Bible Commentaries

THE CHURCH’S POWER

‘And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.’

Luke 1:10

Both the parents of John, Zacharias and Elizabeth, were of the family of the Hebrew priesthood. For a long time the ministrations of this great sacerdotal order in the Temple service at Jerusalem had been distributed among twenty-four courses of priests, each course taking its turn for a week, and each having its own leader. At the time when the Evangelist’s narrative opens, Abia stood at the head of the eighth of these twenty-four courses, and Zacharias, the father of the Baptist, was officiating in his turn in that course.

Near the entrance of the Temple, outside what was properly the sanctuary, was the large altar of the daily sacrifice. Farther in toward the most holy place, very near to the veil of the covenant, stood another altar, with its crown of pure gold and its golden rings, on which one of the priests, chosen by lot, offered twice every day the sweet incense, which with its ascending smoke, in the beautiful language of John, is as ‘the prayers of saints.’ The fire which lighted this altar was always to be taken fresh from the outer altar, of the sacrifice for sin.

At the moment when the effectual work of propitiation and intercession was going forward within the Temple—what is seen without? The whole multitude of the people, bending in silent awe, seconding the priestly office and making it in some sense their own, joining their faith to the sacrifice, and lifting their hearts with the rising incense-cloud, are in supplication before God.

This can represent nothing else than the power of the united prayers of the Christian congregation, aiding and supporting the official work of the threefold ministry and the holy offices of the Church, in declaring Christ to the world.

The question thus brought before us, in its broadest form, is this: Are we using the devotional power of the Church in due proportion to its other powers?

I. The business of religion, therefore, is to bring offerings to Him and, in answer to our prayers, to take blessings from Him.—This is the first business of the Church. It sets open the channel of communion, where there is this incessant spiritual passing and repassing between the Infinite Heart of Love which is open there, and these hearts of ours, weak and struggling, uneasy and hungry, and sinning here. By this spiritual interchange our whole life opens a path into heaven, and the blessed life of heaven opens down upon us. So we stand, in this sacred and redeemed creation, always at a temple door. It is as if the scene at Jerusalem were reproduced in its Christian and everlasting reality. The whole multitude of the Church below is on its knees.

II. Every movement of religious life among us must get its power and direction from the Spirit of God.—Every contrivance of ecclesiastical or parochial wisdom, of energy, even of piety, is nothing but a making ready for this Spirit. The amount of spiritual product is exactly in proportion to the coming into all our organisations of that living Spirit of God. And the degree of that coming and power again, will be exactly in proportion to the fervency and the frequency of prayers that are offered by believers around it.

III. Look into the Bible records of the beginnings and growth of God’s kingdom on the earth. On every spot where that kingdom struck root we see a group of men bending in prayer.—From page to page, in the Acts of the Apostles, the disciples are shown to us together looking upward. The whole fiery heart of the Church of Christ was in instant communication with its ascended Head. And what followed? Why, that was the period when the Church grew before men’s eyes with such swiftness that a thousand converts were gathered in the time that it takes us to gather ten: in the short lifetime of a single generation the worship of Christ raised itself to power in the chief cities of three continents; the swords of all the Herods and Cæsars and their legions could not strike fast enough to cut down one Christian while twenty sprang up; hundreds were baptized in a day; the times of refreshing had come—the prediction was literally accomplished—the windows of heaven were opened, and the blessing was so poured out that there was not room enough to receive it.

IV. All along since the last of the twelve laid down his life, this rule has never had an exception.—The Church has been both strong and pure, victorious abroad and peaceful within itself, just according to its devotional spirit of supplication; according to its devotional nearness to Christ its Head. That means and carries with it its separation from worldly-mindedness and its indifference to the worldly standards of success. Men have not been seen running about, till they first went into their sanctuaries and their closets, with stronger and heartier cries for the Spirit. They were not looking to each other for help, but to God.

V. A lingering doubt casts up its faithless suggestion at these words: ‘Is not the Church constantly praying? Yet where is the fulfilment of the promise?’—The answer is found under another word, ‘the prayer of faith.’ We may be sure that the measure of such prayer is, sooner or later, the measure of the blessing we receive. We very often mistake the strength of our desire for the strength of our faith.

VI. Can we look on any side of us now, and not confess that the great need of Christ’s body is this need of Him?—The power, we have seen, can come only from Him, and comes only as we pray for it. The Church seems to stand, with her holy mysteries, very much as the Temple stood that day—the ark of promise and the altar of incense and of the one eternal sacrifice all safe and sure within. But is the multitude praying as that multitude prayed? Is it that prayer of yearning, and earnest and living faith for new spiritual gifts, which will not be denied? Light the lamps of faith, then, and watch. Kindle the fire of incense and wait—not sleeping, but ‘watching unto prayer.’

