PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — Luke — Volume 1
Henry Donald Maurice Spence [1836–1917] · 342,562 words · 357 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — Luke — Volume 1 — Section 241
rov~lation and teMhlng which has at once t11,iled-evirlently Peter preoerved o. very olrnrmcd 1Lnd influenced so m1L11y million• of vivid memory or theoe events - tells us that men m1d women now for more than eighteen the crowds, "whon they beheld him, were hundred ye1Lrs. Something of the purp.,se greatly ama7,ed." Wi…
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with the pallor of <l!'ath on the poor, pain- 1md rlo1tth simply veiled for them some b1' wrung fn<'e, an<l this sorely afflicted one of t.cl\ching to be explained hereafter; it is " child, <>n<' of those little ones whom Jesus possible they at once dismisso.J it from their lov"'l so w11ll. Poor chil<l-suftercr, on …
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of the worldly twelve. "The child etnnrle ns P"TIY, who hl\rl heen uirlng, t.o aome efl't•,·t tho typo of the humble and chil<llike di"ciple, evidently, that ""me J\fast~r's Name, which an<l (the dispute havi11g been iibont the eotn- possessed, ae John eaw, w•,ndro11A power. pamtive greatueee of the disciples) eneh …
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2. (1) Wl,y iF !hie period, compl\rativcly their Master's immedinto neighbourhood, speaking, so little dwelt on by lho other two These apostles would nl\tumlly choose, as eynoptists SS. MRtthew and Mark? (2) the special subjects of their own tcnohing \\"here did St. Luke probably derive hie and preaching, those event…
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here, and the glorious goo! nlone is spoken perhaps in hlllf-playful rebuke from their of. Whllt a lesson of comfort is here sug- Master, the epithet Boanerges, sons of thun- gested I 'I'he words in the Greek original, der-flamed forth at this insult offered to "he steadfastly set his face," aro evidently their adored …
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offer r,f eervi11P WRS a. ero-ibe. Th is detail 11 worils would have worn off'. It II noticeable uspful, RI! showing thnt those who were that the home duties, which Jesus suggested e I tractc-d by our Lord's teaching w,·re by no should give place to other and more impora.- means C'onfincd to the pensant nnd RrtisRn tiv…
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"Whosoever wills to lose bis life for Christ's sake "-to subordinate all considerations merely personal to the commanu of a supreme affection-may incur shame, may suffer many things, but, in the nobler sense, he shall realize the truth of his existence, he shall receive the crown of his life. Ah I wonderfully sugges…
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~ cio11s, where there is a rea~ r;en1onsl r~latio'!l to him, whei:e. the adoring cry of TbomBs, 1 My Lord and my God! 1s felt,-in this supreme spmtual affiance we recognize the pressure which constrains to live not to self, in Jesus' love to lose the life for Jesus Bake. It is this pressure which bei<tows a beauty q…
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beloved Son I" A wondrous, awe-striking hour I The hush over nature, the darkness illumiued by an inexpressible radiance, the face of the Man of sorrows then and there shining ns the sun, the raiment penetrated by the glory "white and glistering" as the li~ht, and the conversation of the three shining ones,-these, the …
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, ers. 46-50.-Humility and charity. Were these apostles sinners above all ecclesiastics because of this reasoning which arose amoog them ? Were their con- troversies about precedence one whit more foolish and unseemly than the controversies with wliich the air of councils and courts is laden, and by which passions a…
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Klways nkin to self-irlolatry, to be men in unrlerstAnclin" but children in heart and Bf•irit,-this is the mBrk which he presents when, in an;wer to the reasoninz in the bnLrt, ho says, poillting to the child," He that is least among you all, the s11me Bhall be great." A Bell tence ever to be pondered, implying (Matt. …
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Rn<l takrn his wny through the Plain of Es<lrnelon, past Nnin and Shunrm bonnd for ,l,•rn~Hlrm. Il11t this is suhlime: "He steadfastly set biR lace." It im1•lie~ that thero \\Tre solicitntions, temptations in ,mother <lirection. 'l'be Christ of Gud needed to i::ir<l up all his Puergies. Flesh an<l blood cric<l, "Stay …
