xt7tx921cw2b https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7tx921cw2b/data/mets.xml Broadus, John Albert, 1827-1895. 18951890 books b92-209-30909759 English A.C. Armstrong, : New York : Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ Teachings. Jesus of Nazareth : I. His personal character : II. His ethical teachings : III. His supernatural works / three lectures before the Y.M.C.A. of Johns Hopkins University, in Levering Hall, [by] John A. Broadus. text Jesus of Nazareth : I. His personal character : II. His ethical teachings : III. His supernatural works / three lectures before the Y.M.C.A. of Johns Hopkins University, in Levering Hall, [by] John A. Broadus. 1895 2002 true xt7tx921cw2b section xt7tx921cw2b

r
BY Rf V. JOHN A. BROADUS, D.D, LLD.

ON THE PREPARATION AND DELIVERY
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by
A. C. ARMSTRONG SON,
51 East Tenth St. , New York.

JESUS OF NAZARETH,

I. HIS PERSONAL CHARACTER.
II. HIS ETHICAL TEACHINGS.
III. HIS SUPERNATURAL WORKS.

THREE LECTURES BEFORE T7fE ' of. C. A. OF
YOH1VS IIOPAVA'S UVZVE:RSlTY, IA
LEVEA'ZNrG HALL.

JOHN A. BROADUS, D.D., LL.D.,
Preside'nt of the Soutthern Baptist Theological Seminary.

4jUIRD EDITION.

NEW YORK:
C G. ARMSTRONG SON,
51 EAST 10TH STREET.
1895.

PRE F ACE.

These lectures were delivered in Mlarch, 1890,
at the instance of Eugene Levering, Esq., of Balti-
more, in the Hall which he has recently erected and
given to the Johns Hopkins University, for the use
of the Young Alen's Christian Association of that
institution; and the P'resident of the Y. AM. C. A.
specially requested their publication. They were
not designed as class-room lectures, since many not
connected with the University were invited to
attend.
The subject treated seems to possess an ever-
deepening interest at the present time. The per-
sonal character of Jesus is now widely perceived to
be an important guarantee of his teachings and
works. This character is presented by the first
lecture in a way that to some may appear lacking
in devout warmth but the object was to gain the
3

Preface.

concurrence of every person who will calmly survey
the historical facts, and thus to lay a foundation for
what would follow. It is hoped that the second lect-
ure will tend to rectify certain erroneous but quite
prevalent 7iCws of the Saviour's teaching; and that
the third lecture may be found to have some argu-
nmentative force in regard to his mission and claims.
The little volume is the fruit of life-time studies,
and has been prepared with the author's best exer-
tions, and a great desire to promote "the knowledge
of Jesus, the most excellent of the sciences."
J. A. B.
LOUISVILLE, Kr.,
May, 1890.

CONTENTS.

LECTURE I.

THE PERSONAL CHARACTER OF JESUS.... . . 9

LECTURE II.
THE ETHICAIL TEACHINGS OF' JESUS . . . . . . 39

LECTURE III.
THE SUPERNATURAL WORKS OF JESUS . . . . . 71

This page in the original text is blank.

tat 'Versonal Chabracter of Jesu

This page in the original text is blank.

THE PERSONAL CHARACTER OF JESUS.

W HATEVER else many of us believe as to
Jesus the Saviour, all men believe in his
thorough humanity. The oi thodox world has often
failed to make full practical recognition of his hu-
manity, through an exclusive attention to other
views of his person and work; and the modern his-
torical spirit has been a benefactor to orthodoxy by
bringing out his human character and life as a vivid
reality. Jesus of Nazareth, the Founder of Chris-
tianity, stands before us to-day as one of the defi-
nite personages of hunian history. The leading
facts of his career, the chief peculiarities of his
teaching, the distinctive traits of his character, are
now really beyond dispute. And the excellence of
his character, its high and peerless excellence, is
now recognized not only by Christians of every
type and by many Jews, but by persons holding
almost every form of unbelief. Time was, even in
the modern centuries, when some men of talents
and culture reviled him as an impostor or a fanatic,
as did some of the blinded Jews who were his con-
temporaries. But there is hardly a man in all
the world who would speak thus to-day. Even
persons who allow themselves to ridicule the Bible,
9

