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expressly as their true peace-maker with God, the Lamb of God typified or pointed out in the lambs that were offered up in sacrifice according to the law of Moses, and even from the time of Abel; the true sacrifice who should take away the sin of the world.

E. But, Mamma, do you think the people knew what John the Baptist meant when he spoke of the Lamb of God?

M. I think there must have been many around him who quite understood that he was speaking of the long promised Redeemer. You must remember that for many hundreds of years the Jews had been in the daily habit of offering up a lamb to the Lord, morning and evening, as a sacrifice for His people Israel. Thousands and tens of thousands of lambs had thus been offered; and in them every faithful Jew had learnt to see a type of a far more holy and precious sacrifice one day to be offered for the sins of the world. But above all the paschal lamb, which was solemnly offered up once a year at the Passover, would keep the Jews in mind of some great sacrifice for sin which the holiness of God required, and which the merciful wisdom of God should in due time provide :' as was even before the law more strikingly intimated to Abraham, when he offered up his only son in the place called "Jehovah Jireh," that is, "the Lord will see or provide." The words therefore which John spoke would be plain and easy to be understood by all who were inclined to believe them, and most welcome to all who felt their need of such a sacrifice: such persons would see at once in this Lamb of God whom John pointed out to them, that precious Saviour who had been promised from the beginning of the world.

It was to his blood that the baptism of John was intended to lead the thoughts of the people. More than once did the Baptist thus speak of Christ, as the Lamb of God; for it was his humble and holy delight not to seek his own glory, but that of the Son of God; to send men from himself to his divine Lord; yea, even to send away his own disciples, that they might become followers of Christ. John well knew that neither he nor they could find salvation any where but in Him; for there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we may be saved, but only the name of Christ Jesus our Lord. If John the Baptist looked for pardon only to the Lamb of God, how much more should his disciples, and how much more should we, Edward, place our hopes of forgiveness in Him, and in Him alone!

See Mark i. 1-11. Matt. iii. Luke iii. 1-22. John i. 19-36.

EIGHTH SUNDAY EVENING.

OUR LORD TEMPTED IN THE WILDERNESS.

M. You will remember, Edward, that, in our last conversation, we noticed that our blessed Lord, immediately after His baptism by John, was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted of the Devil. We did not at the time stop to enter into that most extraordinary and mysterious event in our Redeemer's history, but went on to show how the Baptist bore witness to Christ, first to the Jews at Jordan, and then to his own disciples, after our Saviour's return from the wilderness.

E. Do you mean when John saw Jesus coming, and said to his disciples, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world?"

M. I do; and now I must take you back to the account of the Temptation which the Gospels contain, and in which, though so strange a transaction, we shall find much to instruct, as well as interest us.

There is, you know, my child, a great enemy of the human race, called Satan, or the Devil; who is said in Scripture to go about "like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." He it was, who, in the form of a serpent, tempted our first parents, and brought death into the world; whence he is called "that old serpent," "the father of lies," and "a murderer from the beginning." He it is who still prompts the wicked to do evil, and tempts the righteous to forsake the commandments of their God. One main object of our Lord's coming into the world was to destroy the works of this evil spirit, and, as it was said of him in prophecy, to bruise the head of the serpent, who had wrought so much evil in a world which God made at first "very good." We need not therefore be surprised to find that the first thing related of our blessed deliverer, after His baptism in Jordan, should be an awful conflict with our great spiritual enemy. Up to this hour, the temptations of the evil one had been but too successful with mankind. Thousands, Edward, nay millions had sunk under them; and but few had passed through them unhurt. But it was not to be always so. Man at length, in the person of Jesus Christ, was to triumph over the tempter. Our Lord is led into the wilderness to be tempted; and it is the Spirit of God that leads Him thither. What created

spirit, however subtle, shall dare to make trial of his wiles in such a case, against such a Being? Yet so great was the malice of Satan, that he ventured to assail even the Son and the Spirit of God! It is an awful history, my child, and one to make us tremble as we read: but it may be a most profitable one, if it only teach us to fear as we ought this dreadful being, to watch lest he obtain possession of our hearts, to fight manfully against the temptations which he throws in our way, and to engage in our behalf the help of that gracious Saviour who underwent for our sakes this conflict with him.

We said that he ventured to assail the Son of God! but it was only ignorantly, or madly, to rush on to his own confusion. For none but God, and those who are taught of Him, are truly wise. The most crafty of wicked beings do in reality pursue a course not less foolish than it is evil. Satan proceeds to tempt even the Son of God. And here I would have you observe that neither the greatest privileges, nor the highest degrees of holiness save men from trial. Neither His own purity, nor the Holy Ghost descending visibly upon Him, nor the voice of the Father declaring Him to be His "beloved Son" exempted our Lord from being tempted. How then can His followers expect to escape? All those circumstances which would seem to us to cast a shield around the person of the Redeemer rather provoke, than overawe the hatred of Satan. They lead to the conflict, instead of preserving Him from it. The glorious baptism of Jesus is followed immediately by His long and trying temptation!

For our Saviour remained in the wilderness forty days, being, during the whole of that time, as St. Luke

relates, "tempted of the devil." In what this part of the temptation consisted, we are not told. All we know is, that He was in the midst of wild beasts; which the tempter perhaps might make use of to terrify our Lord; and that, during the whole forty days, He fasted, or abstained from all food.

E. That is what Moses did, Mamma, and Elijah too, in the wilderness of Arabia.

M. You are quite right: both these distinguished servants of God were wonderfully supported by the divine power, or, as our Saviour has expressed it," by the word of God," without having recourse to meat or drink for forty days and forty nights. But their fasting was a very different thing from His. They fasted, in order to prepare themselves for more than usual communion or intercourse with the blessed Fountain of all good, for a great and glorious display, such as they had never been privileged to behold before, of the glorious majesty of the Almighty. When Moses fasted, you know he was in the mount with God, and was allowed to behold all "His glory pass before him :" and so it was with Elijah, who on the same mountain was admitted to the same high privilege.

The fasting of Christ, on the other hand, was followed by an awful conflict with the great enemy of God and man; and He used prayer and fasting, and afterwards recommended His disciples to do the same, as the best weapons that could be employed against him; the best means of obtaining, through communion with God, that spiritual strength, by which we may withstand and overcome the wicked one.

When the forty days were ended, Jesus "was an

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