Vol 18 Believers etc

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The Life of Christ

Believers

Disbelievers and Unbelievers

Volume 18

This volume is based on:-

Matthew 8:5-13; 11:28-30; 12:22-50; Mark 3:20-35; Luke 7:1-17.

The language of the Scripture quotes has been modernised for easier understanding.

Two groups

The Roman Centurion

Christ had said to the nobleman whose son He healed, "Except you see signs and wonders, you will not believe." John 4:48. He was grieved that His own nation should require these outward signs of His Messiahship. Again and again He had marvelled at their unbelief.

But He also marvelled at the faith of the Roman centurion who came to Him. The centurion did not question the Saviour's power. He did not even ask Him to come in person to perform the miracle. "Speak the word only," he said, "and my servant shall be healed."

The centurion's servant had been stricken with palsy, and lay at the point of death. Among the Romans the servants were slaves, bought and sold in the market places, and treated with abuse and cruelty; but the centurion was tenderly attached to his servant, and greatly desired his recovery. He believed that Jesus could heal him.

He had not seen the Saviour, but the reports he heard had inspired him with faith.

He was a believer

Notwithstanding the formalism of the Jews, this Roman was convinced that their religion was superior to his own. Already he had broken through the barriers of national prejudice and hatred that separated the conquerors from the conquered people. He had manifested respect for the service of God, and had shown kindness to the Jews as His worshippers.

In the teaching of Christ, as it had been reported to him, he found that which met the need of his soul. All that was spiritual within him responded to the Saviour's words. But he felt unworthy to come into the presence of Jesus, and he appealed to the Jewish elders to make request for the healing of his servant. They were acquainted with the Great Teacher, and would, he thought, know how to approach Him so as to win His favour.

He first sent church leaders

As Jesus entered Capernaum, He was met by a delegation of the elders, who told Him of the centurion's desire. They urged "that he was worthy for whom He should do this: for he loves our nation, and he has built us a synagogue." Jesus immediately set out for the officer's home; but, pressed by the multitude, He advanced slowly.

Then he sent a messenger

The news of Jesus’ coming preceded Him, and the centurion, in his self-distrust, sent Him the message, "Lord, trouble not Yourself: for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof."

Last of all he came himself

But the Saviour kept on His way, and the centurion, venturing at last to approach Him, completed the message, saying, "Neither thought I myself worthy to come to You;"... "but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goes; and to another, Come, and he comes; and to my servant, Do this, and he does it."

He recognised the power of a Creator

As I represent the power of Rome, and my soldiers recognise my authority as supreme, so do You represent the power of the Infinite God, and all created things obey Your word. You can command the disease to depart, and it shall obey You. You can summon Your heavenly messengers, and they shall impart healing virtue. Speak but the word, and my servant shall be healed.

"When Jesus heard these things, He marvelled at him, and turned Him about, and said to the people that followed Him, I say to you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel."

And to the centurion He said, "As you have believed, so be it done to you. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour."

Two ways to approach

The Jewish elders who recommended the centurion to Christ had shown how far they were from possessing the spirit of the gospel. They did not recognise that our great need is our only claim on God's mercy. In their self-righteousness they commended the centurion because of the favour he had shown to "our nation."

But the centurion said of himself, "I am not worthy." His heart had been touched by the grace of Christ. He saw his own unworthiness; yet he feared not to ask help. He trusted not to his own goodness; his argument was his great need. His faith took hold upon Christ in His true character. He did not believe in Him merely as a worker of miracles, but as the friend and Saviour of mankind.

It is thus that every sinner may come to Christ.

Our great need

"Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us." Titus 3:5. When Satan tells you that you are a sinner, and cannot hope to receive blessing from God, tell him that Christ came into the world to save sinners. We have nothing to recommend us to God; but the plea that we may urge now and ever is our utterly helpless condition that makes His redeeming power a necessity. Renouncing all self-dependence, we may look to the cross of Calvary and say, -

"In my hand no price I bring;

Simply to Your cross I cling."

