2. Let us never be afraid to vindicate his cause —
[It was but lately that Peter was intimidated by the voice of a servant-maid ; but now he boldly confronted the whole Sanhedrim, and charged them all with the murder of their Messiah. Thus, if the whole world were to rise against us for our attachment to Christ, we should not give way to any unworthy fears, or be deterred from confessing him openly before men. We must indeed look well to our own spirit, and guard against the intemperate sallies of an angry or vin- dictive mind : the apostolic rule should be rigidly adhered to, " Be ready always to give an answer to every one that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear0 :" but still we must never be ashamed of Christ, but " be faithful unto death, if ever we would receive from him a crown of life" ]
0 1 Pet. iii. 15.
Acts iv. 12. Neitlier is there salvation in any other : for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby xve must be saved.
FROM the account given us of the miracles wrought by our blessed Lord, we should be led, not only to acknowledge him as the true Messiah, but to consider what we ourselves may expect at his hands. His Apostles, Peter and John, had healed a man who had been lame from his birth. The spectators, filled with astonishment, were ready to ascribe the honour of this miracle to them : but they told them by whom it had been effected, even by Jesus, whom they had rejected ; but who, notwithstanding their contempt of him, was, and by this miracle had proved himself to be, " the head-stone of the corner3." They then directed the attention of their auditors to their own eternal interests, and assured them, that as Jesus alone restored the cripple to the use of his limbs,
a ver. 11. v 2