A PREPARED PEOPLE

‘A people prepared for the Lord.’

Luke 1:17

Prepared for the Lord! How shall it be? I cannot do as Elias did; but I can follow his teaching. You remember the teaching of John the Baptist. You must be prepared to recognise Christ when He comes, and to know Him. This the Baptist taught. He placed the people in a position that they should know Christ when they saw Him. How are you to be prepared?

I. Christ must be no new Christ to you.—You must have heard His voice; seen His face; felt His love.

II. You must have a deep sense of sin.—‘Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ No one must stand there who has not learnt to stoop very low.

III. You must be exact, faithful, diligent in your daily duties.—Doing whatever you do heartily; a man of large charities, a man of unselfish habits, a man of strict integrity in business, a man of self-government, a man of moderation, a man of content, a man of humility.

IV. You must be baptized—not with the baptism of water only, but with the baptism of the Spirit.

V. You must be much in the use of the ordinances—loving the shadows till the substance comes, learning the original by the pictures He has left to you; frequent in your Holy Communion.

—Rev. James Vaughan.

DUMB, BECAUSE OF UNBELIEF

‘And, behold, thou shalt be dumb … because thou believest not my words.’

Luke 1:20

The threatened dumbness was to be a sign and a rebuke. God prevented Zacharias from speaking about that which, when presented to him, he had not believed. And this effect is common, although produced by different means. The fruit of unbelief is:—

I. Dumbness in prayer.—Not believing God’s words about prayer, we cease from it, or restrain it. If we believe God’s words we can pray. If we believe them cordially we can pray earnestly. If we believe them but feebly we pray faintly. If we do not believe them at all we cease from prayer. As faith declines, dumbness in prayer creeps over us.

II. Dumbness in praise.—Not believing God’s words we are dumb as to praise. Perplexity relaxes, loosens, and entangles the strings of our harp. Faith sets them free, tightens them, and tunes them, and faith brings forth triumphant music.

III. Dumb in testimony.—Not believing God’s words we are dumb as to our testimony to the truth. When a man speaks of that which he believes, an influence goes forth from himself which does not proceed from him when he gives a tract or a book, even though it be the Holy Book. We believe, and speak; we lose our faith, and are silent.

IV. Dumb in Christian intercourse.—Not believing God’s words we become dumb as to Christian intercourse and fellowship. ‘Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another.’

If spiritual dumbness is produced by unbelief, it can be prevented and overcome by faith only.

HIGHLY FAVOURED OF THE LORD

‘And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God … and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.’

Luke 1:26; Luke 1:28

Whether Mary was in her house, or what her engagement when Gabriel visited her, we know not; but he instantly saluted her—‘Hail!’ After this brief salutation, Gabriel bids Mary rejoice, because being ‘highly favoured’ she is to be the mother of the Messiah. This, in truth, was the honour for which every Hebrew female intensely longed from the beginning; but Mary was Divinely chosen for this signal pre-eminency.

I. Mary’s joy.—What joy she felt when Gabriel assured her of this! When he left, she hastened to her cousin Elizabeth, in the upland country, to communicate the information and the joy to her. ‘Only the meeting of saints in heaven can parallel the meeting of these two cousins: the two wonders of the world under one roof, declaring their mutual happiness!’ (Luke 1:46-47).

II. Mary’s dignity.—High dignity, beside deep joy, was now conferred upon Mary. ‘Thou art highly favoured,’ said Gabriel to her. But this dignity was not of an earthly, fleeting nature; for Mary was left by the angel in the same humble condition in which he found her; and, in truth, her humble condition was the same at the birth of Christ, and to the day of her own death. The dignity, therefore, was heavenly and lasting. So it has proved itself. No woman, from Eve downward, has been so honoured as the Blessed Virgin of Nazareth. Her very memory is fragrant as Eden.

III. Mary’s blessedness.—Nor is this all: ‘The Lord is with thee.’ This constituted her real blessedness, and was the climax of the annunciation of the angel. The Lord was with Mary in two sublime senses—to sustain and further deepen the joy of her soul, and to perform the covenant which Gabriel had made with her at His bidding. Mary, in her glorious Magnificat, says of herself, ‘All generations shall call me blessed.’ This they have done since the birth of Christ, and this they will continue to do.

Illustration

The Festival of the Annunciation has been variously yet appropriately designated thus: ‘The Day of Salutation’; ‘the Day of the Gospel’; and ‘the Festival of the Incarnation.’ In many parts it was for some time the first day of the ecclesiastical year, as it is now, under its vernacular name—Lady-Day, the first quarterly division of the ordinary year. How the ancient Church observed the day can scarcely be ascertained now. And this is not a little remarkable, as the Christian Fathers have written numerous homilies on the day itself, and the Christian muse has for centuries been actively engaged in illustrating it. To the Christian artist, the holy mysteries of the day have ever had a special fascination, as shown by the pictures and paintings—some very grotesque, others very beautiful—which were produced during the first ages succeeding the Annunciation itself. Christians of the present day regard it as the first stage of the Incarnation. Hence we gladly keep the day as a holy festival, and fix our mind upon its marvels.’

