The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 234

joy, tho brightness and the smile of B glorious hope,-theso all tell that Christ, "the Life," l~Rs come. His advent, his sacrifice, his resurrection, his Divine outpouring of blessing, wero the means by which his spiritnn1 vitality was commnnicatcd. The samo Christ who gnve the lifo at first, sustains, enriches, and develops it, and will in his.own time also perfect it. It is his work to slay death itself, and to pour the vitality which etreams from tho bosom of the Eternal through all the channelH of the spiritual orgRnism. It must not be overlooked that it is not the mere bodily presence of the t!nviour upon earth that ensured this result. It is his spiritual presence which sccure:1 the fulness of Divine life to humanity. From the Day of Pentecost, when the Spirit, i.e. the Spirit of Christ, WBS poured out from on high, life has entered human souls in now· measure and with new fruits, and in many a spot the desert has rejoiced and blossomed as the rose. III. CHRIST 19 THUS TO MAN TIIE AUTHOR OP' AN nn.ronTAJ,ITY 011' BT,ESBEDNESS. The life of created organisms, both vegetable and animal, is perishable and brief. The life even of a species, a race, is but for a season. There are good reasons for regarding the spiritual life as above the action of this scientific law. T? that law the body, a part of nature, is subject; from its action the spirit is exempt. There are those who hold that endless continuance of being is the purchase of the Saviour's redemption. n,it certain it is, that what makes life good and desirable is due to the Spirit of the living Redeemer. He has "brought life and immortality to light by the gospel." He bas said, "Because I live, ye shall live also." A mere enduring sentiency is valueless; eternal progress in the knowledge and fellowship of Go<l himself,-this is life indeed. It is in this sense that he who liveth and believeth on Christ shall never die. IV. THAT QHRIST 19 THE LIFE OF MEN JS PRECIOUS TIDINGS WORTHY OF ALL ACCEPTA- TJON. Spiritual death is indeed dreadful to contemplate; to experience it is the most awful doom that man can know. Yet the Scriptures represent sinful men as spiritually dead-"dead in trespasses and sins." To those in such a state it seem~, if they know themselves and know not Christ, that existence is a curse. With what sweetness must the gospel come to such! To them it is the bringer of hope; for to them Christ is the Bringer of life. The welcome message is, ".A wake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light! "-T. Ver. 12.-The greater worlcs. Our Lord Jesus when on earth was during the whole of bis ministry a Worker. He spoke of his works, and of his resolve to work the works of the Father. In the text there is no disparagement of these displays of power-power to teach, to heal, to rule, to conquer. They were works worthy of him who wrought them, and they answered the purposes for which they were intended. They were uot only advantageous and ben<'ficent to men; they were a witness to Christ's claims, for be himself made the well-founded appeal, "Believe me for the works' sake." Yet in this passage our Lord affirms the superiority of tha works of his disciples to his own. I. .AN UNEXPECTED AND WC\NDEllFUL SUPERIORITY. The master.,may naturally be expected to excel the servant, the teacher to excel the scholar, t-he 'lender to excel the follower. The reverse, however, was designed in the Christian dispensation. This very marvellous arrangement is to our mind a proof of the Lord's confidence in himself, nnd in the certainty of his expectations regarding the future of his cause. This is one of those many and instructive instances in which God's ways are not as our ways. II. .A REASONABLE SUPERIORITY. Below the superficial difficulty just mentioned there is a deep-rooted reasonBblemiss in this arrangement. As explaiue<l in the text the conditions of this superiority are twofold. 1. They who do the greater works are believers on Christ. _ Faith is ever the inner power of works, both material an<l moral It is the nnion with the Lord himself that makes his people strong to do the greater works; so that, in fact, they are not their works, but his, who works in and by his own faithful servants. Faith ns a grain of mustard seed enables a disciple to remove mountains. 2. 'fhey who do tho greater works are possessed and inspire<l by the Holy Spirit. Tho Lor<l himself assigns the reason: " Because I go unto the Father." The ascension of Christ secured the bestowal of the Spirit, nnd the influences of the Spirit enabled the riobly endowed 1md blessed to do great marvels. "Strengthoned with all might" by the Holy Spirit, they were made fit for the grrat enterprise committed tG them. Feeble in themselves, they were strong in their Lord. .J0IIN.-11, B  242 THE GOSPEL AOOORDING TO BT. JOHN. [ou. xrv. 1-31.