,,expositions ,,of ,,holy ,,scripture   
,,alexander ,,maclaren1 ,d4 ,d41 ,litt4 
,d4  ,,st4 ,,john ,chaps4 ,,xv to ,,xxi 
,,expositions ,,of ,,holy ,,scripture   
,,alexander ,,maclaren1 ,d4 ,d41 ,litt4 
,d4  ,,st4 ,,john ,chaps4 ,,xv to ,,xxi 
,,contents   ,,the ,,true ,,vine 7,john 
xv4 #a-d7  ,,the ,,true ,,branches ,,of 
,,the ,,true ,,vine 7,john xv4 #e-h7    
,,abiding ,,in ,,love 7,john xv4 #i-aa7 
,,the ,,oneness ,,of ,,the ,,branches   
7,john xv4 #ab1 #ac7  ,,christ',s       
,,friends 7,john xv4 #ad-ag7  ,,sheep   
,,among ,,wolves 7,john xv4 #ah-bj7     
,,the ,,world',s ,,hatred1 ,,as ,,christ
 ,,saw ,,it 7,john xv4 #ba-be7  ,,our   
,,ally 7,john xv4 #bf1 #bg7  ,,why      
,,christ ,,speaks 7,john xvi4 #a-f7     
,,the ,,departing ,,christ ,,and ,,the  
,,coming ,,spirit 7,john xvi4 #g1 #h7   
,,the ,,convicting ,,facts 7,john xvi   
#i-aa7  ,,the ,,guide ,,into ,,all      
,,truth 7,john xvi4 #ab-ae7  ,,christ',s
 ',,little ,,whiles' 7,john xvi4 #af-ai7
  ,,sorrow ,,turned ,,into ,,joy 7,john 

xvi4 #bj-bb7  ',,in ,,that ,,day' 7,john
 xvi4 #bc1 #bd7  ,,the ,,joys ,,op      
',,that ,,day' 7,john xvi4 #be-bg7      
',,from' ,,and ',,to' 7,john xvi4 #bh7  
,,glad ,,confession ,,and ,,sad         
,,warning 7,john xvi4 #bi-cb7  ,,peace  
,,and ,,victory 7,john xvi4 #cc7  ,,the 
,,intercessor 7,john xvii4 #a-ai7       
',,the ,,lord ,,thee ,,keeps' 7,john    
xvii4 #ad-af7  ,,the ,,high ,,priest',s 
,,prayer 7,john xvii4 #bj-bf7  ,,the    
,,folded ,,flock 7,john xvii4 #bd7      
,,christ',s ,,summary ,,of ,,his ,,work 
7,john xvii4 #bf7  ,,christ ,,and ,,his 
,,captors 7,john xviii4 #f-i7  ,,jesus  
,,before ,,caiaphas 7,john xviii4       
#ae-bg7  ',,art ,,thou ,a ,,king8'      
7,john xviii4 #bh-dj7  ,,jesus          
,,sentenced 7,john xix4 #a-af7  ,,an    
,,eye-,,witness',s ,,account ,,of ,,the 
,,crucifixion 7,john xix4 #ag-cj7  ,,the
 ,,title ,,on ,,the ,,cross 7,john xix4 
#ai7  ,,the ,,irrevocable ,,past 7,john 
xix4 #bb7  ,,christ',s ,,finished ,,and 
,,unfinished ,,work 7,john xix4 #cj2    

,rev4 xxi4 #f7  ,,christ ,,our          
,,passover 7,john xix4 #cf7  ,,joseph   
,,and ,,nicodemus 7,john xix4 #ch1 #ci7 
,,the ,,grave ,,in ,a ,,garden 7,john   
xix4 #da1 ,r4,v47  ,,the ,,resurrection 
,,morning 7,john xx4 #a-ah7  ,,the      
,,risen ,,lord',s ,,charge ,,and ,,gift 
7,john xx4 #ba-bc7  ,,thomas ,,and      
,,jesus 7,john xx4 #bh7  ,,the ,,silence
 ,,of ,,scripture 7,john xx4 #cj1 #ca7  
,,an ,,eloquent ,,catalogue 7,john xxi4 
#b7  ,,the ,,beach ,,and ,,the ,,sea    
7,john xxi4 #d7  ',,it ,,is ,,the       
,,lord' 7,john xxi4 #g7  ',,lovest      
,,thou ,,me8' 7,john xxi4 #ae7  ,,youth 
,,and ,,age1 ,,and ,,the ,,command ,,for
 ,,both 7,john xxi4 #ah1 #ai7  ',,they  
,,also ,,serve ,,who ,,only ,,stand     
,,and ,,wait' 7,john xxi4 #ba1 #bb7     
,,the ,,true ,,vine  ',i am the true    
vine1 and ,my ,father is the husbandman4
 ,every branch in ,me that beareth not  
fruit ,he taketh away2 and every branch 
that beareth fruit ,he purgeth it1 that 
it may bring forth more fruit4 ,now ye  

are clean through the word which ,i have
 spoken unto you4 ,abide in ,me1 and ,i 
in you4 ,as the branch cannot bear fruit
 of itself1 except it abide in the vine2
 no more can ye1 except ye abide in     
,me4'--,,john xv4 #ad4  ,,what suggested
 this lovely parable of the vine and the
 branches is equally unimportant and    
undiscoverable4 ,many guesses have been 
made1 and1 no doubt1 as was the case    
with almost all our ,lord's parables1   
some external object gave occasion for  
it4 ,it is a significant token of our   
,lord's calm collectedness1 even at that
 supreme and heart-shaking moment1 that 
,he should have been at leisure to      
observe1 and to use for ,his purposes of
 teaching1 something that was present at
 the instant4 ,the deep and solemn      
lessons which ,he draws1 perhaps from   
some vine by the wayside1 are the       
richest and sweetest clusters that the  
vine has ever grown4 ,the great truth in
 this chapter1 applied in manifold      
directions1 and viewed in many aspects1 

is that of the living union between     
,christ and those who believe on ,him1  
and the parable of the vine and the     
branches affords the foundation for all 
which follows4  ,we take the first half 
of that parable now4 ,it is somewhat    
difficult to trace the course of thought
 in it1 but there seems to be1 first of 
all1 the similitude set forth1 without  
explanation or interpretation1 in its   
most general terms1 and then various    
aspects in which its applications to    
,christian duty are taken up and        
reiterated1 ,i simply follow the words  
which ,i have read for my text4  ,i4 ,we
 have then1 first1 the ,vine in the     
vital unity of all its parts4  ',i am   
the ,true ,vine1' of which the material 
one to which ,he perhaps points1 is but 
a shadow and an emblem4 ,the reality    
lies in ,him4 ,we shall best understand 
the deep significance and beauty of this
 thought if we recur in imagination to  
some of those great vines which we      
sometimes see in royal conservatories1  

where for hundred of yards the pliant   
branches stretch along the espaliers1   
and yet one life pervades the whole1    
from the root1 through the crooked stem1
 right away to the last leaf at the top 
of the farthest branch1 and reddens and 
mellows every cluster1 ',so1' says      
,christ1 'between ,me and the totality  
of them that hold by ,me in faith there 
is one life1 passing ever from root     
through branches1 and ever bearing      
fruit4'  ,let me remind you that this   
great thought of the unity of life      
between ,jesus ,christ and all that     
believe upon ,him is the familiar       
teaching of ,scripture1 and is set forth
 by other emblems besides that of the   
vine1 the queen of the vegetable world2 
for we have it in the metaphor of the   
body and its members1 where not only are
 the many members declared to be parts  
of one body1 but the name of the        
collective body1 made up of many        
members1 is ,christ4 ',so also is'--not 
as we might expect1 'the ,church1'      

but--',christ1' the whole bearing the   
name of ,him who is the ,source of life 
to every part4 ,personality remains1    
individuality remains3 ,i am ,i1 and ,he
 is ,he1 and thou art thou2 but across  
the awful gulf of individual            
consciousness which parts us from one   
another1 ,jesus ,christ assumes the     
,divine prerogative of passing and      
joining ,himself to each of us1 if we   
love ,him and trust ,him1 in a union so 
close1 and with a communication of life 
so real1 that every other union which we
 know is but a faint and far-off        
adumbration of it4 ,a oneness of life   
from root to branch1 which is the sole  
cause of fruitfulness and growth1 is    
taught us here4  ,and then let me remind
 you that that living unity between     
,jesus ,christ and all who love ,him is 
a oneness which necessarily results in  
oneness of relation to ,god and men1 in 
oneness of character1 and in oneness of 
destiny4 ,in relation to ,god1 ,he is   
the ,son1 and we in ,him receive the    

standing of sons4 ,he has access ever   
into the ,father's presence1 and we     
through ,him and in ,him have access    
with confidence and are accepted in the 
,beloved4 ,in relation to men1 since ,he
 is ,light1 we1 touched with ,his light1
 are also1 in our measure and degree1   
the lights of the world2 and in the     
proportion in which we receive into our 
souls1 by patient abiding in ,jesus     
,christ1 the very power of ,his ,spirit1
 we1 too1 become ,god's anointed1       
subordinately but truly ,his messiahs1  
for ,he ,himself says3 ',as the ,father 
hath sent ,me1 even so ,i send you4'    
,in regard to character1 the living     
union between ,christ and ,his members  
results in a similarity if not identity 
of character1 and with ,his             
righteousness we are clothed1 and by    
that righteousness we are justified1 and
 by that righteousness we are           
sanctified4 ,the oneness between ,christ
 and ,his children is the ground at once
 of their forgiveness and acceptance1   

and of all virtue and nobleness of life 
and conduct that can ever be theirs4    
,and1 in like manner1 we can look       
forward and be sure that we are so      
closely joined with ,him1 if we love    
,him and trust ,him1 that it is         
impossible but that where ,he is there  
shall also ,his servants be2 and that   
what ,he is that shall also ,his        
servants be4 ,for the oneness of life1  
by which we are delivered from the      
bondage of corruption and the law of sin
 and death here1 will never halt nor    
cease until it brings us into the unity 
of ,his glory1 'the measure of the      
stature of the fullness of ,christ4'    
,and as ,he sits on the ,father's       
throne1 ,his children must needs sit    
with ,him1 on ,his throne4  ,therefore  
the name of the collective whole1 of    
which the individual ,christian is part1
 is ,christ4 ,and as in the great ,old  
,testament prophecy of the ,servant of  
the ,lord1 the figure that rises before 
,isaiah's vision fluctuates between that

 which is clearly the collective ,israel
 and that which is1 as clearly1 the     
personal ,messiah2 so the ',christ' is  
not only the individual ,redeemer who   
bears the body of the flesh literally   
here upon earth1 but the whole of that  
redeemed ,church1 of which it is said1  
',it is ,his body1 the fullness of ,him 
that filleth all in all4'  ,,ii4 ,now   
note1 secondly1 the ,husbandman1 and the
 dressing of the vine4  ,the one tool   
that a vinedresser needs is a knife4    
,the chief secret of culture is         
merciless pruning4 ,and so says my text1
 ',the ,father is the ,husbandman4' ,our
 ,lord assumes that office in other of  
,his parables4 ,but here the exigencies 
of the parabolic form require that the  
office of ,cultivator should be assigned
 only to the ,father2 although we are   
not to forget that the ,father1 in that 
office1 works through and in ,his ,son4 
,but we should note that the one kind of
 husbandry spoken of here is            
pruning--not manuring1 not digging1 but 

simply the hacking away of all that is  
rank and all that is dead4  ,were you   
ever in a greenhouse or in a vineyard at
 the season of cutting back the vines8  
,what flagitious waste it would seem to 
an ignorant person to see scattered on  
the floor the bright green leaves and   
the incipient clusters1 and to look up  
at the bare stem1 bleeding at a hundred 
points from the sharp steel4 ,yes6 ,but 
there was not a random stroke in it all1
 and there was nothing cut away which it
 was not loss to keep and gain to lose2 
and it was all done artistically1       
scientifically1 for a set purpose--that 
the plant might bring forth more fruit4 
,thus1 says ,christ1 the main thing that
 is needed--not1 indeed1 to improve the 
life in the branches1 but to improve the
 branches in which the life is--is      
excision4 ,there are two forms of it    
given here--absolutely dead wood has to 
be cut out2 wood that has life in it1   
but which has also rank shoots1 that do 
not come from the all-pervading and     

hallowed life1 has to be pruned back and
 deprived of its shoots4  ,it seems to  
me that the very language of the        
metaphor before us requires us to       
interpret the fruitless branches as     
meaning all those who have a mere       
superficial1 external adherence to the  
,true ,vine4 ,for1 according to the     
whole teaching of the parable1 if there 
be any real union1 there will be some   
life1 and if there be any life1 there   
will be some fruit1 and1 therefore1 the 
branch that has no fruit has no life1   
because it has no real union4 ,and so   
the application1 as ,i take it1 is      
necessarily to those professing         
,christians1 nominal adherents to       
,christianity or to ,christ's ,church1  
people that come to church and chapel1  
and if you ask them to put down in the  
census paper what they are1 will say    
that they are ,christians--,churchmen or
 ,dissenters1 as the case may be--but   
who have no real hold upon ,jesus       
,christ1 and no real reception of       

anything from ,him2 and the 'taking     
away' is simply that1 somehow or other1 
,god makes visible1 what is a fact1 that
 they do not belong to ,him with whom   
they have this nominal connection4  ,the
 longer ,christianity continues in any  
country1 the more does the ,church get  
weighted and lowered in its temperature 
by the aggregation round about it of    
people of that sort4 ,and one sometimes 
longs and prays for a storm to come1 of 
some sort or other1 to blow the dead    
wood out of the tree1 and to get rid of 
all this oppressive and stifling weight 
of sham ,christians that has come round 
every one of our churches4 ',his fan is 
in ,his hand1 and ,he will throughly    
purge ,his floor1' and every man that   
has any reality of ,christian life in   
him should pray that this pruning and   
cutting out of the dead wood may be     
done1 and that ,he would 'come as a     
refiner's fire and purify' ,his         
priesthood4  ,then there is the other   
side1 the pruning of the fruitful       

branches4 ,we all1 in our ,christian    
life1 carry with us the two natures--our
 own poor miserable selves1 and the     
better life of ,jesus ,christ within us4
 ,the one flourishes at the expense of  
the other2 and it is the ,husbandman's  
merciful1 though painful work1 to cut   
back unsparingly the rank shoots that   
come from self1 in order that all the   
force of our lives may be flung into the
 growing of the cluster which is        
acceptable to ,him4  ,so1 dear friends1 
let us understand the meaning of all    
that comes to us4 ,the knife is sharp   
and the tendrils bleed1 and things that 
seem very beautiful and very precious   
are unsparingly shorn away1 and we are  
left bare1 and1 as it seems to          
ourselves1 impoverished4 ,but ,oh6 it is
 all sent that we may fling our force   
into the production of fruit unto ,god4 
,and no stroke will be a stroke too many
 or too deep if it helps us to that4    
,only let us take care that we do not   
let regrets for the vanished good harm  

us just as much as joy in the present   
good did1 and let us rather1 in humble  
submission of will to ,his merciful     
knife1 say to ,him1 ',cut to the quick1 
,lord1 if only thereby my fruit unto    
,thee may increase4'  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 we
 have here the branches abiding in the  
,vine1 and therefore fruitful4  ,our    
,lord deals with the little group of    
,his disciples as incipiently and       
imperfectly1 but really1 cleansed       
through 'the word which ,he has spoken  
to them1' and gives them ,his           
exhortation towards that conduct through
 which the cleansing and the union and  
the fruitfulness will all be secured4   
',now ye are clean3 abide in ,me and ,i 
in you4 ,as the branch cannot bear fruit
 of itself except it abide in the vine1 
no more can ye except ye abide in ,me4' 
,union with ,christ is the condition of 
all fruitfulness4 ,there may be plenty  
of activity and yet barrenness4 ,works  
are not fruit4 ,we can bring forth a    
great deal 'of ourselves1' and because  

it is of ourselves it is nought4 ,fruit 
is possible only on condition of union  
with ,him4 ,he is the productive source 
of it all4  ,there is the great glory   
and distinctive blessedness of the      
,gospel4 ,other teachers come to us and 
tell us how we ought to live1 and give  
us laws1 patterns and examples1 reasons 
and motives for pure and noble lives4   
,the ,gospel comes and gives us life1 if
 we will take it1 and unfolds itself in 
us into all the virtues that we have to 
possess4 ,what is the use of giving a   
man a copy if he cannot copy it8        
,morality comes and stands over the     
cripple1 and says to him1 ',look here6  
,this is how you ought to walk1' and he 
lies there1 paralysed and crippled1     
after as before the exhibition of what  
graceful progression is4 ,but           
,christianity comes and bends over him1 
and lays hold of his hand1 and says1    
',in the name of ,jesus ,christ of      
,nazareth1 rise up and walk1' and his   
feet and ankle bones receive strength1  

and 'he leaps1 and walks1 and praises   
,god4' ,christ gives more than          
commandments1 patterns1 motives2 ,he    
gives the power to live soberly1        
righteously1 and godly1 and in ,him     
alone is that power to be found4  ,then 
note that our reception of that power   
depends upon our own efforts4 ',abide in
 ,me and ,i in you4' ,is that last      
clause a commandment as well as the     
first8 ,how can ,his abiding in us be a 
duty incumbent upon us8 ,but it is4 ,and
 we might paraphrase the intention of   
this imperative in its two halves1      
by--,do you take care that you abide in 
,christ1 and that ,christ abides in you4
 ,the two ideas are but two sides of the
 one great sphere2 they complement and  
do not contradict each other4 ,we dwell 
in ,him as the part does in the whole1  
as the branch does in the vine1         
recipient of its life and fruit-bearing 
energy4 ,he dwells in us as the whole   
does in the part1 as the vine dwells in 
the branch1 communicating its energy to 

every part2 or as the soul does in the  
body1 being alive equally in every part1
 though it be sight in the eyeball1 and 
hearing in the ear1 and colour in the   
cheek1 and strength in the hand1 and    
swiftness in the foot4  ',abide in ,me  
and ,i in you4' ,so we come down to very
 plain1 practical exhortations4 ,dear   
brethren1 suppress yourselves1 and empty
 your lives of self1 that the life of   
,christ may come in4 ,a lock upon a     
canal1 if it is empty1 will have its    
gates pressed open by the water in the  
canal and will be filled4 ,empty the    
heart and ,christ will come in4 ',abide 
in ,him' by continual direction of      
thought1 love1 desire to ,him2 by       
continual and reiterated submission of  
the will to ,him1 as commanding and as  
appointing2 by the honest reference to  
,him of daily life and all petty duties 
which otherwise distract us and draw us 
away from ,him4 ,then1 dwelling in ,him 
we shall share in ,his life1 and shall  
bring forth fruit to ,his praise4  ,here

 is encouragement for us all4 ,to all of
 us1 sometimes1 our lives seem barren   
and poor2 and we feel as if we had      
brought forth no fruit to perfection4   
,let us get nearer to ,him and ,he will 
see to the fruit4 ,some poor stranded   
sea-creature on the beach1 vainly       
floundering in the pools1 is at the     
point of death2 but the great tide      
comes1 leaping and rushing over the     
sands1 and bears it away out into the   
middle deeps for renewed activity and   
joyous life4 ,let the flood of ,christ's
 life bear you on its bosom1 and you    
will rejoice and expatiate therein4     
,here is a lesson of solemn warning to  
professing ,christians4 ,the lofty      
mysticism and inward life in ,jesus     
,christ all terminate at last in simple1
 practical obedience2 and the fruit is  
the test of the life4 ',depart from ,me1
 ,i never knew you1 ye that work        
iniquity4'  ,and here is a lesson of    
solemn appeal to us all4 ,our only      
opportunity of bearing any fruit worthy 

of our natures and of ,god's purpose    
concerning us is by vital union with    
,jesus ,christ4 ,if we have not that1   
there may be plenty of activity and     
mountains of work in our lives1 but     
there will be no fruit4 ,only that is   
fruit which pleases ,god and is         
conformed to ,his purpose concerning us1
 and all the rest of our busy doings is 
no more the fruit a man should bear than
 cankers are roses1 or than oak-galls   
are acorns4 ,they are but the work of a 
creeping grub1 and diseased excrescences
 that suck into themselves the juices   
that should swell the fruit4 ,open your 
hearts to ,christ and let ,his life and 
,his ,spirit come into you1 and then you
 will have 'your fruit unto holiness1   
and the end everlasting life4'    ,,the 
,,true ,,branches ,,of ,,the ,,true     
,,vine  ',i am the vine1 ye are the     
branches3 he that abideth in ,me1 and ,i
 in him1 the same bringeth forth much   
fruit3 for without ,me ye can do        
nothing4 ,if a man abide not in ,me1 he 

is cast forth as a branch1 and is       
withered2 and men gather them1 and cast 
them into the fire1 and they are burned4
 ,if ye abide in ,me1 and ,my words     
abide in you1 ye shall ask what ye will1
 and it shall be done unto you4 ,herein 
is ,my ,father glorified1 that ye bear  
much fruit2 so shall ye be ,my          
disciples4'--,,john xv4 #e-h4  ,no wise 
teacher is ever afraid of repeating     
himself4 ,the average mind requires the 
reiteration of truth before it can make 
that truth its own4 ,one coat of paint  
is not enough1 it soon rubs off4        
,especially is this true in regard to   
lofty spiritual and religious truth1    
remote from men's ordinary thinkings1   
and in some senses unwelcome to them4   
,so our ,lord1 the great ,teacher1 never
 shrank from repeating ,his lessons when
 ,he saw that they were but partially   
apprehended4 ,it was not grievous to    
,him to 'say the same things1' because  
for them it was safe4 ,he broke the     
bread of life into small pieces1 and fed

 them little and often4  ,so here1 in   
the verses that we have to consider now1
 we have the repetition1 and yet not the
 mere repetition1 of the great parable  
of the vine1 as teaching the union of   
,christians with ,christ1 and their     
consequent fruitfulness4 ,he saw1 no    
doubt1 that the truth was but partially 
dawning upon ,his disciples' minds4     
,therefore ,he said it all over again1  
with deepened meaning1 following it out 
into new applications1 presenting       
further consequences1 and1 above all1   
giving it a more sharp and definite     
personal application4  ,are we any      
swifter scholars than these first ones  
were8 ,have we absorbed into our own    
thinking this truth so thoroughly and   
constantly1 and wrought it out in our   
lives so completely1 that we do not need
 to be reminded of it any more8 ,shall  
we not be wise if we faithfully listen  
to ,his repeated teachings8  ,the verses
 which ,i have read give us four aspects
 of this great truth of union with      

,jesus ,christ2 or of its converse1     
separation from ,him4 ,there is1 first1 
the fruitfulness of union2 second1 the  
withering and destruction of separation2
 third1 the satisfaction of desire which
 comes from abiding in ,christ2 and1    
lastly1 the great1 noble issue of       
fruitfulness1 in ,god's glory1 and our  
own increasing discipleship4 ,now let me
 touch upon these briefly4  ,i4 ,first1 
then1 our ,lord sets forth1 with no mere
 repetition1 the same broad idea which  
,he has already been insisting          
upon--viz41 that union with ,him is sure
 to issue in fruitfulness4 ,he repeats  
the theme1 ',i am the ,vine'2 but ,he   
points its application by the next      
clause1 ',ye are the branches4' ,that   
had been implied before1 but it needed  
to be said more definitely4 ,for are we 
not all too apt to think of religious   
truth as swinging in vacuo as it were1  
with no personal application to         
ourselves1 and is not the one thing     
needful in regard to the truths which   

are most familiar to us1 to bring them  
into close connection with our own      
personal life and experience8  ',i am   
the ,vine' is a general truth1 with no  
clear personal application4 ',ye are the
 branches' brings each individual       
listener into connection with it4 ,how  
many of us there are1 as there are in   
every so-called ,christian communion1   
that listen pleasedly1 and1 in a fitful 
sort of languid way1 interestedly1 to   
the most glorious and most solemn words 
that come from a preacher's lips1 and   
never dream that what he has been saying
 has any bearing upon themselves6 ,and  
the one thing that is most of all needed
 with people like some of you1 who have 
been listening to the truth all your    
days1 is that it should be sharpened to 
a point1 and the conviction driven into 
you1 that you have some personal concern
 in this great message4 ',ye are the    
branches' is the one side of that       
sharpening and making definite of the   
truth in its personal application1 and  

the other side is1 ',thou art the man4' 
,all preaching and religious teaching is
 toothless generality1 utterly useless1 
unless we can manage somehow or other to
 force it through the wall of           
indifference and vague assent to a      
general proposition1 with which         
',gospel-hardened hearers' surround     
themselves1 and make them feel that the 
thing has got a point1 and that the     
point is touching their own             
consciousness4 ',ye are the branches4'  
,note next the great promise of         
fruitfulness4 ',he that abideth in ,me1 
and ,i in ,him1 the same bringeth forth 
much fruit4'  ,i need not repeat what ,i
 have said in former sermons as to the  
plain1 practical duties which are       
included in that abiding in ,christ1 and
 ,christ's consequent abiding in us4 ,it
 means1 on the part of professedly      
,christian people1 a temper and tone of 
mind very far remote from the noisy1    
bustling distractions too common in our 
present ,christianity4 ,we want quiet1  

patient waiting within the veil4 ,we    
want stillness of heart1 brought about  
by our own distinct effort to put away  
from ourselves the strife of tongues and
 the pride of life4 ,we want activity1  
no doubt1 but we want a wise passiveness
 as its foundation4    ',think you1     
midst all this mighty sum     ,of things
 for ever speaking1   ,that nothing of  
itself will come1     ,but we must still
 be seeking8'  ,get away into the       
'secret place of the ,most ,high1' and  
rise into a higher altitude and         
atmosphere than the region of work and  
effort2 and sitting still with ,christ1 
let ,his love and ,his power pour       
themselves into your hearts4 ',come1 ,my
 people1 enter thou into thy chambers   
and shut thy doors about thee4' ,get    
away from the jangling of politics1 and 
empty controversies and busy            
distractions of daily duty4 ,the harder 
our toil necessarily is1 the more let us
 see to it that we keep a little cell   
within the central life where in silence

 we hold communion with the ,master4    
',abide in ,me and ,i in you4'  ,that is
 the way to be fruitful1 rather than by 
efforts after individual acts of        
conformity and obedience1 howsoever     
needful and precious these are4 ,there  
is a deeper thing wanted than these4    
,the best way to secure ,christian      
conduct is to cultivate communion with  
,christ4 ,it is better to work at the   
increase of the central force than at   
the improvement of the circumferential  
manifestations of it4 ,get more of the  
sap into the branch1 and there will be  
more fruit4 ,have more of the life of   
,christ in the soul1 and the conduct and
 the speech will be more ,christlike4   
,we may cultivate individual graces at  
the expense of the harmony and beauty of
 the whole character4 ,we may grow them 
artificially and they will be of little 
worth--by imitation of others1 by       
special efforts after special           
excellence1 rather than by general      
effort after the central improvement of 

our nature and therefore of our life4   
,but the true way to influence conduct  
is to influence the springs of conduct2 
and to make a man's life better1 the    
true way is to make the man better4     
,first of all be1 and then do2 first of 
all receive1 and then give forth2 first 
of all draw near to ,christ1 and then   
there will be fruit to ,his praise4     
,that is the ,christian way of mending  
men1 not tinkering at this1 that1 and   
the other individual excellence1 but    
grasping the secret of total excellence 
in communion with ,him4  ,our ,lord is  
here not merely laying down a law1 but  
giving a promise1 and putting his       
veracity into pawn for the fulfilment of
 it4 ',if a man will keep near ,me1' ,he
 says1 'he shall bear fruit4'  ,notice  
that little word which now appears for  
the first time4 ',he shall bear much    
fruit4' ,we are not to be content with a
 little fruit2 a poor shrivelled bunch  
of grapes that are more like marbles    
than grapes1 here and there1 upon the   

half-nourished stem4 ,the abiding in    
,him will produce a character rich in   
manifold graces4 ',a little fruit' is   
not contemplated by ,christ at all4 ,god
 forbid that ,i should say that there is
 no possibility of union with ,christ   
and a little fruit4 ,little union will  
have little fruit2 but ,i would have you
 notice that the only two alternatives  
which come into ,christ's view here are1
 on the one hand1 'no fruit1' and on the
 other hand1 'much fruit4' ,and ,i would
 ask why it is that the average         
,christian man of this generation bears 
only a berry or two here and there1 like
 such as are left upon the vines after  
the vintage1 when the promise is that if
 he will abide in ,christ1 he will bear 
much fruit8  ,this verse1 setting forth 
the fruitfulness of union with ,jesus1  
ends with the brief1 solemn statement of
 the converse--the barrenness of        
separation--',apart from ,me' 7not      
merely 'without1' as the ,authorised    
,version has it7 'ye can do nothing4'   

,there is the condemnation of all the   
busy life of men which is not lived in  
union with ,jesus ,christ4 ,it is a long
 row of figures which1 like some other  
long rows of algebraic symbols added up1
 amount just to zero4 ',without me1     
nothing4' ,all your busy life1 when you 
come to sum it up1 is made up of plus   
and minus quantities1 which precisely   
balance each other1 and the net result1 
unless you are in ,christ1 is just      
nothing2 and on your gravestones the    
only right epitaph is a great round     
cypher4 ',he did not do anything4 ,there
 is nothing left of his toil2 the whole 
thing has evaporated and disappeared4'  
,that is life apart from ,jesus ,christ4
  ,,ii4 ,and so note1 secondly1 the     
withering and destruction following     
separation from ,him4  ,commentators    
tell us1 ,i think a little prosaically1 
that when our ,lord spoke1 it was the   
time of pruning the vine in ,palestine1 
and that1 perhaps1 as they went from the
 upper room to the garden1 they might   

see in the valley1 here and there1 the  
fires that the labourers had kindled in 
the vineyards to burn the loppings of   
the vines4 ,that does not matter4 ,it is
 of more consequence to notice how the  
solemn thought of withering and         
destruction forces itself1 so to speak1 
into these gracious words2 and how1 even
 at that moment1 our ,lord1 in all ,his 
tenderness and pity1 could not but let  
words of warning--grave1 solemn1        
tragical--drop from ,his lips4  ,this   
generation does not like to hear them1  
for its conception of the ,gospel is a  
thing with no minor notes in it1 with no
 threatenings1 a proclamation of a      
deliverance1 and no proclamation of     
anything from which deliverance is      
needed--which is a strange kind of      
,gospel6 ,but ,jesus ,christ could not  
speak about the blessedness of          
fruitfulness and the joy of life in     
,himself without speaking about its     
necessary converse1 the awfulness of    
separation from ,him1 of barrenness1 of 

withering1 and of destruction4          
,separation is withering4 ,did you ever 
see a hawthorn bough that children bring
 home from the woods1 and stick in the  
grate2 how in a day or two the little   
fresh green leaves all shrivel up and   
the white blossoms become brown and     
smell foul1 and the only thing to be    
done with it is to fling it into the    
fire and get rid of it8 ',and so1' says 
,jesus ,christ1 'as long as a man holds 
on to ,me and the sap comes into him1 he
 will flourish1 and as soon as the      
connection is broken1 all that was so   
fair will begin to shrivel1 and all that
 was green will grow brown and turn to  
dust1 and all that was blossom will     
droop1 and there will be no more fruit  
any more for ever4' ,separate from      
,christ1 the individual shrivels1 and   
the possibilities of fair buds wither   
and set into no fruit1 and no man is the
 man he might have been unless he holds 
by ,jesus ,christ and lets ,his life    
come into him4  ,and as for individuals1

 so for communities4 ,the ,church or the
 body of professing ,christians that is 
separate from ,jesus ,christ dies to all
 noble life1 to all high activity1 to   
all ,christlike conduct1 and1 being     
dead1 rots4  ,withering means           
destruction4 ,the language of our text  
is a description of what befalls the    
actual branches of the literal vine2 but
 it is made a representation of what    
befalls the individuals whom these      
branches represent1 by that added       
clause1 'like a branch4' ,look at the   
mysteriousness of the language4 ',they  
gather them4' ,who8 ',they cast them    
into the fire4' ,who have the tragic    
task of flinging the withered branches  
into some mysterious fire8 ,all is left 
vague with unexplained awfulness4 ,the  
solemn fact that the withering of       
manhood by separation from ,jesus       
,christ requires1 and ends in1 the      
consuming of the withered1 is all that  
we have here4 ,we have to speak of it   
pityingly1 with reticence1 with terror1 

with tenderness1 with awe lest it should
 be our fate4  ,but ,o1 dear brethren6  
be on your guard against the tendency of
 the thinking of this generation1 to    
paste a bit of blank paper over all the 
threatenings of the ,bible1 and to blot 
out from its consciousness the grave    
issues that it holds forth4 ,one of two 
things must befall the branch1 either it
 is in the ,vine or it gets into the    
fire4 ,if we would avoid the fire let us
 see to it that we are in the ,vine4    
,,iii4 ,thirdly1 we have here the union 
with ,christ as the condition of        
satisfied desires4  ',if ye abide in    
,me1 and ,my words abide in you1 ye     
shall ask what ye will1 and it shall be 
done unto you4' ,notice how our ,lord   
varies ,his phraseology here1 and       
instead of saying ',i in you1' says ',my
 words in you4' ,he is speaking about   
prayers1 consequently the variation is  
natural4 ,in fact1 ,his abiding in us is
 largely the abiding of ,his words in   
us2 or1 to speak more accurately1 the   

abiding of ,his words in us is largely  
the means of ,his abiding in us4  ,what 
is meant by ,christ's words abiding in  
us8 ,something a great deal more than   
the mere intellectual acceptance of     
them4 ,something very different from    
reading a verse of the ,gospels of a    
morning before we go to our work1 and   
forgetting all about it all the day     
long2 something very different from     
coming in contact with ,christian truth 
on a ,sunday1 when somebody else        
preaches to us what he has found in the 
,bible1 and we take in a little of it4  
,it means the whole of the conscious    
nature of a man being1 so to speak1     
saturated with ,christ's words2 his     
desires1 his understanding1 his         
affections1 his will1 all being steeped 
in these great truths which the ,master 
spoke4 ,put a little bit of colouring   
matter into the fountain at its source1 
and you will have the stream dyed down  
its course for ever so far4 ,see that   
,christ's words be lodged in your inmost

 selves1 by patient meditation upon     
them1 by continual recurrence to them1  
and all your life will be glorified and 
flash into richness of colouring and    
beauty by their presence4  ,the main    
effect of such abiding of the ,lord's   
words in us which our ,lord touches upon
 here is1 that in such a case1 if our   
whole inward nature is influenced by the
 continual operation upon it of the     
words of the ,lord1 then our desires    
will be granted4 ,do not so vulgarise   
and lower the nobleness and the         
loftiness of this great promise as to   
suppose that it only means--,if you     
remember ,his words you will get        
anything you like4 ,it means something a
 great deal better than that4 ,it means 
that if ,christ's words are the         
substratum1 so to speak1 of your wishes1
 then your wishes will harmonise with   
,his will1 and so 'ye shall ask what ye 
will1 and it shall be done unto you4'   
,christ loves us a great deal too well  
to give to our own foolish and selfish  

wills the keys of ,his treasure-house4  
,the condition of our getting what we   
will is our willing what ,he desires2   
and unless our prayers are a great deal 
more the utterance of the submission of 
our wills to ,his than they are the     
attempt to impose ours upon ,him1 they  
will not be answered4 ,we get our wishes
 when our wishes are moulded by ,his    
word4  ,,iv4 ,the last thought that is  
here is that this union and fruitfulness
 lead to the noble ends of glorifying   
,god and increasing discipleship4       
',herein is ,my ,father glorified1 that 
ye bear much fruit4' ,christ's life was 
all for the glorifying of ,god4 ,the    
lives which are ours in name--but being 
drawn from ,him1 in their depths are    
much rather the life of ,christ in us   
than our lives--will have the same end  
and the same issue4  ,ah1 dear brethren1
 we come here to a very sharp test for  
us all4 ,i wonder how many of us there  
are1 on whom men looking think more     
loftily of ,god and love ,him better1   

and are drawn to ,him by strange        
longings4 ,how many of us are there     
about whom people will say1 ',there must
 be something in the religion that makes
 a man like that'8 ,how many of us are  
there1 to look upon whom suggests to men
 that ,god1 who can make such a man1    
must be infinitely sweet and lovely8    
,and yet that is what we should all     
be--mirrors of the divine radiance1 on  
which some eyes1 that are too dim and   
sore to bear the light as it streams    
from the ,sun1 may look1 and1 beholding 
the reflection1 may learn to love4 ,does
 ,god so shine in me that ,i lead men to
 magnify ,his name8 ,if ,i am dwelling  
with ,christ it will be so4  ,i shall   
not know it4 ',moses wist not that the  
skin of his face shone'2 but1 in meek   
unconsciousness of the glory that rays  
from us1 we may walk the earth1         
reflecting the light and making ,god    
known to our fellows4  ,and if thus we  
abide in ,him and bear fruit we shall   
'be' or 7as the word might more         

accurately be rendered71 we shall       
'become ,his disciples4' ,the end of our
 discipleship is never reached on earth3
 we never so much are as we are in the  
process of becoming1 ,his true followers
 and servants4  ,if we bear fruit       
because we are knit to ,him1 the fruit  
itself will help us to get nearer ,him1 
and so to be more ,his disciples and    
more fruitful4 ,character produces      
conduct1 but conduct rests on character1
 and strengthens the impulses from which
 it springs4 ,and thus our action as    
,christian men and women will tell upon 
our inward lives as ,christians1 and the
 more our outward conduct is conformed  
to the pattern of ,jesus ,christ1 the   
more shall we love ,him in our inmost   
hearts4 ,we ourselves shall eat of the  
fruit which we ourselves have borne to  
,him4  ,the alternatives are before     
us--in ,christ1 living and fruitful2 out
 of ,christ1 barren1 and destined to be 
burned4 ,as the prophet says1 ',will men
 take of the wood of the vine for any   

work8' ,vine-wood is worthless1 its only
 use is to bear fruit2 and if it does   
not do that1 there is only one thing to 
be done with it1 and that is1 ',they    
cast it into the fire1 and it is        
burned4'    ,,abiding ,,in ,,love  ',as 
the ,father hath loved ,me1 so have ,i  
loved you3 continue ye ,in ,my love4 ,if
 ye keep ,my commandments1 ye shall     
abide in ,my love2 even as ,i have kept 
,my ,father's commandments1 and abide in
 ,his love4 ,these things have ,i spoken
 unto you1 that ,my joy might remain in 
you1 and that your joy might be         
full4'--,,john xv4 #i-aa4  ,the last of 
these verses shows that they are to be  
taken as a kind of conclusion of the    
great parable of the ,vine and the      
branches1 for it looks back and declares
 ,christ's purpose in ,his preceding    
utterances4 ,the parable proper is      
ended1 but the thoughts of it still     
linger in our ,lord's mind1 and echo    
through ,his words1 as the vibration of 
some great bell after the stroke has    

ceased4 ,the main thoughts of the       
parable were these two1 that            
participation in ,christ's life was the 
source of all good1 and that abiding in 
,him was the means of participation in  
,his life4 ,and these same thoughts1    
though modified in their form1 and free 
from the parabolical element1 appear in 
the words that we have to consider on   
this occasion4 ,the parable spoke about 
abiding in ,christ2 our text defines    
that abiding1 and makes it still more   
tender and gracious by substituting for 
it1 'abiding in ,his love4' ,the parable
 spoke of conduct as 'fruit1' the       
effortless result of communion with     
,jesus4 ,our text speaks of it with more
 emphasis laid on the human side1 as    
'keeping the commandments4' ,the parable
 told us that abiding in ,christ was the
 condition of bearing fruit4 ,our text  
tells us the converse1 which is also    
true1 that bearing fruit1 or keeping the
 commandments1 is the condition of      
abiding in ,christ4 ,so our ,lord takes 

,his thought1 as it were1 and turns it  
round before us1 letting us see both    
sides of it1 and then tells us that ,he 
does all this for one purpose1 which in 
itself is a token of ,his love1 namely1 
that our hearts may be filled with      
perfect and perennial joy1 a drop from  
the fountain of ,his own4  ,these three 
verses have three words which may be    
taken as their key-notes--love1         
obedience1 joy4 ,we shall look at them  
in that order4  ,i4 ,first1 then1 we    
have here the love in which it is our   
sweet duty to abide4 ',as the ,father   
hath loved ,me1 so have ,i loved you4   
,abide ye in ,my love4'  ,what shall we 
say about these mysterious and profound 
first words of this verse8 ,they carry  
us into the very depths of divinity1 and
 suggest for us that wonderful analogy  
between the relation of the ,father to  
the ,son1 and that of the ,son to ,his  
disciples1 which appears over and over  
again in the solemnities of these last  
hours and words of ,jesus4 ,christ here 

claims to be1 in a unique and solitary  
fashion1 the ,object of the ,father's   
love1 and ,he claims to be able to love 
like ,god4 ',as the ,father hath loved  
,me1 so have ,i loved you'2 as deeply1  
as purely1 as fully1 as eternally1 and  
with all the unnameable perfectnesses   
which must belong to the divine         
affection1 does ,christ declare that ,he
 loves us4  ,i know not whether the     
majesty and uniqueness of ,his nature   
stand out more clearly in the one or in 
the other of these two assertions4 ,as  
beloved of ,god1 and as loving like     
,god1 ,he equally claims for ,himself a 
place which none other can fill1 and    
declares that the love which falls on us
 from ,his pierced and bleeding heart is
 really the love of ,god4  ,in this     
mysterious1 awful1 tender1 perfect      
affection ,he exhorts us to abide4 ,that
 comes yet closer to our hearts than the
 other phrase of which it is the        
modification1 and in some sense the     
explanation4 ,the command to abide in   

,him suggests much that is blessed1 but 
to have all that mysterious abiding in  
,him resolved into abiding in ,his love 
is infinitely tenderer1 and draws us    
still closer to ,himself4 ,obviously1   
what is meant is not our continuance in 
the attitude of love to ,him1 but rather
 our continuance in the sweet and sacred
 atmosphere of ,his love to us4 ,for the
 connection between the two halves of   
the verse necessarily requires that the 
love in which we are to abide should be 
identical with the love which had been  
previously spoken of1 and that is       
clearly ,his love to us1 and not ours to
 ,him4 ,but then1 on the other hand1    
whosoever thus abides in ,christ's love 
to ,him will echo it back again1 in an  
equally continuous love to ,him4 ,so    
that the two things flow together1 and  
to abide in the conscious possession of 
,christ's love to me is the certain and 
inseparable cause of its effect1 my     
abiding in the continual exercise and   
outgoing of my love to ,him4  ,now note 

that this continuance in ,christ's love 
is a thing in our power1 since it is    
commanded4 ,although it is ,his         
affection to us of which my text        
primarily speaks1 ,i can so modify and  
regulate the flow of that divine love to
 my heart that it becomes my duty to    
continue in ,christ's love to me4  ,what
 a quiet1 blessed home that is for us6  
,the image1 ,i suppose1 that underlies  
all this sweet speech in these last     
hours1 about dwelling in ,christ1 in    
,his joy1 in ,his words1 in ,his peace1 
and the like1 is that of some safe      
house1 into which going1 we may be      
secure4 ,and what sorrow or care or     
trouble or temptation would be able to  
reach us if we were folded in the       
protection of that strong love1 and     
always felt that it was the fortress    
into which we might continually resort8 
,they who make their abode there1 and   
dwell behind those firm bastions1 need  
fear no foes1 but are lifted high above 
them all4 ',abide in ,my love1' for they

 who dwell within the clefts of that    
,rock need none other defence2 and they 
to whom the riven heart of ,christ is   
the place of their abode are safe1      
whatsoever befalls4 ',as the ,father    
hath loved ,me1 so have ,i loved you4   
,abide ye in ,my love4'  ,,ii4 ,now     
note1 secondly1 the obedience by which  
we continue in ,christ's love4  ,the    
analogy1 on which ,he has already       
touched1 is still continued4 ',if ye    
keep ,my commandments1 ye shall abide in
 ,my love2 even as ,i have kept ,my     
,father's commandments and abide in ,his
 love4' ,note that ,christ here claims  
for ,himself absolute and unbroken      
conformity with the ,father's will1 and 
consequent uninterrupted and complete   
communion with the ,father's love4 ,it  
is the utterance of a nature conscious  
of no sin1 of a humanity that never knew
 one instant's film of separation1      
howsoever thin1 howsoever brief1 between
 ,him and the ,father4 ,no more         
tremendous words were ever spoken than  

these quiet ones in which ,jesus ,christ
 declares that never1 all ,his life     
long1 had there been the smallest       
deflection or want of conformity between
 the ,father's will and ,his desires and
 doings1 and that never had there been  
one grain of dust1 as it were1 between  
the two polished plates which adhered so
 closely in inseparable union of harmony
 and love4  ,and then notice1 still     
further1 how ,christ here1 with ,his    
consciousness of perfect obedience and  
communion1 intercepts our obedience and 
diverts it to ,himself4 ,he does not    
say1 ',obey ,god as ,i have done1 and   
,he will love you'2 but ,he says1 ',obey
 ,me as ,i obey ,god1 and ,i will love  
you4' ,who is this that thus comes      
between the child's heart and the       
,father's8 ,does ,he come between when  
,he stands thus8 or does ,he rather lead
 us up to the ,father1 and to a share in
 ,his own filial obedience8  ,he further
 assures us that1 by keeping ,his       
commandments1 we shall continue in that 

sweet home and safe stronghold of ,his  
love4 ,of course the keeping of the     
commandments is something more than mere
 outward conformity by action4 ,it is   
the inward harmony of will1 and the     
bowing of the whole nature4 ,it is1 in  
fact1 the same thing 7though considered 
under a different aspect1 and from a    
somewhat different point of view71 as   
,he has already been speaking about as  
the 'fruit' of the vine1 by the bearing 
of which the ,father is glorified4 ,and 
this obedience1 the obedience of the    
hands because the heart obeys1 and does 
so because it loves1 the bowing of the  
will in glad submission to the loved and
 holy will of the heavens--this         
obedience is the condition of our       
continuing in ,christ's love4  ,he will 
love us better1 the more we obey ,his   
commandments1 for although ,his tender  
heart is charged towards all1 even the  
disobedient1 with the love of pity and  
of desire to help1 ,he cannot but feel a
 growing thrill of satisfied and        

gratified affection towards us1 in the  
measure in which we become like         
,himself4 ,the love that wept over us1  
when we were enemies1 will 'rejoice over
 us with singing1' when we are friends4 
,the love that sought the sheep when it 
was wandering will pour itself yet more 
tenderly and with selector gifts upon it
 when it follows in the footsteps of the
 flock1 and keeps close at the heels of 
the ,good ,shepherd4 ',if ye keep ,my   
commandments1 ye shall abide in ,my     
love1' so we will put nothing between us
 and ,him which will make it impossible 
for the tenderest tenderness of that    
holy love to come to your hearts4  ,the 
obedience which we render for love's    
sake will make us more capable of       
receiving1 and more blessedly conscious 
of possessing1 the love of ,jesus       
,christ4 ,the lightest cloud before the 
sun will prevent it from focussing its  
rays to a burning point on the convex   
glass4 ,and the small1 thin1 fleeting1  
scarcely visible acts of self-will that 

sometimes pass across our skies will    
prevent our feeling the warmth of that  
love upon our shrouded hearts4 ,every   
known piece of rebellion against ,christ
 will shatter all true enjoyment of ,his
 favour1 unless we are hopeless         
hypocrites or self-deceived4 ,the       
condition of knowing and feeling the    
warmth and blessedness of ,christ's love
 to me is the honest submission of my   
nature to ,his commandments4 ,you cannot
 rejoice in ,jesus ,christ unless you do
 ,his will4 ,you will have no real      
comfort and blessedness in your religion
 unless it works itself out in your     
daily lives4 ,that is why so many of you
 know nothing1 or next to nothing1 about
 the joy of ,christ's felt presence1    
because you do not1 for all your        
professions1 hourly and momentarily     
regulate and submit your wills to ,his  
commandments4 ,do what ,he wants1 and do
 it because ,he wants it1 if you wish   
that ,his love should fill your hearts4 
,and1 further1 we shall continue in ,his

 love by obedience1 inasmuch as every   
emotion which finds expression in our   
daily life is strengthened by the fact  
that it is expressed4 ,the love which   
works is love which grows1 and the tree 
that bears fruit is the tree that is    
healthy and increases4 ,so note how all 
these deepest things of ,christian      
teaching come at last to a plain piece  
of practical duty4 ,we talk about the   
mysticism of ,john's ,gospel1 about the 
depth of these last sayings of ,jesus   
,christ4 ,yes6 they are mystical1 they  
are deep--unfathomably deep1 thank      
,god6--but connected by the shortest    
possible road with the plainest possible
 duties4 ',let no man deceive you4 ,he  
that doeth righteousness is righteous4' 
,it is of no use to talk about communion
 with ,jesus ,christ1 and abiding in    
,him1 in possession of ,his love1 and   
all those other properly mystical sides 
of ,christian experience1 unless you    
verify them for yourselves by the plain 
way of practice4 ,doing as ,christ bids 

us1 and doing that habitually1 and doing
 it gladly1 then1 and only then1 are we 
in no danger of losing ourselves on the 
heights1 or of forgetting that ,christ's
 mission has for its last result the    
influencing of character and of conduct4
 ',if ye keep ,my commandments1 ye shall
 abide in ,my love1 even as ,i have kept
 ,my ,father's commandments1 and abide  
in ,his love4'  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 note the
 joy which follows on this practical    
obedience4 ',these things have ,i spoken
 unto you1 that my joy might remain1'   
7or 'might be'7 'in you1 and that your  
joy might be full4'  ',my joy might be  
in you'--a strange time to talk of ,his 
'joy4' ,in half an hour he would be in  
,gethsemane1 and we know what happened  
there4 ,was ,christ a joyful man8 ,he   
was a ',man of sorrows' but one of the  
old ,psalms says1 ',thou hast loved     
righteousness 444 therefore ,god hath   
anointed ,thee with the oil of gladness 
above ,thy fellows4' ,the deep truth    
that lies there is the same that ,he    

here claims as being fulfilled in ,his  
own experience1 that absolute surrender 
and submission in love to the beloved   
commands of a loving ,father made       
,him--in spite of sorrows1 in spite of  
the baptism with which ,he was baptized1
 in spite of all the burden and the     
weight of our sins--the most joyful of  
men4  ,this joy ,he offers to us1 a joy 
coming from perfect obedience1 a joy    
coming from a surrender of self at the  
bidding of love1 to a love that to us   
seems absolutely good and sweet4 ,there 
is no joy that humanity is capable of to
 compare for a moment with that bright1 
warm1 continuous sunshine which floods  
the soul1 that is freed from all the    
clouds and mists of self and the        
darkness of sin4 ,self-sacrifice at the 
bidding of ,jesus ,christ is the recipe 
for the highest1 the most exquisite1 the
 most godlike gladnesses of which the   
human heart is capable4 ,our joy will   
remain if ,his joy is ours4 ,then our   
joy will be1 up to the measure of its   

capacity1 ennobled1 and filled1 and     
progressive1 advancing ever towards a   
fuller possession of ,his joy1 and a    
deeper calm of that pure and perennial  
rapture1 which makes the settled and    
celestial bliss of those who have       
'entered into the joy of their ,lord4'  
,brother6 there is only one gladness    
that is worth calling so--and that is1  
that which comes to us1 when we give    
ourselves utterly away to ,jesus        
,christ1 and let ,him do with us as ,he 
will4 ,it is better to have a joy that  
is central and perennial--though there  
may be1 as there will be1 a surface of  
sorrow and care--than to have the       
converse1 a surface of joy1 and a black1
 unsympathetic kernel of aching unrest  
and sadness4 ,in one or other of these  
two states we all live4 ,either we have 
to say1 'as sorrowful yet always        
rejoicing' or we have to feel that 'even
 in laughter the heart is sorrowful1 and
 the end of that mirth is heaviness4'   
,let us choose for ourselves1 and let us

 choose aright1 the gladness which coils
 round the heart1 and endures for ever1 
and is found in submission to ,jesus    
,christ1 rather than the superficial1   
fleeting joys which are rooted on earth 
and perish with time4    ,,the ,,oneness
 ,,of ,,the ,,branches  ',this is ,my   
commandment1 ,that ye love one another1 
as ,i have loved you4 ,greater love hath
 no man than this1 that a man lay down  
his life for his friends4'--,,john xv4  
#ab1 #ac4  ,the union between ,christ   
and ,his disciples has been tenderly set
 forth in the parable of the ,vine and  
the branches4 ,we now turn to the union 
between the disciples1 which is the     
consequence of their common union to the
 ,lord4 ,the branches are parts of one  
whole1 and necessarily bear a relation  
to each other4 ,we may modify for our   
present purpose the analogous statement 
of the ,apostle in reference to the     
,lord's ,supper1 and as ,he says1 ',we  
being many1 are one body1 for we are all
 partakers of that one bread1' so we may

 say--,the branches1 being many1 are one
 ,vine1 for they are all partakers of   
that one ,vine4 ,of this union amongst  
the branches1 which results from their  
common inherence in the ,vine1 the      
natural expression and manifestation is 
the mutual love1 which ,christ here     
gives as the commandment1 and commends  
to us all by ,his own solemn example4   
,there are four things suggested to me  
by the words of our text--the           
,obligation1 the ,sufficiency1 the      
,pattern1 and the ,motive1 of ,christian
 love4  ,i4 ,first1 the ,obligation of  
love4  ,the two ideas of commandment and
 love do not go well together4 ,you     
cannot pump up love to order1 and if you
 try you generally produce1 what we see 
in abundance in the world and in the    
,church1 sentimental hypocrisy1 hollow  
and unreal4 ,but whilst that is true1   
and whilst it seems strange to say that 
we are commanded to love1 still we can  
do a great deal1 directly and           
indirectly1 for the cultivation and     

strengthening of any emotion4 ,we can   
either cast ourselves into the attitude 
which is favourable or unfavourable to  
it4 ,we can either look at the facts    
which will create it or at those who    
will check it4 ,we can go about with a  
sharp eye for the lovable or for the    
unlovable in man4 ,we can either        
consciously war against or lazily       
acquiesce in our own predominant        
self-absorption and selfishness4 ,and in
 these and in a number of other ways1   
our feelings towards other ,christian   
people are very largely under our own   
control1 and therefore are fitting      
subjects for commandment4  ,our ,lord   
lays down the obligation which devolves 
upon all ,christian people1 of          
cherishing a kindly and loving regard to
 all others who find their place within 
the charmed circle of ,his ,church4 ,it 
is an obligation because ,he commands   
it4 ,he puts ,himself here in the       
position of the absolute ,lawgiver1 who 
has the right of entire and             

authoritative control over men's        
affections and hearts4 ,and it is       
further obligatory because such an      
attitude is the only fitting expression 
of the mutual relation of ,christian    
men1 through their common relation to   
the ,vine4 ,if there be the one life-sap
 circling through all parts of the      
mighty whole1 how anomalous and how     
contradictory it is that these parts    
should not be harmoniously concordant   
among themselves6 ,however unlike any   
two ,christian people are to each other 
in character1 in culture1 in            
circumstances1 the bond that knits those
 who have the same relations to ,jesus  
,christ one to another is far deeper1   
far more real1 and ought to be far      
closer1 than the bond that knits either 
of them to the men or women to whom they
 are likest in all these other respects1
 and to whom they are unlike in this    
central one4 ,christian men6 you are    
closer to every other ,christian man1   
down in the depths of your being1       

however he may be differenced from you  
by things that are very hard to get     
over1 than you are to the people that   
you like best1 and love most1 if they do
 not participate with you in this common
 love to ,jesus ,christ4  ,i dread      
talking mere sentiment about this       
matter1 for there is perhaps no part of 
,christian duty which has been so       
vulgarised and pawed over by mere       
unctuous talk1 as that of the fellowship
 that should subsist between all        
,christians4 ,but ,i have one plain     
question to put1--,does anybody believe 
that the present condition of           
,christendom1 and the relations to one  
another even of good ,christian people  
in the various churches and communions  
of our own and of other lands1 is the   
sort of thing that ,jesus ,christ meant1
 or is anything like a fair and adequate
 representation of the deep1 essential  
unity that knits us all together8  ,we  
need far more to realise the fact that  
our emotions towards our brother        

,christians are not matters in which our
 own inclinations may have their way1   
but that there is a simple commandment  
given to us1 and that we are bound to   
cherish love to every man who loves     
,jesus ,christ4 ,never mind though he   
does not hold your theology2 never mind 
though he be very ignorant and narrow as
 compared with you2 never mind though   
your outlook on the world may be        
entirely unlike his4 ,never mind though 
you be a rich man and he a poor one1 or 
you a poor one and he rich1 which is    
just as hard to get over4 ,let all these
 secondary grounds of union and of      
separation be relegated to their proper 
subordinate place2 and let us recognise 
this1 that the children of one ,father  
are brethren4 ,and do not let it be     
possible that it shall be said1 as so   
often has been said1 and said truly1    
that 'brethren' in the ,church means a  
great deal less than brothers in the    
world4 ,lift your eyes beyond the walls 
of the little sheepfold in which you    

live1 and hearken to the bleating of the
 flocks away out yonder1 and            
feel--',other sheep ,he has which are   
not of this fold'2 and recognise the    
solemn obligation of the commandment of 
love4  ,,ii4 ,note1 secondly1 the       
,sufficiency of love4  ,our ,lord has   
been speaking in a former verse about   
the keeping of ,his commandments4 ,now  
,he gathers them all up into one4 ',this
 is my commandment1 that ye love one    
another' ,all duties to our fellows1 and
 all duties to our brethren1 are summed 
up in1 or resolved into1 this one       
germinal1 encyclopaediacal1             
all-comprehensive simplification of     
duty1 into the one word 'love4'  ,where 
the heart is right the conduct will be  
right4 ,love will soften the tones1 will
 instinctively teach what we ought to be
 and do2 will take the bitterness out of
 opposition and diversity1 will make    
even rebuke1 when needful1 only a form  
of expressing itself4 ,if the heart be  
right all else will be right2 and if    

there be a deficiency of love nothing   
will be right4 ,you cannot help anybody 
except on condition of having an honest1
 beneficent1 and benevolent regard      
towards him4 ,you cannot do any man in  
the world any good unless there is a    
shoot of love in your heart towards him4
 ,you may pitch him benefits1 and you   
will neither get nor deserve thanks for 
them2 you may try to teach him1 and your
 words will be hopeless and profitless4 
,the one thing that is required to bind 
,christian men together is this common  
affection4 ,that being there1 everything
 will come4 ,it is the germ out of which
 all is developed4 ,as we read in that  
great chapter to the ,corinthians--the  
lyric praise of ,charity1--all kinds of 
blessing and sweetness and gladness come
 out of this1 ,it is the central force  
which1 being present1 secures that all  
shall be right1 which1 being absent1    
ensures that all shall be wrong4  ,and  
is it not beautiful to see how ,jesus   
,christ1 leaving the little flock of    

,his followers in the world1 gave them  
no other instruction for their mutual   
relationship8 ,he did not instruct them 
about institutions and organisations1   
about orders of the ministry and        
sacraments1 or ,church polity and the   
like4 ,he knew that all these would     
come4 ,his one commandment was1 ',love  
one another1' and that will make you    
wise4 ,love one another1 and you will   
shape yourselves into the right forms4  
,he knew that they needed no            
exhortations such as ecclesiastics would
 have put in the foreground4 ,it was not
 worth while to talk to them about      
organisations and officers4 ,these would
 come to them at the right time and in  
the right way4 ,the 'one thing needful' 
was that they should be knit together as
 true participators of ,his life4 ,love 
was sufficient as their law and as their
 guide4  ,,iii4 ,note1 further1 the     
,pattern of love4  ',as ,i have loved   
you4 ,greater love hath no man than     
this1 that a man lay down his life for  

his friends4' ,christ sets ,himself     
forward then1 here and in this aspect1  
as ,he does in all aspects of human     
conduct and character1 as being the     
realised ,ideal of them all4 ,and       
although the thought is a digression    
from my present purpose1 ,i cannot but  
pause for a moment to reflect upon the  
strangeness of a man thus calmly saying 
to the whole world1 ',i am the          
embodiment of all that love ought to be4
 ,you cannot get beyond ,me1 nor have   
anything more pure1 more deep1 more     
self-sacrificing1 more perfect1 than the
 love which ,i have borne to you4'  ,but
 passing that1 the pattern that ,he     
proposes for us is even more august than
 appears at first sight4 ,for1 if you   
remember1 a verse or two before our     
,lord had said1 ',as the ,father hath   
loved ,me so ,i have loved you4' ,now   
,he says1 ',love one another as ,i have 
loved you4' ,there stand the three1 as  
it were1 the ,father1 the ,son1 the     
disciple4 ,the ,son in the midst        

receives and transmits the ,father's    
love to the disciple1 and the disciple  
is to love his fellows1 in some deep and
 august sense1 as the ,father loved the 
,son4 ,the divinest thing in ,god1 and  
that in which men can be like ,god1 is  
love4 ,in all our other attitudes to    
,him we rather correspond than copy4    
,his fullness is met by our emptiness1  
,his giving by our recipiency1 ,his     
faithfulness by our faith1 ,his command 
by our obedience1 ,his light by our eye4
 ,but here it is not a case of          
correspondence only1 but of similarity4 
,my faith answers ,god's gift to me1 but
 my love is like ,god's love4 ',be ye1  
therefore1 imitators of ,god as beloved 
children'2 and having received that love
 into your hearts1 ray it out1 'and walk
 in love as ,god also hath loved us4'   
,but then our ,lord here1 in a very     
wonderful manner1 sets forth the very   
central point of ,his work1 even ,his   
death upon the ,cross for us1 as being  
the pattern to which our poor affection 

ought to aspire1 and after which it must
 tend to be conformed4 ,i need not      
remind you1 ,i suppose1 that our ,lord  
here is not speaking of the propitiatory
 character of ,his death1 nor of the    
issues which depend upon it1 and upon it
 alone1 viz41 the redemption and        
salvation of the world4 ,he is not      
speaking1 either1 of the peculiar and   
unique sense in which ,he lays down ,his
 life for us1 ,his friends and brethren1
 as none other can do4 ,he is speaking  
about it simply in its aspect of being a
 voluntary surrender1 at the bidding of 
love1 for the good of those whom ,he    
loved1 and that1 ,he tells us--that1 and
 nothing else--is the true pattern and  
model towards which all our love is     
bound to tend and to aspire4 ,that is to
 say1 the heart of the love which ,he   
commands is self-sacrifice1 reaching to 
death if death be needful4 ,and no man  
loves as ,christ would have him love who
 does not bear in his heart affection   
which has so conquered selfishness that1

 if need be1 he is ready to die4  ,the  
expression of ,christian life is not to 
be found in honeyed words1 or the       
indolent indulgence in benevolent       
emotion1 but in self-sacrifice1 modelled
 after that of ,christ's sacrificial    
death1 which is imitable by us4         
,brethren1 it is a solemn obligation1   
which may well make us tremble1 that is 
laid on us in these words1 ',as ,i have 
loved you4' ,calvary was less than      
twenty-four hours off1 and ,he says to  
us1 ',that is your pattern6' ,contrast  
our love at its height with ,his--a drop
 to an ocean1 a poor little flickering  
rushlight held up beside the sun4 ,my   
love1 at its best1 has so far conquered 
my selfishness that now and then ,i am  
ready to suffer a little inconvenience1 
to sacrifice a little leisure1 to give  
away a little money1 to spend a little  
dribble of sympathy upon the people who 
are its objects4 ,christ's love nailed  
,him to the ,cross1 and led ,him down   
from the throne1 and shut for a time the

 gates of the glory behind ,him4 ,and   
,he says1 ',that is your pattern6'  ,oh1
 let us bow down and confess how ,his   
word1 which commands us1 puts us to     
shame1 when we think of how miserably we
 have obeyed4  ,remember1 too1 that the 
restriction which here seems to be cast 
around the flow of ,his love is not a   
restriction in reality1 but rather a    
deepening of it4 ,he says1 ',greater    
love hath no man than this1 that a man  
lay down his life for his friends4' ,but
 evidently ,he calls them so from ,his  
point of view1 and as ,he sees them1 not
 from their point of view1 as they see  
,him--that is to say1 ,he means by      
'friends' not those who love ,him1 but  
those whom ,he loves4 ,the 'friends' for
 whom ,he dies are the same persons as  
the ,apostle1 in his sweet variation    
upon the words of my text1 has called by
 the opposite name1 when ,he says that  
,he died for ,his 'enemies4'  ,there is 
an old1 wild ballad that tells of how a 
knight found1 coiling round a tree in a 

dismal forest1 a loathly dragon         
breathing out poison2 and how1          
undeterred by its hideousness and       
foulness1 he cast his arms round it and 
kissed it on the mouth4 ,three times he 
did it undisgusted1 and at the third the
 shape changed into a fair lady1 and he 
won his bride4 ,christ 'kisses with the 
kisses of ,his mouth' ,his enemies1 and 
makes them ,his friends because ,he     
loves them4 ',if ,he had never died for 
,his enemies' says one of the old       
fathers1 ',he would never have possessed
 ,his friends4' ,and so ,he teaches us  
here in what seems to be a restriction  
of the purpose of ,his death and the    
sweep of ,his love1 that the way by     
which we are to meet even alienation and
 hostility is by pouring upon it the    
treasures of an unselfish1              
self-sacrificing affection which will   
conquer at the last4  ,christ's death is
 the pattern for our lives as well as   
the hope of our hearts4  ,,iv4 ,lastly1 
we have here by implication1 though not 

by direct statement1 the ,motive of the 
love4  ,surely that1 too1 is contained  
in the words1 ',as ,i have loved you4'  
,christ's commandment of love is a new  
commandment1 not so much because it is a
 revelation of a new duty1 though it is 
the casting of an old duty into new     
prominence1 as because it is not merely 
a revelation of an obligation1 but the  
communication of power to fulfil it4    
,the novelty of ,christian morality lies
 here1 that in its law there is a       
self-fulfilling force4 ,we have not to  
look to one place for the knowledge of  
our duty1 and somewhere else for the    
strength to do it1 but both are given to
 us in the one thing1 the gift of the   
dying ,christ and ,his immortal love4   
,that love1 received into our hearts1   
will conquer1 and it alone will conquer1
 our selfishness4 ,that love1 received  
into our hearts1 will mould1 and it     
alone will mould1 them into its own     
likeness4 ,that love1 received into our 
hearts1 will knit1 and it alone will    

knit1 all those who participate in it   
into a common bond1 sweet1 deep1 sacred1
 and all-victorious4  ,and so1 brethren1
 if we would know the blessedness and   
the sweetness of victory over these     
miserable1 selfish hearts of ours1 and  
to walk in the liberty of love1 we can  
only get it by keeping close to ,jesus  
,christ4 ,in any circle1 the nearer the 
points of the circumference are to the  
centre1 the closer they will necessarily
 be to one another4 ,as we draw nearer1 
each for himself1 to our ,centre1 we    
shall feel that we have approximated to 
all those who stand round the same      
centre1 and draw from it the same life4 
,in the early spring1 when the wheat is 
green and young1 and scarcely appears   
above the ground1 it comes up in the    
lines in which it was sown1 parted from 
one another and distinctly showing their
 separation and the furrows4 ,but when  
the full corn in the ear waves on the   
autumn plain1 all the lines and         
separations have disappeared1 and there 

is one unbroken tract of sunny          
fruitfulness4 ,and so when the life in  
,christ is low and feeble1 ,his servants
 may be separated and drawn up in rigid 
lines of denominations1 and churches1   
and sects2 but as they grow the lines   
disappear4 ,if to the churches of       
,england to-day there came a sudden     
accession of knowledge of ,christ1 and  
of union with ,him1 the first thing that
 would go would be the wretched barriers
 that separate us from one another4 ,for
 if we have the life of ,christ in any  
adequate measure in ourselves1 we shall 
certainly have grown up above the fences
 behind which we began to grow1 and     
shall be able to reach out to all that  
love the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 and feel 
with thankfulness that we are one in    
,him4    ,,christ',s ,,friends  ',ye are
 ,my friends1 if ye do whatsoever ,i    
command you4 ,henceforth ,i call you not
 servants2 for the servant knoweth not  
what his lord doeth3 but ,i have called 
you friends2 for all things that ,i have

 heard of ,my ,father ,i have made known
 unto you4 ,ye have not chosen ,me1 but 
,i have chosen you1 and ordained you1   
that ye should go and bring forth fruit1
 and that your fruit should remain2 that
 whatsoever ye shall ask of the ,father 
in ,my name1 ,he may give it you4 ,these
 things ,i command you1 that ye love one
 another4'--,,john xv4 #ad-ag4  ,a      
wonderful word has just dropped from the
 ,master's lips1 when ,he spoke of      
laying down ,his life for ,his friends4 
,he lingers on it as if the idea        
conveyed was too great and sweet to be  
taken in at once1 and with soothing     
reiteration ,he assures the little group
 that they1 even they1 are ,his friends4
  ,i have ventured to take these four   
verses for consideration now1 although  
each of them1 and each clause of them1  
might afford ample material for a       
discourse1 because they have one common 
theme4 ,they are a description of what  
,christ's friends are to ,him1 of what  
,he is to them1 and of what they should 

be to one another4 ,so they are a little
 picture1 in the sweetest form1 of the  
reality1 the blessedness1 the           
obligations1 of friendship with ,christ4
  ,i4 ,notice what ,christ's friends do 
for ,him4  ',ye are ,my friends1 if ye  
do whatsoever ,i command you4' ,in the  
former verse1 'friends' means chiefly   
those whom ,he loved4 ,here it means    
mainly those who love ,him4 ,they love  
,him because ,he loves them1 of course2 
and the two sides of the one thought    
cannot be parted4 ,but still in this    
verse the idea of friendship to ,christ 
is looked at from the human side1 and   
,he tells ,his disciples that they are  
,his lovers as well as beloved of ,him1 
on condition of their doing whatsoever  
,he commands them4  ,he lingers1 as ,i  
said1 on the idea itself4 ,as if ,he    
would meet the doubts arising from the  
sense of unworthiness1 and from some dim
 perception of how ,he towers above     
them1 and their limitations1 ,he        
reiterates1 ',wonderful as it is1 you   

poor men1 half-intelligent lovers of    
,mine1 you are ,my friends1 beloved of  
,me1 and loving ,me1 if ye do whatsoever
 ,i command you4'  ,how wonderful that  
stooping love of ,his is1 which         
condescends to array itself in the      
garments of ours6 ,every form of human  
love ,christ lays ,his hand upon1 and   
claims that ,he ,himself exercises it in
 a transcendent degree4 ',he that doeth 
the will of ,my ,father which is in     
heaven1 the same is ,my brother and     
sister and mother4' ,that which is even 
sacreder1 the purest and most complete  
union that humanity is capable of--that1
 too1 ,he consecrates2 for even it1     
sacred as it is1 is capable of a higher 
consecration1 and1 sweet as it is1      
receives a new sweetness when we think  
of 'the ,bride1 the ,lamb's wife1' and  
remember the parables in which ,he      
speaks of the ,marriage ,supper of the  
,great ,king1 and sets forth ,himself as
 the ,husband of humanity4 ,and passing 
from that ,holy of ,holies out into this

 outer court1 ,he lays ,his hand1 too1  
on that more common and familiar1 and   
yet precious and sacred1 thing--the bond
 of friendship4 ,the ,prince makes a    
friend of the beggar4  ,even if we do   
not think more loftily of ,jesus ,christ
 than do those who regard ,him simply as
 the perfection of humanity1 is it not  
beautiful and wonderful that ,he should 
look with such eyes of beaming love on  
that handful of poor1 ignorant          
fishermen1 who knew ,him so dimly1 and  
say3 ',i pass by all the wise and the   
mighty1 all the lofty and noble1 and ,my
 heart clings to you poor1 insignificant
 people8' ,he stoops to make them ,his  
friends1 and there are none so low but  
that they may be ,his4  ,this friendship
 lasts to-day4 ,a peculiarity of        
,christianity is the strong personal tie
 of real love and intimacy which will   
bind men1 to the end of time1 to this   
,man that died nineteen hundred years   
ago4 ,we look back into the wastes of   
antiquity3 mighty names rise there that 

we reverence2 there are great teachers  
from whom we have learned1 and to whom1 
after a fashion1 we are grateful4 ,but  
what a gulf there is between us and the 
best and noblest of them6 ,but here is a
 dead ,man1 who to-day is the ,object of
 passionate attachment and a love deeper
 than life to millions of people1 and   
will be till the end of time4 ,there is 
nothing in the whole history of the     
world in the least like that strange    
bond which ties you and me to the       
,saviour1 and the paradox of the        
,apostle remains a unique fact in the   
experience of humanity3 ',jesus ,christ1
 whom1 having not seen1 ye love4' ,we   
stretch out our hands across the waste1 
silent centuries1 and there1 amidst the 
mists of oblivion1 thickening round all 
other figures in the past1 we touch the 
warm1 throhbing heart of our ,friend1   
who lives for ever1 and for ever is near
 us4 ,we here1 nearly two millenniums   
after the words fell on the nightly air 
on the road to ,gethsemane1 have them   

coming direct to our hearts4 ,a         
perpetual bond unites men with ,christ  
to-day2 and for us1 as really as in that
 long-past ,paschal night1 is it true1  
',ye are ,my friends4'  ,there are no   
limitations in that friendship1 no      
misconstructions in that heart1 no      
alienation possible1 no change to be    
feared4 ,there is absolute rest for us  
there4 ,why should ,i be solitary if    
,jesus ,christ is my ,friend8 ,why      
should ,i fear if ,he walks by my side8 
,why should anything be burdensome if   
,he lays it upon me and helps me to bear
 it8 ,what is there in life that cannot 
be faced and borne--aye1 and            
conquered1--if we have ,him1 as we all  
may have ,him1 for the ,friend and the  
,home of our hearts8  ,but notice the   
condition1 ',if ye do what ,i command   
you4' ,note the singular blending of    
friendship and command1 involving on our
 parts the cultivation of the two things
 which are not incompatible1 absolute   
submission and closest friendship4 ,he  

commands though ,he is ,friend2 though  
,he commands ,he is ,friend4 ,the       
conditions that ,he lays down are the   
same which have already occupied our    
attention in former sermons of this     
series1 and so may be touched very      
lightly4 ',ye are ,my friends if ye do  
the things which ,i command you1' may   
either correspond with ,his former      
saying1 ',if a ,man love ,me he will    
keep ,my commandments1' or with ,his    
later one1 which immediately precedes   
our text1 ',if ye keep ,my commandments 
ye shall abide in ,my love4' ,for this  
is the relationship between love and    
obedience1 in regard to ,jesus ,christ1 
that the love is the parent of the      
obedience1 and the obedience is the     
guard and guarantee of the love4 ,they  
who love will obey1 they who obey will  
strengthen love by acting according to  
its dictates1 and will be in a condition
 to feel and realise more the warmth of 
the rays that stream down upon them1 and
 to send back more fully answering      

obedience from their hearts4 ,not in    
mere emotion1 not in mere verbal        
expression1 not in mere selfish         
realising of the blessings of ,his      
friendship1 and not in mere mechanical1 
external acts of conformity1 but in the 
flowing down and melting of the hard and
 obstinate iron will1 at the warmth of  
,his great love1 is our love made       
perfect4 ,the obedience1 which is the   
child and the preserver of love1 is     
something far deeper than the mere      
outward conformity with externally      
apprehended commandments4 ,to submit is 
the expression of love1 and love is     
deepened by submission4  ,,ii4          
,secondly1 note what ,christ does for   
,his friends4  ',henceforth ,i call you 
not servants2 for the servant knoweth   
not what his lord doeth4' ,the slave may
 see what his lord does1 but he does not
 know his purpose in his acts--',theirs 
not to reason why4' ,in so far as the   
relation of master and servant goes1 and
 still more in that of owner and slave1 

there is simple command on the one side 
and unintelligent obedience on the      
other4 ,the command needs no            
explanation1 and if the servant is in   
his master's confidence he is more than 
a servant4 ,but1 says ,christ1 ',i have 
called you friends'2 and ,he had called 
them so before ,he now named them so4   
,he had called them so in act1 and ,he  
points to all ,his past relationship1   
and especially to the heart-outpourings 
of the ,upper ,room1 as the proof that  
,he had called them ,his friends1 in the
 fact that whatsoever ,he had heard of  
the ,father ,he had made known to them4 
,jesus ,christ1 then1 recognises the    
obligation of absolute frankness1 and   
,he will tell ,his friends everything   
that ,he can4 ,when ,he tells them what 
,he can1 the voice of the ,father speaks
 through the ,son4 ,every one of        
,christ's friends stands nearer to ,god 
than did ,moses at the door of the      
,tabernacle1 when the wondering camp    
beheld him face to face with the blaze  

of the ,shekinah glory1 and dimly heard 
the thunderous utterances of ,god as ,he
 spake to him 'as a man speaks to his   
friend4' ,that was surface-speech       
compared with the divine depth and      
fullness of the communications which    
,jesus ,christ deems ,himself bound1 and
 assumes ,himself able1 to make to them 
who love ,him and whom ,he loves4  ,of  
course to ,christ's frankness there are 
limits4 ,he will not pour out ,his      
treasures into vessels that will spill  
them2 and as ,he ,himself says in the   
subsequent part of this great discourse1
 ',i have many things to say unto you1  
but you are not able to carry them now4'
 ,his last word was1 ',i have declared  
,thy name unto ,my brethren1 and will   
declare it4' ,and though here ,he speaks
 as if ,his communication was perfect1  
we are to remember that it was          
necessarily conditioned by the power of 
reception on the part of the hearers1   
and that there was much yet to be       
revealed of what ,god had whispered to  

,him1 ere these men1 that clustered     
round ,him1 could understand the        
message4  ,that frank speech is         
continued to-day4 ,jesus ,christ        
recognises the obligation that binds    
,him to impart to each of us all that   
each of us is in our inmost spirits     
capable of receiving4 ,by the light     
which ,he sheds on the ,word1 by many a 
suggestion through human lips1 by many a
 blessed thought rising quietly within  
our hearts1 and bearing the token that  
it comes from a sacreder source than our
 poor1 blundering minds1 ,he still      
speaks to us1 ,his friends4  ,ought not 
that thought of the utter frankness of  
,jesus make us1 for one thing1 very     
patient1 intellectually and spiritually1
 of the gaps that are left in ,his      
communications and in our knowledge8    
,there are so many things that we       
sometimes think we should like to know1 
things about that dark future where some
 of our hearts live so constantly1      
things about the depths of ,his nature  

and the divine character1 things about  
the relation between ,god's love and    
,god's righteousness1 things about the  
meaning of all this dreadful mystery in 
which we grope our way4 ,these and a    
hundred other questionings suggest to us
 that it would have been so easy for    
,him to have lifted a little corner of  
the veil1 and let a little more of the  
light shine out4 ,he holds all in ,his  
hand4 ,why does ,he thus open one finger
 instead of the whole palm8 ,because ,he
 loves4 ,a friend exercises the right of
 reticence as well as the prerogative of
 speech4 ,and for all the gaps that are 
left1 let us bow quietly and believe    
that if it had been better for us ,he   
would have spoken4 ',if it were not so  
,i would have told you4' ',trust ,me6 ,i
 tell you all that it is good for you to
 receive4'  ,and that frankness may well
 teach us another lesson1 viz41 the     
obligation of keeping our ears open and 
our hearts prepared to receive the      
speech that does come from ,him4 ,ah1   

brother6 many a message from your ,lord 
flits past you1 like the idle wind      
through an archway1 because you are not 
listening for ,his voice4 ,if we kept   
down the noise of that 'household jar   
within'2 if we silenced passion1        
ambition1 selfishness1 worldliness2 if  
we withdrew ourselves1 as we ought to   
do1 from the ,babel of this world1 and  
'hid ourselves in ,his pavilion from the
 strife of tongues'2 if we took less of 
our religion out of books and from other
 people1 and were more accustomed to    
'dwell in the secret place of the ,most 
,high1' and to say1 ',speak1 ,friend6   
for ,thy friend heareth1' we should more
 often understand how real to-day is the
 voice of ,christ to them that love     
,him4    ',such rebounds the inward ear 
,catches often from afar2   ,listen1    
prize them1 hold them dear1      ,for of
 ,god--of ,god--they are4'  ,,iii4      
,thirdly1 notice how ,christ's friends  
come to be so1 and why they are so4     
',ye have not chosen1' etc4 7verse #af74