Two points of view

The Jews had been instructed from childhood concerning the work of the Messiah. The inspired utterances of patriarchs and prophets and the symbolic teaching of the sacrificial service had been theirs. But they had disregarded the light; and now they saw in Jesus nothing to be desired.

But the centurion, born in heathenism, educated in the idolatry of imperial Rome, trained as a soldier, seemingly cut off from spiritual life by his education and surroundings, and still further shut out by the bigotry of the Jews, and by the contempt of his own countrymen for the people of Israel, - this man perceived the truth to which the children of Abraham were blinded.

He did not wait to see whether the Jews themselves would receive the One who claimed to be their Messiah. As the "light, which lights every man that comes into the world" (John 1:9) had shone upon him, he had, though afar off, discerned the glory of the Son of God.

A welcome picture

To Jesus this was a picture of the work which the gospel was to accomplish among the Gentiles. With joy He looked forward to the gathering of souls from all nations to His kingdom. With deep sadness He pictured to the Jews the result of their rejection of His grace: "I say to you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

Alas, how many are still preparing for the same fatal disappointment! While souls in heathen darkness accept His grace, how many there are in Christian lands upon whom the light shines only to be disregarded.

Another resurrection

More than twenty miles from Capernaum, on a tableland overlooking the wide, beautiful plain of Esdraelon, lay the village of Nain, and there Jesus next bent His steps. Many of His disciples and others were with Him, and all along the way the people came, longing for His words of love and pity, bringing their sick for His healing, and ever with the hope that He who wielded such wondrous power would make Himself known as the King of Israel.

A multitude thronged His steps, and it was a glad, expectant company that followed Him up the rocky path toward the gate of the mountain village.

As they drew near, a funeral train was seen coming from the gates. With slow, sad steps it was proceeding to the place of burial. On an open stretcher carried in front was the body of the dead, and about it were the mourners, filling the air with their wailing cries. All the people of the town seem to have gathered to show their respect for the dead and their sympathy with the bereaved.

A widow’s son

It was a sight to awaken sympathy. The deceased was the only son of his mother, and she a widow. The lonely mourner was following to the grave her sole earthly support and comfort. Therefore, "When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her."

As she moved on blindly, weeping, without noticing His presence, He came close beside her, and gently said, "Weep not." Jesus was about to change her grief to joy, yet He could not forbear this expression of tender sympathy.

"He came and touched the bier;" to Him even contact with death could impart no defilement. The bearers stood still, and the lamentations of the mourners ceased. The two companies gathered about the bier, hoping against hope. One was present who had banished disease and vanquished demons; was death also subject to His power?

The spoken word

In clear, authoritative voice the words are spoken, "Young man, I say to you, Arise." That voice pierces the ears of the dead. The young man opens his eyes. Jesus takes him by the hand, and lifts him up. His gaze falls upon her who has been weeping beside him, and mother and son unite in a long, clinging, joyous embrace. The multitude look on in silence, as if spellbound. "There came a fear on all." Hushed and reverent they stood for a little time, as if in the very presence of God.

Then they "glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God has visited His people." The funeral train returned to Nain as a triumphal procession. "And this rumour of Him went forth throughout all Judea, and throughout all the region round about."

A call to all

He who stood beside the sorrowing mother at the gate of Nain, watches with every mourning one beside the bier. He is touched with sympathy for our grief. His heart, that loved and pitied, is a heart of unchangeable tenderness.

His word, that called the dead to life, is no less successful now than when spoken to the young man of Nain. He says, "All power is given to
Me in heaven and in earth." Matthew 28:18.

That power is not diminished by the lapse of years, nor exhausted by the ceaseless activity of His overflowing grace. To all who believe on Him He is still a living Saviour.

Unfortunately, not permanent

Jesus changed the mother's grief to joy when He gave back her son; yet the youth was but called forth to this earthly life, to endure its sorrows,
its toils, and its perils, and to pass again under the power of death.

But Jesus comforts our sorrow for the dead with a message of infinite hope: "I am He that lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore,... and have the keys of hell and of death." Revelation 1:18.

"Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage." Hebrews 2:14, 15.

The strong word

Satan cannot hold the dead in his grasp when the Son of God bids them live. He cannot hold in spiritual death one soul who in faith receives Christ's word of power. God is saying to all who are dead in sin, "Awake you that sleep, and arise from the dead." Ephesians 5:14.

That word is eternal life.

As the word of God which bade the first man live still gives us life; as Christ's word, "Young man, I say to you, Arise," gave life to the youth of Nain, so that word, "Arise from the dead," is life to the one that receives it.

God "has delivered us from the power of darkness, and has translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son." Colossians 1:13.

It is all offered us in His word.

If we receive the word, we have the deliverance.

And "if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwells in you." Romans 8:11.

"For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17.

This is the word of comfort wherewith He bids us comfort one another.

The disbelievers

The sons of Joseph, apparently the brothers of Jesus, were far from being in sympathy with Jesus in His work. The reports that reached them in regard to His life and labours filled them with astonishment and dismay. They heard that He devoted entire nights to prayer, that through the day He was thronged by great companies of people, and did not give Himself time so much as to eat.

His friends also felt that He was wearing Himself out by His incessant labour; they were unable to account for His attitude toward the Pharisees, and there were some who feared that His reason was becoming unsettled.

His brothers heard of this, and also of the charge brought by the Pharisees that He cast out devils through the power of Satan. They felt keenly the reproach that came upon them through their relationship to Jesus.

They knew what a tumult His words and works created, and were not only alarmed at His bold statements, but indignant at His denunciation of the scribes and Pharisees.

They decided that He must be persuaded or constrained to cease this manner of labour, and they induced their stepmother Mary to unite with them, thinking that through His love for her they might prevail upon Him to be more prudent.

The unbelievers

It was just before this that Jesus had a second time performed the miracle of healing a man possessed, blind and dumb, and the Pharisees had reiterated the charge, "He casts out devils through the prince of the devils." Matthew 9:34.

Christ told them plainly that in attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan, they were cutting themselves off from the fountain of blessing.

Those who had spoken against Jesus Himself, not discerning His divine character, might receive forgiveness; for through the Holy Spirit they might be brought to see their error and repent. Whatever the sin, if the soul repents and believes, the guilt is washed away in the blood of Christ; but he who rejects the work of the Holy Spirit is placing himself where repentance and faith cannot come to him.

It is by the Spirit that God works upon the heart; when men wilfully reject the Spirit, and declare it to be from Satan, they cut off the channel by which God can communicate with them. When the Spirit is finally rejected, there is no more that God can do for the soul.

Against their own conscience

The Pharisees to whom Jesus spoke this warning did not themselves believe the charge they brought against Him. There was not one of those dignitaries but had felt drawn toward the Saviour. They had heard the Spirit's voice in their own hearts declaring Him to be the Anointed of Israel, and urging them to confess themselves His disciples.

In the light of His presence they had realised their unholiness, and had longed for a righteousness which they could not create. But after their rejection of Him it would be too humiliating to receive Him as the Messiah. Having set their feet in the path of unbelief, they were too proud to confess their error.

And in order to avoid acknowledging the truth, they tried with desperate violence to dispute the Saviour's teaching. The evidence of His power and mercy exasperated them. They could not prevent the Saviour from working miracles, they could not silence His teaching; but they did everything in their power to misrepresent Him and to falsify His words.

Still the convicting Spirit of God followed them, and they had to build up many barriers in order to withstand its power. The mightiest agency that can be brought to bear upon the human heart was striving with them, but they would not yield.

This was their choice

It is not God that blinds the eyes of men or hardens their hearts. He sends them light to correct their errors, and to lead them in safe paths; it is by the rejection of this light that the eyes are blinded and the heart hardened.

Often the process is gradual, and almost imperceptible. Light comes to the individual through God's word, through His servants, or by the direct agency of His Spirit; but when one ray of light is disregarded, there is a partial benumbing of the spiritual perceptions, and the second revealing of light is less clearly discerned. So the darkness increases, until it is night in the soul.

