Christmas Evans Part 24

"His _honours_ are mine. I have an indisputable right to the homage of all created intelligences. I inhabit the praises of Eternity. Before the foundation of the world, I was the object of angelic adoration; and when I became incarnate as a Saviour, the Father published His decree in heaven, saying-'Let all the angels of G.o.d worship Him!' It is His will, also, that all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father-in the same manner, and the same degree. He that honoureth the Son, honoureth the Father; and he that honoureth not the Son, honoureth not the Father: for I and my Father are one-one in honour-possessing joint interest, and authority.

"His _attributes_ are mine. Though as man, and Mediator I am inferior to the Father; yet my nature is no more inferior to His, than the nature of the Prince of Wales is inferior to the nature of the King of England.

You see me clothed in humanity; but, in my original state, I thought it not robbery to be equal with G.o.d. I was in the beginning with G.o.d, and possessed the same eternity of being. Like Him, I am almighty, omniscient, and immutable; infinite in holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. All these attributes, with every other possible perfection, belong to me, in the same sense as they belong to the Father. They are absolute, and independent, underived, and unoriginated-the essential qualities of my nature.

"His _riches of grace_ are mine. I am the Mediator of the new covenant-the Channel of my Father's mercies to mankind. I have the keys of the House of David, and the seal of the Kingdom of Heaven. I have come from the bosom of the Father, freighted with the precious treasures of His good will to men. I have sailed over the sea of tribulation, and death, to bring you the wealth of the other world. I am the Father's Messenger, publishing peace on earth-a peace which I have purchased with my own blood upon the cross. It has pleased the Father that in me all fulness should dwell-all fulness of wisdom, and grace-whatever is necessary for the justification, sanctification, and redemption of them that believe. My Father, and I are one, in the work of salvation, as in the work of creation. We have the same will, and the same intention of mercy toward the children of the great captivity.

"The _objects of His love_ are mine. He hath given them to me in an everlasting covenant. He hath given me the heathen for an inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for a possession. They were mine by the original right of creation; but now they are doubly mine, by the superadded claim of redemption. My Father, before the world was, gave me a charter of all the souls I would redeem. I have fulfilled the condition. I have poured out my soul unto death, and sealed the covenant with the blood of my cross. Therefore, all believers are mine. I have bought them with a price. I have redeemed them from the bondage of sin, and death. Their names are engraven on my hands, and my feet. They are written with the soldier's spear upon my heart. And of all that the Father hath given me, I will lose nothing. I will draw them all to myself; I will raise them up at the last day; and they shall be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory, which I had with the Father before the foundation of the world."

II. The Father and the Son are equally glorified in the economy of redemption, and the work of the Holy Spirit.

1. The Son glorifies the Father. I hear Him praying in the garden:-"Father, I have glorified Thee on earth; I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do." I hear Him, again, amidst the supernatural gloom of Calvary, with a voice that rings through the dominions of death, and h.e.l.l, crying-"It is finished!"

What mighty achievement hast Thou finished to-day, blessed Jesus? and how have Thine unknown agony, and shameful death glorified the Father?

"I have glorified the Father, by raising up those precious things which fell in Eden, and were lost in the abyss.

"I have raised up my Father's _law_. I found it cast down to the earth, and trampled into the dust. I have magnified, and found it honourable.

I have vindicated its authority in the sight of men, and angels. I have satisfied its demands on behalf of my redeemed, and become the end of the law for righteousness to all who will receive me as their surety.

"I have raised up my Father's _name_. I have declared it to my brethren.

I have manifested it to the men whom He has given me. I have given a new revelation of His character to the world. I have shown Him to sinners, as a just G.o.d, and a Saviour. I have restored His worship in purity, and spiritually upon earth. I have opened a new, and living way to His throne of grace. I have written the record of His mercy with my own blood upon the rocks of Calvary.

"I have raised up my Father's _image_. I have imprinted it afresh upon human nature, from which it was effaced by sin. I have displayed its excellence in my own character. I have pa.s.sed through the pollutions of the world, and the territory of death, without tarnishing its l.u.s.tre, or injuring its symmetry. Though my visage is marred with grief, and my back ploughed with scourges, and my hands, and feet nailed to the accursed cross, not one trace of my Father's image has been obliterated from my human soul. It is as perfect, and as spotless now as when I lay in the manger. I will carry it unstained with me into heaven. I will give a full description of it in my Gospel upon earth. I will change my people into the same image, from glory, to glory. I will also renovate, and transform their vile bodies, and fashion them like unto my own glorious body. I will ransom them from the power of the grave; and because I live, they shall live also-the counterpart of my own immaculate humanity-mirrors to reflect my Father's glory for ever."