  ,our ,lord refers here1 no doubt1     
primarily to the little group of the    
,apostles2 the choice and ordaining as  
well as 'the fruit that abides1' point1 
in the first place1 to their apostolic  
office1 and to the results of their     
apostolic labours4 ,but we must widen   
out the words a great deal beyond that  
reference4  ,in all the cases of        
friendship between ,christ and men1 the 
origination and initiation come from    
,him4 ',we love ,him because ,he first  
loved us4' ,he has told us how1 in ,his 
divine alchemy1 ,he changes by the      
shedding of ,his blood our enmity into  
friendship4 ,in the previous verse ,he  
has said1 ',greater love hath no man    
than this1 that a man lay down his life 
for his friends4' ,and as ,i remarked in
 my last sermon1 the friends here are   
the same as 'the enemies' for whom1 the 
,apostle tells us that ,christ laid down
 ,his life4 ,since ,he has thus by the  
blood of the ,cross changed men's enmity
 into friendship1 it is true universally

 that the amity between us and ,christ  
comes entirely from ,him4  ,but there is
 more than that in the words4 ,i do not 
suppose that any man1 whatever his      
theological notions and standpoint may  
be1 who has felt the love of ,christ in 
his own heart in however feeble a       
measure1 but will say1 as the ,apostle  
said1 ',i was apprehended of ,christ4'  
,it is because ,he lays ,his seeking and
 drawing hand upon us that we ever come 
to love ,him1 and it is true that ,his  
choice of us precedes our choice of     
,him1 and that the ,shepherd always     
comes to seek the sheep that is lost in 
the wilderness4  ,this1 then1 is how we 
come to be ,his friends2 because1 when  
we were enemies1 ,he loved us1 and gave 
,himself for us1 and ever since has been
 sending out the ambassadors and the    
messengers of ,his love--or1 rather1 the
 rays and beams of it1 which are parts  
of ,himself--to draw us to ,his heart4  
,and the purpose which all this         
forthgoing of ,christ's initial and     

originating friendship has had in view1 
is set forth in words which ,i can only 
touch in the lightest possible manner4  
,the intention is twofold4 ,first1 it   
respects service or fruit4 ',that ye may
 go'2 there is deep pathos and meaning  
in that word4 ,he had been telling them 
that ,he was going2 now ,he says to     
them1 ',you are to go4 ,we part here4   
,my road lies upward2 yours runs onward4
 ,go into all the world4' ,he gives them
 a quasi-independent position2 ,he      
declares the necessity of separation2   
,he declares also the reality of union  
in the midst of the separation2 ,he     
sends them out on their course with ,his
 benediction1 as ,he does us4           
,wheresoever we go in obedience to ,his 
will1 we carry the consciousness of ,his
 friendship4  ',that ye may bring forth 
fruit'--,he goes back for a moment to   
the sweet emblem with which this chapter
 begins1 and recurs to the imagery of   
the vine and the fruit4 ',keeping ,his  
commandments' does not explain the whole

 process by which we do the things that 
are pleasing in ,his sight4 ,we must    
also take this other metaphor of the    
bearing of fruit4 ,neither an           
effortless1 instinctive bringing forth  
from the renewed nature and the         
,christlike disposition1 nor a painful  
and strenuous effort at obedience to    
,his law1 describe the whole realities  
of ,christian service4 ,there must be   
the effort1 for men do not grow         
,christlike in character as the vine    
grows its grapes2 but there must also   
be1 regulated and disciplined by the    
effort1 the inward life1 for no mere    
outward obedience and tinkering at      
duties and commandments will produce the
 fruit that ,christ desires and rejoices
 to have4 ,first comes unity of life    
with ,him2 and then effort4 ,take care  
of modern teachings that do not         
recognise these two as both essential to
 the complete ideal of ,christian       
service--the spontaneous fruit-bearing1 
and the strenuous effort after          

obedience4  ',that your fruit should    
remain'2 nothing corrupts faster than   
fruit4 ,there is only one kind of fruit 
that is permanent1 incorruptible4 ,the  
only life's activity that outlasts life 
and the world is the activity of the men
 who obey ,christ4  ,the other half of  
the issues of this friendship is the    
satisfying of our desires1 ',that       
whatsoever ye shall ask the ,father in  
,my name ,he may give it you4' ,we have 
already had substantially the same      
promise in previous parts of this       
discourse1 and therefore ,i may deal    
with it very lightly4 ,how comes it that
 it is certain that ,christ's friends1  
living close to ,him and bearing fruit1 
will get what they want8 ,because what  
they want will be 'in ,his name'--that  
is to say1 in accordance with ,his      
disposition and will4 ,make your desires
 ,christ's1 and ,christ's yours1 and you
 will be satisfied4  ,,iv4 ,and now1    
lastly1 for one moment1 note the mutual 
friendship of ,christ's friends4  ,we   

have frequently had to consider that    
point--the relation of the friends of   
,christ to each other4 ',these things ,i
 command you1 that ye love one another4'
 ,this whole context is1 as it were1    
enclosed within a golden circlet by that
 commandment which appeared in a former 
verse1 at the beginning of it1 ',this is
 ,my commandment1 that ye love one      
another1' and reappears here at the     
close1 thus shutting off this portion   
from the rest of the discourse4 ,friends
 of a friend should themselves be       
friends4 ,we care for the lifeless      
things that a dear friend has cared for2
 books1 articles of use of various      
sorts4 ,if these have been of interest  
to him1 they are treasures and precious 
evermore to us4 ,and here are living men
 and women1 in all diversities of       
character and circumstances1 but with   
this stamped upon them all--,christ's   
friends1 lovers of and loved by ,him4   
,and how can we be indifferent to those 
to whom ,christ is not indifferent8 ,we 

are knit together by that bond4 ,we are 
but poor friends of that ,master unless 
we feel that all which is dear to ,him  
is dear to us4 ,let us feel the electric
 thrill which ought to pass through the 
whole linked circle1 and let us beware  
that we slip not our hands from the     
grasp of the neighbour on either side1  
lest1 parted from them1 we should be    
isolated from ,him1 and lose some of the
 love which we fail to transmit4        
,,sheep ,,among ,,wolves  ',if the world
 hate you1 ye know that it hated ,me    
before it hated you4 ,if ye were of the 
world1 the world would love his own3 but
 because ye are not of the world1 but ,i
 have chosen you out of the world1      
therefore the world hateth you4         
,remember the word that ,i said unto    
you1 ,the servant is not greater than   
his ,lord4 ,if they have persecuted ,me1
 they will also persecute you2 if they  
have kept ,my saying1 they will keep    
yours also4'--,,john xv4 #ah-bj4  ,these
 words strike a discord in the midst of 

the sweet music to which we have been   
listening4 ,the key-note of all that has
 preceded has been love--the love of    
,christ's friends to one another1 and of
 all to ,him1 as an answer to ,his love 
to all4 ,that love1 which is one1       
whether it rise to ,him or is diffused  
on the level of earth1 is the result of 
that unity of life between the ,vine and
 the branches1 of which our ,lord has   
been speaking such great and wonderful  
things4 ,but that unity of life between 
,christians and ,christ has another     
consequence than the spread of love4    
,just because it binds them to ,him in a
 sacred community1 it separates them    
from those who do not share in ,his     
life1 and hence the 'hate' of our       
context is the shadow of 'love'2 and    
there result two communities--to use the
 much-abused words that designate       
them--the ,church and 'the ,world'2 and 
the antagonism between these is deep1   
fundamental1 and perpetual4             
,unquestionably1 our ,lord is here      

speaking with special reference to the  
,apostles1 who1 in a very tragic sense1 
were 'sent forth as sheep in the midst  
of wolves4' ,if we may trust tradition1 
every one of that little company1       
,speaker as well as hearers1 died a     
martyr's death1 with the exception of   
,john himself1 who was preserved from it
 by a miracle4 ,but1 be that as it may1 
our ,lord is here laying down a         
universal statement of the permanent    
condition of things2 and there is no    
more reason for restricting the force of
 these words to the original hearers of 
them than there is for restricting the  
force of any of the rest of this        
wonderful discourse4 ',the world' will  
be in antagonism to the ,church until   
the world ceases to be a world1 because 
it obeys the ,king2 and then1 and not   
till then1 will it cease to be hostile  
to ,his subjects4  ,i4 ,what makes this 
hostility inevitable8  ,our ,lord here  
prepares ,his hearers for what is coming
 by putting it in the gentle form of an 

hypothesis4 ,the frequency with which   
',if' occurs in this section is very    
remarkable4 ,he will not startle them by
 the bare1 naked statement which they1  
in that hour of depression and          
agitation1 were so little able to       
endure1 but ,he puts it in the shape of 
a 'suppose that1' not because there is  
any doubt1 but in order to alleviate the
 pain of the impression which ,he       
desires to make4 ,he says1 ',if the     
world hates1' not 'if the world hate'2  
and the tense of the original shows     
that1 whilst the form of the statement  
is hypothetical1 the substance of it is 
prophetic4  ,jesus points to two things1
 as you will observe1 which make this   
hostility inevitable4 ',if the world    
hate you1 ye know that it hated ,me     
before it hated you4' ,and again1 ',if  
ye were of the world1 the world would   
love his own3 but because ye are not of 
the world1 but ,i have chosen you out of
 the world1 therefore the world hateth  
you4' ,the very language carries with it

 the implication of necessary and       
continual antagonism4 ,for what is 'the 
world1' in this context1 but the        
aggregate of men1 who have no share in  
the love and life that flow from ,jesus 
,christ8 ,necessarily they constitute a 
unity1 whatever diversities there may be
 amongst them1 and necessarily1 that    
unity in its banded phalanx is in       
antagonism1 in some measure1 to those   
who constitute the other unity1 which   
holds by ,christ1 and has been drawn by 
,him from 'out of the world4'  ,if we   
share ,christ's life1 we must1          
necessarily1 in some measure1 share ,his
 fate4 ,it is the typical example of    
what the world thinks of1 and does to1  
goodness4 ,and all who have 'the ,spirit
 of life which was in ,jesus ,christ'   
for the animating principle of their    
lives1 will1 just in the measure in     
which they possess it1 come under the   
same influences which carried ,him to   
the ,cross4 ,in a world like this1 it is
 impossible for a man to 'love          

righteousness and hate iniquity1' and to
 order his life accordingly1 without    
treading on somebody's corns2 being a   
rebuke to the opposite course of        
conduct1 either interfering with men's  
self-complacency or with their          
interests4 ,from the beginning the blind
 world has repaid goodness by antagonism
 and contempt4  ,and then our ,lord     
touches another1 and yet                
closely-connected1 cause when ,he speaks
 of ,his selecting the ,apostles1 and   
drawing them out of the world1 as a     
reason for the world's hostility4 ,there
 are two groups1 and the fundamental    
principles that underlie each are in    
deadly antagonism4 ,in the measure in   
which you and ,i are ,christians we are 
in direct opposition to all the maxims  
which rule the world and make it a      
world4 ,what we believe to be precious  
it regards as of no account4 ,what we   
believe to be fundamental truth it      
passes by as of little importance4 ,much
 which we feel to be wrong it regards as

 good4 ,our jewels are its tinsel1 and  
its jewels are our tinsel4 ,we and it   
stand in diametrical opposition of      
thought about ,god1 about self1 about   
duty1 about life1 about death1 about the
 future2 and that opposition goes right 
down to the bottom of things4 ,however  
it may be covered over1 there is a gulf1
 as in some of those ,american canons3  
the towering cliffs may be very         
near--only a yard or two seems to       
separate them2 but they go down for     
thousands and thousands of feet1 and    
never are any nearer each other1 and    
between them at the bottom a black1     
sullen river flows4 ',if ye were of the 
world1 the world would love its own4'   
,if it loves you1 it is because ye are  
of it4  ,,ii4 ,and so note1 secondly1   
how this hostility is masked and        
modified4  ,there are a great many other
 bonds that unite men together besides  
the bonds of religious life or their    
absence4 ,there are the domestic ties1  
there are the associations of commerce  

and neighbourhood1 there are surface    
identities of opinion about many        
important things4 ,the greater portion  
of our lives moves on this surface1     
whore all men are alike4 ',if you tickle
 us1 do we not laugh2 if you wound us1  
do we not bleed8' ,we have all the same 
affections and needs1 pursue the same   
avocations1 do the same sort of things1 
and a large portion of every one's life 
is under the dominion of habit and      
custom1 and determined by external      
circumstances4 ,so there is a film of   
roofing thrown over the gulf4 ,you can  
make up a crack in a wall with plaster  
after a fashion1 and it will hide the   
solution of continuity that lies        
beneath4 ,but let bad weather come1 and 
soon the bricks gape apart as before4   
,and so1 as soon as we get down below   
the surface of things and grapple with  
the real1 deep-lying1 and formative     
principles of a life1 we come to        
antagonism1 just as they used to come to
 it long ago1 though the form of it has 

become quite different4  ,then there are
 other causes modifying this hostility4 
,the world has got a dash of            
,christianity into it since ,jesus      
,christ spoke4 ,we cannot say that it is
 half ,christianised1 but some of the   
issues and remoter consequences of      
,christianity have permeated the general
 conscience1 and the ethics of the      
,gospel are largely diffused in such a  
land as this4 ,thus ,christian men and  
others have1 to a large extent1 a common
 code of morality1 as long as they keep 
on the surface2 and they not only do a  
good many things exactly alike1 but do a
 great many things from substantially   
the same motives1 and have the same way 
of looking at much4 ,thus the gulf is   
partly bridged over2 and the hostility  
takes another form4 ,we do not wrap     
,christians in pitch and stick them up  
for candles in the ,emperor's garden    
nowadays1 but the same thing can be done
 in different ways4 ,newspaper articles1
 the light laugh of scorn1 the whoop of 

exultation over the failures or faults  
of any prominent man that has stood out 
boldly on ,christ's side2 all these     
indicate what lies below the surface1   
and sometimes not so very far below4    
,many a young man in a ,manchester      
warehouse1 trying to live a godly life1 
many a workman at his bench1 many a     
commercial traveller in the inn or on   
the road1 many a student on the college 
benches1 has to find out that there is a
 great gulf between him and the man who 
sits next to him1 and that he cannot be 
faithful to his ,lord1 and at the same  
time1 down to the depths of his being1 a
 friend of one who has no friendship to 
his ,master4  ,still another fact masks 
the antagonism1 and that is1 that after 
all1 the world1 meaning thereby the     
aggregate of godless men1 has a         
conscience that responds to goodness1   
though grumblingly and reluctantly4     
,after all1 men do know that it is      
better to be good1 that it is better and
 wiser to be like ,christ1 that it is   

nobler to live for ,him than for self1  
and that consciousness cannot but modify
 to some extent the manifestations of   
the hostility1 but it is there all the  
same1 and whosoever will be a ,christian
 after ,christ's pattern will find out  
that it is there4  ,let a man for       
,christ's sake avow unpopular beliefs1  
let him try honestly to act out the ,new
 ,testament1 let him boldly seek to     
apply ,christian principles to the      
fashionable and popular sins of his     
class or of his country1 let him in any 
way be ahead of the conscience of the   
majority1 and what a chorus will be     
yelping at his heels6 ,dear brethren1   
the law still remains1 ',if any man will
 be a friend of the world he is at      
enmity with ,god4'  ,,iii4 ,thirdly1    
note how you may escape the hostility4  
,a half-,christianised world and a more 
than half-secularised ,church get on    
well together4 ',when they do agree1    
their agreement is wonderful4' ,and it  
is a miserable thing to reflect that    

about the average ,christianity of this 
generation there is so very little that 
does deserve the antagonism of the      
world4 ,why should the world care to    
hate or trouble itself about a          
professing ,church1 large parts of which
 are only a bit of the world under      
another name8 ,there is no need whatever
 that there should be any antagonism at 
all between a godless world and hosts of
 professing ,christians4 ,if you want to
 escape the hostility drop your flag1   
button your coat over the badge that    
shows that you belong to ,christ1 and do
 the things that the people round about 
you do1 and you will have a perfectly   
easy and undisturbed life4  ,of course1 
in the bad old slavery days1 a          
,christianity that had not a word to say
 about the sin of slave-holding ran no  
risk of being tarred and feathered4 ,of 
course a ,christianity in ,manchester   
that winks hard at commercial           
immoralities is very welcome on the     
,exchange4 ,of course a ,christianity   

that lets beer barrels alone may reckon 
upon having publicans for its adherents4
 ,of course a ,christianity that blesses
 flags and sings ,te ,deums over        
victories will get its share of the     
spoil4 ,why should the world hate1 or   
persecute1 or do anything but despise a 
,christianity like that1 any more than a
 man need to care for a tame tiger that 
has had its claws pared8 ,if the world  
can put a hook in the nostrils of       
leviathan1 and make him play with its   
maidens1 it will substitute good-nature1
 half contemptuous1 for the hostility   
which our ,master here predicts4 ,it was
 out-and-out ,christians that ,he said  
the world would hate2 the world likes   
,christians that are like itself4       
,christian men and women6 be you sure   
that you deserve the hostility which my 
text predicts4  ,,iv4 ,and now1 lastly1 
note how to meet this antagonism4       
,reckon it as a sign and test of true   
union with ,jesus ,christ4 ,and so1 if  
ever1 by reason of our passing at the   

call of duty or benevolence outside the 
circle of those who sympathise with our 
faith and fundamental ideas1 we         
encounter it more manifestly than when  
we 'dwell among our own people1' let us 
count the 'reproach of ,christ' as a    
treasure to be proud of1 and to be      
guarded4  ,be sure that it is your      
goodness and not your evils or your     
weakness1 that men dislike4 ,the world  
has a very keen eye for the             
inconsistencies and the faults of       
professing ,christians1 and it is a good
 thing that it has4 ,the loftier your   
profession the sharper the judgment that
 is applied to you4 ,many well-meaning  
,christian people1 by an injudicious use
 of ,christian phraseology in the wrong 
place1 and by the glaring contradiction 
between their prayers and their talks   
and their daily life1 bring down a great
 deal of deserved hostility upon        
themselves and of discredit upon        
,christianity2 and then they comfort    
themselves and say they are bearing the 

'reproach of the ,cross4' ,not a bit of 
it6 ,they are bearing the natural       
results of their own failings and       
faults4 ,and it is for us to see to it  
that what provokes1 if it does provoke1 
hostile judgments and uncharitable      
criticisms1 insulting speeches and      
sarcasms1 and the sense of our belonging
 to another regiment and having other   
objects1 is our cleaving to ,jesus      
,christ1 and not the imperfections and  
the sins with which we so often spoil   
that cleaving4 ,be you careful for this1
 that it is ,christ in you that men turn
 from1 and not you yourself and your    
weakness and sin4  ,meet this antagonism
 by not dropping your standard one inch4
 ,keep the flag right at the masthead4  
,if you begin to haul it down1 where are
 you going to stop8 ,nowhere1 until you 
have got it draggling in the mud at the 
foot4 ,it is of no use to try to        
conciliate by compromise4 ,all that we  
shall gain by that will be1 as ,i have  
said1 indifference and contempt2 all    

that we shall gain will be a loss to the
 cause4 ,a great deal is said in this   
day1 and many efforts are being made--,i
 cannot but think mistaken efforts--by  
,christian people to bridge over this   
gulf in the wrong way--that is1 by      
trying to make out that ,christianity in
 its fundamental principles does        
approximate a great deal more closely to
 the things that the world goes by than 
it really does4 ,it is all vain1 and the
 only issue of it will be that we shall 
have a decaying ,christianity and a     
dying spiritual life4 ,keep the flag up2
 emphasise and accentuate the things    
that the world disbelieves and denies1  
not pushing them to the 'falsehood of   
extremes1' but not by one jot           
diminishing the clearness of our        
testimony by reason of the world's      
unwillingness to receive it4 ,our       
victory is to be won only through       
absolute faithfulness to ,christ's      
ideal4  ,and1 lastly1 meet hostility    
with unmoved1 patient1 ,christlike1 and 

,christ-derived love and sympathy4 ,the 
patient sunshine pours upon the glaciers
 and melts the thick-ribbed ice at last 
into sweet water4 ,the patient sunshine 
beats upon the mist-cloud and breaks up 
its edges and scatters it at the last4  
,and our ,lord here tells us that our   
experience1 if we are faithful to ,him1 
will be like ,his experience1 in that   
some will hearken to our word though    
others will persecute1 and to some our  
testimony will come as a message from   
,god that draws them to the ,lord       
,himself4 ,these are our only weapons1  
brethren6 ,the only conqueror of the    
world is the love that was in ,christ   
breathed through us2 the only victory   
over suspicion1 contempt1 alienation1 is
 pleading1 persistent1 long-suffering1  
self-denying love4 ,the only way to     
overcome the world's hostility is by    
turning the world into a church1 and    
that can only be done when ,christ's    
servants oppose pity to wrath1 love to  
hate1 and in the strength of ,his life  

who has won us all by the same process1 
seek to win the world for ,him by the   
manifestation of ,his victorious love in
 our patient love4  ,dear brethren1 to  
which army do you belong8 ,which        
community is yours8 ,are you in         
,christ's ranks1 or are you in the      
world's8 ,do you love ,him back again1  
or do you meet ,his open heart with a   
closed one1 and ,his hand1 laden with   
blessings1 with hands clenched in       
refusal8 ,to which class do ,i          
belong8--it is the question of questions
 for us all2 and ,i pray that you and   
,i1 won from our hatred by ,his love1   
and wooed out of our death by ,his life1
 and made partakers of ,his life by ,his
 death1 may yield our hearts to ,him1   
and so pass from out of the hostility   
and mistrust of a godless world into the
 friendships and peace of the sheltering
 ,vine4 ,and then we 'shall esteem the  
reproach of ,christ' if it fall upon our
 heads1 in however modified and mild a  
form1 'greater riches than the treasures

 of ,egypt1' and 'have respect unto the 
recompense of the reward4'  ,may it be  
so with us all6    ,,the ,,world',s     
,,hatred1 ,,as ,,christ ,,saw ,,it      
',but all these things will they do unto
 you for ,my name's sake1 because they  
know not ,him that sent ,me4 ,if ,i had 
not come and spoken unto them1 they had 
not had sin3 but now they have no cloke 
for their sin4 ,he that hateth ,me1     
hateth ,my ,father also4 ,if ,i had not 
done among them the works which none    
other man did1 they had not had sin3 but
 now have they both seen and hated both 
,me and ,my ,father4 ,but this cometh to
 pass1 that the word might be fulfilled 
that is written in their law1 ,they     
hated ,me without a cause4'--,,john     
,,xv4 #ba-be4  ,our ,lord has been      
speaking of the world's hostility to    
,his followers1 and tracing that to its 
hostility to ,himself4 ,in these solemn 
words of our text ,he goes still deeper1
 and parallels the relation which ,his  
disciples bear to ,him and the          

consequent hostility that falls on them1
 with the relation which ,he bears to   
the ,father and the consequent hostility
 that falls on ,him3 ',they hate you    
because they hate ,me4' ,and then ,his  
words become sadder and pierce deeper1  
and with a tone of wounded love and     
disappointed effort and almost surprise 
at the world's requital to ,him1 ,he    
goes on to say1 ',they hate ,me1 because
 they hate the ,father4'  ,so1 then1    
here we have1 in very pathetic and      
solemn words1 ,christ's view of the     
relation of the world to ,him and to    
,god4  ,i4 ,the first point that ,he    
signalises is the world's ignorance4    
',these things they will do unto you1'  
and they will do them 'for ,my name's   
sake'2 they will do them 'because they  
know not ,him that sent ,me4'  ',the    
world1' in ,christ's language1 is the   
aggregate of godless men4 ,or1 to put it
 a little more sharply1 our ,lord1 in   
this context1 gives in ,his full        
adhesion to that narrow view which      

divides those who have come under the   
influence of ,his truth into two        
portions4 ,there is no mincing of the   
matter in the antithesis which ,christ  
here draws2 no hesitation1 as if there  
were a great central mass1 too bad for a
 blessing perhaps1 but too good for a   
curse2 which was neither black nor      
white1 but neutral grey4 ,no6 however it
 may be with the masses beyond the reach
 of the dividing and revealing power of 
,his truth1 the men that come into      
contact with ,him1 like a heap of metal 
filings brought into contact with a     
magnet1 mass themselves into two        
bunches1 the one those who yield to the 
attraction1 and the other those who do  
not4 ,the one is ',my disciples1' and   
the other is 'the world4' ,and now1 says
 ,jesus ,christ1 all that mass that     
stands apart from ,him1 and1 having     
looked upon ,him with the superficial   
eye of those men round about ,him at    
that day1 or of the men who hear of ,him
 now1 have no real love to ,him--have1  

as the underlying motive of their       
conduct and their feelings1 a real      
ignorance of ,god1 ',they know not ,him 
that sent ,me4'  ,our ,lord assumes that
 ,he is so completely the ,copy and     
,revealer of the divine nature as that  
any man that looks upon ,him has had the
 opportunity of becoming acquainted with
 ,god1 and that any man who turns away  
from ,him has lost that opportunity4    
,the ,god that the men who do not love  
,jesus ,christ believe in1 is not the   
,father that sent ,him4 ,it is a        
fragment1 a distorted image tinted by   
the lens4 ,the world has its conception 
of ,god2 but outside of ,jesus ,christ  
and ,his manifestation of the whole     
divine nature1 the world's ,god is but a
 syllable1 a fragment1 a broken part of 
the perfect completeness4 ',the ,father 
of an infinite majesty1' and of as      
infinite a tenderness1 the stooping     
,god1 the pitying ,god1 the forgiving   
,god1 the loving ,god is known only     
where ,christ is accepted4 ,in other    

hearts ,he may be dimly hoped for1 in   
other hearts ,he may be half believed   
in1 in other hearts ,he may be thought  
possible2 but hopes and anticipations   
and fears and doubts are not knowledge1 
and they who see not the light in       
,christ see but the darkness4 ,out of   
,him ,god is not known1 and they that   
turn away from ,his beneficent          
manifestation turn their faces to the   
black north1 from which no sun can      
shine4 ,brother1 do you know ,god in    
,christ8 ,unless you do1 you do not know
 the ,god who is4  ,but there is a      
deeper meaning in that word than simply 
the possession of true thoughts         
concerning the divine nature4 ,we know  
,god as we know one another2 because    
,god is a ,person1 as we are persons1   
and the only way to know persons is     
through familiar acquaintance and       
sympathy4 ,so the world which turns away
 from ,christ has no acquaintance with  
,god4  ,this is a surface fact4 ,our    
,lord goes on to show what lies below   

it4  ,,ii4 ,his second thought here     
is--the world's ignorance in the face of
 ,christ's light is worse than          
ignorance2 it is sin4  ,mark how ,he    
speaks3 ',if ,i had not come and spoken 
unto them1 they had not had sin3 but now
 they have no cloke for their sin4' ,and
 then again3 ',if ,i had not done       
amongst them the works which none other 
men did1 they had not had sin4' ,so then
 ,he puts before us two forms of ,his   
manifestation of the divine nature1 by  
,his words and ,his works4 ,of these two
 ,he puts ,his words foremost1 as being 
a deeper and more precious and brilliant
 revelation of what ,god is than are    
,his miracles4 ,the latter are          
subordinate1 they come as a second      
source of illumination4 ,men who will   
not see the beauty and listen to the    
truth that lie in ,his word may         
perchance be led by ,his deed4 ,but the 
word towers in its nature high above the
 work1 and the miracle to the word is   
but like the picture in the child's book

 to the text1 fit for feeble eyes and   
infantile judgments1 but containing far 
less of the revelation of ,god than the 
sacred words which ,he speaks4 ,first   
the words1 next the miracles4  ,but     
notice1 too1 how decisively1 and yet    
simply and humbly and sorrowfully1 our  
,lord here makes a claim which1 on the  
lips of any but ,himself1 would have    
been mere madness of presumption4 ,think
 of any of us saying that our words made
 all the difference between innocent    
ignorance and criminality6 ,think of any
 of us saying that to listen to us1 and 
not be persuaded1 was the sin of sins6  
,think of any of us pointing to our     
actions and saying1 ,in these ,god is so
 manifest that not to see ,him augurs   
wickedness1 and is condemnation6 ,and   
yet ,jesus ,christ says all this4 ,and1 
what is more wonderful1 nobody wonders  
that ,he says it1 and the world believes
 that ,he is saying the truth when ,he  
says it4  ,how does that come8 ,there is
 only one answer2 only one4 ,his words  

were the illuminating manifestation of  
,god1 and ,his deeds were the plain and 
unambiguous operation of the divine hand
 then and there1 only because ,he       
,himself was divine1 and in ,him ',god  
was manifested in the flesh4'  ,but     
passing from that1 notice how our ,lord 
here declares that in comparison with   
the sin of not listening to ,his words1 
and being taught by ,his manifestation1 
all other sins dwindle into nothing4    
',if ,i had not spoken1 they had not had
 sin4' ,that does not mean1 of course1  
that these men would have been clear of 
all moral delinquency2 it does not mean 
that there would not have been amongst  
them crimes against their own           
consciences1 crimes against the law     
written on their own hearts1 crimes     
against the law of revelation4 ,there   
were liars1 impure men1 selfish men1 and
 men committing all the ordinary forms  
of human transgression amongst them4    
,and yet1 says ,christ1 black and       
bespattered as these natures are1 they  

are white in comparison with the        
blackness of the man who1 looking into  
,his face1 sees nothing there that he   
should desire4 ,beside the mountain     
belching out its sulphurous flame the   
little pimple of a molehill is nought4  
,and so1 says ,christ1 heaven heads the 
count of sins with this--unbelief in    
,me4  ,ah1 brother1 as light grows      
responsibility grows1 and this is the   
misery of all illumination that comes   
through ,jesus ,christ1 that where it   
does not draw a man into ,his sweet     
love1 and fill him with the knowledge of
 ,god which is eternal life1 it darkens 
his nature and aggravates his           
condemnation1 and lays a heavier burden 
upon his soul4 ,the truth that the      
measure of light is the measure of guilt
 has many aspects4 ,it turns a face of  
alleviation to the dark places of the   
earth2 but just in the measure that it  
lightens the condemnation of the        
heathen1 it adds weight to the          
condemnation of you men and women who   

are bathed in the light of              
,christianity1 and all your days have   
had it streaming in upon you4 ,the      
measure of the guilt is the brightness  
of the light4 ,no shadows are so black  
as those which the intense sunshine of  
the tropics casts4 ,and you and ,i live 
in the very tropical regions of divine  
revelation1 and 'if we turn away from   
,him that spoke on earth and speaketh   
from heaven1 of how much sorer          
punishment1 think you1 shall we be      
thought worthy' than those who live away
 out in the glimmering twilight of an   
unevangelised paganism1 or who stood by 
the side of ,jesus ,christ when they had
 only ,his earthly life to teach them8  
,,iii4 ,the ignorance which is sin is   
the manifestation of hatred4  ,our ,lord
 has sorrowfully contemplated the not   
knowing ,god1 which in the blaze of ,his
 light can only come from wilful closing
 of the eyes1 and is therefore the very 
sin of sins4 ,but that1 sad as it is1 is
 not all which has to be said about that

 blindness of unbelief in ,him4 ,it     
indicates a rooted alienation of heart  
and mind and will from ,god1 and is1 in 
fact1 the manifestation of an           
unconscious but real hatred4 ,it is an  
awful saying1 and one which the lips    
'into which grace was poured' could not 
pronounce without a sigh4 ,but it is our
 wisdom to listen to what it was ,his   
mercy to say4  ,observe our ,lord's     
identification of ,himself with the     
,father1 so as that the feelings with   
which men regard ,him are1 ipso facto1  
the feelings with which they regard the 
,father ,god4 ',he that hath seen ,me   
hath seen the ,father4' ',he that hath  
loved ,me hath loved the ,father4' ',he 
that hath hated ,me hath hated the      
,father4' ,an ugly word--a word that a  
great many of us think far too severe   
and harsh to be applied to men who      
simply are indifferent to the divine    
love4 ,some say1 ',i am conscious of no 
hatred4 ,i do not pretend to be a       
,christian1 but ,i do not hate ,god4    

,take the ordinary run of people round  
about us in the world2 if you say ,god  
is not in all their thoughts1 ,i agree  
with you2 but if you say that they hate 
,god1 ,i do not believe it4'  ,well1    
what do you think the fact that men go  
through their days and weeks and months 
and years1 and have not ,god in all     
their thoughts1 indicates as to the     
central feeling of their hearts towards 
,god8 ,granted that there is not actual 
antagonism1 because there is no thought 
at all1 do you think it would be        
possible for a man who loved ,god to go 
on for a twelvemonth and never think of1
 or care to please1 or desire to be     
near1 the object that he loved8 ,and    
inasmuch as1 deep down at the bottom of 
our moral being1 there is no such thing 
possible as indifference and a perfect  
equipoise in reference to ,god1 it is   
clear enough1 ,i think1 that--although  
the word must not be pressed as if it   
meant conscious and active              
antagonism1--where there is no love     

there is hate4  ,if a man does not love 
,god as ,he is revealed to him in ,jesus
 ,christ1 he neither cares to please    
,him nor to think about ,him1 nor does  
he order his life in obedience to ,his  
commands4 ,and if it be true that       
obedience is the very life-breath of    
love1 disobedience or non-obedience is  
the manifestation of antagonism1 and    
antagonism towards ,god is the same     
thing as hate4  ,dear friends1 ,i want  
some of my hearers to-day who have never
 honestly asked themselves the question 
of what their relation to ,god is1 to go
 down into the deep places of their     
hearts and test themselves by this      
simple inquiry3 ',do ,i do anything to  
please ,him8 ,do ,i try to serve ,him8  
,is it a joy to me to be near ,him8 ,is 
the thought of ,him a delight1 like a   
fountain in the desert or the cool      
shadow of a great rock in the blazing   
wilderness8 ,do ,i turn to ,him as my   
,home1 my ,friend1 my ,all8 ,if ,i do   
not1 am ,i not deceiving myself by      

fancying that ,i stand neutral8' ,there 
is no neutrality in a man's relation to 
,god4 ,it is one thing or other4 ',ye   
cannot serve ,god and ,mammon4' ',the   
friendship of the world is enmity       
against ,god4'  ,,iv4 ,and now1 lastly1 
note how our ,lord here touches the deep
 thought that this ignorance1 which is  
sin1 and is more properly named hatred1 
is utterly irrational and causeless4    
',all this will they do that it might be
 fulfilled which is written in their    
law1 ,they hated ,me without a cause4'  
,one hears sighing through these words  
the ,master's meek wonder that ,his love
 should be so met1 and that the requital
 which ,he receives at men's hands1 for 
such an unexampled and lavish outpouring
 of it1 should be such a carelessness1  
reposing upon a hidden basis of such a  
rooted alienation4  ',without a cause'2 
yes6 that suggests the deep thought that
 the most mysterious and irrational     
thing in men's whole history and        
experience is the way in which they     

recompense ,god in ,christ for what ,he 
has done for them4 ',be astonished1 ,o  
ye heavens6 and wonder1 ,o ye earth6'   
said one of the old prophets2 the       
mystery of mysteries1 which can give no 
account of itself to satisfy reason1    
which has no apology1 excuse1 or        
vindication1 is just that when ,god     
loves me ,i do not love ,him back again2
 and that when ,christ pours out the    
whole fullness of ,his heart upon me1   
nay dull and obstinate heart gives back 
so little to ,him who has given me so   
much4  ',without a cause4' ,think of    
that ,cross2 think1 as every poor       
creature on earth has a right to think1 
that he and she individually were in the
 mind and heart of the ,saviour when ,he
 suffered and died1 and then think of   
what we have brought ,him for it4 ,de we
 not stand ashamed at-if ,i might use so
 trivial a word1--the absurdity as well 
as at the criminality of our requital8  
,causeless love on the one side1        
occasioned by nothing but itself1 and   

causeless indifference on the other1    
occasioned by nothing but itself1 are   
the two powers that meet in this        
mystery-men's rejection of the infinite 
love of ,god4  ,my friend1 come away    
from the unreasonable people1 come away 
from the men who can give no account of 
their attitude4 ,come away from those   
who pay benefits by carelessness1 and a 
,love that died by an indifference that 
will not cast an eye upon that miracle  
of mercy1 and let ,his love kindle the  
answering flame in your hearts4 ,then   
you will know ,god as only they who love
 ,christ know ,him1 and in the sweetness
 of a mutual bond will lose the misery  
of self1 and escape the deepening       
condemnation of those who see ,christ on
 the ,cross and do not care for the     
sight1 nor learn by it to know the      
infinite tenderness and holiness of the 
,father that sent ,him4    ,,our ,,ally 
',but when the ,comforter ,is come1 whom
 ,i will send unto you from the ,father1
 even the ,spirit of truth1 which       

proceedeth from the ,father1 ,he shall  
testify of ,me3 ,and ye also shall bear 
witness1 because ye have been with ,me  
from the beginning4'--,,john xv4 #bf1   
#bg4  ,our ,lord has been speaking of a 
world hostile to ,his followers and to  
,him4 ,he proceeds1 in the words which  
immediately follow our text1 to paint   
that hostility as aggravated even to the
 pitch of religious murder4 ,but here   
,he lets a beam of light in upon the    
darkness4 ,these forlorn ,twelve1       
listening to ,him1 might well have said1
 ',thou art about to leave us2 how can  
we alone face this world in arms1 with  
which ,thou dost terrify us8' ,and here 
,he lets them see that they will not be 
left alone1 but have a great ,champion1 
clad in celestial armour1 who1 coming   
straight from ,god1 will be with them   
and put into their hands a weapon1 with 
which they may conquer the world1 and   
turn it into a friend1 and with which   
alone they must meet the world's hate4  
,so1 then1 we have three things in this 

text2 the great promise of an ,ally in  
the conflict with the world2 the witness
 which that ,ally bears1 to fortify     
against the world2 and the consequent   
witness with which ,christians may win  
the world4  ,i4 ,now consider briefly   
the first of these points1 the great    
promise of an ,ally in the conflict with
 the world4  ,i may touch1 very lightly1
 upon the wonderful designation of this 
,champion-,friend whom ,christ sends1   
because on former occasions in this     
course of sermons we have had to deal   
with the same thoughts1 and there will  
be subsequent opportunities of recurring
 to them4 ,but ,i may just emphasise in 
a few sentences the points which our    
,lord here signalises in regard to the  
,champion whom ,he sends4 ,there is a   
double designation of that ,spirit1 'the
 ,comforter' and 'the ,spirit of truth4'
 ,there is a double description of ,his 
mission1 as being 'sent' by ,jesus1 and 
as 'proceeding from the ,father1' and   
there is a single statement as to the   

position from which ,he comes to us4 ,a 
word about each of these things4  ,i    
have already explained in former sermons
 that the notion of ',comforter1' as it 
is understood in modern ,english1 is a  
great deal too restricted and narrow to 
cover the whole ground of this great and
 blessed promise4 ,the ,comforter whom  
,christ sends is no mere drier of men's 
tears and gentle ,consoler of human     
sorrows1 but ,he is a mightier ,spirit  
than that1 and the word by which ,he is 
described in our text1 which means 'one 
who is summoned to the side of another1'
 conveys the idea of a helper who is    
brought to the man to be helped1 in     
order to render whatever aid and succour
 that man's weakness and circumstances  
may require4 ,the verses before our text
 suggest what sort of aid and succour   
the disciples will need4 ,they are to be
 as sheep in the midst of wolves4 ,their
 defenceless purity will need a         
,protector1 a strong ,shepherd4 ,they   
stand alone amongst enemies4 ,there must

 be some one beside them to fight for   
them1 to shield and to encourage them1  
to be their ,safety and their ,peace4   
,and that ,paraclete1 who is called to  
our side1 comes for the special help    
which these special circumstances       
require1 and is a strong ,spirit who    
will be our ,champion and our ,ally1    
whatever antagonism may storm against   
us1 and however strong and well-armed   
may be the assaulting legions of the    
world's hate4  ,then1 still further1 the
 other designation here of this strong  
,succourer and ,friend is 'the ,spirit  
of truth1' by which is designated1 not  
so much ,his characteristic attribute1  
as rather the weapon which ,he wields1  
or the material with which ,he works4   
,the 'truth' is ,his instrument2 that is
 to say1 the ,spirit of ,god sent by    
,jesus ,christ is the ,strengthener1 the
 ,encourager1 the ,comforter1 the       
,fighter for us and with us1 because ,he
 wields that great body of truth1 the   
perfect revelation of ,god1 and man1 and

 duty1 and salvation1 which is embodied 
in the incarnation and work of ,jesus   
,christ our ,lord4 ,the truth is ,his   
weapon1 and it is by it that ,he makes  
us strong4  ,then1 still further1 there 
is a twofold description here of the    
mission of this divine ,champion1 as    
'sent' by ,christ1 and 'proceeding from 
the ,father4'  ,in regard to the former1
 ,i need only remind you that1 in a     
previous part of this wonderful         
discourse1 our ,lord speaks of that     
divine ,spirit as being sent by the     
,father in ,his name and in answer to   
,his prayer4 ,the representation here is
 by no means antagonistic to1 or diverse
 from1 that other representation1 but   
rather the fact that the ,father and the
 ,son1 according to the deep teaching of
 ,scripture1 are in so far one as that  
'whatsoever the ,son seeth the ,father  
do that also the ,son doeth likewise1'  
makes it possible to attribute to ,him  
the work which1 in another place1 is    
ascribed to the ,father4 ,in speaking of

 the ,persons of the ,deity1 let us     
never forget that that word is only     
partially applicable to that ineffable  
,being1 and that whilst with us it      
implies absolute separation of          
individuals1 it does not mean such      
separation in the case of its imperfect 
transference to the mysteries of the    
divine nature2 but rather1 the ,son     
doeth what the ,father doeth1 and       
therefore the ,spirit is sent forth by  
the ,father1 and also the ,son sends the
 ,spirit4  ,but1 on the other hand1 we  
are not to regard that divine ,spirit as
 merely a ,messenger sent by another4   
,he 'proceeds from the ,father4' ,that  
word has been the battlefield of        
theological controversy1 with which ,i  
do not purpose to trouble you now4 ,for 
,i do not suppose that in its use here  
it refers at all to the subject to which
 it has been sometimes applied1 nor     
contains any kind of revelation of the  
eternal depths of the divine ,nature and
 its relations to itself4 ,what is meant

 here is the historical coming forth    
into human life of that divine ,spirit4 
,and1 possibly1 the word 'proceeds' is  
chosen in order to contrast with the    
word 'sent1' and to give the idea of a  
voluntary and personal action of the    
,messenger1 who not only is sent by the 
,father1 but of ,himself proceeds on the
 mighty work to which ,he is destined4  
,be that as it may1 mark only1 for the  
last thought here about the details of  
this great promise1 that wonderful      
phrase1 twice repeated in our ,lord's   
words1 and emphasised by its verbal     
repetition in the two clauses1 which in 
all other respects are so               
different--'from the ,father4' ,the word
 translated 'from' is not the ordinary  
word so rendered1 but rather designates 
a position at the side of than an origin
 from1 and suggests much rather the     
intimate and ineffable union between    
,father1 ,son1 and ,spirit1 than the    
source from which the ,spirit comes4 ,i 
touch upon these things very lightly1   

and gather them up into one sentence4   
,here1 then1 are the points4 ,a ,person 
who is spoken of as ',he'--a divine     
,person whose home from of old has been 
close by the ,father's side--a ,person  
whose instrument is the revealed truth  
ensphered and in germ in the facts of   
,christ's incarnation and life--a divine
 ,person1 wielding the truth1 who is    
sent by ,christ as ,his ,representative1
 and in some sense a continuance of ,his
 personal ,presence--a divine1 personal 
,spirit coming from the ,father1        
wielding the truth1 sent by ,christ1 and
 at the side of all the persecuted and  
the weak1 all world-hated and ,christian
 men1 as their ,champion1 their         
,combatant1 their ,ally1 their          
,inspiration1 and their ,power4 ,is not 
that enough to make the weakest strong8 
,is not that enough to make us 'more    
than conquerors through ,him that loved 
us'8 ,all nations have legends of the   
gods fighting at the head of their      
armies1 and through the dust of battle  

the white horses and the shining armour 
of the celestial champions have been    
seen4 ,the childish dream is a          
historical reality4 ,it is not we that  
fight1 it is the ,spirit of ,god that   
fighteth in us4  ,,ii4 ,and so note1    
secondly1 the witness of the ,spirit    
which fortifies against the world4  ',he
 shall bear witness of ,me4' ,now we    
must especially observe here that little
 phrase1 'unto you4' ,for that tells us 
at once that the witness which our ,lord
 has in mind here is something which is 
done within the circle of the ,christian
 believers1 and not in the wide field of
 the world's history or in nature4 ,of  
course it is a great truth that long    
before ,jesus ,christ1 and to-day far   
beyond the limits of ,his name and      
knowledge1 to say nothing of ,his faith 
and obedience1 the ,spirit of ,god is   
working4 ,as of old ,he brooded over the
 chaotic darkness1 ever labouring to    
turn chaos into order1 and darkness into
 light1 and deformity into beauty2 so   

today1 all over the field of humanity1  
,he is operating4 ,grand as that truth  
is1 it is not the truth here4 ,what is  
spoken of here is something that is done
 in and on ,christian men1 and not even 
through them on the world1 but in them  
for themselves4 ',he shall testify of   
,me' to you4  ,now it is to be noted1   
also1 that the first and special        
application of these words is to the    
little group listening to ,him4 ,never  
were men more desolate and beaten down  
than these were1 in the prospect of     
,christ's departure4 ,never were men    
more utterly bewildered and dispirited  
than these were1 in the days between    
,his crucifixion and ,his resurrection4 
,think of them during ,his earthly life1
 their narrow understandings1 their     
manifold faults1 moral as well as       
intellectual4 ,how little perception    
they had of anything that ,he said to   
them1 as their own foolish questions    
abundantly show6 ,how little they had   
drunk in ,his spirit1 as their selfish  

and ambitious janglings amongst         
themselves abundantly show6 ,they were  
but ,jews like their brethren1          
believing1 indeed1 that ,jesus ,christ  
was the ,messiah1 but not knowing what  
it was that they believed1 or of what   
kind the ,messiah was in whom they were 
thus partially trusting4 ,but they loved
 ,him and were led by ,him1 and so they 
were brought into a larger place by the 
,spirit whom ,christ sent4  ,what was it
 that made these dwarfs into giants in  
six weeks8 ,what was it that turned     
their narrowness into breadth2 that made
 them start up all at once as heroes1   
and that so swiftly matured them1 as the
 fruits and flowers are ripened under   
tropical sunshine8 ,the resurrection and
 ascension of ,jesus ,christ had a great
 deal to do with the change2 but they   
were not its whole cause4 ,there is no  
explanation of the extraordinary        
transformation of these men as we see   
them in the pages of the ,gospels1 and  
as we find them on the pages of the     

,acts of the ,apostles1 except this--the
 resurrection and the ascension of      
,jesus ,christ as facts1 and the ,spirit
 on ,pentecost as an indwelling         
,interpreter of the facts4 ,he came1 and
 the weak became strong1 and the foolish
 wise1 and the blind enlightened1 and   
they began to understand--though it     
needed all their lives to perfect the   
teaching1--what it was that their       
ignorant hands had grasped and their dim
 perceptions had seen1 when they touched
 the hands and looked upon the face of  
,jesus ,christ4 ,the witness of the     
,spirit of ,god working within them1    
working upon what they knew of the      
historical facts of ,christ's life1 and 
interpreting these to them1 was the     
explanation of their change and growth4 
,and the ,new ,testament is the product 
of that change4 ,christ's life was the  
truth which the ,spirit used1 and a     
product of ,his teaching was these      
,epistles which we have1 and which for  
us step into the place which the        

historical facts held for them1 and     
become the instrument with which the    
,spirit of ,god will deepen our         
understanding of ,christ and enlarge our
 knowledge of what ,he is to us4  ,so1  
dear friends1 whilst here we have a     
promise which specially applies1 no     
doubt1 to these twelve ,apostles1 and   
the result of which in them was         
different from its result in us1        
inasmuch as the ,spirit's teaching1     
recorded in the ,new ,testament1 becomes
 for us the authoritative rule of faith 
and practice1 the promise still applies 
to each of us in a secondary and        
modified sense4 ,for there is nothing in
 these great valedictory words of our   
,lord's which has not a universal       
bearing1 and is not the revelation of a 
permanent truth in regard to the        
,christian ,church4 ,and1 therefore1    
here we have the promise of a universal 
gift to all ,christian men and women1 of
 an actual divine ,spirit to dwell with 
each of us1 to speak in our hearts4     

,and what will ,he speak there8 ,he will
 teach us a deeper knowledge of ,jesus  
,christ4 ,he will help us to understand 
better what ,he is4 ,he will show us    
more and more of the whole sweep of ,his
 work1 of the whole infinite truth for  
morals and religion1 for politics and   
society1 for time and for eternity1     
about men and about ,god1 which is      
wrapped up in that great saying which we
 first of all1 perhaps under the        
pressure of our own sense of sin1 grasp 
as our deliverance from sin3 ',god so   
loved the world that ,he gave ,his only 
begotten ,son1 that whosoever believeth 
in ,him should not perish1 but have     
everlasting life4' ,that is the sum of  
truth which the ,spirit of ,god         
interprets to every faithful heart4 ,and
 as the days roll on1 and new problems  
rise1 and new difficulties present      
themselves1 and new circumstances emerge
 in our personal life1 we find the      
truth1 which we at first dimly grasped  
as life and salvation1 opening out into 

wisdom and depth and meaning that we    
never dreamed of in the early hours4 ,a 
,spirit that bears witness of ,christ   
and will make us understand ,him better 
every day we live1 if we choose1 is the 
promise that is given here1 for all     
,christian men and women4  ,then note   
that this inward witness of ,christ's   
depth and preciousness is our true      
weapon and stay against a hostile world4
 ,a little candle in a room will make   
the lightning outside almost invisible2 
and if ,i have burning in my heart the  
inward experience and conviction of what
 ,jesus ,christ is and what ,he has done
 and will do for me--,oh6 then1 all the 
storm without may rage1 and it will not 
trouble me4  ,if you take an empty      
vessel and bring pressure to bear upon  
it1 in go the sides4 ,fill it1 and they 
will resist the pressure4 ,so with      
growing knowledge of ,christ1 and       
growing personal experience of ,his     
sweetness in our souls1 we shall be     
able1 untouched and undinted1 to throw  

off the pressure which would otherwise  
have crushed us4  ,therefore1 dear      
friends1 here is the true secret of     
tranquillity1 in an age of questioning  
and doubt4 ,let me have that divine     
,voice speaking in my heart1 as ,i may  
have1 and no matter what questions may  
be doubtful1 this is sure--',we know in 
whom we have believed'2 and we can say1 
',settle all your controversies any way 
you like3 one thing ,i know1 and that   
divine ,voice is ever saying it to me in
 my deepest consciousness--the ,son of  
,god is come and hath given us an       
understanding that we may know ,him that
 is true2 and we are in ,him that is    
true4' ,labour for more of this inward1 
personal conviction of the preciousness 
of ,jesus ,christ to strengthen you     
against a hostile world4  ,and remember 
that there are conditions under which   
this ,voice speaks in our souls4 ,one is
 that we attend to the instrument which 
the ,spirit of ,god uses1 and that is   
'the truth4' ,if ,christians will not   

read their ,bibles1 they need not expect
 to have the words of these ,bibles     
interpreted and made real to them by any
 inward experience4 ,if you want to have
 a faith which is vindicated and        
warranted by your daily experience1     
there is only one way to get it1 and    
that is1 to use the truth which the     
,spirit uses1 and to bring yourself into
 contact1 continual and reverent and    
intelligent1 with the great body of     
divine truth that is conveyed in these  
authoritative words of the ,spirit of   
,god speaking through the first         
witnesses4  ,and there must be moral    
discipline too4 ,laziness1 worldliness1 
the absorption of attention with other  
things1 self-conceit1 prejudice1 and1 ,i
 was going to say1 almost above all1 the
 taking of our religion and religious   
opinions at secondhand from men and     
teachers and books--all these stand in  
the way of our hearing the ,spirit of   
,god when ,he speaks4 ,come away from   
the babble and go by yourself1 and take 

your ,bibles with you1 and read them1   
and meditate upon them1 and get near the
 ,master of whom they speak1 and the    
,spirit which uses the truth will use it
 to fortify you4  ,,iii4 ,and1 lastly1  
note the consequent witness with which  
the ,christian may win the world4  ',and
 ye also shall bear witness of ,me1     
because ye have been with ,me from the  
beginning4' ,that 'also' has1 of course1
 direct reference to the ,apostles'     
witness to the facts of our ,lord's     
historical appearance1 ,his life1 ,his  
death1 ,his resurrection1 and ,his      
ascension2 and therefore their          
qualification was simply the            
companionship with ,him which enabled   
them to say1 ',we saw what we tell you2 
we were witnesses from the beginning4'  
,but then1 again1 ,i say that there is  
no word here that belongs only to the   
,apostles2 it belongs to us all1 and so 
here is the task of the ,christian      
,church in all its members4 ,they       
receive the witness of the ,spirit1 and 

they are ,christ's witnesses in the     
world4  ,note what we have to do--to    
bear witness2 not to argue1 not to      
adorn1 but simply to attest4 ,note what 
we have to attest--the fact1 not of the 
historical life of ,jesus ,christ1      
because we are not in a position to be  
witnesses of that1 but the fact of ,his 
preciousness and power1 and the fact of 
our own experience of what ,he has done 
for us4 ,note1 that that is by far the  
most powerful agency for winning the    
world4 ,you can never make men angry by 
saying to them1 ',we have found tho     
,messias4' ,you cannot irritate people1 
or provoke them into a controversial    
opposition when you say1 ',brother1 let 
me tell you my experience4 ,i was dark1 
sad1 sinful1 weak1 solitary1 miserable2 
and ,i got light1 gladness1 pardon1     
strength1 companionship1 and a joyful   
hope4 ,i was blind--you remember me when
 my eyes were dark1 and ,i sat begging  
outside the ,temple2 ,i was blind1 now  
,i see--look at my eyeballs4' ,we can   

all say that4 ,this is the witness that 
needs no eloquence1 no genius1 no       
anything except honesty and experience2 
and whosoever has tasted and felt and   
handled of the ,word of ,life may surely
 go to a brother and say1 ',brother1 ,i 
have eaten and am satisfied4 ,will you  
not help yourselves8' ,we can all do it1
 and we ought to do it4 ,the ,christian 
privilege of being witnessed to by the  
,spirit of ,god in our hearts brings    
with it the ,christian duty of being    
witnesses in our turn to the world4     
,that is our only weapon against the    
hostility which godless humanity bears  
to ourselves and to our ,master4 ,we may
 win men by that2 we can win them by    
nothing else4 ',ye are ,my witnesses1   
saith the ,lord1 and ,my servants whom  
,i have chosen4' ,christian friend1     
listen to the ,master1 who says1 ',him  
that confesseth ,me before men1 him will
 ,i also confess before ,my ,father in  
heaven4'    ,,why ,,christ ,,speaks     
',these things have ,i spoken unto you1 

that ye should not be offended4 ,they   
shall put you out of the synagogues3    
yea1 the time cometh1 that whosoever    
killeth you will think that he doeth    
,god service4 ,and these things will    
they do unto you1 because they have not 
known the ,father1 nor ,me4 ,but these  
things have ,i told you1 that1 when the 
time shall come1 ye may remember that ,i
 told you of them4 ,and these things ,i 
said not unto you at the beginning1     
because ,i was with you4 ,but now ,i go 
,my way to ,him that sent ,me2 and none 
of you asketh ,me1 ,whither goest ,thou8
 ,but because ,i have said these things 
unto you1 sorrow hath filled your       
heart4'--,,john xvi4 #a-f4  ,the        
unbroken flow of thought1 and the many  
subtle links of connection between the  
parts1 of these inexhaustible last words
 of our ,lord make any attempt at       
grouping them into sections more or less
 unsatisfactory and artificial4 ,but ,i 
have ventured to throw these1 perhaps   
too many1 verses together for our       

consideration now1 because a phrase of  
frequent recurrence in them manifestly  
affords a key to their main subject4    
,notice how our ,lord four times repeats
 the expression1 ',these things have ,i 
spoken unto you4' ,he is not so much    
adding anything new to ,his words1 as   
rather contemplating the reasons for    
,his speech now1 the reasons for ,his   
silence before1 and the imperfect       
apprehension of the things spoken which 
,his disciples had1 and which led to    
their making ,his announcement1 thus    
imperfectly understood1 an occasion for 
sorrow rather than for joy4 ,there is a 
kind of landing place or pause here in  
the ascending staircase4 ,our ,lord     
meditates for ,himself1 and invites us  
to meditate with ,him1 rather upon ,his 
past utterances than upon anything      
additional to them4 ,so1 then1 whilst it
 is true that we have in two of these   
verses a repetition1 in a somewhat more 
intense and detailed form1 of the       
previous warnings of the hostility of   

the world1 in the main the subject of   
the present section is that which ,i    
have indicated4 ,and ,i take the        
fourfold recurrence of that clause to   
which ,i have pointed as marking out for
 us the leading ideas that we are to    
gather from these words4  ,i4 ,there is1
 first1 our ,lord's loving reason for   
,his speech4  ,this is given in a double
 form4 ',these things have ,i spoken    
unto you1 that ye should not be         
offended4' ,and1 again1 ',these things  
have ,i told you1 that when the time    
shall come1 ye may remember that ,i told
 you of them4' ,these two statements    
substantially coalesce and point to the 
same idea4  ,they are separated1 as ,i  
have said1 by a reiteration1 in more    
emphatic form1 of the dark prospect     
which ,he has been holding out to ,his  
disciples4 ,he tells them that the world
 which hates them is to be fully        
identified with the apostate ,jewish    
,church4 ',the synagogue' is for them   
'the world4' ,there is a solemn lesson  

in that4 ,the organised body that calls 
itself ,god's ,church and ,house may    
become the most rampant enemy of        
,christ's people1 and be the truest     
embodiment on the face of the earth of  
all that ,he means by 'the world4' ,a   
formal church is the true world always2 
and to-day as then4 ,and such a body    
will do the cruellest things and believe
 that it is offering up ,christ's       
witnesses as sacrifices to ,god4 ,that  
is partly an aggravation and partly an  
alleviation of the sin4 ,it is possible 
that the inquisitor and the man in the  
,san ,benito1 whom he ties to the stake1
 may shake hands yet at ,his side up    
yonder4 ,but a church which has become1 
the world will do its persecution and   
think that it is worship1 and call the  
burning of ,god's people an auto-da-fe  
7act of faith72 and the bottom of it all
 is that1 in the blaze of light1 and    
calling themselves ,god's1 'they do not 
know' either ,god or ,christ4 ,they do  
not know the one because they will not  

know the other4  ,but that is all       
parenthetical in the present section1   
and so ,i say nothing more about it2 and
 ask you1 rather1 just to look at the   
loving reasons which ,christ here       
suggests for ,his present speech--'that 
ye should not be offended1' or stumble4 
,he warns them of the storm before it   
bursts1 lest1 when it bursts1 it should 
sweep them away from their moorings4 ,of
 course1 there could be nothing more    
productive of intellectual bewilderment1
 and more likely to lead to doubt as to 
one's own convictions1 than to find     
oneself at odds with the synagogue about
 the question of the ,messiah4 ,a modest
 man might naturally say1 ',perhaps ,i  
am wrong and they are right4' ,a coward 
would be sure to say1 ',i will sink my  
convictions and fall in with the        
majority4' ,the stumbling-block for     
these first ,jewish converts1 in the    
attitude of the whole mass of the nation
 towards ,christ and ,his pretensions1  
is one of such a magnitude as we cannot1

 by any exercise of our imagination1    
realise4 ',and1' says ,christ1 'the only
 way by which you will ever get over the
 temptation to intellectual doubt or to 
cowardly apostasy that arises from your 
being thrown out of sympathy with the   
whole mass of your people1 and the      
traditions of the generations1 is to    
reflect that ,i told you it would be so1
 before it came to pass4'  ,of course   
all that has a special bearing upon     
those to whom it was originally         
addressed1 and then it has a secondary  
bearing upon ,christians1 whose lot it  
is to live in a time of actual          
persecution4 ,but that does not in the  
slightest degree destroy the fact that  
it also has a bearing upon every one of 
us4 ,for if you and ,i are ,christian   
people1 and trying to live like our     
,master1 and to do as ,he would have us 
to do1 we too shall often have to stand 
in such a very small minority1 and be   
surrounded by people who take such an   
entirely opposite view of duty and of   

truth1 as that we shall be only too much
 disposed to give up and falter in the  
clearness1 fullness1 and braveness of   
our utterance1 and think1 ',well1       
perhaps after all it is better for me to
 hold my tongue4'  ,and then1 besides   
this1 there are all the cares and griefs
 which befall each of us1 with regard to
 which also1 as well as with regard to  
the difficulties and dangers and        
oppositions which we may meet with in a 
faithful ,christian life1 the principles
 of my text have a distinct and direct  
application4 ,he has told us in order   
that we might not stumble1 because when 
the hour comes and the sorrow comes with
 it1 we remember that ,he told us all   
about it before4  ,it is one of the     
characteristics of ,christianity that   
,jesus ,christ does not try to enlist   
recruits by highly-coloured1 rosy       
pictures of the blessing and joy of     
serving ,him1 keeping ,his hand all the 
while upon the weary marches and the    
wounds and pains4 ,he tells us plainly  

at the beginning1 ',if you take ,my yoke
 upon you1 you will have to carry a     
heavy burden4 ,you will have to abstain 
from a great many things that you would 
like to do4 ,you will have to do a great
 many things that your flesh will not   
like4 ,the road is rough1 and a high    
wall on each side4 ,there are lovely    
flowers and green pastures on the other 
side of the hedge1 where it is a great  
deal easier walking upon the short grass
 than it is upon the stony path4 ,the   
roadway is narrow1 and the gateway is   
very strait1 but the track goes steadily
 up4 ,will you accept the terms and come
 in and walk upon it8'  ,it is far      
better and nobler1 and more attractive  
also1 to tell us frankly and fully the  
difficulties and dangers than to try and
 coax us by dwelling on pleasures and   
ease4 ,jesus ,christ will have no       
service on false pretences1 but will let
 us understand at the beginning that if 
we serve under ,his flag we have to make
 up our minds to hardships which        

otherwise we may escape1 to antagonisms 
which otherwise will not be provoked1   
and to more than an ordinary share of   
sorrow and suffering and pain4 ',through
 much tribulation we must enter the     
,kingdom4'  ,and the way by which all   
these troubles and cares1 whether they  
be those incident and peculiar to       
,christian life1 or those common to     
humanity1 can best be met and overcome1 
is precisely by this thought1 ',the     
,master has told us before4' ,sorrows   
anticipated are more easily met4 ,it is 
when the vessel is caught with all its  
sails set that it is almost sure to go  
down1 and1 at all events1 sure to be    
badly damaged in the typhoon4 ,but when 
the barometer has been watched1 and its 
fall has given warning1 and everything  
movable has been made fast1 and every   
spare yard has been sent below1 and all 
tightened up and ship-shape--then she   
can ride out the storm4 ,forewarned is  
forearmed4 ,savages think1 when an      
eclipse comes1 that a wolf has swallowed

 the sun1 and it will never come out    
again4 ,we know that it has all been    
calculated beforehand1 and since we know
 that it is coming to-morrow1 when it   
does come1 it is only a passing         
darkness4 ,sorrow anticipated is sorrow 
half overcome2 and when it falls on us1 
the bewilderment1 as if 'some strange   
thing had happened1' will be escaped    
when we can remember that the ,master   
has told us it all beforehand4  ,and    
again1 sorrow foretold gives us         
confidence in our ,guide4 ,we have the  
chart1 and as we look upon it we see    
marked 'waterless country1' 'pathless   
rocks1' 'desert and sand1' 'wells and   
palm-trees4' ,well1 when we come to the 
first of these1 and find ourselves1 as  
the map says1 in the waterless country2 
and when1 as we go on step by step1 and 
mile after mile1 we find it is all down 
there1 we say to ourselves1 ',the       
remainder will be accurate1 too1' and if
 we are in ',marah' to-day1 where 'the  
water is bitter1' and nothing but the   

wood of the tree that grows there can   
ever sweeten it1 we shall be at ',elim' 
to-morrow1 where there are 'the twelve  
wells and the seventy palm trees4' ,the 
chart is right1 and the chart says that 
the end of it all is 'the land that     
flows with milk and honey4' ,he has told
 us this2 if there had been anything    
worse than this1 ,he would have told us 
that4 ',if it were not so ,i would have 
told you4' ,the sorrow foretold deepens 
our confidence in our ,guide4  ,sorrow  
that comes punctually in accordance with
 ,his word plainly comes in obedience to
 ,his will4 ,our ,lord uses a little    
word in this context which is very      
significant4 ,he says1 ',when their hour
 is come4'  ',their hour'--the time     
allotted to them4 ,allotted by whom8    
,allotted by ,him4 ,he could tell that  
they would come1 because it was as ,his 
instruments that they came4 ',their     
time' was ,his appointment4 ,it was only
 an 'hour1' a definite1 appointed1 and  
brief period in accordance with ,his    

loving purpose4 ,it takes all sorts of  
weathers to make a year2 and after all  
the sorts of weathers are run out1 the  
year's results are realised and the calm
 comes4 ,and so the good old hymn1 with 
its rhythm that speaks at once of fear  
and triumph1 has caught the true meaning
 of these words of our ,lord's--        
',why should ,i complain     ,of want or
 distress1   ,temptation or pain8       
,he told me no less4'  ',these things   
have ,i spoken unto you that ye might   
not be offended4'  ,,ii4 ,still further1
 note our ,lord's loving reasons for    
past silence4 ',these things ,i said not
 unto you from the beginning1 because ,i
 was with you4'  ,of course there had   
been in ,his early ministry hints1 and  
very plain references1 to persecutions  
and trials1 but we must not restrict the
 'these things' of my text to that only1
 but rather include the whole of the    
previous chapter1 in which ,he sets the 
sorrow and the hostility which ,his     
servants have to endure in their true   

light1 as being the consequences of     
their union with ,him and of the        
closeness and the identity of life and  
fate between the ,vine and the branches4
 ,in so systematic and detailed fashion1
 and with such an exhibition of the     
grounds of its necessity1 our ,lord had 
not spoken of the world's hostility in  
,his earlier ministry1 but had reserved 
it to these last moments1 and the reason
 why ,he had given but passing hints    
before was because ,he was there4 ,what 
a superb confidence that expresses in   
,his ability to shield ,his poor        
followers from all that might hurt and  
harm them6 ,he spreads the ample robe of
 ,his protection over them1 or rather1  
to go back to ,his own metaphor1 'as a  
hen gathereth her chickens under her    
wings' so ,he gathers them to ,his own  
breast1 and stretches over them that    
which is at once protection and warmth1 
and keeps them safe4 ,as long as ,he is 
there1 no harm can come to them4 ,but   
,he is going away1 and so it is time to 

speak1 and to speak more plainly4       
,that1 too1 yields for us1 dear         
brethren1 truths that apply to us quite 
as much as to that little group of      
silent listeners4 ,for us1 too1         
difficulties and sorrows1 though        
foretold in general terms1 are largely  
hidden till they are near4 ,it would    
have been of little use for ,christ to  
have spoken more plainly in those early 
days of ,his ministry4 ,the disciples   
managed to forget and to misunderstand  
,his plain utterances1 for instance1    
about ,his own death and resurrection4  
,there needs to be an adaptation between
 the hearing ear and the spoken word1 in
 order that the word spoken should be of
 use1 and there are great tracts of     
,scripture dealing with the sorrows of  
life1 which lie perfectly dark and dead 
to us1 until experience vitalises them4 
,the old ,greeks used to send messages  
from one army to another by means of a  
roll of parchment twisted spirally round
 a baton1 and then written on4 ,it was  

perfectly unintelligible when it fell   
into a man's hands that had not a       
corresponding baton to twist it upon4   
,many of ,christ's messages to us are   
like that4 ,you can only understand the 
utterances when life gives you the frame
 round which to wrap them1 and then they
 flash up into meaning1 and we say at   
once1 ',he told us it all before1 and ,i
 scarcely knew that ,he had told me1    
until this moment when ,i need it4'     
,oh1 it is merciful that there should be
 a gradual unveiling of what is to come 
to us1 that the road should wind1 and   
that we should see so short a way before
 us4 ,did you never say to yourselves1  
',if ,i had known all this before1 ,i do
 not think ,i could have lived to face  
it'8 ,and did you not feel how good and 
kind and loving it was1 that in the     
revelation there had been concealment1  
and that while ,jesus ,christ had told  
us in general terms that we must expect 
sorrows and trials1 this specific form  
of sorrow and trial had not been        

foreseen by us until we came close to   
it8 ,thank ,god for the loving          
reticence1 and for the as loving        
eloquence of ,his speech and of ,his    
silence1 with regard to sorrow4  ,and   
take this further lesson1 that there    
ought to be in all our lives times of   
close and blessed communion with that   
,master1 when the sense of ,his presence
 with us makes all thought of sorrows   
and trials in the future out of place   
and needlessly disturbing4 ,if these    
disciples had drunk in the spirit of    
,jesus ,christ when they were with ,him1
 then they would not have been so       
bewildered when ,he left them4 ,when ,he
 was near them there was something      
better for them to do than to be 'over  
exquisite to cast the fashion of        
uncertain evils' in the future--namely1 
to grow into ,his life1 to drink in the 
sweetness of ,his presence1 to be       
moulded into the likeness of ,his       
character1 to understand ,him better1   
and to realise ,his nearness more fully4

 ,and1 dear brethren1 for us all there  
are times--and it is our own fault if   
these are not very frequent and         
blessed--when thus1 in such an hour of  
sweet communion with the present        
,christ1 the future will be all radiant 
and calm1 if we look into it1 or1       
better1 the present will be so blessed  
that there will be no need to think of  
the future4 ,these men in the upper     
chamber1 if they had learnt all the     
lessons that ,he was teaching them then1
 would not have gone out1 to sleep in   
,gethsemane1 and to tell lies in the    
high priest's hall1 and to fly like     
frightened sheep from the ,cross1 and to
 despair at the tomb4 ,and you and ,i1  
if we sit at ,his table1 and keep our   
hearts near ,him1 eating and drinking of
 that heavenly manna1 shall 'go in the  
strength of that meat forty days into   
the wilderness1' and say--    ',e'en let
 the unknown to-morrow   ,bring with it 
what it may4'  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 ,i must  
touch1 for the sake of completeness1    

upon the final thought in these pregnant
 verses1 and that is1 the imperfect     
apprehension of our ,lord's words1 which
 leads to sorrow instead of joy4  ',now 
,i go ,my way to ,him that sent ,me2 and
 none of you asketh ,me1 ,whither goest 
,thou8 ,but because ,i have said these  
things unto you1 sorrow hath filled your
 heart4' ,he had been telling them--and 
it was the one definite idea that they  
gathered from ,his words--that ,he was  
going4 ,and what did they say8 ,they    
said1 ',going6 ,what is to become of    
us8' ,if there had been a little less   
selfishness and a little more love1 and 
if they had put their question1 ',going6
 ,what is to become of ,him8' then it   
would not have been sorrow that would   
have filled their hearts1 but a joy that
 would have flooded out all the sorrow1 
'and the winter of their discontent'    
would have been changed into 'glorious  
summer1' because ,he was going to ,him  
that sent ,him2 that is to say1 ,he was 
going with ,his work done and ,his      

message accomplished4 ,and therefore1 if
 they could only have overlooked their  
own selves1 and the bearing of ,his     
departure1 as it seemed to them1 on     
themselves1 and have thought of it a    
little as it affected ,him1 they would  
have found that all the oppressive and  
the dark in it would have disappeared1  
and they would have been glad4  ,ah1    
dear brethren1 that gives us a thought  
on which ,i can but touch now1 that the 
steadfast contemplation of the ascended 
,christ1 who has gone to the ,father1   
having finished ,his work1 is the       
sovereign antidote against all sense of 
separation and solitude1 the sovereign  
power by which we may face a hostile    
world1 the sovereign cure for every     
sorrow4 ,if we could live in the light  
of the great triumphant1 ascended ,lord1
 then1 ,oh1 how small would the babble  
of the world be4 ,if the great ,white   
,throne1 and ,he that sits upon it1 were
 more distinctly before us1 then we     
could face anything1 and sorrow would   

'become a solemn scorn of ills1' and all
 the transitory would be reduced to its 
proper insignificance1 and we should be 
emancipated from fear and every         
temptation to unfaithfulness and        
apostasy4 ,look up to the ,master who   
has gone1 and as the dying martyr       
outside the city wall 'saw the heavens  
opened1 and the ,son of ,man            
standing'--having sprung to ,his feet to
 help ,his poor servant--'at the right  
hand of ,god1' so with that vision in   
our eyes and the light of that ,face    
flashing upon our faces1 and making them
 like the angels'1 we shall be masters  
of grief and care1 and pain and trial1  
and enmity and disappointment1 and      
sorrow and sin1 and feel that the absent
 ,christ is the present ,christ1 and    
that the present ,christ is the         
conquering power in us4  ,dear brethren1
 there is nothing else that will make us
 victors over the world and ourselves4  
,if we can grasp ,him by our faith and  
keep ourselves near ,him1 then union    

with ,him as of the ,vine and the       
branches1 which will result inevitably  
in suffering here1 will result as       
inevitably in joy hereafter4 ,for ,he   
will never relax the adamantine grasp of
 ,his strong hand until ,he raises us to
 ,himself1 and 'if so be that we suffer 
with ,him we shall also be glorified    
together4'    ,,the ,,departing ,,christ
 ,,and ,,the ,,coming ,,spirit          
',nevertheless ,i tell you the truth2   
,it is expedient for you that ,i go     
away3 for if ,i go not away1 the        
,comforter will not come unto you2 but  
if ,i depart1 ,i will send ,him unto    
you4 ,and when ,he is come1 ,he will    
convince the world of sin1 and of       
righteousness1 and of judgment4'--,,john
 xvi4 #g1 #h4  ,we read these words in  
the light of all that has gone after1   
and to us they are familiar and almost  
thread-bare4 ,but if we would appreciate
 their sublimity1 we must think away    
nineteen centuries1 and all             
,christendom1 and recall these eleven   

poor men and their peasant ,leader in   
the upper room4 ,they were not very     
wise1 nor very strong1 and outside these
 four walls there was scarcely a        
creature in the whole world that had the
 least belief either in ,him or in them4
 ,they had everything against them1 and 
most of all their own hearts4 ,they had 
nothing for them but their ,master's    
promise4 ,their eyes had been dimmed by 
their sorrowful hearts1 so that they    
could not see the truth which ,he had   
been trying to reveal to them2 and ,his 
departure had presented itself to them  
only as it affected themselves1 and     
therefore had brought a sense of loss   
and desolation4  ,and now ,he bids them 
think of that departure1 as it affects  
themselves1 as pure gain4 ',it is for   
your profit that ,i go away4' ,he       
explains that staggering statement by   
the thought which ,he has already       
presented to them1 in varying aspects1  
of ,his departure as the occasion for   
the coming of that ,great ,comforter1   

who1 when ,he is come1 will through them
 work upon the world1 which knows       
neither them nor ,him4 ,they are to go  
forth 'as sheep in the midst of wolves1'
 but in this promise ,he tells them that
 they will become the judges and        
accusers of the world1 which1 by the    
,spirit dwelling in them1 they will be  
able to overcome1 and convict of error  
and of fault4  ,we must remember that   
the whole purpose of the words which we 
are considering now is the strengthening
 of the disciples in their conflict with
 the world1 and that1 therefore1 the    
operations of that divine ,spirit which 
are here spoken of are operations       
carried on by their instrumentality and 
through the word which they spake4 ,with
 that explanation we can consider the   
great words before us4  ,i4 ,the first  
thing that strikes me about them is that
 wonderful thought of the gain to       
,christ's servants from ,christ's       
departure4 ',it is expedient for you    
that ,i go away4'  ,i need not enlarge  

here upon what we have had frequent     
occasion to remark1 the manner in which 
our ,lord here represents the complex   
whole of ,his death and ascension as    
being ,his own voluntary act4 ,he       
'goes4' ,he is neither taken away by    
death nor rapt up to heaven in a        
whirlwind1 but of ,his own exuberant    
power and by ,his own will ,he goes into
 the region of the grave and thence to  
the throne4 ,contrast the story of ,his 
ascension with that ,old ,testament     
story of the ascension of ,elijah4 ,one 
needed the chariot of fire and the      
horses of fire to bear him up into the  
sphere1 all foreign to his mortal and   
earthly manhood2 the ,other needed no   
outward power to lift ,him1 nor any     
vehicle to carry ,him from this dim spot
 which men call earth1 but slowly1      
serenely1 upborne by ,his own indwelling
 energy1 and rising as to ,his native   
home1 ,he ascended up on high1 and went 
where the very manner of ,his going     
proclaimed that ,he had been before4    

',if ,i go away1 ,i will send ,him4'    
,but that is a digression4 ,what we are 
concerned with now is the thought of    
,christ's departure as being a step in  
advance1 and a positive gain1 even to   
those poor1 bewildered men who were     
clustering round ,him1 depending        
absolutely upon ,himself1 and feeling   
themselves orphaned and helpless without
 ,him4  ,now if we would feel the full  
force and singularity of this saying of 
our ,lord's1 let us put side by side    
with it that other one1 ',i have a      
desire to depart and to be with ,christ1
 which is far better4 ,nevertheless1 to 
abide in the flesh is more needful for  
you4' ,why is it that the ,apostle says1
 ',though ,i want to go ,i am bound to  
stay8' and why is it that the ,master   
says1 ',it is for your good that ,i am  
going1' but because of the essential    
difference in the relation of the two to
 the people who are to be left1 and in  
the continuance of the work of the two  
after they had departed8 ,paul knew that

 when he went1 whatever befell those    
whom he loved and would fain help1 he   
could not stretch a hand to do anything 
for them4 ,he knew that death dropped   
the portcullis between him and them1    
and1 whatever their sore need on the one
 side of the iron gate1 he on the other 
could not succour or save4 ,jesus       
,christ said1 ',it is better for you    
that ,i should go1' because ,he knew    
that all ,his influences would flow     
through the grated door unchecked1 and  
that1 departed1 ,he would still be the  
life of them that trusted in ,him2 and1 
having left them1 would come near them1 
by the very act of leaving them4  ,and  
so there is here indicated for us--as we
 shall have occasion to see more fully1 
presently1--in that one singular and    
anomalous fact of ,christ's departure   
being a positive gain to those that     
trust in ,him1 the singularity and      
uniqueness of ,his work for them and    
,his relation to them4  ,the words mean 
a great deal more than the analogies of 

our relation to dear ones or great ones1
 loves or teachers1 who have departed1  
might suggest4 ,of course we all know   
that it is quite true that death reveals
 to the heart the sweetness and the     
preciousness of the departed ones1 and  
that its refining touch manifests to our
 blind eyes what we did not see so      
clearly when they were beside us4 ,we   
all know that it needs distance to      
measure men1 and the dropping away of   
the commonplace and the familiar ere we 
can see 'the likeness' of our           
contemporaries 'to the great of old4'   
,we have to travel across the plains    
before we can measure the relative      
height of the clustered mountains1 and  
discern which is manifestly the         
loftiest4 ,and all this is true in      
reference to ,jesus ,christ and ,his    
relation to us4 ,but that does not go   
half-way towards the understanding of   
such words as these of my text1 which   
tell us that so singular and solitary is
 ,his relation to us that the thing     

which ends the work of all other men1   
and begins the decay of their influence1
 begins for ,him a higher form of work  
and a wider sweep of sway4 ,he is nearer
 us when ,he leaves us1 and works with  
us and in us more mightily from the     
throne than ,he did upon the earth4 ,who
 is ,he of whom this is true8 ,and what 
kind of work is it of which it is true  
that death continues and perfects it8   
,so let me note1 before ,i pass on1 that
 there is a great truth here for us4 ,we
 are accustomed to look back to our     
,lord's earthly ministry1 and to fancy  
that those who gathered round ,him1 and 
heard ,him speak1 and saw ,his deeds1   
were in a better position for loving    
,him and trusting ,him than you and ,i  
are4 ,it is all a mistake4 ,we have lost
 nothing that they had which was worth  
the keeping2 and we have gained a great 
deal which they had not4 ,we have not to
 compare our relation to ,christ with   
theirs1 as we might do our relation to  
some great thinker or poet1 with that of

 his contemporaries1 but we have ,christ
 in a better form1 if ,i may so speak2  
and we1 on whom the ends of the world   
are come1 may have a deeper and a fuller
 and a closer intimacy with ,him than   
was possible for men whose perceptions  
were disturbed by sense1 and who had to 
pierce through 'the veil1 that is to    
say1 ,his flesh1' before they reached   
the ,holy of ,holies of ,his spirit4    
,,ii4 ,note1 secondly1 the coming for   
which ,christ's going was needful1 and  
which makes that going a gain4  ',if ,i 
go not away the ,comforter will not come
 unto you1 but if ,i depart ,i will send
 ,him unto you4' ,now we have already1  
in former sermons1 touched upon many of 
the themes which would naturally be     
suggested by these words1 and therefore 
,i do not propose to dwell upon them at 
any length4 ,there is only one point to 
which ,i desire to refer briefly here1  
and that is the necessity which here    
seems to be laid down by our ,lord for  
,his departure1 in order that that      

divine ,spirit may come and dwell with  
men4 ,that necessity goes down deeper   
into the mysteries of the divinity and  
of the processes and order of divine    
revelation than it is given to us to    
follow4 ,but though we can only speak   
superficially and fragmentarily about   
such a matter1 let me just remind you1  
in the briefest possible words1 of what 
,scripture plainly declares to us with  
regard to this high and1 in its         
fullness1 ineffable matter4 ,it tells us
 that the complete work of ,jesus       
,christ--not merely ,his coming upon    
earth1 or ,his life amongst men1 but    
also ,his sacrificial death upon the    
,cross--was the necessary preliminary1  
and in some sense procuring cause1 of   
the gift of that divine ,spirit4 ,it    
tells us--and there we are upon ground  
on which we can more fully verify the   
statement--that ,his work must be       
completed ere that ,spirit can be sent1 
because the word is the ,spirit's weapon
 for the world1 and the revelation of   

,god in ,jesus must be ended1 ere the   
application of that revelation1 which is
 the ,spirit's work1 can be begun in its
 full energy4  ,it tells us1 further1   
7and there our eyesight fails1 and we   
have to accept what we are told71 that  
,jesus ,christ must ascend on high and  
be at the right hand of ,god1 ere ,he   
can pour down upon men the fullness of  
the ,spirit which dwelt uncommunicated  
in ,him in the time of ,his earthly     
humiliation4 ',thou hast ascended up on 
high1' and therefore ',thou hast given  
gifts to men4' ,we accept the           
declaration1 not knowing all the deep   
necessity in the divine ,nature on which
 it rests1 but believing it1 because ,he
 in whom we have confidence has declared
 it to us4  ,and we are further         
told--and there our experience may1 in  
some degree1 verify the statement1--that
 only those1 in whose hearts there is   
union to ,jesus ,christ by faith in ,his
 completed work and ascended glory1 are 
capable of receiving that divine gift4  

,so every way1 both as regards the      
depths of ,deity and the processes of   
revelation1 and as regards the power of 
the humanity of ,christ to impart ,his  
,spirit1 and as regards the capacity of 
us poor recipients to receive it1 the   
words of my text seem to be confirmed1  
and we can1 though not with full        
insight1 at any rate with full faith1   
accept the statement1 ',if ,i go not    
away1 the ,comforter will not come to   
you4'  ,that coming is gain4 ,it teaches
 a deeper knowledge of ,him4 ,it teaches
 and gives a fuller possession of the   
life of righteousness which is like ,his
 own4 ,it draws us into the fellowship  
of the ,son4  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 note here 
the threefold conflict of the ,spirit   
through the ,church with the world4     
',when ,he is come ,he will convict the 
world' in respect 'of sin and of        
righteousness and of judgment4' ,by the 
'reproof1' or rather 'conviction1' which
 is spoken about here1 is meant the     
process by which certain facts are borne

 in upon men's understanding and        
consciences1 and1 along with these      
facts1 the conviction of error and fault
 in reference to them4 ,it is no mere   
process of demonstration of an          
intellectual truth1 but it is a process 
of conviction of error in respect to    
great moral and religious truth1 and of 
manifestation of the truths in regard to
 which the error and the sin have been  
committed4 ,so we have here the triple  
division of the great work which the    
divine ,spirit does1 through ,christian 
men and women1 in the world4  ',he shall
 convict the world of sin4' ,the        
outstanding first characteristic of the 
whole ,gospel message is the new gravity
 which it attaches to the fact of sin1  
the deeper meaning which it gives to the
 word1 and the larger scope which it    
shows its blighting influences to have  
had in humanity4 ,apart from the        
conviction of sin by the ,spirit using  
the word proclaimed by disciples1 the   
world has scarcely a notion of what sin 

is1 its inwardness1 its universality1   
the awfulness of it as a fact affecting 
man's whole being and all his relations 
to ,god4 ,all these conceptions are     
especially the product of ,christian    
truth4 ,without it1 what does the world 
know about the poison of sin8 ,and what 
does it care about the poison until the 
conviction has been driven home to the  
reluctant consciousness of mankind by   
the ,spirit wielding the word8 ,this    
conviction comes first in the divine    
order4 ,i do not say that the process of
 turning a man of the world into a      
member of ,christ's ,church always      
begins1 as a matter of fact1 with the   
conviction of sin4 ,i believe it most   
generally does so2 but without insisting
 upon a pedantic adherence to a         
sequence1 and without saying a word     
about the depth and intensity of such a 
conviction1 ,i am here to assert that a 
,christianity which is not based upon   
the conviction of sin is an impotent    
,christianity1 and will be of very      

little use to the men who profess it1   
and will have no power to propagate     
itself in the world4 ,everything in our 
conception of the ,gospel of ,jesus     
,christ and of ,his work for us depends 
upon what we think about this primary   
fact of man's condition1 that he is a   
sinful man4 ,the root of all heresy lies
 there4 ,every error that has led away  
men from ,jesus ,christ and ,his ,cross 
may be traced up to defective notions of
 sin and a defective realisation of it4 
,if ,i do not feel as the ,bible would  
have me feel1 that ,i am a sinful man1  
,i shall think differently of ,jesus    
,christ and of my need of ,him1 and of  
what ,he is to me4 ,christianity may be 
to me a system of beautiful ethics1 a   
guide for life1 a revelation of much    
precious truth1 but it will not be the  
redemptive power without which ,i am    
lost4 ,and ,jesus ,christ will be shorn 
of ,his brightest beams1 unless ,i see  
,him as the ,redeemer of my soul from   
sin1 which else would destroy and is    

destroying it4 ,is ,christianity merely 
a better morality8 ,is it merely a      
higher revelation of the divine ,nature8
 ,or does it do something as well as say
 something1 and what does it do8 ,is    
,jesus ,christ only a ,teacher1 a ,wise 
,man1 an ,example1 a ,prophet1 or is ,he
 the ,sacrifice for the sins of the     
world8 ,oh1 brethren1 we must begin     
where this text begins2 and our whole   
conception of ,him and of ,his work for 
us must be based upon this fact1 that we
 are sinful and lost1 and that ,jesus   
,christ1 by ,his sweet and infinite love
 and all-powerful sacrifice1 is our     
soul's ,redeemer and our only ,hope4    
,the world has to be convicted and      
convinced of sin as the first step to   
its becoming a ,church4  ,the next step 
of this divine ,spirit's conviction is  
that which corresponds to the           
consciousness of sin1 the dawning upon  
the darkened soul of the blessed sunrise
 of righteousness4 ,the triple subjects 
of conviction must necessarily belong to

 the world of which our ,lord is        
speaking4 ,it must be the world that is 
convinced1 and it must be the world's   
sin and the world's righteousness and   
the world's judgment of which my text   
speaks4 ,how1 then1 can there follow on 
the conviction of sin as mine a         
conviction of righteousness as mine8 ,i 
know but one way1 ',not having mine own 
righteousness1 which is of the law1 but 
that which is of ,god through faith4'   
,when a man is convinced of sin1 there  
will dawn upon the heart the wondrous   
thought that a righteousness may be his1
 given to him from above1 which will    
sweep away all his sin and make him     
righteous as ,christ is righteous4 ,that
 conviction will never awake in its     
blessed and hope-giving power unless it 
be preceded by the other4 ,it is of no  
use to exhibit medicine to a man who    
does not know himself diseased4 ,it is  
of no use to talk about righteousness to
 a man who has not found himself to be a
 sinner4 ,and it is of as little use to 

talk to a man of sin unless you are     
ready to tell him of a righteousness    
that will cover all his sin4 ,the one   
conviction without the other is misery1 
the second without the first is         
irrelevant and far away4  ,the world as 
a world has but dim and inadequate      
conceptions of what righteousness is4 ,a
 ,pharisee is its type1 or a man that   
keeps a clean life in regard to great   
transgressions2 a whited sepulchre of   
some sort or other4 ,the world apart    
from ,christ has but languid desires    
after even the poor righteousness that  
it understands1 and the world apart from
 ,christ is afflicted by a despairing   
scepticism as to the possibility of ever
 being righteous at all4 ,and there are 
men listening to me now in every one of 
these three conditions--not caring to be
 righteous1 not understanding what it is
 to be righteous1 and cynically         
disbelieving that it is possible to be  
so4 ,my brother1 here comes the message 
to you--first1 ,thou art sinful2 second1

 ,god's righteousness lies at thy side  
to take and wear if thou wilt4  ,the    
last of these triple convictions is     
'judgment4' ,if there be in the world   
these two things both operating1 sin and
 righteousness1 and if the two come     
together1 what then8 ,if there is to be 
a collision1 as there must be1 which    
will go down8 ,christ tells us that this
 divine ,spirit will teach us that      
righteousness will triumph over sin1 and
 that there will be a judgment which    
will destroy that which is the weaker1  
though it seems the stronger4 ,now ,i   
take it that the judgment which is      
spoken about here is not merely a future
 retribution beyond the grave1 but that1
 whilst that is included1 and is the    
principal part of the idea1 we are      
always to regard the judgment of the    
hereafter as being prepared for by the  
continual judgment here4  ,and so there 
are two thoughts1 a blessed one and a   
terrible one1 wrapped up in that word--a
 blessed thought for us sinful men1     

inasmuch as we may be sure that the     
divine righteousness1 which is given to 
us1 will judge us and separate us day by
 day from our sins2 and a terrible      
thought1 inasmuch as if ,i1 a sinful    
man1 do not make friends with and ally  
myself to the divine righteousness which
 is proffered to me1 ,i shall one day   
have to front it on the other side of   
the flood1 when the contact must        
necessarily be to me destruction4  ,time
 does not allow me to dwell upon these  
solemn matters as ,i fain would1 but let
 me gather all ,i have been feebly      
trying to say to you now into one       
sentence4 ,this threefold conviction1 in
 conscience1 understanding1 and heart1  
of sin which is mine1 of righteousness  
which may be mine1 and of judgment which
 must be mine--this threefold conviction
 is that which makes the world into a   
,church4 ,it is the message of          
,christianity to each of us4 ,how do you
 stand to it8 ,do you hearken to the    
,spirit who is striving to convince you 

of these8 ,or do you gather yourselves  
together into an obstinate1 close-knit  
unbelief1 or a loose-knit indifference  
which is as impenetrable8 ,beware that  
you resist not the ,spirit of ,god6     
,,the ,,convicting ,,facts  ',of sin1   
because they believe not on ,me2 ,of    
righteousness1 because ,i go to ,my     
,father1 and ye see ,me no more2 ,of    
judgment1 because the prince of this    
world is judged4'--,,john xvi4 #i-aa4   
,our ,lord has just been telling ,his   
disciples how ,he will equip them1 as   
,his champions1 for their conflict with 
the world4 ,a divine ,spirit is coming  
to them who will work in them and       
through them2 and by their simple and   
unlettered testimony will 'convict1' or 
convince1 the mass of ungodly men of    
error and crime in regard to these three
 things--sin1 righteousness1 and        
judgment4  ,he now advances to tell them
 that this threefold conviction which   
they1 as counsel for the prosecution1   
will establish as against the world at  

the bar1 will be based upon three facts3
 first1 a truth of experience2 second1 a
 truth of history2 third1 a truth of    
revelation1 all three facts having      
reference to ,jesus ,christ and ,his    
relation to men4  ,now these three facts
 are--the world's unbelief2 ,christ's   
ascension and session at the right hand 
of ,god2 and the 'judgment of the prince
 of this world4' ,if we remember that   
what our ,lord is here speaking about is
 the work of a divine ,spirit through   
the ministration of believing men1 then 
,pentecost with its thousands 'pricked  
to the heart1' and the ,roman ruler who 
trembled1 as the prisoner 'reasoned of  
righteousness and judgment to come1' are
 illustrations of the way in which the  
humble disciples towered above the pride
 and strength of the world1 and from    
criminals at its bar became its         
accusers4  ,these three facts are the   
staple and the strength of the          
,christian ministry4 ,these three facts 
are misapprehended1 and have failed to  

produce their right impression1 unless  
they have driven home to our consciences
 and understandings the triple          
conviction of my text4 ,and so ,i come  
to you with the simple questions which  
are all-important for each of us3 ,have 
you looked these three facts in the     
face--unbelief1 the ascended ,christ1 a 
judged prince of the world1 and have you
 learned their meaning as it bears on   
your own character and religious life8  
,i4 ,the first point here is the        
rejection of ,jesus ,christ as the      
climax of the world's sin4  ,strange    
words6 ,they are in some respects the   
most striking instance of that gigantic 
self-assertion of our ,lord1 of which we
 have had occasion to see so many       
examples in these valedictory           
discourses4 ,the world is full of all   
unrighteousness and wickedness1 lust and
 immorality1 intemperance1 cruelty1     
hatred2 all manner of buzzing evils that
 stink and sting around us4 ,but ,jesus 
,christ passes them all by and points to

 a mere negative thing1 to an inward    
thing1 to the attitude of men towards   
,himself2 and ,he says1 ',if you want to
 know what sin is1 look at that6' ,there
 is the worst of all sins4 ,there is a  
typical instance of what sin is1 in     
which1 as in some anatomical            
preparation1 you may see all its fibres 
straightened out and made visible4 ,look
 at that if you want to know what the   
world is1 and what the world's sin is4  
,some of us do not think that it is sin 
at all2 and tell us that man is no more 
responsible for his belief than he is   
for the colour of his hair1 and suchlike
 talk4 ,well1 let me put a very plain   
question3 ,what is it that a man turns  
away from when he turns away from ,jesus
 ,christ8 ,the plainest1 the loveliest1 
the loftiest1 the perfectest revelation 
of ,god in ,his beauty and completeness 
that ever dawned1 or ever will dawn upon
 creation4 ,he rejects that4 ,anything  
more8 ,yes6 ,he turns away from the     
loveliest human life that ever was1 or  

will be1 lived4 ,anything more8 ,yes6   
,he turns away from a miracle of        
self-sacrificing love1 which endured the
 ,cross for enemies1 and willingly      
embraced agony and shame and death for  
the sake of those who inflicted them    
upon ,him4 ,anything more8 ,yes6 ,he    
turns away from hands laden with1 and   
offering him1 the most precious and     
needful blessings that a poor soul on   
earth can desire or expect4  ,and if    
this be true1 if unbelief in ,jesus     
,christ be indeed all this that ,i have 
sketched out1 another question arises1  
,what does such an attitude and act     
indicate as to the rejector8 ,he stands 
in the presence of the loveliest        
revelation of the divine nature and     
heart1 and he sees no light in it4 ,why1
 but because he has blinded his eyes and
 cannot behold8 ,he is incapable of     
seeing ',god manifest in the flesh1'    
because he 'loves the darkness rather   
than the light4' ,he turns away from the
 revelation of the loveliest and most   

self-sacrificing love4 ,why1 but because
 he bears in himself a heart cased with 
brass and triple steel of selfishness1  
against the manifestation of love8 ,he  
turns away from the offered hands heaped
 with the blessings that he needs4 ,why1
 but because he does not care for the   
gifts that are offered8 ,forgiveness1   
cleansing1 purity a heaven which        
consists in the perfecting of all these1
 have no attractions for him4 ,the      
fugitive ,israelites in the wilderness  
said1 ',we do not want your light1      
tasteless manna4 ,it may do very well   
for angels1 but we have been accustomed 
to garlic and onions down in ,egypt4    
,they smell strong1 and there is some   
taste in them4 ,give us them4' ,and so  
some of you say1 ',the offer of pardon  
is of no use to me1 for ,i am not       
troubled with my sin4 ,the offer of     
purity has no attraction to me1 for ,i  
rather like the dirt and wallowing in   
it4 ,the offer of a heaven of your sort 
is but a dreary prospect to me4 ,and so 

