ordinance of 
 secret prayer, the redeemed of the Lord have 
 frequently opened a well in the wilderness : " who 
 passing through the Valley of Baca, make it a 
 well." It is this mysterious, this prevalent power 
 of faith in the believer, which converts this wilder- 
 ness into an Eden of fruitfulness and joy, and 
 opens a river of life and peace from the bleak and 
 barren rock of affliction, poverty, and death. Of 
 the wells of salvation, the believer, therefore, may, 
 ever in faith and in prayer, earnestly and constant- 
 ly exclaim, " Spring up, well ! " for from these 
 wells are destined to flow forth those streams which 
 shall ultimately gird the entire universe with fer- 
 tility and joy. 
 
 But these wells are to afford employment to 
 the redeemed: "With, joy shall ye draw water 
 out of the wells of salvation." Through the me- 
 diums mentioned, the people of God are to receive 
 the water of Divine grace, life, and peace ; they 
 20 
 
230 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 are to draw water. If asked, how ? by using the 
 means God has appointed the ordinances of God's 
 house, secret and public prayer; but above all, 
 by believing : faith is the simple and sublime in- 
 strumentality by which the Christian drinks of 
 those streams which make glad the city of God. 
 " He that believeth on me, out of his belly shall 
 flow rivers of living water." 
 
 And for what purpose shall the redeemed draw 
 these waters ? For their own encouragement, con- 
 solation, strength, and fruitfulness ; and also for 
 the benefit of others; for u no man liveth to him- 
 self," saith the Apostle, "and no man dieth to 
 himself; but whether we live or die, we are the 
 Lord's." Oh, how frequently do believers seek 
 earnestly a blessing for others, when their sense 
 of personal un worthiness seems all but to preclude 
 the hope that they can receive one for them- 
 selves! 
 
 But, with joy shall ye draw water. Why with 
 joy ? Because their service shall be a service of 
 love, and love makes labour light a free service: 
 they shall serve as sons and not as slaves. Be- 
 cause their service shall be disinterested, and such 
 a service is ever pleasant. Because it shall be a 
 holy service, and such a service must be a happy 
 service. The prophet, however, assigns the reason 
 in the context " And in that day thou shalt say, 
 Lord, I will praise thee: though thou wast 
 ^angry with me, thine .anger is .turned away, and 
 
WELLS OF SALVATION. 231 
 
 thou comfortest me ;" " therefore with joy shall ye 
 draw water out of the wells of salvation." 
 
 " Behold, God is thy salvation !" " therefore with 
 joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salva- 
 tion." 
 
 " I will trust and not be afraid ;" " therefore with 
 joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salva- 
 tion." 
 
 " For the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my 
 song; He also is become my salvation;" " there- 
 fore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells 
 of salvation." 
 
 The reader will observe that the chief reason 
 why the church is to draw water with joy out of 
 the " wells of salvation," is the holy and sublime 
 assurance she has of her interest in God "Be- 
 hold, God is my salvation !" This is the life- 
 giving root of all true joy and spiritual service ; 
 and because God ever lives, the wells of salvation 
 can never run dry ; the church shall continue as 
 a garden enclosed, and a living spring, whose 
 waters fail not; " therefore with joy shall ye draw 
 water out of the wells of salvation." 
 
 From the whole, then, we may learn, that al- 
 though believers are very highly favoured and 
 distinguished of God, they nevertheless continue 
 to be spiritually poor and dependent upon their 
 Lord; that God has provided all that they can 
 possibly need to meet their wants, and to make 
 them equal to a joyful and happy service ; and 
 
232 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 that it is their duty and privilege to avail them- 
 selves of what He has in love provided. We may 
 learn, still further, that assurance of interest in the 
 love of God is the root of all spiritual activity in 
 His service, and that the obedience He requires is 
 cheerful and intelligent, and a source of satisfaction 
 and delight to the soul ; and, finally, that the doc- 
 trines of divine grace, being so many sources of 
 spiritual life, refreshment, and strength to the 
 soul, can never become obsolete, and that so far as 
 they are wilfully kept back, or ignorantly super- 
 seded by something else, to the same extent must 
 the Church lose her spiritual health, joy, and 
 fruitfulness. Many who have drunk but very 
 superficially of the wells of salvation, and who, 
 whatever they may know of other things, know 
 but little of themselves, or of Divine teaching, 
 speak of the growth of the church as a something 
 so transcendent as to have superseded the old- 
 fashioned wells of salvation. These are too rustic 
 for their approbation ; but let not the believer be 
 deceived. Men may have more faith in their own 
 dreams than God's word, and prefer their own 
 thoughts to His ; they may originate new systems 
 or mar God's, thinking they are doing Him ser- 
 vice; but, after all, their thoughts and schemes 
 turn out to be but broken cisterns. They 'may 
 alter and modify them, elaborate, carve and gild 
 them make them of gold, silver, copper, or brass: 
 still they are but broken cisterns which hold no 
 
WELLS OF SALVATION. . 233 
 
 water, and only serve to mock the thirst of the 
 heaven-bound pilgrim. 
 
 It is the duty and privilege of the church, 
 therefore, to stand by the " wells of salvation ;" 
 to remember that truth is immutable and will 
 never change ; that God will conquer the world 
 by His own thoughts, and not man's ; that though 
 the age may advance in knowledge, yet, if men are 
 to be saved, they must come to the " wells of 
 salvation" to drink ; that sin is the same in this 
 age, as those which have preceded it, and that 
 God's method of putting it away is the same ; that 
 man is as unjust as ever he was, and that God has 
 the same method of justifying him ; that the heart 
 is still as corrupt, and that God has the same grace, 
 by which He cleanses it. Let us not, therefore, be 
 carried away by fine talk, but listen to the words of 
 Christ. " Sanctify them by thy truth," said He ; 
 " thy word is truth." The same truth which sanc- 
 tified the church triumphant, is to elevate the 
 church militant ; and let us endeavour to show 
 the reality of spiritual growth above and beyond 
 our fathers, by the reverence we manifest for the 
 Gospel of Christ, and by seeking to drink at the 
 wells of pure and unadulterated truth. 
 
 Let us give heed to the apostolic admonition, 
 " Beware lest any man spoil you through philo- 
 sophy and vain deceit, after the rudiments of the 
 world, and not after Christ." Let us remember, 
 believer, that it is our especial vocation to make 
 20* 
 
234 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 known the "wells of salvation;" and when we 
 perceive a poor creature wearied in the greatness 
 of his way, seeking happiness and finding none, 
 let us direct him to the true source of peace and 
 joy. Oh, may the Gospel become increasingly 
 precious to us ! may it be our joy to point the 
 guilty to the well of full and free forgiveness, 
 through a crucified Redeemer, and the tried and 
 afflicted saint to that spring of sovereign and 
 immutable love which will never exhaust itself ! 
 and thus employing ourselves, we shall do more 
 to elevate and bless our fellows than mere philo- 
 sophy and eloquent talk have ever accomplished, 
 and realise for ourselves the truth of the Divine 
 declaration " Therefore with joy shall ye draw 
 water out of the wells of salvation." 
 
 " Not lost are they whose journey lies 
 
 Along the world's most tangled ways ; 
 
 Nor need they faint if burning skies 
 
 Dry up t he wells for many days ; 
 
 Nor they repine whose lot command 
 
 A life-path through the desert sands. 
 
 For, lo ! the Gospel waters clear 
 
 Are given to their aching eyes, 
 Wherein, through mist of earthly tear, 
 
 They yet may see the skies, 
 Along whose margin spreads the strand 
 That stretches to the Holy Land. 
 
 We may be poor through all our days, 
 Yet gather great increase : 
 
WELLS OF SALVATION. 235 
 
 Our lives may lead through rugged ways, 
 
 But all their paths be peace ; 
 And they on earth the sons of toil, 
 Are heirs of an immortal soil. 
 
 'Twas thus the ladder's lowest round 
 
 Rose up where, faint and weary thrown, 
 The Patriarch's head no pillow found 
 
 More gentle than the stone ; 
 Yet there he caught the message bright 
 
 That sounded down the golden spars, 
 And track'd in dreams, the steps of light 
 
 That stretch'd beyond the stars ; 
 And knew they were the shining road 
 That took the angels up to God." 
 
 T. K. HEEVEY, Esq. 
 
 " Lays of the Sanctuary." 
 
" Two things have shone with golden light 
 
 Upon the way where I am sent : 
 A rich man poor in his own sight, 
 
 And a poor man rich in his content. 
 But a nobler thing than even these, 
 
 And shining with a light more pure, 
 Is a poor man kneeling on his knees, 
 And thanking God that he is poor." 
 
 REV. W. W. How, M.A. 
 " Lays of the Sanctuary" 
 
 <l Hereby many deceive their own souls : goods, lands, posses- 
 sions, relations, trades, with secular interest in them, are the 
 things whose image is drawn on their minds, and whose charac- 
 ters are written on their foreheads as the titles whereby they 
 may be known. As believers, beholding the glory of Christ in 
 the blessed image of the Gospel, are changed into the same 
 image arid likeness by the Spirit of the Lord : so these persons, 
 beholding the beauty of the world and the things that are in it 
 in the cursed glass of self-love, are in their minds changed into 
 the same image. Hence perplexing fears, vain hopes, empty 
 embraces of things perishing, fruitless desires, earthly, carnal 
 designs, cursed self-pleasing imaginations, feeding on, and being 
 fed by the love of the world and self, do abide and prevail in 
 them. (Eph. iv. 17 20; Rom. viii. 6.) But we have not so 
 learned Christ." 
 
 OWEN. 
 
t jlnhrnn Jtrntomtion; 
 
 OB, 
 
 
 
 A LESSON FOR THE COVETOUS. 
 
 " Take heed and beware of covetousness." Luke xii. 15. 
 
 SIN having made man a coward at heart, he is apt 
 to raise false alarms, and frequently, through the 
 want of wisdom, he attaches very solemn admoni- 
 tions to things scarcely worthy of his attention. 
 This is not the case, however, with the Great 
 Teacher and man's best Friend. If a note of warn- 
 ing a beware falls from His lips, we may ever 
 view it as a beacon-light upon some hidden rock, 
 upon which many have made shipwreck as a 
 floating light amid a sea of danger ; and this is 
 pre-eminently the case in those solemn words the 
 importance of which induces us to cite them again : 
 "Take heed, and BEWARE of covetousness." 
 
 Of this sin we may affirm, that it is the one great 
 sin to which men are primarily exposed ; having 
 ceased to desire the best of all portions, God Him- 
 
238 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 self, their corrupt hearts perpetually go astray after 
 other things, which they would fain put in His 
 place, and make to be to their hearts what He 
 only can be. But while this sin embraces more 
 or less all alike, both rich and poor, binding all to 
 the bleak and barren rock of dissatisfaction and 
 despair, but few are conscious of its influence, and 
 very few indeed ever confess it either before God 
 or man. The truth is, sin has made man so com- 
 pletely selfish, that not until the love of God loosens 
 his affections from himself does he become aware 
 of the number or strength of the foes by whom 
 he is held captive. Some, too, have a difficulty 
 in understanding what is meant by covetousness. 
 The word of God, however, speaks of it clearly and 
 explicitly, as inordinate desire, perpetually striving 
 to reach a practical issue, irrespective of right or 
 wrong or the glory of God. It is a parent sin, 
 and never exists by itself. The covetous man 
 will mostly be found to be a niggard ; sordid, mer- 
 cenary, mean, unscrupulous, cruel, and dishonest. 
 With such features of character, such a one might 
 certainly be viewed as the masterpiece of Satanic 
 agency. Let us, therefore, take heed, and beware 
 of this sin ; because 
 
 1. It estranges from God. This follows as a 
 necessary result. A covetous man is perpetually 
 putting something else in the place of God ; and 
 hence God stands at a distance from him. 
 
 Covetousness also hardens the heart, locks up 
 
THE SOLEMN ADMONITION. 239 
 
 the affections, shuts up all bowels of mercy, makes 
 men cruel, unnatural, most unlike God, who "is 
 love," and loves to communicate Himself. A 
 covetous man is in fact a moral petrifaction, and 
 with such God can hold no communion. 
 
 Covetousness leads to a suspension of that Di- 
 vine influence which is essential to nearness with 
 God. The dew will not rest upon a rock ; nei- 
 ther will God's free, loving, and beneficent Spirit 
 dwell with the man who, under the mastery of 
 this odious sin, lives exclusively for the gratifi- 
 cation of himself. 
 
 Covetousness cripples confidence in God ; and 
 when confidence in God leaves the heart, com- 
 munion with Him fails : the soul finds itself upon 
 an inclined plane, and by the weight of its own 
 selfishness gravitates further and further from 
 God, until faith becomes a moral impossibility, 
 and God declares, "Ephraim is joined to idols; 
 LET HIM ALONE !" And hence covetous men are 
 generally timid, full of doubts and fears ; a spirit 
 of bondage binds them, and they are often afraid 
 to die, while yet too miserable to live ; for, when 
 the heart so embraces its idol as entirely to ex- 
 clude God, estrangement is complete, and all kinds 
 of misery begin to prey upon the soul. 
 
 2. Of its insidious development. This sin more 
 than all others grows upon men. It resembles a 
 certain plant, which, having selected a tree, con- 
 tinues to creep up and entwine its fibres so closely 
 
240 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 around it, that at last it is suffocated, and perishes 
 in the embrace of the parasite which its strength 
 had nourished and sustained. Oh ! let us beware 
 of this sin, which, like a serpent, ever seeks by 
 degrees to coil around us, that it may sting us 
 down to hell. 
 
 3. On account of its influence upon others. This 
 sin, like all others, communicates itself. We have 
 heard of a certain family, the members of which 
 would sit together for hours in the dark on a 
 winter's night, rather than be at the expense of a 
 candle ; and yet they were possessed of thousands. 
 Through the indulgence of this sin, the husband 
 may ruin the wife, and the wife the husband ; the 
 parents their children, and the children their 
 parents. Reflect, reader, how awful to be instru- 
 mental in smiting those whom we love with a 
 moral leprosy, which must issue in eternal death ! 
 
 4. It pre-eminently dishonours Christ, on the part 
 of those who profess to be his disciples. " He that is 
 joined to the Lord is one spirit.' 7 Should the 
 men of the world believe this truth, what must 
 they think of Christ's spirit as they see it displayed 
 by a covetous Christian ? Oh ! what must be the 
 condemnation of those who by their covetousness 
 are transformed into so many living, practical, 
 walking, speaking libels of Christ of Him who, 
 " although He was rich, yet for our sakes became 
 poor, that we through His poverty might be made 
 rich ;" who parted with all that He had, and at 
 
THE SOLEMN ADMONITION. 241 
 
 last gave even Himself a sacrifice for His people, 
 that they through Him might have eternal life. 
 
 5. It so injures the cause of Christ. Covetous- 
 ness is like a moth fretting a garment ; however 
 costly and beautiful it may be, by degrees it will 
 be destroyed. And thus have many Christians 
 for a time been robbed of all their spiritual 
 strength and beauty ; while in reference to those 
 who have not grace, covetousness has ruined its 
 thousands. And what this sin does for the indi- 
 vidual, it will do for a community. Covetous 
 ministers and deacons especially hurt the cause 
 of God, and hold back the blessing of the Most 
 High. Let the reader read and ponder Isa. Iviii. 
 1012. 
 
