IV. THE IlESUBBEOTION WAS TilE TIME WHEJI HE COULD BECOME THE SPIRITUAL POWEB HE WANTED TO DE. This point will open out with some freshness. Jesus always wanted to be a spiritual power in the souls of men. While he was in the body, the body seemed both to help and to hinder both him and them. It was a necessary help for a time, but Jesus longed for the risen and ascended life, in which he could be unhindered spiritual power to redeem and sa.ve.-R. T. Ver. 27.-The avoidance of needless offence. The miracle of the stater in the fish's mouth is one of the most difficult miracles to deal wisely with; and that for this reason- it seems to be opposed to the principle our Lord adopted, and so readily carried through, that he would work no miracle for the supply of his own needs. All Christ's miracles are acts of service; sometimes evidently the service of teaching moral and spiritual truth to his disciples. But if this incident be carefully observed, it will be seen that, though the supernatural element is clearly present, the precisely miraculous element is absent. Christ, by supernatural power, knew which fish would first seize St. Peter's hook, and what would be found in that fish; but not a word is said which intimates that Christ put forth miraculous power in order to place that stater in the fish's mouth. There is, indeed, no miracle to explain to those who believe in the Divine-human nature of Christ. The point we take is the reason given by Jesus for allowing this tax-money to be pa.id-" Lest we should offend them." Those who note the finer shades of language can scarcely fail to trace in these words the tone of what we should describe in a human teacher as a half-playful, half-serious irony. L THERE A.BE TIMES WHEN WE DO WELL TO STAND TO OUR BIGHTS, There were such times in the life of Jesus. Standing on our dignity is a very doubtful thing. .A man's dignity is but a poor thing if it cannot take ea.re of itself. But every man has rights. He ought to be prepared to assert them on all fitting occasions. A man's rights represent his trust, his mission for God, and he must be jealous of them. II. THERE ARE TIMES WHEN WE DO WELL NOT TO PRESS OUR BIGHTS. It may be that men do not recognize them, or do not admit them, as in the case of Christ. Then we do better to live them rather than assert them. It may be that those around us are unsympathetic and prepared to object, as in the case of Christ. Then Christian pru- dence advises a careful reticence, lest we offend them. llJ. THE SKILL OF CHRISTIAN LIVING IS SEEN IN DISCERNING THE TIME TO ACT, AND THE TIME TO REFRAIN Jo'ROM ACTING. Many things are not abstractly right, but are relatively right. We have to act in view of existing circumstances, in ways we should not adopt if all the circumstances were according to our mind. A Christian should not hesitate to give offence, but he should a.void giving needless offence.-R. T.
EXPOSITION. would ere long publicly assert his Messianic OHAPTER XVIll. claims, which, in their view, implied tem- poral sovereignty and secular power, they Vere. 1-35.-Discourse C011ceming the looked forward to becoming dignitaries in greateat in the 1cingdom of heaven, and the this new kingdom. Three of them had been mutual duties of Chl-istiam. (Mark ix. S3- honoured with specie.I marks of favour; one 50 ; Luke ix. 46-50.) of them he.d been pre-eminently distin- Vere. 1-4.-Tha greateat in t1,e kingdom guished: how would it be when the coming of heaven. empire was established? This had been the subject of conversation, and had given Ver. 1.-At the same time; lit.erally, in rise to some contention among them. Christ that hour. The narrator connects the follow• had marked the dispute, but had said nothing ing important discourse with the circum- at the time. Now he gives them a lesson etanoee just previously related. Peter had in humility, and teaches the spiritual nature completed the business of the didrachma, of his kingdom, in which earthly pride and and had rejoined the body of disciples. ambition find no place. 1trom St. Mark we These, according to St. Mark, had disputed learn that Jesus hilllllelf took the initiative about preoedency on the way to Capernaum. in the discourse, asking the disciples con- Filed with the notion th11t their Master cerning their disputation on the ro&d; l\lld, !OS TIIE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MAT'IHEW. [CB. xvm.1-35.