simple, in fact, than to trust the undoubtedly trustworthy, and to love the undoubtedly good. Men are made to believe, and made to love; and the more manifestly true and good a being is, the more easy the faith and the love. Conclusion: O hungry and thirsty souls, come in love and faith to Christ, and you shall never hunger, never thirst. Believe me, there is nothing else on this round earth, nothing in the universe of God, that can support and satisfy your natures. "Where, but in the bosom of Christianity, has the heaven-born soul found its rest and peace, its cravings satisfied, its aspirations filled, and its highest heaven of hope realised? A bright cloud of witnesses respond, 'Nowhere but in Jesus Christ.'" Germs of Thought. Subject: Christ's Appeal to Peter. THESE words contain the conversation which took place between Christ and Peter after dinner. The dinner of which they had partaken was extremely poor, it consisted only of bread and fish; but the conversation after was exceedingly rich, eloquent, and instructive. None but epicures would prefer a sumptuous dinner accompanied and followed with common-place talk, to a poor dinner accompanied and followed with eloquent, witty, and instructive conversation. The text contains three things: I. A QUESTION proposed three times by Christ to Peter: Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me more than these ?" 1. The phrase "more than these,” implies that there were some objects present to which our Lord directed the attention of Peter when He asked him this question. As to what were those objects there are three opinions :(a) That they were the disciples; and that the meaning is : "Lovest thou Me more than thou lovest these disciples? Thy love to them must be very great, for thou hast been with them for a long time-often participated in their joys and sorrows." Notwithstanding, "lovest thou Me more than these?” (b) That they were the disciples; but that the meaning is, "Lovest thou Me more than these disciples love Me." Those who maintain this view think that reference is made to Matt. xxvi. 31-35; and that Christ asked this question ironically in order to rebuke Peter for his confident assertion that he loved Jesus more than the other disciples. (c) That the word "these" is in the neuter gender, and that it denotes these things; viz., the boats, nets, and fishing utensils and employment, by which means Peter had hitherto obtained his daily food, and by which he hoped to obtain it in the future. Christ therefore, pointing to these, asks him, "Lovest thou Me more than these ?" "Art thou now willing, from love to Me, to leave all these-all that thou hast-and go and preach My Gospel to the nations of the earth ?" Philologically it is impossible to decide which of these interpretations is right. Take either of them, however, and the principle contained in the question is the same; namely, that Christ demands the first place in the affections of His people-the throne of the heart. Whatever object is dear to us-father or mother, brother or sister, wife or children, fame, honour, or wealth, Christ directs our attention to these, and asks, "Lovest thou Me more than these ?" 2. It is a personal question-" Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me more than these?" Religion is a personal matter. All the invitations and threatenings of the Gospel are addressed to each individually. 3. It is the most important of all questions; for on a right answer to it, either in the affirmative or in the negative, hangs the salvation or damnation of every man. II. The answer given three times by Peter to Christ—" Yea, Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee." 1. It was in the affirmative. "Yea, Lord." 2. It was true. Three things to prove that. (a) It was within the range of Peter's consciousness. He could not have mistaken the dictates of his conciousness as to whether he loved the Saviour or not. (b) He was conscious of the dignity and omniscience of his Interrogator; for he said, "Lord, Thou knowest all things; Thou knowest that I love Thee." No mortal man could have told a lie under such circumstances. (c) Christ approved of his answer, which is evident from the fact that He restored him to His confidence, and to his former Apostolic office, saying, "Feed My lambs," "Feed My sheep." This teaches us the possibility for every one to know positively whether he loves Christ, and hence is the child of God, or not. Peter was "grieved" because Jesus "said unto him the third time, Lovest thou Me?" No wonder; for probably he thought Christ saw some defect in his love, of which he was not conscious; or perhaps the sad event-the denial of his Lord-rushed into his memory like a mighty hurricane, bringing with it all the horrors of the bottomless pit. Christ asks His people this question repeatedly now, not in the same way as He asked Peter, but in various ways through His providence by taking the father, or mother, or child, or wealth, or health, etc. When Christ asks us this question repeatedly, we may be "grieved" like Peter; but if, like Peter, we can always answer in the affirmative, we shall be blessed. III. The two commandments issued by Christ to Peter"Feed My lambs," "Feed My sheep." "If thou lovest Me, show it by feeding My lambs and sheep, by obeying My commandments, and by being useful in My vineyard." 1. "Lambs" may denote two classes: (a) children, or :-(a) those that are young in years; and (b) those that are young in the faith and in Christian experience. It is the duty of all who love the Lord Jesus Christ to take care of both, to feed them with the bread of life, that they may grow in grace and in the image of Jesus. 2. "Sheep" denote the members of the Church of Christ; and "Feed My sheep" has reference chiefly to the office of Peter as pastor of the Church; and teaches the necessity of not only feeding the "lambs," but the "sheep" also, that they may be strong in the faith, strong in Christian zeal, strong in resisting evil, and strong in the "liberty wherewith Christ has made them free." MAURICE PHILLIPS, M.R.A.S., Missionary, L.M.S., South India. SERMONIC NOTES ON THE VISIONS OF EZEKIEL. No. XV. Subject: The True Redemption of Man. Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went. And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. For will take you from among the heathen, and gather you o of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen. Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations. Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord God, be it known unto you be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel. EZEKIEL XXXVI. 22-32. THE seer's vision of the future here revealed that Israel L would be redeemed out of the midst of the pagan peoples amongst whom multitudes of them, either by exile or captivity or wandering, had settled, and that they who were thus redeemed would be brought back to their own land, and, together with those who had still remained there, would be elevated spiritually, and so indeed elevated completely to more than their former prosperity. Succeeding history is a complete commentary on all that was local and temporary in this prophetic vision. As Dr. Fairbairn succinctly shows, "People of the stock of Israel did again possess the land of their fathers; by them the mountains of Israel were again cultivated, and for them the land yielded its fruit there again, as of old, the seed of man and of beast did greatly increase and multiply, so that the region was known for ages as one of the most fertile and prosperous in Asia, and that too while the old and hereditary enemies of Israel in the neighbourhood sank into comparative insignificance and lost their original place in the scale of nations. There is moreover, in this rich and encouraging promise of good things to come, a very strong asseveration as to the ground on which God's contemplated interference for Israel's behalf was to proceed: negatively, not on their own account; positively, on account of His own name which they had profaned. Just as at the first, when Moses said to their fathers, "Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thy heart dost thou go to possess this land, for thou art a stiff-necked people," so here the prophet disclosed the utter absence of any personal claim on the Divine goodness, and showed that, whatever might henceforth be experienced, it must proceed from the upper spring of God's own grace and righteousness. In Himself alone could the Lord find the motive of benevolent action." The lasting and universal lessons illustrated by this prophetic vision and by its fulfilment are,— I. The true redemption of man HAS ITS ORIGIN IN GOD AND GOD ONLY. "I do this for My Holy Name's sake." This is true of all that God does, all He does is self-originated. |
