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June 06
Devotions
Daily Devotions for June 2006
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
THEME - The
Gospel of Matthew, cont.
by Charles Haddon
Spurgeon
Please
click on the current date # above or scroll down to read the devotional
for the day!
LBC devotionals
are written by the following men:
- DW - Senior Pastor, Dan Wilkenson
- RJS - Retired Pastor, Dr. Bob Shifflett
May God richly bless you this day!
Thursday, June 1st
June 1
MATTHEW 11:1-19
THE KING
SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS OWN APPEARING
12. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the
kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.
John had aroused an unusual earnestness which had
not died out. Men were eager for the glories of “the kingdom of heaven.”
Though they misinterpreted it, they were on fire to seize it. John himself,
in his excess of eagerness, had sent his two disciples to our Lord with an
impatient question. Our Savior does not blame John’s intense enquiry; but
says that it must be. A holy violence had
been introduced by John, and they had just seen it in his question, and our
Lord would have all those who would obtain the kingdom capture it by the same
passionate eagerness. The time was come to end indifference, and put on a
holy resolution as to the things of God. Thus the King sets forth what the
spirit demanded in these who would take part and parcel in his great cause
and kingdom. Lord, wake us up! Suffer us not to be using dead formality,
where living violence can alone avail.
13. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until
John.
God left not himself without witness all
along. John ended the chain of foreseers and foretellers, and now the Lord
himself appears. Our Lord draws a line at John by saying “until John” henceforth the kingdom is set up.
14. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was
for to come.
John was the Elijah for whom they
looked. Would people believe it? Would they obey his command to repent? Then
he would be to them a true Elijah, and make straight for them the way of the
Lord. Even a man sent of God is to his hearer very much what that hearer
chooses to make of him. No doubt many a great opportunity has been missed by
men failing to accept it. “If ye will
receive it,” a minister, may be the channel of
salvation, or the means of spiritual edification, or of surpassing joy; but
if not received it may become a weariness, or as meaningless as sounding
brass or a tinkling cymbal.
Friday, June 2nd
June 2
MATTHEW 11:1-19
THE KING SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS OWN APPEARING
15. He
that hath ears to hear let him hear.
This matter is worthy of earnest heed. If you can hear
anything, hear this truth. This call to attention needs to be oft repeated.
Through the hearing ear, the divine blessing comes to the soul; therefore
hear, and your soul shall live. Our Lord and King, who made the ear has a
right to demand its attention. Some men have no ears to hear truth, but quick
ears for falsehood. We should be grateful if the Lord has given us spiritual
perception; for “the hearing ear and the seeing eye” are from the Lord.
16-19. But
whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in
the markets, and calling unto their fellows, and saying, We have piped unto
you, and ye have not danced; we mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented.
For John came neither eating nor drinking and they say, He hath a devil. The
Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous,
and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified
of her children.
Our Lord condemns the folly of the age in which he lived. The people
would not listen to the messenger of God whoever he might be, but raised
childish objections. Therefore the Lord likens them to “children sitting
in the markets” who were asked to play by their fellows, but they could
never agree upon the game. If certain of the children would imitate a
wedding, and began to pipe, the others would not dance; and when they
proposed a funeral, and began to mourn, the others would not lament. They were disagreeable, sullen, and faultfinding
and rejected every offer. Such was the foolish manner of men in our Lord’s time.
John was an ascetic: Jesus must be under the influence of a demon. Jesus is a
man among men; he is accused of eating and drinking to excess, and
associating with the sordid and wicked. There was no pleasing them. One
preacher, who speaks with elegant diction, is too flowery; and another, uses
plain speech, is vulgar: the instructive preacher is dull, and the earnest
preacher is too excitable. There is no suiting some people. Even the great
Lord of all finds his wise council met with discontent.
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Saturday, June 3rd
June 3
MATTHEW 11:1-19
THE KING SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS OWN APPEARING
Yet wisdom,
after all, gave forth her teachings by rightly chosen ambassadors. She is
justified of her children. Her children recognized the fitness of her
messengers; and her messengers, who were also her children, were a credit to
her choice, and justified her selection and made preparation of them. The all
wise God is a better judge of what a minister should be than any of us are.
Well did George Herbert write - “Judge not the preacher, he is thy judge.”
The varied orders of preachers are all needful,
and, if we would but know it, they are all ours; whether Paul or Apollos, or
Cephas; and it is ours not to complain at them, but to give earnest heed to
their proposals. Lord, deliver us from a fault-finding spirit; for if we
begin objecting, we are apt to keep on at it. If we will not hear one
preacher, we may soon find ourselves quite weary of a second and a third, and
before long it may come to pass that we cannot hear any minister to profit.
MATTHEW 11:20-30
THE KING’S WARNINGS, REJOCINGS, AND
INVITATIONS
The wonderful portion of Scripture which makes up the
rest of this chapter deals with three things, about which there has been
great disputing: namely, the responsibility of man, the sovereign election of
God, and the free invitations of the gospel. They are all here in happy
combination.
20. Then
began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done,
because they repented not.
Some cities were more favored with the Lord’s presence
than others, and therefore he looked for more from them. These cities ought
to have repented, or Christ would not have upbraided them: repentance is a
duty. The more men hear and see of the Lord’s work, the greater is their
obligation to repent. Where much is given much is required. Men are
responsible for the way in which they treat the Lord Jesus and “his
mighty works.” There is a time for upbraiding: “Then
began he.” The most loving preacher will see cause
for complaining of his impenitent hearers: He upbraids, even he who
also wept.
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Sunday, June 4th
June
4
MATTHEW
11:1-19
THE KING SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS
OWN APPEARING
Repentance is what we who are preachers drive at; and
when we do not see it, we are sore troubled. Our trouble is not that our
hearers did not applaud our ability, but because
they repented not. They have enough to repent of,
and without repentance woe is upon them, and therefore we mourn that they do
not repent.
21. Woe unto
thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were
done in you, had been done in Tyre
and Sidon, they would have
repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
Jesus knew what the doom of certain Jewish towns would be; and he
knew what certain heathen cities would have done if they had been placed in favorable circumstances. He spoke
infallibly. Great privileges were lost on Chorazin and Bethsaida, but would
have been effectual had they been granted to Tyre and Sidon.
