"Granny's Chapters" Part 8

Jesus plainly declared Himself to be the good Shepherd, who would lead the Jews to salvation, if they would follow Him, as the sheep in those Eastern countries follow their Shepherd, when he calls them. Alluding to the Gentiles, Jesus also said, that He had other sheep whom He would also by means of the Gospel bring into His fold, the Church of Christ on earth; and hereafter into His heavenly fold in heaven.

All that our Lord now said, made a great impression upon some of His hearers; and again caused a division of opinion among the Jews. Those who were disposed to believe in Him were reproached by others, who, foolishly as well as blasphemously, said, "He hath a devil, and is mad; why hear ye him?" Others, who did not allow prejudice to blind their common sense, reasonably answered, "These are not the words of him that hath a devil,"--no man possessed with a devil could speak such good and beautiful words; and then they referred to the recent miracle, in proof that the Lord could not be under the influence of Satan in any way; for they asked, "Can a devil open the eyes of the blind?" No more appears to have been said: we will hope that many went away determined to follow Jesus, but many, no doubt, hardened their hearts and continued in unbelief.

We next hear of Jesus being at Jerusalem, for "the feast of the dedication, and it was winter." This Feast of the Dedication had been appointed by Judas Maccabeus, in remembrance of the cleansing of the temple, and devoting it again to the proper wors.h.i.+p of G.o.d, after it had been profaned by the heathen. By attending this Feast, Jesus set us an example to keep solemn days appointed by man, in order to offer up thanksgiving to G.o.d for particular mercies. The Feast of the Dedication took place in the month which answers to our December.

Chapter XXIV.--JESUS'S LAST JOURNEY TO JERUSALEM.

"And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch:" that is, in a porch or colonnade, which stood on the same spot where Solomon's porch had formerly stood; for the temple which existed in our Saviour's time was the one built by the Jews, after their return from their captivity in Babylon. The Jews came round about Jesus whilst He was in this porch, and most unreasonably accused Him of keeping them in doubt, as to whether He was the Messiah or not; saying, "If thou be the Christ tell us plainly." Jesus in answer told them, that all the works which they had seen would have convinced them of that fact, if they had not been obstinately determined not to believe: and then, when He did plainly declare that He was the Son of G.o.d, by saying, "I and my Father are one," "the Jews took up stones again to stone him"; telling Him that they did so, because He had spoken blasphemy in making Himself, or saying that He was, the Son of G.o.d. In spite of all He could say, they persisted in their unbelief; and when He again referred them to His works as proving Him to be really the Son of G.o.d, "they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand, and went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized." "Many resorted," or went out to him, there: those who had before listened to the teaching of John the Baptist, could not but see that He was greater than the Baptist; for as they truly said, "John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true.

And many believed on him there."

It seems to have been at this time, that those about our Saviour asked Him, "Lord, are there few that be saved?" whereupon our Lord bid them, "strive to enter in at the strait gate," by which He meant, that if any one really wished to go to heaven, he must try with all his might to walk in the path of holiness, by resisting the Devil and giving up his own will or wishes, to do whatever would please G.o.d.

The same day there came certain of the Pharisees, saying unto him, Get thee out, and depart hence: for Herod "will kill thee." The answer that Jesus made meant, that neither Herod nor any other man could put Him to death before the time appointed by G.o.d for His death; but that when the proper time came, He should perfect or finish His work by dying. He added, moreover, that He must return to Jerusalem to die, "for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem."

By the Jewish Laws, a prophet could only be judged by the Sanhedrim, or great Council of the Jews at Jerusalem. Jesus then lamented over the troubles which he foresaw would fall upon Jerusalem, because the Jews would not come to Him for safety.

Again we hear of a miracle of healing performed on the Sabbath day, when Jesus cured a man of the dropsy. At the same time, He spake various parables to the people, and taught them many things. Amongst the parables now spoken, were those of "the Prodigal Son" and "the Unjust Steward": the first of these was intended to teach the Jews, that they who had always been the chosen people of G.o.d, did wrong to be angry because the Gentiles were admitted to share their privileges; and also to show that, although the Pharisees would have nothing to say to those whom they looked upon as sinners, G.o.d was more merciful, and would receive and bless sinners who were truly penitent. The parable of "the Unjust Steward" was intended to teach all men, that they ought to use as much diligence in seeking for spiritual blessings, as they would make use of in regard to temporal blessings.

Shortly after this, we read of little children being brought to the Lord, who received them kindly, and blamed those who would have kept them from Him.

The parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus the beggar, was now told: an awful warning to all who lead a life of luxury and self-indulgence, denying themselves nothing.