2. The Father glorifies the Son. He prayed in the garden,-"And now, Father, glorify Thou me with Thine own self, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was." Was the pet.i.tion granted? Answer, ye Roman sentinels, who watched His sepulchre! Answer, ye men of Galilee, who gazed upon His chariot, as He ascended from the mount of Olives!

The glorification of the Son by the Father implies all the honours of His mediatorial office-all the crowns which He won by His victory over the powers of death, and h.e.l.l. The Father raised Him from the dead, and received Him up into glory, as a testimony of His acceptance as the sinner's Surety-an expression of perfect satisfaction with His vicarious sacrifice upon the cross. It was the just reward of His work; it was the fruit of His gracious travail. He is "crowned with glory and honour for the sufferings of death." "Because He hath poured out His soul unto death," therefore "G.o.d also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name that is above every name."

What an honour would it be to a man, to receive eight, or ten of the highest offices in the kingdom! Infinitely greater is the glory of Emmanuel. His name includes all the offices, and t.i.tles of the kingdom of heaven. The Father hath made Him "both Lord, and Christ"-that is, given Him the supreme prerogatives of government and salvation. "Him hath G.o.d exalted to be a prince and a Saviour, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins." He is "head over all things in the Church"-Prime Minister in the kingdom of heaven-Lord Treasurer, dispensing the bounties of Divine grace to mankind-Lord High-Chancellor of the Realm, and Keeper of the great Seal of the living G.o.d; holding in His hand the charter of our redemption, and certifying the authenticity of the Divine covenant-Lord Chief Justice of heaven, and earth, having all power, and authority to administer the laws of Providence throughout the universe-the chief Prince-the General of the army-the Captain of the Lord's host-the Champion who conquered Satan, sin, and death; bruising the head of the first, destroying the power of the second, and swallowing up the third in victory. He hath the keys of h.e.l.l, and of death. He shutteth, and no man openeth; He openeth, and no man shutteth. He bears all the honours of His Father's house; and concentrates in Himself all the glories of Supreme Divinity, redeemed humanity, and "mediator between G.o.d, and man."

3. The Holy Spirit glorifies Father and Son together. He is procured for the world by the blood of the Son, and sent into the world by the authority of the Father; so that both are alike represented in His mission, and equally glorified in His office. The gracious things which the Father gave into the hands of the Son, when He descended from heaven, the Son gave into the hands of the Spirit, when He returned to heaven.

"All things that the Father hath are mine; and He shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you."

This is the object of the Spirit's advent, the communication of the things of Christ to men. What are the things of Christ? His merit, His mercy, His image, His Gospel, His promises, all the gifts of His grace, all the treasures of His love, and all the immunities of eternal redemption. These the Father hath given to the Son, as the great Trustee of the Church; and the Son hath given them to the Spirit, as the appointed Agent of their communication.

A ship was laden in India, arrived safely in London, unloaded her precious cargo, and the goods were soon distributed all over the country, and offered for sale in a thousand stores. The Son of G.o.d brought immense riches of Divine grace from heaven to earth, which are all left to the disposal of the Holy Spirit, and freely proffered to the perishing, wherever the Gospel is preached.

The Holy Spirit came, not to construct a new engine of mercy, but to propel that already constructed by Christ. Its first revolution rent the rocks of Calvary, and shook the rocky hearts of men. Its second revolution demolished the throne of death, burst his prison-doors, and liberated many of his captives. Its third revolution carried its builder up into the Heaven of heavens, and brought down the Holy Spirit to move its machinery for ever. Its next revolution, under the impulse of this new Agent, was like "the rushing of a mighty wind" among the a.s.sembled disciples at Jerusalem, kindled a fire upon the head of every Christian, inspired them to speak all the languages of the babbling earth, and killed, and quickened three thousand souls of the hearers.

The Holy Spirit is still on earth, glorifying the Father, and the Son.

