THE SAVIOR'S MINISTRY
'His was a life of miracles, and might, and charity, and love.'
'Jesus of Nazareth- who went about doing good.'- Acts 10: 38.
'It was His glory, as it was His delight, to be the friend of the
friendless, and the helper of the helpless; to pardon the sinful, and
cleanse the polluted; to open the door of heaven to faith, and hold out the
golden scepter to penitence; to suffuse with hope the eye of despair, and
open a passage from the grave to the world of glory.' -Dwight .
Star of the land, in glory bright,
Through time's dark valley, Oh be my light;
Star of the sea, may your sweet beam,
Over life's troubled ocean gleam.
Star of the pilgrim, cheer my way,
A pilgrim to the realms of day;
Star of the blessed, around my head,
Your everlasting radiance shed.
Star of the morn, and of the gloom,
Of life, and of the cheerless tomb,
But more than star, my King, my Lord,
My God, by earth, and heaven adored,
My glory, wealth, and rapture be,
Now, and through all eternity.
THE SAVIOR IN HIS PERSONAL MINISTRY ON EARTH.
Hail to His rising from afar;
He is the bright and morning star;
His healing beams, O nations, bless;
He is the Sun of Righteousness;
To save His people from their sins,
Jesus His suffering life begins;
'Ere long, as Christ our sacrifice,
The Holy and the Just One dies.
-J. Montgomery
It is a most wonderful, important, and glorious truth, that the eternal Son
of God, robed in humanity, has appeared in this world of spiritual darkness,
as the blessed Day-spring from on high, to impart light to us, to guide our
feet into the way of peace, and to conduct us to the realms of a blissful
immortality beyond the skies. In His immeasurable benevolence for a lost
world, the only-begotten Son of God comes forth from the bosom of the
Father, places Himself between offended Deity and sinful man, receives the
stroke of divine wrath, and breathes out His life a ransom for many. For
more than thirty years He dwells in this weary world, leading a life of
suffering from the manger of Bethlehem to the cross of Calvary. This divine
pilgrimage of our blessed Savior deserves our most serious consideration;
for with it our eternal welfare is inseparably connected. It is a subject of
vast concern to the human race. It is the life of our precious souls. If we
possess a saving knowledge of Him whom God the Father has sent forth to
atone for our sin, heaven with all its untold glories will be ours. But if
we reject the only Savior, and the divine doctrines He has taught, the wrath
of God will abide on us through all the infinite ages of our existence. Let
us, then, attend to those great truths which the Scriptures, in disclosing
the scenes of our Savior's life, present for our instruction, comfort, and
salvation. We have already viewed Christ as the Morning Star, the Sun of
Righteousness, and Light of the world: we have contemplated the nature and
excellence of His divine Person; and have followed Him in His wonderful
transition from the throne of heaven to the manger of Bethlehem, when He
embodied the attributes of Deity in an incarnate form, descending from
supreme glory to the deepest humiliation, taking upon Him the form of a
servant, that He might become obedient unto death, even the death of the
cross. And now we would glance at some of the remarkable scenes in His holy
life on earth, and muse upon the lessons they impart to us.
How delightful to trace the footsteps of our blessed Redeemer through this
valley of tears, when he went about doing good, performing the noblest
deeds, healing all manner of disease, working the most stupendous miracles,
manifesting the purest and most unselfish benevolence, ministering the balm
of consolation to the afflicted, and holding forth the glorious promise of
life and immortality to a perishing world!
'My soul rejoices to pursue
The steps of Him I love,
Till glory breaks upon my view
In brighter worlds above.'
OUR SAVIOR'S LIFE ON EARTH WAS ONE OF POVERTY, REPOACH, AND PERSECUTION.
'For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich,
yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might be
rich.' The Son of God was not only invested in the robes of humanity, but
also condescended to live in a state of voluntary poverty and persecution on
earth. While the irrational creation was amply provided for, the blessed
Jesus had not a couch of His own on which He could repose, when faint with
fatigue. In His extreme poverty He could say, 'The foxes have holes, and the
birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has not where to lay His
head.' The Possessor of heaven and earth, the Lord of all, in His voluntary
humiliation, has not where to lay His head! Oh, what an unparallel
exhibition of the vast benevolence of God to a perishing world! Oh, the
depth of the riches of His love wherein God has abounded towards us, in
sending His only-begotten Son to endure poverty, and reproach, and
persecution for us! And what surpassing grace, that Christ Jesus, who was
originally so rich in the glories of the celestial state, should, for our
sakes, become so poor and despised on earth! What overflowing joy should
spring up in our hearts, when we think that our blessed Savior voluntarily
stooped to the hardships of poverty, to persecution and revilings, for the
purpose of raising us up to a participation of the unending joys of heaven:
for the purpose of bringing us into a state of the most intimate and
endearing communion with God, and all holy beings; for the purpose of
refreshing our famishing and thirsty souls with the hidden manna, and the
water of life; for the purpose of eternally enriching us with all those
immense stores of heavenly blessings, which the eye has not seen, nor the
ear heard, nor the heart conceived! Everlasting thanks and praise be
rendered unto Your name, Oh divine Redeemer, for stooping so low in poverty,
that we might be raised to the possession of the unsearchable riches of
heaven. Oh, may the inspiring thought of Your surpassing grace towards the
sons of men lift us above the cares, the sorrows, and the trials of life's
weary way, and cause the voice of joy and gladness to be heard in our
habitations, until crowned with consummate bliss in heaven, we take up the
new and everlasting song of the redeemed, and celebrate the great and
glorious mysteries of the gospel.