According to our Lord’s declaration, God gave the opportunity where it was
rejected. and it was not given where it would have been accepted. This is
true, but how mysterious! The practical point was the guilt of these favored
cities, in that they remained unmoved by visitation which would have
converted the heathen Sidonians; yes, and would have made them repent quickly “long ago”; and in the most
humiliating manner, “in sackcloth and ashes.” It is a sad fact that our impenitent hearers do despite
to a grace which would have brought cannibals to the Savior’s feet!
22. But I say
unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and
Sidon at the day of Judgment, than for you.
Terrible as the hell of these two sinful cities will be,
their punishment will be more bearable than the sentence
passed on cities of Galilee where Jesus
taught and wrought miracles of love. The sin is in proportion to the light.
Those who perish with salvation sounding in their ears perish with a
vengeance. Assuredly the day of judgment will be notable for surprises. Who
would have thought to see Bethsaida sink lower
than Sidon? Believers will not in the
day of judgment be surprised, for they will remember in that day our Lord’s “I
say unto you.”
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Monday, June 5th
June 5
MATTHEW
11:1-19
THE KING SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS
OWN APPEARING
23. And thou,
Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for
if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it
would have remained until this day.
The warning to Capernaum
is, if possible, still more emphatic, for
Sodom was actually destroyed by fire from heaven. Capernaum, his own
city, the head-quarters of the army of salvation, had seen and heard the Son
of God. He had done in Capernaum that which even Sodomites would have
felt; and yet it remained unmoved. Those foul sinners of the accursed Sodom,
had beheld the miracles of Christ, would have so forsaken their sins their
city would have been spared. Jesus knew that it would have been so; and
therefore he mourned to see Capernaum remain as hardened as ever. Because of
this rejection of special privilege, the city which had been exalted unto
heaven would be brought as low in punishment as it had been raised high in
privilege. May none of our favored English people perish in the same
condemnation! Alas, how much we fear that millions of them will do so!
24. But I say
unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for thee.
What Sodom will endure when the great Judge of all appoints the doom of
the wicked, we may not try to realize; but it will be somewhat less than the
penalty inflicted upon those who have sinned against the light, and rejected
the testimony of the Lord from heaven. To reject the gospel of the Son of God
is to create for one’s self a sevenfold hell. Here, again, our Lord speaks
from his own full authority, with “I say unto you.” He speaks what he knows: he will himself be the Judge. So
far our Lord spake in heaviness of heart; but his brow cleared when he came
to the glorious doctrine of election in the next verse.
25 & 26. At
that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and
earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast
revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy
sight. He turned to
the other side of truth.
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Tuesday, June 6th
June
6
MATTHEW
11:1-19
THE KING SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS
OWN APPEARING
“Jesus answered,” one doctrine answers to another: sovereign grace is the answer to
abounding guilt. With rejoicing spirit Jesus sees how sovereign grace meets
the unreasonable abounding of human sin, and chooses out its own, according
to the good pleasure of the Father’s will. Here it is the spirit in which to
regard the electing grace of God: “I thank thee.” It is cause for
deepest gratitude. Here is the author of election: “O Father.” It is
the Father who makes the choice, and reveals the blessings. Here it is his
right to act as he does: he is “the Lord of heaven and earth.” Who
shall question the good pleasure of his will? Here we see the objects of
election, under both aspects; the chosen and the passed-over. Babes see
because sacred truths are revealed to them, and not otherwise. They are weak
and inexperienced. They are simple and unsophisticated. They can cling and
trust, and cry, and love; and to such the Lord opens up the treasures of wisdom.
The objects of divine choice are such as these. Lord, let me be one among
them! The truths of the heavenly kingdom are hid, by a judicial act of God,
from men who, in their own esteem, are “the wise and prudent.” They
cannot see, because they trust their own dim light, and will not accept the
light of God. Here we see, also, the reason of election, the divine will:
“So it seemed good in thy sight.” We can go no further than this. The
choice seemed good to Him who never errs, and therefore it is good. This
stands to the children of God as the reason
which is above all reason. If God wills it, so must it be, and so ought it to
be.
27. All
things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but
the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to
whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
Here we have the channel through which electing love
works towards men: “All things are delivered unto me of my Father.” All things are put into the Mediator’s hands; fit hands both
towards God and man; for he alone knows both to perfection. Jesus reveals the
Father to the babes whom he has chosen. Know Christ, and you know the Father,
and know that the Father himself loves you. There is no other way of knowing
the Father but through the Son.
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Wednesday, June 7th
June 7
MATTHEW
11:1-19
THE KING SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS
OWN APPEARING
In this our Lord rejoiced; for his office of Mediator is dear to him,
and he loves to be the way of communication between the Father whom he loves, and the people whom he
loves for the Father’s sake. Observe the intimate
fellowship between the Father and the Son, and how they know each other as
none else ever can. Oh, to see all things in Jesus by the Father’s
appointment, and so to find the Father’s love and grace in finding Christ. My
soul, there are great mysteries here! Enjoy what you can not explain.
28. Come unto
me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Here is the gracious invitation of the gospel in which
the Savior’s tears and smiles were blended, as in a covenant rainbow of
promise. “Come”; he
drives none away: he calls them to himself. His favorite word is “Come.” Not,
— go to Moses, “Come unto me.” To
Jesus himself we must come, by a personal trust. Not to doctrine, ordinance,
or ministry are we to come first; but to the personal Savior. All laboring and laden ones may come: he does not
limit the call to the spiritually laboring, but every working and wearied one
is called. It is well to give the largest sense to all that mercy speaks.
Jesus calls me. Jesus promises “rest” as his gift: his immediate, personal,
effectual rest he freely gives to all who come to him by faith. To come to
him is the first step, and he entreats us to take it. In himself, as the
great sacrifice for sin, the conscience, the heart, the understanding obtain
complete rest. When we have obtained the rest he gives, we shall be ready to hear of a further rest which we find.