HIGHLY FAVOURED OF THE LORD

‘And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God … and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.’

Luke 1:26; Luke 1:28

Whether Mary was in her house, or what her engagement when Gabriel visited her, we know not; but he instantly saluted her—‘Hail!’ After this brief salutation, Gabriel bids Mary rejoice, because being ‘highly favoured’ she is to be the mother of the Messiah. This, in truth, was the honour for which every Hebrew female intensely longed from the beginning; but Mary was Divinely chosen for this signal pre-eminency.

I. Mary’s joy.—What joy she felt when Gabriel assured her of this! When he left, she hastened to her cousin Elizabeth, in the upland country, to communicate the information and the joy to her. ‘Only the meeting of saints in heaven can parallel the meeting of these two cousins: the two wonders of the world under one roof, declaring their mutual happiness!’ (Luke 1:46-47).

II. Mary’s dignity.—High dignity, beside deep joy, was now conferred upon Mary. ‘Thou art highly favoured,’ said Gabriel to her. But this dignity was not of an earthly, fleeting nature; for Mary was left by the angel in the same humble condition in which he found her; and, in truth, her humble condition was the same at the birth of Christ, and to the day of her own death. The dignity, therefore, was heavenly and lasting. So it has proved itself. No woman, from Eve downward, has been so honoured as the Blessed Virgin of Nazareth. Her very memory is fragrant as Eden.

III. Mary’s blessedness.—Nor is this all: ‘The Lord is with thee.’ This constituted her real blessedness, and was the climax of the annunciation of the angel. The Lord was with Mary in two sublime senses—to sustain and further deepen the joy of her soul, and to perform the covenant which Gabriel had made with her at His bidding. Mary, in her glorious Magnificat, says of herself, ‘All generations shall call me blessed.’ This they have done since the birth of Christ, and this they will continue to do.

Illustration

The Festival of the Annunciation has been variously yet appropriately designated thus: ‘The Day of Salutation’; ‘the Day of the Gospel’; and ‘the Festival of the Incarnation.’ In many parts it was for some time the first day of the ecclesiastical year, as it is now, under its vernacular name—Lady-Day, the first quarterly division of the ordinary year. How the ancient Church observed the day can scarcely be ascertained now. And this is not a little remarkable, as the Christian Fathers have written numerous homilies on the day itself, and the Christian muse has for centuries been actively engaged in illustrating it. To the Christian artist, the holy mysteries of the day have ever had a special fascination, as shown by the pictures and paintings—some very grotesque, others very beautiful—which were produced during the first ages succeeding the Annunciation itself. Christians of the present day regard it as the first stage of the Incarnation. Hence we gladly keep the day as a holy festival, and fix our mind upon its marvels.’

THE PROMISED SON

‘And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou … shalt … bring forth a Son, and shalt call His name Jesus.’

Luke 1:30-31

In keeping the Feast of the Annunciation we must beware of anything approaching the Mariolatry which is characteristic of the Roman Church, but while we do not offer the Virgin Mary worship we highly reverence her memory. We can never forget that she was ‘highly favoured amongst women’ in that she was chosen to be the channel by which—and the thought is a most stupendous one—the Incarnation of the Son of God was to be effected. We reverence her purity and we admire the beauty of her character. When we think of the greatness conferred upon womanhood in the Incarnation it should lead all men—should it not?—to cultivate habits of chivalry and grace in all their dealings with women. But we shall mistake the significance of this festival unless we observe that the Church centres our attention, not upon Mary, but upon her promised Son. The Collect, the Epistle, the Gospel, the Lessons all point to Him.

I. The promised Son.—The message of the angel revealed to Mary that her Son should be Jesus the Saviour. He was coming to redeem Israel, ‘to save His people from their sins’—and not Israel only, but all the world. This was He, of Whose coming Isaiah prophesied (see portion of Scripture appointed for Epistle) when he said that ‘a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel.’ Nor was this all. The angel who appeared to Mary said that her Son should be a King, ‘and of His kingdom there shall be no end.’

II. The work He came to do.—As our Saviour He came to save us from our sins. He was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil. Has His coming made any difference to your life? Has He saved, is He saving you? He is very near to every one of us, for is not His name Immanuel? That is the meaning of the Incarnation—God coming amongst men. We need a deeper realisation of the presence of God. What a stupendous thought—God with us! He claims to have control over our life, for is He not the King? ‘Of His kingdom there shall be no end.’ Has it begun in you?