As soon as the Savior appeared in the world, He became the object of
persecution and disdain. While an Infant, His life was sought by the cruel
and jealous Herod; and He became an exile in Egypt. He came unto His own,
and His own received Him not. He was in the world, and the world was made by
Him, and the world knew Him not.
He was despised and rejected-a man of sorrows, acquainted with bitterest
grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way when he went by.
He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a
punishment from God for his own sins! But he was wounded and crushed for our
sins. He was beaten that we might have peace. He was whipped, and we were
healed! Ah! did the Son of God receive such inhuman treatment from sinners
whom He came to redeem? How plainly does this evince the deep-seated enmity
of the natural heart against God, and His holy law!
One continual scene of reproach and persecution followed our Savior in the
discharge of His mediatorial office on earth, until the crowning act of
iniquity was accomplished, when His holy hands were nailed to the accursed
tree, and when, quivering in agony on the bloody cross, He calmly bore in
His bosom the revilings of all His persecutors. Trace His footsteps through
the land of Judea, and see the bitter scorn, persecution, and calumny He
endured while engaged in the blessed work of preaching the gospel of the
kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness, and all manner of disease among
the people. How often did the Jews, from envy, and prejudice, and hatred,
conspire against Him to put Him to death! On one occasion we find them
taking up stones to cast at Him; at another time we see them, filled with
wrath, rising up and thrusting Him out of the city of Nazareth, and leading
him unto the brow of the hill, that they might cast Him down headlong. When
he had healed the impotent man, who had been diseased for thirty-eight
years, we read of them persecuting Jesus, and seeking to slay Him because He
had done these things on the Sabbath day. And after He had raised Lazarus,
we see the chief priests and the Pharisees calling a council, and adopting
measures to put Him to death. These proud and self-righteous rulers long to
imbrue their hands in His innocent blood. The high priest and the scribes,
Herod and Pilate, unite against the Lord of glory, while the common people,
excited by their wicked rulers, cry, 'Crucify Him, crucify Him!' 'Not this
man, but Barabbas.' 'And the voices of them, and of the chief priests
prevailed.' How appropriately may this language be applied to the persecuted
Savior, 'Princes have persecuted me without a cause.' 'For the enemy has
persecuted my soul; he has smitten my life down to the ground; he has made
me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.' 'Reproach has
broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take
pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none.' 'Remember,
Lord, the reproach of Your servants; how I do bear in my bosom the reproach
of all the mighty people; with which Your enemies have reproached the
footsteps of Your anointed.'
It has been beautifully remarked by Jeremy Taylor, that 'all that Christ
came for was, or was mingled with, sufferings; for all those little joys
which God sent, either to recreate His person, or to illustrate His office,
were abated, or attended with afflictions; God being more careful to
establish in Him the covenant of sufferings than to relieve His sorrows.
Presently after the angels had finished their hallelujahs, He was forced to
flee to save His life, and the air became full of shrieks of the desolate
mothers of Bethlehem for their dying babes. God had no sooner made Him
illustrious with a voice from heaven, and the descent of the Holy Spirit
upon Him in the waters of baptism, but He was delivered over to be tempted
and assaulted by the devil in the wilderness. His transfiguration was a
bright ray of glory; but then also He entered into a cloud, and was told a
sad story, what He was to suffer at Jerusalem. When He rode triumphantly
into Jerusalem, and was adorned with the acclamations of a King and a God,
He wet the palms with His tears, sweeter than the drops of manna, or the
little pearls of heaven that descended upon Mount Hermon, weeping, in the
midst of this triumph, over obstinate, perishing, and malicious Jerusalem.'
Now, can the faithful servants of Christ expect to be always exempt from
persecution and reproach in a world where their divine Master was so cruelly
and maliciously treated? No! They will be exposed to these trials until they
reach the shores of that better world where the wicked cease from troubling,
and where the weary are at rest. We are yet in an enemy's country; the
world, the devil, and the flesh are all against us. 'All that will live
godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.' Well does the Savior, in
His valedictory discourse to His disciples on the evening before His
suffering, remind them of the opposition and persecution they would meet
with in the world. 'Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is
not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also
persecute you.' Oh, let us prepare for the conflicts of earth, remembering
that while the day of life continues we must encounter it's storms and
tempests. 'Ordinarily,' says Richard Baxter, 'God would have vicissitudes of
summer and winter, day and night, that the church may grow externally in the
summer of prosperity, and internally and radically in the winter of
adversity; yet usually their night is longer than their day, and that day
itself has its storms and tempests.'