29, 30. Take
my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye
shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.“Take my yoke, and learn”: this
is the second instruction; it brings with it a further rest which we “find.” The first rest he gives through his death; the second we find in
copying his life. This is no correction of the former statement, but an
addition thereto. First, we rest by faith in Jesus, and next we rest through
obedience to him. We are not only to bear a
yoke, but his yoke; and we are not only to submit to it when it is laid upon
us, but we are to take it upon us.
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Thursday, June 8th
June 8
MATTHEW
11:1-19
THE KING SUPPORTS HIS MESSENGERS BY
HIS
OWN APPEARING
We are to be workers, and take his yoke; and at the same time we are
to be scholars, and learn from him as our Teacher. We are to learn of Christ
and also to learn Christ. He is both teacher and lesson. His gentleness of
heart fits him to teach, to be the
illustration of his own teaching, and to work in us his great design. If we can become as he is, we
shall rest as he does. We shall not only rest from the guilt of sin - this he
gives us; but we shall rest in the peace of holiness, which we find through
obedience to him. It is the heart that makes or mars the rest of the man.
Lord, make us “lowly in heart” and
we shall be restful of heart. “Take
my yoke.” The yoke in which we draw with Christ needs be a happy
one; and the burden that we carry for him is a blessed one. We rest in the fullest sense when
we serve, since Jesus is the Master. We are carrying by bearing his burden,
we are rested by running on his errands. “Come unto me” is thus a divine
prescription, curing our ills by the pardon of sin through our Lord’s
sacrifice, and causing us the greatest peace by sanctifying us to his
service. Oh for grace to be always coming to Jesus, and to be constantly
inviting others to do the same! Always free, yet always bearing his yoke;
always having the rest once given, yet always finding more: this is the
experience of those who come to Jesus always, and for everything. Blessed
heritage; and it is ours!
CHAPTER 12
MATTHEW 12:1-13
OUR KING AS LORD OF THE SABBATH
1. At that
time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were
an hungered, and began, to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat. But when the
Pharisees saw it, they said unto to him, Behold, thy disciples do that which
is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day
They were probably on their way to the
synagogue. They were allowed by law to take ears of corn as they passed
along; but the objection of the Pharisees was to their doing on the Sabbath. Plucking was reaping,
rubbing the grain from the husk was threshing, to their hypercritical
minds.
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Friday, June 9th
June 9
MATTHEW 12:1-13
OUR KING AS LORD OF THE SABBATH
Their traditions and fancies they regarded as a code of
law, and according to this the disciples were doing “that which is not lawful to do upon the Sabbath
day.” They came to Jesus himself with their grave complaints:
for once they plucked up courage to deal with the Leader; for they felt very
strong on the Sabbath question, and they thought it fair to lay the faults of
the disciples at the door of their Teacher. We incidentally learn from this
story that our Lord and his disciples were poor, and that he who fed the
multitudes did not use his miraculous power to feed his own followers. He
left them till they did what poor men are forced to do to supply a little
stay for their stomachs. Our Lord bribes none into following him: they may be
his apostles, and yet be hungry on a Sabbath. Why did not these Pharisees
give them bread, and so prevent their doing that to which they objected? We
might also fairly ask, How came they to see the disciples? Did they not break
the Sabbath by setting a watch over them?
3, 4. But he
said unto them, Have ye not read what David did, when he was an hungered, and
they that were with him; how he entered into the house of God, and did eat
the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which
were with him, but only for the priests?
He speaks to his learned opponents as if they had not
read the law that they professed to uphold. “Have ye not read?” The instance of
David served the Son of David well. It was clear from his example that
necessity has no law. The Tabernacle law was broken by David when he and his
band were pressed with hunger; and that breach of law touched Jewish ritual
in a very special and tender point, and yet he was never rebuked for it. To
have eaten the holy bread out of profanity, or bravado, or levity, might have
involved the offender in the judgment of death; but to do so in urgent need
was not blameworthy in the case of David. As men excuse any breach of manners
necessitated by the pressure of hunger, so does the Lord permit any
ceremonial point of law to give way to his mercy, and to man’s evident necessity.
The law of the Sabbath was never meant to compel starvation to hungry men,
any more than the law of “the house
of God” and “the shewbread.” Works of necessity are lawful on the Sabbath.
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Saturday, June10th
June 10
MATTHEW 12:1-13
OUR KING AS LORD OF THE SABBATH
5, 6. Or have
ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the
temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless, But I say unto you, That in
this place is one greater than the temple.
This instance is absolutely to the point. The priests worked hard on the Sabbath in offering sacrifice, and in
other appointed ways; but they were to be honored rather than censured for so
doing, seeing they had the approval of the temple law. But in the case of
Christ’s disciples, that which they did had the sanction of the temple’s
Lord, who is far greater than the temple. Work done for God on the Sabbath is
no real profanation of the Sabbath, though it may seem to be so to those
whose religion lies wholly in external observances. If we work with Jesus,
and for Jesus, we care not for the criticisms of formalists. As the substance
is greater than the shadow, so is our Lord greater than the temple, or any or
all ceremonial laws; and his sanction overrules all the interpretations of
the law which asceticism or superstition may thrust upon us. Works of piety
are lawful on the Sabbath.
7. But if ye
had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would
not have condemned the guiltless.
Our Lord had galled the Pharisees by saying twice, “Have ye not
read?” Did he imagine that they had left any part of the Psalms or Law
unread? Now he assails them again with the
charge of ignorance of the meaning of a passage
from the prophets: “If ye had known what this meaneth.” Then he quotes from Hosea 6:6, which he had used against them
before. (See Chapter 9:13) “I will have mercy, and not
sacrifice.” There must be very much in this
word of the prophet to make it so great a favorite with our Lord. God
preferred that his priests should rather give the consecrated shewbread to
David as an act of mercy, than keep it sacred to its use: he would rather
that the disciples should spend a few minutes in plucking ears of corn for
their hunger than suffer faintness in order to preserve the sanctity of the
day. Having thus the permit of the Lord himself, those who allowed the
merciful act of removing hunger were guiltless, and ought not to be
condemned. Indeed, they would not have been condemned had their critics been
better instructed. Works of mercy are lawful on the Sabbath.