,i turn away from the hands that offer  
precious things4' ,the man who is blind 
to the ,god that beams1 lambent and     
loving1 upon him in the face of ,jesus  
,christ--the man who has no stirrings of
 responsive gratitude for the great     
outpouring of love upon the ,cross--the 
man who does not care for anything that 
,jesus ,christ can give him1 surely1 in 
turning away1 commits a real sin4  ,i do
 not deny1 of course1 that there may be 
intellectual difficulties cropping up in
 connection with the acceptance of the  
message of salvation in ,jesus ,christ1 
but as1 on the one hand1 ,i am free to  
admit that many a man may be putting a  
true trust in ,christ which is joined   
with a very hesitant grasp of some of   
the things which1 to me1 are the very   
essence and heart of the ,gospel2 so1 on
 the other side1 ,i would have you      
remember that there is necessarily a    
moral quality in our attitude to all    
moral and religious truth2 and that sin 
does not cease to be sin because its    

doer is a thinker or has systematised   
his rejection into a creed4 ,though it  
is not for us to measure motives and to 
peer into hearts1 at the bottom there   
lies what ,christ ,himself put ,his     
finger on3 ',ye will not come to me that
 ye might have life4'  ,then1 still     
further1 let me remind you that our     
,lord here presents this fact of man's  
unbelief as being an instance in which  
we may see what the real nature of sin  
is4 ,to use learned language1 it is a   
'typical' sin4 ,in all other acts of sin
 you get the poison manipulated into    
various forms1 associated with other    
elements1 disguised more or less4 ,but  
here1 because it is purely an inward act
 having relation to ,jesus ,christ1 and 
to ,god manifested in ,him1 and not done
 at the bidding of the animal nature1 or
 of any of the other strong temptations 
and impulses which hurry men into gross 
and coarse forms of manifest            
transgression1 you get sin in its       
essence4 ,belief in ,christ is the      

surrender of myself4 ,sin is living to  
myself rather than to ,god4 ,and there  
you touch the bottom4 ,all those        
different kinds of sin1 however unlike  
they may be to one another--the lust of 
the sensualist1 the craft of the cheat1 
the lie of the deceitful1 the passion of
 the unregulated man1 the avarice of the
 miser--all of them have this one common
 root1 a diseased and bloated regard to 
self4 ,the definition of sin is1--living
 to myself and making myself my own     
centre4 ,the definition of faith        
is1--making ,christ my centre and living
 for ,him4 ,therefore1 if you want to   
know what is the sinfulness of sin1     
there it is4 ,and if ,i may use such a  
word in such a connection1 it is all    
packed away in its purest form in the   
act of rejecting that ,lord4  ,brother1 
it is no exaggeration to say that1 when 
you have summoned up before you the     
ugliest forms of man's sins that you can
 fancy1 this one overtops them all1     
because it presents in the simplest form

 the mother-tincture of all sins1 which1
 variously coloured and perfumed and    
combined1 makes the evil of them all4 ,a
 heap of rotting1 poisonous matter is   
offensive to many senses1 but the       
colourless1 scentless1 tasteless drop   
has the poison in its most virulent     
form1 and is not a bit less virulent1   
though it has been learnedly distilled  
and christened with a scientific name1  
and put into a dainty jewelled flask4   
',this is the condemnation1 that light  
is come into the world1 and men love    
darkness rather than light1 because     
their deeds are evil4' ,i lay that upon 
the hearts and consciences of some of my
 present hearers as the key to their    
rejection or disregard of ,christ and   
,his salvation4  ,,ii4 ,now1 secondly1  
notice the ascension of ,jesus ,christ  
as the pledge and the channel of the    
world's righteousness--',because ,i go  
to the ,father1 and ye see ,me no more4'
  ,he speaks as if the process of       
departure were already commenced4 ,it   

had three stages--death1 resurrection1  
ascension2 but these three are all parts
 of the one departure4 ,and so ,he says3
 ',because1 in the future1 when ye go   
forth to preach in ,my name1 ,i shall be
 there with the ,father1 having finished
 the work for which ,he sent ,me2       
therefore you will convince the world of
 righteousness4'  ,now let me put that  
briefly in two forms4 ,first of all1 the
 fact of an ascended ,christ is the     
guarantee and proof of ,his own complete
 fulfilment of the ideal of a righteous 
man4 ,or to put it into simpler words1  
suppose ,jesus ,christ is dead2 suppose 
that ,he never rose from the grave2     
suppose that ,his bones mouldered in    
some sepulchre2 suppose that there had  
been no ascension--would it be possible 
to believe that ,he was other than an   
ordinary man8 ,and would it be possible 
to believe that1 however beautiful these
 familiar records of ,his life1 and     
however lovely the character which they 
reveal1 there was really in ,him no sin 

at all8 ,a dead ,christ means a ,christ 
who1 like the rest of us1 had ,his      
limitations and ,his faults4 ,but1 on   
the other hand1 if it be true that ,he  
sprang from the grave because 'it was   
not possible that ,he should be holden  
of it1' and because in ,his nature there
 was no proclivity to death1 since there
 had been no indulgence in sin2 and if  
it be true that ,he ascended up on high 
because that was ,his native sphere1 and
 ,he rose to it as naturally as the     
water in the valley will rise to the    
height of the hill from which it has    
descended1 then we can see that ,god has
 set ,his seal upon that life by that   
resurrection and ascension2 and as we   
gaze on ,him swept up heavenward by ,his
 own calm power1 a light falls backward 
upon all ,his earthly life1 upon ,his   
claims to purity1 and to union with the 
,father1 and we say1 ',surely this was a
 perfectly righteous ,man4'  ,and       
further let me remind you that with the 
supernatural facts of our ,lord's       

resurrection and ascension stands or    
falls the possibility of ,his           
communicating any of ,his righteousness 
to us sinful men4 ,if there be no such  
possibility1 what does ,jesus ,christ's 
beauty of character matter to me8       
,nothing6 ,i shall have to stumble on as
 best ,i can1 sometimes ashamed and     
rebuked1 sometimes stimulated and       
sometimes reduced to despair1 by looking
 at the record of ,his life4 ,if ,he be 
lying dead in a forgotten grave1 and    
hath not 'ascended up on high1' then    
there can come from ,his history and    
past nothing other in kind1 though1     
perhaps1 a little more in degree1 than  
comes from the history and the past of  
the beautiful and white souls that have 
sometimes lived in the world4 ,he is a  
saint like them1 ,he is a teacher like  
them1 ,he is a prophet like some of     
them1 and we have but to try our best to
 copy that marble purity and white      
righteousness4 ,but if ,he hath ascended
 up on high1 and sits there1 wielding   

the forces of the universe1 as we       
believe ,he does1 then to ,him belongs  
the divine prerogative of imparting ,his
 nature and ,his character to them that 
love ,him4 ,then ,his righteousness is  
not a solitary1 uncommunicative         
perfectness for ,himself1 but like a sun
 in the heavens1 which streams out      
vivifying and enlightening rays to all  
that seek ,his face4 ,if it be true that
 ,christ has risen1 then it is also true
 that you and ,i1 convicted of sin1 and 
learning our weakness and our faults1   
may come to ,him1 and by the exercise of
 that simple and yet omnipotent act of  
faith1 may ally our incompleteness with 
,his perfectness1 our sin with ,his     
righteousness1 our emptiness with ,his  
fullness1 and may have all the grace and
 the beauty of ,jesus ,christ passing   
over into us to be the ,spirit of life  
in us1 'making us free from the law of  
sin and death4' ,if ,christ be risen1   
,his righteousness may be the world's2  
if ,christ be not risen1 ,his           

righteousness is useless to any but to  
,himself4  ,my brother1 wed yourself to 
that dear ,lord by faith in ,him1 and   
,his righteousness will become yours1   
and you will be 'found in ,him without  
spot and blameless1' clothed with white 
raiment like ,his own1 and sharing in   
the ,throne which belongs to the        
righteous ,christ4  ,,iii4 ,lastly1     
notice the judgment of the world's      
prince as the prophecy of the judgment  
of the world4  ,we are here upon ground 
which is only made known to us by the   
revelation of ,scripture4 ,we began with
 a fact of man's experience2 we passed  
on to a fact of history2 now we have a  
fact certified to us only on ,christ's  
authority4  ,the world has a prince4    
,that ill-omened and chaotic            
agglomeration of diverse forms of evil  
has yet a kind of anarchic order in it1 
and1 like the fabled serpent's locks on 
the ,gorgon head1 they intertwine and   
sting one another1 and yet they are a   
unity4 ,we hear very little about 'the  

prince of the world' in ,scripture4     
,mercifully the existence of such a     
being is not plainly revealed until the 
fact of ,christ's victory over him is   
revealed4 ,but however ludicrous        
mediaeval and vulgar superstitions may  
have made the notion1 and however       
incredible the tremendous figure painted
 by the great ,puritan poet has proved  
to be1 there is nothing ridiculous1 and 
nothing that we have the right to say is
 incredible1 in the plain declarations  
that came from ,christ's lips over and  
over again1 that the world1 the         
aggregate of ungodly men1 has a prince4 
,and then my text tells us that that    
prince is 'judged4' ,the ,cross did     
that1 as ,jesus ,christ over and over   
again indicates1 sometimes in plain     
words1 as ',now is the judgment of this 
world1' ',now is the prince of this     
world cast out'2 sometimes in metaphor1 
as ',i beheld ,satan as lightning fall  
from heaven1' ',first bind the strong   
man and then spoil his house4' ,we do   

not know how far-reaching the influences
 of the ,cross may be1 and what they may
 have done in those dark regions1 but we
 know that since that ,cross1 the power 
of evil in the world has been broken in 
its centre1 that ,god has been          
disclosed1 that new forces have been    
lodged in the heart of humanity1 which  
only need to be developed in order to   
overcome the evil4 ,we know that since  
that auspicious day when ',he spoiled   
principalities and powers1 making a show
 of them openly and leading them in     
triumph1' even when ,he was nailed upon 
the ,cross1 the history of the world has
 been the judgment of the world4 ,hoary 
iniquities have toppled into the        
ceaseless washing sea of divine love    
which has struck against their bases4   
,ancient evils have vanished1 and more  
are on the point of vanishing4 ,a       
loftier morality1 a higher notion of    
righteousness1 a deeper conception of   
sin1 new hopes for the world and for    
men1 have dawned upon mankind2 and the  

prince of the world is led bound1 as it 
were1 at the victorious chariot wheels4 
,the central fortress has been captured1
 and the rest is an affair of outposts4 
,my text has for its last word this--the
 prince's judgment prophesies the       
world's future judgment4 ,the process   
which began when ,jesus ,christ died has
 for its consummation the divine        
condemnation of all the evil that still 
afflicts humanity1 and its deprivation  
of authority and power to injure4 ,a    
final judgment will come1 and that it   
will is manifested by the fact that     
,christ1 when ,he came in the form of a 
servant and died upon the ,cross1 judged
 the prince4 ,when ,he comes in the form
 of a ,king on the great ,white ,throne 
,he will judge the world which ,he has  
delivered from its prince4  ,that       
thought1 my brother1 ought to be a hope 
to us all4 ,are you glad when you think 
that there is a day of judgment coming8 
,does your heart leap up when you       
realise the fact that the righteousness1

 which is in the heavens1 is sure to    
conquer and coerce and secure under the 
hatches the sin that is riding rampant  
through the world8 ,it was a joy and a  
hope to men who did not know half as    
much of the divine love and the divine  
righteousness as we do4 ,they called    
upon the rocks and the hills to rejoice1
 and the trees of the forest to clap    
their hands before the ,lord1 'for ,he  
cometh to judge the world4' ,does your  
heart throb a glad ,amen to that8  ,it  
ought to be a hope2 it is a fear2 and   
there are some of us who do not like to 
have the conviction driven home to us1  
that the end of the strife between sin  
and righteousness is that ,jesus ,christ
 shall judge the world and take unto    
,himself ,his eternal kingdom4  ,but1 my
 friends1 hope or fear1 it is a fact1 as
 certain in the future1 as the ,cross is
 sure in the past1 or the ,throne in the
 present4 ,let me ask you this question1
 the question which ,christ has sent all
 ,his servants to ask--,have you loathed

 your sin8 have you opened your heart to
 ,christ's righteousness8 ,if you have1 
when men's hearts are failing them for  
fear1 and they 'call on the rocks and   
the hills to cover them from the face of
 ,him that sitteth upon the ,throne1'   
you will 'have a song as in the night   
when a holy solemnity is kept1' and lift
 up your heads1 'for your redemption    
draweth nigh4' ',herein is our love made
 perfect1 that we may have boldness     
before ,him in the day of judgment4'    
,,the ,,guide ,,into ,,all ,,truth  ',i 
have yet many things to say unto you1   
but ye cannot bear them now4 ,howbeit   
when ,he1 the ,spirit of truth1 is come1
 ,he will guide you into all truth3 for 
,he shall not speak of ,himself2 but    
whatsoever ,he shall hear1 that shall   
,he speak3 and ,he will show you things 
to come4 ,he shall glorify ,me3 for ,he 
shall receive of ,mine1 and shall show  
it unto you4 ,all things that the       
,father hath are ,mine3 therefore said  
,i1 that ,he shall take of ,mine1 and   

shall show it unto you4'--,,john xvi4   
#ab-ae4  ,this is our ,lord's last      
expansion1 in these discourses1 of the  
great promise of the ,comforter which   
has appeared so often in them4 ,first1  
,he was spoken of simply as dwelling in 
,christ's servants1 without any more    
special designation of ,his work than   
was involved in the name4 ,then1 ,his   
aid was promised1 to remind the         
,apostles of the facts of ,christ's     
life1 especially of ,his words2 and so  
the inspiration and authority of the    
four ,gospels were certified for us4    
,then ,he was further promised as the   
witness in the disciples to ,jesus      
,christ4 ,and1 finally1 in the          
immediately preceding context1 we have  
,his office of 'convincing1' or         
convicting1 'the world of sin1 and of   
righteousness1 and of judgment4' ,and   
now we come to that gracious and gentle 
work which that divine ,spirit is       
declared by ,christ to do1 not only for 
that little group gathered round ,him   

then1 but for all those who trust       
themselves to ,his guidance4 ,he is to  
be the ',spirit of truth' to all the    
ages1 who in simple verity will help    
true hearts to know and love the truth4 
,there are three things in the words    
before us--first1 the avowed            
incompleteness of ,christ's own         
teaching2 second1 the completeness of   
the truth into which the ,spirit of     
truth guides2 and1 last1 the unity of   
these two4  ,i4 ,first1 then1 we have   
here the avowed incompleteness of       
,christ's own teaching4  ',i have yet   
many things to say unto you1 but ye     
cannot bear them now4' ,now in an       
earlier portion of these great          
discourses1 we have our ,lord asserting 
that 'all things whatsoever ,he had     
heard of the ,father ,he had made known'
 unto ,his servants4 ,how do these two  
representations harmonise8 ,is it       
possible to make them agree8 ,surely1   
yes4 ,there is a difference between the 
germ and the unfolded flower4 ,there is 

a difference between principles and the 
complete development of these4 ,i       
suppose you may say that all ,euclid is 
in the axioms and definitions4 ,i       
suppose you may also say that when you  
have learned the axioms and definitions1
 there are many things yet to be said1  
of which you have not grown to the      
apprehension4 ,and so our ,lord1 as far 
as ,his frankness was concerned1 and as 
far as the fundamental and seminal      
principles of all religious truth were  
concerned1 had even then declared all   
that ,he had heard of the ,father4 ,but 
yet1 in so far as the unfolding of these
 was concerned1 the tracing of their    
consequences1 the exhibition of their   
harmonies1 the weaving of them into an  
ordered whole in which a man's          
understanding could lodge1 there were   
many things yet to be said1 which that  
handful of men were not able to bear4   
,and so our ,lord ,himself here declares
 that ,his words spoken on earth are not
 ,his completed revelation4  ,of course 

we find in them1 as ,i believe1 hints   
profound and pregnant1 which only need  
to be unfolded and smoothed out1 as it  
were1 and their depths fathomed1 in     
order to lead to all that is worthy of  
being called ,christian truth4 ,but upon
 many points we cannot but contrast the 
desultory1 brief1 obscure references    
which came from the ,master's lips with 
the more systematised1 full1 and        
accurate teaching which came from the   
servants4 ,the great crucial instance of
 all is the comparative reticence which 
our ,lord observed in reference to ,his 
sacrificial death1 and the atoning      
character of ,his sufferings for the    
world4 ,i do not admit that the silence 
of the ,gospels upon that subject is    
fairly represented when it is said to be
 absolute4 ,i believe that that silence 
has been exaggerated by those who have  
no desire to accept that teaching4 ,but 
the distinction is plain and obvious1   
not to be ignored1 rather to be marked  
as being fruitful of blessed teaching1  

between the way in which ,christ speaks 
about ,his ,cross1 and the way in which 
the ,apostles speak about it after      
,pentecost4  ,what then8 ,my text gives 
us the reason4 ',you cannot bear them   
now4' ,now the word rendered 'bear' here
 does not mean 'bear' in the sense of   
endure1 or tolerate1 or suffer1 but     
'bear' in the sense of carry4 ,and the  
metaphor is that of some weight--it may 
be gold1 but still it is a weight--laid 
upon a man whose muscles are not strong 
enough to sustain it4 ,it crushes rather
 than gladdens4 ,so because they had not
 strength enough to carry1 had not      
capacity to receive1 our ,lord was      
lovingly reticent4  ,there is a great   
principle involved in this saying--that 
revelation is measured by the moral and 
spiritual capacities of the men who     
receive it4 ,the light is graduated for 
the diseased eye4 ,a wise oculist does  
not flood that eye with full sunshine1  
but he puts on veils and bandages1 and  
closes the shutters1 and lets a stray   

beam1 ever growing as the curve is      
perfected1 fall upon it4 ,so from the   
beginning until the end of the process  
of revelation there was a correspondence
 between men's capacity to receive the  
light and the light that was granted2   
and the faithful use of the less made   
them capable of receiving the greater1  
and as soon as they were capable of     
receiving it1 it came4 ',to him that    
hath shall be given4' ,in ,his love1    
then1 ,christ did not load these men    
with principles that they could not     
carry1 nor feed them with 'strong meat' 
instead of 'milk1' until they were able 
to bear it4 ,revelation is progressive1 
and ,christ is reticent1 from regard to 
the feebleness of ,his listeners4  ,now 
that same principle is true in a        
modified form about us4 ,how many things
 there are which we sometimes feel we   
should like to know1 that ,god has not  
told us1 because we have not yet grown  
up to the point at which we could       
apprehend them6 ,compassed with these   

veils of flesh and weakness1 groping    
amidst the shadows of time1 bewildered  
by the cross-lights that fall upon us   
from so many surrounding objects1 we    
have not yet eyes able to behold the    
ineffable glory4 ,he has many things to 
say to us about that blessed future1 and
 that strange and awful life into which 
we are to step when we leave this poor  
world1 but 'ye cannot bear them now4'   
,let us wait with patience until we are 
ready for the illumination4 ,for two    
things go to make revelation1 the light 
that reveals and the eye that beholds4  
,now one remark before ,i go further4   
,people tell us1 ',your modern theology 
is not in the ,gospels4' ,and they say  
to us1 as if they had administered a    
knockdown blow1 ',we stick by ,jesus1   
not ,paul4' ,well1 as ,i said1 ,i do not
 admit that there is no ',pauline'      
teaching in the ,gospels1 but ,i do     
confess there is not much4 ,and ,i say1 
',what then8' ,why1 this1 then--it is   
exactly what we were to expect2 and     

people who reject the apostolic form of 
,christian teaching because it is not   
found in the ,gospels are flying in the 
face of ,christ's own teaching4 ,you say
 you will take ,his words as the only   
source of religious truth4 ,you are     
going clean contrary to ,his own words  
in saying so4 ,remember that ,he        
proclaimed their incompleteness1 and    
referred us1 for the fuller knowledge of
 the truth of ,god1 to a subsequent     
,teacher4  ,,ii4 ,so1 secondly1 mark    
here the completeness of the truth into 
which the ,spirit guides4  ,i must      
trouble you with just a word or two of  
remark as to the language of our text4  
,note the personality1 designation1 and 
office of this new ,teacher4 ',he1' not 
'it1' ,he1 is the ,spirit of truth whose
 characteristic and weapon is truth4    
',he will guide you'--suggesting a      
loving hand put out to lead2 suggesting 
the graciousness1 the gentleness1 the   
gradualness of the teaching4 ',into all 
truth '--that is no promise of          

omniscience1 but it is the assurance of 
gradual and growing acquaintance with   
the spiritual and moral truth which is  
revealed1 such as may be fitly          
paralleled by the metaphor of men       
passing into some broad land1 of which  
there is much still to be possessed and 
explored4 ,not to-day1 nor to-morrow1   
will all the truth belong to those whom 
the ,spirit guides2 but if they are true
 to ,his guidance1 'to-morrow shall be  
as this day1 and much more abundant1'   
and the land will all be traversed at   
the last4 ',he shall not speak of       
,himself1 but whatsoever ,he shall hear 
that shall ,he speak4' ,mark the        
parallel between the relation of the    
,spirit-,teacher to ,jesus1 and the     
relation of ,jesus to the ,father4 ,of  
,him1 too1 it is said by ,himself1 ',all
 things whatsoever ,i have heard of the 
,father ,i have declared unto you4' ,the
 mark of ,satan is1 ',he speaketh of his
 own'2 the mark of the divine ,teacher  
is1 ',he speaketh not of ,himself1 but  

whatsoever things1' in all their        
variety1 in their continuity1 in their  
completeness1 ',he shall hear1'--where8 
yonder in the depths of the             
,godhead--'whatsoever things ,he shall  
hear there1' ,he shall show to you1 and 
especially1 ',he will show you the      
things that are to come4' ,these        
,apostles were living in a revolutionary
 time4 ,men's hearts were 'failing them 
for fear of the things that were coming 
on the earth4' ,step by step they would 
be taught the evolving glory of that    
kingdom which they were to be the       
instruments in founding2 and step by    
step there would be spread out before   
them the vision of the future and all   
the wonder that should be1 the world    
that was to come1 the new constitution  
which ,christ was to establish4  ,now1  
if that be the interpretation1 however  
inadequate1 of these great and wonderful
 words1 there are but two things needful
 to say about them4 ,one is that this   
promise of a complete guidance into     

truth applies in a peculiar and unique  
fashion to the original hearers of it4  
,i ventured to say that one of the other
 promises of the ,spirit1 which ,i      
quoted in my introductory remarks1 was  
the certificate to us of the inspiration
 and reliableness of these ,four        
,gospels4 ,and ,i now remark that in    
these words1 in their plain and         
unmistakable meaning1 there lie involved
 the inspiration and authority of the   
,apostles as teachers of religious      
truth4 ,here we have the guarantee for  
the authority over our faith1 of the    
words which came from these men1 and    
from the other who was added to their   
number on the ,damascus road4 ,they were
 guided 'into all the truth1' and so our
 task is to receive the truth into which
 they were guided4  ,the ,acts of the   
,apostles is the best commentary on     
these words of my text4 ,there you see  
how these men rose at once into a new   
region2 how the truths about their      
,master which had been bewildering      

puzzles to them flashed into light2 how 
the ,cross1 which had baffled and       
dispersed them1 became at once the      
centre of union for themselves and for  
the world2 how the obscure became lucid1
 and ,christ's death and the            
resurrection stood forth to them as the 
great central facts of the world's      
salvation4 ,in the book of the          
,apocalypse we have part of the         
fulfilment of this closing promise3 ',he
 will show you things to come'2 when the
 ,seer was 'in the ,spirit on the       
,lord's ,day1' and the heavens were     
opened1 and the history of the ,church  
7whether in chronological order1 or in  
the exhibition of symbols of the great  
forces which shall be arrayed for and   
against it1 over and over again1 to the 
end of time1 does not at present        
matter71 was spread before ,him as a    
scroll4  ,now1 dear friends1 this great 
principle of my text has a modified     
application also to us all4 ,for that   
divine ,spirit is given to each of us if

 we will use ,him1 is given to any and  
every man who desires ,him1 does dwell  
in ,christian hearts1 though1 alas6 so  
many of us are so little conscious of   
,him1 and does teach us the truth which 
,christ ,himself left incomplete4  ,only
 let me make one remark here4 ,we do not
 stand on the same level as these men   
who clustered round ,christ on ,his road
 to ,gethsemane1 and received the first 
fruits of the promise--the ,spirit4     
,they1 taught by that divine ,guide and 
by experience1 were led into the deeper 
apprehension of the words and the deeds1
 of the life and the death1 of ,jesus   
,christ our ,lord4 ,we1 taught by that  
same ,spirit1 are led into a deeper     
apprehension of the words which they    
spake1 both in recording and            
interpreting the facts of ,christ's life
 and death4  ,and so we come sharp up to
 this1 ',if any man thinketh himself to 
be a prophet1 or spiritual1 let him     
acknowledge that the things which ,i    
speak unto him are the commandments of  

the ,lord4' ,that is how an ,apostle put
 his relation to the other possessors of
 the divine ,spirit4 ,and you and ,i    
have to take this as the criterion of   
all true possession of the ,spirit of   
,god1 that it bows in humble submission 
to the authoritative teaching of this   
book4  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 we have here our 
,lord pointing out the unity of these   
two4  ,in the verse on which ,i have    
just been commenting ,he says nothing   
about ,himself1 and it might easily     
appear to the listeners as if these two 
sources of truth1 ,his own incomplete   
teaching1 and the full teaching of the  
divine ,spirit1 were independent of1 if 
not opposed to1 one another4 ,so in the 
last words of our text ,he shows us the 
blending of the two streams1 the union  
of the two beams4  ',he shall glorify   
,me4' ,think of a man saying that6 ,the 
,spirit who will come from ,god and     
'guide men into all truth' has for ,his 
distinctive office the glorifying of    
,jesus ,christ4 ,so fair is ,he1 so     

good1 so radiant1 that to make ,him     
known is to glorify ,him4 ,the          
glorifying of ,christ is the ultimate   
and adequate purpose of everything that 
,god the ,father1 ,son1 and ,holy       
,spirit has done1 because the glorifying
 of ,christ is the glorifying of ,god1  
and the blessing of the eyes that behold
 ,his glory4  ',for ,he shall take of   
,mine1 and show it unto you4' ,all which
 that divine ,spirit brings is          
,christ's4 ,so1 then1 there is no new   
revelation1 only the interpretation of  
the revelation4 ,the text is given1 and 
its last word was spoken1 when 'the     
cloud received ,him out of their sight1'
 and henceforward all is commentary4    
,the ,spirit takes of ,christ's2 applies
 the principles1 unfolds the deep       
meaning of words and deeds1 and         
especially the meaning of the mystery of
 the ,cradle1 and the tragedy of the    
,cross1 and the mystery of the          
,ascension1 as declaring that ,christ is
 the ,son of ,god1 the ,sacrifice for   

the world4 ,christ said1 ',i am the     
,truth4' ,therefore1 when ,he promises1 
',he will guide you into all the truth1'
 we may fairly conclude that 'the truth'
 into which the ,spirit guides is the   
personal ,christ4 ,it is the whole      
,christ1 the whole truth1 that we are to
 receive from that divine ,teacher2     
growing up day by day into the capacity 
to grasp ,christ more firmly1 to        
understand ,him better1 and by love and 
trust and obedience to make ,him more   
entirely our own4 ,we are like the first
 settlers upon some great               
island-continent4 ,there is a little    
fringe of population round the coast1   
but away in the interior are leagues of 
virgin forests and fertile plains       
stretching to the horizon1 and          
snow-capped summits piercing the clouds1
 on which no foot has ever trod4 ',he   
will guide you into all truth'2 through 
the length and breadth of the boundless 
land1 the person and the work of ,jesus 
,christ our ,lord4  ',all things that   

the ,father hath are ,mine1 therefore   
said ,i that ,he shall take of ,mine and
 show it unto you4' ,what awful words6  
,a divine1 teaching ,spirit can only    
teach concerning ,god4 ,christ here     
explains the paradox of ,his words      
preceding1 in which1 if ,he were but    
human1 ,he seems to have given that     
teaching ,spirit an unworthy office1 by 
explaining that whatsoever is ,his is   
,god's1 and whatsoever is ,god's is     
,his4  ,my brother6 do you believe that8
 ,is that what you think about ,jesus   
,christ8 ,he puts out here an           
unpresumptuous hand1 and grasps all the 
constellated glories of the divine      
,nature1 and says1 ',they are ,mine'2   
and the ,father looks down from heaven  
and says1 ',son6 ,thou art ever with    
,me1 and all that ,i have is ,thine4'   
,do you answer1 ',amen6 ,i believe it8' 
,here are three lessons from these great
 words which ,i leave with you without  
attempting to unfold them4 ,one is1     
,believe a great deal more definitely   

in1 and seek a great deal more          
consciously and earnestly1 and use a    
great deal more diligently and honestly1
 that divine ,spirit who is given to us 
all4 ,i fear me that over very large    
tracts of professing ,christendom to-day
 men stand up with very faltering lips  
and confess1 ',i believe in the ,holy   
,ghost4' ,hence comes much of the       
weakness of our modern ,christianity1 of
 the worldliness of professing          
,christians1 'and when for the time they
 ought to be teachers1 they have need   
that one teach them again which be the  
first principles of the oracles of      
,god4' ',quench not1 grieve not1 despise
 not the ,holy ,spirit4'  ,another      
lesson is1 ,use the ,book that ,he      
uses--else you will not grow1 and ,he   
will have no means of contact with you4 
,and the last is1 ,try the spirits4 ,if 
anything calling itself ,christian      
teaching comes to you and does not      
glorify ,christ1 it is self-condemned4  
,for none can exalt ,him highly enough1 

and no teaching can present ,him too    
exclusively and urgently as the sole    
,salvation and ,life of the whole earth1
 ,and if it be1 as my text tells us1    
that the great teaching ,spirit is to   
come1 who is to 'guide us into all      
truth1' and therein is to glorify       
,christ1 and to show us the things that 
are ,his1 then it is also true1 ',hereby
 know we the ,spirit of ,god4 ,every    
spirit that confesseth that ,jesus      
,christ is come in the flesh is of ,god2
 and every spirit that confesseth not   
that ,jesus ,christ is come in the flesh
 is not of ,god4 ,and this is the spirit
 of ,antichrist4'    ,,christ',s        
',,little ,,whiles'  ',a little while1  
and ye shall not see ,me3 and again1 a  
little while1 and ye shall see ,me1     
because ,i go to the ,father4 ,then said
 some of ,his disciples among           
themselves1 ,what is this that ,he saith
 unto us1 ,a little while1 and ye shall 
not see ,me3 and again1 a little while1 
and ye shall see ,me3 and1 ,because ,i  

go to the ,father8 ,they said therefore1
 ,what is this that ,he saith1 ,a little
 while8 we cannot tell what ,he saith4  
,now ,jesus knew that they were desirous
 to ask ,him1 and said unto them1 ,do ye
 inquire among yourselves of that ,i    
said1 ,a little while1 and ye shall not 
see ,me3 and again a little while1 and  
ye shall see ,me8'--,,john xvi4 #af-ai4 
,a superficial glance at the former part
 of these verses may fail to detect     
their connection with the great         
preceding promise of the ,spirit who is 
to guide the disciples 'into all truth4'
 ,they appear to stand quite isolated   
and apart from that4 ,but a little      
thought will bring out an obvious       
connection4 ,the first words of our text
 are really the climax and crown of the 
promise of the ,spirit2 for that ,spirit
 is to 'guide into all the truth' by    
declaring to the disciples the things   
that are ,christ's1 and in consequence  
of that ministration1 they are to be    
able to see their unseen ,lord4 ,so this

 is the loftiest thought of what the    
divine ,spirit does for the ,christian  
heart1 that it shows ,him a visible     
though absent ,christ4  ,then we have in
 the subsequent part of our text the    
blundering of the bewildered disciples  
and the patient answer of the           
long-suffering ,teacher4 ,so that there 
are these three points to take up3 the  
times of disappearance and of sight2 the
 bewildered disciples2 and the patient  
,teacher4  ,i4 ,first of all1 then1 note
 the deep teaching of our ,lord here1   
about the times of disappearance and of 
,sight4  ,the words are plain enough2   
the difficulty lies in the determination
 of the periods to which they refer4 ,he
 tells us that1 after a brief interval  
from the time at which ,he was speaking1
 there would come a short parenthesis   
during which ,he was not to be seen2 and
 that upon that would follow a period of
 which no end is hinted at1 during which
 ,he is to be seen4 ,the two words      
employed in the two consecutive clauses1

 for 'sight1' are not the same1 and so  
they naturally suggest some difference  
in the manner of vision4  ,but the      
question arises1 ,where are the limits  
of these times of which the ,lord       
speaks8 ,now it is quite clear1 ,i      
suppose1 that the first of the 'little  
whiles' is the few hours that intervened
 between ,his speaking and the ,cross4  
,and it is equally clear that ,his death
 and burial began1 at all events1 the   
period during which they were not to see
 ,him4 ,but where does the second period
 begin1 during which they are to see    
,him8 ,is it at ,his resurrection or at 
,his ascension1 when the process of     
'going to the ,father' was completed in 
all its stages2 or at ,pentecost1 when  
the ,spirit1 by whose ministration ,he  
was to be made visible1 was poured out8 
,the answer is1 perhaps1 not to be      
restricted to any one of these periods2 
but ,i think if we consider that all    
disciples1 in all ages1 have a portion  
in all the rest of these great          

discourses1 and if we note the absence  
of any hint that the promised seeing of 
,christ was ever to terminate1 and if we
 mark the diversity of words under which
 the two manners of vision are          
described1 and1 above all1 if we note   
the close connection of these words with
 those which precede1 we shall come to  
the conclusion that the full realisation
 of this great promise of a visible     
,christ did not begin until that time   
when the ,spirit1 poured out1 opened the
 eyes of ,his servants1 and 'they saw   
,his glory4' ,but however we settle the 
minor question of the chronology of     
these periods1 the great truth shines   
out here that1 through all the stretch  
of the ages1 true hearts may truly see  
the true ,christ4  ,if we might venture 
to suppose that in our text the second  
of the periods to which ,he refers1 when
 they did not see ,him1 was not         
coterminous with1 but preceded1 the     
second 'little while1' all would be     
clear4 ,then the first 'little while'   

would be the few hours before the       
,cross4 ',ye shall not see ,me' would   
refer to the days in which ,he lay in   
the tomb4 ',again1 a little while' would
 point to that strange transitional     
period between ,his death and ,his      
ascension1 in which the disciples had   
neither the close intercourse of earlier
 days nor the spiritual communion of    
later ones4 ,and the final period1 ',ye 
shall see ,me1' would cover the whole   
course of the centuries till ,he comes  
again4  ,however that may be1 and ,i    
only offer it as a possible suggestion1 
the thing that we want to fasten upon   
for ourselves is this--we all1 if we    
will1 may have a vision of ,christ as   
close1 as real1 as firmly certifying us 
of ,his reality1 and making as vivid an 
impression upon us1 as if ,he stood     
there1 visible to our senses4 ,and so1  
'by this vision splendid' we may 'be    
everywhere attended1' and whithersoever 
we go1 have burning before us the light 
of ,his countenance1 in the sunshine of 

which we shall walk4  ,brother6 that is 
personal ,christianity--to see ,jesus   
,christ1 and to live with the thrilling 
consciousness1 printed deep and abiding 
upon our spirits1 that1 in very deed1   
,he is by our sides4 ,o how that        
conviction would make life strong and   
calm and noble and blessed6 ,how it     
would lift us up above temptation6 ',he 
endured as seeing ,him who is           
,invisible4' ,what should terrify us if 
,christ stood before us8 ,what should   
charm us if we saw ,him8 ,competing     
glories and attractions would fade      
before ,his presence1 as a dim candle   
dies at noon4 ,it would make all life   
full of a blessed companionship4 ,who   
could be solitary if he saw ,christ8 or 
feel that life was dreary if that       
,friend was by his side8 ,it would fill 
our hearts with joy and strength1 and   
make us evermore blessed by the light of
 ,his countenance4  ,and how are we to  
get that vision8 ,remember the          
connection of my text4 ,it is because   

there is a divine ,spirit to show men   
the things that are ,christ's that      
therefore1 unseen1 ,he is visible to the
 eye of faith4 ,and therefore the       
shortest and directest road to the      
vision of ,jesus is the submitting of   
heart and mind and spirit to the        
teaching of that divine ,spirit1 who    
uses the record of the ,scriptures as   
the means by which ,he makes ,jesus     
,christ known to us4  ,but besides this 
waiting upon that divine ,teacher1 let  
me remind you that there are conditions 
of discipline which must be fulfilled   
upon our parts1 if any clear vision of  
,jesus ,christ is to bless us pilgrims  
in this lonely world4 ,and the first of 
these conditions is--,if you want to see
 ,jesus ,christ1 think about ,him4      
,occupy your minds with ,him4 ,if men in
 the city walk the pavements with their 
eyes fixed upon the gutters1 what does  
it matter though all the glories of a   
sunset are dyeing the western sky8 ,they
 will see none of them2 and if ,christ  

stood beside you1 closer to you than any
 other1 if your eyes were fixed upon the
 trivialities of this poor present1 you 
would not see ,him4 ,if you honestly    
want to see ,christ1 meditate upon ,him4
  ,and if you want to see ,him1 shut out
 competing objects1 and the dazzling    
cross-lights that come in and hide ,him 
from us4 ,there must be a 'looking off  
unto ,jesus4' ,there must be a rigid    
limitation1 if not excision1 of other   
objects1 if we are to grasp ,him4 ,if we
 would see1 and have our hearts filled  
with1 the calm sublimity of the solemn1 
white wedge that lifts itself into the  
far-off blue1 we must not let our gaze  
stop on the busy life of the valleys or 
the green slopes of the lower ,alps1 but
 must lift it and keep it fixed aloft4  
,meditate upon ,him1 and shut out other 
things4  ,if you want to see ,christ1 do
 ,his will4 ,one act of obedience has   
more power to clear a man's eyes than   
hours of idle contemplation2 and one act
 of disobedience has more power to dim  

his eyes than anything besides4 ,it is  
in the dusty common road that ,he draws 
near to us1 and the experience of those 
disciples that journeyed to ,emmaus may 
be ours4 ,he meets us in the way1 and   
makes 'our hearts burn within us4' ,the 
experience of the dying martyr outside  
the city gate may be ours4 ,sorrows and 
trials will rend the heavens if they be 
rightly borne1 and so we shall see      
,christ 'standing at the right hand of  
,god4' ,rebellious tears blind our eyes1
 as ,mary's did1 so that she did not    
know the ,master and took ,him for 'the 
gardener4' ,submissive tears purge the  
eyes and wash them clean to see ,his    
face4 ,to do ,his will is the sovereign 
method for beholding ,his countenance4  
,brethren1 is this our experience8 ,you 
professing ,christians1 do you see      
,christ8 ,are your eyes fixed upon ,him8
 ,do you go through life with ,him      
consciously nearer to you than any      
beside8 ,is ,he closer than the         
intrusive insignificances of this       

fleeting present8 ,have you ,him as your
 continual ,companion8 ,oh6 when we     
contrast the difference between the     
largeness of this promise--a promise of 
a thrilling consciousness of ,his       
presence1 of a vivid perception of ,his 
character1 of an unwavering certitude of
 ,his reality--and the fly-away glimpses
 and wandering sight1 and faint1 far-off
 views1 as of a planet weltering amid   
clouds1 which the most of ,christian men
 have of ,christ1 what shame should     
cover our faces1 and how we should feel 
that if we have not the fulfilment1 it  
is our own fault6 ,blessed they of whom 
it is true that they see 'no man any    
more save ,jesus only'6 and to whom all 
sorrow1 joy1 care1 anxiety1 work1 and   
repose are but the means of revealing   
that sweet and all-sufficient ,presence6
 ',i have set the ,lord always before   
me1 therefore ,i shall not be moved4'   
,,ii4 ,now notice1 secondly1 these      
bewildered disciples4  ,we find1 in the 
early portion of these discourses1 that 

twice they ventured to interrupt our    
,lord with more or less relevant        
questions1 but as the wonderful words   
flowed on1 they seem to have been awed  
into silence2 and our ,lord ,himself    
almost complains of them that ',none of 
you asketh ,me1 ,whither goest ,thou8'  
,the inexhaustible truths that ,he had  
spoken seem to have gone clear over     
their heads1 but the verbal repetition  
of the 'little whiles1' and the         
recurring ring of the sentences1 seem to
 have struck upon their ears4 ,so       
passing by all the great words1 they    
fasten upon this minor thing1 and       
whisper among themselves1 perhaps       
lagging behind on the road1 as to what  
,he means by these 'little whiles4' ,the
 ,revised ,version is probably correct1 
or at least it has strong manuscript    
authority in its favour1 in omitting the
 clause in our ,lord's words1 ',because 
,i go to the ,father4' ,the disciples   
seem to have quoted1 not from the       
preceding verse1 but from a verse a     

little before that in the context1 where
 ,he said that 'the ,spirit will        
convince the world of righteousness     
because ,i go to ,my ,father1 and ye see
 ,me no more4' ,the contradiction seems 
to strike them4  ,these disciples in    
their bewilderment seem to me to        
represent some very common faults which 
we all commit in our dealing with the   
,lord's words1 and to one or two of     
these ,i turn for a moment4  ,note this 
to begin with1 how they pass by the     
greater truths in order to fasten upon a
 smaller outstanding difficulty4 ,they  
have no questions to ask about the gifts
 of the ,spirit1 nor about the unity of 
,christ and ,his disciples as           
represented in the vine and the         
branches1 nor about what ,he tells them 
of the love that 'lays down its life for
 its friends4' ,but when ,he comes into 
the region of chronology1 they are all  
agog to know the 'when' about which ,he 
is so enigmatically speaking4  ,now is  
not that exactly like us1 and does not  

the ,christianity of this day very much 
want the hint to pay most attention to  
the greatest truths1 and let the little 
difficulties fall into their subordinate
 place8 ,the central truths of          
,christianity are the incarnation and   
atonement of ,jesus ,christ4 ,and yet   
outside questions1 altogether           
subordinate and1 in comparison with     
this1 unimportant1 are filling the      
attention and the thoughts of people at 
present to such an extent that there is 
great danger of the central truth of all
 being either passed by1 or the         
reception of it being suspended on the  
clearing up of smaller questions4  ,the 
truth that ,christ is the ,son of ,god1 
who has died for our salvation1 is the  
heart of the ,gospel4 ,and why should we
 make our faith in that1 and our living 
by it1 contingent on the clearing up of 
certain external and secondary          
questions2 chronological1 historical1   
critical1 philological1 scientific1 and 
the like8 ,and why should men be so     

occupied in jangling about the latter as
 that the towering supremacy1 the       
absolute independence1 of the former    
should be lost sight of8 ,what would you
 think of a man in a fire who1 when they
 brought the fire-escape to him1 said1  
',i decline to trust myself to it1 until
 you first of all explain to me the     
principles of its construction2 and1    
secondly1 tell me all about who made it2
 and1 thirdly1 inform me where all the  
materials of which it is made came      
from8' ,but that is very much what a    
number of people are doing to-day in    
reference to 'the ,gospel of our        
salvation1' when they demand that the   
small questions--on which the central   
verity does not at all depend--shall be 
answered and settled before they cast   
themselves upon that4  ,another of the  
blunders of these disciples1 in which   
they show themselves as our brethren1 is
 that they fling up the attempt to      
apprehend the obscurity in a very swift 
despair4 ',we cannot tell what ,he      

saith1 and we are not going to try any  
more4 ,it is all cloud-land and chaos   
together4'  ,intellectual indolence1    
spiritual carelessness1 deal thus with  
outstanding difficulties1 abandoning    
precipitately the attempt to grasp them 
or that which lies behind them4 ,and yet
 although there are no gratuitous       
obscurities in ,christ's teaching1 ,he  
said a great many things which could not
 possibly be understood at the time1 in 
order that the disciples might stretch  
up towards what was above them1 and1 by 
stretching up1 might grow4 ,i do not    
think that it is good to break down the 
children's bread too small4 ,a wise     
teacher will now and then blend with the
 utmost simplicity something that is    
just a little in advance of the capacity
 of the listener1 and so encourage a    
little hand to stretch itself out1 and  
the arm to grow because it is stretched4
 ,if there are no difficulties there is 
no effort1 and if there is no effort    
there is no growth4 ,difficulties are   

there in order that we may grapple with 
them1 and truth is sometimes hidden in a
 well in order that we may have the     
blessing of the search1 and that the    
truth found after the search may be more
 precious4 ,the tropics1 with their     
easy1 luxuriant growth1 where the       
footfall turns up the warm soil1 grow   
languid men1 and our less smiling       
latitude grows strenuous ones4 ,thank   
,god that everything is not easy1 even  
in that which is meant for the          
revelation of all truth to all men6     
,instead of turning tail at the first   
fence1 let us learn that it will do us  
good to climb1 and that the fence is    
there in order to draw forth our effort4
  ,there is another point in which these
 bewildered disciples are uncommonly    
like the rest of us2 and that is that   
they have no patience to wait for time  
and growth to solve the difficulty4     
,they want to know all about it now1 or 
not at all4 ,if they would wait for six 
weeks they would understand1 as they    

did4 ,pentecost explained it all4 ,we1  
too1 are often in a hurry4 ,there is    
nothing that the ordinary mind1 and     
often the educated mind1 detests so much
 as uncertainty1 and being consciously  
baffled by some outstanding difficulty4 
,and in order to escape that uneasiness1
 men are dogmatical when they should be 
doubtful1 and positively asserting when 
it would be a great deal more for the   
health of their souls and of their      
listeners to say1 ',well1 really ,i do  
not know1 and ,i am content to wait4'   
,so1 on both sides of great             
controversies1 you get men who will not 
be content to let things wait1 for all  
must be made clear and plain to-day4    
,ah1 brethren6 for ourselves1 for our   
own intellectual difficulties1 and for  
the difficulties of the world1 there is 
nothing like time and patience4 ,the    
mysteries that used to plague us when we
 were boys melted away when we grew up4 
,and many questions which trouble me    
to-day1 and through which ,i cannot find

 my way1 if ,i lay them aside1 and go   
about my ordinary duties1 and come back 
to them to-morrow with a fresh eye and  
an unwearied brain1 will have           
straightened themselves out and become  
clear4 ,we grow into our best and       
deepest convictions1 we are not dragged 
into them by any force of logic4 ,so for
 our own sorrows1 questions1 pains1     
griefs1 and for all the riddle of this  
painful world1    ',take it on trust a  
little while1   ,thou soon shalt read   
the mystery right1   ,in the full       
sunshine of ,his smile4'  ,,iii4        
,lastly1 and very briefly1 a word about 
the patient ,teacher4  ',jesus knew that
 they were desirous to ask ,him4' ,he   
knows all our difficulties and          
perplexities4 ,perhaps it is ,his       
supernatural knowledge that is indicated
 in the words before us1 or perhaps it  
is merely that ,he saw them whispering  
amongst themselves and so inferred their
 wish4 ,be that as it may1 we may take  
the comfort that we have to do with a   

,teacher who accurately understands how 
much we understand and where we grope1  
and will shape ,his teaching according  
to our necessities4  ,he had not a word 
of rebuke for the slowness of their     
apprehension4 ,he might well have said  
to them1 ',o fools and slow of heart to 
believe6' ,but that word was not        
addressed to them then1 though two of   
them deserved it and got it1 after      
events had thrown light on ,his         
teaching4 ,he never rebukes us for      
either our stupidity or for our         
carelessness1 but 'has long patience'   
with us4  ,he does give them a kind of  
rebuke4 ',do ye inquire among           
yourselves8' ,that is a hopeful source  
to go to for knowledge4 ,why did they   
not ask ,him1 instead of whispering and 
muttering there behind ,him1 as if two  
people equally ignorant could help each 
other to knowledge8 ,inquiry 'among     
yourselves' is folly2 to ask ,him is    
wisdom4 ,we can do much for one another1
 but the deepest riddles and mysteries  

can only be wisely dealt with in one    
way4 ,take them to ,him1 tell ,him about
 them4 ,told to ,him1 they often        
dwindle4 ,they become smaller when they 
are looked at beside ,him1 and ,he will 
help us to understand as much as may be 
understood1 and patiently to wait and   
leave the residue unsolved1 until the   
time shall come when 'we shall know even
 as we are known4'  ,in the context     
here1 ,jesus ,christ does not explain to
 the disciples the precise point that   
troubled them4 ,olivet and ,pentecost   
were to do that2 but ,he gives them what
 will tide them over the time until the 
explanation shall come1 in triumphant   
hopes of a joy and peace that are       
drawing near4  ,and so there is a great 
deal in all our lives1 in ,his dealings 
with us1 in ,his revelation of ,himself 
to us1 that must remain mysterious and  
unintelligible4 ,but if we will keep    
close to ,him1 and speak plainly to ,him
 in prayer and communion about our      
difficulties1 ,he will send us          

triumphant hope and large confidence of 
a coming joy1 that will float us over   
the bar and make us feel that the burden
 is no longer painful to carry4 ,much   
that must remain dark through life will 
be lightened when we get yonder2 for the
 vision here is not perfect1 and the    
knowledge here is as imperfect as the   
vision4  ,dear friends6 the one question
 for us all is1 ,do our eyes fix and    
fasten on that dear ,lord1 and is it the
 description of our own whole lives1    
that we see ,him and walk with ,him8    
,oh6 if so1 then life will be blessed1  
and death itself will be but as 'a      
little while' when we 'shall not see    
,him1' and then we shall open our eyes  
and behold ,him close at hand1 whom we  
saw from afar1 and with wandering eyes1 
amidst the mists and illusions of earth4
 ,to see ,him as ,he became for our     
sakes is heaven on earth4 ,to see ,him  
as ,he is will be the heaven of heaven1 
and before that ,face1 'as the sun      
shining in ,his strength1' all sorrows1 

difficulties1 and mysteries will melt as
 morning mists4    ,,sorrow ,,turned    
,,into ,,joy  ',verily1 verily1 ,i say  
unto you1 ,that ye shall weep and       
lament1 but the world shall rejoice3 and
 ye shall be sorrowful1 but your sorrow 
shall be turned into joy4 ,a woman when 
she is in travail hath sorrow1 because  
her hour is come3 but as soon as she is 
delivered of the child1 she remembereth 
no more the anguish1 for joy that a man 
is born into the world4 ,and ye now1    
therefore1 have sorrow2 but ,i will see 
you again1 and your heart shall rejoice1
 and your joy no man taketh from        
you4'-,,john xvi4 #bj-bb4  ,these words1
 to which we have come in the ordinary  
course of our exposition1 make an       
appropriate text for ,easter ,sunday4   
,for their one theme is the joy which   
began upon that day1 and was continued  
in increasing measure as the possession 
of ,christ's servants after ,pentecost4 
,our ,lord promises that the momentary  
sadness and pain shall be turned into a 

swift and continual joy4 ,he pledges    
,his word for that1 and bids us believe 
it on ,his bare word4 ,he illustrates it
 by that tender and beautiful image     
which1 in the pains and bliss of        
motherhood1 finds an analogy for the    
pains and bliss of the disciples1       
inasmuch as1 in both cases1 pain leads  
directly to blessedness in which it is  
forgotten4 ,and ,he crowns ,his great   
promises by explaining to us what is the
 deepest foundation of our truest       
gladness1 ',i will see you again1' and  
by declaring that such a joy is         
independent of all foes and all         
externals1 'and your joy no man taketh  
from you4'  ,there are1 then1 two or    
three aspects of the ,christian life as 
a glad life which are set before us in  
these words1 and to which ,i ask your   
attention4  ,i4 ,there is1 first1 the   
promise of a joy which is a transformed 
sorrow4  ',your sorrow shall be turned  
into joy1' not merely that the one      
emotion is substituted for the other1   

but that the one emotion1 as it were1   
becomes the other4 ,this can only mean  
that that1 which was the cause of the   
one1 reverses its action and becomes the
 cause of the opposite4 ,of course the  
historical and immediate fulfilment of  
these words lies in the double result of
 ,christ's ,cross upon ,his servants4   
,for part of three dreary days it was   
the occasion of their sorrow1 their     
panic1 their despair2 and then1 all at  
once1 when with a bound the mighty fact 
of the resurrection dawned upon them1   
that which had been the occasion for    
their deep grief1 for their apparently  
hopeless despair1 suddenly became the   
occasion for a rapture beyond their     
dreams1 and a joy which would never     
pass4 ,the ,cross of ,christ1 which for 
some few hours was pain1 and all but    
ruin1 has ever since been the centre of 
the deepest gladness and confidence of a
 thousand generations4  ,i do not need  
to remind you1 ,i suppose1 of the value1
 as a piece of evidence of the          

historical veracity of the ,gospel      
story1 of this sudden change and        
complete revolution in the sentiments   
and emotions of that handful of         
disciples4 ,what was it that lifted them
 out of the pit8 ,what was it that      
revolutionised in a moment their notions
 of the ,cross and of its bearing upon  
them8 ,what was it that changed         
downhearted1 despondent1 and all but    
apostate1 disciples into heroes and     
martyrs8 ,it was the one fact which     
,christendom commemorates to-day3 the   
resurrection of ,jesus ,christ4 ,that   
was the element1 added to the dark      
potion1 which changed it all in a moment
 into golden flashing light4 ,the       
resurrection was what made the death of 
,christ no longer the occasion for the  
dispersion of ,his disciples1 but bound 
them to ,him with a closer bond4 ,and ,i
 venture to say that1 unless the first  
disciples were lunatics1 there is no    
explanation of the changes through which
 they passed in some eight-and-forty    

hours1 except the supernatural and      
miraculous fact of the resurrection of  
,jesus ,christ from the dead4 ,that set 
a light to the thick column of smoke1   
and made it blaze up a 'pillar of fire4'
 ,that changed sorrow into joy4 ,the    
same death which1 before the            
resurrection1 drew a pall of darkness   
over the heavens1 and draped the earth  
in mourning1 by reason of that          
resurrection which swept away the cloud 
and brought out the sunshine1 became the
 source of joy4 ,a dead ,christ was the 
,church's despair2 a dead and risen     
,christ is the ,church's triumph1       
because ,he is 'the ,christ that died444
 and is alive for evermore4'  ,but1 more
 generally1 let me remind you how this  
very same principle1 which applies      
directly and historically to the        
resurrection of our ,lord1 may be       
legitimately expanded so as to cover the
 whole ground of devout men's sorrows   
and calamities4 ,sorrow is the first    
stage1 of which the second and completed

 stage is transformation into joy4      
,every thundercloud has a rainbow lying 
in its depths when the sun smites upon  
it4 ,our purest and noblest joys are    
transformed sorrows4 ,the sorrow of     
contrite hearts becomes the gladness of 
pardoned children2 the sorrow of        
bereaved1 empty hearts may become the   
gladness of hearts filled with ,god2 and
 every grief that stoops upon our path  
may be1 and will be1 if we keep near    
that dear ,lord1 changed into its own   
opposite1 and become the source of      
blessedness else unattainable4 ,every   
stroke of the bright1 sharp ploughshare 
that goes through the fallow ground1 and
 every dark winter's day of pulverising 
frost and lashing tempest and howling   
wind1 are represented in the broad      
acres1 waving with the golden grain4    
,all your griefs and mine1 brother1 if  
we carry them to the ,master1 will flash
 up into gladness and be turned into    
joy4  ,,ii4 ,still further1 another     
aspect here of the glad life of the true

 ,christian is1 that it is a joy founded
 upon the consciousness that ,christ's  
eye is upon us4  ',i will see you again 
and your heart shall rejoice4' ,in other
 parts of these closing discourses the  
form of the promise is the converse of  
this1 as for instance--',yet a little   
while1 and ye shall see ,me4' ,here     
,christ lays hold of the thought by the 
other handle1 and says1 ',i will see you
 again1 and your heart shall rejoice4'  
,now these two forms of putting the same
 mutual relationship1 of course1 agree1 
in that they both of them suggest1 as   
the true foundation of the blessedness  
which they promise1 the fact of         
communion with a present ,lord4 ,but    
they differ from one another in         
colouring1 and in the emphasis which    
they place upon the two parts of that   
communion4 ',ye shall see ,me' fixes    
attention upon us and our perception of 
,him4 ',i will see you' fixes attention 
rather upon ,him and ,his beholding of  
us4 ',ye shall see ,me' speaks of our   

going out after ,him and being satisfied
 in ,him4 ',i will see you' speaks of   
,his perfect knowledge1 of ,his loving  
care1 of ,his tender1 compassionate1    
complacent1 ever-watchful eye resting   
upon us1 in order that ,he may          
communicate to us all needful good4     
,and so it requires a loving heart on   
our part1 in order to find joy in such a
 promise4 ',his eyes are as a flame of  
fire1' and ,he sees all men2 but unless 
our hearts cleave to ,him and we know   
ourselves to be knit to ,him by the     
tender bond of love from ,him1 accepted 
and treasured in our souls1 then ',i    
will see you again' is a threat and not 
a promise4 ,it depends upon the relation
 which we bear to ,him1 whether it is   
blessedness or misery to think that ,he 
whose flaming eye reads all men's sins  
and pierces through all hypocrisies and 
veils has it fixed upon us4 ,the        
sevenfold utterance of ,his words to the
 ,asiatic churches-the last recorded    
words of ,jesus ,christ-begins with ',i 

know thy works4' ,it was no joy to the  
lukewarm professors at ,laodicea1 nor to
 the church at ,ephesus which had lost  
the freshness of its early love1 that   
the ,master knew them2 but to the       
faithful souls in ,philadelphia1 and to 
the few in ,sardis1 who 'had not defiled
 their garments1' it was blessedness and
 life to feel that they walked in the   
sunshine of ,his face4  ,is there any   
joy to us in the thought that the ,lord 
,christ sees us8 ,oh6 if our hearts are 
really ,his1 if our lives are as truly  
built on ,him as our profession of being
 ,christians alleges that they are1 then
 all that we need for the satisfaction  
of our nature1 for the supply of our    
various necessities1 or as an armour    
against temptation1 and an amulet       
against sorrow1 will be given to us1 in 
the belief that ,his eye is fixed upon  
us4 ,there is the foundation of the     
truest joy for men4 ',there be many that
 say1 ,who will show us any good8 ,lord1
 lift ,thou up the light of ,thy        

countenance upon us4 ,thou hast put     
gladness in my heart more than in the   
time when their corn and their wine     
abound4' ,one look towards ,christ will 
more than repay and abolish earth's     
sorrow4 ,one look from ,christ will fill
 our hearts with sunshine4 ,all tears   
are dried on eyes that meet ,his4       
,loving hearts find their heaven in     
looking into one another's faces1 and if
 ,christ be our love1 our deepest and   
purest joys will be found in ,his glance
 and our answering gaze4  ,if one could 
anyhow take a bit of the ,arctic world  
and float it down into the tropics1 the 
ice would all melt1 and the white       
dreariness would disappear1 and a new   
splendour of colour and of light would  
clothe the ground1 and an unwonted      
vegetation would spring up where        
barrenness had been4 ,and if you and ,i 
will only float our lives southward     
beneath the direct vertical rays of that
 great ',sun of ,righteousness1' then   
all the dreary winter and ice of our    

sorrows will melt1 and joy will spring4 
,brother6 the ,christian life is a glad 
life1 because ,christ1 the infinite and 
incarnate ,lover of our souls1 looks    
upon the heart that loves and trusts    
,him4  ,,iii4 ,still further1 note how  
our ,lord here sets forth ,his          
disciples' joy as beyond the reach of   
violence and independent of externals4  
',no man taketh it from you4' ,of       
course1 that refers primarily to the    
opposition and actual hostility of the  
persecuting world1 which that handful of
 frightened men were very soon to face2 
and our ,lord assures them here that1   
whatsoever the power of the devil       
working through the world may be able to
 filch away from them1 it cannot filch  
away the joy that ,he gives4 ,but we may
 extend the meaning beyond that         
reference4  ,much of our joy1 of course1
 depends upon our fellows1 and          
disappears when they fade away from our 
sight and we struggle along in a        
solitude1 made the more dreary because  

of remembered companionship4 ,and much  
of our joy depends upon the goodwill and
 help of our fellows1 and they can      
snatch away all that so depends4 ,they  
can hedge up our road and make it       
uncomfortable and sad for us in many    
ways1 but no man but myself can put a   
roof over my head to shut me out from   
,god and ,christ2 and as long as ,i have
 a clear sky overhead1 it matters very  
little how high may be the walls that   
foes or hostile circumstances pile      
around me1 and how close they may press 
upon me4 ,and much of our joy           
necessarily depends upon and fluctuates 
with external circumstances of a hundred
 different kinds1 as we all only too    
well know4 ,but we do not need to have  
all our joy fed from these surface      
springs4 ,we may dig deeper down if we  
like4 ,if we are ,christians1 we have1  
like some beleaguered garrison in a     
fortress1 a well in the courtyard that  
nobody can get at1 and which never can  
run dry4 ',your joy no man taketh from  

you4'  ,as long as we have ,christ1 we  
cannot be desolate4 ,if ,he and ,i were 
alone in the universe1 or1 paradoxical  
as it may sound1 if ,he and ,i were     
alone1 and the universe were not1 ,i    
should have all that ,i needed and my   
joy would be full1 if ,i loved ,him as  
,i ought to do4  ,so1 my brother6 let us
 see to it that we dig deep enough for  
the foundation of our blessedness1 and  
that it is on ,christ and nothing less  
infinite1 less eternal1 less            
unchangeable1 that we repose for the    
inward blessedness which nothing outside
 of us can touch4 ,that is the          
blessedness which we may all possess1   
',for ,i am persuaded that neither death
 nor life1 nor angels1 nor              
principalities1 nor powers1 nor things  
present1 nor things to come1 nor height1
 nor depth1 nor any other creature1     
shall be able to separate us' from the  
eye and the heart of the risen ,christ  
who lives for us4 ,but remember1 though 
externals have no power to rob us of our

 joy1 they have a very formidable power 
to interfere with the cultivation of    
that faith1 which is the essential      
condition of our joy4 ,they cannot force
 us away from ,christ1 but they may     
tempt us away4 ,the sunshine did for the
 traveller in the old fable what the    
storm could not do2 and the world may   
cause you to think so much about it that
 you forget your ,master4 ,its joys may 
compel ,him to hide ,his face1 and may  
so fill your eyes that you do not care  
to look at ,his face2 and so the sweet  
bond may be broken1 and the             
consciousness of a living1 loving ,jesus
 may fade1 and become filmy and         
unsubstantial1 and occasional and       
interrupted4 ,do you see to it that what
 the world cannot do by violence and    
directly1 it does not do by its harlot  
kisses and its false promises1 tempting 
you away from the paths where alone you 
can meet your ,master4  ,,iv4 ,lastly1  
note that this life of joy1 which our   
,lord here speaks of1 is made certain by

 the promise of a faithful ,christ4     
',verily1 verily1 ,i say unto you1'--,he
 was accustomed to use that impressive  
and solemn formula1 when ,he was about  
to speak words beyond the reach of human
 wisdom to discover1 or of prime        
importance for men to accept and        
believe4 ,he tells these men1 who had   
nothing but ,his bare word to rely upon1
 that the astonishing thing which ,he is
 going to promise them will certainly   
come to pass4 ,he would encourage them  
to rest an unfaltering confidence1 for  
the brief parenthesis of sorrow1 upon   
,his faithful promise of joy4 ,he puts  
,his own character1 so to speak1 in     
pawn4 ,his words are precisely          
equivalent in meaning to the solemn ,old
 ,testament words which are represented 
as being the oath of ,god1 ',as ,i live 
saith the ,lord1' ',you may be as sure  
of this thing as you are of ,my divine  
existence1 for all ,my divine ,being is 
pledged to you to bring it about4'      
',verily1 verily1 ,i say unto you1'     

',you may be as sure of this thing as   
you are of ,me1 for all that ,i am is   
pledged to fulfil the words of ,my      
lips4'  ,so ,christ puts ,his whole     
truthfulness at stake1 as it were2 and  
if any man who has ever loved ,jesus    
,christ and trusted ,him aright has not 
found this 'joy unspeakable and full of 
glory1' then ,jesus ,christ has said the
 thing that is not4  ,then why is it    
that so many professing ,christians have
 such joyless lives as they have8       
,simply because they do not keep the    
conditions4 ,if we will love ,him so as 
to set our hearts upon ,him1 if we will 
desire ,him as our chief good1 if we    
will keep our eyes fixed upon ,him1     
then1 as sure as ,he is living and is   
the ,truth1 ,he will flood our hearts   
with blessedness1 and ,his joy will pour
 into our souls as the flashing tide    
rushes into some muddy and melancholy   
harbour1 and sets everything dancing    
that was lying stranded on the slime4   
,if1 my brother1 you1 a professing      

,christian1 know but little of this joy1
 why1 then1 it is your fault1 and not   
,his4 ,the joyless lives of so many who 
say that they are ,his disciples cast no
 shadow of suspicion upon ,his veracity1
 but they do cast a very deep shadow of 
doubt upon their profession of faith in 
,him4  ,is your religion joyful8 ,is    
your joy religious8 ,the two questions  
go together4 ,and if we cannot answer   
these questions in the light of ,god's  
eye as we ought to do1 let these great  
promises and my text prick us into      
holier living1 into more consistent     
,christian character1 and a closer walk 
with our ,master and ,lord4  ,the       
out-and-out ,christian is a joyful      
,christian4 ,the half-and-half          
,christian is the kind of ,christian    
that a great many of you are--little    
acquainted with 'the joy of the ,lord4' 
,why should we live half way up the hill
 and swathed in mists1 when we might    
have an unclouded sky and a visible sun 
over our heads1 if we would only climb  

higher and walk in the light of ,his    
face8    ',,in ,,that ,,day'  ',and in  
that day ye shall ask ,me nothing4      
,verily1 verily1 ,i say unto you1       
,whatsoever ye shall ask the ,father in 
,my name1 ,he will give it you4         
,hitherto have ye asked nothing in ,my  
name3 ask1 and ye shall receive1 that   
your joy may be full4'--,,john xvi4 #bc1
 #bd4  ,our ,lord here sums up the      
prerogatives and privileges of ,his     
servants in the day that was about to   
dawn and to last till ,he came again4   
,there is nothing absolutely new in the 
words2 substantially the promises       
contained in them have appeared in      
former parts of these discourses under  
somewhat different aspects and          
connections4 ,but our ,lord brings them 
together here1 in this condensed        
repetition1 in order that the scattered 
rays1 being thus focussed1 may have more
 power to illuminate with certitude1 and
 to warm into hope4 ',ye shall ask ,me  
nothing4444 ,ask and ye shall           

receive4444 ,your joy shall be full4'   
,these are the jewels which ,he sets in 
a cluster1 the juxtaposition making each
 brighter1 and gives to us for a parting
 keepsake4  ,now it is to be noticed    
that the two askings which are spoken of
 here are expressed by different words  
in the ,greek4 ,our ,english word 'ask' 
means two things1 either to question or 
to request2 to ask in the sense of      
interrogating1 in order to get          
information and teaching1 or in the     
sense of beseeching1 in order to get    
gifts4 ,in the former sense the word is 
employed in the first clause of my text1
 with distinct reference to the         
disciples' desire1 a moment or two      
before1 to ask ,him a very foolish      
question2 and in the second sense it is 
employed in the central portion of my   
text4  ,so1 then1 there are three things
 here as the marks of the ,christian    
life all through the ages3 the cessation
 of the ignorant questions addressed to 
a present ,christ2 the satisfaction of  

desires2 and the perfecting of joy4     
,these are the characteristics of a true
 ,christian life4 ,my brother1 are they 
in any degree the characteristics of    
yours8  ,i4 ,note then1 first1 the end  
of questionings4  ',in that day ye shall
 ask ,me nothing1' and do not you think 
that when the disciples heard that1 they
 would be tempted to say1 ',then what in
 all the world are we to do8' ,to them  
the thought that ,he was not to be at   
their sides any longer1 for them to go  
to with their difficulties1 must have   
seemed despair rather than advance2 but 
in ,christ's eyes it was progress4 ,he  
tells them and us that we gain by losing
 ,him1 and are better off than they     
were1 precisely because ,he does not any
 longer stand at our sides for us to    
question4 ,it is better for a boy to    
puzzle out the meaning of a ,latin book 
by his own brains and the help of a     
dictionary than it is lazily to use an  
interlinear translation4 ,and1 though we
 do not always feel it1 and are often   

tempted to think how blessed it would be
 if we had an infallible ,teacher       
visible here at our sides1 it is a great
 deal better for us that we have not1   
and it is a step in advance that ,he has
 gone away4 ,many eager and honest      
,christian souls1 hungering after       
certainty and rest1 have cast themselves
 in these latter days into the arms of  
an infallible ,church4 ,i doubt whether 
any such questioning mind has found what
 it sought2 and ,i am sure that it has  
taken a step downwards1 in passing from 
the spiritual guidance realised by our  
own honest industry and earnest use of  
the materials supplied to us in         
,christ's word1 to any external         
authority which comes to us to save us  
the trouble of thinking1 and to confirm 
to us truth which we have not made our  
own by search and effort4 ,we gain by   
losing the visible ,christ2 and ,he was 
proclaiming progress and not            
retrogression1 when ,he said3 ',in that 
day ye shall ask ,me no more questions4'

  ,for what have we instead8 ,we have   
two things3 a completed revelation1 and 
an inward ,teacher4  ,we have a         
completed revelation4 ,great and        
wonderful and unspeakably precious as   
were and are the words of ,jesus        
,christ1 ,his deeds are far more4 ,the  
death of ,christ has told us things that
 ,christ before ,his death could not    
tell4 ,the resurrection of ,christ has  
cast light upon all the darkest places  
of man's destiny which ,christ1 before  
,his resurrection1 could not by any     
words so illuminate4 ,the ascension of  
,christ has opened doors for thought1   
for faith1 for hope1 which were fast    
closed1 notwithstanding all ,his        
teachings1 until ,he had burst them     
asunder and passed to ,his throne4 ,and 
the facts which are substituted for the 
bodily presence of ,jesus with ,his     
disciples tell us a great deal more than
 they could ever have drawn from ,him by
 questionings1 however persistent and   
however wisely directed4 ,we have a     

completed revelation1 and therefore we  
need 'ask ,him nothing4'  ,and we have a
 divine ,spirit that will come to us if 
we will1 and teach us by means of       
blessing the exercise of our own        
faculties1 and guiding us1 not1 indeed1 
into the uniform perception of the      
intellectual aspects of ,christian      
truth1 but into the apprehension and the
 loving possession1 as a power in our   
lives1 of all the truth that we need to 
mould our characters and to raise us to 
the likeness of ,himself4  ,only1       
brother6 let us remember what such a    
method of teaching demands from us4 ,it 
needs that we honestly use the          
revelation that is given us2 it needs   
that we loyally1 lovingly1 trustfully1  
submit ourselves to the teaching of that
 ,spirit who will dwell in us2 it needs 
that we bring our lives up to the height
 of our present knowledge1 and make     
everything that we know a factor in     
shaping what we do and what we are4 ,if 
thus we will to do ,his will1 'we shall 

know of the doctrine'2 if thus we yield 
ourselves to the divine ,spirit1 we     
shall be taught the practical bearings  
of all essential truth2 and if thus we  
ponder the facts and principles that are
 enshrined in ,christ's life1 and the   
,apostolic commentary on them1 as       
preserved for us in the ,scripture1 we  
shall not need to envy those that could 
go to ,him with their questions1 for ,he
 will come to us with ,his              
all-satisfying answers4  ,ah6 but you   
say experience does not verify these    
promises4 ,look at a divided            
,christendom2 look at my own            
difficulties of knowing what ,i am to   
believe and to think4 ,well1 as for a   
divided ,christendom1 saintly souls are 
all of one ,church1 and however they may
 formulate the intellectual aspects of  
their creed1 when they come to pray1    
they say the same things4 ,roman        
,catholic and ,protestant1 and ,quaker  
and ,churchman1 and ,calvinist and      
,arminian1 and ,greek and ,latin        

,christians--all contribute to the      
hymn-book of every sect2 and we all sing
 their songs4 ,so the divisions are like
 the surface cracks on a dry field1 and 
a few inches down there is continuity4  
,as for the difficulty of knowing what  
,i am to believe and think about        
controverted questions1 no doubt there  
will remain many gaps in the circle of  
our knowledge2 no doubt there will be   
much left obscure and unanswered2 but if
 we will keep ourselves near the        
,master1 and use honestly and diligently
 the helps that ,he gives us--the       
outward help in the ,word1 and the      
inward help in ,his teaching ,spirit--we
 shall not 'walk in darkness1' but shall
 have light enough given to be to us    
'the ,light of ,life4'  ,brother1 keep  
close to ,christ1 and ,christ--present  
though absent--will teach you4  ,,ii4   
,secondly1 satisfied desires4  ,this    
second great promise of my text1        
introduced again by the solemn          
affirmation1 ',verily1 verily1 ,i say   

unto you1' substantially appeared in a  
former part of these discourses with a  
very significant difference4            
',whatsoever ye shall ask in ,my name   
that will ,i do4' ',if ye shall ask     
anything in ,my name ,i will do it4'    
,there ,christ presented ,himself as the
 ,answerer of the petitions1 because    
,his more immediate purpose was to set  
forth ,his going to the ,father as ,his 
elevation to a yet loftier position4    
,here1 on the other hand1 ,he sets forth
 the ,father as the ,answerer of the    
petitions1 because ,his purpose is to   
point away from undue dependence on ,his
 own corporeal presence4 ,but the fact  
that ,he thus1 as occasion requires1    
substitutes the one form of speech for  
the other1 and indifferently represents 
the same actions as being done by       
,himself and by the ,father in heaven1  
carries with it large teachings which ,i
 do not dwell upon now4 ,only ,i would  
ask you to consider how much is involved
 in that fact1 that1 as a matter of     

course1 and without explanation of the  
difference1 our ,lord alternates the two
 forms1 and sometimes says1 ',i will do 
it1' and sometimes says1 ',the ,father  
will do it4' ,does it not point to that 
great and blessed truth1 ',whatsoever   
thing the ,father doeth1 that also doeth
 the ,son likewise8'  ,but passing from 
that1 let me ask you to note very       
carefully the limitation1 which is here 
given to the broad universality of the  
declaration that desires shall be       
satisfied4 ',if ye shall ask anything in
 ,my name'2 there is the definition of  
,christian prayer4 ,and what does it    
mean8 ,is a prayer1 which from the      
beginning to the end is reeking with    
self-will1 hallowed because we say1 as a
 kind of charm at the end of it1 ',for  
,christ's sake4 ,amen'8 ,is that praying
 in ,christ's name8 ,surely not6 ,what  
is the 'name' of ,christ8 ,his whole    
revealed character4 ,so these disciples 
could not pray in ,his name 'hitherto1' 
because ,his character was not all      

revealed4 ,therefore1 to pray in ,his   
name is to pray1 recognising what ,he   
is1 as revealed in ,his life and death  
and resurrection and ascension1 and to  
base all our dependence of acceptance of
 our prayers upon that revealed         
character4 ,is that all8 ,are any kind  
of wishes1 which are presented in       
dependence upon ,christ as our only     
,hope and ,channel of divine blessing1  
certain to be fulfilled8 ,certainly not4
 ,to pray 'in ,my name' means yet more  
than that4 ,it means not only to pray in
 dependence upon ,christ as our only    
,ground of hope and ,source of          
acceptance and ,god's only ,channel of  
blessing1 but it means exactly what the 
same phrase means when it is applied to 
us4 ,if ,i say that ,i am doing         
something in your name1 that means on   
your behalf1 as your representative1 as 
your organ1 and to express your mind and
 will4 ,and if we pray in ,christ's     
name1 that implies1 not only our        
dependence upon ,his merit and work1 but

 also the harmony of our wills with ,his
 will1 and that our requests are not    
merely the hot products of our own      
selfishness1 but are the calm issues of 
communion with ,him4 ,thus to pray      
requires the suppression of self4       
,heathen prayer1 if there be such a     
thing1 is the violent effort to make    
,god will what ,i wish4 ,christian      
prayer is the submissive effort to make 
my wish what ,god wills1 and that is to 
pray in ,christ's name4  ,my brother6 do
 we construct our prayers thus8 ,do we  
try to bring our desires into harmony   
with ,him1 before we venture to express 
them8 ,do we go to ,his footstool to    
pour out petulant1 blind1 passionate1   
un-sanctified wishes after questionable 
and contingent good1 or do we wait until
 ,he fills our spirits with longings    
after what it must be ,his desire to    
give1 and then breathe out those desires
 caught from ,his own heart1 and echoing
 ,his own will8 ,ah6 ,the discipline    
that is wanted to make men pray in      

,christ's name is little understood by  
multitudes amongst us4  ,notice how     
certain such prayer is of being         
answered4 ,of course1 if it is in       
harmony with the will of ,god1 it is    
sure not to be offered in vain4 ,our    
,revised ,version makes a slight        
alteration in the order of the words in 
the first clause of this promise by     
reading1 ',if ye ask anything of the    
,father ,he will give it you in ,my     
name4' ,god's gifts come down through   
the same channel through which our      
prayer goes up4 ,we ask in the name of  
,christ1 and get our answers in the name
 of ,christ4  ,but1 whether that be the 
true collocation of ideas or not1 mark  
the plain principle here1 that only     
desires which are in harmony with the   
divine will are sure of being satisfied4
 ,what is a bad thing for a child cannot
 be a good thing for a man4 ,what is a  
foolish and wicked thing for a father   
down here to do cannot be a kind and a  
wise thing for the ,father in the       

heavens to do4 ,if you wish to spoil    
your child you say1 ',what do you want1 
my dear8 tell me and you shall have it4'
 ,and if ,god were saying anything like 
that to us1 through the lips of ,jesus  
,christ ,his ,son1 in the text1 it would
 be no blessing1 but a curse4 ,he knows 
a great deal better what is good for us2
 and so ,he says3 ',bring your wishes   
into line with ,my purpose1 and then you
 will get them'2 ',delight thyself in   
the ,lord1 and ,he will give thee the   
desires of thine heart4' ,if you want   
,god most you will be sure to get ,him2 
if your heart's desires are after ,him1 
your heart's desires will be satisfied4 
',the young lions do roar and suffer    
hunger4' ,that is the world's way of    
getting good2 fighting and striving and 
snarling1 and forcibly seeking to grasp1
 and there is hunger after all4 ,there  
is a better way than that4 ,instead of  
striving and struggling to snatch and to
 keep a perishable and questionable     
portion1 let us wait upon ,god and quiet

 our hearts1 stilling them into the     
temper of communion and conformity with 
,him1 and we shall not ask in vain4  ,he
 who prays in ,christ's name must pray  
,christ's prayer1 ',not ,my will1 but   
,thine be done4' ,and then1 though many 
wishes may be unanswered1 and many weak 
petitions unfulfilled1 and many desires 
unsatisfied1 the essential spirit of the
 prayer will be answered1 and1 ,his will
 being done in us and on us1 our wishes 
will acquiesce in it and desire nothing 
besides4 ,to him who can thus pray in   
,christ's name in the deepest sense1 and
 after ,christ's pattern1 every door in 
,god's treasure-house flies open1 and he
 may take as much of the treasure as he 
desires4 ,the ,master bends lovingly    
over such a soul1 and looks him in the  
eyes1 and with outstretched hand says1  
',what wilt thou that ,i should do unto 
thee8 ,be it unto thee even as thou     
wilt4'  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 the perfect joy 
which follows upon these two4  ',that   
your joy may be fulfilled4' ,again we   

have a recurrence of a promise that has 
appeared in another connection in an    
earlier part of this discourse2 but the 
connection here is worthy of notice4    
,the promise is of joy that comes from  
the satisfaction of meek desires in     
unison with ,christ's will4 ,is it      
possible then1 that1 amidst all the ups 
and downs1 the changes and the sorrows  
of this fluctuating1 tempest-tossed life
 of ours we may have a deep and stable  
joy8 ',that your joy may be full1' says 
my text1 or 'fulfilled1' like some      
jewelled1 golden cup charged to the very
 brim with rich and quickening wine1 so 
that there is no room for a drop more4  
,can it be that ever1 in this world1 men
 shall be happy up to the very limits of
 their capacity8 ,was anybody ever so   
blessed that he could not be more so8   
,was your cup ever so full that there   
was no room for another drop in it8     
,jesus ,christ says that it may be so1  
and ,he tells us how it may be so4      
,bring your desires into harmony with   