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quiet villnge. No; he is nearly, but not quitr, rca<ly. It is on him that the Lore! look~. He sees him trembling nt the word tbat is wurking in his soul, and forth comes the calling, empowering, "Follow I" Was it not so natural (ver. 59), "LrlTll, snlT~r me first to go and bury my father"? And will not he wh0se comm"nd…
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Vers. 7-9.-The tetr11,rch and the Teacher. Our Lord had very little to do with the " kings and rulers of the earth," but they did occasionally cross his path. At such times he bore himself as we should expect be would-be who was so fa.r below and yet so much further above them. His relations with Herod, as suggested…
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Ver. 11.-TM healing hand of (Jhrist. "An<l healed them that had Med of heal- ing." Antle who are they to whom these words do not apply? In a worlrl as full of sin as ours ie, there is nothing of which we have greater need than a Divine Hcal,,r. For sin means sickness, disease, derangement, pain-both spiritual and co…
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lic>arls than ewr comes from the lips of bodily convalescence, "I will extol thee, 'J Lord; for thou l1a,t lifte<l me up, aud hast nut made my foes to rejoice over rue,"-0. "Vcrs. 12-li.-The Divi'.11e prov,'.sionfor the world's need, Thie miracle of our Lord nwc>ting as_ it did the present bodily nec~ssities of the …
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wore life." Human life, as its Divine Anthor regards it, means very much more than this. And, taught of Christ, we underdtand the.t we then e.ttain to our true life when we livo unto God, in his holy service, and for the good of those whom be bas committed to our care. 'l'be thoughts of sinful men concerning life ar…
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Ver. 28.-Tlu, Tra,ufiguration. This incident is one that stands quite by itself; it is wholly unlike everything else in our Lord's history. It was miraculous enough, yet we do not count it amongst the miracles of Christ, It may be viewed in many lights; it may illustrate- L THE CLOSE RELATION BETWEEN OUB BPIBITUAL …
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II. THE 0AnE wmoH OoD TAS:F:B OF me OWN IN THJr.11\ TIME OF 8PECTAL NEED. Whrit was the purpose of this won<lerful sceue? It I ras to prepare the disciples (an<l perhaps the Mn8ter) for the Inst scenes of all. Those two celestial visitants spake of "the dec8888 which he should accomplish," etc. A terrible ordeal was th…
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fRr b~tter thRn they knew tbemsel!es, Such is bis knowledge of us. We may think tbnt we know onr~clves and what 1s beet for ourselves, But we may be utterly mis- tRken. \Ve find that our neighbours display lamentable and ruinous ignorance on these greRt matt.ere. Who are we that we should be full of wisdom where others…
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Vere. 46-48.-7'118 CJhurch and the chlld. The scene is well worthy the genius of the artist: the disciples together, but still at variance with one another, with cold or averted look; the Master with e. little child in his arms (Mark ix. 36), either turning a reproachful glance on his. disciples, or a look of tendernes…
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11light.e8t inconsist.ency between th888 two declaration8 of our Lord. One states one truth, snrl the other a different one. They teach successively- I. THAT WE ARE IN DANGER OF OOUNTING AMONG oun OPPONENTS THOBB WHOM W1t SHOULD RECKON AS ALLIES, It did not seem to be a service of any particular account that a man s…
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n future of pain, or of 1eparah'cm a:,d attendant loneliness and elngle-h11ndedneBB of struggle, or of strong and sustained kmptatwn, in whet spirit shall we face that? In the temper of callll and devout resoluteness; with II full and fixed determination to go bravely and unfalteringly through, shrinking from 110 suffe…
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'RELJG1otr~ EA nNEBT1''E8B. 1. They both receive instruction in the common fl\ith; th~y 1,·:un nnd ndm1l the gree.t fundamental truths of the gospel-the life dco.th resurrec- tion, te~cLing o~ Jesus Chris~.. 2.. They are both impressed by the ;urpassing excellence of Christ; for there 1s m him now, as there was when…