"And it came to pa.s.s, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem."

The appointed time being near, Jesus now began His last journey to Jerusalem, in the course of which He said many things to His disciples and the people in general, speaking often in parables; and He told His disciples plainly that He was going up to Jerusalem, not to become an earthly king, as they still hoped, but to be ill treated and put to death. During this time Jesus healed the ten lepers, only one of whom, and he was a Samaritan, "returned to give glory to G.o.d" for his cure.

To him our Lord spake the comfortable words, "Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole." Then a certain young Ruler came, and asked Jesus, "Good Master, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life." Jesus first shows him, that he must not look upon Him as man only, but as G.o.d; and then tells him that, to enter into eternal life, he must keep all the commandments and precepts of G.o.d; and then, when the young man "went away sorrowful," Jesus warned His followers of the danger of letting the love of riches draw their hearts from G.o.d.

Another remarkable parable spoken by Jesus at this time was that of the labourers in the vineyard. This parable taught two lessons; first it showed to the Jews as a nation, that though they might be said to have been labourers, from the time that they were first chosen by G.o.d, they ought not to be envious and angry, because the Gentiles were now, at the eleventh hour, called also to be the servants of G.o.d. The Jews in general could not bear the idea of any other people sharing with them, privileges, which they considered to belong to themselves alone; and many of Christ's discourses and parables were meant to correct this wrong feeling. The second lesson taught by this parable comes home to every individual; and shows, that though those are most blessed who from their childhood have truly served G.o.d, or, as it is called, "worked in the vineyard," still, _all_ who, at any age, so truly repent as to go and work, obeying the Word of G.o.d in everything, will be graciously received by the Lord of the vineyard; and must not therefore be despised by their fellow labourers, who were called at an earlier age. Jesus next received a message from Martha and Mary, the sisters of His friend Lazarus, saying, "Lord, behold he whom thou lovest is sick." When, after a delay of two days, Jesus "saith to his disciples, Let us go into Judaea again"; they reminded Him that the Jews had of late sought to kill Him, and that He had better not go back. But Jesus told them, that as long as it was day, that is, His time for working, He was safe anywhere. He explained to them that Lazarus was now dead, and that He was going to wake him out of the sleep of death. The faith of the disciples seems to have been weak, but their love was strong, for all agreed in Thomas's proposal, "Let us also go, that we may die with him." "And as they went on their way, Jesus took again the twelve disciples apart, and began to tell them what things should happen unto him"; speaking plainly of being betrayed, delivered unto the Chief Priests, mocked, spitefully entreated, spitted on, scourged, and put to death by the Gentiles, and rising again the third day. But "they understood none of these things": so little idea had they of the literal meaning of our Lord's words, that at this very time, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came with their mother, to beg that they might sit, one on His right hand and the other on His left hand, in His kingdom.

In earthly courts, to be nearest the king's person, was a mark of dignity and favour; and, misunderstanding still the nature of Christ's kingdom, the sons of Zebedee made this request, to the indignation of the other Apostles; who did not see why two of their number should be favoured so far beyond the rest. But Jesus rebuked them all; and told them, that His followers must not seek for power and greatness as the Gentiles did; for that those who were humble and meek were most pleasing to G.o.d. And He bid them, and all Christians in all times, follow His example; reminding them, that although he was Lord of all, He came on earth to serve men, and give His life for them.

Pa.s.sing through Jericho, Jesus, when he came near the town, gave sight to two blind men, who were sitting by the wayside begging. Hearing an unusual bustle, as of many people pa.s.sing by, they asked what it meant; and being told that "Jesus of Nazareth pa.s.seth by," they, believing in His power, cried out earnestly, "Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David:" and this prayer they continued to repeat, although many of those who accompanied Jesus "rebuked them, that they should hold their peace," and not trouble Him with their cries.

In the Gospel accounts of this miracle, St. Mark and St. Luke only mention the healing of one blind man; but St. Matthew tells us there were two. St. Matthew, who was one of the twelve Apostles, was present on this occasion, so we may be sure that he saw two blind men healed.

St. Mark and St. Luke, writing many years afterwards, only mentioned one of these men, who seems to have been the most known amongst the Jews: for St. Mark speaks of him by his name, "Bartimaeus," as if those for whom he wrote would know the man, and therefore think more of the miracle, about which they could also ask him. Perhaps, too, Bartimaeus is more particularly mentioned, because his faith was greater than that of his companion; for St. Mark tells us, that Jesus said to him, "Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole." However that may be, these blind men cried to Jesus for mercy, and "Jesus had compa.s.sion on them, and touched their eyes: and their eyes received sight, and they followed him," "glorifying G.o.d: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto G.o.d."

