Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1890-01-30


children; it was spoken TO the Phari-
sees The children had come without
any invitation. No sooner did Jesus
appear than the little ones pitched from
their mothers arms, an avalanche OF
beauty and love into His lap. ''Suffer
little children to come unto me-" That
was addressed to the Pharisees; not to
the children Christ did not ask John
to put his head down on His bosom;
John could not help but put his head
there. Such eyes, such checks, such a
chin. such hair, such physical condition
and appearsnce-why, it must have
been completely captivating and win
some. l suppose look at Him was just
to love Him. o. how attractive His
manners! Why, when they saw Christ
coming along the street they ran into
their houses and they wrapped up their
invalids as quick as they could and
brought them out that He might look at
them. o! there was something so pleas
ant, so inviting, so cheering in every
thing He did, in His very look. When
these sick ones were brought out did He
say: Take away these sores; do not
trouble me with these leprosies?' No,
no; there was kind look, there was a
gentle word, there was healing touch.
They could not keep away from Him.
In addition to this softness of char
acter there was fiery momentum. How
the old hypocrite trembled before Him.
How the kings of the earth turned pale.
Here is plain man, with few sailors
at His back, coming of the Sea of Cali
lee, going up to the palace of the
Caesars, making that palace quake to the
foundations, and uttering a word of
mercy and kindness which throbs
through all the earth, and through all
the heavens, and through all the ages.
o! He was loving Christ. But it was
not effeminacy, or insipidity of char
acter; it was accompanied with majesty,
infinite and OmnipOtent. Lest the
world should not realize His earnest
ness, this Christ mounts the cross. You
say: eff Christ has to die, why not let
Him take some deadly portion and lie
on a couch in some bright and beautiful
home? If He must die, let Him expire
amid all kindly attentions" No, the
world must hear the hammers on
the head of the spikes. The world must
listen to the death rattle of the sufferer
The world must feel His warm blood
dropping on each cheek, while it looks
up into the face of His anguish. And so
the cross must be lifted, and the hole is
dug on the top of Calvary. 1t must be
dug three feet deep, and then the cross
is laid on the ground, and the sufferer is
upon it, and the nails are
pounded through nerve, and muscle, and
bone, through the right hand, through
the left hand; and then they shake His
right hand to see if it is fast, and then
they heaVe up the wood, half dozen
shoulders under the weight, and they
put the end of the cross to the mouth
of the hole, and they plunge it in. all the
weight of His body coming down for the
first time on the spikes; and while some
hold the cross upright, others throw in
the dirt and trample it down, and tram
pie it hard.
o, plant that tree well and thorough
ly, for it is to bear fruit such as no other
tree ever bore. Why did Christ endure
it? He could have taken those rocks,
and with them crushed His crucifiers
He could have reached up and grasped
the sword of the OmnipOtent God and
with one clean cut have tumbled them
into perdition. But no, He was to die.
He must die. His life for my life. His
70 lSfn Iya Of hn
European cities young, man died on
the scaffold for the crime of murder.
Some time after the mother of this
young man was dying, and the priest
came in, and she made confession to the
priest that she was the murderer, and
not her son; in moment of anger she
had struck her husband a blow that
slew him. The son came suddenly into
the room, and was washing away the
wounds and trying to resuscitate his
father, when some one looked through
the window and saw him, and supposed
him to be the criminal That young
man died for his own mother. You say:
ut was wonderful that he never eX-
posed her." But tell you of a grander
thing. Christ, the Son of God, died
not for His mother, not for His father,
but for His sworn enemies. o, such a
Christ as that-so loving, so self-sacri-
you not trust Him?
How are you to trust in Christ? Just
rs you trust any one You trust your.
things. If a commercial house gives
you a note payable three months hence,
you expect the payment of that note at
the end of three months. You have
perfect confidence in their word and in
their ability. You go home to-day.
You expect there viii be food on the
table. You have confidence in that.
Now, ask you to have the same conf
ience in the Lord Jesus Christ. He
says:
You believe; l take away your SINS"
and they are all taken away.
What" you say, before pray any
more? Before 1 read my Bible any
more? Before 1 cry over my sins any
more?"
Yes, this moment Believe with all
your heart and you are saved. Why,
Christ is only waiting to get from you
what you give to scores of people every
lay. What is that? Confidence. If
these people whom you trust day by day
are more worthy than Christ, if they are
more faithful than Christ, if they have
lone more than Christ ever did, then
give them the preference; but if you
really think that Christ is as trust
worthy as they are, then deal with Him
Is fairly.
''Oh," says some one in light way.
Il believe that Christ was born in
and believe that He died
On the cross"
DO ron heliava It with vonr head or