Jesus of Nazareth.

and the God whom it describes, are unwilling now to
speak lightly of Jesus; and if in some rare cases a
man attempts to hint possible and slight defect, he
seenis to do so with reluctance, and turns quickly
away to join the chorus of eulogy. Robert Brown-
ing, in a letter published since his death, cites sev-
eral utterances of men of ge-iius as to the Christian
faith, and among them one from Charles Lamb.
"In a gay fancy with some friends, as to how lie
and they would feel if the greatest of the dead were
to appear suddenly in flesh and blood once more-
on the final suggestion, ' And if Christ entered this
room V he changed his manner at once and stut-
tered out, as his manner was when moved, You
see, if Shakespeare entered we should all rise; if
he appeared, we must kneel."' Such reverence is
not a mere result of Christian education, of Chris-
tian literature and art and usages; it will be felt by
any person of susceptible nature who will thought-
fully read one of the gospels at a single sitting, and
alone with his beating heart and his God.
Of a character thus unique, unparalleled, univer-
sally reverenced, how can we attempt a portraiture
The effort is fore-doomed to failure. It must be
disappointing to taste and unsatisfying to devotion.
No painter among all the great names has made a
picture of Jesus which a loving reader of the gos-
pels can feel to be adequate. How can we depict
his character in words But if one undertakes the
task, of all things lie must beware of high-wrought
expressions. The most inadequate language is less
unworthy of Jesus than inflated language. And it
may contribute towards the design of these lectures

His Personal Chea racter.

if we attempt, in slicer sinmplicity, to bring before
our minds the circumstances of his self-manifesta-
tion, and the more easily apprehended traits of his
character. The present sketch has been wrought
out from the gospels themselves, with suggestions
afterwards welcomed from several recent writings.
For the present we must leave almost entirely out
of view the Saviour's beautiful teachings and glori-
ous works, which are to be considered on other
occasions.
Notice first the external conditions of his life. We
all know that lie was reared in a small and obscure
village, whose inlabitants were rude and violent,
and had an ill-name among their neighbors. Not
once nor twice only have the world's wisest and
greatest, the world's teachers and rulers, sprung
from some petty village or country neighborhood.
We know that Jesus was reared in poverty, and
was himself a mechanics a worker in wood. Justin
Martyr, who lived a hundred years later in the
same region, states the tradition that he made
ploughs and ox-yokes. It ought to be clearly
brought out in our time that the Founder of Chris-
tianity spent his early life as what we call a work-
ing-man. Yet remember that from boyhood he
went at least once a year, and probably oftener, to
the great city of Jerusalem, making the journey
amid scenes of varied natural beauty and all man-
ner of sacred associations, to mingle with vast
crowds from every district of the Holy Land and
from many a distant country, and to take part in
impressive religious ceremonies, to join in chanting
the sweet Psalms of David, and listen long to

Jesus of Nazareth.

the fervent reading of ancient record and high pro-
phetic instruction and exhortation. It is difficult to
estimate the benefits that would be derived by a
highly impressible youthful nature during the whole
period between the age of twelve and that of thirty,
from such journeys and weeks of abiding in the
Holy City.
During his public ministry he had no home, and
spent most of his time in travelling, on foot, busy
with public and private teaching, and sustained by
the hospitality of friends and sometimes of stran-
gers, or by money contributed by generous women
for the support of himself and his followers. Yet
observe that he did not do this as meritorious
asceticism, but simiply from a desire to spend his
whole time in doing good, throughout a ministry
which be foresaw must be short. Even among
ourselves there are men so devoted to science or
art, to authorship or teaching or religious ministra-
tions, that they often share the feeling of the great
scientific man who said, " I haven't time to make
nmoney." This early life was very different from
that of Sakhya Mluni, the Founder of Buddhism,
who is represented as the son of a wealthy king,
dwelling for years in a home of luxury, and leaving
it to become an ascetic. Jesus showed no tinge of
asceticism. John the forerunner made his life an
object lesson to a luxurious age, as Elijah had done
long before, by dwelling for years among the wild
hills, with the garb and the food of the poorest.
But it was quite otherwise with Jesus. lIe wore
good clothing, for we read of a tunic woven without
seam, which at that day must have been a costly