"And Jesus entered and pa.s.sed through Jericho": and now he gave another lesson to the Pharisees, against despising any of their fellow creatures.

Chapter XXV.--ZACCHaeUS AND LAZARUS.

At Jericho "there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the Publicans, and he was rich." He had already heard much of Jesus, and now "he sought to see Jesus, who he was; and could not for the press," or crowd of people who surrounded the Lord, for Zacchaeus was a short man, or "little of stature." Being really anxious to see Jesus, Zacchaeus did not content himself with merely _wis.h.i.+ng_, and _regretting_; but he took some trouble to accomplish his object, and met with his reward. We read that Zacchaeus "ran on before, and climbed up into a sycamore tree," under which Jesus must pa.s.s; and by this means nothing could prevent his seeing the Lord.

The sycamore tree here spoken of, is also called the Egyptian fig; the leaves are like those of the mulberry tree, but the fruit resembles the fig, in size, shape, and taste.

Jesus, who knows all things, saw the heart of Zacchaeus, and knew that he was willing to become a true disciple; and none such will He ever overlook. Therefore, "when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to-day I must abide at thy house." Most joyfully did Zacchaeus obey: he had taken some trouble merely to see Jesus, and now he would have the privilege of listening to His words. But many of the Jews who were present were offended and displeased, because Jesus took such notice of a man belonging to a cla.s.s, whom they, in their self-righteous spirit, condemned as unworthy to a.s.sociate with them; "they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be a guest with a man that is a sinner." Zacchaeus, seeing that Jesus was blamed for noticing him, thought it right to show that whatever his sins might have been, he was now truly penitent, and determined to undo as much as possible any wrong he had done to his fellow creatures, in making them pay more taxes than were justly due: so he stood up, "and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give," that is, I will from this time give, "to the poor, and if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation," (or over-taxing,) "I will restore him fourfold": that is, I will give him back four times as much as he has lost, through any fault of mine. This was true repentance, springing from faith, and as such it found favour with G.o.d. "And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost."

Zacchaeus had shown himself to be, spiritually, as well as by descent, a son of faithful Abraham; and as such he and his family were to receive that salvation, which Jesus came to bring to those who would turn from their sins and be saved.

At this time, "Jesus spake a parable; because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of G.o.d should immediately appear." By this parable of the n.o.bleman, who went into a far country to receive a kingdom, and then returned to judge his servants for the use they had made of the talents which he had given them, Jesus showed that although He was Lord of all, He must leave this world for a time, and return again to judge His servants, before His kingdom could be visibly established,--before the kingdom of G.o.d could appear in glory.

It is very easy to understand the meaning of this parable: we all, that is, all the men, women, and children, who have ever been born, are sent upon earth that we may serve G.o.d, and show our love to Him, by doing His will in all things; and in doing all the good we can to others. Some have greater means and opportunities of doing good than others; such means and opportunities, as riches, wisdom, health, leisure, &c., are the "talents" entrusted to us; and we are to use them in the service of G.o.d, and not for our own pleasure only. Some have more of these "talents" than others; but all of us have opportunities of being useful, if we are ready to practise self-denial, and give up our own pleasure, wishes, and ease, in order to do little acts of kindness to others, in obedience to the word of G.o.d. If we do not do our duty to G.o.d and man to the best of our power whilst we are on earth, the Lord will be angry with us, as the king in the parable was with the "wicked servant," who had kept his talent "laid up in a napkin," instead of using it so as to make a proper return to the Master, who had given it to him.

When Jesus reached Bethany, Lazarus had already been buried four days.

Bethany was a village about two miles from Jerusalem; "and many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother." It was a custom amongst the Jews for friends and relations to come in this way to the house where any one had died, and there to mourn and lament, with particular ceremonies, for seven days. We have no such custom; but when any one is in trouble, we should do all we can to comfort and help: even in all the little troubles and vexations which daily happen to those around us, we should try to do anything we can to help them. The best rule in this, as in all other matters, is to observe the precept, "Do unto others as you would wish them to do unto you." That is, think how you would feel if the same misfortune, trouble, or vexation, fell upon you; and thus try and feel for others: then think what you would wish to be done for you in a like case, and do the same for them. Show that you are sorry for them, by doing any little act of kindness that is in your power, without thinking of yourself,--your own wishes, pleasure, or convenience. Even children can do this; and the sooner they begin to do so, the more will they grow in favour with G.o.d and Man.

The beautiful story of the raising of Lazarus is to be read in St.

John's Gospel (ch. xi.).

Martha's faith seems to have been weak; for though she believed that Jesus could have saved her brother's life had He come in time, she certainly did not believe that He could now restore him to life.