III. The future glory.—It is astonishing that although nineteen hundred years have passed away there should still be so many who do not recognise His claims over them. May it be ours to know Jesus to be our Saviour! May we realise His presence in our lives as our Immanuel! May we recognise His claims as our King! Then, and then only, shall we pass through this world with an assurance of the future glory.

(SECOND OUTLINE)

A NEW POWER

Is it not obvious that what is wanted is a new power? ‘Set me upon the rock that is higher than I” is the cry of the universal human heart.

I. Where shall the new power be found?—There is evidence enough and to spare that a new power has come on the earth (see text). It is true as we sing in one of our Christmas carols—

Now a new power has come on the earth,

A match for the armies of hell.

The coming of this new power into a man’s life is what we mean by salvation. To be saved is to make this new power our own. It is the great characteristic of the Christian religion which separates it from all other religions, by which men have sought to be at peace with God, that it is the religion of a new power.

II. Thus salvation is a present thing.—If you are to be saved in the future you must be saved here and now.

III. Who can say that he needs not this power?—You are sorely tempted; with God on your side you can overcome. Remember St. Bernard’s Rule of Life: ‘Never despair of the mercy of God; never mistrust the power of God.’ Reckon up your foes. What is there against you? The world, the flesh, and the devil; and each is a mighty enemy. But these mighties never yet made an Almighty, and God is Almighty. God is on your side, and you can prevail if you will.

—Rev. W. S. Swayne.

IN CONFIRMATION OF FAITH

‘He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest.’

Luke 1:32

For the sake of deepening our conviction of the unspeakable importance of the doctrine of the Incarnation, let us lay aside our own belief for the moment, and see what the result of the surrender will be.

I. We should lose the Atonement.—If Jesus be only a man, His death upon the Cross is only an ordinary death—the death of a human being, and nothing more. Christ the Man can set us an example, but Christ the God-man alone can make atonement for transgression.

II. We should lose Christ’s Intercession.—You expect Christ to be the receptacle and the transmitter, as your great High Priest, of the almost infinite number of petitions and intercessions which are being offered at the throne of grace. Do you conceive it possible that any being who was not actually Divine could undertake such an office as this—the office of a hearer of prayer to a universe full of petitioners?

III. We exhaust the Gospel of its power.—If we abandon the doctrine of the Incarnation, we really exhaust the Gospel of the power which it possesses over human hearts—the power of self-sacrificing love.

Nothing on earth shall induce us to surrender our belief in the eternal Sonship of Christ.

—Prebendary Gordon Calthrop.

Illustration

‘“We are bound,” says Bishop Westcott, “not only to believe that ‘Jesus is Lord,’ but to confess Him before men. For if the message of the Incarnation necessarily transcends our thoughts in its fullness, none the less it comes within the range of our experience as far as our thoughts can reach. It touches life at every point, and we are bound to consider what it means for us, for our fellow-men, and for the world. It is not enough to hold it as an article of our creed; we must openly and in secret prove its efficacy in action. By our reticence, by our habitual reserve in dealing with it as the master-power in shaping and sustaining our thoughts, our purposes, our deeds, we encourage a feeling of secret mistrust as to the validity of the faith.”’

AN ENDLESS KINGDOM

‘He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.’

Luke 1:33

Every attempt at world empire has been struck on the feet by ‘the stone that smote the image’ (Daniel 2:35), which is Christ; for to Him alone is it given to establish a kingdom that will extend throughout the world.

I. The Kingdom.—The Baptist’s work was to prepare men by repentance to enter into ‘the Kingdom.’ And Christ Himself preached on the same topic (Matthew 4:17; Matthew 10:7).

II. The Jews’ expectation.—The Jews, at the time when John preached, were full of expectation of the coming of the Messiah. They thought that all false religions would be swept away, and all nations brought to worship the true God; but alongside with this spiritual idea came the more sordid conception of the Kingdom. The Jews panted to massacre and plunder the Gentiles.

III. What Christ taught.—In Matthew 15 we are given six parables of the Kingdom. Their purport is to enforce the great preciousness of the privilege of membership of the Catholic Church, the Kingdom of Christ that He was about to found. It was to be through the Jews, not apart from the Jews, that the world was to pass under the sceptre of Christ. But the Jews rejected Christ and, then, but not till then, was the offer made to the Gentiles. How rapid, how triumphant would have been the march of the Gospel through the world had the Jews accepted and carried out the Divine plan we can only conjecture. Now all we can do is to pray, ‘Thy kingdom come.’

—Rev. S. Baring-Gould.