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20; ver. 58). He risked the attachment of another (ver. 60); and again of this man (text), How was this? It was that he had such absolute confidence in the rectitude of his cause, in the support of his Divine Father, and therefore in the triumph of his truth and grace. It is never well to hurry even good issues; we sho…
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It wae not quantitatively eo great a miracle BB the feeding of the leraelitee with the manna for forty years; yet it was a oufficient miracle to show that the Sustainer of the world was Blljong them. Upon him they should depend, and, if they fed by faith on him, they would always be strengthened. It was et the eame tim…
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he bec0mes 11 ~artyr. for the faith and lays down, as these disciples did, hie lifo for J ems, he fin<ls 111 an immortal fnture of further dedication all bis best beina cnrrie,l f11rwerd. Death may cripple him in working powers here, but promotion aw"'nite him bcyoud the shadows, and he finds that" be is-himself aga…
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gn hBnd-in-hand. Work done in a prayerlese spirit cannot succeed as it ought to do. 'l'be transfigured once alone can meet the emergencies of Christian work, and s11ccee,rl where otbore foil. Some cases are doubtless more difficult than others, and some domone make I\ hBrder fight of it than others; but there are none …
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CHAPTER L ful preparations should be made before he personally visited the place. ViJlagee and Ve!'II. 1-24.-The mwi-On of the •eeenty. towns, too, where his presence was found, 118 The Lord'~ w,,rd. to tli.em of i,uitructwn and in the case of the Samaritan village, un- direction and warning. welcome, would he thus…
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a,J,t, d ago.in the words of M11tt. x. 28, "Fear 11t the Anme time should preserve their mnnly not them whioh kill the body," eto. independence. The be.re austere ruetennnr,e, Ver. 4.-Carry neither pune, nor 1orip, the simple lodging,-the,e things they hBd nor shoe■. Thoy were to burden themeel vee surely ee.med. Bnt…
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vicinity of Capernnum, where for e. longth- Josnphne, •Doll. Jud.,' iii. 3. 2), Borne thlrt:, C'ncd period our Lord prinoipe.lly resided. years after the woe hlld boon uttered, in the He wne, no doubt, during the GRlilmRn terrible wars in which Rome 11venged herself ministry, oonst.lmtly in one or other of those on …
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which at length hie eervante, when they the life of our Lord is well br,mght ont in, should have learned the true ueo and the that touching legend which we find in the reeietleee power of that glorious Nnme of spurious lett~r of P. Lentnlue to the BPnnte, hie, should win over the rostleea enemy of that he wept often…
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rl<lf's hul m0re fully cxpmm,I whnt ie im- teaching in a house or a comtvnTd of 11 plicitly contained in the enrliPst of the house. M1my Wl're sitting rntm,l ·him. To G,,spels." St. l\fatthow (xi. 2S~'lO) here e.ttract hie. atten_tiou, th,is lawyer stood up !-'.' n•s us that sublime invitation of the before puttmg I…
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l!O.l'erully kept, hia prnyer-formu!M never nnturall v to their own homos. It has been negluctod. Yes: e.s regards God, the remarked thnt the grave censure which Pharisee-lawyer's oonscience WFIS e.t ease I this story levels at the everyrh1y want But his neighbour? He thought of his of ?he.rity on the part of priests…
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him11elf understand the IC'nn "neighbour." the little story, the menning of which the Tho Sami<ritan. lrntcd of the J owe, i<nd most trained-scholar mind of the lnwyer at 01100 probably, in common with the rf!st of his grasped, went right home to the henrt. The nation, hilting them-he, in his tum, was Jewish scribe,…
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medlmval Ohurohmen, Bernard and his St. John's GOBpel wa.e not written for long devout school. Although this method of yea.re after the event. It probably repre- exposition has nr,t been adoptocl hero, still sents no public preaching, rather a private on exegesis which has commended itstolf so heBrtily to leflmed Bnd d…
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she hurTiod in with the words, "Why is reading is, " Thore is need of fow things, Mary sitting there doing nothing?" • Bid or of one only." In other words, "Fow her therefore that she help me. "We things are C'llough for me and my friends nlmost seem to hesr the undertone of • It to sit down to, or even one dish onl…
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HOMILETICS. Ch. ix. 1-6 and eh. x. 1-11.-The mission of the twelve, and the mission of the seventy. The differences between the two missions can be easily distinguished. The scene of the mission related in the ninth chapter is Northern Galilee; the scene of the mission related in the tenth chapter is Southern Galilee.…
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of the love that ia Reeking them; t.o hold before their gaze the reality of a kingdom which is, not a name in a book, not a Utopia of priest or poet, but a li-ving fnct, a kingdom vrhich "1s not meat and drink, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the lloly Ghost,"-this is the burden of the preaching-the free gi…
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vineyard." A threerold lesson seems to be conveyed. 1. A lesson a.s to the spint of mind proper to the serva.nt of Christ. 2. A lesson a.s to the ministry a.ppointed to th" serv1rnt of Obrist. 3. A lesson as to the confession of hilll dema.nded from the servant of Christ. I. THE SPIRIT OP MIND PROPER TO THE TRUE SERV…
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f'C\n8ists 0f fivr, l0aves 1md two fishes: shnll we go &nd buy meat for all the people?" Oh, it is the unbelief, the slow-he:ute<lness of man, which thus speaks out. "Can God furnish a tnhle in the wilderness?" Does not faith need to be reminded that the little br0ui".l'.t_ki C_hrist is multiplied a ~,undredfold? "N…
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heart wills some self-justification, anJ, thus willing, produces some excuse, some word by which to tum aside the arrow of conviction, II. THE B0ENE AND THE PERSONS 01" TJIE DRAMA. 1. The ,cene. The wild road, proverbial for deeds of blood, which Jesus and the disciples had just traversed. 2. The persons. The travelle…
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c.onfess that we cannot love because we are told to love our neigh Lour BB oureel vee." Now, let it be acknowledged that these and similar difficulties are real difficultlee, But, in the mean time, see whether Christ, in commanding, hM not Indicated the way of assist.ance; whether a more spiiitual exposition of his t…
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hea.rt. It le describe<l in the Acripiurcs as the gift of God. It is "a. heart of super- natural texture "-part of that new ordering of the life which is realized when the wayward will is offered to the consuming fire of God, and the inner man is born from above. See, then, what this pure self-love, which is the measur…
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But the MRrys, to?, hRve t!1eir place. Busy business people e.ro Rpt to underrate them. They exh1b1t something of the elrler sister's impatience: "We !\re left to do nil; these dree.mers do not hl'!p." Not help? It is Mary who sees into the truth of .Tes_us' sacrifi~e. It is she who, sitting e.nd listening, divines …
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-t.o the wants and desires of e.n immortal nature?" 2. The finger of commendation i8 pointed lo Mary, (Ver. 42.) "She hath cho~en thflt good part, which shall not be te.kcm away from her." The good part is e. place, a. nourishmene, and a ch01:ce. The place~Jesus' feet. Oh the blessedness of sitting there I When the Gad…
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they will be but the sme.U dust in the be.le.noe, Th.ire ls encoure.gement ln the thought of- II. THE OHARACTER OF THE SEED WHIOH TB BOWN, The.t seed was In course of pre- JJarat!on e.s Jesus Ohrist was spoaking and working e.nd suffering. It was his whole life; 1t was, indeed, him~elf in all his relations with men,…
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e.n lncenllve to fuller labour and more energetic service. 3. The payment of the reward will renct beneficially on him that pa.ye it-he will appreciate more highly the ministry he recei vee. Ill. Goo's anA01ous AND GENEROUS OFl!'ER. Though (as eald) we can claim nothing from God as our right, yet he is plea~ed to offe…
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Ver. 16.-The largeness of our life. Jesus Christ is eendina his disciples, two nud two, to prepare his way; it is certain that by some towns at~<l villages they will be 111•ell received, e.nd equally certain that by others they will be repelled. He tells them that those who received them would be doing more e.nd bet…
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you nre also ecrving your Saviour, and that in a we.y in which he most delights to be served. He ie s11ying to you, 'If you had eyes to see, yon would recognize me in those pinched faces 11nd ill-clad forms; if you he.d ears to hear, you would recognize my voice in those plaintive tones; it is my need that yon are supp…
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0 F&ther." Joy and th,mkfulness are here united, aa indeed they are evorywhore. It is grat.itude that holds the key to h&ppiness of hoart and life. Who &re the miserablo? Not the poor; they are often the most contented. Not the nffii ;ted; they aro often very cheerful under great privation. Not the lonely; they are fou…
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far; their influence had not been felt in the liCe of their countrymen. 2. It was one of glorious advanta,qe in one respect. They had the moRt distinguished honour of heing tho personal attendants upon the Messiah himself. They not only &'lW hie face and heard hie words, but they ministered to his wants; they rendered…
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For we find in Old Test.e.ment Sciipture pass11.ges 11.ffirming the kindnesa, the pity, the patience, the mercy, of God, well worthy to be placed by the side of any we find in the New (Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7; Pe. ciii. 8-14; cxlv. 8, 9; Micah vii. 18, etc.). It was surely possible for him to let reverence ascend to love.…
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the pormnnting force of the Christian spirH will avail to lead us to love those beyond our lionlcrs, without the palo of our own civilization. II. HEMOVEB THE LIMIT OF SPACE, The simple and cbmmon notion of a neighbour is that of one locally near to us. But that idea, under Christ, has been very greatly enlar~ed. 1. I…
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foet, and beard his word." We also receive it into our hoal'ts RB wo "go unto him" and " le11rn of him," 11s we follow him, 110d 11s we abide in him. Of him we learn the way to God, the way to the light and the pe11co aud the life which are in him. From him wo gain forgivene~s, friendship, purity, usefulness, a hope …
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the eick ie porformed RB e. sign of the higher salvation which is included in the comin" of the kingdom, PhysicBI mire.oles eJre spiritual signs. The health of the soul is t~ follow that of the body, if the people will only trust the King. The delegated miracu- lous power is the sign e.nd announcement of coming spiritu…
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11]! bi~ mind; he WRR also loving his neighbnur Rs hlmReH; and he fonnrl l\llrl felt tlll\t this was life, and life e,·e1-Iastin_g too. D,mbtlcse he might have to die, but beyond death tbere was the compensat10n of resurrection. He was entitled to life on the ground of law, ~ince he had kept it in every particular. …
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EXPOSITION. o.ppeared to them-no doubt, os they caught CHAPTER XI. here e.nd there o. word e.nd expression as he Vere. 1-13.-The Lord's teaching on the prayed, perhaps pe.rtly alone, pe.rtly to him- aubject of prayer. Ago.in the scene is for self-as though !\ friend wo.s speaking to a awe.y from Jerusalem; no specia…
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only nil cxceRs, but nll extravngnnce, nnd midnigl,t hae nothing stmine<l in it-it wBII even oonsiderntirm crnd thought, in providing frequently tho prooti~e in the Enst to travel fur anyU.1iug beyond the simplost daily by night, anJ so to eecape the greo.t heat of sustounnce. the de.y. Ver. 4.-~nd forgive u1 our ain1…
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that ask him, In St. Matthew we find the Jesus (ver. li) had been occupied In ono ll\al portion of this tcaehing related oe having of his (probably) daily works of healing. tnken place at a mnoh earlier poriod of the Lorcl's ministry. It ie more than proboble He \1ad expelled an evil spirit from" sufferer tliat muc…
935 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.