He convinces the world of sin. He leads men to Christ, through the rivers of corruption, the mountains of presumption, and the terrible bogs of despair, affording them no rest till they come to the city of refuge.

He continues on the field to bring up the rear; while the Captain of our Salvation, on His white horse, rides victorious in the van of battle. He strengthens the soldiers-"faint, yet pursuing!" raises the fallen; encourages the despondent; feeds them with the bread of life, and the new wine of the kingdom; and leads them on-"conquering and to conquer."

His work will not be finished till the resurrection. Then will He quicken our mortal bodies. Then will He light His candle, and sweep the house till He find every lost piece of silver. Then will He descend into the dark caves of death, and gather all the gems of redeemed humanity, and weave them into a crown for Emmanuel, and place that crown upon Emmanuel's head, amid the songs of the adoring seraphim!

Thus the Holy Spirit glorifies the Father, and the Son. Let us pray for the outpouring of His grace upon the Church. In proportion to His manifestation in our hearts, will be our "knowledge of the light of the glory of G.o.d in the face of Jesus Christ." Nor is this all; in proportion to the visitations of the Holy Spirit, will be the purity of our lives, the spirituality of our worship, the ardour of our zeal, and charity, and the extent of our usefulness to the cause of Christ. Would you see a revival of religion? pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon you, to sanctify your hearts, and lives, that your light may "so shine before men, that others may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."

"When thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, then thou shalt bestir thyself; for then the Lord shall go out before thee, to strike the hosts of the Philistines." Brethren, this is the time. The mulberry trees are shaking. G.o.d is going before His people, to prepare their way to victory. The hand of Divine Providence is opening a great, and effectual door for the Gospel. The mountains are levelled, the valleys are exalted, and a highway is cast up in the wilderness for our G.o.d. The arts of printing, and navigation, the increasing commerce of the world, the general prevalence of the Spirit of peace, the rapid march of literature and science, and the correspondence of eminent and leading men in every nation, are so many preparatives for the moral conquest of the world. The Captain of our Salvation, on the white horse of the Gospel, can now ride through Europe and America: and will soon lead forth His army, to take possession of Asia, and Africa.

The wings of the mighty angel are unbound, and he is flying in the midst of heaven.

Again: Christians are better informed concerning the moral state of the world than formerly. If my neighbour's house were on fire, and I knew nothing of it, I could not be blamed for rendering him no a.s.sistance; but who could be guiltless in beholding the building in flames, without an effort to rescue its occupants? Brethren, you have heard of the perishing heathen. You have heard of their dreadful superst.i.tions, their human sacrifices, and their abominable rites. You have heard of Juggernaut, and the River Ganges, and the murder of infants, and the immolation of widows, and the worship of idols, and demons. You know something of the delusion of Mohammedanism, the cruel, and degrading ignorance of Popery, and how millions around you are perishing for the lack of knowledge. Do you feel no solicitude for their souls-no desire to pluck them as brands from the burning?

What can we do? The Scriptures have been translated into nearly all the languages of the babbling earth. Missionaries have gone into many lands-have met the Indian in his wigwam, the African in his Devil's-bush, and the devotee on his way to Mecca. We can furnish more men for the field, and more money to sustain them. But these things cannot change, and renovate the human heart. "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord." This is the grand regenerating agency. He alone can convince and save the world. His aid is given in answer to prayer; and the Father is more ready to give than we are to ask.

Mr. Ward, one of the Baptist missionaries in India, in a missionary discourse at Bristol, said,-"Brethren, we need your money,-we need your prayers more." Oh, what encouragement we have to pray for our missionaries! Thus saith the Lord: "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring." Let us plead with G.o.d for the accomplishment of the promise, "Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, and give Him no rest till He make Jerusalem a praise in the whole earth."

Brethren in the ministry! let us remember that all our success depends upon the aid of the Holy Spirit, and let us pray constantly for His blessing upon the world! Brethren in the Church! forget not the connection between the work of the Holy Spirit and the glory of your Best Friend, and earnestly entreat Him to mingle His sanctifying unction with the treasures of Divine Truth contained in these earthern vessels!

"Finally, Brethren, pray for us; that the Word of the Lord may have free course and be glorified; and all the ends of the earth see the salvation of our G.o.d!"