Illustration

‘We are too apt to read the Gospel story with our minds charged with twentieth century ideas, to read it as we would like it to be, and as we presume it ought to be. We accordingly insist on the Kingdom being so purely spiritual as to be inorganic, unsubstantial and shapeless. But if to the Jews, and afterwards to the world, it had been frankly stated that all the prophecies led up to and found their fulfilment in a general diffusion of pious sentiment among a thousand sects which agreed to differ on most points in matters of faith and practice, who had no cohesion, no organic structure binding into one body, then almost certainly the Jew would have said, “We have been completely hoaxed by the Prophets. The reality is not attractive, it is not worth a rush.”’

THE VIRGIN BIRTH

‘That which is to be born shall be called holy, the Son of God.’

Luke 1:35 (R.V.).

The doctrine of the Virgin Birth is based on historical evidence, which, when calmly and dispassionately considered, will be found by every fair and reasonable mind to impart almost irresistible conviction. Have we not the declaration of one of the Apostles of Jesus Christ, and an appeal to prophecy? Have we not also a full and circumstantial statement of one who, though not an Apostle, was a companion of St. Paul, a physician—(this should not be overlooked)—and one who made it his especial duty to collect from eye-witnesses and ministers of the Word the carefully traced-out narrative that bears the name of the Gospel according to Luke? The argument for the truth of all the circumstances related by Luke has been worked out, with a fullness and care which must carry conviction to any heart that had not been prejudiced and pre-occupied against acceptance of the supernatural.

I. The main features of the narrative could only have come from the Blessed Virgin Mary herself, either directly to the carefully inquiring Evangelist, or to some one to whom the Blessed Virgin had related them, and by whom they had been communicated to Luke. And what a consideration this is! Could she, whom all generations shall call blessed unto the very end of time, could she have been in any way mistaken? Such a question in its mildest form is painful; in any other form it is to any one bearing the name of a Christian unthinkable. It is thus through the Blessed Virgin herself that the full revelation has been made to mankind.

II. If the Evangelist had only received the recital of the facts indirectly, the some one who had communicated them could hardly have been other than one of the earliest believers, and most probably one of the Apostles. For we are expressly told that Mary was with the small holy company that, after the Lord’s Ascension, joined the Apostles in the upper room and continued steadfastly with them in prayer. Would not those earliest days have been days of holy reminiscence, and, in that holy retrospect, could it have been possible that the Annunciation, and all the circumstances it involved, were not dwelt upon when the mother of our Lord was present, who alone could tell the mysterious history of the angel visit, and all in the fullness of time that followed?

III. The silence of other parts of Scripture.—May it not further be said, as accounting for the silence in other parts of Scripture (except in Matthew) as to any of the details of the Incarnation, that such things would sink into the very souls of those who heard them, and remain there, deep and eternal truths, which, as we may well believe, would never have been likely to form a part of their general teaching. The Resurrection was the standing witness of the truth of the Incarnation; and Christ and the Resurrection formed the outward and general teaching of the first preachers of the Gospel.

—Bishop Ellicott.

(SECOND OUTLINE)

THE INCARNATION AND BROTHERHOOD

I. The importance of the doctrine.—If God took such especial pains to make us quite sure that the Son of Mary was also God and the Son of God, we may be sure that it is especially important that we should get a thorough hold upon the fact. Have you really thought out what it means?

(a) Before Christ came, a man might say, God knows my trials. After Christ, a man must say, God has felt my trials.

(b) This is the Gospel:—this fact that God became man, and lived through all your life, hallowing each stage and portion of it, so that you, if you will but walk hand in hand with Him through every part of it, may feel that you have a guide Who not only knows, but has trodden its every step before you.

(c) No one ever comes to love his Saviour who does not strive with all his heart to realise his Saviour. You cannot love what you do not realise.

II. In the Incarnation we see how we are to look out upon all the world of struggling and suffering, aye, and sinning men and women around us. Let the men and women round us be what else they may, they are all this—viz., brethren and sisters of Christ, the Son of God—yearned over, loved and cared for by Him Who now sitteth on the right hand of God, but Who, not so very long ago, was Himself suffering in the flesh for them and for their redemption.

Illustration

‘Not only was it prophesied of in the Old Testament, but, now that the fullness of the time was come, God once more announces His intention, and sends His Angel to inform the Blessed Virgin of it. It is noticeable throughout all Holy Scripture how God takes care to prepare the way for all His more startling and extraordinary actions. He gives notice, beforehand, what His purpose is. Therefore, when God would work His one greatest marvel of all—when God intends His Son to be born into the world as a man, and to be a man among men, the real son of a Jewish maiden—He does once more the same thing that He had done so often before, and sends word, beforehand, of His purpose.’

WOMAN’S TRUE AVOCATION

‘The handmaid of the Lord.’

Luke 1:38

The glory of woman only abides while it remains true to the instincts which God implanted. What these instincts are, what woman’s true avocation is, the Blessed Virgin helps to remind us.

