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diff --git a/42258.txt b/42258.txt deleted file mode 100644 index e79d145..0000000 --- a/42258.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,13870 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Expositor's Bible: The Acts of the -Apostles, Vol. 1, by G. T. Stokes - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: The Expositor's Bible: The Acts of the Apostles, Vol. 1 - -Author: G. T. Stokes - -Editor: W. Robertson Nicoll - -Release Date: March 4, 2013 [EBook #42258] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE: ACTS 1 *** - - - - -Produced by Colin Bell, Julia Neufeld and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - -Transcriber's note: - -Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - -Small capital text has been replaced with all capitals. - -Variations in spelling, punctuation and hyphenation have been retained -except in obvious cases of typographical error. - -The cover for the eBook version of this book was created by the -transcriber and is placed in the public domain. - - * * * * * - - - THE EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE - - EDITED BY THE REV. - - W. ROBERTSON NICOLL, M.A., LL.D., - - Editor of "The Expositor." - - THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. - - - NEW YORK - - 51 EAST TENTH STREET - - (NEAR BROADWAY). - - 1891. - - - BY - - G. T. STOKES, D.D. - - NEW YORK: - - A. C. ARMSTRONG AND SON, - - 51 EAST TENTH STREET - - (NEAR BROADWAY). - - 1891. - - - THE EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE. - - EDITED BY THE REV. W. ROBERTSON NICOLL, M.A., LL.D. - - _Crown 8vo, cloth._ - - - FIRST SERIES, 1887-88. - - Colossians. - By A. MACLAREN, D.D. - - St. Mark. - By Very Rev. the Dean of Armagh. - - Genesis. - By Prof. MARCUS DODS, D.D. - - 1 Samuel. - By Prof. W. G. BLAIKIE, D.D. - - 2 Samuel. - By the same Author. - - Hebrews. - By Principal T. C. EDWARDS, D.D. - -SECOND SERIES, 1888-89. - - Galatians. - By Prof. G. G. FINDLAY, B.A. - - The Pastoral Epistles. - By Rev. A. PLUMMER, D.D. - - Isaiah I.--XXXIX. - By G. A. SMITH, M.A. Vol. I. - - The Book of Revelation. - By Prof. W. MILLIGAN, D.D. - - 1 Corinthians. - By Prof. MARCUS DODS, D.D. - - The Epistles of St. John. - By Rt. Rev. W. ALEXANDER, D.D. -THIRD SERIES, 1889-90. - - Judges and Ruth. - By Rev. R. A. WATSON, M.A. - - Jeremiah. - By Rev. C. J. BALL, M.A. - - Isaiah XL.-LXVI. - By G. A. SMITH, M.A. Vol. II. - - St. Matthew. - By Rev. J. MONRO GIBSON, D.D. - - Exodus. - By Very Rev. the Dean of Armagh. - - St. Luke. - By Rev. H. BURTON, B.A. - -FOURTH SERIES, 1890-91. - - Ecclesiastes. - By Rev. SAMUEL COX, D.D. - - St. James and St. Jude. - By Rev. A. PLUMMER, D.D. - - Proverbs. - By Rev. R. F. HORTON, M.A. - - Leviticus. - By Rev. S. H. KELLOGG, D.D. - - The Gospel of St. John. - By Prof. M. DODS, D.D. Vol. I. - - The Acts of the Apostles. - By Rev. Prof. G. T. STOKES, D.D. - - NEW YORK: A. C. ARMSTRONG AND SON. - - - - - THE - ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. - - BY THE REV. - G. T. STOKES, D.D., - - PROFESSOR OF ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF DUBLIN, - AND VICAR OF ALL SAINTS', BLACKROCK. - - NEW YORK: - A. C. ARMSTRONG AND SON, - 51 EAST TENTH STREET - (NEAR BROADWAY). - 1891. - - - - -PREFACE. - -This volume contains an exposition of the Acts of the Apostles down -to, but not including, the conversion of St. Paul and the baptism of -Cornelius. There is a natural division at that point. Prior to these -events, the inspired narrative is engaged with what the late Bishop -Lightfoot of Durham called great "representative facts," prophetical -or typical of the future developments of the Church, whether among -Jews or Gentiles;[1] while the subsequent course of the history deals -almost entirely with missionary work among the heathen and the labours -of St. Paul.[2] - - [1] See the treatise on the Christian Ministry in his - _Philippians_, p. 186. - - [2] Dr. Goulburn, in his _Acts of the Deacons_, suggested this - view of the Acts of the Apostles nearly thirty years ago. - -We are dependent for the story of these earliest days of the Church's -life upon the Acts of the Apostles. I have endeavoured, however, to -illustrate the narrative by copious references to ancient documents, -some of which may appear of dubious value and authority, such as the -_Acts of the Saints_ and the writings of the mediaeval Greek -hagiologist, Simeon Metaphrastes, who lived in the tenth century.[3] -The latter writer has been hitherto regarded as more famous for his -imagination than for his historical accuracy. This age of ours is a -noted one, however, for clearing characters previously regarded as -very doubtful, and Simeon Metaphrastes has come in for his own share -of this process of rehabilitation. The distinguished writer just -referred to, Dr. Lightfoot, as we have shown in a note on p. 218, has -proved that Metaphrastes embodied in his works valuable early records, -dating back to the second century, which in critical hands can shed -much light upon primitive Christian history.[4] In fact, students of -Holy Scripture and of early Christianity are learning every day to -look more and more to ancient Greek, Syriac, and Armenian writers, and -to the libraries of the Eastern Churches, for fresh light on these -important subjects. It is only natural we should do so. Writers like -Simeon Metaphrastes and Photius, the student Patriarch of -Constantinople, lived a thousand years nearer the apostolic times than -we do. They flourished in an age of the highest civilization, when -precious literary works, in hundreds and thousands, which are no -longer known amongst us, lay all around them and at their command. -These men and their friends gathered them up and extracted them, and -common sense alone teaches that a critical study of their writings -will reveal to us somewhat of the treasures they possessed. The -libraries of the East again form a great field for investigation. -During the last fifty years we have paid some little attention to -them, which has been amply rewarded. The recovery of the complete -works of Hippolytus and of Clement of Rome, the discovery of the -_Teaching of the Apostles_ and of the _Diatessaron_ of Tatian, are -only specimens of what we may yet hope to exhume from the dust of -ages. - - [3] For an account of Simeon Metaphrastes the English reader - should consult Dr. Schaff's valuable _Encyclopaedia of Historical - Theology_. - - [4] See Professor Ramsay on "The Tale of Saint Abercius" in the - _Journal of Hellenic Studies_, vol. iii., p. 338, for a full - account of this new source of early Church history which his - travels and excavations have brought to our notice. - -The testimony, too, borne by these finds has been of the greatest -importance. The _Diatessaron_ alone has formed the most triumphant -reply to the argument against the Gospels, specially against St. -John's Gospel, formulated some years ago by the author of -_Supernatural Religion_. And the process of discovery is still going -on. I have said something in the notes to the final lecture of the -present volume concerning the latest discovery of this kind which -throws some light upon the composition of the Acts. I refer to the -lost _Apology_ of Aristides, which has just been brought to light. Let -me very briefly tell its story and show its bearing on the age and -date of the Acts. Eusebius, the historian of the fourth century, -mentions in his _Chronicle_, under the year 124, the two earliest -apologies written in defence of Christianity; one by Quadratus, a -hearer of the Apostles, the other by Aristides, a philosopher of -Athens. Now this year 124 was about twenty years after St. John's -death. These apologies have hitherto been best known by this -historian's notice, though Eusebius says they were widely circulated -in his time. The _Apology_ or defence of Aristides has often been -sought for. In the seventeenth century it was said to have been extant -in a monastery near Athens,[5] but no Western had ever seen it in a -complete shape in modern times. Two years ago, however, Professor J. -Rendel Harris, M.A., of Cambridge and of Haverford College, -Pennsylvania, discovered it in a Syriac version in the library of the -convent of St. Catharine on Mount Sinai, whence he has published it -with an English translation in a new series of _Texts and Studies in -Biblical and Patristic Literature_, the first number of which has -appeared at Cambridge within the last few weeks.[6] - - [5] Ceillier, _Hist. des Auteurs Ecclesiastiques_, i., 403. - - [6] Mr. Harris's discovery is not the first find of this ancient - apologist in modern times. The Armenian Mechitarites of Venice - published what they called two sermons of Aristides in 1878; which - Cardinal Pitra, the learned librarian of the Vatican, reprinted in - 1883, in his _Analecta Sacra_, t. iv., pp. x, xi, 6-11, 282-86. - One of these sermons was a fragment of the _Apology_ of Aristides, - which the Mechitarites scarcely at first recognised as such. M. - Renan, in his _Origines de Christianisme_, vol. vi., p. vi (Paris, - 1879), scoffed at this fragment, declaring that, from the - technical theological terms, such as Theotokos, therein used, it - was evidently posterior to the fourth century. Doulcet, in the - _Revue des Questions Historiques_ for October 1880, pp. 601-12, - made an effective reply with the materials at hand at the time; - but Mr. Harris's publication of the complete work triumphantly - demonstrates that M. Renan's objections were worthless (see - Harris, pp. 2, 3, 27). It is another proof that Christians have - everything to hope and nothing to fear from such discoveries of - early documents. Mr. Harris's preface is specially interesting, - because it shows that we have had the _Apology_ of Aristides all - the time, though we knew it not, as it was worked in the - quasi-oriental tale of Barlaam and Joasaph printed among the works - of St. John of Damascus. - -I need not go farther into the story of the recovery of this document, -which raises high our expectations of others still more interesting. -The _Apology_ of Quadratus would be even more important, as it bore -direct testimony to the miracles of our Lord. The brief extract from -it which Eusebius gives in his _History_, book iv., chap. 3, proves -how precious would be the complete work. "The deeds of our Saviour, -says Quadratus, were always before you, for they were true; those that -were healed, those that were raised from the dead, who were seen, not -only when healed and when raised, but were always present. They -remained for a long time, not only whilst the Saviour was sojourning -with us, but likewise when He had been removed. So that some of them -have also survived to our own times." - -In the _Apology_ of Quadratus we should obtain a picture of the -popular theology of the Church during that dark period which elapsed -between the days of Clement of Rome and Ignatius, and those of Justin -Martyr. The _Apology_ of Aristides which has been found reveals -something indeed in the same direction, but is more occupied with an -attack upon paganism than in a statement of the Christian faith. Here, -however, consists its bearing on the Acts of the Apostles, not -directly, but by way of contrast. Let me explain what I mean. In -lecture xvii., when treating of the story of Simon Magus, I have shown -how the simple narrative of the Acts concerning that man became -elaborated in the second century till it formed at last a regular -romance; whence I conclude that if the Acts had been written in the -second century the story of Simon Magus would not be the simple matter -we read in St. Luke's narrative. Now our argument for the date of the -Acts derived from the _Apology_ of Aristides is of much the same kind. -This document shows us what the tone and substance of second century -addresses to the pagans were. It is the earliest of a series of -apologies extending over the whole of that century. The _Apology_ of -Aristides, the numerous writings of Justin Martyr, specially the -_Oratio_ and the _Cohortatio ad Graecos_ attributed to him, the -_Oration_ of Tatian addressed to the Greeks, the _Apologeticus_ and -the treatise _Ad Nationes_ of Tertullian, the _Epistle to Diognetus_, -the writings of Athenagoras, all deal with the same topics, the -theories and absurdities of Greek philosophy, the immoral character of -the pagan deities, and the purity of Christian doctrine and -practice.[7] If the Acts of the Apostles had been composed in the -second century, the address of St. Paul to the Athenians would have -been very different from what it is, and must necessarily have -partaken of those characteristics which we find common to all the -numerous treatises addressed to the heathen world of that date. If the -Acts were written in the second century, why does not the writer put -arguments into St. Paul's mouth like those which were current among -the Christian apologists of that time? The philosophical argument of -Aristides, which is followed by Justin Martyr[8] and the later -apologists, when contrasted with the simplicity of St. Paul, is a -conclusive proof of the early date of the composition of the Acts.[9] -But this is not the only argument of this kind which modern research -furnishes. Aristides shows us what the character of Christian -controversy with the pagans was in the generation succeeding the -Apostles. We can draw the same conclusion when we examine Christian -controversy as carried on against the Jews of the same period. - - [7] The apologists of the second century will be found in a - collected shape in Otto's _Corpus Apologetarum_, in nine vols. - (Jena, 1842-72). Most of those mentioned above will be found in an - English shape in Clarke's Ante-Nicene Library. See also Harnack in - _Texte und Untersuchungen_, bd. i., hft. i. (Leipzig, 1882). - - [8] St. Jerome, in _Ep._ 70, addressed to Magnus, a Roman - rhetorician, expressly says that Justin Martyr imitated Aristides. - The _Cohortatio ad Graecos_ attributed to him is much liker the - treatise of Aristides than Justin's admitted first and second - apologies. - - [9] Overbeck, Zeller, and Schwegler fix the composition of the - Acts between 110 and 130, the very date of the _Apology_ of - Aristides. See Zeller's _Acts of the Apostles_, p. 71 (London: - Williams & Norgate, 1875). - -We have a number of treatises directed against the Jews by Christian -writers of the second century: the _Dialogue_ of Justin Martyr with -Trypho the Jew, of Jason and Papiscus, and the treatise of Tertullian -directed _Ad Judaeos_. When compared with one another we find that the -staple arguments of these writings are much the same.[10] They were -evidently framed upon the model of St. Stephen's address at Jerusalem, -of St. Paul at Antioch in Pisidia, and of the Epistle to the -Galatians. They deal with the transitory and temporary character of -the Jewish law, they enter very largely into the fulfilment of Old -Testament prophecy, and they notice Jewish objections. The second -century works are, however, elaborate treatises, dealing with a great -controversy in a manner which experience had showed to be far the most -effective and telling. The Jewish controversy in the Acts, whether in -the mouth of St. Peter, St. Stephen, or St. Paul, is treated in a much -simpler way. The speakers think, speak, write, like men who are making -their first essays in controversy, and have no experience of others to -guide them. Had the Acts been written in the second century, the -writer must have composed the addresses to the Jews as well as those -to the Gentiles after the model of the age when he was writing. The -more carefully, however, we examine and contrast these two -controversies, as conducted in the Acts and in the writings of the -second century respectively, the more thoroughly shall we be convinced -of the apostolic date of St. Luke's narrative, of its genuine -character, and of its historic worth. - - [10] For an account of the Jewish controversy in the second - century see Gebhardt and Harnack's _Texte_, bd. i., hft. 3 - (Leipzig, 1883), where Harnack seeks to critically restore the - substance of the dialogue between Jason and Papiscus. An article - on "Apologists" in the _Dictionary of Christian Biography_, vol. - i., pp. 140-47, and another on "Theophilus" (13) in the same work, - vol. iv., p. 1009, should be consulted. - -I have written this book from my own standpoint as a decided -Churchman, but I hope that I have said nothing which can really hurt -the feelings of any one who thinks otherwise, or which may tend to -widen those differences between Christians which are such a terrible -hindrance to the cause of true religion and its progress in the world. - -I have tried to use the Revised Version consistently throughout my -expositions, but I fear that my attempt has been but vain. In my -formal quotations I think I have succeeded. But then, in commenting -upon Scripture, a writer constantly refers to and quotes passages -without formal reference. Here is where I must have failed. The -Authorized Version is so bound up with all our earliest thoughts and -associations that its language unconsciously colours all our ideas and -expressions. Any one who at present makes such an attempt as I have -done will find illustrated in himself the phenomena which we behold in -writings of the fifth and sixth centuries. St. Jerome published a -Revised Version of the Latin translation of the Scripture about the -year 400 A.D. For hundreds of years afterwards Latin writers are found -using indiscriminately the old Latin and the new Latin translations. -St. Patrick's _Confession_, for instance, was composed about the -middle of the fifth century. Quotations from both versions of the New -Testament are found in that document, affording a conclusive -indication of its date; just as the mixture of the Revised and -Authorized Versions will form a prominent feature in theological works -composed towards the close of the nineteenth century. - -I have to acknowledge the kind assistance of the Rev. H. W. Burgess, -LL.D., who has patiently read all my proofs, and called my attention -to many a solecism or mistake which might have otherwise disfigured my -pages; and of Mr. W. Etienne Phelps, B.A., deputy keeper of Primate -Marsh's Library, who has compiled the index. - - GEORGE T. STOKES. - - ALL SAINTS' VICARAGE, BLACKROCK, - _May 27th, 1891_. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - CHAPTER I. - - THE ORIGIN AND AUTHORITY OF THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. - - ACTS i. 1, 2. - - PAGE - - Title--Apocryphal Acts--Paul and Thecla--Evidence of - Tertullian--His Chronological Position--Modern - Analogies--Muratorian Fragment and Bobbio--Epistle from - Lyons--Pothinus an Apostolic Man--Marcion and St. - Luke--Defects of German Criticism--Growth of New Testament - Canon--Newly-discovered Second Century Documents-- - Scillitan Martyrs--Primitive Christians and Biblical - Criticism--Advantages of Uncertainty on Theology-- - Theological Accuracy of St. Luke 1-22 - - - CHAPTER II. - - THE CONVERSATIONS OF THE GREAT FORTY DAYS. - - ACTS i. 6-9. - - Subject-Matter Revealed in the Acts--Our Lord's - Post-Resurrection Appearances--Apostolic Curiosity-- - Messianic Idea among Jews--Books of Enoch and of - Jubilees--Evidence for Inspiration of New Testament-- - Christianity a Practical Religion--Contrast with - Paganism--Mithraism--Spiritual Blessing of Christ's - Reticence concerning the Future--Antinomies in - Scripture--Bad Effects of Human Curiosity--At - Thessalonica--In the Middle Ages--In Last and Present - Centuries--Irvingism--Holy Ghost alone the Source of - Spiritual Power 23-42 - - - CHAPTER III. - - THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST, AND ITS LESSONS. - - ACTS i. 9. - - Position of Doctrine of Ascension in Epistles--And in - Apostolic Teaching--Curious and Foolish Questions about - it--_The Unseen Universe_--Fitness of the Doctrine--And - Necessity if the Church was to rise out of Judaism into - Christianity--Illustrations, London and the Papacy--Renan's - Theory--The Ascension Glorified Human Nature--Paganism - Degraded It--Gladiatorial Shows and Story of the Monk - Telemachus--Tacitus and Slavery--Cato the Censor and the - Treatment of Slaves--The Ascension and Darwinism 43-60 - - - CHAPTER IV. - - THE ELECTION OF MATTHIAS. - - ACTS i. 24-26. - - Expectation Days--Principle of Divine Delay--Christian - Seasons and Judaism--Pentecost and Sinai--Continuity of - the Divine Purposes--Christian Chronology--Tatian's - _Oration_--The Apostles and the Upper Room--Narratives - of Epiphanius and Cyril of Jerusalem--Christianity - Supra-local--Last Notice of the Blessed Virgin--Doctrine - of the Assumption--Self-restraint of Scriptural Writers-- - Choice of New Apostle--St. Peter's Proposition--His - Character--_Privilegium Petri_--Reasons for the Election-- - The Christian Ministry and the Resurrection--C. Leslie's - _Short and Easy Method_--History of St. Matthias-- - Apocryphal Gospels--Papias on Fate of Judas Iscariot 61-81 - - - CHAPTER V. - - THE PENTECOSTAL BLESSING. - - ACTS ii. 1-4. - - Origin and History of Pentecost--Gnosticism and Antinomianism-- - Modern Aspect of Ancient Heresies--Ancient Union and - Modern Divisions of Christendom--Jeremy Taylor's Prayer-- - The Fiery Tongues--Protest against Persecution and Penal - Laws in Religion--Ussher and Baxter, Mistakes of-- - Death-Scene of Queen Caroline--Importance of Corporate - Aspect of Christianity--Clergy and Laity in Apostolic - Church--Gift of Tongues and Irvingism--Modern Theories - about Pentecost--Hypnotism--Greek and Latin not Universal - Languages in Apostolic Times--Ramsay's _Geography of Asia - Minor_ 82-106 - - - CHAPTER VI. - - ST. PETER'S FIRST SERMON. - - ACTS ii. 14. - - Reports of Ancient Sermons, how Derived--Use of - Shorthand among Ancients--St. Peter's Auditory--Celts - of Britain at Crucifixion--Jews in Arabia--Homerite - Martyrs--St. Peter's Conduct at Pentecost an Evidence - for the Resurrection--Contrast with his Action at - Antioch--St. Peter's Universal Conceptions and - Language--A Protest against Ebionism and Unitarianism-- - St. Peter and Christ's Descent into Hades-- - Apollinarianism and the True Doctrine of Our Lord's - Humanity--David's Sepulchre and Christ's Resurrection-- - Jewish Traditions 107-126 - - - CHAPTER VII. - - THE FIRSTFRUITS OF PENTECOST. - - ACTS ii. 37-39. - - Contrast between Our Lord's Preaching and that of His - Apostles--Proof of Extraordinary Work of the Spirit-- - Evidence of Tacitus--Spiritual Power a Different Thing - from Religious Knowledge--Character of St. Peter's - Teaching--Repentance--Modern Antinomianism--Williams, - Baxter, Stillingfleet, Wesley--St. Peter and Baptism-- - Baptism in the _Didache_--Story of that Manual and its - Discovery--The Baptismal Formula--Immersion--Infant - Baptism--St. Peter and the Power of the Keys 127-147 - - - CHAPTER VIII. - - FIRST RECORDED MIRACLE AND FIRST PERSECUTION. - - ACTS iii. 1-6. - - The Acts a Mirror of Church History--Pause after - Pentecost, Reason of--Need of Pastoral Work--Relapses - in Mission Field--The Corinthian Case--Rest and - Spiritual Growth--Evils of Excitement--Contrast - of Christianity with the Montanists and Cynics-- - True Religion not, however, Purely Contemplative-- - Circumstances of First Miracle--Which was Typical - of Church's Future Work--Among the Poor and Sick-- - Story of St. Crispin--St. Chrysostom's Sermons-- - First Franciscans Contrasted with Early Methodists-- - Medical Missions--Place of Miracle--Solomon's Porch--St. - Peter's Address Model for Preachers--Shows Divinity of - Christ--Exalts Christ--Is Bold and Prudent withal 148-172 - - - CHAPTER IX. - - THE FIRST PERSECUTION. - - ACTS iv. 1-3, 5-7. - - St. Peter's Teaching in Solomon's Porch and the Captain of - the Temple--The Romans and Jewish Law--Discovery of Temple - Tablet--The Sadducees and the Work of Opposition--Sadduceism - and Modern Theories--Sceptics and Religious Intolerance-- - Pliny and the Martyrs--Trial of the Apostles--Constitution - of the Sanhedrin--Sadduceism and the Priesthood--St. - Peter's Defence and Christ's Promise--Afford no - Support to Unprepared Teaching in Ordinary Life--St. - Peter and the Power of Christ's Name--The Sanhedrin and - Miracles--The Jews and Magic--Reverence towards the Name - of God--Early Symbolism and Christ's Name--Salvation - through Christ and the Wider Hope 173-192 - - - CHAPTER X. - - THE COMMUNITY OF GOODS. - - ACTS iv. 32-35. - - The Holy Scriptures and the Errors of their Heroes-- - Controversy between St. Jerome and St. Augustine--A - Mistaken View of Christ's Second Advent the Source of - Community of Goods--Communism and the Essenes--And - Anabaptists--And Plymouthism--Source of Poverty in - Jerusalem Church--Warning to Missionary Churches-- - Apostolic Constitutions--And Primitive Missions--Fayum - Documents--Evils of Indiscriminate Almsgiving--True - Christian Charity--Post Office Savings Banks--Jerusalem - Communism and Modern Legislation and Ideals--A Warning - and yet a Noble Conception--Connection of Enthusiasm - and Spiritual Power 193-210 - - - CHAPTER XI. - - HONESTY AND PRETENCE IN THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. - - ACTS iv. 36, 37; v. 1-6. - - Hebrews and Hellenists in the Synagogue and in the - Church--Original Christians were Hebrews--Introduction - of Hellenists--Who became the Bridge whereby Christianity - was Communicated to the World--Barnabas and Greek - Culture--A Native of Cyprus--His Personal Appearance--And - History according to Simeon Metaphrastes--Personal - Character--Story of Ananias--His Sin and Punishment-- - Proved that Christianity had a Stern as well as a - Loving Side--Dr. Vaughan's Application of this Incident 211-228 - - - CHAPTER XII. - - GAMALIEL AND HIS PRUDENT ADVICE. - - ACTS v. 38-40. - - The Apostles again Brought before Sanhedrin--Because of - St. Peter's Miracles--Note on the Miraculous Effects - of St. Peter's Shadow and Hypnotism--St. Peter and - Angelic Deliverances--Jortin's Theory--The Incarnation - Rendered the Age a Special Time--The Sadducees and - Materialism--Gamaliel a Pharisee--Effect of a Spiritual - Creed on the Character--His Address--Cases of Judas - and Theudas--Modern Illustrations--Gamaliel's Family - History--Gamaliel in the _Clementine Recognitions_ and - in Greek Christian Tradition--Gamaliel and Nicodemus - in the _Bibliotheca_ of Photius--Gamaliel and the - Spirit of Toleration--St. Augustine and Cornelius a - Lapide--Conduct of the Apostles 229-245 - - - CHAPTER XIII. - - PRIMITIVE DISSENSIONS AND APOSTOLIC PRECAUTIONS. - - ACTS vi. 1-4. - - The Election of the Seven a Crisis in Church History--Date - of St. Stephen's Martyrdom--Occasion of it--Primal - Relation of Judaism to Christianity--Not Mutually - Exclusive--Illustrated by those of First Methodists - to Church of England--Tyranny and Deposition of - Pilate--Multiplication of Christians led to Murmuring - and thence to Choice of Seven--Showing Benefits and - Drawbacks of Prosperity--Imperfections of Apostolic - Church--Fallacy of Roman _a priori_ Argument for - Infallibility--Reciprocal Influence of Church and - World--Various Meanings of Term "World"--Murmuring - arose from Racial and Linguistic Differences--Hebrews - and Hellenists--Modern Analogies--Diversity of Functions - in Church--Serving of Tables Differs from Ministry of - Word--Which Demands Study, Meditation, and Prayer-- - Weakness of Modern Pulpit Accounted for--Election - of Deacons and Number--The Diaconate and Cardinalate 246-267 - - - CHAPTER XIV. - - ST. STEPHEN AND THE EVOLUTION OF THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. - - ACTS vi. 5, 6; 8-11. - - The Seven were Scriptural--Origin of Diaconate--Bishop - Lightfoot's View--Influence of the Synagogue upon the - Church--Illustrated by Marcionites--And by Pilgrim - Fathers in New England--Constitution of Synagogues-- - Jewish Almoners or Deacons--Evidence to Diaconate of - Apostolic Fathers--Of Pliny--Of Irenaeus--Connection - of Community of Goods with the Eucharist--Poor Law - among Jews--And Christians--Testimony of Lucian-- - Christianity Viewed from the Outside--Difference - between Ancient and Modern Office--Life-long - Diaconate in Ancient Celtic Church--St. Patrick's - Father--Election of Deacons in the Synagogues-- - Imposition of Hands and Ordination--Names of Deacons - and Nicolas of Antioch--St. Stephen and the Charge - of Blasphemy--Every True Teacher must expect - Misrepresentation 268-292 - - - CHAPTER XV. - - ST. STEPHEN'S DEFENCE AND THE DOCTRINE OF INSPIRATION. - - ACTS vi. 12-14; vii. 1, 2. - - Derivation and Meaning of Name "Stephen"--Libertine - Assailants of St. Stephen--United with Cilicians--St. - Paul and the Sanhedrin--Selden on Sanhedrin--Use of - Shorthand among the Ancients--The _Acts_ of the - Martyrs and Investigations of M. le Blant--Effective - Character of Stephen's _Apology_--Analysis of - it--Naturally Irritating to Jewish Officialism--Charity - towards Persecutors--Reverence towards the Past--A - Good Thing, but may be Pressed too far--Lessons for - our Age--Science and Religion--Mistakes in the Martyr's - Speech--Natural--Useful, too, as Testifying to Honesty - of Report--And Teaching True Doctrine of Inspiration--Dr. - Vaughan on St. Stephen's Mistakes--St. Stephen and - Freedom of Church Worship--Christian Universalism not - Inconsistent with Sacred and Consecrated Buildings 293-321 - - - CHAPTER XVI. - - THE FIRST CHRISTIAN MARTYRDOM. - - Testimony of Church of Lyons to St. Stephen's Martyrdom-- - Earliest Celtic Martyrdoms and Celtic Assemblies-- - Christmas Day and St. Stephen's Day--Christmas Season - and Three Classes of Martyrs--Dies Natalis and the - Liturgies--Immediate Cause of St. Stephen's Death-- - Locality of the Martyrdom--Newly-discovered - Church of St. Stephen--Survey of Western Palestine-- - Jewish Stonings--St. Stephen died under Forms - of Law--Christianity and Human Law--Testimony of St. - Clement's Epistle--St. Stephen and Prayer to Jesus - Christ--Doctrine of Book of Common Prayer--St. - Stephen's Funeral--Early Christian View of - Resurrection--Story told by John Malalas--Persecution - and Church Extension 322-345 - - - CHAPTER XVII. - - SIMON MAGUS AND THE CONVERSION OF SAMARIA. - - Prominence of Hellenists in the Church's Earliest - Days--Apostles and Deacons Contrasted--Source of St. - Luke's Knowledge of Early Church History--St. Philip - at Caesarea--Exact Locality where Philip taught in - Samaria--Our Lord's Ministry in Samaria a Failure-- - Why?--Because the Spirit was not yet given--Presence of - the Holy Ghost the Condition of Permanent Blessing--St. - Philip and Simon Magus--Story of Simon as told by - Justin Martyr--Evidence for Early Date of the Acts-- - Justin and Simon's Statue--Simon a Sorcerer--Jews and - Sorcery--Jewish Gnosticism--Fayum Manuscripts and - Magic--Contrast between Philip's Miracles and - Simon's Magic--Need of Miracles at Outset of - Christianity--Philip's Doctrine Concerning - the Kingdom of God--What it involved--Church's - Prosperity Dependent entirely upon Christ--Threefold - Result of Philip's Teaching--John Keble on Christian Joy 346-368 - - - CHAPTER XVIII. - - THE APOSTLES AND CONFIRMATION. - - Apostolic Mission to Samaria--Development of - Church--Position of St. Peter--False Decretals-- - Confirmation, Origin of--New Testament is not an - Exhaustive Manual of Rites and Ceremonies--Tertullian - on Standing at Prayer--Conservative Character of - Church Ritual--Illustrated by Cases of Dean Hook, - J. H. Newman, Tate and Brady, and the Plymouth - Brethren--Apostolic Example Perpetuated in Second - Century Practice--And in Case of Confirmation--Calvin - on its Apostolic Origin 369-384 - - - CHAPTER XIX. - - ST. PETER AND SIMON MAGUS. - - ACTS viii. 18, 19. - - Change in Confirmation at Reformation--Yet the Rite - remained Essentially the Same as of Old--Importance - of Tertullian's Testimony for its Primitive Origin-- - Cyprian's and Augustine's View--Relation of Cyprian - to Tertullian--Imposition of Hands United with Prayer - in Ancient and Modern Church--Utility and Blessings - of the Rite--Improvement which might be made in its - Administration--Conduct of Simon Magus--He was - Intellectually Convinced but Spiritually Unconverted-- - Application of his Example to Foreign Missions--Late - Controversy Concerning Educational Missions--Simon's - Conduct and Simony--Definition of Simony--Sin not - Confined to Established Churches--Takes Subtle Shapes - in Every Community--St. Peter's Exhortation to Simon - Magus--Corrects a Modern Error 385-397 - - - CHAPTER XX. - - EVANGELISTIC WORK IN THE PHILISTINE'S LAND. - - ACTS viii. 26-8; ix. 32. - - Those Passages Typical of Evangelistic Efforts and - Qualifications for Success in them--St. Philip - Contrasted with St. Peter--Need of Education for - Mission Field--Christian Missionaries of Early Centuries - Partook of Highest Culture--Pantaenus--Origen--Clement-- - These Texts show Importance of Clear Conception in - Theology--Clear Views need not be Narrow Views--Distinction - between St. Philip's Guidance and that of St. Peter--Reasons - for Angelic Interference--Archbishop Trench on John v. - 4.--Apostolic Labours all tended Westward--Philip's - Mission towards Gaza--Obstinate Paganism of Gaza-- - Proved by Survey of Palestine--Ethiopian Eunuch--Candace - and her Kingdom--St. Philip's Doctrines--Abyssinian - Traditions--Revised Version and the Eunuch's Confession-- - Creed of Apostolic Church--Witness of Aristides' - _Apology_ 398-419 - - - INDEX 421-424 - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -_THE ORIGIN AND AUTHORITY OF THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES._ - - "The former treatise I made, O Theophilus, concerning all that - Jesus began both to do and to teach, until the day in which He - was received up, after that He had given commandment through the - Holy Ghost unto the apostles whom He had chosen."--ACTS i. 1, 2. - - -These words constitute the very brief preface which the writer thought -sufficient for the earliest ecclesiastical history ever produced in -the Church of God. Let us imitate him in his brevity and conciseness, -and without further delay enter upon the consideration of a book which -raises vital questions and involves all-important issues. - -Now when a plain man comes to the consideration of this book one -question naturally strikes him at once: How do I know who wrote this -book, or when it was written? What evidence or guarantee have I for -its authentic character? To these questions we shall apply ourselves -in the present chapter. - -The title of the book as given in our Bibles does not offer us much -help. The title varies in different manuscripts and in different -ancient authors. Some writers of the second century who touched upon -apostolic times call it by the name our Bibles retain, The Acts of the -Apostles; others call it The Acts of the Holy Apostles, or at times -simply The Acts. This title of "Acts" was indeed a very common one, -in the second and third centuries, for a vast variety of writings -purporting to tell the story of apostolic lives, as an abundance of -extant apocryphal documents amply proves. The Acts of Paul and Thecla, -the Acts of St. Thomas, of St. Peter, and of St. John, were -imitations, doubtless, of the well-known name by which our canonical -book was then called. Imitation is universally acknowledged to be the -sincerest form of flattery, and the imitation of the title and form of -our book is an evidence of its superior claim and authority. One of -the oldest of these apocryphal Acts is a document celebrated in -Christian antiquity as the Acts of Paul and Thecla. We know all about -its origin. It was forged about the year 180 or 200 by a presbyter of -Asia Minor who was an enthusiastic admirer of the Apostle St. Paul. -But when we take up the narrative and read it, with its absurd legends -and its manifold touches and realistic scenes drawn from the -persecutions of the second century, and well known to every student of -the original records of those times, we can at a glance see what the -canonical Acts of the Apostles would have been had the composition -been postponed to the end of the second century. The Acts of Paul and -Thecla are useful, then, as illustrating, by way of contrast in title -and in substance, the genuine Acts of the New Testament which they -imitated.