SERMON V.

THE CEDAR OF G.o.d.

"_Thus saith the Lord G.o.d_: _I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar_, _and will set it_; _I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one_, _and plant it upon a high mountain and eminent_; _in the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it_: _and it shall bring forth boughs_, _and bear fruit_, _and be a goodly cedar_; _and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing_; _in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell_; _and all the trees of the field shall know that I_, _the Lord_, _have brought down the high tree_, _and have exalted the low tree-have dried up the green tree_, _and have made the dry tree to flourish_. _I_, _the Lord_, _have spoken_, _and I have done it_."-EZEKIEL xvii. 2224.

You perceive that our text abounds in the beautiful language of allegory.

In the context is portrayed the captivity of the children of Israel, and especially the carrying away of the royal family by the king of Babylon.

Here G.o.d promises to restore them to their own land, in greater prosperity than ever; and to raise up Messiah, the Branch, out of the house of David, to be their king. All this is presented in a glowing figurative style, dressed out in all the wealth of poetic imagery so peculiar to the Orientals. Nebuchadnezzar, the great eagle-the long-winged, full-feathered, embroidered eagle-is represented as coming to Lebanon, and taking the highest branch of the tallest cedar, bearing it off as the crow bears the acorn in its beak, and planting it in the land of traffic. The Lord G.o.d, in His turn, takes the highest branch of the same cedar, and plants it on the high mountain of Israel, where it flourishes and bears fruit, and the fowls of the air dwell under the shadow of its branches.

We will make a few general remarks on the character of the promise, and then pa.s.s to a more particular consideration of its import.

I. This is an _evangelical_ promise. It relates to the coming and kingdom of Messiah. Not one of the kings of Judah since the captivity, as Boothroyd well observes, answers to the description here given. Not one of them was a cedar whose branches could afford shadow, and shelter for all the fowls of heaven. But the prophecy receives its fulfilment in Christ, the Desire of all nations, to whom the ends of the earth shall come for salvation.

This prophecy bears a striking resemblance, in several particulars, to the parable of the mustard-seed, delivered by our Lord. "The mustard-seed," said Jesus, "is the least of all seeds; but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof." So the delicate twig of the young, and tender branch, becomes a goodly cedar, and under its shadow dwell all fowl, of every wing. The prophecy, and the parable are alike intended to represent the growth, and prosperity of Messiah's kingdom, and the gracious protection, and spiritual refreshment afforded to its subjects. Christ is the mustard plant, and cedar of G.o.d; and to Him shall the gathering of all the people be; and mult.i.tudes of pardoned sinners shall sit under His shadow, with great delight, and His fruit shall be sweet to their taste.

This prophecy is a promise of the true, and faithful, and immutable G.o.d.

It begins with-"Thus saith the Lord G.o.d, I will do thus and so;" and concludes with-"I, the Lord, have spoken, and I have done it." There is no peradventure with G.o.d. His Word is for ever settled in heaven, and cannot fail of its fulfilment. When He says, "I promise to pay," there is no failure, whatever the sum. The Bank of grace cannot break. It is the oldest and best in the universe. Its capital is infinite; its credit is infallible. The mighty G.o.d, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, is able to fulfil, to the utmost, all His engagements. He can do anything that does not imply a contradiction, or a moral absurdity. He could take upon Himself the form of a servant, and become obedient unto death, even the death of the cross; but we can never forget, or disregard, His promise, any more than He can cease to exist. His nature renders both impossible. Heaven, and earth shall pa.s.s away, but His word shall not pa.s.s away. Every jot, and t.i.ttle shall be fulfilled. This is the consolation of the Church. Here rested the patriarchs, and prophets.

Here reposes the faith of the saints, to the end of time. G.o.d abideth faithful; He cannot deny Himself. Our text is already partially verified in the advent of Christ, and the establishment of His Church; the continuous growth of the gospel kingdom indicates its progressive fulfilment; and we antic.i.p.ate the time, as not far distant, when the whole earth shall be overshadowed by the branches of the cedar of G.o.d.

II. We proceed to consider, with a little more particularity, the import of this evangelical prophecy. It describes the character, and mediatorial kingdom of Christ, and the blessings which He confers upon His people.

1. His character and mediatorial kingdom.-"I will take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, and plant it upon a high mountain and eminent; in the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it."

