The Penn's Grove record., 1910-05-13

the ordinary trials of life. But
heaven has not! Earth's sorrows are
worse in heavens view than in our
own. Do not think that Jesus mini
mics them, when even the angel,
when speaking of His suffering ones
to John, said, "These are they that
have come out of great tribulation."
3. The third instance is His agony
in the Garden. And this, too, is SYM
pathy. Not now for the Jewish peo-
pie, nor for the world at large in life's
ordinary troubles, but for His own
disciples, whose awful grief and dis
appointment He foresees.
I know that some think that His
agony in the Garden was due to His
dread of physical suffering. But l
do not believe it. That would CON
tradict all 1 have said about the Man
lest of Men. l have a nobler concep-
ton of Jesus. Other men have faced
death in the most excruciating forms
without a murmur. His followers
without number have died for Hin
rejoicing. They have been beheaded,
! crucified head downward, burned at
the stake, and have bathed their
hands in the fire and sung praises to
God while breath lasted. Jesus was
no coward. "And the disciple is not
greater than His Lord"
But others think that we must add
to this the ''loss of the conscious
fellowship of the Father, which was
hell for Jesus" But He evidently
did not anticipate this. That is a cry
of surprise He utters on the cross
when He says, my Cod My God!
Why hast Thou forsaken Me?" Bad
enough for His disciples to forsake
Him, and reason enough for it, but
Thou? why hast Thou forsaken
Me?"
And there are still others who say
it was the horror of being made an
offering for SIM" But He knew this
all along. He faced this from the
beginning of His ministry. And He
said once that He was "straitened I'M
til it be accomplished"
I see in Christ's agony in the Gar
demand it is beautiful as a revela-
ton Of His characteristic sympathy
for His disciples in the awful agony
His death was to occasion them You,
too, may see it, if you will read atten-
lively the story in Johns Gospel be-
ginning with the thirteenth chapter.
Note how He labors to make them
comprehend what must happen to
Him, and how utterly He falls.
Though He tells them W. and over
again that He must leave them, that
He will be crucifed, and that it is abb
solutely necessary that He should
be, they cannot entertain the thought.
So far from it that they insist on be-
lieving that He is still speaking to
them in parallels. But He is so ex-
ceedingly eager to forewarn them
and thus fortify them for their trial
that He utters that remarkable prayer
of John II in their hearing. Surely
they will believe and understand
when they hear Him speaking the
same things to God and praying for
them that the Father might Keep
them in His absence? But it is in
vain. So foreign to their preconcep-
lions is it that His words make no
impression upon them. And so they
must hear the awful downfall of all
their hopes and the loss of all their
faith in Him. Dull pupils were the
apostles until after Pentecost.
It was in this spirit that Christ en-
tered Gethsemane. Why did He take
aside the brightest three of His apos-
ties and why did He bid them watch
Him as He went and prayed, unless it
were to show them the eager earnest
ness of His own heart for them? They
could not think that a parable. But
they were too heavy-eyed to watch.
So I believe that wen the agony in
the Garden was vicarious. Jesus who
refused to exercise His power for
Himself at the beginning did not
weep for Himself at the end of His
ministry.
Now what could show US the heart
side of the Saviour so clearly as His
tears? We need no feminine inter-
mediary, for Christ has the tender
ness of a woman He knows your
sorrow. He appreciates its weight to
the full. He considers it more awful
than you do. How gloriously will He
reward them that endure to the end?
He feels for all mankind. His W
ministry was largely to the d~esolate,
and He waits for you, His disciples,
to hear His message of hope and o v
and comfort to every one
He has not forgotten nor cast on
His ancient people. They, too, in
Gods good time, shall come to know
His love for them. And in that day
the city that crumbled beneath the
Saviour's tears shall be glorifed with
His smile.