 6. On account of the hell to which it exposes the 
 soul. Covetousness, of all sins, most assimilates 
 to Satan ; his heart is a covetous heart, his desires 
 are inordinate, but they all terminate in himself, 
 irrespective of the glory of God ; and hence the 
 misery of this great but fallen spirit. The dew 
 of God's holy and benign Spirit never rests upon 
 his heart, hardened and seared by the dominant 
 law of selfishness ; and hence, misery supreme, 
 no gushing forth of generous feeling, love, and 
 kindness, is ever witnessed there, to fertilise and 
 bless. The heart, to be happy, must be an all- 
 embracing heart, like the heart of God, and must 
 hold all things for the good of others. The devil 
 holds all things for himself, and this is his misery, 
 
 21 
 
242 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 a misery from which he cannot escape, for it is 
 himself. And hence, though as the god of this 
 world he has much, yet in reality he has nothing, 
 for he cannot get away from himself to enjoy it. 
 All his vast powers centre in himself; like so 
 many chains, they bind him to the central fire of 
 selfishness which consumes him: he never has 
 turned, he never can, he never will of himself 
 turn his face towards that blessed Sun of LOVE 
 whose beams could thaw his awful nature into 
 fruitful ness and joy, and scatter for ever the 
 dreadful winter of hate, covetousness, and de- 
 spair, which for ever feed upon his mighty heart, 
 and create an eternal desolation in that spirit 
 which once stood erect and brightest before the 
 throne of God. Now, by covetousness men are, 
 as we have observed, assimilated to Satan and 
 fitted for his society ; and to the place for which 
 men fit themselves by their sins, God's Word 
 declares they shall go. And, reader, canst thou 
 conceive of anything more awful than this? 
 Picture to thyself a number of covetous men 
 compelled to live together in the same house 
 with no other society for one hundred years 
 what a scene of moral ruin and misery thou 
 wouldst witness ! Canst thou not imagine, that, 
 as these men became less and less human under 
 the influence of their darling sin, how they would 
 torment each other, and even delight themselves 
 in their mutually inflicted pains ? Think, then, 
 
THE SOLEMN ADMONITION. 243 
 
 reader, of hell, with its covetous prince and his 
 children their state, the ages they have been 
 and must be together; and thy thought, if se- 
 rious, will give a terrible, and it is right that it 
 should, a terrible emphasis to these solemn 
 words of the Great Teacher, " Take heed, and 
 beware of covetousness." 
 
 But it is possible some may inquire how they 
 are to escape this all-besetting sin. Can the 
 dreadful chains by which it binds the spirit to the 
 regions of woe be broken ? They can : the hands 
 of that God-man who spoiled Satan, and which 
 were nailed to the tree for our sins, can break 
 them. Dost thou ask how? by leading thee e to 
 believe in Himself, and to look constantly to Him 
 for strength to overcome this sin as every other. 
 Dost thou doubt this ? see it exemplified in the 
 publican of old (Luke xix. 8). Faith will enable 
 thee to bring thy heart near to the heart of Christ, 
 and here it will lose its covetousness, and thou 
 wilt realise for thyself the great truth uttered by 
 the Apostle, "For none of us liveth to himself, 
 and no man dieth to himself; for whether we live, 
 we live unto the Lord ; or whether we die, we 
 die unto the Lord : whether we live, therefore, or 
 die, we are the Lord's." A faith, therefore, that 
 works by love will save the soul even from the 
 deadly embraces of covetousness ; but it must be 
 a faith that works by love. "The liberal man 
 deviseth liberal things, and by liberal things he 
 
244 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 shall stand." This order must not be inverted ; 
 many imagine they are to stand by covetousness, 
 and to fall by liberality,. But, no ; God declares 
 we are to stand by liberality. Let our faith 
 prayerfully embrace this fact, and practise it, and 
 covetousness shall not claim us as its slaves. 
 
 " In vain do wealthy mortals toil, 
 
 And heap their shining dust in vain, 
 Look down and scorn the humble poor, 
 And boast their lofty hills of gain. 
 
 Their golden cordials cannot ease 
 Their pained hearts or aching heads, 
 
 Nor fright nor bribe approaching death 
 From glittering roofs and downy beds. 
 
 The lingering, the unwilling soul 
 
 The dismal summons must obey, 
 And bid a long, a sad farewell 
 
 To the pale lump of lifeless clay. 
 
 Thence they are huddled to the grave, 
 
 Where kings and slaves have equal thrones ; 
 
 Their bones without distinction lie 
 Amongst the heap of meaner bones." 
 
 WATTS. 
 
Christ is the only 
 
 Mass that e'er can save the soul ! His precious 
 And atoning blood, once spilt, for ever cleansed 
 And purified the church. He is alone, 
 The Altar, Sacrifice, and Priest : yea, ALL 
 A sinner needs to cleanse and save. 
 
 "Two things may quiet any man's conscience under the 
 greatest guilt. 1 Is there not a sufficient sacrifice ? Is there 
 . not satisfaction and atonement in the blood of Christ ? Is not 
 this a sufficient sacrifice? 2. Is it thine? This I know unbe- 
 lief is apt to stagger at ; but do but lay the hand of thy faith 
 upon the head of the sacrifice, and confess and forsake thy sins, 
 and all that Christ hath done shall be as effectual for thy good 
 as if thou thyself hadst suffered, yea, infinitely more." S. 
 MATHER. 
 
 "Here is mercy in its yearning tenderness; grace in its 
 boundless liberality;, power in its mightiest operations; wisdom 
 in its sweetest deepest contrivances ; faithfulness in its stability ; 
 holiness in all its beauty ; justice in all its glory ; God's whole 
 will perfectly expressed and responded to ; and all these attri- 
 butes the portion of the sinner, who trusts in the Saviour, all 
 honoured by his deliverance from hell, and restoration to the 
 glory of Clod." Our Great High' Priest. 
 
 REV. J. Cox. 
 
(fine fffmng ; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S REST. 
 
 " For ly one offering he hath perfected for ever them that 
 are sanctified" Heb. x. 12. 
 
 THERE is something very delightful in the contem- 
 plation of perfection a finished thing is generally 
 loved. For this reason the smallest expression of 
 Divine power has more charms for us than the 
 most choice productions of man. We look upon 
 a little flower made by God, as it hides its head in 
 the grass, with more pleasure in this particular 
 than the most classic book, ornate temple, or 
 ingenious instrument. And we love in thought 
 to ascend far above all worlds to the contemplation 
 of the Great Eternal, and far away from all sin 
 and imperfection to lay ourselves down at His feet, 
 to muse over the absolutely perfect, in the hope 
 that, at some future period, through the mediation 
 
248 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 of Christ, we shall lose all our imperfections in the 
 beams of His ineffable glory. 
 
 Now we have to contemplate a perfect work 
 the one offering of Jesus, with the result of 
 that perfection u He hath by His one offering for 
 ever peril cted the sanctified." We pity the man 
 who does not understand this language ; whatever 
 he may know of other things, being ignorant of 
 this, his learning will be of little service to him. 
 We are surrounded with the expressions of the 
 physical power of God, minute and diversified, and 
 perfection is written upon them all ; but here we 
 have a medium through which His moral attributes 
 display themselves in all their unsullied majesty 
 and glory. The sun, and the moon, and the stars 
 are but so many shining letters in the name of 
 God; but could we put them all together, pile 
 them up in one vast pyramid, blazing and burn- 
 ing with a light above the brightness of the sun, 
 still it would not spell out to us so much of God's 
 character as may be seen written upon the one 
 offering of Christ. God by one act brought this 
 vast world into existence by Him who offered 
 Himself up upon its surface, and by a series of 
 touches chastened and subdued, beautified and 
 ultimately subordinated it to man; and as we 
 gaze upon this finished temple, and think of the 
 one act which bade it spring forth out of nothing, 
 and the repeated strokes which fluted its columns, 
 carpeted the floor, and painted the ceiling, we 
 
THE ONE OFFERING. 249 
 
 wonder and adore. But when we contemplate 
 the one offering of Christ, what it embodies and 
 what it has accomplished, our wonder and adora- 
 tion is enhanced a thousandfold. That which the 
 many offerings of the law could not accomplish, 
 Jesus accomplishes by one. The creature offered 
 up by the creature could not reach the ultimate 
 design of God, but Himself presented through the 
 creature, accomplished at once and for ever the 
 work. This last act of Jesus was but the climax 
 of a series by which the spirituality of the law was 
 brought out and satisfied, for Christ worked out 
 the spirituality of the law as well by deeds as by 
 words, and the perfection of the church ensured. 
 To reach this grand consummation, to which all 
 the types and sacrifices of the law pointed, Jesus 
 became incarnate God and the creature became 
 one. The glory which the heaven of heavens 
 could not contain is for a time veiled in a temple 
 of clay. " Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, 
 God hath shined." From the womb of a virgin 
 comes forth a child whom the angels worship, while 
 the earth recognises the footprints of its adorable 
 Creator. Well might the angelic throng touch 
 their harps afresh, and the shepherds of Bethlehem 
 join in their song, when the Son of God stepped 
 from His throne into a manger, and the Ancient of 
 days appeared in an infant of time. From the 
 moment of His birth does His work commence, 
 fully conformed to the law from the breasts of His 
 
250 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 mother to the grave. He assumed the nature that 
 had sinned, though not a sinful nature, that He 
 might reach its sin, and for ever put it away. 
 This He accomplished by bearing its penalty. 
 Say some, he could not have endured the precise 
 penalty due to sin, for eternity enters into the 
 sufferings of the lost. True ; but does eternity 
 enter into the essence of punishment, or belong 
 rather to the inability of the creature, who is 
 not strong enough to bear the whole at once? 
 Say some, the humanity of Christ suffered only, 
 and, therefore, it was impossible that could have 
 borne all the curse, suffering, and misery due 
 to the myriads redeemed. Who shall say what 
 humanity could bear as sustained by the Divine ? 
 Upheld by Almighty power, we believe it did 
 bear a tornado of wrath which must have sought 
 to expend itself upon a guilty church, for ever, 
 but in vain. "You talk mysteries;' 7 yes, sacred 
 to a believing heart. The precise penalty im- 
 possible! what! wrath, anger, remorse, despair? 
 Do these belong to the essence of punishment, 
 or arise out of the sinner's consciousness that 
 he never can meet the requisitions of justice ? 
 If Christ did not bear the precise penalty threat- 
 ened, what relation have His sufferings to the 
 law ? If He bore but part, then to that extent 
 must judgment go by default. In the theory 
 of perfect equivalent, men may find difficulties ; 
 but does not its denial involve greater? We 
 
THE ONE OFFERING. 251 
 
 find it easier to believe even it than those which, 
 while they aim to destroy it, put nothing im- 
 plicitly and fairly in its place, but leave us to 
 search in vain for what it is in the one " one offer- 
 ing" of Christ, of such ineffable, such unutterable 
 value, that those who are embraced by it are eter- 
 nally perfected. Penitent sinner, dost thou ask 
 what it is ? It is the SATISFACTION which Christ 
 gave, really gave, to the justice of God for thy 
 sins. That justice simply demanded that which 
 was right. Christ yielded that, neither more nor 
 less ; standing in thy room and place, a surety 
 for thee, by the purpose of God made one with 
 thee, He bore all the wrath, curse and suffering 
 due to thy sins, that thou mightest escape. Thou 
 canst never understand what it cost Him, what 
 He suffered. The depths of those waters of sor- 
 row in which he was baptized will never be fa- 
 thomed by thee, and when thou dost approach 
 them let it be with holy awe ; put off thy shoes 
 from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou 
 standest is holy ground. Let not Speculation 
 place her cold hand upon thy heart, and avoid 
 the mere metaphysician when thou dost approach 
 the cross of Christ. The eye of the former may 
 be keen, but you look in vain for a tear ; while 
 the latter, counting the stripes of Jesus, says, they 
 fell upon a creature's back, and that so many and 
 no more could be endured before death seized his 
 victim. They take the fact you see that Jesus 
 
252 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 died. " Shake hands," say they, " over this.' 7 
 "Oh, no," says Faith, "'tis its significance that 
 constitutes its worth, that saves my soul, that 
 sanctifies my heart, and lifts me upwards towards 
 the throne of God ; superficial views of the justice 
 of God lead to superficial views of the sufferings 
 of Christ, and superficial views of the sufferings 
 of Christ lead to similar views of the nature of 
 sin." " I see no mystery in the cross of Christ," 
 says Eeason, and, putting her fingers into His 
 bleeding wounds, she says they are not deep. 
 Says Faith, " They are deep enough to hide all 
 the sins of the Church, for He has by His one 
 offering for ever perfected them that are sanctified, 
 and 
 
 " * Here I'll sit for ever viewing 
 
 Mercy's streams in streams of blood ; 
 Precious drops my soul bedewing, 
 
 Plead and claim my peace with God.' " 
 
 For ever perfected the sanctified? perfected, 
 how ? By the removal of sin, the procuring of 
 pardon, justification, sanctification. In relation 
 to what? l The law of God, the lawgiver God 
 Himself, if you please ; the act of justification 
 which passed upon the Head, when He arose 
 from the dead, embraced the members. In the 
 blood of Jesus the church lost at once and for 
 ever all her guilt. The huge burden of all her 
 sins He left in His sepulchre, never to be seen 
 again; and now in the eyes of absolute purity she 
 
THE ONE OFFERING. 253 
 
 stands without a spot. The law with its ten eyes 
 looks at her both within and without, and declares 
 her faultless. Holiness smiles upon her, and placing 
 her arms around her, lifts her to the very bosom 
 of God. Amid the streaming effulgence of heaven 
 her robes are white, and in beauty and brightness 
 outvie the clothing of cherubim and seraphim 
 before the throne. Here we have a perfection 
 not built upon the creature's excellence or work, 
 but the perfections and toil of the Son of God. 
 Here we behold the soul again restored to its 
 rightful Lord, and more than paradise regained. 
 We see it clothed in a beauty more glorious than 
 even that which sin took away, and imperishable 
 as the life of God, a perfection built upon the 
 finished work of Christ and secured and embraced 
 by all the attributes of Deity, and destined to dis- 
 play itself in the undying bliss of myriads through 
 the countless ages of eternity. glorious bride- 
 groom ! transcendent bride ! wondrous 
 sacrifice, which thus consummates a union preg- 
 nant with such divine results I my soul, amid 
 the many things which the passing pageant of 
 this world constantly presents to thy view, and 
 by which it would distract thy attention from 
 heavenly things, let the one offering of Jesus 
 never be overlooked. Let this be the central 
 object of all thy meditations, as it is the procuring 
 cause of all thy bliss. See thou but one offering 
 in the book of God and amid all the varied offer- 
 22 
 
 ^V^ Of 
 
254 LESSONS FEOM JESUS. 
 
 ings of the law ; see this world reared but as an 
 altar for its presentation to God. Behold it as the 
 central point of time, the pivot of providence, and 
 destined to exert an infallible and holy influence 
 over the present and eternal destiny of myriads 
 yet unborn. To this great offering come, and on 
 it present thy offerings, that they may be per- 
 fumed and accepted by the great I AM. Art 
 thou anxious to know if the one offering of Jesus 
 embraces thee ? He has by His one offering per- 
 fected them that are sanctified. Those who were 
 set apart by the Father's love, chosen in Jesus, 
 for whom He stood surety whom He received 
 as a precious gift from His Father's hand ah! 
 but who are they, say you ? Those who believe 
 in and love Jesus; those who obey and follow 
 Jesus ; those who hunger and thirst after Jesus ; 
 who not only desire to be saved by Jesus, but to 
 be conformed to Him these are the sanctified. 
 But while seeking to be sanctified, believer, .look 
 not to it, but to Jesus ; look not at the perfection 
 thou hast reached as the basis of thy hope, or it 
 will be hidden from thy eyes ; but look to the 
 perfection of Jesus, to His one offering. Here, 
 while labouring to glorify thy God, thou wilt find 
 a perfection which will never fail thee, but, in the 
 midst of all thy conscious sins and infirmities, 
 will ever remain the same, and will support thy 
 hope amid all the billows of temptation, the trials 
 of life, and the dark waves of death. 
 
THE ONE OFFERING. 255 
 
 " Jesus, thy blood and righteousness, 
 My beauty is, rny glorious dress ; 
 'Midst flaming worlds, in these arrayed, 
 With joy shall I lift up my head." 
 