[11] - - [11] See a copious account of this strange second-century forgery - in Dr. Gwynne's article on Thecla in the fourth volume of the - _Dictionary of Christian Biography_. Dr. Salmon, in his - _Introduction to the N.T._, chap. xix., gives a most interesting - description of the apocrypha Acts of the Apostles, which even the - unlearned can enjoy. - -But then, some one might say, how do we know that the genuine Acts of -the Apostles existed prior to the Acts of Paul and Thecla and the -time of Tertullian, who first mentions these apocryphal Acts, and -tells us of their forged origin? The answer to that query is easy -enough. Yet it will require a somewhat copious statement in order to -exhibit its full force, its convincing power. - -Tertullian is a writer who connects the age of apostolic men, as we -may call the men who knew the Apostles--Ignatius, Polycarp, Clement of -Rome, and such like--with the third century. Tertullian was born about -the middle of the second century, and he lived till the third century -was well advanced. He was one of those persons whose chronological -position enables them to transmit historical facts and details from -one critical point to another. Let me illustrate what I mean by a -modern example. Every unprejudiced thinker will acknowledge that the -Rev. John Wesley was a man who exercised an extraordinary religious -influence. He not only originated a vast community of world-wide -extent, which calls itself after his name, but he also imparted a -tremendous impetus to spiritual life and work in the Church of -England. After the departure of Mr. Wesley from this life his mantle -fell upon a certain number of his leading followers, men like Adam -Clarke, the commentator; Jabez Bunting, the organizer of modern -Wesleyanism; Thomas Coke, Robert Newton, and Richard Watson, the -author of the _Institutes of Theology_. Several of these men lived far -into this century, and there are at the present day thousands still -alive who recollect some of them, while there are many still alive who -can recollect all of them. Now let us draw a parallel with all -reverence, and yet with perfect fairness. John Wesley began his life -at the beginning of the eighteenth century as our Lord began His -human life at the beginning of the first century. John Wesley's -immediate disciples perpetuated their lives till the middle of the -present century. Our Lord's apostles and immediate followers -perpetuated their lives in some cases till well into the second -century. At the close of the nineteenth century there are hundreds, to -say the least, who remember Adam Clarke and Thomas Coke, who in turn -were personally acquainted with John Wesley. In the last quarter of -the second century there must have been many still alive--apostolic -men, I have called them--whose youthful memories could bear them back -to the days when the Apostle St. John, and men like St. Mark, and St. -Luke, and St. Ignatius, still testified what they had personally seen -and heard and known. Why, the simple fact is this, that in the year -1950 there will be still living numerous persons who will be able to -say that they have personally known many individuals who were the -friends and acquaintances of John Wesley's immediate disciples. Four -long lives of ninety years, the one overlapping the other, will easily -cover three centuries of time. - -Let us dwell a little more on this point, for it bears very directly -on Tertullian's witness, not only to the canon of the New Testament, -but also to the whole round of Christian doctrine. It is simply -wonderful what vast tracts of time can be covered by human memory even -at the present day, when that faculty has lost so much of its power -for want of exercise, owing to the printing-press. I can give a -striking instance from my own knowledge. There is at present an -acquaintance of mine living in this city of Dublin where I write. He -is hale and hearty, and able still to take the keenest interest in the -affairs of religion and of politics. He is about ninety-five years of -age, and he has told me within the last twelve months that he -remembers quite well a grand-aunt of his born in the reign of Queen -Anne, who used to tell him all the incidents connected with the -earliest visits of John and Charles Wesley to Ireland about 1745. If -Tertullian's experience was anything like my own, he may quite easily -have known persons at Rome or elsewhere who had heard the tale of St. -Paul's preaching, labour, and miracles from the very men whom the -Apostle had converted at Antioch, Damascus, and Rome. I can give a -more striking instance still, which any reader can verify for himself. -Mr. S. C. Hall was a writer known far and wide for the last seventy -years. About the middle of this century Mr. Hall was at the height of -his popularity, though he only passed to the unseen world within the -last year or so. In the year 1842 he, in union with his accomplished -and well-known wife, composed a beautifully-illustrated work, -published in three volumes, called _Picturesque Ireland_, which now -finds an honoured place in many of our libraries. In the second volume -of that work Mr. Hall mentions the following curious fact bearing on -our argument. He states that he was then (in 1842) staying at the -house of a gentleman, Sir T. Macnaghten, whose father had commanded at -the siege of Derry in 1689, one hundred and fifty-three years before. -Yet vast as the distance of time was, the explanation which he offered -was easy enough. The Macnaghten Clan was summoned to assist in the -celebrated siege of Derry. They refused to march unless headed by -their chief, who was then a boy of seven. The child was placed on a -horse and duly headed his clan, who would follow him alone. That child -married when a very old man, and his eldest son attained to an -equally patriarchal age, carrying with him the traditions of Jacobite -times down to the reign of Queen Victoria. I could give many other -similar instances, illustrating my contention that vivid and accurate -traditions of the past can be transmitted over vast spaces of time, -and that through persons who come into living contact with one -another.[12] - - [12] The Irish people are very Oriental in the tenacity with which - they retain ancient traditions, transmitting them intact to - posterity. Abundant instances have proved this, the traditions - having been perpetuated in some cases for five hundred years or - more. The following case has come under the writer's notice in his - own neighbourhood. There is near Dublin a village called Finglas, - celebrated for its ancient Abbey. A cross stood there which had - been venerated from the earliest times. When Cromwell's soldiers - were advancing to attack Dublin about the year 1648, their - iconoclastic fame reached the inhabitants of Finglas, who took the - ancient cross and buried it in one of the glebe fields. Some one - hundred and sixty years later a vicar of Finglas of antiquarian - tastes heard traditions of this event. He learned from an - extremely old man that his grandfather when a boy had been present - at the burial of the cross, and had shown him the spot where it - was concealed. The vicar made excavations, and duly found the - cross, which he re-erected some time about 1810, in a spot where - it is still to be seen. This instance will show how two long lives - could cover the space between St. Paul's middle age and - Tertullian's mature years. See _Fingal and its Churches_, by Rev. - R. Walsh, D.D., pp. 147-49. Dublin, 1888. St. Jerome, _De Vir. - Illust._, 53, mentions a similar case in his time. St. Jerome knew - an old man who when young had himself known one of St. Cyprian's - secretaries. St. Jerome wrote about A.D. 400, St. Cyprian died in - 257; the difference exactly between Tertullian and St. Paul. - -Tertullian must have had ample means, then, of ascertaining the facts -concerning the books of the New Testament from living witnesses. There -is again another point we must bear in mind, and it is this: the -distance of time with which Tertullian's investigations had to deal -was not so vast as we sometimes imagine. It was by no means so great -as the spaces we have just now referred to. We naturally think of -Tertullian as living about the year 200, and then, remembering that -our Saviour was born just two centuries before, we ask, What is the -value of a man's testimony concerning events two centuries old? But we -must bear in mind the exact point at issue. We are not enquiring at -all about events two centuries old, but we are enquiring as to -Tertullian's evidence with respect to the canonical Gospels and the -Acts; and none of these was one hundred years old when Tertullian was -born, about 150 A.D., while the Gospel of St. John may not have been -more than sixty years old, or thereabouts, at the same date. Now if we -take up the writings of Tertullian, which are very copious indeed, we -shall find that the Acts of the Apostles are quoted at least one -hundred times in them, long passages being in some cases transcribed, -and the whole book treated by him as Scripture and true history. If we -accept the ordinary view, that the Acts were written previously to St. -Paul's death, the book was only a century old at Tertullian's birth. -But we can come nearer to the apostolic times. - -The Muratorian Fragment is a document which came to light by chance -one hundred and fifty years ago. It illustrates the age of the Acts, -and shows what wondrous testimonies to the New Testament scriptures we -may yet gain. Its story is a very curious and interesting one for -ourselves. St. Columbanus was an Irish missionary who, about the year -600 A.D., established a monastery at Bobbio, a retired spot in North -Italy. He gathered a library there, and imparted a literary impulse to -his followers which never left them.[13] Some Irish monk a hundred -years later than Columbanus employed his time in copying into a book -an ancient manuscript of the second century giving a list of the books -of the New Testament then received at Rome. This second-century -manuscript enumerated among these the four Gospels, the Acts of the -Apostles, and thirteen Epistles of St. Paul. Concerning the Acts of -the Apostles, the Roman writer of this document, who lived about A.D. -170, says: "The Acts of all the Apostles are written in one book. Luke -explains to the most excellent Theophilus everything which happened in -his presence, as the omission of Peter's martyrdom and of Paul's -journey into Spain manifestly proves;" a passage which clearly shows -that about the middle of the second century the Acts of the Apostles -was well known at Rome, and its authorship ascribed to St. Luke.[14] -But this is not all. We have another most interesting second-century -document, which proves that at the very same period our canonical book -was known and authoritatively quoted far away in the south of France. -It is hard to exaggerate the evidential value of the Epistle of the -Churches of Lyons and Vienne written about the year 177, and addressed -to their brethren in Asia Minor. That letter quotes the books of the -New Testament in the amplest manner, and without any formal -references, just as a modern preacher or writer would quote them, -showing how common and authoritative was their use. Leader-writers in -the _Times_ or the _Saturday Review_ often garnish their articles with -a scriptural quotation; the late Mr. John Bright, in his great popular -orations, loved to point them with an apt citation from Holy Writ; but -he never thought it necessary, nor do journalists ever think it -necessary, to prefix a formal statement of the place whence their -texts have been derived. They presume a wide knowledge and a formal -recognition of the text of the Bible. So it was in this epistle -written from Lyons and Vienne, and in it we find an exact quotation -from the Acts of the Apostles--"According as Stephen the perfect -martyr prayed, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." - - [13] See two articles on St. Columbanus and his library in the - _Expositor_ for June and August 1889. - - [14] Dr. Salmon, in his _Introd. N.T._, pp. 48-54, describes the - Muratorian Fragment. - -But this is not the whole of the argument which can be derived from -the Epistle of the Lyonnese Christians, which is given to us at full -length in the fifth book of the _Church History_ of the celebrated -historian Eusebius. Their incidental notice of the Acts involves a -vast deal when duly considered. The Epistle from Lyons implies that -the Acts were received as authoritative and genuine in the churches of -towns like Ephesus, Philadelphia, Smyrna, Miletus, where the memories -and traditions of the Apostles were still vivid and living. Then, too, -the Bishop of Lyons had suffered in this persecution. His name was -Pothinus. He was the first Bishop of the Church of Lyons, and he died -when he was more than ninety years of age, and may have been a -disciple of an apostle, or of one of the first generation of -Christians. At any rate, his memory would easily carry him back to the -days of Domitian and the times of the first century; and yet the -Church over which this first-century Christian presided accepted the -Acts of the Apostles. The testimony of Pothinus helps then to carry -back the Acts of the Apostles to the year 100 at least. But we can go -farther still, and closer to apostolic times. - -The Gospel of St. Luke and the Acts of the Apostles are, we may say, -universally admitted to be by the same writer. The reference of the -Acts to the Gospel, the unity of style and tone of thought, all -demonstrate them to be the production of one mind. Any circumstance -therefore which proves the early existence of the Gospel equally -proves the existence of the Acts of the Apostles. Now we have proof -positive that the Gospel of St. Luke occupied an authoritative -position and was counted an apostolic and sacred writing at Rome in -the early years of the second century, say between 100 and 150, -because when Marcion, whom we might call a primitive Antinomian, -wished to compile a gospel suited to his own purposes, he took St. -Luke's Gospel, cut out whatever displeased him, and published the -remainder as the true version. The perversion and mutilation of St. -Luke's work shows that it must already have held a high position in -the Church at Rome, or else there would have been no object in -mutilating it. Marcion's treatment of St. Luke proves the use and -position the Gospel and the Acts must have occupied in days when the -converts and companions of the Apostles were still alive.[15] That is -as far as we can go back by external testimony. But then we must -remember what these facts involve--that the Gospel and the Acts -occupied authoritative positions in various parts of the world, and -specially in Rome, Gaul, Africa, and Asia Minor, in the generation -next after the Apostles. Then let us take up the Book of Acts itself, -and what does this book, known at Rome and throughout the Christian -world at that early period, tell us? It informs us that it was the -work of the writer of the Gospel, and that the writer was a companion -of the Apostle Paul throughout the portion of his career sketched in -the latter part of the book. The Christian Church has never pinned -its faith to the Lukian authorship of either the Gospel or the Acts. -The question of the authorship of these books is an open one, like -that of the Epistle to the Hebrews. The Acts has been attributed to -Silas, to Timothy, to Titus; but I may say, without going into any -further details on this question, that every attempt to ascribe the -Acts to any one else save to the beloved physician has failed, and -must fail, because he was the real author, well known to the living -tradition of the Church of Rome in the early part of the second -century, as that tradition is handed down to us in the language of the -Muratorian Fragment. - - [15] See Dr. Sanday's _The Gospels in the Second Century_, and Dr. - Salmon's _Introd. N.T._, pp. 204-208. - -If we were writing a critical treatise, we should of course have to -enter upon the full discussion of many questions which might here be -raised. The Acts of the Apostles in its latter chapters plainly claims -to be the work of an eye-witness. In its opening words, placed at the -head of this dissertation, it claims to be the work of the author of -the Gospel. All the facts fall into a simple, natural order if we -accept the traditional testimony of the Church that the Acts and the -Gospel were both of them written before the martyrdom of St. Paul, and -were indited by the hands of St. Paul's companion St. Luke. Any other -solution is forced, unnatural, and involves inconsistencies on every -side. We may turn aside from this brief outline of the critical -question, to some more purely spiritual reflections, simply referring -those who desire more information on the questions of date and -authorship to such exhaustive works as those of Dr. Salmon's -_Introduction to the New Testament_; Dr. Westcott on the _New -Testament Canon_; Dr. Charteris on _Canonicity_, or Meyer's -_Introduction to the Acts_. - -First, then, it may strike the intelligent reader, how comes it that -we have not much fuller testimony in early Christian writers to the -Acts of the Apostles, and to all the books of the Old Testament? How -is it that the writings of Polycarp, Ignatius, Clement of Rome, do not -abound with references, not merely to the Acts, but also to the four -Gospels and to the other works of the New Testament? How is it that we -have to depend on this obscure reference and that dubious quotation? -These are questions which have often puzzled my own mind before I had -investigated, and must often have raised anxiety and thought in other -minds sincerely desirous of being rooted and grounded in the truth. -But now, after having investigated, and thought, I think I can see -solid reasons why things are as they are; clear evidences of the truth -of the Christian story in the apparent difficulties. Historic -imagination is one of the necessary requisites in such an -investigation, and historic imagination is one of the qualities in -which our German cousins, from whom most of the objections to the -canon of the New Testament have been derived, are conspicuously -deficient. They are gifted with prodigious industry, and an amazing -capacity for patient investigation. They live secluded lives, however, -and no one is a worse judge of practical life, or forms wilder -conclusions as to what men actually do in practical life, than the -academic pure and simple. A dear friend, now with God, himself a -distinguished resident of a well-known college, used often to say to -me, "Never trust the opinion of a mere college fellow or professor -upon any practical point; they know nothing about life." This dictum, -begotten of long experience, bears on our argument. German thought and -English thought offer sharp and strong contrasts on many points, and -on none more than in this direction. English students mix more in the -world, are surrounded by the atmosphere of free institutions, and -realize more vividly how men spontaneously act under the conditions of -actual existence. The German thinker evolves his men of the past and -the facts of their existence out of his own consciousness, without -submitting them to the necessary corrections which experience dictates -to his English brother; and the result is, that while we may be very -ready to accept the premises of the Germans, we should be in general -somewhat suspicious of their conclusions. Scholarship alone does not -entitle a man to pronounce on questions of history. It is only one of -the elements requisite for the solution of such problems. Knowledge of -men, experience of life, enabling a man to form a just and true mental -picture of the past and of the motives by which men are -influenced,--these are elements equally necessary. Now let us try and -throw ourselves back by an effort of historical imagination into the -age of Polycarp, Ignatius, and Clement of Rome, and I think we shall -at once see that the omission of such abundant references to the New -Testament as men at times desiderate was quite natural in their case. - -Let us reflect a little. The manner in which the early Christians -learned the facts and truths of Christianity was quite different from -that which now prevails. If men wish now to learn about original -Christianity they resort to the New Testament. In the age of Polycarp -they resorted to the living voice of the elders who had known the -Apostles, and had heard the truth from their lips. Thus Irenaeus, who -had the four Gospels before him, tells us: "I can recall the very -place where Polycarp used to sit and teach, his manner of speech, his -mode of life, his appearance, the style of his address to the people, -his frequent references to St. John and to others who had seen our -Lord; how he used to repeat from memory the discourses which he had -heard from them concerning our Lord, His miracles, and His mode of -teaching; and how, being instructed himself by those who were -eye-witnesses of the Life of the Word, there was in all that he said a -strict agreement with the Scriptures." And it is very natural that -men, though possessed of the Gospels, should thus have delighted in -the testimony of elders like Polycarp. There is a charm in the human -voice, there is a force and power in living testimony, far superior to -any written words. Take, for instance, the account of a battle -contributed to a newspaper by the best-informed correspondent. Yet how -men will hang on the lips and follow with breathless attention the -narrative of the humblest actor in the actual contest. This one fact, -known to common experience, shows how different the circumstances of -the early Christians were as touching the canonical books from those -which now exist, or existed in the third and fourth centuries. Again, -we must remember that in the age of Polycarp there was no canon of the -New Testament as we have it.[16] There were a number of books here -and there known to have been written by the Apostles and their -immediate followers. One Church could show the Epistle written by St. -Paul to the Ephesians, another that written to the Colossians. Clement -of Rome, when writing to the Corinthians, expressly refers them to the -First Epistle to the Corinthians, which possibly was treasured by them -as their one sacred document of the new covenant; and so it was -doubtless all over the Christian world till well-nigh the close of the -second century. The New Testament was dispersed in portions, a few -leading Churches possessing perhaps all or most of the books, and a -few remote ones probably only a few detached epistles, or a solitary -gospel. A Greek document found in the National Library at Paris within -the last few years illustrates this point. The Scillitan martyrs were -a body of Africans who sealed their testimony to the faith by -suffering martyrdom in the year 180, about three years after the -sufferings of the Christians of Lyons and Vienne. North Africa, now -the chosen home of the false prophet, was then the most fruitful field -for the religion of the Crucified, yielding doctors, saints, -confessors, in multitudes. The document which has now come to light -tells the story of these north Africans and their testimony to the -truth. The details of their judicial examination are there set forth, -and in one question, proposed by the heathen magistrate, we have an -interesting glimpse of the very point upon which we are insisting, the -scattered and detached nature of the New Testament writings at that -period. The President of the Roman Court, in the course of his -examination, asks the leader of the martyrs, St. Speratus, "What are -those books in your cases?" "They are," he replied, "the epistles of -that holy man Paul." So that apparently the Scillitan Church depended -for instruction, in the closing years of the second century, upon the -Epistles of St. Paul alone.[17] - - [16] The latest enquiries and discoveries confirm this view, which - may be deduced from a study of the apostolic Fathers, with which - should be compared the new second-century documents belonging to - Ephesus and Rome discussed in _Texte u. Untersuch_. of Gebhardt - and Harnack for 1888. Their titles are the tract _De Aleatoribus_, - by Pope Victor I., and the _Martyrdoms_ of Carpus and Papylus, - Companions of St. Polycarp. Pope Victor gives a long extract from - the _Shepherd of Hermas_, and calls it "Divine Scripture;" which - shows that the canon was not closed at Rome in the last fifteen - years of the second century. - - [17] An interesting account of this second-century document will - be found in the _Texts_, edited by Gebhardt and Harnack, or in the - _Dict. Christ. Biog._ under "Scillitan Martyrs." Every scrap of - second century evidence is of the greatest importance for biblical - criticism. - -The canon of the New Testament grew up by degrees somehow thus. While -the Apostles and their followers and the friends of their followers -lived and flourished, men naturally sought after their living -testimonies, consulting doubtless such documents as well which lay -within their reach. But when the living witnesses and their friends -had passed away, the natural instinct of the Church, guided by that -Spirit of Truth which in the darkest times has never wholly left -Christ's Spouse, led her to treasure up and dwell with greater love -upon those written documents which she had possessed from the -beginning. It is no wonder, then, that we do not find large quotations -and copious references to the canonical books in the earliest -writers--simply because it was impossible they should then have -occupied the same place in the Christian consciousness as they now do. -Rather, on the contrary, we should be inclined to say that, had they -been largely quoted and frequently referred to by Polycarp, Ignatius, -or Clement, men might naturally have derived therefrom a forcible -argument against the genuine character of the works of these primitive -Fathers, as such quotations would have been contrary to the principles -of human nature. It is very important for us to remember these facts. -They have a very clear bearing upon present-day controversies. Friends -and foes of Christianity have often thought that the truth of our -religion was bound up with the traditional view of the canon of the -New Testament, or with some special theory of inspiration; forgetting -the self-evident truth that Christianity existed at the beginning -without a canon of the New Testament, that the early Christians -depended upon personal testimony alone, and that if the Apostles and -their friends had never written a line or left a solitary document -behind them, yet that we should have abundant information concerning -the work and teaching of our Lord and His Apostles in the writings of -the successors of the Apostles, compared with and fortified by -contemporaneous pagan testimony. Men have sometimes thought and spoken -as if the New Testament descended from heaven in its present shape, -like the image that fell down from Jupiter which the Ephesians -worshipped, forgetting the true history of its upgrowth and origin. -The critical theories that have been advanced in abundance of late -years would have troubled a second-century Christian very little. If -the Johannine authorship of the fourth Gospel were denied, or the -Pauline authorship of Colossians or Ephesians questioned; what does it -matter? would have been his reply. These documents may have been -forgeries, but there are plenty of other documents which tell the same -story, and I have myself known many men who have suffered and died -because they had embraced the truths, from the lips of the Apostles -themselves, which they have taught me. The simple fact is, that if all -the books of the New Testament were proved impudent forgeries except -the Epistle to the Romans, the two Epistles to the Corinthians, and -the Galatians, which every person admits, we should have ample and -convincing statements of Christian truth and doctrine. The devout -Christian may, then, make his mind easy, certain that no efforts and -no advances in the field of biblical criticism are likely to ruffle -even a feather of the faith once delivered to the saints. - -But then, some one may come forward and say, is not this a very -uncomfortable position for us? Would it not have been much more easy -and consoling for Christians to have had the whole canon of Scripture -infallibly decided by Divine authority once for all, so as to save all -doubts and disputations on the whole subject? Would it not have been -better had the Acts of the Apostles expressly named St. Luke as its -author, and appended ample proofs that its statement was true? This -objection is a very natural one, and springs up at times in every -mind; and yet it is merely part and parcel of the larger objection, -Why has Revelation been left a matter of doubt and disputation in any -respect? Nay, it is part of a still wider and vaster question, Why has -truth in any department, scientific, philosophical, ethical, or -historical, been left a matter of debate? Why has it not shone forth -by its own inherent light and compelled the universal consent of -admiring mankind? Why has not the great fundamental truth of all, the -existence and nature of God, been made so clear that an atheist could -not possibly exist? A century and a-half ago Bishop Butler, in his -immortal _Analogy_, disposed of this objection, which still crops up -afresh in every generation as if that work had never been written.[18] -God has placed us here in a state of probation, and neither in -temporal nor in spiritual matters is the evidence for what is true, -and right, and wise so clear and overwhelming that no room is left -for mistake or error. As it is in every other department of life, so -is it especially with reference to the canon of Scripture. It would -doubtless be very convenient for us if the whole question were settled -authoritatively and no doubts possible, but would it be good for us? -would it be wholesome for our spiritual life? I trow not. We have, -indeed, a living and speaking example of the blessings of uncertainty -in the state of the Roman Catholic Church, which has tried to better -the Divine method of training mankind, and banish all uncertainty. -That communion undertakes to settle infallibly all questions of -theology, and to leave nothing in doubt; and with what result? The -vast body of the laity take no interest whatsoever in theological -questions. They regard theology as outside their sphere, and belonging -to the clergy exclusively. The clergy in turn believe that the Pope, -in his office of infallible and universal pastor and teacher, has -alone the right and authority to settle doctrines, and they leave it -to him. They have made a solitude, and that they call peace, and the -pretence alone of an authority which undertakes to release man from -doubt and the need of investigation has paralysed theological inquiry -among Roman Catholics. - - [18] See Butler's _Analogy_, Part II., chap. vi. - -The same results on a vastly larger scale must have happened -throughout the Christian world had God made His revelation so clear -that no doubt could arise concerning it. Man is a lazy animal by -nature, and that laziness would at once have been developed by the -very abundance of the light vouchsafed. Religion would have been laid -aside as a thing settled once for all. All interest would have been -lost in it, and human attention would have been concentrated on those -purely mundane matters where uncertainty arises, and therefore -imperiously demands the mind's thought and care. The blessings of -uncertainty would offer a very wide topic for meditation. The man of -vast wealth whose bread is certain can never know the childlike faith -whereby the poor man waits upon his God and receives from Him day by -day his daily dole. The uncertainties of life hide from us much future -sorrow, teach us to walk by faith, not by sight, and lead us to depend -completely on the loving guidance of that Fatherly Hand which does all -things well. The uncertainties of life develop the spiritual life of -the soul. The doubts and questions which arise about religion bring -their own blessings with them too. They develop the intellectual life -of the spirit. They prevent religion becoming a matter of -superstition, they offer opportunities for the exercise of the graces -of honesty, courage, humility, and love; and thus form an important -element in that Divine training by which man is fitted here below for -the beatific vision which awaits him hereafter. Human nature ever -craves with longing desire to walk by sight. The Divine method -evermore prescribes, on the contrary, that man must for the present -walk by faith. Very wisely indeed, and with truest spiritual instinct, -the poet of the _Christian Year_ has sung, in words applicable to life -and to theology alike:-- - - "There are who, darkling and alone, - Would wish the weary night were gone, - Though dawning morn should only show - The secret of their unknown woe: - Who pray for sharpest throbs of pain - To ease them of doubt's galling chain: - 'Only disperse the cloud,' they cry, - 'And if our fate be death, give light and let us die.' - - "Unwise I deem them, Lord, unmeet - To profit by Thy chastenings sweet, - For Thou wouldst have us linger still - Upon the verge of good or ill, - That on Thy guiding hand unseen - Our undivided hearts may lean, - And this our frail and foundering bark - Glide in the narrow wake of Thy beloved ark."[19] - - [19] J. Keble, "The Sixth Sunday after Epiphany." - -The thoughts with which we have hitherto dealt connect themselves with -the opening words of the text with which we have begun this chapter, -"The former treatise I made, O Theophilus." There are two other points -in this passage which are worthy of devout attention. The writer of -the Acts took a thoroughly historical view of our Lord's life after -the resurrection as well as before that event. He considered that our -Lord's person, no matter how it may have been modified by His death -and resurrection, was still as real after these events as in the days -when He ministered and wrought miracles in Galilee and Jerusalem. His -whole life was continuous, from the day of the birth in Bethlehem -"until the day He was taken up." - -Then again St. Luke recognises the dual personality of our Lord. As we -shall afterwards have frequently to notice, St. Luke realized His -Divine character. In the opening verses of this book he recognises His -complete and perfect humanity--"After that He had given commandment -through the Holy Ghost unto the Apostles." There was an ancient heresy -about the nature of our Lord's person, which denied the perfection of -our Lord's humanity, teaching that His Divinity took the place of the -human spirit in Christ. Such teaching deprives us of much comfort and -instruction which the Christian can draw from a meditation upon the -true doctrine as taught here by St. Luke. Jesus Christ was God as -well as man, but it was through the manhood He revealed the life and -nature of God. He was perfect Man in all respects, with body, soul, -and spirit complete; and in the actions of His manhood, in the -exercise of all its various activities, He required the assistance and -support of the Holy Ghost just as really as we ourselves do. He -taught, gave commandments, worked miracles through the Holy Ghost. The -humanity of the Eternal Son required the assistance of the Divine -Spirit. Christ sought that Divine aid in prolonged communion with His -Father and His God, and then went forth to work His miracles and give -His commandments. Prayer and the gift of the Spirit and the works and -marvels of Christ were closely connected together, even before the -open descent of the Spirit and the wonders of Pentecost. There was a -covenant blessing and a covenant outpouring of the Spirit peculiar to -Christianity which was not vouchsafed till Christ had ascended. But -the Divine Spirit had been given in a measure long before Christ came. -It was through the Spirit that every blessing and every gift came to -patriarchs, prophets, warriors, teachers, and workers of every kind -under the Jewish dispensation. The Spirit of God came upon Bezaleel -and Aholiab, qualifying them to work cunningly for the honour and -glory of Jehovah when a tabernacle was to be reared. The Spirit of God -came upon Samson, and roused his natural courage when Israel was to be -delivered. The Spirit of God could rest even upon a Saul, and convert -him for a time into a changed character. And just as really the Holy -Ghost rested upon the human nature of Jesus Christ, guiding Him in the -utterance of those commandments, the outcome and development of which -we trace in the book of the Acts of the Apostles. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -_THE CONVERSATIONS OF THE GREAT FORTY DAYS._ - - "They therefore, when they were come together, asked Him, saying, - Lord, dost Thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? And - He said unto them, It is not for you to know times or seasons, - which the Father hath set within His own authority. But ye shall - receive power, when the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall - be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea and Samaria, - and unto the uttermost part of the earth."--ACTS i. 6-9. - - -The conversations and intercourse between our Lord and His apostles -during the forty days which elapsed from the resurrection to the -ascension must have been of intensest interest, yet, like so much that -we should esteem interesting concerning the heroes of Scripture and -their lives, these things are wrapped round with thickest darkness. We -get a glimpse of the risen Christ here and there. We are told He was -conversing with His disciples touching the things concerning the -kingdom of God. And then we are practically referred to the Acts of -the Apostles if we wish to know what topics His resurrection -discourses dealt with. And when we do so refer to the Acts we find -that His disciples moved along the line of Christian development with -steps sure, unfaltering, and decided, because they doubtless felt -themselves nerved by the well-remembered directions, the conscious -guidance of the Eternal Son of God, vouchsafed in the commandments -given by Him in the power of the Holy Ghost. - -Let us reflect for a little on the characteristics of Christ's risen -appearances to His disciples. I note then in the first place that they -were intermittent, and not continuous,--here and there, to Mary -Magdalene at one time; to the disciples journeying to Emmaus, to the -assembled twelve, to five hundred brethren at once, at other times. -Such were the manifestations of our Lord; and some may feel inclined -to cavil at them, and ask, Why did He not dwell continuously and -perpetually with His disciples as before His resurrection? And yet, -reading our narrative in the light of other scriptures, we might -expect the resurrection appearances of Christ to have been of this -description. In one place in the Gospel narrative we read that our -Lord replied thus to a section of His adversaries: "In the -resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are as -angels in heaven." Now we often read of angelic appearances in Holy -Scripture, in the Old and New Testament alike. We read too of -appearances of Old Testament saints, as of Moses and Elias on the -Mount of Transfiguration. And they are all like those of our Lord -Jesus Christ after His resurrection. They are sudden, independent of -time or space or material barriers, and yet are visible and tangible -though glorified. Such in Genesis was Abraham's vision of angels at -the tent door, when they did eat and drink with him. Such was Lot's -vision of angels who came and lodged with him in wicked Sodom. Such -was Peter's vision when an angel released him, guided him through the -intricate mazes of Jerusalem's streets; and such were Christ's -appearances when, as on this occasion, His disciples, now accustomed -to His risen and glorified form, tested Him as of old with the -question, "Lord, dost Thou at this time restore the kingdom to -Israel?" - -I. _Now let us here notice the naturalness of this query concerning -the restoration of the kingdom._ The Apostles evidently shared the -national aspirations of the Jews at that time. A large number of books -have come to light of late years, which show what a keen expectation -of the Messiah's kingdom and His triumph over the Romans existed at -the time, and prior to the time, of our Saviour. The book of Enoch, -discovered one hundred years ago in Abyssinia, and translated into -English in the beginning of the present century, was written a century -at least before the Incarnation.