I. The turning-point in woman’s history.—In the thoughtful, loving, obedient woman whom ‘all nations shall call blessed,’ the Virgin Mary, God Himself raised womanhood to more than her first estate. What laws, and civilisation, and culture, and education had failed to do towards restoring woman to her right position, God, her Saviour, in the fullness of time wrought for her. And so the words: ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord’ have ever been regarded as the turning-point in the history of womanhood, a true contrast to the fall of Eve.

II. Woman in the home.—If it be true that the history of marriage is the history of woman, then of what infinite importance must it be that the home-life of our England should be one of its most sacred traditions, that woman should be able to fulfil her distinctive mission as ‘the handmaid of the Lord,’ as the God-given helpmate for man, and as the mother of children, whom she shall teach to know their Lord and Saviour—for it must always be the mother who will have the larger share in the development of a child’s character. Blessed are the men, blessed above all man’s blessedness, are those who know what it is to have a good mother!

IV. Woman’s religious instinct.—It is just as the fall seems more terrible in the case of him who falls from the greatest height, so an irreligious woman is worse than a sceptical man, for either she is a ‘handmaid of the Lord’ or she is nothing, either she is beneath the Cross or she is nowhere. You have only to be true to your vocation. Do you notice how the Scripture enjoins love upon the husband very often, but never once upon the wife? And why? Because it relies upon her nature to supply that love. By your loving and sweet natures you will win the souls of your husbands for your Saviour, and so together, from age to age, your souls shall magnify the Lord, and your spirits shall rejoice in God your Saviour. Together you shall glorify Him Who created us in a time of love, and saved us in a day of grace.

Rev. T. R. Hine-Haycock.

Illustration

‘In Blessed Mary we have the outline of all that is best in woman’s nature—habitual modesty, reserve, quietness, thoughtfulness; yet, if need be, love strong in death, and ability to suffer things which sterner natures shrink from. Above all, you have that holiness of heart which brings angels down from heaven to be its companions; yea, with which God Himself is content to come down from heaven to dwell.’

THE SONG OF THE VIRGIN

‘My soul doth magnify the Lord.… As He spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.’

Luke 1:46-55

Next to the Lord’s Prayer, perhaps, few passages of Scripture are better known than this. Observe:—

I. The full acquaintance with Scripture which this hymn exhibits.—We are reminded, as we read it, of many expressions in the Psalms. Above all, we are reminded of the song of Hannah in the Book of Samuel (1 Samuel 2:2, etc.). The memory of the Blessed Virgin was stored with Scripture. The time spent on Bible-study is never mis-spent.

II. The Virgin Mary’s deep humility.—She who was chosen of God to the high honour of being Messiah’s mother, speaks of her own ‘low estate.’ Let us copy this holy humility of the Virgin mother. Let us be lowly in our own eyes, and think little of ourselves. ‘A man has just so much Christianity as he has humility.’

III. The Virgin Mary’s thankfulness.—It stands out in all the early part of the hymn. A thankful spirit has ever been a mark of God’s most distinguished saints in every age.

IV. The experimental acquaintance with God’s former dealings with His people, which the Virgin Mary possessed.—She spoke in recollection of Old Testament history. The true Christian should always give close attention to the lives of the saints.

V. The firm grasp which the Virgin Mary had of Bible promises.—She remembered the old promise made to Abraham, ‘In thee shall all the nations of the earth be blessed,’ and it is evident that in the approaching birth of her Son she regarded this promise as about to be fulfilled.

—Bishop J. C. Ryle.

Illustration

‘We must regard the Magnificat as a result of the direct inspiring impulse of the Holy Ghost, such as “moved holy men of old,” and such as is distinctly stated to have been given to Elizabeth (Luke 1:41) and Zacharias (Luke 1:67). At the same time the close resemblance of the Song to that of Hannah shows that it was the natural outcome of Mary’s feelings, which would most readily express themselves in words familiar to her in her reading of the Scriptures. The words “God my Saviour” do not refer directly to the Child; Mary’s knowledge of His nature and work was imperfect as yet. Nor do they merely mean God as the Preserver of His people. The idea of spiritual salvation is in them—salvation to be wrought out by God in some way through the Child. “Shall call me blessed” is, in the Greek, one word—“felicitate me.” It is not “Shall name me the Blessed.” It is no prophecy of the title “Blessed Virgin.” “Low estate” is, in the Prayer Book version, “lowliness,” which is not accurate. It describes Mary’s circumstances, not her character. It is rendered “humiliation” in Acts 8:33.’

MODERN PROPHETS

‘As He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the world began.’

Luke 1:70

The message of Zacharias is as true to-day as when he sang. There have been, and there are, prophets and teachers of righteousness all through the ages. God has not left Himself without witnesses; He still has prophets prophesying in the way of Christ.