Thus it had been with these Jewish leaders.

They were convinced that a divine power attended Christ, but in order to resist the truth, they attributed the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan. In doing this they deliberately chose deception; they yielded themselves to Satan, and henceforth they were controlled by his power.

Beware of criticising too

Closely connected with Christ's warning in regard to the sin against the Holy Spirit is a warning against idle and evil words. The words are an indication of that which is in our heart, for, "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks."

But the words are more than an indication of character; they have power to react on the character. Men and women are influenced by their own words.

Often under a momentary impulse, prompted by Satan, they give utterance to jealousy or evil surmising, expressing that which they do not really believe; but the expression reacts on the thoughts. They are deceived by their words, and come to believe that true which was spoken at Satan's instigation. Having once expressed an opinion or decision, they are often too proud to retract it, and try to prove themselves in the right, until they come to believe that they are.

It is dangerous to utter a word of doubt, dangerous to question and criticise divine light. The habit of careless and irreverent criticism reacts upon the character, in fostering irreverence and unbelief. Many a man indulging this habit has gone on unconscious of danger, until he was ready to criticise and reject the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, "Every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned."

Beware of neglect

Then He added a warning to those who had been impressed by His words, who had heard Him gladly, but who had not surrendered themselves for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It is not only by resistance but by neglect that the soul is destroyed. "When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man," said Jesus, "he walks through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he finds it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goes he, and takes with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there."

There were many in Christ's day, as there are today, over whom the control of Satan for the time seemed broken; through the grace of God they were set free from the evil spirits that had held dominion over the soul. They rejoiced in the love of God; but, like the stony-ground hearers of the parable, they did not abide in His love.

They did not surrender themselves to God every day, that Christ might dwell in their heart; and when the evil spirit returned, with "seven other spirits more wicked than himself," they were wholly dominated by the power of evil.

The change of heart

When the sinner surrenders him or herself to Christ, a new power takes possession of their new heart.

A change is wrought which humanity can never accomplish for themselves. It is a supernatural work, bringing a supernatural element into human nature.

The life that is yielded to Christ becomes His own fortress, which He holds in a revolted world, and He intends that no authority shall be known in it but His own. A person thus kept in possession by the heavenly agencies is impregnable to the assaults of Satan.

But unless we do yield ourselves to the control of Christ, we shall be dominated by the wicked one. We must inevitably be under the control of the one or the other of the two great powers that are contending for the supremacy of the world.

It is not necessary for us deliberately to choose the service of the kingdom of darkness in order to come under its dominion. We have only to neglect to ally ourselves with the kingdom of light. If we do not co-operate with the heavenly agencies, Satan will take possession of our heart, and will make it his abiding place.

The only defence against evil is the indwelling of Christ in our heart through faith in His righteousness.

Unless we become vitally connected with God, we can never resist the unhallowed effects of self-love, self-indulgence, and temptation to sin. We may leave off many bad habits, for the time we may even part company with Satan; but without a vital connection with God, through the surrender of ourselves to Him moment by moment, we shall be overcome. Without a personal acquaintance with Christ, and a continual communion, we are at the mercy of the enemy, and shall do his bidding in the end.

The last state

"The last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so," said Jesus, "shall it be also to this wicked generation." There are none so hardened as those who have slighted the invitation of mercy, and done despite to the Spirit of grace.

The most common way to commit the sin against the Holy Spirit is in persistently slighting Heaven's invitation to repent. Every step in the rejection of Christ is a step toward the rejection of salvation, and toward the sin against the Holy Spirit.

In rejecting Christ the Jewish people committed the unpardonable sin; and by refusing the invitation of mercy, we may commit the same error.

We offer insult to the Prince of life, and put Him to shame before the synagogue of Satan and before the heavenly universe when we refuse to listen to His delegated messengers, and instead listen to the agents of Satan, who would draw the soul away from Christ. So long as one does this, he or she can find no hope or pardon, and will finally lose all desire to be reconciled to God.