[20] The book of Jubilees was written -in Palestine about the time of our Lord's birth; the Psalter of -Solomon dates from the same period. All these works give us clearest -glimpses into the inner mind, the religious tone, of the Jewish nation -at that time.[21] The pious unsophisticated people of Galilee were -daily expecting the establishment of the Messianic kingdom; but the -kingdom they expected was no spiritual institution, it was simply an -earthly scene of material glory, where the Jews would once again be -exalted above all surrounding nations, and the hated invader expelled -from the fair plains of Israel. We can scarcely realize or understand -the force and naturalness of this question, "Dost Thou at this time -restore the kingdom to Israel?" as put by these Galilean peasants till -one takes up Archbishop Laurence's translation of the book of Enoch, -and sees how this eager expectation dominated every other feeling in -the Jewish mind of that period, and was burned into the very secrets -of their existence by the tyranny of Roman rule. Thus, let us take the -forty-seventh chapter of the book of Enoch, which may very possibly -have been in the thoughts of the Apostles as they presented this query -to their Lord. In that chapter we read the following words, attributed -unto Enoch: "There I beheld the Ancient of Days, whose head was like -white wool; and with Him another, whose countenance resembled that of -man. His countenance was full of grace, like that of one of the holy -angels. Then I inquired of one of the angels who went with me, and who -showed me every secret thing concerning this Son of Man, who He was, -whence He was, and why He accompanied the Ancient of Days. He answered -and said to me, This is the Son of Man, to whom righteousness belongs, -with whom righteousness has dwelt, and who will reveal all the -treasures of that which is concealed. For the Lord of Spirits has -chosen Him, and His portion has surpassed all before the Lord of -Spirits in everlasting uprightness. This Son of Man whom thou -beholdest shall raise up kings and the mighty from their couches, and -the powerful from their thrones; shall loosen the bridles of the -powerful, and break in pieces the teeth of sinners. He shall hurl -kings from their thrones and their dominions, because they will not -exalt and praise Him, nor humble themselves before Him, by whom their -kingdoms were granted to them. The countenance likewise of the mighty -shall He cast down, filling them with confusion. Darkness shall be -their habitation, and worms shall be their bed; nor from that their -bed shall they hope to be again raised, because they exalted not the -Name of the Lord of Spirits." This is one specimen of the Messianic -expectations, which were just then worked up to fever pitch among the -Galileans especially, and were ever leading them to burst out into -bloody rebellion against the power of the Romans. We might multiply -such quotations fourfold did our space permit. This one extract must -suffice to show the tone and quality of the religious literature upon -which the souls of the Apostles had fed and been sustained, when they -proposed this query, "Dost Thou at this time restore the kingdom to -Israel?" They were thinking simply of such a kingdom as the book of -Enoch foretold. - - [20] The book of Enoch was translated into English by Archbishop - Laurence, and was first published about seventy years ago. There - is an exhaustive article on the subject in the second volume of - the _Dictionary of Christian Biography_, written by Professor - Lipsius of Jena. - - [21] The book of Jubilees has never been published in English. An - interesting account of it will be found in the later editions of - Kitto's _Biblical Cyclopaedia_. The reader will find another - account of the book of Jubilees in the _Dict. Christ. Biog._, iv., - 507. The Psalms of Solomon are contained in the _Cod. Pseud. Vet. - Test._ of J. A. Fabricius. There is a brief notice of them in the - _Dict. Chris. Biog._, iv., 508, under the title "Pseudepigrapha." - -This very point seems to us one of the special and most striking -evidences for the inspiration and supernatural direction of the -writers of the New Testament. Their natural, purely human, and -national conception of the kingdom of God was one thing; their final, -their divinely taught and inspired conception of that kingdom is quite -another thing. I cannot see how, upon any ground of mere human -experience or human development, the Apostles could have risen from -the gross, material conceptions of the book of Enoch, wherein the -kingdom of the Messiah would have simply been a purified, reformed, -and exalted copy of the Roman Empire of that day, to the spiritual and -truly catholic idea of a kingdom not of this world, which ruled over -spirits rather than over bodies.[22] Some persons maintain that -Christianity in its doctrines, organisation, and discipline was but -the outcome of natural forces working in the world at that epoch. But -take this doctrine alone, "My kingdom is not of this world," announced -by Christ before Pilate, and impressed upon the Apostles by revelation -after revelation, and experience after experience, which they only -very gradually assimilated and understood. Where did it come from? How -was it the outcome of natural forces? The whole tendency of Jewish -thought was in the opposite direction. Nationalism of the most narrow, -particular, and limited kind was the predominant idea, specially among -those Galilean provincials who furnished the vast majority of the -earliest disciples of Jesus Christ. Our minds have been so steeped in -the principles of Christian liberalism, we have been so thoroughly -taught the rejection of race-prejudice, that we can scarcely realize -the narrow and limited ideas which must have ruled the minds of the -first Christians, and therefore we miss the full force of this -argument for the Divine character of the Christian religion. A Roman -Catholic peasant from Connaught, an Ulster Orangeman, a Celtic -Presbyterian Highlander, none of these will take a wide, tolerant, -generous view of religion. They view the question through their own -narrow provincial spectacles. And yet any one of them would have been -broad, liberal, and comprehensive when contrasted with the tone and -thought of the Galilean provincials of our Lord's day. They lived -lonely, solitary lives, away from the din, the pressure, and the -business of daily life; they knew nothing of what the great outside -world was thinking and doing; they fed their spirits on the glories of -the past, and had no room in their gloomy fanaticism for aught that -was liberal and truly spiritual. How could men like them have -developed the idea of the Catholic Church, boundless as the earth -itself, limited by no hereditary or fleshly bonds, and trammelled by -no circumstances of race, climate, or kindred? The magnificence of the -idea, the grandeur of the conception, is the truest and most -sufficient evidence of the divinity of its origin. "In Christ Jesus -there is neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor female," the -rapt expression of an inspired and illuminated Apostle, when compared -with this query, "Dost Thou at this time restore the kingdom to -Israel?" the darkened utterance of carnal and uninspired minds groping -after truth, furnishes to the thinking soul the clearest evidence of -the presence of a supernatural power, of a Divine enlightenment, -vouchsafed to the Apostles upon the Day of Pentecost. If this higher -knowledge, this nobler conception, this spiritualised ideal, came not -from God, whence did it come? - - [22] The strongest argument, from a mere literary point of view, - for the existence of a supernatural element in Christianity and - primitive Christian literature will be derived from a contrast - between the Jewish literature of the period of the Christian era - and the New Testament. Take, for instance, the book of Jubilees. - It was written about the time of our Lord, and probably in - Galilee. It represents the current tone of Jewish religion, and - shows us, with its narrowness and absurdities, what the New - Testament would have been had it been the product of unassisted - human nature. The book of Jubilees or of Enoch is the strongest - argument for the inspiration of the New Testament. I cannot even - imagine what explanation can be offered of the difference in tone - between the Christian and the Jewish writings save that of the - inspiration of the Christian. - -I do not think we can press this point of the catholicity and -universality of the Christian idea and the Christian society too far. -We cannot possibly make too much of it. There were undoubtedly -Christian elements, or elements whence Christian ideas were developed, -prevalent in the current Judaism of the day. Many a clause of the -Lord's Prayer and of the Sermon on the Mount can be paralleled almost -word for word from the Jewish teachers and writings of the times -immediately preceding our Lord. There was nothing in Christ of that -petty vanity of little minds which craves after complete originality, -and which will be nothing if not completely new. He was indeed the -wise and the good householder, who brought forth out of His treasures -things old as well as things new. Many a teacher and thinker, like -Philo, whose ideas had been broadened by the Divine training of -banishment and enforced exile in Alexandria or in Asia Minor, had -risen to nobler and wider views than were current in Palestine. But it -was not among these, or such as these, that the catholic ideas of the -gospel took their rise. Christianity took its rise among men whose -ideas, whose national aspirations, whose religious hopes, were of the -narrowest and most limited kind; and yet, amid such surroundings and -planted in such a soil, Christianity assumed at once a world-wide -mission, rejected at once and peremptorily all mere Judaic -exclusiveness, and claimed for itself the widest scope and -development. The universality of the Gospel message, the -comprehensive, all-embracing character of the Gospel teaching, as set -forth in our Lord's parting words, is, we conclude, an ample evidence -of its Divine and superhuman origin. - -II. _In this passage again there lies hidden the wisest practical -teaching for the Church of all ages._ We have warnings against the -folly which seeks to unravel the future and penetrate that veil of -darkness by which our God in mercy shrouds the unknown. We have -taught us the benefits which attend the uncertainties of our Lord's -return and of the end of this present dispensation. "It is not for you -to know times or seasons." Let us endeavour to work out this point, -together with the manifold illustrations of it which the history of -the Church affords. - -(_a_) The wisdom of the Divine answer will best be seen if we take the -matter thus, and suppose our Lord to have responded to the apostolic -appeal fixing some definite date for the winding-up of man's probation -state, and for that manifestation of the sons of God which will take -place at His appearing and His kingdom. Our Lord, in fixing upon some -such definite date, must have chosen one that was either near at hand -or else one that was removed far off into the distant future. In -either of these cases He must have defeated the great object of the -Divine society which He was founding. That object was simply this, to -teach men how to lead the life of God amid the children of men. The -Christian religion has indeed sometimes been taunted with being an -unpractical religion, turning men's eyes and attention from the -pressing business and interests of daily life to a far-away spiritual -state with which man has nothing to do, at least for the present. But -is this the case? Has Christianity proved itself unpractical? If so, -what has placed Christendom at the head of civilization? The -tendencies of great principles are best shown in the actions of vast -masses. Individuals may be better or worse than their creeds, but if -we wish to see the average result of doctrines we must take their -adherents in the mass and enquire as to their effect on them. Here, -then, is where we may triumph. The religions of Greece and of Rome are -identical in principle, and even in their deities, with the paganism -of India, as the investigations of comparative historians have -abundantly shown.[23] Compare Christendom and India from the simply -practical point of view, and which can show the better record? The -paganism of India, Persia, and Western Asia was the parent of the -paganism of Greece and Rome. The child has passed away and given place -to a noble and spiritual religion, while the parent still remains. And -now what is the result? Can the boldest deny that while barbarism, -decay, and death reign over the realms of Asiatic paganism, though -starting with every advantage upon its side, concerning the religion -of the Cross, which is taunted with being an unpractical religion, and -concerning that religion alone, can it be said in the language of the -rapt Jewish seer, "Wheresoever the waters of that river have come, -behold there is life," and that the fair plains, and crowded cities, -and the massive material development and civilisation of Europe and of -America alike proclaim the truth, that Christianity has the promise of -the life which now is as well as of that which is to come? - - [23] The most curious instance of the essential identity of the - nature deities of the West and East will be found in Mithraism. - The worship of Mithras was originally the worship of the sun. It - started from India, passed into Persia, thence found its way to - Asia Minor, and about 70 B.C. was introduced into Rome, where it - became, about A.D. 200, the great rival of Christianity, imitating - the sacraments of baptism and holy communion in rites of its own. - Mithraism easily combined with the worship of Apollo, or the - Sun-God. Apollo, Mithras, and Baal were fundamentally one and the - same. Tertullian, Justin Martyr, and Origen call Mithraism a - demoniacal imitation of Christianity. See more on this point in - the article on Mithras in the _Dictionary of Christian Biography_, - vol. iii., p. 925. - -(_b_) Our Lord's answer to His Apostles was couched in words suited to -develop this practical aspect of His religion. It refused to minister -to mere human curiosity, and left men uncertain as to the time of His -return, that they might be fruitful workers in the great field of -life. And now behold what ill results would have followed had He acted -otherwise! The Master in fact says, It is not well for you to know the -times or seasons, because such knowledge would strike at the root of -practical Christianity. Uncertainty as to the time of the end is the -most healthful state for the followers of Christ. Christ holds out the -prospect of His own return for a twofold purpose: first, to comfort -His people under the daily troubles of life--"Rejoice in the Lord -alway: again I will say, Rejoice. Let your forbearance be known unto -all men. The Lord is at hand;" "Whatever our hope or joy or crown of -glorying, are not even ye, before our Lord Jesus Christ at His -coming;" "If we believe that Jesus Christ died and rose again, even so -them also that are fallen asleep in Jesus will God bring with -Him,"--these and dozens of other passages, which will recur in a -moment to every student of St. Paul's writings, prove the power to -comfort and sustain exercised by the doctrine of Christ's second -coming. But there was another and still more powerful influence -exercised by this doctrine. It stirred men up to perpetual -watchfulness and untiring care. "Watch, therefore, for ye know neither -the day nor the hour;" "Therefore be ye also ready, for in an hour -that ye think not the Son of man cometh;" "The night is far spent, the -day is at hand; let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and -let us put on the armour of light,"--these and many a similar -exhortation of the Master and of his chosen Apostles alike, indicate -to us that another great object of this doctrine was to keep -Christians perpetually alive with an intense anxiety and a sleepless -watchfulness directed towards the person and appearing of Christ. The -construction of the gospel narrative shows this. - -(_c_) There are in the New Testament, taken as a whole, two contrasted -lines of prophecy concerning the Second Coming of Christ. If in one -place the Lord Jesus speaks as if the date of His coming were fixed -for His own generation and age, "Verily, I say unto you, this -generation shall not pass away till all these things shall be -fulfilled," in the very same context He indicates that it is only -_after a long time_ that the Lord of the servants will return, to take -account of their dealings with the property entrusted to them. If St. -Paul in one place seems to indicate to the Thessalonians the speedy -appearing of Christ and the end of the dispensation, in another -epistle he corrects such a misapprehension of his meaning. If the -Revelation of St. John in one place represents the awful Figure who -moves amid the Churches, watching their works and spying out their -secret sins, as saying, "Behold, I come quickly," the same book -pictures a long panorama of events, extending over vast spaces of -time, destined yet to elapse before the revelation of the city of God -and the final triumph of the saints. The doctrine of Christ's second -appearing is like many another doctrine in the New Testament. Like the -doctrine of God's election, which is undoubtedly there, and yet side -by side with election appears as really and truly the doctrine of -man's free will; like the doctrine of God's eternal and almighty love, -side by side with which appears the existence of a personal devil, and -of an abounding iniquity and sorrow which seems to contradict this -doctrine; like the doctrine of the Godhead itself, where the Unity of -the Divine Nature is most clearly taught, yet side by side therewith -appears the manifold personality of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost as -existing in that Nature;--so too is it in the case of the doctrine of -Christ's Second Coming. We have a twofold antinomy. In one line of -prophecy we have depicted the nearness and suddenness of Christ's -appearing; in another line we behold that tremendous event thrown into -the dim and distant future. And what is the result upon the human mind -of such opposite views? It is a healthy, useful, practical result. We -are taught the certainty of the event, and the uncertainty of the time -of that event; so that hope is stirred, comfort ministered, and -watchfulness evoked. We can see this more clearly by imagining the -opposite. Suppose Christ had responded to the spirit of the apostolic -query, "Dost Thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" and -fixed the precise date of His coming? He would in that case have -altogether defeated the great end of His own work and labour. Suppose -He had fixed it a thousand years from the time of His Ascension. Then -indeed the doctrine of Christ's Second Coming would have lost all -personal and practical power over the lives of the generation of -Christians then living, or who should live during the hundreds of -years which were to elapse till the date appointed. The day of their -death, the uncertainty of life, these would be the inspiring motives -to activity and devotion felt by the early Christians; while, as a -matter of fact, St. Paul never appeals to either of them, but ever -appeals to the coming of Christ and His appearing to judgment as the -motives to Christian zeal and diligence. But a more serious danger in -any such prediction lurks behind. What would have been the result of -any such precise prophecy upon the minds of the Christians who lived -close to the time of its fulfilment? It would have at once defeated -the great end of the Christian religion, as we have already defined -it. The near approach of the great final catastrophe would have -completely paralysed all exertion, and turned the members of Christ's -Church into idle, useless, unpractical religionists. We all know how -the near approach of any great event, how the presence of any great -excitement, hinders life's daily work. A great joy or a great sorrow, -either of them is utterly inconsistent with tranquil thought, with -steady labour, with persistent and profitable exertions. The -expectation of some tremendous change, whether it be for happiness or -misery, creates such a flutter in the spirit that steady application -is simply out of the question. So would it have been in our supposed -case. As the time fixed for the appearance of our Lord drew nigh, all -work, business, labour, the manifold engagements of life, the rearing -of families, the culture of the ground, the development of trade and -commerce, would be considered a grand impertinence, and man's powers -and man's life would be prostrated in view of the approaching -catastrophe. - -(_d_) Again and again has history verified and amply justified the -wisdom of the Master's reply, "It is not for you to know times or -seasons." It was justified in apostolic experience. The Second Epistle -to the Thessalonians is a commentary on our Lord's teaching in this -passage. The Christians of Thessalonica imbibed the notion from St. -Paul's words that Christ's appearance to judgment was at hand. Perhaps -St. Paul's words in his first Epistle led them into the mistake. The -Apostle was not infallible on all questions. He was richly inspired, -but he knew nothing of the future save what was expressly revealed, -and beyond such express revelations he could only surmise and guess -like other men.[24] The Thessalonians, however, were led by him to -expect the immediate appearance of Christ, and the result was just -what I have depicted. The transcendent event, which they thought -impending, paralyzed exertion, destroyed honest and useful labour, -scandalized the gospel cause, and compelled St. Paul to use the -sternest, sharpest words of censure and rebuke. The language of St. -Paul completely justifies our line of argument. He tells us that the -spirits of the Thessalonians had been upset, the natural result of a -great expectation had been experienced as we might humanly have -predicted. The beginning of the second chapter of his Second Epistle -proves this: "Now we beseech you, brethren, touching the coming of our -Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together unto Him; to the end -that ye be not quickly shaken from your mind, nor yet be troubled, -either by spirit, or by word, or by epistle as from us, as that the -day of the Lord is present." See here how he dwells on mental -perturbation as the result of high-strung expectation; and that is -bad, for mental peace, not mental disturbance, is the portion of -Christ's people. Then again he indicates another result of which we -have spoken as natural under such circumstances. Idleness and its long -train of vices had followed hard upon the mental strain which found -place for a time at Thessalonica, and so in the third chapter of the -Epistle he writes, "Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our -Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that -walketh disorderly;" and then he defines the disorderliness of which -he complains, "For we hear of some that walk among you disorderly, -that work not at all, but are busybodies." Or, to put the matter in a -concise shape, and interpret St. Paul into modern language, the -expectation of the near approach of the judgment and the personal -appearing of Christ had upset the spirits of the Thessalonians; it had -so fluttered them they could not attend to ordinary business. Human -nature then asserted itself. Idleness resulted from the mental -disturbance. Idleness begot gossip, disorder, and scandals. The idlers -indeed professed that they ceased from labour in order to give their -whole attention to devotion. But St. Paul knew that there was no -incompatibility between work and prayer, while he was convinced there -was the closest union between idleness and sin. Idleness put on an -appearance of great spirituality, but St. Paul effectually met the -difficulty. He knew that an idler, no matter how spiritual he -pretended to be, must eat, and so he strikes at the root of such mock -religion by laying down, "If any will not work, neither let him -eat,"--a good healthy practical rule, which soon restored the moral -and spiritual tone of the Macedonian Church to its normal condition. - - [24] The miraculous gifts of the Spirit possessed by the Apostles - did not guard them against mistakes as to the future, nor override - the exercise of private judgment and common sense, nor enable them - to work miracles or cure sicknesses for their own purposes. St. - Paul, for instance, was obliged to depend upon the assistance of - St. Luke when he was ill. The miraculous powers were restrained, - as in our Lord's example, to cases where God's glory was specially - advanced by their exercise. - -(_e_) The experiences of Thessalonica have been often repeated down -through the ages till we come to our own day. I remember a curious -instance that I once read of exactly the same spirit, and exactly the -same method of cure, as St. Paul used, in the case of an Egyptian -monastery in the fifth century. The monks were then divided into two -classes. There were monks who laboured diligently and usefully in -communities, and there were others who lived idle lives as solitaries, -pretending to a spirituality too great to permit them to engage in -secular pursuits. A solitary one day entered a monastery presided over -by a wise abbot. He found the monks all diligently employed, and, -addressing them from his superior standpoint, said, "Labour not for -the meat that perisheth." "That is very good, brother," said the -abbot. "Take our brother away to his cell," he said to one of his -attendants, who left him there to meditate. Nature, after a time, -began to assert its sway, and the solitary became hungry. He heard the -signal for the midday meal, and wondered that no man came to summon -him. Time passed, and the evening meal was announced, and yet no -invitation came. At last the solitary left his cell and proceeded in -search of food, when the wise abbot impressed on him the Pauline rule -that it was quite possible to unite work and worship, labouring for -the bread that perisheth while feeding on the bread that is eternal. - -The tenth century again verified the wisdom of the Divine denial to -reveal the future, or fix a date for Christ's second coming. The year -1000 was regarded in the century immediately preceding it as the limit -of the world's existence and the date of Christ's appearing. The -belief in this view spread all over Europe, and the result was just -the same as at Thessalonica. Men abandoned all work, they left their -families to starve, and thought the one great object worth living for -was devotion and preparation for their impending change. And the -result was widespread misery, famine, disease, and death, while, -instead of working any beneficial change upon society at large, the -terror through which men had passed brought about, when the dreaded -time had gone by, a reaction towards carelessness and vice, all the -greater from the self-denial which they had practised for a time. And -as it was in the earlier ages so has it been in later times. The -people of London were, in the middle of the last century, deluded into -a belief that on a certain day the Lord would appear to judgment, with -the result that the business of London was suspended for the time. The -lives of John Wesley and his fellow-evangelists tell us how diligently -they seized the opportunity of preaching repentance and preparation -for the coming of Christ, though they shared not the belief in the -prediction which gained them their audience. While again in the -present century there was a widespread opinion about the year 1830 -that the coming of Christ was at hand. It was the time when the -Irvingite and Darbyite bodies sprang into existence, in which systems -the near approach of the Second Coming forms an important element. Men -then thought that it was a mere matter of days or weeks, and in -consequence they acted just like the Thessalonians. In their ardour -their minds were upset, their business and families neglected, and, as -far as in them lay, the work of life and of civilisation was utterly -destroyed. While when again we come to later times experience has -taught that no men have been more profitless and unpractical -Christians than the numbers, by no means inconsiderable, who have -spent their lives in vain attempts to fix now for this year, and again -for that day, the exact time when the Son of Man should appear. The -wisest Christians have acted otherwise. It is told of a foreign -bishop, eminent for his sanctity and for the wise guidance which he -could give in the spiritual life, that he was once engaged in playing -a game of bowls. One of the bystanders was of a critical disposition, -and was scandalized at the frivolity of the bishop's occupation, so -much beneath the dignity, as it was thought, of his character. "If -Christ was to appear the next moment, what would you do?" he asked the -bishop. "I would make the next stroke the best possible one," was the -wise man's reply. And the reply involved the true principle which the -Lord Himself by His refusal to gratify the Apostles' curiosity desired -to impress on His people. The uncertainty of the time of Christ's -coming, combined with the certainty of the event itself, should stir -us up to intensity of purpose, to earnestness of life, to a hallowed -enthusiasm to do thoroughly every lawful deed, to think thoroughly -every lawful thought, conscious that in so doing we are fulfilling the -will and work of the great Judge Himself. Blessed indeed shall be -those servants whom the Lord when He cometh shall find so doing. - -III. Christ, after He had reproved the spirit of vain curiosity which -strikes at the root of all practical effort, then indicates the source -of their strength and the sphere of its activity. "Ye shall receive -power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you." They were wanting then, -as yet, in power, and the Holy Ghost was to supply the want. -Intellect, talent, eloquence, wit, all these things are God's gifts, -but they are not the source of spiritual power. A man may possess them -one and all, and yet be lacking in that spiritual power which came -upon the Apostles through the descent of the Spirit. And the sphere of -their appointed activity is designated for them. Just as in the -earliest days of Christ's public ministry He spake words indicative -of the universal spirit of the gospel, and prophesied of a time when -men from the east and west should come and sit down in the kingdom of -God, while the children of the kingdom should be cast out, so, too, -one of His few recorded resurrection sayings now indicates the same: -"Ye shall be My witnesses, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and -Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Jerusalem, -Judaea,--the Apostles were to begin their great practical life of -witnessing at home, but they were not to stay there. Samaria was next -to have its opportunity, and so we shall find it to have been the -case; and then, working from home as centre, the uttermost parts of -the earth, a distant Spain from Paul, and a distant India from Thomas, -and a barbarous Scythia from Andrew, and a frigid, ocean-girt Britain -from a Joseph of Arimathaea,[25] were to learn tidings of the new life -in Christ.[26] - - [25] See my _Ireland and the Celtic Church_ for the traditions - about St. Joseph of England. - - [26] The line of argument followed in this chapter was originally - suggested to me by a sermon for the First Sunday in Advent, - printed in a volume of _Sermons at the Octagon Chapel, Bath_, by - the Rev. W. C. Magee, B.D., now Archbishop of York. London, - Hatchards, 1858. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -_THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST, AND ITS LESSONS._ - - "When He had said these things, as they were looking, He was - taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight."--ACTS i. - 9. - - -In this passage we have the bare literal statement of the fact of -Christ's ascension. Let us now consider this supernatural fact, the -Ascension, and meditate upon its necessity, and even naturalness, when -taken in connection with the whole earthly existence of Incarnate God, -and then strive to trace the results and blessings to mankind which -followed from it in the gift of the new power, the covenanted gift of -the Spirit, and in the spread of the universal religion. - - -I. The ascension of our Lord is a topic whereon familiarity has worked -its usual results; it has lost for most minds the sharpness of its -outline and the profundity of its teaching because universally -accepted by Christians; and yet no doctrine raises deeper questions, -or will yield more profitable and far-reaching lessons. First, then, -we may note the place this doctrine holds in apostolic teaching. -Taking the records of that teaching contained in the Acts and the -Epistles, we find that it occupies a real substantial position. The -ascension is there referred to, hinted at, taken as granted, -pre-supposed, but it is not obtruded nor dwelt upon overmuch.[27] The -resurrection of Christ was the great central point of apostolic -testimony; the ascension of Christ was simply a portion of that -fundamental doctrine, and a natural deduction from it. If Christ had -been raised from the dead and had thus become the firstfruits of the -grave, it required but little additional exercise of faith to believe -that He had passed into that unseen and immediate presence of Deity -where the perfected soul finds its complete satisfaction. In fact, the -doctrine of the resurrection apart from the doctrine of the ascension -would have been a mutilated fragment, for the natural question would -arise, not for one age but for every age, If Jesus of Nazareth has -risen from the dead, where is He? Produce your risen Master, and we -will believe in Him, would be the triumphant taunt to which Christians -would be ever exposed. But then when we closely examine the teaching -of the Apostles, we shall find that the doctrine of the ascension was -just as really bound up with all their preaching and exhortations as -the doctrine of the resurrection; the whole Christian idea as -conceived by them just as necessarily involved the doctrine of the -ascension as it did that of the resurrection. St. Peter's conception -of Christianity, for instance, involved the ascension. Whether in his -speech at the election of Matthias, or in his sermon on the day of -Pentecost, or in his address in Solomon's Porch after the healing of -the crippled beggar, his teaching ever presupposes and involves the -ascension. He takes the doctrine and the fact for granted. Jesus is -with him the Being "whom the heavens must receive until the times of -restoration of all things." So is it too with St. John in his Gospel. -He never directly mentions the fact of Christ's ascension, but he -always implies it. So too with St. Paul and the other apostolic -writers of the New Testament. It would be simply impossible to exhibit -in detail the manner in which this doctrine pervades and underlies all -St. Paul's teaching. The ascended Saviour occupies the same position -in St. Paul's earliest as in his latest writings. Is he speaking of -the lives of the Thessalonians in his First Epistle to that Church: -"they are waiting for God's Son from heaven." Is he pointing them -forward to the second advent of Christ: it is of that day he speaks -when "the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven." Is he in Rom. viii. -dwelling upon the abiding security of God's elect: he enlarges upon -their privileges in "Christ Jesus, who is at the right hand of God, -making intercession for us." Is he exhorting the Colossians to a -supernatural life: it is because they have supernatural privileges in -their ascended Lord. "If ye then were raised with Christ, seek the -things above, where Christ is seated on the right hand of God." The -more closely the teaching of the Apostles is examined, the more -clearly we shall perceive that the ascension was for them no ideal -act, no imaginary or fantastic elevation, but a real actual passing of -the risen Saviour out of the region and order of the seen and the -natural into the region and order of the unseen and supernatural. -Just as really as they believed Christ to have risen from the dead, -just as really did they in turn believe Him to have ascended into the -heavens. - - [27] The incarnation and the ascension are, in this respect, very - much on a level in St. Paul's writings. The incarnation and birth - of our Lord are referred to incidentally, but only incidentally, - in Rom. i. 3; Gal. iv. 4; 1 Tim. iii. 16; yet the facts of the - birth and incarnation must have occupied a great share of St. - Paul's attention, if we are to judge of his teaching by the Gospel - of St. Luke, his disciple and companion. The Apostle never - formally states the doctrine of the incarnation as St. Luke set it - forth, because it was well known by all to whom he wrote as the - very foundation of his system. A bare reference was therefore - enough. It was just the same with the doctrine of the ascension. - - -II. But some one may raise curious questions as to the facts of the -ascension. Whither, for instance, it may be asked, did our Lord depart -when He left this earthly scene? The childish notion that He went up -and up far above the most distant star will not of course stand a -moment's reflection. It suits the apprehension of childhood, and the -innocent illusion should not be too rudely broken; but still, as the -advance of years and of wisdom dispels other illusions, so too will -this one depart, when the child learns that there is neither up nor -down in this visible universe of ours, and that if we were ourselves -transported to the moon, which seems shining over our heads, we should -see the earth suspended in the blue azure which would overhang the -moon and its newly-arrived inhabitants. The Book of the Acts of the -Apostles does not describe our Saviour as thus ascending through -infinite space. It simply describes Him as removed from off this -earthly ball, and then, a cloud shutting Him out from view, Christ -passed into the inner and unseen universe wherein He now dwells. The -existence of that inner and unseen universe, asserted clearly enough -in Scripture, has of late years been curiously confirmed by scientific -speculation. Scripture asserts the existence of such an unseen -universe, and the ascension implies it. The second coming of our -Saviour is never described as a descent from some far-off region. No, -it is always spoken of as an Apocalypse,--a drawing back, that is, of -a veil which hides an unseen chamber. The angels, as the messengers of -their Divine Master, are described by Christ in Matt. xiii. as -"coming forth" from the secret place of the Most High to execute His -behests.