If we are conformed to the blessed image of Christ, and follow His example,
we must submit to be reproached by the world- to have our names cast out as
evil. Yes, if we cleave to Jesus and the doctrines of the cross, and labor
to bring others to Him, we must, like the apostle, suffer reproach. 'For
therefore we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living
God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those that believe.' The
world will endeavor to impeach our motives, misconstrue our actions, and
tarnish our reputation. But while thus reproached for the sake of Christ,
let us consider Him, and go forth unto Him outside the camp, bearing His
reproach- like Moses, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than
the treasures in Egypt. Like this great prophet and lawgiver, let our choice
be wise for eternity; let us have respect unto the recompense of the reward,
continually viewing the heavenly prize, the immortal diadem, which is ready
to encircle the brow of the Christian, when he comes from the field of
life's battle, more than a conqueror through the glorious Captain of his
salvation. 'If you are reproached for the name of Christ, happy are you; for
the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.' 'Hearken unto me, you that
know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law; do not fear the
reproach of men, neither be afraid of their revilings. For the moth shall
eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them like wool; but my
righteousness shall be forever, and my salvation from generation to
generation.'
My soul, with all your wakened powers
Survey the heavenly prize;
Nor let, these glittering toys of earth
Allure your wandering eyes.
The splendid crown that Moses sought,
Still beams around his brow;
Though soon great Pharaoh's sceptered pride
Was taught by death to bow.
The joys and treasures of a day
I cheerfully resign;
Rich in that large immortal store,
Secured by grace divine.
Let fools my wiser choice deride,
Angels and God approve;
Nor scorn of men, nor rage of hell,
My steadfast soul shall move.
With ardent, eye that bright reward
I daily will survey;
And in the blooming prospect lose
The sorrows of the way
THE SAVIOR TAUGHT THE MOST IMPORTANT, SUBLIME, AND GLORIOUS DOCTRINES.
As the great Teacher come from God, He daily taught and illustrated those
things which concern the glory of His Heavenly Father and the salvation of
man. He enlightens our minds respecting the nature and existence of God; our
lost condition by nature; the will of God concerning our duty and salvation;
the necessity of regeneration; the extent and spirituality of the divine
law- the impossibility of justification by our own works- the necessity of
faith, repentance, and holiness- and the certainty of a future state of
reward and of punishment. He also exhibits His own character as the Son of
God, and the Savior of a lost world; teaches the doctrine of redemption
through His atoning blood; and declares His willingness to receive even the
chief of sinners. Appearing as the great Luminary of the world, He
scattered, by His teachings, the darkness which brooded over mankind
respecting divine things, and pointed out the way to immortal life and
felicity. He exhibits in the clearest light the momentous concerns of the
soul- its inestimable value- its salvation as most precious- and its loss as
unspeakable. To warn sinners of their danger in continuing to reject the
offers of the gospel, He speaks of the dark region of woe- of the worm that
never dies- of the fire which is never quenched. And to animate His faithful
servants amid the duties and trial's of life, point's them to the mansions
of glory, where they will reign with Him- where they shall sit down with
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, at the banquet of redeeming love- where they
shall be made equal to the angels of God- where they shall shine as the sun
forever and ever.
Isaiah, with his prophetic pen, drew this most beautiful and striking
representation of the nature and excellency of those doctrines which Christ
was to teach in the days of His public ministry on earth: 'The Spirit of the
Lord God is upon me; because the Lord has anointed me to preach good tidings
unto the meek; He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim
liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are
blind; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance
of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto those who mourn in
Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the
garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called
trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be
glorified.' When our Savior had read a portion of these very words in the
synagogue, He said to the Jews, 'This day is this Scripture fulfilled in
your ears.'
These truths He taught with divine authority, while His hearers listened
with astonishment. The Jewish officers, who were sent to apprehend Him on
one occasion, confessed, that never man spoke like this man. When He had
ended His sermon on the mount, the people were astonished at His doctrine:
for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. The
Spirit of God and of glory rested on Him, and gracious words proceeded from
His mouth. He makes known with authority and power all those things that He
has heard from His Father. He taught all those doctrines that the Father had
directed Him to teach; and He met with divine acceptance. At the waters of
baptism, and on the mount of transfiguration, a voice from heaven declares-
'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased- hear Him.'
The MANNER in which Christ was to declare the great truths of His divine
mission was also clearly foretold by the prophet. 'Look at my servant, whom
I strengthen. He is my chosen one, and I am pleased with him. I have put my
Spirit upon him. He will reveal justice to the nations. He will be gentle-he
will not shout or raise his voice in public. He will not crush those who are
weak or quench the smallest hope. He will bring full justice to all who have
been wronged. He will not stop until truth and righteousness prevail
throughout the earth. Even distant lands beyond the sea will wait for his
instruction.' Through the whole period of His public ministry our blessed
Savior was actively employed in preaching His heavenly doctrines,
manifesting at the same time the most undaunted firmness, and the greatest
meekness, humility, patience, tenderness and benevolence.
To spread the rays of heavenly light;
To give the mourner joy;
To preach glad tidings to the poor,
Was His divine employ.
Midst keen reproach and cruel scorn,
Patient and meek He stood;
His foes, ungrateful, sought His life;
He labored for their good.'
