how oan we suffer for hie sake when unnoticed, unsupported 1 and alone? " 'l'hle way of thinking o\'erloc•ka Christ's spiritual presence. In reality, they who suffer /or him " sutler with him." V. ANOTHER BA VB, " IF, Loan, THOU HADST BBEN BEBE, THEN 'l'BY WORK &NTRUBTED TD MY HANDS WOULD HAVE PROSPERED." There are those who fear tho.t in this spiritul\l dispensation, where no present Lord stands ready to ,vork signs and wonders for the conviction of men, it is vain to hope for great results to follow the prcaohing of the gospel l\nd the witness of the saints. Yet it cannot be denied that grel\ter works tho.n those wrought during Christ's ministry were effeoted after his o.ecension; and that the spiritual economy wo.e introduced into the world with signal trophies of might and signal omens of victory. It is not the Master's bodily absence which acoounts for the slow progress of the truth and kingdom of Christ. Spiritual causes account for this lamentable fact; spiritual powers alone can cheok the advance of error, and ho.sten the kingdom of God, of righteousness, of truth. The Church has not faith enough in the Lord's own assurance, "Lo, I am with you al way, even unto the end of the world." APPLICATION. It is well for us to remember that, as a matter of faot and reality, Christ is always here. His Spirit is near our spirit. He is truly present to those who have faith. When duty is difficult and arduous, let us reflect, Christ is here I When temptation is urgent, or when trials are severe, let us not forget that Christ is. hero I When bereavement overtakes us, and we are very sensible that those whom we ha.vo loved, and upon whom we have relied, are gone, then let us oherish the comforting assure.nee that Christ is here !-T. Ver. 35.-The t6af'8 of Jesus. Thrice in the gospel narrative is Jesus recorded to have wept; viz. over the unbelieving and doomed city of Jerusalem, by the grave of his friend, Lazarus of Bethany, and in the garden of Gethsemane, when enduring the agony which all but overwhelmed his souL Much valuable and consolatory reflection is su~gested by the simple record, "Jesus wept." L CHB.IST's CAPACITY FOB TEARS. 1. It is obvious to say this capo.city bi.y in hie true human nature. As we read in Job, "Man is bom to sorrow; n as our poet sings, "Man is made to mourn." Jesus was ~• a Ms.n of sorrows." 2. Christ was· capable of human sympathy. Men weep for themselves, and they weep for others. The tears of Jesus were tears shed, not for himself, but for members of this race whose nature he assumed. 3. Tb.is capacity lay yet deeper in our Lord's Divinity. It is unjust to represent God as unfeeling; he is susceptible of some deep" painless sympathy with pain." He pities and grieves over the sorrow he nevertheless in wisdom and in love permits. . IL THE OCCASIONS or Cmwrr's TEA118. The narrative reveals : 1. His personal sorrow for the death of hie friend. He had been wont to come to Bethany j;o meet with a cordial welcome and a friendly smile from Lazarus. And as he knew the joys of friendship, so did he experience the distress of bereavement. There. was justice i11 the exclamation of the Jews," Behold how he loved him I" 2. His sympathy with the grief of the bereaved sisters. Mary and Martha. were nearest in kindred and in affection to the decewied Lazarus ; and Jesus, who loved all three, could not but feel for the sisters whom he found in sorrow and in tears. 3. Consciousness of the power of sin. Nothing less than this can aooount for the prevalence and the bitterness of the heart's im.,uu.ish. J esue, who knew all things, knew this; it was sin which ''. brought death into the world with all its woes." In every• instance of human mortality Je~us could not fail to discem the bitterer root of fruit so bitter. Henqe the strong emotion he displayed, as he groaned and was stirred and moved by the mighty. wave of feeling which swept over his souL - IlL 'l'BE PRAC'TlOAL ocr'.l'OOME OF OBB:urr's T&ABB. There a.re cases in which tears a.re a substitute for help. It was not so ill the instance before us. 'l'he heart that fuund expreasion for its woe in tearB, fowid expression for its sympathy and pity in the te0Ching out of e. hand of help. Jesus first wept, and then succoured the 110!'.fOWful 4Ild raised the dead. Chrietia11 sympathy should be like Ohri.Bt'e syui.pathy, which was .,ot content with words and tears, but made for itself a way of practical compassion. IV. THE BIGNIFJO.urr LESSOliB or CHRIBT's TE.ARB. 1. They,sssure us that we ho.ve in biru a feeling Friend, who ill all our afflictions is 11.filicted. 2, They teach us a (JI[, XJ. 1-67,] THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. 111
lesson of sympathy-that we should "weep with those who weep." 3. They remind us by contrast of that state where "all tee.re sha.ll be wiped from off a.11 fe.ces," "The po.th of eorrow, and that path alone, Lei.Ids to the land where sorrow is unknown." T. Ver. 47.-.A s(qnifi,cane admission. It was not before the public, but in the secret conclave of the Sanhedrin, tha.t the Sa.dducea.n chief priests and the Piiariseee made this very remarkable admission. .Animated only by selfish considerations, these men looked the facts in the face. They regarded the position of J esas in the light of their own interests, and accordingly proceeded to deal with his case with a brutal frankness and insensibility. It was no time for misrepresentation or self-deception. To this sincerity of wickedness we owe the valuable witness of those who were as competent as any of his contemporaries to judge of the validity of the claims of Jesus. "This man doeth many miracles." I. THIS ADMISSION ACCOUNTS FOR THE FEARS AND THE MALICE OF CIIRIST S ENEMIES. 0