[28] What a solemn light such a scriptural view sheds upon -life! The unseen world is not at some vast distance, but, as the -ascension would seem to imply, close at hand, shut out from us by that -thin veil of matter which angelic hands will one day rend for ever. -And then how wondrously the speculations of that remarkable book to -which I have referred, _The Unseen Universe_, lend themselves to this -scriptural idea, pointing out the necessity imposed by modern -scientific thought for postulating some such interior spiritual -sphere, of which the external and material universe may be regarded as -a temporary manifestation and development.[29] The doctrine of the -ascension, when rightly understood, presents then no difficulties from -a scientific point of view, but is rather in strictest accordance with -the highest and subtlest forms of modern thought. But when we advance -still closer to the heart of this doctrine, and endeavour, quite apart -from all mere carping criticism, to realize its meaning and its power, -we shall perceive a profound fitness, beauty, and harmony in this -mysterious fact. Laying apart all carping criticism, I say, because -the critical spirit is not appreciative, it is on the look-out for -faults, it necessarily involves a certain assumption of superiority in -the critic to the thing or doctrine criticised; and most certainly it -is not to the proud critic, but to the humble soul alone, that the -doctrines of the Cross yield of their sweetness, and make revelation -of their profound depths. We can perceive a fitness and a naturalness -in the ascension; we can advance even farther still, and behold an -absolute necessity for it, if Christ's work was to be perfected in all -its details, and Christianity to become, not a narrow local religion, -but a universal and catholic Church. - - [28] See Archbishop Trench on the Draw-net in _Notes on the - Parables_, p. 145, 10th ed. - - [29] We now live so fast that it may perhaps be necessary to - explain that the _Unseen Universe_ was a book written some ten or - eleven years ago by two eminent scientists, showing how that it - was needful, on the principles, of modern science, to postulate - the existence of an unseen universe, out of which the seen - universe has been derived, and into which it is in turn passing. - - -III. The ascension was a fitting and a natural termination of Christ's -earthly ministry, considering the Christian conception of His sacred -Personality. When the Second Person of the Eternal Trinity wished to -reveal the life of God among men, and to elevate humanity by -associating it for ever with the person of Him who was the Eternal -God, He left the glory which He had with the Father before the world -was, and entered upon the world of humanity through a miraculous door. -"The Son, which is the Word of the Father, begotten from everlasting -of the Father, the very and eternal God, and of one substance with the -Father, took Man's nature in the womb of the blessed Virgin, of her -substance." These are the careful, accurate, well-balanced words of -the second Article of the Church of England, in which all -English-speaking Christians substantially agree. They are accurate, I -say, and well-balanced, avoiding the Scylla of Nestorianism, which -divides Christ's person, on the one side, and the Charybdis of -Eutychianism, which denies His humanity, on the other. The Person of -God, the Eternal Word, assumed human nature, not a human person, but -human nature, so that God might be able, acting in and through this -human nature as His instrument, to teach mankind and to die for -mankind. God entered upon the sphere of the seen and the temporal by -a miraculous door. His life and work were marked all through by -miracle, His death and resurrection were encompassed with miracle; and -it was fitting, considering the whole course of His earthly career, -that His departure from this world should be through another -miraculous door. The departure of the Eternal King was, like His first -approach, a part of a scheme which forms one united and harmonious -whole. The Incarnation and the Ascension were necessarily related the -one to the other. - - -IV. Again, we may advance a step further, and say that not only was -the ascension a natural and fitting termination to the activities of -the Eternal Son manifest in the flesh, it was a necessary completion -and finish. "It is expedient," said Christ Himself, "that I go away; -for if I go not away the Comforter will not come to you." For some -reason secret from us, but hidden in the awful depths of that Being -who is the beginning and the end, the source and the condition of all -created existence, the return of Christ to the bosom of the Father was -absolutely necessary before the outpouring of the Divine Spirit of -Life and Love could take place. How this can have been we know not. We -only know the fact as revealed to us by Jesus Christ and affirmed by -His Apostles. "Being therefore by the right hand of God exalted, and -having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He hath -poured forth this which ye see and hear," is the testimony of the -illuminated Apostle St. Peter on the day of Pentecost, speaking in -strict unison with the teaching of Jesus Christ Himself as reported in -St. John's Gospel. But without endeavouring to intrude into these -mysteries of the Divine nature, into which even the angels themselves -pry not, we behold in the character and constitution of Christ's -Church and Christ's religion sufficient reasons to show us the Divine -expediency of our Lord's ascension. Let us take the matter very -plainly and simply thus. Had our Lord not ascended into the unseen -state whence He had emerged for the purpose of rescuing mankind from -that horrible pit, that mire and clay of pollution, immorality, and -selfishness in which it lay at the epoch of the Christian era, He must -in that case (always proceeding on the supposition that He had risen -from the dead, because we always suppose our readers to be believers) -have remained permanently or temporarily resident in some one place. -He might have chosen Jerusalem, the city of the great King, as His -abode, and this would have seemed to the religious men of His time -quite natural. The same instinct of religious conservatism which made -the Twelve to tarry at Jerusalem even when persecution seemed to -threaten the infant Church with destruction, would have led the risen -Christ to fix His abode at the city which every pious Jew regarded as -the special seat of Jehovah. There would have been nothing to tempt -Him to Antioch, or Athens, or Alexandria, or Rome. None of these -cities could have held out any inducement or put forward any claim -comparable for one moment with that which the name, the traditions, -and the circumstances of Jerusalem triumphantly maintained. Nay, -rather the tone and temper of those cities must have rendered them -abhorrent as dwelling-places to the great Teacher of holiness and -purity. - -At any rate, the risen Saviour, if He remained upon earth, must have -chosen some one place where His presence and His personal glory would -have been manifested. Now let us contemplate, and work out in some -detail, the results which would have inevitably followed. The place -chosen by our Lord as His visible dwelling-place must then have become -the centre of the whole Church. At that spot pilgrims from every land -must necessarily have assembled. To it would have resorted the doubter -to have his difficulties resolved, the sick and weak to have their -ailments cured, the men of profound devotion to bathe themselves and -lose themselves in the immediate presence of Incarnate Deity. All -interest in local Churches or local work would have been destroyed, -because every eye and every heart would be perpetually turning towards -the one spot where the risen Lord was dwelling, and where personal -adoration could be paid to Him. All honest, manly self-reliance would -have been lost for individuals, for Churches, and for nations. -Whenever a difficulty or controversy arose, either in the personal or -ecclesiastical, the social or political sphere, men, instead of trying -to solve it for themselves under the guidance of the Divine Spirit, -would have hurried off with it to the Fount of supernatural wisdom, as -an oracle, like the fabled pagan ones of old, whence direction would -infallibly be gained. Judaism would have triumphed and the -dispensation of the Spirit would have ceased. - -The whole idea, too, of Christianity as a scheme of moral probation -would have been overthrown. Christ as belonging to the supernatural -sphere would of course have been raised above the laws of time and -space. For Him the powers of earth and the terrors of earth would have -had no meaning, and heavenly glory, shooting forth from His sacred -Person, would have compelled obedience and acceptance of His laws at -the hands of His most deadly and obstinate foes. Sight would have -taken the place of faith, and the terrified submission of slaves would -have been substituted for the moral, loving obedience of the -regenerate soul. The whole social order of life would also have been -overthrown. God has now placed men in families, societies, and -nations, that they might be proved by the very difficulties of their -positions. The probation which God thereby exercises over men extends -not to those alone who are subject to government, but to those as well -who are entrusted with government. God by His present system tries -governors and governed, kings and subjects, magistrates and people, -parents and children, teachers and pupils, all alike. Any one who has -ever made the experiment knows, however, how impossible it is to give -full play to one's power and faculties, whether of government or of -teaching, when overlooked by the conscious presence of one who can -supersede and control all the arrangements made or all the -instructions offered. Nervousness comes in, and paralyzes the best -efforts a man might otherwise make. So would it have been had Christ -remained upon earth. Neither those placed in authority nor those set -under authority would have done their best or played their part -effectually, feeling there was One standing by whose all-piercing gaze -could see the imperfection of their noblest actions. A modern -illustration or two will perhaps exhibit more plainly what we mean. -London, with its enormous and ever-growing population, constitutes in -many respects a portentous danger to our national life. But thoughtful -colonists often see in it a danger which does not strike us here at -home. London has a tendency to sap the springs of local interest and -local self-reliance. Every colonist who attains to wealth and position -feels himself an exile till he can get back to London, which he -regards as the one centre of the empire worth living at; while the -colonies, viewing London as the centre of England's wealth, power, and -resources, feel naturally inclined to fling upon London the care and -responsibility of the empire's protection, in which all its separate -parts should take their proportionate share. - -Or again, let us take an illustration from the ecclesiastical sphere. -M. Renan is a writer who has depicted the early history of the Church -from a sceptical point of view. He has done so with all the skill of a -novelist, aided by the resources of immense erudition. Before Renan -became a sceptic he was a Roman Catholic, and a student for the -priesthood in one of those narrow seminaries wherein exclusively the -Roman Church now trains her clergy. Renan can never, therefore, view -Christianity save through a Roman medium, and from a Roman Catholic -standpoint. Descended himself from a Jewish stock, and trained up in -Roman Catholic ideas, Renan, sceptic though he be, is lost in -admiration of the Papacy, because it has combined the Jewish and the -ancient imperial ideas, so that Rome having taken the place which -Jerusalem once occupied in the spiritual organisation, has now become -the local centre of unity for the Latin Church, where Christ's vicar -visibly bears sway, to whom resort can be had from every land as an -authoritative guide, and whence he and he alone dispenses with more -than imperial sway the gifts and graces of Divine love. Rome is for -the Latin Church the centre of the earth, and upon Rome and its -spiritual ruler all interest is concentrated as Christ's earthly -representative and deputy. Now what London is to our own colonists, -what Rome is for its adherents, such, and infinitely more, would the -localised presence of Jesus Christ have been for the Christian world -had not the ascension taken place. The Papacy, instead of securing -the universality of the Church, strikes a deadly blow at it. The -Papacy, with its centralised ecclesiastical despotism, is not the -Catholic Church, it is simply the local Church of Rome spread out into -all the world; just as Judaism never was and never could have been -catholic in its ideal, no matter how widely spread it was, from the -shores of the British Islands in the West to the far-distant regions -of China in the East. Its adherents, like the eunuch of Ethiopia, -never felt a local interest in their religion,--their eyes ever turned -towards Zion, the city of the great King. And so would it have been -with the bodily presence of Christ manifested in one spot; the -Christian Church would still have remained a purely local institution, -and the place where the risen Saviour was manifested would have been -for Christian people the one centre towards which all their thoughts -would gravitate, to the complete neglect of those home interests and -labours in which each individual Church ought to find the special work -appointed for it by the Master. It was expedient for the Church that -Christ should go away, to deepen faith, to strengthen Christian -self-reliance, to offer play and scope for the power and work of the -Holy Ghost, to render life a testing-ground, and a place of probation -for the higher life to come. But above all, it was expedient that -Christ should go away in order that the Church might rise out of and -above that narrow provincialism in which the Jewish spirit would fain -bind it, might attain to a truly universal and catholic position, and -thus fulfil the Master's magnificent prophecy to the woman of Samaria, -when, viewing in spirit the Church's onward march, beholding it -bursting all local and national bonds, recognising it as the religion -of universal humanity, He proclaimed its destiny in words which shall -never die--"Woman, believe Me, the hour cometh when neither in this -mountain nor in Jerusalem shall ye worship the Father. God is a -Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in -truth." The ascension of Jesus Christ was absolutely necessary to -equip the Church for its universal mission, by withdrawing the bodily -presence of Christ into that unseen region which bears no special -relation to any terrestrial locality, but is the common destiny, the -true fatherland, of all the sons of God.[30] - - [30] The line of thought here worked out was originally suggested - to me by Canon Liddon's sermon on "Our Lord's Ascension the - Church's Gain," in his first series of University sermons. - -V. We have now seen how the ascension was needful for the Church, by -rendering Christ an ideal object of worship for the whole human race, -thus saving it from that tendency to mere localism which would have -utterly changed its character. We can also trace another great -blessing involved in it. The ascension glorified humanity as humanity, -and ennobled man viewed simply as man. The ascension thus transformed -life by adding a new dignity to life and to life's duties. - -This was a very necessary lesson for the ancient world, especially the -ancient Gentile world, which Christ came to enlighten and to save. -Man, considered by himself as man, had no peculiar dignity in the -popular religious estimate of Greece and Rome. A Greek or a Roman was -a dignified person, not, however, in virtue of his humanity, but in -virtue of his Greek or Roman citizenship. The most pious Greeks or -Romans simply despised mankind as such, regarding all other nations -as barbarians, and treating them accordingly. Roman law exempted Roman -citizens from degrading and cruel punishments, which they reserved for -men outside the limits of Roman citizenship, because that humanity as -humanity had no dignity attached to it in their estimation. The -gladiatorial shows were the most striking illustration of this -contempt for human nature which paganism inculcated.[31] - - [31] The gladiatorial shows form an interesting standard by which - we may compare the practical effects of Christian and the very - highest pagan sentiment. Tertullian denounced them in the - strongest language in his treatise _De Spectaculis_. Cicero, in - the _Tusculan Disputations_, ii. 17, defends them warmly as the - best discipline against fear of pain and death. - -It is a notable evidence, too, of the firm grasp upon the popular mind -this contempt had taken, of the awful depths to which the fatal -infection had permeated the public conscience, that it was not till -four hundred years after the Incarnation, and not till one hundred -years after the triumph of Christianity, that these frightful -carnivals of human blood and slaughter yielded to the gentler and -nobler principles of the religion of the Cross. No name indeed in the -long roll of Christian martyrs, who for truth and righteousness have -laid down their lives, deserves higher mention than that of -Telemachus, the Asiatic monk, who, in the year 404, hearing that the -city, where the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul had suffered, was -still disgraced by the gladiatorial shows, made his way to Rome, and -by the sacrifice of his own life terminated them for ever within the -bounds of Christendom. Telemachus rushed between the combatants in the -arena, flung them asunder, and then was stoned to death by the mob, -infuriated at the interruption of their favourite amusement.[32] A -tragic but glorious ending indeed, showing clearly how little the -Roman mob realized as yet the doctrine of the sanctity of human -nature; how powerful was the sway which paganism and pagan modes of -thought held as yet over the populace of nominally Christian Rome; the -tradition of which even still perpetuates itself in the cruel -bull-fights of Spain. From the beginning, however, Christianity took -exactly the opposite course, declaring to all the dignity and glory of -human nature in itself. The Incarnation was in itself a magnificent -proclamation of this great elevating and civilising truth. The title -Son of Man, which Christ, rising above all narrow Jewish nationalism, -assumed to Himself, was a republication of the same dogma; and then, -to crown the whole fabric, comes the doctrine of the ascension, -wherein mankind was taught that human nature as joined to the person -of God has ascended into the holiest place of the universe, so that -henceforth the humblest and lowliest can view his humanity as allied -with that elder Brother who in the reality of human flesh--glorified, -indeed, spiritualised and refined by the secret, searching processes -of death--has passed within the veil, now to appear in the presence of -God for us. What new light must have been shed upon life--the life of -the barbarian and of the slave--crushed beneath the popular theory of -St. Paul's day![33] What new dignity this doctrine imparted to the -bodies of the outcast and despised, counted fit food only for the -cross, the stake, or the arena! Man might despise them and ill-treat -them, yet their bodies were made like unto the one glorious Body for -ever united to God, and therefore they were comforted, elevated, -enabled to endure as seeing Him who is invisible. Cannot we see many -examples of the consoling, elevating power of the ascension in the New -Testament? Take St. Paul's writings, and there we trace the influence -of the ascension in every page. Take the very lowest case. Slaves -under the conditions of ancient society occupied the most degraded -position. Their duties were of the humblest type, their treatment of -the worst description, their punishments of the most terrible -character.[34] Yet for even these oppressed and degraded beings the -doctrine of the ascension transformed life, because it endowed that -menial service which they rendered with a new dignity. "Servants, obey -in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eye -service, as men pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing God." -And why? Because life has been enriched with a new motive: -"Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men; -knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the -inheritance; for ye serve the Lord Christ." _Ye serve the Lord -Christ._ That was the supreme point. The cooking of a dinner, the -dressing of an imperious lady's hair, the teaching of a careless or -refractory pupil--all these things were transfigured into the service -of the ascended Lord. And as with the servant, so was it with their -masters. The ascension furnished them with a new and practical motive, -which, at first leading to kindly treatment and generous actions, -would one day, by the force of logical deduction as well as of -Christian principle, lead to the utter extinction of slavery. -"Masters, render unto your servants that which is just and equal, -knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven." The doctrine of the -ascension diffused sweetness and light throughout the whole Christian -system, furnishing a practical motive, offering an ever-present and -eternal sanction, urging men upwards and onwards; without which -neither the Church nor the world would ever have reached that high -level of mercy, charity, and purity which men now enjoy. Perhaps here -again the present age may see the doctrine of the ascension asserting -its glory and its power in the same direction. Much of modern -speculation tends to debase and belittle the human body, teaching -theories respecting its origin which have a natural tendency to -degrade the popular standard. If people come to think of their bodies -as derived from a low source, they will be apt to think a low standard -of morals as befitting bodies so descended. The doctrine of evolution -has not, to say the least, an elevating influence upon the masses. I -say nothing against it. One or two passages in the Bible, as Gen. ii. -7, seem to support it, appearing, as that verse does, to make a -division between the creation of the body of man and the creation of -his spirit.[35] But the broad tendency of such speculation lies in a -downward moral direction. Here the doctrine of the ascension steps in -to raise for us, as it raised for the materialists of St. Paul's day, -the standard of current conceptions, and to teach men a higher and a -nobler view. We leave to science the investigation of the past and of -the lowly sources whence man's body may have come; but the doctrine of -the ascension speaks of its present sanctity and of its future glory, -telling of the human body as a body of humiliation and of lowliness -indeed, but yet proclaiming it as even now, in the person of Christ, -ascended into the heavens, and seated on the throne of the Most High. -It may have been once humble in its origin; it is now glorious in its -dignity and elevation; and that dignity and that elevation shed a halo -upon human nature, no matter how degraded and wherever it may be -found, because it is like unto that Body, the firstfruits of humanity, -which stands at the right hand of God. Thus the doctrine of the -ascension becomes for the Christian the ever-flowing fountain of -dignity, of purity, and of mercy, teaching us to call no man common or -unclean, because all have been made like unto the image of the Son of -God. - - [32] The original authority for the story of Telemachus is - Theodoret's _Eccles. Hist._, v. 26. It is vigorously told by - Gibbon in the thirtieth chapter of his _Decline and Fall_. - - [33] The doctrine of the sanctity of human life was unknown under - paganism. Tacitus tells us, about the year A.D. 61, how that - Pedianus Secundus, prefect of the city, having been murdered by - one of his slaves, the whole body of his slaves, numbering more - than four hundred persons, of every age and sex, were put to death - (_Annals_, xiv., 42-45). - - [34] We have no idea of the frightful character of pagan slavery. - The worst form which negro slavery ever took never approached it. - The following story will give our readers some idea of it. Cato, - the censor, wrote a treatise, very little read or known, called - _De Re Rustica_, treating of farming operations. In this he gives - directions concerning the economical management of slaves, and - among other things tells how wine for their winter consumption was - to be prepared. "Put into a cask ten amphorae of sweet wine, two - amphorae of sour vinegar, and as much wine boiled down by - two-thirds. Add fifty amphorae of pure water. Mix all together with - a stick three times a day for five consecutive days. After this - add sixty-four amphorae of stale salt and water." - - [35] See St. George Mivart, _Genesis of Species_, p. 282. The - whole chapter (xii.) on Theology and Evolution is well worth - careful study. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -_THE ELECTION OF MATTHIAS._ - - "They prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of - all men, shew of these two the one whom Thou hast chosen, to take - the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas fell - away, that he might go to his own place. And they gave lots for - them; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with - the eleven apostles."--ACTS i. 24-6. - - -We have selected the incident of this apostolic election as the -central point round which to group the events of the ten days' -expectation which elapsed between the Ascension and Pentecost. But -though this election is a most important fact, in itself and in the -principles involved therein, yet there are numerous other -circumstances in this waiting time which demand and will amply repay -our thoughtful attention. - -I. There is, for instance, the simple fact that ten days were allowed -to elapse between Christ's departure and the fulfilment of His promise -to send the Comforter to take His place with His bereaved flock. The -work of the world's salvation depended upon the outcome of this Divine -agent. "Tarry ye in the city till ye be endued with power from on -high;" and all the time souls were hurrying on to destruction, and -society was becoming worse and worse, and Satan's hold upon the world -was daily growing in strength. God, however, acted in this interval -according to the principles we see illustrated in nature as well as -in revelation. He does nothing in a hurry. The Incarnation was -postponed for thousands of years. When the Incarnation took place, -Christ grew up slowly, and developed patiently, till the day of His -manifestation to Israel. And now that Christ's public work on earth -was done, there is no haste in the further development of the plan of -salvation, but ten days are suffered to elapse before His promise is -fulfilled. What a rebuke we read in the Divine methods of that -faithless unbelieving haste which marks and mars so many of our -efforts for truth and righteousness, and specially so in these -concluding years of the nineteenth century. Never did the Church stand -more in need of the lesson so often thus impressed upon her by her -Divine Teacher. As Christ did not strive nor cry, neither did any man -hear His voice in the streets, so neither did He make haste, because -He lived animated by Divine strength and wisdom, which make even -apparent delay and defeat conduce to the attainment of the highest -ends of love and mercy. And so, too, Christ's Church still does not -need the bustle, the haste, the unnatural excitement which the world -thinks needful, because she labours under a sense of Divine guidance, -and imitates His example who kept His Apostles waiting ten long days -before He fulfilled His appointed promise. What a lesson of comfort, -again, this Divine delay teaches! We are often inclined to murmur in -secret at the slow progress of God's Church and kingdom. We think that -if we had the management of the world's affairs things would have been -ordered otherwise, and the progress of truth be one long-continued -march of triumph. A consideration of the Divine delays in the past -helps us to bear this burden, though it may not explain the -difficulty. God's delays have turned out to His greater glory in the -past, and they who wait patiently upon Him will find the Divine delays -of the present dispensation equally well ordered. - -II. Then again, how carefully, even in His delays, God honours the -elder dispensation, though now it had grown old and was ready to -vanish away. Christianity had none of that revolutionary spirit which -makes a clean sweep of old institutions to build up a new fabric in -their stead. Christianity, on the contrary, rooted itself in the past, -retained old institutions and old ideas, elevating indeed and -spiritualising them, and thus slowly broadened down from precedent to -precedent. This truly conservative spirit of the new dispensation is -manifest in every arrangement, and specially reveals itself in the -times selected for the great events of our Lord's ministry--Easter, -Ascension, then the ten days of expectation, and then Pentecost. And -it was most fitting that it should be so. The old dispensation was a -shadow and picture of the higher and better covenant one day to be -unfolded. Moses was told to make the tabernacle after the pattern -shown to him in the mount, and the whole typical system of Judaism was -modelled after a heavenly original to which Christ conformed in the -work of man's salvation. - -At the first Passover, the paschal lamb was offered up and the -deliverance from Egypt effected; and so, too, at the Passover the true -Paschal Lamb, Jesus Christ, was presented unto God as an acceptable -sacrifice, and the deliverance effected of the true Israel from the -spiritual Egypt of the world. Forty days after the Passover, Israel -came to the mount of God, into which Moses ascended that he might -receive gifts for the people; and forty days after the last great -Paschal Offering, the great spiritual Captain and Deliverer ascended -into the Mount of God, that He, in turn, might receive highest -spiritual blessings and a new law of life for God's true people. Then -there came the ten days of expectation and trial, when the Apostles -were called to wait upon God and prove the blessings of patient -abiding upon Him, just as the Israelites were called to wait upon God -while Moses was absent in the mount. But how different the conduct of -the Apostles from that of the more carnal Jews! How typical of the -future of the two religions--the Jewish and the Christian! The Jews -walked by sight, and not by faith; they grew impatient, and made an -image, the golden calf, to be their visible Deity. The Apostles -tarried in patience, because they were walking by faith, and they -received in return the blessing of an ever-present unseen Guide and -Comforter to lead them, and all who like them seek His help, into the -ways of truth and peace. And then, when the waiting time is past, the -feast of Pentecost comes, and at Pentecost, the feast of the giving of -the old law, as the Jews counted it, the new law of life and power, -written not on stony tables, but on the fleshy tables of the heart, is -granted in the gift of the Divine Comforter. All the lines of the old -system are carefully followed, and Christianity is thus shown to be, -not a novel invention, but the development and fulfilment of God's -ancient purposes.[36] We can scarcely appreciate nowadays the -importance and stress laid upon this view among the ancient expositors -and apologists. It was a favourite taunt used by the pagans of Greece -and Rome against Christianity that it was only a religion of -yesterday, a mere novelty, as compared with their own systems, which -descended to them from the dawn of history. This taunt has been indeed -most useful in its results for us moderns, because it led the ancient -Christians to pay the most careful attention to chronology and -historical studies, producing as the result works like _The Chronicle -of Eusebius_, to which secular history itself owes the greatest -obligations. - - [36] See on this point Dr. John Lightfoot's _Horae Hebraicae_, Acts - ii. 1; and a sermon by the learned Joseph Mede of Cambridge on - Deut. xvi. 16, 17, in his _Works_, vol. i., p. 350 (London, 1664). - -The heathens reproached Christians with the novelty of their faith, -and then the early Christians replied by pointing to history, which -proved that the Jewish religion was far older than any other, -maintaining at the same time that Christianity was merely the -development of the Jewish religion, the completion and fulfilment in -fact and reality of what Judaism had shadowed forth in the ritual of -the Passover and of Pentecost.[37] - - [37] See this point worked out in Dr. Salmon's article _Chronica_, - in the first volume of the _Dict. Christ. Biog._, and in the - opening of his article on _The Chronicle of Eusebius_ in the - second volume of the same work. A brief extract from one of the - earliest and most learned apologists, who lived about the middle - of the second century, will show how the Christians elaborated - this argument. Tatian, in ch. xl. of his _Oration to the Greeks_, - speaks thus: "Therefore from what has been said it is evident that - Moses was older than the ancient heroes, wars, and demons. And we - ought rather to believe him, who stands before them in point of - age, than the Greeks, who, without being aware of it, drew his - doctrines as from a fountain. For many of the sophists among them, - stimulated by curiosity, endeavoured to adulterate whatever they - learned from Moses, and from those who philosophised like him, - first that they might be considered as having something of their - own, and secondly, that covering up by a certain rhetorical - artifice whatever things they did not understand, they might - misrepresent the truth as if it were a fable. But what the learned - among the Greeks have said concerning our polity and the history - of our laws, and how many and what kind of men have written of - these things, will be shown in the treatise against those who have - discoursed of Divine things." - -III. We notice again in this connection the place where the Apostles -met, and the manner in which they continued to assemble after the -ascension, and while they waited for the fulfilment of the Master's -promise: "They returned unto Jerusalem, and they went up into an upper -chamber." Round this upper room at Jerusalem has gathered many a story -dating from very early ages indeed. The upper room in which they -assembled has been identified with the chamber in which the Last -Supper was celebrated, and where the gift of the Holy Ghost was first -received, and that from ancient times. Epiphanius, a Christian writer -of the fourth century, to whom we owe much precious information -concerning the early ages of the Church, tells us that there was a -church built on this spot even in Hadrian's time, that is, about the -year 120 A.D.