 From these observations, the reader, it is hoped, 
 will perceive that there is an indissoluble con- 
 nexion between the finished work of Christ, and 
 the ultimate salvation of all who are embraced by 
 it. If the Atonement, therefore, of Christ em- 
 braces all men, then all men are perfected by it, 
 and who can perish ? Ah ! but faith is needed. 
 True, but faith creates nothing, but simply appre- 
 hends what is. Prom this stand-point, too, of 
 eternal truth, we see the sin of the Catholic priest, 
 who declares that he constantly offers up the Son 
 of God afresh in the unbloody sacrifice of the 
 Mass, and, by thus acting, as constantly impeaches 
 and denies the perfection of the sacrifice of Christ. 
 Upon this huge, monstrous, Christ-denying lie the 
 entire system of Rome is built ; take this away, 
 and the vast, voluptuous temple of superstition 
 falls. Let us aim to take it away, not by using 
 her weapons, by emulating her spirit, or by thun- 
 dering forth anathemas, but by making known 
 the truth. The death of Christ which is her 
 weakness, is our strength ; by her many offerings 
 she shall die, by the one offering of Christ we shall 
 live. This is the knife by which only we can kill 
 the pride and enmity of man ; the lever in the 
 hand of faith by which all false systems shall 
 
256 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 ultimately be overturned. Upon the one offering 
 of Jesus, as the most grand and sublime reality 
 which God Himself ever presented to the faith 
 and affections of an intelligent being, may we, 
 therefore, in simple and childlike faith, live, and, 
 thus fed and sustained, may we labour; and having 
 accomplished all the work assigned us through the 
 same blessed medium, may we enter into that rest 
 the enjoyment of which it has procured and en- 
 sured to the perfected just! 
 
 "Rest, weary soul! 
 
 The penalty is borne, the ransom paid, 
 For all thy sins full satisfaction made ; 
 Strive not thyself to do what Christ has done ; 
 Take the free gift, and make the joy thine own. 
 No more by pangs of guilt and fear distrest 
 
 Rest, sweetly rest ! 
 
 Rest, weary heart ! 
 
 From all thy silent griefs, and secret pain, 
 Thy profitless regrets, and longings vain ; 
 Wisdom and love have ordered all the past, 
 All shall be blessedness and light at last ; 
 Cast off the cares that have so long opprest 
 
 Rest, sweetly rest ! 
 
 Rest, weary head ! 
 
 Lie down to slumber in the peaceful tomb, 
 Light from above has broken through its gloom, 
 Here, in the^ place where once thy Saviour lay, 
 Where He shall wake thee on a future day, 
 Like a tired child upon its mother's breast- 
 Rest, sweetly rest ! 
 
THE ONE OFFERING. 257 
 
 Rest, spirit free ! 
 
 In the green pastures of the heavenly shore, 
 Where sin and sorrow can approach no more ; 
 "With all the flock by the Good Shepherd fed, 
 Beside the streams of life eternal led, 
 Forever with thy God and Saviour blest 
 
 Rest, sweetly rest I " 
 
 H. L. L. in Family Paper. 
 
" Hast thou a care, whose pressure dread 
 Expels sweet slumber from thy bed ? 
 To thy Redeemer take that care, 
 And change anxiety to prayer." 
 
 MRS. A. JULIUS. 
 
 " The green apple does not like to be twisted and torn from 
 the tree ; but the ripened fruit that has no more need for the 
 root's sap, drops easily off. Trust in the Lord, when a soul 
 attains it, lonsens every other bond, and makes it easy to let go 
 all which the world gives. When you feel your footing firm in 
 the peace of God, you will not be afraid though the earth should 
 sink away from beneath you." " Illustrations of the Book of Pro- 
 ve?ds" by REV. "W. ARNOT. 
 
 " It is easy to persuade Papists to lean on priests and saints, 
 on old rags and painted pictures on any idol ; but it is hard to 
 get a Protestant to trust in the living God." Ibid. 
 
 11 Popery sails with the stream when it bids men trust, for this 
 tails in with a tendency of nature ; but it puts forward to receive 
 the confiding soul a dead idol, whose presence is no rebuke to 
 indulged sin." Ibid. 
 
n tlteijer's (Swat f essoit; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE CONDITION OF PEACE. 
 
 " TJiou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed 
 on thee : because he trusteth in thee" Isaiah xxvi. 3. 
 
 THEKE are many very beautiful, congruous, and 
 harmonious things to be found in this lower crea- 
 tion : but none more beautiful, congruous, and 
 harmonious than that of a mind " stayed upon 
 God." But how rare a thing is this ; and how 
 seldom do we meet with it. There are myriads 
 of minds to be found in the world, but of how 
 few comparatively can it be affirmed that they 
 are stayed upon God. 
 
 Man is, indeed, a wanderer at a distance from 
 his home ; and his mind roams through the uni- 
 verse like an orphan seeking rest, and finding 
 none. Upon the flower of worldly pleasure his 
 mind frequently settles, like a bee seeking to ex- 
 tract from it the honey of contentment, but in 
 
260 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 vain. Wealth, learning, fame, successively pre- 
 sent themselves before him ; and enamoured 
 with their charms, he seeks to find rest in their 
 embrace, and as constantly fails. Any object, 
 indeed, he will for a time eulogise and receive, 
 rather than the God who made him ; and against 
 the requisitions of whose mercy he constantly 
 fights. In the world of mind, therefore, a mind 
 stayed upon God is a rare thing ; and it may be 
 profitable to notice some of its characteristics, and 
 the peace which stands connected with its privi- 
 lege. Such a mind is 
 
 1. A regenerate mind. Sin has made man de- 
 generate ; alive to anything and everything rather 
 than God. Under its influence the mind gravi- 
 tates from God, and that perpetually, from the 
 cradle to the grave. At regeneration, a principle 
 of spiritual life is infused into the soul by the 
 Holy Spirit, under the influence of which it again 
 turns to God, as its Great Parent, to find refuge 
 and peace. No human power can accomplish this ; 
 it is the work of God. " No man can come unto 
 me," said Christ, " except the Father which hath 
 sent me draw him." 
 
 2. Instructed. A mind stayed upon God does 
 not rest upon- Him like a stone in the ocean, with- 
 out intelligence or feeling ; but is possessed of 
 both. Such a mind will be found to be instruct- 
 ed, and that by God himself. " All thy children 
 shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the 
 
THE BELIEVER'S GREAT LESSON. 261 
 
 peace of thy children." The character of God is 
 known for " this is life eternal to know thee, 
 the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou 
 hast sent.' 7 " God, who commanded the light to 
 shine out of darkness, hath shined into our hearts, 
 to give the light of the knowledge of the glory 
 of God in the face of Jesus Christ." God out of 
 Christ, by reason of his Holiness, is a consuming 
 fire ; but in Christ, all his perfections are so har- 
 monised, as to become the couch of the soul. 
 Christ is the mirror in which God is seen by the 
 believer ; and here he learns how He can pardon 
 his sins ; how He can be just, and yet the justifier 
 of the ungodly ; and under the influence of these 
 perceptions he comes, and with child-like confi- 
 dence drops upon the bosom of paternal love. 
 The rest, therefore, of the soul, when it is of God, 
 is a sublimely intelligent rest; the mind is at 
 home amid the perfections of Deity ; is hushed to 
 rest by the very attributes of Jehovah, and be- 
 comes a medium by which they are perpetually 
 reflected. God looks upon the mind thus blessed 
 with holy delight and complacency, and says, 
 " This is my rest, here will I dwell, for I have 
 desired it;" while the soul responds, "Whom 
 have I in heaven but Thee, and there is none upon 
 the earth that I desire beside Thee. My heart and 
 flesh fail, but God is the strength of my heart and 
 my portion for ever." 
 
 3. Believing mind. " Thou wilt keep him in 
 
262 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: 
 because he trusteih in thee." It is by believing we 
 enter into rest. It is by faith that the hand of 
 God raises the soul to himself. " THOU wilt keep 
 him in peace." The waters of the human mind 
 God calms by the oil of faith ; faith is a balm, a 
 sedative for all its woes ; but the hand of God's 
 Spirit must apply it. Faith is an anchor to the 
 soul, sure and steadfast, and which entereth into 
 that within the veil ; but God fixes that anchor 
 upon the rock of Christ, and thus fulfils the pro- 
 mise, " Thou wilt keep Him in perfect peace, 
 whose mind is stayed on thee : because he trusteth 
 in thee." 
 
 4. Weaned mind. " My soul is like a weaned 
 child," said the psalmist. His soul had but one 
 Master God. The carnal mind has many lords, 
 who make sad havoc of its powers, and who help 
 themselves to its strength and peace as they please 
 hence its distractions and sorrows. The soul, 
 therefore, can never be itself until it comes to God. 
 Until the King takes possession of His throne, all 
 the subjects will rebel. To bring a man, there- 
 fore, to God, is to bring him to himself. A mind 
 stayed upon God is weaned from all created 
 things, and being weaned from them gains power 
 over them, and can subordinate them to their 
 legitimate uses. When the mind is content to be 
 nothing, that God may be all and in all, perfect 
 peace and prevalent victory is the result ; and 
 
THE BELIEVER'S GREAT LESSON. 263 
 
 those thus blessed even now reign with Christ, 
 and are made "kings and priests unto God." 
 
 5. Sanctified. If the mind, like a vessel, be- 
 comes emptied of itself and filled with Christ, we 
 are sure who has accomplished the work. The 
 GREAT SAISTCTIFIER only can purify the affections, 
 and lead the mind to desire and realize its true 
 rest in God. And how loving, yet invincible, is 
 His work. It is His kind hand removes all our 
 vain refuges until the heart of Jesus becomes the 
 home of the spirit. When contemplating man's 
 wrecked, forlorn, and storm-tossed spirit, at rest 
 upon the bosom of its God, let us never forget 
 that this shining gem in this universe of darkness 
 and uncertainty, is especially and emphatically 
 the work of God's Spirit. 
 
 But we have to notice the result of the mind 
 being stayed upon God " perfect peace" 
 
 This peace is a peace of harmony ; the soul is 
 in harmony with God, itself, and the world. 
 
 1. In harmony with God. This is essential to 
 real peace. That which is true of our physical 
 constitution, is no less true of our moral. The 
 body is an exquisitely -adjusted machine, every 
 part of which must work in accordance with the 
 intention of the Great Mechanician who put it 
 together, or health, which is indeed the peace of 
 the body, will be absent. And so with the soul ; 
 the intelligence which dwells in the midst of the 
 complicated bodily mechanism, with all its facul- 
 
264 . LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 ties, must be in accordance with God's moral 
 laws in order to peace. When the mind is stayed 
 upon Christ, this is accomplished, and peace is 
 the result. 
 
 2. In harmony with itself. This follows as the 
 result of the former. A mind in harmony with 
 God will be in harmony with itself, even as the 
 planets of the solar s} 7 stem being in harmony with 
 the sun, are in harmony with themselves: the 
 effect of this harmony is peace. 
 
 3. In harmony with the universe. A mind 
 stayed upon God is a rneek mind ; and the meek 
 shall inherit the earth. Such a mind will wisely 
 use the world, and not abuse it ; will be able fre- 
 quently to say, under the influence of holy and 
 sublime enjoyment, 
 
 " Creation's heir, the world, the world is mine." 
 
 Even the seeming discord of the world will be- 
 come music to the soul in harmony with God. 
 The mind, attuned to its highest and sublimest 
 function, like an JEolian harp touched by the 
 fingers of nature, will give forth its most latent 
 music, and yield in undying strains the richest 
 melodies of heaven the key-note of each and all, 
 however, being peace : " And the work of right- 
 eousness shall be peace ; and the effect of right- 
 eousness, quietness and assurance for ever." 
 
 This peace, however, is spoken of as a "perfect 
 peace :" 
 
THE BELIEVER'S GREAT LESSON. 265 
 
 1. Because it is complete in itself, and contains 
 the germ of present and everlasting bliss. 
 
 2. Because it is the fruit of God's most perfect 
 Spirit, harmonising the powers of the soul, and 
 bringing them into accordance with God, and 
 truth, and happiness. 
 
 8*. On account of the element of perpetuity it 
 contains, this perfect peace never fails the soul. 
 It is not affected by the changes of time ; it may 
 be compared to a river issuing from the throne 
 of God and the Lamb, and flowing on without 
 let or hindrance through the waste places of time 
 to the deep and quiet ocean of eternity. 
 
 4. It perfects the character; it frees the mind 
 from the reign of slavish fear, doubt, and uncer- 
 tainty, and fits for heaven. 
 
 We have said; that a mind stayed upon God is 
 a beautiful thing ; it is like a child in peace upon 
 its mother's breast; like a beautiful mirror re- 
 flecting the glory of God ; a well-tuned instru- 
 ment ever discoursing His praise. Oh that 
 through the teaching of God's Spirit this privi- 
 lege may become unceasingly ours ! 
 From these reflections, we may learn how 
 foolish it is to seek for happiness apart from the 
 favour of God, seeing that the conditions of hap- 
 piness depend upon the soul's being brought into 
 harmony with God. And what an encouraging 
 consideration, to the most disordered and de- 
 graded, that God in Christ speaks to us, and 
 23 
 
266 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 exhorts us to look to Him, that we may be saved. 
 The soul is, indeed, like a broken harp ; but God 
 can repair it ; and this He accomplishes, not by 
 education, philosophy, or morality, but by bring- 
 ing it to Himself, by the power of a living faith 
 in a crucified Saviour, the merits of His Son, and 
 the renewing of His Spirit. Thus is it, dear 
 reader, that the hand of Divine Mercy reaches 
 the soul in the midst of its most dreadful strug- 
 gles with sin and death, to raise it from its dan- 
 gers and sorrows to the very heights of glory and 
 renown. "TRUST YE (THEREFORE) IN THE 
 LORD FOR EVER; for in the Lord JEHOVAH 
 
 IS EVERLASTING STRENGTH." 
 
 " Thou hidden Love of God, whose height, 
 
 Whose depth unfathom'd no man knows, 
 I see from far thy beauteous light, 
 Inly I sigh for thy repose. 
 
 My heart is pain'd, nor can it be 
 At rest, till it findvS rest in Thee. 
 
 Thy secret voice invites me still 
 
 The sweetness of Thy yoke to prove ; 
 And fain I would ; but though my will 
 Seems fix'd, yet wide my passions rove, 
 And hindrances obstruct the way ; 
 I aim at Thee, but from Thee stray. 
 
 'Tis mercy all, that Thou hast brought 
 My mind to seek her peace in Thee ; 
 Yet, while I seek, but find Thee not, 
 No peace my wandering soul shall see. 
 Oh, when shall all my wanderings end, 
 And all my steps to heaven tend ! 
 
THE BELIEVER'S GREAT LESSOR. 267 
 
 Is there a thing beneath the sun 
 
 That strives with Thee my heart to share ? 
 Ah, tear it thence and reign alone, 
 The Lord of every motion there. 
 
 Then shall my heart from earth be free 
 When it hath found repose in Thee. 
 
 Each moment draw from earth away 
 
 My heart, that lowly waits Thy call. 
 Speak to my inmost soul and say, 
 'I am thy Love, thy God, thy All.' 
 To feel Thy power, to hear Thy voice, 
 To taste Thy love, be all my choice 1" 
 
" A seeming truth, and yet beware 
 The half truth only may be there. 
 The man is not of soul alone, 
 But soul and body knit in one ; 
 And will the Maker look for less 
 Than the whole being's earnestness?" 
 WM. SAWYER, ESQ., 
 
 " Lays of the Sanctuary" 
 
 "The turning which constitutes salvation is, supremely, all 
 God's gift, and subordinately, all the doing of man. From the 
 spring-head in the heart, to the outermost streams of life, He 
 makes all things new ; and yet the man himself must, at God's 
 bidding, turn from all iniquity." 
 
 KEV. "W. ARNOT, 
 "Illustrations of the Book of Proverbs. 11 
 
t fmtjfinj ; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE MANIFESTATION OF TRUTH TO THE 
 CONSCIENCE. 
 
 " By manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to 
 every man's conscience in the sight of God" 2 Cor. iv. 2. 
 
 WHAT God as a moral Governor claims from men 
 in general who hear the Gospel of His Son, and 
 how those claims are to be set forth by those to 
 whom is entrusted the proclamation of the tidings 
 of mercy, have been and must continue to be, 
 points of intense interest and prayerful anxiety to 
 the earnest Christian. When we reflect that a 
 mistake in reference to the former, will not only 
 dishonour God, but may be the means of mislead- 
 ing men to their eternal ruin, how solemnly import- 
 ant it is, that we should seek wisdom at the foun- 
 tain-head ; that so men may neither be deceived by 
 our words, nor alienated by our manner, but that, 
 emulating the conduct of the Apostle, " by the 
 23* 
 
270 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 manifestation of the truth we may commend our- 
 selves to every man's conscience in the sight of 
 God." The contemplation of these words may 
 tend to the elucidation of the points to which 
 reference is made above, and we will notice three 
 things : conscience, work, and manner. 
 