,god's1 and you will have none          
unsatisfied amongst them2 and so you    
will be blessed to the full2 and though 
sorrow comes1 as of course it will come1
 still you may be blessed4 ,there is no 
contradiction between the presence of   
this deep1 central joy and a surface and
 circumference of sorrow4 ,rather we    
need the surrounding sorrow1 to         
concentrate1 and so to intensify1 the   
central joy in ,god4 ,there are some    
flowers which only blow in the night2   
and white blossoms are visible with     
startling plainness in the twilight1    
when all the flaunting purples and reds 
are hid4 ,we do not know the depth1 the 
preciousness1 the power of the 'joy of  
the ,lord1' until we have felt it       
shining in our hearts in the midst of   
the thick darkness of earthly sorrow1   
and bringing life into the very death of
 our human delights4 ,it may be ours on 
the conditions that my text describes4  
,my dear friends6 there are only two    
courses before us4 ,either we must have 

a life with superficial1 transitory1    
incomplete gladness1 and an aching      
centre of vacuity and pain1 or we may   
have a life which1 in its outward       
aspects and superficial appearance1 has 
much about it that is sad and trying1   
but down in the heart of it is calm and 
joyful4 ,which of the two do you deem   
best1 a superficial gladness and a      
rooted sorrow1 or a superficial sorrow  
and a central joy8 ',even in laughter   
the heart is sorrowful1 and the end of  
that mirth is heaviness4' ,but1 on the  
other hand1 the 'ransomed of the ,lord  
shall return1 and come to ,zion with    
songs and everlasting joy upon their    
heads4 ,they shall obtain joy and       
gladness2 and sorrow and sighing shall  
flee away4'    ,,the ,,joys ,,of ',,that
 ,,day'  ',these things have ,i spoken  
unto you in proverbs3 but the time      
cometh1 when ,i shall no more speak unto
 you in proverbs1 but ,i shall show you 
plainly of the ,father4 ,at that day ye 
shall ask in ,my ,name3 and ,i say not  

unto you1 that ,i will pray the ,father 
for you3 ,for the ,father ,himself      
loveth you1 because ye have loved ,me1  
and have believed that ,i came out from 
,god4'--,,john xvi4 #be-bg4  ,the stream
 which we have been tracking for so long
 in these discourses has now nearly     
reached its close4 ,our ,lord1 in these 
all but final words1 sums up the great  
salient features which ,he has already  
more than once specified1 of the time   
when ,his followers shall live with an  
absent and yet present ,christ4 ,he     
reiterates here substantially just what 
,he has been saying before1 but in      
somewhat different connection1 and with 
some slight expansion4 ,and this        
reiteration of the glad features of the 
day which was about to dawn suggests how
 much the disciples needed1 and how much
 we need1 to have repeated over and over
 again the blessed and profound lessons 
of these words4  ,what a sublime        
self-repression there was in the        
,master6 ,not one word escapes from ,his

 lips of the personal pain and agony    
into which ,he had to plunge and be     
baptized1 before that day could dawn4   
,all that was crushed down and kept     
back1 and ,he only speaks to the        
disciples and to us of the joy that     
comes to them1 and not at all of the    
bitter sorrow by which it is bought4    
,there are set forth in these words1 as 
it seems to me1 especially three        
characteristics which belong to the     
whole period between the ascension of   
,jesus ,christ and ,his coming again for
 judgment4 ,it is a day of continual and
 clearer teaching by ,him4 ,it is a day 
of desires in ,his name4 ,it is a day of
 filial experience of a ,father's love4 
,these are the characteristics of the   
,christian period1 and they ought to be 
the characteristics of our individual   
,christian life4 ,my brother6 are they  
the characteristics of yours8  ,let us  
note them in order4  ,i4 ,first1 our    
,lord tells us that the whole period of 
the ,christian life upon earth is to be 

a period of continuous and clearer      
teaching by ,himself4  ',hitherto ,i    
have spoken to you in proverbs1' or     
parables4 ,the word means1 not only a   
comparison or parable1 but also1 and    
perhaps primarily1 a mysterious and     
enigmatical saying4 ,the reference is1  
of course1 directly to the immediately  
preceding thoughts1 in which ,his       
departure and the sorrow that           
accompanied it and was to merge into    
joy1 were described under that touching 
figure of the woman in travail4 ,but the
 reference must be extended very much   
farther than that4 ,it includes not only
 this discourse1 but the whole of ,his  
teaching by word whilst ,he was here    
upon earth4  ,now the first thing that  
strikes me here is this strange fact4   
,here is a man who knew ,himself to be  
within four-and-twenty hours of ,his    
death1 and knew that scarcely another   
word of instruction was to come from    
,his lips upon earth1 calmly asserting  
that1 for all the subsequent ages of the

 world's history1 ,he is to continue its
 ,teacher4 ,we know how the wisest and  
profoundest of earthly teachers have    
their lips sealed by death1 so as that  
no counsel can come from them any more1 
and their disciples long in vain for    
responses from the silenced oracle1     
which is dumb whatever new problems may 
arise4 ,but ,jesus ,christ calmly poses 
before the world as not having ,his     
teaching activity in the slightest      
degree suspended by that fact which puts
 a conclusive and complete close to all 
other teachers' words4 ,rather ,he says 
that after death ,he will1 more clearly 
than in life1 be the ,teacher of the    
world4  ,what does ,he mean by that8    
,well1 remember first of all the facts  
which followed this saying--the ,cross1 
the ,grave1 ,olivet1 the ,heavens1 the  
,throne4 ,these were still in the future
 when ,he spoke4 ,and have not          
these--the bitter passion1 the          
supernatural resurrection1 the          
triumphant ascension1 and the           

everlasting session of the ,son at the  
right hand of ,god--taught the whole    
world the meaning of the ,father's name1
 and the love of the ,father's heart1   
and the power of the ,father's ,son1 as 
nothing else1 not even the sweetest and 
tenderest of ,his utterances1 could have
 taught them8 ,when1 then1 ,he declares 
the continuance of ,his teaching        
functions unbroken through death and    
beyond it1 ,he refers partly to the     
future facts of ,his earthly            
manifestation1 and still more does ,he  
refer to that continuous teaching which1
 by that divine ,spirit whom ,he sends1 
is granted to every believing soul all  
through the ages4  ,this great truth1   
which recurs over and over again in     
these discourses of our ,lord1 is far   
too much dropped out of the             
consciousness and creeds of the modern  
,christian ,church4 ,we call ourselves  
,christ's disciples4 ,if there be       
disciples1 there must be a ,master4 ,his
 teaching is by no means merely the     

effect of the recorded facts and        
utterances of the ,lord1 preserved here 
in the ,book for us1 and to be pondered 
upon by ourselves1 but it is also the   
hourly communication1 to waiting hearts 
and souls that keep themselves near the 
,lord1 of deeper insight into ,his will1
 of larger views of ,his purposes1 of a 
firmer grasp of the contents of         
,scripture1 and a more complete         
subjection of the whole nature to the   
truth as it is in ,jesus4 ,christian men
 and women6 do you know anything about  
what it is to learn of ,christ in the   
sense that ,he ,himself1 and no poor    
human voice like mine1 nor even merely  
the records of ,his past words and deeds
 as garnered in these ,gospels and      
expounded by ,his ,apostles1 is the     
source of your growing knowledge of     
,him8 ,if we would keep our hearts and  
minds clearer than we do of the babble  
of earthly voices1 and be more loyal and
 humble and constant and patient in our 
sitting on the benches in ,christ's     

school till the ,master ,himself came to
 give us ,his lessons1 these great words
 of my text would not1 as they so often 
do in the mass of professing            
,christians1 lack the verification of   
experience and the assurance that it is 
so with us4 ,have you sat in ,christ's  
school1 and do you know the secret and  
illuminative whispers of ,his teaching8 
,if not1 there is something wrong in    
your ,christian character1 and something
 insincere in your ,christian           
profession4  ,notice1 still further1    
that our ,lord here ranks that          
subsequent teaching before all that ,he 
said upon earth1 great and precious as  
it was4 ,now ,i do not mean for one     
moment to allege that fresh             
communications of truth1 uncontained in 
,scripture1 are given to us in the      
age-long and continuous teaching of     
,jesus ,christ4 ,that ,i do not suppose 
to be the meaning of the great promises 
before us1 for the facts of revelation  
were finished when ,he ascended1 and the

 inspired commentary upon the facts of  
revelation was completed with these     
writings which follow the ,gospels in   
our ,new ,testament4 ,but ,christ's     
teaching brings us up to the            
understanding of the facts and of the   
commentary upon them which ,scripture   
contains1 so that what was parable or   
proverb1 dimly apprehended1 mysterious  
and enigmatical when it was spoken1 and 
what remains mysterious and enigmatical 
to us until we grow up to it1 gradually 
becomes full of significance and weighty
 with a plain and certain meaning4 ,this
 is the teaching which goes on through  
the ages--the lifting of ,his children  
to the level of apprehending more and   
more of the inexhaustible and manifold  
wisdom which is stored for us in this   
,book4 ,the mine has been worked on the 
surface1 but the deeper it goes the     
richer is the lode2 and no ages will    
exhaust the treasures that are hid in   
,christ ,jesus our ,lord4  ,he uses the 
new problems1 the new difficulties1 the 

new circumstances of each successive    
age1 and of each individual ,christian1 
in order to evolve from ,his word larger
 lessons1 and to make the earlier       
lessons more fully and deeply           
understood4 ,and this generation1 with  
all its new problems1 with all its      
uneasiness about social questions1 with 
all its new attitude to many ancient    
truths1 will find that ,jesus ,christ   
is1 as ,he has been to all past         
generations1--the answer to all its     
doubts1 using even these doubts as a    
means of evolving the deeper harmonies  
of ,his ,word1 and of unveiling in the  
ancient truth more than former          
generations have seen in it4 ',brethren1
 ,i write unto you no new commandment4  
,again1 a new commandment ,i write unto 
you4' ,the inexhaustible freshness of   
the old word taught us anew1 with deeper
 significance and larger applications1  
by the everlasting ,teacher of the      
,church1 is the hope that shines through
 these words4 ,i commend to you1 dear   

brethren1 the one simple1 personal      
question1 ,have ,i submitted myself to  
that ,teacher1 and said to men and      
systems and preachers and books and     
magazines1 and all the rest of the noisy
 and clamorous tongues that bewilder    
under pretence of enlightening this     
generation--have ,i said to them all1   
',hold your peace6 and let me1 in the   
silence of my waiting soul1 hear the    
,teacher ,himself speak to me4 ,speak1  
,lord6 for ,thy servant heareth4 ,teach 
me ,thy way and lead me1 for ,thou art  
my ,master1 and ,i the humblest of ,thy 
scholars'8  ,,ii4 ,in the next place1   
another of the glad features of this    
dawning day is that it is to be a day of
 desires based upon ,christ1 and        
,christlike4  ',in that day ye shall ask
 in ,my name4' ,our translators have    
wisely put a colon at the end of that   
clause1 in order that we may not hurry  
over it too quickly in haste to get to  
the next one4 ,for there is a           
substantial blessing and privilege      

wrapped up in it4 ,our ,lord has just   
been saying the same thing in the       
previous verses1 but ,he repeats it here
 in order to emphasise it1 and to set it
 by the subsequent words in a somewhat  
different light4 ,but ,i dwell upon it  
for a very simple1 practical purpose4 ,i
 have already explained in former       
sermons the full1 deep meaning of that  
phrase1 'asking in ,christ's name1' and 
have suggested to you that it implies   
two things--the one1 that our desires   
should all be based upon ,his great work
 as the only ground of our acceptance   
with ,god2 and the other1 that our      
desires should all be such as represent 
,his heart and ,his mind4 ,when we 'ask 
in ,his name' we ask1 first1 for ,his   
sake1 and1 second1 as in ,his person4   
,and such desires1 resting their hopes  
of answer solely upon ,his mighty       
sacrifice and all-sufficient merit1 and 
shaped accurately and fully after the   
pattern of the wishes that are dear to  
,his heart1 are to be the prerogative   

and the joy of ,his servants1 in the new
 'day' that is about to dawn4  ,note how
 beautifully this thought1 of wishes    
moulded into conformity with ,jesus     
,christ1 and offered in reliance upon   
,his great sacrifice1 follows upon that 
other thought1 ',i will tell you plainly
 of the ,father4' ,the ,master's voice  
speaks1 revealing the paternal heart1   
the scholar's voice answers with desires
 kindled by the revelation4 ,longings   
and aspirations humbly offered for ,his 
sake1 and after the pattern of ,his own1
 are our true response to ,his teaching 
voice4 ,as the astronomer1 the more     
powerful his telescope1 though it may   
resolve some of the nebulae that        
resisted feebler instruments1 only has  
his bounds of vision enlarged as he     
looks through it1 and sees yet other and
 mightier star-clouds lying mysterious  
beyond its ken--so each new influx and  
tidal wave of knowledge of the ,father1 
which ,christ gives to ,his waiting     
child1 leads on to enlarged desires1 to 

longings to press still further into the
 unexplored mysteries of that           
magnificent and boundless land1 and to  
nestle still closer into the infinite   
heart of ,god4 ,he declares to us the   
,father1 and the answer of the child to 
the declaration of the ,father is the   
cry1 ',abba6 ,father6 show me yet more  
of ,thy heart4' ,thus aspiration and    
fruition1 longing and satisfaction in   
unsatiated and inexhaustible and        
unwearying alternation1 are the two     
blessed poles between which the life of 
a ,christian may revolve in smoothness  
and music4  ,my friend6 is that anything
 like the transcript of our experience1 
that the more we know of ,god1 the more 
we long to know of1 and to possess1     
,him8 and the more we long to know of1  
and to possess1 ,him1 the more full1    
gracious1 confidential1 tender1 and     
continuous are the teachings of our     
,master8 ,is not this a far higher level
 of ,christian life than that we live   
upon8 ,and why so8 ,is ,christ's word   

faithless8 ,hath ,he forgotten to be    
gracious8 ,was this promise of ,his idle
 wind8 ,or is it that you and ,i have   
never grasped the fulness of privileges 
that ,he bestows upon us8  ,,iii4 ,note1
 lastly1 that that day is to be a day of
 filial experience of a ,father's love4 
',i say not unto you that ,i will pray  
the ,father for you1 for the ,father    
,himself loveth you because ye have     
loved ,me1 and have believed that ,i    
came out from ,god4' ,jesus ,christ does
 not deny ,his intercession4 ,he simply 
does not bring it into evidence here4   
,to deny it would have been impossible1 
for soon afterwards we find ,him saying1
 ',i pray for them which ,thou hast     
given ,me1 for they are ,thine4' ,but   
,he does not emphasise it here1 in order
 that ,he may emphasise another blessed 
source of solace--viz41 that to those   
who listen to the ,master's teaching1   
and have their desires moulded into     
harmony with ,his1 and their wishes and 
hopes all based upon ,his sacrifice and 

work1 the divine ,father's love directly
 flows4 ,there is no need of any        
intercession to turn ,him to be         
merciful4 ,men sometimes caricature the 
thought of the intercession of ,christ1 
as if it meant that ,he1 by ,his prayer1
 bent the reluctant will of the ,father 
in heaven4 ,all such horrible           
misconceptions ,christ sweeps out of the
 field here1 even whilst there remains1 
in the fact that the prayers of which   
,he is speaking are offered in ,his     
name1 the substance and reality of all  
that we mean by the intercession of     
,jesus ,christ4  ,and now note that ,god
 loves the men who love ,jesus ,christ4 
,so completely does the ,father identify
 ,himself with the ,son1 that love to   
,christ is love to ,him1 and brings the 
blessed answer of ,his love to us4      
,whosoever loves ,christ loves ,god4    
,whosoever loves ,christ must do so1    
believing that ,he 'came forth from     
,god4' ,there are the two               
characteristics of a ,christian         

disciple1--faith in the divine mission  
of the ,son1 and love that flows from   
faith4 ,now1 of course1 it does not     
follow from the words before us1 that   
this divine love which comes down upon  
the heart which loves ,christ is the    
original and first flow of that love    
towards that heart4 ',we love ,him      
because ,he first loved us4' ,christ is 
not here tracking the stream to its     
source1 but is pointing to it midway in 
its flow4 ,if you want to go up to the  
fountain-head you have to go up to the  
divine ,father's heart1 who loved when  
there was no love in us2 and1 because   
,he loved1 sent the ,son4 ,first comes  
the unmotived1 spontaneous1             
self-originated1 undeserved1 infinite   
love of ,god to sinners and aliens and  
enemies2 then the ,cross and the mission
 of ,jesus ,christ2 then the faith in   
,his divine mission2 then the love which
 is the child of faith1 as it grasps the
 ,cross and recognises the love that    
lies behind it2 and then1 after that1   

the special1 tender1 and paternal love  
of ,god falling upon the hearts that    
love ,him in ,his ,son4 ,there is       
nothing here in the slightest degree to 
conflict with the grand universal truth 
that ,god loves enemies and sinners and 
aliens4 ,but there is the truth1 as     
precious as the other1 that they who    
have 'known and believed the love that  
,god hath to us' live under the         
selectest influences of ,his loving     
heart1 and have a place in its          
tenderness which it is impossible that  
any should have who do not so love4 ,and
 that sweet commerce of a divine love   
answering a human1 which itself is the  
answer to a prior divine love1 brings   
with it the firm confidence that prayers
 in ,his name shall not be prayers in   
vain4  ,so1 dear friends1 growing       
knowledge1 an ever-present ,teacher1 the
 peace of calm desires built upon       
,christ's ,cross and fashioned after    
,christ's ,spirit1 and the assurance in 
my quiet and filial heart that my       

,father in the heavens loves me1 and    
will neither give me 'serpents' when ,i 
ask for them1 thinking them to be       
'fishes1' nor refuse 'bread' when ,i ask
 for it--these things ought to mark the 
lives of all professing ,christians4    
,are they our experience8 ,if not1 why  
are they not1 but because we do not     
believe that ',thou art come forth from 
,god1' nor love ,thee as we ought8      
',,from' ,,and ',,to'  ',i came forth   
from the ,father1 and am come into the  
world3 again1 ,i leave the world1 and go
 to the ,father4'--,,john xvi4 #bh4     
,these majestic and strange words are   
the proper close of our ,lord's         
discourse1 what follows being rather a  
reply to the disciples' exclamation4    
,there is nothing absolutely new in     
them1 but what is new is the            
completeness and the brevity with which 
they cover the whole ground of ,his     
being1 work1 and glory4 ,they fall into 
two halves1 each consisting of two      
clauses2 the former half describing our 

,lord's descent1 the latter ,his ascent4
 ,in each half the two clauses deal with
 the same fact1 considered from the two 
opposite ends as it were--the point of  
departure and the point of arrival4 ',i 
came forth from the ,father1 and am come
 into the world3 again ,i leave the     
world and go to the ,father4' ,but the  
first point of departure is the last    
point of arrival1 and the end comes     
round to the beginning4 ,our ,lord's    
earthly life is1 as it were1 a jewel    
enclosed within the flashing gold of    
,his eternal dwelling with ,god4  ,so ,i
 think we shall best apprehend the      
scope1 and appropriate to ourselves the 
blessing and power of these words1 if we
 deal with the four points to which they
 call our attention--the dwelling with  
the ,father2 the voluntary coming to the
 earth2 the voluntary departure from the
 earth2 and1 once more1 the dwelling    
with the ,father4 ,we must grasp them   
all if we would know the whole ,christ  
and all that ,he is able to do and to be

 to us and to the world4 ,so1 then1 ,i  
deal simply with these four points4  ,i4
 ,note then1 first1 the dwelling with   
the ,father4  ,if we adopt the most     
probable reading of the first clause of 
my text1 it is even more forcible than  
in our version3 ',i came forth out of   
the ,father4' ,such an egress implies a 
being in the ,father in a sense         
ineffable for our words1 and            
transcending our thoughts4 ,it implies a
 far deeper and closer relation than    
even that of juxtaposition1             
companionship1 or outward presence4     
,now1 in these great words there is     
involved obviously1 to begin with1 that1
 during ,his earthly life1 our ,lord    
bore about with ,him the remembrance and
 consciousness of an individual         
existence prior to ,his life on earth4  
,i need not remind you how frequently   
such hints drop from ,his lips--',before
 ,abraham was1 ,i am1' and the like4    
,but beyond that solemn thought of a    
remembered previous existence there is  

this other one--that the words are the  
assertion by ,christ ,himself of a      
previous1 deep1 mysterious1 ineffable   
union with the ,father4 ,on such a      
subject wisdom and reverence bid us     
speak only as we hear2 but ,i cannot    
refrain from emphasising the fact that1 
if this fourth ,gospel be a genuine     
record of the teaching of ,jesus        
,christ--and1 if it is not1 what genius 
was he who wrote it8--if it be a genuine
 record of the teaching of ,jesus       
,christ1 then nothing is more plain than
 that over and over again1 in all sorts 
of ways1 by implication and by direct   
statement1 to all sorts of audiences1   
friends and foes1 ,he reiterated this   
tremendous claim to have 'dwelt in the  
bosom of the ,father1' long before ,he  
lay on the breast of ,mary4 ,what did   
,he mean when ,he said1 ',no man hath   
ascended up into heaven save ,he which  
came down from heaven'8 ,what did ,he   
mean when ,he said1 ',what and if ye    
shall see the ,son of ,man ascend up    

where ,he was before'8 ,what did ,he    
mean when ,he said1 ',i came down from  
heaven1 not to do ,mine own will1 but   
the will of ,him that sent ,me'8 ,and   
what did ,he mean when1 in the midst of 
the solemnities of that last prayer1 ,he
 said1 ',glorify ,thou ,me with the     
glory which ,i had with ,thee before the
 world was'8  ,dear friends6 it seems to
 me that if we know anything about      
,jesus ,christ1 we know that4 ,if we    
cannot believe that ,he thus spoke1 we  
know nothing about ,him on which we can 
rely4 ,and so1 without venturing to     
enlarge at all upon these solemn words1 
,i leave this with you as a plain fact1 
that the meekest1 lowliest1 and most    
sane and wise of religious teachers made
 deliberately over and over again this  
claim1 which is either absolutely true1 
and lifts ,him into the region of the   
,deity1 or else is fatal to ,his        
pretensions to be either meek or modest1
 or wise or sane1 or a religious teacher
 to whom it is worth our while to       

listen4  ,,ii4 ,note1 secondly1 the     
voluntary coming into the world4  ',i   
came forth from the ,father1 and am come
 into the world4' ,we all talk in a     
loose way about men coming into the     
world when they are born2 but the weight
 of these words and the solemnity of the
 occasion on which they were spoken1 and
 the purpose for which they were        
spoken--viz41 to comfort and to         
illuminate these disciples--forbid us to
 see such a mere platitude as that in   
them4 ,there would have been no         
consolation in them unless they meant   
something a great deal more than the    
undeniable fact that ,jesus ,christ was 
born1 and the melancholy fact that      
,jesus ,christ was about to die4  ',i am
 come into the world4' ,there has been a
 ,man who chose to be born4 ,there has  
been a ,man who appeared here1 not 'of  
the will of the flesh1 nor of the will  
of man1' but by ,his own free choice4   
,he willed to take upon ,him the form of
 humanity4 ,now the voluntariness of the

 entrance of ,jesus ,christ into the    
conditions of our human life is         
all-important for us1 for it underlies  
the whole value of that life and its    
whole power to be blessing and good to  
us4 ,it underlies1 for instance1 the    
personal sinlessness of ,jesus ,christ1 
and hence ,his power to bring a new     
beginning of pure and perfect life into 
the midst of humanity4 ,all the rest of 
mankind1 knit together by that          
mysterious bond of natural descent which
 only now for the first time is         
beginning to receive its due attention  
on the part of men of science1 by       
heredity have the taint upon them4 ,and 
if ,jesus ,christ is only one of the    
series1 then there is no deliverance in 
,him1 for there is no sinlessness in    
that life4 ,however fair its record may 
seem on the surface1 there is beneath1  
somewhere or other1 the leprosy that    
infects us all4 ,unless ,he came in     
another fashion from all the rest of us1
 ,he came with the same sin as all the  

rest of us1 and ,he is no deliverer from
 sin4 ,rather ,he is one of the series  
who1 like the melancholy captives on the
 road to ,siberia1 each carries a link  
of the hopeless chain that binds them   
all together4 ,but1 if it be true that  
of ,his own will ,he took to ,himself   
humanity1 and was born as the ,scripture
 tells us ,he was born1 ,his birth being
 ,his 'coming' and not ,his being       
brought1 then1 being free from taint1   
,he can deliver us from taint1 and1     
,himself unbound by the chain1 ,he can  
break it from off our necks4 ,the stream
 is fouled from its source downwards1   
and flows on1 every successive drop     
participant of the primeval pollution4  
,but1 down from the white snows of the  
eternal hills of ,god1 there comes into 
it an affluent which has no stain on its
 pure waters1 and so can purge that into
 which it enters4 ,jesus ,christ willed 
to be born1 and to plant a new beginning
 of holy life in the very heart of      
humanity which henceforth should work as

 leaven4  ,let me remind you1 too1 that 
this voluntary assumption of our nature 
is all-important to us1 for unless we   
preserve it clear to our minds and      
hearts1 the power to sway our affections
 is struck away from ,jesus ,christ4    
,unless ,he voluntarily took upon       
,himself the nature which ,he meant to  
redeem1 why should ,i be thankful to    
,him for what ,he did1 and what right   
has ,he to claim my love8 ,but if ,he   
willingly came down amongst us1 and 'to 
this end was born1 and for this cause1' 
of ,his own loving heart1 'came into the
 world1' then ,i am knit to ,him by     
cords that cannot be broken4 ,one thing 
only saves for ,jesus ,christ the       
unbounded and perpetual love of mankind1
 and that is1 that from ,his own        
infinite and perpetual love ,he came    
into the world4 ,we talk about kings    
leaving their palaces and putting on the
 rags of the beggar1 and learning 'love 
in huts where poor men lie1' and making 
experience of the conditions of their   

lowliest subjects4 ,but here is a fact1 
infinitely beyond all these legends4 ,it
 is set forth for us in a touching      
fashion1 in the incident that almost    
immediately preceded these parting words
 of our ,lord1 when ',jesus1 knowing    
that ,he came forth from ,god1 laid     
aside ,his garments and took a towel1   
and girded ,himself1' and washed the    
foul feet of these travel-stained men4  
,that was a parable of the ,incarnation4
 ,the consciousness of ,his divine      
origin was ever with ,him1 and that     
consciousness led ,him to lay aside the 
garments of ,his majesty1 and to gird   
,himself with the towel of service4     
,that ,he had a body round which to wrap
 it was more humiliation than that ,he  
wrapped it round the body which ,he     
took4 ,and we may learn there what it is
 that gives ,him ,his supreme right to  
our devotion and our surrender--viz41   
that1 'being in the form of ,god1 ,he   
thought not equality with ,god a thing  
to be covetously retained1 but made     

,himself of no reputation1 and was found
 in fashion as a ,man4'  ,,iii4 ,note   
the voluntary leaving the world4  ,the  
stages of that departure are not        
distinguished4 ,they are threefold in   
fact--the death1 the resurrection1 the  
ascension1 and in all three we have the 
majestic1 spontaneous energy of ,christ 
as their cause4  ,there was a voluntary 
death1 ,i have so often had occasion to 
insist upon that1 in the course of these
 sermons1 that ,i do not need to dwell  
upon it now4 ,let me remind you only how
 distinctly and in what various forms   
that thought is presented to us in the  
,scriptures4 ,we have our ,lord's own   
words about ,his having 'power to lay   
down ,his life4' ,we have in the story  
of the ,passion hints that seem to      
suggest that ,his relation to death1 to 
which ,he is about to bow ,his head1 was
 altogether different from that of ours4
 ,for instance1 we read3 ',into ,thy    
hands ,i commend ,my ,spirit'2 and ',he 
gave up the ,spirit4' ,we have hints of 

a similar nature in the very swiftness  
of ,his death and unexpected brevity of 
,his suffering1 to be accounted for by  
no natural result of the physical       
process of crucifixion4 ,the fact is    
that ,jesus ,christ is the ,lord of     
death1 and was so even when ,he seemed  
to be its ,servant1 and that ,he never  
showed ,himself more completely the     
,prince of ,life and the ,conqueror of  
,death than when ,he gave up ,his life  
and died1 not because ,he must1 but     
because ,he would4 ,there is a scene in 
a modern book of fiction of a man       
sitting on a rock and the ocean         
stretching round him4 ,it reaches high  
upon his breast1 but it threatens not   
his life1 till he1 sitting there in his 
calm1 bows his head beneath the wave and
 lets it roll over him4 ,so ,christ     
willed to die1 and died because ,he     
willed4  ,there was also a voluntary    
resurrection by ,his own power2 for     
although ,scripture sometimes represents
 ,his rising again from the dead as     

being the ,father's attestation of the  
,son's finished work1 it also represents
 it as being1 in accordance with ,his   
own claim of 'power to lay down ,my     
life1 and to take it again1' the ,son's 
triumphant egress from the prison into  
which1 for the moment1 ,he willed to    
pass4 ,jesus 'was raised from the dead  
by the glory of the ,father1' but also  
,jesus rose from the dead by ,his own   
power4  ,there was also a voluntary     
ascension to the heavens4 ,there was no 
need for ,elijah's chariot of fire4     
,there was no need for a whirlwind to   
sweep a mortal to the sky4 ,there was no
 need for any external vehicle or agency
 whatsoever4 ,no angels bore ,him up    
upon their wings4 ,but1 the cords of    
duty which bound ,him to earth being    
cut1 ,he rose to ,his own native sphere2
 and1 if one might so say1 the natural  
forces of ,his supernatural life bore   
,him1 by inverted gravitation1 upward to
 the place which was ,his own4 ,he      
ascended by ,his own inherent power4    

,thus1 by a voluntary death1 ,he became 
the ,sacrifice for our sins2 by the     
might of ,his self-effected resurrection
 ,he proclaimed ,himself the ,lord of   
death and the resurrection for all that 
trust ,him2 and by ascending up on high 
,he draws our hearts' desires after     
,him1 so that we1 too1 as we see ,him   
lost from our sight1 behind the bright  
,shekinah cloud that stooped to conceal 
the last stages of ,his ascension from  
our view1 may return to our lowly work  
'with great joy1' and 'set our affection
 on things above1 where ,christ is1     
sitting at the right hand of ,god4'     
,,iv4 ,so1 lastly1 we have here the     
dwelling again with the ,father4  ,but  
that final dwelling with ,god is not    
wholly identical with the initial one4  
,the earthly life was no mere           
parenthesis1 and ,he who returned to the
 ,throne carried with ,him the manhood  
which ,he had assumed1 and bore it      
thither into the glory in which the     
,word had dwelt from the beginning4 ,and

 this is the true consolation which     
,christ offered to these ,his weeping   
servants1 and which ,he still offers to 
us ,his waiting children1 that now the  
manhood of ,jesus ,christ is exalted to 
participation in the divine glory1 and  
dwells there in the calm1 invisible     
sweetness and solemnity of fellowship   
with the ,father4  ,if that be so1 it is
 no mere abstract dogma of theology1 but
 it touches our daily life at all       
points1 and is essential to the fullness
 of our satisfaction and our rest in    
,christ4  ',we see not all things put   
under ,him1 but we see ,jesus4' ,our    
,brother is elevated to the ,throne1    
and1 if ,i might so say1 ,he makes the  
fortunes of the family1 and none of them
 will be poor as long as ,he is so rich4
 ,he sends us from the far-off land     
where ,he is gone precious gifts of its 
produce1 and ,he will send for us to    
share ,his throne one day4  ,christ's   
ascension to the ,father is the         
elevation of our best and dearest       

,friend to the ,throne of the ,universe1
 and the hands that were pierced for us 
on the ,cross hold the helm and sway the
 sceptre of ,creation1 and therefore we 
may calmly meet all events4  ,the       
elevation of ,jesus ,christ to the      
,throne fills ,heaven for our faith1 our
 imagination1 and our hearts4 ,how      
different it is to look up into those   
awful abysses1 and to wonder where1     
amidst their crushing infinitude1 the   
spirits of dear ones that are gone are  
wandering1 if they are at all2 and to   
look up and to think ',my ,christ hath  
passed through the ,heavens1' and is    
somewhere with a true ,body1 and with   
,him all that loved ,him4 ,without an   
ascended ,christ we recoil from the cold
 splendours of an unknown ,heaven1 as a 
rustic might from the unintelligible    
magnificence of a palace4 ,but if we    
believe that ,he is 'at the right hand  
of ,god1' then the far-off becomes near1
 and the vague becomes definite1 and the
 unsubstantial becomes solid1 and what  

was a fear becomes a joy1 and we can    
trust ourselves and the dear dead in    
,his hands1 knowing that where ,he is   
they are1 and that in ,him they and we  
have all that we need4  ,so1 dear       
friends6 it all comes to this--make sure
 that you have hold of the whole ,christ
 for yourselves4 ,his earthly life is   
little without the celestial halo that  
rings it round4 ,his life is nothing    
without ,his death4 ,his death without  
,his resurrection and ascension maybe a 
little more pathetic than millions of   
other deaths1 but is nothing1 really1 to
 us4 ,and the life and death and        
resurrection are not apprehended in     
their fullest power until they are set  
between the eternal glory before and the
 eternal glory after4  ,these four      
facts--the dwelling in the ,father2 the 
voluntary coming to earth2 the voluntary
 leaving earth2 and1 again1 the dwelling
 with the ,father--are the walls of the 
strong fortress into which we may flee  
and be safe4 ,with them it 'stands four 

square to every wind that blows4'       
,strike away one of them1 and it totters
 into ruin4 ,make the whole ,christ your
 ,christ2 for nothing less than the     
whole ,christ1 'conceived of the ,holy  
,ghost1 born of the ,virgin ,mary1 444  
crucified1 dead1 and buried1 444        
ascended into ,heaven1 and sitting at   
the right hand of ,god1' is strong      
enough to help your infirmities1 vast   
enough to satisfy your desires1 loving  
enough to love you as you need1 or able 
to deliver you from your sins1 and to   
lift you to the glories of ,his own     
,throne4    ,,glad ,,confession ,,and   
,,sad ,,warning  ',his disciples said   
unto ,jesus1 ,lo6 now speakest ,thou    
plainly1 and speakest no proverb4 ,now  
are we sure that ,thou knowest all      
things1 and needest not that any man    
should ask ,thee3 by this we believe    
that ,thou earnest forth from ,god4     
,jesus answered them1 ,do ye now        
believe8 ,behold1 the hour cometh1 yea1 
is now come1 that ye shall be scattered1

 every man to his own1 and shall leave  
,me alone3 and yet ,i am not alone1     
because the ,father is with             
,me4'--,,john xvi4 #bi-cb4  ,the first  
words of these wonderful discourses     
were1 ',let not your heart be troubled4'
 ,they struck the key-note of the whole4
 ,the aim of all was to bring peace and 
confidence unto the disciples' spirits4 
,and this joyful burst of confession    
which wells up so spontaneously and     
irrepressibly from their hearts1 shows  
that the aim has been reached4 ,for a   
moment sorrow1 bewilderment1 dullness of
 apprehension1 had all passed away1 and 
the foolish questioners and             
non-receptive listeners had been lifted 
into a higher region1 and possessed     
insight1 courage1 confidence4 ,the last 
sublime utterance of our ,lord had      
gathered all the scattered rays into a  
beam so bright that the blindest could  
not but see1 and the coldest could not  
but be warmed4  ,but yet the calm1 clear
 eye of ,christ sees something not      

wholly satisfactory in this outpouring  
of the disciples' confidence4 ,he does  
not reject their imperfect faith1 but   
,he warns them1 as if seeing the        
impending hour of denial which was so   
terribly to contradict the rapture of   
that moment4 ,and then1 with most       
pathetic suddenness1 ,he passes from    
them to ,himself2 and in a singularly   
blended utterance lets us get a glimpse 
into ,his deep solitude and the         
companions that shared it4  ,my words   
now make no attempt at anything more    
than is involved in following the course
 of thought in the words before us4  ,i4
 ,note the disciples' joyful confession4
  ,their words are permeated throughout 
with allusions to the previous promises 
and sayings of our ,lord1 and the very  
allusions show how shallow was their    
understanding of what they thought so   
plain4 ,he had said to them that1 in    
that coming day which was so near its   
dawn1 ,he would speak to them 'no more  
in proverbs1 but show them plainly of   

the ,father'2 and they answer1 with a   
kind of rapture of astonishment1 that   
the promised day has come already1 and  
that even now ,he is speaking to them   
'plainly1' and without mysterious       
sayings4 ,did they understand ,his words
 when they thought them so plain8 ',i   
came forth from the ,father1 and am come
 into the world8 ,again ,i leave the    
world and go unto the ,father1' that    
summary statement of the central        
mysteries of ,christianity1 which the   
generations have found to be            
inexhaustible1 and which to so many     
minds has been absolutely incredible1   
seemed to the shallow apprehension of   
these disciples to be sun-clear4 ,if    
they had understood what ,he meant1     
could they have spoken thus1 or have    
left ,him so soon8  ,they begin with    
what they believed to be a fact1 ,his   
clear utterance4 ,then follows a        
conviction which has allusion to ,his   
previous words4 ',now'1 say they1 'we   
know that ,thou knowest all things1 and 

needest not that any man should ask     
,thee4' ,he had said to them1 ',in that 
day ye shall ask ,me nothing'2 and from 
the fact that he had interpreted their  
unspoken words1 and had anticipated     
their desire to ask what they durst not 
ask1 they draw1 and rightly draw1 the   
conclusion of ,his divine ,omniscience4 
,they think that therein1 in ,his answer
 to their question before it is asked1  
is the fulfilment of that great promise4
 ,was that all that ,he meant8          
,certainly not4 ,did ,he merely mean to 
say1 ',you will ask ,me nothing1 because
 ,i shall know what you want to know1   
without your asking'8 ,no6 ,but ,he     
meant1 ',ye shall ask ,me nothing1      
because in that day you will have with  
you an illuminating ,spirit who will    
solve all your difficulties4' ,so1      
again1 a shallow interpretation empties 
the words which they accept of their    
deepest and most precious meaning4  ,and
 then they take yet a further step4     
,first1 they begin with a fact2 then    

from that they infer a conviction2 and  
now1 upon the basis of the inferred     
conviction1 they rear a faith1 ',we     
believe that ,thou camest forth from    
,god4' ,but what they meant by 'coming  
forth from ,god' fell far short of the  
greatness of what ,he meant by the      
declaration1 and they stand1 in this    
final1 articulate confession of their   
faith1 but a little in advance of       
,nicodemus the ,rabbi1 and behind ,peter
 the ,apostle when he said3 ',thou art  
the ,son of the living ,god4'  ,so their
 confession is a strangely mingled warp 
and woof of insight and of ignorance4   
,and they may stand for us both as      
examples to teach us what we ought to   
be1 and as beacons teaching us what we  
should not be4  ,let me note just one or
 two lessons drawn from the disciples'  
demeanour and confession4  ,the first   
remark that ,i would make is that here  
we learn what it is that gives life to a
 creed--experience4 ,these men had1 over
 and over again1 in our ,lord's earlier 

utterances1 heard the declaration that  
',he came forth from ,god'2 and in a    
sort of fashion they believed it4 ,but1 
as so many of our convictions do1 it lay
 dormant and half dead in their souls4  
,but now1 rightly or wrongly1 experience
 had brought them into contact1 as they 
thought1 with a manifest proof of ,his  
divine ,omniscience1 and the torpid     
conviction flashed all up at once into  
vitality4 ,the smouldering fire of a    
mere piece of abstract belief was       
kindled at once into a glow that shed   
warmth through their whole hearts2 and  
although they had professed to believe  
long ago that ,he came from ,god1 now1  
for the first time1 they grasp it as a  
living reality4 ,why8 ,because          
experience had taught it to them4 ,it is
 the only teacher that teaches us the   
articles of our creed in a way worth    
learning them4 ,every one of us carries 
professed beliefs1 which lie there      
inoperative1 bedridden1 in the hospital 
and dormitory of our souls1 until some  

great necessity or sudden circumstance  
comes that flings a beam of light upon  
them1 and then they start and waken4 ,we
 do not know the use of the sword until 
we are in battle4 ,until the shipwreck  
comes1 no man puts on the lifebelt in   
his cabin4 ,every one of as has large   
tracts of ,christian truth which we     
think we most surely believe1 but which 
need experience to quicken them1 and    
need us to grow up into the possession  
of them4 ,of all our teachers who turn  
beliefs assented to into beliefs really 
believed none is so mighty as ,sorrow2  
for that makes a man lay a firm hold on 
the deep things of ,god's ,word4  ,then 
another lesson that ,i draw from this   
glad confession is--the bold avowal that
 always accompanies certitude4 ,these   
men's stammering tongues are loosed4    
,they have a fact to base themselves    
upon4 ,they have a piece of assured     
knowledge inferred from the fact4 ,they 
have a faith built upon the certitude of
 what they know4 ,having this1 out it   

all comes in a gush4 ,no man that       
believes with all his heart can help    
speaking4 ,you silent ,christians are   
so1 because you do not more than half   
grasp the truth that you say you hold4  
',thy word1 when shut up in my bones1   
was like a fire'2 and it ate its way    
through all the dead matter that        
enclosed it1 until at last it flamed out
 heaven high4 ,can you say1 ',we know   
and we believe1' with unfaltering       
confidence8 ,not 'we argue'2 not 'we    
humbly venture to think that on the     
whole'2 not 'we are inclined rather to  
believe'2 but 'we know--that ,thou      
knowest all things1 and that ,thou hast 
come from ,god4' ,seek for that blessed 
certitude of knowledge1 based upon the  
facts of individual experience1 which   
'makes the tongue of the dumb sing1' and
 changes all the deadness of an outward 
profession of ,christianity into a      
living1 rejoicing power4  ,then1        
further1 ,i draw this lesson4 ,take care
 of indolently supposing that you       

understand the depths of ,god's truth4  
,these ,apostles fancied that they had  
grasped the whole meaning of the        
,master's words1 and were glad in them4 
,they fed on them1 and got something out
 of them2 but how far they were from the
 true perception of their meaning6 ,this
 generation abhors mystery1 and demands 
that the deepest truths of the highest  
subject1 which is religion1 shall be so 
broken down into mincemeat that the 'man
 in the street' can understand them in  
the intervals of reading the newspaper4 
,there are only too many of us who are  
disposed to grasp at the most           
superficial interpretation of ,christian
 truth1 and lazily to rest ourselves in 
that4 ,a creed which has no depth in it 
is like a picture which has no distance4
 ,it is flat and unnatural1 and         
self-condemned by the very fact4 ,it is 
better that we should feel that the     
smallest word that comes from ,god is   
like some little leaf of a water plant  
on the surface of a pond2 if you lift   

that you draw a whole trail after it1   
and nobody knows how far off and how    
deep down are the roots4 ,it is better  
that we should feel how ,infinity and   
,eternity press in upon us on all sides1
 and should take as ours the temper that
 recognises that till the end we are but
 learners1 seeing 'in a glass1 in a     
riddle1' and therefore patiently waiting
 for light and strenuously striving to  
stretch our souls to the width of the   
infinite truth of ,god4  ,,ii4 ,so1     
then1 look1 in the second place1 at the 
sad questions and forebodings of the    
,master4  ',do ye now believe8' ,that   
does not cast doubt on the reality of   
their faith so much as on its permanence
 and power4 ',behold the hour cometh    
that ye shall be scattered'--as ,he had 
told them a little while before in the  
upper room1 like a flock when the       
shepherd is stricken down--'every man to
 his own4' ,he does not reject their    
imperfect homage1 though ,he discerns so
 clearly its imperfection and its       

transiency1 but sadly warns them to     
beware of the fleeting nature of their  
present emotion2 and would seek to      
prepare them1 by the knowledge1 for the 
terrible storm that is going to break   
upon them4  ,so let us learn two or     
three simple lessons4 ,one is that the  
dear ,lord accepts imperfect surrender1 
ignorant faith and love1 of which ,he   
knows that it will soon turn to denial4 
,oh6 if ,he did not1 what would become  
of us all8 ,we reject half hearts2 we   
will not have a friendship on which we  
cannot rely4 ,the sweetness of vows is  
all sucked out of them to our           
apprehension1 if we have reason to      
believe that they will be falsified in  
an hour4 ,but the patient ,master was   
willing to put up with what you and ,i  
will not put up with2 and to accept what
 we reject2 and be pleased that they    
gave ,him even that4 ,his 'charity      
suffereth long1 and is kind4' ,let us   
not be afraid to bring even imperfect   
consecration--    ',a little faith all  

undisproved'--  to ,his merciful feet4  
,then another lesson is the need for    
,christian men sedulously to search and 
make sure that their inward life        
corresponds with their words and        
professions4 ,i wonder how many         
thousands of people will stand up this  
day and say1 ',i believe in ,god the    
,father ,almighty1 and in ,jesus ,christ
 ,his only ,son1' whose words would     
stick in their throats if that question 
of the ,master's was put to them1 ',do  
ye now believe8' ,and ,i wonder how many
 of us are the fools of our own verbal  
acknowledgments of ,christ4             
,self-examination is not altogether a   
wholesome exercise1 and it may easily be
 carried too far1 to the destruction of 
the spontaneity and the gladness of the 
,christian life4 ,a man may set his     
pulse going irregularly by simply       
concentrating his attention upon it1 and
 there may be self-examination of the   
wrong sort1 which does harm rather than 
good4 ,but1 on the other hand1 we all   

need to verify our position1 lest our   
outward life should fatally slip away   
from correspondence with our inward4    
,our words and acts of ,christian       
profession and service are like bank    
notes4 ,what will be the end if there is
 a whole ream of such going up and down 
the world1 and no balance of bullion in 
the cellars to meet them8 ,nothing but  
bankruptcy4 ,do you see to it that your 
reserve of gold1 deep down in your      
hearts1 always leaves a margin beyond   
the notes in circulation issued by you4 
,and in the midst of your professions   
hear the ,master saying1 ',do ye now    
believe8'  ,another lesson that ,i draw 
is1 trust no emotions1 no religious     
experiences1 but only ,him to whom they 
turn4  ,these men were perfectly        
sincere1 and there was a glow of        
gladness in their hearts1 and a real    
though imperfect faith when they spoke4 
,in an hours time where were they8  ,we 
often deal far too hard measure to these
 poor disciples1 in our estimate of     

their conduct at that critical moment4  
,we talk about them as cowards4 ,well1  
they were better and they were worse    
than cowards2 for their courage failed  
second1 but their faith had failed      
first4 ,the ,cross made them dastards   
because it destroyed their confidence in
 ,jesus ,christ4  ',we trusted4' ,ah6   
what a world of sorrow there is in those
 two final letters of that word6 ',we   
trusted that it had been ,he who should 
have redeemed ,israel4' ,but they do not
 trust it any more1 and so why should   
they put themselves in peril for ,one on
 whom their faith can no longer build8  
,would we have been any better if we had
 been there8 ,suppose you had stood afar
 off and seen ,jesus die on the cross1  
would your faith have lived8 ,do we not 
know what it is to be a great deal more 
exuberant in our professions of         
faith--and real faith it is1 no         
doubt--in some quiet hour when we are   
with ,him by ourselves1 than when swords
 are flashing and we are in the presence

 of ,his antagonists8 ,do we not know   
what it is to grasp conviction at one   
moment1 and the next to find it gone    
like a handful of mist from our clutch8 
,is our ,christian life always lived    
upon one high uniform level8 ,have we no
 experience of hours of exhaustion      
coming after deep religious emotion8    
',let him that is without sin among you 
cast the first stone'2 there will not be
 many stones flung if that law be       
applied4 ,let us all1 recognising our   
own weakness1 trust to nothing1 either  
in our convictions or our emotions1 but 
only to ,him1 and cry1 ',hold ,thou me  
up1 and ,i shall be safe6'  ,,iii4      
,lastly1 note the lonely ,christ and    
,his companion4  ',ye shall leave ,me   
alone'2 there is sadness1 though it be  
calm1 in that clause1 and then1 ,i      
suppose1 there was a moment's pause     
before the quiet voice began again3     
',and yet ,i am not alone1 for the      
,father is with ,me4' ,there are two    
currents there1 both calm2 but the one  

bright and the other dark4  ,jesus was  
the loneliest man that ever lived4 ,all 
other forms of human solitude were      
concentrated in ,his4 ,he knew the pain 
of unappreciated aims1 unaccepted love1 
unbelieved teachings1 a heart thrown    
back upon itself4 ,no man understood    
,him1 no man knew ,him1 no man deeply   
and thoroughly loved ,him or sympathised
 with ,him1 and ,he dwelt apart4 ,he    
felt the pain of solitude more sharply  
than sinful men do4 ,perfect purity is  
keenly susceptible2 a heart fully       
charged with love is wounded sore when  
the love is thrown back1 and all the    
more sorely the more unselfish it is4   
,solitude was no small part of the pain 
of ,christ's passion4 ,remember the     
pitiful appeal in ,gethsemane1 ',tarry  
ye here and watch with ,me6' ,remember  
the threefold vain return to the        
sleepers in the hope of finding some    
sympathy from them4 ,remember the       
emphasis with which1 more than once in  
,his life1 ,he foretold the loneliness  

of ,his death4 ,and then let us         
understand how the bitterness of the cup
 that ,he drank had for not the least   
bitter of its ingredients the sense that
 ,he drank it alone4  ,now1 dear        
friends6 some of us1 no doubt1 have to  
live outwardly solitary lives4 ,we all  
of us live alone after all fellowship   
and communion4 ,physicists tell us that 
in the most solid bodies the atoms do   
not touch4 ,hearts come closer than     
atoms1 but yet1 after all1 we die alone1
 and in the depths of our souls we all  
live alone4 ,so let us be thankful that 
the ,master knows the bitterness of     
solitude1 and has ,himself trod that    
path4  ,then we have here the calm      
consciousness of unbroken communion4    
,jesus ,christ's sense of union with the
 ,father was deep1 close1 constant1 in  
manner and measure altogether           
transcending any experience of ours4    
,but still ,he sets before us a pattern 
of what we should aim at in these great 
words4 ,they show the path of comfort   

for every lonely heart4 ',i am not      
alone1 for the ,father is with ,me4' ,if
 earth be dark1 let us look to ,heaven4 
,if the world with its millions seems to
 have no friend in it for us1 let us    
turn to ,him who never leaves us4 ,if   
dear ones are torn from our grasp1 let  
us grasp ,god4 ,solitude is bitter2 but1
 like other bitters1 it is a tonic4 ,it 
is not all loss if the trees which with 
their leafy beauty shut out the sky from
 us are felled1 and so we see the blue4 
,christ's company is to us what the     
,father's fellowship was to ,christ4 ,he
 has borne solitude that ,he might be   
the companion of all the lonely1 and the
 same voice which said1 ',ye shall leave
 ,me alone1' said also1 ',i am with you 
always1 even to the end of the world4'  
,but that communion of ,christ with the 
,father was broken1 in that awful hour  
when ,he cried3 ',my ,god1 why hast     
,thou forsaken ,me8' ,we tread there on 
the verge of mysteries1 beyond our      
comprehension2 but this we know--that it

 was our sin and the world's1 made ,his 
by ,his willing identifying of ,himself 
with us1 which built up that black wall 
of separation4 ,that hour of utter      
desolation1 forsaken by ,god1 deserted  
by men1 was the hour of the world's     
redemption4 ,and ,jesus ,christ was     
forsaken by ,god and deserted by men1   
that you and ,i might never be either   
the one or the other1 but might find in 
,his sweet and constant companionship at
 once the society of man and the        
presence of ,god4    ,,peace ,,and      
,,victory  ',these things ,i have spoken
 unto you1 that in ,me ye might have    
peace4 ,in the world ye shall have      
tribulation2 but be of good cheer2 ,i   
have overcome the world4'--,,john xvi4  
#cc4  ,so end these wonderful           
discourses1 and so ends our ,lord's     
teaching before ,his passion4 ,he       
gathers up in one mighty word the total 
intention of these sweet and deep       
sayings which we have so long been      
pondering together4 ,he sketches in     

broad outline the continual             
characteristics of the disciples' life1 
and closes all with the strangest shout 
of victory1 even at the moment when ,he 
seems most utterly defeated4  ,we shall1
 ,i think1 best lay on our hearts and   
minds the spirit and purpose of these   
words if we simply follow their course1 
and look at the three things which      
,christ emphasises here3 the inward     
peace which is ,his purpose for us2 the 
outward tribulation which is our certain
 fate2 and the courageous confidence    
which ,christ's victory for us gives4   
,i4 ,note1 then1 first1 the inward      
peace4  ',these things have ,i spoken   
unto you that in ,me ye might have      
peace4' ,peace is not lethargy2 and it  
is very remarkable to notice how1 in    
immediate connection with this great    
promise1 there occur words which suggest
 its opposite--tribulation and battle4  
',in the world ye have tribulation4' ',i
 have overcome'--that means a fight4    
,these are to go side by side with the  

peace that ,he promises4 ,the two       
conditions belong to two different      
spheres4 ,the ,christian life           
bifurcates1 as it were1 into a double   
root1 and moves in two realms--'in ,me' 
and 'in the world' ,and the predicates  
and characteristics of these two lives  
are1 in a large measure1 diametrically  
opposite4 ,so here1 without any         
contradiction1 our ,lord brackets       
together these two opposite conditions  
as both pertaining to the life of a     
devout soul4 ,he promises a peace which 
co-exists with tribulation and          
disturbance1 a peace which is realised  
in and through conflict and struggle4   
,the tree will stand1 with its deep     
roots and its firm bole1 unmoved1 though
 wildest winds may toss its branches and
 scatter its leaves4 ,in the fortress1  
beleaguered by the sternest foes1 there 
may be1 right in the very centre of the 
citadel1 a quiet oratory through whose  
thick walls the noise of battle and the 
shout of victory or defeat can never    

penetrate4 ,so we may live in a centre  
of rest1 however wild may be the uproar 
in the circumference4 ',in ,me444       
peace1' that is the innermost life4 ',in
 the world444 tribulation1' that is only
 the surface4  ,but1 then1 note that    
this peace1 which exists with1 and is   
realised through1 tribulation and       
strife1 depends upon certain conditions4
 ,our ,lord does not say1 ',ye have     
peace1' but ',these things ,i have      
spoken that you may have it4' ,it is a  
possibility2 and ,he lays down          
distinctly and plainly here the twofold 
set of conditions1 in fulfilment of     
which a ,christian disciple may dwell   
secure and still1 in the midst of all   
confusion4 ,note1 then1 these two4  ,it 
is peace1 if we have it at all1 in ,him4
 ,now you remember how emphatically and 
loftily1 as one of the very key-notes of
 these discourses1 our ,lord has spoken 
to us1 in them1 of 'dwelling in ,him' as
 the prerogative and the duty of every  
,christian4 ,we are in ,him as in an    

atmosphere4 ,in ,him our true lives are 
rooted as a tree in the soil4 ,we are in
 ,him as a branch in the vine1 in ,him  
as the members in a body1 in ,him as the
 residents in a house4 ,we are in ,him  
by simple faith1 by the trust that rests
 all upon ,him1 by the love that finds  
all in ,him1 by the obedience that does 
all for ,him4 ,and it is only when we   
are 'in ,christ' that we rest1 and      
realise peace4 ,all else brings         
distraction4 ,even delights trouble4    
,the world may give excitement1 the     
world may give vulgar and fleeting joys1
 the world may give stimulus to much    
that is good and true in us1 but there  
is only one thing that gives peace1 and 
that is that our hearts should dwell in 
the ,fortress1 and should ever be       
surrounded by ,jesus ,christ4 ,brother6 
let nothing tempt us down from the      
heights1 and out from the citadel where 
alone we are at rest2 but in the midst  
of all the pressing duties1 the         
absorbing cares1 the carking anxieties1 

the seducing temptations of the world1  
and in the presence of all the necessity
 for noble conflict which the world     
brings to every man that is not its     
slave1 let us try to keep the roots of  
our lives in contact with that soil from
 which they draw all their nourishment1 
and to wrap ourselves round with the    
life of ,jesus ,christ1 which shall make
 an impenetrable shield between us and  
'the fiery darts of the wicked4' ,keep  
on the lee side of the breakwater and   
your little cock-boat will ride out the 
gale4 ,keep ,christ between you and the 
hurtling storm1 and there will be a     
quiet place below the wall where you may
 rest1 hearing not the loud winds when  
they call4 ',these things have ,i spoken
 that in ,me ye might have peace4'  ,but
 there is another condition4 ,christ    
speaks the great words which have been  
occupying us so long1 that they may     
bring to us peace4 ,i need not do more  
than remind you1 in a sentence1 of the  
contents of these wonderful discourses4 

,think of how they have spoken to us of 
our ,brother's ascension to ,heaven to  
prepare a place for us2 of ,his coming  
again to receive us to ,himself2 of ,his
 presence with us in ,his absence2 of   
,his indwelling in us and ours in ,him2 
of ,his gift to us of a divine ,spirit4 
,if we believed all these things2 if we 
realised them and lived in the faith of 
them2 if we meditated upon them in the  
midst of our daily duties2 and if they  
were real to us1 and not mere words     
written down in a ,book1 how should     
anything be able to disturb us1 or to   
shake our settled confidence8 ,cleave to
 the words of the ,master1 and let them 
pour into your hearts the quietness and 
confidence which nothing else can give4 
,and then1 whatsoever storms may be     
around1 the heart will be at rest4 ,we  
find peace nowhere else but where ,mary 
found her repose1 and could shake off   
care and 'trouble about many things1'   
sitting at the feet of ,jesus1 wrapt in 
,his love and listening to ,his word4   

,,ii4 ,then note1 secondly1 the outward 
tribulation which is the certain fate of
 ,his followers4  ,of course there is a 
very sad and true sense in which the    
warning1 ',in the world ye shall have   
tribulation1' applies to all men4 ,pain 
and sickness1 loss and death1 the       
monotony of hard1 continuous1 unwelcome 
toil1 hopes blighted or disappointed    
even in their fruition1 and all the     
other 'ills that flesh is heir to1'     
afflict us all4 ,but our ,lord is not   
speaking here about the troubles that   
befall men as men1 nor about the        
chastisement that befalls them as       
sinners1 nor about the evils which dog  
them because they are mortal or because 
they are bad1 but of the yet more       
mysterious sorrows which fall upon them 
because they are good1 ',in the world ye
 have tribulation1' is the proper       
rendering and reading4 ,it had already  
begun1 and it was to be the standing    
condition and certain fate of all that  
followed ,him4  ,i have already said    

that the ,christian life moves in two   
spheres1 and hence there must           
necessarily be antagonism and conflict4 
,whoever realises the inward life in    
,christ will more or less1 and sooner or
 later1 find himself coming into hostile
 collision with lives which only move on
 the surface and belong to the world4   
,if you and ,i are ,christians after the
 pattern of ,jesus ,christ1 then we     
dwell in the midst of an order of things
 which is not constituted on or for the 
principles that regulate our lives and  
the objects at which we aim4 ,and hence1
 in that fundamental discordance between
 the ,christian life and society as it  
is constituted1 there must always be1 if
 there be honesty and consistency on the
 side of the ,christian man1 more or    
less of collision between him and it4   
,all that you regard as axiomatic the   
world regards as folly1 if you take     
,christ for your ,teacher4 ,all that you
 labour to secure the world does not    
care to possess1 if you have ,him for   

your aim4 ,all that you live to seek it 
has abandoned2 all that you desire to   
obey it will not even consult1 if you   
are taking ,christ and ,his law for your
 rule4 ,and therefore there must come1  
sooner or later1 and more or less       
intensely in all ,christian lives1      
opposition and tribulation4 ,you cannot 
get away from the necessity1 so it is as
 well to face it4  ,no doubt the form of
 antagonism varies4 ,no doubt the more  
the world is penetrated by ,christian   
principles divorced from their root and 
source1 the less vehement and painful   
will the collision be4 ,but there is the
 gulf1 and there it will remain1 until  
the world is a ,church4 ,no doubt some  
portion of the battlements of organised 
,christianity has tumbled into the      
ditch1 and made it a little less deep4  
,christians have dropped their standard 
far too much1 and so the antagonism is  
not so plain as it ought to be1 and as  
it used to be1 and as1 some day1 it will
 be4 ,but there it is1 and if you are   

going to live out and out like a        
,christian man1 you will get the old    
sneers flung at you4 ,you will be       
'crotchety1' 'impracticable1' 'spoiling 
sport1' 'not to be dealt with1' 'a wet  
blanket1' 'pharisaical1' 'bigoted1' and 
all the rest of the pretty words which  
have been so frequently used about the  
men that try to live like ,jesus        
,christ4 ,never mind6 ',in the world ye 
have tribulation4' ',i bear in my body  
the marks of the ,lord ,jesus1' the     
branding-iron which tells to whom the   
slave belongs4 ,and if it is ,his       
initials that ,i carry ,i may be proud  
of the marks4  ,but at any rate there   
will be antagonism4 ,you young men in   
your warehouses1 you men that go on     
',change'1 we people that live by our   
pens or our tongues1 and find ourselves 
in opposition to much of the tendencies 
of the present day--we have all1 in our 
several ways1 to bear the cross4 ,do not
 let us be ashamed of it1 and1 above    
all1 do not let us1 for the sake of     

easing our shoulders1 be unfaithful to  
our ,master4 ',in the world ye have     
tribulation'2 and the ,christian man's  
peace has to be like the rainbow that   
lives above the cataract--still and     
radiant1 whilst it shines above the hell
 of white waters that are tortured      
below4  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 notice the      
courageous confidence which comes from  
the ,lord's victory4  ',be of good      
cheer6' ,it is the old commandment that 
rang out to ,joshua when1 on the        
departure of ,moses1 the conduct of the 
war fell into his less experienced      
hands3 ',be strong1 and of a good       
courage2 only be thou strong and very   
courageous4' ,so says the ,captain of   
salvation1 leaving ,his soldiers to face
 the current of the heady fight in the  
field4 ,like some leader who has climbed
 the ramparts1 or hewed his way through 
the broken ranks of the enemies1 and    
rings out the voice of encouragement and
 call to his followers1 our ,captain    
sets before us ,his own example3 ',i    

have overcome the world1' ,he said that 
the day before ,calvary4 ,if that was   
victory1 what would defeat have been8   
,notice1 then1 how our ,lord's life was 
a true battle4 ,the world tried to draw 
,him away from ,god by appealing to     
things desirable to sense1 as in the    
wilderness2 or to things dreadful to    
sense1 as on the cross2 and both the one
 and the other form of temptation ,he   
faced and conquered4 ,it was no shadow  
fight which evoked this paean of victory
 from ,his lips4 ,the reality of ,his   
conflict is somewhat concealed from us  
by reason of its calm and the           
completeness of ,his conquest4 ,we do   
not appreciate the force that drives a  
planet upon its path because it is calm 
and continuous and silent1 but the power
 that kept ,jesus ,christ continually   
faithful to ,his ,father1 continually   
sure of that ,father's presence1        
continually averse to all self-will and 
selfish living1 was a power mightier    
then all others that have been          

manifested in the history of humanity4  
,the ,captain of our salvation has      
really fought the fight before us4  ,but
 mark1 again1 that our ,lord's life is  
the type of all victorious life4 ,the   
world conquers me when it draws me away 
from ,god1 when it makes me its slave1  
when it coaxes me to trust it1 and urges
 to despair if ,i lose it4 ,the world   
conquers me when it comes between me and
 ,god1 when it fills my desires1 when it
 absorbs my energies1 when it blinds my 
eyes to the things unseen and eternal4  
,i conquer the world when ,i put my foot
 upon its temptations1 when ,i crush it 
down1 when ,i shake off its bonds1 and  
when nothing that time and sense1 with  
their delights or their dreadfulnesses1 
can bring1 prevents me from cleaving to 
my ,father with all my heart1 and from  
living as ,his child here4 ,whoso thus  
coerces ,time and ,sense to be the      
servants of his filial love has         
conquered them both1 and whoso lets them
 draw him away from ,god is beaten1     

however successful he may dream himself 
to be and men may call him4  ,my        
friends6 there is a lesson for          
,manchester people4 ,jesus ,christ was  
not a very successful man according to  
the standard of ,market ,street and the 
,exchange4 ,he made but a poor thing of 
the world1 and ,he was going to be      
martyred on the cross the day after ,he 
said these words4 ,and yet that was     
victory4 ,ay6 ,many a man beaten down in
 the struggle of daily life1 and making 
very little of it1 according to our     
vulgar estimate1 is the true conqueror4 
,success means making the world a       
stepping-stone to ,god4  ,still further1
 note our share in the ,master's        
victory--',i have overcome the world4   
,be ye of good cheer4' ,that seems an   
irrelevant way of arguing4 ,what does it
 matter to me though ,he has overcome8  
,so much the better for ,him2 but what  
good is it to me8  ,it may aid us       
somewhat to more strenuous fighting1 if 
we know that a brother has fought and   

conquered1 and ,i do not under-estimate 
the blessing and the benefit of the life
 of ,jesus ,christ1 as recorded in these
 ,scriptures1 even from that1 as ,i     
conceive it1 miserably inadequate and   
imperfect point of view4 ,but the       
victory of ,jesus ,christ is of         
extremely little practical use to me1 if
 all the use of it is to show me how to 
fight4 ,ah6 you must go a deal deeper   
than that4 ',i have overcome the world1 
and ,i will come and put ,my overcoming 
,spirit into your weakness1 and fill you
 with ,my own victorious life1 and make 
your hands strong to war and your       
fingers to fight2 and be in you the     
conquering and omnipotent ,power4'  ,my 
friends6 ,jesus ,christ's victory is    
ours1 and we are victors in it1 because 
,he is more than the pattern of brave   
warfare1 ,he is even the ,son of ,god1  
who gave ,himself for us1 and gives     
,himself to us1 and dwells in us our    
,strength and our ,righteousness4       
,lastly1 remember that the condition of 

that victory's being ours is the simple 
act of reliance upon ,him and upon it4  
,the man who goes into the battle as    
that little army of the ,hebrews did    
against the wide-stretching hosts of the
 enemy1 saying1 ',o ,lord6 we know not  
what to do1 but our eyes are up unto    
,thee1' will come out 'more than        
conqueror through ,him that loved him4' 
,for 'this is the victory that          
overcometh the world1 even our faith4'  
,,the ,,intercessor  ',these words spake
 ,jesus1 and lifted up ,his eyes to     
heaven1 and said1 ,father1 the hour is  
come2 glorify ,thy ,son1 that ,thy ,son 
also may glorify ,thee3 ,as ,thou hast  
given ,him power over all flesh1 that   
,he should give eternal life to as many 
as ,thou hast given ,him4 ,and this is  
life eternal1 that they might know ,thee
 the only true ,god1 and ,jesus ,christ1
 whom ,thou hast sent4 ,i have glorified
 ,thee on the earth3 ,i have finished   
the work which ,thou gavest ,me to do4  
,and now1 ,o ,father1 glorify ,thou ,me 

with ,thine own ,self with the glory    
which ,i had with ,thee before the world
 was4 ,i have manifested ,thy name unto 
the men which ,thou gavest ,me out of   
the world3 ,thine they were1 and ,thou  
gavest them ,me2 and they have kept ,thy
 word4 ,now they have known that all    
things whatsoever ,thou hast given ,me1 
are of ,thee4 ,for ,i have given unto   
them the words which ,thou gavest ,me2  
and they have received them1 and have   
known surely that ,i came out from      
,thee1 and they have believed that ,thou
 didst send ,me4 ,i pray for them3 ,i   
pray not for the world1 but for them    
which ,thou hast given ,me2 for they are
 ,thine4 ,and all ,mine are ,thine1 and 
,thine are ,mine2 and ,i am glorified in
 them4 ,and now ,i am no more in the    
world1 but these are in the world1 and  
,i come to ,thee4 ,holy ,father1 keep   
through ,thine own name those whom ,thou
 hast given ,me1 that they may be one1  
as we are4 ,while ,i was with them in   
the world1 ,i kept them in ,thy name3   

those that ,thou gavest ,me ,i have     
kept1 and none of them is lost1 but the 
son of perdition2 that the ,scripture   
might be fulfilled4 ,and now come ,i to 
,thee2 and these things ,i speak in the 
world1 that they might have ,my joy     
fulfilled in themselves4 ,i have given  
them ,thy word2 and the world hath hated
 them1 because they are not of the      
world1 even as ,i am not of the world4  
,i pray not that ,thou shouldest take   
them out of the world1 but that ,thou   
shouldest keep them from the evil4 ,they
 are not of the world1 even as ,i am not
 of the world4 ,sanctify them through   
,thy truth3 ,thy word is truth4 ,as     
,thou hast sent ,me into the world1 even
 so have ,i also sent them into the     
world4 ,and for their sakes ,i sanctify 
,myself1 that they also might be        
sanctified through the truth4'--,,john  
xvii4 #a-ai4  ,we may well despair of   
doing justice to the deep thoughts of   
this prayer1 which volumes would not    
exhaust4 ,who is worthy to speak or to  

write about such sacred words8 ,perhaps 
we may best gain some glimpses of their 
great and holy sublimity by trying to   
gather their teaching round the centres 
of the three petitions1 'glorify' 7vs4  
#a1 #e71 'keep' 7v4 #aa71 and 'sanctify'
 7v4 #ag74  ,i4 ,in verses #a-e1 ,jesus 
prays for ,himself1 that ,he may be     
restored to ,his pre-incarnate glory2   
but yet the prayer desires not so much  
that glory as affecting ,himself1 as    
,his being fitted thereby for completing
 ,his work of manifesting the ,father4  
,there are three main points in these   
verses-the petition1 its purpose1 and   
its grounds4  ,as to the first1 the     
repetition of the request in verses #a  
and #e is significant1 especially if we 
note that in the former the language is 
impersonal1 ',thy ,son1' and continues  
so till verse #d1 where ',i' and ',me'  
appear4 ,in verses #a-c1 then1 the      
prayer rests upon the ideal relations of
 ,father and ,son1 realised in ,jesus1  
while in verses #d and #e the personal  

element is emphatically presented4 ,the 
two petitions are in their scope        
identical4 ,the 'glorifying' in the     
former is more fully explained in the   
latter as being that which ,he possessed
 in that ineffable fellowship with the  
,father1 not merely before incarnation1 
but before creation4 ,in ,his manhood   
,he possessed and manifested the 'glory 
as of the ,only-,begotten of the        
,father1 full of grace and truth'2 but  
that glory1 lustrous though it was1 was 
pale1 and humiliation compared with the 
light inaccessible1 which shone around  
the ,eternal ,word in the bosom of the  
,father4 ,yet ,he who prayed was the    
same ,person who had walked in that     
light before time was1 and now in human 
flesh asked for what no mere manhood    
could bear4 ,the first form of the      
petition implies that such a partaking  
in the uncreated glory of the ,father is
 the natural prerogative of ,one who is 
'the ,son1' while the second implies    
that it is the appropriate recompense of

 the earthly life and character of the  
man ,jesus4  ,the petition not only     
reveals the conscious divinity of the   
,son1 but also ,his willing acceptance  
of the ,cross2 for the glorifying sought
 is that reached through death1         
resurrection1 and ascension1 and that   
introductory clause1 'the hour is come1'
 points to the impending sufferings as  
the first step in the answer to the     
petition4 ,the ,crucifixion is always   
thus treated in this ,gospel1 as being  
both the lowest humiliation and the     
'lifting up' of the ,son2 and here ,he  
is reaching out ,his hand1 as it were1  
to draw ,his sufferings nearer4 ,so     
willingly and desiringly did this ,isaac
 climb the mount of sacrifice4 ,both    
elements of the great saying in the     
,epistle to the ,hebrews are here3 ',for
 the joy that was set before ,him1 ,he  
endured the ,cross4'  ,the purpose of   
the petition is to be noted2 namely1 the
 ,son's glorifying of the ,father4 ,no  
taint of selfishness corrupted ,his     

prayer4 ,not for ,himself1 but for men1 
did ,he desire ,his glory4 ,he sought   
return to that serene and lofty seat1   
and the elevation of ,his limited       
manhood to the throne1 not because ,he  
was wearied of earth or impatient of    
weakness1 sorrows1 or limitations1 but  
that ,he might more fully manifest by   
that ,glory1 the ,father's name4 ,to    
make the ,father known is to make the   
,father glorious2 for ,he is all fair   
and lovely4 ,that revelation of divine  
perfection1 majesty1 and sweetness was  
the end of ,christ's earthly life1 and  
is the end of ,his heavenly divine      
activity4 ,he needs to reassume the     
prerogatives of which ,he needed to     
divest ,himself1 and both necessities   
have one end4 ,he had to lay aside ,his 
garments and assume the form of a       
servant1 that ,he might make ,god known2
 but1 that revelation being complete1   
,he must take ,his garments and sit down
 again1 before ,he can go on to tell all
 the meaning of what ,he has 'done unto 

us4'  ,the ground of the petition is    
twofold4 ,verses #b and #c represent the
 glory sought for1 as the completion of 
the ,son's mission and task4 ,already   
,he had been endowed with 'authority    
over all flesh1' for the purpose of     
bestowing eternal life2 and that eternal
 life stands in the knowledge of ,god1  
which is the same as the knowledge of   
,christ4 ,the present gift to the ,son  
and its purpose are thus precisely      
parallel with the further gift desired1 
and that is the necessary carrying out  
of this4 ,the authority and office of   
the incarnate ,christ demand the glory  
of1 and consequent further manifestation
 by1 the glorified ,christ4 ,the life   
which ,he comes to give is a life which 
flows from the revelation that ,he makes
 of the ,father1 received1 not as mere  
intellectual knowledge1 but as loving   
acquaintance4  ,the second ground for   
the petition is in verse #d1 the actual 
perfect fulfilment by the ,son of that  
mission4 ,what untroubled consciousness 

of sinless obedience and transparent    
shining through ,his life of the        
,father's likeness and will ,he must    
have had1 who could thus assert ,his    
complete realisation of that ,father's  
revealing purpose1 as the ground of ,his
 deserving and desiring participation in
 the divine glory6 ,surely such words   
are either the acme of                  
self-righteousness or the self-revealing
 speech of the ,son of ,god4  ,,ii4     
,with verse #f we pass to the more      
immediate reference to the disciples1   
and the context from thence to verse #ae
 may be regarded as all clustered round 
the second petition 'keep' 7v4 #aa74    
,that central request is preceded and   
followed by considerations of the       
disciples' relation to ,christ and to   
the world1 which may be regarded as its 
grounds4 ,the whole context preceding   
the petition may be summed up in two    
grounds for the prayer--the former set  
forth at length1 and the latter         
summarily2 the one being the genuine1   

though incomplete discipleship of the   
men for whom ,christ prays 7vs4 #f-aj71 
and the latter their desolate condition 
without ,jesus 7v4 #aa74  ,it is        
beautiful to see how our ,lord here     
credits the disciples with genuine      
grasp1 both in heart and head1 of ,his  
teaching4 ,he had shortly before had to 
say1 ',have ,i been so long time with   
you1 and yet hast thou not known ,me8'  
and soon 'they all forsook ,him and     
fled4' ,but beneath misconception and   
inadequate apprehension there lived     
faith and love2 and ,he saw 'the full   
corn in the ear1' when only the green   
'blade' was visible1 pushing itself     
above the surface4 ,we may take comfort 
from this generous estimate of imperfect
 disciples4 ,if ,he did not tend1       
instead of quenching1 'dimly burning    
wicks1' where would ,he have 'lights in 
the world8'  ,verse #f lays down the    
beginning of discipleship as threefold3 
,christ's act in revealing2 the         
,father's1 in giving men to ,jesus2 and 

men's1 in keeping the ,father's word4   
',thy word' is the whole revelation by  
,christ1 which is1 as this ,gospel so   
often repeats1 not ,his own1 but the    
,father's4 ,these three facts underlying
 discipleship are pleas for the petition
 to follow2 for unless the feeble       
disciples are 'kept' in the name1 as in 
a fortress1 ,christ's work of revelation
 is neutralised1 the ,father's gift to  
,him made of none effect1 and the       
incipient disciples will not 'keep' ,his
 word4 ,the plea is1 in effect1         
',forsake not the works of thine own    
hands'2 and1 like all ,christ's prayers1
 it has a promise in its depths1 since  
,god does not begin what ,he will not   
finish2 and it has a warning1 too1 that 
we cannot keep ourselves unless a       
stronger ,hand keeps us4  ,verses #g and
 #h carry on the portraiture of         
discipleship1 and thence draw fresh     
pleas4 ,the blessed result of accepting 
,christ's revelation is a knowledge1    
built on happy experience1 and1 like the

 acquaintance of heart with heart1      
issuing in the firm conviction that     
,christ's words and deeds are from ,god4
 ,why does ,he say1 ',all things        
whatsoever ,thou hast given1' instead of
 simply 'that ,i have' or 'declare'8    
,probably it is the natural expression  
of ,his consciousness1 the lowly        
utterance of ,his obedience1 claiming   
nothing as ,his own1 and yet claiming   
all1 while the subsequent clause 'are of
 ,thee' expresses the disciples'        
conviction4 ,in like fashion our ,lord1 
in verse #h1 declares that ,his words1  
in their manifoldness 7contrast v4 #f1  
',thy word'71 were all received by ,him 
from the ,father1 and accepted by the   
disciples1 with the result that they    
came1 as before1 to 'know' by inward    
acquaintance with ,him as a person1 and 
so to have the divinity of ,his ,person 
certified by experience1 and further    
came to 'believe' that ,god had sent    
,him1 which was a conviction arrived at 
by faith4 ,so knowledge1 which is       

personal experience and acquaintance1   
and faith1 which rises to the heights of
 the ,father's purpose1 come from the   
humble acceptance of the ,christ        
declaring the ,father's name4 ,first    
faith1 then knowledge1 and then a fuller
 faith built on it1 and that faith in   
its turn passing into knowledge 7v4     
#be7--these are the blessings belonging 
to the growth of true discipleship1 and 
are discerned by the loving eye of      
,jesus in very imperfect followers4  ,in
 verse #i ,jesus assumes the great      
office of ,intercessor4 ',i pray for    
them' is not so much prayer as ,his     
solemn presentation of ,himself before  
the ,father as the ,high-priest of ,his 
people4 ,it marks an epoch in ,his work4
 ,the task of bringing ,god to man is   
substantially complete4 ,that of        
bringing men by supplication to ,god is 
now to begin4 ,it is the revelation of  
the permanent office of the departed    
,lord4 ,moses on the ,mount holds up the
 rod1 and ,israel prevails 7,exod4 xvii4

 #i74 ,the limitation of this prayer to 
the disciples applies only to the       
special occasion1 and has no bearing on 
the sweep of ,his redeeming purpose or  
the desires of ,his all-pitying heart4  
,the reasons for ,his intercession      
follow in verses #i-aa;a4 ,the disciples
 are the ,father's1 and continue so even
 when 'given' to ,christ1 in accordance 
with the community of possession1 which 
oneness of nature and perfectness of    
love establish between the ,father and  
the ,son4 ,god cannot but care for those
 who are ,his4 ,the ,son cannot but pray
 for those who are ,his4 ,their having  
recognised ,him for what ,he was binds  
,him to pray for them4 ,he is glorified 
in disciples1 and if we show forth ,his 
character1 ,he will be our ,advocate4   
,the last reason for ,his prayer is the 
loneliness of the disciples and their   
exposure in the world without ,him4 ,his
 departure impelled ,him to ,intercede1 
both as being a leaving them defenceless
 and as being an entrance into the      

heavenly state of communion with the    
,father4  ,in the petition itself 7v4   
#aa;b71 observe the invocation ',holy   
,father6' with special reference to the 
prayer for preservation from the        
corruption of the world4 ,god's holiness
 is the pledge that ,he will make us    
holy1 since ,he is ',father' as well4   
,observe the substance of the request1  
that the disciples should be kept1 as in
 a fortress1 within the enclosing circle
 of the name which ,god has given to    
,jesus4 ,the name is the manifestation  
of the divine nature4 ,it was given to  
,jesus1 inasmuch as ,he1 'the ,word1'   
had from the beginning the office of    
revealing ,god2 and that which was      
spoken of the ,angel of the ,covenant is
 true in highest reality of ,jesus3 ',my
 name is in ,him4' ',the name of the    
,lord is a strong tower3 the righteous  
runneth into it and is safe4'  ,observe 
the issue of this keeping2 namely1 the  
unity of believers4 ,the depths of that 
saying are beyond us1 but we can at     

least see thus far--that the true bond  
of unity is the name in which all who   
are one are kept2 that the pattern of   
the true unity of believers is the      
ineffable union of ,father and ,son1    
which is oneness of will and nature1    
along with distinctness of persons2 and 
that therefore this purpose goes far    
deeper than outward unity of            
organisation4  ,then follow other pleas1
 which are principally drawn from       
,christ's relation to the disciples1 now
 ending2 whereas the former ones were   
chiefly deduced from the disciples'     
relation to ,him4 ,he can no more do    
what ,he has done1 and commits it to the
 ,father4 ,happy we if we can leave our 
unfinished tasks to be taken up by ,god1
 and trust those whom we leave          
undefended to be shielded by ,him6 ',i  
kept' is1 in the ,greek1 expressive of  
continuous1 repeated action1 while ',i  
guarded' gives the single issue of the  
many acts of keeping4 ,jesus keeps ,his 
disciples now as ,he did then1 by       

sedulous1 patient1 reiterated acts1 so  
that they are safe from evil4 ,but note 
where ,he kept them--'in ,thy name4'    
,that is our place of safety1 a sure    
defence and inexpugnable fortress4 ,one1
 indeed1 was lost2 but that was not any 
slur on ,christ's keeping1 but resulted 
from his own evil nature1 as being 'a   
son of loss' 7if we may so preserve the 
affinity of the words in the ,greek71   
and from the divine decree from of old4 
,sharply defined and closely united are 
the two apparent contradictories of     
man's free choice of destruction and    
,god's foreknowledge4 ,christ saw them  
in harmony1 and we shall do so one day4 
,then the flow of the prayer recurs to  
former thoughts4 ,going away so soon1   
,he yearned to leave them sharers of    
,his own emotions in the prospect of    
,his departure to the ,father1 and      
therefore ,he had admitted them 7and us7
 to hear this sacred outpouring of ,his 
desires4 ,if we laid to heart the       
blessed revelations of this disclosure  

of ,christ's heart1 and followed ,him   
with faithful gaze as ,he ascends to the
 ,father1 and realised our share in that
 triumph1 our empty vessels would be    
filled by some of that same joy which   
was ,his4 ,earthly joy can never be     
full2 ,christian joy should never be    
anything less than full4  ,then follows 
a final glance at the disciples'        
relation to the world1 to which they are
 alien because they are of kindred to   
,him4 ,this is the ground for the       
repetition of the prayer 'keep'1 with   
the difference that formerly it was     
'keep in ,thy name1' and now it is 'from
 the evil4' ,it is good to gaze first on
 our defence1 the 'munitions of rocks'  
where we lie safely1 and then we can    
venture to face the thought of 'the     
evil1' from which that keeps us1 whether
 it be personal or abstract4  ,,iii4    
,verses #af-ai give the final petition  
for the immediate circle of disciples1  
with its grounds4 ,the position of      
alienation from the world1 in which the 

disciples stand by reason of their      
assimilation to ,jesus1 is repeated     
here4 ,it was the reason for the former 
prayer1 'keep'2 it is the reason for the
 new petition1 'sanctify4' ,keeping     
comes first1 and then sanctifying1 or   
consecration4 ,security from evil is    
given that we may be wholly devoted to  
the service of ,god4 ,the evil in the   
world is the great hindrance to that4   
,the likeness to ,jesus is the great    
ground of hope that we shall be truly   
consecrated4 ,we are kept 'in the name'2
 we are consecrated 'in the truth1'     
which is the revelation made by ,jesus1 
and in a very deep sense is ,himself4   
,that truth is1 as it were1 the element 
in which the believer lives1 and by     
abiding in which his real consecration  
is possible4  ,christ's prayer for us   
should be our aim and deepest desire for
 ourselves1 and ,his declaration of the 
condition of its fulfilment should      
prescribe our firm adhesion to1 and     
constant abiding in1 the truth as       

revealed and embodied in ,him1 as the   
only means by which we can attain the   
consecration which is at once1 as the   
closing verses of the passage tell us1  
the means by which we may fulfil the    
purpose for which we are sent into the  
world1 and the path on which we reach   
complete assimilation to ,his perfect   
self-surrender4 ,all ,christians are    
sent into the world by ,jesus1 as ,jesus
 was sent by the ,father4 ,we have the  
charge to glorify ,him4 ,we have the    
presence of the ,sender with us1 the    
sent4 ,we are inspired with ,his        
,spirit4 ,we cannot do ,his work without
 that entire consecration which shall   
copy ,his devotion to the ,father and   
eager swiftness to do ,his will4 ,how   
can such ennobling and exalted          
consecration be ours8 ,there is but one 
way4 ,he has 'consecrated ,himself1' and
 by union with ,him through faith1 our  
selfishness may be subdued1 and the     
,spirit of ,christ may dwell in our     
hearts1 to make us 'living sacrifices1  

consecrated and acceptable to ,god4'    
,then shall we be truly 'consecrated1'  
and then only1 when we can say1 ',i     
live2 yet not ,i1 but ,christ liveth in 
me4' ,that is the end of ,christ's      
consecration of ,himself--the prayer    
which ,he prayed for ,his disciples--and
 should be the aim which every disciple 
earnestly pursues4     ',,the ,,lord    
,,thee ,,keeps'  '444,they are not of   
the world1 even as ,i am not of the     
world4 ,i pray not that ,thou shouldest 
take them out of the world1 but that    
,thou shouldest keep them from the evil4
 ,they are not of the world1 even as ,i 
am not of the world4'--,,john xvii4     
#ad-af4  ,we have here a petition       
imbedded in a reiterated statement of   
the disciples' isolated position when   
left in a hostile world without         
,christ's sheltering presence4 ,we      
cannot fathom the depth of the mystery  
of the praying ,christ1 but we may be   
sure of this1 that ,his prayers were    
always in harmony with the ,father's    

will1 were1 in fact1 the expression of  
that will1 and were therefore promises  
and prophecies4 ,what ,he prays the     
,father for ,his disciples ,he gives to 
,his disciples4 ,once only had ,he to   
say1 ',if it be possible'2 at all other 
times ,he prayed as sure that ',thou    
hearest ,me always1' and in this very   
prayer ,he speaks in a tone of strange  
authority1 when ,he prays for all       
believers in future ages1 and says3 ',i 
will that1 where ,i am1 they also may be
 with ,me4' ,in this ,high-priestly     
prayer1 offered when ,gethsemane was    
almost in sight1 and the ,judgment ,hall
 and ,calvary were near1 our ,lord's    
tender interest in ,his disciples fills 
,his mind1 and even in its earlier      
portion1 which is in form a series of   
petitions for ,himself1 it is in essence
 a prayer for them1 whilst this central 
section which concerns the ,apostles1   
and the closing section which casts the 
mantle of ,his love and care over all   
who hereafter shall 'believe on ,me     

through their word1' witnesses to the   
sublime completeness of ,his            
self-oblivion4 ,gethsemane heard ,his   
prayer for ,himself2 here ,he prays for 
,his people1 and the calm serenity and  
confident assurance of this prayer1 set 
against the agitation of that other1    
receives and gives emphasis by the      
contrast4  ,our text falls into two     
parts1 the enclosing circle of the      
repeated statement of the disciples'    
isolation in an alien world1 and the    
enclosed jewel of the all-sufficient    
prayer which guarantees their           
protection4 ,we shall best make its     
comfort and cheer our own by dealing    
with these two successively4  ,i4 ,the  
disciples' isolation4  ,of course we are
 to interpret the 'world' here in       
accordance with the ethical usage of    
that term in this ,gospel1 according to 
which it means the aggregate of mankind 
considered as apart from and alien to   
,god4 ,it is roughly equivalent to the  
modern phrase1 'society4'  ,with that   

order of things ,christ's real followers
 are not in accord4  ,that want of      
accord depends upon their accord with   
,jesus4  ,every ,christian has the 'mind
 of ,christ' in him1 in the measure of  
his ,christianity4 ',it is enough for   
the disciple that he be as his ,master' 
,but ,christian discipleship has a      
better guarantee for the assimilation of
 the disciple to his ,lord than the     
ordinary forms of the relation of       
teacher and taught ever present4 ,there 
is a participation in the ,master's     
life1 an implantation in the scholar's  
spirit of the ,teacher's ,spirit4       
',christ in us' is not only 'the hope of
 glory1' but the power which makes      
possible and actual the present         
possession of a life kindred with1      
because derived from1 and essentially   
one with1 ,his life4  ,they whose       
spirits are touched by the indwelling   
,christ to the 'fine issues' of sympathy
 with the law of ,his earthly life      
cannot but live in the world as aliens1 

and wander amid its pitfalls with 'blank
 misgivings' and a chill sense that this
 is not their rest4 ,they are knit to   
,one whose 'meat and drink' was to do   
the will of the ,father in heaven1 who  
'pleased not ,himself1' whose life was  
all one long service and sacrifice for  
men1 whose joys were not fed by earthly 
possessions or delights4 ,how should    
they have a sense of community of aims  
with grovelling hearts that cling to    
wealth or ambition1 that are not at     
peace with ,god1 and have no holdfasts  
beyond this 'bank and shoal of time'8 ,a
 man who has drunk into the spirit of   
,christ's life is thereby necessarily   
thrown out of gear with the world4      
,happy is he if his union with ,jesus is
 so deep and close that it is but       
deepened by his experience of the lack  
of sympathy between the world and       
himself6 ,happy if his consciousness of 
not being 'of the world' but quickens   
his desire to help the world and glorify
 his ,lord1 by bringing ,his            

all-sufficiency into its emptiness1 and 
leading it1 too1 to discern ,his        
sweetness and beauty6  ,but how little  
the life of the average ,christian      
corresponds to this reiterated utterance
 of our ,lord6 ,who of us dare venture  
to take it on our lips and to say that  
we are 'not of the world even as ,he is 
not of the world'8 ,is not our relation 
to that world of which ,jesus here      
speaks a contrast rather than a parallel
 to ,his8 ,the 'prince of this world'   
had nothing in ,christ1 as ,he himself  
declared1 but ,he has much in each of   
us4 ,there are stored up heaps of       
combustibles in every one of us which   
catch fire only too swiftly1 and burn   
but too fiercely1 when the 'fiery darts 
of the wicked' fall among them4 ,instead
 of an instinctive recoil from the view 
of life characteristic of 'the world1'  
we must confess1 if we are honest1 that 
it draws us strongly1 and many of us are
 quite at home with it4 ,why is this but
 because we do not habitually live near 

enough to our ,lord to drink in ,his    
,spirit8 ,the measure of our discord    
with the world is the measure of our    
accord with our ,saviour4 ,it is in the 
degree in which we possess ,his life    
that we come to be aliens here1 and it  
is in the degree in which we keep in    
touch with ,jesus1 and keep our hearts  
wide open for the entrance of ,his      
,spirit1 that we possess ,his life4 ,a  
worldly ,christian--no uncommon         
character--is a ,christian who has all  
but shut himself off from the life which
 ,christ breathes into the expectant    
soul4  ,,ii4 ,the disciples' guarded    
security4  ,jesus encloses ,his prayer  
between the two parts of that repeated  
statement of the disciples' isolation4  
,it is like some lovely1 peaceful plain 
circled by grim mountains4 ,the         
isolation is a necessary consequence of 
the disciples' previous union with ,him4
 ,it involves much that is painful to   
the unrenewed part of their natures1 but
 their ,lord's prayer is more than      

enough for their security and peace4    
',i pray not that ,thou shouldest take  
them out of the world4' ,they are in it 
by ,god's appointment for great         
purposes1 affecting their own characters
 and affecting the world1 with which    
,christ will not interfere4 ,it is their
 training ground1 their school4 ,the    
sense of belonging to another order is  
to be intensified by their experiences  
in it1 and these are to make more vivid 
the hopes that yearn towards the true   
home1 and to develop the 'wrestling     
thews that throw the world4' ,the       
discipline of life is too precious to be
 tampered with even by a ,saviour's     
prayer1 and ,he loves ,his people too   
wisely to seek to shelter them from its 
roughness1 and to procure for them      
exemption which would impoverish their  
characters4  ,so let us learn the lesson
 and shape our desires after the pattern
 of our ,lord's prayer for us1 nor      
blindly seek for that ease which ,he    
would not ask for us4 ,false asceticism 

that shrinks from contact with an alien 
world1 weak running from trials and     
temptations1 selfish desires for        
exemption from sorrows1 are all rebuked 
by this prayer4 ,christ's relation to   
the world is our pattern1 and we are not
 to seek for pillows in an order of     
things where ,he 'had not where to lay  
,his head4'  ,but ,he does ask for ,his 
people that they may be kept 'from      
evil1' or from 'the evil ,one4' ,that   
prayer is1 as we have said1 a promise   
and a prophecy4 ,but the fulfilment of  
it in each individual disciple hinges on
 the disciple's keeping himself in touch
 with ,jesus1 whereby the 'much virtue' 
of ,his prayer will encompass him and   
keep him safe4 ,we do not discuss the   
alternative renderings1 according to one
 of which 'the evil' is impersonal1 and 
according to the other of which it is   
concentrated in the personal 'prince of 
this world4' ,in either case1 it is 'the
 evil' against which the disciples are  
to be guarded1 whether it has a personal

 source or not4  ,here1 in ,christ's    
intercession1 is the firm ground of our 
confidence that we may be 'more than    
conquerors' in the life-long fight which
 we have to wage4 ,the sweet strong old 
psalm is valid in its assurances to-day 
for every soul which puts itself under  
the shadow of ,christ's protecting      
intercession3 ',the ,lord shall keep    
thee from all evil1 ,he shall keep thy  
soul4' ,we have not 'to lift up our eyes
 unto the hills1' for 'vainly is help   
hoped for from the multitude of the     
mountains1' but ',our help cometh from  
the ,lord which made heaven and earth4' 
,therefore we may dwell at peace in the 
midst of an alien world1 having the     
,father for our ,keeper1 and the ,son1  
who overcame the world1 for our         
,intercessor1 our ,pattern and our      
,hope4  ,the parallel between ,christ   
and ,his people applies to their        
relations to the present order of       
things3 ',they are not of the world1    
even as ,i am not of the world4' ,it    

applies to their mission here3 ',as     
,thou didst send ,me into the world1    
even so sent ,i them into the world4'   
,it applies to the future3 ',i am no    
more in the world1 but these are in the 
world1 and ,i come to ,thee1' and in    
that 'coming' lies the guarantee that   
,his servants will1 each in his due     
time1 come out from this alien world and
 pass into the state which is home1     
because ,he is there4 ,the prayer that  
they might be kept from the evil1 while 
remaining in the scene where evil is    
rampant1 is crowned by the prayer3 ',i  
will that1 where ,i am1 they also may be
 with ,me1 that they may behold ,my     
glory4'    ,,the ,,high ,,priest',s     
,,prayer  ',neither pray ,i for these   
alone1 but for them also which shall    
believe on ,me through their word2 ,that
 they all may be one2 as ,thou1 ,father1
 art in ,me1 and ,i in ,thee1 that they 
also may be one in us3 that the world   
may believe that ,thou hast sent ,me4   
,and the glory which ,thou givest ,me ,i

 have given them2 that they may be one1 
even as we are one3 ,i in them1 and     
,thou in ,me1 that they may be made     
perfect in one2 and that the world may  
know that ,thou hast sent ,me1 and hast 
loved them1 as ,thou hast loved ,me4    
,father1 ,i will that they also1 whom   
,thou hast given ,me1 be with ,me where 
,i am2 that they may behold ,my glory1  
which ,thou hast given ,me3 for ,thou   
lovedst ,me before the foundation of the
 world4 ,o righteous ,father1 the world 
hath not known ,thee3 but ,i have known 
,thee1 and these have known that ,thou  
hast sent ,me4 ,and ,i have declared    
unto them ,thy name1 and will declare   
it2 that the love wherewith ,thou hast  
loved ,me may be in them1 and ,i in     
them4'--,,john xvii4 #bj-bf4  ,the      
remainder of this prayer reaches out to 
all generations of believers to the end4
 ,we may incidentally note that it shows
 that ,jesus did not anticipate a speedy
 end of the history of the world or the 
,church2 and also that it breathes but  

one desire1 that for the ,church's      
unity1 as though ,he saw what would be  
its greatest peril4 ,characteristic1    
too1 of the idealism of this ,gospel is 
it that there is no name for that future
 community4 ,it is not called 'church1' 
or 'congregation1' or the like--it is   
'them also that believe on ,me through  
their word1' a great spiritual          
community1 held together by common faith
 in ,him whom the ,apostles preached4   
,is not that still the best definition  
of ,christians1 and does not such a     
conception of it correspond better to   
its true nature than the formal         
abstraction1 'the ,church'8  ,we can but
 touch in the most inadequate fashion   
the profound words of this section of   
the prayer which would take volumes to  
expound fitly4 ,we note that it contains
 four periods1 in each of which         
something is asked or stated1 and then a
 purpose to be attained by the petition 
or statement is set forth4  ,first comes
 the prayer for unity and what the      

answer to it will effect 7v4 #ba74 ,now 
in this verse the unity of believers is 
principally regarded as resulting from  
the inclusion1 if we may so say1 of them
 all in the ineffable union of the      
,father and the ,son4 ,jesus prays that 
'they may all be one1' and also 'that   
they also may be in us' 7,rev4 ,ver474  
,and their unity is no mere matter of   
formal external organisation nor of     
unanimity of creed1 or the like1 but it 
is a deep1 vital unity4 ,the pattern of 
it is the unity of the ,father and the  
,son1 and the power that brings it about
 is the abiding of all believers 'in    
us4' ,the result of such a manifestation
 in the world of a multitude of men1 in 
all of whom one life evidently moves1   
fusing their individualities while      
retaining their personalities1 will be  
the world's conviction of the divine    
mission of ,jesus4 ,the world was       
beginning to feel its convictions moving
 slowly in that direction1 when it      
exclaimed3 ',behold how these           