The doctrines which Christ taught are designed to console the wretched- to
heal the wounds of the soul caused by sin- to bring us from spiritual
darkness into spiritual light- to translate us into His peaceful, holy, and
heavenly kingdom. They are food to the soul of the Christian- the joy and
rejoicing of his heart- more to be desired than gold, yes, then much fine
gold- sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. They abound with the
greatest consolation for the believer at all seasons, especially in the hour
of adversity, pain, and death. How often they have calmed the troubled
conscience, soothed the pillow of the afflicted, made the dim eye bright
with hope, and caused the song of praise to come from lips 'quivering with
agony!'
How often they have illuminated the dark confines of the grave, and enabled
the believer to enter, with songs of triumph, into the joy of his Lord! 'My
teaching will fall on you like rain; my speech will settle like dew. My
words will fall like rain on tender grass, like gentle showers on young
plants.' Deut. 32:2. 'The doctrine of the gospel is like the dew and the
gentle rain that descends upon the tender grass, with which it flourishes,
and is kept green. Christians are like the several flowers in a garden, that
have upon each of them the dew of heaven, which being shaken with the wind,
they let fall their dew at each other's roots, whereby they are jointly
nourished, and become nourishers of one another.' -Bunyan
Oh, the preciousness of the doctrines of the Lord Jesus- so full of
consolation for all believers in every period, in every circumstance, in
every condition of life- so fraught with excellent precepts for the
regulation of our conduct while here- so replete with promises of a rich,
glorious, imperishable inheritance hereafter! How delightful to sit at the
feet of Him, who is the way, the truth, and the life, and hear the gracious
words which proceed from His mouth!
'Oh, happy they who know the Lord,
With whom He deigns to dwell,
He feeds and cheers them by His word,
His arms support them well.
He helped His saints in ancient days,
Who trusted in His name;
And we can witness to His praise,
His love is still the same.'
Here, let us ask- What impression do those divine truths which the Savior
has declared, make on our minds? Are we listening with the deepest interest
and the greatest pleasure to the sayings of Him who has brought life and
immortality to light? Do we regard them as the life of our souls- as all our
salvation and all our desire? Can we say with Job: 'I have esteemed the
words of His mouth more than my necessary food?' or are we viewing them
without concern? As we value the salvation of our precious immortal souls,
let us see that those blessed truths, which Christ came to reveal to us, are
most cordially received, obeyed, and loved. 'Listen to my counsel and be
wise. Don't ignore it. Happy are those who listen to me, watching for me
daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home! For whoever finds me
finds life and wins approval from the Lord. But those who miss me have
injured themselves. All who hate me love death.'
Oh, Spirit of Light and Truth, we beseech You to bring those cheering
doctrines, which distilled as the dew from the lips of the Savior, home to
our souls with saving power. May they brighten our sorrows, dispel our
fears, fill us with joy unspeakable, and prepare us for the participation of
heaven's glories. Oh, take what is Christ's and show it unto us; guide us
into all truth; comfort us in all our tribulations; lead us in the path of
holiness, and bring its in due time to the far-off land of glory. Oh, send
out Your light and Your truth: let them lead us; let them bring us unto Your
holy Hill, and to Your tabernacles.
THE SAVIOR PERFORMED THE MOST STUPENDOUS MIRACLES. His life on earth was
truly a life of miracles. Isaiah has depicted in vivid colors the nature of
some of those miraculous works which the Messiah was to perform in the days
of His public ministry on earth. While setting forth the flourishing
condition of His kingdom among men, he says: 'And when he comes, he will
open the eyes of the blind and unstop the ears of the deaf. The lame will
leap like a deer, and those who cannot speak will shout and sing! Springs
will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams will water the desert. The
parched ground will become a pool, and springs of water will satisfy the
thirsty land.' We have only to turn to the history of our blessed Savior to
see these predictions literally accomplished. How astonishing were the
miracles He performed! How unlimited the control He exercised over the
elements of nature, and all creatures! Life and death were in His hand. At
His command disease vanished; the blind were restored to sight; the ears of
the deaf opened; the lepers cleansed; demons cast out; the storms and
tempests stilled; and the dead raised. Yes,
'When God came down from Heaven, the Living God,
What signs and wonders marked His stately way?
Broke out the winds in music where He trod?
Shone over the heavens a brighter, softer day?
The dumb began to speak, the blind to see,
And the lame leaped, and pain and darkness fled;
The mourner's sunken eye grew bright with glee,
And from the tomb awoke the wondering dead.'
'Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord? who can show forth all His
praise?' Let us follow Him, in thought, as He goes about, performing those
miraculous works which confirmed His divine mission, and proclaimed the
majesty of His Godhead. At Cana of Galilee, we see Him performing His first
miracle, by turning water into wine, exhibiting His glory, that His
disciples might believe on Him. 'This beginning of miracles did Jesus in
Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed on
Him.' On another occasion we see Him sailing with His disciples on the Sea
of Galilee, in a furious storm which threatened them with destruction. He is
asleep, while the ship is fearfully tossed by the waves and driven by the
storm. The terrified disciples come to Him, and awake Him with these words:
'Lord, save us, or we perish.' With perfect calmness He rises, and with
sovereign will speaks to the tempestuous elements; and the storm is calmed
to rest. 'When He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a
great calm.' The same voice which on the morning of the creation said, 'Let
there he light; and there was light'; now says to the tempestuous sea,
'Peace, be still'. And the wind ceased , and there was a great calm.
