Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1875-04-28
Accepted Suffering.


mn.b. STOWE.
rhinke.t thou that e1paoi pas TO 10y Father aed b.
hut how then 'hail the Scripture be- iuhliei that 'n'
must be- r'
II was one remarkable feature in the his
tory of our Lords last hours that his huinil-
iations and sufferiugs were voluntarily ac-
ceptcd IN the full consciousness OF Divine
power.
lie said, in view Of his death, 81 lay down
my life for my sheep. No man taketh it
from me, but lay it down myself have
power to lay il down and power to take it ur
again"
So we see him in this scene when his hu
initiation aud sufferings began, rebuking the
forward merely animal zeal OF his followers
in kngly language. Ills royal guards were
within call--he had only 10 speak the word,
and twelve legions Of angels, dazzling and
destructive, would oyerwhelm his enemies
with terror
But the word lac would not speak. He
chose 10 fulfill his Fathers will and his
resolution never faltered for moment
through all the scenes that followed. till ON
the cross he said, It Is finished" and bowed
his head aud gave up the ghost During all
that last agony he bad the power 10 depart
ever with him, but he bore the agony to the
last needful moment, till he could say at is
finished"
Now there are aspects in which this volun.
tary consent Of our Lords in his last suffer
ings transcends what can be true OF any
merely human being.
II is not true Of any other son Of man that
he can have legions of angels for the asking.
But the New Testament represents the union
Of Christians to their Lord TO be such that
in a sense all things are theirs All things
are YOURS" says st. Paul. Whether Paul,
or Apollos, or Cephas or the world, or life,
or death, or things present, or things TO
come all are yours, and ye are Christ's, and
Christ is Gods"
The twelve legions of angels belong TO
Christians, although they have not the con-
troll Of them, and cannot call ON them as
their Master could
Yet it is, nevertheless true that in our
deepest straits and troubles we belong 10
him who has the angels at his command
and that in our case as in his, It is only be-
cause some appointed scene Of suffering or
trials is forewrtten for us in the counsels OF
our Father that the angels do not interpose.
Suppose in the very first Of this scene our
Lord had been as impatient as we are had
summoned his angels, and blazed forth III
terrible glory on his enemies
The world then would have lost the power
Of those last victories Of patient endurance,
of forgiveness Of injuries, Of the unshaken
peace Of love, which have been a regenerat-
ing force in society from that time to this.
An unsuffering jesus, fighting, victori.
Gus Prince was exactly where the world was
ready to run after and follow with acclama
tion but suffering Jesus, surrendering
himself To injustice, patient under Insult,
silent under false accusation, praying for his
murderers with his dying breath this was
new sort OF power in the world. Had the
Lord been of the same spirit we are of, had
he been impatient Of humiliation, and pain,
and protracted suffering, and chosen the
sho-tsst way nf salf '-itidIcalloil, there would
have been no preaching Of the cross, for
there would have been no cross to preach.
so there is sense in which the hnmbest
Christian may stay himself up under the
pressure Of afliction with just these words Of
Jesus d" Can | not pray to my Father, and
he shall Immediately give me more than
twelve legions of angels; but how, then,
should the Scriptures be fulfilled that thus it
must be-" There is scripture" for every
Christian forewritten plan of his life, on
which is marked every trial, every needed
scene of suffering and sorrow. and though
his Father has legions of angels, and loves
1 ..
MN dearly these appointed trlals must De
gone through with as the Lord went through
wlth MS But II we remember the twelve
legons oi sympathetic angels, the great
cloud OF invisible witnesses around u.s. only
waiting our Fathers word we can raise and
dignity our trials, oil whatever nature, by ae-
cepting them as Christ did his We can feel
ourselves passing through an appointed
suffering and be only anxious to pass through