,christians love one another6' ,the     
alienation of ,christians has given     
barbs and feathers to its arrows of     
scorn4 ,but it is 'the unity of the     
,spirit1' not that of a1 great          
corporation1 that ,christ's prayer      
desires4  ,the petitions for what would 
be given to believers passes for a      
moment into a statement of what ,jesus  
had already given to them4 ,he had begun
 the unifying gift1 and that made a plea
 for its perfecting4 ,the 'glory' which 
,he had given to these poor bewildered  
,galilaeans was but in a rudimentary    
stage2 but still1 wherever there is     
faith in ,him1 there is some            
communication of ,his life and ,spirit1 
and some of that veiled and yet radiant 
glory1 'full of grace and truth1' which 
shone through the covering when the     
,incarnate ,word 'became flesh4' ,it is 
the ,christ-given ,christ-likeness in   
each which knits believers into one4 ,it
 is ,christ in us and we in ,christ that
 fuses us into one1 and thereby makes   

each perfect4 ,and such flashing back of
 the light of ,jesus from a million     
separate crystals1 all glowing with one 
light and made one in the light1 would  
flash on darkest eyes the lustre of the 
conviction that ,god sent ,christ1 and  
that ,god's love enfolded those         
,christlike souls even as it enfolded   
,him4  ,again 7v4 #bd7 comes a petition 
with its result4 ,and here there is no  
mention of the effect of the answer on  
the world4 ,for the moment the thoughts 
of isolation in1 and a message to1 the  
world fade away4 ,the                   
partially-possessed 'glory' seems to    
have led on ,christ's thoughts to the   
calm home of perfection waiting for ,him
 who was 'not of the world' and was sent
 into it1 and for the humble ones who   
had taken ,him for ,lord4 ',i will      
that'--that is a strange tone for a     
prayer4 ,what consciousness on ,christ's
 part does it involve8 ,the disciples   
are not now called 'them that should    
believe on ,me1' but 'that which ,thou  

hast given ,me1' the individuals melt   
into the great whole4 ,they are         
,christ's1 not merely by their faith or 
man's preaching1 but by the ,father's   
gift4 ,and the fact of that gift is used
 as a plea with ,him1 to 'perfect that  
which concerneth' them1 and to complete 
the unity of believers with ,jesus by   
bringing them to be 'with ,him' in ,his 
triumphant session at the right hand4   
,to 'behold' will be the same as to     
share ,his glory1 not only that which we
 beheld when ,he tabernacled among us1  
but that which ,he had in the pouring   
out on ,him of ,god's love 'before the  
foundation of the world4' ,our dim eyes 
cannot follow the happy souls as they   
are lost in the blaze1 but we know that 
they walk in light and are like ,him1   
for they 'see ,him as ,he is4'  ,the    
last statement 7vs4 #be1 #bf7 is not    
petition but vow1 and1 to our ears1     
promise4 ,the contrast of the world and 
believers appears for the last time4    
,what made the world a 'world' was its  

not knowing ,god2 what made believers   
isolated in1 and having an errand to1   
the world1 was that they 'knew' 7not    
merely 'believed1' but knew by          
experience7 that ,jesus had been sent   
from ,god to make known ,his name4 ,all 
our knowledge of ,god comes through     
,him2 it is for us to recognise ,his    
divine mission1 and then ,he will       
unveil1 more and more1 with blessed     
continuity of increasing knowledge1 the 
,name1 and with growing knowledge of it 
growing measures of ,god's love will be 
in us1 and ,jesus ,himself will 'dwell  
in our hearts by faith' more completely 
and more blessedly through an eternity  
of wider knowledge and more fervent     
love4    ,,the ,,folded ,,flock  ',i    
will that they also1 whom ,thou hast    
given ,me1 be with ,me where ,i am2 that
 they may behold ,my glory4'--,,john    
xvii4 #bd4  ,this wonderful prayer is   
7a7 for ,jesus ,himself1 7b7 for the    
,apostles1 7c7 for the whole ,church on 
earth and in heaven4  ,i4 ,the prayer4  

',i will' has a strange ring of         
authority4 ,it is the expression of ,his
 love to men1 and of ,his longing for   
their presence with ,him in ,his glory4 
,not till they are with ,him there1     
shall ,he 'see of the travail of ,his   
soul and be satisfied4'  ,we have here a
 glimpse of the blessed state of the    
dead in ,christ4  7a7 ,local presence   
with ,christ4 ,his glorified body is    
somewhere4 ,the value of this thought is
 that it gives solidity to our ideas of 
a future life4 ,there they are4 ,we need
 not dwell on the metaphysical          
difficulties about locality for         
disembodied spirits4  ,if a spirit can  
be localised in a body1 ,i suppose it   
can be localised without a body2 but    
passing by all that1 we have the hope   
held out here of a real local presence  
with the glorified humanity of our      
,lord4 ,we speak of the dead as gone    
from us1 and we have that idea far more 
vividly in our minds than that of their 
having gone to ,him4 ,we speak of the   

'departed1' but we do not think of them 
as 'arrived4' ,we look down to the      
narrow grave1 but we forget ',he is not 
here1 ,he is risen4 ,why seek ye the    
living among the dead8' ,ah6 if we could
 only bring home to our hearts the solid
 prose of the conviction that where     
,christ is there ,his servants are1 and 
that not in the diffused ubiquity of    
,his ,divine ,omnipresence1 it would go 
far to remove the darkness and vague    
mist which wrap the future1 and to set  
it as it really is before us1 as a solid
 definite reality4 ,we see the sails    
glide away out into the west as the sun 
goes down1 and we think of them as      
tossing on a midnight sea1 an           
unfathomable waste4 ,try to think of    
them more truly4 ,as in that old        
miracle1 ,he comes to them walking on   
the water in the night watch1 and if at 
first they are terrified1 ,his voice    
brings back hope to the heart that is   
beginning to stand still1 and           
immediately they are at the land whither

 they go4 ,now1 as they sink from our   
sight1 they are in port1 sails furled   
and anchor dropped1 and green fields    
round them1 even while we watch the     
sinking masts1 and cannot yet rightly   
tell whether the fading sail has faded  
wholly4  7b7 ,communion with ,christ4   
,our ,lord says not only 'that where ,i 
am1 they also may be1' but adds 'with   
,me4' ,that is not a superfluous        
addition1 but emphasises the thought of 
a communion which is more intimate and  
blessed than local presence alone would 
be4  ,the communion here is real but    
imperfect4 ,it is perfected there on our
 part by the dropping away of flesh and 
sin1 by change of circumstances1 by     
emancipation from cares and toils       
necessary here1 by the development of   
new powers and surroundings1 and on ,his
 side by new manifestations4  7c7       
,vision of ,his glory4  ,the crown of   
this utterance of ,christ's will is     
'that they may behold ,my glory4' ,in an
 earlier part of this prayer our ,lord  

had spoken of the 'glory which ,i had   
with ,thee before the world was4' ,but  
probably the glory 'given' is not that  
of essential ,divinity1 but that of ,his
 mediatorial work4 ,to ,his people 'with
 ,him where ,he is1' are imparted fuller
 views of ,christ as ,saviour1 deeper   
notions of ,his work1 clearer perception
 of ,his rule in providence and nature4 
,this is the loftiest employment of the 
spirits who are perfected and lapped in 
'pleasures for evermore' by their union 
with the glorified ,jesus4  ,surely this
 is grander than all metaphorical       
pictures of heaven4  ,,ii4 ,the         
incipient fulfilment now going on4  ,the
 prayer has been in process of          
fulfilment ever since4 ,the dead in     
,christ have entered on its answer now4 
,we need not discuss difficulties about 
the 'intermediate state1' for this at   
all events is true1 that to be 'absent  
from the body' is to be 'present with   
the ,lord4'  ,a ,christian death is an  
answer to this prayer4 ,true1 for       

,christians as for all1 the physical    
necessity is an imperative law4 ,true1  
the punitive aspect of death is retained
 for them4 ,but yet the law is wielded  
by ,christ1 and while death remains1 its
 whole aspect is changed4 ,so we may    
think of those who have departed in ,his
 faith and fear as gone in answer to    
this prayer4  ,how beautiful that is6   
,slowly1 one by one1 they are gathered  
in1 as the stars one by one light up4   
,place after place is filled4  ,thus    
through the ages the prayer works on1   
and our dear ones have gone from us1 but
 they have gone to ,him4 ,we weep1 but  
they rejoice4 ,to us their departure is 
the result of an iron law1 of a penal   
necessity1 of some secondary cause2 but 
to them it is seen to be the answer to  
,his mighty prayer4 ,they hear ,his     
voice and follow ,him when ,he says1    
',come up hither4'  ,,iii4 ,the final   
fulfilment still future4  ,the prayer   
looks forward to a perfect fulfilment4  
,his prayer cannot be vain4  7a7        

,perfect in degree4  7b7 ,perfect in    
extent1 when all shall be gathered      
together and the 'whole family' shall be
 'in heaven1' and ,christ's own word    
receives its crowning realisation1 that 
'of all whom the ,father hath given ,him
 ,he has lost nothing4'  ,and these are 
not some handful picked out by a decree 
which we can neither fathom nor alter1  
but ,christ is given to us all1 and if  
we choose to take ,him1 then for us ,he 
has ascended2 and as we watch ,him going
 up the voice comes to us3 ',i go to    
prepare a place for you4 ,i will come   
again and receive you unto ,myself1 that
 where ,i am1 there ye may be also4'    
,,christ',s ,,summary ,,of ,,his ,,work 
',i have declared onto them ,thy name1  
and will declare it3 that the love      
wherewith ,thou hast loved ,me may be in
 them1 and ,i in them4'--,,john xvii4   
#bf4  ,this is the solemn and calm close
 of ,christ's great ,high-priestly      
prayer2 the very last words that ,he    
spoke before ,gethsemane and ,his       

passion4 ,in it ,he sums up both the    
purpose of ,his life and the petitions  
of ,his prayer1 and presents the perfect
 fulfilment of the former as the ground 
on which ,he asks the fulfilment of the 
latter4 ,there is a singular            
correspondence and contrast between     
these last words to ,god and the last   
words to the disciples1 which           
immediately preceded them4 ,these were1 
',in the world ye shall have            
tribulation1 but be of good cheer1 ,i   
have overcome the world4' ,in both ,he  
sums up ,his life1 in both ,he is       
unconscious of flaw1 imperfection1 or   
limitation2 in both ,he shares ,his own 
possessions among ,his followers4 ,but  
,his words to men carry a trace of ,his 
own conflict and a foreboding of theirs4
 ,for ,him life had been1 and for them  
it was to be1 tribulation and a battle1 
and the highest thing that ,he could    
promise them was victory won by         
conflict4 ,but from the serene elevation
 of the prayer all such thoughts        

disappear4 ,unbroken calm lies over it4 
,his life has been one continual        
manifestation of the name of ,god2 and  
the portion that ,he promises to ,his   
followers is not victory won by strife1 
but the participation with ,himself in  
the love of ,god4  ,both views are      
true--true to ,his experience1 true to  
ours4 ,the difference between them lies 
in the elevation of the beholder's eye4 
,looked at on the outward side1 ,his    
life and ours must be always a battle   
and often a sorrow4 ,looked at from     
within1 ,his life was an unbroken       
abiding in the love of ,god1 and a      
continual impartation of the name of    
,god1 and our lives may be an ever      
growing knowledge of ,god1 leading to   
and being a fuller and fuller possession
 of ,his love1 and of a present ,christ4
 ,so let us ponder these deep words3 our
 ,lord's own summing up of ,his work and
 aims2 ,his statement of what we may    
hope to attain2 and the path by which we
 may attain it4 ,i shall best bring out 

the whole fullness of their meaning if  
,i simply follow them word by word4  ,i4
 ,note1 first1 the backward look of the 
revealing ,son4  ',i have declared ,thy 
name4'  ,the first thing that strikes   
one about these words is their boldness4
 ,remember that they are spoken to ,god1
 at the close of a life the heights and 
depths of which they sum up4 ,they are  
an appeal to ,god's righteous judgment  
of the whole character of the career4   
,do they breathe the tone that we might 
expect8 ,surely the prophet or teacher  
who has most earnestly tried to make    
himself a mirror1 without spot to darken
 and without dint to distort the divine 
ray1 will be the first to feel1 as he   
looks back1 the imperfections of his    
repetition of his message4 ,but ,jesus  
,christ1 when ,he looks back over ,his  
life1 has no flaw1 limitation1          
incompleteness1 to record or to confess4
 ,as always so here1 ,he is absolutely  
unconscious of anything in the nature of
 weakness1 error1 or sin4 ,as when ,he  

looked back upon ,his life as a         
conflict1 ,he had no defeats to remember
 with shame1 so here1 when ,he looks    
upon it as the revelation of ,god ,he   
feels that everything which ,he has     
received of the ,father ,he has made    
known unto men4  ,and the strange thing 
is that we admit the claim1 and have    
become so accustomed to regard it as    
being perfectly legitimate that we      
forget how enormous it is4 ,he takes an 
attitude here which in any other man    
would be repulsive1 but in ,him is      
supremely natural4 ,we criticise other  
people1 we outgrow their teachings1 we  
see where their doctrines have deviated 
from truth by excess or defect1 or      
disproportion2 but when ,he says ',i    
have declared ,thy name1' we feel that  
,he says nothing more than the simple   
facts of ,his life vindicate and        
confirm4  ,not less remarkable is the   
implication in these words1 not only of 
the completeness of ,his message1 but of
 the fullness of ,his knowledge of ,god1

 and its entirely underived nature4 ,so 
,he claims for ,himself an altogether   
special and unique position here3 ,he   
has learned ,god from none2 ,he teaches 
,god to all4 ',that was the true ,light 
which lighteth every man that cometh    
into the world4'  ,looking a little more
 closely at these words before us1 we   
have here ,christ's own account of ,his 
whole life4 ,the meaning of it all is   
the revelation of the heart of ,god4    
,not by words1 of course2 not by words  
only1 but far more by deeds4 ,and ,i    
would have you ask yourselves this      
question--,if the deeds of a man are a  
declaration of the name of ,god1 what   
sort of a man is ,he who thus declares  
,him8 ,must we not feel that if these   
words1 or anything like them1 really    
came from the lips of ,jesus ,christ1 we
 are here in the presence of something  
other than a holy life of a simple      
humanity1 which might help men to climb 
to the apprehension of a ,god who was   
perfect love2 and that when ,he says    

',he that hath seen ,me hath seen the   
,father1' we stand before ',god manifest
 in the flesh4'  ,what is that name of  
,god which the revealing ,son declares8 
,not the mere syllables by which we call
 ,him1 but the manifested character of  
the ,father4 ,that one name1 in the     
narrower sense of the word1 carries the 
whole revelation that ,jesus ,christ has
 to make2 for it speaks of tenderness1  
of kindred1 of paternal care1 of the    
transmission of a nature1 of the embrace
 of a divine love4 ,and it delivers men 
from all their creeping dreads1 from all
 their dark peradventures1 from all     
their stinging fears1 from all the      
paralysing uncertainties which1 like    
clouds1 always misty and often          
thunder-bearing1 have shut out the sight
 of the divine face4 ,if this ,christ1  
in ,his weakness and humanity1 with pity
 welling from ,his eyes1 and making     
music of ,his voice1 with the swift help
 streaming from ,his fingers-tips to    
every pain and weariness1 and the       

gracious righteousness that drew little 
children and did not repel publicans and
 harlots1 is our best image of ,god1    
then love is the centre of divinity1 and
 all the rest that we call ,god is but  
circumference and fringe of that central
 brightness4    ',so through the thunder
 comes a human voice   ,saying1 ,o heart
 ,i made6 a heart beats here4'  ,he has 
declared ,god's name1 ,his last best    
name of ,love4  ,need ,i dwell for one  
moment on the fact that that name is    
only declared by this ,son8 ,there is no
 need to deny the presence of manifold  
other precious sources in men's         
experience and lives from which         
something may be inferred of what ,god  
truly is4 ,but all these1 rich and      
manifold as they are1 fall into         
nothingness before the life of ,jesus   
,christ1 considered as the making       
visible of ,god4 ,for all the rest are  
partial and incomplete4 ',at sundry     
times and in divers manners' ,god flung 
forth syllables of the name1 and        

'fragments of that mighty voice came    
rolling down the wind4' ,but in ,jesus  
,christ the whole name1 in all its      
syllables1 is spoken4 ,other sources of 
knowledge are ambiguous1 and need the   
interpretation of ,christ's life and    
,cross ere they can be construed into a 
harmonious whole4 ,life1 nature1 our    
inmost being1 history1 all these sources
 speak with two voices2 and it is only  
when we hear the deep note that         
underlies them in the word of ,christ   
that their discord becomes a harmony4   
,other sources lack authority4 ,they    
come at the most with a 'may be4' ,he   
comes with a ',verily1 verily4' ,other  
sources speak to the understanding1 or  
the conscience1 or to fear4 ,christ     
speaks to the heart4 ,other sources     
leave the man who accepts them          
unaffected4 ,christ's message penetrates
 to the transforming and assimilation of
 the whole being4  ,so1 dear brethren6  
for all generations1 and for this       
generation most of all1 the plain       

alternative lies between the declaration
 of the name of ,god in ,jesus ,christ  
and a godless and orphan world4 ,modern 
thought will make short work of all     
other sources of certitude about the    
character of ,god1 and will leave men   
alone in the dark4 ,christ1 the         
historical fact of the life and death of
 ,jesus ,christ1 is the sole surviving  
source of certitude1 which is           
blessedness1 as to whether there is a   
,god1 and what sort of a ,god ,he is4   
,,ii4 ,secondly1 note here that strange 
forward look of the dying ,man3 ',i have
 declared ,thy name and will declare    
it4'  ,and that was said within eight   
and forty hours of the ,cross1 which1 if
 ,he had been a simple human teacher and
 martyr1 would have ended all ,his      
activity in the world4 ,but here ,he is 
not merely summing up ,his life1 and    
laying it aside1 writing the last       
sentence1 as it were1 which gathers up  
the whole of the completed book1 but ,he
 is closing the first volume1 and in the

 act of doing so ,he stretches out ,his 
hand to open the second4 ',i will       
declare it4' ,when8 ,how8 ,did not      
earthly life1 then1 put a stop to this  
,teacher's activity8 ,was there still   
prophetic function to be done after     
death had sealed ,his lips8 ,certainly4 
,that anticipation1 which at once       
differentiates ,him from all the brood  
of merely human teachers and prophets1  
even the highest1 does indeed include as
 future1 at the moment when ,he speaks1 
the swiftly coming and close ,cross2 but
 it goes beyond it4 ,how much of        
,christendom's knowledge of ,god        
depended upon the ,passion1 on the      
threshold of which ,christ was standing8
 ,he1 hanging on the ,cross in weakness1
 and dying there amidst the darkness    
that overspread the land1 is a strange  
,revealer of the omnipotent1 infinite1  
ever-blessed ,god4 ,but ,oh6 if we      
strike ,gethsemane and ,calvary out of  
,christ's manifestation of the ,father1 
how infinitely poorer are we and the    

world6 ',god commendeth1' 7rather       
'establisheth1'7 ',his love toward us in
 that whilst we were yet sinners ,christ
 died for us4' ,and so as we turn       
ourselves to the little knoll outside   
the gate1 where the ,nazarene carpenter 
hangs faint and dying1 we--wonder of    
,wonders1 and yet certainty of          
certainties6--have to say1 ',lo6 this is
 our ,god2 we have waited for ,him4'    
,but that future revelation extends     
beyond the ,cross1 and includes         
resurrection1 ascension1 ,pentecost1 and
 the whole history of the ,church right 
onwards through the ages4 ,the          
difference between the two volumes of   
revelation--that which includes the work
 of ,christ upon earth1 and that which  
includes ,his revelation from the       
heavens--is this1 that the first volume 
contains all the facts1 and the second  
volume contains ,his interpretation and 
application of the facts in the         
understandings and hearts of ,his       
people4 ,we have no more facts from     

which to construe ,god than these which 
belong to the earthly life of ,jesus    
,christ1 and we never shall have1 here  
at all events4 ,but whilst the first    
volume to the bottom of the last page is
 finished and tolerates and needs no    
additions1 day by day1 moment by moment1
 epoch by epoch ,christ is bringing ,his
 people to a fuller understanding of the
 significance of the first volume1 and  
writing the second more and more upon   
their hearts4  ,so we have an           
ever-living ,christ1 still the active   
,teacher of ,his ,church4 ,times of     
unsettlement and revolutionary change   
and the 'shaking of the things that are 
made1' like the times in which we live1 
are but times in which the great        
,teacher is setting some new lesson from
 the old ,book to ,his slow scholars4   
,there is always a little confusion in  
the schoolroom when the classes are     
being rearranged and new books are being
 put into old hands4 ,the tributary     
stream1 as it rushes in1 makes broken   

water for a moment4 ,do not let us be   
afraid when 'the things that can be     
shaken' shake1 but let us see in the    
shaking the attendant of a new          
curriculum on which the great ,teacher  
is launching ,his scholars1 and let us  
learn the new lessons of the old ,gospel
 which ,he is then teaching4  ,,iii4    
,thirdly1 note the participation in the 
,father's love which is the issue of the
 knowledge of the ,father's name4       
,christ says that ,his end1 an end which
 is surely attained in the declaration  
of the divine name1 is that 'the love   
wherewith ,thou hast loved ,me may be in
 them4' ,we are here touching upon      
heights too dizzy for free and safe     
walking1 on glories too bright for close
 and steady gaze4 ,but where ,christ has
 spoken we may reverently follow4 ,mark1
 then1 that marvellous thought of the   
identity between the love which was ,his
 and the love which is ours4 ',from     
everlasting' that divine love lay on the
 ,eternal ,word which in the hoary      

beginning1 before the beginning of      
creatures1 'was with ,god1 and was      
,god4' ,the deepest conception that we  
can form of the divine nature is of a   
,being who in ,himself carries the      
,subject and the ,object of an eternal  
love1 which we speak of in the deep     
emblem of 'the ,word1' and the ,god with
 whom ,he eternally 'was4' ,that love   
lay upon ,christ1 without limitation1   
without reservation1 without            
interruption1 finding nothing there from
 which it recoiled1 and nothing there   
which did not respond to it4 ,no mist1  
no thunderstorm1 ever broke that        
sunshine1 no tempest ever swept across  
that calm4 ,continuous1 full1 perfect   
was the love that knit the ,father to   
the ,son1 and continuous1 full1 and     
perfect was the consciousness of abiding
 in that love1 which lay like light upon
 the spirit of ,him that said ',i       
delight to do ,thy will4' ',the ,father 
hath not left ,me alone4'  ,and all that
 love ,christ gives to us as deep1 as   

continuous1 as unreserved4 ,our         
consciousness of ,god's love is meant by
 ,christ to be like ,his own4 ,alas6    
alas6 is that our experience1 ,christian
 people8 ,the sun always shines on the  
rainless land of ,egypt1 except for a   
month or two in the year4 ,the contrast 
between the unclouded blue and          
continuous light and heat there1 and our
 murky skies and humid atmosphere1 is   
like the contrast between our broken and
 feeble consciousness of the shining of 
the divine love and the uninterrupted   
glory of light and joy of communion     
which poured on ,christ's heart4 ,but it
 is possible for us indefinitely to     
approximate to such an experience2 and  
the way by which we reach it is that    
plain and simple one of accepting       
,christ's declaration of the ,father's  
name4  ,,iv4 ,and so1 lastly1 notice the
 indwelling ,christ who makes our       
participation in the divine love        
possible3 ',and ,i in them4'  ,one may  
well say1 ',how can it be that love     

should be transferred8 ,how can it be   
that the love of ,god to me shall be    
identical with the love of ,god to      
,christ8' ,there is only one answer4 ,if
 ,christ dwells in me1 then ,god's love 
to ,him falls upon me by no             
transference1 but by my incorporation   
into ,him4 ,and ,i would urge that this 
great truth of the actual indwelling of 
,christ in the soul is no mere piece of 
rhetorical exaggeration1 nor a wild and 
enthusiastic way of putting the fact    
that the influence of ,his teaching and 
the beauty of ,his example can sway us2 
but it is a plain and absolute truth    
that the divine ,christ can come into   
and abide in the narrow room of our poor
 hearts4 ,and if ,he does this1 then 'he
 that is joined to the ,lord is one     
,spirit'2 and the ,christ in me receives
 the sunshine of the divine love4 ,that 
does not destroy1 but heightens1 my     
individuality4 ,i am more and not less  
myself because ',i live1 yet not ,i1 but
 ,christ liveth in me4'  ,so1 dear      

brethren6 it all comes to this--we may  
each of us1 if we will1 have ,jesus     
,christ for ,guest and ,inhabitant in   
our hearts4 ,if we have1 then1 since    
,god loves ,him1 ,he must love me who   
have ,him within me1 and as long as ,god
 loves ,christ ,he cannot cease to love 
me1 nor can ,i cease to be conscious of 
,his love to me1 and whatsoever gifts   
,his love bestows upon ,jesus1 pass over
 in measure1 and partially1 to myself4  
,thus immortality1 heaven1 glory1 all   
blessedness in heaven and earth1 are the
 fruit and crystallisation1 so to speak1
 of that oneness with ,christ which is  
possible for us4 ,and the conditions are
 simply that we shall with joyful trust 
accept ,his declaration of the ,father's
 name1 and see ,god manifest in ,him2   
and welcome in our inmost hearts that   
great ,gospel4 ,then ,his prayer1 and   
the travail of ,his soul1 will reach    
their end even in me1 and 'the love     
wherewith the ,father loved the ,son    
shall be in me1' and the ,son ,himself  

shall dwell in my heart4    ,,christ    
,,and ,,his ,,captors  ',as soon then as
 ,he had said unto them1 ,i am ,he1 they
 went backward1 and fell to the ground4 
,then asked ,he them again1 ,whom seek  
ye8 ,and they said1 ,jesus of ,nazareth4
 ,jesus answered1 ,i have told you that 
,i am ,he3 if therefore ye seek ,me1 let
 these go their way3 ,that the saying   
might be fulfilled1 which ,he spake1 ,of
 them which ,thou gayest ,me have ,i    
lost none4'--,,john xviii4 #f-i4  ,this 
remarkable incident is narrated by ,john
 only4 ,it fits in with the purpose     
which he himself tells us governed his  
selection of the incidents which he     
records4 ',these things are written1'   
says he1 near the end of the ,gospel1   
'that ye might believe that ,jesus is   
the ,son of ,god1 and that1 believing1  
ye might have life in ,his name4' ,the  
whole of the peculiarities of the       
substance of ,john's ,gospel are to be  
explained on the two grounds that he was
 writing a supplement to1 and not a     

substitute for1 or a correction of1 the 
,gospels already in existence2 and that 
his special business was to narrate such
 facts and words as set forth the glory 
of ,christ as 'the ,only ,begotten of   
the ,father4'  ,the incident before us  
is1 as ,i think1 one of these4 ,the     
,evangelist would have us see in it1 as 
,i gather from his manner of narrating  
it1 mainly three things4 ,he emphasises 
that strange recoil of the would-be     
captors before ,christ's majestic1 calm 
',i am ,he'2 that was a manifestation of
 ,christ's glory4 ,he emphasises our    
,lord's patient standing there1 in the  
midst of the awe-struck crowd1 and even 
inciting them1 as it would seem1 to do  
the work for which they had come out2   
that was a manifestation of the         
voluntariness of ,christ's sufferings4  
,and ,he emphasises the self-forgetting 
care with which at that supreme moment  
,he steps between ,his faithless1 weak  
friends and danger1 with the wonderful  
words1 ',if ye seek ,me1 let these go   

their way'2 to the ,evangelist that     
little incident is an illustration1 on a
 very low level1 and in regard to a     
comparatively trivial matter1 of the    
very same principle by which salvation  
from all evil in time and in eternity1  
is guaranteed to all that believe on    
,him3--  ,i4 ,first1 then1 consider this
 remarkable1 momentary manifestation of 
our ,lord's glory4  ',i am ,he6' ,when  
the ,band were thus doubly assured by   
the traitor's kiss and by ,his own      
confession1 why did they not lay hands  
upon ,him8 ,there ,he stood in the midst
 of them1 alone1 defenceless2 there was 
nothing to hinder their binding ,him on 
the spot4 ,instead of that they recoil1 
and fall in a huddled heap before ,him4 
,some strange awe and terror1 of which  
they themselves could have given no     
account1 was upon their spirits4 ,how   
came it about8 ,many things may have    
conspired to produce it4 ,i am by no    
means anxious to insist that this was a 
miracle4 ,things of the same sort1      

though much less in degree1 have been   
often enough seen2 when some innocent   
and illustrious victim has for a moment 
paralysed the hands of his would-be     
captors and made them feel1 though it   
were but transiently1 'how awful        
goodness is4' ,there must have been many
 in that band who had heard ,him1       
though1 in the uncertain light of       
quivering moonbeams and smoking torches1
 they failed to recognise ,him till ,he 
spoke4 ,there must have been many more  
who had heard of ,him1 and many who     
suspected that they were about to lay   
hands on a holy man1 perhaps on a       
prophet4 ,there must have been reluctant
 tools among the inferiors1 and no doubt
 some among the leaders whoso           
consciences needed but a touch to be    
roused to action4 ,to all1 ,his calmness
 and dignity would appeal1 and the      
manifest freedom from fear or desire to 
flee would tend to deepen the strange   
thoughts which began to stir in their   
hearts4  ,but the impression which the  

narrative seems intended to leave1      
appears to me to be of something more   
than this4 ,it looks as if there were   
something more than human in ,christ's  
look and tone4 ,it may have been the    
same in kind as the ascendency which a  
pure and calm nature has over rude and  
inferior ones4 ,it may have been the    
same in kind as has sometimes made the  
headsman on the scaffold pause before he
 struck1 and has bowed rude gaolers into
 converts before some grey-haired saint 
or virgin martyr2 yet the difference is 
so great in degree as practically to    
become quite another thing4 ,though ,i  
do not want to insist upon any          
'miraculous' explanation of the cause of
 this incident1 yet ,i would ask1 ,may  
it not be that here we see1 perhaps     
apart from ,christ's will altogether1   
rising up for one moment to the surface1
 the indwelling majesty which was always
 there8  ,we do not know the laws that  
regulated the dwelling of the ,godhead1 
bodily1 within that human frame1 but we 

do know that at one other time there    
came upon ,his features a               
transfiguration1 and over ,his very     
garments a lustre which was not thrown  
upon them from without1 but rose up from
 within4 ,and ,i am inclined to think   
that here1 as there1 though under such  
widely different circumstances and to   
such various issues1 there was for a    
moment a little rending of the veil of  
,his flesh1 and an emission of some     
flash of the brightness that always     
tabernacled within ,him2 and that1      
therefore1 just as ,isaiah1 when ,he saw
 the ,king in ,his glory1 said1 ',woe is
 me1 for ,i am undone6' and just as     
,moses could not look upon the ,face1   
but could only see the back parts1 so   
here the one stray beam of manifest     
divinity that shot through the crevice1 
as it were1 for an instant1 was enough  
to prostrate with a strange awe even    
those rude and insensitive men4 ,when   
,he had said ',i am ,he1' there was     
something that made them feel1 ',this is

 ,one before whom violence cowers       
abashed1 and in whose presence impurity 
has to hide its face4' ,i do not assert 
that this is the explanation of that    
panic terror4 ,i only ask1 ,may it not  
be8  ,but whatever we may think was the 
reason1 at all events the incident      
brings out very strikingly the elevation
 and dignity of ,christ1 and the        
powerful impressions made by ,his       
personality1 even at such a time of     
humiliation4 ,this ,evangelist is always
 careful to bring out the glory of      
,christ1 especially when that glory lies
 side by side with ,his lowliness4 ,the 
blending of these two is one of the     
remarkable features in the ,new         
,testament portraiture of ,jesus        
,christ4 ,wherever in our ,lord's life  
any incident indicates more emphatically
 than usual the lowliness of ,his       
humiliation1 there1 by the side of it1  
you get something that indicates the    
majesty of ,his glory4 ,for instance1   
,he is born a weak infant1 but angels   

herald ,his birth2 ,he lies in a manger1
 but a star hangs trembling above it1   
and leads sages from afar1 with their   
myrrh1 and incense1 and gold4 ,he       
submits ,himself to the baptism of      
repentance1 but the heavens open and a  
voice proclaims1 ',this is ,my beloved  
,son6' ,he sits wearied1 on the stone   
coping of the well1 and craves for water
 from a peasant woman2 but ,he gives her
 the ,water of ,life4 ,he lies down and 
sleeps1 from pure exhaustion1 in the    
stern of the little fishing-boat1 but   
,he wakes to command the storm1 and it  
is still4 ,he weeps beside the grave1   
but ,he flings ,his voice into its      
inmost recesses1 and the sheeted dead   
comes forth4 ,he well-nigh faints under 
the agony in the garden1 but an angel   
from ,heaven strengthens ,him4 ,he      
stands a prisoner at a human bar1 but   
,he judges and condemns ,his judges4 ,he
 dies1 and that hour of defeat is ,his  
hour of triumph1 and the union of shame 
and glory is most conspicuous in that   

hour when on the ,cross the ',son of    
,man is glorified1 and ,god is glorified
 in ,him4'  ,this strange blending of   
opposites--the glory in the lowliness1  
and the abasement in the glory--is the  
keynote of this singular event4 ,he will
 be 'delivered into the hands of men4'  
,yes2 but ere ,he is delivered ,he      
pauses for an instant1 and in that      
instant comes a flash 'above the        
brightness of the noonday sun' to tell  
of the hidden glory4  ,do not forget    
that we may well look upon that incident
 as a prophecy of what shall be4 ,as one
 of the suggestive1 old commentators on 
this verse says3 ',he will say ,i am    
,he1 again1 a third time4 ,what will ,he
 do coming to reign1 when ,he did this  
coming to die8 ,and what will ,his      
manifestation be as a ,judge when this  
was the effect of the manifestation as  
,he went to be judged8' ',every eye     
shall see ,him'2 and they that loved not
 ,his appearing shall fall before ,him  
when ,he cometh to be our ,judge2 and   

shall call on the rocks and the hills to
 cover them4  ,,ii4 ,there is here1     
secondly1 a manifestation of the        
voluntariness of our ,lord's suffering4 
,when that terrified mob recoiled from  
,him1 why did ,he stand there so        
patiently8 ,the time was propitious for 
flight1 if ,he had cared to flee4 ,he   
might have 'passed through the midst of 
them and gone ,his way4' as ,he did once
 before1 if ,he had chosen4 ,he comes   
from the garden2 there shall be no      
difficulty in finding ,him4 ,he tells   
who ,he is2 there shall be no need for  
the traitor's kiss4 ,he lays them low   
for a moment1 but ,he will not flee4    
,when ,peter draws his sword ,he rebukes
 his ill-advised appeal to force1 and   
then ,he holds out ,his hands and lets  
them bind ,him4 ,it was not their       
fetters1 but the 'cords of love' which  
held ,him prisoner4 ,it was not their   
power1 but ,his own pity which drew ,him
 to the judgment hall and the ,cross4   
,let us dwell upon that thought for a   

moment4 ,the whole story of the ,gospels
 is constructed upon the principle1 and 
illustrates the fact1 that our ,lord's  
life1 as our ,lord's death1 was a       
voluntary surrender of ,himself for     
man's sin1 and that nothing led ,him to1
 and fastened ,him on1 the ,cross but   
,his own will4 ,he willed to be born4   
,he 'came into the world' by ,his own   
choice4 ,he 'took upon ,him the form of 
a servant4' ,he 'took part' of the      
children's 'flesh and blood4' ,his birth
 was ,his own act1 the first of the long
 series of the acts1 by which for the   
sake of the love which ,he bore us1 ,he 
'humbled ,himself4' ,step by step ,he   
voluntarily journeyed towards the       
,cross1 which stood clear before ,him   
from the very beginning as the necessary
 end1 made necessary by ,his love4  ,as 
we get nearer and nearer to the close of
 the history1 we see more and more      
distinctly that ,he willingly went      
towards the ,cross1 ,take2 for instance1
 the account of the last portion of our 

,lord's life1 and you see in the whole  
of it a deliberate intention to         
precipitate the final conflict4 ,hence  
the last journey to ,jerusalem when     
',his face was set1' and ,his disciples 
followed ,him amazed4 ,hence the studied
 publicity of ,his triumphal entry into 
,jerusalem4 ,hence the studied1 growing 
severity of ,his rebukes to the priests 
and rulers4 ,the same impression is     
given1 though in a somewhat different   
way1 by ,his momentary retreat from the 
city and by the precautions taken       
against premature arrest1 that ,he might
 not die before the ,passover4 ,in both 
the hastening toward the city and in the
 retreating from it1 there is apparent  
the same design3 that ,he ,himself shall
 lay down ,his life1 and shall determine
 the how1 and the when1 and the where as
 seems good to ,him4  ,if we look at the
 act of death itself1 ,jesus did not die
 because ,he must4 ,it was not the nails
 of the ,cross1 the physical exhaustion1
 the nervous shock of crucifixion that  

killed ,him4 ,he died because ,he would4
 ',i have power to lay down ,my life1'  
,he said1 'and ,i have power'--of       
course--'to take it again4' ,at that    
last moment1 ,he was ,lord and ,master  
of death when ,he bowed ,his head to    
death1 and1 if ,i might so say1 ,he     
summoned that grim servant with a       
',come6' and he came1 and ,he set him   
his task with a ',do this6' and he did  
it4 ,he was manifested as the ,lord of  
death1 having its 'keys' in ,his hands1 
when ,he died upon the ,cross4  ,now ,i 
pray you to ask yourselves the question1
 if it be true that ,christ died because
 ,he would1 why was it that ,he would   
die8 ,if because ,he chose1 what was it 
that determined ,his choice8 ,and there 
are but two answers1 which two are one4 
,the divine motive that ruled ,his life 
is doubly expressed3 ',i must do the    
will of ,my ,father1' and ',i must save 
the world4'  ,the taunt that those      
,jewish rulers threw at ,him had a      
deeper truth than they dreamed1 and was 

an encomium1 and not a taunt4 ',he saved
 others'--yes1 and therefore1 ',himself 
,he cannot save4' ,he cannot1 because   
,his choice and will to die are         
determined by ,his free love to us and  
to all the world4 ,his fixed will 'bore 
,his body to the tree1' and ,his love   
was the strong spring which kept ,his   
will fixed4  ,you and ,i have our share 
in these voluntary sufferings1 and our  
place in that loving heart which        
underwent them for us4 ,oh6 should not  
that thought speak to all our hearts1   
and bind us in grateful service and     
lifelong surrender to ,him who gave     
,himself for us2 and must die because   
,he loved us all so much that ,he could 
not leave us unsaved8  ,,iii4 ,we have1 
lastly1 here1 a symbol1 or1 perhaps1    
more accurately1 an instance1 on a small
 scale1 of ,christ's self-sacrificing   
care for us4  ,his words3 ',if ye seek  
,me1 let these go their way1' sound more
 like the command of a prince than the  
intercession of a prisoner4 ,the calm   

dignity of them strikes one just as much
 as the perfect self-forgetfulness of   
them4  ,it was a very small matter which
 ,he was securing thereby4 ,the         
,apostles would have to die for ,him    
some day1 but they were not ready for it
 yet1 and so ,he casts the shield of    
,his protection round them for a moment1
 and interposes ,himself between them   
and the band of soldiers in order that  
their weakness may have a little more   
time to grow strong4 ,and though it was 
wrong and cowardly for them to forsake  
,him and flee1 yet these words of my    
text more than half gave them permission
 and warrant for their departure3 ',let 
these go their way4'  ,now ,john did not
 think that this small deliverance was  
all that ,christ meant by these great   
words3 ',of them which ,thou gavest ,me 
have ,i lost none6' ,he saw that it was 
one case1 a very trifling one1 a merely 
transitory one1 yet ruled by the same   
principles which are at work in the     
immensely higher region to which the    

words properly refer4 ,of course they   
have their proper fulfilment in the     
spiritual realm1 and are not fulfilled1 
in the highest sense1 till all who have 
loved and followed ,christ are presented
 faultless before the ,father in the    
home above4 ,but the little incident may
 be a result of the same cause as the   
final deliverance is4 ,a dew-drop is    
shaped by the same laws which mould the 
mightiest of the planets4 ,the old      
divines used to say that ,god was       
greatest in the smallest things1 and the
 self-sacrificing care of ,jesus        
,christ1 as ,he gives ,himself a        
prisoner that ,his disciples may go     
free1 comes from the same deep heart of 
pitying love1 which led ,him to die1 the
 'just for the unjust4' ,it may then    
well stand for a partial fulfilment of  
,his mighty words1 even though these    
wait for their complete accomplishment  
till the hour when all the sheep are    
gathered into the one fold1 and no evil 
beasts1 nor weary journeys1 nor barren  

pastures can harass them any more4      
,this trivial incident1 then1 becomes an
 exposition of highest truth4 ,let us   
learn from such an use of such an event 
to look upon all common and transitory  
circumstances as governed by the same   
loving hands1 and working to the same   
ends1 as the most purely spiritual4 ,the
 visible is the veil which drapes the   
invisible1 and clings so closely to it  
as to reveal its outline4 ,the common   
events of life are all parables to the  
devout heart1 which is the wise heart4  
,they speak mystic meanings to ears that
 can hear4 ,the redeeming love of ,jesus
 is proclaimed by every mercy which     
perishes in the using2 and all things   
should tell us of ,his self-forgetting1 
self-sacrificing care4  ,thus1 then1 we 
may see in that picture of our ,lord's  
surrendering ,himself that ,his         
trembling disciples might go free1 an   
emblem of what ,he does for us1 in      
regard to all our foes4 ,he stands      
between us and them1 receives their     

arrows into ,his own bosom1 and says1   
',let these go their way4' ,god's law   
comes with its terrors1 with its        
penalties1 to us who have broken it a   
thousand times4 ,the consciousness of   
guilt and sin threatens us all more or  
less1 and with varying intensity in     
different minds4 ,the weariness of the  
world1 'the ills that flesh is heir to1'
 the last grim enemy1 ,death1 and that  
which lies beyond them all1 ring you    
round4 ,my friends6 what are you going  
to do in order to escape from them8 ,you
 are a sinful man1 you have broken      
,god's law4 ,that law goes on crashing  
its way and crushing down all that is   
opposed to it4 ,you have a weary life   
before you1 however joyful it may       
sometimes be4 ,cares1 and troubles1 and 
sorrows1 and tears1 and losses1 and     
disappointments1 and hard duties that   
you will not be able to perform1 and    
dark days in which you will be able to  
see but very little light1 are all      
certain to come sooner or later2 and the

 last moment will draw near when the    
,king of ,terrors will be at your side2 
and beyond death there is a life of     
retribution in which men reap the things
 that they have sown here4 ,all that is 
true1 much of it is true about you at   
this moment1 and it will all be true    
some day4 ,in view of that1 what are you
 going to do8  ,i preach to you a       
,saviour who has endured all for us4 ,as
 a mother might fling herself out of the
 sledge that her child might escape the 
wolves in full chase1 here is ,one that 
comes and fronts all your foes1 and says
 to them1 ',let these go their way4     
,take ,me4' ',by ,his stripes we are    
healed4' ',on ,him was laid the iniquity
 of us all4'  ,he died because ,he      
chose2 ,he chose because ,he loved4 ,his
 love had to die in order that ,his     
death might be our life1 and that in it 
we should find our forgiveness and      
peace4 ,he stands between our foes and  
us4 ,no evil can strike us unless it    
strike ,him first4 ,he takes into ,his  

own heart the sharpest of all the darts 
which can pierce ours4 ,he has borne the
 guilt and punishment of a world's sin4 
,these solemn penalties have fallen upon
 ,him that we1 trusting in ,him1 'may go
 our way1' and that there may be 'no    
condemnation' to us if we are in ,christ
 ,jesus4 ,and if there be no            
condemnation1 we can stand whatever     
other blows may fall upon us4 ,they are 
easier to bear1 and their whole         
character is different1 when we know    
that ,christ has borne them already4    
,two of the three whom ,christ protected
 in the garden died a martyr's death2   
but do you not think that ,james bowed  
his neck to ,herod's sword1 and ,peter  
let them gird him and lead him to his   
cross1 more joyfully and with a         
different heart1 when they thought of   
,him that had died before them8 ,the    
darkest prison cell will not be so very 
dark if we remember that ,christ has    
been there before us1 and death itself  
will be softened into sleep because our 

,lord has died4 ',if therefore1' says   
,he1 to the whole pack of evils baying  
round us1 with their cruel eyes and     
their hungry mouths1 'ye seek ,me1 let  
these go their way4' ,so1 brother1 if   
you will fix your trust1 as a poor1     
sinful soul1 on that dear ,christ1 and  
get behind ,him1 and put ,him between   
you and your enemies1 then1 in time and 
in eternity1 that saying will be        
fulfilled in you which ,he spake1 ',of  
them which ,thou gavest ,me1 have ,i    
lost none4'    ,,jesus ,,before         
,,caiaphas  ',and ,simon ,peter followed
 ,jesus1 and so did another disciple3   
that disciple was known unto the high   
priest1 and went in with ,jesus into the
 palace of the high priest4 ,but ,peter 
stood at the door without4 ,then went   
out that other disciple1 which was known
 unto the high priest1 and spake unto   
her that kept the door1 and brought in  
,peter4 ,then saith the damsel that kept
 the door unto ,peter1 ,art not thou    
also one of this ,man's disciples8 ,he  

saith1 ,i am not4 ,and the servants and 
officers stood there1 who had made a    
fire of coals2 for it was cold3 and they
 warmed themselves3 and ,peter stood    
with them1 and warmed himself4 ,the high
 priest then asked ,jesus of ,his       
disciples1 and of ,his doctrine4 ,jesus 
answered him1 ,i spake openly to the    
world2 ,i ever taught in the synagogue1 
and in the temple1 whither the ,jews    
always resort2 and in secret have ,i    
said nothing4 ,why askest thou ,me8 ask 
them which heard ,me1 what ,i have said 
unto them3 behold1 they know what ,i    
said4 ,and when ,he had thus spoken1 one
 of the officers which stood by struck  
,jesus with the palm of his hand1       
saying1 ,answerest ,thou the high priest
 so8 ,jesus answered him1 ,if ,i have   
spoken evil1 bear witness of the evil3  
but if well1 why smitest thou ,me8 ,now 
,annas had sent ,him bound unto         
,caiaphas the high priest4 ,and ,simon  
,peter stood and warmed himself4 ,they  
said therefore unto him1 ,art not thou  

also one of ,his disciples8 ,he denied  
it1 and said1 ,i am not4 ,one of the    
servants of the high priest1 being his  
kinsman whose ear ,peter cut off1 saith1
 ,did not ,i see thee in the garden with
 ,him8 ,peter then denied again3 and    
immediately the cock crew4'--,,john     
xviii4 #ae-bg4  ,the last verses of the 
preceding passage belong properly to    
this one1 for they tell us that ,jesus  
was 'first' brought before ,annas1 a    
fact which we owe to ,john only4 ,annas 
himself and his five sons held the      
high-priesthood in succession4 ,to the  
sons has to be added ,caiaphas1 who1 as 
we learn from ,john only1 was ,annas'   
son-in-law1 and so one of the family    
party4 ,that ,jesus should have been    
taken to him1 though he held no office  
at the time1 shows who pulled the       
strings in the ,sanhedrim4 ,the         
reference to ,caiaphas in verse #ad     
seems intended to suggest what sort of a
 trial might be expected1 presided over 
by such a man4 ,but verse #ae tells us  

that ,jesus entered in1 accompanied by  
'another disciple1' 'to the court1' not1
 as we should have expected1 of ,annas1 
but 'of the high priest1' who1 by the   
testimony of verse #ac1 can be no one   
but ,caiaphas4 ,how came that about8    
,apparently1 because ,annas had         
apartments in the high-priest's official
 residence4 ,as he obviously exercised  
the influence through his sons and      
son-in-law1 who successively held the   
office1 it was very natural that he     
should be a fixture in the palace4      
,what ,john's connection was with this  
veteran intriguer 7assuming that ,john  
was that 'other disciple'7 we do not    
know4 ,probably it was some family bond 
that united two such antipathetic       
natures4 ,at all events1 the ,apostle's 
acquaintance with the judge so far      
condoned his discipleship to the        
criminal1 that the doors of the audience
 chamber were open to him1 though he was
 known as 'one of them4'  ,so he and    
poor ,peter were parted1 and the latter 

left shivering outside in the grey of   
the morning4 ,john had not missed him at
 first1 for he would be too much        
absorbed in watching ,jesus to have     
thoughts to spare for ,peter1 and would 
conclude that he was following him2 but1
 when he did miss him1 like a brave man 
he ran the risk of being observed1 and  
went for him4 ,the sharp-witted         
porteress1 whose business it was to     
judge applicants for entrance by a quick
 glance1 at once inferred that ,peter   
'also' was one of this man's disciples4 
,her 'also' shows that she knew ,john to
 be one2 and her 'this man' shows that  
either she did not know ,jesus' name1 or
 thought ,him too far beneath her to be 
named by her6 ,the time during which    
,peter had been left outside alone1     
repenting now of1 and alarmed for what  
might happen to him on account of1 his  
ill-aimed blow at ,malchus1 and feeling 
the nipping cold1 had taken all his     
courage out of him4 ,the one thing he   
wished was to slip in unnoticed1 and so 

the first denial came to his lips as    
rashly as many another word had come in 
old days4 ,he does not seem to have     
remained with ,john1 who probably went  
up to the upper end of the hall1 where  
the examination was going on1 while     
,peter1 not having the entree and very  
much terrified as well as miserable1    
stayed at the lower end1 where the      
understrappers were making themselves   
comfortable round a charcoal fire1 and  
paying no attention to the proceedings  
at the other end4 ,he seemed to be as   
indifferent as they were1 and to be     
intent only on getting himself warmed4  
,but what surges of emotion would be    
tossing in his heart1 which yet he was  
trying to hide under the mask of being  
an unconcerned spectator1 like the      
others6  ,the examination of our ,lord  
was conducted by 'the high priest1' by  
which title ,john must mean ,caiaphas1  
as he has just emphatically noted that  
he then filled the office4 ,but how is  
that to be reconciled with the statement

 that ,jesus was taken to ,annas8       
,apparently by supposing that1 though   
,annas was present1 ,caiaphas was       
spokesman4 ,but did not a formal trial  
before ,caiaphas follow1 and does not   
,john tell us 7verse #bd7 that1 after   
the first examination1 ,annas sent      
,jesus bound to ,caiaphas8 ,yes4 ,and   
are these things compatible with this   
account of an examination conducted by  
the latter8 ,yes1 if we remember that   
flagrant wresting of justice marked the 
whole proceedings4 ,the condemnation of 
,jesus was a judicial murder1 in which  
the highest court of the ,jews 'decreed 
iniquity by a law'2 and it was of a     
piece with all the rest that he1 who was
 to pose as an impartial judge          
presently1 should1 in the spirit of a   
partisan1 conduct this preliminary      
inquiry4 ,observe that no sentence was  
pronounced in the case at this stage4   
,this was not a court at all4 ,what was 
it8 ,an attempt to entrap the prisoner  
into admissions which might be used     

against ,him in the court to be held    
presently4 ,the rulers had ,jesus in    
their hands1 and they did not know what 
to do with ,him now that they had ,him4 
,they were at a loss to know what ,his  
indictment was to be4 ,to kill ,him was 
the only thing on which they had made up
 their minds2 the pretext had yet to be 
found1 and so they tried to get ,him to 
say something which would serve their   
purpose4  ',the high priest therefore   
asked ,jesus of ,his disciples1 and of  
,his teaching'6 ,if they did not know   
about either1 why had they arrested     
,him8 ,cunning outwits itself1 and falls
 into the pit it digs for the innocent4 
,jesus passed by the question as to ,his
 disciples unnoticed1 and by ,his calm  
answer as to ,his teaching showed that  
,he saw the snare4 ,he reduced ,caiaphas
 and ,annas to perpetrating plain       
injustice1 or to letting ,him go free4  
,elementary fair play to a prisoner     
prescribes that he should be accused of 
some crime by some one1 and not that he 

should furnish his judges with materials
 for his own indictment4 ',why askest   
thou ,me8 ask them that have heard ,me1'
 is unanswerable1 except by such an     
answer as the officious 'servant'       
gave--a blow and a violent speech4 ,but 
,christ's words reach far beyond the    
momentary purpose2 they contain a wide  
truth4 ,his teaching loves the daylight4
 ,there are no muttered oracles1 no     
whispered secrets for the initiated1 no 
double voice1 one for the multitude1 and
 another for the adepts4 ,all is        
above-board1 and all is spoken 'openly  
to the world4' ,christianity has no     
cliques or coteries1 nothing sectional1 
nothing reserved4 ,it is for mankind1   
for all mankind1 all for mankind4 ,true1
 there are depths in it2 true1 the      
secrets which ,jesus can only speak to  
loving ears in secret are ,his sweetest 
words1 but they are 'spoken in the ear' 
that they may be 'proclaimed on the     
housetops4'  ,the high-priest is silent1
 for there was nothing that he could say

 to so undeniable a demand1 and he had  
no witnesses ready4 ,how many since his 
day have treated ,jesus as he treated   
,him--condemned ,him or rejected ,him   
without reason1 and then looked about   
for reasons to justify their attitude1  
or even sought to make ,him condemn     
,himself6  ,an unjust judge breeds      
insolent underlings1 and if everything  
else fails1 blows and foul words cover  
defeat1 and treat calm assertion of     
right as impertinence to high-placed    
officials4 ,caiaphas degraded his own   
dignity more than any words of a        
prisoner could degrade it4  ,our ,lord's
 answer 'reviled not again4' ,it is meek
 in majesty and majestic in meekness4   
,patient endurance is not forbidden to  
remonstrate with insolent injustice1 if 
only its remonstrance bears no heat of  
personal anger in it4 ,but ,jesus was   
not so much vindicating ,his words to   
,caiaphas in saying1 ',if ,i have spoken
 evil1 bear witness of the evil1' as    
reiterating the challenge for           

'witnesses4' ,he brands the injustice of
 ,caiaphas1 while meekly rebuking the   
brutality of his servant4 ,master and   
man were alike in smiting ,him for words
 of which they could not prove the evil4
  ,there was obviously nothing to be    
gained by further examination4 ,no crime
 had been alleged1 much less            
established2 therefore ,jesus ought to  
have been let go4 ,but ,annas treated   
,him as a criminal1 and handed ,him over
 'bound1' to be formally tried before   
the man who had just been foiled in his 
attempt to play the inquisitor4 ,what a 
hideous mockery of legal procedure6 ,how
 well the pair1 father-in-law and       
son-in-law1 understood each other6 ,what
 a confession of a foregone conclusion1 
evidence or no evidence1 in shackling   
,jesus as a malefactor6 ,and it was all 
done in the name of religion6 and       
perhaps the couple of priests did not   
know that they were hypocrites1 but     
really thought that they were 'doing    
,god service4'  ,john's account of      

,peter's denials rises to a climax of   
peril and of keenness of suspicion4 ,the
 unnamed persons who put the second     
question must have had their suspicions 
roused by something in his manner as he 
stood by the glinting fire1 perhaps by  
agitation too great to be concealed4    
,the third question was put by a more   
dangerous person still1 who not only    
recognised ,peter's features as the     
firelight fitfully showed them1 but had 
a personal ground of hostility in his   
relationship to ,malchus4  ,john        
lovingly spares telling of the oaths and
 curses accompanying the denials1 but   
dares not spare the narration of the    
fact4 ,it has too precious lessons of   
humility1 of self-distrust1 of the      
possibility of genuine love being       
overborne by sudden and strong          
temptation1 to be omitted4 ,and the     
sequel of the denials has yet more      
precious teaching1 which has brought    
balm to many a contrite heart1 conscious
 of having been untrue to its deepest   

love4 ,for the sound of the cock-crow1  
and the look from the ,lord as ,he was  
led away bound past the place where     
,peter stood1 brought him back to       
himself1 and brought tears to his eyes1 
which were sweet as well as bitter4 ,on 
the resurrection morning the risen ,lord
 sent the message of forgiveness and    
special love to the broken-hearted      
,apostle1 when ,he said1 ',go1 tell ,my 
disciples and ,peter1' and on that day  
there was an interview of which ,paul   
knew 7#a ,cor4 xv4 #e71 but the details 
of which were apparently communicated by
 the ,apostle to none of his brethren4  
,the denier who weeps is taken to       
,christ's heart1 and in sacred secrecy  
has ,his forgiveness freely given1      
though1 before he can be restored to his
 public office1 he must1 by his         
threefold public avowal of love1 efface 
his threefold denial4 ,we may say1      
',thou knowest that ,i love thee1' even 
if we have said1 ',i know ,him not1' and
 come nearer to ,jesus1 by reason of the

 experience of ,his pardoning love1 than
 we were before we fell4    ,,art ,,thou
 ,a ,,king8  ',then led they ,jesus from
 ,caiaphas unto the hall of judgment3   
and it was early2 and they themselves   
went not into the judgment hall1 lest   
they should be defiled2 but that they   
might eat the passover4 ,pilate then    
went out unto them1 and said1 ,what     
accusation bring ye against this ,man8  
,they answered and said unto him1 ,if   
,he were not a malefactor1 we would not 
have delivered ,him up unto thee4 ,then 
said ,pilate unto them1 ,take ye ,him1  
and judge ,him according to your law4   
,the ,jews therefore said unto him1 ,it 
is not lawful for us to put any man to  
death3 ,that the saying of ,jesus might 
be fulfilled1 which ,he spake1          
signifying what death ,he should die4   
,then ,pilate entered into the judgment 
hall again1 and called ,jesus1 and said 
unto ,him1 ,art ,thou the ,king of the  
,jews8 ,jesus answered him1 ,sayest thou
 this thing of thyself1 or did others   

tell it thee of ,me8 ,pilate answered1  
,am ,i a ,jew8 ,thine own nation and the
 chief priests have delivered ,thee unto
 me3 what hast ,thou done8 ,jesus       
answered1 ,my kingdom is not of this    
world3 if ,my kingdom were of this      
world1 then would ,my servants fight1   
that ,i should not be delivered to the  
,jews3 but now is ,my kingdom not from  
hence4 ,pilate therefore said unto ,him1
 ,art ,thou a king then8 ,jesus         
answered1 ,thou sayest that ,i am a     
king4 ,to this end was ,i born1 and for 
this cause came ,i into the world1 that 
,i should bear witness unto the truth4  
,every one that is of the truth heareth 
,my voice4 ,pilate saith unto ,him1     
,what is truth8 ,and when he had said   
this1 he went out again unto the ,jews1 
and saith unto them1 ,i find in ,him no 
fault at all4 ,but ye have a custom1    
that ,i should release unto you one at  
the passover3 will ye therefore that ,i 
release unto you the ,king of the ,jews8
 ,then cried they all again1 saying1    

,not this ,man1 but ,barabbas4 ,now     
,barabbas was a robber4'--,,john xviii4 
#bh-dj4  ,john evidently intends to     
supplement the synoptic ,gospels'       
account4 ,he tells of ,christ's         
appearance before ,annas1 but passes by 
that before ,caiaphas1 though he shows  
his knowledge of it4 ,similarly he      
touches lightly on the public hearing   
before ,pilate1 but gives us in detail  
the private conversation in this        
section1 which he alone records4 ,we may
 suppose that he was present at both the
 hearing before ,annas and the interview
 within the palace between ,jesus and   
,herod1 for he would not be deterred    
from entering1 as the ,jews were1 and   
there seems to have been no other       
impediment in the way4 ,the passage has 
three stages--the fencing between the   
,sanhedrists and ,pilate1 the 'good     
confession before ,pontius ,pilate1' and
 the preference of ,barabbas to ,jesus4 
,i4 ,the passage of arms between the    
priests and the governor4 ',it was      

early1' probably before #f ,a4,m4 ,a    
hurried meeting of the ,sanhedrim had   
condemned ,jesus to death1 and the next 
thing was to get the ,roman authority to
 carry out the sentence4 ,the necessity 
of appeal to it was a bitter pill1 but  
it had to be swallowed1 for the right of
 capital punishment had been withdrawn4 
,a 'religious' scruple1 too1 stood in   
the way--very characteristic of such    
formalists4 ,killing an innocent man    
would not in the least defile them1 or  
unfit for eating the passover1 but to go
 into a house that had not been purged  
of 'leaven1' and was further unclean as 
the residence of a ,gentile1 though he  
was the governor1 that would stain their
 consciences--a singular scale of       
magnitude1 which saw no sin in          
condemning ,jesus1 and great sin in     
going into ,pilate's palace6 ,perhaps   
some of our conventional sins are of a  
like sort4  ,pilate was1 probably1 not  
over-pleased at being roused so early1  
nor at having to defer to a scruple     

which would to him look like insolence2 
and through all his bearing to the      
,sanhedrim a certain irritation shows   
itself1 which sometimes flashes out in  
sarcasm1 but is for the most part kept  
down4 ,his first question is1 perhaps1  
not so simple as it looks1 for he must  
have had some previous knowledge of the 
case1 since ,roman soldiers had been    
used for the arrest4 ,but1 clearly1     
those who brought him a prisoner were   
bound to be the prosecutors4  ,whether  
or not ,pilate knew that his question   
was embarrassing1 the rulers felt it so4
 ,why did they not wish to formulate a  
charge8 ,partly from pride4 ,they hugged
 the delusion that their court was      
competent to condemn1 and wanted1 as we 
all often do1 to shut their eyes to a   
plain fact1 as if ignoring it           
annihilated it4 ,partly because the     
charge on which they had condemned      
,jesus--that of blasphemy in calling    
,himself 'the ,son of ,god'--was not a  
crime known to ,roman law1 and to allege

 it would probably have ended in the    
whole matter being scornfully dismissed4
 ,so they stood on their dignity and    
tried to bluster4 ',we have condemned   
,him2 that is enough4 ,we look to you to
 carry out the sentence at our bidding4'
 ,so the 'ecclesiastical authority' has 
often said to the 'secular arm' since   
then1 and unfortunately the civil       
authority has not always been as wise as
 ,pilate was4  ,he saw an opening to get
 rid of the whole matter1 and with just 
a faint flavour of irony suggests that1 
as they have 'a law'--which he1 no      
doubt1 thought of as a very barbarous   
code--they had better go by it1 and     
punish as well as condemn4 ,that        
sarcastic proposal compelled them to    
acknowledge their subjection4 ,pilate   
had given the reins the least touch1 but
 enough to make them feel the bit2 and  
though it went sore against the grain1  
they will own their master rather than  
lose their victim4 ,so their reluctant  
lips say1 ',it is not lawful for us4'   

,pilate has brought them on their knees 
at last1 and they forget their dignity1 
and own the truth4 ,malicious hatred    
will eat any amount of dirt and         
humiliation to gain its ends1 especially
 if it calls itself religious zeal4     
,john sees in the issue of this first   
round in the duel between ,pilate and   
the rulers the sequence of events which 
brought about the fulfilment of our     
,lord's prediction of ,his crucifixion1 
since that was not a ,jewish mode of    
execution4 ,this encounter of keen wits 
becomes tragical and awful when we      
remember ,who it was that these men were
 wrangling about4  ,,ii4 ,we have ,jesus
 and ,pilate2 the 'good confession1' and
 the indifferent answer4 ,we must       
suppose that1 unwillingly1 the rulers   
had brought the accusation that ,jesus  
had attempted rebellion against ,rome4  
,john omits that1 because he takes it   
for granted that it is known4 ,it is    
implied in the conversation which now   
ensued4 ,we must note as remarkable that

 ,pilate does not conduct his first     
examination in the presence of the      
rulers1 but has ,jesus brought to him in
 the palace4 ,perhaps he simply wished  
to annoy the accusers1 but more probably
 his ,roman sense of justice combined   
with his wish to assert his authority1  
and perhaps with a suspicion that there 
was something strange about the whole   
matter--and not least strange that the  
,sanhedrim1 who were not enthusiastic   
supporters of ,rome1 should all at once 
display such loyalty--to make him wish  
to have the prisoner by himself1 and try
 to fathom the business4 ,with ,roman   
directness he went straight to the      
point3 ',art ,thou the ,king of the     
,jews1 as they have been saying8' ,there
 is emphasis on ',thou'--the emphasis   
which a practical ,roman official would 
be likely to put as he looked at the    
weak1 wearied1 evidently poor and       
helpless man bound before him4 ,there is
 almost a touch of pity in the question1
 and certainly the beginning of the     

conviction that this was not a very     
formidable rival to ,caesar4  ,the      
answer to be given depended on the sense
 in which ,pilate asked the question1 to
 bring out which is the object of       
,christ's question in reply4 ,if ,pilate
 was asking of himself1 then what he    
meant by 'a king' was one of earth's    
monarchs after the emperor's pattern1   
and the answer would be ',no4' ,if he   
was repeating a ,jewish charge1 then1 'a
 king' might mean the prophetic ,king of
 ,israel1 who was no rival of earthly   
monarchs1 and the answer would be       
',yes1' but that ',yes' would give      
,pilate no more reason to crucify ,him  
than the ',no' would have given4        
,pilate is getting tired of fencing1 and
 impatiently answers1 with true ,roman  
contempt for subject-people's thoughts  
as well as their weapons4 ',i 444 a     
,jew8' is said with a curl of the firm  
lips4 ,he points to his informants1     
',thine own nation and the chief        
priests1' and does not say that their   

surrender of a would-be leader in a war 
of independence struck him as           
suspicious4 ,but he brushes aside the   
cobwebs which he felt were being spun   
round him1 and comes to the point1      
',what hast ,thou done8' ,he is         
supremely indifferent to ideas and      
vagaries of enthusiasts4 ,this poor man 
before him may call ,himself anything   
,he chooses1 but his only concern is    
with overt acts4 ,strange to ask the    
,prisoner what ,he had done6 ,it had    
been well for ,pilate if he had held    
fast by that question1 and based his    
judgment resolutely on its answer6 ,he  
kept asking it all through the case1 he 
never succeeded in getting an answer2 he
 was convinced that ,jesus had done     
nothing worthy of death1 and yet fear1  
and a wish to curry favour with the     
rulers1 drove him to stain the judge's  
robe with innocent blood1 from which he 
vainly sought to cleanse his hands4     
,our ,lord's double answer claims a     
kingdom1 but first shows what it is not1

 and then what it is4 ,it is 'not of    
this world1' though it is in this world1
 being established and developed here1  
but having nothing in common with       
earthly dominions1 nor being advanced by
 their weapons or methods4 ,pilate could
 convince himself that this 'kingdom'   
bore no menace to ,rome1 from the fact  
that no resistance had been offered to  
,christ's capture4 ,but the principle   
involved in these great words goes far  
beyond their immediate application4 ,it 
forbids ,christ's 'servants' to         
assimilate ,his kingdom to the world1 or
 to use worldly powers as the means for 
the kingdom's advancement4 ,the history 
of the ,church has sadly proved how hard
 it is for ,christian men to learn the  
lesson1 and how fatal to the energy and 
purity of the ,church the forgetfulness 
of it has been4 ,the temptation to such 
assimilation besets all organised       
,christianity1 and is as strong to-day  
as when ,constantine gave the ,church   
the paralysing gift of 'establishing' it

 as a kingdom 'of this world4'  ,pilate 
did pick out of this saying an increased
 certainty that he had nothing to fear  
from this strange ',king'2 and          
half-amused contempt for a dreamer1 and 
half-pitying wonder at such lofty claims
 from such a helpless enthusiast1       
prompted his question1 ',art ,thou a    
king then8' ,one can fancy the scornful 
emphasis on that ',thou4' and can       
understand how grotesquely absurd the   
notion of his prisoner's being a king   
must have seemed4  ,having made clear   
part of the sense in which the avowal   
was to be taken1 our ,lord answered     
plainly ',yes4' ,thus before the        
high-priest1 ,he declared ,himself to be
 the ,son of ,god1 and before ,pilate   
,he claimed to be ,king1 at each        
tribunal putting forward the claim which
 each was competent to examine--and1    
alas6 at each meeting similar levity and
 refusal to inquire seriously into the  
validity of the claim4 ,the solemn      
revelation to ,pilate of the true nature

 of ,his kingdom and of ,himself the    
,king fell on careless ears4 ,a deeper  
mystery than ,pilate dreamed of lay     
beneath the double designation of ,his  
origin2 for ,he not only had been 'born'
 like other men1 but had 'come into the 
world1' having 'come forth from the     
,father1' and having been before ,he was
 born4 ,it was scarcely possible that   
,pilate should apprehend the meaning of 
that duplication1 but some vague        
impression of a mysterious personality  
might reach him1 and ,jesus would not   
have fully expressed ,his own           
consciousness if ,he had simply said1   
',i was born4' ,let us see that we keep 
firm hold of all which that utterance   
implies and declares4  ,the end of the  
,incarnation is to 'bear witness to the 
truth4' ,that witness is the one weapon 
by which ,christ's kingdom is           
established4 ,that witness is not given 
by words only1 precious as these are1   
but by deeds which are more than words4 
,these witnessing deeds are not complete

 till ,calvary and the empty grave and  
,olivet have witnessed at once to the   
perfect incarnation of divine love1 to  
the perfect ,sacrifice for the world's  
sin1 to the ,victor over death1 and to  
the opening of heaven to all believers4 
,jesus is 'the faithful and true        
,witness1' as ,john calls ,him1 not     
without reminiscences of this passage1  
just because ,he is 'the ,first-begotten
 of the dead4' ,as here ,he told ,pilate
 that ,he was a 'king1' because a       
'witness1' so ,john1 in the passage     
referred to1 bases ,his being ',prince  
of the kings of the earth' on the same  
fact4  ,how little ,pilate knew that he 
was standing at the very crisis of his  
fate6 ,a yielding to the impression that
 was slightly touching his heart and    
conscience1 and he1 too1 might have     
'heard' ,christ's voice4 ,but he was not
 'of the truth1' though he might have   
been if he had willed1 and so the words 
were wind to him1 and he brushed aside  
all the mist1 as he thought it1 with the

 light question1 which summed up a      
,roman man of the world's indifference  
to ideas1 and belief in solid facts like
 legions and swords4 ',what is truth8'  
may be the cry of a seeking soul1 or the
 sneer of a confirmed sceptic1 or the   
shrug of indifference of the 'practical 
man4'  ,it was the last in ,pilate's    
case1 as is shown by his not waiting for
 an answer1 but ending the conversation 
with it as a last shot4 ,it meant1 too1 
that he felt quite certain that this    
man1 with his high-strained1 unpractical
 talk about a kingdom resting on such a 
filmy nothing1 was absolutely harmless4 
,therefore the only just thing for him  
to have done was to have gone out to the
 impatient crowd and said so1 and flatly
 refused to do the dirty work of the    
priests for them1 by killing an innocent
 man4 ,but he was too cowardly for that1
 and1 no doubt1 thought that the murder 
of one poor ,jew was a small price to   
pay for popularity with his troublesome 
subjects4 ,still1 like all weak men1 he 

was not easy in his conscience1 and made
 a futile attempt to get the right thing
 done1 and yet not to suffer for doing  
it4 ,the rejection of ,barabbas is      
touched very lightly by ,john1 and must 
be left unnoticed here4 ,the great      
contribution to our knowledge which     
,john makes is this private interview   
between the ,king who reigns by the     
truth1 and the representative of earthly
 rule1 based on arms and worldly forces4
    ,,jesus ,,sentenced  ',then ,pilate 
therefore took ,jesus1 and scourged     
,him4 ,and the soldiers platted a crown 
of thorns1 and put it on ,his head1 and 
they put on ,him a purple robe4 ,and    
said1 ,hail1 ,king of the ,jews6 and    
they smote ,him with their hands4       
,pilate therefore went forth again1 and 
saith unto them1 ,behold1 ,i bring ,him 
forth to you1 that ye may know that ,i  
find no fault in ,him4 ,then came ,jesus
 forth1 wearing the crown of thorns1 and
 the purple robe4 ,and ,pilate saith    
unto them1 ,behold the ,man6 ,when the  

chief priests therefore and officers saw
 ,him1 they cried out1 saying1 ,crucify 
,him1 crucify ,him4 ,pilate saith unto  
them1 ,take ye ,him1 and crucify ,him3  
for ,i find no fault in ,him4 ,the ,jews
 answered him1 ,we have a law1 and by   
our law ,he ought to die1 because ,he   
made ,himself the ,son of ,god4 ,when   
,pilate therefore heard that saying1 he 
was the more afraid2 ,and went again    
into the judgment hall1 and saith unto  
,jesus1 ,whence art ,thou8 ,but ,jesus  
gave him no answer4 ,then saith ,pilate 
unto ,him1 ,speakest ,thou not unto me  
,i knowest ,thou not that ,i have power 
to crucify ,thee1 and have power to     
release ,thee8 ,jesus answered1 ,thou   
couldest have no power at all against   
,me1 except it were given thee from     
above3 therefore he that delivered ,me  
unto thee hath the greater sin4 ,and    
from thenceforth ,pilate sought to      
release ,him3 but the ,jews cried out1  
saying1 ,if thou let this ,man go1 thou 
art not ,caesar's friend3 whosoever     

maketh himself a king speaketh against  
,caesar4 ,when ,pilate therefore heard  
that saying1 he brought ,jesus forth1   
and sat down in the judgment seat in a  
place that is called the ,pavement1 but 
in the ,hebrew1 ,gabbatha4 ,and it was  
the preparation of the passover1 and    
about the sixth hour3 and he saith unto 
the ,jews1 ,behold your ,king6 ,but they
 cried out1 ,away with ,him1 away with  
,him1 crucify ,him6 ,pilate saith unto  
them1 ,shall ,i crucify your ,king8 ,the
 chief priests answered1 ,we have no    
king but ,caesar4 ,then delivered he    
,him therefore unto them to be          
crucified4 ,and they took ,jesus1 and   
led ,him away4'--,,john xix4 #a-af4     
,the struggle between the vacillation of
 ,pilate and the fixed malignity of the 
rulers is the principal theme of this   
fragment of ,christ's judicial trial4   
,he ,himself is passive and all but     
silent1 speaking only one sentence of   
calm rebuke4 ,the frequent changes of   
scene from within to without the        

praetorium indicate the steps in the    
struggle1 and vividly reflect the       
irresolution of ,pilate4 ,these changes 
may help to mark the stages in the      
narrative4  ,i4 ,the cruelties and      
indignities in verses #a-c were         
inflicted within the 'palace1' to which 
,pilate1 with his prisoner1 had returned
 after the popular vote for ,barabbas4  
,john makes that choice of the robber   
the reason for the scourging of ,jesus4 
,his thought seems to be that ,pilate1  
having failed in his attempt to get rid 
of the whole difficulty by releasing    
,jesus1 according to the 'custom1'      
ordered the scourging1 in hope that the 
lighter punishment might satisfy the    
turbulent crowd1 whom he wished to      
humour1 while1 if possible1 saving their
 victim4 ,it was the expedient of a weak
 and cynical nature1 and1 like all weak 
attempts at compromise between right and
 wrong1 only emboldened the hatred which
 it was meant to appease4 ,if by clamour
 the rulers had succeeded in getting    

,pilate to scourge a man whom he thought
 innocent1 they might well hope to get  
him to crucify1 if they clamoured loudly
 and long enough4  ,one attitude only   
befitted ,pilate1 since he did not in   
the least believe that ,jesus threatened
 the ,roman supremacy2 namely1 to set   
,him at liberty1 and let the            
disappointed rulers growl like wild     
beasts robbed of their prey4 ,but he did
 not care enough about a single         
half-crazy ,jewish peasant to imperil   
his standing well with his awkward      
subjects1 for the sake of righteousness4
 ,the one good which ,rome could give to
 its vassal nations was inflexible      
justice and a sovereign law2 but in     
,pilate's action there was not even the 
pretence of legality4 ,tricks and       
expedients run through it all1 and never
 once does he say1 ,this is the law1    
this is justice1 and by it ,i stand or  
fall4  ,the cruel scourging1 which1 in  
,roman hands1 was a much more severe    
punishment than the ,jewish 'beating    

with rods' and often ended in death1 was
 inflicted on the silent1 unresisting   
,christ1 not because ,his judge thought 
that it was deserved1 but to please     
accusers whose charge he knew to be     
absurd4 ,the underlings naturally       
followed their betters' example1 and    
after they had executed ,pilate's orders
 to scourge1 covered the bleeding wounds
 with some robe1 perhaps ragged1 but of 
the royal colour1 and crushed the       
twisted wreath of thorn-branch down on  
the brows1 to make fresh wounds there4  
,the jest of crowning such a poor1      
helpless creature as ,jesus seemed to   
them1 was exactly on the level of such  
rude natures1 and would be the more     
exquisite to them because it was        
double-barrelled1 and insulted the      
nation as well as the ',king4' ,they    
came in a string1 as the tense of the   
original word suggests1 and offered     
their mock reverence4 ,but that sport   
became tame after a little1 and mockery 
passed into violence1 as it always does 

in such natures4 ,these rough           
legionaries were cruel and brutal1 and  
they were unconscious witnesses to ,his 
,kingship as founded on suffering2 but  
they were innocent as compared with the 
polished gentleman on the judgment-seat 
who prostituted justice1 and the learned
 ,pharisees outside who were howling for
 blood4  ,,ii4 ,in verses #d-h the scene
 changes again to without the palace1   
and shows us ,pilate trying another     
expedient1 equally in vain4 ,the        
hesitating governor has no chance with  
the resolute1 rooted hate of the rulers4
 ,jesus silently and unresistingly      
follows ,pilate from the hall1 still    
wearing the mockery of royal pomp4      
,pilate had calculated that the sight of
 ,him in such guise1 and bleeding from  
the lash1 might turn hate into contempt1
 and perhaps give a touch of pity4      
',behold the man6' as he meant it1 was  
as if he had said1 ',is this poor1      
bruised1 spiritless sufferer worth hate 
or fear8 ,does ,he look like a ,king or 

a dangerous enemy8' ,pilate for once    
drops the scoff of calling ,him their   
,king1 and seeks to conciliate and move 
to pity4 ,the profound meanings which   
later ages have delighted to find in his
 words1 however warrantable1 are no part
 of their design as spoken1 and we gain 
a better lesson from the scene by       
keeping close to the thoughts of the    
actors4 ,what a contrast between the    
vacillation of the governor1 on the one 
hand1 afraid to do right and reluctant  
to do wrong1 and the dogged malignity of
 the rulers and their tools on the      
other1 and the calm1 meek endurance of  
the silent ,christ1 knowing all their   
thoughts1 pitying all1 and fixed in     
loving resolve1 even firmer than the    
rulers' hate1 to bear the utmost1 that  
,he might save a world6  ,some pity may 
have stirred in the crowd1 but the      
priests and their immediate dependants  
silenced it by their yell of fresh hate 
at the sight of the prisoner4 ,note how 
,john gives the very impression of the  

fierce1 brief roar1 like that of wild   
beasts for their prey1 by his ',crucify1
 crucify6' without addition of the      
person4 ,pilate lost patience at last1  
and angrily and half seriously gives    
permission to them to take the law into 
their own hands4 ,he really means1 ',i  
will not be your tool1 and if my        
conviction of the ,man's innocence is to
 be of no account1 you must punish ,him2
 for ,i will not4' ,how far he meant to 
abdicate authority1 and how far he was  
launching sarcasms1 it is difficult to  
say4 ,throughout he is sarcastic1 and   
thereby indicates his weakness1         
indemnifying himself for being thwarted 
by sneers which sit so ill on authority4
  ,but the offer1 or sarcasm1 whichever 
it was1 missed fire1 as the appeal to   
pity had done1 and only led to the      
production of a new weapon4 ,in their   
frantic determination to compass ,jesus'
 death1 the rulers hesitate at no       
degradation2 and now they adduced the   
charge of blasphemy1 and were ready to  

make a heathen the judge4 ,to ask a     
,roman governor to execute their law on 
a religious offender1 was to drag their 
national prerogative in the mud4 ,but   
formal religionists1 inflamed by        
religious animosity1 are often the      
degraders of religion for the           
gratification of their hatred4 ,they are
 poor preservers of the ,church who call
 on the secular arm to execute their    
'laws4' ,rome went a long way in letting
 subject peoples keep their             
institutions2 but it was too much to    
expect ,pilate to be the hangman for    
these furious priests1 on a charge      
scarcely intelligible to him4  ,what was
 ,jesus doing while all this hell of    
wickedness and fury boiled round ,him8  
,standing there1 passive and dumb1 'as a
 sheep before her shearers1' ,himself is
 the least conspicuous figure in the    
history of ,his own trial4 ,in silent   
communion with the ,father1 in silent   
submission to ,his murderers1 in silent 
pity for us1 in silent contemplation of 

