Morning
"His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground."
Luke 22:44
The
mental pressure arising from our Lord's struggle with temptation, so
forced his frame to an unnatural excitement, that his pores sent forth
great drops of blood which fell down to the ground. This proves how
tremendous must have been the weight of sin when it was able to crush
the Saviour so that he distilled great drops of blood! This demonstrates
the mighty power of his love. It is a very pretty observation of old
Isaac Ambrose that the gum which exudes from the tree without cutting is
always the best. This precious camphire-tree yielded most sweet spices
when it was wounded under the knotty whips, and when it was pierced by
the nails on the cross; but see, it giveth forth its best spice when
there is no whip, no nail, no wound. This sets forth the voluntariness
of Christ's sufferings, since without a lance the blood flowed freely.
No need to put on the leech, or apply the knife; it flows spontaneously.
No need for the rulers to cry, "Spring up, O well;" of itself it flows
in crimson torrents. If men suffer great pain of mind apparently the
blood rushes to the heart. The cheeks are pale; a fainting fit comes on;
the blood has gone inward as if to nourish the inner man while passing
through its trial. But see our Saviour in his agony; he is so utterly
oblivious of self, that instead of his agony driving his blood to the
heart to nourish himself, it drives it outward to bedew the earth. The
agony of Christ, inasmuch as it pours him out upon the ground, pictures
the fulness of the offering which he made for men.
Do we not
perceive how intense must have been the wrestling through which he
passed, and will we not hear its voice to us? "Ye have not yet resisted
unto blood, striving against sin." Behold the great Apostle and High
Priest of our profession, and sweat even to blood rather than yield to
the great tempter of your souls.
Evening
"I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out."
Luke 19:40
But
could the stones cry out? Assuredly they could if he who opens the
mouth of the dumb should bid them lift up their voice. Certainly if they
were to speak, they would have much to testify in praise of him who
created them by the word of his power; they could extol the wisdom and
power of their Maker who called them into being. Shall not we speak well
of him who made us anew, and out of stones raised up children unto
Abraham? The old rocks could tell of chaos and order, and the handiwork
of God in successive stages of creation's drama; and cannot we talk of
God's decrees, of God's great work in ancient times, in all that he did
for his church in the days of old? If the stones were to speak, they
could tell of their breaker, how he took them from the quarry, and made
them fit for the temple, and cannot we tell of our glorious Breaker, who
broke our hearts with the hammer of his word, that he might build us
into his temple? If the stones should cry out they would magnify their
builder, who polished them and fashioned them after the similitude of a
palace; and shall not we talk of our Architect and Builder, who has put
us in our place in the temple of the living God? If the stones could cry
out, they might have a long, long story to tell by way of memorial, for
many a time hath a great stone been rolled as a memorial before the
Lord; and we too can testify of Ebenezers, stones of help, pillars of
remembrance. The broken stones of the law cry out against us, but Christ
himself, who has rolled away the stone from the door of the sepulchre,
speaks for us. Stones might well cry out, but we will not let them: we
will hush their noise with ours; we will break forth into sacred song,
and bless the majesty of the Most High, all our days glorifying him who
is called by Jacob the Shepherd and Stone of Israel.
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