 Conscience. Much has been written respecting 
 this by many, and to but little purpose. Some 
 have made use of their reason to destroy con- 
 sciecne, thinking that by so doing they should get 
 rid of their responsibility. These men may be 
 viewed as moral suicides, both in reference to 
 themselves and society. They have argued thus: 
 Many are to be found among the heathen who 
 have not and never had a conscience, and, there- 
 fore, it is evident that God makes some men 
 without a conscience, and if without a conscience, 
 without responsibility. But does the absence of 
 a thing prove the normal condition of the thing 
 from which it is absent? Men may be found 
 without natural health, but does this prove that 
 God made or meant them to be so ? And ought 
 we not to distinguish between the existence of a 
 thing and the evidences of its existence ? The 
 eye is a beautiful optical instrument, perfect in 
 itself; and though it should present no object to 
 the mind in the midst of darkness, still the person 
 favoured with its possession would not be justified 
 in coming to the conclusion, that because he could 
 not see under such circumstance such an organ did 
 
APOSTOLIC PREACHING. 271 
 
 not exist. So man may have the faculty by which 
 to distinguish right from wrong, though the dark- 
 ness of ignorance may for a time prevent its exer- 
 cise. But let light from heaven stream inward 
 upon it through the truth, and we soon shall find 
 that the monitor is there, though for a long time 
 lulled to sleep by his own sin or the sins of his 
 parents. Here is a train of gunpowder, but we 
 cannot see it, and have no evidence of its exist- 
 ence ; but let a spark though ever so small reach 
 it, and what a sudden explosion ! And here is a 
 conscience altogether dead, and affording no evi- 
 dences of its existence, but the omnipotent Spirit 
 lets fall a spark of truth upon it, and what a 
 terrible storm in the soul ! the man is killed in 
 his apprehensions, while all his false hopes are 
 blown to pieces around him. It was so with the 
 Apostle Paul. He was once alive, he tells us, 
 without the law. It appeared as though he had 
 no conscience in relation to it but when the law 
 came, brought by the agency of the Holy Spirit, 
 when its true character was opened up to his mind, 
 his spiritual perception of the extent of its require- 
 ments pierced his slumbering conscience like a 
 knife, and it arose and pronounced the verdict of 
 condemnation upon him, and he stood a dead man 
 in the eye of law, with his false hope slain by his 
 side. We cannot, therefore, argue from what a 
 man is in a diseased condition, to what he is 
 when in health, either naturally or spiritually. 
 
272 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Nor does it follow, because conscience does not 
 trouble a man, that, therefore, he has none ; for in a 
 .moment, by the agency of truth, His Almighty 
 Spirit can demonstrate the contrary in the expe- 
 rience of any man, however ignorant or depraved 
 he may be. We think that if it be granted to us 
 that man has a soul as well as a body, we could, 
 arguing from analogy, prove that man must have 
 a conscience. Take a needle and pierce any part 
 of the body ; what is the result ? pain ; and 
 what is that but God's sentinel upon the walls of 
 our frail habitation, placed there by Him in love, 
 to warn us when we are violating any of the laws 
 of our physical being, that we may not destroy 
 ourselves? And can we for a moment suppose 
 that God would thus care for the material and 
 perishable, without a corresponding care for the 
 safety of the immaterial and imperishable ? We 
 believe that what we term conscience in the soul 
 of man, is this expression of God's superlative love 
 of that immortal inmate, and intended by Him to 
 preserve us from the violation of the laws of our 
 moral being, even as pain is by Him intended to 
 be subservient to the same result in reference to 
 the body. Though nations therefore may be 
 found, whose conscience has been partially or 
 wholly destroyed by their ancestors, and indivi- 
 duals who have, by their own sins, consigned to 
 death the friend whose faithful warnings and re- 
 proofs it was their duty, and would most assuredly 
 
APOSTOLIC PREACHING. 273 
 
 have been tlieir happiness to have preserved, still 
 of men in general, even the most ignorant and 
 depraved, we may safely affirm that there is in 
 them a moral sense, a mind capable of discrimina- 
 tion between right and wrong, termed conscience, 
 and which gives them a relation of responsibility 
 to the law and moral government of God. This 
 conscience, however, may and does exist in men 
 in various states ; it may be found in a state of 
 death, Eph. ii. 1; anxiety, Acts ii. 37; peace, 
 Eom. v. 1. 
 
 Now the Apostles while with all plainness of 
 speech they endeavoured to make known the truth 
 of the Gospel to the mind, and by their appeals to 
 the facts of human consciousness or experience, as 
 agreeing with the declarations of the Word of God, 
 sought to gain for their message a believing recep- 
 tion as coming from God never lost sight of the 
 various states of conscience to which we have re- 
 ferred, but sought through the medium of certain 
 adapted truths found in the Word of God, to reach 
 them, and to produce certain specific results in 
 relation to each. It may be instructive for us to 
 notice these results, and how they sought to pro- 
 duce them. Their object in reference to the dead 
 conscience would be to wound, alarm, and arouse 
 it ; in other words, in dependence upon the Holy 
 Spirit to vitalise it. This they endeavoured to 
 compass by : 
 
 1. Opening up the nature and spirituality of 
 
274 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 God's law, and the truth in general, to the under- 
 standing, and by reasoning and persuasion ; as 
 may be seen most fully exemplified in the Epistle 
 of Paul to the Galatians, and the course he pur- 
 sued with his unbelieving brethren at Antioch. 
 Acts xiii. 14. 
 
 2. By charging home certain sins upon the con- 
 sciences of those who were known to have com- 
 mitted them. Acts ii. 23. 
 
 3. By warnings : we shall cite but one, uttered 
 by Paul and Barnabas to the unbelieving Jews. 
 Acts xiii. 46. " Then Paul and Barnabas waxed 
 bold, and said, It was necessary that the Word of 
 God should first have been spoken to you : but 
 seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves 
 unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the 
 Gentiles." These words are very striking, and 
 plainly declare that the Apostles did not permit 
 men to go from beneath the sound of their voice 
 under the impression that their unbelief and desti- 
 tution of salvation were to be traced to the sove- 
 reignty of God, but to their own ignorance and 
 enmity ; they traced it to their own act and deed, 
 and threw the blame of their own condemnation 
 upon themselves u seeing ye judge yourselves un- 
 worthy of everlasting life." The heavy chain of 
 personal responsibility men are perpetually endea- 
 vouring, by all kinds of sophistries and the teach- 
 ing of Satan, to loosen from themselves and to 
 fasten upon God, vainly striving to throw the 
 
APOSTOLIC PREACHING. 275 
 
 blame of their eternal ruin upon him, the Apos- 
 tles constantly sought, by their teaching, and the 
 manifestation of the truth, to fasten again upon 
 them, with the design and prayer that they, feel- 
 ing its pressure, might be brought to seek for 
 mercy ; or if they did not, that the righteousness 
 of God might the more abundantly appear in 
 their condemnation . " We are unto God," said 
 he, " a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are 
 saved, and in them that perish." 
 
 4. By exhortation. Thus the Apostle upon 
 Mars-hill " and the times of this ignorance God 
 winked at; but now commandeth all men every- 
 where to repent." And the motive he brings 
 before them to incite them to repentance in de- 
 pendence upon God's Spirit was not derived from 
 any national good t<j be procured by it, or tem- 
 poral favour, but from the day of judgment and 
 their eternal destiny in relation to it. 
 
 The same course also was pursued by the Apos- 
 tle Peter, who did not hesitate to call upon Simon, 
 the sorcerer, to repent of his sin, and to pray to 
 God that it might be forgiven him/ "Kepent 
 therefore," said he, "of this thy wickedness, and 
 pray God, if perhaps the thought of thy heart 
 may be forgiven thee. For I perceive that thou art 
 in ike gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity " 
 Here we have a man exhorted to repentance and 
 prayer, that his sin may be forgiven him ; and, 
 of course, faith in the merits of Christ must have 
 
276 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 been involved, for there can be no pardon without 
 faith in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus. And the 
 reason why the Apostle so exhorted him was, that 
 he perceived him to be unconverted "I perceive," 
 said he, "thou art in the gall of bitterness," &c. 
 the very reason why some would not have so ex- 
 horted him, but have thought it extremely wrong 
 and a great folly to do so. 
 
 Our Saviour also exhorted sinners to seek their 
 salvation " While ye have light believe in the 
 light, that ye may be the children of light." 
 These words were addressed to the people indis- 
 criminately. It has been admitted that the appel- 
 lation "children of light," is never applied to any 
 but real Christians ; it follows, therefore, that 
 .Christ exhorted men in general to seek their salva- 
 tion, and to follow after real religion. Some have 
 affirmed that by these words our Saviour simply 
 exhorts to natural faith, and that those who so 
 believed and received him as the Messiah, might 
 be compared to children of light when contrasted 
 with those who rejected Him, although not saved 
 by their faith, or really converted in heart to God. 
 But it has been admitted that the phraseology is 
 never used but in reference to those who are 
 really converted to God; and to admit that Christ 
 exhorted to the exercise of such natural faith, as 
 the extent of man's obligation, would be equal to 
 an affirmation that He was broken in the aim of 
 His ministry that on some occasions He exhorted 
 
APOSTOLIC PKEACHING. 277 
 
 to that which on other occasions he condemned. 
 This is apparent from the parable of the " wise 
 and foolish virgins," in which He condemns those 
 who were satisfied with a mere form of religion, 
 and terms them foolish for taking a lamp without 
 oil. But if He exhorted them not to seek grace, 
 but merely to a faith which left them with their 
 hearts alienated and really in the world notwith- 
 standing their profession, a faith which left them 
 natural men still, and as such at enmity with God, 
 how could he justly term them foolish virgins ? 
 Could not such at the day of judgment reply to 
 Christ and say, Why term us foolish for being 
 what you simply exhorted us to be ? You did 
 not really call upon us to seek grace or the salva- 
 tion of our souls ; and have we not heard your 
 own servants, upon the ground of vour own re- 
 vealed will, ridicule duty-faith, and affirm that it 
 was folly to exhort us to seek the one thing need- 
 ful ? But can the reader believe that the exhorta- 
 tions of Christ for the most part were intended to 
 direct self-righteous men to a dead morality, which 
 He condemned, to believe with the faith of devils 
 to repent, while at the same time they hate, and 
 at last die in their sins and perish for ever ? Yet 
 all these things follow if Christ exhorted men to 
 a faith which left them natural men ; for a natural 
 man is a carnal man, and the carnal mind is enmity 
 against God; it is not subject to the law of God, 
 neither indeed can it be. If it be asserted that 
 24 
 
278 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Christ did call upon men to exercise such a faith, 
 and has made it incumbent upon His ministers to 
 do so now, we should be inclined to ask upon 
 what ground and to what law such a faith stands 
 related ? We certainly think it passing strange 
 that, standing in the midst of a self-righteous 
 people, He should exhort them to a faith which 
 was dead, not having a spiritual root, and that 
 He of whom it was said most emphatically that 
 He came to save the lost, should direct almost all 
 His efforts to the production of a grace which left 
 men still in their sins, and exposed to eternal 
 wrath. If this is not German neology, it is cer- 
 tainly something worse than negative theology, 
 as we have no doubt the day of eternity will 
 declare. 
 
 We could cite almost any number of passages 
 to prove our position that the Apostles sought 
 to arouse the dead consciences of men by exhort- 
 ing them to seek the salvation of their souls but 
 shall content ourselves with but two. Our Saviour, 
 addressing the Pharisees, said "Labour not for 
 the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which 
 endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of 
 man shall give unto you ; for Him hath God the 
 Father sealed." Then said they unto Him, " What 
 shall we do, that we might work the works of 
 God?" Jesus answered and said unto them, 
 "This is the work of God, that ye believe on 
 Him whom He hath sent." The people here, as 
 
APOSTOLIC PREACHING. 279 
 
 elsewhere, were all for working. "What shall 
 we do?" said they. "This is your duty," said 
 Christ, " not to work at all, but simply to believe" 
 This is what God demands of you, that you " be- 
 lieve on Him whom He hath sent." And the 
 motive to this was not that their nation might be 
 spared the judgments of God, or that they might 
 have a less degree of torment in hell, but that 
 they might have EVERLASTING LIFE. To a curious 
 speculative character, and there are many such, 
 who put a question to our Lord as to whether 
 few would be saved, He said, " Strive to enter in 
 at the straight gate." Upon this we cannot now 
 enlarge, but we would simply add, that we think 
 our Saviour dealt wisely with this man, who was 
 but a type of too many in our day ; our supreme 
 concern should be to know that we are interested 
 in Christ ; with the number to be saved, whether 
 few or many, we have nothing to do. 
 
 To what we have here stated many objections, 
 we have no doubt, will be brought. Some will 
 say, Why exhort the sinner to seek when he is 
 dead ? To which we reply, that the rule of a 
 man's obligation is not his ability or inability, 
 but the commands of God, which commands are 
 built upon His eternal law, which law makes it 
 incumbent upon man that, in whatever form the 
 will of God is made known to him, he should 
 receive it, and conform himself to it. And if it 
 be absurd to exhort men to believe because they 
 
280 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 cannot, then it must be equally absurd to open 
 up the law to- them, seeing that they have no 
 more power to perceive its spirituality, so as to 
 be savingly convinced of sin, than they have to 
 believe the Gospel. 
 
 Others may object that to exhort men in gene- 
 ral to seek the salvation of their souls is equal to 
 a declaration of insincerity on the part of God, 
 He having determined the salvation of the elect 
 only ; to which we reply that these exhortations 
 are not declarative of God's secret intentions, but 
 of the sinner's duty, and intended to show the 
 connexion God has established between the means 
 and the end to be accomplished viz. faith and 
 the salvation of the soul. God commanded 
 Pharaoh, by the mouth of His servant, to let His 
 people go, but secretly He determined he should 
 not ; was God insincere, or was it less Pharoah's 
 duty to have obeyed His command ? 
 
 But, say some, God has not provided salvation 
 for all. How, then, can all be exhorted to seek ? 
 Because obligation to believe does not arise out 
 of provision at all, but out of the eternal law of 
 God. If these explanations are not satisfactory, 
 and do not harmonise the doctrine of particular 
 redemption with a free appeal to the sinner's con- 
 science, what then shall we give up either? 
 God forbid ! Both being contained in the Word 
 of God, it is of more importance that we should 
 hold and declare both, than that we should sup- 
 
APOSTOLIC PREACHING. 281 
 
 ply connecting links, to make them harmonise 
 with each other, as we imagine. Does God seek 
 this at our hands ? Let the reader consider what 
 he must believe if he parts with either, and 
 whether other systems do not present greater 
 difficulties. 
 
 Suppose we were to say that the exhortations 
 we have referred to form but the moral instru- 
 mentality by which God seeks out His elect, the 
 Spirit of God making them efficient thereto ; can 
 this be shown to be inconsistent with the will, 
 wisdom, or Word of God? We should have no 
 objection to let them rest on this ground, espe- 
 cially as God himself has been pleased so to em- 
 ploy them ; and this fact one would think might 
 well induce us so to use them. 
 