His brethren approached

While Jesus was still teaching the people, His disciples brought the message that His mother and His brothers were without, and desired to see Him. He knew what was in their hearts, and "He answered and said to him that told Him, Who is My mother? and who are My brethren? And He stretched forth His hand toward His disciples, and said, Behold My mother and My brethren! For whoever shall do the will of My Father which is in heaven, the same is My brother, and sister, and mother."

All who would receive Christ by faith were united to Him by a tie closer than that of human kinship. They would become one with Him, as He was one with the Father.

As a believer and doer of His words, His mother was more nearly and savingly related to Him than through her natural relationship.

His brothers also could receive no benefit from their connection with Him unless they accepted Him as their personal Saviour.

The cup of woe

What a support Christ would have found in His earthly relatives if they had believed in Him as one from heaven, and had co-operated with Him in doing the work of God! Their disbelief cast a shadow over the earthly life of Jesus.

It was a part of the bitterness of that cup of woe which He drained for us.

The enmity kindled in the human heart against the gospel was keenly felt by the Son of God, and it was most painful to Him in His home; for His own heart was full of kindness and love, and He appreciated tender regard in the family relationship. His brothers desired that He should concede to their ideas, when such a course would have been utterly out of harmony with His divine mission.

They looked upon Him as in need of their counsel. They judged Him from their human point of view, and thought that if He would speak only such things as would be acceptable to the scribes and Pharisees, He would avoid the disagreeable controversy that His words aroused.

They thought that He was beside Himself in claiming divine authority, and in placing Himself before the rabbis as a reprover of their sins.
They knew that the Pharisees were seeking occasion to accuse Him, and they felt that He had given them sufficient occasion.

Love never gives up

With their short measuring line they could not see the mission which He came to fulfil, and therefore could not sympathise with Him in His trials. Their coarse, unappreciative words showed that they had no true perception of His character, and did not discern that the divine blended with the human.

They often saw Him full of grief; but instead of comforting Him, their spirit and words only wounded His heart. His sensitive nature was tortured, His motives were misunderstood, His work was uncomprehended.

His brothers often brought forward the philosophy of the Pharisees, which was threadbare and hoary with age, and presumed to think that they could teach Him who understood all truth, and comprehended all mysteries. They freely condemned that which they could not understand. Their reproaches probed Him to the quick, and His soul was wearied and distressed.

They declared faith in God, and thought they were vindicating Him, when God was with them in the flesh, and they knew Him not.

Another home

These things made His path a thorny one to travel. So pained was Christ by the misunderstanding in His own home that it was a relief to Him to go where it did not exist. There was one home that He loved to visit - the home of Lazarus, and Mary, and Martha; for in the atmosphere of faith and love His spirit had rest. Yet there were none on earth who could comprehend His divine mission, or know the burden which He bore in behalf of humanity. Often He could find relief only in being alone, and communing with His heavenly Father.

The same for all Christians

Those who are called to suffer for Christ's sake, who have to endure misunderstanding and distrust, even in their own home, may find comfort in the thought that Jesus has endured the same. He is moved with compassion for them. He bids them find companionship in Him, and relief where He found it, in communion with the Father.

Those who accept Christ as their personal Saviour are not left as orphans, to bear the trials of life alone. He receives them as members of the heavenly family; He bids them call His Father their Father. They are His "little ones," dear to the heart of God, bound to Him by the most tender and abiding ties. He has toward them an exceeding tenderness, as far surpassing what our father or mother has felt toward us in our helplessness as the divine is above the human.

The Redeemer

Of Christ's relation to His people, there is a beautiful illustration in the laws given to Israel. When through poverty a Hebrew had been forced to part with his family land, and to sell himself as a bondservant, the duty of redeeming him and his inheritance fell to the one who was nearest of kin. See Leviticus 25:25, 47-49; Ruth 2:20.

So the work of redeeming us and our inheritance, lost through sin, fell upon Him who is "near of kin" to us. It was to redeem us that He became our kinsman.