I. The prophet in the home.—Parents stand, or should do, to their children in the relation of those who have studied the book of experience, some of whose pages were written in blood, some of which were written amid lamentation and tears. It is a difficult task for the most upright and conscientious of parents to decide how to interpret the ways of God. Pure habits, the proper observance of Sunday, absolute truthfulness, unflinching honour and unbroken consistency—surely such things exist, and we can trace them to the voice of father or mother now hushed and dead. If such a voice has spoken to us, let us thank God for it. If we can look back to a prophet who prepared for us the way of the Lord, let us once more thank God for it.

II. The prophet in the school.—The ‘crammer’ is one thing, the educator is quite another. Any schoolmaster can push forward a few prize men, but it requires some self-denial and much genius to develop and turn to their proper uses the unpromising and unprofitable. Let us thank God once more that we have found from among our teachers those who have had patience with us, who have trusted us, who have shown us what we might be, and the heights to which we might attain.

III. The prophet in the Church.—Pre-eminently, as we are reminded at every ordination sermon, God is always sending out into His Church fresh prophets, those whose mission and life-work it is to reprove, rebuke, and exhort, whose duty it is to warn and to watch, and, while they minister before God, to devote themselves to the wants of their fellow-men. In no way is advice more unpopular than in religion. We know to-day the contempt expressed for preaching and sermons; but there never was a time when sermons were wanted as they are now. Do not think for a moment that the duty of the prophets is to tell you how you must despise this world, that you may live in a better. Do not think that they are insurance agents, who tell you to make a provision now against possible danger hereafter. This may be a part, but it is a very insignificant part, of their duty. Their message is to bring God into your life, to help you to realise His real presence. God be praised that He has not left Himself without witnesses! God be praised for that voice He has left behind!

Rev. Canon Newbolt.

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‘It is possible that some of you who have seen an ordination may have been struck by a discrepancy between the solemn claim for the awfulness of the service and the agents on whose behalf this claim is made, and over whom the words are spoken. You say: “These men are so young, fresh from the University or training college, who but recently were at school; what do they know about the world, with its hundred appeals to the human heart? What do they know of the intricate questions of the day? of the criticisms which have assailed the Bible? We should like priests who are men of the world, men who have studied, men who can talk to us on questions of the day, men whose Bible is the open page of contemporary history. We need prophets of research who shall show us God as He is to-day—not God as He appeared to an Eastern race some hundreds of years ago.” I accept the appeal. It is true that we need men of research—men who do not speak the dead language of the past, but the living language of the present. But where is that research to be made? What are the fields to which these new workmen are directed? Is there not a danger of forgetting that there is a vast field of spiritual research? If they are young as regards questions of the day and things of the world, does it follow that they are young as regards spiritual things—things which are hidden from the wise and prudent and revealed unto babes? John the Baptist, the great forerunner of Christ, was no man of the world. He was no courtier. He was no learned man, and yet he exercised the most wonderful influence. He could answer the questions of the people and he could meet the rough words of the soldiers, and all were satisfied. Why? Because he was a man of spiritual research.’

DELIVERANCE AND SERVICE

‘That He would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.’

Luke 1:74-75

This promise is meant for us, and is to last all our life. God has sworn to give this blessing to those who have been delivered out of the hand of their enemies. Who are our enemies? I would sum them up under the five titles of sin, the flesh, the world, the devil, and death.

I. Sin.—Sin is an enemy. Sin is illustrated by Egypt in its old power over Israel, and holds us in bondage as a taskmaster holds his slaves, so that we cannot have our own way. The Lord Jesus gives us deliverance from the hand of this enemy, exactly as God gave Israel deliverance from the hand of the Egyptians.

II. The flesh.—The flesh is distinct from sin, because it is a part of our very nature. Sin is a taskmaster ruling over us; the flesh is an evil principle working in every man by nature. It is the flesh which makes us ready to yield to the claims of sin, the taskmaster, even when we are children of God. ‘Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.’

III. The world.—The world presents its temptations in two separate forms, either alluring or attacking. In each case we are delivered from the hand of the world by virtue of the death of Christ. The power of Christ’s work will only operate for our benefit as we, moment by moment, exercise faith. ‘This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.’

IV. The devil.—There are demons at work the world over, but the Lord Jesus was revealed that He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and if we trust in His strength we shall find that the devil cannot prevail.

V. Death.—There are men who all their lifetime are in bondage for fear of death. Christ Jesus died to set us free from this enemy also, and there is now for us no sting in death. ‘Thanks be to God, Who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.’

What is the outcome of this deliverance? Service—‘that we … might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him, all the days of our life.’

—Rev. Prebendary Webb-Peploe.