'the joy that was set before ,him1' ,he 
waits on their will4  ,,iii4 ,once more 
the scene changes to the interior of the
 praetorium 7vs4 #i-aa74 ,the rulers'   
words stirred a deepened awe in ,pilate4
 ,he 'was the more afraid'2 then he had 
been already afraid4 ,his wife's dream1 
the impression already produced by the  
person of ,jesus1 had touched him more  
deeply than probably he himself was     
aware of2 and now this charge that      
,jesus had 'made ,himself the ,son of   
,god' shook him4 ,what if this strange  
man were in some sense a messenger of   
the gods8 ,had he been scourging one    
sent from them8 ,sceptical he probably  
was1 and therefore superstitious2 and   
half-forgotten and disbelieved stories  
of gods who had 'come down in the       
likeness of men' would swim up in his   
memory4 ,if this ,man were such1 ,his   
strange demeanour would be explained4   
,therefore he carried ,jesus in again1  
and1 not now as judge1 sought to hear   
from ,his own lips ,his version of the  

alleged claim4  ,why did not ,jesus     
answer such a question8 ,his silence was
 answer2 but1 besides that1 ,pilate had 
not received as he ought what ,jesus had
 already declared to him as to ,his     
kingdom and ,his relation to 'the       
truth1' and careless turning away from  
,christ's earlier words is righteously  
and necessarily punished by subsequent  
silence1 if the same disposition        
remains4 ,that it did remain1 ,christ's 
silence is proof4 ,had there been any   
use in answering1 ,pilate would not have
 asked in vain4 ,if ,jesus was silent1  
we may be sure that ,he who sees all    
hearts and responds to all true desires 
was so1 because ,he knew that it was    
best to say nothing4 ,the question of   
,his origin had nothing to do with      
,pilate's duty then1 which turned1 not  
on whence ,jesus had come1 but on what  
,pilate believed ,him to have done1 or  
not to have done4 ,he who will not do   
the plain duty of the moment has little 
chance of an answer to his questions    

about such high matters4  ,the shallow  
character of the governor's awe and     
interest is clearly seen from the       
immediate change of tone to arrogant    
reminder of his absolute authority4 ',to
 me dost ,thou not speak8' ,the pride of
 offended dignity peeps out there4 ,he  
has forgotten that a moment since he    
half suspected that the prisoner1 whom  
he now seeks to terrify with the cross1 
and to allure with deliverance1 was     
perhaps come from some misty heaven4    
,was that a temper which would have     
received ,christ's answer to his        
question8  ,but one thing he might be   
made to perceive1 and therefore ,jesus  
broke silence for the only time in this 
section1 and almost the only time before
 ,pilate4 ,he reads the arrogant ,roman 
the lesson which he and all his tribe in
 all lands and ages need--that their    
power is derived from ,god1 therefore in
 its foundation legitimate1 and in its  
exercise to be guided by ,his will and  
used for ,his purposes4 ,it was ,god who

 had brought the ,roman eagles1 with    
their ravening beaks and strong claws1  
to the ,holy ,city4 ,pilate was right in
 exercising jurisdiction over ,jesus4   
,let him see that he exercised justice1 
and let him remember that the power     
which he boasted that he 'had' was      
'given4' ,the truth as to the source of 
power made the guilt of ,caiaphas or of 
the rulers the greater1 inasmuch as they
 had neglected the duties to which they 
had been appointed1 and by handing over 
,jesus on a charge which they themselves
 should have searched out1 had been     
guilty of 'theocratic felony4' ,this    
sudden flash of bold rebuke1 reminding  
,pilate of his dependence1 and charging 
him with the lesser but yet real 'sin1' 
went deeper than any answer to his      
question would have done1 and spurred   
him to more earnest effort1 as ,john    
points out4 ,he 'sought to release      
,him1' as if formerly he had been rather
 simply unwilling to condemn than       
anxious to deliver4  ,,iv4 ,so the scene

 changes again to outside4 ,pilate went 
out alone1 leaving ,jesus within1 and   
was met before he had time1 as would    
appear1 to speak1 by the final          
irresistible weapon which the rulers had
 kept in reserve4 ,an accusation of     
treason was only too certain to be      
listened to by the suspicious tyrant who
 was then ,emperor1 especially if       
brought by the authorities of a subject 
nation4 ,many a provincial governor had 
had but a short shrift in such a case1  
and ,pilate knew that he was a ruined   
man if these implacable zealots howling 
before him went to ,tiberius with such a
 charge4 ,so the die was cast4 ,with    
rage in his heart1 no doubt1 and knowing
 that he was sacrificing 'innocent      
blood' to save himself1 he turned away  
from the victorious mob1 apparently in  
silence1 and brought ,jesus out once    
more4 ,he had no more words to say to   
his prisoner4 ,nothing remained but the 
formal act of sentence1 for which he    
seated himself1 with a poor assumption  

of dignity1 yet feeling all the while1  
no doubt1 what a contemptible surrender 
he was making4  ,judgment-seats and     
mosaic pavements do not go far to secure
 reverence for a judge who is no better 
than an assassin1 killing an innocent   
man to secure his own ends4 ,pilate's   
sentence fell most heavily on himself4  
,if 'the judge is condemned when the    
guilty is acquitted1' he is tenfold     
condemned when the innocent is          
sentenced4  ,pilate returned to his     
sarcastic mood when he returned to his  
injustice1 and found some satisfaction  
in his old jeer1 'your ,king4' ,but the 
passion of hatred was too much in       
earnest to be turned or even affected by
 such poor scoffs1 and the only answer  
was the renewed roar of the mob1 which  
had murder in its tone4 ,the repetition 
of the governor's taunt1 ',shall ,i     
crucify your ,king8' brought out the    
answer in which the rulers of the nation
 in their fury blindly flung away their 
prerogative4 ,it is no accident that it 

was 'the chief priests' who answered1   
',we have no king but ,caesar4' ,driven 
by hate1 they deliberately disown their 
,messianic hope1 and repudiate their    
national glory4 ,they who will not have 
,christ have to bow to a tyrant4        
,rebellion against ,him brings slavery4 
,,an ,,eye-,,witness',s ,,account ,,of  
,,the ,,crucifixion  ',and ,he bearing  
,his cross went forth into a place      
called the place of a skull1 which is   
called in the ,hebrew ,golgotha3 ,where 
they crucified ,him1 and two other with 
,him1 on either side one1 and ,jesus in 
the midst4 ,and ,pilate wrote a title1  
and put it on the cross4 ,and the       
writing was1 ,,jesus ,,of ,,nazareth    
,,the ,,king ,,of ,,the ,,jews4 ,this   
title then read many of the ,jews3 for  
the place where ,jesus was crucified was
 nigh to the city3 and it was written in
 ,hebrew1 and ,greek1 and ,latin4 ,then 
said the chief priests of the ,jews to  
,pilate1 ,write not1 ,the ,king of the  
,jews2 but that ,he said1 ,i am ,king of

 the ,jews4 ,pilate answered1 ,what ,i  
have written ,i have written4 ,then the 
soldiers1 when they had crucified       
,jesus1 took ,his garments1 and made    
four parts1 to every soldier a part2 and
 also ,his coat3 now the coat was       
without seam1 woven from the top        
throughout4 ,they said therefore among  
themselves1 ,let us not rend it1 but    
cast lots for it1 whose it shall be3    
that the scripture might be fulfilled1  
which saith1 ,they parted ,my raiment   
among them1 and for ,my vesture they did
 cast lots4 ,these things therefore the 
soldiers did4 ,now there stood by the   
cross of ,jesus ,his mother1 and his    
mother's sister1 ,mary the wife of      
,cleophas1 and ,mary ,magdalene4 ,when  
,jesus therefore saw ,his mother1 and   
the disciple standing by1 whom ,he      
loved1 ,he saith unto ,his mother1      
,woman1 behold ,thy ,son6 ,then saith   
,he to the disciple1 ,behold thy mother6
 ,and from that hour that disciple took 
her unto his own home4 ,after this1     

,jesus knowing that all things were now 
accomplished1 that the ,scripture might 
be fulfilled1 saith1 ,i thirst4 ,now    
there was set a vessel full of vinegar3 
and they filled a spunge with vinegar1  
and put it upon hyssop1 and put it to   
,his mouth4 ,when ,jesus therefore had  
received the vinegar1 ,he said1 ,it is  
finished3 and ,he bowed ,his head1 and  
gave up the ghost4'--,,john xix4 #ag-cj4
  ,in great and small matters ,john's   
account adds much to the narrative of   
the crucifixion4 ,he alone tells of the 
attempt to have the title on the ,cross 
altered1 of the tender entrusting of the
 ,virgin to his care1 and of the two    
'words' ',i thirst' and ',it is         
finished4' ,he gives details which had  
been burned into his memory1 such as    
,christ's position 'in the midst' of the
 two robbers1 and the jar of 'vinegar'  
standing by the crosses4 ,he says little
 about the act of fixing ,jesus to the  
,cross1 but enlarges what the other     
,evangelists tell as to the soldiers    

'casting lots4' ,he had heard what they 
said to one another4 ,he alone          
distinctly tells that when ,he went     
forth1 ,jesus was bearing the ,cross    
which afterwards ,simon of ,cyrene had  
to carry1 probably because our ,lord's  
strength failed4  ,who appointed the two
 robbers to be crucified at the same    
time8 ,not the rulers1 who had no such  
power but probably ,pilate1 as one more 
shaft of sarcasm which was all the      
sharper both because it seemed to put   
,jesus in the same class as they1 and   
because they were of the same class as  
the man of the ,jews' choice1 ,barabbas1
 and possibly were two of his gang4     
,jesus was 'in the midst1' where ,he    
always is1 completely identified with   
the transgressors1 but central to all   
things and all men4 ,as ,he was in the  
midst on the ,cross1 with a penitent on 
one hand and a rejecter on the other1   
,he is still in the midst of humanity1  
and ,his judgment-seat will be as       
central as ,his ,cross was4  ,all the   

,evangelists give the title written over
 the ,cross1 but ,john alone tells that 
it was ,pilate's malicious invention4   
,he thought that he was having a final  
fling at the priests1 and little knew   
how truly his title1 which was meant as 
a bitter jest1 was a fact4 ,he had it   
put into the three tongues in           
use--',hebrew1' the national tongue2    
',greek1' the common medium of          
intercourse between varying             
nationalities2 and ',latin' the official
 language4 ,he did not know that he was 
proclaiming the universal dominion of   
,jesus1 and prophesying that wisdom as  
represented by ,greece1 law and imperial
 power as represented by ,rome1 and all 
previous revelation as represented by   
,israel1 would yet bow before the       
,crucified1 and recognise that ,his     
,cross was ,his throne4  ,the           
'high-priests' winced1 and would fain   
have had the title altered4 ,their wish 
once more denied ,jesus1 and added to   
their condemnation1 but it did not move 

,pilate4 ,it would have been well for   
him if he had been as firm in carrying  
out his convictions of justice as in    
abiding by his bitter jest4 ,he was     
obstinate in the wrong place1 partly    
because he was angry with the rulers1   
and partly to recover his self-respect1 
which had been damaged by his           
vacillation4 ,but his stiff-necked      
speech had a more tragic meaning than he
 knew1 for 'what he had written' on his 
own life-page on that day could never be
 erased1 and will confront him4 ,we are 
all writing an imperishable record1 and 
we shall have to read it out hereafter1 
and acknowledge our handwriting4  ,john 
next sets in strong contrast the two    
groups round the ,cross--the stolid     
soldiers and the sad friends4 ,the four 
legionaries went through their work as a
 very ordinary piece of military duty4  
,they were well accustomed to crucify   
rebel ,jews1 and saw no difference      
between these three and former          
prisoners4 ,they watched the pangs      

without a touch of pity1 and only wished
 that death might come soon1 and let    
them get back to their barracks4 ,how   
blind men may be to what they are gazing
 at6 ,if knowledge measures guilt1 how  
slight the culpability of the soldiers6 
,they were scarcely more guilty than the
 mallet and nails which they used4 ,the 
,sufferer's clothes were their          
perquisite1 and their division was      
conducted on cool business principles1  
and with utter disregard of the solemn  
nearness of death4 ,could callous       
indifference go further than to cast    
lots for the robe at the very foot of   
the ,cross8  ,but the thing that most   
concerns us here is that ,jesus         
submitted to that extremity of shame and
 humiliation1 and hung there naked for  
all these hours1 gazed on1 while the    
light lasted1 by a mocking crowd4 ,he   
had set the perfect ,pattern of lowly   
self-abnegation when1 amid the disciples
 in the upper room1 ,he had 'laid aside 
,his garments1' but now ,he humbles     

,himself yet more1 being clothed only   
'with shame4' ,therefore should we      
clothe ,him with hearts' love4          
,therefore ,god has clothed ,him with   
the robes of imperial majesty4  ,another
 point emphasised by ,john is the       
fulfilment of prophecy in this act4 ,the
 seamless robe1 probably woven by loving
 hands1 perhaps by some of the weeping  
women who stood there1 was too valuable 
to divide1 and it would be a moment's   
pastime to cast lots for it4 ,john saw1 
in the expedient naturally suggested to 
four rough men1 who all wanted the robe 
but did not want to quarrel over it1 a  
fulfilment of the cry of the ancient    
sufferer1 who had lamented that his     
enemies made so sure of his death that  
they divided his garments and cast lots 
for his vesture4 ,but he was 'wiser than
 he knew1' and1 while his words were to 
his own apprehension but a vivid        
metaphor expressing his desperate       
condition1 'the ,spirit which was in'   
him 'did signify' by them 'the          

sufferings of ,christ4' ,theories of    
prophecy or sacrifice which deny the    
correctness of ,john's interpretation   
have the ,new ,testament against them1  
and assume to know more about the       
workings of inspiration than is either  
modest or scientific4  ,what a contrast 
the other group presents6 ,john's       
enumeration of the women may be read so 
as to mention four or three1 according  
as ',his mother's sister1 ,mary the wife
 of ,cleophas1' is taken to mean one    
woman or two4 ,the latter is the more   
probable supposition1 and it is also    
probable that the unnamed sister of our 
,lord's mother was no other than        
,salome1 ,john's own mother4 ,if so1    
entrusting ,mary to ,john's care would  
be the more natural4 ,tender care1      
joined with consciousness that          
henceforth the relation of son and      
mother was to be supplanted1 not merely 
by ,death's separating fingers1 but by  
faith's uniting bond1 breathed through  
the word1 so loving yet so removing1    

',woman1 behold thy son6' ,dying trust  
in the humble friend1 which would go far
 to make the friend worthy of it1       
breathed in the charge1 to which no form
 of address corresponding to ',woman' is
 prefixed4 ,jesus had nothing else to   
give as a parting gift1 but ,he gave    
these two to each other1 and enriched   
both4 ,he showed ,his own loving heart1 
and implied ,his faithful discharge of  
all filial duties hitherto4 ,and ,he    
taught us the lesson1 which many of us  
have proved to be true1 that losses are 
best made up when we hear ,him pointing 
us by them to new offices of help to    
others1 and that1 if we will let ,him1  
,he will point us too to what will fill 
empty places in our hearts and homes4   
,the second of the words on the ,cross  
which we owe to ,john is that pathetic  
expression1 ',i thirst4' ,most          
significant is the insight into our     
,lord's consciousness which ,john1 here 
as elsewhere1 ventures to give4 ,not    
till ,he knew 'that all things were     

accomplished' did ,he give heed to the  
pangs of thirst1 which made so terrible 
a part of the torture of crucifixion4   
,the strong will kept back the bodily   
cravings so long as any unfulfilled duty
 remained4 ,now ,jesus had nothing to do
 but to die1 and before ,he died ,he let
 flesh have one little alleviation4 ,he 
had refused the stupefying draught which
 would have lessened suffering by       
dulling consciousness1 but ,he asked for
 the draught which would momentarily    
slake the agony of parched lips and     
burning throat4  ,the words of verse #bh
 are not to be taken as meaning that    
,jesus said ',i thirst' with the mere   
intention of fulfilling the ,scripture4 
,his utterance was the plaint of a real 
need1 not a performance to fill a part4 
,but it is ,john who sees in that wholly
 natural cry the fulfilment of the psalm
 7,ps4 lxix4 #ba74 ,all ,christ's bodily
 sufferings may be said to be summed up 
in this one word1 the only one in which 
they found utterance4 ,the same lips    

that said1 ',if any man thirst1 let him 
come unto ,me1 and drink1' said this4   
,infinitely pathetic in itself1 that cry
 becomes almost awful in its appeal to  
us when we remember who uttered it1 and 
why ,he bore these pangs4 ,the very     
',fountain of living water' knew the    
pang of thirst that every one that      
thirsteth might come to the waters1 and 
might drink1 not water only1 but 'wine  
and milk1 without money or price4'      
,john's last contribution to our        
knowledge of our ,lord's words on the   
,cross is that triumphant ',it is       
finished1' wherein there spoke1 not only
 the common dying consciousness of life 
being ended1 but the certitude1 which   
,he alone of all who have died1 or will 
die1 had the right to feel and utter1   
that every task was completed1 that all 
,god's will was accomplished1 all       
,messiah's work done1 all prophecy      
fulfilled1 redemption secured1 ,god and 
man reconciled4 ,he looked back over all
 ,his life and saw no failure1 no       

falling below the demands of the        
occasion1 nothing that could have been  
bettered1 nothing that should not have  
been there4 ,he looked upwards1 and even
 at that moment ,he heard in ,his soul  
the voice of the ,father saying1 ',this 
is ,my beloved ,son1 in whom ,i am well 
pleased6'  ,christ's work is finished4  
,it needs no supplement4 ,it can never  
be repeated or imitated while the world 
lasts1 and will not lose its power      
through the ages4 ,let us trust to it as
 complete for all our needs1 and not    
seek to strengthen 'the sure foundation'
 which it has laid by any shifting1     
uncertain additions of our own4 ,but we 
may remember1 too1 that while ,christ's 
work is1 in one aspect1 finished1 when  
,he bowed ,his head1 and by ,his own    
will 'gave up the ghost1' in another    
aspect ,his work is not finished1 nor   
will be1 until the whole benefits of    
,his incarnation and death are diffused 
through1 and appropriated by1 the world4
 ,he is working to-day1 and long ages   

have yet to pass1 in all probability1   
before the voice of ,him that sitteth on
 the throne shall say ',it is done6'    
,,the ,,title ,,on ,,the ,,cross        
',pilate wrote a title also1 and put it 
on the cross4'--,,john xix4 #ai4  ,this 
title is recorded by all four           
,evangelists1 in words varying in form  
but alike in substance4 ,it strikes them
 all as significant that1 meaning only  
to fling a jeer at his unruly subjects1 
,pilate should have written it1 and     
proclaimed this ,nazarene visionary to  
be ,he for whom ,israel had longed      
through weary ages4 ,john's account is  
the fullest1 as indeed his narrative of 
all ,pilate's shufflings is the most    
complete4 ,he alone records that the    
title was tri-lingual 7for the similar  
statement in the ,authorised ,version of
 ,luke is not part of the original      
text74 ,he alone gives the ,jews'       
request for an alteration of the title1 
and ,pilate's bitter answer4 ,that angry
 reply betrays his motive in setting up 

such words over a crucified prisoner's  
head4 ,they were meant as a savage taunt
 of the ,jews1 not as an insult to      
,jesus1 which would have been welcome to
 them4 ,he seems to have regarded our   
,lord as a harmless enthusiast1 to have 
had a certain liking for ,him1 and a    
languid curiosity as to ,him1 which came
 by degrees to be just tinged with awe  
as he felt that he could not quite make 
,him out4 ,throughout1 he was convinced 
that ,his claim to be a king contained  
no menace for ,caesar1 and he would have
 let ,jesus go but for fear of being    
misrepresented at ,rome4 ,he felt that  
the sacrifice of one more ,jew was a    
small price to pay to avert his         
accusation to ,caesar2 he would have    
sacrificed a dozen such to keep his     
place4 ,but he felt that he was being   
coerced to do injustice1 and his anger  
and sense of humiliation find vent in   
that written taunt4 ,it was a spurt of  
bad temper and a measure of his         
reluctance4  ,besides the interest      

attaching to it as ,pilate's work1 it   
seems to ,john significant of much that 
it should have been fastened on the     
,cross1 and that it should have been in 
the three languages1 ,hebrew 7,aramaic71
 ,greek1 and ,latin4  ,let us deal with 
three points in succession4  ,i4 ,the   
title as throwing light on the actors in
 the tragedy4  ,we may consider it1     
first1 in its bearing on ,jesus' claims4
 ,he was condemned by the priests on the
 theocratic charge of blasphemy1 because
 ,he made ,himself the ,son of ,god4 ,he
 was sentenced by ,pilate on the civil  
charge of rebellion1 which the priests  
brought against ,him as an inference    
necessarily resulting from ,his claim to
 be the ,son of ,god4 ,they drew the    
same conclusion as ,nathanael did long  
before3 ',rabbi1 ,thou art the ,son of  
,god1' and therefore ',thou art the     
,king of ,israel4' ,and they were so far
 right that if the former designation is
 correct1 the latter inevitably follows4
  ,both charges1 then1 turned on ,his   

personal claims4 ,to ,pilate ,he        
explained the nature of ,his kingdom1 so
 as to remove any suspicion that it     
would bring ,him and ,his subjects into 
collision with ,rome1 but ,he asserted  
,his kingship1 and it was ,his own claim
 that gave ,pilate the material for ,his
 gibe4 ,it is worth notice1 then1 that  
these two claims from ,his own lips1    
made to the authorities who respectively
 took cognisance of the theocratic and  
of the civic life of the nation1 and at 
the time when ,his life hung on the     
decision of the two1 were the causes of 
,his judicial sentence4 ,the people who 
allege that ,jesus never made the       
preposterous claims for ,himself which  
,christians have made for ,him1 but was 
a simple ,teacher of morality and lofty 
religion1 have never fairly faced the   
simple question3 ',for what1 then1 was  
,he crucified8' ,it is easy for them to 
dilate on the hatred of the ,jewish     
officials and the gross earthliness of  
the masses1 as explaining the attitude  

of both1 but it is not so easy to       
explain how material was found for      
judicial process4 ,one can understand   
how ,jesus was detested by rulers1 and  
how they succeeded in stirring up       
popular feeling against ,him1 but not   
how an indictment that would hold water 
was framed against ,him4 ,nor would even
 ,pilate's complaisance have gone so far
 as to have condemned a prisoner against
 whom all that could be said was that he
 was disliked because he taught wisely  
and well and was too good for his       
critics4 ,the question is1 not what made
 ,jesus disliked1 but what set the ,law 
in motion against ,him8 ,and no         
plausible answer has ever been given    
except the one that was nailed above    
,his head on the ,cross4 ,it was not    
,his virtues or the sublimity of ,his   
teaching1 but ,his twofold claim to be  
,son of ,god and ,king of ,israel that  
haled ,him to ,his death4  ,we may      
further ask why ,jesus did not clear up 
the mistakes1 if they were mistakes1    

that led to ,his condemnation4 ,surely  
,he owed it to the two tribunals before 
which ,he stood1 no less than to        
,himself and ,his followers1 to disown  
the erroneous interpretations on which  
the charges against ,him were based4    
,even a ,caiaphas was entitled to be    
told1 if it were so1 that ,he meant no  
blasphemy and was not claiming anything 
too high for a reverent ,israelite1 when
 ,he claimed to be the ,son of ,god4 ,if
 ,jesus let the ,sanhedrim sentence ,him
 under a mistake of what ,his words     
meant1 ,he was guilty of ,his own death4
  ,we note1 further1 the light thrown by
 the ,title on ,pilate's action4 ,it    
shows his sense of the unreality of the 
charge which he basely allowed himself  
to be forced into entertaining as a     
ground of condemning ,jesus4 ,if this   
enigmatical prisoner had had a sword1   
there would have been some substance in 
the charge against ,him1 but ,he was    
plainly an idea-monger1 and therefore   
quite harmless1 and ,his kingship only  

fit to be made a jest of and a means of 
girding at the rulers4 ',practical men' 
always under-estimate the power of      
ideas4 ,the ,title shows the same       
contempt for 'mere theorisers' as       
animated his question1 ',what is truth8'
 ,how little he knew that this ',king1' 
at whom he thought that he could launch 
clumsy jests1 had lodged in the heart of
 the ,empire a power which would shatter
 and remould it6  ,in his blindness to  
the radiant truth that stood before him1
 in the tragedy of his condemnation of  
that to which he should have yielded    
himself1 ,pilate stands out as a beacon 
for all time1 warning the world against 
looking for the forces that move the    
world among the powers that the world   
recognises and honours4 ,if we would not
 commit ,pilate's fault over again1 we  
must turn to 'the base things of this   
world' and the 'things that are not' and
 find in them the transforming powers   
destined to 'bring to nought things that
 are4'  ,pilate's gibe was an           

unconscious prophecy4 ,he thought it an 
exquisite jest1 for it hurt4 ,he was an 
instance of that strange irony that runs
 through history1 and makes1 at some    
crisis1 men utter fateful words that    
seem put into their lips by some higher 
power4 ,caiaphas and he1 the ,jewish    
chief of the ,sanhedrim and the ,roman  
procurator1 were foremost in ,christ's  
condemnation1 and each of them spoke    
such words1 profoundly true and far     
beyond the speaker's thoughts4 ,was the 
,evangelist wrong in saying3 ',this     
spake he not of himself8'  ,,ii4 ,the   
,title on the ,cross as unveiling the   
ground of ,christ's dominion4  ,it      
seemed a ludicrous travesty of royalty  
that a criminal dying there1 with a     
crowd of his 'subjects' gloating on his 
agonies and shooting arrowy words of    
scorn at him1 should be a ,king4 ,but   
,his cross is ,his throne4 ,it is so    
because ,his death is ,his great work   
for the world4 ,it is so because in it  
we see1 with melted hearts1 the         

sublimest revelation of ,his love4      
,absolute authority belongs to utter    
self-sacrifice4 ,he1 and only ,he1 who  
gives ,himself wholly to and for me1    
thereby acquires the right of absolute  
command over me4 ,he is the ',prince of 
all the kings of the earth1' because ,he
 has died and become the                
',first-begotten from the dead4' ,from  
the hour when ,he said1 ',i1 if ,i be   
lifted up1 will draw all men unto ,me1' 
down to the hour when the seer heard the
 storm of praise from 'ten thousand     
times ten thousand1 and thousands of    
thousands' breaking round the throne1   
every ,new ,testament reference to      
,christ's dominion is accompanied with a
 reference to ,his cross1 and every     
reference to ,his cross merges in a     
reference to ,his throne4 ,the crown of 
thorns was a revelation of the inmost   
nature of ,christ's rule4 ,the famous   
,iron ,crown of ,milan is a hard1 cold  
circlet within a golden covering blazing
 with jewels4 ,christ's right to sway   

men1 like ,his power to do so1 rests on 
,his sacrifice for men4 ,a ,christianity
 without a ,cross is a ,christianity    
without authority1 as has been seen over
 and over again in the history of the   
,church1 and as is being seen again     
today1 if men would only look4 ,a       
,christ without a ,cross is a ,christ   
without a ,kingdom4 ,the dominion of the
 world belongs to ,him who can sway     
men's inmost motives4 ,hearts are ,his  
who has bought them with ,his own4      
,,iii4 ,the ,title as prophesying       
,christ's universal dominion4  ,the     
three tongues in which it was written   
were chosen simply to make it easy to   
read by the crowd from every part of the
 ,empire assembled at the ,passover4    
,there were ,palestinian ,jews there who
 probably read ,aramaic only1 and       
representatives from the widely diffused
 ,jewish emigration in ,greek-speaking  
lands1 as well as ,roman officials and  
,jews from ,italy who would be most     
familiar with ,latin4 ,pilate wanted his

 shaft to reach them all4 ,it was1 in   
its tri-lingual character1 a sign of    
,israel's degradation and a flourishing 
of the whip in their faces1 as a        
government order in ,english placarded  
in a ,bengalee village might be1 or a   
,russian ukase in ,warsaw4 ,its very    
wording betrayed a foreign hand1 for a  
,jew would have written ',king of       
,israel1' not 'of the ,jews4'  ,but     
,john divined a deeper meaning in this  
,title1 just as he found a similar      
prophecy of the universality of         
,christ's death in the analogous word of
 ,caiaphas4 ,as in that saying he heard 
a faint prediction that ,jesus should   
die 'not for that people only1 but that 
,he might also gather into one the      
scattered children of ,god1' so he feels
 that ,pilate was wiser than he knew1   
and that his written words in their     
threefold garb symbolised the relation  
of ,christ and ,his work to the three   
great types of civilisation which it    
found possessed of the field4 ,it bent  

them all to its own purposes1 absorbed  
them into itself1 used their witness and
 was propagated by means of them1 and   
finally sucked the life out of them and 
disintegrated them4 ,the ,jew           
contributed the morality and monotheism 
of the ,old ,testament2 the ,greek1     
culture and the perfected language that 
should contain the treasure1 the fresh  
wine-skin for the new wine2 the ,roman  
made the diffusion of the kingdom       
possible by the pax ,romana1 and at     
first sheltered the young plant4 ,all   
three1 no doubt1 marred as well as      
helped the development of ,christianity1
 and infused into it deleterious        
elements1 which cling to it to-day1 but 
the prophecy of the ,title was fulfilled
 and these three tongues became heralds 
of the ,cross and with 'loud1 uplifted  
trumpets blew' glad tidings to the ends 
of the world4  ,that ,title thus became 
an unconscious prophecy of ,christ's    
universal dominion4 ,the ,psalmist that 
sang of ,messiah's world-wide rule was  

sure that 'all nations shall serve      
,him1' and the reason why he was certain
 of it was 'for ,he shall deliver the   
needy when he crieth4' ,we may be       
certain of it for the same reason4 ,he  
who can deal with man's primal needs1   
and is ready and able to meet every cry 
of the heart1 will never want suppliants
 and subjects4 ,he who can respond to   
our consciousness of sin and weakness1  
and can satisfy hungry hearts1 will     
build ,his sway over the hearts whom ,he
 satisfies on foundations deep as life  
itself4 ,the history of the past becomes
 a prophecy of the future4 ,jesus has   
drawn men of all sorts1 of every stage  
of culture and layer of civilisation1   
and of every type of character to ,him1 
and the power which has carried a       
peasant of ,nazareth to be the          
acknowledged ,king of the civilised     
world is not exhausted1 and will not be 
till ,he is throned as ,saviour and     
,ruler of the whole earth4 ,there is    
only one religion in the world that is  

obviously growing4 ,the gods of ,greece 
and ,rome are only subjects for studies 
in ,comparative ,mythology1 the         
labyrinthine pantheon of ,india makes no
 conquests1 ,buddhism is moribund4 ,all 
other religions than ,christianity are  
shut up within definite and             
comparatively narrow geographical and   
chronological limits4 ,but in spite of  
premature jubilations of enemies and    
much hasty talk about the need for a    
re-statement 7which generally means a   
negation7 of ,christian truth1 we have a
 clear right to look forward with quiet 
confidence4 ,often in the past has the  
religion of ,jesus seemed to be wearing 
or worn out1 but it has a strange       
recuperative power1 and is wont to      
startle its enemies' paeans over its    
grave by rising again and winning       
renewed victories4 ,the ,title on the   
,cross is for ever true1 and is written 
again in nobler fashion 'on the vesture 
and on the thigh' of ,him who rides     
forth at last to rule the nations1      

',,king ,,of ,,kings1 ,,and ,,lord ,,of 
,,lords4'    ,,the ,,irrevocable ,,past 
',what ,i have written ,i have          
written4'--,,john xix4 #bb4  ,this was a
 mere piece of obstinacy4 ,pilate knew  
that he had prostituted his office in   
condemning ,jesus1 and he revenged      
himself for weak compliance by ill-timed
 mulishness4 ,a cool-headed governor    
would have humoured his difficult       
subjects in such a trifle1 as a just one
 would have been inflexible in a matter 
of life and death4 ,but this man's      
facile yielding and his stiff-necked    
obstinacy were both misplaced4 ',so ,i  
will1 so ,i command4 ,let my will       
suffice for a reason1' was what he      
meant4 ,he had written his gibe1 and not
 all the ,jews in ,jewry should make him
 change4  ,but his petulant answer to   
the rulers' request for the removal of  
the offensive placard carried in it a   
deeper meaning1 as the ,title also did1 
and as the people's fierce yell1 ',his  
blood be on us and on our children1'    

did4 ,possibly the ,evangelist had some 
thought of that sort in recording this  
saying2 but1 at all events1 ,i venture  
to take a liberty with it which ,i      
should not do if it were a word of      
,god's1 or if it were given for our     
instruction4 ,so ,i take it now as      
expressing in a vivid way1 and          
irrespective of ,pilate's intention1 the
 thought of the irrevocable past4  ,i4  
,every man is perpetually writing a     
permanent record of himself4  ,it is    
almost impossible to get the average man
 to think of his life as a whole1 or to 
realise that the fleeting present leaves
 indelible traces4 ,they seem to fade   
away wholly4 ,the record appears to be  
written in water4 ,it is written in ink 
which is invisible1 but as indelible as 
invisible4 ,grammarians define the      
perfect tense as that which expresses an
 action completed in the past and of    
which the consequences remain in the    
present4 ,that is true of all our       
actions4 ,our characters1 our           

circumstances1 our remembrances1 are all
 permanent4 ,every day we make entries  
in our diary4  ,,ii4 ,that record1 once 
written1 is irrevocable4  ,we all know  
what it is to long that some one action 
should have been otherwise1 to have     
taken some one step which perhaps has   
coloured years1 and which we would give 
the world not to have taken4 ,but it    
cannot be4 ,remorse cannot alter it4    
,wishes are vain4 ,repentance is vain4  
,a new line of conduct is vain4  ,what  
an awful contrast in this respect       
between time future and time past6      
,think of the indefinite possibilities  
in the one1 the rigid fixity of the     
other4 ,our present actions are like    
cements that dry quickly and set hard on
 exposure to the air--the dirt of the   
trowel abides on the soft brick for     
ever4 ,many cuneiform inscriptions were 
impressed with a piece of wood on clay1 
and are legible millenniums after4  ,we 
have to write currente calamo1 and as   
soon as written1 the ,,ms4 is printed   

and stereotyped1 and no revising proofs 
nor erasures are possible4 ,an action1  
once done1 escapes from us wholly4  ,how
 needful1 then1 to have lofty principles
 ready at hand6 ,the fresco painter must
 have a sure touch1 and a quick hand1   
and a full mind4  ,what a boundless     
field the future offers us6 ,how much it
 may be6 ,how much1 perhaps1 we resolve 
it shall be6 ,what a shrunken heap the  
harvest is6 ,are you satisfied with what
 you have written8  ,,iii4 ,this record1
 written here1 is read yonder4  ,our    
actions carry eternal consequences4     
,these will be read by ourselves4       
,character remains4 ,memory remains4    
,we shall read with all illusions       
stripped away4  ,others will read--,god 
and a universe4  ',we shall all be      
manifested before the judgment-seat of  
,christ4'  ,,iv4 ,this record may be    
blotted out by the blood of ,christ4    
,it cannot be made not to have been1 but
 ,god's pardon will be given1 and in    
respect to all personal consequences it 

is made non-existent4 ,circumstances may
 remain1 but their pressure is          
different4 ,character may be renewed and
 sanctified1 and even made loftier by   
the evil past4 ,our dead selves may     
become 'stepping-stones to higher       
things4'  ,memory may remain1 but its   
sting is gone1 and new hopes1 and joys1 
and work may fill the pages of our      
record4  ',he took away the handwriting 
that was against us1 nailing it to ,his 
,cross4'  ,our lives and characters may 
become a palimpsest4 ',i will write upon
 him ,my new name4' ',ye are an epistle 
of ,christ ministered by us4'           
,,christ',s ,,finished ,,and            
,,unfinished ,,work  ',jesus 444 said1  
,it is finished4'--,,john xix4 #cj4     
',he said unto me1 ,it is done4'--,,rev4
 xxi4 #f4  ,one of these sayings was    
spoken from the ,cross1 the other from  
the ,throne4 ,the ,speaker of both is   
the same4 ,in the one1 ,his voice 'then 
shook the earth1' as the rending rocks  
testified2 in the other1 ,his voice     

'will shake not the earth only but also 
heaven'2 for 'new heavens and a new     
earth' accompanied the proclamation4 ,in
 the one1 like some traveller ready to  
depart1 who casts a final glance over   
his preparations1 and1 satisfied that   
nothing is omitted1 gives his charioteer
 the signal and rolls away1 ,jesus      
,christ looked back over ,his life's    
work1 and1 knowing that it was          
accomplished1 summoned ,his servant     
,death1 and departed4 ,in the other1 ,he
 sets ,his seal to the closed book of   
the world's history1 and ushers in a    
renovated universe4 ,the one masks the  
completion of the work on which the     
world's redemption rests1 the other     
marks the completion of the age-long    
process by which the world's redemption 
is actually realised4 ,the one proclaims
 that the foundation is laid1 the other 
that the headstone is set on the        
finished building4 ,the one bids us     
trust in a past perfected work2 the     
other bids us hope in the perfect       

accomplishment of the results of that   
work4 ,taken singly1 these sayings are  
grand2 united1 they suggest thoughts    
needed always1 never more needful than  
to-day4  ,i4 ,we see here the work which
 was finished on the ,cross4  ,the      
,evangelist gives great significance to 
the words of my first text1 as is shown 
by his statement in a previous verse3   
',jesus1 knowing that all things were   
now accomplished1 said1 ,i thirst1' and 
then--',it is finished4' ,that is to    
say1 there is something in that dying   
voice a great deal deeper and more      
wonderful than the ordinary human       
utterance with which a dying man might  
say1 ',it is all over now4 ,i have      
done1' for this utterance came from the 
consciousness that all things had been  
accomplished by ,him1 and that ,he had  
done ,his life's work4  ,now1 there1    
taking the words even in their most     
superficial sense1 we come upon the     
strange peculiarity which marks off the 
life of ,jesus ,christ from every other 

life that was ever lived4 ,there are no 
loose ends left1 no unfinished tasks    
drop from ,his nerveless hands1 to be   
taken up and carried on by others4 ,his 
life is a rounded whole1 with everything
 accomplished that had been endeavoured1
 and everything done that had been      
commanded4 ',his hands have laid the    
foundation2 ,his hands shall also       
finish4' ,he alone of the sons of men1  
in the deepest sense1 completed ,his    
task1 and left nothing for successors4  
,the rest of us are taken away when we  
have reared a course or two of the      
structure1 the dream of building which  
brightened our youth4 ,the pen drops    
from paralysed hands in the middle of a 
sentence1 and a fragment of a book is   
left4 ,the painter's brush falls with   
his palette at the foot of his easel1   
and but the outline of what he conceived
 is on the canvas4 ,all of us leave     
tasks half done1 and have to go away    
before the work is completed4 ,the      
half-polished columns that lie at       

,baalbec are but a symbol of the        
imperfection of every human life4 ,but  
this ,man said1 ',it is finished1' and  
'gave up the ghost4' ,now1 if we ponder 
on what lies in that consciousness of   
completion1 ,i think we find1 mainly1   
three things4  ,christ rendered a       
complete obedience4 ,all through ,his   
life we see ,him1 hearing with the      
inward ear the solemn voice of the      
,father1 and responding to it with that 
',i must' which runs through all ,his   
days1 from the earliest dawning of      
consciousness1 when ,he startled ,his   
mother with ',i must be about ,my       
,father's business1' until the very last
 moments4 ,in that obedience to the     
all-present necessity which ,he         
cheerfully embraced and perfectly       
discharged1 there was no flaw4 ,he alone
 of men looks back upon a life in which 
,his clear consciousness detected       
neither transgression nor imperfection4 
,in the midst of ,his career ,he could  
front ,his enemies with ',which of you  

convinceth ,me of sin8' and no man then1
 and no man in all the generations that 
have elapsed since--though some have    
been blind enough to try it1 and        
malicious enough to utter their         
attempts1--has been able to answer the  
challenge4 ,in the midst of ,his career 
,he said1 ',i do always the things that 
please ,him'2 and nobody then or since  
has been able to lay his finger upon an 
act of ,his in which1 either by excess  
or defect1 or contrariety1 the will of  
,god has not been fully represented4 ,at
 the beginning of ,his career ,he said1 
in answer to the ,baptist's             
remonstrance1 ',it becometh us to fulfil
 all righteousness1' and at the end of  
,his career ,he looked back1 and knowing
 that ,he had thus done what became     
,him--namely1 fulfilled it all--,he     
said1 ',it is finished6'  ,the utterance
 further expresses ,christ's            
consciousness of having completed the   
revelation of ,god4 ,jesus ,christ has  
made known the ,father1 and the         

generations since have added nothing to 
,his revelation4 ,the very people1      
to-day1 that turn away from             
,christianity1 in the name of higher    
conceptions of the divine nature1 owe   
their conceptions of it to the ,christ  
from whom they turn4 ,not in broken     
syllables2 not 'at sundry times and in  
divers manners1' but with the one       
perfect1 full-toned name of ,god on ,his
 lips1 and vocal in ,his life1 ,he has  
declared the ,father unto us4 ,in the   
course of ,his career ,he said1 ',he    
that hath seen ,me hath seen the        
,father'2 and1 looking back on ,his life
 of manifestation of ,god1 ,he          
proclaimed1 ',it is finished6' ,and the 
world has since1 with all its thinking1 
added nothing to the name which ,christ 
has declared4  ,the utterance farther   
expresses ,his consciousness of having  
made a completed1 atoning ,sacrifice4   
,remember that the words of my first    
text followed that awful cry that came  
from the darkness1 and as by one        

lightning flash1 show us the waves and  
billows rolling over ,his head4 ',my    
,god6 ,my ,god6 why hast ,thou forsaken 
,me8' ,in that infinitely pathetic and  
profound utterance1 to the              
interpretation of which our powers go   
but a little way1 ,jesus ,christ blends 
together1 in the most marvellous        
fashion1 desolation and trust1 the      
consciousness that ,god is ,his ,god1   
and the consciousness that ,he is bereft
 of the light of ,his presence4         
,brethren6 ,i know of no explanation of 
these words which does justice to both  
the elements that are intertwined so    
intimately in them1 except the old one1 
which listens to ,him as they come from 
,his quivering lip1 and says1 ',the     
,lord hath made to meet on ,him the     
iniquity of us all4'  ,ah1 brethren6    
unless there was something a great deal 
more than the physical shrinking from   
physical death in that piteous cry1     
,jesus ,christ did not die nearly as    
bravely as many a poor1 trembling woman 

who1 at the stake or the block1 has owed
 her fortitude to ,him4 ,many a         
blood-stained criminal has gone out of  
life with less tremor than that which1  
unless you take the explanation that    
,scripture suggests of the cry1 marred  
the last hours of ,jesus ,christ4       
,having drained the cup1 ,he held it up 
inverted when ,he said ',it is          
finished6' and not a drop trickled down 
the edge4 ,he drank it that we might    
never need to drink it2 and so ,his     
dying voice proclaimed that 'by one     
offering for sin for ever1' ,he         
'obtained eternal redemption' for us4   
,,ii4 ,now1 secondly1 note the work     
which began from the ,cross4 ,between my
 two texts lie untold centuries1 and the
 whole development of the consequences  
of ,christ's death1 like some great     
valley stretching between twin          
mountain-peaks on either side1 which    
from some points of view will be        
foreshortened and invisible1 but when   
gazed down upon1 is seen to stretch     

widely leagues broad1 from mountain     
ridge to mountain ridge4 ,so my two     
texts1 by the fact that millenniums have
 to interpose between the time when ',it
 is finished6' is spoken1 and the time  
when ',it is done6' can be proclaimed   
from the ,throne1 imply that the        
interval is filled by a continuous work 
of our ,lord's1 which began at the      
moment when the work on the ,cross      
ended4  ,now it has very often been the 
case1 as ,i take leave to think1 that   
the interpretation of the former of     
these two texts has been of such a kind 
as to distort the perspective of        
,christian truth1 and to obscure the    
fact of that continuous work of our     
,lord's4 ,therefore it may not be out of
 place if1 in a sentence or two1 ,i     
recall to you the plain teaching of the 
,new ,testament upon this matter4 ',it  
is finished6' ,yes2 and as the lower    
course of some great building is but the
 foundation for the higher1 when        
'finished' it is but begun4 ,the work   

which1 in one aspect1 is the close1 in  
another aspect is the commencement of   
,christ's further activity4 ,what did   
,he say ,himself1 when ,he was here with
 ,his disciples8 ',i will not leave you 
comfortless1 ,i will come to you4' ,what
 was the last word that came fluttering 
down1 like an olive leaf1 into the      
bosoms of the men as they stood with    
uplifted faces gazing upon ,him as ,he  
disappeared8 ',lo6 ,i am with you alway1
 even to the end of the ages4' ,what is 
the keynote of the book which carries on
 the story of the ,gospels in the       
history of the militant ,church8 ',the  
former treatise have ,i made444 of all  
that ,jesus began both to do and to     
teach1 until the day in which ,he was   
taken up'--and1 being taken up1         
continued1 in a new form1 both the doing
 and the teaching4 ,thus that book1     
misnamed the ,acts of the ,apostles1    
sets ,him forth as the ,worker of all   
the progress of the ,church4 ,who is it 
that 'adds to the ,church daily such as 

were being saved8' ,the ,lord4 ,who is  
it that opened the hearts of the hearers
 to the message8 ,the ,lord4 ,who is it 
that flings wide the prison-gates when  
,his persecuted servants are in chains8 
,the ,lord4 ,who is it that bids one man
 attach himself to the chariot of the   
eunuch of ,ethiopia1 and another man go 
and bear witness in ,rome8 ,the ,lord4  
,through the whole of that book there   
runs the keynote1 as its dominant       
thought1 that men are but the           
instruments1 and the hand that wields   
them is ,christ's1 and that ,he who     
wrought the finished work that          
culminated on ,calvary is operating a   
continuous work through the ages from   
,his ,throne4  ,take that last book of  
,scripture1 which opens with a view of  
the ascended ,christ 'walking in the    
midst of the seven candlesticks1 and    
holding the stars in ,his right hand2'  
which further draws aside the curtains  
of the heavenly sanctuary1 and lets us  
see 'the ,lamb in the midst of the      

,throne1' opening the seven seals--that 
is to say1 setting loose for their      
progress through the world the forces   
that make the history of humanity1 and  
which culminates in the vision of the   
final battle in which the ,incarnate    
,word of ,god goes forth to victory1    
with all the armies of heaven following 
,him4 ,are not its whole spirit and     
message that ,jesus ,christ1 the ,lamb  
who is the ,antagonist of the ,beast1 is
 working through all the history of the 
world1 and will work till its kingdoms  
are 'become the kingdoms of our ,god and
 of ,his ,christ8'  ,now1 that          
continuous operation of ,jesus ,christ  
in the midst of men is not to be        
weakened down to the mere continued     
influence of the truths which ,he       
proclaimed1 or the ,gospel which ,he    
brought4 ,there is something a great    
deal more than the diminishing          
vibrations of a force long since set in 
operation1 and slowly ceasing to act4   
,dead teachers do still 'rule our       

spirits from their urns'2 but it is no  
dead ,christ who1 by the influence of   
what ,he did when ,he was living1 sways 
the world and comforts ,his ,church2 it 
is a living ,christ who to-day is       
working in ,his people1 by ,his ,spirit4
 ,further1 ,he works on the world       
through ,his people by the ,word2 they  
plant and water1 ,he 'gives the         
increase4' ,and ,he is working in the   
world1 for ,his ,church and for the     
world1 by ,his wielding of all power    
that is given to ,him1 in heaven and on 
earth4 ,so that the work that is done   
upon earth ,he doeth it all ,himself2   
and ,christian people unduly limit the  
sphere of ,christ's operations when they
 look back only to the ,cross1 and talk 
about a 'finished work' there1 and      
forget that that finished work there is 
but the vestibule of the continuous work
 that is being done to-day4  ,christian 
people6 ,the present work of ,christ    
needs working servants4 ,we are here in 
order to carry on ,his work4 ,the       

,apostle ventured to say that he was    
appointed 'to fill up that which is     
behind of the sufferings of ,christ'2 we
 may well venture to say that we are    
here mainly to apply to the world the   
benefits resulting from the finished    
work upon the ,cross4 ,the              
accomplishment of redemption1 and the   
realisation of the accomplished         
redemption1 are two wholly different    
things4 ,christ has done the one4 ,he   
says to us1 ',you are honoured to help  
,me to do the other4' ,according to the 
accurate rendering of a great saying of 
the ,old ,testament1 ',take no rest1 and
 give ,him no rest1 till ,he establish  
and make ,jerusalem a praise in the     
earth1 ,christ's work is finished2 there
 is nothing for us to do with it but    
trust it4 ,christ's work is going on2   
come to ,his help4 ,ye are              
fellow-labourers with and to the        
,incarnate ,truth4  ,,iii4 ,i need not  
say more than a word about the third    
thought1 suggested by these texts--viz41

 the completion of the work which began 
on the ,cross4  ',it is done6' ,that    
lies1 no man knows how far1 ahead of us4
 ,as surely as astronomers tell us that 
all this universe is hastening towards a
 central point1 so surely 'that far-off 
divine event' is that 'to which the     
whole creation moves4' ,it is the blaze 
of light which fills the distant end of 
the dim vista of human history4 ,its    
elements are in part summed up in the   
context--the tabernacle of ,god with    
men1 the perfected fellowship of the    
human with the divine1 the housing of   
men in the very home and heart of ,god2 
'a new heaven and a new earth1' a       
renovated universe2 the removal of all  
evil1 suffering1 sorrow1 sin1 and tears4
 ,these things are to be1 and shall be1 
when ,he says ',it is done6'  ,brethren6
 nothing else than such an issue can be 
the end of ,creation1 for nothing else  
than such is the purpose of ,god for    
man1 and ,god is not going to be beaten 
by the world and the devil4 ,nothing    

else than such can be the issue of the  
,cross2 for ',he shall see of the       
travail of ,his soul1 and shall be      
satisfied1' and ,christ is not going to 
labour in vain1 and spend ,his life1 and
 give ,his breath and ,his blood for    
nought4  ,nothing but the work finished 
on the ,cross guarantees the coming of  
that perfected issue4 ,i know not where 
else there is hope for mankind1 looking 
on the history of humanity1 except in   
that great message1 that ,jesus ,christ1
 the ,son of ,god1 has come1 has died1  
lives for ever1 and is the world's ,king
 and ,lord4  ,so for ourselves1 in      
regard to the one part of the work1 let 
us listen to ,him saying ',it is        
finished6' abandon all attempts to eke  
it out by additions of our own1 and cast
 ourselves on the finished ,revelation1 
the finished ,obedience1 the finished   
,atonement1 made once for all on the    
,cross4 ,but as for the continuous work 
going on through the ages1 let us cast  
ourselves into it with earnestness1     

self-sacrifice1 consecration1 and       
continuity1 for we are fellow-workers   
with ,christ1 and ,christ will work in1 
with1 and for us if we will work for    
,him4    ,,christ ,,our ,,passover      
',these things were done1 that the      
,scripture should be fulfilled1 ,a bone 
of ,him shall not be broken4'--,,john   
xix4 #cf4  ,the ,evangelist1 in the     
words of this text1 points to the great 
,feast of the ,passover and to the      
,paschal ,lamb1 as finding their highest
 fulfilment1 as he calls it1 in ,jesus  
,christ4 ,for this purpose of bringing  
out the correspondence between the      
shadow and the substance he avails      
himself of a singular coincidence       
concerning a perfectly unimportant      
matter--viz41 the abnormally rapid      
sinking of ,christ's physical strength  
in the crucifixion1 by which the final  
indignity of breaking the bones of the  
sufferers was avoided in ,his case4     
,john sees1 in that entirely            
insignificant thing1 a kind of          

fingerpost pointing to far more         
important1 deeper1 and real             
correspondences4 ,we are not to suppose 
that he was so purblind1 and attached so
 much importance to externals1 as that  
this outward coincidence exhausted in   
his conception the correspondence       
between the two4 ,but ,it was a trifle  
that suggested a greater matter4 ,it was
 a help aiding gross conceptions and    
common minds to grasp the inward        
relation between ,jesus and that        
,passover rite4 ,but just as our ,lord  
would have fulfilled the prophecy about 
the ,king coming 'meek1 and having      
salvation1' though ,he had never ridden 
on a literal ass into the literal       
,jerusalem1 so our ,lord would have     
'fulfilled' the shadow of the ,passover 
with the substance of ,his own sacrifice
 if there had never been this           
insignificant correspondence1 in outward
 things1 between the two4  ,but whilst  
my text is the ,evangelist's commentary1
 the question arises1 ,how did he come  

to recognise that our ,lord was all     
which that ,passover signified8 ,and the
 answer is1 he recognised it through    
,christ's own teaching4 ,he does not    
record the institution of the ,lord's   
,supper4 ,it did not fall into his      
scheme to deal with external events of  
that sort1 and he knew that it had been 
sufficiently taught by the three earlier
 ,gospels1 to which his is a supplement4
 ,but though he did not narrate the     
institution1 he takes it for granted in 
the words of my text1 and his           
vindication of his seeing the fulfilment
 of ',a bone of ,him shall not be       
broken' in the incident to which ,i have
 referred1 lies in this1 that ,jesus    
,christ ,himself swept away the         
,passover and substituted the memorial  
feast of the ,lord's ,supper4 ',this do 
in remembrance of ,me1' said at the     
table where the ,paschal lamb had been  
eaten1 sufficiently warrants ,john's    
allusion here4  ,so then1 marking the   
fact that our ,evangelist is but        

carrying out the lesson that he had     
learned in the upper room1 we may fairly
 take the identification of the ,paschal
 lamb with the crucified ,christ as     
being the last instance in which our    
,lord ,himself laid ,his hand upon ,old 
,testament incidents and said1 ',they   
all mean ,me4' ,and it is from that     
point of view1 and not merely for the   
purpose of dealing with the words that  
,i have read as our starting-point1 that
 ,i wish to speak now4  ,i4 ,now then1  
the first thing that strikes me is that 
in this substitution of ,himself for the
 ,passover we have a strange instance of
 ,christ's supreme authority4  ,try to  
fling yourself back in imagination to   
that upper room1 where ,jesus and a     
handful of ,galileans were sitting1 and 
remember the sanctity which immemorial  
usage had cast round that centre and    
apex of the ,jewish ritual1 established 
at the ,exodus by a solemn divine       
appointment1 intended to commemorate the
 birth of the nation1 venerable by      

antiquity and association with the most 
vehement pulsations of national feeling1
 the centre point of ,jewish religion4  
,christ said3 ',put it all away2 do not 
think about the ,exodus2 do not think   
about the destroying ,angel2 do not     
think about the deliverance4 ,forget all
 the past2 do this in remembrance of    
,me4' ,take into account that the       
,passover had a double sacredness1 as a 
religious festival1 and also as         
commemorating the birthday of the       
nation1 and then estimate what a strange
 sense of ,his own importance the ,man  
must have had who said3 ',that past is  
done with1 and it is ,me that you have  
to think of now4' ,if ,i might venture  
to take a very modern illustration      
without vulgarising a great thing1      
suppose that on the other side of the   
,atlantic somebody were to stand up and 
say1 ',i abrogate the ,fourth of ,july  
and ,independence ,day4 ,do not think   
about ,washington and the establishment 
of the ,united ,states any more4 ,think 

about me6' ,that is exactly what ,jesus 
,christ did4 ,only instead of a century 
there were millenniums of observance    
which ,he thus laid aside4 ,so ,i say   
that is a strange exercise of authority4
  ,what does it imply8 ,it implies two  
things1 and ,i must say a word about    
each of them4 ,it implies that ,christ  
regarded the whole of the ancient system
 of ,judaism1 its history1 its law1 its 
rites of worship1 as pointing onwards to
 ,himself1 that ,he recognised in it a  
system the whole raison d'etre of which 
was anticipatory and preparatory of     
,himself4 ,for ,him the ,decalogue was  
given1 for ,him priests were            
consecrated1 for ,him kings were        
anointed1 for ,him prophets spake1 for  
,him sacrifices smoked1 for ,him        
festivals were appointed1 and the nation
 and its history were all one long      
proclamation3 ',the ,king cometh6 go ye 
forth to meet ,him4' ,you cannot get    
less than that out of the way in which  
,he handled1 as is told in this ,gospel1

 ,jacob's ladder1 the ,serpent in the   
wilderness1 the ,manna that fell from   
,heaven1 the ,pillar of ,cloud that led 
the people1 the ,rock that gushed forth 
water1 and now1 last of all1 the        
,passover1 which was the very shining   
apex of the whole sacrificial and ritual
 system4  ,and remember1 too1 that this 
way of dealing with all the institutions
 of the nation as meaning1 in their     
inmost purpose1 ,himself1 is exactly    
parallel to ,his way of dealing with the
 sacred words of ,mosaic commandment and
 prohibition in the ,sermon on the      
,mount1 where ,he set side by side as of
 equal--,i was going to say1 and ,i     
should have been right in saying1       
identical--authority what was 'said to  
them of old time' and what ',i say unto 
you4' ,amidst the dust of our present   
controversies as to the processes by    
which1 and the times at which1 the ,old 
,testament books assumed their present  
form1 there is grave danger that the    
essential thing about the whole matter  

should be obscured4 ,the way in which   
what is called ,higher ,criticism may   
finally locate the origins and dates of 
the various parts of that ancient record
 and that ancient system does not in the
 slightest degree affect the outstanding
 characteristic of the whole1 that it is
 the product of the divine hand1 working
 7if you will7 through men who had more 
freedom of action whilst they were its  
organs than our grandfathers thought4   
,be it so2 but still that divine ,hand  
shaped the whole in order that1 besides 
its educational effects upon the        
generations that received it1 there     
should shine through it all the         
expectation of the coming ,king4 ,and ,i
 venture to say that1 however grateful  
we may be to modern investigation for   
light upon these other points to which  
,i have referred1 the ignorant reader   
that reads ,jesus ,christ into all the  
,old ,testament may be very uncritical  
and mistaken in regard to details1 but  
he has got hold of the root of the      

matter1 and is nearer to the            
apprehension of the essence and spirit  
and purpose of the ancient ,revelation  
than the most learned critic who does   
not see that it is the preparation for1 
and the prophecy of1 ,jesus ,christ     
,himself4 ,and the vindication of such a
 position lies in this1 among other     
facts1 that ,he in the upper room1 in   
harmony with1 and in completion of1 all 
that ,he had previously spoken about    
,his relation to the ,old ,testament1   
claimed the ,passover as the prophecy of
 ,himself1 and said1 ',i am the ,lamb of
 ,god4'  ,i need not dwell1 ,i suppose1 
on the other consideration that is      
involved in this strange exercise of    
authority--viz41 the naturalness1 as    
without any sense of doing anything     
presumptuous or extraordinary1 with     
which ,christ assumes ,his right to     
handle divine appointments with the most
 perfect freedom1 to modify them1 to    
reshape them1 to divert them from their 
first purpose1 and to enjoin them with  

an authority equal to that with which   
the ,lord said unto ,moses1 ',keep ye   
this day through your generations4'     
,there is only one supposition on which 
,i1 for my part1 can understand that    
conduct--that ,he was the possessor of  
authority the same as the ,authority    
that had originally instituted the rite4
  ,and so1 dear brethren6 when our ,lord
 said1 ',do this in remembrance of ,me1'
 ,i pray you to ask yourselves1 ,what   
did that involve in regard to ,his      
nature and the source of ,his authority 
over us8 ,and what did it involve in    
regard to ,his relation to that ancient 
,revelation8  ,,ii4 ,and now another    
point that ,i would suggest is--we have1
 in this substitution of the new rite   
for the old1 our ,lord's clear          
declaration of what was the very heart  
of ,his work in the world4  ',this do in
 remembrance of ,me4' ,what is it1 then1
 to which ,he points8 ,is it to the     
wisdom1 the tenderness1 the deep beauty1
 the flashing moral purity that gleamed 

and shone lambent in ,his words8 ,no6   
,is it to the gracious self--oblivion1  
the gentle accessibility1 the loving    
pity1 the leisurely heart always ready  
to help1 the eye ready to fill with     
tears1 the hand ever outstretched and   
ever laden with blessings8 ,no6 ,it is  
the death on the ,cross which ,he1 if ,i
 might so say1 isolates1 at least which 
,he underscores with red lines1 and     
which ,he would have us remember1 as we 
remember nothing else4 ,brethren1 rites 
are insignificant in many aspects1 but  
are often of enormous importance as     
witnesses to truths4 ,and ,i point to   
the ,lord's ,supper1 the one rite of the
 ,christian ,church1 which is to be     
repeated over and over and over again1  
and see in it the great barrier which   
has rendered it impossible1 and will    
render it impossible1 as ,i believe1 for
 evermore1 that a ,christianity1 which  
obscures the atoning sacrifice of       
,christ on the ,cross1 should ever pose 
as the full representation of the       

,master's mind1 or as the full          
expression of the ,saviour's word4      
,what do men and churches that falter in
 their allegiance to the truth of       
,christ's redemptive death do with the  
,lord's ,supper8 ,nothing6 ,for the most
 part they ignore it1 or if they retain 
it1 do not1 for the life of them1 know  
how to explain it1 or why it should be  
there4 ,the explanation of why it is    
there is the great truth1 of which it is
 the clear utterance and the strong     
defence1 the truth that ',jesus ,christ 
died for our sins according to the      
,scriptures1' and that 'the ,son of ,man
 came444 to give ,his life a ransom for 
the many4'  ,what did that ,passover    
say8 ,two things it said1 the blood that
 was sprinkled on the lintels and on the
 door-posts was the token to the        
destroying ,angel1 as with his broad1   
silent pinions he swept through the     
land1 bringing a blacker night into     
,egyptian darkness1 and leaving behind  
him no house 'in which there was not one

 dead4' ,all the houses of which the    
occupants had put the ruddy mark on the 
lintels and on the doorposts1 and were  
wise enough not to go forth from behind 
the shelter of that mark on the door1   
were safe when the morning dawned4 ,and 
so to us all who1 by our sinfulness1    
have brought down upon our heads        
exposedness to that retribution1 which1 
in a righteously governed universe1 must
 needs follow sin1 and to that death    
which the separation from ,god--the     
necessary result of sin--most surely is1
 there is proffered in that great       
,sacrifice shelter from the destroying  
sword4  ,but that is not all4 ,whilst   
the blood on the posts meant security1  
the ,lamb on the table meant            
emancipation4 ,so they who find in the  
dying ,christ their exemption from the  
last consequences of transgression1     
find1 in partaking of the ,christ whose 
sacrifice is their pardon1 the          
communication of a new power1 which sets
 them free from a worse than ,egyptian  

bondage1 and enables them to shake from 
their emancipated limbs the fetters of  
the grimmest of the ,pharaohs that have 
wielded a tyrannous dominion over them4 
,pardon and freedom1 the creation of a  
nation subject only to the law of       
,jehovah ,himself--these were the facts 
that the ,passover festival and the     
,passover lamb signified1 and these are 
the facts which1 in nobler fashion1 are 
brought to us by ,jesus ,christ4 ,so1 ,i
 beseech you1 let ,him teach you what   
,his work in the world is1 as ,he lays  
,his own hand on that highest of the    
ancient festivals1 and endorses the     
,baptist's declaration1 ',behold the    
,lamb of ,god1 which taketh away the sin
 of the world6'  ,,iii4 ,now1 lastly1   
let me ask you to notice how1 in this   
regal and authoritative dealing by our  
,lord with that ancient festival1 there 
lies a loving provision for our         
weakness4  ,surely we may venture to say
 that ,jesus ,christ desired to be      
remembered1 even by that handful of poor

 people1 and by us1 not only for our    
sakes1 but because ,his heart1 too1     
craved that ,he should not be forgotten 
by those whom ,he was leaving4 ,as you  
may remember1 the dying king turned to  
the bishop standing by him1 with the    
enigmatical word which no one understood
 but the receiver of it--',remember6' so
 did ,jesus ,christ4 ,he appeals to our 
thankfulness1 ,he appeals to our        
affections1 ,he lets us see that ,he    
wishes to live in our memories1 because 
,he delights in it1 as well as because  
it is for our profit4  ,the ,passover   
was purely and simply a rite of         
remembrance4 ,i venture to believe that 
the ,lord's ,supper is nothing more4 ,i 
know how people talk about the bare1    
bald1 ,zwinglian ideas of the           
,communion4 ,they do look very bald and 
bare by the side of modern notions and  
mediaeval notions resuscitated4 ,well1  
,i had rather have the bareness than ,i 
would have it overlaid by coverings     
under which there is room for abundance 

of vermin to lurk4 ,christ puts the     
,lord's ,supper in the place of the     
,passover4 ,the ,passover was a purely  
memorial rite4 ,you ,christian people   
will understand the spirituality of the 
whole ,gospel system1 and the nature of 
the only bond which unites men to ,jesus
 and brings spiritual blessings to      
them--viz4 faith--all the better1 the   
more you cling1 in spite of all that is 
going on round us to-day1 to that       
simple1 intelligible1 ,scriptural notion
 that we commemorate the ,sacrifice1 not
 offer the ,sacrifice4 ,jesus ,christ   
said that the ,lord's ,supper was to be 
observed 'in remembrance of ,me4' ,that 
was ,his explanation of its purpose1 and
 ,i for one am content to take as the   
expounder of the laws of the feast1 the 
feast's own ,founder4  ,now one more    
word4 ,in the ,passover men fed on the  
,sacrifice4 ,jesus ,christ presents     
,himself to each of us as at once the   
,sacrifice for our sins and the ,food of
 our souls4 ,if you will keep your minds

 in touch with the truth about ,him1 and
 with ,him whom the truth about ,him    
reveals to you1 if you will keep your   
hearts in touch with that great and     
unspeakable sign of ,god's love1 if you 
will keep your wills in submission to   
,his authority1 if you will let ,his    
blood1 'which is the life1' or as you   
may otherwise word it1 ,his ,spirit1    
come into your lives1 and be your       
spirit1 your motive1 then you will go   
out from the table1 not like the        
disciples to flee1 and deny1 and forget1
 nor like the ,israelites to wander in a
 wilderness1 but strengthened for many a
 day of joyous service and true         
communion1 and will come at last to what
 ,he has promised us3 ',ye shall sit    
with ,me at ,my table in ,my ,kingdom1' 
whence we shall go 'no more out4'       
,,joseph ,,and ,,nicodemus  ',and after 
this ,joseph of ,arimathea1 being a     
disciple of ,jesus1 but secretly for    
fear of the ,jews1 besought ,pilate that
 he might take away the body of ,jesus2 

444 ,and there came also ,nicodemus     
which at the first came to ,jesus by    
night4'--,,john xix4 #ch1 #ci4  ,while  
,christ lived1 these two men had been   
unfaithful to their convictions2 but    
,his death1 which terrified and         
paralysed and scattered ,his avowed     
disciples1 seems to have shamed and     
stung them into courage4 ,they came now1
 when they must have known that it was  
too late1 to lavish honour and tears on 
the corpse of the ,master whom they had 
been too cowardly to acknowledge1 whilst
 acknowledgment might yet have availed4 
,how keen an arrow of self-condemnation 
must have pierced their hearts as they  
moved in their offices of love1 which   
they thought that ,he could never know1 
round ,his dead corpse6  ,they were both
 members of the ,sanhedrim2 the same    
motives1 no doubt1 had withheld each of 
them from confessing ,christ2 the same  
impulses united them in this too late   
confession of discipleship4 ,nicodemus  
had had the conviction1 at the beginning

 of ,christ's ministry1 that ,he was at 
least a miraculously attested and       
,god-sent ,teacher4 ,but the fear which 
made him steal to ,jesus by night--the  
unenviable distinction which the        
,evangelist pitilessly reiterates at    
each mention of him--arrested his growth
 and kept him dumb when silence was     
treason4 ,joseph of ,arimathea is       
described by two of the ,evangelists as 
'a disciple'2 by the other two as a     
devout ,israelite1 like ,simeon and     
,anna1 'waiting for the ,kingdom of     
,god4' ,luke informs us that he had not 
concurred in the condemnation of ,jesus1
 but leads us to believe that his       
dissent had been merely silent4 ,perhaps
 he was more fully convinced than       
,nicodemus1 and at the same time even   
more timid in avowing his convictions4  
,we may take these two contrite cowards 
as they try to atone for their          
unfaithfulness to their living ,master  
by their ministrations to ,him dead1 as 
examples of secret disciples1 and see   

here the causes1 the misery1 and the    
cure of such4  ,i4 ,let us look at them 
as illustrations of secret discipleship 
and its causes4  ,they were restrained  
from the avowal of the ,messiahship of  
,jesus by fear4 ,there is nothing in the
 organisation of society at this day to 
make any man afraid of avowing the      
ordinary kind of ,christianity which    
satisfies the most of us2 rather it is  
the proper thing with the bulk of us    
middle-class people1 to say that in some
 sense or other we are ,christians4 ,but
 when it comes to a real avowal1 a real 
carrying out of a true discipleship1    
there are as many and as formidable1    
though very different1 impediments in   
the way to-day1 from those which blocked
 the path of these two cowards in our   
text4 ,in all regions of life it is hard
 to work out into practice any moral    
conviction whatever4 ,how many of us are
 there who have beliefs about social and
 moral questions which we are ashamed to
 avow in certain companies for fear of  

the finger of ridicule being pointed at 
us8 ,it is not only in the ,church1 and 
in reference to purely religious belief1
 that we find the curse of secret       
discipleship1 but it is everywhere4     
,wherever there are moral questions     
which are yet the subject of            
controversy1 and have not been enthroned
 with the hallelujahs of all men1 you   
get people that carry their convictions 
shut up in their own breasts1 and lock  
their lips in silence1 when there is    
most need of frank avowal4 ,the         
political1 social1 and moral conflicts  
of this day have their 'secret          
disciples1' who will only come out of   
their holes when the battle is over1 and
 will then shout with the loudest4  ,but
 to turn to the more immediate subject  
before us1 how many men and women1 ,i   
wonder1 are there who ought to be and   
are not1 distinctly and openly united   
with the ,christian community8  ,i do   
not mean to say--,god forbid that ,i    
should--that connection with any        

existing church is the same as a        
connection with ,jesus ,christ1 or that 
the neglect to be so associated is      
tantamount to secret discipleship2 ,i   
know there are plenty of other ways of  
acknowledging ,him than that1 but ,i am 
quite sure that this is one department  
in which a large number of men1 in all  
our congregations--and there are not a  
few in this congregation--need a very   
plain word of earnest remonstrance4 ,it 
is one way of manifesting whose you are1
 that you should unite yourselves openly
 with those who belong to ,him1 and who 
try to serve ,him4 ,i do not dwell upon 
this matter1 because ,i do not wish to  
be misunderstood1 as if ,i supposed that
 union to a church is equivalent to     
union with ,him2 or that a connection   
with a church is the only1 or even the  
principal way of making an open avowal  
of ,christian principle2 but ,i am      
certain that amongst us in this day     
there is a laxity in this matter which  
is doing harm both to the ,church and to

 some of you4 ,therefore ,i say to you1 
dear friends1 suffer the word of        
exhortation as to the duty of openly    
uniting yourselves with the ,christian  
community4  ,but far higher and more    
important than that--do you ever say    
anyhow that you belong to ,jesus        
,christ8 ,in a society like ours1 in    
which the influence of ,christian       
morality affects a great many people who
 have no personal connection with ,him1 
it is not always enough that the life   
should preach1 because over a very large
 field of ordinary daily life the       
underground influence1 so to speak1 of  
,christian ethics has infiltrated and   
penetrated1 so that many a tree bears a 
greener leaf because of the water that  
has found its way to it from the river1 
though it be planted far from its banks4
 ,even those who are not ,christians    
live outward lives largely regulated by 
,christian principle4 ,the whole level  
of morality has been heaved up1 as the  
coastline has sometimes been by hidden  

fires slowly working1 by the            
imperceptible1 gradual influence of the 
gospel4  ,so it needs sometimes that you
 should say ',i am a ,christian1' as    
well as that you should live like one4  
,ask yourselves1 dear friends6 whether  
you have buttoned your greatcoat over   
your uniform that nobody may know whose 
soldier you are4 ,ask yourselves whether
 you have sometimes held your tongues   
because you knew that if you spoke      
people would find out where you came    
from and what country you belonged to4  
,ask yourselves1 ,have you ever         
accompanied the witness of your lives   
with the commentary of your confession8 
,did you ever1 anywhere but in a church1
 stand up and say1 ',i believe in ,jesus
 ,christ1 ,his only ,son1 my ,lord'8    
,and then ask yourselves another        
question3 ,have you ever dared to be    
singular8 ,we are all of us in this     
world often thrust into circumstances in
 which it is needful that we should say1
 ',so do not ,i because of the fear of  

the ,lord4' ,boys go to school2 they    
used always to kneel down at their      
bedsides and say their prayers when they
 were at home4 ,they do not like to do  
it with all those critical and cruel    
eyes--and there are no eyes more        
critical and more cruel than young      
eyes--fixed upon them1 and so they give 
up prayer4 ,a young man comes to        
,manchester1 goes into a warehouse1 pure
 of life1 and with a tongue that has not
 blossomed into rank fruit of obscenity 
and blasphemy4 ,and he hears1 at the    
next desk there1 words that first of all
 bring a blush to his cheek1 and he is  
tempted into conduct that he knows to be
 a denial of his ,master4 ,and he covers
 up his principles1 and goes with the   
tempters into the evil4 ,i might sketch 
a dozen other cases1 but ,i need not4   
,in one form or other1 we have all to go
 through the same ordeal4 ,we have      
sometimes to dare to be in a minority of
 one1 if we will not be untrue to our   
,master and to ourselves4  ,now the     

reasons for this unfaithfulness to      
conviction and to ,christ1 are put by   
the ,apostle here in a very blunt       
fashion--',for fear of the ,jews4' ,that
 is not what we say to ourselves2 some  
of us say1 ',oh6 ,i have got beyond     
outward organisations4 ,i find it enough
 to be united to ,christ4 ,the          
,christian communities are very         
imperfect4 ,there is not any of them    
that ,i quite see eye to eye with4 ,so  
,i stand apart1 contemplating all1 and  
happy in my unsectarianism4' ,yes1 ,i   
quite admit the faults1 and suppose that
 as long as men think at all they will  
not find any ,church which is entirely  
to their mind2 and ,i rejoice to think  
that some day we shall all outgrow      
visible organisations--when we get there
 where the seer 'saw no temple therein4'
 ,admitting all that1 ,i also know that 
isolation is always weakness1 and that  
if a man stand apart from the wholesome 
friction of his brethren1 he will get to
 be a great diseased mass of oddities1  

of very little use either to himself1 or
 to men1 or to ,god4 ,it is not a good  
thing1 on the whole1 that people should 
fight for their own hands1 and the      
wisest thing any of us can do is1       
preserving our freedom of opinion1 to   
link ourselves with some body of        
,christian people1 and to find in them  
our shelter and our home4  ,but these   
two in our text were moved by 'fear4'   
,they dreaded ridicule1 the loss of     
position1 the expulsion from ,sanhedrim 
and synagogue1 social ostracism1 and all
 the armoury of offensive weapons which 
would have been used against them by    
their colleagues4 ,so1 ignobly they kept
 their thumb on their convictions1 and  
the two of them sat dumb in the council 
when the scornful question was asked1   
',have any of the rulers or of the      
,pharisees believed on ,him8' when they 
ought to have started to their feet and 
said ',yes1 we have6' ,and when         
,nicodemus ventured a feeble            
remonstrance1 which he carefully        

divested of all appearance of personal  
sympathy1 and put upon the mere abstract
 ground of fair play--',doth our law    
judge any man before it hear him8'--one 
contemptuous question was enough to     
reduce him to silence4 ',art thou also  
of ,galilee8' was enough to cow him into
 dropping his timid plea for ,him whom  
in his heart he believed to be the      
,messiah4  ,so with us1 the fear of loss
 of position comes into play4 ,i have   
heard of people who settled the         
congregation which they should honour by
 their presence from the consideration  
of the social advantages which it       
offered4 ,i have heard of their saying1 
',oh6 we cannot attach ourselves to such
 and such a community2 there is no      
society for the children4' ,then many of
 us are very much afraid of being       
laughed at4 ,ridicule1 ,i think1 to     
sensitive people in a generation like   
ours1 is pretty nearly as bad as the old
 rack and the physical torments of      
martyrdom4 ,we have all got so nervous  

and high-strung nowadays1 and depend so 
much upon other people's good opinion1  
that it is a dreadful thing to be       
ridiculed4 ,timid people do not come to 
the front and say what they believe1 and
 take up unpopular causes1 because they 
cannot bear to be pointed at and pelted 
with the abundant epithets of           
disparagement1 which are always flung at
 earnest people who will not worship at 
the appointed shrines1 and have sturdy  
convictions of their own4  ,ridicule    
breaks no bones4 ,it has no power if you
 make up your mind that it shall not    
have4 ,face it1 and it will only be     
unpleasant for a moment at first4 ,when 
a child goes into the sea to bathe1 he  
is uncomfortable till his head has been 
fairly under water1 and then after that 
he is all right4 ,so it is with the     
ridicule which out-and-out ,christian   
faithfulness may bring on us4 ,it only  
hurts at the beginning1 and people very 
soon get tired4 ,face your fears and    
they will pass away4 ,it is not perhaps 

a good advice to give unconditionally1  
but it is a very good one in regard of  
all moral questions--always do what you 
are afraid to do4 ,in nine cases out of 
ten it will be the right thing to do4   
,if people would only discount 'the fear
 of men which bringeth a snare' by      
making up their minds to neglect it1    
there would be fewer 'dumb dogs' and    
'secret disciples' haunting and         
weakening the ,church of ,christ4  ,,ii4
 ,i have spent too much time upon this  
part of my subject1 and ,i must deal    
briefly with the following4 ,let me say 
a word about the illustrations that we  
have in this text of the miseries of    
this secret discipleship4  ,how much    
these two men lost--all those three     
years of communion with the ,master2 all
 ,his teaching1 all the stimulus of ,his
 example1 all the joy of fellowship with
 ,him6 ,they might have had a treasure  
in their memories that would have       
enriched them for all their days1 and   
they had flung it all away because they 

were afraid of the curled lip of a      
long-bearded ,pharisee or two4  ,and so 
it always is2 the secret disciple       
diminishes his communion with his       
,master4 ,it is the valleys which lay   
their bosoms open to the sun that       
rejoice in the light and warmth2 the    
narrow clefts in the rocks that shut    
themselves grudgingly up against the    
light1 are all dank and dark and dismal4
 ,and it is the men that come and avow  
their discipleship that will have the   
truest communion with their ,lord4 ,any 
neglected duty puts a film between a man
 and his ,saviour2 any conscious neglect
 of duty piles up a wall between you and
 ,christ4 ,be sure of this1 that if from
 cowardly or from selfish regard to     
position and advantages1 or any other   
motive1 we stand apart from ,him1 and   
have our lips locked when we ought to   
speak1 there will steal over our hearts 
a coldness1 ,his face will be averted   
from us1 and our eyes will not dare to  
seek1 with the same confidence and joy1 

the light of ,his countenance4  ,what   
you lose by unfaithful wrapping of your 
convictions in a napkin and burying them
 in the ground is the joyful use of the 
convictions1 the deeper hold of the     
truth by which you live1 and before     
which you bow1 and the true fellowship  
with the ,master whom you acknowledge   
and confess4 ,and when these men came   
for ,christ's corpse and bore it away1  
what a sharp pang went through their    
hearts6 ,they woke at last to know what 
cowardly traitors they had been4 ,if you
 are a disciple at all1 and a secret    
one1 you will awake to know what you    
have been doing1 and the pang will be a 
sharp one4 ,if you do not awake in this 
life1 then the distance between you and 
your ,lord will become greater and      
greater2 if you do1 then it will be a   
sad reflection that there are years of  
treason lying behind you4 ,nicodemus and
 ,joseph had the veil torn away by the  
contemplation of their dead ,master4    
,you may have the veil torn away from   

your eyes by the sight of the throned   
,lord2 and when you pass into the       
heavens may even there have some sharp  
pang of condemnation when you reflect   
how unfaithful you have been4  ,blessed 
be ,his name6 ,the assurance is firm    
that if a man be a disciple he shall be 
saved2 but the warning is sure that if  
he be an unfaithful and a secret        
disciple there will be a life-long      
unfaithfulness to a beloved ,master to  
be purged away 'so as by fire4'  ,,iii4 
,and so1 lastly1 let me point you to the
 cure4  ,these men learned to be ashamed
 of their cowardice1 and their dumb lips
 learned to speak1 and their shy1 hidden
 love forced for itself a channel by    
which it could flow out into the light2 
because of ,christ's death4 ,and in     
another fashion that same death and     
,cross are for us1 too1 the cure of all 
cowardice and selfish silence4 ,the     
sight of ,christ's ,cross makes the     
coward brave4 ,it was no small piece of 
courage for ,joseph to go to ,pilate and

 avow his sympathy with a condemned     
criminal4 ,the love must have been very 
true which was forced to speak by       
disaster and death4 ,and to us the      
strongest motive for stiffening our     
vacillating timidity into an iron       
fortitude1 and fortifying us strongly   
against the fear of what man can do to  
us1 is to be found in gazing upon ,his  
dying love who met and conquered all    
evils and terrors for our sakes4  ,that 
,cross will kindle a love which will not
 rest concealed1 but will be 'like the  
ointment of the right hand which        
bewrayeth itself4' ,i can fancy men to  
whom ,christ is only what ,he was to    
,nicodemus at first1 'a ,teacher sent   
from ,god1' occupying ,nicodemus'       
position of hidden belief in ,his       
teaching without feeling any need to    
avow themselves ,his followers2 but if  
once into our souls there has come the  
constraining and the melting influence  
of that great and wondrous love which   
died for us1 then1 dear brethren1 it is 

unnatural that we should be silent4 ,if 
those 'for whom ,christ has died' should
 hold their peace1 'the stones would    
immediately cry out4' ,that death1      
wondrous1 mysterious1 terrible1 but     
radiant1 and glorious with hope1 with   
pardon1 with holiness for us and for all
 the world--that death smites on the    
chords of our hearts1 if ,i may so      
speak1 and brings out music from them   
all4 ,the love that died for me will    
force me to express my love1 ',then     
shall the tongue of the dumb sing1' and 
silence will be impossible4  ,the sight 
of the ,cross not only leads to courage1
 and kindles a love which demands       
expression1 but it impels to joyful     
surrender4 ,joseph gave a place in his  
own new tomb1 where he hoped that one   
day his bones should be laid by the side
 of the ,master against whom he had     
sinned--for he had no thought of a      
resurrection4 ,nicodemus brought a      
lavish1 almost an extravagant1 amount of
 costly spices1 as if by honour to the  

dead he could atone for treason to the  
living4 ,and both the one and the other 
teach us that if once we gain the true  
vision of that great and wondrous love  
that died on the ,cross for us1 then the
 natural language of the loving heart   
is--    ',here1 ,lord6 ,i give myself   
away2   ',tis all that ,i can do4'  ,if 
following ,him openly involves          
sacrifices1 the sacrifices will be      
sweet1 so long as our hearts look to    
,his dying love4 ,all love delights in  
expression1 and most of all in          
expression by surrender of precious     
things1 which are most precious because 
they give love materials which it may   
lay at the beloved's feet4 ,what are    
position1 possessions1 reputation1      
capacities1 perils1 losses1 self1 but   
the 'sweet spices' which we are blessed 
enough to be able to lay upon the altar 
which glorifies the ,giver and the gift8
 ,the contemplation of ,christ's        
sacrifice--and that alone--will so      
overcome our natural selfishness as to  

make sacrifice for ,his dear sake most  
blessed4  ,i beseech you1 then1 look    
ever to ,him dying on the ,cross for    
each of us4 ,it will kindle our courage1
 it will make our hearts glow with love1
 it will turn our silence into melody   
and music of praise2 it will lead us to 
heights of consecration and joys of     
confession2 and so it will bring us at  
last into the possession of that        
wondrous honour which ,he promised when 
,he said1 ',he that confesseth ,me      
before men1 him will ,i also confess2   
and he that denieth ,me before men1 him 
will ,i also deny4'    ,,the ,,grave    
,,in ,a ,,garden  ',in the garden a new 
tomb4'--,,john xix4 #da 7,r4,v474  ,this
 is possibly no more than a             
topographical note introduced merely for
 the sake of accuracy4 ,but it is quite 
in ,john's manner to attach importance  
to these apparent trifles and to give no
 express statement that he is doing so4 
,there are several other instances in   
the ,gospel where similar details are   

given which appear to have had in his   
eyes a symbolical meaning--e4g4 ',and it
 was night4' ,there may have been such a
 thought in his mind1 for all men in    
high excitement love and seize symbols1 
and ,i can scarcely doubt that the      
reason which induced ,joseph to make his
 grave in a garden was the reason which 
induced ,john to mention so particularly
 its situation1 and that they both      
discerned in that garden round the      
sepulchre1 the expression of what was to
 the one a dim desire1 to the other 'a  
lively hope by the resurrection of      
,jesus ,christ from the dead'--that they
 who are laid to rest in the grave shall
 come forth again in new and fairer     
life1 as 'the garden causeth the things 
that are sown in it to bud4'  ,to us at 
all events on ,easter morning1 with     
nature rising on every hand from her    
winter death1 and 'life re-orient out of
 dust1' that new sepulchre in the garden
 may well serve for the starting-point  
of the familiar but ever-precious       

lessons of the day4  ,i4 ,a symbol of   
death and decay as interwoven with all  
nature and every joy4  ,we think of     
,eden and the first coming of death4    
,the grave was fittingly in the garden1 
because nature too is subject to the law
 of decay and death4 ,the flowers fade  
and men die4 ,meditative souls have ever
 gathered lessons of mortality there1   
and invested death with an alien        
softness by likening it to falling      
leaves and withered blooms4 ,but the    
contrast is greater than the            
resemblance1 and painless dropping of   
petals is not a parallel to the rending 
of soul and body4  ,the garden's        
careless wealth of beauty and joy       
continues unconcerned whatever befalls  
us4 ',one generation cometh and another 
goeth1 but the earth abideth for ever4' 
,the grave is in the garden because all 
our joys and works have sooner or later 
death associated with them4  ,every     
relationship4  ,every occupation4       
,every joy4  ,the grave in the garden   

bids us bring the wholesome             
contemplation of death into all life4   
,it may be a harm and weakening to think
 of it1 but should be a strength4  ,,ii4
 ,the dim hopes with which men have     
fought against death4  ,to lay the dead 
amid blooming nature and fair flowers   
has been and is natural to men4 ,the    
symbolism is most natural1 deep1 and    
beautiful1 expressing the possibility of
 life and even of advance in the life   
after apparent decay4 ,there is         
something very pathetic in so eager a   
grasping after some stay for hope4  ,all
 these natural symbols are insufficient4
 ,they are not proofs1 they are only    
pretty analogies4 ,but they are all that
 men have on which to build their hopes 
as to a future life apart from ,christ4 
,that future was vague1 a region for    
hopes and wishes or fears1 not for      
certainty1 a region for poetic fancies4 
,the thoughts of it were very faintly   
operative4 ,men asked1 ,shall we live   
again8 ,conscience seemed to answer1    

,yes6 ,the instinct of immortality in   
men's souls grasped at these things as  
proofs of what it believed without them1
 but there was no clear light4  ,,iii4  
,the clear light of certain hope which  
,christ's resurrection brings4  ,the    
grave in the garden reversed ,adam's    
bringing of death into ,eden4  ,christ's
 resurrection as a fact bears on the    
belief in a future state as nothing else
 can4  ,it changes hope into certainty4 
,it shows by actual example that death  
has nothing to do with the soul2 that   
life is independent of the body2 that a 
man after death is the same as before   
it4 ,the risen ,lord was the same in    
,his relations to ,his disciples1 the   
same in ,his love1 in ,his memory1 and  
in all else4  ,it changes shadowy hopes 
of continuous life into a solid         
certainty of resurrection life4 ,the    
former is vague and powerless4 ,it is   
impossible to conceive of the future    
with vividness unless as a bodily life4 
,and this is the strength of the        