His Personal Charac far.

garment. lie spent days at a wedding feast,
which the forerunner would probably not have con-
sented to attend. Ile accepted invitations from
the rich, and conformed to social usage by reclining
on a couch beside the table in the luxurious
Persian fashion; and; as lhe himself expressly
mentions, ate and drank what others dlid, though it
exj)osed him even then to misconception and un-
kind remark. Jesus touched life at many points,
yet it was mainly and essentially the life of the
poor. The profound literary anld artistic interest
now felt in the life of the poor, as dealing with what
is "1 common to manila ought to awaken sympathy
with the Beginnings of Christianity.
Quietly pursuing the healthy duties of an humble
calling, profoundly pondering from boyhood the
prophetic writings, Jesus patiently waited till the
time caine for himn to appear and act. The earliest
period at which a ima was then supposed to be
mature enough for highlly responsible functions was
something like the age of thirty. At that age the
Saviour came forth without delay, and after a min-
istry of not more than three or four years he left
the earth. Ile taught and died a young man. To
all the other great achievements of young men must
be added this incomparable fact, that a young man
gave us Christianity.
Consider next the personal religious life of Jesus.
It is remarkable how often we find mention of his
praying. The innocent and holy One gave frequent
recognition of dependence on God, which is one of
the chief elements of religious feeling and convic-
tion. If any human being was ever able to stand

Jesus of Nazareth..

alone in the universe, without leaning on God, it
might have been true of him. Not the guilty alone,
nor the perilously weak, have occasion to lift the
heart in prayer. Jesus habitually and lovingly
prayed. Nor did he merely keep up the habit of
stated devotion, but he made special prayer upon
various recorded occasions. At his baptism we are
told that Ike was praying and also on the Mount of
Transfiguration. lie spent a night in prayer when
about to select the Twelve. They were to be the
companions of his remaining life, and the responsi-
ble messengers of his teaching after that life should
be ended. The selection was therefore immensely
important, and lie made it after protracted and
special prayer. When the fanatical multitude of
five thousand vehemently declared that they would
make him kiinq even against his will, and all his pa-
tient spiritual instructions seemed to have gone for
nothing, he bade them depart and went up into the
mountain to pray. Thrice in Gethsemane he with-
drew to agonize in prayer, and his last words on
the cross were words of prayer. Strange that
heedless, bustling, self-sufficient humanity does not
see its own folly when contemplating that life of
prayer.
Remarkable familiarity with the sacred writings
appears already in the glimpse we catch of Jesus
at the age of twelve years, and comes out in his
constant use of Scripture for argument and instruc-
tion throughout his ministry. He also used it for
his personal support in times of special trial. In
the strange and wonderful scene of manifested temp-
tation, he three times quotes the book of Deuteron-

His Pemrsonal Character.