Closer than father, mother, brother, friend, or lover is the Lord our Saviour. "Fear not," He says, "for I have redeemed you, I have called you by your name; you are Mine.... Since you were precious in My sight, you have been honourable, and I have loved you: therefore will I give men for you, and people for your life." Isaiah 43:1, 4.

Christ loves the heavenly beings that surround His throne; but what shall account for the great love wherewith He has loved us? We cannot understand it, but we can know it true in our own experience. And if we do hold the relation of kinship to Him, with what tenderness should we regard those who are brethren and sisters of our Lord! Should we not be quick to recognise the claims of our divine relationship?

Adopted into the family of God, should we not honour our Father and our kindred?

The Invitation

"Come to Me, all you that labour and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest."

These words of comfort were spoken to the multitude that followed Jesus. The Saviour had said that only through Himself could men receive a knowledge of God. He had spoken of His disciples as the ones to whom a knowledge of heavenly things had been given. But He left none to feel themselves shut out from His care and love. All who labour and are heavy-laden may come to Him.

Scribes and rabbis, with their particular attention to religious forms, had a sense of want that rites of penance could never satisfy. Publicans and sinners might pretend to be content with the sensual and earthly, but in their hearts were distrust and fear. Jesus looked upon the distressed and heart burdened, those whose hopes were blighted, and who with earthly joys were seeking to quiet the longing of the soul, and He invited all to find rest in Him.

His "way" is restful

Tenderly He bade the toiling people, "Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest to your souls."

In these words Christ is speaking to every human being. Whether they know it or not, all are weary and heavy-laden. All are weighed down with burdens that only Christ can remove.

The heaviest burden that we bear is the burden of sin. If we were left to bear this burden, it would crush us. But the Sinless One has taken our place. "The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:6. He has borne the burden of our guilt. He will take the load from our weary shoulders. He will give us rest.

The burden of care and sorrow also He will bear. He invites us to cast all our care upon Him; for He carries us upon His heart.

He is one of us

The Elder Brother of our race is by the eternal throne. He looks upon every one who is turning his or her face toward Him as the Saviour.
He knows by experience what are the weaknesses of humanity, what are our wants, and where lies the strength of our temptations; for He was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

He is watching over you, trembling child of God. Are you tempted? He will deliver.

Are you weak? He will strengthen.

Are you ignorant? He will enlighten.

Are you wounded? He will heal.

The Lord "tells the number of the stars;" and yet "He heals the broken in heart, and binds up their wounds." Psalm 147:4, 3. "Come to Me," is His invitation. Whatever your anxieties and trials, spread out your case before the Lord.

Your spirit will be braced for endurance.

The way will be opened for you to disentangle yourself from embarrassment and difficulty.

The weaker and more helpless you know yourself to be, the stronger will you become in His strength. The heavier your burdens, the more blessed the rest in casting them upon the Burden Bearer.

The conditions

The rest that Christ offers depends upon conditions, but these conditions are plainly specified. They are those with which all can comply. He tells us just how His rest is to be found.

"Take My yoke upon you," Jesus says. The yoke is an instrument of service. Cattle are yoked for labour, and the yoke is essential that they may labour effectively. By this illustration Christ teaches us that we are called to service as long as life shall last. We are to take upon us His yoke, that we may be co-workers with Him.

The yoke that binds to service is the law of God, the Ten Commandments.

The great law of love revealed in Eden, proclaimed upon Sinai, and in the new covenant written in the heart, is that which binds the human worker to the will of God.

If we were left to follow our own inclinations, to go just where our will would lead us, we should fall into Satan's ranks and become possessors of his attributes. Therefore God confines us to His will, which is high, and noble, and elevating. He desires that we shall patiently and wisely take up the duties of service.

The yoke of service Christ Himself has borne in humanity. He said, "I delight to do Your will, O My God: yes, Your law is within My heart." Psalm 40:8.

"I came down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him that sent Me." John 6:38. Love for God, zeal for His glory, and love for fallen humanity, brought Jesus to earth to suffer and to die. This was the controlling power of His life. This principle He bids us adopt.