,christian conception of the future     
life1 that corporeity is the end and    
goal of the redeemed man4  ,it changes  
terror and awe into joy1 and opens up a 
future in which ,he is4  ,we shall be   
with ,him4  ,we shall be like ,him4     
,now we can go back to all these        
incomplete analogies and use them       
confidently4 ,our faith does not rest   
upon them but upon what has actually    
been done on this earth4  ,christ is    
'the ,first fruits of them that slept4' 
,what will the harvest be6  ,as the     
single little seed is poor and small by 
the side of the gorgeous flower that    
comes from it2 so will be the change4   
',god giveth it a body as it hath       
pleased ,him4'  ,how then to think of   
death for ourselves and for those who   
are gone8 ,thankfully and hopefully4    
,,the ,,resurrection ,,morning  ',the   
first day of the week cometh ,mary      
,magdalene early1 when it was yet dark1 
unto the sepulchre1 and seeth the stone 
taken away from the sepulchre4 ,then she

 runneth1 and cometh to ,simon ,peter1  
and to the other disciple1 whom ,jesus  
loved1 and saith unto them1 ,they have  
taken away the ,lord out of the         
sepulchre1 and we know not where they   
have laid ,him4 ,peter therefore went   
forth1 and that other disciple1 and came
 to the sepulchre4 ,so they ran both    
together3 and the other disciple did    
outrun ,peter1 and came first to the    
sepulchre4 ,and he stooping down1 and   
looking in1 saw the linen clothes lying2
 yet went he not in4 ,then cometh ,simon
 ,peter following him1 and went into the
 sepulchre1 and seeth the linen clothes 
lie1 ,and the napkin1 that was about    
,his head1 not lying with the linen     
clothes1 but wrapped together in a place
 by itself4 ,then went in also that     
other disciple1 which came first to the 
sepulchre1 and he saw1 and believed4    
,for as yet they knew not the scripture1
 that ,he must rise again from the dead4
 ,then the disciples went away again    
unto their own home4 ,but ,mary stood   

without at the sepulchre weeping3 and as
 she wept1 she stooped down1 and looked 
into the sepulchre1 ,and seeth two      
angels in white sitting1 the one at the 
head1 and the other at the feet1 where  
the body of ,jesus had lain4 ,and they  
say unto her1 ,woman1 why weepest thou8 
,she saith unto them1 ,because they have
 taken away my ,lord1 and ,i know not   
where they have laid ,him4 ,and when she
 had thus said1 she turned herself back1
 and saw ,jesus standing1 and knew not  
that it was ,jesus4 ,jesus saith unto   
her1 ,woman1 why weepest thou8 whom     
seekest thou8 ,she1 supposing ,him to be
 the gardener1 saith unto ,him1 ,sir1 if
 thou have borne ,him hence1 tell me    
where thou hast laid ,him1 and ,i will  
take ,him away4 ,jesus saith unto her1  
,mary4 ,she turned herself1 and saith   
unto ,him1 ,rabboni2 which is to say1   
,master4 ,jesus saith unto her1 ,touch  
,me not2 for ,i am not yet ascended to  
,my ,father3 but go to ,my brethren1 and
 say unto them1 ,i ascend unto ,my      

,father1 and your ,father2 and to ,my   
,god1 and your ,god4 ,mary ,magdalene   
came and told the disciples that she had
 seen the ,lord1 and that ,he had spoken
 these things unto her4'--,,john xx4    
#a-ah4  ,john's purpose in his narrative
 of the resurrection is not only to     
establish the fact1 but also to depict  
the gradual growth of faith in it1 among
 the disciples4 ,the two main incidents 
in this passage1 the visit of ,peter and
 ,john to the tomb and the appearance of
 our ,lord to ,mary1 give the dawning of
 faith before sight and the rapturous   
faith born of sight4 ,in the remainder  
of the chapter are two more instances of
 faith following vision1 and the        
teaching of the whole is summed up in   
,christ's words to the doubter1         
',because thou hast seen ,me1 thou hast 
believed3 blessed are they that have not
 seen1 and yet have believed6'  ,i4 ,the
 open sepulchre and the bewildered alarm
 it excited4 ,the act of resurrection   
took place before sunrise4 ',at         

midnight1' probably1 'the ,bridegroom   
came4' ,it was fitting that ,he who was 
to scatter the darkness of the grave    
should rise while darkness covered the  
earth1 and that no eye should behold    
'how' that dead was 'raised up4' ,the   
earthquake and the descent of angels and
 the rolling away of the stone were     
after the tomb was empty4  ,john's note 
of time seems somewhat earlier than that
 of the other ,gospels1 but is not so   
much so as to require the supposition   
that ,mary preceded the other women4    
,she appears alone here1 because the    
reason for mentioning her at all is to  
explain how ,peter and ,john knew of the
 empty tomb1 and she alone had been the 
informant4 ,in these ,eastern lands1 'as
 it began to dawn1' 'very early at the  
rising of the sun1' and 'while it was   
yet dark1' are times very near each     
other1 and ,mary may have reached the   
sepulchre a little before the others4   
,her own words1 ',we know not1' show    
that she had spoken with others who had 

seen the empty grave4 ,we must therefore
 suppose that she had with the others   
come to it1 seen that the sacred corpse 
was gone and their spices useless1      
exchanged hurried words of alarm and    
bewilderment1 and then had hastened away
 before the appearance of the angels4   
,the impulse to tell the leaders of the 
forlorn band the news1 which she thinks 
to be so bad1 was womanly and natural4  
,it was not hope1 but wonder and sorrow 
that quickened her steps as she ran     
through the still morning to find them4 
,whether they were in one house or not  
is uncertain2 but1 at all events1       
,peter's denial had not cut him off from
 his brethren1 and the two who were so  
constantly associated before and        
afterwards were not far apart that      
morning4 ,the disciple who had stood by 
the ,cross to almost the last had an    
open heart1 and probably an open house  
for the denier4 ',restore such an one1  
444 considering thyself4'  ,mary had    
seen the tomb empty1 and springs to the 

conclusion that 'they'--some unknown    
persons--have taken away the dead body1 
which1 with clinging love that tries to 
ignore death1 she still calls 'the      
,lord4' ,possibly she may have thought  
that the resting-place in ,joseph's new 
sepulchre was only meant for temporary  
shelter 7ver4 #ae74 ,at all events the  
corpse was gone1 and the fact suggested 
no hope to her4 ,how often do we1 in    
like manner1 misinterpret as dark what  
is really pregnant with light1 and      
blindly attribute to 'them' what ,jesus 
does6 ,a tone of mind thus remote from  
anticipation of the great fact is a     
precious proof of the historical truth  
of the resurrection2 for here was no    
soil in which hallucinations would      
spring1 and such people would not have  
believed ,him risen unless they had seen
 ,him living4  ,,ii4 ,peter and ,john at
 the tomb1 the dawning of faith1 and the
 continuance of bewildered wonder4 ,in  
the account1 we may observe1 first1 the 
characteristic conduct of each of the   

two4 ,peter is first to set out1 and    
,john follows1 both men doing according 
to their kind4 ,the younger runs faster 
than his companion4 ,he looked into the 
tomb1 and saw the wrappings lying2 but  
the reverent awe which holds back finer 
natures kept him from venturing in4     
,peter is not said to have looked before
 entering4 ,he loved with all his heart1
 but his love was impetuous and         
practical1 and he went straight in1 and 
felt no reason why he should pause4 ,his
 boldness encouraged his friend1 as the 
example of strong natures does4 ,some of
 my readers will recall ,bushnell's     
noble sermon on ',unconscious           
,influence' from this incident1 and ,i  
need say no more about it4  ,observe1   
too1 the further witness of the folded  
grave-clothes4 ,john from outside had   
not seen the napkin1 lying carefully    
rolled up apart from the other cloths4  
,it was probably laid in a part of the  
tomb invisible from without4 ,but the   
careful disposal of these came to him1  

when he saw them1 with a great flash of 
illumination4 ,there had been no hurried
 removal4  ,here had been no hostile    
hands1 or there would not have been this
 deliberation2 nor friendly hands1 or   
there would not have been such dishonour
 to the sacred dead as to carry away the
 body nude4 ,what did it mean8 ,could   
,he ,himself have done for ,himself what
 ,he had bade them do for ,lazarus8     
,could ,he have laid aside the garments 
of the grave as needing them no more8   
',they have taken away'--what if it were
 not 'they' but ,he8 ,no trace of hurry 
or struggle was there4 ,he did 'not go  
out with haste1 nor go by flight1' but  
calmly1 deliberately1 in the majesty of 
,his lordship over death1 ,he rose from 
,his slumber and left order in the land 
of confusion4  ,observe1 too1 the birth 
of the ,apostle's faith4 ,john connects 
it with the sight of the folded         
garments4 ',believed' here must mean    
more than recognition of the fact that  
the grave was empty4 ,the next clause   

seems to imply that it means belief in  
the resurrection4 ,the scripture1 which 
they 'knew' as scripture1 was for ,john 
suddenly interpreted1 and he was lifted 
out of the ignorance of its meaning1    
which till that moment he had shared    
with his fellow-disciples4 ,their       
failure to understand ,christ's frequent
 distinct prophecies that ,he would rise
 again the third day has been thought   
incredible1 but is surely intelligible  
enough if we remember how unexampled    
such a thing was1 and how marvellous is 
our power of hearing and yet not hearing
 the plainest truth4 ,we all in the     
course of our lives are lost in         
astonishment when things befall us which
 we have been plainly told will befall4 
,the fulfilment of all divine promises  
7and threatenings7 is a surprise1 and no
 warnings beforehand teach one tithe so 
clearly as experience4  ,john believed1 
but ,peter still was in the dark4 ,again
 the former had outrun his friend4 ,his 
more sensitive nature1 not to say his   

deeper love--for that would be unjust1  
since their love differed in quality    
more than in degree--had gifted him with
 a more subtle and swifter-working      
perception4 ,perhaps if ,peter's heart  
had not been oppressed by his sin1 he   
would have been readier to feel the     
sunshine of the wonderful hope4 ,we     
condemn ourselves to the shade when we  
deny our ,lord by deed or word4  ,,iii4 
,the first appearance of the ,lord1 and 
revelation of the new form of           
intercourse4 ,nothing had been said of  
,mary's return to the tomb2 but how     
could she stay away8 ,the disciples     
might go1 but she lingered1 woman-like1 
to indulge in the bitter-sweet of tears4
 ,eyes so filled are more apt to see    
angels4 ,no wonder that these calm      
watchers1 in their garb of purity and   
joy1 had not been seen by the two men4  
,the laws of such appearance are not    
those of ordinary optics4 ,spiritual    
susceptibility and need determine who   
shall see angels1 and who shall see but 

the empty place4 ,wonder and adoration  
held these bright forms there4 ,they had
 hovered over the cradle and stood by   
the shepherds at ,bethlehem1 but they   
bowed in yet more awestruck reverence at
 the grave1 and death revealed to them a
 deeper depth of divine love4  ,the     
presence of angels was a trifle to      
,mary1 who had only one thought--the    
absence of her ,lord4 ,surely that touch
 in her unmoved answer1 as if speaking  
to men1 is beyond the reach of art4 ,she
 says ',my ,lord' now1 and ',i know     
not1' but otherwise repeats her former  
words1 unmoved by any hope caught from  
,john4 ,her clinging love needed more   
than an empty grave and folded clothes  
arid waiting angels to stay its tears1  
and she turned indifferently and wearily
 away from the interruption of the      
question to plunge again into her       
sorrow4 ,chrysostom suggests that she   
'turned herself' because she saw in the 
angels' looks that they saw ,christ     
suddenly appearing behind her2 but the  

preceding explanation seems better4 ,her
 not knowing ,jesus might be accounted  
for by her absorbing grief4 ,one who    
looked at white-robed angels1 and saw   
nothing extraordinary1 would give but a 
careless glance at the approaching      
figure1 and might well fail to recognise
 ,him4 ,but probably1 as in the case of 
the two travellers to ,emmaus1 her 'eyes
 were holden1' and the cause of         
non-recognition was not so much a change
 in ,jesus as an operation on her4  ,be 
that as it may1 it is noteworthy that   
,his voice1 which was immediately to    
reveal ,him1 at first suggested nothing 
to her2 and even ,his gentle question1  
with the significant addition to the    
angels' words1 in ',whom seekest thou8' 
which indicated ,his knowledge that her 
tears fell for some person dear and     
lost1 only made her think of ,him as    
being 'the gardener1' and therefore     
probably concerned in the removal of the
 body4 ,if ,he were so1 ,he would be    
friendly2 and so she ventured her       

pathetic petition1 which does not name  
,jesus 7so full is her mind of the ,one1
 that she thinks everybody must know    
whom she means71 and which so overrated 
her own strength in saying1 ',i will    
take ,him away1' ,the first words of the
 risen ,christ are on ,his lips yet to  
all sad hearts4 ,he seeks our           
confidences1 and would have us tell ,him
 the occasions of our tears4 ,he would  
have us recognise that all our griefs   
and all our desires point to one        
,person--,himself--as the one real      
,object of our 'seeking1' whom finding1 
we need weep no more4  ,verse #af tells 
us that ,mary turned herself to see ,him
 when ,he next spoke1 so that1 at the   
close of her first answer to ,him1 she  
must have once more resumed her gaze    
into the tomb1 as if she despaired of   
the newcomer giving the help she had    
asked4  ,who can say anything about that
 transcendent recognition1 in which all 
the stooping love of the risen ,lord is 
smelted into one word1 and the burst of 

rapture1 awe1 astonishment1 and devotion
 pours itself through the narrow channel
 of one other8 ,if this narrative is the
 work of some anonymous author late in  
the second century1 he is indeed a      
',great ,unknown1' and has managed to   
imagine one of the two or three most    
pathetic 'situations' in literature4    
,surely it is more reasonable to suppose
 him no obscure genius1 but a well-known
 recorder of what he had seen1 and knew 
for fact4 ,christ's calling by name ever
 reveals ,his loving presence4 ,we may  
be sure that ,he knows us by name1 and  
we should reply by the same swift cry of
 absolute submission as sprung to       
,mary's lips4 ',rabboni6 ,master6' is   
the fit answer to ,his call4  ,but      
,mary's exclamation was imperfect in    
that it expressed the resumption of no  
more than the old bond1 and her gladness
 needed enlightenment4 ,things were not 
to be as they had been4 ,christ's       
',mary6' had indeed assured her of ,his 
faithful remembrance and of her present 

place in ,his love2 but when she clung  
to ,his feet she was seeking to keep    
what she had to learn to give up4       
,therefore ,jesus1 who invited the touch
 which was to establish faith and banish
 doubt 7,luke xxiv4 #ci2 ,john xx4 #bg71
 bids her unclasp her hands1 and gently 
instils the ending of the blessed past  
by opening to her the superior joys of  
the begun future4 ,his words contain for
 us all the very heart of our possible  
relation to ,him1 and teach us that we  
need envy none who companied with ,him  
here4 ,his ascension to the ,father is  
the condition of our truest approach to 
,him4 ,his prohibition encloses a       
permission4 ',touch ,me not6 for ,i am  
not yet ascended1' implies ',when ,i am1
 you may4'  ,further1 the ascended      
,christ is still our ,brother4 ,neither 
the mystery of death nor the impending  
mystery of dominion broke the tie4      
,again1 the ,resurrection is the        
beginning of ,ascension1 and is only    
then rightly understood when it is      

considered as the first upward step to  
the throne4 ',i ascend1' not ',i have   
risen1 and will soon leave you1' as if  
the ,ascension only began forty days    
after on ,olivet4 ,it is already in     
process4 ,once more the ascended        
,christ1 our ,brother still1 and capable
 of the touch of reverent love1 is yet  
separated from us by the character1 even
 while united to us by the fact1 of ,his
 filial and dependent relation to ,god4 
,he cannot say ',our ,father' as if     
standing on the common human ground4 ,he
 is ',son' as we are not1 and we are    
'sons' through ,him1 and can only call  
,god our ,father because ,he is         
,christ's4  ,such were the immortal     
hopes and new thoughts which ,mary      
hastened from the presence of her       
recovered ,lord to bring to the         
disciples4 ,fragrant though but         
partially understood1 they were like    
half-opened blossoms from the tree of   
life planted in the midst of that       
garden1 to bloom unfading1 and ever     

disclosing new beauty in believing      
hearts till the end of time4    ,,the   
,,risen ,,lord',s ,,charge ,,and ,,gift 
',then said ,jesus to them again1 ,peace
 be unto yon3 as ,my ,father hath sent  
,me1 even so send ,i you4 ,and when ,he 
had said this1 ,he breathed on them1 and
 saith unto them1 ,receive ye the ,holy 
,ghost4 ,whose soever sins ye remit1    
they are remitted unto them2 and whose  
soever sins ye retain1 they are         
retained4'--,,john xx4 #ba-bc4  ,the day
 of the ,resurrection had been full of  
strange rumours1 and of growing         
excitement4 ,as evening fell1 some of   
the disciples1 at any rate1 gathered    
together1 probably in the upper room4   
,they were brave1 for in spite of the   
,jews they dared to assemble2 they were 
timid1 for they barred themselves in    
'for fear of the ,jews4' ,no doubt in   
little groups they were eagerly         
discussing what had happened that day4  
,fuel was added to the fire by the      
return of the two from ,emmaus4 ,and    

then1 at once1 the buzz of conversation 
ceased1 for ',he ,himself1 with ,his    
human air1' stood there in the midst1   
with the quiet greeting on ,his lips1   
which might have come from any casual   
stranger1 and minimised the separation  
that was now ending3 ',peace be unto    
you6'  ,we have two accounts of that    
evening's interview which remarkably    
supplement each other4 ,they deal with  
two different parts of it4 ,john begins 
where ,luke ends4 ,the latter           
,evangelist dwells mainly on the        
disciples' fears that it was some       
ghostly appearance that they saw1 and on
 the removal of these by the sight1 and 
perhaps the touch1 of the hands and the 
feet4 ,john says nothing of the terror1 
but ,luke's account explains ,john's    
statement that ',he showed them ,his    
hands and ,his side1' and that1 ',then  
were the disciples glad1' the joy       
expelling the fear4 ,luke's account     
also1 by dwelling on the first part of  
the interview1 explains what else is    

unexplained in ,john's narrative1 viz4  
the repetition of the salutation1       
',peace be unto you6' ,our ,lord thereby
 marked off the previous portion of the 
conversation as being separate1 and a   
whole in itself4 ,their doubts were     
dissipated1 and now something else was  
to begin4 ,they who were sure of the    
risen ,lord1 and had had communion with 
,him1 were capable of receiving a deeper
 peace1 and so ',jesus said to them     
again1 ,peace be unto you6' and thereby 
inaugurated the second part of the      
interview4  ,luke's account also helps  
us in another and very important way4   
,john simply says that 'the disciples   
were gathered together1' and that might 
mean the ,eleven only4 ,luke is more    
specific1 and tells us what is of prime 
importance for understanding the whole  
incident1 that 'the ,eleven444 and they 
that were with them' were assembled4    
,this interview1 the crown of the       
appearances on ,easter ,day1 is marked  
as being an interview with the assembled

 body of disciples1 whom the ,lord1     
having scattered their doubts1 and laid 
the deep benediction of ,his peace upon 
their hearts1 then goes on to invest    
with a sacred mission1 ',as ,my ,father 
hath sent ,me1 even so send ,i you'2 to 
equip them with the needed power1       
',receive ye the ,holy ,ghost'2 and to  
unfold to them the solemn issues of     
their work1 ',whose sins ye remit they  
are remitted2 and whose sins ye retain  
they are retained4' ,the message of that
 ,easter evening is for us all2 and so  
,i ask you to look at these three       
points4  ,i4 ,the ,christian ,mission4  
,i have already said that the clear     
understanding of the persons to whom the
 words were spoken1 goes far to         
interpret the significance of the words4
 ,here we have at the very beginning1   
the great thought that every ,christian 
man and woman is sent by ,jesus4 ,the   
possession of what preceded this charge 
is the thing1 and the only thing1 that  
fits a man to receive it1 and whoever   

possesses these is thereby despatched   
into the world as being ,christ's envoy 
and representative4 ,and what are these 
preceding experiences8 ,the vision of   
the risen ,christ1 the touch of ,his    
hands1 the peace that ,he breathed over 
believing souls1 the gladness that      
sprang like a sunny fountain in the     
hearts that had been so dry and dark4   
,those things constituted the disciples'
 qualification for being sent1 and these
 things were themselves--even apart from
 the ,master's words--their sending out 
on their future life's-work4 ,thus1     
whoever--and thank ,god ,i am addressing
 many who come under the                
category6--whoever has seen the ,lord1  
has been in touch with ,him1 and has    
felt his heart filled with gladness1 is 
the recipient of this great commission4 
,there is no question here of the       
prerogative of a class1 nor of the      
functions of an order2 it is a question 
of the universal aspect of the          
,christian life in its relation to the  

,master who sends1 and the world into   
which it is sent4  ,we ,nonconformists  
pride ourselves upon our freedom from   
what we call 'sacerdotalism4' ,ay6 and  
we ,nonconformists are quite willing to 
assert our priesthood in opposition to  
the claims of a class1 and are as       
willing to forget it1 should the        
question of the duties of the priest    
come into view4 ,you do not believe in  
priests1 but a great many of you believe
 that it is ministers that are 'sent1'  
and that you have no charge4            
,officialism is the dry-rot of all the  
,churches1 and is found as rampant      
amongst democratic ,nonconformists as   
amongst the more hierarchical           
communities4 ,brethren6 you are included
 in ,christ's words of sending on this  
errand1 if you are included in this     
greeting of ',peace be unto you6' ',i   
send1' not the clerical order1 not the  
priest1 but 'you1' because you have seen
 the ,lord1 and been glad1 and heard the
 low whisper of ,his benediction        

creeping into your hearts4  ,mark1 too1 
how our ,lord reveals much of ,himself1 
as well as of our position1 when ,he    
thus speaks4 ,for ,he assumes here the  
royal tone1 and claims to possess as    
absolute authority over the lives and   
work of all ,christian people as the    
,father exercised when ,he sent the     
,son4 ,but we must further ask ourselves
 the question1 what is the parallel that
 our ,lord here draws1 not only between 
,his action in sending us1 and the      
,father's action in sending ,him1 but   
also between the attitude of the ,son   
who was sent1 and of the disciples whom 
,he sends8 ,and the answer is this--the 
work of ,jesus ,christ is continued by1 
prolonged in1 and carried on            
henceforward through1 the work that ,he 
lays upon ,his servants4 ,mark the exact
 expression that our ,lord here uses4   
',as ,my ,father hath sent1' that is a  
past action1 continuing its consequences
 in the present4 ,it is not 'as ,my     
,father did send once1' but as ',my     

,father hath sent1' which means 'is also
 at present sending1' and continues to  
send4 ,which being translated into less 
technical phraseology is just this1 that
 we here have our ,lord presenting to us
 the thought that1 though in a new form1
 ,his work continues during the ages1   
and is now being wrought through ,his   
servants4 ,what ,he does by another1 ,he
 does by ,himself4 ,we ,christian men   
and women do not understand our function
 in the world1 unless we have realised  
this3 ',now1 then1 we are ambassadors   
for ,christ' and ,his interests and ,his
 work are entrusted to our hands4  ,how 
shall the servants continue and carry on
 the work of the ,master8 ,the chief way
 to do it is by proclaiming everywhere  
that finished work on which the world's 
hopes depend4 ,but note1--'as ,my       
,father hath sent ,me1 so send ,i       
you1'--then we are not only to carry on 
,his work in the world1 but if one might
 venture to say so1 we are to reproduce 
,his attitude towards ,god and the      

world4 ,he was sent to be 'the ,light of
 the world'2 and so are we4 ,he was sent
 to 'seek and to save that which was    
lost'2 so are we4 ,he was sent not to do
 ,his own will1 but the will of the     
,father that sent ,him2 so are we4 ,he  
took upon ,himself with all cheerfulness
 the office to which ,he was appointed1 
and said1 ',my meat is to do the will of
 ,him that sent ,me1--and to finish ,his
 work'2 and that must be our voice too4 
,he was sent to pity1 to look upon the  
multitudes with compassion1 to carry to 
them the healing of ,his touch1 and the 
sympathy of ,his heart2 so must we4 ,we 
are the representatives of ,jesus       
,christ1 and if ,i might dare to use    
such a phrase1 ,he is to be incarnated  
again in the hearts1 and manifested     
again in the lives1 of ,his servants4   
,many weak eyes1 that would be dazzled  
and hurt if they were to gaze on the    
sun1 may look at the clouds cradled by  
its side1 and dyed with its lustre1 and 
learn something of the radiance and the 

glory of the illuminating light from the
 illuminated vapour4 ,and thus1 'as ,my 
,father hath sent ,me1 even so send ,i  
you4'  ,now let us turn to  ,,ii4 ,the  
,christian ,equipment4  ',he breathed on
 them1 and said1 ,receive ye the ,holy  
,ghost6' ,the symbolical action reminds 
us of the ,creation story1 when into the
 nostrils was breathed 'the breath of   
life1 and man became a living soul4'    
,the symbol is but a symbol1 but what it
 teaches us is that every ,christian man
 who has passed through the experiences 
which make him ,christ's envoy1 receives
 the equipment of a new life1 and that  
that life is the gift of the risen      
,lord4 ,this ,prometheus came from the  
dead with the spark of life guarded in  
,his pierced hands1 and ,he bestowed it 
upon us2 for the ,spirit of life1 which 
is the ,spirit of ,christ1 is granted to
 all ,christian men4 ,dear brethren6 we 
have not lived up to the realities of   
our ,christian confession1 unless into  
our death has come1 and there abides1   

this life derived from ,jesus ,himself1 
the communication of which goes along   
with all faith in ,him4  ,but the gift  
which ,jesus brought to that group of   
timid disciples in the upper room did   
not make superfluous the further gift on
 the day of ,pentecost4 ,the            
communication of the divine ,spirit to  
men runs parallel with1 depends on1 and 
follows1 the revelation of divine truth1
 so the ascended ,lord gave more of that
 life to the disciples1 who had been    
made capable of more of it by the fact  
of beholding ,his ascension1 than the   
risen ,lord could give on that ,easter  
,day4 ,but whilst thus there are        
measures and degrees1 the life is given 
to every believer in correspondence with
 the clearness and the contents of his  
faith4  ,it is the power that will fit  
any of us for the work for which we are 
sent into the world4 ,if we are here to 
represent ,jesus ,christ1 and if it is  
true of us that 'as ,he is1 so are we1  
in this world1' that likeness can only  

come about by our receiving into our    
spirits a kindred life which will       
effloresce and manifest itself to men in
 kindred beauty of foliage and of fruit4
 ,if we are to be 'the lights of the    
world1' our lamps must be fed with oil4 
,if we are to be ,christ's              
representatives1 we must have ,christ's 
life in us4 ,here1 too1 is the only     
source of strength and life to us       
,christian people1 when we look at the  
difficulties of our task and measure our
 own feebleness against the work that   
lies before us4 ,i suppose no man has   
ever tried honestly to be what ,christ  
wished him to be amidst his fellows1    
whether as preacher or teacher or guide 
in any fashion1 who has not hundreds of 
times clasped his hands in all but      
despair1 and said1 ',who is sufficient  
for these things8' ,that is the temper  
into which the power will come4 ,the    
rivers run in the valleys1 and it is the
 lowly sense of our own unfitness for   
the task which yet presses upon us1 and 

imperatively demands to be done1 that   
makes us capable of receiving that      
divine gift4  ,it is for lack of it that
 so much of so-called ',christian       
effort' comes to nothing4 ,the priests  
may pile the wood upon the altar1 and   
compass it all day long with vain cries1
 and nothing happens4 ,it is not till   
the fire comes down from heaven that    
sacrifice and altar and wood and water  
in the trench1 are licked up and        
converted into fiery light4 ,so1 dear   
brethren6 it is because the ,christian  
,church as a whole1 and we as individual
 members of it1 so imperfectly realise  
the ,a ,b ,c of our faith1 our absolute 
dependence on the inbreathed life of    
,jesus ,christ1 to fit us for any of our
 work1 that so much of our work is      
ploughing the sands1 and so often we    
labour for vanity and spend our strength
 for nought4 ,what is the use of a mill 
full of spindles and looms until the    
fire-born impulse comes rushing through 
the pipes8 ,then they begin to move4    

,let me remind you1 too1 that the words 
which our ,lord here employs about these
 great gifts1 when accurately examined1 
do lead us to the thought that we1 even 
we1 are not altogether passive in the   
reception of that gift4 ,for the        
expression1 ',receive ye the ,holy      
,ghost' might1 with more completeness of
 signification1 be rendered1 'take ye   
the ,holy ,ghost4' ,true1 the           
outstretched hand is nothing1 unless the
 giving hand is stretched out too4      
,true1 the open palm and the clutching  
fingers remain empty1 unless the open   
palm above drops the gift4 ,but also    
true1 things in the spiritual realm that
 are given have to be asked for1 because
 asking opens the heart for their       
entrance4 ,true1 that gift was given    
once for all1 and continuously1 but the 
appropriation and the continual         
possession of it largely depend upon    
ourselves4 ,there must be desire before 
there can be possession4 ,if a man does 
not take his pitcher to the fountain the

 pitcher remains empty1 though the      
fountain never ceases to spring4 ,there 
must be taking by patient waiting4 ,the 
old ,friends had a lovely phrase when   
they spoke about 'waiting for the       
springing of the life4' ,if we hold out 
a tremulous hand1 and our cup is not    
kept steady1 the falling water will not 
enter it1 and much will be spilt upon   
the ground4 ,wait on the ,lord1 and the 
life will rise like a tide in the heart4
 ,there must be a taking by the faithful
 use of what we possess4 ',to him that  
hath shall be given4' ,there must be a  
taking by careful avoidance of what     
would hinder4 ,in the winter weather the
 water supply sometimes fails in a      
house4 ,why8 ,because there is a plug of
 ice in the service-pipe4 ,some of us   
have a plug of ice1 and so the water has
 not come1  ',take the ,holy ,spirit6'  
,now1 lastly1 we have here  ,,iii4 ,the 
,christian power over sin4  ,i am not   
going to enter upon controversy4 ,the   
words which close our ,lord's great     

charge here have been much misunderstood
 by being restricted4 ,it is eminently  
necessary to remember here that they    
were spoken to the whole community of   
,christian souls4 ,the harm that has    
been done by their restriction to the   
so-called priestly function of          
absolution has been1 not only the       
monstrous claims which have been thereon
 founded1 but quite as much the         
obscuration of the large effects that   
follow from the ,christian discharge by 
all believers of the office of          
representing ,jesus ,christ4  ,we must  
interpret these words in harmony with   
the two preceding points1 the ,christian
 mission and the ,christian equipment4  
,so interpreted1 they lead us to a very 
plain thought which ,i may put thus4    
,this same ,apostle tells us in his     
letter that ',jesus ,christ was         
manifested to take away sin4' ,his work 
in this world1 which we are to continue1
 was 'to put away sin by the sacrifice  
of ,himself4' ,we continue that work    

when1--as we have all1 if ,christians1  
the right to do--we lift up our voices  
with triumphant confidence1 and call    
upon our brethren to 'behold the ,lamb  
of ,god which taketh away the sin of the
 world6' ,the proclamation has a twofold
 effect1 according as it is received or 
rejected2 to him who receives it his    
sins melt away1 and the preacher of     
forgiveness through ,christ has the     
right to say to his brother1 ',thy sins 
are forgiven because thou believest on  
,him4' ,the rejecter or the neglecter   
binds his sin upon himself by his       
rejection or neglect4 ,the same message 
is1 as the ,apostle puts it1 'a savour  
of life unto life1 or of death unto     
death4' ,these words are the best       
commentary on this part of my text4 ,the
 same heat1 as the old ,fathers used to 
say1 'softens wax and hardens clay4'    
,the message of the word will either    
couch a blind eye1 and let in the light1
 or draw another film of obscuration    
over the visual orb4  ,and so1          

,christian men and women have to feel   
that to them is entrusted a solemn      
message1 that they walk in the world    
charged with a mighty power1 that by the
 preaching of the ,word1 and by their   
own utterance of the forgiving mercy of 
the ,lord ,jesus1 they may 'remit' or   
'retain' not only the punishment of sin1
 but sin itself4 ,how tender1 how       
diligent1 how reverent1 how--not bowed  
down1 but--erect under the weight of our
 obligations1 we should be1 if we       
realised that solemn thought6           
,,thomas ,,and ,,jesus  ',and after     
eight days1 again ,his disciples were   
within1 and ,thomas with them4 ,then    
came ,jesus4'--,,john xx4 #bf4  ,there  
is nothing more remarkable about the    
narrative of the resurrection1 taken as 
a whole1 than the completeness with     
which our ,lord's appearances met all   
varieties of temperament1 condition1 and
 spiritual standing4 ,mary1 the lover2  
,peter1 the penitent2 the two disciples 
on the way to ,emmaus1 the thinkers2    

,thomas1 the stiff unbeliever--the      
presence of the ,christ is enough for   
them all2 it cures those that need cure1
 and gladdens those that need           
gladdening4 ,i am not going to do       
anything so foolish as to try to tell   
over again1 less vividly1 this          
well-known story4 ,we all remember its  
outlines1 ,i suppose3 the absence of    
,thomas from ,christ's first meeting    
with the assembled disciples on ,easter 
evening2 the dogged disbelief with which
 he met their testimony2 his arrogant   
assumption of the right to lay down the 
conditions on which he should believe1  
and ,christ's gracious acceptance of the
 conditions2 the discovery when they    
were offered that they were not needful2
 the burst of glad conviction which     
lifted him to the loftiest height       
reached while ,christ was on earth1 and 
then the summing up of all in our       
,lord's words--',blessed are they that  
have not seen and yet have              
believed6'--the last ,beatitude1 that   

links us and all the generations yet to 
come with the story1 and is like a      
finger pointing to it1 as containing    
very special lessons for them all4  ,i  
simply seek to try to bring out the     
force and instructiveness of the story4 
,the first point is--  ,i4 ,the         
isolation that misses the sight of the  
,christ4  ',thomas1 one of the ,twelve1 
was not with them when ,jesus came4' ,no
 reason is assigned4 ,the absence may   
have been purely accidental1 but the    
specification of ,thomas as 'one of the 
,twelve1' seems to suggest that his     
absence was regarded by the ,evangelist 
as a dereliction of apostolic duty2 and 
the cause of it may be found1 ,i think1 
with reasonable probability1 if we take 
into account the two other facts that   
the same ,evangelist records concerning 
this ,apostle4 ,one is his exclamation1 
in which a constitutional tendency to   
accept the blackest possibilities as    
certainties1 blends very strangely and  
beautifully with an intense and brave   

devotion to his ,master4 ',let us also  
go1' said ,thomas1 when ,christ         
announced ,his intention1 but a few days
 before the ,passion1 of returning to   
the grave of ,lazarus1 'that we may die 
with ,him4' ',he is going to ,his death1
 that ,i am sure of1 and ,i am going to 
be beside ,him even in ,his death4' ,a  
constitutional pessimist6 ,the only     
other notice that we have of him is that
 he broke in--with apparent irreverence 
which was not real1--with a brusque     
contradiction of ,christ's saying that  
they knew the way1 and they knew ,his   
goal4 ',lord6 we know not whither ,thou 
goest'--there spoke pained love fronting
 the black prospect of eternal          
separation1--'and how can we know the   
way8'--there spoke almost impatient     
despair4  ,so is not that the kind of   
man who on the ,resurrection day would  
have been saying to himself1 even more  
decidedly and more bitterly than the two
 questioning thinkers on the road to    
,emmaus had said it1 ',we trusted that  

this had been ,he1 but it is all over   
now'8 ,the keystone was struck out of   
the arch1 and this brick tumbled away of
 itself4 ,the hub was taken out of the  
wheel1 and the spokes fell apart4 ,the  
divisive tendency was begun1 as ,i have 
had occasion to remark in other sermons4
 ,thomas did the very worst thing that a
 melancholy man can do1 went away to    
brood in a corner by himself1 and so to 
exaggerate all his idiosyncrasies1 to   
distort the proportion of truth1 to hug 
his despair1 by separating himself from 
his fellows4 ,therefore he lost what    
they got1 the sight of the ,lord4 ,he   
'was not with them when ,jesus came4'   
,would he not have been better in the   
upper room than gloomily turning over in
 his mind the dissolution of the fair   
company and the shipwreck of all his    
hopes8  ,may we not learn a lesson8 ,i  
venture to apply these words1 dear      
friends1 to our gatherings for worship4 
,the worst thing that a man can do when 
disbelief1 or doubt1 or coldness shrouds

 his sky1 and blots out the stars1 is to
 go away alone and shut himself up with 
his own1 perhaps morbid1 or1 at all     
events1 disturbing thoughts4 ,the best  
thing that he can do is to go amongst   
his fellows4 ,if the sermon does not do 
him any good1 the prayers and the       
praises and the sense of brotherhood    
will help him4 ,if a fire is going out1 
draw the dying coals close together1 and
 they will make each other break into a 
flame4 ,one great reason for some of the
 less favourable features that modern   
,christianity presents1 is that men are 
beginning to think less than they ought 
to do1 and less than they used to do1 of
 the obligation and the blessing1       
whatever their spiritual condition1 of  
gathering together for the worship of   
,god4 ,but1 further1 there is a far     
wider thought than that here1 which ,i  
have already referred to1 and which ,i  
do not need to dwell upon1 namely1 that1
 although1 of course1 there are very    
plain limits to be put to the principle1

 yet it is a principle1 that solitude is
 not the best medicine for any disturbed
 or saddened soul4 ,it is true that     
'solitude is the mother-country of the  
strong1' and that unless we are         
accustomed to live very much alone1 we  
shall not live very much with ,god4 ,but
 on the other hand1 if you cut yourself 
off from the limiting1 and therefore    
developing1 society of your fellows1 you
 will rust1 you will become what they   
call eccentric4 ,your idiosyncrasies    
will swell into monstrosities1 your     
peculiarities will not be subjected to  
the gracious process of pruning which   
society with your fellows1 and          
especially with ,christian hearts1 will 
bring to them4 ,and in every way you    
will be more likely to miss the ,christ 
than if you were kindly with your kind1 
and went up to the house of ,god in     
company4  ,take the next point that is  
here3  ,,ii4 ,the stiff incredulity that
 prescribed terms4  ,when ,thomas came  
back to his brethren1 they met him with 

the witness that they had seen the      
,lord1 and he met them as they had met  
the witnesses that brought the same     
message to them4 ,they had thought the  
women's words 'idle tales4' ,thomas     
gives them back their own incredulity4  
,i need not remind you of what ,i have  
already had occasion to say1 how much   
this frank acknowledgment that none of  
these1 who were afterwards to be        
witnesses of the ,resurrection to the   
world1 accepted testimony to the        
,resurrection as enough to convince     
them1 enhances the worth of their       
testimony1 and how entirely it shatters 
the conception that the belief in the   
,resurrection was a mist that rose from 
the undrained swamps of their own heated
 imaginations4  ,but notice how ,thomas 
exaggerated their position1 and took up 
a far more defiant tone than any of them
 had done4 ,he is called 'doubting      
,thomas4' ,he was no doubter4 ,flat1    
frank1 dogged disbelief1 and not        
hesitation or doubt1 was his attitude4  

,the very form in which he puts his     
requirement shows how he was hugging his
 unbelief1 and how he had no idea that  
what he asked would ever be granted4    
',unless ,i have so-and-so ,i will not1'
 indicates an altogether spiritual      
attitude from what ',if ,i have         
so-and-so1 ,i will1' would have         
indicated4 ,the one is the language of  
willingness to be persuaded1 the other  
is a token of a determination to be     
obstinate4 ,what right had he--what     
right has any man--to say1 ',so-and-so  
must be made plain to me1 or ,i will not
 accept a certain truth'8 ,you have a   
right to ask for satisfactory evidence2 
you have no right to make up your minds 
beforehand what that must necessarily   
be4 ,thomas showed his hand not only in 
the form of his expression1 not only in 
his going beyond his province and       
prescribing the terms of surrender1 but 
also in the terms which he prescribed4  
,true1 he is only saying to the other   
,apostles1 ',i will give in if ,i have  

what you had1' for ,jesus ,christ had   
said to them1 ',handle ,me and see6'    
,but although thus they could say       
nothing in opposition1 it is clear that 
he was asking more than was needful1 and
 more than he had any right to ask4 ,and
 he shows his hand1 too1 in another way4
 ',i will not believe6'--what business  
had he1 what business have you1 to bring
 any question of will into the act of   
belief or credence8 ,thus1 in all these 
four points1 the form of the demand1 the
 fact of the demand1 the substance of   
the demand1 and the implication in it   
that to give or withhold assent was a   
matter to be determined by inclination1 
this man stands not as an example of a  
doubter1 but as an example1 of which    
there are too many copies amongst us    
always1 of a determined disbeliever and 
rejecter4  ,so ,i come to the third     
point1 and that is3  ,,iii4 ,the        
revelation that turned the denier into a
 rapturous confessor4  ,what a strange  
week that must have been between the two

 ,sundays--that of the ,resurrection and
 the next6 ,surely it would have been   
kinder if the ,christ had not left the  
disciples1 with their new-found1        
tremulous1 raw conviction4 ,it would    
have been less kind if ,he had been with
 them1 for there is nothing that is     
worse for the solidity of a man's       
spiritual development than that it      
should be precipitated1 and new thoughts
 must have time to take the shape of the
 mind into which they come1 and to mould
 the shape of the mind into which they  
come4 ,so they were left to quiet       
reflection1 to meditation1 to adjust    
their thoughts1 to get to understand the
 bearings of the transcendent fact4 ,and
 as a mother will go a little way off   
from her little child1 in order to      
encourage it to try to walk1 they were  
left alone to make experiments of that  
self-reliance which was also reliance on
 ,him1 and which was to be their future 
and their permanent condition4 ,so the  
week passed1 and they became steadier   

and quieter1 and began to be familiar   
with the thought1 and to see some       
glimpses of what was involved in the    
mighty fact1 of a risen ,saviour4 ,then 
,he comes back again1 and when ,he comes
 ,he singles out the unbeliever1 leaving
 the others alone for the moment1 and   
,he gives him back1 granted1 his        
arrogant conditions4 ,how much ashamed  
of them ,thomas must have been when he  
heard them quoted by the ,lord's own    
lips6 ,how different they would sound   
from what they had sounded when1 in the 
self-sufficiency of his obstinate       
determination1 he had blurted them out  
in answer to his brethren's testimony6  
,there is no surer way of making a good 
man ashamed of his wild words than just 
to say them over again to him when he is
 calm and cool4 ,christ's granting the  
request was ,christ's sharpest rebuke of
 the request4 ,but there was not only   
the gracious and yet chastising granting
 of the foolish desire1 but there was a 
penetrating warning3 ',be not faithless1

 but believing4' ,what did that mean8   
,well1 it meant this3 ',it is not a     
question of evidence1 ,thomas2 it is a  
question of disposition4 ,your          
incredulity is not due to your not      
having enough to warrant your belief1   
but to your tendency and attitude of    
mind and heart4' ,there is light enough 
in the sun2 it is our eyes that are     
wrong1 and deep below most questions1   
even of intellectual credence1 lies the 
disposition of the man4 ,the ultimate   
truths of religion cannot be matters of 
demonstration any more than the         
fundamental truths of any science can be
 proved2 any more than ,euclid's axioms 
can be demonstrated2 any more than the  
sense of beauty or the ear for music    
depend on the understanding4 ',be not   
faithless1 but believing4' ,the eye that
 is sound will see the light4  ,and     
there is another lesson here4 ,the words
 of our ,lord1 literally rendered1 are1 
'become not faithless1 but believing4'  
,there are two tendencies at work with  

us1 and the one or the other will       
progressively lay hold upon us1 and we  
shall increasingly yield to it4 ,you can
 cultivate the habit of incredulity     
until you descend into the class of the 
faithless2 or you can cultivate the     
opposite habit and disposition until you
 rise to the high level of a settled and
 sovereign belief4  ,it is clear that   
,thomas did not reach forth his hand and
 touch4 ,the rush of instantaneous      
conviction swept him along and bore him 
far away from the state of mind which   
had asked for such evidence4 ,our       
,lord's words must have pierced his     
heart1 as he thought3 ',then ,he was    
here all the while2 ,he heard my wild   
words2 ,he loves me still4' ,as         
,nathanael1 when he knew that ,jesus had
 seen him under the fig-tree1 broke out 
with the exclamation1 ',rabbi6 ,thou art
 the ,son of ,god1' so ,thomas1 smitten 
as by a lightning flash with the sense  
of ,jesus' all-embracing knowledge and  
all-forgiving love1 forgets his         

incredulity and breaks into the         
rapturous confession1 the highest ever  
spoken while ,he was on earth3 ',my     
,lord and my ,god6' ,so swiftly did his 
whole attitude change4 ,it was as when  
the eddying volumes of smoke in some    
great conflagration break into sudden   
flame1 the ruddier and hotter1 the      
blacker they were4 ,sight may have made 
,thomas believe that ,jesus was risen1  
but it was something other and more     
inward than sight that opened his lips  
to cry1 ',my ,lord and my ,god6'        
,finally1 we note--  ,,iv4 ,a last      
,beatitude that extends to all          
generations4  ',blessed are they who    
have not seen and yet have believed4' ,i
 need not do more than just in a        
sentence remind you that we shall very  
poorly understand either this saying or 
this ,gospel or the greater part of the 
,new ,testament1 if we do not make it   
very clear to our minds that 'believing'
 is not credence only but trust4 ,the   
object of the ,christian's faith is not 

a proposition2 it is not a dogma nor a  
truth1 but a ,person4 ,and the act of   
faith is not an acceptance of a given   
fact1 a ,resurrection or any other1 as  
true1 but it is a reaching out of the   
whole nature to ,him and a resting upon 
,him4 ,i have said that ,thomas had no  
right to bring his will to bear on the  
act of belief1 considered as the        
intellectual act of accepting a thing as
 true4 ,but ,christian faith1 being more
 than intellectual belief1 does involve 
the activity of the will4 ,credence is  
the starting-point1 but it is no more4  
,there may be belief in the truth of the
 gospel and not a spark of faith in the 
,christ revealed by the gospel4  ,even  
in regard to that lower kind of belief1 
the assent which does not rest on sense 
has its own blessing4 ,we sometimes are 
ready to think that it would have been  
easier to believe if 'we had seen with  
our eyes1 and our hands had handled the 
7incarnate7 ,word of ,life' but that is 
a mistake4  ,this generation1 and all   

generations that have not seen ,him1 are
 not in a less advantageous position in 
regard either to credence or to trust1  
than were those that companied with ,him
 on earth1 and the blessing ,which ,he  
breathed out in that upper room comes   
floating down the ages like a perfume   
diffused through the atmosphere1 and is 
with us fragrant as it was in the 'days 
of ,his flesh4' ,there is nothing in the
 world's history comparable to the      
warmth and closeness of conscious       
contact with that ,christ1 dead for     
nearly nineteen centuries now1 which is 
the experience today of thousands of    
,christian men and women4 ,all other    
names pass1 and as they recede through  
the ages1 thickening veils of oblivion1 
mists of forgetfulness1 gather round    
them4 ,they melt away into the fog and  
are forgotten4 ,why is it that one      
,person1 and one ,person only1 triumphs 
even in this respect over space and     
time1 and is the same close ,friend with
 whom millions of hearts are in loving  

touch1 as ,he was to those that gathered
 around ,him upon earth8  ,what is the  
blessing of this faith that does not    
rest on sense1 and only in a small      
measure on testimony or credence8 ,part 
of its blessing is that it delivers us  
from the tyranny of sense1 sets us free 
from the crowding oppression of 'things 
seen and temporal'2 draws back the veil 
and lets us behold 'the things that are 
unseen and eternal4' ,faith is sight1   
the sight of the inward eye4 ,it is the 
direct perception of the unseen4 ,it    
sees ,him who is invisible4 ,the vision 
which is given to the eye of faith is   
more real in the true sense of that     
word1 more substantial in the true sense
 of that word1 more reliable and more   
near than that sight by which the bodily
 eye beholds external things4 ,we see1  
when we trust1 greater things than when 
we look4 ,the blessing of blessings is  
that the faith which triumphs over the  
things seen and temporal1 brings into   
every life the presence of the unseen   

,lord4  ,brethren6 do not confound      
credence with trust4 ,remember that     
trust does involve an element of will4  
,ask yourselves if the things seen and  
temporal are great enough1 lasting      
enough1 real enough to satisfy you1 and 
then remember whose lips said1 ',become 
not faithless but believing1' and       
breathed ,his last ,beatitude upon those
 'who have not seen and yet have        
believed4' ,we may all have that        
blessing lying like dew upon us1 amidst 
the dust and scorching heat of the      
things seen and temporal4 ,we shall have
 it1 if our heart's trust is set on     
,him1 whom one of the listeners on that 
,sunday spoke of long after1 in words   
which seem to echo that promise1 as     
',jesus in whom though now ye see ,him  
not1 yet believing ye rejoice with joy  
unspeakable and full of glory1 receiving
 the end of your faith1 even the        
salvation of your souls4'    ,,the      
,,silence ,,of ,,scripture  ',and many  
other signs truly did ,jesus in the     

presence of ,his disciples1 which are   
not written in this book3 ,but these are
 written1 that ye might believe that    
,jesus is the ,christ1 the ,son of ,god2
 and that believing ye might have life  
through ,his name4'--,,john ,,xx4 #cj1  
#ca4  ,it is evident that these words   
were originally the close of this       
,gospel1 the following chapter being an 
appendix1 subsequently added by the     
writer himself4 ,in them we have the    
,evangelist's own acknowledgment of the 
incompleteness of his ,gospel1 and his  
own statement of the purpose which he   
had in view in composing it4 ,that      
purpose was first of all a doctrinal    
one1 and he tells us that in carrying it
 out he omitted many things that he     
could have put in if he had chosen4 ,but
 that doctrinal purpose was subordinate 
to a still further aim4 ,his object was 
not only to present the truth that      
,jesus was the ,christ1 the ,son of     
,god1 but to present it in such a way as
 to induce his readers to believe in    

that ,christ4 ,and he desired that they 
might have faith in order that they     
might have life4  ,now1 it is a very    
good old canon in judging of a book that
 'in every work' we are to 'regard the  
writer's end1' and if that simple       
principle had been applied to this      
,gospel1 a great many of the features in
 it which have led to some difficulty   
would have been seen to be naturally    
explained by the purpose which the      
,evangelist had in view4  ,but this text
 may be applied very much more widely   
than to ,john's ,gospel4 ,we may use it 
to point our thoughts to the strange    
silences and incompletenesses of the    
whole of ,revelation1 and to the        
explanation of these incompletenesses by
 the consideration of the purpose which 
it all had in view4 ,in that sense ,i   
desire to look at these words before us4
  ,i4 ,first1 then1 we have here set    
forth the incompleteness of ,scripture4 
,take this ,gospel first4 ,anybody who  
looks at it can see that it is a        

fragment4 ,it is not meant to be a      
biography2 it is avowedly a selection1  
and a selection under the influence1 as 
,i shall have to show you presently1 of 
a distinct dogmatic purpose4 ,there is  
nothing in it about ,christ's birth1    
nothing in it about ,his baptism1 nor   
about ,his selection of ,his ,apostles4 
,there is scarcely anything about the   
facts of ,his outward life at all4      
,there is scarcely a word about the     
whole of ,his ministry in ,galilee4     
,there is not one of ,his parables1     
there are only seven of ,his miracles   
before the ,resurrection1 and two of    
these occur also in the other           
,evangelists4 ,there is scarcely any of 
,his ethical teaching2 there is not a   
word about the ,lord's ,supper4  ,and so
 ,i might go on enumerating many        
remarkable gaps in this ,gospel4 ,nearly
 half of it is taken up with the        
incidents of one week at the end of ,his
 life1 and the incidents of and after   
the ,resurrection4 ,of the remainder-by 

far the larger portion consists of      
several conversations which are hung    
upon miracles that seem to be related   
principally for the sake of these4 ,the 
whole of the phenomena show us at once  
the fragmentary character of this       
,gospel as stamped upon the very        
surface4  ,and when we turn to the other
 three1 the same thing is true1 though  
less strikingly so4 ,why was it that in 
the ,church1 after the completion of the
 ,scriptural canon1 there sprang up a   
whole host of ,apocryphal ,gospels1 full
 of childish stories of events which    
people felt had been passed over with   
strange silence1 in the teachings of the
 four ,evangelists3 stories of ,his     
childhood1 for instance1 and stories    
about what happened between ,his death  
and ,his resurrection8 ,a great many    
miracles were added to those that have  
been told us in ,scripture4 ,the        
condensed hints of the canonical        
,gospels received a great expansion1    
which indicated how much their silence  

about certain points had been felt4     
,what a tiny pamphlet they make6 ,is it 
not strange that the greatest event in  
the world's history should be told in   
such brief outline1 and that here1 too1 
the mustard seed1 'less than the least  
of all seeds1' should have become such a
 great tree8 ,put the four ,gospels down
 by the side of the two thick octavo    
volumes1 which it is the regulation     
thing to write nowadays1 as the         
biography of any man that has a name at 
all1 and you will feel their            
incompleteness as biographies4 ,they are
 but a pen-and-ink drawing of the ,sun6 
,and yet1 although they be so tiny that 
you might sit down and read them all in 
an evening over the fire1 is it not     
strange that they have stamped on the   
mind of the world an image so deep and  
so sharp1 of such a character as the    
world never saw elsewhere8 ,they are    
fragments1 but they have left a         
symmetrical and an unique impression on 
the consciousness of the whole world4   

,and then1 if you turn to the whole     
,book1 the same thing is true1 though in
 a modified sense there4 ,i have no time
 to dwell upon that fruitful field1 but 
the silence of ,scripture is quite as   
eloquent as its speech4 ,think1 for     
instance1 of how many things in the     
,bible are taken for granted which one  
would not expect to be taken for granted
 in a book of religious instruction4 ,it
 takes for granted the being of a ,god4 
,it takes for granted our relations to  
,him4 ,it takes for granted our moral   
nature4 ,in its later portions1 at all  
events1 it takes for granted the future 
life4 ,look at how the ,bible1 as a     
whole1 passes by1 without one word of   
explanation or alleviation1 a great many
 of the difficulties which gather round 
some of its teaching4 ,for instance1 we 
find no attempt to explain the divine   
nature of our ,lord2 or the existence of
 the three ,persons in the ,godhead4 ,it
 has not a word to say in explanation of
 the mystery of prayer2 or of the       

difficulty of reconciling the           
,omnipotent will of ,god on the one     
hand1 with our own free will on the     
other4 ,it has not a word to explain1   
though many a word to proclaim and      
enforce1 the fact of ,christ's death as 
the atonement for the sins of the whole 
world4 ,observe1 too1 how scanty the    
information on points on which the heart
 craves for more light4 ,how closely1   
for instance1 the veil is kept over the 
future life6 ,how many questions which  
are not prompted by mere curiosity1 our 
sorrow and our love ask in vain6  ,nor  
is the incompleteness of ,scripture as a
 historical book less marked4 ,nations  
and men appear on its pages abruptly1   
rending the curtain of oblivion1 and    
striding to the front of the stage for a
 moment1 and then they disappear1       
swallowed up of night4 ,it has no care  
to tell the stories of any of its       
heroes1 except for so long as they were 
the organs of that divine breath1 which1
 breathed through the weakest reed1     

makes music4 ,the self-revelation of    
,god1 not the acts and fortunes of even 
,his noblest servants1 is the theme of  
the ,book4 ,it is full of gaps about    
matters that any sciolist or philosopher
 or theologian would have filled up for 
it4 ,there it stands1 a ,book unique in 
the world's history1 unique in what it  
says1 and no less unique in what it does
 not say4  ',many other things truly    
did' that divine ,spirit in ,his march  
through the ages1 'which are not written
 in this book2 but these are written    
that ye might believe4'  ,,ii4 ,and so  
that brings me next to say a word or two
 about the more immediate purpose which 
explains all these gaps and             
incompletenesses4  ,john's ,gospel1 and 
the other three ,gospels1 and the whole 
,bible1 ,new ,testament and ,old1 have  
this for their purpose1 to produce in   
men's hearts the faith in ,jesus as 'the
 ,christ' and as 'the ,son of ,god4'  ,i
 need not speak at length about this one
 ,gospel with any special regard to that

 thought4 ,i have already said that the 
,evangelist avows that his work is a    
selection1 that he declares that the    
purpose that determined his selection   
was doctrinal1 and that he picked out   
facts which would tend to represent     
,jesus ,christ to us in the twofold     
capacity1--as the ,christ1 the          
,fulfiller of all the expectations and  
promises of the ,old ,covenant1 and as  
the ,son of ,god4 ,the one of these     
titles is a name of office1 the other a 
name of nature2 the one declares that   
,he had come to be1 and to do1 all to   
which types and prophecies and promises 
had dimly pointed1 and the other        
declares that ,he was 'the ,eternal     
,word1' which 'in the beginning was with
 ,god and was ,god1' and was manifest   
here upon earth to us4  ,this was his   
purpose1 and this representation of     
,jesus ,christ is that which shapes all 
the facts and all the phenomena of this 
,gospel1 from the very first words of it
 to its close4  ,and so1 although it is 

wide from my present subject1 ,i may    
just make one parenthetical remark1 to  
the effect that it is ridiculous in the 
face of this statement for 'critics' to 
say1 as some of them do3 ',the author of
 the fourth ,gospel has not told us     
this1 that1 and the other incident in   
,christ's life1 therefore1 he did not   
know it4' ,then some of them will draw  
the conclusion that ,john's ,gospel is  
not to be trusted in the given case1    
because he does not give us a certain   
incident1 and others might draw the     
conclusion that the other three         
,evangelists are not to be trusted      
because they do give it us4 ,and the    
whole fabric is built up upon a blunder1
 and would have been avoided if people  
had listened when ,john said to them3   
',i knew a great many things about      
,jesus ,christ1 but ,i did not put them 
down here because ,i was not writing a  
biography1 but preaching a gospel2 and  
what ,i wanted to proclaim was that     
,jesus is the ,christ1 the ,son of      

,god4'  ,but now we may extend that a   
great deal further4 ,it is just as true 
about the whole ,new ,testament4 ,the   
four ,gospels are written to tell us    
these two facts about ,christ4 ,they are
 none of them merely biographies2 as    
such they are singularly deficient1 as  
we have seen4 ,but they are biographies 
plus a doctrine2 and the biography is   
told mainly for the sake of carrying    
this twofold truth into men's           
understandings and hearts1 that ,jesus  
is1 first of all1 the ,christ1 and      
second1 the ,son of ,god4  ,and then    
comes the rest of the ,new ,testament1  
which is nothing more than the working  
out of the theoretical and practical    
consequence of these great truths4 ,all 
the ,epistles1 the ,book of ,revelation1
 and the history of the ,church1 as     
embodied in the ,acts of the            
,apostles1--all these are but the       
consequences of that fundamental truth2 
and the whole of ,scripture in its later
 portions is but the drawing of the     

inferences and the presenting of the    
duties that flow from the facts that    
',jesus is the ,christ1 the ,son of     
,god4'  ,and what about the ,old        
,testament8 ,why1 this about it3 that   
whatever may be the conclusion as to the
 date and authorship of any of the books
 in it1--and ,i am not careful to       
contend about these at present2--and    
whatever a man may believe about the    
verbal prophecies which most of us      
recognise there1--there is stamped      
unmistakably upon the whole system1 of  
which the ,old ,testament is the record1
 an onward-looking attitude4 ,it is all 
anticipatory of 'good things to come1'  
and of a ,person who will bring them4   
,sacrifice1 sacred offices1 such as     
priesthood and kingship1 and the whole  
history of ,israel1 have their faces    
turned to the future4 ',they that went  
before1 and they that followed after1   
cried ,hosanna6 ,blessed be ,he that    
cometh in the name of the ,lord6' ,this 
,christ towers up above the history of  

the world and the process of revelation1
 like ,mount ,everest among the         
,himalayas4 ,to that great peak all the 
country on the one side runs upwards1   
and from it all the valleys on the other
 descend2 and the springs are born there
 which carry verdure and life over the  
world4  ,christ1 the ,son of ,god1 is   
the centre of ,scripture2 and the       
,book--whatever be the historical facts 
about its origin1 its authorship1 and   
the date of the several portions of     
which it is composed--the ,book is a    
unity1 because there is driven right    
through it1 like a core of gold1 either 
in the way of prophecy and              
onward-looking anticipation1 or in the  
way of history and grateful retrospect1 
the reference to the one ',name that is 
above every name1' the name of the      
,christ1 the ,son of ,god4  ,and all its
 incompleteness1 its fragmentariness1   
its carelessness about persons1 are     
intended1 as are the slight parts in a  
skilful artist's handiwork1 to emphasise

 the beauty and the sovereignty of that 
one central ,figure on which all lights 
are concentrated1 and on which the      
painter has lavished all the resources  
of his art4 ,so ,god--for ,god is the   
,author of the ,bible--on this great    
canvas has painted much in sketchy      
outline1 and left much unfilled in1 that
 every eye may be fixed on the central  
,figure1 the ,christ of ,god1 on whose  
head comes down the ,dove1 and round    
whom echoes the divine declaration3     
',this is ,my ,beloved ,son1 in whom ,i 
am well pleased4'  ,but it is not merely
 in order to represent ,jesus as the    
,christ of ,god that these things are   
written1 but it is that that            
representation may become the object of 
our faith4 ,if the intention of         
,scripture had been simply to establish 
the fact that ,jesus was the ,christ and
 the ,son of ,god1 it might have been   
done in a very different fashion4 ,a    
theological treatise would have been    
enough to do that4 ,but if the object be

 that men should not only accept with   
their understandings the truth          
concerning ,christ's office and nature1 
but that their hearts should go out to  
,him1 and that they should rest their   
sinful souls upon ,him as the ,son of   
,god and the ,christ1 then there is no  
other way to accomplish that1 but by the
 history of ,his life and the           
manifestation of ,his heart4 ,if the    
object were simply to make us know about
 ,christ1 we do not need a ,book like   
this2 but if the object is to lead us to
 put our faith in ,him1 then we must    
have what we have here1 the infinitely  
touching and tender ,figure of ,jesus   
,christ ,himself1 set before us in all  
its sweetness and beauty as ,he lived   
and moved and died for us4  ,and so1    
dear friends1 let me put one last word  
here about this part of my subject4 ,if 
this be the purpose of ,scripture1 then 
let us learn on the one hand the        
wretched insufficiency of a mere        
orthodox creed1 and let us learn on the 

other hand the equal insufficiency of a 
mere creedless emotion4  ,if the purpose
 of ,scripture1 in these ,gospels1 and  
all its parts1 is that we should believe
 'that ,jesus is the ,christ1 the ,son  
of ,god1' that purpose is not           
accomplished when we simply yield our   
understanding to that truth and accept  
it as a great many people do4 ,that was 
much more the fault of the last         
generation than of this1 though many of 
us may still make the mistake of        
supposing that we are ,christians       
because we idly assent to--or1 at least1
 do not deny1 and so fancy that we      
accept--,christian truth4 ,but1 as      
,luther says in one of his rough        
figures1 ',human nature is like a       
drunken peasant2 if you put him up on   
the horse on the one side1 he is sure to
 tumble down on the other4' ,and so the 
reaction from the heartless1 unpractical
 orthodoxy of half a century ago has    
come with a vengeance to-day1 when      
everybody is saying1 ',oh6 give me a    

,christianity without dogma6' ,well1 ,i 
say that too1 about a great many of the 
metaphysical subtleties which have been 
called ,doctrinal ,christianity4 ,but   
this doctrine of the nature and office  
of ,jesus ,christ cannot be given up1   
and the ,christianity which ,christ and 
,his ,apostles taught be retained4 ,do  
you believe that ,jesus is the ,christ1 
the ,son of ,god8 ,do you trust your    
soul to ,him in these characters8 ,if   
you do1 ,i think we can shake hands4 ,if
 you do not1 ,scripture has failed to do
 its work on you1 and you have not      
reached the point which all ,god's      
lavish revelation has been expended on  
the world that you and all men might    
attain4  ,,iii4 ,now1 lastly1 notice the
 ultimate purpose of the whole4         
,scripture is not given to us merely to 
make us know something about ,god in    
,christ1 nor only in order that we may  
have faith in the ,christ thus revealed 
to us1 but for a further end--great1    
glorious1 but1 blessed be ,his ,name6   

not distant--namely1 that we may 'have  
life in ,his name4' ',life' is deep1    
mystical1 inexplicable by any other     
words than itself4 ,it includes pardon1 
holiness1 well-being1 immortality1      
,heaven2 but it is more than they all4  
,this life comes into our dead hearts   
and quickens them by union with ,god4   
,that which is joined to ,god lives4    
,each being according to its nature1 is1
 on condition of the divine power acting
 upon it4 ,this bit of wood upon which  
,i put my hand1 and the hand which ,i   
put upon it1 would equally crumble into 
nothingness if they were separated from 
,god4  ,you can separate your wills and 
your spiritual nature from ,him1 and    
thus separated you are 'dead in         
trespasses and in sins4' ,and1 ,o       
brother6 the message comes to you3 there
 is life in that great ,christ1 'in ,his
 name'2 that is to say1 in that revealed
 character of ,his by which ,he is made 
known to us as the ,christ and the ,son 
of ,god4  ,union with ,him in ,his      

,sonship will bring life into dead      
hearts4 ,he is the true ',prometheus'   
who has come from ,heaven with 'fire1'  
the fire of the divine ,life in the     
'reed' of ,his humanity1 and ,he imparts
 it to us all if we will4 ,he lays      
,himself upon us1 as the prophet laid   
himself on the little child in the upper
 chamber2 and lip to lip1 and beating   
heart to dead heart1 ,he touches our    
death1 and it is quickened into life4   
,the condition on which that great ,name
 will bring to us life is simply our    
faith4 ,do you believe in ,him1 and     
trust yourself to ,him1 as ,he who came 
to fulfil all that prophet1 priest1 and 
king1 sacrifice1 altar1 and ,temple of  
old times prophesied and looked for8 ,do
 you trust in ,him as the ,son of ,god  
who comes down to earth that we in ,him 
might find the immortal life which ,he  
is ready to give8 ,if you do1 then1 dear
 brethren6 the end that ,god has in view
 in all ,his revelation1 that ,christ   
had in view in ,his bitter ,passion1 has

 been accomplished for you4 ,if you do  
not it has not4 ,you may admire ,him1   
you may think loftily of ,him1 you may  
be ready to call ,him by many great and 
appreciative names1 but ,oh6 unless you 
have learned to see in ,him the divine  
,saviour of your souls1 you have not    
seen what ,god means you to see4  ,but  
if you have1 then all other questions   
about this ,book1 important as they are 
in their places1 may settle themselves  
as they will2 you have got the kernel1  
the thing that it was meant to bring    
you4 ,many an erudite scholar1 who has  
studied the ,bible all his life1 has    
missed the purpose for which it was     
given2 and many a poor old woman in her 
garret has found it4 ,it is not meant to
 wrangle over1 it is not meant to be    
read as an interesting product of the   
religious consciousness1 it is not to be
 admired as all that remains of the     
literature of a nation that had a genius
 for religion2 but it is to be taken as 
being ,god's great ,word to the world1  

the record of the revelation that ,he   
has given us in ,his ,son4 ,the ,eternal
 ,word is the theme of all the written  
word4 ,have you made the jewel which is 
brought us in that casket your own8 ,is 
,jesus to you the ,son of the living    
,god1 believing on whom you share ,his  
life1 and become 'sons of ,god' by ,him8
 ,can you take on to your thankful lips 
that triumphant and rapturous confession
 of the doubting ,thomas1--the flag     
flying on the completed roof-tree of    
this ,gospel--',my ,lord and my ,god'8  
,if you can1 you will receive the       
blessing which ,christ then promised to 
all of us standing beyond the limits of 
that little group1 'who have not seen   
and yet have believed'--even that       
eternal life which flows into our dead  
spirits from the ,christ1 the ,son of   
,god1 who is the ,light of the world1   
and the ,life of men4    ,,an ,,eloquent
 ,,catalogue  ',there were together     
,simon ,peter1 and ,thomas called       
,didymus1 and ,nathanael of ,cana in    

,galilee1 and the sons of ,zebedee1 and 
two other of ,his disciples4'--,,john   
xxi4 #b4  ,this chapter1 containing the 
infinitely significant and pathetic     
account of our ,lord's appearance to    
these disciples by the ,sea of          
,tiberias1 is evidently an appendix to  
the ,gospel of ,john4 ,the design of    
that ,gospel is complete with the       
previous chapter1 and there is a formal 
close1 as of the whole book1 at the end 
thereof4 ,but whilst obviously an       
appendix1 this chapter is as obviously  
the work of the same hand as wrote the  
,gospel4 ,there are many minute points  
of identity between the style of it and 
of the rest of the work1 so that there  
can be no difficulty or doubt as to     
whence it came4 ,this enumeration of    
these seven disciples1 regarded as being
 the work of ,john himself1 seems to me 
to be significant1 and to contain a good
 many lessons4 ,and ,i desire to turn to
 these now4  ,i4 ,first of all1 the fact
 that they were together is significant4

  ,how did they come to hold together8  
,how had they not yielded to the        
temptation to seek safety by flight1    
which would have been the natural course
 after the death of their ,leader on a  
charge of treason against the ,roman    
power8 ,the process of disintegration   
had begun1 and we see it going on in the
 conduct of the disciples before the    
,resurrection4 ,the ',shepherd was      
smitten1' and1 as a matter of course1   
'the sheep' began to 'scatter4' ,and yet
 here we find them back in ,galilee1 in 
their old haunts1 and not trying to     
escape by separation1 which would have  
been the first step suggested to        
ordinary men in an ordinary state of    
things4 ,but where everybody knew them1 
and they knew everybody1 and everybody  
knew them to be disciples of ,jesus     
,christ1 thither they go1 and hold      
together as if they had still a living  
centre and a uniting bond4 ,how did that
 come about8 ,the fact that after       
,christ's death there was a group of men

 united together simply and solely as   
disciples1 and exhibiting their unity as
 disciples conspicuously1 in the face of
 the men that knew them best1 this forms
 a strange phenomenon that needs an     
explanation4 ,and there is only one     
explanation of it1 that ,jesus ,christ  
had risen from the dead4 ,that drew them
 together once more4 ,you cannot build a
 ,church on a dead ,christ2 and of all  
the proofs of the ,resurrection1 ,i take
 it that there is none that it is harder
 for an unbeliever to account for1 in   
harmony with his hypothesis1 than the   
simple fact that ,christ's disciples    
held together after ,he was dead1 and   
presented a united front to the world4  
,so1 then1 the fact of the group is     
itself significant1 and we may claim it 
as being a morsel of evidence for the   
historical veracity of the resurrection 
of ,jesus ,christ4  ,,ii4 ,then the     
composition of this group is            
significant4  ,taken in comparison with 
the original nucleus of the ,church1 the

 calling of which we find recorded in   
the first chapter of this ,gospel1 it is
 to be noticed that of the five men who 
made the ,primitive ,church1 there are  
three who reappear here by name--viz4   
,simon ,peter1 ,john and ,nathanael1 and
 ,nathanael never appears anywhere else 
except in these two places4 ,then1 note 
that there are two unnamed men here1    
'two other of ,his disciples'2 who1 ,i  
think1 in all probability are the two of
 the original five that we do not find  
named here--viz4 ',philip and ,andrew1  
,simon ,peter's brother'--both of them  
connected with ,bethsaida1 the place    
where probably this appearance of the   
risen ,lord took place4  ,so1 then1 ,i  
think1 the fair inference from the list 
before us is that we have here the      
original nucleus again1 the first five1 
with a couple more1 and the couple more 
are ',thomas1 who is called             
,didymus'--and we shall see the reason  
for his presence in a moment--and the   
brother of ,john1 one of the first pair4

  ,thus1 then1 to the original little   
group that had gathered round ,him at   
the first1 and to whom ,he had been so  
often manifested in this very scene     
where they were standing now1 ,he is    
revealed again4 ,there1 along the beach1
 is the place where ,james and ,john and
 ,simon and ,andrew were called from    
their nets three short years ago4       
,across yonder1 on the other side of the
 lake1 is the bit of green grass where  
the thousands were fed4 ,behind it is   
the steep slope down which the          
devil-possessed herd rushed4 ,there1    
over the shoulder of the hill1 is the   
road that leads up to ,cana of ,galilee1
 which they had trod together on that   
never-to-be-forgotten first morning1 and
 from which little village one of the   
group came4 ,they who had companied with
 ,him all the time of ,his too short    
fellowship1 and had seen all ,his       
manifestations1 were fittingly chosen to
 be the recipients of this last         
appearance1 which was to be full of     

instruction as to the work of the       
,church1 its difficulties1 its          
discouragements1 its rewards1 its final 
success1 and ,his benediction of it     
until the very end of time4 ,it was not 
for nothing that they who were gathered 
together were that first nucleus of the 
,church1 who received again from their  
,master the charge to be 'fishers of    
men4'  ,and then1 if we look at the     
list1 having regard to the history of   
those that make it up1 it seems to me   
that that also brings us some valuable  
considerations4 ,foremost stand1 as     
receiving this great manifestation of   
,jesus ,christ1 the two greatest sinners
 of the whole band1 ',simon ,peter1 and 
,thomas1 which is called ,didymus1' the 
denier and the doubter4 ,singularly     
contrasted these two men were in much of
 their disposition2 and yet alike in the
 fact that the ,crucifixion had been too
 much for their faith4 ,the one of them 
was impetuous1 the other of them slow4  
,the one was always ready to say more   

than he meant2 the other always ready to
 do more than he said4 ,the one was     
naturally despondent1 disposed to look  
ahead and to see the gloomiest side of  
everything--',let us also go that we may
 die with ,him'--the other never looking
 an inch beyond his nose1 and always    
yielding himself up to the impulse of   
the moment4 ,and yet both of them were  
united in this1 that the one1 from a    
sudden wave of cowardice which swept him
 away from his deepest convictions and  
made him for an hour untrue to his      
warmest love1 and the other1 from giving
 way to his constitutional tendency to  
despondency1 and to taking the blackest 
possible view of everything--they had   
both of them failed in their faith1 the 
one turning out a denier and the other  
turning out a doubter4 ,and yet here    
they are1 foremost upon the list of     
those who saw the ,risen ,christ4       
,well1 there are two lessons there1 and 
the one is this--let us ,christian      
people learn with what open hearts and  

hands we should welcome a penitent when 
he comes back4 ,the other is1--let us   
learn who they are to whom ,jesus       
,christ deigns to manifest ,himself--not
 immaculate monsters1 but men that1     
having fallen1 have learned humility and
 caution1 and by penitence have risen to
 a securer standing1 and have turned    
even their transgressions into steps in 
the ladder that lifts them to ,christ4  
,it was something that the first to whom
 the risen ,saviour appeared when ,he   
came victorious and calm from the grave1
 was the woman 'out of whom ,he had cast
 seven devils1' and the blessed truth   
which that teaches is the same as that  
which is to be drawn from this list of  
those whom ,he regarded1 and whom we    
regard1 as then constituting the true   
nucleus of ,his ,church--a list which is
 headed by the blackest denier and the  
most obstinate and captious sceptic in  
the whole company4 ',there were together
 ,simon ,peter and ,thomas1 which is    
called ,didymus1' and the little group  

was glad to have them1 and welcomed     
them1 as it becomes us to welcome       
brethren who have fallen1 and who come  
again saying1 ',i repent4'  ,well1 then1
 take the next3 he was ',nathanael1 of  
,cana in ,galilee'2 a guileless         
',israelite indeed1' so swift to        
believe1 so ready with his confession1  
so childlike in his wonder1 so ardent in
 his love and faith4 ,the only thing    
that ,christ is recorded as having said 
to him is this3 ',because ,i said444    
believest thou8 ,thou shalt see greater 
things than these4' ,a promise of       
growing clearness of vision and growing 
fullness of manifestation was made to   
this man1 who never appears anywhere    
else in ,scripture but in these two     
scenes1 and so may stand to us as the   
type of the opposite kind of ,christian 
experience from that stormy one of the  
doubter and the denier--viz4 that of    
persistent1 quiet1 continuous growth1   
which is marked by faithful use of the  
present amount of illumination1 and is  

rewarded by a continual increase of the 
same4 ,if the keynote to the two former 
lives is1 that sin confessed helps a man
 to climb1 the keynote to this man's is 
the other truth1 that they are still    
more blessed who1 with no interruptions1
 backslidings1 inconsistencies1 or      
denials1 by patient continuousness in   
well-doing1 widen the horizon of their  
,christian vision and purge their       
eyesight for daily larger knowledge4 ,to
 these1 as to the others1 there is      
granted the vision of the risen ,lord1  
and to them also is entrusted the care  
of ,his sheep and ,his lambs4 ,we do not
 need to go away into the depths and the
 darkness in order to realise the warmth
 and the blessedness of the light4      
,there is no necessity that any         
,christian man's career should be broken
 by denials like ,peter's or by doubts  
like ,thomas's1 but we may 'grow in     
grace and in the knowledge of our ,lord 
and ,saviour4' ',so is the kingdom of   
heaven1 first the blade1 then the ear1  

after that the full corn in the ear4'   
,then1 still further1 there were here   
'the two sons of ,zebedee4' ,these were 
the men of whom the ,master said that   
they were 'sons of thunder1' who1 by    
natural disposition1 in so far as they  
resembled one another 7which they seem  
to have done71 were eager1 energetic1   
somewhat bigoted1 ready with passionate 
rebukes1 and not unwilling to invoke    
destructive vengeance1 all for the love 
of ,him4 ,they were also touched with   
some human ambition which led them to   
desire a place at ,his right hand and   
,his left1 but the ambition1 too1 was   
touched with love towards ,him1 which   
half redeemed it4 ,but by dwelling with 
,him one of them1 at least1 had become  
of all the group the likest his ,master4
 ,and the old monastic painters taught a
 very deep truth when1 in their pictures
 of the apostles1 they made ,john's     
almost a copy of the ,master's face4 ,to
 him1 too1 there was granted in like    
manner a place amongst this blessed     

company1 and it is surely a trace of his
 hand that his place should seem so     
humble4 ,any other but himself would    
certainly have put ,james and ,john in  
their natural place beside ,peter4 ,it  
must have been himself who slipped      
himself and his brother into so         
inconspicuous a position in the list1   
and further veiled his personality under
 the patronymic1 'the sons of ,zebedee4'
  ,last of all come 'two other of ,his  
disciples1' not worth naming4 ,probably1
 as ,i have said1 they were the missing 
two out of the five of the first        
chapter2 but possibly they were only    
'disciples' in the wider sense1 and not 
of the ,apostolic group at all4 ,nobody 
can tell4 ,what does it matter8 ,the    
lesson to be gathered from their        
presence in this group is one that most 
of us may very well take to heart4      
,there is a place for commonplace1      
undistinguished people1 whose names are 
not worth repeating in any record2 there
 is a place for us one-talented folk1 in

 ,christ's ,church1 and we1 too1 have a 
share in the manifestation of ,his love4
 ,we do not need to be brilliant1 we do 
not need to be clever1 we do not need to
 be influential1 we do not need to be   
energetic1 we do not need to be anything
 but quiet1 waiting souls1 in order to  
have ,christ showing ,himself to us1 as 
we toil wearily through the darkness of 
the night4 ,undistinguished disciples   
have a place in ,his heart1 a sphere and
 a function in ,his ,church1 and a share
 in ,his revelation of ,himself4  ,,iii4
 ,the last point that ,i touch is this1 
that the purpose of this group is       
significant4  ,what did they thus get   
together for8 ',simon ,peter saith1 ,i  
go a fishing4 ,they say1 ,we also go    
with thee4' ,so they went back again to 
their old trade1 and they had not left  
the nets and the boats and the hired    
servants for ever1 as they once thought 
they had4  ,what sent them back8 ,not   
doubt or despair2 because they had seen 
,jesus ,christ up in ,jerusalem1 and had

 come down to ,galilee at ,his command  
on purpose to meet ,him4 ',there shall  
ye see ,him1 lo6 ,i have told you1' was 
ringing in their ears1 and they went    
back in full confidence of ,his         
appearance there4 ,it is very like      
,peter that he should have been the one 
to suggest filling an hour of the       
waiting time with manual labour4 ,the   
time would be hanging heavily on his    
hands4 ,john could have 'sat still in   
the house1' like ,mary1 the heart all   
the busier1 because the hands lay       
quietly in the lap4 ,but that was not   
,peter's way1 and ,john was ready to    
keep him company4 ,peter thought that   
the best thing they could do1 till      
,jesus chose to come1 was to get back to
 their work1 and he was sensible and    
right4 ,the best preparation for        
,christ's appearance1 and the best      
attitude to be found in by ,him1 is     
doing our daily work1 however secular   
and small it may be4 ,a dirty1 wet      
fishing boat1 all slimy with scales1 was

 a strange place in which to wait for   
the manifestation of a risen ,saviour4  
,but it was the right place1 righter    
than if they had been wandering about   
amongst the fancied sanctities of the   
synagogues4  ,they went out to do their 
work2 and to them was fulfilled the old 
saying1 ',i1 being in the way1 the ,lord
 met me4' ,jesus ,christ will come to   
you and me in the street if we carry the
 waiting heart there1 and in the shop1  
and the factory1 and the counting-house1
 and the kitchen1 and the nursery1 and  
the study1 or wherever we may be4 ,for  
all things are sacred when done with a  
hallowed heart1 and ,he chooses to make 
,himself known to us amidst the dusty   
commonplaces of daily life4  ,he had    
said to them before the ,crucifixion3   
',when ,i sent you forth without purse  
or scrip1 lacked ye anything8 ,and they 
said1 ,nothing4' ,and then ,he said1 as 
changing the conditions3 ',but now he   
that hath a purse or scrip1 let him take
 it4' ,as long as ,he was with them they

 were absolved from these common tasks4 
,now that ,he had left them the         
obligation recurred4 ,and the order of  
things for ,his servants in all time    
coming was therein declared to be3 no   
shirking of daily tasks on the plea of  
wanting divine communications2 keep at  
your work1 and if it last all night1    
stick to it2 and if there are no fish in
 the net1 never mind2 out with it again4
 ,and be sure that sooner or later you  
will see ,him standing on the beach1 and
 hear ,his voice1 and be blessed by ,his
 smile4    ,,the ,,beach ,,and ,,the    
,,sea  ',when the morning was now come1 
,jesus stood on the shore2 but the      
disciples knew not that it was          
,jesus4'--,,john xxi4 #d4  ,the incident
 recorded in this appendix to ,john's   
,gospel is separated from the other     
appearances of our risen ,lord in       
respect of place1 time1 and purpose4    
,they all occurred in and about         
,jerusalem2 this took place in ,galilee4
 ,the bulk of them happened on the day  

of the ,resurrection1 one of them a week
 after4 ,this1 of course1 to allow time 
for the journey1 must have been at a    
considerably later date4 ,their object  
was1 mainly1 to establish the reality of
 the ,resurrection1 the identity of     
,christ's physical body1 and to confirm 
the faith of the disciples therein4     
,here1 these purposes retreat into the  
background2 the object of this incident 
is to reveal the permanent relations    
between the risen ,lord and ,his        
struggling ,church4  ,the narrative is  
rich in details which might profitably  
occupy us1 but the whole may be gathered
 up in two general points of view in    
considering the revelation which we have
 here in the participation of ,christ in
 ,his servants' work1 and also the      
revelation which we have in the         
preparation by ,christ of a meal for    
,his toiling servants4 ,we take this    
whole narrative thus regarded as our    
subject on this ,easter morning4  ,i4   
,first we have here a revelation of the 

permanent relation of ,jesus ,christ to 
,his ,church and to the individuals who 
compose it1 in this1 that the risen     
,lord on the shore shares in the toil of
 ,his servants on the restless sea4     
,the little group of whom we read in    
this narrative reminds us of the other  
group of the first disciples in the     
first chapter of this ,gospel4 ,four out
 of the five persons named in our text  
appear there3 ,simon ,peter1 ,nathanael 
of ,cana in ,galilee1 and the sons of   
,zebedee1 ,james and ,john4 ,and a very 
natural inference is that the 'two      
others' unnamed here are the two others 
of that chapter1 viz4 ,andrew and       
,philip4 ,if so1 we have at the end1 the
 original little group gathered together
 again2 with the addition of the        
doubting ,thomas4  ,be that as it may1  
there they are on the shore of the sea1 
and ,peter characteristically takes the 
lead and suggests a course that they all
 accept3 ',i go a fishing4' ',we also go
 with thee4'  ,now we must not read that

 as if it meant3 ',it is all over6 ,our 
hopes are vain6 ,we dreamed that we were
 going to be princes in the ,messiah's  
,kingdom1 we have woke up to find that  
we are only fishermen4 ,let us go back  
to our nets and our boats6' ,no6 all    
these men had seen the risen ,lord1 and 
had received from ,his breath the gift  
of the ,holy ,spirit4 ,they had all gone
 from ,jerusalem to ,galilee1 in        
obedience to ,his command1 and were now 
waiting for ,his promised appearance4   
,very noble and beautiful is the calm   
patience with which they fill the time  
of expectation with doing common and    
long-abandoned tasks4 ,they go back to  
the nets and the boats long since       
forsaken at the ,master's bidding4 ,that
 is not like fanatics4 ,that is not like
 people who would be liable to the      
excesses of excitement that would lead  
to the 'hallucination1' which is the    
modern explanation of the resurrection  
faith1 on the part of the disciples4    
,and it is a precious lesson for us1    

dear brethren6 that whatever may be our 
memories1 and whatever may be our hopes1
 the very wisest thing we can do is to  
stick to the common drudgery1 and even  
to go back to abandoned tasks4 ,it      
stills the pulses4 ',study to be quiet2 
and to do our own business' is the best 
remedy for all excitement1 whether it be
 of sorrow or of hope4 ,and not seldom  
to us1 if we will learn and practise    
that lesson1 as to these poor men in the
 tossing fisherman's boat1 the          
accustomed and daily duties will be the 
channel through which the presence of   
the ,master will be manifested to us4   
,so they go1 and there follow the       
incidents which ,i need not repeat1     
because we all know them well enough4   
,only ,i wish to mark the distinct      
allusion throughout the whole narrative 
to the earlier story of the first       
miraculous draught of fishes which was  
connected with their call to the        
,apostleship1 and was there by ,christ  
declared to have a symbolical meaning4  

