Orange County observer., 1902-09-25
..s+a vn,, t.nar i know Hlm not

-. 4 tea you GnaI know him not.
U This is the, denial that comes because OF
some unconfessed sim Alas Tor the man
diat4 confession. It will spring upon him
some dav like. tiger from the jungle, and
will overthrow him before he can have
time to call for help. Sin is always down
Grade in it's tendencies, and he who denies
Christ at the wicket gate will ere long
deny Him face to face.
This text is also to be used in connection
with the sufferings of Jesus. It may not
be amiss to give brief account OF Ills
trial.
the hirh priest, an account of which we
read in John xviii: 10 to 22-"The high
priest then asked Jesus of His disciples
and Of His doctrine. Jesus answered him,
I snake openly to the world; ever taught
in the synagogue and in the temple, whlth.
er the Jews always resort, and In secres
have said nothing. Why askest thou Me!
Ask them which heard Me what I have
said unto them: behold, they know what |
said. And when He had thus spoken one
Of the officers which stood by struck Jesus
with the palm of his hand, saying, An
swerest Thou the high priest so!" :,
It was an awful thing for this man with
open hand to strike Him in the face. 10
strike Him, before Whom the angels yelled
their faces to strike HIM Hin before ber Wow holQ
Lord God Almighty" :,
But do you notice that when they struck
Him He never shuddered? They could not
hurt Him with any such blows as this, but
when we read. CHOW Simon Peter stood
without and warmed himself" this is a
blow which makes the Son Of God shudder
and His heart grow sick.
TN IS %1o kVpso1 vvyoc
pearance before ,Caiaphas. Here, although
false witnesses appeared against Him He
was perfectly silent. "But Jesus held His
peace And the high priest answered and
said unto Him, adjure Thee by the living
God that Thou tell us whether Thou be
the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus said
unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless, l
Son of Man sitting on the right hand OF
power and coming in the clouds OF hea-
ven." 80,
"And they did spit in His face" :" but He
never saw them. His eyes. were blinded to
His insults, but Peter in the presence OF
His enemies was a blow at His very heart.
They smote Him until, if He had been only
ness, but they might as well have struck {,
rock like Gibraltar and expected it to fall
as to move Him with their blows, but
when Peter stood in the presence OF those
who were against Him, like one of them
himself, it was terrific blow at the Son
of God.
The third part of the trial was before
tAe Saphedrim. He is led out from the
Co where He has seen both Annas and
Caiaphas, and passes through an outer
court to another room where the Sanhe-
drim is to meet. As He passes, possibly
near enough to reach out His hand and
touch His disciple, suddenly He hears
Peter say:
"I tell you I know Him not"
He could forget the splitting of His enc
mics, the blows of those who hated Him
and the rods that had fallen upon Him In
| the hands of the angry multitude, but He
could not forget Peter.
That which hurts Him the most in these
days is not the sin of the unregenerate-
| this He must expect, but the sins of Hi
own people for whom He suffered and
| died, and rose again.
There is an infinite amount of pathos II
| the words, "He turned and looked at Pc
| ter" No word of reproach fell from His
| was there to be seen. Does He not lool
| upon you to-day, and does He not arouse
memories in your life-vows that you have
| broken-pledges that you have never kept
| Jesus, let Thy pitying eye call back the
| wandering sheep.
False TO Thoe LILO potorz Hwould fair
like Peter weep.
| III.
| But do not be discouraged Mans use
fulness not infrequently springs from hi
recovery from some sin. Out OF Peter
| fall came his first epistle. The best glimps'
| that I have of the Saviour's heart is tina
which comes when I think of His persona
| dealings with individuals. When / thinl
of the God of Abraham I think Of one VIII
strengthens His child under trial. Th
God of Jacob is my encouragement to be
ieve that my old nature may be con
quered, and my name changed from Jacol
to Israel, the prince of God. The God o
Elijah teaches me that prayer must be an
swered. The Saviour of Thomas encour
ages me while in doubt; the Saviour o
| Paul sustains me in my suffering, but tn
Saviour of Peter is the restorer of the pen
itent.
/ Peter and Jesus met after the Resurree
ton on the shore of the lake. It is mos
| significant that when he denied Christ
was in the presence of the fire of Goals i
of God met him on the shore of this lax
there was fire of Goals Burning there.
doubt not but that all the story Of his d.
nial came rushing upon him. What wa
said at that interview we shall not kno,
until we hear it from Peters own lips, bu
it is safe to say that all his sins were fol
given, and even the marks of his denis
were taken away.
If you have denied this same Lord i
your business, in your home. or in societ,
He waits to forgive and to forget, and Fl
S'is the same yesterday, to-day and TO
! ever"
Better Than Smashing.
} An estimable young married lady of
, Kansas village waited until the small hou
, for her husband, and he came not 81