 But we must conclude with a few words on 
 the MANNER or SPIRIT under the influence of 
 which the Apostle sought to accomplish his work 
 "commending ourselves," he says, "to every 
 man's conscience in the sight of God" It is very 
 evident from this declaration of the Apostle, that, 
 however great the number of persons to whom he 
 addressed himself, he did not lose his Master 
 among them, but kept the eye of his faith stead- 
 fastly fixed upon the God whom he served ; and 
 among the many important purposes which this 
 would accomplish in his soul, it would certainly 
 lift him above the smile or frown of the creature, 
 and enable him to look at man, simply as man. 
 24* 
 
282 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 Kings or princes might be among his auditors ; 
 but what could they be in his estimation compared 
 with the great God in whose presence he stood ? 
 The realization also of the Divine presence would 
 also impart fervour and becoming solemnity to 
 his speech. How important is the former ; while 
 in reference to the latter what is preaching with- 
 out it, but a sacred pantomime, a religious make- 
 believe? There is, however, a professional so- 
 lemnity put on by some, and which is as offensive 
 to God as the levity of the fool ; like all unreal 
 things, it is formal, dead, cold, uninteresting, and 
 uninfluential. And there is a solemnity which is 
 sacred, sweet, cheerful, enlivening, elevating, 
 instructive, subduing, and joyous under the in- 
 fluence of which both the speaker and hearer may 
 smile, sing, and even laugh. We suppose it is 
 so in the temple of heaven, and no less in the 
 spiritual church here, which is but the porch of 
 that temple. This solemnity, however, does not 
 arise out of a man's natural formation, but out of 
 the state of his soul before God, which leads him 
 to be natural because earnest, and the influence 
 of His Holy Spirit, so that it is just one of those 
 things which cannot be counterfeited. The very 
 reality and earnestness of some preachers, to- 
 gether with the sacred joyousness they feel in 
 their Master's work, will sometimes so influence 
 their manner and words as to provoke a smile, 
 which is frequently but expressive of spiritual 
 
APOSTOLIC PKEACHING. 283 
 
 perception and enjoyment of the truth so ad- 
 vanced ; and this shows the folly of those who 
 condemn without discrimination what they ima- 
 gine to be inconsistent, not with the work of 
 God, but with certain preconceived notions en- 
 gendered by monotonous ignorance or the canons 
 of respectable formality. Such persons very 
 frequently most require the very things they con- 
 demn in a preacher. So completely are they 
 asleep in the grave of formality that the very 
 voice of God himself, as it awakens the dead by 
 their side, is offensive to them, because it arouses 
 them from their slumber, disturbs their sacerdotal 
 vestments, and removes that darling order of 
 things upon which they have stretched themselves 
 for so many years with all the settled complacency 
 and serenity of death. But the holy cheerfulness 
 of the saint, and the smile that lights up his face 
 beneath the beaming forth of God's love throuo'h 
 the truth and His Spirit, must not be confounded 
 with the senseless titter of levity. The Apostle 
 never attempted to provoke a smile apart from a 
 moral purpose. He was neither a sanctimonious 
 formalist, nor a religious buffoon. He, at least, 
 could not perceive anything in the great verities 
 he proclaimed the state of man the cross of 
 Christ, heaven or hell to excite laughter in the 
 presence of the great God whom he served ; and 
 he forgot not one who had said, "Behold, I am 
 against them that prophesy false dreams, saith 
 
284: LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 the Lord, and do tell them, and cause my people 
 to err by their lies, and by their lightness ; yet I 
 sent them not, nor commanded them : therefore 
 they shall not profit this people at all, saith the 
 Lord." Jer. xxiii. 32. May the important truths 
 we have so slightly touched have our most prayer- 
 ful attention! 
 
 " Lord, preserve us in the faith, 
 
 Suffer nought to drive us thence, 
 Neither Satan, scorn, nor death ; 
 
 Be our God and our defence, 
 Though the flesh resist Thy will, 
 Let Thy word be stronger still. 
 
 And when we at last must die, 
 Oh, assure the sinking heart 
 
 Of the glorious realm on high, 
 Where thou healest every smart, 
 
 Of the joys unspeakable, 
 
 Where our God would have us dwell" 
 
"A school has risen up at Oxford and elsewhere, in which 
 some of the fundamental doctrines of the Gospel, especially the 
 atonement and the inspiration and authority of the Old Testa- 
 ment, are, if not absolutely denied, yet undermined. The atone- 
 ment means, as they teach it, nothing more than a manifestation 
 of Divine love, and the putting away of sin by its moral power 
 over the soul, but which has no reference to the authority and 
 majesty of the law and the rectitude of the Divine government ; 
 as held by them, it is merely a wonderful instance of fortitude 
 and patience under suffering of the Man of sorrows, and its whole 
 efficacy lies in the influence of those virtues on the human con- 
 science, but not in his death being an expiation of guilt, a vicarious 
 sacrifice of the Son of God. Mercy, according to their view, is 
 the only attribute of the Divine nature displayed in the stu- 
 pendous transactions of Calvary, while the manifestation of 
 public justice has no provision made for it in their view of the 
 scheme of human redemption. Thus while the name of atone- 
 ment is retained, and even that reluctantly, the true scriptural 
 idea, as shadowed forth in the sacrifices of the Old Testament 
 and asserted in the pages of the New, is denied and lost. This, 
 I fear, is the error which is insidiously corrupting the theology 
 of some Episcopalians and Nonconformists. From the writers 
 of this class we hear a good deal about ' enlightened and liberal 
 opinions,' 'a rational interpretation of Scriptures,' 'freedom from 
 the prejudices of the schools,' 'extreme views of inspiration,' 
 ' the narrow prejudices which trammel the noble spirit of theology 
 by creeds and catechisms.' And we have been lately told, 
 ' Science is the basis of a rational theology, which is to give the 
 death-blow to superstition.' All this high-sounding praise of 
 modern illumination, pronounced as it is by men whose genius 
 or whose style gives enchantment to their words, is seductive to 
 those young and ardent minds which are exulting in their free- 
 dom from the fetters of old systems, and is, I fear, leading some 
 astray from the way of truth." REV. J. A. JAMES. 
 
nsife 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE WHOLE COUNSEL OF GOD. 
 
 " Wherefore I take you to record this day that I am pure 
 from the Hood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare 
 unto you all the counsel of God." Acts xx. 26, 27. 
 
 WE should never forget that we live in a world 
 which produced a Judas, and that it is the place 
 where Christ was crucified ; that the saddest epi- 
 sodes of its history may find a place in our own 
 experience, and that the worst done by the worst 
 may gather a double emphasis from our lives. 
 This world, as of old, has a fair lip but a foul heart ; 
 and while professing to love the truth, it behoves 
 us to remember, that, in the person of Christ, it 
 did with truth what it did with virtue hung it 
 up between two thieves. By pretty words, there- 
 fore, we ought not to be deceived ; but, if God has 
 opened our hearts, as he did Lydia's of old, to 
 receive His words, we should buckle on our armour 
 
288 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 and prepare for the battle. Men, having departed 
 from God, are at a distance from the truth. He 
 speaks to them, but they do not care to listen to 
 His voice ; or, when they hear, their enmity is too 
 frequently the only result. Should our voice, 
 therefore, be in any degree the echo of the great 
 Lawgiver's, we may witness a similar result. From 
 the language of the Apostle Paul, it is evident that 
 this was his experience ; be affirmed, indeed, in 
 another place, that the preaching of the Cross was 
 to the Jews a stumbling-block, and to the Greeks 
 foolishness; and from his solemn appeal to the 
 consciences of his hearers, above cited, it is plain 
 that there are certain truths contained in the 
 Gospel of Christ to which the minds of men in 
 general are greatly opposed. "We may very briefly 
 notice some of those peculiarities of the Gospel 
 system towards which men ever have and continue 
 to manifest great enmity. And there are two 
 doctrines plainly revealed which generally develop 
 this latent tendency Divine sovereignty as it is 
 manifested and reigns in the salvation of man, and 
 human responsibility. Publish the former to the 
 exclusion of the latter, and men will not find much 
 fault ; on the contrary, it is the direct road to 
 popularity with numbers; for among the many 
 bad things sin has introduced into man's heart, 
 there are all the elements of a Mohammedan fatal- 
 ism, and he loves to be told that God so reigns as 
 to supersede all his duties and anxieties in refer- 
 

 POSITIVE THEOLOGY. 289 
 
 ence to his eternal destiny and that of others; 
 that as a blind man cannot see, so neither can he 
 understand ; that as a lame man cannot walk, so 
 neither can he love God. Poor sinner ! Ah, this 
 suits the enmity of such poor ; this indirect vindi- 
 cation of their wilful ignorance and hatred of the 
 light. And, on the other hand, those who fully 
 declare the latter while they repudiate the former, 
 swim bravely with the tide; for men are self- 
 righteous and proud, and care not how responsible 
 they are made, so long as God is not put above 
 them in the matter of their salvation, and they are 
 allowed, in some degree, to share the glory with 
 Him. 
 
 The doctrine, too, of divine and special influence 
 is exceedingly offensive to many, especially to 
 mere formalists. Such will talk about religion ; 
 and, although they think little, and never really 
 pray, are very oracular, and their opinion is quite 
 as good as any one's. " Special influence ! Non- 
 sense ; we rely upon the Word of Almighty God : 
 no one but ignorant and superstitious people talk 
 so. Special influence ! Why, that would involve 
 a change of which we are not conscious ; therefore, 
 down with it. Special influence ! Why, that 
 would involve the doctrine of special love, and 
 make God a respecter of persons ; mere enthu- 
 siasm !" 
 
 It would be very instructive to trace out how it 
 is that the grand peculiarities of the Gospel: 
 25 
 
290 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 the precious, purifying, exalting, and ennobling 
 thoughts of God^-are so alien to the natural 
 mind ; but such is the fact ; and, according to the 
 initiative, representative men of the present day, 
 our fathers made a great mistake in giving so 
 much prominence to them. The sanctified intel- 
 lect of the past is with them a very common, 
 strange, eccentric thing ; and could the glorified 
 Church once more robe herself in the garments 
 of frailty, and come into this world again on a 
 pilgrimage in quest of the truth, she would have 
 to sit at the feet of some modern divines who have 
 had little time for self-communion, and less incli- 
 nation to pray ; who have derived their inspiration 
 from the pages of Carlyle or the rhapsodies of 
 Emerson ; whose especial vocation and mission ap- 
 pears to be to sneer at the orthodox, to sympathise 
 with error, and to transform its egotistical progeny 
 into something transcendent ; and without shame 
 constantly, directly or indirectly, to libel and mis- 
 represent better men than themselves. 
 
 The manner, too, in which God would have His 
 truth brought before men, is frequently very 
 offensive to them. They love to have it intro- 
 duced with a long apologetic preamble, and many 
 polite excuses ; as a trembling culprit it must ever 
 stand at the bar of their reason ; and hence, where 
 there are not the strong convictions arising out 
 of spiritual life, the temptation not only to bring 
 forth but little truth, but even to present that 
 
POSITIVE THEOLOGY. 291 
 
 little in such a form as to rob it of all its influence 
 upon the conscience, frequently prevails. But 
 can it be right to treat man with such great con- 
 sideration, and God with so little to bring God's 
 thoughts before those whose minds are full of 
 pride and enmity, who seldom read His Word 
 and never pray, as so many coins which they are 
 to chink upon the counter of depraved reason, 
 lame logic, bald statements, crude notions, worldly 
 systems, and idle speculations, before they admit 
 their value or receive them, assuming that the 
 carnal mind as such is competent to pronounce at 
 once a righteous verdict upon the decisions of the 
 great Eternal? The Apostle would not speak 
 thus, but sought the prayers of his brethren that 
 he might speak boldly as he ought to speak ; and 
 those who declare what they have tasted and 
 handled of the "Word of God, will never Ihus 
 compliment the creature at the expense of the 
 Creator. But let not the people of God be de- 
 ceived ; those who speak thus as they ought to 
 speak, will ever be exposed to the educated scorn 
 of the ignorant, and the malice of the would-be 
 Christian leaders of transcendent doubters, whose 
 sorrows and aspirations do not terminate in Christ 
 or His exaltation, but in an ethical apotheosis of 
 themselves, their marvellous intuitions and theo- 
 logical vagaries, or a Byronic dirge over their 
 own inevitable misfortunes, but which leaves them 
 still the slaves of sin in some form or other, but 
 
292 LESSONS FROM JESUS 
 
 especially in bondage to the world and intellectual 
 pride. 
 
 From the language of the Apostle, then, we may 
 infer that there are certain truths in the revealed 
 will of God to which the natural mind is much 
 opposed ; and that on this account there is a 
 temptation presented to those who are engaged in 
 its proclamation to keep them back, and that in 
 some cases such is the actual result. Sometimes 
 this arises from the fact that those whose duty it 
 is to make known the truth, have never received 
 it themselves ; they have taken to the ministry as 
 the physician takes to medicine, or the ^olicitor 
 to the laws, imply for a living. These, of course, 
 are concerned only for peace, ease, and respect- 
 ability. Ministers ought to be raised above hard- 
 ship and privation of course they should ; but to 
 engage in the service of Christ, under the influence 
 of such motives and such anticipations, never to 
 have asked soberly and prayerfully, whether for 
 the sake of truth and fidelity to Christ all could 
 be sacrificed, and the path marked out by the 
 Apostle (2 Cor. vi. 4 10) accepted, marks the 
 character of the hireling, and not the man of God. 
 
 Some think that certain truths should be sup- 
 pressed for the sake of union, as though God would 
 have even this built upon the demoralisation of 
 His servants. 
 
 Others imagine they shall be more useful by 
 keeping back some of God's thoughts, though the 
 
POSITIVE THEOLOGY. 293 
 
 Apostles ever sought to lay hold of their hearers 
 by the whole of God's counsel, and Christ declared, 
 " Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall 
 make you free." 
 
 Some imagine they think deeply, and have more 
 faith in their own thoughts than God's declarations. 
 Truth is a strain of music : certain doctrines are 
 discordant ; they must never be heard. But God 
 has written the notes; you are simply to play 
 them, leaving the harmony or discord with him. 
 Perhaps the music is to be heard at a greater dis- 
 tance than you imagine ; or, perhaps, your ear is 
 not quite in tune ; would it not, at least, be safer 
 to mistrust it than the notes ? Years ago, through 
 the bad results attending an over-statement of 
 certain doctrines, and the almost total abnegation 
 of others, it was thought that the collective wis- 
 dom of the Fathers could be improved ; the meta- 
 physical screw was applied to certain doctrines to 
 squeeze them into such a form as that other truths 
 might have a more fraternal juxtaposition with 
 them in the mind of certain persons, and that cer- 
 tain dangerous symptoms affecting the body of 
 Christ might be removed. The motive was good 
 doubtless there were things to be deplored but 
 the process was dangerous. The minds who ap- 
 plied the screw were spiritual, matured, and vigo- 
 rous ; others have since found it more convenient 
 to leave those same obstreperous truths altogether. 
 What, indeed, was wanted then, is the want now, 
 25* 
 
294 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 the old theology more faith in God's thoughts 
 than man's interpretation. The church robbed 
 of her food, or partially fed, must lose her strength. 
 The whole truth must be preached, not as an expe- 
 riment, but in faith and from a heartfelt know- 
 ledge of its power ; not dealt out in infinitesimal 
 doses as a dangerous thing from God, requiring 
 to be corrected by our wisdom, but as the bread 
 of the soul. Semi-converted men, by vapid de- 
 clamations, intellectual platitudes, the convolu- 
 tions of the imagination and flowers of rhetoric, 
 and even by railing at and misrepresenting cer- 
 tain doctrines, may gather crowds to follow them 
 who will not follow Christ nor receive his words. 
 But to gather a different people, and produce a 
 different result, the whole Gospel must live in the 
 affections, as the blood dwells in the heart, and 
 well forth from the lip as a living stream. The 
 truth thus preached will be carried by the Holy 
 Spirit into the heart ; and like as the sap of a 
 living tree flows into the branches to cover it 
 with leaves and fruit, so will it appear in the life, 
 and a spiritual, vigorous character will be formed, 
 which, rock-like, will oppose itself to the torrents 
 of error, pride, and worldliness, which ever spread 
 themselves around the feet of the heaven-bound 
 pilgrim. If there is not enough truth, however, 
 in the ministry to form and sustain such a cha- 
 racter, it is useless for us to complain, or to en- 
 deavour, by mere practical talk, to produce a re- 
 
POSITIVE THEOLOGY. 295 
 
 vival. The fault is with ourselves. Let us seek 
 to "comprehend with all saints what is the 
 breadth, and length, and depth, and height, and 
 to know the love of Christ which passeth know- 
 ledge;" and having drunk of this stream, let us 
 carry the living waters to others, and beneath the 
 blessing of God's Spirit, the waste places will soon 
 be made glad, and the wilderness rejoice and 
 blossom as the rose. 
 