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Sunday, June 11th
June 11
MATTHEW 12:1-13
OUR KING AS LORD OF THE SABBATH
8. For the
Son of man is lord even of the sabbath day.
This sets the whole matter beyond further question. “The Son of man,” Christ Jesus, being in union with the Godhead, “is Lord” of everything which lies in the range of
that law which concerns God and man, seeing he is Mediator; and therefore he
may arrange and dispose of Sabbaths as he pleases. He has done so, and has
interpreted the Sabbatical law, not with license, but with a sweet
reasonableness that the more rigid of what religionists do not exhibit. From
Jesus example and teaching we learn that the Sabbath is not profaned by works
of necessity, piety or mercy; and that we need not care for the sharp
speeches of hypercritical formalists who strain the Sabbatical law and make a
bondage of that which was intended to be a season of holy rest.
9. And when
he was departed thence, he went into their synagogue.
The time arrived when the Sabbath question came up again
in reference to our Lord’s own work among the sick and diseased. Jesus set
the example of attending public worship. The synagogues had no divine
appointment to authorize them, but in the nature of things it must be right
and good to meet for the worship of God on his own day, and therefore Jesus
was there. He had nothing to learn, yet he went up to the assembly on the day
which the Lord God had hallowed.
10. And,
behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him,
saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him.
The incident was noteworthy, and therefore it is
mentioned with a “behold.” It was
remarkable that so very soon a case occurred to bring up again the matter in dispute. Did the Pharisees bring
the man with the withered hand into the synagogue so as to raise the question in a
practical form? They went to the synagogue to indulge their bigotry and not
to worship: it is to be feared that many in these days imitate then, before
our Lord made any motion towards a miracle, they were at him with what they
hoped would prove an entangling question. “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath days?” He had claimed to be Lord of the Sabbath; and now they,
with much show of fairness, submit a difficulty to him, but it was with a
base purpose.
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Monday, June12th
June
12
MATTHEW 12:1-13
OUR KING AS LORD OF THE
SABBATH
In the moral character of questioning, everything depends
upon the motive they did not ask that they might learn from him, but “that
they might accuse him.” They were on the catch; yet they took nothing by
their malicious craft.
11, 12. And he said unto them, What man shall there
be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the
Sabbath day, will he not lay hold of, it, and lift it out? How much then is a
man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath
days.
He answers their question by another. He propounds a
case, and makes them to be judges in it. If a poor man, with “one sheep” saw it fall “into a pit” or become cast on its back “on
the Sabbath” would he not “lay hold on it, and lift it out” And
set it on its feet? Of course he would; and he would be right in so doing.
How much then is a man better than a sheep? Therefore
it is and must be right to heal a man. Alas, some act as if a man were not
better than an animal; for their dogs and horses are better housed than their
laborers, and they are more indignant about the killing of a fox than at the
starving of a pauper. Our Lord’s argument was overwhelming. One form of human
kindness being proved to be right, the whole class of beneficent actions is
admitted, and “it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath days.” One
wonders that anybody ever thought otherwise. But zeal for externals, and
hatred of spiritual religion, when united, create a narrow bigotry as cruel
as it is ridiculous. Our Lord has set us free from the Rabbinical yoke, and
we find rest unto our souls in a true spiritual Sabbath. Let none, however,
from this liberty, infer a license, and treat the Lord’s day as if it were
their own, and might be spent for their own purposes. They best keep the
Sabbath who on the seventh day, and always, rest from their own works, as God
did from his; but how can a man rest until he knows the finished work of God
in Christ Jesus?
13. Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine
hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the
other.
Thus our Lord practically carried out his own teaching.
He that could work a miracle of this sort was divine, and could rightly
interpret his own law.
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Tuesday, June13th
June 13
MATTHEW 12:1-13
OUR KING AS LORD OF THE SABBATH
The man was sitting down, and Jesus bade him stand up
that all might observe him; and then he further bade him hold up his hand so
that all could see its lifeless condition. It does not appear that his arm
was withered, as some have supposed; but he was able, by the use of his arm
to hold out his hand to public view. This being done, the Lord restored it at
once, before the whole synagogue, and before the critical Pharisees. The man
stretched out each finger perfectly restored to its natural vigor. The poor
man had hidden his hand when it was dried up; but when restored, it was meet
that it should be seen by all in the synagogue. By that restored hand, made
whole on the Sabbath, all men knew that Jesus would work deeds of mercy on
the Sabbath. Let us pray him to do the same in our assemblies. Oh, that the
hands which have been useless for holy purposes may at his bidding become
whole! Oh, that those who are bidden to believe and live would cease from
questioning, and obey, as this man did; then would healing his surely come to
them, as it did to the obedient man!
MATTHEW 12:14-21
OUR KING IN THE MAJESTY OF HIS
PEACEFULNESS
14. Then the
Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy
him.
The synagogue was too hot for the Pharisees, and so they went out. Utterly routed, they retire from
public gaze, hating the man who had so completely baffled them. They could
not silence him, and so they would slay him. Those who begin with seeking to
accuse the Lord soon come to seeking to destroy him. It was not easy to touch one who lived so much in the esteem of the
people, and so they consulted together as to the safest method of procedure.
Their killing of Jesus was indeed the result of malice aforethought, for they
deliberately planned their cruel deed. Men at this hour still take counsel “against
him.” The present calculating attacks of
skeptics upon the gospel have a special degree of crime in them.
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Wednesday, June 14th
June
14
MATTHEW 12:14-21
OUR KING IN THE MAJESTY OF HIS
PEACEFULNESS
15, 16. But
when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes
followed him, and he healed them, all; and charged them, that they should not
make him known.
Their secret counsels were all discerned by his
omniscience: Jesus knew it. He acted
accordingly. He came not to contend with critics; therefore he withdrew
himself from the
scene of their perpetual disputations. But he could not get alone; the crowd
flocked after him, and his love could not refuse to bless them with healing.
He did not want to create an excitement, and so, when the people gathered in
multitudes, he commanded them not to advertise his presence. To him
popularity became a hindrance in his work, and he shunned it. In this
avoidance of notoriety he fulfilled an ancient prophecy. We are under no
charge to conceal his gracious wonders, and therefore we would joyfully
enlarge upon that glorious record, “He healed them all.” What an encouragement to sin-sick souls to push to him!