Instantly nature yields obedience unto her Lord, and the raging storm is
stilled in a moment. When the ocean is roused into fury by the raging wind,
it continues in a state of agitation long after the tempest has ceased to
roar; but when Christ speaks the word, the effect is instantaneous and
complete. 'He makes the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.'
'Oh, Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto You? You rule the
raging of the sea; when the waves thereof arise, You still them.' Yes,
'When raring winds
Rushed from their caverns, and resistless swept
The foaming waves, when hideous roared the storm,
As if the wild contending elements
Had strove for mastery, at His command
The tempest ceased, the towering billows sunk
In undulations calm, and zephyrs played
Upon the bosom of the peaceful deep.'
Blessed Savior, may we learn from the miracle of the stilling of the
tempest, that our safety lies in being near You, in exercising faith in You,
and in calling on You in the hour of danger, in the language of the
disciples, 'Lord, save us, or we perish.' We are still on the tempestuous
sea of life, and however bright our sky, and calm our sea at present, yet in
a moment the winds may rise, the tempests break, waves roll on waves, and
speedy and utter destruction stare us in the face. Oh, in that dark and
stormy hour when all human aid will be vain, be awake to our dilemma, even
unto our cause; stand by us, and still the raging tempest with Your voice of
Omnipotence and compassion; compass us about with songs of deliverance;
direct our vision beyond mortal scenes, beyond the narrow sea of life, 'unto
the other side,' the peaceful shore of glory, where every earthly storm will
be changed into a heavenly calm- where the trials of time will give place to
the joys of eternity.
Oh, my soul, in the fearful hour of calamity- of temptation- of affliction-
of bereavements, still look to Your Divine Master, who is interceding for
You in yonder heavens, and whose voice alone can say to the weary, troubled
soul, 'Peace, be still'. If we would enjoy that peace which the world cannot
impart, if we would die in peace, and be supremely blest beyond the ocean of
life, let us keep in the ark of God, with our eye fixed on the Great Pilot,
who will cause our tempest-tossed bark to ride triumphantly over every
billow, and to enter with safety into the haven of eternal felicity. Amid
all the turbulent scenes of earth, let us look for deliverance to Him whose
voice stilled the waves of the Sea of Galilee, and whose hand upholds and
governs the mighty universe. In the beautiful language of Robert Leighton,
'Nothing does so establish the mind amid the rollings and turbulence of
present things, as both a look above them, and a look beyond them; above
them, to the steady and good hand by which they are ruled; and beyond them,
to the sweet and beautiful end to which, by that hand, they will be
brought.'
When first the Savior wakened me,
And showed me why He died,
He pointed over life's narrow sea,
And said, "To yonder side.
I am the ark where Noah dwelt,
And heard the delude roar
No soul can perish that has felt
My rest- To yonder shore."
Peaceful and calm the tide of life
When first I sailed with Thee
My sins forgiven- no inward strife
My breast a glassy sea.
But soon the storm of passion raves
My soul is tempest-tossed
Corruptions rise, like angry waves,
"Help, Master, I am lost!"
"Peace! peace! be still, you raging breast,
My fullness is for thee-"
The Savior speaks and all is rest,
Like the waves of Galilee.'
In following our Lord still further in the accomplishing of His wonderful
works, we see Him at one time on a mountain, praying alone in the evening,
while His disciples are in a ship in the midst of the Sea of Gennesaret,
tossed with waves, for the wind was contrary. In the fourth-watch of the
night Christ comes to them, walking on the rough sea. He dispels their fears
by saying, 'Be of good cheer; it is I; do not be afraid.' His hand sustains
Peter from sinking, and His word causes the wind to cease instantaneously; a
miracle which fills all in the ship with amazement, and leads those who were
sailing with the disciples to come and worship the Savior, by saying,
'Truly, You are the Son of God.' Of Him who thus walks on the great deep,
controlling nature in her wild uproar, it is beautifully written: 'Your way
is in the sea, and Your path in the great waters, and Your footsteps are not
known.' 'Who alone spreads out the heavens, and treads upon the waves of the
sea.'
Again, we behold the Savior at the grave of Lazarus, proclaiming the majesty
of His Godhead, showing that he is the resurrection and the life, uttering
that thanksgiving prayer; 'Father, I thank You that You have heard Me,' and
'then Jesus shouted, "Lazarus, come out!" And Lazarus came out, bound in
grave clothes, his face wrapped in a head cloth. Jesus told them, "Unwrap
him and let him go!"
"Come forth!" He cries, "you dead!"
O God, what means that strange and sudden sound,
That murmurs from the tomb? That ghastly head,
With funeral fillets bound?
It is a living form-
The loved, the lost, the won,
Won from the grave, corruption, and the worm-
"And is not this the Son
of God?" they whispered, while the sisters poured
Their gratitude in tears, for they had known the Lord.'
The miracles which our Lord wrought in the days of His flesh are so
numerous, that we have space only to mention some of them. Besides
performing those already named, we find Him healing the nobleman's son;
raising the daughter of Jairus; healing the paralytic; healing the
centurion's servant; raising the widow's son; healing the paralyzed man at
Bethesda; opening the eyes of one born blind; restoring the man with a
withered band; healing one deaf and dumb; and opening the eyes of two blind
men near Jericho.
The grand design of these miracles was to manifest the glory of Jesus, to
show the world the truth of His divine mission, and lead men to receive Him
as the promised Messiah. The Christian religion is thus established amid the
most astonishing and repeated demonstrations of miraculous power. 'It was a
miraculous mercy that God should look upon us in our blood, and miraculous
condescension that His Son should take our nature; and even this favor we
could not believe without many miracles: and so contrary was our condition
to all possibilities of happiness, that if salvation had not marched to us
all the way in miracle, we had perished in the ruins of a sad eternity.'
IN HIS PUBLIC MINISTRY ON EARTH OUR SAVIOR MANIFESTED THE GREATEST SYMPATHY
FOR THOSE IN DISTRESS. The history of His whole earthly course evinces that
His heart was always full of sympathy for fallen man- that He was ever
touched with the feeling of our infirmities. How often do we find Him moved
with compassion for the children of earth, in their diseases, needs,
temptations, persecutions, trials, and bereavements! How often do we see Him
affording relief in the hour when all is trouble, and darkness, and grief;
and when no human arm can bring deliverance or peace. So much did He
sympathize with others in their distresses, that it is said, 'He Himself
took our infirmities, and bore our sicknesses.'
Take the following instances in His life as illustrative of His ineffable
compassion. On one occasion, when He looked on the five thousand whom He
miraculously fed, it is said, 'He was moved with compassion toward them,
because they were as sheep without a shepherd: and He began to teach them
many things.' When the leper came to Him with earnest request that he might
be made clean, we are told that 'Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth His
hand, and touched him, and says unto him, I will; be clean.' And see how his
compassion flows, when the two blind men beseech Him to impart sight to
them- 'So Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and
immediately they received sight, and followed Him.'
But let us look again at the compassionate Savior of men, as He journeys
from place to place, effecting His wondrous deeds of charity and love.
Shortly after He had performed His miracle of healing the centurion's
servant, we find Him 'with many of His disciples and many people,'
approaching the city of Nain, and meeting at the gate of the city a sad
procession following the remains of a young man to the grave. This was truly
a melancholy scene. A widow has lost her only son- her support, and the
solace of her life; and her heart is touched with the keenest anguish. She
mourns for an only son; and who call describe the bitterness of such a
mourning? 'Make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation.' 'I
will make it as the mourning of an only son.' 'They shall mourn for him, as
one mourns for his only son.' The narrative respecting the youth of Nain is
beautifully and touchingly related by the evangelist Luke. 'Now when He came
near to the gate of the city, behold there was a dead man carried out, the
only son of his mother, and she was a widow; many people from the city were
with her. As Jesus witnesses this sad spectacle of grief, and sees the
afflicted mother bathed in tears for the loss of her only son, He is moved
with compassion, and immediately comes forward to relieve her distress.
'Soon afterward Jesus went with his disciples to the village of Nain, with a
great crowd following him. A funeral procession was coming out as he
approached the village gate. The boy who had died was the only son of a
widow, and many mourners from the village were with her. When the Lord saw
her, his heart overflowed with compassion. "Don't cry!" he said. Then he
walked over to the coffin and touched it, and the bearers stopped. "Young
man," he said, "get up." Then the dead boy sat up and began to talk to those
around him! And Jesus gave him back to his mother.' Luke 7:11-15
What a touching instance is here presented of the supreme tenderness of Him
who gives unto those who mourn in Zion beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for
mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness! The pious mind
will love often to turn to a scene which called forth so much compassion in
Christ Jesus, who is the source of all life: who came to despoil the grave
of its prey, and to guide the believer to that land where death is swallowed
up in victory, and where all are robed in the garments of eternal salvation.
But let us recall another most impressive scene in the life of our blessed
Savior. Let us consider Him at the grave of Lazarus, and see His tears of
compassion freely flow. Approaching the tomb of His friend, and seeing the
sisters of the departed weeping, and the Jews also weeping, who came to
console the bereaved sisters, Jesus Himself 'groaned in the spirit, and was
troubled.' And as He contemplates the melancholy scene in its true aspect-
remembers the miseries which sin has brought upon our race- sees with His
omniscient eye the graves in all ages opening to receive the remains of
loved ones- and bears the cries of bereaved, agonized hearts, rising from
earth's habitations down to the close of time- He gives vent to His own
feelings in tears of sorrow. 'Jesus wept.' Amazing sight! The Son of God,
the Creator of the universe, the Lord of glory in tears! How plainly do
those tears show the tenderness of His humanity! And how animating for the
mourner in Zion to think, that the heart of Jesus, now that He reigns in
glory, is still full of sympathy, and full of love for His suffering
disciples in this valley of tears! Oh, this is a sweet, a delightful
thought- 'For we have not a High Priest who cannot be touched with the
feeling of our infirmities: but was in all points tempted like as we are,
yet without sin.'