 Love of popularity may in some cases lead to 
 the keeping back of certain doctrines, or to the 
 mind's dancing over the surface of truth, like the 
 heathen goddess, whose feet were so light that she 
 could pass over a field of standing corn without 
 shaking out a single grain and this love of 
 popularity impeaches different truths in different 
 places. Where the people have been well fami- 
 liarised with the doctrines of Divine sovereignty, 
 electing love and particular redemption, there can 
 be but little temptation to keep them back but 
 there are others equally plainly revealed; are 
 these proclaimed? He who said, "No man can 
 come unto Me except the Father who sent Me 
 draw him," said also, " Ye will not come unto Me 
 that ye might have life," and cried, " Eepent and 
 believe the Gospel "are these and other kindred 
 declarations heard? In other places they are 
 constantly iterated, but what has become of the 
 doctrines ? On both sides, therefore, the tempta- 
 tion to keep back part of the truth exists, and 
 
296 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 love of popularity on both sides may prevail to 
 the accomplishment of this sad result. Let not, 
 therefore, the hearer judge of the extent to whicli 
 it prevails by his own opinions merely, but by 
 the unerring Word of God. The language of 
 the Apostle simply points us to a fact that, 
 under certain circumstances, some may shun to 
 declare the whole counsel of God ; so that it 
 becomes the spiritually matured, at least, to be 
 watchful that they are not cheated out of the 
 Bread of heaven, either by ignorance or want of 
 fidelity in those who preach the Gospel. 
 
 We must pass on, however, to notice the RE- 
 SULT of this keeping back of the truth, which is 
 fearful indeed, and such as no words can ade- 
 quately describe. The Apostle could say that 
 he was pure from the blood of all men, for that 
 he had not shunned to declare all the counsel of 
 God ; the inference is, that had he not done so he 
 would have been guilty of their blood ; and, 
 observe, not by the proclamation of positive 
 error, but by keeping back part of the truth, by 
 not declaring it An awful negative is this ; this, 
 I suppose, will be admitted, is " Negative The- 
 ology." Well, it has done many things won- 
 ders, no doubt and it will do more. It has set 
 up Christian men as a target for doubting, intel- 
 lectual sharp-shooters, who have just sense enough 
 to know how to wound but not to understand 
 them. It has prepared many to sympathise with 
 
POSITIVE THEOLOGY. 297 
 
 and receive anything, rather than the humbling 
 doctrines of the Cross. It has imparted to shal- 
 low, superficial thinkers an opinion that they are 
 mental giants ; and that they have a mission, and 
 which appears to be to affect great magnanimity, 
 humility, wonderful conflicts, and transcendent 
 spirituality; to retail out the subtle poison of 
 misrepresentation ; to point the finger of scorn at 
 the venerable temple of truth, and lead, helter- 
 skelter, all who have achieved a doubt their 
 darling children to a religious mirage of fanjas- 
 tic forms and gorgeous tints, and sparkling waters 
 flowing above the dry and barren sands of specu- 
 lation, spiritual unitarianism, and incipient infi- 
 delity ; and it is to please such men that we are 
 to shape our words I Truly, Negative Theology 
 has done something, but there are some things it 
 cannot do. It cannot make a Christian, nor feed 
 him when made ; but it can do something yes ; 
 it can damn the soul ! So thought, believed, and 
 wrote the Apostle, and solemnly appealed to 
 heaven that he was not thus guilty. 
 
 " Pure from the blood of souls" It is an awful 
 thing to have the blood of the body upon us, but 
 a much heavier burden to have the destruction 
 of souls upon us. Could we have witnessed the 
 murderous Sepoys as they came forth fresh from 
 the slaughter of our fellow-countrywomen, stained 
 with the purple tide of their life, with what abhor- 
 rence we should have gazed upon them. With 
 
298 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 how much greater abhorrence must God look 
 upon the man through whose want of fidelity to 
 the truth, souls are cast into hell. A soul lost ! 
 What can we say, when we think of the value 
 which God Himself has put upon it of its vast 
 powers and capabilities ? To think that it may 
 be and has been lost through want of ministerial 
 fidelity, may well make us cry mightily to God 
 to make and keep us faithful. Well might the 
 Apostle exclaim, " Woe is me if I preach not the 
 Gpspel ! " But, reader, there is another inference 
 having reference to you. If you hear the Gospel 
 fully preached, and perish, the result is not 
 through the preacher ; and as it cannot be from 
 God, it must be therefore owing to YOURSELF ! 
 Your blood must be upon your own head. Ob, 
 think of this, pray over it : what shall it profit 
 you though you gain the whole world and lose 
 your own soul ? 
 
 The subject admonishes us : 
 
 1. To take heed HOW we hear. "Take heed 
 how ye hear," said Christ, and that again and 
 again ; our hearing has to do not only with our 
 present but our eternal destiny. Oh, with what 
 humility, prayer, reverence, and dependence upon 
 God's Spirit should we listen to the Gospel of 
 Christ ! 
 
 2. To take heed WHOM we hear. All men have 
 not faith, and it is certain that all men have not 
 the truth ; and even good men may for a time 
 
POSITIVE THEOLOGY. 299 
 
 yield to temptation ; the fear of man may so 
 smite them with spiritual paralysis, that the arrow 
 of truth shall be kept at their side or fall power- 
 less from their hands. If, therefore, we would 
 not waste our time or lose our souls, we must 
 take heed who we hear. This world's gentleman 
 sometimes overcomes the man of God. The con- 
 ventionalisms of respectable life rob his sword 
 of its edge love of praise makes it a beautiful 
 sheath, while a fussy politeness takes the place 
 of manly, faithful, disinterested love. 
 
 3. To seek to know the whole truth. This will 
 not ensure our spirituality of itself but there can 
 be no great spirituality without it. The blood 
 requires all the elements of which the air is com- 
 posed to effect its purification, and so the soul 
 requires all the doctrines of the Gospel the 
 whole truth, in order to its spiritual health and 
 sanctification. In the hands of the Spirit it is 
 the vital sap of its strength and purity. " Sanc- 
 tify them through thy truth, thy word is truth," 
 said the dying Eedeemer. We cannot enlarge, 
 but ponder and pray over Eph. iii. 17, 18, 19 ; 
 Heb. vi. 1, and v. .12 ; Phil. i. 9, 10, 11. 
 
 4. To receive the ivhole truth. To know it sim- 
 ply will not save or sanctify. The poison of sin 
 is in us ; the truth must be in us too. This must 
 be our constant and abiding concern. When, 
 therefore, we hear that which is new to us, or, as 
 we imagine, opposed to other doctrines, let us be 
 
300 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 cautious lest pride, prejudice, or interest should 
 lead us to reject any part of the counsel of God 
 against ourselves lest we ignorantly quarrel with 
 a friend who is anxious simply to bless us, or 
 reject the waters of life because they flow through 
 channels which we approve not. 
 
 5. To communicate the whole truth. There is 
 not so much of truth in the world that we can be 
 excused in keeping back a part. Responsibility 
 is not confined to the pulpit in this matter: "Ye 
 are my witnesses, saith the Lord." We are not 
 to trust to ministers to do this work exclusively, 
 nor yet to deacons, for these sometimes become 
 so corrupted by public life and carnal policy, that 
 they care but little for the whole counsel of God, 
 and think more of what will bring worldly pres- 
 tige and prosperity. Such do not look at man 
 as man simply, nor truth as truth. The people 
 must do part of the work themselves, or God 
 will hold them responsible for it. It is not to 
 seats of learning, to learned men or preachers, 
 that we must look for the preservation of the 
 truth, but to all who have felt and proved its 
 power, the people of God in general and hence 
 all believers are exhorted a to contend earnestly 
 for the faith once delivered to the saints." To 
 u buy the truth and sell it not" to be willing to 
 part with anything to get the truth, and when it 
 is once possessed we are never to part with it. 
 " Take fast hold of instruction, keep her, for she 
 
POSITIVE THEOLOGY. 301 
 
 is thy life." Let us mark well the Apostle's 
 teaching, that the church's danger does not so 
 much arise from positive error as from the Popish 
 doctrine of RESERVE. Let us remember that 
 Truth is as much a stranger in the earth as ever 
 she was, and that there are as many temptations 
 to be faithless to her claims as ever; that, like 
 her Lord, she often wanders here in poverty and 
 nakedness, frequently misunderstood, misrepre- 
 sented, and despised. Oh happy he who loves 
 her at all times, and is not ashamed to stand 
 identified with her ! his path may be rough, but 
 his end shall be peace. Are you ashamed, reader, 
 of Truth in her robes of sorrow and humiliation? 
 Thou shalt never see her in her exaltation in the 
 fair palace of her Lord ; for thus saith the Saviour 
 "Whosoever shall be ashamed of Me and of 
 my word, in this adulterous and sinful generation, 
 of him also shall the Son of Man be ashamed 
 when He cometh in the glory of His Father with 
 the holy angels." 
 
 " God of truth, whose living word 
 
 Upholds whate'er had breath, 
 Look down on Thy creation, Lord, 
 Enslaved by sin and death. 
 
 Set up Thy standard, Lord, that we, 
 
 That claim a heavenly birth, 
 May march with Thee to smite the lies 
 
 That vex Thy groaning earth. 
 
 26 
 
302 LESSONS FKOM JESUS. 
 
 Mount Thy white horse, thou Word of God, 
 
 Thy blood-stained vesture don : 
 To the last strife with death and hell 
 
 Lead Thy great army on. 
 
 Ah 1 would we join that blest array, 
 
 And follow, in the might 
 Of Him, the Faithful and the True, 
 
 In raiment clean and white. 
 
 We fight for Truth, we fight for God, 
 
 Poor slaves of lis and sin ; 
 He who would fight for Thee on earth 
 
 Must first be true within. 
 
 Then, God of Truth, for whom we long, 
 
 Thou who wilt hear our prayer, 
 Do Thine own battle in our hearts, 
 
 And slay the falsehood there. 
 
 Thou sword which goeth from His mouth, 
 Smite these false hearts in twain ; 
 
 Here burn, thou never-dying fire, 
 Fall on, thou fiery rain ! 
 
 Still smite! still burn! till nought is left 
 
 But God's own truth and love ; 
 Then, Lord, as morning dew comes down, 
 
 Rest on us from above. 
 
 Yea, come ! then, tried as in the fire, 
 
 From every lie set free, 
 Thy perfect truth shall dwell in us, 
 And we shall live in Thee." 
 
 T. HUGHES, ESQ., 
 "Lays of the Sanctuary" 
 
" Oh to be 
 
 Dauntless, devoted in the war of Life 
 Neither to sorrow, pain, nor trouble down 
 Bending thy colours, but march right through all, 
 Obedient to the voice that says, ' Go on ! ' 
 Oh, there are shot and shell that rend the heart, 
 And swords that pierce the soul, and pangs to which 
 A bayonet- thrust were mercy wounds within, 
 That perchance bleed not in the sight of men 
 Yet ah ! that will not heal. Oh, to be strong ! 
 And with a faith enduring all things, still 
 To look to Thee, and battle stoutly through, 
 Ne'er growing weary of the glorious strife ! " 
 
 " It is not strength of body, natural courage, liberal education, 
 bright parts, or sparkling genius, that can make a truly great 
 man. Hence this seeming contradiction, yet sterling truth, great 
 men are not always great." Solitude Sweetened. 
 
OB, 
 
 A SUBLIME LIFE. 
 
 " For me to live is Christ." Phil. i. 21. 
 
 THE religion of the Apostle Paul was not an ac- 
 cident of an accident; nor a something extrinsic 
 to himself it was not like a little dust upon his 
 exterior, to be brushed away occasionally by acci- 
 dent or design; a thing to be removed by the 
 smallest amount of friction if rightly applied ; he 
 did not carry it about like his clothes, and think 
 it quite right to cast it aside now and then, as 
 might best suit his purpose no ; his religion 
 appears thoroughly to have embraced him as well 
 as he it ; it dwelt in him as the air in his lungs, 
 and the blood in his body, so that his enemies 
 found that, if his religion was to be got rid of, they 
 must get rid of him: Now, many would consider 
 this very inconvenient ; and yet, having less reli- 
 gion than this, all real Christians would admit 
 26* 
 
o06 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 that we have just none at all. Now, there has 
 been a good deal of disputation among many about 
 the objective and subjective aspect of religion; 
 but, according to the Apostle, we certainly must 
 all of us be subjective enough to know that unless 
 the motive, power, and spring of all our efforts be 
 the honour of Christ, our religion is of little worth, 
 through whatever mediums exhibited, or however 
 highly esteemed by men. " For me to live is 
 Christ," said the Apostle brief but emphatic 
 words ; but embodying one of the highest myste- 
 ries of heaven, and a stretch of God's love which 
 can never be fully apprehended by men. The 
 great and good of every age have given occasional 
 utterance to sentiments illustrious and sublime; 
 but when properly understood the Apostle's words 
 give birth to one which in moral force and gran- 
 deur surpasses them all; u For me to live is 
 Christ." This was the pole star of his faith and 
 life. Philosophy never dreamt of this ; all truth 
 brought into one person to be unfolded and exhi- 
 bited by myriads : and Christ is not more exalted 
 above men in general than was the motive of His 
 servant to those by which mankind for the most 
 part are actuated. These words, therefore, of the 
 Apostle ought to be interesting to all Christians, 
 for his life was undoubtedly an illustrious life, 
 pregnant with high and holy teaching, transcend- 
 ent purity, imperishable principles, and a spiritual 
 influence and glory which can never die. Like 
 
A EIGHT MOTIVE. 307 
 
 the life of its great Archetype, it passed on through 
 the waste places of the universe, like a beneficent 
 river carrying life and fruitfulness wherever it 
 came. Surely the source of such a life should 
 command our attention "For me to live is 
 Christ;" here is the all-absorbing centre of my 
 being, around which all my thoughts, feelings, 
 and efforts revolve. For Christ to be seen is for 
 Him to be glorified, and hence the entire aim of 
 my life is the exhibition of the SON OF GOD ! 
 Oh ! illustrious aim, sublime man ! let us endea- 
 vour to ascertain, in some few particulars, how he 
 sought to accomplish this great result. 
 
 I. IN SPIRIT, BY THE GRACES HE EXEMPLI- 
 FIED. 
 
 1. Simple child-like faith, or habitual reliance 
 upon God. Man, as made by God, was upright, 
 fully equal to all the requirements of the law 
 under which he was made, while yet he was de- 
 pendent upon God, both physically ^nd morally. 
 Of this Adam was conscious, his experience as an 
 unfallen being was in accordance with the facts 
 of his existence; hence he walked as seeing "Him 
 who is invisible, 7 ' and habitually acknowledged 
 God and reclined upon Him. And this, so far 
 from being a burden to our first parent, was a 
 source of joy and delight to him. Now, this was 
 the great central power of the moral forces within 
 Him, holding them together in coherence and 
 harmony, the result of which was peace the con- 
 
308 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 servative life of the spiritual system, the absence 
 of which entails ruin. Sin, however, carried man 
 away from God, and thus robbed him of his 
 strength ; under its influence, too, from trusting 
 in God he came to trust in himself. And hence 
 his misery, weakness, timidity, and bondage to 
 numberless fears, which make him the slave of 
 circumstances and fritter away his life in inquie- 
 tude and unrest. To this life of self-trust and 
 worship, however, he is so wedded that the hand 
 of God only can separate him from it ; and hence 
 one object which our Saviour sought to accom- 
 plish by His life and teaching was to show man 
 that so far from happiness being incompatible 
 with a life of dependence upon God, that such a 
 dependence was essential to its very existence, 
 and that if he would have rest in himself he must 
 have it in God. Hence Christ appeared below 
 as a poor man, and lived a life of faith upon His 
 Father as truly as the feeblest of His children. 
 And this faith of the Great Teacher we behold 
 reproduced by the Spirit of God in the Apostle 
 of the Gentiles : we find him constantly acknow- 
 ledging his God and Father, and glorying in his 
 weakness, " that the power of God may rest upon 
 him." 
 
 2. Profound reverence for the Word of God. 
 Our Saviour perpetually referred to the Word of 
 God as His text-book, guide, and directory : "I 
 came," He says, " not to do my 'own will, but the 
 
A RIGHT MOTIVE. 309 
 
 will of Him that sent me." And the same spirit 
 lived in the Apostle who perpetually supported 
 the doctrines he taught by the Word of God. 
 (Acts xiii. 17.) 
 