17-19. That
it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Behold
my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased:
I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles. He
shall not strive, nor cry, neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.
It is in Isaiah 42:1-4 that we read words which are
quoted in their full sense, if not literally, by the Evangelist. The Servant of God, elect, beloved, and delight some to the Lord,
clothed with the Spirit of God, would come forth, and reveal the Lord’s mind
to the nations; but it would not be with tumult and turmoil, noise and
clamor. To avoid contention and ostentation, our Lord quieted those whom he
had healed, or at least charged them not to make him known. Our Lord did not
aim at raising himself in the esteem of the multitude by successfully
contending with the Pharisees; for his method was of another sort. The names
given to the Savior here are exceedingly precious, and worthy of our careful
meditation, and especially so in connection with the passage in Isaiah. Jesus
is the chosen of Jehovah, ordained to be his servant, beloved in that
capacity, and well pleasing to his Father.
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Thursday, June 15th
June 15
MATTHEW 12:14-21
OUR KING IN THE MAJESTY
OF HIS PEACEFULNESS
The power of this beloved Servant of God would lie in the
divine Spirit, in the doctrine which he would teach, and in the law which he
would proclaim; his whole life being a judging and condemnation of sin before
the eyes of all men. Not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the
Lord, and the force of truth, would he prevail. The wrath of man in hot
controversy, the frenzy of wild rhetoric, the torrent of popular declamation
all these he left to mere pretenders: he disdained such weapons in
establishing his Kingdom. Many of his followers have taken an opposite
course, and are much enamored of clamorous and blatant methods: in this they
will yet find that they are not well pleasing to the Lord.
20. A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking
flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
He left the bruised Pharisaic presence to prove its own
impotence, it was not at that time worth his while to break it, and the
smoking flax of a nominal religiousness he passed by,
and left all dealing with it till another day, when the hour should come to
end its offensiveness. He will in the end victoriously judge those hypocrites
who were useless as bruised reeds, and offensive as smoking flax; but he would
not do this during his first mission to men. He is in no haste to destroy
every petty opposition. This I take to be the exact sense of the words in
this connection; but as the passage is popularly received; it is equally
true, and much richer in consolation. The feeblest are not disdained by our
Lord Jesus. Though apparently useless as a bruised reed, or even actually
offensive as an smoking flax. He is gentle, and exercises no harsh severity.
He bears and forbears with those who are unlovely in his eyes. He longs to
bind up the broken reed, and fan the smoking, flax into flaming life. Oh,
that, poor sinners would remember this, and trust him!
21. And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.
Because he is so kind, the despised Gentile dogs shall
come and crouch at his feet and love him as their Master. He shall be the
hope of those who were left as hopeless. Our Lord’s disdain for popularity,
and his avoiding antagonism, thus proved him to be the Messiah of the
prophets.
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Friday, June 16th
June
16
MATTHEW 12:22-37
OUR KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
22. Then was brought unto him one possessed with a
devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb
both spake and saw.
It is well when men take to bringing others to Jesus:
good is sure to come of it. An extraordinary case exhibited a novel form of
the handicraft of Satan. The evil spirit had secured himself by stopping up
the windows and the door of the soul, the victim was blind and dumb. How could he escape? He could not see his Savior, nor cry to
him. But the dumb devil vanished when, in an instant, Jesus dislodged the
demon: “the blind and dumb both spake and saw.” When Satan is
dethroned, the spiritual faculties begin to work at once. Nothing baffles our
Lord. Men who neither see their sin, nor cry for mercy, his grace can save.
Lord, be with us when we preach, and cast out devils by thy Word; then shall
moral inability be succeeded by gracious health.
23. And all the people were amazed, and said, Is
not this the son of David?
Again and again we have noticed their astonishment; and
here a question was asked which may have been the footfall of coming faith in
many. “Is he? He cannot be; he must be; but is he? Is this the Son of David?”
There were various voices, yet the people were one in their wonderment: all
the people were amazed!
24. But when the Pharisees heard it, they said,
This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the
devils.
This was their former concoction it was old and stale,
yet for lack of a better or more bitter suggestion, they stick to it. Our
Lord was too busy to reply to the vile slander on its first appearance
(Matthew 9:34); or perhaps he so loathed it that he would not touch it, but
left the abominable thing to poison itself with its own venom. Now they bring
it out again, and come to minutest detail by mentioning Beelzebub as the name of the prince of the devils, with who he was in league. Lies grow as they move on. Those who
doubt God’s work in the conversion of sinners, soon advance in audacity, and
ascribe the blessed change to hypocrisy, self-interest, madness, or some
other evil influence.
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Saturday, June 17th
June 17
MATTHEW
12:22-37
OUR KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
25, 26. And
Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against
itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against
itself shall not stand: and if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against
himself; how shall then his kingdom stand?
The Thought-Reader meets them with an argument in the
highest degree overwhelming them by reducing their statement to absurdity.
Imagine Satan divided against Satan, and his kingdom thus rent with civil
war! No, whatever faults the devils have, they are not at strife with each
other; that fault is reserved for the servants of a better Master. Oh, that,
divisions in the church were not so many, and so desolating as they are! It would
be a very hopeful circumstance if we could hear of divisions among the powers
of darkness; for then would Satan’s kingdom fall. No, ye cunning Pharisees;
your slanderous suggestion is too manifestly a lie, and reasonable men are
not to be entrapped by it!
27. And if I
by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out?
therefore they shall be your judges.
Our Lord here used an argument fitted for the men he dealt with. It
was not so forcible in itself as the former one, but as an argument to them
it would come home with singular force. Some of the disciples of the
Pharisees, and probably some of their children, acted as exorcists; and,
whether truly or falsely, professed to cast out devils. If Jesus wrought this marvel by Beelzebub, and the Pharisees had made
that discovery, how could they have learned it better than from their own
sons? Did their sons have dealings with the demon-prince? This would impale
them on the horns of a dilemma, and prevent their uttering that malicious invention
again, for the sake of their own friends.