omy as an answer to the tempter, and on the cross
three times quotes the Psalms.
Jesus ]habitually attended upon public worship in
the synagogues. tie must have been often pained
or repelled by wrong explanations of the sacred
writing, by the repetition of foolish traditions, by
unwise counsel andl exhortation, but we are ex-
pressly told that it was " his custom " to go into the
synagogue. Ilow little did the men who spoke
imagine the thoughts revolving in the mind of a
quiet youth in the assembly; even as we now little
know the slowly-developing wisdom, the latent po-
tencies of some student to whom we lecture, some
child to whom we preach. Jesus also went regu-
larly, as we have already seen, to the great relig-
ious festivals at the temple.
Fron the means contributed to the support of
himself and his followers he was accustomed to give
something to the poor. Thus when Judas went out
from the last paschal supper, after the Mlaster had
said, A" NWliat thou doest, do quickly," some of the
disciples thought it meant that he should give to
the poor. The Saviour once declared that "1 it is
more blessed to give than to receive." In spiritual
things he and his apostles were constantly the
givers; but even in temporal things, where it was
their part to receive, they must not be denied some
share in the higher happiness of giving.
In every way Jesus radiated forth an atmosphere
of goodness; he presented the beauty of holiness in
living incarnation. We can see that to be near him

' Compare Stalker, " Imago Christi."

115

Jesus of Nazareth.

often awakened in men the feeling that God was
near. It is so now. Many shrink from reading
the gospels attentively because getting near to
Jesus makes holiness seem so real, and renders
their own sinfulness a matter of painful conscious-
ness.
Yet this great Teacher of spiritual truth, and
model of public worship and private devotion, was
constantly manifesting a deep interest in Nature,
and in the outward life of men. He watched the
dark, violet-colored lily of Galilee, recalling the
purple robes of Solomon in all his glory, and the
minute mustard-seed which grew into so large a
plant lie saw with interest the little sparrow fly-
ing or falling to the ground, and the eagles swoop-
ing down from a distance upon their proper food.
He loved retirement to some mountain top. In the
last summer of the Galilean ministry lie kept with-
drawing from Capernaum, in the deep and heated
caldron of the Lake of Galilee, far below the level
of the Mediterranean, to mountain regions in every
direction. No one can climb the high hill west of
Nazareth without fancying that often, when the
day's work was done, the young carpenter climbed
to that summit, gazing with delight upon the blue
Mediterranean, then in another direction upon the
snow-clad range of Mount Lebanon, and far and
wide over the Holy Land.
He was also a close observer of ordinary human
pursuits. He drew illustration in his teaching
from patching clothes, and bottling wine, and sow-
ing wheat, and reaping when the stalks were white
for the harvest, and from boys at play. Some

His Personal Character.

great painter ought to have given us that scene,
children sitting in the market-place engaged in
their sports, while Jesus stood by and looked with
kindly face upion thet. lie dearly loved little
children, and they for their part would leap from
their mothers' arms into his arms. He was deeply
interested in human enjoynents. He not only at-
tended the wedding feast at Cana, but practically
ministered to the gratification of the guests and
aided the bridegroom in liospitality. When re-
clining at the tables of the rich, at feasts made in
his honor, he was not silent nor severe, but con-
versed with the colmpahyv, and introduced religious
lessons suggested by the circumstances. It is
indeed remarkable, as some one has observed, how
many of his most striking sayings are literally
" table-tal-k."
Look now at theprivate relatios of Jesus, con-
cerning which we are not without interesting
points of information. As a child of twelve years,
on his first visit to Jerusalem, lie was found in one
of the tlh:ological colleges, sitting in the inidst of
the rabbinical professors, listening intently and
eagerly questioning ; and all present were amazed,
not simply at his questions, for many a child asks
wonderful questions, but "' at his understanding and
his iswers. e e exprcssed surprise that Joseph
and Mary should not know where to find him, for
of course he ought to be in his Father's house, at
the temple. He really was, in some respects, what
many boys imagine they are, wiser than his par-

Stalker.