 3. Disinterested love and self-sacrifice. The bur- 
 den of the law was " thou shalt love the Lord thy 
 God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and 
 with all thy mind, and thy neighbour as thyself." 
 And how beautifully do we see this precept ex- 
 emplified in the life of Christ ; and the Apostle 
 was no dreamy sentimentalist, talking and writ- 
 ing pretty things about self-sacrifice, overlooking 
 the great sacrifice of the Son of God ; but while 
 laying this as the only basis of a sinner's hope, 
 his life was one scene of the purest love, and 
 anxious toil, and disinterested labour for the sal- 
 vation of men. How repeatedly did he affirm 
 that he was willing to die for the sake of the Gos- 
 pel and people of God; "I endure all things," 
 says he, "for the elect's sake, that they may also 
 obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with 
 eternal glory." 
 
 4. Faithfulness. The world, sometimes, has 
 much to say about faithfulness ; but we must not 
 forget that Christ was the faithful and true witness, 
 in a certain sense the only one the world ever 
 saw, and yet it crucified Him. God, to put men 
 to the test and manifest their spirit, brought all 
 truth into one living page, and presented it for 
 perusal, and they put their hands upon it at once, 
 
310 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 and tore it to pieces. Our Saviour, we are told, 
 "was faithful in all His house," and the great 
 Apostle had His spirit ; " moreover," says he, " it 
 is required of stewards that a man be found faith- 
 ful." He saw that he was in the midst of an un- 
 real world, and that men were taken up with shams 
 and loved smooth things; that a religion of power 
 would have no friends but those whom God made, 
 and that truth was liable to be killed by the cour- 
 tesies of life, and that it was possible for the spirit 
 of this world to overcome the man of God. And 
 hence he aimed to be faithful ; it was the very 
 height of his ambition as a good soldier of Jesus 
 Christ; not that he indulged in practical talk 
 without a conscience, rattling away under the in- 
 fluence of a professional habit, thinking that this 
 was the object to be desiderated. He did not fling 
 the precepts of Christ at men as so many stones, 
 under the influence of a heathenish spirit; nor 
 did he find it easy to preach them, while he remem- 
 bered that he ought also to practise them: and 
 hence in his most faithful utterances he identified 
 himself with the people to whom he addressed 
 himself in all their sorrows and conflicts, and as 
 standing in need of the same corrective words 
 which he administered to others. Nor did the 
 Apostle aim to be faithful by perpetually finding 
 fault with everybody and everything, for he loved 
 to commend what was good. But he was true to 
 the light that was in him ; and the truth which 
 
A EIGHT MOTIVE. 311 
 
 Christ had taught and made precious in his expe- 
 rience he freely proclaimed, whether men would 
 hear or forbear. A proud, haughty, overbearing 
 spirit he never manifested, nor put on an affected 
 dignity on account either of his great knowledge 
 or public services; he was really great because 
 unconscious of his greatness ; and so truly humble 
 that the feeblest babe in grace would approach 
 him with confidence as a brother. All his spi- 
 ritual power and beauty arose out of what he 
 was, and sprang forth from his new nature like 
 the blossoms and fruit of a living tree. He was 
 a powerful reasoner, , not by the aid of formal 
 logic, but a holy life, and the truth he preached 
 he sublimely knew, because he lived it. His 
 whole life constrained him to tell the whole truth, 
 and hence he was often most faithful when least 
 he knew it ; while yet, knowing the sensibilities 
 of spiritual life, he knew also how to sustain it 
 beneath the dissecting knife of truth. The faith- 
 fulness of the Apostle, however, was not a noisy, 
 impudent, and obtrusive thing; it was not like 
 the thunder-storm, but the gently-descending rain 
 which melts the unsightly clods and makes them 
 fruitful ; his knife was keen, and hence it passed 
 into the conscience without a great noise. He 
 was faithful to his principles, nor less with per- 
 sons ; he courted not the smile of the great, nor 
 feared the frowns of the ignorant. Though pre- 
 pared to render honour to whom honour was due f 
 
312 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 in his public capacity as a preacher of the Gospel 
 he dealt with men as men, and permitted not 
 their predilections nor prejudices, nor the con- 
 ventionalisms of life to rob his sword of its edge. 
 He thought more of God than men ; of truth more 
 than human opinions. 
 
 5. Tenderness. Of our exalted Redeemer it 
 was written, " He shall not break the bruised 
 reed, nor quench the smoking flax." With the 
 incorruptible fidelity of the faithful and true wit- 
 ness, He combined the most inimitable tender- 
 ness ; and most ardently did the Apostle Paul 
 emulate His spirit. However searching and cor- 
 rective the words of this great man fall upon the 
 Christian's ear, he ever feels that it is a loving 
 brother who is dealing with his conscience. This 
 world is faithless and cruel ; it is capable of judg- 
 ment, but not mercy : men, being aliens from 
 God, are aliens from each other, and frequently, 
 in their self-righteous and ignorant zeal, would 
 not only correct but destroy each other. The 
 Apostle is altogether free from this spirit ; he 
 wounded but to heal, and the two-edged sword 
 of the Spirit was ever wielded by him with the 
 greatest tenderness and love. And surely, amid 
 the artificialities, flatteries, falsehoods, and fre- 
 quently cruelty of both the Church and the 
 world, every Christian should aim to embody in 
 his life and conduct the tenderness of that Apostle 
 who in all things could say, " for me to live is 
 
A EIGHT MOTIVE. 313 
 
 Christ ;" and to labour like him to be sincere,, 
 amid an atmosphere of insincerity ; to struggle 
 to be real while thousands are perpetually seek- 
 ing to hide themselves behind the mask of false 
 appearances ! 
 
 II. IN WORD, BY THE DOCTRINES HE PRO- 
 CLAIMED. "We preach not ourselves," said he, 
 "but Christ Jesus the Lord;" and in another 
 place, u I determined not to know anything among 
 you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified ;" and, 
 writing to the Galatians, he exclaims, " But God 
 forbid that I should glory, save in the Cross of 
 our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is 
 crucified unto me, and I unto the world." This 
 celebrated apostle would have Christ incarnated 
 by God's Spirit in all his thoughts, and in every 
 truth he proclaimed ; he was a graphic spiritual 
 artist, and his preaching was a picture in which 
 Christ crucified was ever the centre object. And 
 the Apostle took this course, not from ignorance 
 nor narrowness of mind, but from knowledge and 
 a comprehensive view of the will of God, and of 
 both sanctified and unsanctified nature. He 
 knew, from the promises of God and his own 
 experience, that Christ must be the sun of 
 his doctrinal system, if its several truths were 
 to be clothed with spiritual beauty, and made 
 attractive to the faith of real Christians, or 
 to exert a vivifying and fertilizing influence 
 upon the hearts of men in general ; hence, how- 
 27 
 
314 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 ever' broken, incoherent, and unsystematized his 
 writings or utterances may seem to be, the spi- 
 ritual eye will ever perceive that he placed Christ 
 in the centre as a magnet to bring them together, 
 to vitalize them, and give them unity and force 
 upon the conscience. The Gospel in his hands, 
 like a kaleidoscope, constantly presented truths 
 in various forms and colours, the whole of which, 
 however, through the light of God's Spirit, per- 
 petually blended together to form but one image, 
 the consummate beauty and instructive perfection 
 of which eternity will never fully reveal that of 
 Him who, in the estimation of every saint, is 
 " the chief among ten thousand, and the alto- 
 gether lovely;" a man of sorrows, it is true, with 
 a head crowned with thorns, a body broken and 
 pierced with hails, but a centre of profound mys- 
 tery, divine wisdom, and moral utterance, upon 
 which the highest intelligences of heaven gaze 
 with holy reverence, wonder, and delight a page 
 of truth comprehending and embracing all other 
 truths, and bringing each divergent line of this 
 world's mysteries and sorrows into the all-absorb- 
 ing infinite and inimitable centre of Jehovah's 
 LOVE. This, the key-stone of that arch which 
 spans the Divine perfections, the basis of those 
 attributes which form the very nature of God 
 which, in union with His justice, becomes the great 
 healer of all man's grief, the foundation of his 
 undying bliss and everlasting triumph over sin, 
 
A RIGHT MOTIVE. 315 
 
 death, and hell throws forth its brightness and 
 beauty through the Cross of Christ ; and hence 
 all the words of this well-instructed scribe and 
 illustrious apostle, went but to form the god-like 
 base and column of his public work, upon the 
 golden apex of which in characters of light were 
 ever inscribed the one great legend of this world's 
 sins and sorrows, and the great remedy of all its 
 woes " CHRIST CRUCIFIED." 
 
 III. DEEDS. The life of the Apostle Paul was 
 not only sublime in words, but WORK. He not 
 only spoke well, but he did well: his actions 
 gave emphasis to bis teaching; he could say, 
 " These things which ye have both learned and 
 received, and heard and seen in me, do, and the 
 God of heaven shall be with you;" and it is this 
 union of right principles with right conduct 
 which constitutes a great life. And as Christ 
 was the centre of all the Apostle's words, so he 
 was no less the life of all his deeds ; hence, as his 
 words had a noble meaning, so had also his ac- 
 tions, and both terminated in one object, the 
 exaltation of the Son of God. The Apostle's life, 
 therefore, was, in the highest sense, a great speak- 
 ing life full of holy and instructive lessons, 
 copied from the life of the Great Exemplar. The 
 activities of his bodily and mental powers were 
 not the movements of a mere intellectual machine, 
 on which little meaning and no moral aim could 
 be written, but they were the visible embodiments 
 
816 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 of a holy and spiritual intelligence in him, as 
 truly related to Christ as the needle to the pole. 
 The biography of the Apostle, therefore, was 
 great, because filled with a greater than himself; 
 and so far from his words and deeds resembling 
 those of a mere automaton, or intended by him to 
 accomplish but another incarnation of himself 
 before the eye of his mind or the gaze of the 
 world, they were charged with a more exalted 
 mission, and designed by him to issue in a constant 
 apocalypse of His Lord and Master. And thus 
 the fame which others seek to obtain by labouring 
 to exalt themselves, he unconsciously achieved by 
 living to make known another ; the entire hemi- 
 sphere of his receptive and active life being filled 
 with Christ, his words and deeds are as imperish- 
 able as the life from whence they sprang, and 
 from them springs forth an influence, the waves 
 of which not only rise and spread over the ocean 
 of time, but break forth in one ceaseless, everlast- 
 ing anthem upon the shores of eternity. 
 
 reader ! what dost thou know of this vital, 
 soul-transforming Christianity, of which Christ is 
 the centre and circumference? Dost thou aim to 
 exhibit Him in spirit, word, and deed? The 
 priests of Eome tell us that even right principles 
 are too abstract, and that we fail in our Chris- 
 tianity because we have not a priest to embody 
 and give them a practical exemplification before 
 us ; but, oh, we fail, not because we have not a 
 
A RIGHT MOTIVE. 317 
 
 priest, for we have One of whom it is witnessed 
 that "HE EVER LIVETH," but because we seek 
 not that grace which lived in the heart of the 
 Apostle of the Gentiles, and which made his life 
 so beautiful a transcript of heaven's richest mercy, 
 wisdom, and love. Alas! what poor artists we 
 are at best, and how frequently our most elabo- 
 rate attempts to portray the " Fairest of the Fair " 
 do but hide His beauty. May we at least have 
 the humility which becomes the initial lines of 
 the great Picture we have dared to set before us, 
 and, above all, be kept from an affected magna- 
 nimit} 7 which more than anything transforms us 
 into so many caricatures of Him who was meek 
 and lowly in heart. 
 
 But it may be profitable for us before we close 
 this paper to notice what is involved in the de- 
 velopment and maintenance of this life, and some 
 of its advantages. 
 
 THE DEVELOPMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF 
 THIS LIFE. Many things are involved : 
 
 1. Spiritual Life. As all the external beauty 
 and fruit of a tree springs from the living sap of 
 the root, so all the spiritual and practical beauty 
 of the Christian must spring from a principle of 
 spiritual life ever in connexion with its great 
 Author, or it will perish ; as our Saviour admon- 
 ished us when, speaking of certain hearers of the 
 Gospel, He said, "and because they had no root 
 in themselves they withered away." 
 27* 
 
318 LESSONS FEOM JESUS. 
 
 2. Dependence. "We are not sufficient of our- 
 selves to think a good thought as of ourselves," 
 said the Apostle, " but our sufficiency is of God." 
 " Abide in me," said Christ, "and I in yon; as 
 the branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it 
 abide in the vine, no more can ye except ye 
 abide in me." If we .are to bear the fruit, there- 
 fore, of the TRUE VINE, we must receive of its 
 living sap, and look to Christ constantly for the 
 renewings of His Divine Spirit. 
 
 3. Watchfulness. How carefully does the artist 
 watch his hand when imparting to his picture 
 those minute touches upon the precision of which 
 the life and beauty of his picture depends ; and 
 how watchful must the Christian be over his little 
 words, tempers and things, if he would have it 
 known and felt that " for him to live is Christ." 
 
 4. Diligence. It has been said of one of the 
 pictures of a certain artist, that every square inch 
 of its surface, when brought under the glass, exhi- 
 bits marks of genius, and the closest study and 
 observation of Nature in all her changing moods 
 and manifestations ; and oh, if our life in the 
 remotest degree, is to be a transcript of One who 
 was the perfection of beauty, what labour we must 
 expend upon it ! And if men, in the pursuit of a 
 passing glory, will expend so much toil upon a 
 piece of canvas to exhibit but a passing gleam of 
 this world's glory, how much more labour should 
 we willingly devote to the perfection of a spirit 
 
A RIGHT MOTIVE. 319 
 
 which can receive and exhibit an imperishable 
 beauty before the throne of God ! 
 
 5. Prayer. He who would exhibit Christ must 
 walk with Christ ; it is by communion with Him 
 that we catch His Spirit. Prayer keeps us from 
 fainting beneath the imperfection of our own 
 efforts, revives the drooping heart, and gives 
 tranquillity and strength to the mind, to sketch 
 in, upon the crossed and blotted page of life, some 
 at least of the heavenly lineaments of Divine pity, 
 purity, mercy and love, so that all is not quite con- 
 fusion and darkness. Oh, ye prayerless souls, 
 what a dark enigma must your lives be, both to 
 yourselves and others ! Know ye that the ele- 
 ments of a great character are developed and 
 matured by divine Mercy, and that she stoops 
 only to embrace her children upon the knee of 
 prayer, and beneath the golden propitiatory of a 
 Saviour's righteousness. 
 THE ADVANTAGES OF THIS LIFE : 
 1. It will give a dignity and grandeur to our 
 existence. An exalted aim will impart greatness 
 to any man's life, however humble or insignifi- 
 cant he may be in the estimation of the world. 
 And what is the aim of a real Christian ? to ex- 
 hibit Christ, to embody His teachings in his life, 
 and to exemplify His graces. It is while daring 
 to make this attempt, that he learns what Christ 
 is ; and while he thus realizes his own littleness 
 and insufficiency, his feeblest efforts raise him to a 
 
320 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 moral and spiritual elevation he never otherwise 
 would have perceived or known. Actuated by 
 such a motive, the whole of the Christian's life 
 becomes sublime, pregnant with Divine principles 
 and undying thoughts. The smallest affairs of 
 life, as we deem them, gather a meaning from the 
 purpose to which they are subordinated, and 
 assume a shape and beauty, in the eyes even of 
 the Great Eternal, and in relation to the Divine 
 object, which, like the minute touches of the 
 artist's pencil, they are intended to portray. 
 
 2. An intelligent unity to life. What a number 
 of valuable lives are lost, for want of unity of 
 moral aim ! Now it is thought this is of import 
 ance, and now that. Now it is a moral apho- 
 rism, now a law of etiquette, now a piece of 
 ritualism ; many things in turn and nothing 
 long. Oh, how many, at the close of life, behold 
 all their efforts lie together, a rude and senseless 
 heap, without form, coherence, or meaning ; upon 
 which, in their dying hour, they write vanity and 
 vexation of spirit, and depart, having exerted no 
 permanent, elevating influence over their fellow- 
 creatures. The Christian escapes this: the one 
 object for which he lives, in the hands of God's 
 Spirit, gives a force and vitality to his labours, so 
 that he cannot live in vain ; wherever he goes, he 
 has a clear perception of his work, and of the great 
 business of life ; nor does he waste his time look- 
 ing after either his implements or companions. 
 
