The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1902-06-11

with His tears a. He looked upon the CITY.
He knew all about the suffering OF Jeruaa'
lem from all eternity, and yet He went on;
When He ate the Passover and spoke OF
what was coming, and still He went on.
When PLATE Knocked Him He knew it was
but the forshadowing OF the sufierings OF
the cross, but still He went on. When he
endured the pain of the scourging He knew
that this was but the beginning OF agony
with which the pain of the cross was not
to be compared because it was so great,
and vet He went on. The world has never
seen such q conqueror as the Son OF God,
"who died that we might live"
II. HIS FACE IN THE DUST.
Matt. XVI: 36-3a-"Then cometh Jesus
with them unto place called Gethsemane,
and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here,
while 20 and pray yonder. And He took
with Him Peter and the two sons OF Zebe.
dee, and began to be sorrowful and very
heavy. Then saith He unto them, Ny soul
is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death:
tarry ye here and watch with Ne. And
He went . little farther, and fell on His
face and prayed. saying: Oh, Ny Father,
ii it be possible, let this cup pass from Me;
nevertheless, not as will, but as Thou
wilt"
In the thrtieth verse We read that when
they had sang an hymn they went out
How simple, and yet how profound the
meaning!
before; there never has been such going.
out since. From the supper He made His
way with the faithful few to Gethsemane,
where the agony was 50 great that Gethse'
name has stood for suffering ever since.
this eun ID pass from Me-" / wonder why
the cry? Some one has said it was te-
cause He was about to be branded as q
sinner, treated ~ sinner, put to death as
a sinner. and it was His horror OF sin that
wrung the cry from His soul. Yet we have
trifled with it, and sin has always been
the same, is to-day, and shall be till the
DR.. Gregg tells of story in Fox's Book
Of Martyrs, where Christian was to die .
most horrible death,being placed IN q
sack filed almost with venomous reptiles.
As he looked at it he said:
T can stand this for Jesus sake" .
Yet when they put him in the sack and
he felt the first touch Of the reptiles upon
| his face he gave a shriek of agony that
could not be described.
Il is said that no one has ever really
known what prayer is until be has learned
of the Spirit to put into practice this one
offered in Gethsemane. II is not the kind
that is offered TO the congregation, or that
is said at the bedside before we close our
eyes in sleep; it Is the kind that 10
Syrophenoecian woman, MY daughter 10
previously vexed of the devil" It is tho
cry of Jesus in Gethsemane, MY Father,
let this cup pass from Me-"
You say, ''What! His Father and oil
| His suffering"
Yes. His Father, still, and yours, also.
| In the midst OF an agony that may have
almost broken your heart, you might have
cried: MY Father" When there vas not
hope in.your life ,you. might have whls;
pered, MY Father" And il the cry had
come from the heart you would have got.
ten as quick a response:
"Bc still, and know that am God"
III. HIS FACE SPIT UPON.
But there is still another picture Of His
| face in the New Testament. Matthew
XVI: 62-6s-"And the high priest arose,
| and said unto Him, Answerest Thou moth
ing? What is it which these witness
against Thee? But Jesus held His peace;
And the high priest answered and said
unto Him, I adjure Thee, by the living
God that Thou tell Us whether Thou be
the Christ, the Son OF God. Jesus saith
| unto him, Thou has said; nevertheless !
say unto you, hereafter shall ye see the
| Son of Man sitting on the right hand OF
power, and coming in the clouds OF heaven.
| Then the high priest rent his clothes, say.
| ing, He hath spoken blasphemy; what fur
| ther need have we Of witnesses! behold,
| now ye have heard His blasphemy.. What
think ye? They answered and said, He is
guilty of death. Then they did spit in His
face and bufeted Him, and others smote
--.kl A. - ko.r
ing, Prophesy unto u.s.. Thou Christ, who
| is he that smote Thee"
Have you noticed how quiet He was in
all the mockings and the scourgngs! 1t
must have been because OF the Gethsemane
experience. There are scenes in our lives
that make talk q sacrilege. When you
came back from following your child to
the grave, or reached your home after
| being at the new-made grave of your moth.
er, not a word was spoken; the house was
as still as the tomb where they rested. A
night with God would have the same ef.
feet. They may spit upon Him and strike
Him, but He feels it not, for while He
walks the earth He lives in heaven. Paul
above fourteen years ago whether in the
body I cannot tell, or whether out OF the
body, cannot tell; God knoweth) such
| an one caught up to the third heaven; And
knew such q man whether in the body,
or out Of the body, cannot tell: God
| knoweth) how that he was caught up into
| paradise, and heard unspeakable words,
which it is not lawful for man to utter" |"
2 Cor. xii: -. And yet in point OF fact
Paul was lying at the gate Of Lystra. Peo-
pie though him dead; His back was bleed
| a possible thing for US to be transfgured
by the power OF God, and become insensi.
bic to every earthly experience. Just as
when the hell-hounds were let loose against
Jesus Himself, and they smote Him and
spit upon Him, they never touched Him.
". HIS FACE HEREAFTER.
We have hints as to what He is to be
like in the hereafter. For God, who
commanded the light to shine out OF dark
ness. hath shined in our hearts, to give
the light Of the knowledge OF the glory Of
| God in the face Of Jesus Christ. % Cor.
iv: 6.)
We are told how He will appear to the
sinner: For the gre1t day Of His wrath
| is come; and who shall be able to stand?
-(Rev. vi: III There was time when
rs they smote Him they covered His face:
And some began to spit on Him, and to
cover His face and to buffet Him. and say
unto Him, Prophesy: and the servants did
strike Him with the palms OF their hands
| Mark xiv: 65.) But not now. His eyes
pierce His beholders through and through,
and their rnforgiven sins in awful process
sion pass by. The cry Of the lost soul =
hide us from His lace" "And ] saw
great white throne, and HIM that sat on
It, from whose face the earth and the
heaven fed away; and there was found no
place for them" (Rev. xx: ll.) This pas
sage gives another touch to the picture,
and what a change there is! Once there
was in that ia ,e that which brought little
children to Him. and made women love