Jesus of Nazareth.

ents; and yet, as an obedient child, be left that scene
of delightful studies and went back with themi to
Nazareib, and was subject unto themn. This filial
subjection doubtless continued until his pul)lic
ministry began. At the we(lding of Cana he in-
timated to his mnother that she must not now seek
to control his actions. The language enmployed is
not unkind, as some think it in our version. For
the term " womian " was also employed by him
when speaking to her upon the cross ; and the
phrase rendered " what have I to do with thee "
means rather, what have we in common !-a not un-
kind suggestion that he bad now entered upon
duties which she mutst not attenmpt to control. One
of the well-known Latin hivuins of the great me-
diaval period gives a most pathetic picture of the
mother of Jesus standing sad and tearful beside his
cross. The Saviour was dying, a young inanu; and
beholding his widowe(l mother, hIe felt, antid all his
strange sufferings, the loving impulse with which
every young man can sympathize, to make sonme
provision for her earthly future. lie had a faithful
friend standing by, the friend of his bosom, known
among all the rest as one peculiarly loved. This
friend was not destitute, but had a homle of his
own; and to himt the dying Teacher commended his
mother, that henceforth they should be mother and
son. The simple words possess for all earthis sons
and all earth's mothers an unspeakable pathos.
We have just been reminded that certain of his
followers appear as in a peculiar sense the friends
of Jesus. So it is expressly stated that "Jesus
loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus." We

His Personal Character.

can see that the Twelve and some other friends
werefamiliar with him, freely offering counsel and
even making complaint. The ardent Peter, when
told more than six months in advance that the
Master was going to Jerusalem and would there be
crucified, eagerly remonstrated: "d Be it far from
thee, Lord; this shall never be unto thee." When
the loving family at Bethany first appear in the
history Martha says, "d Lord, carest thou not that
my sister hath left me to serve alone " implying
that he ought to care. When hie heard of Lazarus'
sickness, and after two days' delay proposed a return
to Judea, the disciples objected, saying that the
Jews in Jerusalem had recently sought to stone
him, and it was imprudent to go thither again.
When lie arrived at Bethanv , and the two sisters
met him separately, each of them said in a com-
plaining tone, " Lord, if thou hadst been here, my
brother had not died." These expressions show
that he admitted his friends to the closest intimacy.
Great as was the reverence awakened by his char-
acter and teachings and works, they did not ex-
clude the familiarity of friendship. And we ought
to note how exactly Jesus suited himself to the
disposition of his friends; as for example on meet-
ing the sorrowing sisters at Bethany, he reasoned
with the active and energetic Martha, and with the
gentle, contemplative Mary he wept in silent sym-
pathy. At the crisis of agony in Gethsemane
he wished to have near him the three most
cherished friends among his followers; as any one
in a season of great suffering desires to be much
alone, and yet to have dear friends close by.

Jesus of Nazareth.

This great instructor of mankind was a notable
Teacher of teachers. The twelve disciples were
subjected to a very careful and protracted training.
We can discern the successive stages. He first
called one an(1 another to come and follow him.
After some months, he carefully selected twelve of
these, to be his special companions, and in the com-
ing time his messengers and representatives. At
the time of this choice he addressed to them and the
multitude the wonderful discourse called the Sermon
on the Mount, which was peculiarly fitted to open
up before them the true nature of the Messianic
reign, and the relation of his teachings to the law
of Moses and its current interpretations. For a
long time the Twelve followed him about, hearing
all his instructions to public assemblies or in the
homes they visited, and encouraged to question him
freely in private. At length he sent them out on a
temporary mission in Galilee, to practise their ap-
pointed task of religious instruction. After their
return he spent six months almost wholly in seclu-
sion, in districts outside of Galilee, evidently devot-
ing his time mainly to careful instruction of the
Twelve, and at length beginning to tell them in'
confidence how differently his ministry would end
from their expectations concerning the Messiah.
Observe that although much of his teaching was
private, and some things concerning the foreseen
end of his ministry were to be temporarily kept to
themselves, there was yet nothing here of that
esoteric teachirg which some ancient philosophers
practised, directing that certain truths should be
kept always confined to an inner circle. Jesus

His Personal Character.

expressly told his disciples that what they heard
in the ear they were ultimately to proclaim upon
the housetops, and carry to all the nations.
The Great Teacher showed in a high degree that
patience upon which all good teaching makes large
demands. Yet we know of one occasion on which
he was much displeased with the Twelve. lie had
been giving instruction on the important subject of
divorce, and in the house the disciples were ques-
tioning him further. Just then some mothers
brought to him little children for his blessing, as
they were wont to do with a revered rabbi. The
disciples were unwilling that this should interrupt
the instructions they were seeking on so important
a practical question, and so they rebuked the
mothers. Ad But when Jesus saw it, lie was moved
with indignation," at their repulsing those in whom
he felt so deep an interest, and from whom, as
examples of docility and loving trustfulness, they
themselves had so much to learn. We have seen
that the reverence of his friends did not prevent
familiarity, and we must add that their familiarity
did not dininish reverence. As the end drew on,
though it was an end which involved apparent fail-
ure and multiplied ignominy, both friend and foe
manifest an awe that ever grows upon them, and
cannot be shaken off.
We may next notice that Jesus treated the pub9
lie authorities with deference and due subjection.
lie said to Peter that there were reasons -why lhe
might have claimed exemption from paying the

Compare Bushnell, "Nature anDd the Supernatural't

Jesus of Nazareth.

annual half-shekel for the support of the temple;
and yet directed. him to pay for them both. lie
told the disciples and the multitudes to (lo what the
scribes bade them, because they sat on loses' seat,
were recognized interpreters of the law, but not to
imitate their conduct. By a skilful and promising
plot, representatives of the Pharisees and of the
IHerodians, or supporters of the IHerod (lynasty,
approached him together one day, with honeyed
wordls of flattery, asking, "Is it lawful to give
tribute unto Caesar or not " Thev wished an
answer, yes or no, and thought they were present-
ing a perfect dilemma. If he had said yes, the
Pharisecs would have gone -out among the Jews,
many of whom were very reluctant to recognize the
Roman rule, and especially to pay the Roman trib-
ute, andl would have (diligently used against him the
offensive statement that it was proper to pay trib-
-ate to Caesar. If he had said no, the Ilerodians
would have gone to the Roman authorities, and
charged him with encouraging the people to refuse
payment of tribute, a point on which the Romans
were very sensitive. It really seemed a hopeless
dilemma. But he cut through the midst of it by
pointing out a distinction between civil and religi-
ous duties, of which they had never thought, and
which to our modern world, after being long ob-
scured, has again become clear and cardinal, "to
Caesar the things that are Caesar's, to God the
things that are God's."
He was indeed teaching ideas that would ulti-
mately transform society; yet he was no violent and
revolutionary reformer, bat quietly respected the

Ies Personal Character.

existing authorities. At Gethsemane, he did not
simply yield to force, lie surrendered to representa-
tives of the high priest, accomnpaniied by Roman sol-
diers. Jesus never plunged into politics, but direct-
ly concerned himself with spiritual ideas and influ-
ences. By this course lie has actually done more
for civilization than could possibly have resulted
had he fallen in with the coininon Jewish expecta-
tion and become a civil ruler. The indirect influ-
ence of his unworldly and spiritual reign is helpful
to all the hig-hest interests of humanity. Still, he
could not fail to be deeply moved by the civil and
social, as well as the religious condition of the cho-
sen people. And when he wept over the foreseen
destruction of Jerusalem, it was doubtless the grief
of a patriot as well as of a Saviour.
In considering the association of Jesus with the
people at large, we are struck at once with the factthat
though pure and sinless, lie did not shrink from con-
tact with the most sinful and the most despised. lIe
was in this respect the very opposite of the Phari-
sees. Their name signifiesseparatists. Fundamen-
tal in their conception of a pious life was the idea
of scrupulously avoiding any social intercourse, or
even the slightest contact, with persons who liabitu-
ally violated the ceremonial law, as well as with
those guilty of gross immorality. This was
the idea of personal purity materialized, and
pushed to an utter extreme. Accordingly, the
Pharisees found it hard to believe that one could be
a prophet, a teacher comne froin God, who would
consent to cat at the table of a publican, or would
allow his feet to be washed with the tears of a faMl.

Jesus of Nazareth.

en woman. Jesus often found it necessary to ex-
plain and vindicate his course in this respect; and
it was for this purpose that on one occasion he gave
the three beautiful parables which tell of joy at the
recovery of the lost sheep, the lost coin, the lost son.
Contact with vile people is proper or improper ac-
cordin- to our ain and the probable results. It
Imast be avoided or carefully limited, if of such a
character as would probably assimilate us to them.
But the thoughtful and consistent followers of Jesus
have been mnoved iv his example and teachings to
far more of kindly effor' to redeem the vile than
ever existed in the world beyond the influence of
Christianity; and to dlo still more in this direction
would only be acting according to his spirit. Jer-
erny Taylor has said that Jesus moved among the
despised of humanity like sunshine, which falls
among foul things without being itself defiled. To
imitate this in our measure must be an attainment
full of blessedness for us and rich -in blessing to
others. Jesus was very weary with months of
earnest teaching as lie sat that daiy beside Jacob's
well; yet he aroused himself to speak most kindly
with one who came to draw water, and that a
woman who was living sinfully with a man not her
husband. bis conversation with her is a suggestive
model of skill in the introduction of religion into pri-
vate conversation-one of the finest of all accomplish-
ments for Christian men and women. The delicate
tact with which he aroused her conscience, and
thus turned her thoughts away from the mere satis-
faction of bodily thirst to the water of eternal life,

His Personal Character.

is among the most wonderful touches in his consum-
mate teaching.
Jesus was not only friendly to the poor, but he
evidently counted largely, from beginning to end,
on their reception of his influence and their support
of his movement. lie has been called "the poor
man's philosopher; the first and only one that had ever
appeared." Iie expected, and found, the chief
results of his ministry among the poor, the masses
of mankind. Even ignorance may not be so great
a hindrance to the sympathetic reception of moral
and spiritual truth as a sophisticated culture, and
a selfish contentment with existing social and moral
conditions. No religious movement can have large
and blessed results which does not adapt itself to
the poor. No Christians are worthy to bear the
name of their Master, who do not, like him, delight
in preaching the gospel to the poor, and in minister-
ing to their needs. Yet Jesus was no partisan of
the poor. He also mingled freely with the rich,
entering with equal freedom and equal sympathy,
as his ministers should strive to do, into the lowliest
and the loftiest homes.
We ought to notice bow he dealt with hypocrites,
and with the fanatical multitudes. Again and again
he withdrew from the fanatical excitement of great
crowds who thought themselves his followers, so as
to leave time for such feelings to subside. Sober
men of the world are at times specially disgusted
with certain fanatics they hear of, and tempted to
regard all apparently earnest piety as mere fanati-

Bushuell.

Jesus of .Yazareth.

cism. They ought to observe how carefully the
Founder of Christianity r(pressedl everything of the
kind. The worst hypocrites were among men of
high station or influence. These hypocrites Jesus
rebuked many times, and in burnimg words of
righteous indignation. Some have thought these
words out of harmony with his characteristic gentle-
ness and love. But it is right to abhor and hate all
forms of vile wickedness, however we may pity the
humanity that lies behind them. M1any of his con-
temporaries imagined that the prophet of Nazareth
must be one of the grand old prophets come to life
again. And it is noteworthy, as a recent writer
rernarks, that some thought he was Jeremiah, the
tender and pathetic, while others thought he was
Elijah, bold and stern in rebuking. May we not
suppose that these had only observed different
manifestations of a many-sided character I Or
rather, that like God his Father, the compassionate
love of Jesus towards human weakness was but an-
other aspect of the sanie essential character which
showed itself in burning indignation towards human
wickedness!
Having thus gone over the principal relations
which Jesus sustained in his private and public life,
noticing how in each of these his character was
manifested, we may now come nearer to certain
personal traits that appear through