A EIGHT MOTIVE. 321 
 
 In reference to the former, the words of Jesus and 
 the hand of faith are all he needs ; while, as it re- 
 gards the latter, those who serve his Lord best are 
 his selected friends. Thus he is neither driven nor 
 drifted by the strong current of life into either 
 his creed or connexions, but selects both under the 
 guidance of the life which is in him, and with a 
 view to the great object to which, constrained by 
 Divine love, he has consecrated all his powers. 
 
 3. Perpetuity. Of the Christian, it is written 
 " He shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots 
 as Lebanon. His branches shall spread, and his 
 beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as 
 Lebanon. They that dwell under his shadow shall 
 return ; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as 
 the vine : the scent thereof shall be as the wine of 
 Lebanon.' 7 In constantly returning to God in 
 Christ, the believer exerts an influence upon him- 
 self and others which shall never die ; and the fair 
 outlines of truth which he is instrumental in 
 stamping upon the heart in the exhibition of 
 Christ, shall never be effaced; while the pure 
 current of that happiness which he finds in his 
 aim and work, shall continue to rise and rise, until 
 it reaches the throne of God and the Lamb, where, 
 spreading like a sea of glass, it shall for ever reflect, 
 in all their perfection and beauty, the spiritual 
 lineaments of Him, whose grace, rich, free, and 
 abundant, bade it to gush forth in the heart and 
 life of an alien and stranger. 
 
322 LESSOXS FROM JESUS. 
 
 In conclusion, dear reader, how different is the 
 life of a real Christian from that of a mere ritualist, 
 or man of the world ! The former lives to exhibit 
 Christ ; the latter himself, or some part or parts of 
 a dead material system. We perceive what the 
 Christian cannot be he cannot be an egotist, 
 for he lives to exhibit another : we see what he 
 must be, an epistle of Christ. The true believer 
 would have his entire life built up as a chaste 
 temple to the memory of Jesus. What the 
 Christian is to be in heaven he desires to be here, 
 a mirror in the hand of Love, perpetually reflecting 
 the beauty of his Lord. How worthless is pro- 
 fession without Christ ! how vain our anticipation 
 of heaven ! Without Christ we can only exhibit 
 Satan and ourselves ; this may be allowed in this 
 world, but not in that which is to come. ' Eeal 
 greatness, then, does not consist in mere intellectual 
 power, wealth, or skill in things human or divine ; 
 but in the conformity of our minds to Christ. And 
 this greatness is accessible to the poor as well as 
 the rich, the learned and the unlearned a great- 
 ness upon which even God will smile, which 
 emulates and embodies the perfections of His Son, 
 and derives an imperishable beauty, fragrance, and 
 beneficence from the constant ministrations and 
 discipline of the Eternal Spirit ; and which, when 
 all the greatness of this world, with all its manifold 
 signs and symbols, shall have passed away, robed 
 in the righteousness of Christ, shall lift its regal 
 
A RIGHT MOTIVE. 323 
 
 head among the sons of God, and even there, in 
 other forms and more illustrious words, shall still 
 give utterance to the glorious theme, u FOR ME TO 
 LIVE is CHRIST." May the Apostle's prayer, 
 therefore, be ours: "THAT I MAY KNOW HIM, 
 
 AND THE POWER OF HlS RESURRECTION, AND 
 THE FELLOWSHIP OF HIS SUFFERINGS, BEING MADE 
 CONFORMABLE UNTO HIS DEATH ! " 
 
 '' NOW UNTO HIM THAT IS ABLE TO KEEP 
 YOU FROM FALLING, AND TO PRESENT YOU FAULT- 
 LESS BEFORE THE PRESENCE OF HIS GLORY WITH 
 EXCEEDING JOY, 
 
 " TO THE ONLY WISE GOD, OUR SAVIOUR, BE 
 GLORY AND MAJESTY, DOMINION AND POWER, 
 BOTH NOW AND EVER. AMEN." 
 
 ; ' My Father ! Heavenly Father ! to whom sole 
 I lift my eye in trouble or in joy, 
 Thou who hast led me ? erst a wayward child, 
 And wayward still, from weakness, not from choice, 
 And brought me thus far on my journey's way, 
 Grant in the years to come I still may prove 
 Obedient to the imperial Voice within ; 
 Voice of that soul which Thou hast given ; which bids 
 Still to go forward, resting riot till death. 
 Oh! make me strong, that so when sorrows come, 
 When loved ones die and leave me, and the day 
 Grows dark about me, and the sunshine comes 
 To the heart no more, and the Spirit's life seems gone 
 With the love that fed it, I may still march on, 
 Content to do Thy work, and heed no more 
 Whether the clarion-voice of fame do come 
 In life, or after death, or not at all. 
 
324 LESSONS FROM JESUS. 
 
 Ob, be it mine, at life's bless'd close, to stand, 
 
 Scarr'd though it be with sorrows, still erect, 
 
 In harness to the last, raising my hands 
 
 On the won battle-field aloft to Thee, 
 
 And with a calm joy yielding up my soul, 
 
 Scourged, chastened, purified, and hearing now 
 
 The inner voices chanting victory ! 
 
 Like some old warrior-chief, on his last field, 
 
 Dying with upturned face, and in his ears 
 
 An army's songs of triumph; heedless all, 
 
 If so be the stern fight is won at last, 
 
 And his flag flies, victorious still in death." 
 
 ^s%> 
 
 hJHITBRSITTl 
 
 THE END. 
 
Books Published, by Sheldon. &; Co. 
 
 THE BAPTIST CHURCH DIRECTORY: 
 
 * A Guide to the Doctrines, Discipline, Officers. Ordinances, 
 and Customs of Baptist Churches. By EDWARD T. Hiscox, D. D. 
 Price, red edges, 60 cents; plain, 50 cents. 
 
 " It will prove, in my judgment, an invaluable guide to our church 
 members." Dr. Jeter , of Richmond. 
 
 \ IFE OF SPENCER H. CONE, D.D. With 
 
 ^ a fine Steel Plate Portrait. 1 vol. 12 mo. Price $1 25. 
 
 " A complete, accurate, and in erery way reliable memoir of our la- 
 men ted brother." New York Chronicle. 
 
 GRACE TRUMAN; or, Love and Principle. 
 By SALLIE ROCHESTER FORD. With Steel Portrait of the 
 Authoress. 1 vol. 12mo. Price $1. 
 
 PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES OF BAP- 
 
 TISTS. By FRANCIS WAYLAND, D. D. 1 vol. 12 mo. 
 Price, $1. 
 
 THE BAPTIST DENOMINATION. By 
 
 -* Rev. D. C. HAYNES. With an Introduction by Rev. JOHN 
 DOWLING, D. D. 1 vol. 12mo. Price $1. 
 
 THE BAPTIST LIBRARY. A Republica- 
 
 A tioii of Standard Baptist Works. Edited by Rev. Messrs. 
 G. G. SOMERS, W. R. WILLIAMS, and L. L. HILL. 1 vol. royal 
 octavo. Sheep. $3 50. 
 
 BENEDICT'S HISTORY OF THE BAP- 
 
 D TISTS A General History of the Baptist Denomination in 
 America, and other parts of the World. By DAVID BENEDICT. 
 With a Steel Portrait of Roger Williams. 1 vol. royal octavo. 
 Sheep. Price $3 50. 
 
 COMPENDIUM OF THE FAITH OF THE 
 
 ^ BAPTISTS. Paper. Price, per dozen, 50 cents. 
 
.Books Pu.~blish.ed. "by Sh.eld.on. 5c Co. 
 
 IJLIND BAETIMEUS; Or, The Story of a 
 
 ** Sightless Sinner and his Great Physician. By Rev. WILLIAM 
 J. HOGE, Professor in the Union Theological Seminary, Prince 
 Edwards, Va. 1 vol. large 18mo. 257 pages. 75 cents. 
 
 "A most excellent book, full of sound instruction and the very spirit of 
 the Gospel." Boston Recorder. 
 
 " We wish it could be placed, this winter, in the hands of thousands of 
 * sightless sinners. 1 " Cincinnati Christian Herald. 
 
 " Brief in compass, clear in arrangement, and singularly animated, 
 direct, forcible, and pungent in style, not rarely reminding one of the fer- 
 vor of Richard Baxter, while marked throughout by a classic elegance of 
 diction, to which he made no pretension. 1 ' Cor. N. C. Presbyterian. 
 
 |)AILY THOUGHTS FOR A CHILD. By 
 
 Mrs. THOMAS GELDART, author of " Truth is Every Thing," 
 " Emilio the Peacemaker," etc., etc. 1 vol. 18mo. 50 cents. 
 
 44 In exquisite simplicity of style, beauty of illustration, and religious 
 power, this book has few superiors in juvenile literature. 11 Boston Era. 
 
 44 Meditations for morning and evening for a month, adapted to the 
 capacity and aspirations of a youthful heart. Many of them are very 
 sweet ,nd affecting compositions. 11 
 
 44 A charming little work, which is sure to be a Tavorite with the 
 young. 11 English Papers. 
 
 TRUTH IS EVEEY THING. By Mrs. 
 
 * THOMAS GELDART. 1 vol. 18mo. Price 50 cents. 
 
 u The interest of the volume is genuine. There is nothing false or spu- 
 rious about it. It is true to nature ; it is true to the heart. 11 
 
 44 This is a charming little book for the young ; the matter is very in- 
 te resting, not overdrawn, while its tenor is to win over youth to the prae 
 tice and love of truth. 11 
 
 44 This is a charming tale, attractive from the simplicity and beauty of 
 feeling which pervades it most useful because it steps not beyond the 
 comprehension of youth.' 1 English Press. 
 
 THE LIVING EPISTLE; or, The Moral 
 
 Power of a Religious Life. By Rev. CORNELIUS TYREE, of 
 Powhatan, Va. With an Introduction by Rev. Dr. FULLER, of 
 Baltimore. 1 vol. 18mo. Price 60 cents. 
 
 ' 4 It is adapted to the wants of the times, and, we trust, will be exten- 
 sively read." Southern Baptist Missionary Magazine. 
 
 44 A book full of good counsels, important lessons, elevating the idea of 
 the Christian life, and encouraging the reader to holy living and action." 
 New York Obe.rver. 
 
Sooks JPu.blish.ed by Sh.eld.on. &; Co. 
 
 CTJMMER PICTURES PEOM COPENHA- 
 GEN TO VENICE. By Rev. HENRY M. FIELD. 1 voL 
 12 mo. Price $1. 
 
 Mr. Field's book gives lively pictures of the Continent and ita 
 inhabitants, and is particularly valuable for its descriptions of 
 northern Italy, the scene of the coming conflict. It will be a 
 popular and very interesting volume for summer reading. 
 
 THE LOSING AND TAKING OF MAN- 
 
 SOUL ; or, Lectures on the Holy "War. By Rev. A. S. 
 PATTON, A.M. 1 vol. 12mo. Illustrated with Eight spirited 
 Engravings. Price $1. 
 
 " He writes well and forcibly." Philadelphia Ledger. 
 
 44 The eminent author of this work has compressed into a brief space a 
 comprehensive review of the evils which, without religious influences, 
 everywhere abound in society, and the effective means with which to cor- 
 rect them. It is the result of a life-time of deep thought and close obser- 
 vation." Dubuque Times. 
 
 THE PEECIOUS STONES OP THE HE AV- 
 
 ENLY FOUNDATIONS." By AUGUSTA BROWN GARRET. 
 1 vol. 18mo. Price $1. 
 
 44 A book of great beauty, and full of attractive discourse on heavenly 
 and divine things." New York Observer. 
 
 44 The articles are brief, and include many choice specimens of prose and 
 poetry. It is especially adapted to lay on the center-table, or elsewhere, 
 for the casual reader." Congregationalist. 
 
 " The book is a suggestive one, and needs but a slight examination to 
 become a favorite with the religious portion of the community." Boston 
 Post. 
 
 MEMOIR OP REV. DAVID T. STODDARD. 
 
 By Rev. J. P. THOMPSON, D. D. 1 vol. 12mo. Pnce $1. 
 
 44 A biography of serene beauty and abiding value." New Englander. 
 
 44 All Sabbath School libraries and all students should especially make 
 rare of the possession of this volume.' 1 Congregationalist. 
 
 41 The entire volume proffers numerous claims to an extended circuit* 
 tion." North American. 
 
Books iPioblislied. by Sh.eld.on &c Co. 
 
 THE CHKISTIAN GEACES. By Eev. J. P. 
 
 THOMPSON, D.D., of the Broadway Tabernacle. 1 vol. 
 18mo Price 75 cents. 
 
 t; The book i well fitted to do good to all everywhere ; and we hope it 
 will be widely read, and made greatly useful.*' New York Observer. 
 
 44 Dr. Thompson has a happy talent for the familiar exposition of Scrip- 
 ture, and the practical application of its doctrines." Boston Recorder. 
 
 41 They are earnest and affectionate exhortations, intended to help in the 
 formation of Christian character, and the cultivation of the Christian 
 graces." Boston Advertiser. 
 
 THE BIBLE IN THE LEVANT; or, The 
 
 Life and Letters of Rev. CHESTER N. RIGHTER. By Rev. S. 
 IRESMEUS PRIME, D.D. Illustrated with a Steel Portrait of Mr. 
 Rigkter. 1 vol. 18 mo. 336 pages. Price 75 cents. 
 
 44 The results of his efforts are narrated by Mr. Prime in a style clear 
 and interesting, which renders this volume not only readable, but exceed- 
 ingly instructive. We can commend the work with entire confidence that 
 it will be productive of good results." Boston Post. 
 
 44 It is really beautiful in its delineation of a frank, whole-souled man, 
 who always pressed straight forward in the fear of God, without any fear 
 of man." Hartford Courant. 
 
 4 ' Mr. Righter' s visit to the Copts, in Egypt, and description of that in- 
 teresting people, will be read with peculiar interest. The account of his 
 travels is taken principally from his letters, and displays, unconsciously, 
 his bold, fearless, unwavering devotion to the right. His biographer was 
 his traveling companion in his first tour abroad, and enjoyed peculiar ad- 
 vantages for thoroughly comprehending his character." Boston Journal. 
 
 GLIMPSES OF JESUS, EXALTED IN THE 
 
 V AFFECTIONS OF HIS PEOPLE. By Rev. W. P SAL- 
 TERN. 1 vol. 18mo. Price 60 cents. 
 
 44 This book is redolent with the sweet savor of Him whose name is like 
 precious ointment poured forth." Evangelical Repository. 
 
 44 Few works of this class are to be named with it, and as a Sabbath 
 School volume it stands, we should think, almost without a rival." Bos- 
 jon Daily Traveller. 
 
 4 ' This is a sweet little book. Many a halting pilgrim will be quickened, 
 many awakened ones will be led to Jesus, and many stricken souls will be 
 revived and comforted by a perusal of its pages, beaming with a Saviour's 
 love." Prcsb'/terian Banner and Advocate. 
 
 44 It presents the example of Christ under the various circumstances and 
 vicissitudes of his brief earthly history, for the imitation and encourage- 
 ment of his followers." American Presbyterian and Genesaee Evangelist. 
 

RETURN TO the circulation desk of any 
 University of California Library 
 
 or to the 
 
 NORTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 Bldg, 400, Richmond Field Station 
 University of California 
 Richmond, CA 94804-4698 
 
 ALL BOOKS MAY BE RECALLED AFTER 7 DAYS 
 
 2-month loans may be renewed by calling 
 (510)642-6753 
 
 1-year loans may be recharged by bringing 
 books to NRLF 
 
 Renewals and recharges may be made 4 
 days prior to due date. 
 
 DUE AS STAMPED BELOW 
 SENT ON ILL 
 
 APR 1 3 1999 
 
 U. C. BERKELEY 
 
V , 
 
 poc-oq 
 
 .j / 7 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY