14. Remember that Christ your Lord and pattern did humble himself to the meanest office of love, even to wash the feet of his disciples: not to teach you to wash a few poor men's feet, as a ceremony once a year, and persecute and murder the servants of Christ the rest of the year, as the Roman Vice-Christ doth; but to teach us, that if he their Lord and Master washed his disciples' feet, we also should stoop as low in any office of love, for one another, John xiii. 14.
15. Remember also that Christ your pattern spent whole nights in prayer to God;[97] so much was he for this holy attendance upon God: to teach us to "pray always and not wax faint," Luke xviii. 1. And not to be like the impious God-haters, that love not any near or serious addresses unto God, nor those that use them, but make them the object of their cruelty or scorn.
16. Remember also that Christ was against the Pharisees' outside, hypocritical, ceremonious worship, consisting in lip-labour, affected repetitions, and much babbling; their "Touch not, taste not, handle not," and worshipping God in vain, according to their traditions, "teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." He taught us a serious, spiritual worship: not "to draw nigh to God with our mouth, and honour him with our lips, while our hearts are far from him;" but to "worship God who is a Spirit, in spirit and truth," Matt. xv. 6-9; John iv. 23, 24; Matt. xxiii.
17. Christ was a sharp reprover of hypocritical, blind, ceremonious, malicious Pharisees; and warneth his disciples to take heed of their leaven. When they are offended with him, he saith, "Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted shall be rooted up: let them alone, they be blind leaders of the blind," &c. Matt. xv. 12-14. To teach us to take heed of autonomous, supercilious, domineering, formal hypocrites, and false teachers, and to difference between the shepherds and the wolves.
18. Though Christ seems cautelously to avoid the owning of the Romans' usurpation over the Jews, yet rather than offend them he payeth tribute himself, Matt. xvii. 25-27, and biddeth them "render to Cæsar the things that are Cæsar's, and to God the things that are God's," Matt. xxii. 21. The Pharisees bring their controversy to him hypocritically, "Whether it be lawful to give tribute to Cæsar, or not?" (For that Cæsar was a usurper over them, they took to be past controversy.) And Christ would give them no answer that should insnare himself, or encourage usurpation, or countenance their sedition: teaching us much more to pay tribute cheerfully to our lawful governors, and to avoid all sedition and offence.
19. Yet is he accused, condemned, and executed among malefactors, as aspiring to be "King of the Jews," and the judge called, "none of Cæsar's friend," if he let him go: teaching us to expect that the most innocent christians should be accused, as enemies to the rulers of the world, and mistaken governors be provoked and engaged against them, by the malicious calumnies of their adversaries; and that we should, in this unrighteous world, be condemned of those crimes of which we are most innocent, and which we most abhor, and have borne the fullest testimonies against.
20. The furious rout of the enraged people deride him by their words and deeds, with a purple robe, a sceptre of reed, a crown of thorns, and the scornful name of "King of the Jews;" they spit in his face, and buffet him, and then break jests upon him; and in all this "being reviled he reviled not again, but committed all to him that judgeth righteously," 1 Pet. ii. 21-23. Teaching us to expect the rage of the ignorant rabble, as well as of deluded governors; and to be made the scorn of the worst of men; and all this without impatience, reviling, or threatening words; but quieting ourselves in the sure expectation of the righteous judgment, which we and they must shortly find.
21. When Christ is urged at Pilate's bar to speak for himself, he holds his peace: teaching us to expect to be questioned at the judgment-seat of man; and not to be over-careful for the vindicating of our names from their most odious calumnies, because the judgment that will fully justify us is sure and near.
22. When Christ is in his agony, his disciples fail him; when he is judged and crucified, they "forsook him and fled," Matt. xxvi. 56: to teach us not to be too confident in the best of men, nor to expect much from them in a time of trial, but to take up our comfort in God alone, when all our nearest friends shall fail us.
23. Upon the cross he suffereth the torments and ignominy of death for us, praying for his murderers: "leaving us an example that we should follow his steps," 1 Pet. ii. 21; and that we think not life itself too dear to part with, in obedience to God, and for the love of Christ and one another, 1 John iii. 16; and that we forgive and pray for them that persecute us.