Weeping believer, you whose tears are flowing over the grave of a beloved
friend, come to Jesus for sympathy, and tell Him all your grief. He has
words of comfort for you- precious promises. He can console you as none else
can. He is the same in all ages, the same yesterday, today, and forever. The
eye that dropped its tears at the tomb of Lazarus, will be fixed upon you in
all the scenes of anguish through which you may be called to pass before
reaching the bright world of everlasting joy. Remember that He who is now
seated on the throne of heaven, radiant in celestial glory, was once
afflicted on earth, that He might know how to sympathize with you in the
hour your unutterable anguish. Oh, rejoice that you have so sympathizing a
Friend, who is ready to mitigate your grief, and to conduct you to those
happy mansions, where pious friends shall be reunited to be separated no
more, and where God shall wipe away all tears from the eye.
Who can tell how great is the sympathy of the Son of God, who came from the
bosom of the Father; from the unapproachable splendor of Heaven; to bear our
infirmities, to lighten our burdens, to wipe the tears from our eyes, and to
turn our sorrows into everlasting joys? When you are called to take the last
look of a beloved friend, and to follow his remains to the dark and silent
grave, think of the Savior weeping at the tomb of Lazarus, sympathizing with
the mourners- soothing their pain- cheering their hearts by the glorious
declaration that He is the resurrection and the life, and that whoever
believes in Him, though he were dead, yet shall he live. Aways view Jesus as
the great Sympathizer with His disciples; and in the time of your keenest
anguish and sorest bereavement, look to Him for compassion and relief. He
will regard your cries of misery. Yes, the Great High Priest of our
profession, whose heart felt and bled for sinners, will speak soothingly to
you, and send you the Comforter to be with you forever, and to give you a
foretaste of heaven even in a world of tribulation. Oh, the ineffable
compassion of our blessed Redeemer! In seasons of devout retirement let us
often muse on these affecting words- - Jesus wept!
'Jesus wept! These tears are over,
But His heart is still the same;
Kinsman, Friend, and Elder Brother,
Is His everlasting name.
Savior, who can love like Thee,
Gracious One of Bethany!
When the pangs of trial seize us,
When the waves of sorrow roll,
I will lay my head on Jesus,
Pillow of the troubled soul.
Surely none can feel like Thee,
Weeping One of Bethany!
Jesus wept! And still in glory,
He can mark each mourner's tear;
Loving to retrace the story
Of the hearts He solaced here.
Lord, when I am called to die,
Let me think of Bethany!
Jesus wept! That tear of sorrow
Is a legacy of love;
Yesterday, today, tomorrow,
He the same does ever prove.
You are all in all to me,
Living One of Bethany!
WHILE HE SOJOURNED ON EARTH THE SAVIOR SHED TEARS OF SORROW OVER LOST
SINNERS. Here His divine compassion is again exhibited in a strong and
marvelous light. When He looked at the impenitent sinner rejecting the
offers of mercy and eternal life, and sporting on the very brink of
destruction, His heart was made sorrowful. What tears of commiseration fell
from His eyes when He thought of these things! 'Rivers of waters run down my
eyes, because they keep not Your Law.' Take one most remarkable and striking
example. Contemplate the Savior weeping over impenitent Jerusalem. The time
of His departure is at hand. The last week of His personal ministry has
come; and He is now approaching Jerusalem for the last time. Gaining the
summit of the Mount of Olives, from which so grand a view of Jerusalem is
obtained, He pauses and gazes upon that city and its magnificent temple
which shone under the rays of the sun, like 'a mountain of snow studded with
gold.' He thinks of the fearful downfall of the city, whose wicked
inhabitants had shed so much righteous blood, and whose darkest act of
wickedness was so soon to be committed in His own crucifixion. The cup of
Jerusalem's iniquity is now almost full. The cry is soon to be heard through
her streets, 'His blood be on it us, and on our children.' The Savior knew
this; but still He looks on the wicked and rebellious city with unutterable
concern. Tears of compassionate grief start in His eyes, and roll down His
cheeks. He utters a most bitter lamentation over the city, whose scenes of
coming woe, and famine, and carnage, and desolation, all rise before His
prophetic eye. 'As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it
and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you
peace- but now it is hidden from your eyes."
We must remember that these compassionate tears of the Savior were shed in
the hour of His triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, when the multitude cried,
'Hosanna to the Son of David; Blessed is He that comes in the name of the
Lord; Hosanna in the highest.' But amid all these loud hosannas that resound
from the summit of Olivet, the compassionate Savior weeps over Jerusalem in
her lost condition. He does not pause to drop a tear over his own sufferings
now so near. No. He seems to forget all the agonizing scenes of Gethsemane
and Calvary, while He mourns over the impenitent city. Oh, the pitying love
of Jesus for sinners! Oh, the intensity of His disinterested benevolence!