28. But if I
cast out devils by the Spirit of God then the kingdom of God is come
unto you.
Our Lord in effect says - If I cast out devils by the Spirit of God,
then is a new era begun: the divine power
has come into distinct conflict with the evil one, and is manifestly
victorious. In my person is “the kingdom of God” inaugurated,
and you are placed in a position of gracious advantage by my being among you.
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Sunday, June 18th
June
18
MATTHEW
12:22-37
OUR
KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
If the demons are not cast out by the Spirit of God then
the throne of God is not among you, and you are grievous losers. The
overthrow of evil is a clear proof that the kingdom of grace has come. Note
that, though our Lord had power all his own, he honored the Spirit of God,
and worked by his energy, and mentioned the fact that he did so. What can we
do without that Spirit? Lord God the Holy Spirit, teach us to wait on thee!
29. Or else-how
can one enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he first
bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house.
The devil is the strong man, the giant robber. He holds men in
possession as a warrior hordes his property. There is no getting his goods
from him without first encountering himself. The bare
idea of spoiling him while you are his friend, or he is unsubdued, is
ridiculous. Our Lord, when his work began, bound Satan: the presence of God
in human flesh was a restraint upon man’s foe. Having bound the enemy, he now
takes out of his house those spoils that else had been for ever in his
possession. There is no deliverance for us save by our Lord’s victory over
our powerful tyrant. Glory to his name, he has bound the mighty, and he takes
from him his prey! This was our Lord’s fair and self evident explanation of
the matter concerning which the Pharisees theorized so basely.
30. He that
is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth
abroad.
Our Lord had made no compromise with Satan. Satan was not with him but against him. He meant to be equally
decisive in his dealings with all other parties.
Men must either come to his side, or be reckoned as his opponents; there can
be no middle ground. Jesus meant war with the great enemy, and with all that
sided with evil. Men would of necessity practically take sides: their actions
would tend to gather to him or to scatter from him. Jesus is the one and only
possible center of human unity; and whatever teaching does not unite men in
him, disperses them through selfishness, pride, hate, and a thousand other
disintegrating forces. Our King has thrown down the gauntlet, and he will
never accept truce or compromise. Lord, let me never hesitate, but be with
thee, and gather with thee.
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Monday, June
19th
June 19
MATTHEW
12:22-37
OUR
KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
31. Wherefore
I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men:
but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
Here is a solemn warning for these slanderous Pharisees:
the sin of reviling the Spirit of God, and imputing his work to Beelzebub, is
a very great one; and, in fact, so hardens the heart that men who are guilty
of it that they never repent, and consequently are never forgiven. Our Lord
let his opponents see whither they were drifting: they were on the verge of a
sin for which no pardon would be possible. We must be very tender in our
conduct towards “the Holy Ghost”; for
his honor has a special guard set about it by such a solemn text as this.
32. And
whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him:
but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him,
neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
Why should a word be spoken against Jesus? Yet many words are so
spoken, and he forgives. But when it comes to willfully confusing the Holy
Spirit with the evil spirit, the offense is rank and most hardening to the
heart. In no state of the divine economy was it ever possible to extend
forgiveness to one who willfully regarded God himself as in league with the
devil. This is spiritual death, and corruption of the most putrid kind. It is
no error, but a wicked, willful blasphemy of the Holy Spirit that dares to impute his works of grace and
power to a diabolical agency. He who is guilty of this crime has sinned
himself into a condition in which spiritual feeling is dead, and repentance has become morally impossible.
33. Either
make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree
corrupt, and its fruit corrupt: for the tree is
known by his fruit.
Still he argues with the Pharisees, and as good as says,
“Be consistent; accept me and my works, or reject me and my works; for by my
works only can you judge me. But do not admit the work to be a good one, and
then charge me with being in league with the devil in the doing of it. If I
were in league with the devil, I should do works such as the devil does, and
not works which shake his kingdom.” The expostulation is most powerful,
because it is founded in righteousness. We judge a tree by its fruits.
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Tuesday,
June 20th
June
20
MATTHEW
12:22-37
OUR
KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
34, 35. O
generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of
the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good
treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the
evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.
Our Lord accuses them of “being evil.”
He repeats John’s words, “O generation of vipers!” They had spoken evil: how could they do otherwise when
their hearts were so full of malice towards him? They had gone to the utmost
extreme of malevolence in charging him with being in league with Satan, and
that only showed what a treasure of evil lay within their hearts. They threw evil forth
with energy of temper, and with lavishness of falsehood, because they had
such a fullness of it within. That which is in the well comes up in the
bucket. The heart betrays itself through the mouth. Had they been good, their
words would have been good; but such was their baseness of heart, that they
could not “speak good things.” Thus
our Lord carried the war into their territory, and flashed holy indignation
in their faces.
36, 37. But I
say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give
account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be
justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
They might think that they had done no great wrong when
they scattered their black phrases among the people: they had only given
their opinion with more or less of levity; at the worst, they had only spoken
“idle
words.” Thus
they would make light of what they had done now that the Lord had most
completely crushed them. But our Lord drives them out of this retreat. He
deals strictly with such gross offenders. Words are to be accounted for at
the last great day. Words prove men just, or worthy of condemnation. Their
very works may be judged by their words. There is a something very
heart-revealing about men’s language, and especially about those words which
spring from deep seated passion. We may, when we are convicted of unjust
speech, shield ourselves behind the notion that our bark was worse than our
bite, and that we merely said hardly meant it to be taken so seriously; but
the plea will not avail us. We must mind what we say about godly men, and
especially about their Lord.
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Wednesday,
June 21st
June 21
MATTHEW
12:22-37
OUR
KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
Libelous words will live, and will be swift witnesses
against us in the Day of Judgment, when
we shall find that they were all recorded in the book of God. Surely this
business of charging the Lord Jesus with being in league with Satan was
never likely to be heard of again while he lived! He had silenced that form
of slander once for all, as far as the Pharisees were concerned. Dear Master,
help me to bridle my tongue, that I be not found guilty of idle words; and teach me when to speak, that I may keep equally clear of
idle silence.