Mary, too, seems only to have thought that Jesus could have kept Lazarus from dying; but her faith was stronger than Martha's, for she made no objection to the taking away the stone that lay upon the cave in which Lazarus was buried.

Jesus here sets us an example of feeling for others: He saw the great sorrow of Martha and Mary, and, although He was going to remove the cause of their grief, yet He felt for them in their distress--"Jesus wept." What a comfort to all who are in trouble upon earth, to know that their Lord in heaven feels for them, and will hear their prayers for help and comfort; though He will not answer them in the same way that He answered the prayers of Mary and her sister.

"Many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him. But some of them," determined not to acknowledge Him as the Messiah, "went their ways to the Pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had done."

The Chief Priests and Pharisees immediately called together the members of the Sanhedrim, or great Council, and said, "What do we? for this man worketh many miracles." They could not deny that Jesus had worked many miracles; for mult.i.tudes of the people had seen, and been benefited by them. To the question, "What do we?" or rather, what shall we do? We might reasonably expect the answer, We will acknowledge Him as the Messiah, the Son of G.o.d; but, no: they did not say this; on the contrary, their only thought was to prevent others from believing in Him. Rightly did they judge, "If we let him thus alone, all men will believe in him": but they added, "and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation." In their blindness as to the spiritual nature of the Messiah's kingdom, these Jews thought, that if they acknowledged Jesus, the Roman Emperor would consider them as rebels, wis.h.i.+ng to set up a temporal kingdom, and would send his armies to destroy them utterly. Far better would it have been for these unhappy men, if they had _only_ considered the proofs before them, and acknowledged Jesus to be the Messiah, without fearing what man could do unto them. In a few years moreover, the very evil which they so wickedly strove to avoid did come upon them: their nation was totally destroyed, the people scattered over all lands, and the temple burnt to the ground.

No doubt there were many different opinions amongst the members of the Sanhedrim, for, after much discussion, "one of them, named Caiaphas, being the High Priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And this spake he not of himself; but being High Priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; and not for that nation only, but that also he should gather in one the children of G.o.d that were scattered abroad."

Chapter XXVI.--JESUS IN THE HOUSE OF SIMON THE LEPER

The speech made in the Sanhedrim by Caiaphas, meant a great deal more than he did, when he _used_ the _words_. Caiaphas meant, that if there were any chance of offending the Romans, it would be better at once to put one man to death, than to bring destruction upon the whole nation.

But St. John bids us take notice that, without intending it, Caiaphas thus proclaimed the blessed plan of salvation through the atonement, which, by the death of One, would be made for all mankind.

Caiaphas was the "High Priest that same year." By the appointment of G.o.d, a man who once became High Priest continued to be so as long as he lived; but the Romans forced the Jews to alter many of their customs, and it had been so in regard to the office of High Priest, which was now seldom held by the same person for more than a year.

What Caiaphas said, seems to have decided the Sanhedrim as to what should be done; and the only question that remained was, how it should be done: how the death of Jesus could be safely managed, without causing a disturbance amongst the people, who might not be willing to see one who had worked such miracles for their good, put to death.

This required consideration on the part of the Sanhedrim: "and from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death."

Jesus, knowing that His time was not fully come, went with His disciples into a small city, situated among the mountains in the wilderness of Judah, which lay on the borders of the Dead Sea. We read, "Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples." "And the Jews'

Pa.s.sover was nigh at hand: and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the Pa.s.sover, to purify themselves": that is, to observe certain forms and ceremonies, without which no man was looked upon as fit to partake of this holy feast.

This was the third Pa.s.sover which had occurred since Jesus began His public teaching; the last of which He was to partake. It was fitting that "the Lamb of G.o.d, which taketh away the sin of the world," should be sacrificed at this solemn season. The Feast of the Pa.s.sover was kept in remembrance of the deliverance of the Children of Israel from death, by the blood of the paschal lamb; but it was also a type, or sign, of a greater deliverance to come; when through the shedding of the blood of the Lamb of G.o.d, all mankind would be delivered from a far more terrible death. In the New Testament, Jesus Christ is called "our Pa.s.sover."

The Jews who now a.s.sembled in Jerusalem, to prepare themselves for the approaching Feast, naturally spake to each other of Jesus, whom all must have heard of, and whom many had, no doubt, seen. They sought for Jesus amongst those who were purifying themselves, and not finding Him, spake to each other, saying, "What think ye, that he will not come to the feast?" Many of them probably thought, that Jesus would be afraid to show Himself in public; for "both the Chief Priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that, if any man knew where he were, he should show it, that they might take him."