But this is not all- His tender compassion is again manifested for the city
that had slain the prophets, and rejected Him of whom they wrote- the great
Prophet, the true Messiah. Soon after reaching the city, perhaps when
leaving the temple for the last time, He utters these other words of
touching grief: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets
and stones God's messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children
together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you were not
willing. And now look, your house is left to you, empty and desolate." Oh,
what melting tones of pity are these, coming from the lips of a despised and
rejected Savior! What tender words of sorrow, respecting the city of His
love- the city which He had chosen, and the house of which He said, 'My name
shall be there.'
Let us admire the infinite compassion of Christ. We see how He pities
sinners obstinately bent on their own destruction. He has no pleasure in
their death. 'As I live, with the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death
of the wicked; but that the wicked should turn from his way and live.' Oh,
will not the tears of a compassionate Savior move the hearts of unconcerned
sinners, and bring them to repentance? Will they still go on in the ways of
sin, when out of compassion for their souls the Lord of glory weeps? Will
they still despise that rich mercy which caused Him to weep, and bleed, and
die? Oh, let us look to our merciful Redeemer before it is too late- before
the door of life is forever closed- before our house is left unto us
desolate. May the Savior never weep over us as He did over the impenitent
sinners of Jerusalem; 'If you had known, even you, at least in this your
day, the things which belong to your peace? But now they are hidden from
your eyes.' Christ is now ready to receive us, and encircle us in the arms
of His forgiving love, and carry us safely to the mansions of glory, where
every tear is wiped away, where there is no more pain, nor sorrow; for sin
finds no place in those blissful abodes.
Before the things which concern our everlasting peace are hidden from our
eyes, let us come to Jesus, and abide under His shadow, and rest in His
unchanging love. Then we will never hear from the lips of the Man of
Calvary, who shall one day sit on His great white throne to judge the world,
those words which will fill the soul of the finally impenitent with
indescribable terror: "I called you so often, but you didn't come. I reached
out to you, but you paid no attention. You ignored my advice and rejected
the correction I offered. So I will laugh when you are in trouble! I will
mock you when disaster overtakes you- when calamity overcomes you like a
storm, when you are engulfed by trouble, and when anguish and distress
overwhelm you. I will not answer when they cry for help. Even though they
anxiously search for me, they will not find me. For they hated knowledge and
chose not to fear the Lord. They rejected my advice and paid no attention
when I corrected them. That is why they must eat the bitter fruit of living
their own way. They must experience the full terror of the path they have
chosen. For they are simpletons who turn away from me-to death. They are
fools, and their own complacency will destroy them." Let us now make sure of
our interest in Christ, remembering that the shadows of life's evening will
soon gather around us, and that there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge,
nor wisdom in the grave.
Oh, compassionate Redeemer, still look in pity from Your exalted throne upon
a world of sinners. Let Your mercy and forgiveness be extended to those who
have hitherto so unreasonably disregarded Your tears, Your entreaties, Your
sufferings, Your death. Open their eyes that they may see the things which
belong to their eternal peace. Show them the vanity of the world, the
fearful termination of the ways of sin, and the solemn realities of
eternity. Oh, reach out Your arm, and bring them from the horrible pit, from
the miry clay. Set their fret on the Rock of Ages; and put a new song in
their mouth, even praise unto our God. May they show forth Your
loving-kindness from day to day, until, in the Jerusalem above, they forever
stand before Your throne as trophies of Your rich and marvelous grace.
Now, will not Christians weep with the Son of God for sinners perishing in
their midst? Oh, that every one of us could feel, in some measure, the
inexpressible tenderness of Jesus for the unconverted! Look at their fearful
condition. See them going down to the pit of the lost- even now, standing on
the verge of a gulf of irretrievable ruin. Oh, think of the loss of an
immortal soul; and weep for the despisers of Emmanuel's mercy. Thus did
Jesus weep. Ah! it must be a great calamity that causes the Son of God to
shed these tears of grief, and to pour out His soul unto death. He knows
full well how precious is the redemption of the souls of men. He has taught
us that the soul is of infinitely more value than the world. 'For what shall
it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or
what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?'
If we properly value the soul, we will grieve for those who seem to be
living far from God and righteousness. And if we have the Spirit of Christ,
we will not only mourn for them, but also labor to bring them to the
footstool of mercy; to instruct them in the knowledge of divine truth; to
point them to the crown which shines for the righteous in heaven; and to
warn them of the doom which awaits the wicked in the land of woe. In
language like that which was spoken by Moses to Hobab, we will beseech them
to come with us as we journey through the wilderness of this world to the
heavenly Canaan. 'We are journeying unto the place of which the Lord said, I
will give it you: come you with us, and we will do you good: for the Lord
has spoken good concerning Israel.' And when we look on a world of
impenitent, perishing sinners, we will be ready to exclaim with the prophet:
'Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might
weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!'
Did Christ weep over sinners?
And shall our checks be dry?
Let floods of penitential grief,
Burst forth from every eye.
The Son of God in tears,
Angels with wonder see!
Oh, be astonished, oh, my soul,
He shed those tears for thee.
He wept that we might weep;
Each sin demands a tear;
In heaven alone no sin is found,
For there's no weeping there.''