and troubled about much serving," when Mary " sat at the feet of Jesus and heard His word." Yet there came a day at Bethany, when Mary was crushed and pros- trated by overmuch sorrow, and Martha's faith shone more brightly than her sister's. (Luke x. 39, 40; John xi. 20 — 28.) Nevertheless both were loved by our Lord. The one thing needful is to have the grace of the Spirit, and to love Christ. Let us love all of whom this can be said, though they may not see with our eyes in everything. The Church of Christ needs servants of all kinds, and instruments of every sort ; penknives as well as swords, axes as well as hammers, chisels as well as saws, Marthas as well as Marys, Peters as well as Johns. Let our ruling maxim be this, " Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity.'* (Ephes. vi. 24.)
"VVe should observe, lastly, in these verses, the abun- dant evidence which Scripture supplies of our Lord Je- sus Christ''s resurrection. Here, as in other places, we find an unanswerable proof that our Lord rose again with a real material body, and a proof seen by seven grown-up men with their own eyes, at one and the same time. We see Him sitting, talking, eating, drink- ing, on the shore of the lake of Galilee, and to all ap- pearance for a considerable time. The morning sun of spring shines down on the little party. They are alone by the well-known Galilean lake, far away from the crowd and noise of Jerusalem. In the midst sits the Master, with the nail-prints in His hands, — the very Master whom they had all followed for three years, and one of them, at least, had seen hanging on the cross. They could not be deceived. Will any one pretend to say that stronger proof could be given that Jesus rose from the dead? Can any one imagine better evidence of a fact ? That Peter was convinced and satisfied we