MATTHEW
12:38-42
OUR KING CHALLENGED TO GIVE A SIGN
38, 39. Then
certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we
would see a sign from thee. But he answered and said unto them, An evil and
adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given
to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas.
The Pharisees change their manner, but they are in
pursuit of the same object. How hopeless had the religionists of that age
become! Nothing would convince them. They manifest their hate of the Lord
Jesus, by ignoring all the wonders he had wrought. What further signs could
they seek than those he had already given? Petty inquirers these! They treat
all the miracles of our Lord as if they had never occurred. Well might the
Lord call them “evil and adulterous” since they were so given to personal lasciviousness, and were
spiritually so untrue to God. We have those among us now who lack candidness
as to treat all the achievements of evangelical doctrine as if they were
nothing, and talk to us as if no result had followed the preaching of the
gospel. There is need of great patience to deal wisely with such.
40. For as
Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son
of man he three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The great sign of our Lord’s mission is his resurrection
and his preparing gospel of salvation for the heathen. His life-story is well
symbolized by that of Jonah. They cast our Lord
overboard, even as the sailors did the man of God.
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Thursday,
June 22nd
June 22
MATTHEW
12:38-42
OUR
KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
The sacrifice of Jonah calmed the sea for the mariners;
our Lord’s death made peace for us. Our Lord was a while in the heart of the
earth as Jonah in the depth of the sea; but he rose again, and his ministry
was full of the power of his resurrection. As Jonah’s ministry was certified
by his restoration from the sea, so is our Lord’s ministry attested by his
rising from the dead. The man who had come back from death and burial in the
sea commanded the attention of all Nineveh, and so does the risen Savior
demand and deserve the obedient faith of all to whom his message comes.
41. The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and
shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and,
behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
The heathen of Nineveh were convinced by the sign of a prophet
restored from burial in the sea; and moved and convinced, they repented at
his preaching. Without procrastinating or delay they put the whole city in
mourning, and pleaded with God to turn from his anger. Jesus came with a
clearer command of repentance and a brighter promise of deliverance; but he
spoke to obstinate hearts. Our Lord reminds the Pharisees of this; and as
they were the most Jewish of Jews, they were touched to the quick by the fact
that heathens perceived what Israel did not understand, and that Ninevites
repented while Jews were hardened. All men will rise at the judgment: “The
men of Nineveh shall rise.” The lives of penitents will condemn
those who did not repent: the Ninevites will condemn the Jews, “because
they repented at the preaching of Jonas,” and the Jews did not. Those who
heard Jonah and repented will be swift witnesses against those who heard
Jesus and refused his testimony. The standing witness to our Lord is his
resurrection from the dead. God grant that every one of us, believing that
unquestionable fact, may be so assured of his mission that we might repent
and believe the gospel. RESURRECTION is one proof; in fact, it is THE SIGN;
although, as we shall see, it is supplemented by another. The two will
convince us or condemn us.
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Friday, April 23rd
June 23
MATTHEW
12:38-42
OUR
KING AND THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
42. The
queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and
shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear
the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than
Solomon is here.
The second sign of our Lord’s mission is HIS KINGLY
WISDOM. As the fame of Solomon brought the
queen of the south from the uttermost parts of the earth, so does the doctrine of our Lord command attention from
the utmost isles of the sea. If Israel perceives not his glorious wisdom,
Ethiopia and Sheba shall hear of it, and come bowing before him. The queen of
Sheba will rise again, and will rise up as a
witness against unbelieving Jews; for she
journeyed far to hear Solomon, while they would not hear the Son of God
himself who came into their midst. The superlative excellence of his wisdom
stands for our Lord as a sign, which can never be effectively disputed. What
other teaching meets all the wants of men? Who else has revealed such grace
and truth? He is infinitely greater than Solomon, who from a moral point of
new exhibited a sorrowful littleness. Who but the Son of God could have made
known the Father as he has done?
MATTHEW
12:43-45
OUR
KING UNVEILING THE TACTICS
OF
THE ARCH-ENEMY
Our Lord was mindful to deal a finishing stroke to the
notion of his being aided by Satanic co-operation, by returning to his
parable (verse 29), and declaring that, even if the contingency should occur
of the evil spirit leaving a man of its own accord, the man would be none the
more a subject of hope; for the enemy would return before long.
43. When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he
walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.
Well is the devil named “the unclean spirit”
he loves that which is foul, and makes the
man in whom he dwells filthy in heart. In the incident described above, the
devil has been in possession of a man and he is gone out for purposes
of his own. He has quitted the man of his own
accord, without conflict of any kind.
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Saturday, June 24th
June 24
MATTHEW
12:43-45
OUR
KING UNVEILING THE TACTICS
OF
THE ARCH-ENEMY
This is a case that frequently occurs:
the devil does in this way leave the madly immoral to become decent and
orderly. The crafty spirit takes the key of the house with him, for he means
to return. He has quitted occupancy, but has not given up ownership. He has
gone out that he might not be turned out. Who can understand the subtlety of
the old serpent? The evil spirit is, however, uneasy when he is not ruling a
human mind. He wanders seeking rest and finding none He finds nothing to
cheer him on this earth, or in heaven, or in hell; these are all dry places
to him. Within the sinful heart he was at home, and found some little
content; but outside in nature he finds a desert for his unclean desires. “Every
prospect pleases And only man is vile!” And hence only man affords a
suitable lodging for the vile spirit.
44. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I
came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.
The foul fiend calls the man, “My house.”
His audacity is amazing. He did not build or buy that house. He speaks of his
leaving the man as a mere coming out: “I came out.” He says, as if it were an easy matter, “I will
return.” Evidently he considers that he has the
freehold of man’s nature, and can go and come at his pleasure. If Satan quits
a man of his own will he is sure to return just when it suits his purpose.
Only the divine force that ejects him can secure his non-return. Reformations
that are not the work of conquering grace are usually temporary, and often
lead up to a worse condition in after years. The unclean spirit returns, “and
when he is come, he findeth it empty” no one
else has taken possession, and so no one hinders his entrance into his own tenement.