,the correspondences and the contrasts  
are obvious4 ,the scene is the same2 the
 same green mountains look down upon the
 same blue waters4 ,it was the same     
people that were concerned4 ,they were1 
probably enough1 in the same            
fishing-boat4 ,in both there had been a 
night of fruitless toil2 in both there  
was the command to let down the net once
 more2 in both obedience was followed by
 instantaneous and large success4  ,so  
much for the likenesses2 the contrasts  
are these4 ,in the one case the ,master 
is in the boat with them1 in the other  
,he is on the shore2 in the one the net 
is breaking2 in the other1 'though there
 were so many1 yet did it not break4'   
,in the one ,peter1 smitten by a sense  
of his own sinfulness1 says1 ',depart   
from me1 for ,i am a sinful man1 ,o     
,lord6' ,in the other1 ,peter1 with a   
deeper knowledge of his own sinfulness1 
but also with the sweet knowledge of    
forgiveness1 casts himself into the sea1
 and flounders through the shallows to  

reach the ,lord4 ,the one is followed by
 the call to higher duty and to the     
abandonment of possessions2 the other is
 followed by rest and the mysterious    
meal on the shore4  ,that is to say1    
whilst both of the stories point the    
lesson of service to the ,master1 the   
one of them exhibits the principles of  
service to ,him whilst ,he was still    
with them1 and the other exhibits the   
principles of service to ,him when ,he  
is removed from struggling and toiling  
on the billows to the calm of the       
peaceful shore in the morning light4    
,so we may take that night of toil as   
full of meaning4 ,think of them as the  
darkness fell1 and the solemn bulk of   
the girdling hills lay blacker upon the 
waters1 and the ,syrian sky was mirrored
 with all its stars sparkling in the    
still lake4 ,all the night long cast    
after cast was made1 and time after time
 the net was drawn in and nothing in it 
but tangle and mud4 ,and when the first 
streak of the morning breaks pale over  

the ,eastern hills they are still so    
absorbed in their tasks that they do not
 recognise the voice that hails them    
from the nearer shore3 ',lads1 have ye  
any meat8' ,and they answer it with a   
half surly and wholly disappointed      
monosyllabic ',no6' ,it is an emblem for
 us all2 weary and wet1 tugging at the  
oar in the dark1 and often seeming to   
fail4 ,what then8 ,if the last cast has 
brought nothing1 try another4 ,out with 
the nets once more6 ,never mind the     
darkness1 and the cold1 and the wetting 
spray1 and the weariness4 ,you cannot   
expect to be as comfortable in a        
fishing-boat as in your drawing-room4   
,you cannot expect that your nets will  
be always full4 ,failure and            
disappointment mingle in the most       
successful lives4 ,christian work has   
often to be done with no results at all 
apparent to the doer1 but be sure of    
this1 that they who learn and practise  
the homely1 wholesome virtue of         
persistent adherence to the task that   

,god sets them1 will catch some gleams  
of a ,presence most real and most       
blessed1 and before they die will know  
that 'their labour has not been in vain 
in the ,lord4' ',they that sow in tears 
shall reap in joy4'  ,and so1 finally1  
about this first part of my subject1    
there stands out before us here the     
blessed picture of the ,lord ,himself1  
the ,risen ,lord1 with the halo of death
 and resurrection round about ,him2     
there1 on the firm beach1 in the        
increasing light of the morning1        
interested in1 caring about1 directing  
and crowning with ,his own blessing1 the
 obedient work of ,his servants4  ,the  
simple prose fact of the story1 in its  
plain meaning1 is more precious than any
 'spiritualising' of it4 ,take the fact4
 ,jesus ,christ1 fresh from the grave1  
who had been down into those dark       
regions of mystery where the dead sleep 
and wait1 and had come back into this   
world1 and was on the eve of ascending  
to the ,father--this ,christ1 the       

possessor of such experience1 takes an  
interest in seven poor men's fishing1   
and cares to know whether their ragged  
old net is full or is empty4 ,there     
never was a more sublime and wonderful  
binding together of the loftiest and the
 lowliest than in that question in the  
mouth of the ,risen ,lord4 ,if men had  
been going to dream about what would be 
fitting language for a risen ,saviour1  
if we had to do here with a legend1 and 
not with a piece of plain1 prosaic fact1
 do you think that the imagination would
 ever have entered the mind of the      
legend-maker to put such a question as  
that into such lips at such a time8     
',lads1 have ye any meat8'  ,it teaches 
us that anything that interests us is   
not without interest to ,christ4        
,anything that is big enough to occupy  
our thoughts and our efforts is large   
enough to be taken into ,his4 ,all our  
ignoble toils1 and all our petty        
anxieties1 touch a chord that vibrates  
in that deep and tender heart4 ,though  

other sympathy may be unable to come    
down to the minutenesses of our little  
lives1 and to wind itself into the      
narrow room in which our histories are  
prisoned1 ,christ's sympathy can steal  
into the narrowest cranny4 ,the risen   
,lord is interested in our poor fishing 
and our disappointments4  ,and not only 
that1 here is a promise for us1 a       
prophecy for us1 of certain guidance and
 direction1 if only we will come to ,him
 and acknowledge our dependence upon    
,him4 ,the question that was put to     
them1 ',lads1 have ye any meat8' was    
meant to evoke the answer1 ',no6' ,the  
consciousness of my failure is the      
pre-requisite to my appeal to ,him to   
prosper my work4 ,and just as before ,he
 would1 on the other margin of that same
 shore1 multiply the loaves and the     
fishes1 ,he put to them the question1   
',how many have ye8' that they might    
know clearly the inadequacy of their own
 resources for the hungry crowd1 so     
here1 in order to prepare their hearts  

for the reception of ,his guidance and  
,his blessing1 ,he provides that they be
 brought to catalogue and confess their 
failures4 ,so ,he does with us all1     
beats the self-confidence out of us1    
blessed be ,his name6 and makes us know 
ourselves to be empty in order that ,he 
may pour ,himself into us1 and flood us 
with the joy of ,his presence4  ,then   
comes the guidance given4 ,we may be    
sure that it is given to us all to-day1 
if we wait upon ,him and ask ,him4      
',cast the net on the right side of the 
ship1 and ye shall find4' ,his command  
is followed by swift1 unanswering1      
unquestioning obedience1 which in its   
turn is immediately succeeded by the    
large blessing which the ,master then   
gave on the instant1 which ,he gives    
still1 though often1 in equal love and  
unquestioned wisdom1 it comes long after
 faith has discerned ,his presence and  
obedience has bowed to ,his command4    
,it may be that we shall not see the    
results of our toil till the morning    

dawns and the great net is drawn to land
 by angel hands4 ,but we may be sure    
that while we are toiling on the tossing
 sea1 ,he watches from the shore1 is    
interested in all our weary efforts1    
will guide us if we own to ,him our     
weakness1 and will give us to see at    
last issues greater than we had dared to
 hope from our poor service4 ,the dying 
martyr looked up and saw ,him 'standing 
at the right hand of ,god1' in the      
attitude of interested watchfulness and 
ready help4 ,this ,easter morning bids  
us lift our eyes to a risen ,lord who   
'has not left us to serve alone1' nor   
gone up on high1 like some careless     
general to a safe height1 while his     
forsaken soldiers have to stand the     
shock of onset without him4 ,from this  
height ,he bends down and 'covers our   
heads in the day of battle4' ',he was   
received up1' says the ,evangelist1 'and
 sat on the right hand of ,god1 and they
 went forth and preached everywhere4'   
,strange contrast between ,his throned  

rest and their wandering toils for ,him6
 ,but the contrast gives place to a     
deeper identity of work and condition1  
as the ,gospel goes on to say1 ',the    
,lord also working with them and        
confirming the word with signs          
following4'  ,though we be on the       
tossing sea and ,he on the quiet shore1 
between us there is a true union and    
communion1 ,his heart is with us1 if our
 hearts be with ,him1 and from ,him will
 pass over all strength1 grace1 and     
blessing to us1 if only we know ,his    
presence1 and owning our weakness1 obey 
,his command and expect ,his blessing4  
,,ii4 ,look at the other half of this   
incident before us4 ,i pass over the    
episode of the recognition of ,jesus by 
,john1 and of ,peter struggling to ,his 
feet1 interesting as it is1 in order to 
fix upon the central thought of the     
second part of the narrative1 viz4 the  
risen ,lord on the shore1 in the        
increasing light of the morning1        
'preparing a table' for ,his toiling    

servants4 ,that 'fire of coals' and the 
simple refreshment that was being       
dressed upon it had been prepared there 
by ,christ's own hand4 ,we are not told 
that there was anything miraculous about
 it4 ,he had gathered the charcoal2 ,he 
had procured the fish2 ,he had dressed  
it and prepared it4 ,they are bidden to 
'bring of the fish they had caught'2 ,he
 accepts their service1 and adds the    
result of their toil1 as it would seem1 
to the provision which ,his own hand has
 prepared4 ,he summons them to a meal1  
not the midday repast1 for it was still 
early morning4 ,they seat themselves1   
smitten by a great awe4 ,the meal goes  
on in silence4 ,no word is spoken on    
either side4 ,their hearts know ,him4   
,he waits on them1 making ,himself their
 ,servant as well as their ,host4 ,he   
'taketh bread and giveth them and fish  
likewise1' as ,he had done in the       
miracles by the same shore and on that  
sad night in the upper room that seemed 
so far away now1 and in the roadside inn

 at ,emmaus1 when something in ,his     
manner or action disclosed ,him to the  
wondering two at the table4  ,now what  
does all that teach us8 ,two things2 and
 first--neglecting for a moment the     
difference between shore and sea--here  
we have the fact of ,christ's providing1
 even by doing menial offices1 for ,his 
servants4  ,these seven men were wet and
 weary1 cold and hungry4 ,the first     
thing they wanted when they came out of 
the fishing-boat was their breakfast4   
,if they had been at home1 their wives  
and children would have got it ready for
 them4 ,jesus had a great deal to say to
 them that day1 a great deal to teach   
them1 much to do for them1 and for the  
whole world1 by the words that followed2
 but the first thing that ,he thinks    
about is to feed them4 ,and so1         
cherishing no overstrained contempt for 
material necessities and temporal       
mercies1 let us remember that it is ,his
 hand that feeds us still1 and let us be
 glad to think that this ,christ1 risen 

from the dead and with ,his heart full  
of the large blessings that ,he was     
going to bestow1 yet paused to consider3
 ',they are coming on shore after a     
night's hard toil1 they will be faint   
and weary2 let ,me feed their bodies    
before ,i begin to deal with their      
hearts and spirits4'  ,and ,he will take
 care of you1 brother6 and of us all4   
,the 'bread will be given' us1 at any   
rate1 and 'the water made sure4' ,it was
 a modest meal that ,he with ,his       
infinite resources thought enough for   
toiling fishermen4 ',one fish1' as the  
original shows us1 'one loaf of bread4' 
,no more6 ,he could as easily have      
spread a sumptuous table for them4      
,there is no covenant for superfluities1
 necessaries will be given4 ,let us     
bring down our wishes to ,his gifts and 
promises1 and recognise the fact that   
'he who needs least is the nearest the  
gods1' and he that needs least is surest
 of getting from ,christ what he needs4 
,but then1 besides that1 the supply of  

all other deeper and loftier necessities
 is here guaranteed4 ,the symbolism of  
our text divides1 necessarily1 the two  
things which in fact are not divided4   
,it is not all toiling on the restless  
sea here1 any more than it is all rest  
and fruition yonder2 but all that your  
spirit needs1 for wisdom1 patience1     
heroism1 righteousness1 growth1 ,christ 
will give you in your work2 and that is 
better than giving it to you after your 
work1 and the very work which is blessed
 by ,him1 and furthered and prospered by
 ,him1 the very work itself will come to
 be moat and nourishment4 ',out of the  
eater will come forth meat1' and the    
slain 'lions' of past struggles and     
sorrows1 the next time we come to them1 
will be 'full of honey4'  ,finally1     
there is a great symbolical prophecy    
here if we emphasise the distinction    
between the night and the morning1      
between the shore and the sea4 ,we can  
scarcely fail to catch this meaning in  
the incident which sets forth the old   

blessed assurance that the risen ,lord  
is preparing a feast on the shore while 
,his servants are toiling on the        
darkling sea4  ,all the details1 such as
 the solid shore in contrast with the   
changeful sea1 the increasing morning in
 contrast with the toilsome night1 the  
feast prepared1 have been from of old   
consecrated to shadow forth the         
differences between earth and heaven4   
,it would be blindness not to see here a
 prophecy of the glad hour when ,christ 
shall welcome to their stable home1 amid
 the brightness of unsetting day1 the   
souls that have served ,him amidst the  
fluctuations and storms of life1 and    
seen ,him in its darkness1 and shall    
satisfy all their desires with the      
'bread of heaven4'  ,our poor work which
 ,he deigns to accept forms part of the 
feast which is spread at the end of our 
toil1 when 'there shall be no more sea4'
 ,he adds the results of our toil to the
 feast which ,he has prepared4 ,the     
consequences of what we have done here  

on earth make no small part of the      
blessedness of heaven4    ',their works 
and alms and all their good endeavour   
,stayed not behind1 nor in the grave    
were trod4'  ,the souls which a ,paul or
 a ,john has won for the ,master1 in    
their vocation as 'fishers of men1' are 
their 'hope and joy and crown of        
rejoicing1 in the presence of our ,lord 
,jesus4' ,the great benediction which   
the ,spirit bade the ,apocalyptic seer  
write over 'the dead which die in the   
,lord1' is anticipated in both its parts
 by this mysterious meal on the beach4  
',they rest from their labours' inasmuch
 as they find the food prepared for     
them1 and sit down to partake2 ',their  
works do follow them' inasmuch as they  
'bring of the fish which they have      
caught4'  ,finally1 ,christ ,himself    
waits on them1 therein fulfilling in    
symbol what ,he has told us in great    
words that dimly shadow wonders         
unintelligible until experienced3       
',verily ,i say unto you1 ,he shall gird

 ,himself1 and make them to sit down to 
meat1 and will come forth1 and serve    
them4'  ,so here is a vision to cheer us
 all4 ,life must be full of toil and of 
failure4 ,we are on the midnight sea1   
and have to tug1 weary and wet1 at a    
heavy oar1 and to haul an often empty   
net4 ,but we do not labour alone4 ,he   
comes to us across the storm1 and is    
with us in the night1 a most real1      
because unseen ,presence4 ,if we accept 
the guidance of ,his directing word1    
,his indwelling ,spirit1 and ,his       
all-sufficient example1 and seek to     
ascertain ,his will in outward          
,providences1 we shall not be left to   
waste our strength in blunders1 nor     
shall our labour be in vain4 ,in the    
morning light we shall see ,him standing
 serene on the steadfast shore4 ,the    
',pilot of the ,galilean lake' will     
guide our frail boat through the wild   
surf that marks the breaking of the sea 
of life on the shore of eternity2 and   
when the sun rises over the ,eastern    

hills we shall land on the solid beach1 
bringing our 'few small fishes' with us1
 which ,he will accept4 ,and there we   
shall rest1 nor need to ask who ,he is  
that serves us1 for we shall know that  
',it is the ,lord6'    ',,it ,,is ,,the 
,,lord6'  ',therefore that disciple whom
 ,jesus loved saith unto ,peter1 ,it is 
the ,lord4--,,john xxi4 #g4  ,it seems a
 very strange thing that these disciples
 had not1 at an earlier period of this  
incident1 discovered the presence of    
,christ1 inasmuch as the whole was so   
manifestly a repetition of that former  
event by which the commencement of their
 ministry had been signalised1 when ,he 
called them to become 'fishers of men4' 
,we are apt to suppose that when once   
again they embarked on the lake1 and    
went back to their old trade1 it must   
have been with many a thought of ,him   
busy at their hearts4 ,yonder--perhaps  
we fancy them thinking--is the very     
point where we saw ,him coming out of   
the shadows of the mountains1 that night

 when ,he walked on the water2 yonder is
 the little patch of grass where ,he    
made them all sit down whilst we bore   
the bread to them3 there is the very    
spot where we were mending our nets when
 ,he came up to us and called us to     
,himself2 and now it is all over4 ,we   
have loved and lost ,him2 ,he has been  
with us1 and has left us4 ',we trusted  
that it had been ,he who should have    
redeemed ,israel1' and the ,cross has   
ended it all6 ,so1 we are apt to think1 
they must have spoken2 but there does   
not seem to have been about them any    
such sentimental remembrance4 ,john     
takes pains in this narrative1 ,i think1
 to show them to us as plain1 rough men1
 busy about their night's work1 and     
thinking a great deal more of their want
 of success in fishing1 than about the  
old associations which we are apt to put
 into their minds4 ,then through the    
darkness ,he comes1 as they had seen    
,him come once before1 when they know   
,him not2 and ,he speaks to them as ,he 

had spoken before1 and they do not      
detect ,his voice yet2 and ,he repeats  
the old miracle1 and their eyes are all 
holden1 excepting the eyes of him who   
loved1 and he first says1 ',it is the   
,lord6' ,now1 besides all the other     
features of this incident by which it   
becomes the revelation of the ,lord's   
presence with ,his ,church1 and the     
exhibition of the work of the ,church   
during all the course of the world's    
history1 it contains valuable lessons on
 other points1 such as these which ,i   
shall try to bring before you4  ,now and
 always1 as in that morning twilight on 
the ,galilean lake1 ,christ comes to    
men4 ,everywhere ,he is present1        
everywhere revealing ,himself4 ,now1 as 
then1 our eyes are 'holden' by our own  
fault1 so that we recognise not the     
merciful ,presence which is all around  
us4 ,now1 as then1 it is they who are   
nearest to ,christ by love who see ,him 
first4 ,now1 as then1 they who are      
nearest to ,him by love1 are so because 

,he loves them1 and because they know   
and believe the love which ,he has to   
them4 ,i find1 then1 in this part of the
 story three thoughts1--,first1 they    
only see aright who see ,christ in      
everything4 ,secondly1 they only see    
,christ who love ,him4 ,lastly1 they    
only love ,him who know that ,he loves  
them1  ,i4 ,first then1 they only see   
aright who see ,christ in everything4   
,this word of ,john's1 ',it is the      
,lord6'--ought to be the conviction with
 the light of which we go out to the    
examination of all events1 and to the   
consideration of all the circumstances  
of our daily life4 ,we believe that unto
 ,christ is given 'all power in heaven  
and upon earth4' ,we believe that to    
,him belongs creative power--that       
'without ,him was not anything made     
which was made4' ,we believe that from  
,him came all life at first4 ,in ,him   
life was1 as in its deep source4 ,he is 
the ,fountain of life4 ,we believe that 
as no being comes into existence without

 ,his creative power1 so none continues 
to exist without ,his sustaining energy4
 ,we believe that ,he allots to all men 
their natural characters and their      
circumstances4 ,we believe that the     
history of the world is but the history 
of ,his influence1 and that the centre  
of the whole universe is the cross of   
,calvary4 ,in the light of such         
convictions1 ,i take it1 every man that 
calls himself a ,christian ought to go  
out to meet life and to study all       
events4 ,let me try1 then1 to put before
 you1 very briefly1 one or two of the   
provinces in which we are to take this  
conviction as the keynote to all our    
knowledge4  ,no man will understand the 
world aright1 to begin with1 who cannot 
say about all creation1 ',it is the     
,lord6' ,nature is but the veil of the  
invisible and ascended ,lord3 and if we 
would pierce to the deepest foundations 
of all being1 we cannot stop until we   
get down to the living power of ,christ 
our ,saviour and the ,creator of the    

world1 by whom all things were made1 and
 whose will pouring out into this great 
universe1 is the sustaining principle   
and the true force which keeps it from  
nothingness and from quick decay4  ,why1
 what did ,christ work all ,his miracles
 upon earth for8 ,not solely to give us 
a testimony that the ,father had sent   
,him2 not solely to make us listen to   
,his words as a ,teacher sent from ,god2
 not solely as proof of ,his            
,messiahship1--but besides all these    
purposes there was surely this other1   
that for once ,he would unveil to us the
 true ,author of all things1 and the    
true ,foundation of all being4 ,christ's
 miracles interrupted the order of the  
world1 because they made visible to men 
for once the true and constant ,orderer 
of the order4 ,they interrupted the     
order in so far as they struck out the  
intervening links by which the creative 
and sustaining word of ,god acts in     
nature1 and suspended each event        
directly from the firm staple of ,his   

will4 ,they revealed the eternal        
,orderer of that order in that they     
showed the ,incarnate ,word wielding the
 forces of nature1 which ,he has done   
from of old and still does4 ,we are then
 to take all these signs and wonders    
that ,he wrought1 as a perennial        
revelation of the real state of things  
with regard to this natural world1 and  
to see in them all1 signs and tokens    
that into every corner and far-off      
region of the universe ,his loving hand 
reaches1 and ,his sustaining power goes 
forth4 ,into what province of nature did
 ,he not go8 ,he claimed to be the ,lord
 of life by the side of the boy's bier  
at the gate of ,nain1 in the chamber of 
the daughter of ,jairus1 by the grave of
 ,lazarus4 ,he asserted for ,himself    
authority over all the powers and       
functions of our bodily life1 when ,he  
gave eyes to the blind1 hearing to the  
deaf1 feet to the lame4 ,he showed that 
,he was ,lord over the fowl of the air1 
the beasts of the earth1 the fish of the

 sea4 ,and ,he asserted ,his dominion   
over inanimate nature1 when the         
fig-tree1 cursed by ,him1 withered away 
to its roots1 and the winds and waves   
sunk into silence at ,his gentle voice4 
,he let us get a glimpse into the dark  
regions of ,his rule over the unseen1   
when 'with authority ,he commanded the  
unclean spirits1 and they came out4'    
,and all these things ,he did1 in order 
that we1 walking in this fair world1    
encompassed by the glories of this      
wonderful universe1 should be delivered 
from the temptation of thinking that it 
is separated from ,him1 or independent  
of ,his creative and sustaining power2  
and in order that we should feel that   
the continuance of all which surrounds  
us1 the glories of heaven and the       
loveliness of earth1 are as truly owing 
to the constant intervention of ,his    
present will1 and the interposition     
beneath them of ,his sustaining hand1 as
 when first1 by the ',word of ,god' who 
'was with ,god and who was ,god1'       

speaking forth ,his fiat1 there came    
light and beauty out of darkness and    
chaos4  ,o ,christian men6 we shall     
never understand the ,christian thought 
about ,god's universe1 until we are able
 to say1 ,preservation is a continual   
creation2 and beneath all the ordinary  
workings of ,nature1 as we faithlessly  
call it1 and the apparently dead play of
 secondary causes1 there are welling    
forth1 and energising1 the living love  
and the blessed power of ,christ1 the   
,maker1 and ,monarch1 and ,sustainer of 
all4 ',it is the ,lord6' is the highest 
teaching of all science4 ,the mystery of
 the universe1 and the meaning of ,god's
 world1 are shrouded in hopeless        
obscurity1 until we learn to feel that  
all laws suppose a ,lawgiver1 and that  
all working involves a divine energy2   
and that beneath all which appears there
 lies for ever rising up through it and 
giving it its life and power1 the one   
true living ,being1 the ,father in      
heaven1 the ,son by whom ,he works1 and 

the ,holy ,ghost the ,spirit4 ,darkness 
lies on ,nature1 except to those who in 
'the light of setting suns1   ,and the  
round ocean1 and the living air1   ,and 
the blue sky1'  see that ,form which    
these disciples saw in the morning      
twilight4 ,let ',it is the ,lord6' be   
the word on our lips as we gaze on them 
all1 and nature will then be indeed to  
us the open secret1 the secret of the   
,lord which ',he will show to them that 
fear ,him4'  ,then again1 the same      
conviction is the only one that is      
adequate either to explain or to make   
tolerable the circumstances of our      
earthly condition4 ,to most men--ah6 to 
all of us in our faithless times--the   
events that befall ourselves1 seem to be
 one of two things equally horrible1 the
 play of a blind ,chance1 or the work of
 an iron ,fate4 ,i know not which of    
these two ghastly thoughts about the    
circumstances of life is the more       
depressing1 ruining all our energy1     
depriving us of all our joy1 and        

dragging us down with its weight4 ,but  
brethren1 and friends1 there are but    
these three ways for it--either our life
 is the subject of a mere chaotic       
chance2 or else it is put into the mill 
of an iron destiny1 which goes grinding 
on and crushing with its remorseless    
wheels1 regardless of what it grinds up2
 or else1 through it all1 in it all1    
beneath it and above it all1 there is   
the ,will which is ,love1 and the ,love 
which is ,christ6 ,which of these       
thoughts is the one that commends itself
 to your own hearts and consciences1 and
 which is the one under which you would 
fain live if you could8 ,i understand   
not how a man can front the awful       
possibilities of a future on earth1     
knowing all the points at which he is   
vulnerable1 and all the ways by which   
disaster may come down upon him1 and    
retain his sanity1 unless he believes   
that all is ruled1 not merely by a ,god 
far above him1 who may be as            
unsympathising as ,he is omnipotent1 but

 by his ,elder ,brother1 the ,son of    
,god1 who showed ,his heart by all ,his 
dealings with us here below1 and who    
loves as tenderly1 and sympathises as   
closely with us as ever ,he did when on 
earth ,he gathered the weary and the    
sick around ,him4 ,is it not a thing1   
men and women1 worth having1 to have    
this for the settled conviction of your 
hearts1 that ,christ is moving all the  
pulses of your life1 and that nothing   
falls out without the intervention of   
,his presence and the power of ,his will
 working through it8 ,do you not think  
such a belief would nerve you for       
difficulty1 would lift you buoyantly    
over trials and depressions1 and would  
set you upon a vantage ground high above
 all the petty annoyances of life8 ,tell
 me1 is there any other place where a   
man can plant his foot and say1 ',now ,i
 am on a rock and ,i care not what      
comes'8 ,the riddle of ,providence is   
solved1 and the discipline of           
,providence is being accomplished when  

we have grasped this conviction--,all   
events do serve me1 for all             
circumstances come from ,his will and   
pleasure1 which is love2 and everywhere 
,i go--be it in the darkness of disaster
 or in the sunshine of prosperity--,i   
shall see standing before me that       
familiar and beloved ,shape1 and shall  
be able to say1 ',it is the ,lord6'     
,friends and brethren1 that is the faith
 to live by1 that is the faith to die   
by2 and without it life is a mockery and
 a misery4  ,once more this same        
conviction1 ',it is the ,lord6 should   
guide us in all our thoughts about the  
history and destinies of mankind and of 
,christ's ,church4 ,the ,cross is the   
centre of the world's history1 the      
incarnation and the crucifixion of our  
,lord are the pivot round which all the 
events of the ages revolve4 ',the       
testimony of ,jesus was the spirit of   
prophecy1' and the growing power of     
,jesus is the spirit of history1 and in 
every book that calls itself the history

 of a nation1 unless there be written1  
whether literally or in spirit1 this for
 its motto1 ',it is the ,lord6' all will
 be shallow and incomplete4  ',they that
 went before and they that came after1' 
when ,he entered into the holy city in  
,his brief moment of acceptance and     
pomp1 surrounded ,him with hosannas and 
jubilant gladness4 ,it is a deep and    
true symbol of the whole history of the 
world4 ,all the generations that went   
before ,him1 though they knew it not1   
were preparing the way of the ,lord1 and
 heralding the advent of ,him who was   
'the desire of all nations' and 'the    
light of men'2 and all the generations  
that come after1 though they know it    
not1 are swelling the pomp of ,his      
triumph and hastening the time of ,his  
crowning and dominion4 ',it is the      
,lord6' is the secret of all national   
existence4 ,it is the secret of all the 
events of the world4 ,the tangled web of
 human history is only then intelligible
 when that is taken as its clue1 ',from 

,him are all things1 and to ,him are all
 things4' ,the ocean from which the     
stream of history flows1 and that into  
which it empties itself1 are one4 ,he   
began it1 ,he sustains it4 ',the help   
that is done upon earth ,he doeth it    
,himself1' and when all is finished1 it 
will be found that all things have      
indeed come from ,christ1 been sustained
 and directed by ,christ1 and have      
tended to the glory and exaltation of   
that ,redeemer1 who is ,king of kings   
and ,lord of lords1 ,maker of the       
worlds1 and before whose throne are for 
ever gathered for service1 whether they 
know it or not1 the forces of the       
,gentiles1 the riches of the nations1   
the events of history1 the fates and    
destinies of every man4  ,i need not    
dwell upon the way in which such a      
conviction as this1 my friends1 living  
and working in our hearts1 would change 
for us the whole aspect of life1 and    
make everything bright and beautiful1   
blessed and calm1 strengthening us for  

all which we might have to do1 nerving  
us for duty1 and sustaining us against  
every trial1 leading us on1 triumphant  
and glad1 through regions all sparkling 
with tokens of ,his presence and signs  
of ,his love1 unto ,his throne at last1 
to lay down our praises and our crowns  
before ,him4 ,only let me leave with you
 this one word of earnest entreaty1 that
 you will lay to heart the solemn       
alternative--either see ,christ in      
everything1 and be blessed2 or miss     
,him1 and be miserable4 ,oh6 it is a    
waste1 weary world1 unless it is filled 
with signs of ,his presence4 ,it is a   
dreary seventy years1 brother1 of       
pilgrimage and strife1 unless1 as you   
travel along the road1 you see the marks
 that ,he who went before you has left  
by the wayside for your guidance and    
your sustenance4 ,if you want your days 
to be true1 noble1 holy1 happy1 manly1  
and ,godlike1 believe us1 it is only    
when they all have flowing through them 
this conviction1 ',it is the ,lord6'    

that they all become so4  ,,ii4 ,then1  
secondly1 only they who love1 see       
,christ4  ,john1 the ,apostle of ,love1 
knew ,him first4 ,in religious matters1 
love is the foundation of knowledge4    
,there is no way of knowing a ,person   
except love4 ,the knowledge of ,god and 
the knowledge of ,christ are not to be  
won by the exercise of the              
understanding4 ,a man cannot argue his  
way into knowing ,christ4 ,no skill in  
drawing inferences will avail him there4
 ,the treasures of wisdom--earthly      
wisdom--are all powerless in that       
region4 ,man's understanding and natural
 capacity--let it keep itself within its
 own limits and region1 and it is strong
 and good2 but in the region of         
acquaintance with ,god and ,christ1 the 
wisdom of this world is foolishness1 and
 man's understanding is not the organ by
 which he can know ,christ4 ,oh no6     
there is a better way than that3 ',he   
that loveth not knoweth not ,god1 for   
,god is love4' ,as it is1 in feebler    

measure1 with regard to our personal    
acquaintance with one another1 where it 
is not so much the power of the         
understanding1 or the quickness of the  
perception1 or the talent and genius of 
a man1 that make the foundation of his  
knowledge of his friend1 as the force of
 his sympathy and the depth of his      
affection2 so--with the necessary       
modification arising from the           
transference from earthly acquaintances 
to the great ,friend and ,lover of our  
souls in heaven--so is it with regard to
 our knowledge of ,christ4 ,love will   
trace ,him everywhere1 as dear friends  
can detect each other in little marks   
which are meaningless to others4 ,love's
 quick eye pierces through disguises    
impenetrable to a colder scrutiny4 ,love
 has in it a longing for ,his presence  
which makes us eager and quick to mark  
the lightest sign that ,he for whom it  
longs is near1 as the footstep of some  
dear one is heard by the sharp ear of   
affection long before any sound breaks  

the silence to those around4 ,love leads
 to likeness to the ,lord1 and that     
likeness makes the clearer vision of the
 ,lord possible4 ,love to ,him strips   
from our eyes the film that self and    
sin1 sense and custom1 have drawn over  
them4 ,it is these which hide ,him from 
us4 ,it is because men are so           
indifferent to1 so forgetful of1 their  
best ,friend that they fail to behold   
,him1 ',it is the ,lord6' is written    
large and plain on all things1 but like 
the great letters on a map1 they are so 
obvious and fill so wide a space1 that  
they are not seen4 ,they who love ,him  
know ,him1 and they who know ,him love  
,him4 ,the true eye-salve for our       
blinded eyes is applied when we have    
turned with our hearts to ,christ4 ,the 
simple might of faithful love opens them
 to behold a more glorious vision than  
the mountain 'full of chariots of fire1'
 which once flamed before the prophet's 
servant of old--even the august and     
ever-present form of the ,lord of life1 

the ,lord of history1 the ,lord of      
providence4 ,when they who love ,jesus  
turn to see 'the ,voice that speaks with
 them1' they ever behold the ,son of    
,man in ,his glory2 and where others see
 but the dim beach and a mysterious     
stranger1 it is to their lips that the  
glad cry first comes1 ',it is the       
,lord6'  ,and is it not a blessed thing1
 brethren6 that thus this high and      
glorious prerogative of recognising the 
marks of ,christ's presence everywhere1 
of going through life gladdened by the  
assurance of ,his nearness1 does not    
depend on what belongs to few men only1 
but on what may belong to all8 ,when we 
say that 'not many wise men after the   
flesh1 not many mighty1 not many noble1 
are called'--when we say that love is   
the means of knowledge--we are but in   
other words saying that the way is open 
to all1 and that no characteristics     
belonging to classes1 no powers that    
must obviously always belong to but a   
handful1 are necessary for the full     

apprehension of the power and           
blessedness of ,christ's ,gospel4 ,the  
freeness and the fullness of that divine
 message1 the glorious truth that it is 
for all men1 and is offered to all1 are 
couched in that grand principle1 ,love  
that thou mayest know2 love1 and thou   
art filled with the fullness of ,god1   
,not for the handful1 not for the elite 
of the world2 not for the few1 but for  
the many2 not for the wise1 but for all2
 not for classes1 but for humanity--for 
all that are weak1 and sinful1 and      
needy1 and foolish1 and darkened ,he    
comes1 who only needs that the heart    
that looks should love1 and then it     
shall behold6  ,but if that were the    
whole that ,i have to say1 ,i should    
have said but little to the purpose4 ,it
 very little avails to tell men to love4
 ,we cannot love to order1 or because we
 think it duty4 ,there is but one way of
 loving1 and that is to see the lovely4 
,the disciple who loved ,jesus was 'the 
disciple whom ,jesus loved4' ,generalise

 that1 and it teaches us this1 that     
,,iii4 ,they love who know that ,christ 
loves them4 ,his divine and eternal     
mercy is the foundation of the whole4   
,our love1 brethren1 can never be any   
thing else than our echo to ,his voice  
of tenderness than the reflected light  
upon our hearts of the full glory of    
,his affection4 ,no man loveth ,god     
except the man who has first learned    
that ,god loves him4 ',we love ,him1    
because ,he first loved us4' ,and when  
we say1 ',love ,christ1' if we could not
 go on to say1 ',nay1 rather let        
,christ's love come down upon you'--we  
had said worse than nothing4 ,the       
fountain that rises in my heart can only
 spring up heavenward1 because the water
 of it has flowed down into my heart    
from the higher level4 ,all love must   
descend first1 before it can ascend4 ,we
 have1 then1 no ,gospel to preach1 if we
 have only this to preach1 ',love1 and  
thou art saved4' ,but we have a ,gospel 
that is worth the preaching1 when we can

 come to men who have no love in their  
hearts1 and say1 ',brethren6 listen to  
this--you have to bring nothing1 you are
 called upon to originate no affection2 
you have nothing to do but simply to    
receive the everlasting love of ,god in 
,christ ,his ,son1 which was without us1
 which began before us1 which flows     
forth independent of us1 which is       
unchecked by all our sins1 which        
triumphs over all our transgressions1   
and which will make us--loveless1       
selfish1 hardened1 sinful men--soft1 and
 tender1 and full of divine affection1  
by the communication of its own self4   
,oh1 then1 look to ,christ1 that you may
 love ,him6 ,think1 brethren1 of that   
full1 and free1 and boundless mercy     
which1 from eternity1 has been pouring  
itself out in floods of grace and       
loving-kindness over all creatures4     
,think of that everlasting love which   
presided at the foundation of the earth1
 and has sustained it ever since4 ,think
 of that ,saviour who has died for us1  

and lives for us4 ,think of ,christ1 the
 heart of ,god1 and the fullness of the 
,father's mercy2 and do not think of    
yourselves at all4 ,do not ask          
yourselves1 to begin with1 the question1
 ,do ,i love ,him or do ,i not8 ,you    
will never love by that means4 ,if a man
 is cold1 let him go to the fire and    
warm himself4 ,if he is dark1 let him   
stand in the sunshine1 and he will be   
light4 ,if his heart is all clogged and 
clotted with sin and selfishness1 let   
him get under the influence of the love 
of ,christ1 and look away from himself  
and his own feelings1 towards that      
,saviour whose love shed abroad is the  
sole means of kindling ours4 ,you have  
to go down deeper than your feelings1   
your affections1 your desires1 your     
character4 ,there you will find no      
resting-place1 no consolation1 no power4
 ,dig down to the living ,rock1 ,christ 
and ,his infinite love to you1 and let  
it be the strong foundation1 built into 
which you and your love may become      

living stones1 a holy temple1 partaking 
of the firmness and nature of that on   
which it rests4 ,they that love do so   
because they know that ,christ loves    
them2 and they that love see ,him       
everywhere2 and they that see ,him      
everywhere are blessed for evermore4    
,and let no man here torture himself1 or
 limit the fullness of this message that
 we preach1 by questionings whether     
,christ loves ,him or not4 ,are you a   
man8 are you sinful8 have you broken    
,god's law8 do you need a ,saviour8     
,then put away all these questions1 and 
believe that ,christ's personal love is 
streaming out for the whole world1 and  
that there is a share for you if you    
like to take it and be blessed6  ,there 
is one last thought arising from the    
whole subject before us1 that may be    
worth mention before ,i close4 ,did you 
ever notice how this whole incident     
might be turned1 by a symbolical        
application1 to the hour of death1 and  
the vision which may meet us when we    

come thither8 ,it admits of the         
application1 and perhaps was intended to
 receive the application1 of such a     
symbolic reference4 ,the morning is     
dawning1 the grey of night going away1  
the lake is still2 and yonder1 standing 
on the shore1 in the uncertain light1   
there is one dim ,figure1 and one       
disciple catches a sight of ,him1 and   
another casts himself into the water1   
and they find 'a fire of coals1 and fish
 laid thereon1 and bread1' and ,christ  
gathers them around ,his table1 and they
 all know that ',it is the ,lord6' ,it  
is what the death of the ,christian man1
 who has gone through life recognising  
,christ everywhere1 may well            
become3--the morning breaking1 and the  
finished work1 and the ,figure standing 
on the quiet beach1 so that the last    
plunge into the cold flood that yet     
separates us1 will not be taken with    
trembling reluctance2 but1 drawn to ,him
 by the love beaming out of ,his face1  
and upheld by the power of ,his         

beckoning presence1 we shall struggle   
through the latest wave that parts us1  
and scarcely feel its chill1 nor know   
that we have crossed it2 till falling   
blessed at ,his feet1 we see1 by the    
nearer and clearer vision of ,his face1 
that this is indeed heaven4 ,and looking
 back upon 'the sea that brought us     
thither1' we shall behold its waters    
flashing in the light of that           
everlasting morning1 and hear them      
breaking in music upon the eternal      
shore4 ,and then1 brethren1 when all the
 weary night-watchers on the stormy     
ocean of life are gathered together     
around ,him who watched with them from  
,his throne on the bordering mountains  
of eternity1 where the day shines for   
ever--then ,he will seat them at ,his   
table in ,his kingdom1 and none will    
need to ask1 ',who art ,thou8' or       
',where am ,i8' for all shall know that 
',it is the ,lord6' and the full1       
perfect1 unchangeable vision of ,his    
blessed face will be heaven6            

',,lovest ,,thou ,,me8'  ',jesus saith  
to ,simon ,peter1 ,simon1 son of ,jonas1
 lovest thou ,me more than these8 ,he   
saith unto ,him1 ,yea1 ,lord2 ,thou     
knowest that ,i love ,thee4 ,he saith   
unto him1 ,feed ,my lambs4'--,,john xxi4
 #ae4  ,peter had already seen the risen
 ,lord4 ,there had been that interview  
on ,easter morning1 on which the seal of
 sacred secrecy was impressed2 when1    
alone1 the denier poured out his heart  
to his ,lord1 and was taken to the heart
 that he had wounded4 ,then there had   
been two interviews on the two          
successive ,sundays in which the        
,apostle1 in common with his brethren1  
had received1 as one of the group1 the  
,lord's benediction1 the ,lord's gift of
 the ,spirit1 and the ,lord's           
commission4 ,but something more was     
needed2 there had been public denial1   
there must be public confession4 ,if he 
had slipped again into the circle of the
 disciples1 with no special treatment or
 reference to his fall1 it might have   

seemed a trivial fault to others1 and   
even to himself4 ,and so1 after that    
strange meal on the beach1 we have this 
exquisitely beautiful and deeply        
instructive incident of the special     
treatment needed by the denier before he
 could be publicly reinstated in his    
office4  ,the meal seems to have passed 
in silence4 ,that awe which hung over   
the disciples in all their intercourse  
with ,jesus during the forty days1 lay  
heavy on them1 and they sat there1      
huddled round the fire1 eating silently 
the meal which ,christ had provided1 and
 no doubt gazing silently at the silent 
,lord4 ,what a tension of expectation   
there must have been as to how the      
oppressive silence was to be broken6 and
 how ,peter's heart must have throbbed1 
and the others' ears been pricked up1   
when it was broken by ',simon1 son of   
,jonas1 lovest thou ,me8' ,we may listen
 with pricked-up ears too4 ,for we have 
here1 in ,christ's treatment of the     
,apostle1 a revelation of how ,he       

behaves to a soul conscious of its      
fault2 and in ,peter's demeanour an     
illustration of how a soul1 conscious of
 its fault1 should behave to ,him4      
,there are three stages here3 the       
threefold question1 the threefold       
answer1 and the threefold charge4 ,let  
us look at these4  ,i4 ,the threefold   
question4  ,the reiteration in the      
interrogation did not express doubt as  
to the veracity of the answer1 nor      
dissatisfaction with its terms2 but it  
did express1 and was meant1 ,i suppose1 
to suggest to ,peter and to the others1 
that the threefold denial needed to be  
obliterated by the threefold confession2
 and that every black mark that had been
 scored deep on the page by that denial 
needed to be covered over with the      
gilding or bright colouring of the      
triple acknowledgment4 ,and so ,peter   
thrice having said1 ',i know ,him not6' 
,jesus with a gracious violence forced  
him to say thrice1 ',thou knowest that  
,i love ,thee4' ,the same intention to  

compel ,peter to go back upon his past  
comes out in two things besides the     
triple form of the question4 ,the one is
 the designation by which he is         
addressed1 ',simon1 son of ,jonas1'     
which travels back1 as it were1 to the  
time before he was a disciple1 and      
points a finger to his weak humanity    
before it had come under the influence  
of ,jesus ,christ4 ',simon1 son of      
,jonas1' was the name that he bore in   
the days before his discipleship4 ,it   
was the name by which ,jesus had        
addressed him1 therefore1 on that       
never-to-be-forgotten turning-point of  
his life1 when he was first brought to  
,him by his brother ,andrew4 ,it was the
 name by which ,jesus had addressed him 
at the very climax of his past life     
when1 high up1 he had been able to see  
far1 and in answer to the ,lord's       
question1 had rung out the confession3  
',thou art the ,christ1 the ,son of the 
living ,god6' ,so the name by which     
,jesus addresses him now says to him in 

effect3 ',remember thy human weakness2  
remember how thou wert drawn to ,me2    
remember the high-water mark of thy     
discipleship1 when ,i was plain before  
thee as the ,son of ,god1 and           
remembering all these1 answer           
,me--lovest thou ,me8'  ,the same       
intention to drive ,peter back to the   
wholesome remembrance of a stained past 
is obvious in the first form of the     
question4 ,our ,lord mercifully does not
 persist in giving to it that form in   
the second and third instances3 ',lovest
 thou ,me more than these8' ,more than  
these1 what8 ,i cannot for a moment     
believe that that question means        
something so trivial and irrelevant as  
',lovest thou ,me more than these nets1 
and boats1 and the fishing8' ,no2 in    
accordance with the purpose that runs   
through the whole1 of compelling ,peter 
to retrospect1 it says to him1 ',do you 
remember what you said a dozen hours    
before you denied ,me1 ,though all      
should forsake ,thee1 yet will not ,i8  

,are you going to take that stand again8
 ,lovest thou ,me more than these that  
never discredited their boasting so     
shamefully8'  ,so1 dear brethren6 here  
we have ,jesus ,christ1 in ,his         
treatment of this penitent and          
half-restored soul1 forcing a man1 with 
merciful compulsion1 to look steadfastly
 and long at his past sin1 and to       
retrace step by step1 shameful stage by 
shameful stage1 the road by which he had
 departed so far4 ,every foul place he  
is to stop and look at1 and think about4
 ,each detail he has to bring up before 
his mind4 ,was it not cruel of ,jesus   
thus to take ,peter by the neck1 as it  
were1 and hold him right down1 close to 
the foul things that he had done1 and   
say to him1 ',look6 look6 look ever6 and
 answer1 ,lovest thou ,me8' ,no2 it was 
not cruel2 it was true kindness4 ,peter 
had never been so abundantly and        
permanently penetrated by the sense of  
the sinfulness of his sin1 as after he  
was sure1 as he had been made sure in   

that great interview1 that it was all   
forgiven4 ,so long as a man is disturbed
 by the dread of consequences1 so long  
as he is doubtful as to his relation to 
the forgiving ,love1 he is not in a     
position beneficially and sanely to     
consider his evil in its moral quality  
only4 ,but when the conviction comes to 
a man1 ',god is pacified towards thee   
for all that thou hast done'2 and when  
he can look at his own evil without the 
smallest disturbance rising from slavish
 fear of issues1 then lie is in a       
position rightly to estimate its        
darkness and its depth4 ,and there can  
be no better discipline for us all than 
to remember our faults1 and penitently  
to travel back over the road of our     
sins1 just because we are sure that ,god
 in ,christ has forgotten them4 ,the    
beginning of ,christ's merciful         
treatment of the forgiven man is to     
compel him to remember1 that he may     
learn and be ashamed4  ,and then there  
is another point here1 in this triple   

question4 ,how significant and beautiful
 it is that the only thing that ,jesus  
,christ cares to ask about is the       
sinner's love6 ,we might have expected3 
',simon1 son of ,jonas1 are you sorry   
for what you did8 ,simon1 son of ,jonas1
 will you promise never to do the like  
any more8' ,no6 ,these things will come 
if the other thing is there4 ',lovest   
thou ,me8' ,jesus ,christ sues each of  
us1 not for obedience primarily1 not for
 repentance1 not for vows1 not for      
conduct1 but for a heart2 and that being
 given1 all the rest will follow4 ,that 
is the distinguishing characteristic of 
,christian morality1 that ,jesus seeks  
first for the surrender of the          
affections1 and believes1 and is        
warranted in the belief1 that if these  
are surrendered1 all else will follow2  
and love being given1 loyalty and       
service and repentance and hatred of    
self-will and of self-seeking will      
follow in her train4 ,all the graces of 
human character which ,christ seeks1 and

 is ready to impart1 are1 as it were1   
but the pages and ministers of the regal
 ,love1 who follow behind and swell the 
cortege of her servants4  ,christ asks  
for love4 ,surely that indicates the    
depth of ,his own6 ,in this commerce ,he
 is satisfied with nothing less1 and can
 ask for nothing more2 and ,he seeks for
 love because ,he is love1 and has given
 love4 ,oh6 to all hearts burdened1 as  
all our hearts ought to be--unless the  
burden has been cast off in one way--by 
the consciousness of our own weakness   
and imperfection1 surely1 surely1 it is 
a gospel that is contained in that one  
question addressed to a man who had gone
 far astray1 ',simon1 son of ,jonas1    
lovest thou8'  ,here1 again1 we have    
,jesus ,christ1 in ,his dealing with the
 penitent1 willing to trust discredited 
professions4 ,we think that one of the  
signs of our being wise people is that  
experience shall have taught us 'once'  
being 'bit1 twice' to be 'shy1' and if a
 man has once deceived us by flaming    

professions and ice-cold acts1 never to 
trust him any more4 ,and we think that  
is 'worldly wisdom1' and 'the bitter    
fruit of earthly experience1' and       
'sharpness1' and 'shrewdness1' and so   
forth4 ,jesus ,christ1 even whilst      
reminding ,peter1 by that 'more than    
these1' of his utterly hollow and       
unreliable boasting1 shows ,himself     
ready to accept once again the words of 
one whose unveracity ,he had proved4    
',charity hopeth all things1 believeth  
all things1' and ,jesus ,christ is ready
 to trust us when we say1 ',i love      
,thee1' even though often in the past   
our professed love has been all         
disproved4  ,we have here1 in this      
question1 our ,lord revealing ,himself  
as willing to accept the imperfect love 
which a disciple can offer ,him4 ,of    
course1 many of you well know that there
 is a very remarkable play of expression
 here4 ,in the two first questions the  
word which our ,lord employs for 'love' 
is not the same as that which appears in

 ,peter's two first answers4 ,christ    
asks for one kind of love2 ,peter       
proffers another4 ,i do not enter upon  
discussion as to the distinction between
 these two apparent synonyms4 ,the kind 
of love which ,christ asks for is       
higher1 nobler1 less emotional1 and more
 associated with the whole mind and     
will4 ,it is the inferior kind1 the more
 warm1 more sensuous1 more passionate   
and emotional1 which ,peter brings4 ,and
 then1 in the third question1 our ,lord1
 as it were1 surrenders and takes       
,peter's own word1 as if ,he had said1  
',be it so6 ,you shrink from professing 
the higher kind2 ,i will take the lower2
 and ,i will educate and bring that up  
to the height that ,i desire you to     
stand at4' ,ah1 brother6 however stained
 and imperfect1 however disproved by    
denials1 however tainted by earthly     
associations1 ,jesus ,christ will accept
 the poor stream of love1 though it be  
but a trickle when it ought to be a     
torrent1 which we can bring ,him4       

,these are the lessons which it seems to
 me lie in this triple question4 ,i have
 dealt with them at the greater length1 
because those which follow are largely  
dependent upon them4 ,but let me turn   
now briefly1 in the second place1 to--  
,,ii4 ,the triple answer4  ',yea1 ,lord6
 ,thou knowest that ,i love ,thee4' ,is 
not that beautiful1 that the man who by 
,christ's ,resurrection1 as the last of 
the answers shows1 had been led to the  
loftiest conception of ,christ's        
omniscience1 and regarded ,him as       
knowing the hearts of all men1 should1  
in the face of all that ,jesus ,christ  
knew about his denial and his sin1 have 
dared to appeal to ,christ's own        
knowledge8 ,what a superb and           
all-conquering confidence in ,christ's  
depth of knowledge and forgivingness of 
knowledge that answer showed6 ,he felt  
that ,jesus could look beneath the      
surface of his sin1 and see that below  
it there was1 even in the midst of the  
denial1 a heart that in its depths was  

true4 ,it is a tremendous piece of      
confident appeal to the deeper          
knowledge1 and therefore the larger love
 and more abundant forgiveness1 of the  
righteous ,lord--',thou knowest that ,i 
love ,thee4'  ,brethren6 a ,christian   
man ought to be sure of his love to     
,jesus ,christ4 ,you do not study your  
conduct in order to infer from it your  
love to others4 ,you do not study your  
conduct in order to infer from it your  
love to your wife1 or your husband1 or  
your parents1 or your children1 or your 
friend4 ,love is not a matter of        
inference2 it is a matter of            
consciousness and intuition4 ,and whilst
 self-examination is needful for us all 
for many reasons1 a ,christian man ought
 to be as sure that he loves ,jesus     
,christ as he is sure that he loves his 
dearest upon earth4  ,it used to be the 
fashion long ago--this generation has   
not depth enough to keep up the         
fashion--for ,christian people to talk  
as if it were a point they longed to    

know1 whether they loved ,jesus ,christ 
or not4 ,there is no reason why it      
should be a point we long to know4 ,you 
know all about your love to one another1
 and you are sure about that4 ,why are  
you not sure about your love to ,jesus  
,christ8 ',oh6 but1' you say1 'look at  
my sins and failures'2 and if ,peter had
 looked only at his sins1 do you not    
think that his words would have stuck in
 his throat8 ,he did look1 but he looked
 in a very different way from that of   
trying to ascertain from his conduct    
whether he loved ,jesus ,christ or not4 
,brethren1 any sin is inconsistent with 
,christian love to ,christ4 ,thank ,god1
 we have no right to say of any sin that
 it is incompatible with that love6     
,more than that2 a great1 gross1        
flagrant1 sudden fall like ,peter's is a
 great deal less inconsistent with love 
to ,christ than are the continuously    
unworthy1 worldly1 selfish1             
,christ-forgetting lives of hosts of    
complacent professing ,christians       

to-day4 ,white ants will eat up the     
carcase of a dead buffalo quicker than a
 lion will4 ,and to have denied ,christ 
once1 twice1 thrice1 in the space of an 
hour1 and under strong temptation1 is   
not half so bad as to call ,him         
',master' and ',lord1' and day by day1  
week in1 week out1 in works to deny     
,him4 ,the triple answer declares to us 
that in spite of a man's sins he ought  
to be conscious of his love1 and be     
ready to profess it when need is4       
,,iii4 ,lastly1 we have here the triple 
commission4  ,i do not dwell upon it at 
any length1 because in its original form
 it applies especially to the ,apostolic
 office4 ,but the general principles    
which underlie this threefold charge1 to
 feed and to tend both 'the sheep' and  
'the lambs1' may be put in a form that  
applies to each of us1 and it is        
this--the best token of a ,christian's  
love to ,jesus ,christ is his service of
 man for ,christ's sake4 ',lovest thou  
,me8' ',yea6 ,lord4' ,thou hast said2 go

 and do1 ',feed ,my lambs2 feed ,my     
sheep4' ,we need the profession of      
words2 we need1 as ,peter himself       
enjoined at a subsequent time1 to be    
ready to 'give to every man that asketh 
us a reason of the hope1' and an        
acknowledgment of the love1 that are in 
us4 ,but if you want men to believe in  
your love1 however ,jesus ,christ may   
know it1 go and work in the ,master's   
vineyard4 ,the service of man is the    
garb of the love of ,god4 ',he that     
loveth ,god will love his brother also4'
 ,do not confine that thought of        
service1 and feeding1 and tending1 to   
what we call evangelistic and religious 
work4 ,that is one of its forms1 but it 
is only one of them4 ,everything in     
which ,christian men can serve their    
fellows is to be taken by them as their 
worship of their ,lord1 and is taken by 
the world as the convincing proof of the
 reality of their love4  ,love to ,jesus
 ,christ is the qualification for all   
such service4 ,if we are knit to ,him by

 true affection1 which is based upon our
 consciousness of our own falls and     
evils1 and our reception of ,his        
forgiving mercy1 then we shall have the 
qualities that fit us1 and the impulse  
that drives us1 to serve and help our   
fellows4 ,i do not say--,god            
forbid6--that there is no philanthropy  
apart from ,christian faith1 but ,i do  
say that1 on the wide scale1 and in the 
long run1 they who are knit to ,jesus   
,christ by love will be those who render
 the greatest help to all that are      
'afflicted in mind1 body1 or estate'2   
and that the true basis and             
qualification for efficient service of  
our fellows is the utter surrender of   
our hearts to ,him who is the ,fountain 
of love1 and from whom comes all our    
power to live in the world1 as the      
images and embodiments of the love which
 has saved us that we might help to save
 others4  ,brethren6 let us all ask     
ourselves ,christ's question to the     
denier4 ,let us look our past evils full

 in the face1 that we may learn to hate 
them1 and that we may learn more the    
width and the sweep of the power of ,his
 pardoning mercy4 ,god grant that we may
 all be able to say1 ',thou knowest all 
things2 ,thou knowest that ,i love      
,thee6'    ,,youth ,,and ,,age1 ,,and   
,,the ,,command ,,for ,,both  ,annual   
,sermon to the ,young  '444 ,when thou  
wast young1 thou girdedst thyself1 and  
walkedst whither thou wouldest3 but when
 thou shalt be old1 thou shalt stretch  
forth thy hands1 and another shall gird 
thee1 and carry thee whither thou       
wouldest not4444 ,and when ,he had      
spoken this1 ,he saith unto him1 ,follow
 ,me4'--,,john xxi4 #ah1 #ai4  ,the     
immediate reference of these words is1  
of course1 to the martyrdom of the      
,apostle ,peter4 ,our ,lord contrasts   
the vigorous and somewhat self-willed   
youth and the mellowed old age of ,his  
servant1 and shadows forth his death1 in
 bonds1 by violence4 ,and then ,he bids 
him1 notwithstanding this prospect of   

the issue of his faithfulness1 ',follow 
,me4'  ,now ,i venture1 though with some
 hesitation1 to give these words a      
slightly different application4 ,i see  
in them two pictures of youth and of old
 age1 and a commandment based upon both4
 ,you young people are often exhorted to
 a ,christian life on the ground of the 
possible approach of death4 ,i would not
 undervalue that motive1 but ,i seek now
 to urge the same thing upon you from a 
directly opposite consideration1 the    
probability that many of you will live  
to be old4 ,all the chief reasons for   
our being ,christians are of the same   
force1 whether we are to die to-night1  
or to live for a century4 ,so in my text
 ,i wish you to note what you are now2  
what1 if you live1 you are sure to      
become2 and what1 in the view of both   
stages1 you will be wise to do4 ',when  
thou wast young thou girdedst thyself1  
and wentest whither thou wouldest4 ,when
 thou shalt be old another shall gird   
thee1 and carry thee whither thou       

wouldest not4' ,therefore1 ',follow     
,me4'  ,i4 ,so1 then1 note the picture  
here of what you are4  ,most of you     
young people are but little accustomed  
to reflect upon yourselves1 or upon the 
special characteristics and prerogatives
 of your time of life4 ,but it will do  
you no harm to think for a minute or two
 of what these characteristics are1 that
 you may know your blessings1 and that  
you may shun the dangers which attach to
 them4  ',when thou wast young thou     
girdedst thyself4' ,there is a picture  
easily translated1 and significant of   
much4 ,the act of girding implies       
preparation for action1 and may be      
widened out to express that most blessed
 prerogative of youth1 the cherishing of
 bright imaginations of its future      
activity and course4 ,the dreams of     
youth are often laughed at1 but if a    
young man or woman be faithful to them  
they are the prophecies of the future1  
and are given in order that at the      
opening of the flower nature may put    

forth her power2 and so we may be able  
to live through many a dreary hour in   
the future4 ,only1 seeing that you do   
live so much in rich foreshadowings and 
fair anticipations of the times that are
 to come1 take care that you do not     
waste that divine faculty1 the freshness
 of which is granted to you as a morning
 gift1 the 'dew of your youth4' ,see    
that you do not waste it in             
anticipations which cling like mist to  
the low levels of life1 but that you    
lift it higher and embrace worthy       
objects4 ,it is good that you should    
anticipate1 that you should live by     
hope4 ,it is good that you should be    
drawn onwards by bright visions1 whether
 they be ever fulfilled or no4 ,but     
there are dangers in the exercise1 and  
dreaming with some of you takes the     
place of realising your dreams1 and you 
build for yourselves fair fabrics in    
imagination which you never take one    
step to accomplish and make real4 ,be   
not the slaves and fools of your        

imaginations1 but cultivate the faculty 
of hoping largely2 for the possibilities
 of human life are elastic1 and no man  
or woman1 in their most sanguine1 early 
anticipations1 if only these be directed
 to the one real good1 has ever         
exhausted or attained the possibilities 
open to every soul4  ,again1 girding    
one's self implies independent          
self-reliance1 and that is a gift and a 
stewardship given 7as all gifts are     
stewardships7 to the young4 ,we all     
fancy1 in our early days1 that we are   
going to build 'towers that will reach  
to heaven4' ,now we have come1 and we   
will show people how to do it6 ,the past
 generations have failed1 but ours is   
full of brighter promise4 ,there is     
something very touching1 to us older men
 almost tragical1 in the unbounded      
self-confidence of the young life that  
we see rushing to the front all round   
us4 ,we know so well the disillusion    
that is sure to come1 the               
disappointments that will cloud the     

morning sky4 ,we would not carry one    
shadow from the darkened experience of  
middle life into the roseate tints of   
the morning4 ,the 'vision splendid'     
,will fade away   ,into the light of    
common day1'  soon enough4 ,but for the 
present this self-reliant confidence is 
one of the blessings of your early days4
  ,only remember1 it is dangerous1 too4 
,it may become want of reverence1 which 
is ruinous1 or presumption and rashness4
 ,remember what a cynical head of a     
college said1 ',none of us is           
infallible1 not even the youngest1' and 
blend modesty with confidence1 and yet  
be buoyant and strong1 and trust in the 
power that may make you strong4 ,and    
then your self-confidence will not be   
rashness4  ',thou wentest whither thou  
wouldest4' ,that is another             
characteristic of youth1 after it has   
got beyond the schoolboy stage4 ,your   
own will tends to become your guide4    
,for one thing1 at your time of life1   
most other inward guides are            

comparatively weak4 ,you have but little
 experience4 ,most of you have not      
cultivated largely the habit of patient 
reflection1 and thinking twice before   
you act once4 ,that comes3 it would not 
be good that it should be               
over-predominant in you4 ',old heads on 
young shoulders' are always             
monstrosities1 and it is all right that1
 in your early days1 you should largely 
live by impulse1 if only1 as well as a  
will1 there be a conscience at work     
which will do instead of the bitter     
experience which comes to guide some of 
the older of us4  ,again1 yours is the  
age when passion is strong4 ,i speak now
 especially to young men4 ,restraints   
are removed for many of you4 ,there are 
dozens of young men listening to me now1
 away from their father's home1         
separated from the purifying influence  
of sisters and of family life1 living in
 solitary lodgings1 at liberty to spend 
their evenings where they choose1 and   
nobody be a bit the wiser4 ,ah1 my dear 

young friend6 'thou wentest whither thou
 wouldest' and thou wouldest whither    
thou oughtest not to go4  ,there is     
nothing more dangerous than getting into
 the habit of saying1 ',i do as ,i      
like1' however you cover it over4 ,some 
of you say1 ',i indulge natural         
inclinations2 ,i am young2 a man must   
have his fling4 ,let me sow my wild oats
 in a quiet corner1 where nobody will   
see the crop coming up2 and when ,i get 
to be as old as you are1 ,i will do as  
you do2 young men will be young men1'   
etc41 etc4 ,you know all that sort of   
talk4 ,take this for a certain fact3    
that whoever puts the reins into the    
charge of his own will when he is young1
 has put the reins and the whip into    
hands which will drive over the         
precipice4  ,my friend6 ',i will' is no 
word for you4 ,there is a far diviner   
and better one than that--',i ought4'   
,have you learnt that8 ,do you yield to 
that sovereign imperative1 and say1 ',i 
must1 because ,i ought and1 therefore1  

,i will'8 ,bow passion to reason1 reason
 to conscience1 conscience to ,god--and 
then1 be as strong in the will and as   
stiff in the neck as ever you choose2   
but only then4 ,so much1 then1 for my   
first picture4  ,,ii4 ,now let me ask   
you to turn with me for a moment to the 
second one--,what you will certainly    
become if you live4  ,i have already    
explained that putting this meaning on  
the latter portion of our first verse is
 somewhat forcing it from its original  
signification4 ,and yet it is so little 
of violence that the whole of the       
language naturally lends itself to make 
a picture of the difference between the 
two stages of life4  ,all the bright    
visions that dance before your youthful 
mind will fade away4 ,we begin by       
thinking that we are going to build     
temples1 or 'towers that shall reach to 
heaven1' and when we get into middle    
life we have to say to ourselves3       
',well6 ,i have scarcely material enough
 to carry out the large design that ,i  

had4 ,i think that ,i will content      
myself with building a little hovel1    
that ,i may live in1 and perhaps it will
 keep the weather off me4' ,hopes       
diminish2 dreams vanish2 limited        
realities take their place1 and we are  
willing to hold out our hands and let   
some one else take the responsibilities 
that we were so eager to lay upon       
ourselves at the first4 ,strength will  
fade away4 ',even the youths shall faint
 and be weary1 and the young men shall  
utterly fail4' ,physical weariness1     
weakness1 the longing for rest1 the     
consciousness of ever-narrowed and      
narrowing powers1 will come to you1 and 
if you grow up to be old men1 which it  
is probable that many of you will do1   
you will have to sit and watch the tide 
of your life ebb1 ebb1 ebbing away      
moment by moment4  ,self-will will be   
wonderfully broken1 for there are far   
stronger forces that determine a man's  
life than his own wishes and will4 ,we  
are like swimmers in the surf of the    

,indian ,ocean1 powerless against the   
battering of the wave which pitches us1 
for all our science1 and for all our    
muscle1 where it will4 ,call it         
environment1 call it fate1 call it      
circumstances1 call it providence1 call 
it ,god--there is something outside of  
us bigger than we are1 and the man who  
begins life1 thinking ',thus ,i will1   
thus ,i command1 let my determination   
stand instead of all other reason'2 has 
to say at last1 ',i could not do what ,i
 wanted4 ,i had to be content to do what
 ,i could4' ,thus our self-will gets    
largely broken down2 and patient        
acceptance of the inevitable comes to be
 the wisdom and peace of the old man4   
,and1 last of all1 the picture shows us 
an irresistible approximation to an     
unwelcome goal3 ',another shall carry   
thee whither thou wouldest not4'  ,life 
to the old seems to you to be so empty  
and ashen grey that you wonder they care
 to live4 ,but life to them1 for all its
 disappointments1 its weariness1 its    

foiled efforts1 its vanished hopes1 its 
departed companions1 is yet life1 and   
most of them cling to it like a miser to
 his gold4 ,but yet1 like a man sucked  
into ,niagara above the falls1 they are 
borne on the irresistible1 smooth flood1
 nearer and nearer to the edge of the   
rock1 and they hear the mighty sound in 
their ears long before they reach the   
place where the plunge is to be taken   
from sunshine into darkness and foam4   
,so 'when thou shalt be old' your fancy 
will be gone1 your physical strength    
will be gone1 your freshness will be    
gone1 your faculty of hoping will work  
feebly and have little to work on2 on   
earth your sense of power will be       
humbled1 and yet you will not want to be
 borne to the place whither you must be 
borne4  ,fancy two portraits1 one of a  
little chubby boy in child's dress1 with
 a round face and clustering curls and  
smooth cheeks and red lips1 and another 
of an old man1 with wearied eyes1 and   
thin locks1 and wrinkled cheeks1 and a  

bowed frame4 ,the difference between the
 two is but the symbol of the profounder
 differences that separate the two      
selves1 which yet are the one self--the 
impetuous1 self-reliant1 self-willed1   
hopeful1 buoyant youth1 and the weary1  
feeble1 broken1 old man4 ,and that is   
what you will come to1 if you live1 as  
sure as ,i am speaking to you1 and you  
are listening to me4  ,,iii4 ,and now1  
lastly1 what in the view of both these  
stages it is wise for you to do4  ',when
 ,he had spoken thus1 ,he saith unto    
him1 ,follow ,me4' ,what do we mean by  
following ,christ8 ,we mean submission  
to ,his authority4 ',follow ,me' as     
,captain1 ,commander1 absolute          
,lawgiver1 and ,lord4 ,we mean imitation
 of ,his example4 ,these two words      
include all human duty1 and promise to  
every man perfection if he obeys4       
',follow ,me'--it is enough1 more than  
enough1 to make a man complete and      
blessed4 ,we mean choosing and keeping  
close to ,him1 as ,companion as well as 

,leader and ,lord4 ,no man or woman will
 ever be solitary1 though friends may   
go1 and associates may change1 and      
companions may leave them1 and life may 
become empty and dreary as far as human 
sympathy is concerned--no man or woman  
will ever be solitary if stepping in    
,christ's footsteps1 close at ,his      
heels1 and realising ,his presence4     
,but you cannot follow ,him1 and ,he has
 no right to tell you to follow ,him1   
unless ,he is something more and other  
to you than ,example1 and ,commander1   
and ,companion4 ,what business has      
,jesus ,christ to demand that a man     
should go after ,him to the death8 ,only
 this business1 that ,he has gone to the
 death for the man4 ,you must follow    
,christ first1 my friend1 by coming to  
,him as a sinful creature1 and finding  
your whole salvation and all your hope  
in humble reliance on the merit of ,his 
death4 ,then you may follow ,him in     
obedience1 and imitation1 and glad      
communion4  ,that being understood1 ,i  

would press upon you this thought1 that 
such a following of ,jesus ,christ will 
preserve for you all that is blessed in 
the characteristics of your youth1 and  
will prevent them from becoming evil4   
,he will give you a basis for your hopes
 and fulfil your most sanguine dreams1  
if these are based on ,his promises1 and
 their realisation sought in the path of
 ,his feet4 ,as ,isaiah prophesies1 'the
 mirage shall become a pool4' ,that     
which else is an illusion1 dancing ahead
 and deceiving thirsty travellers into  
the belief that sand is water1 shall    
become to you really 'pools of water1'  
if your hopes are fixed on ,jesus       
,christ4 ,if you follow ,him1 your      
strength will not ebb away with shrunken
 sinews and enfeebled muscles4 ,if you  
trust ,christ1 your self-will will be   
elevated by submission1 and become      
strong to control your rebellious       
nature1 because it is humble to submit  
to ,his supreme command4 ,and if you    
trust and follow ,jesus ,christ1 your   

hope will be buoyant1 and bright1 and   
blessed1 and prolong its buoyancy1 and  
brightness1 and blessedness into 'old   
age1 when others fade4' ,if you will    
follow ,christ your old age will1 if you
 reach it1 be saved from the bitterest  
pangs that afflict the aged1 and will be
 brightened by future possibilities4    
,there will be no need for lingering    
laments over past blessings1 no need for
 shrinking reluctance to take the       
inevitable step4 ,an old age of         
peaceful1 serene brightness caught from 
the nearer gleam of the approaching     
heaven1 and quiet as the evenings in the
 late autumn1 not without a touch of    
frost1 perhaps1 but yet kindly and      
fruitful1 may be ours4 ,and instead of  
shrinking from the end1 if we follow    
,jesus1 we shall put our hands quietly  
and trustfully into ,his1 as a little   
child does into its mother's soft1 warm 
palm1 and shall not ask whither ,he     
leads1 assured that since it is ,he who 
leads we shall be led aright4  ,dear    

young friends6 ',follow ,me6' is        
,christ's merciful invitation to you4   
,you will never again be so likely to   
obey it as you are now4 ,well begun is  
half ended4 ',i would have you innocent 
of much transgression4' ,you need ,him  
to keep you in the slippery ways of     
youth4 ,you could not go into some of   
those haunts1 where some of you have    
been1 if you thought to yourselves1 ',am
 ,i following ,jesus as ,i cross this   
wicked threshold8' ,you may never have  
another message of mercy brought to your
 ears4 ,if you do become a religious man
 in later life1 you will be laying up   
for yourselves seeds of remorse and     
sorrow1 and in some cases memories of   
pollution and filth1 that will trouble  
you all your days4 ',to-day1 if ye will 
hear ,his voice1 harden not your        
hearts4'    ',,they ,,also ,,serve ,,who
 ,,only ,,stand ,,and ,,wait'  ',peter1 
seeing him1 saith to ,jesus1 ,lord1 and 
what shall this man do6 ,jesus saith    
unto him1 ,if ,i will that he tarry till

 ,i come1 what is that to thee8 ,follow 
thou ,me4'--,john xxi4 #ba1 #bb4  ,we   
have seen in a former sermon that the   
charge of the risen ,christ to ,peter1  
which immediately precedes these verses1
 allotted to him service and suffering4 
,the closing words of that charge       
',follow ,me6' had a deep significance1 
as uniting both parts of his task in the
 one supreme command of imitation of his
 ,master4  ,but the same words had also 
a simpler meaning1 as inviting the      
,apostle to come apart with ,christ at  
the moment1 for some further token of   
,his love or indication of ,his will4   
,peter follows2 but in following1       
naturally turns to see what the little  
group1 sitting silent there by the coal 
fire on the beach1 may be doing1 and he 
notices ,john coming towards them1 with 
intent to join them4  ,what emboldened  
,john to thrust himself1 uncalled for1  
into so secret an interview8 ,the words 
in which he is described in the context 
answer the question4 ',he was the       

disciple whom ,jesus loved1 which also  
leaned on ,his breast at ,supper1 and   
said1 ,lord6 which is he that betrayeth 
,thee8' ,he was also bound by close ties
 to ,peter4 ,so with the familiarity of 
'perfect love which casteth out fear1'  
he felt that the ,master could have no  
secrets from him1 and no charge to give 
to his friend which he might not share4 
,peter's swift question1 ',lord6 and    
what shall this man do8' though it has  
been often blamed1 does not seem very   
blameworthy4 ,there was perhaps a little
 touch of his old vivacity in it1       
indicating that he had not been         
sufficiently subdued and sobered by the 
prospect which ,christ had held out to  
him2 but far more than that there was a 
natural interest in his friend's fate1  
and something of a wish to have his     
company on the path which he was to     
tread4 ,christ's answer1 ',if ,i will   
that he tarry till ,i come1 what is that
 to thee8 ,follow thou ,me6' gently     
rebukes any leaven of evil that there   

may have been in the question2 warns him
 against trying to force other people   
into his groove2 with solemn emphasis   
reiterates his own duty2 and1 in effect1
 bids him let his brother alone1 and see
 that he himself discharges the ministry
 which he has received of the ,lord4    
,the enigmatical words of ,christ1 and  
the long life of the ,apostle1 which    
seemed to explain them1 naturally bred  
an interpretation of them in the ,early 
,church which is recorded here1 as ,i   
believe1 by the ,evangelist himself1 to 
the effect that ,john1 like another     
,enoch at the beginning of a new world1 
was to escape the common lot4 ,and very 
beautiful is the quiet way in which the 
,evangelist put that error on one side1 
by the simple repetition of his         
,master's words1 emphasising their      
hypothetical form and their enigmatical 
character3 ',jesus said not unto him1   
,he shall not die2 but if ,i will that  
he tarry till ,i come1 what is that to  
thee8'  ,now all this1 ,i think1 is full

 of lessons4 ,let me try to draw one or 
two of them briefly now4  ,i4 ,first1   
then1 we have in that majestic ',if ,i  
will6' the revelation of the risen      
,christ as the ,lord of life and death4 
,in ,his charge to ,peter1 ,christ had  
asserted ,his right absolutely to       
control ,his servant's conduct and fix  
his place in the world1 and ,his power  
to foresee and forecast his destiny and 
his end4 ,but in these words ,he goes a 
step further4 ',i will that he tarry'2  
to communicate life and to sustain life 
is a divine prerogative2 to act by the  
bare utterance of ,his will upon        
physical nature is a divine prerogative4
 ,jesus ,christ here claims that ,his   
will goes out with sovereign power      
amongst the perplexities of human       
history and into the depths of that     
mystery of life2 and that ,he1 the ,son 
of ,man1 'quickens whom ,he will1' and  
has power 'to kill and to make alive4'  
,the words would be absurd1 if not      
something worse1 upon any but divine    

lips1 that opened with conscious        
authority1 and whose ,utterer knew that 
,his hand was laid upon the innermost   
springs of being4  ,so1 in this entirely
 incidental fashion1 you have one of the
 strongest and plainest instances of the
 quiet1 unostentatious and habitual     
manner in which ,jesus ,christ claimed  
for ,himself properly divine            
prerogatives4  ,remember that ,he who   
thus spoke was standing before these    
seven men there1 in the morning light1  
on the beach1 fresh from the grave4 ,his
 resurrection had proved ,him to be the 
,lord of death4 ,he had bound it to ,his
 chariot-wheels as a ,conqueror4 ,he had
 risen and ,he stood there before them  
with no more mark of the corruption of  
the grave upon ,him than there are      
traces of the foul water in which a sea 
bird may have floated1 on its white wing
 that flashes in the sunshine as it     
soars4 ,and surely as these men looked  
to ,christ1 'declared to be the ,son of 
,god with power1 by ,his resurrection   

from the dead1 'they may have begun1    
however 'foolish and slow of heart' they
 were 'to believe1' to understand that  
'to this end ,christ both died and rose 
and revived1 that ,he might be the ,lord
 both of the dead and of the living1'   
both of death and of life4  ,these two  
,apostles' later history was full of    
proofs that ,christ's claim was valid4  
,peter is shut up in prison and         
delivered once1 at the very last moment1
 when hope was almost dead1 in order    
that he might understand that when he   
was put into another prison and not     
delivered1 the blow of martyrdom fell   
upon him1 not because of the strength of
 his persecutors1 but because of the    
will of his ,lord4 ,and ,john had to see
 his brother ,james1 to whom he had been
 so closely knit1 with whom he had      
pledged himself to drink the cup that   
,christ drank of1 whom he had desired to
 have associated with himself in the    
special honours in the ,messianic       
,kingdom--he had to see him slain1 first

 of the ,apostles1 while he himself     
lingered here long after all his early  
associates were gone4 ,he had1 no doubt1
 many a longing to depart4 ,solitary1   
surrounded by a new world1 pressed by   
many cares1 he must often have felt that
 the cross which he had to carry was no 
lighter than that laid on those who had 
passed to their rest by martyrdom4 ,to  
him it would often be martyrdom to live4
 ,his personal longing is heard for a   
moment in the last words of the         
,apocalypse1 ',amen6 even so1 come1     
,lord ,jesus6'--but undoubtedly for the 
most part he stayed his heart on his    
,lord's will1 and waited in meek        
patience till he heard the welcome      
announcement1 ',the ,master is come and 
calleth for thee4'  ,and1 dear friends6 
that same belief that the risen ,christ 
is the ,lord of life and death1 is the  
only one that can stay our hearts1 or   
make us bow with submission to ,his     
divine will4 ,he who has conquered death
 by undergoing it is death's ,lord as   

well as ours1 and when ,he wills to     
bring ,his friends home to ,himself1    
saith to that black-robed servant1 ',go1
 and he goeth2 do this and he doeth it4'
 ,the vision which ,john saw long after 
this on another shore1 washed by a      
stormier sea1 spoke the same truth as   
does this majestic ',i will'--',he that 
liveth and became dead and is alive for 
evermore1' is by virtue of ,his divine  
eternal life1 and has become in ,his    
humanity by virtue of ,his death and    
resurrection the ,lord of life and      
death4 ,the hands that were nailed to   
the ,cross turn the keys of death and   
,hades4 ',he openeth and no man         
shutteth2 ,he shutteth and no man       
openeth4'  ,,ii4 ,we have here before   
us1 in this incident1 the service of    
patient waiting4  ',if ,i will that he  
tarry1 what is that to thee8 ,follow    
thou ,me4' ,peter is the man of action1 
not great at reflection2 full of        
impulse1 restless until his hands can do
 something to express his thoughts and  

his emotions4 ,on the very ,mount of    
,transfiguration he wanted to set to    
work and build 'three tabernacles1'     
instead of listening awed to the divine 
colloquy4 ,in ,galilee he cannot wait   
quietly for his ,master to come1 but    
must propose to his friends to 'go a    
fishing4' ,in the fishing-boat1 as soon 
as he sees the ,lord he must struggle   
through the sea to get at ,him2 whilst  
,john sits quiet in the boat1 blessed in
 the consciousness of his ,master's     
presence and in silently gazing at ,him 
verily there4 ,all through the first    
part of the ,acts of the ,apostles his  
bold energy goes flashing and flaming4  
,it is always his voice that rings out  
in the front1 whether preaching on the  
,pentecost ,day1 bringing healing to the
 sick1 or fronting the ,sanhedrim4 ,his 
element is in the shock of conflict and 
the strain of work4  ,john1 on the other
 hand1 seldom appears in the narrative4 
,when he does so he stands a silent     
figure by the side of ,peter1 and       

disappears from it altogether before    
very long4 ,we do not hear that he did  
anything4 ,he seems to have had no part 
in the missionary work of the ,church4  
,he 'tarried1' that was all4 ,the word  
is the same--'abide'--which is so often 
upon his lips in his ,gospel and in his 
,epistles1 as expressive of the         
innermost experience of the ,christian  
soul1 the condition of all fruitfulness1
 blessedness1 knowledge and             
,christ-likeness4 ,christ's charge to   
,john to 'tarry' did not only1 as his   
brethren misinterpreted it1 mean that   
his life was to be continued1 but it    
prescribed the manner of his life4 ,it  
was to be patient contemplation1 a      
'dwelling in the house of the ,lord1' a 
keeping of his heart still1 like some   
little tarn up amongst the silent hills1
 for heaven with all its blue to mirror 
itself in4  ,and that quiet life of     
contemplation bore its fruit4 ,in his   
meditation the deeds and words of his   
,master slowly grew ever more and more  

luminous to him4 ,deeper meanings came  
out1 revealing new constellations1 as he
 gazed into that opening heaven of      
memory4 ,he reaped 'the harvest of a    
quiet eye' and garnered the sheaves of  
it in his ,gospel1 the holy of holies of
 the ,new ,testament2 and in his        
,epistles1 in which he proclaims the    
first and last word of revelation1 ',god
 is love'--the pure diamond that hangs  
at the end of the golden chain let down 
from ,heaven4 ,often1 no doubt1 his     
brethren thought him 'but an idler in   
the land1' but at last his 'tarrying'   
was vindicated4  ,now1 dear brethren6 in
 all times of the world's history that  
form of ,christian service needs to be  
pressed upon busy people4 ,and there    
never was a time in the world's history1
 or in the ,church's history1 when it   
more needed to be pressed upon the      
ordinary ,christian man than at this    
day4 ,the good and the bad of our       
present ,christianity1 and of our       
present social life1 conspire to make   

people think that those who are not at  
work in some external form of ,christian
 service for the good of their fellows  
are necessarily idlers4 ,many of them   
are so1 but by no means all1 and there  
is always the danger that the external  
work which good1 earnest people do shall
 become greater than can be wholesomely 
and safely done by them without their   
constant recourse to this solitary      
meditation1 and to tarrying before ,god4
  ,the stress and bustle of our everyday
 life2 the feverish desire for immediate
 results2 the awakened conviction that  
,christianity is nothing if not         
practical2 the new sense of             
responsibility for the condition of our 
fellows2 the large increase of all sorts
 of domestic1 evangelistic1 and         
missionary work among all churches in   
this day--things to be profoundly       
thankful for1 like all other good things
 have their possible dangers2 and it is 
laid on my heart to warn you of these   
now4 ,for the sake of our own personal  

hold on ,jesus ,christ1 for the sake of 
our progress in the knowledge of ,his   
truth1 and for the sake of the very work
 which some of us count so precious1    
there is need that we shall betake      
ourselves to that still communion4 ,the 
stream that is to water half a continent
 must rise high in the lonely hills1 and
 be fed by many a mountain rill in the  
solitude1 and the men who are to keep   
the freshness of their ,christian zeal1 
and of the consecration which they will 
ever feel is being worn away by the     
attrition even of faithful service1 can 
only renew and refresh it by resorting  
again to the ,master1 and imitating ,him
 who prepared ,himself for a day of     
teaching in the ,temple by a night of   
communion on the ,mount of ,olives4     
,further1 there is here a lesson of     
tolerance for us all4 ,practical men are
 always disposed1 as ,i said1 to force  
everybody else into their groove4       
,martha is always disposed to think that
 ,mary is idle when she is 'sitting at  

,christ's feet1' and wants to have her  
come into the kitchen and help her      
there4 ,the eye which sees must not say 
to the hand which toils1 nor the hand to
 the eye1 ',i have no need of thee4'    
,there are men who cannot think much2   
there are men who cannot work much4     
,there are men whom ,god has chosen for 
diligent external service2 there are men
 whom ,god has chosen for solitary      
retired musing2 and we cannot dispense  
with either the one or the other4 ,did  
not ,john ,bunyan do more for the world 
when he was shut up in ,bedford ,gaol   
and dreamed his dream than by all his   
tramping about ,bedfordshire1 preaching 
to a handful of cottagers8 ,and has not 
the ,christian literature of the prison1
 which includes three at least of       
,paul's ,epistles1 proved of the        
greatest service and most precious value
 to the ,church8  ,we need all to listen
 to the voice which says1 ',come ye     
apart by yourselves into a solitary     
place1 and rest awhile4' ,work is good1 

but the foundation of work is better4   
,activity is good1 but the life which is
 the basis of activity is even more4    
,there is plenty of so-called ,christian
 work to-day which ,i fear me is not    
life but mechanism2 has slipped off its 
original foundations1 and is1 therefore1
 powerless4 ,let us tolerate the forms  
of service least like our own1 not seek 
to force other men into our paths nor   
seek to imitate them4 ,let ,peter flame 
in the van1 and beard high priests1 and 
stir and fight2 and let ,john sit in his
 quiet horns1 caring for his ,lord's    
mother1 and holding fellowship with his 
,lord's ,spirit4  ,,iii4 ,lastly1 we    
have here the lesson of patient         
acquiescence in ,christ's undisclosed   
will4  ,the error into which the        
brethren of the ,apostle fell as to the 
meaning of the ,lord's words was a very 
natural one1 especially when taken with 
the commentary which ,john's unusually  
protracted life seemed to append to it4 
,we know that that belief lingered long 

after the death of the ,apostle2 and    
that legends1 like the stories that are 
found in many nations of heroes that    
have disappeared1 but are sleeping in   
some mountain recess1 clustered round   
,john's grave2 over which the earth was 
for many a century believed to heave and
 fall with his gentle breathing4  ,john 
did not know exactly what his ,master   
meant4 ,he would not venture upon a     
counter-interpretation4 ,perhaps his    
brethren were right1 he does not know2  
perhaps they were wrong1 he does not    
know4 ,one thing he is quite sure of1   
that what his ,master said was3 ',if ,i 
will that he tarry4' ,and he acquiesces 
quietly in the certainty that it shall  
be as his ,master wills2 and1 in the    
uncertainty what that will is1 he says  
in effect3 ',i do not know1 and it does 
not much matter4 ,if ,i am to go to find
 ,him1 well6 ,if ,he is to come to find 
me1 well again6 ,whichever way it be1 ,i
 know that the patient tarrying here    
will lead to a closer communion         

hereafter1 and so ,i leave it all in    
,his hands4'  ,dear brethren6 that is a 
blessed state that you and ,i may come  
to2 a state of quiet submission1 not of 
indifference but of acquiescence in the 
undisclosed will of our loving ,christ  
about all matters1 and about this       
alternative of life or death amongst the
 rest4 ,the soul that has had communion 
with ,jesus ,christ amidst the          
imperfections here will be able to refer
 all the mysteries and problems of its  
future to ,him with unshaken confidence4
 ,for union with ,him carries with it   
the assurance of its own perpetuity1 and
 'in its sweetness yieldeth proof that  
it was born for immortality4' ,the      
,psalmist learned to say1 ',thou shalt  
afterward receive me to glory1' because 
he could say1 ',i am continually with   
,thee4' ,and in like manner we may all  
rise from the experience of the present 
to confidence in that immortal future4  
,death with his 'abhorred shears' cuts  
other close ties1 but their edge turns  

on the knot that binds the soul to its  
,saviour4 ,he who has felt the power of 
communion with the ever-living ,christ  
cannot but feel that such union must be 
for ever1 and that because ,christ      
lives1 and as long as ,christ lives1 he 
will live also4  ,therefore1 to the soul
 thus abiding in ,christ that           
alternative of life or death which looms
 so large to us when we have not ,christ
 with us1 will dwindle down into very   
small dimensions4 ,if ,i live there will
 be work for me to do here1 and ,his    
love to possess2 if ,i die there will be
 work for me to do there too1 and ,his  
love to possess in still more abundant  
measure4 ,so it will not be difficult   
for such a soul to leave the decision of
 this as of all other things with the   
,lord of life and death1 and to lie     
acquiescent in ,his gracious hands4     
,that calm acceptance of ,his will and  
patience with ,christ's ',if' is the    
reward of tarrying in silent communion  
with ,him4  ,my dear friend6 has death  

to you dwindled to a very little thing8 
,can you say that you are quite sure    
that it will not touch your truest self8
 ,are you able to leave the alternative 
in ,his hands1 content with ,his        
decision and content with the           
uncertainty that wraps ,his decision8   
,can you say1    ',lord6 ,it belongs not
 to my care1   ,whether ,i die or live'8
  ,the answer to these questions is     
involved in the answer to the           
other3--,have you trusted your sinful   
soul for salvation to ,jesus ,christ1   
and are you drawing from ,him a life    
which bears fruit in glad service and in
 patient communion8 ,then it will not   
much matter whether you are in heaven or
 on earth1 for in both places and states
 the essence of your life will be the   
same1 your ,companion one1 and your work
 identical4 ,if it be ',christ' for me  
to live it will be 'gain' for me to die4
    ,,end ,,of ,,vol4 ,,iii4