[38] The Empress Helena, again, the mother of Constantine -the Great, identified or thought she identified the spot, and built a -splendid church to mark it out for all time; and succeeding ages have -spent much care and thought upon it. St. Cyril of Jerusalem was a -writer little referred to and little known in our day, who yet has -much precious truth to teach us. He was a learned bishop of Jerusalem -about the middle of the fourth century, and he left us catechetical -lectures, showing what pains and trouble the Early Church took in the -inculcation of the fundamental articles of the Christian creed. His -catechetical lectures, delivered to the candidates for baptism, -contain much valuable evidence of the belief, the practice, and the -discipline of the early ages, and they mention among other points the -church built upon Mount Zion on the spot once occupied by this upper -room. The tradition, then, which deals with this chamber and points -out its site goes back to the ages of persecution; and yet it is -notable how little trouble the book of the Acts of the Apostles takes -in this matter. It is just the same with this upper chamber as with -the other localities in which our Lord's mighty works were wrought. -The Gospels tell us not where His temptations occurred, though man has -often tried to fix the exact locality. The site of the Transfiguration -and of the true Mount of Beatitudes has engaged much human curiosity; -the scene of Peter's vision at Joppa and of St. Paul's conversion on -the road to Damascus,--all these and many other divinely honoured -localities of the Old as well as of the New Testament have been -shrouded from us in thickest darkness, that we might learn not to fix -our eyes upon the external husk, the locality, the circumstances, the -time, which are nothing, but upon the interior spirit, the love, the -unity, the devotion and self-sacrifice which constitute in the Divine -sight the very heart and core of our holy religion.[39] They assembled -themselves, too, in this upper chamber in a united spirit, such as -Christianity, though only in an undeveloped shape, already dictated. -The Apostles "continued steadfastly in prayer, with the women also, -and Mary, the mother of Jesus." The spirit of Christianity was, I say, -already manifesting itself. - - [38] Epiphanius, _On Weights and Measures_, ch. xiv. - - [39] The traditions about the upper chamber are given at length in - Fr. Quaresmius, _Terrae Sanctae Elucidatio_, t. ii., p. 119 - (Antwerp, 1639), with which may be compared Bingham's - _Antiquities_, bk. viii., ch. i., sec. 13; Mede's _Discourse Of - Churches_ in his _Works_, vol. i., p. 408; and Bishop Milles' - notes on Cyril's _Catech._, xvi. 2, in his edition of that writer, - p. 225. - -In the temple, as in the synagogues to this day, the women prayed in -a separate place; they were not united with the men, but parted from -them by a screen. But in Christ Jesus there was to be neither male nor -female. The man in virtue of his manhood had no advantage or -superiority over the woman in virtue of her womanhood; and so the -Apostles gathered themselves at the footstool of their common Father -in union with the women, and with Mary the mother of Jesus. How -simple, again, this last mention of the Blessed Virgin Mother of the -Lord! how strangely and strongly contrasted the scriptural record is -with the fables and legends which have grown up round the memory of -her whom all generations must ever call blessed. Nothing, in fact, -shows more plainly the historic character of the book we are studying -than a comparison of this last simple notice with the legend of the -assumption of the Blessed Virgin as it has been held since the fifth -century, and as it is now believed in the Church of Rome. The popular -account of this fabled incident arose in the East amid the -controversies which rent the Church concerning the Person of Christ in -the fifth century. It taught that the Holy Virgin, a year or so after -the ascension, besought the Lord to release her; upon which the angel -Gabriel was sent to announce her departure in three days' time. The -Apostles were thereupon summoned from the different parts of the world -whither they had departed. John came from Ephesus, Peter from Rome, -Thomas from India, each being miraculously wafted on a cloud from his -special sphere of labour, while those of the apostolic company who had -died were raised for the occasion. On the third day the Lord descended -from heaven with the angels, and took to Himself the soul of the -Virgin. The Jews then attempted to burn the body, which was -miraculously rescued and buried in a new tomb, prepared by Joseph of -Arimathea in the Valley of Jehoshaphat. For two days the angels were -heard singing at the tomb, but on the third day their songs ceased, -and the Apostles then knew that the body had been transferred to -Paradise. St. Thomas was indeed vouchsafed a glimpse of her ascension, -and at his request she dropped him her girdle as a token, whereupon he -went to his brother Apostles and declared her sepulchre to be empty. -The Apostles regarded this as merely a sign of his customary -incredulity, but on the production of the girdle they were convinced, -and on visiting the grave found the body was gone.[40] - - [40] See, for a fuller account, Salmon's _Introduction N. T._, 4th - ed., pp. 384-86, and the references there given. - -Can any contrast be greater or more striking between the inspired -narrative, composed for the purpose of ministering to godly life and -practice, and such legendary fables as this, invented to gratify mere -human curiosity, or to secure a temporary controversial triumph? The -Divine narrative shrouds in thickest darkness details which have no -spiritual significance, no direct bearing on the work of man's -salvation. The human fable intrudes into the things unseen, and revels -with a childish delight in the regions of the supernatural and -miraculous. - -What a striking likeness do we trace between the composition of the -Acts and of the Gospels in this direction! The self-restraint of the -evangelical writers is wondrous. Had the Evangelists been mere human -biographers, how they would have delighted to expatiate on the -childhood and youth and earlier years of Christ's manhood. The -apocryphal Gospels composed in the second and third centuries show us -what our Gospels would have been had they been written by men -destitute of an abundant supply of the Divine Spirit. They enter into -the most minute incidents of our Lord's childhood, tell us of His -games, His schoolboy days, of the flashes of the supernatural glory -which ever betrayed the awful Being who lay hidden beneath. The -Gospels, on the other hand, fling a hallowed and reverent veil over -all the details, or almost all the details, of our Lord's early life. -They tell us of His birth, and its circumstances and surroundings, -that we might learn the needful lesson of the infinite glory, the -transcendent greatness of lowliness and humiliation. They give us a -glimpse of our Lord's development when twelve years old, that we may -learn the spiritual strength and force which are produced through the -discipline of obedience and patient waiting upon God; and then all -else is concealed from human vision till the hour was come for the -manifestation of the full-orbed God-Man. And as it was with the -Eternal Son, so was it with that earthly parent whom the consensus of -universal Christendom has agreed to honour as the type of devout -faith, of humble submission, of loving motherhood. Fable has grown -thick round her in mere human narrative, but when we turn to the -inspired Word, whether in the Gospels or in the Acts,--for it is all -the same in both,--we find a story simple, restrained, and yet -captivating in all its details, ministering indeed to no prurient -curiosity, yet rich in all the materials which serve to devout -meditation, culminating in this last record, where the earthly parent -finally disappears from out of sight, eclipsed by the heavenly glory -of the Divine Son:--"These all continued stedfastly in prayer, with -the women, and Mary, the mother of Jesus." - -IV. And then we have the record of the apostolic election, which is -rich in teaching. We note the person who took the first step, and his -character, so thoroughly in unison with that picture which the four -Gospels present. St. Peter was not a forward man in the bad sense of -the word, but he possessed that energetic, forcible character to which -men yield a natural leadership. Till St. Paul appeared St. Peter was -regarded as the spokesman of the apostolic band, just as during our -Lord's earthly ministry the same position was by tacit consent -accorded to him. He was one of those men who cannot remain inactive, -especially when they see anything wanting. There are some men who can -see a defect just as clearly, but their first thought is, What have I -to do with it? They behold the need, but it never strikes them that -they should attempt to rectify it. St. Peter was just the opposite: -when he saw a fault or a want his disposition and his natural gifts at -once impelled him to strive to rectify it. When our Lord, in view of -the contending rumours afloat concerning His ministry and authority, -applied this searching test to His Apostles, "But whom do ye say that -I am?" it was Peter that boldly responded, "Thou art the Christ, the -Son of the living God." Just as a short time afterwards the same Peter -incurred Christ's condemnation when he rebuked the Saviour for the -prophecy of His forthcoming death and humiliation. The character of -St. Peter as depicted in the Gospels and the Acts is at unison with -itself. It is that of one ever generous, courageous, intensely -sympathetic, impulsive, but deficient, as impulsive and sympathetic -characters often are, in that staying power, that capacity to bear up -under defeat, discouragement, and darkness which so conspicuously -marked out the great Apostle of the Gentiles, and made him such a -pillar in the spiritual temple of the New Jerusalem. Yet St. Peter did -his own work, for God can ever find employment suitable to every type -of that vast variety of temperament which finds shelter beneath the -roof of Christ's Church. St. Peter's impulsiveness, chastened by -prayer, solemnized by his own sad personal experience, deepened by the -bitter sorrow consequent on his terrible fall, urged him to take the -first conscious step as the leader of the newly-constituted society. -How very similar the Peter of the Acts is to the Peter of St. Matthew; -what an undesigned evidence of the truth of these records we trace in -the picture of St. Peter presented by either narrative! Just as St. -Peter was in the Gospels the first to confess at Caesarea, the first to -strike in the garden, the first to fail in the high priest's palace, -so was he the first "to stand up in these days in the midst of the -brethren," and propose the first corporate movement on the Church's -part. - -Here again we note that his attitude at this apostolic election proves -that the interviews which St. Peter held with Christ after the -Resurrection must have been lengthened, intimate, and frequent, for -St. Peter's whole view of the Christian organization seems thoroughly -changed. Christ had continued with His Apostles during forty days, -speaking to them of the things concerning the kingdom of God; and St. -Peter, as he had been for years one of the Lord's most intimate -friends, so he doubtless still held the same trusted position in these -post-resurrection days. The Lord revealed to him the outlines of His -kingdom, and sketched for him the main lines of its development, -teaching him that the Church was not to be a knot of personal -disciples, dependent upon His manifested bodily presence, and -dissolving into its original elements as soon as that bodily presence -ceased to be realized by the eye of sense; but was rather to be a -corporation with perpetual succession, to use legal language, whose -great work was to be an unceasing witness to Christ's resurrection. If -Peter's mind had not been thus illuminated and guided by the personal -instruction of Christ, how came it to pass that prior to the descent -of the Spirit the Apostles move with no uncertain step in this matter, -and unhesitatingly fill up the blank in the sacred college by the -election of Matthias into the place left vacant by the terrible fall -of Judas? The speech of St. Peter and the choice of this new Apostle -reflect light back upon the forty days of waiting. No objection is -raised, no warm debate takes place such as heralded the solution of -the vexed question concerning circumcision at the council of -Jerusalem; no one suggests that as Christ Himself had not supplied the -vacancy the choice should be postponed till after the fulfilment of -the Master's mysterious promise, because they were all instructed as -to our Lord's wishes by the conversations held with Christ during His -risen and glorified life. - -Let us pause a little to meditate upon an objection which might have -been here raised. Why fill up what Christ Himself left vacant? some -short-sighted objector might have urged; and yet we see good reason -why Christ may have omitted to supply the place of Judas, and may have -designed that the Apostles themselves should have done so. Our Lord -Jesus Christ gifted His Apostles with corporate power; He bestowed -upon them authority to act in His stead and name; and it is not God's -way of action to grant power and authority, and then to allow it to -remain unexercised and undeveloped. When God confers any gift He -expects that it shall be used for His honour and man's benefit. The -Lord had bestowed upon the Apostles the highest honour, the most -wondrous power ever given to men. He had called them to an office of -which He Himself had spoken very mysterious things. He had told them -that, in virtue of the apostolic dignity conferred upon them, they -should in the regeneration of all things sit upon thrones, judging the -twelves tribes of Israel. He had spoken, too, of a mysterious -authority with which they were invested, so that their decisions here -upon earth would be ratified and confirmed in the region of heavenly -realities. Yet when a gap is made by successful sin in the number of -the mystical twelve who are to judge the twelve tribes, He leaves the -selection of a new Apostle to the remaining eleven, in order that they -may be compelled to stir up the grace of God which was in them, and to -exercise the power entrusted to them under a due sense of -responsibility. The Lord thus wished to teach the Church from earliest -days to walk alone. The Apostles had been long enough depending on His -personal presence and guidance, and now, that they might learn to -exercise the privileges and duties of their Divine freedom, He leaves -them to choose one to fill that position of supernatural rank and -office from which Judas had fallen. The risen Saviour acted in grace -as God ever acts in nature. He bestowed His gifts lavishly and -generously, and then expected man to respond to the gifts by making -that good use of them which earnest prayer, sanctified reason, and -Christian commonsense dictated. - -St. Peter's action is notable, too, in another aspect. St. Peter was -undoubtedly the natural leader of the apostolic band during those -earliest days of the Church's history. Our Lord Himself recognised his -natural gifts as qualifying him to fulfil this position. There is no -necessity for a denial on our part of the reality of St. Peter's -privilege as contained in such passages as the verse which says, "I -will give unto thee (Peter) the keys of the kingdom of heaven." He was -eminently energetic, vigorous, quick in action. But we find no traces -of that despotic authority as prince of the Apostles and supreme head -over the whole Church with which some would fain invest St. Peter and -his successors. St. Peter steps forward first on this occasion, as -again on the day of Pentecost, and again before the high priest after -the healing of the impotent man, and yet again at the council of -Jerusalem; for, as we have already noted, St. Peter possessed in -abundance that natural energy which impels a man to action without any -desire for notoriety or any wish to thrust himself into positions of -undue eminence. But then on every occasion St. Peter speaks as an -equal to his equals. He claims no supreme authority; no authority, in -fact, at all over and beyond what the others possessed. He does not, -for instance, on this occasion claim the right as Christ's vicar to -nominate an Apostle into the place of Judas. He merely asserts his -lawful place in Christ's kingdom as first among a body of equals to -suggest a course of action to the whole body which he knew to be in -keeping with the Master's wishes, and in fulfilment of His revealed -intentions. - -V. The address of St. Peter led the Apostles to practical action. He -laid the basis of it in the book of Psalms, the mystical application -of which to our Lord and His sufferings he recognises, selecting -passages from the sixty-ninth and the one hundred and ninth Psalms as -depicting the sin and the fate of Judas Iscariot;[41] and then sets -forth the necessity of filling up the vacancy in the apostolic office, -a fact of which he had doubtless been certified by the Master Himself. -He speaks as if the College of the Apostles had a definite work and -office; a witness peculiar to themselves as Apostles, which no others -except Apostles could render. This is manifest from the language of -St. Peter. He lays down the conditions of a possible Apostle: he must -have been a witness of all that Jesus had done and taught from the -time of His baptism to His ascension. But this qualification alone -would not make a man an Apostle, or qualify him to bear the witness -peculiar to the apostolic office. There were evidently numerous such -witnesses, but they were not Apostles, and had none of the power and -privileges of the Twelve. He must be chosen by his brother Apostles, -and their choice must be endorsed by Heaven; and then the chosen -witness, who had known the past, could testify to the resurrection in -particular, with a weight, authority, and dignity he never possessed -before. The apostolic office was the germ out of which the whole -Christian ministry was developed, and the apostolic witness was -typical of that witness to the resurrection which is not the duty -alone, but also the strength and glory of the Christian ministry; for -it is only as the ministers and witnesses of a risen and glorified -Christ that they differ from the officials of a purely human -association.[42] - - [41] Peter may have learned this mystical mode of interpretation - from our Lord Himself in His conversations. See Luke xxiv. 44-9. - - [42] The intimate connection between the Christian ministry and - the miraculous facts of Christianity has been powerfully argued by - Charles Leslie in his _Short and Easy Method with the Deists_. He - contends that the existence of the Christian ministry is a - standing evidence of the supernatural facts of the gospel which - can alone explain that existence. If the facts never happened, how - did the Christian ministry arise? Hence he concludes the perpetual - character and obligation of the ministry for Christians, or, to - quote his own words, "Now the Christian priesthood, as instituted - by Christ Himself, and continued by succession to this day, being - as impregnable and flagrant a testimony to the truth of the matter - of fact of Christ as the sacraments or any other public - institutions; besides that, if the priesthood were taken away, the - sacraments and other public institutions which are administered by - their hands, must fall with them: therefore the devil has been - most busy, and bent his greatest force, in all ages, against the - priesthood, knowing that if that goes down, all goes with - it."--Leslie's _Works_, vol. i., p. 27. - -After St. Peter had spoken, two persons were selected as possessing -the qualifications needful in the successor of Judas. Then when the -Apostles had elected they prayed, and cast lots as between the two, -and the final selection of Matthias was made. Questions have sometimes -been raised as to this method of election, and attempts have been -sometimes made to follow the precedent here set. The lot has at times -been used to supersede the exercise of human judgment, not only in -Church elections, but in the ordinary matters of life; but if this -passage is closely examined, it will be seen that it affords no -justification for any such practice. The Apostles did not use the lot -so as to supersede the exercise of their own powers, or relieve them -of that personal responsibility which God has imposed on men, whether -as individuals, or as gathered in societies civil or ecclesiastical. -The Apostles brought their private judgment into play, searched, -debated, voted, and, as the result, chose two persons equally well -qualified for the apostolic office. Then, when they had done their -best, they left the decision to the lot, just as men often do still; -and if we believe in the efficacy of prayer and a particular -Providence ordering the affairs of men, I do not see that any wiser -course can ever be taken, under similar circumstances, than that which -the Apostles adopted on this occasion. But we must be careful to -observe that the Apostles did not trust to the lot absolutely and -completely. That would have been trusting to mere chance. They first -did their utmost, exercised their own knowledge and judgment, and -then, having done their part, they prayerfully left the final result -to God, in humble confidence that He would show what was best. - -The two selected candidates were Joseph Barsabas and Matthias, neither -of whom ever appeared before in the story of our Lord's life, and yet -both had been His disciples all through His earthly career. What -lessons for ourselves may we learn from these men! These two eminent -servants of God, either of whom their brethren counted worthy to -succeed into the apostolic College, appear just this once in the -sacred narrative, and then disappear for ever. Indeed it is with the -Apostles as we have already noted in the case of our Lord's life and -the story of the Blessed Virgin, the self-restraint of the sacred -narrative is most striking. What fields for romance! What wide scope -for the exercise of imagination would the lives of the Apostles have -opened out if the writers of our sacred books had not been guided and -directed by a Divine power outside and beyond themselves. We are not, -indeed, left without the materials for a comparison in this respect, -most consoling and most instructive for the devout Christian. - -Apocryphal histories of all the Apostles abound on every side, some of -them dating from the second century itself. Many of them indeed are -regular romances. The Clementine Homilies and Recognitions form a -religious novel, entering into the most elaborate details of the -labours, preaching, and travels of the Apostle Peter. Every one of the -other Apostles, and many of the earliest disciples too, had gospels -forged in their honour; there was the Gospel of Peter, of Thomas, of -Nicodemus, and of many others. And so it was with St. Matthias.[43] -Five hundred years after Christ the Gospel of Matthias was known and -repudiated as a fiction. A mass of tradition, too, grew up round him, -telling of his labours and martyrdom, as some said in Ethiopia, and as -others in Eastern Asia. - - [43] The literature of the apocryphal Gospels is very extensive. - Those who wish to pursue this subject will find abundant materials - in an article on "Gospels, Apocryphal" in the second volume of the - _Dictionary of Christian Biography_, written by Professor Lipsius - of Jena; or in Dr. Salmon's _Introduction to the New Testament_, - Lect. XI. Origen mentioned the Gospel of Matthias, while again - Eusebius (_H. E._, iii., 25) describes it as heretical. See - Fabricius, _Cod. Apoc. N. T._ p. 782. The apocryphal Acts of - Andrew and Matthias may be seen in Tischendorf's _Acta Apoc._, p. - 132. Nelson's _Fasts and Festivals_ tells, in a convenient shape, - the traditions about St. Matthias and the other Apostles. - -Clement, a writer who lived about the year 200, at Alexandria, -recounts for us some sayings traditionally ascribed to St. Matthias, -all of a severe and sternly ascetic tone. But in reality we know -nothing either of what St. Matthias did or of what he taught. The -genuine writings of apostolic times carry their own credentials with -them in this respect. They are dignified and natural. They indulge in -no details to exalt their heroes, or to minister to that love of the -strange and marvellous which lies at the root of so much religious -error. They were written to exalt Christ and Christ alone, and they -deal, therefore, with the work of Apostles merely so far as the story -tends to increase the glory of the Master, not that of His servants. -Surely this repression of the human agents, this withdrawal of them -into the darkness of obscurity, is one of the best evidences of the -genuineness of the New Testament. One or two of the earliest witnesses -of the Cross have their story told at some length. Peter and Paul, -when compared with James or John or Matthias, figure very largely in -the New Testament narrative. But even they have allotted to them a -mere brief outline of a portion of their work, and all the rest is -hidden from us. The vast majority even of the Apostles have their -names alone recorded, while nothing is told concerning their labours -or their sufferings. If the Apostles were deceivers, they were -deceivers who sought their rewards neither in this life, where they -gained nothing but loss of all things, nor in the pages of history, -where their own hands and the hands of their friends consigned their -brightest deeds to an obscurity no eye can pierce.[44] But they were -not deceivers. They were the noblest benefactors of the race, men -whose minds and hearts and imaginations were filled with the glory of -their risen Redeemer. Their one desire was that Christ alone should be -magnified, and to this end they willed to lose themselves in the -boundless sea of His risen glory. And thus they have left us a noble -and inspiriting example. We are not apostles, martyrs, or confessors, -yet we often find it hard to take our part and do our duty in the -spirit displayed by Matthias and Joseph called Barsabas. We long for -public recognition and public reward. We chafe and fret and fume -internally because we have to bear our temptations and suffer our -trials and do our work unknown and unrecognised by all but God. Let -the example of these holy men help us to put away all such vain -thoughts. God Himself is our all-seeing and our ever-present Judge. -The Incarnate Master Himself is watching us. The angels and the -spirits of the just made perfect are witnesses of our earthly -struggles. No matter how low, how humble, how insignificant the story -of our spiritual trials and struggles, they are all marked in heaven -by that Divine Master who will at last reward every man, not according -to his position in the world, but in strict accordance with the -principles of infallible justice. - - [44] The dignified self-restraint of the Acts is nowhere more - manifest than in its reference to Judas Iscariot. The only notice - bestowed upon him is connected with the election of Matthias. - Papias was a writer of the beginning of the second century. He - knew some of the Apostles and early disciples, and gathered - diligently every tradition about the Church's early days. Papias - made an attempt to harmonise the account of the death of Judas - given by St. Peter with that told in St. Matthew, which has been - preserved for us by two Greek commentators, OEcumenius, who - lived in the tenth, and Theophylact, who flourished in the - eleventh century. The difficulty is this. St. Matthew says that - Judas hanged himself; St. Peter says that he burst asunder. Papias - harmonises the two by telling that Judas first of all hanged - himself on a fig-tree, but the halter broke. He was then seized - with a terrible dropsy, and swelled up to an enormous size, so - that when endeavouring to pass where a waggon could go he burst - asunder. The narrative of Papias is given in Theophylact on Matt. - xxvii., and OEcumenius on Acts i. Dr. Routh, in his _Reliquiae - Sacrae_, vol. i., pp. 9, 25, points out that the horrid details of - the story, which cannot be here printed, are due to the Greek - commentators enlarging on the simple facts stated by Papias. - Origen, with characteristic daring, suggests that Judas committed - suicide as soon as he saw that our Lord was condemned, in order - that he might arise in the region of the dead before Him, and - there seek His forgiveness. There is a curious Latin book, - published in 1680, which gives all the traditions about the - traitor. Its title is Kempius, _On the Life and Fate of Judas - Iscariot_. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -_THE PENTECOSTAL BLESSING._ - - "And when the day of Pentecost was now come, they were all - together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a - sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the - house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them - tongues parting asunder (or distributing themselves), like as of - fire; and it sat upon each one of them. And they were all filled - with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as - the Spirit gave them utterance."--ACTS ii. 1-4. - - -In these words we find the record of the event which completed the -Church, and endowed it with that mysterious power which then was, and -ever since has been, the source of its true life and of its highest -success. - -The time when the gift of the Spirit was vouchsafed is marked for us -as "when the day of Pentecost was now come." Here again, as in the -fact of the ascension and the waiting of the Church, we trace the -outline of Christianity in Judaism, and see in the typical ceremonial -of the old dispensation the outline and shadow of heavenly realities. - -What was the history of the Pentecostal feast? That feast fulfilled in -the Jewish system a twofold place. It was one of the great natural -festivals whereby God taught His ancient people to sanctify the -different portions of the year. The Passover was the feast of the -first ripe corn, celebrating the beginning of the barley harvest, as -again the Pentecostal loaves set forth, solemnized, and sanctified the -close of the wheat harvest. No one was permitted, according to the -twenty-third of Leviticus, to partake of the fruits of the earth till -the harvest had been sanctified by the presentation to God of the -first ripe sheaf, just as at the greatest paschal festival ever -celebrated, Christ, the first ripe sheaf of that vast harvest of -humanity which is maturing for its Lord, was taken out of the grave -where the rest of the harvest still lies, and presented in the inner -temple of the universe as the first-fruits of humanity unto God. At -Pentecost, on the other hand, it was not a sheaf but a loaf that was -offered to signify the completion of the work begun at the Passover. -At Pentecost the law is thus laid down: "Ye shall bring out of your -habitations two wave loaves of two tenth parts of an ephah: they shall -be of fine flour, they shall be baken with leaven, for first-fruits -unto the Lord" (Lev. xxiii. 17). Pentecost, therefore, was the harvest -festival, the feast of ingathering for the Jews; and when the type -found its completion in Christ, Pentecost became the feast of -ingathering for the nations, when the Church, the mystical body of -Christ, was presented unto God to be an instrument of His glory and a -blessing to the world at large. This feast, as we have already -intimated, was a fitting season for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and -that for another reason. Pentecost was considered by the Jews as a -festival commemorative of the giving of the law at Mount Sinai in the -third month after they had been delivered from the bondage of Egypt. -It was a fitting season, therefore, for the bestowal of the Spirit, -whereby the words of ancient prophecy were fulfilled, "I will put My -law in their inward parts, and in their heart I will write it; and I -will be their God, and they shall be My people" (Jer. xxxi. 33).[45] - -The time when the Spirit was poured out on the assembled body of -Christians, and the Church's foundations laid deep and strong, -revealed profound reverence for the old dispensation, raising by -anticipation a protest against the heretical teaching which became -current among the Gnostics in the second century, and has often since -found place in Christian circles, as amongst the Anabaptists of -Germany and the Antinomians at the time of the Reformation. This view -taught that there was an essential opposition between the Old and the -New Testament, some maintainers of it, like the ancient Gnostics, -holding that the Old Testament was the production of a spiritual being -inferior and hostile to the Eternal God. The Divine Spirit guided St. -Luke, however, to teach the opposite view, and is careful to honour -the elder dispensation and the old covenant, showing that Christianity -was simply the perfection and completion of Judaism, and was developed -therefrom as naturally as the bud of spring bursts forth into the -splendid blossom and flower of summer. We trace these evidences of the -Divine foreknowledge, as well as of the Divine wisdom, in these -Pentecostal revelations, providing for and forecasting future dangers -with which, even in its earlier days, the bark of Christ's Church had -desperately to struggle.