It is true it is swept from certain grosser sins, and garnished with some pretty moralities; but the Holy Spirit is not
there, and no divine change has been wrought, and therefore the unclean
spirit is as much at home there as ever he was. The parable needs no further
explanation. The demon has no objection to his house being swept and
garnished; for a moralist may be as truly his slave as the man of debauched
habits. So long as the heart is not occupied by his great foe, and he can use
the man for his own purposes, the adversary of souls will let him reform as
much as he pleases.
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Sunday, June 25th
June 25
MATTHEW
12:43-45
OUR
KING UNVEILING THE TACTICS
OF
THE ARCH-ENEMY
45. Then
goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than
himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is
worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.
He takes another walk; he is so pleased with his elegant mansion that
he calls upon other demons and invites them to his garnished home. The evil
ones join him, and the inhabitants of the house are as eight to one of their
former number. They “enter in and dwell there” they take the fullest
possession and make a permanent stay. Their residence is secured beyond
future likelihood of removal; and now the man is worse than at the first; for
the unclean spirits are more numerous and more wicked. The sinful man becomes more proud, and more unbelieving, or
he becomes more vicious and more blasphemous than at the beginning. So much
for a hopeful reformation, which indeed from the very first was hopeless,
because Jesus was not there, and the Holy Spirit had no hand in it. Cunningly
the unclean spirit submits to an apparent giving up of power that he may
establish his dominion the more firmly. No doubt, relapses into sin are, like
relapses in disease, even more dangerous than the original malady. In
Christ’s day the Pharisees and others were in this case. The spirit which led
the Jews to idolatry was gone, but the true God was not spiritually loved nor
even known; and so the demoniac power held them still in possession. In the
future, even in that wicked generation, in the form of hatred to Christ.
Fanatical contempt of other nations, the evil spirit which had depraved
Judaism, would yet display itself in a still more hideous shape; as it did
from our Lord’s day and onward till the destruction of Jerusalem, when the
race seemed to have gone fairly mad, under a diabolical influence which made
them “hateful, and hating one another.” We may fear that our present
age of “culture” and advancement will go onward till it reaches a similar
goal. It is progressing towards infidelity, and advancing towards absurdity;
while at the same time worldliness is rampant, and holiness is ridiculed.
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Monday, June 26th
June 26
MATTHEW
12:46-50
OUR KING AND HIS EARTHLY RELATIVES
46. While he
yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and brethren stood without,
desiring to speak with him.
The members of his family had come to take him, because
they thought him beside himself. No doubt the Pharisees had so represented
his ministry to his relatives that they thought they had better restrain him,
lest he should procure his own destruction by his zealous preaching. Friends
may be a good man’s greatest hindrance. They intruded upon his holy service “while he yet talked to the people.” A mark
of wonder is put before this record: “Behold.” How
dare they act in this manner? By the request of his mother and his brethren
he is called away from the pressing
engagement of teaching the people, which was his urgent lifework; but the
call had no power over him. What ailed Mary that she joined in this transaction?
Many a nervous mother has been ready to hold back her consecrated son when
his courage has defied danger. Our Lord did not allow his love to his mother
to turn him aside.
47. Then one
said unto him, Behold thy mother and thy brethren stand without desiring to
speak with thee.
An officious person reported the errand of the family: one said unto
him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without. It is hard when
interruptions come from our own flesh and blood; for strangers are sure to
back them up. Ignorantly or willfully, the reporting person lent himself to
the design of the relatives by representing that they were desiring to speak
with him; though, indeed, they desired to take him.
He who would not permit a disciple to neglect his duty on the plea of burying
his father, how will he act now that his mother comes to hinder him? He will
do the right thing. We may always find the rule of our conduct by asking the
question, “What would Jesus do?”
48, 49. But
he answered and said unto 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!
He does not reject the tender ties of
his human nature, but he exhibits their true position as secondary to the
spiritual bonds that united him to the spiritual family.
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Tuesday, June 27th
June 27
MATTHEW
12:46-50
OUR
KING AND HIS EARTHLY RELATIVES
Those who were related to him by the bonds of
discipleship had in this the truest union with him. He pointed to “his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and
my brethren!” All believers in Jesus are of the
royal family, princes of the blood, brothers of the Christ. See how he owns
the affinity, and bids all know it, “He is not ashamed to call them
brethren.” In this instance his method of acknowledging them was
singularly striking; he even set them before his earthly mother and brethren.
Lord, let us know and enjoy our nearness to thy self. Help us also to care
for thee as a mother for her son, and to love thee as a man should love his
own brother.
50. For
whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my
brother, and sister, and mother.
He enlarges upon the truth. Every doer of the Father’s will is
thereby proved to be a true disciple, and he is to Jesus as near as a
brother, as dear as a sister, as much cared for as mother. According to our
condition and capacity, let us act towards our Lord the part of brother in
help, of sister in sympathy, of mother in tender love; for all these
relationships act in both ways, and involve giving as well as receiving. What
a blessed “whosoever” is this! It is not for ministers only, or for
persons set apart to special service; but all who do the Father’s will in any position of life are encompassed in the
family circle of the Lord Christ. Our Lord Jesus had a little while before
cut himself adrift from the bands of formality by routing the scribes and
Pharisees, and now the knife goes deeper, and all that is of the flesh at its
very best is divided from that which is of the spirit. Henceforth it is clear
that after the flesh he knows no man any more; neither can we hope to know
him by birth-right membership, or anything else that is of blood, or birth,
or of the will of the flesh. The inner life which is akin to God, and shows
itself in holiness, is that which gives us union with our Lord. Oh, to feel
its influence more and more!
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Wednesday, June
28th
June 28
MATTHEW 13:1-53
OUR
KING SETS FORTH SEVEN PARABLES
OF HIS KINGDOM
1. The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by
the sea side.
He was not afraid of being seized by his family, but
freely went abroad. How serene was his behavior. He “sat by the sea side”: this
must have been a great relief to him. He ceased from the controversy of the
house and the street, and came into restful communion with nature. On the
beach, in the open air, he gave greater play to his imagination, and quitted
the didactic style for the parabolical.
2. And great
multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that be went into a ship, and
sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.
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