Give up the world

There are many whose hearts are aching under a load of care because they seek to reach the world's standard. They have chosen its service, accepted its perplexities, adopted its customs. Thus their character is marred, and their life made a weariness. In order to gratify ambition and worldly desires, they wound the conscience, and bring upon themselves an additional burden of remorse. The continual worry is wearing out their life forces.

Our Lord desires them to lay aside this yoke of bondage. He invites them to accept His yoke; He says, "My yoke is easy, and My burden is light." He bids them seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and His promise is that all things needful to them for this life shall be added.

Worry is blind, and cannot discern the future; but Jesus sees the end from the beginning. In every difficulty He has His way prepared to bring relief. Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we know nothing. Those who accept the one principle of making the service and honour of God supreme will find perplexities vanish, and a plain path before their feet.

Be willing to be taught

"Learn of Me," says Jesus; "for I am meek and lowly in heart: and you shall find rest. " We are to enter the school of Christ, to learn from Him meekness and lowliness. Redemption is that process by which the soul is trained for heaven. This training means a knowledge of Christ.

It means deliverance from ideas, habits, and practices that have been gained in the school of the prince of darkness. We must be delivered from all that is opposed to loyalty to God.

In the heart of Christ, where reigned perfect harmony with God, there was perfect peace. He was never elated by applause, nor dejected by censure or disappointment. Amid the greatest opposition and the most cruel treatment, He was still of good courage.

But many who profess to be His followers have an anxious, troubled heart, because they are afraid to trust themselves with God. They do not make a complete surrender to Him; for they shrink from the consequences that such a surrender may involve. Unless they do make this surrender, they cannot find peace.

It is the love of self that brings unrest.

When we are born from above, the same mind will be in us that was in Jesus, the mind that led Him to humble Himself that we might be saved. Then we shall not be seeking the highest place. We shall desire to sit at the feet of Jesus, and learn of Him. We shall understand that the value of our work does not consist in making a show and noise in the world, and in being active and zealous in our own strength.

The value of our work is in proportion to the actual guidance of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Trust in God brings holier qualities of mind, so that in patience we may possess our souls.

The yoke

The yoke is placed upon the oxen to aid them in drawing the load, to lighten the burden. So with the yoke of Christ. When our will is swallowed up in the will of God, and we use His gifts to bless others, we shall find life's burden light.

He who walks in the way of God's commandments is walking in company with Christ, and in His love the heart is at rest. When Moses prayed, "Show me now Your way, that I may know You," the Lord answered him, "My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest." Exodus 33:13, 14.

And through the prophets the message was given, "Thus says the Lord, Stand you in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and you shall find rest for your souls." Jeremiah 6:16. And He says, "O that you had hearkened to My commandments! then had your peace been as a river, and your righteousness as the waves of the sea." Isaiah 48:18.

Perfect peace

Those who take Christ at His word, and surrender their souls to His keeping, their lives to His ordering, will find peace and quietude. Nothing of the world can make them sad when Jesus makes them glad by His presence. In perfect acquiescence there is perfect rest. The Lord says, "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You: because he trusts in You." Isaiah 26:3.

Our lives may seem a tangle; but as we commit ourselves to the wise Master Worker, He will bring out the pattern of life and character that will be to His own glory. And that character which expresses the glory - character - of Christ will be received into the Paradise of God. A renovated race shall walk with Him in white, for they are worthy.

The invitation is to all

His invitation is, "Come, learn of Me", and in thus coming we begin the life eternal, for Heaven is a ceaseless approaching to God through Christ.

The longer we are in the heaven of bliss, the more and still more of glory will be opened to us; and the more we know of God, the more intense will be our happiness. As we walk with Jesus in this life, we may be filled with His love, satisfied with His presence. All that human nature can bear, we may receive here.

But what is this compared with the hereafter?

There "are they before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple: and He that sits on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them to living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." Revelation 7:15-17.

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................... Text only ................... "Word 97" version

Bible study sites:-

The "The Future" - A Daniel and The Revelation compilation

The Letter to the Roman Christians

A book entitled "Light on the Dark Side of God"