[46] - - [45] In the last lecture I have already given the reference to - Lightfoot's and Mede's works where this point is fully worked out. - - [46] The same view has practically been taught by some modern - sects, who have proclaimed that all of the Old Testament and the - whole of our Lord's teaching till He died were intended for Jews - only, and have no relation to Christians. It is hard to say how - such persons regard the Old Testament and the greater part of the - four Gospels, save as interesting fossils to be hung up in a - museum of comparative religion. - -I. Now let us take the circumstances of the Pentecostal blessing as -they are stated, for every separate detail bears with it an important -message. The place and the other circumstances of the outpouring of -the Spirit are full of instruction. The first disciples were all with -one accord in one place. There was unity of spirit and unity in open -manifestation to the world at large. Christ's disciples, when they -received the gifts of heaven's choicest blessings, were not split up -into dozens of different organizations, each of them hostile to the -others, and each striving to aggrandise itself at the expense of -kindred brotherhoods. They had keenly in remembrance the teaching of -our Lord's great Eucharistic supplication when He prayed to His Father -for His people that "they may all be one; even as Thou Father, art in -Me, and I in Thee ... that the world may believe that Thou didst send -Me." There was visible unity among the followers of Christ; there was -interior love and charity, finding expression in external union which -qualified the disciples for the fuller reception of the spirit of -love, and rendered them powerful in doing God's work amongst men. The -state of the Apostles and the blessing then received have an important -message for the Christianity of our own and of every age. What a -contrast the Christian Church--taking the word in its broadest sense -as comprising all those who profess and call themselves -Christians--presents at the close of the nineteenth when compared with -the opening years of the first century. May not many of the problems -and difficulties which the Church of to-day experiences be traced up -to this woeful contrast? Behold England nowadays, with its two hundred -sects, all calling themselves by the name of Christ; take the -Christian world, with its Churches mutually hostile, spending far -more time and trouble on winning proselytes one from the other than -upon winning souls from the darkness of heathenism;--surely this one -fact alone, the natural result of our departure from the Pentecostal -condition of unity and peace, is a sufficient evidence of our evil -plight. We do not purpose now to go into any discussion of the causes -whence have sprung the divisions of Christendom. "An enemy hath done -this" is a quite sufficient explanation, for assuredly the great enemy -of souls and of Christ has counterworked and traversed the work of the -Church and the conversion of the world most effectually thereby. There -are some persons who rejoice in the vast variety of divisions in the -Church; but they are shortsighted and inexperienced in the danger and -scandals which have flowed, and are flowing, from them. It is indeed -in the mission field that the schisms among Christians are most -evidently injurious. When the heathen see the soldiers of the Cross -split up among themselves into hostile organizations, they very -naturally say that it will be time enough when their own divergences -and difficulties have been reconciled to come and convert persons who -at least possess internal union and concord. The visible unity of the -Church was from the earliest days a strong argument, breaking down -pagan prejudice. Then, again, not only do the divisions of Christians -place a stumbling-block in the way of the conversion of the heathen, -but they lead to a wondrous waste of power both at home and abroad. -Surely one cannot look at the religious state of a town or village in -England without realizing at a glance the evil results of our -divisions from this point of view. If men believe that the preaching -of the Cross of Christ is the power of God unto salvation, and that -millions are perishing from want of that blessed story, can they feel -contentment when the great work of competing sects consists, not in -spreading that salvation, but in building up their own cause by -proselytising from their neighbours, and gathering into their own -organization persons who already have been made partakers of Christ -Jesus? And if this competition of sects be injurious and wasteful -within the bounds of Christendom, surely it is infinitely more so when -various contending bodies concentrate all their forces, as they so -often do, on the same locality in some unconverted land, and seem as -eagerly desirous of gaining proselytes from one another as from the -mass of paganism. - -Then, too, to take it from another point of view, what a loss in -generalship, in Christian strategy, in power of concentration, results -from our unhappy divisions? The united efforts made by Protestants, -Roman Catholics, and Greeks, are indeed all too small for the vast -work of converting the heathen world if they were made with the -greatest skill and wisdom. How much more insufficient they must be -when a vast proportion of the power employed is wasted, as far as the -work of conversion is concerned, because it is used simply in -counteracting and withstanding the efforts of other Christian bodies. -I say nothing as to the causes of dissensions. In many cases they may -have been absolutely necessary, though in too many cases I fear they -have resulted merely from views far too narrow and restrained; I -merely point out the evil of division in itself as being, not a help, -as some would consider it, but a terrible hindrance in the way of the -Church of Christ. How different it was in the primitive Church! Within -one hundred and fifty years, or little more, of the ascension of Jesus -Christ and the outpouring of the Divine Spirit, a Christian writer -could boast that the Christian Church had permeated the whole Roman -empire to such an extent that if the Christians abandoned the cities -they would be turned into howling deserts. This triumphant march of -Christianity was simply in accordance with the Saviour's promise. The -world saw that Christians loved one another, and the world was -consequently converted. But when primitive love cooled down, and -divisions and sects in abundance sprang up after the conversion of -Constantine the Great, then the progress of God's work gradually -ceased, till at last Mahometanism arose to roll back the tide of -triumphant success which had followed the preaching of the Cross, and -to reduce beneath Satan's sway many a fair region, like North Africa, -Egypt, and Asia Minor, which once had been strongholds of -Christianity. Surely when one thinks of the manifold evils at home and -abroad which the lack of the Pentecostal visible union and concord has -caused, as well as of the myriads who still remain in darkness while -nominal Christians bite and devour one another, we may well join in -the glowing language of Jeremy Taylor's splendid prayer for the whole -Catholic Church, as he cries, "O Holy Jesus, King of the saints and -Prince of the Catholic Church, preserve Thy spouse whom Thou hast -purchased with Thy right hand, and redeemed and cleansed with Thy -blood. O preserve her safe from schism, heresy, and sacrilege. Unite -all her members with the bands of faith, hope, and charity, and an -external communion when it shall seem good in Thine eyes. Let the -daily sacrifice of prayer and sacramental thanksgiving never cease, -but be for ever presented to Thee, and for ever united to the -intercession of her dearest Lord, and for ever prevail for the -obtaining for each of its members grace and blessing, pardon and -salvation."[47] - - [47] Prayer for all estates of men in the Holy Catholic Church, in - Jeremy Taylor's _Holy Living_, chap. iv., sec. vii. - -II. Furthermore, we have brought before us the external manifestations -or evidences of the interior gift of the Spirit really bestowed upon -the Apostles at Pentecost. There was a sound as of a rushing mighty -wind; there were tongues like as of fire, a separate and distinct -tongue resting upon each disciple; and lastly there was the miraculous -manifestation of speech in divers languages. Let us take these -spiritual phenomena in order. First, then, "there came from heaven a -sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house -where they were sitting;" a sign which was repeated in the scene -narrated in the fourth chapter and the thirty-first verse, where we -are told that "when they had prayed, the place was shaken wherein they -were gathered together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost." -The appearances of things that were seen responded to the movements -and powers that were unseen. It was a supernatural moment. The powers -of a new life, the forces of a new kingdom, were coming into -operation, and, as the result, manifestations that never since have -been experienced found place among men. We can find a parallel to what -then happened in scientific investigations. Geologists and astronomers -push back the beginning of the world and of the universe at large to a -vast distance, but they all acknowledge that there must have been a -period when phenomena were manifested, powers and forces called into -operation, of which men have now no experience. The beginning, or the -repeated beginnings, of the various epochs must have been times of -marvels, which men can now only dream about. Pentecost was for the -Christian with a sense of the awful importance of life and of time and -of the individual soul a far greater beginning and a grander epoch -than any mere material one. It was the beginning of the spiritual -life, the inauguration of the spiritual kingdom of the Messiah, the -Lord and Ruler of the material universe; and therefore we ought to -expect, or at least not to be surprised, that marvellous phenomena, -signs and wonders even of a physical type, should accompany and -celebrate the scene. The marvels of the story told in the first of -Genesis find a parallel in the marvels told in the second of Acts. The -one passage sets forth the foundation of the material universe, the -other proclaims the nobler foundations of the spiritual universe. Let -us take it again from another point of view. Pentecost was, in fact, -Moses on Sinai or Elijah on Horeb over again, but in less terrific -form. Moses and Elijah may be styled the founder and the refounder of -the old dispensation, just as St. Peter and the Apostles may be called -the founders of the new dispensation. But what a difference in the -inaugural scene! No longer with thunder and earthquake, and mountains -rent, but in keeping with a new and more peaceful economy, there came -from heaven the sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind. It is not, -too, the only occasion where the idea of wind is connected with that -of the Divine Spirit and its mysterious operations. How very similar, -as the devout mind will trace, are the words and description of St. -Luke, when narrating this first outpouring of the Spirit, to the words -of the Divine Master repeated by St. John, "The wind bloweth where it -listeth, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it -cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the -Spirit." - -There appeared, too, tongues, separate and distinct, sitting upon each -of them. The outward and visible sign manifested on this occasion was -plainly typical of the new dispensation and of the chief means of its -propagation. The personality of the Holy Ghost is essentially a -doctrine of the new dispensation. The power and influence of God's -Spirit is indeed often recognised in the Old Testament. Aholiab and -Bezaleel are said to have been guided by the Spirit of God as they -cunningly devised the fabric of the first tabernacle. The Spirit of -Jehovah began to move Samson at times in the camp of Dan; and, on a -later occasion, the same Spirit is described as descending upon him -with such amazing force that he went down and slew thirty men of -Ashkelon. These and many other similar passages present to us the -Jewish conception of the Spirit of God and His work. He was a force, a -power, quickening the human mind, illuminating with genius and -equipping with physical strength those whom God chose to be champions -of His people against the surrounding heathen. Aholiab's skill in -mechanical operations, and Samson's strength, and Saul's prophesying, -and David's musical art, were all of them the gifts of God. What a -noble, what a grand, inspiring view of life and life's gifts and work, -is there set before us. It is the old lesson taught by St. James, -though so often forgotten by men when they draw a distinction between -things sacred and things secular, "Every good gift and every perfect -boon is from above, coming down from the Father of light." A deeper -view, indeed, of the Divine Spirit and His work on the soul can be -traced in the prophets, but then they were watchers upon the -mountains, who discerned from afar the approach of a nobler and a -brighter day. "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath -anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor." That was Isaiah's -statement of his work as adopted by our Lord; and now, at the very -foundation of the Church, this deeper and nobler tone of thought -concerning the Spirit is proclaimed, when there appeared tongues like -as of fire sitting upon each of them. - -The sign of the Holy Spirit's presence was a tongue of fire. It was a -most suitable emblem, pregnant with meaning, and indicative of the -large place which the human voice was to play in the work of the new -dispensation, while the supernatural fire declared that the mere -unaided human voice would avail nothing. The voice needs to be -quickened and supported by that Divine fire, that superhuman energy -and power, which the Holy Ghost alone can confer. The tongue of fire -pointed on the Pentecostal morn to the important part in the Church's -life, and in the propagation of the gospel, which prayer, and praise, -and preaching would hereafter occupy. It would have been well, indeed, -had the Church ever remembered what the Holy Ghost thus taught, -specially concerning the propagation of the gospel, for it would have -been thereby saved many a disgraceful page of history. The human -tongue, illuminated and sanctified by fire from the inner sanctuary, -was about to be the instrument of the gospel's advancement,--not penal -laws, not the sword and fire of persecution; and so long as the -divinely-appointed means were adhered to, so long the course of our -holy religion was one long-continued triumph. But when the world and -the devil were able to place in the hands of Christ's spouse their own -weapons of violence and force, when the Church forgot the words of -her Master, "My kingdom is not of this world," and the teachings -embodied in the symbol of the tongue of fire, then spiritual paralysis -fell upon religious effort; and even where human law and power have -compelled an external conformity to the Christian system, as they -undoubtedly have done in some cases, yet all vital energy, all true -godliness, have been there utterly lacking in the religion established -by means so contrary to the mind of Christ. Very good men have made -sad mistakes in this matter. Archbishop Ussher was a man whose deep -piety equalled his prodigious learning, yet he maintained that the -civil sword ought to be used to repress false doctrine; the divines of -the Westminster Assembly have left their opinion on record, that it is -the duty of the magistrate to use the sword on behalf of Christ's -kingdom; Richard Baxter taught that the toleration of doctrines which -he considered false was sinful; and all of them forgot the lesson of -the day of Pentecost, that the tongue of fire was to be the only -weapon permissible in the warfare of the kingdom whose rule is over -spirits, not over bodies. The history of religion in England amply -proves this. The Church of England enjoyed, about the middle of the -last century, the greatest temporal prosperity. Her prelates held high -estate, and her security was fenced round by a perfect bulwark of -stringent laws. Yet her life-blood was fast ebbing away, and her true -hold upon the nation was speedily relaxing. The very highest ranks of -society, whom worldly policy attached nominally to her communion, had -lost all faith in her supernatural work and commission. A modern -historian has shown this right well in his description of the -death-scene of Queen Caroline, a woman of eminent intellectual -qualities, who had played no small part in the religious life of this -nation during the reign of her husband George II. Queen Caroline came -to die, and was passing away surrounded by a crowd of attendants and -courtiers. The whole Court, permeated by the spirit of earthliness -which then prevailed, was disturbed by the death of the Queen's body, -but no one seems to have thought of the Queen's soul, till some one -mildly suggested that, for decency's sake, the Archbishop of -Canterbury should be sent for that he might offer up prayer with the -dying woman. Writing here in Ireland, I cannot forget that it was just -the same with us at that very period. Religion was here upheld by -worldly power; the Church, which should have been viewed as simply a -spiritual power, was regarded and treated as a mere branch of the -civil service, and true religion sank to its lowest depths. And we -reaped in ourselves the due reward of our deeds. The very men whose -voices were loudest in public for the repression of Romanism were -privately living in grossest neglect of the offices and laws of -religion and morality, because they in their hearts despised an -institution which had forgotten the Pentecostal gift, and sought -victory with the weapons of the flesh, and not with those of the -spirit. May God for evermore protect His Church from such miserable -mistakes, and lead her to depend more and more upon the power of the -blessed and ever-present Pentecostal gift! - -A separate and distinct tongue, too, sat upon each individual -assembled in the upper room,--significant of the individual character -of our holy religion. Christianity has a twofold aspect, neither of -which can with impunity be neglected. Christianity has a corporate -aspect. Our Lord Jesus Christ came not so much to teach a new -doctrine as to establish a new society, based on newer and higher -principles, and working towards a higher and nobler end than any -society ever previously founded. This side of Christianity was -exaggerated in the Middle Ages. The Church, its unity, its interests, -its welfare as a corporation, then dominated every other -consideration. Since the Reformation, however, men have run to the -other extreme. They have forgotten the social and corporate view of -Christianity, and only thought of it as it deals with individuals. Men -have looked at Christianity as it deals with the individual alone, and -have forgotten and ignored the corporate side of its existence. Truth -is many-sided indeed, and no side of truth can with impunity be -neglected. Some have erred in dwelling too much on the corporate -aspect of Christianity; others have erred in dwelling too much on its -individual aspect. The New Testament alone combines both in due -proportion, and teaches the importance and necessity of a Church, as -against the extreme Protestant, on the one hand, who will reduce -religion to a mere individual matter; and of a personal religion, an -individual interest in the Spirit's presence, as here indicated by the -tongues which sat upon each of them, as against the extreme Romanist, -on the other hand, who looks upon the Church as everything, to the -neglect of the life and progress of the individual. This passage does -not at the same time lend any assistance to those who would thence -conclude that there was no distinction between clergy and laity, and -that no ministerial office was intended to exist under the -dispensation of the kingdom of heaven. The Spirit, doubtless, was -poured out upon all the disciples, and not upon the Twelve alone, upon -the day of Pentecost, as also upon the occasion of the conversion of -Cornelius and his household. Yet this fact did not lead the Apostles -and early Christians to conclude that an appointed and ordained -ministry might be dispensed with. The Lord miraculously bestowed His -graces and gifts at Pentecost and in the centurion's house at Caesarea, -because the gospel dispensation was opened on these occasions first of -all to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. But when, subsequently to -the formal opening, we read of the gifts of the Spirit, we find that -their bestowal is connected with the ministry of the Apostles, of St. -Peter and St. John at Samaria, or of St. Paul at Ephesus. The Holy -Ghost was poured out upon all the company assembled in the upper room, -or in the centurion's house; yet the Apostles saw nothing in this fact -inconsistent with a ministerial organization, else they would not have -set apart the seven men full of faith and of the Holy Ghost to -minister to the widows at Jerusalem, nor would they have laid hands -upon elders in every church which they founded, nor would St. Paul -have written, "He that seeketh the office of a bishop desireth a good -work," nor would St. Peter have exhorted the elders to a diligent -oversight of the flock of God after the model of the Good Shepherd -Himself. St. Peter clearly thought that the Pentecostal gifts did not -obliterate the distinction which existed between the shepherds and the -sheep, between a fixed and appointed ministry and the flock to whom -they should minister, though in the very initial stages of the -miraculous movement the Spirit was bestowed without any human agency -upon men and women alike.[48] - - [48] In the primitive Church the gift of preaching or prophesying - seems to have been widely diffused and exercised among what we - should call the laity, while at the same time a fixed and - appointed ministry exercised the pastoral office, including - therein the celebration of the sacraments and the exercise of - Church discipline. This seems the explanation of the phenomena we - behold in St. Paul's Epistles, in the manual called the _Teaching - of the Twelve Apostles_, and in that curious production of the - primitive Church called the _Shepherd of Hermas_. But though - preaching and prophesying were at first very freely exercised, the - disorders which arose at Corinth and other places quickly taught - the necessity for fixed rules. It was just the same in the - synagogue. The ritual and worship was conducted by the officials. - Preaching was free and open to all, but subject to the control and - direction of the ruler of the Synagogue, as the case of St. Paul - at Antioch in Pisidia proves (Acts xiii. 15). - -III. Lastly, in this passage we find another external proof of the -Spirit's presence in the miraculous gift of tongues. That gift -indicated to the Apostles and to all ages the tongue as the instrument -by which the gospel was to be propagated, as the symbol fire indicated -the cleansing and purifying effects of the Spirit.[49] The gift of -tongues is one that has ever excited much speculation, and specially -so during the present century, when, as some will remember, an -extraordinary attempt to revive them was made, some sixty years ago, -by the followers of the celebrated Edward Irving. Devout students of -Scripture have loved to trace in this incident at Pentecost, at the -very foundation of the new dispensation, a reversal of that confusion -of tongues which happened at Babel, and have seen in it the removal of -"the covering cast over all peoples, and the veil that is spread over -all nations."[50] The precise character of the gift of tongues has of -late years exercised many minds, and different explanations have been -offered of the phenomena. Some have viewed it as a miracle of hearing, -not of speaking, and maintained that the Apostles did not speak -different languages at all, but that they all spake the one Hebrew -tongue, while the Jews of the various nationalities then assembled -miraculously heard the gospel in their own language. - - [49] Lightfoot, _Horae Hebraicae_, Acts, chap. ii., ver. 3, notes - that "there is a form of prayer in the Jewish writings which was - used on the solemn fast of the ninth month Ab, one clause of which - illustrates the Divine symbol, 'Have mercy, O God, upon the city - that mourneth, that is trodden down and desolate, because Thou - didst lay it waste by fire, and by fire wilt build it up again.'" - - [50] Isa. xxv. 7. See Lightfoot, _Horae Heb._, on Acts ii. - -The miracle is in that case intensified one hundredfold, while not one -single difficulty which men feel is thereby alleviated. Meyer and a -large number of German critics explain the speaking with tongues as -mere ecstatic or rapturous utterances in the ordinary language of the -disciples. Meyer thinks too that some foreign Jews had found their way -into the band of the earliest disciples. They naturally delivered -their ecstatic utterances, not in Aramaic, but in the foreign tongues -to which they were accustomed, and legend then exaggerated this -natural fact into the form which the Acts of the Apostles and the -tradition of the Christian Church have ever since maintained.[51] It -is, indeed, rather difficult to understand the estimate formed by such -critics of the gift of tongues, whether bestowed on the day of -Pentecost or during the subsequent ministrations of St. Paul at -Corinth and Ephesus. Meyer is obliged to confess that there were some -marvellous phenomena in Corinth and other places to which St. Paul -bears witness. He describes himself as surpassing the whole Corinthian -Church in this particular gift (1 Cor. xiv. 18), so that if St. Paul's -testimony is to be relied upon,--and Meyer lays a great deal of weight -upon it,--we must accept it as conclusively proving that there existed -a power of speaking in various languages among the first Christians. -But the explanation offered by many critics of the gift of tongues as -undoubtedly exercised at Corinth reduces it to something very like -those fanatical exhibitions witnessed among the earliest followers of -the Irvingite movement, or, to put it plainly, to a mere uttering of -gibberish, unworthy of apostolic notice save in the language of -sternest censure, as being a disorderly and foolish proceeding -disgraceful to the Christian community. - - [51] Meyer on _Acts_ (ii. 4), vol. i., pp. 67, 68. Clark's - translation. - -Meyer's theory and that of many modern expositors seems, then, to me -very unsatisfactory, raising up more difficulties than it solves. But -it may be asked, what explanation do you offer of the Pentecostal -miracle? and I can find no one more satisfactory than the -old-fashioned one, that there was a real bestowal of tongues, a real -gift of speaking in foreign languages, granted to the Apostles, to be -used as occasion required when preaching the gospel in heathen lands. -Dean Stanley, in his commentary on Corinthians, gives, as was his -wont, a clear and attractive statement of the newer theory, putting in -a vigorous shape the objections to the view here maintained. I know -there are difficulties connected with this view, but many of these -difficulties arise from our ignorance of the state and condition of -the early Church, while others may spring from our very imperfect -knowledge of the relations between mind and body. But whatever -difficulties attend the explanation I offer, they are as nothing -compared with the difficulties which attend the modern explanations to -which I have referred.[52] What, then, is our theory, which we call -the old-fashioned one? It is simply this, that on the day of Pentecost -Christ bestowed upon His Apostles the power of speaking in foreign -languages, according to His promise reported by St. Mark (xvi. 17), -"They shall speak with new tongues." This was the theory of the -ancient Church. Irenaeus speaks of the tongues as given "that all -nations might be enabled to enter into life;" while Origen explains -that "St. Paul was made a debtor to different nations, because, -through the grace of the Holy Spirit, he had received the gift of -speaking in the languages of all nations." This has been the -continuous theory of the Church as expressed in one of the most -ancient portions of the Liturgy, the proper prefaces in the Communion -office. The preface for Whit Sunday sets forth the facts commemorated -on that day, as the other proper prefaces state the facts of the -Incarnation, the Resurrection, and Ascension. The fact which Whit -Sunday celebrates, and for which special thanks are then offered, is -this, that then "the Holy Ghost came down from heaven in the likeness -of fiery tongues, lighting upon the Apostles, to teach them, and to -lead them to all truth; giving them both the gift of divers languages, -and also boldness with fervent zeal constantly to preach the gospel -unto all nations."[53] - - [52] The speculations and discussions now rife concerning - hypnotism ought to teach modesty of assertion as to what is or is - not possible. On the 28th of March there appeared in an eminent - medical authority, the _Lancet_ newspaper, a review of a number of - works on hypnotism, acknowledging the wonders of the subject, and - containing this expression of opinion: "It is quite impossible to - assign any limits to the influence of mind upon body, which is - probably much more potent and far-reaching than we are usually - prepared to admit." Now among the works reviewed in that article - was one by Dr. Albert Moll of Berlin, published in the - "Contemporary Science Series." That book makes statements about - hypnotism which would quite cover Scripture miracles at which even - devout people have stumbled, such as the miracles wrought by the - shadow of St. Peter, or by handkerchiefs brought from the body of - St. Paul (Acts v. 15, and xix. 12), which Meyer regards as mere - legendary accretions to the genuine story. Moll, however, makes - quite as wondrous statements about hypnotism. On page 1 he thus - begins his _History of Hypnotism_: "In order to understand the - gradual development of modern hypnotism from actual magnetism we - must distinguish two points: firstly, that there are human beings - who can exercise a personal influence over others, either by - direct contact or even from a distance; and, secondly, the fact - that particular psychical facts can be induced in human beings by - certain physical processes. This second fact especially has long - been known among the Oriental peoples, and was utilized by them - for religious purposes. Kiesewetter attributes the early - soothsaying by means of precious stones to hypnosis, which was - induced by steadily gazing at the stones. This is also true of - divination by looking into vessels and crystals, as the Egyptians - have long been in the habit of doing, and has often been done in - Europe: by Cagliostro, for example. These hypnotic phenomena are - also found to have existed several thousand years ago among the - Persian magi, as well as up to the present day among the Indian - yogis and fakirs, who throw themselves into the hypnotic state by - means of fixation of the gaze." The phenomena mentioned in the - Acts, whether as to the tongues or to miracles worked through - inanimate objects, may be compared with Moll's statements on pp. - 5, 6, 84, and 362. - - [53] The proper preface in the Book of Common Prayer is longer and - more minute than the corresponding one in the Missal. The - Reformers extended the ancient form, inserting a special reference - to the gift of tongues. - -Now this traditional interpretation has not only the authority of the -past on its side; we can also see many advantages which must have -accrued from a gift of this character. The preface we have just cited -states that the tongues were bestowed for the preaching of the gospel -among all nations. And surely not merely as a striking sign to -unbelievers, but also as a great practical help in missionary labours, -such a gift of tongues would have been invaluable to the Church at its -very birth. There was then neither time, nor money, nor organization -to prepare men as missionaries of the Cross. An universal commission -and work were given to twelve men, chiefly Galilean peasants, to go -forth and found the Church. How could they have been fitted for this -work unless God had bestowed upon them some such gift of speech? The -vast diversity of tongues throughout the world is now one of the chief -hindrances with which missionary effort has to contend. Years have -often to elapse before any effective steps can be taken in the work of -evangelisation, simply because the question of the languages bars the -way. It would have been only in accordance with God's action in -nature, where great epochs have been ever signalised by extraordinary -phenomena, if such a great era-making epoch as the birth of the Church -of Christ had been marked with extraordinary spiritual powers and -developments, which supplied the want of that learning and those -organizations which the Lord now leaves to the spiritual energies of -the Church itself. But it is sometimes said, we never hear of this -power as used by the Apostles for missionary purposes. Nothing, -however, is a surer rule in historical investigations than this, -"Never trust to mere silence," specially when the records are but few, -scanty, fragmentary. We know but very little of the ways, worship, -actions of the Apostles. Silence is no evidence either as to what they -did or did not do. Some of them went into barbarous and distant lands, -as history states. Eusebius (III., 1) tells us that St. Thomas -received Parthia as his allotted region, while St. Andrew taught in -Scythia. Eusebius is an author on whom great reliance is justly -placed. He is one, too, whose accuracy and research have been again -and again confirmed in our own day by discoveries of every kind. I -see, then, no reason why we should not depend upon him upon this point -as well as upon others. Now if the Apostles taught in Scythia and -Parthia, what an enormous advantage it must have given them in their -work among a strange and barbarous people if, by means of the -Pentecostal blessing, they could at once proclaim a crucified Saviour. -It is sometimes said, however, the gift of speaking with foreign -languages was not required by the Apostles for missionary purposes, as -Greek alone would carry a man all through the world, and Greek the -Apostles evidently knew. But people in saying so forget that there is -a great difference between possessing enough of a language to travel -over the world, and speaking with such facility as enables one to -preach. English will now carry a man over the world, but English will -not enable him to preach to the people of India or of China. Greek -might carry Apostles all over the Roman Empire, and might enable St. -Thomas to be understood by the courtiers of the great kings of -Parthia, where traces of the ancient Greek language and civilization, -derived from Alexander's time, long prevailed. But Greek would not -enable a primitive Christian teacher to preach fluently among the -Celts of Galatia, or of Britain, or among the natives of Spain or of -Phrygia, or the barbarians of Scythia.[54] We see from St. Paul's -case how powerful was the hold which the Aramaic language had over the -people of Jerusalem. When the excited mob heard St. Paul speak in the -Hebrew tongue they listened patiently, because their national -feelings, the sentiments which sprang up in childhood and were allied -with their noblest hopes, were touched. So must it have been all the -world over. The Pentecostal gift of tongues was a powerful help in -preaching the gospel, because, like the Master's promise to assist -their minds and their tongues in the hour of need, it freed the -Apostles from care, anxiety, and difficulties, which would have sorely -hindered their great work. But while I offer this explanation, I -acknowledge that it has its own difficulties; but then every theory -has its difficulties, and we can only balance difficulties against -difficulties, selecting that theory which seems to have the fewest. -The conduct, for instance, of the Corinthians, who seem to have used -the gift of tongues simply to minister to the spirit of display, not -to edification or to missionary work, seems to some a great -difficulty. But after all is not their conduct simply an instance of -human sin, perverting and misusing a divine gift, such as we often -see still? God still bestows His gifts, the real outcome and work of -the Spirit. Man takes them, treats them as his own, and misuses them -for his own purposes of sin and selfishness. What else did the -Corinthians do, save that the gift which they abused was an -exceptional one; but then their circumstances, times, opportunities, -punishments, all were exceptional and peculiar. The one thing that was -not peculiar was this, the abiding tendency of human nature to degrade -Divine gifts and blessings. There must, we again repeat, be -difficulties and mystery connected with this subject, no matter what -view we take. Perhaps, too, we are no fitting judges of the gifts -bestowed on the primitive Church, or the phenomena manifested under -such extraordinary circumstances, when everything, every power, every -force, every organization, was arrayed against the company of the -twelve Apostles. Surely miracles and miraculous powers seem absolutely -necessary and natural in such a case.[55] We are not now sufficient or -capable judges of events as they then existed. Perhaps, too, we are -not sufficient judges because we do not possess that spirit which -would make us to sympathise with and understand the state of the -Church at that time. "They were all together in one place." The -Church was then visibly united, and internally united too. A -nineteenth century Christian, with the endless divisions of -Christendom, is scarcely the most fitting judge of the Church and the -Church's blessings when the Spirit of the Master pervaded it and the -prayer of the Master for visible unity was fulfilled in it. -Christendom is weak now from its manifold divisions. Even in a mere -natural way, and from a mere human point of view, we can see how its -divisions destroy its power and efficacy as Christ's witness in the -world. But when we take the matter from a spiritual point of view, we -cannot even guess what marvellous gifts and endowments, needful for -the edification of His people and the conversion of the world, we now -lack from want of the Divine charity and peace which ruled the hearts -of the twelve as they assembled in the upper room that Pentecostal -morn. We shall better understand primitive gifts when we get back -primitive union. - - [54] It is a completely mistaken notion, which no one would - cherish who had read history with a full-orbed mental eye, - realizing the past with its circumstances, that Latin and Greek - superseded all other languages throughout the empire. Local - dialects and languages continued to flourish all the time, save - amongst the official classes. Else how did Welsh survive to this - day in England? How did Celtic survive in France side by side with - Latin? The two celebrated cases of Gregory of Tours and of St. - Patrick show that their Latin was of a very rude and corrupt kind; - their real spoken language was Celtic, the tongue of the mass of - the people. In a learned work just published I note a confirmation - of this view. Professor Ramsay, in his _Historical Geography of - Asia Minor_, p. 24, avows how his mind has changed on this - question in regard to Asia Minor. "Romans governed Asia Minor, - because with their marvellous governing talent they knew how to - adapt their administration to the people of the plateau. It is - true that the great cities (of Asia Minor) put on a Western - appearance, and took Latin or Greek names. Latin and Greek were - the languages of government, of the educated classes, and of - polite society. Only this superficial aspect is attested in - literature and in ordinary history, and when I began to travel the - thought had never occurred to me that there was any other. The - conviction has gradually forced itself on me that the real state - of the country was very different. Greek was not the popular - language of the plateau, even in the third century after Christ; - the mass of the people spoke Lycaonian, and Galatian, and - Phrygian, although those who wrote books wrote Greek, and those - who governed spoke Latin." See again pp. 98, 99 for much more on - the same subject, showing the prevalence of the native languages - of Asia Minor down to the year A.D. 500. - - [55] Christians often give their sceptical opponents an advantage - over them by allowing them to state the difficulties of - Christianity and never retorting the difficulties of scepticism. - There is no historical fact of the distant past that cannot be - encumbered with numerous difficulties, deduced, in most cases, - from our own ignorance. No difficulty on our side is so great as - that which the sceptic has to meet in undertaking to explain, on - purely natural grounds, the rise and success of Christianity on - the very spot and at the very time its Author had been crucified. - The Christian story is simple and natural; the sceptical - explanation forced, unnatural, and surrounded by a thousand - appalling difficulties. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -_ST. PETER'S FIRST SERMON._ - - "But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and - spake forth unto them, saying, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that - dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and give ear unto my - words."--ACTS ii. 14. - - -This verse contains the opening words of St. Peter's address to the -multitude who were roused to wonder and inquiry by the miraculous -manifestations of Pentecost. That address is full of interest when -viewed aright, freed from all the haze which the long familiarity of -ages has brought with it. In this second chapter we have the report of -a sermon preached within a few days of Christ's ascension, addressed -to men many of whom knew Jesus Christ, all of whom had heard of His -work, His life, and His death, and setting forth the apostolic -estimate of Christ, His miracles, His teaching, His ascended condition -and glory. We cannot realize, unless by an intellectual effort, the -special worth of these apostolic reports contained in the Acts. Men -are sometimes sceptical about them, asking, how did we get them at -all? how were they handed down? This is, however, an easier question -to answer than some think. If we take, for instance, this Pentecostal -address alone, we know that St. Luke had many opportunities of -personal communication with St. Peter. He may have learned from St. -Peter's own mouth what he said on this occasion, and he could compare -this verbal report with the impressions and remembrances of hundreds -who then were present. But there is another solution of the difficulty -less known to the ordinary student of Holy Scripture. The ancients -made a great use of shorthand, and were quite well accustomed to take -down spoken discourses, transmitting them thus to future ages. -Shorthand was, in fact, much more commonly used among the ancients -than among ourselves. The younger Pliny, for instance, who was a -contemporary of the Apostles, never travelled without a shorthand -writer, whose business it was to transcribe passages which struck his -master in the books he was perpetually studying. The sermons of -Chrysostom were all extemporaneous effusions. In fact, the -golden-mouthed patriarch of Constantinople was such an indefatigable -pulpit-orator, preaching almost daily, that it would have been -impossible to have made any copious preparation. The extensive reports -of his sermons which have come down to us, the volumes of his -expositions on the books of Scripture which we possess, prove that -shorthand must have been constantly used by his hearers.[56] Now what -would we give for a few shorthand reports of sermons by Clement of -Rome, by St. Luke, by Timothy, by Apollos, preached in Rome, -Alexandria, or Antioch? Suppose they were discovered, like the -numerous Egyptian manuscripts which have of late years come to light, -deposited in the desert sands, and were found to set forth the -miracles, the ministry, and the person of Christ exactly as now we -preach them, what a marvellous confirmation of the faith we should -esteem them! And yet what should we then possess more than we already -have in the sermons and discourses of St. Peter and St. Paul, reported -by an eye and ear-witness who wrote the Acts of the Apostles? - - [56] I read the other day the report of an eminent Unitarian - divine who was lecturing upon the Gospels. He was upholding the - view that it was impossible that reports of the discourses of - Christ and of His Apostles could have been handed down in anything - like their shape as given in the New Testament, because it was an - age without shorthand. The lecturer is an eminent metaphysical and - philosophical critic, but he is evidently not versed in the social - life of the ancients. Had the lecturer but referred to Prof. J. E. - B. Mayor's edition of Pliny's _Letters_, Book iii., p. 96, he - would have found abundant references proving that shorthand was a - usual accomplishment among educated men long prior to the - Christian era. - -I. The congregation assembled to listen to this first Gospel discourse -preached by a human agent was a notable and representative one. There -were Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in -Mesopotamia and in Judaea,--or, as an ancient expositor (Tertullian) -puts it, in Armenia[57] and Cappadocia,--in Pontus and Asia, in -Phrygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt and in the parts of Libya about -Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and -Arabians. The enumeration of the various nationalities listening to -St. Peter begins from the extremest east; it proceeds then to the -north, from thence to the south, terminating with Rome, which -represents the west. They were all Jews or Jewish proselytes, showing -how extremely wide, at the epoch of the Incarnation, was the -dispersion of God's ancient people. St. Paul, in one profound passage -of the Epistle to the Galatians, notes that "God sent forth His Son in -the fulness of time," that is, at the exact moment when the world was -prepared for the advent of the truth. This "fulness of time" may be -noted in many directions. Roman roads, Roman law, commerce, and -civilization opened channels of communication which bore the tidings -of the gospel into every land. A sweet singer of our own time, the -late Sir Samuel Ferguson, has depicted in his _Lays of the Western -Gael_ this diffusion of the gospel through the military organization -of Rome. He represents a Celt from Ireland as present at the -crucifixion. This may seem at first somewhat improbable, as Ireland -was never included within the bounds of the Roman Empire; and yet the -poet's song can be justified from history. Though never included -formally within the Empire, Irishmen and Scotch Highlanders must often -have served in the ranks of the Roman army, just as at the present -day, and especially in India, men of foreign nationalities are often -found serving in the ranks of the British army. In later times -Irishmen most certainly formed a Roman legion all to themselves. St. -Jerome tells us[58] that he had seen them acting in that capacity at -Treves, in Germany. They were noted for their bravery, which, as -Jerome believes, they sustained by consuming human flesh. Three -hundred years earlier Irishmen may often have enlisted in the service -of those British legions which the Romans withdrew from Britain and -located in the East; and thus Sir Samuel Ferguson does not pass the -bounds of historic credibility when he represents a certain centurion, -who had been present at the crucifixion, as returning to his native -land, and there proclaiming the tidings of our Lord's atoning -sacrifice:-- - - [57] Tertullian, _Against the Jews_, chap. vii. - - [58] _Adv. Jovin._, lib. ii., cap. 7, in Migne's _Pat. Lat._, t. - xxiii., col. 296. - - "And they say, Centurion Altus, when he to Emania came, - And to Rome's subjection called us, urging Caesar's tribute claim, - Told that half the world barbarian thrills already with the faith, - Taught them by the God-like Syrian, Caesar lately put to death."[59] - - [59] I have worked out this point at some length in _Ireland and - the Celtic Church_, chap. i., pp. 14-20. - -The dispersion of the Jews throughout not only the Roman Empire, but -far beyond its limits, served the same end, and hastened the fulness -of time needed for the Messiah's appearance. We must remember, -however, that the long list of varied nationalities present at this -Pentecostal feast were not Gentiles, they were Jews of the dispersion -scattered broadcast among the nations as far as Central Asia towards -the east, as far as southern Arabia and Aden on the south, and Spain -and Britain on the west. The course of modern investigation and -discovery amply confirms the statement of this passage, as well as the -similar statement of the eighth chapter, which represents a Jewish -statesman of Abyssinia or Ethiopia as coming up to Jerusalem for the -purposes of devotion. Jewish inscriptions have been found in Aden -dating back long before the Christian era. A Jewish colony existed -ages before Christ in the region of Southern Arabia, and continued to -flourish there down to the Middle Ages.[60] At Rome, Alexandria, and -Greece the Jews at this period constituted an important factor in the -total population.[61] The dispersion of the Jews had now done its -work, and brought with it the fulness of time required by the Divine -purposes. The way of the Messiah had been effectually prepared by it. -The Divine seed fell upon no unploughed and unbroken soil. Pure and -noble ideas of worship and morality had been scattered broadcast -throughout the world. Some years ago the Judgment of Solomon was found -depicted on the ceiling of a Pompeian house, witnessing to the spread -of scriptural knowledge through Jewish artists in the time of Tiberius -and of Nero. A race of missionaries, too, equipped for their work, was -developed through the discipline of exile. The thousands who hung upon -Peter's lips needed nothing but instruction in the faith of Jesus -Christ, together with the baptism of the Spirit, and the finest, the -most enthusiastic, and the most cosmopolitan of agencies lay ready to -the Church's hand. While, again, the organization of synagogues, which -the exigencies of the dispersion had called into existence, was just -the one suited to the various purposes of charity, worship, and -teaching, which the Christian Church required. Whether, indeed, we -consider the persons whom St. Peter addressed, or the machinery they -had elaborated, or the diffusion of pure religious ideas they had -occasioned, we see in this passage a splendid illustration of the care -and working of Divine Providence bringing good out of evil and real -victory out of apparent defeat. Prophet and psalmist had lamented over -Zion's ruin and Israel's exile into foreign lands, but they saw not -how that God was thereby working out His own purposes of wider -blessing to mankind at large, fitting Jews and Gentiles alike for that -fulness of time when the Eternal Son should be manifested. - - [60] The history of the Jewish settlement in the south of Arabia - is very little known by the average student of the Acts, and yet - it is a wonderful confirmation of its accuracy both here and in - the account of the Ethiopian eunuch. This colony existed in Arabia - long before the Christian era. They claimed, indeed, to have been - a portion of the Jews of the Captivity. They established an - independent kingdom in Southern Arabia, which bitterly persecuted - the Christians about the year 500. A full account of this - little-known persecution, and of the Homerite martyrs who suffered - in it, will be found by those curious in such matters in that - great monumental work the _Acta Sanctorum_ of the Bollandists, - vols. x. and xii. for October, under the names of St. Arethas and - St. Elesbaan. Large quantities of manuscripts about this Jewish - colony were discovered some years ago in the mosques of Southern - Arabia. A considerable number of Jews still find a place there. - See, for an account of the Jewish kingdom in Arabia, an article on - Elesbaan, in vol. ii. of the _Dictionary of Christian Biography_. - Gibbon in his forty-second and fiftieth chapters has much about - it. - - [61] The Jewish cemeteries discovered at Rome date back to the - time of our Lord, or even before it. They were the models on which - the Christians made the catacombs. The symbols of Judaism appear - in the Christian tombs. See Northcote's _Epitaphs of the - Catacombs_, and Brownlow and Northcote's _Roma Sotteranea_. - -II. The brave, outspoken tone of this sermon evidences the power and -influence of the Holy Spirit upon St. Peter's mind. St. Chrysostom, in -his famous lectures on the Acts of the Apostles, notes the courageous -tone of this address as a clear evidence of the truth of the -resurrection. This argument has been ever since a commonplace with -apologists and expositors, and yet it is only by an effort that we can -realize how very strong it is. Here was St. Peter and his fellow -Apostles standing up proclaiming a glorified and ascended Messiah. -Just seven weeks before, they had fled from the messengers of the High -Priest sent to arrest their Master, leaving Him to His fate. They had -seen Him crucified, knew of His burial, and then, feeling utterly -defeated, had as much as possible withdrawn themselves from public -notice. Seven weeks after, the same band, led by St. Peter, himself a -short time before afraid to confess Christ to a maidservant, boldly -stand up, charge upon the multitude, who knew all the circumstances of -Christ's execution, the crime of having thus killed the Prince of -Life, and appeal to the supernatural evidence of the gift of tongues, -to which they had just listened, as the best proof of the truth of -their message. St. Peter's courage on this occasion is one of the -clearest proofs of the truth of his testimony. St. Peter was not -naturally a courageous man. He was very impulsive and very -sympathetic. He was the creature of his surroundings. If he found -himself in the midst of Christ's friends, he was the most forward to -uphold Christ's cause, but he had not much moral stamina. He was sadly -deficient in staying power. His mind was very Celtic in its tone, to -draw an illustration from national characteristics. The Celtic mind is -very sympathetic, ardent, enthusiastic. It is swept along in moments -of excitement, either of victory or of defeat, by the dominating power -of numbers. How often has this quality been manifested by the French -people, for instance? They are resistless when victorious; they -collapse utterly and at once when defeated. St. Peter was just the -same. He was sympathetic, ardent, enthusiastic, and fell, in later as -well as in earlier age, into the perils which attend such -temperaments. He denied his Master when surrounded by the menials of -the high priest. He was ready to die for that Master a few hours -before, when sitting surrounded by Christ's disciples in the secrecy -of the upper room. Divine grace and the baptism of the Spirit did not -at all change his natural character in this respect. Divine grace, -whether granted in ancient or in modern times, does not destroy -natural character, which is God's gift to man. It merely refines, -purifies, elevates it. We find, indeed, a striking illustration of -this law of the Divine life in St. Peter's case. - -One of the most convincing proofs of the truth of the New Testament is -the identity of character we behold in the representations given of -St. Peter by writers who produced their books quite independently of -each other. St. Paul wrote his Epistle to the Galatians long prior to -any of the Gospel narratives. Yet St. Paul's picture of St. Peter in -the Epistle to the Galatians is exactly the same as that drawn by the -four Evangelists alike. St. Paul depicts him as the same intensely -sympathetic, and therefore the same unstable person whom the -Evangelists describe. The brave scene in the upper chamber, and the -scene of cowardice and disgrace in the high priest's palace, were in -principle re-enacted twenty years after, about the year A.D. 53, at -Antioch. St. Peter was very bold in maintaining the right of Gentile -freedom, and hesitated not to live like the Gentile Christians of -Antioch, so long as none of the strict Jewish Christians of Jerusalem -knew about it. St. Peter wished, in fact, to stand well with both -parties, and therefore strove to conciliate both. He was, for the -time, a type of that famous character Mr. Facing-two-ways. He lived, -therefore, as a Gentile, until some of the Jerusalem brethren arrived -at Antioch, when he at once quailed before them and retreated, -betraying the cause of Christian freedom, and sacrificing, just as men -do still, Christian principle and honesty upon the altar of -self-seeking popularity. St. Peter, we therefore maintain, always -remained at heart the same character. He was bold and forward for -Christ so long as all went well, because he was intensely sympathetic; -but he had very little of that power of standing alone which marked -St. Paul, and nerved him, even though a solitary witness, when the -cause of truth was involved. This somewhat lengthened argument is -absolutely necessary to show the strength of our conclusion: that it -must have been an overpowering sense of the awful reality of Christ's -resurrection and ascension which alone could have overcome this -natural weakness of St. Peter, and make him on the day of Pentecost as -brave in proclaiming Jesus Christ to his red-handed murderers as he -was bold to propose a new Apostle in place of the hapless traitor to -the assembled disciples in the upper chamber. St. Peter evidently -believed, and believed with an intense, overwhelming, resistless -conviction, in the truth of Christ's resurrection and ascension, which -thus became to him the source of personal courage and of individual -power. - -III. Again, the tone of St. Peter's sermon was remarkable because of -its enlarged and enlightened spirituality. It proved the Spirit's -power in illuminating the human consciousness. St. Peter was rapidly -gaining a true conception of the nature of the kingdom of God. He -enunciates that conception in this sermon. He proclaims Christianity, -in its catholic and universal aspect, when he quotes the prophet Joel -as predicting the time when the Lord would pour out His Spirit upon -all flesh. St. Peter does not indeed seem to have realized all at once -the full significance of his own teaching. He did not see that his -words applied to the Gentiles equally with the Jews, sounding the -death-knell of all national exclusiveness in religion. Had he seen the -full meaning of his own words, he would not have hesitated so much -about the baptism of Cornelius and the admission of the Gentiles. It -has been found true, not only of St. Peter, but of teachers, -reformers, politicians, statesmen, that they have not at once -recognised all the vast issues and undeveloped principles which lay -wrapped up in their original message. The stress and trial of life -alone draw them out, at times compelling their authors to regret their -earlier actions, at other times leading them to follow out with -intensified vigour the principles and movements which they had -themselves set in operation. Luther, when he protested against -indulgences; Erasmus, when he ridiculed the ignorance of the monks -and advocated the study of the Greek New Testament; John Hampden, when -he refused to pay ship money; or Bishop Ken, when he declined -obedience to the orders of King James II.;--none of them saw whereunto -their principles would necessarily grow till time had thoroughly -threshed their teaching and their actions, separating the husk of -external circumstances, which are so variable, from the kernel of -principle, which is eternally the same, stern, severe, inexorable, in -its operations. So it was with St. Peter, and still earlier with the -prophets. They sang of and preached a universal religion, as in this -passage, but yet none of them realized the full scope and meaning of -the words they had used, till a special revelation upon the housetop -at Joppa compelled St. Peter to grasp and understand and apply the -principles he had been already proclaiming. - -In this respect, indeed, we recognise the greatness, the divinity of -the Master Himself towering above the noblest of His followers; above -even Peter himself, upon whom He pronounced such an eulogium, and -bestowed such privileges. Our Lord Jesus Christ taught this -universality of Christianity, and expressly recognised it. St. Peter -indeed taught it in this sermon, but he did not recognise the force of -his own words. Jesus Christ not only taught it, but realized the -meaning of His teaching. It was indeed no part of Christ's earthly -ministry to preach to the Gentiles. He came to the house of Israel -alone. Yet how clearly He witnesses, how distinctly He prophesies of -the future universality of His kingdom. He heals a centurion's -servant, proclaiming at the same time that many shall come from the -east and west, and sit down in the kingdom, while the children of the -kingdom shall be cast out. He risks His life among the inhabitants of -the city where He had been brought up, in order that He may deliver -this truth. He repeats it to the woman of Samaria, in order that He -may chase away her national superstition. He embodies it in His great -eucharistic prayer for His Apostles and for His Church at large. The -more carefully and the more devoutly we study Christ's words, the more -lofty will be our conception of His personality and character, who -from the very beginning recognised the full force of His message, the -true extent of that Divine society He was about to establish. The -avowed catholicity of Christ's teaching is one of the surest proofs of -Christ's divinity. He had not to wait as Peter waited, till events -explained the meaning of His words; from the beginning He knew all -things which should happen. - -Still the tone of St. Peter's sermon proved that the Spirit had -supernaturally enlightened him. He had already risen to spiritual -heights undreamt-of hitherto, even by himself. A comparison of a few -passages proves this. In the sixteenth chapter of St. Matthew we have -narrated for us the scene where our Lord extracts from St. Peter his -celebrated confession, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living -God," and then soon after bestows upon him the equally celebrated -rebuke, "Get thee behind Me, Satan! thou art a stumblingblock unto Me: -for thou mindest not the things of God, but the things of men." St. -Peter, with his horror-struck opposition to the very idea of Christ's -death and suffering, evidently cherished the same notions of the -kingdom of God, which Christ had come to establish, as James and John -did when they petitioned for the highest place in the Master's -kingdom. This carnal conception of a temporal kingdom and earthly -forces and human weapons St. Peter retained when he armed himself -with a sword and prepared to defend his Master in the Garden of -Gethsemane; and even later still when, after the resurrection, the -Apostles, acting doubtless through Peter as their spokesman, demanded, -"Dost Thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" But the Spirit -was vouchsafed, and new power, of which the Master had spoken, was -granted, and that power raised Peter above all such low Jewish ideas, -and the kingdom announced to the Jews is no longer a kingdom of earth, -with its carnal weapons and its dignities. He now understood what the -Master had taught when He witnessed before Pontius Pilate His good -confession, "My kingdom is not of this world: if My kingdom were of -this world, then would My servants fight, that I should not be -delivered to the Jews: but now is My kingdom not from hence." The -carnal conception passes away under the influence of the heavenly -solvent, and St. Peter proclaimed a kingdom which was a purely -spiritual dominion, dealing with remission of sins and a purified -interior life, through the operation and indwelling of the Holy Ghost. -The power of the Holy Ghost was shown in St. Peter's case by the vast -and complete change which passed at once over his spiritual ideas and -outlook. The thoughts and expectations of the pious Jews of -Galilee--the very class from whom St. Peter sprang--were just then -shaped and formed by the popular apocalyptic literature of the period, -as we have already pointed out in the second lecture. The Second -Epistle of St. Peter and the Epistle of Jude prove that the Galileans -of that time were careful students of works like the Assumption of -Moses, the Book of Enoch, and the Ascension of Isaiah, which agree in -representing the kingdom of God and the reign of the Messiah as -equivalent to the triumph of the Jewish nation over all foreign -dominion and bondage. St. Peter and the other eleven Apostles shared -these natural ideas and expectations till the Spirit was poured out, -when they learned in a profounder spiritual comprehension to estimate -aright the scope and meaning of our blessed Lord's teaching. St. Peter -dwells, therefore, in his sermon on Christ's person, His sufferings, -His resurrection, His ascension, no longer indeed for the purpose of -exalting the Jewish nation, or predicting its triumph, but to point a -purely spiritual lesson. "Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you -in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye -shall receive"--not honour, riches, temporal freedom, but "ye shall -receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." The subject-matter of St. Peter's -sermon, the change in his tone of teaching, is another great proof of -a supernatural force and power imparted on the Day of Pentecost. - -IV. Let us look somewhat farther into the matter of this earliest -Christian sermon, that we may learn the apostolic view of the -Christian scheme. Some persons have asserted that the earliest -Christians were Ebionites,[62] and taught a system of doctrine akin to -modern Unitarianism. This theory can best be tested by an appeal to -the Acts of the Apostles. What, for instance, was the conception of -Christ's life, work, and ascended state, which St. Peter presented to -the astonished multitude? We must not expect, indeed, to find in this -sermon a formulated and scientific system of Christian doctrine. St. -Peter was as yet far too near the great events he declared, far too -close to the superhuman personality of Christ, to co-ordinate his -ideas and arrange his views. It is a matter of every-day experience -that when a new discovery is suddenly made, when a new revelation -takes place in the region of nature, men do not grasp at once all the -new relations thereby involved, all the novel applications whereof it -is capable. The human mind is so limited in its power that it is not -till we get some distance away from a great object that we are enabled -to survey it in the fulness of its outline. Inspiration assisted St. -Peter, elevated his mind, raised his tone of thought to a higher -level, but it did not reverse this fundamental law under which the -human mind works. Yet St. Peter's discourse contains all the great -principles of Catholic Christianity as opposed to that low view which -would represent the earliest Christians as preaching the purely -humanitarian scheme of modern Unitarianism. St. Peter taught boldly -the miraculous element of Christ's life, describing Him as "a man -approved of God by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did -by Him." Yet he did not dwell as much as we might have expected upon -the miraculous side of Christ's ministry. In fact, the earliest -heralds of the Cross did not make as much use of the argument from -miracles as we might have expected them to have done. And that for a -very simple reason. The inhabitants of the East were so accustomed to -the practices of magic that they simply classed the Christian -missionaries with magicians. The Jewish explanation of the miracles of -our Lord is of this description. The Talmudists do not deny that He -worked miracles, but assert that He achieved them by a special use of -the Tetragammaton, or the sacred name of Jehovah, which was known only -to Himself. The sacred writers and preachers refer, therefore, again -and again to the miracles of our Saviour, as St. Peter does in the -second chapter, as well-known and admitted facts, whatever explanation -may be offered of them, and then turn to other aspects of the -question. The Apostles had, however, a more powerful argument in -reserve. They preached a spiritual religion, a present peace with God, -a present forgiveness of sins; they point forward to a future life of -which even here below believers possess the earnest and the pledge. -We, with our minds steeped in ages of Christian thought and teaching, -can have no idea of the convincing self-evidencing force of teaching -like that, to a Jew reared up in a system of barren formalism, and -still more to a Gentile, with spiritual instincts longing for -satisfaction, and which he was expected to satisfy with the -bloodstained shows of the amphitheatre or with the immoralities and -impure banquetings of the pagan temples. To persons in that condition, -an argument derived from a mere wonderful work brought little -conviction, for they were well accustomed to behold very marvellous -and apparently miraculous actions, such as to this day the wandering -jugglers of India exhibit.[63] But when they beheld lives transfused -by the love of God, and heard pure spiritual teaching such as -responded to the profoundest depths of their own hearts, then deep -answered unto deep. The preaching of the Cross became indeed the power -of God unto salvation, because the human soul instinctively felt that -the Cross was the medicine fittest for its spiritual maladies. - - [62] The term Ebionite is thus well explained by the Rev. J. M. - Fuller in the _Dict. Christ. Biog._, vol. ii., p. 25: "The term - Ebionism expresses conveniently the opinions and practices of the - descendants of the Judaizers of the apostolic age, and is very - little removed from Judaism. Judaism was for them not so much a - preparation for Christianity as an institution eternally good in - itself, and but slightly modified in Christianity. Whatever merit - Christianity possessed, was possessed as the continuation and - supplement of Judaism. The divinity of the old covenant was the - only valid guarantee for the truth of the new. Hence the tendency - of this class of Ebionites to exalt the old at the expense of the - new, to magnify Moses and the prophets, and to allow Jesus Christ - to be 'nothing more than a Solomon or a Jonas' (Tertull., _De - Carne Christi_, c. 18); 'Legal righteousness was to them the - highest type of perfection; the earthly Jerusalem, in spite of its - destruction, was an object of adoration, as if it were the House - of God' (Irenaeus, _Adv. Haer._, i., 26); its restoration would take - place in the millennial kingdom of Messiah, and the Jews would - return there as the manifested chosen people of God." - - [63] See Moll's _Hypnotism_, p. 216, in the "Contemporary Science - Series." - -V. Again, this sermon shows the method of interpreting the Psalms and -Prophets popular among the pious Jews of St. Peter's time. St. Peter's -method of interpretation is identical with that of our Lord, of St. -Paul, and of the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews. He beholds in -the Psalms hints and types of the profoundest doctrines of the Creed. -We can see this in both the quotations which he makes. St. Peter finds -in the sixteenth Psalm a prophecy of the intermediate state of souls -and of the resurrection of our Lord. "Thou wilt not leave my soul in -Hades" is a text which has furnished the basis of the article in the -Apostles' Creed which teaches that Christ descended into hell. It is a -pity indeed that the translation which the last revisers have adopted, -"Hades" instead of "Hell," was not used in the English translation of -the Apostles' Creed; for the ordinary reading has misled many a -thoughtful and serious soul, as if the Creed taught that the pure and -sinless spirit of the Saviour had been made partaker of the horrors of -eternal misery. Whereas, in truth, the doctrine of Scripture and of -the Creed alike merely asserts that our Lord's spirit, when separated -from the body, entered and thereby sanctified and prepared the place -or state where Christian souls, while separated from their bodies, -await the general resurrection of the just and the completion of their -happiness. The doctrine of the intermediate state, as taught by Bishop -Pearson and other great divines, is primarily based on two texts, the -passage before us and the words of our Saviour to the penitent thief, -"To-day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise" (Luke xxiii. 43). This -doctrine accurately corresponds with the catholic doctrine of our -Lord's Person. The Arian heresy denied the true deity of our Lord. The -second great heresy was the Apollinarian, which denied His true and -perfect humanity. The orthodox doctrine taught the tripartite nature -of man, that is, that there was in man, first, a body, secondly, the -animal soul which man possesses in common with the beasts, and which -perishes at death, and, lastly, the human spirit which is immortal and -by which he maintains communion with God. Now the Apollinarian heresy -asserted that Jesus Christ possessed a body and a soul, but denied His -possession of a spirit. Its theory was that the Divine nature took the -place of a true human spirit in Christ, so that Christ was unlike His -brethren in this respect, that when the body died, and the animal soul -perished, He had no human spirit by which He might enter into Hades, -or dwell in Paradise. The Divine nature was the only portion of the -Incarnate Lord which then survived. Against this view the words of St. -Peter testified beforehand, teaching, by his adaptation of David's -prophecy, that our Lord possessed the fulness of humanity in its -threefold division, whereby He was enabled to share the experience and -lot of His brethren, not only in this life, but also in the -intermediate state of Hades, wherein the spirits of the blessed dead -await re-union with their bodies, and expect in hope the second advent -of their Lord.[64] - - [64] See the article on "Apollinaris the Younger" in the _Dict. - Christ. Biog._, vol. i., for a concise account of the Apollinarian - heresy. - -St. Peter's interpretation again of the Psalms recognised in David's -words a prophecy of the resurrection: "Neither wilt Thou give Thy Holy -One to see corruption,"--a rendering of the New Testament revisers -which, however literal, is not nearly as vigorous or suggestive as the -old translation, "Neither wilt Thou suffer Thy Holy One to see -corruption." St. Peter then proceeds to point out how impossible it -was that this prediction could have been fulfilled in David. David's -flesh undoubtedly did see corruption, because every one knew where his -tomb was. St. Peter's speech here touches upon a point where we can -confirm his accuracy out of ancient historians. David was buried, -according to ancient writers, in the city of David (2 Kings ii. 10). -The Rabbis went even further, they determined the time of his death. -According to a writer quoted by that great seventeenth-century -teacher, Dr. John Lightfoot,[65] "David died at Pentecost, and all -Israel bewailed him, and offered their sacrifices the day following." -After the return from Babylon the site of the sepulchre was known, as -Neh. iii. 16 reports, telling us that Nehemiah the son of Azbuk -repaired the wall over against the sepulchre of David; while still -later Josephus[66] tells us that Hyrcanus, the high priest, and Herod -the Great opened David's tomb, and removed vast treasures from it. St. -Peter's words on this occasion possess an important evidential -aspect, and suggest one of the gravest difficulties which the -assailants of the resurrection have to face. St. Peter appealed to the -evidence of David's tomb as demonstrating the fact that he was dead, -and that death still held him in its power. Why did not his opponents -appeal to the testimony of Christ's tomb? It is evident from St. -Peter's argument that Christ's tomb was empty, and was known to be -empty. The first witnesses to the resurrection insisted, within a few -weeks of our Lord's crucifixion, upon this fact, proclaimed it -everywhere, and the Jews made no attempt to dispute their assertions. -Our opponents may indeed say, we acknowledge the fact of the emptiness -of the tomb, but the body of Christ was removed by St. Peter and his -associates. How then, we reply, do you account for St. Peter's action? -Did conscious guilt and hypocrisy make him brave and enthusiastic? If -they say, indeed, Peter did not remove the body, but that his -associates did, then how are we to account for the conversations St. -Peter thought he had held with his risen Master, the appearances -vouchsafed to him, the close converse, "eating and drinking with him -after He was risen from the dead"? St. Peter, by his appeal to David's -tomb, and its bearing on the sixteenth Psalm, proves that he believed -in no ideal resurrection, no phantasm,--no ghost story, to put it -plainly; but that he taught the doctrine of the resurrection as the -Church now accepts it. - - [65] _Horae Hebraicae_ on Acts ii. 29. - - [66] See Josephus, _Antiqq._, XIII., viii., 4; XVI., vii., 1; - _Wars_, I., ii., 5. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -_THE FIRSTFRUITS OF PENTECOST._ - - "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and - said unto Peter and the rest of the apostles, Brethren, what - shall we do? And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized - every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission - of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. - For to you is the promise, and to your children, and to all that - are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto - Him."