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‘A Scotchman was said to be very godly and earnest. The question was asked by a stranger in the place if this man were as good as he was described—as much out and out for God. The answer was, “Well, I think he is straight enough toward God, but he is a wee bit twistical toward men.” A great many Christians appear to be all right on Sunday toward God, but from Monday to Saturday are very apt to play “twistical” tricks toward men.’

THE PROPHET OF THE HIGHEST

‘And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest.’

Luke 1:76

In the passage, Luke 1:76-79, we have the song of a father dedicating the infant child to missionary service.

I. It has an octave of Gospel notes.—(a) ‘Visited.’ Incarnation (Luke 19:10). (b) ‘Redeemed.’ Calvary. You are redeemed. For service. ‘Not your own—bought’ (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). (c) ‘Salvation.’ ‘Horn.’ Abundance of it (Ephesians 1:3; Isaiah 55:7). (d) ‘He spake.’ Inspiration (2 Peter 1:21). (e) ‘His people.’ ‘All souls are Mine.’ The heathen are His (Ezekiel 18:4). (f) ‘Saved … delivered … that we might serve Him.’ (g) ‘Remission of sins.’ This the first rung in ladder of grace (See Psalms 103:3). ‘Thou … child, to prepare His ways.’ No forcing to ministry. (h) ‘To give knowledge of His salvation.’

II. This the task of redeemed.—It is His salvation. We ‘to give knowledge of it.’ Its source—‘the tender mercy of our God.’ That the deep invisible spring. The stream—‘the dayspring,’ i.e. dawn of redemption day. Jesus is the light of the world. Think of Him as the Sun. His glory. His Power. Illuminates conscience. Illuminates mind. Illuminates grave. Illuminates face of God (2 Corinthians 4:6). What know of God apart from Him? Illuminates gates of heaven. Shows where they are, and how reached.

III. ‘That sit in darkness.’—Exactly describes Christless world. ‘Sit,’ i.e. their abiding condition. Observe sin’s three descriptions: bondage (Luke 1:74); darkness (Luke 1:79); wandering (Luke 1:79). ‘The way of peace.’ There is such a way. If a Christian, you know it. If a Christian, you cannot but show it.

IV. To sum up.—Here series of great realities. We have been ‘put in trust’ with all this. The realities of a Christless world. We have liberty. ‘Proclaim liberty.’ We have the light. Give it to those who ‘sit in darkness.’ We have been led into the way of peace. Lead others into it. We shall profit our own souls as we do this.

—Rev. R. C. Joynt.

THE WAY OF PEACE

‘To guide our feet into the way of peace.’

Luke 1:79

The Lord Jesus Christ:—

I. Brought peace.—It was the burden of the angels’ Christmas song—‘on earth peace.’

II. Made peace.—‘He made peace through the blood of His cross” (Colossians 1:20). ‘Peace with God.’ ‘Therefore,’ says St. Paul, speaking for all believers, ‘He is our peace’ (Ephesians 2:14). Peace was His dying legacy: ‘Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you.’

III. Imparts peace.—The living Christ comes, His hands full of gifts; among those priceless gifts, peace, perfect peace!—‘the very peace of God which passeth all understanding.’

—Rev. F. Harper.

THE VIRTUES OF ASCETICISM

‘And the child grew, and wared strong in spirit.’

Luke 1:80

The words refer to the Baptist, who is set before us as an example of the ascetic, self-sacrificing, self-subduing life, and of the virtues that belong to it. The first, and perhaps the chief of these, is spiritual strength. He ‘waxed strong in spirit.’

I. For want of this power of self-control and self-mastery great numbers of persons lead—

(a) Vague and almost useless lives. They may have good intentions and even great powers, but the good intentions come to nothing, and the great powers are not applied perseveringly to any good end, because they have no rule over themselves. Their will is not supreme over their actions. They act from impulse, not from reason.

(b) Sinful lives. They see the better course and follow the worse. They sin and repent, and sin again in the very same way, and so on, making no progress in spiritual things, getting no higher, nor rising above the same round of temptation and fall. They see a perfection—a saintliness of character—whose glory and beauty they willingly acknowledge, but which they hardly even try to reach. They willingly take the lower road, because it is broad and easy and pleasant, whilst the Saviour beckons them to the higher. Why is it this moral paralysis has affected them? Where is the root of the evil? It is because of the want of hardness and self-mastery in their religion.

II. Divine power.—Sin arose from the idea instilled into the soul by a tempter from without that man should be self-centred—his own standard of right and wrong—‘that ye shall be as gods’ said the tempter to Eve. Now in the degree in which we take back again the Divine Will instead of our own wills as the standard and rule of our actions, we really destroy sin in our souls. And without ‘strength of spirit,’ that is, without self-mastery and ascetic strictness over ourselves, we are powerless to do this. A soul without asceticism is as an army without discipline, which is more formidable to itself than to the enemy.