Christ, as concerning the flesh, is of the seed of Abraham-a rod issuing from the stem of Jesse, and a branch growing out of his root. As the new vine is found in the cl.u.s.ter, and one saith, "Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it," so the children of Israel were spared, notwithstanding their perverseness, and their backslidings, because they were the cl.u.s.ter from which should be expressed in due time the new wine of the kingdom-because from them was to come forth the blessing, the promised seed, in whom all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

The Word that was in the beginning with G.o.d, one with G.o.d, in essence, and in attributes, in the fulness of time a.s.sumed our nature, and tabernacled, and dwelt among us. Here is the union of G.o.d, and man.

Here is the great mystery of G.o.dliness-G.o.d manifest in the flesh. But I have only time now to take off my shoes, and draw near the burning bush, and gaze a moment upon this great sight.

The Father is represented as preparing a body, for His Son. He goes to the quarry to seek a stone, a foundation-stone, for Zion. The angel said to Mary:-"The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee; therefore that Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of G.o.d." The Eternal lays hold on that nature which is hastening downward, on the flood of sin, to the gulf of death, and destruction, and binds it to Himself. Though made in the likeness of sinful flesh, He was holy, harmless, and undefiled. He did no iniquity, neither was guile found in His mouth. The rod out of the stem of Jesse is also Jehovah, our righteousness. The Child born in Bethlehem is the mighty G.o.d. The Son given to Israel is the Everlasting Father. He is of the seed of Abraham, according to the flesh; but he is also the true G.o.d, and eternal life. Two natures, and three offices meet mysteriously in His Person. He is at once the bleeding sacrifice, the sanctifying altar, the officiating priest, the prophet of Israel, and the Prince of Peace. All this was necessary that He might become "the Author of eternal salvation, to all them that obey Him."

Hear Jehovah speaking of Messiah and His kingdom:-"Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take council together against the Lord, and against His anointed. Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion.

I will declare the decree by which He is to rule His redeemed empire."

That decree, long kept secret, was gradually announced by the prophets, but at the new tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, Jehovah Himself proclaimed it aloud, to the astonishment of earth, the terror of h.e.l.l, and the joy of heaven:-"Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten Thee. Come forth from the womb of the grave, thou whose goings forth have been from of old, even from everlasting. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession. I will exalt Thee to the throne of the universe, and thou shalt be chief in the chariot of the Gospel. Thou shalt ride through the dark places of the earth, with the lamps of eternal life suspended to Thy chariot, enlightening the world. Be wise, now, therefore, O ye kings; be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish from the way when His wrath is kindled but a little. Let no man withstand Him. Let no man seek to stay His progress. Herod, Pilate, Caiaphas, stand off! clear the way! lest ye be crushed beneath the wheels of His chariot! for that which is a savour of life to some, is to others a savour of death; and if this stone shall fall upon you, it shall grind you to powder!"

Behold, here is wisdom! All other mysteries are toys, in comparison with the mystery of the everlasting gospel-the union of three Persons in the G.o.dhead-the union of two natures in the Mediator-the union of believers in Christ, as the branches to the vine-the union of all the saints together in Him, who is the head of the body, and the chief stone of the corner-the mighty G.o.d transfixed to the cross-the Son of Mary ruling in the Heaven of heavens-the rod of Jesse becoming the sceptre of universal dominion-the Branch growing out of his root, the little delicate branch which a lamb might crop for its food, terrifying and taming the serpent, the lion, the leopard, the tiger, and the wolf, and transforming into gentleness, and love, the wild, and savage nature of all the beasts of prey upon the mountain! "And such," old Corinthian sinners, "were some of you; but ye are washed, ye are sanctified, ye are justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our G.o.d." And such, my brethren, were some of you; but ye have been made a new creation in Jesus Christ; old things are pa.s.sed away, and all things are become new. Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in G.o.d. He is one with the Father, and ye are one in Him; united and interwoven, like the roots of the trees in the forest of Lebanon; so that none can injure the least disciple of Christ, without touching the apple of His eye, and grieving all His members.

II. The blessings which He confers upon His people. It shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar, and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell; and all the trees of the field shall know that I, the Lord, have brought down the high tree, and have exalted the low tree-have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish.