no message from God at all. Their pretended objections were only a cloak to cover over their hatred of God's truth. What they really disliked was, not so much God's minis- ters, as God Himself.
Perhaps we read this acconnt with wonder and surprise. We think that never were men so wickedly unreasonable as these Jews were. But are we sure that their conduct is not continually repeated among Christians? Dq we know that the same thing is continually going on around us at the present day ? Strange as it may seem at first sight, the generation which will neither "dance" when their companions "pipe," nor "lament" when they "mourn," is only too numerous in the Church of Christ.
Is it not a fact that many who strive to serve Christ faithfully, and walk closely with God, find their neighbours and relations always dissatisfied with their conduct P 'No matter how holy and consistent their lives may be, they are always thought wrong ! If they withdraw entirely from the world, and live, like John the Baptist, a retired and ascetic life, the cry is raised that they are exclusive, narrow-minded, sour-spirited, and righteous overmuch. If, on the other hand, they go much into society, and endeav- our as far they can to take interest in their neighbour's pursuits, the remark is soon made that they are no better than other people, and have no more real religion than those who make no profession at all. Treatment like this is only too common. Few are the decided Christians who do not know it by bitter experience. The servants of God in every age, whatever they do, are blamed.
The plain truth is, that the natural heart of man hates
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God. The carnal mind is enmity against God. It dis- likes His law. His Gh)spel9 and His people. It will always find some excuse for not believing and obeying. The doctrine of repentance is too strict for' it! The doctrine of faith and grace is too easy for it ! John the Baptist goes too much out of the world ! Jesus Christ goes too much into the world ! And so the heart of man excuses itself for sitting still in its sins. — ^All this must not surprise us. We must make up our minds to find unconverted people as perverse, unreasonable, and hard to please as the Jews of our Lord's time. We must give up the vain idea of trying to please everybody. The thing is impossible, and the attempt is mere waste of time. We must be content to walk in Christ's steps, and let the world say what it likes. Do what we will we shall never satisfy it, or silence its ill-natured remarks. It first found fault with John the Baptist, and then with his blessed Master. And it will go on cavilling and finding fault with that Master's disciples, so long as one of them is left upon earth.
We learn, secondly, firom these verses, that the wisdom of God^8 icays is always recognized and acknowledged by those who are wise-hearted.
This is a lesson which is taught in a sentence of some- what obscure character : "Wisdom is justified of all her children." But it seems difficult to extract any other meaning firom the words, by fair and consistent interpre- tation. The idea which our Lord desires to impress upon us appears to be, that though the vast majority of the Jews were hardened and unreasonable, there were some who were not, — and that though multitudes saw no