--ACTS ii. 37-39. - - -The sermon of St. Peter on the day of Pentecost and the sermon of our -Lord present a striking contrast. Our Lord's sermons were of various -kinds; they were at times consoling, yet full of instruction and -direction. Such, for instance, was the Sermon on the Mount. At other -times His discourses were stern, and full of sharp reproof. Such was -His teaching in His parting addresses to the Jews delivered in the -temple, recorded in the synoptic Gospels. Yet they apparently failed, -for the time at least, in producing any great practical results. In -fact, His temple discourses served only to irritate His foes, and -arouse their hostility. - -St. Peter delivered a sermon on the day of Pentecost which was quite -as stern and quite as calculated to irritate, and yet that discourse -was crowned with results exceeding those ever achieved by our Lord, -though His discourses far surpassed St. Peter's in literary skill, in -spiritual meaning, in eternal significance and value. Whence came -this fact? It simply happened in fulfilment of Christ's own prophecy -recorded by St. John, where He predicts that His Apostles shall -achieve greater works than He had achieved, "because I go unto the -Father" (John xiv. 12). The departure of Christ into the true Holy of -Holies opened the channel of communication between the eternal Father -and the waiting Church; the Spirit was poured out through Christ as -the channel, and the result was conviction and conversion; leading the -people to cry out, in response to St. Peter's simple statement of -facts, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" - -I. One of the first qualifications absolutely necessary, if a man is -to write history tellingly and sympathetically, is a historical -imagination. Unless a man can, from a multitude of separate and often -independent details, reconstruct the past, realize it vividly for -himself, and then depict it with life and force to his readers, he -will utterly fail as a historian. The same historical imagination is -needed, too, if we wish to realize the full force of the circumstances -we are considering. It is hard even for those who do possess such an -imagination to throw themselves back into all the circumstances and -surroundings of the Apostles at Pentecost; but when we succeed in -doing so, then all these circumstances can only be explained on the -supposition--the orthodox and catholic supposition--that there must -have happened a supernatural occurrence, and that there must have been -granted a supernatural power and blessing on the day of Pentecost. - -The courage of St. Peter when preaching his sermon is, as we have -already noticed, a proof of the descent of the Spirit. The -resurrection of his Master had doubtless inspired him with all the -power of a new idea. But St. Peter's history, both before the day of -Pentecost and after it, amply proved that mere intellectual conviction -could be united with grievous moral cowardice. We cannot doubt, for -instance, that St. Peter was intellectually convinced of the justice -of the Gentile claims, and their right to a full equality with the -Jews, when St. Paul felt compelled to withstand him at Antioch. Yet he -was possessed with no such spiritual enthusiasm on the question as -that which moved St. Paul, or else he never would have fallen into -such lamentable hypocrisy as he displayed on that occasion. The gift -of the Spirit was needed by St. Peter before an intellectual -conviction could be transformed into an overwhelming spiritual -movement, which swept every obstacle from its path. Again, the conduct -of the people is a proof of the descent of the Spirit. St. Peter -assails their actions, charges upon them the murder of the Messiah, -and proclaims the triumph of Christ over all their machinations. Yet -they listen quietly, respectfully, without opposition, as mobs do not -usually listen to speeches running counter to their prejudices. Some -wondrous phenomena, such as the gift of tongues, combined with -divinely persuasive eloquence, flinging the aegis of their protection -over the preacher's defenceless person, must have so struck the minds -of these fanatical Jews as to keep them quiet while St. Peter spoke. -But the result of St. Peter's speech was the chiefest evidence that -something extraordinary must have happened at Jerusalem in the -earliest days of the Church's history. Secular history tells us, as -well as the sacred narrative, that Christianity rose again from what -seemed its grave at the very spot where, and at the very moment when, -the crucifixion had apparently extinguished it for ever. - -The evidence of the historian Tacitus is conclusive upon this point. -He lived and flourished all through the time when St. Paul's ministry -was most active. He was born about the year 50, and had every -opportunity of becoming acquainted with the facts concerning the -execution of Christ and the rise of Christianity, as they were -doubtless laid up in the imperial archives at Rome. His testimony, -written at a period when, as some maintain, neither the Acts of the -Apostles nor the Gospels of the New Testament were in existence, -exactly tallies with the account given by our sacred books. In his -_Annals_, book xv., chap. 44, he writes concerning Christianity: -"Christus, from whom the name of Christian has its origin, suffered -the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one -of our procurators, Pontius Pilate, and a most mischievous -superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out in Judaea." -So that the Pagan historian, who knew nothing about Christianity save -what official pagan documents or popular report told him, agrees with -the Scriptures that Christianity was checked for a moment by the death -of its founder, and then gained its earliest and most glorious triumph -on the very scene of its apparent defeat where--and this is a very -important part of the argument--previously the most marvellous wisdom -and the most striking signs and wonders had utterly failed to gain any -large measure of success. Whence, then, can we explain this fact, or -how account for this conscience-stricken cry, "Men and brethren, what -shall we do?" unless we assume, what the narrative of our text -declares, that the Holy Ghost, in all His convincing and converting -power, had been poured out from on high? - -And surely our own personal experience daily corroborates this view. -There may be intellectual conviction and controversial triumph without -any spiritual enthusiasm. Sermons may be clever, powerful, convincing, -and yet, unless the Spirit's power be sought, and an unction from on -high be vouchsafed, no spiritual harvest can be expected. St. Peter's -sermon, if viewed from a human standpoint, could no more have been -expected to succeed than the Master's. The one new element, however, -which now entered into the combination, explains the difference. The -Spirit was now given, and men therefore hearkened to the servant where -they had turned a deaf ear to the Master. It is a lesson much needed -for our generation, especially in the case of the young, and of our -Sunday-school system. The religious instruction of youth is much more -carefully looked after than it used to be. Primers, handbooks, -elementary commentaries, catechists' manuals, are published in -profusion, and many think that provided a Sunday or day school -distinguishes itself in the examination list, which is now the one -great educational test, religious knowledge has been secured. The -contrast between St. Peter's success and our Lord's failure warns us -that there is a vast difference between religious life and religious -knowledge. The most irreligious people, the most bitter opponents of -Christianity, have been produced by schools and systems where -religious knowledge was literally crammed down the throats of the -children in a hard, mechanical, unloving style. But let there be no -mistake. I do not object to organised religious instruction. I think, -in fact, that a vast amount of Sunday-school teaching is utterly -worthless for want of such organization. Our Sunday-school system -will, in fact, be thoroughly inefficient, if not useless, as a system, -till every Sunday-school has its teachers' meeting, presided over by -a competent instructor, who will carefully teach the teachers -themselves in a well-ordered, systematic course. But after all this -has been done, we must still remember that Christianity is something -more than a system of doctrine, or a Divine scheme of philosophy, -which can be worked up like Aristotle's _Ethics_ or Mill's _Logic_. -Christianity is a Divine power, a power which must be sought in faith, -in humiliation, and in prayer; and till the Holy Ghost be duly -honoured, and His presence be humbly sought, the finest system and the -most elaborate organizations will be found devoid of any fruitful life -and vigour. - -II. There are many other points of interest in this passage; let us -take them one by one as they offer themselves. The people, seized by -conviction and in acute pain of conscience, cried out, "What shall we -do?" St. Peter replied, "Repent, and be baptized." Repent is the -Apostle's first rule,--contrasting very strongly with some modern -systems which have been devised on a plan very different from that of -our Lord and of His Apostles. The preaching of the New Testament is -ever the same. John the Baptist came, and his teaching was briefly -summed up thus, "Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." -John was removed, and Christ came. The lamp ceased to shine, and then -the true Light stood revealed; but the teaching was the same, and the -Messiah still proclaims, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at -hand." The system of teaching to which I refer parries the force of -our Lord's example, as well as of the Baptist's words, by saying, that -was the old dispensation. Till Christ died, the new covenant did not -come into force, and therefore Christ taught in His public ministry -merely as a Jew, speaking on Jewish grounds to Jews. But let us see -whether such an explanation, which makes void our Lord's personal -teachings and commands, is tenable. A reference to this passage -sufficiently settles this point. The Master departs and the Spirit is -outpoured, and still the apostolic and inspired teaching is just the -same. The cry of the multitude, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" -produces, from the illuminated Apostle, the same response, "Repent," -coupled with a new requirement, "Be baptized, every one of you, for -the remission of sins." And the same message has ever since continued -to be the basis of all real spiritual work. Simon Magus is found by -St. Peter with his mind intellectually convinced, but with his -affections untouched and his heart spiritually dead. To Simon Magus -Peter delivers the same message, "Repent of this thy wickedness, and -pray God if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee." -John Wesley was one of the greatest evangelists that ever lived and -worked for God. During the whole sixty years of his continuous -labours, from the time when he taught his pupils in Oxford College and -the prisoners in Oxford jail down to the last sermon that he preached, -his ministry and teaching were modelled upon that of the New -Testament,--it was ever a preaching of repentance. He counted it -utterly useless and hopeless to preach the comforts of the gospel -before he had made men feel and wince beneath the terrors of the law -and the sense of offended justice. Modern times have seen, however, a -strange perversion of the gospel method, and some have taught that -repentance was not to be urged or even mentioned to Christian -congregations. - -This is one of the leading points which the Plymouth Brethren -specially press in the course of their destructive and guerilla-like -assaults upon the communions of reformed Christendom. The apostolic -doctrine of repentance finds no place in their scheme; while again -their teaching on this subject, or something very like it, is often -reproduced, all unconsciously it may be, by the conductors of those -mission services so common throughout the country. It is as hard now -to preserve a just balance in teaching, as it was in the days of St. -Paul and St. James. It is no easy matter so to preach repentance as -not to discourage the truly humble soul; so to proclaim God's -forgiving love as not to encourage presumption and carelessness. - -I have said, indeed, that the doctrine of the Plymouth body on this -point is a modern one. It is modern, indeed, when compared with the -genuine teaching of the New Testament; but still it is, in fact, -ancient, for it dates back to the Antinomians, who, two hundred and -fifty years ago, created a great sensation among the Puritan divines. -A brief historical narrative will prove this. The sermons of Dr. -Tobias Crisp and Fisher's _Marrow of Modern Divinity_ are books whose -very titles are now forgotten, and yet the diligent student will there -find all those ideas about repentance, justification, and assurance -which are now produced as marvellous new truths, though reprobated two -centuries ago as earnestly by Churchmen, like Bull, Beveridge, and -Stillingfleet, as by Howe, and Baxter, and Williams among the -Nonconformists and Puritans. The denial of the necessity for Christian -repentance was based, by the logical Antinomians of the olden time, -upon the theory that Christ bore in His own person the literal sins of -the elect; so that an elect person has nothing whatsoever to do with -his sins save assure himself, by an act of faith, that his sins were -forgiven and rendered completely non-existent eighteen hundred years -ago. The formula which they delight in and I have heard used, even by -Churchmen, is this: "Believe that you are saved, and then you are -saved." The result of this teaching in every age, wherever it has -appeared, is not far to seek. The main stress of all Christian effort -is devoted not to the attainment of likeness to Christ, or that -pursuit of holiness without which the beatific vision of God is -impossible. The great point urged by this party in every age is the -supreme importance of assurance which they identify with saving -faith.[67] Therefore it is that they discourage, aye, and go farther, -utterly reject, all teaching of repentance. The words of one of those -old writers puts the matter in its simplest form. In the reign of -James II. and William III. there arose a great controversy in London -touching this very point. Dr. Williams, the founder of the well-known -library in Grafton Street, London, was the leader on one side, while -the sermons of Tobias Crisp were the rallying-point on the other. -Williams and Baxter maintained the importance of repentance and the -absolute necessity of good works for salvation. On the opposite side, -the views and doctrines which we have seen pressed in modern times -were explicitly stated, but with far more fearlessness and logical -power than are ever now used. Here are a few of the propositions which -Dr. Williams felt himself bound to refute. I shall give them at some -length, that my readers may see how ancient is this heresy. "The elect -are discharged from all their sins by the act of God laying their sins -upon Christ on the cross, and consequently that the elect upon the -death of Christ ceased to be sinners, and ever since sins committed by -them are none of their sins, they are the sins of Christ." Again, the -Antinomians taught, in language often still reproduced, "Men have -nothing to do in order to salvation, nor is sanctification a jot the -way of any person to heaven. Nor can the duties and graces of the -elect, nor even faith itself, do them the least good, or prevent the -least evil; while, on the other hand, the grossest sins which the -elect commit cannot do them the least harm, nor ought they to fear the -least hurt from their own sins." While again, coming still closer to -the point on which we have been insisting, they declared, according to -Dr. Williams, that "the covenant of grace hath no condition to be -performed on man's part, even though in the strength of Christ. -Neither is faith itself the condition of this covenant, but all the -saving benefits of this covenant actually and really belong to the -elect before they are born, yea, and even against their will;" while -as to the nature of faith, they taught "that saving faith is nothing -else but our persuasion or absolute concluding within ourselves that -our sins are pardoned, and that Christ is ours." Hence they derived a -dogma of their own, directly and plainly contradictory of the teaching -of the New Testament on the subject of repentance, "that Christ is -offered to blasphemers, murderers, and the worst of sinners, that -they, remaining ignorant, unconvinced, and resolved in their purpose -to continue such, may be assured they have a full interest in Christ; -and this by only concluding in their own minds that Christ is theirs." -It is plain to any one fully acquainted with modern religious thought, -that all the special doctrines of Plymouthism concerning -justification, repentance, and faith, are involved in the statements -which Dr. Williams set himself to refute, and which he does refute -most ably, in works long since consigned to the oblivion of our great -libraries, though well worthy of careful study amid the troubles of -the present age.[68] Assurance, a present knowledge of a present -salvation, present peace, these are the only topics pressed upon the -unconverted. If the multitude at Jerusalem had asked the same question -from our modern teachers which they asked from the Apostles, "Men and -brethren, what shall we do?" the reply would have been, "Do you know -you are saved? If not, believe that you are saved, believe that Jesus -died for you." But not one of them would have given the apostolic -reply, "Repent, and be baptized, and ye shall receive the gift of the -Holy Ghost," because the doctrine of repentance and the value and use -of the sacrament of baptism find no place in this new-fangled scheme. - - [67] This point has been admirably discussed by Dr. Salmon in his - sermon on "Present Salvation" in his volume of sermons styled _The - Reign of Law_, pp. 295-99. - - [68] This controversy between the Antinomian party and the London - Nonconformists of the orthodox sort is now almost unknown, and yet - it created great excitement in religious circles, conformist and - nonconformist, in the time of William III. Bishop Stillingfleet of - Worcester, the aged Baxter, and many of the leading divines, - joined in it. The echoes of it will be found resounding in the - more modern controversy between John Wesley and Fletcher on the - one side, and Rowland Hill and Lady Huntingdon on the other, about - the year 1770. A brief account of Dr. Daniel Williams will be - found in Schaft's edition of Herzog's _Cyclopaedia_; see also - Calamy's _Life_ i., 323. - -III. "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus -Christ for the remission of your sins." These words form the basis of -a well-known clause in the Nicene Creed, which says, "I acknowledge -one baptism for the remission of sins." They suggest in addition some -very important discussions. The position which baptism occupies in -apostolic teaching is worthy of careful notice. It is pressed upon -the multitude as a present duty, and as the result there were three -thousand persons baptized in that one day. It was just the same with -Cornelius the centurion, and with the Philippian jailer whom St. Paul -converted. Baptism did not then succeed a long course of preparatory -training and instruction, as now is the case in the mission field. -When men in apostolic times received the rudiments of the faith, the -sacrament of baptism was administered, as being the channel or door of -admission into Christ's Church; and then, being once admitted into -God's house, it was firmly believed that the soul's life would grow -and develop at a vastly accelerated rate. A grave question here -suggests itself, whether baptism of converts from paganism is not -often too long delayed? The Apostles evidently regarded the Church as -an hospital where the wounds of the soul were to be healed, as a -Divine school where the ignorance of the soul was to be dissipated, -and therefore at once admitted the converts to the sacrament upon the -profession of their rudimentary faith. The Church soon reversed this -process, and demanded an amount of spiritual knowledge and a -development of spiritual life as the conditions of baptism, which -should have been looked for as the result of admission within her -sacred ranks, forgetful of that great missionary law laid down by the -Master Himself, which places baptism first and teaching afterwards, -"Go ye, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing -them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost: -teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you." -We freely admit that there may have been a quickened spiritual -vitality, a stronger spiritual life, in the case of the earliest -converts, enabling them in the course of a few hours to attain a -spiritual level which demanded a more prolonged effort on the part of -the later disciples. When we come to the times of the later apostolic -age, and inquire from such a book as the lately-discovered _Teaching -of the Twelve Apostles_, what the practice of the Church was then, we -see that experience had taught a more regular, a less hasty course of -action.[69] The law of baptism in the _Didache_, as the _Teaching of -the Twelve Apostles_ is usually called, runs thus: "Now concerning -baptism, thus baptize ye; having first uttered all these things, -baptize into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy -Spirit, in running water. But if thou hast not running water, baptize -in other water; and if thou canst not in cold, then in warm. But if -thou hast neither, pour water upon the head thrice, into the name of -the Father and Son and Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let the -baptizer and the baptized fast, and whatever others can; but the -baptized thou shalt command to fast for one or two days before." - - [69] As some readers may not know what the work called the - _Teaching of the Twelve Apostles_ is, let me explain its history - in a few words. Early Christian writers, from the year A.D. 200, - speak of a work called the _Teaching of the Twelve Apostles_ in - the highest terms. It was evidently, as known by them, a manual - used in the catechetical instruction of the young. This manual was - known to all the early ages, but disappeared from the view of the - Western Church during the middle ages. Nearly twenty years ago it - was discovered in Constantinople by the learned Greek Bishop - Bryennios, and published by him about ten years ago. It is - assigned by some critics to the concluding years of the first - century. A convenient and cheap edition of it will be found in the - second volume of the Apostolic Fathers in Griffith and Farran's - "Ancient and Modern Library." It is called the _Teaching of the - Twelve Apostles_, or else the _Didache_, using a Greek title, - which has the advantage of being shorter. - -From these words it is plain that the immediate baptism of converts -had ceased probably with the first organization of the Church. A -pause was instituted between the first conviction of the truth and the -complete initiation which baptism involved, but not such a period of -delay as the months and even years over which the preparation for -baptism was subsequently spread. This delay of baptism sprang out of a -mistaken view of this Divine sacrament. Men came to look on it as a -charm, whereby not merely admission was obtained to the Divine society -which our Lord had founded, but also as bringing with it a complete -purgation from the sins of a careless life. Men postponed it, -therefore, to the very last, so that all sins might be swept away at -once. The Emperor Constantine was a good example of this mischievous -extreme. He was a man who took a kind of interest in theological -matters. Like our own King James I., he considered it his duty to -settle the religious affairs of his empire, even as his predecessors -had done in the days of paganism. He presided over Church councils, -dictated Church formularies, and exercised the same control in the -Church as in the State, being all the time unbaptized. He was scarce -aught but a pagan too in disposition and temper. He retained pagan -symbols, titles, and observances, and imbrued his hands, Herod-like, -in the blood of his own family. Yet he delayed his baptism to the very -last, under the notion that then there could be thus effected at one -stroke the complete removal of the accumulated sins of a lifetime. - -IV. The comparison of the passage just quoted from the _Teaching of -the Apostles_ with the words of my text suggests other topics. The -Plymouth Brethren, at least in some of their numerous ramifications, -and other sects, have grounded upon the words, "be baptized, every one -of you, in the name of Jesus Christ," a tenet that baptism should not -be conferred in the name of the Trinity, but in that of Jesus alone. -It is indeed admitted that while our Lord commanded the use of the -historic baptismal formula in the concluding words of St. Matthew's -Gospel, the formula itself is never expressly mentioned in the Acts of -the Apostles. Not merely on the day of Pentecost, but on several other -occasions, Christian baptism is described as if the Trinitarian -formula was unknown. In the tenth chapter Cornelius and his household -are described as "baptized in the name of Jesus Christ." In the -nineteenth chapter St. Paul converts a number of the Baptist's -disciples to a fuller and richer faith in Christ. They were at once -"baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus." But a reference to the -newly-discovered _Teaching of the Twelve Apostles_ explains the -difficulty, offering an interesting example of the manner in which -modern discoveries have helped to illustrate and confirm the Acts of -the Apostles. In the _Didache_, as in the Acts, the expression -"baptism in the name of the Lord" is used. The _Didache_ lays down -with respect to the communion, "Let no one eat or drink of your -Eucharist except those baptized into the name of the Lord." Yet this -does not exclude the time-honoured formula of Christendom. The same -apostolic manual lays down the rule, a little before this prohibition -which we have just quoted, "Baptize into the name of the Father and of -the Son and of the Holy Spirit," and then in the tenth chapter -describes baptism thus administered in the threefold name, as baptism -in the name of the Lord; and thus it was doubtless in the case of the -Acts. For the sake of brevity St. Luke speaks of Christian baptism as -baptism in the name of Christ, never dreaming at the same time that -this was exclusive of the divinely appointed formula, as certain -moderns have taught. The Acts of the Apostles, and the _Didache_ prove -their primitive character, and show that they deduce their origin from -the same early epoch, because they both describe Christian baptism as -performed in the name of Christ; and yet this fact does not exclude, -according to either, the use of the threefold Name. It is evident -that, whether in the Acts or in the _Didache_, baptism in the name of -the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost was regarded as baptism especially in -the name of Jesus Christ, because while the Father and the Spirit were -known to the Jews, the one new element introduced was that of the name -of Jesus, whom God had made both Lord and Christ. Baptism in the -Triune Name was emphatically baptism in the name of the Lord. This -passage, when compared with the _Didache_, sheds light on another -point. The mode wherein baptism should be administered has been a -point often discussed. Some have maintained the absolutely binding and -universal character of immersion; others have stood at the opposite -extreme, and upheld the method of sprinkling. The Church of England, -in union with the ancient Church, has laid down no hard-and-fast rule -on the subject. She recognises immersion as the normal idea in a warm -Eastern climate, but she allows pouring (not sprinkling) of water to -be substituted for immersion, which has, as a matter of fact, taken -the place in the Western Church of the more regular and ancient -immersion.[70] The construction of the ancient Churches, with their -baptisteries surrounded with curtains, and the female assistants for -the service of their own sex, amply proves that in the ancient Church, -as to this day in the Eastern Church, baptism was ordinarily -administered by immersion. The Church proved its Eastern origin by the -mode wherein its initial sacrament was at first applied. But it also -showed its power of adaptation to Western nations by allowing the -alternative of pouring water when she dealt with the needs of a colder -climate. Yet from the beginning the Church cannot have made the -validity of her sacraments depend upon the quantity of water that was -used. Take the cases reported in the Acts of the Apostles, or the -rules prescribed in the apostolic manual, the _Didache_. In the latter -it is expressly said that pouring with water shall suffice if a larger -quantity is not at hand. On the day of Pentecost it was clearly -impossible to immerse three thousand persons in the city of Jerusalem. -The Ethiopian eunuch baptized by St. Philip in the wilderness could -not have been immersed. He came to a stream trickling along, scarce -sufficient to lave his feet, or perhaps rather to a well in the -desert; the water was deep down, and reached only, as in the case of -Jacob's well, by a rope or chain. Even if the water could have been -reached, common sense, not to speak of any higher motive, would have -forbidden the pollution of an element so needful for human life. The -baptism of the eunuch must have been by pouring or affusion, as must -also have been the case with the Philippian jailer. The difficulties -of the case are forgotten when people insist that immersion must -necessarily have been the universal rule in ancient times.[71] Men and -women were baptized separately, deaconesses officiating in the case -of the women. When immersion was used the men descended naked, or -almost so, into the baptistery, which was often a building quite -separate and distinct from the church, with elaborate arrangements for -changing garments.[72] The Church, in the days of earliest freedom and -purity, left her children free in those points of minor detail, -refusing to hamper herself or limit her usefulness by a restriction -which would have equally barred entrance to her fold in the burning -deserts or in the ice-bound regions of the frozen north, where baptism -by immersion would have been equally impossible. - - [70] The method of sprinkling is completely unknown to the Church - ancient or modern, and should be absolutely rejected, as tending - to a disuse of the element of water at all. - - [71] The case of Perpetua and Felicitas, and the other famous - martyrs of Carthage in the beginning of the third century, proves - that pouring with water must have sufficed for baptism in a Church - so intensely conservative as the Church of North Africa. - Tertullian in his writings often reproves its members for the - superstitious extremes to which they pushed their conservative - feelings, imitating every ancient Christian custom, rational or - irrational. Felicitas and her friends were baptized in prison, - where they were thrust into a noisome dungeon. How could they have - been immersed in such a place? This case is good evidence for the - practice of the second century as well. - - [72] See the articles on Baptism and Baptistery in Smith and - Cheetham's _Dictionary of Christian Antiquities_, vol. i. - -Again, the extent of the baptismal commission is indicated in this -passage. "Make disciples of all the nations by baptism" are the words -of our Lord. "Be baptized, every one of you, for the promise is to you -and to your children, and to all that are afar off," is St. Peter's -application of this passage. St. Peter's language admits of various -interpretations. Like much of Scripture, the speaker, when uttering -these words, meant probably one thing, while the words themselves mean -something much wider, more catholic and universal. When Peter spake -thus he proclaimed the world-wide character of Christianity, just as -when he quoted the prophet Joel's language he declared the mission of -the Comforter in its most catholic aspect, embracing Gentiles as well -as Jews. "I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh." But St. Peter -never thought of the full scope of his words. He meant, doubtless, -that the promise of pardon, and acceptance, and citizenship in the -heavenly kingdom was to those Jews that were present in Jerusalem, and -to their children, and to all of the Jews of the dispersion scattered -afar off amid the Gentiles. Had Peter thought otherwise, had he -perceived the wider meaning of his words, he would have had no -hesitation about the reception of the Gentiles, and the baptism of -Cornelius would not have demanded a fresh revelation. - -We often, indeed, invest the Apostles and the writers of Holy -Scripture with an intellectual grasp of a supernatural kind, which -prevents us recognising that growth in Divine knowledge which found -place in them, as it found place in the Divine Master Himself. We -silently vote them infallible on every topic, because the Spirit's -presence was abundantly vouchsafed. The inspiration they enjoyed -guided their language, and led them to use words which, while -expressing their own sentiments, admitted a deeper meaning and -embraced a wider scope than the speaker intended. It was just the same -with the Apostles' words as with their conduct in other respects. The -presence and inspiration of the Spirit did not make them sinless, did -not destroy human infirmities. It did not destroy St. Peter's moral -cowardice, or St. Paul's hot temper, or St. Barnabas's family -partiality and nepotism; and neither did that presence illumine at -once St. Peter's natural prejudices and intellectual backwardness, -which led him long to restrain the mercies and lovingkindness of the -Lord to His ancient people, though here on the day of Pentecost we -find him using language which plainly included the Gentiles as well as -the Jews within the covenant of grace. A farther question concerning -the language of St. Peter here arises. Do not his words indicate that -children were fit subjects for baptism? Do they not justify the -practice of infant baptism? I honestly confess that, apart from the -known practice of the Jews, St. Peter's language would not necessarily -mean so much. But then when we take the known practice of the Jews -into consideration; when we remember that St. Peter was speaking to a -congregation composed of Jews of the dispersion, accustomed, in their -own missionary work among the heathen, to baptize children as well as -adults, we must admit that, in the absence of any prohibition to the -contrary, the effect of the words of St. Peter upon his hearers must -have been this; they would have acted when Christians as they had -already done as Jews, and baptized proselytes of every age and -condition on their admission to the Christian fold. (See Lightfoot, -_Hor. Heb._, St. Matt. iii. 6.) - -V. Such was St. Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost. The results of -it in the unity of doctrine and discipline and the community of goods -will come before us in subsequent chapters. One thought stands out -prominent as we survey this second chapter. Here in very deed we find -an ample fulfilment of our Lord's promise to St. Peter which has been -so completely misused and misunderstood, "I will give unto thee the -keys of the kingdom of heaven;" a passage which has been made one of -the scriptural foundations of the monstrous claims of the See of Rome -to an absolute supremacy alike over the Christian Church and over the -individual conscience. In this respect, however, Scripture is its own -best interpreter. Just reflect how it is in this matter. Christ first -of all defines, in the celebrated series of parables related in the -thirteenth of St. Matthew, what the kingdom of heaven is. It is the -kingdom He had come to reveal, the society He was establishing, the -Church and dispensation of which He is the Head and Chief. To St. -Peter he gave the keys, or power of opening the doors, of this -kingdom; and this office St. Peter duly executed. He opened the door -of the kingdom of heaven to the Jews on the day of Pentecost, and to -the Gentiles by the conversion and baptism of Cornelius. St. Peter -himself recognised on one occasion the special Providence which -watched over him in this matter. He points out, in his speech to the -brethren gathered at the first council held at Jerusalem, that "a good -while ago God made choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles -should hear the word of the gospel;" a passage which seems a -reminiscence of the earlier promise of Christ, which Peter must have -so well remembered, and a humble recognition of the glorious -fulfilment which that promise had received at the Divine hand.[73] The -promise was a purely personal one peculiar to St. Peter, as purely -personal as the revelation made to him on the housetop at Joppa, and -as such received a complete fulfilment in the Church's infant days. -But Rome's vaulting ambition would not be content with the fulfilment -which satisfied St. Peter himself, and on this text has been built up -a series of claims which, culminating in the celebrated traffic in -indulgences, precipitated the great revolution involved in the German -Reformation. - - [73] See Dr. John Lightfoot's _Horae Hebraicae_, St. Matt. xvi. 19. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -_THE FIRST MIRACLE._ - - "Now Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of - prayer, being the ninth hour. And a certain man that was lame - from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the - door of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them - that entered into the temple; who seeing Peter and John about to - go into the temple, asked to receive an alms. And Peter, - fastening his eyes upon him, with John, said, Look on us. And he - gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something from them. - But Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but what I have, - that give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, - walk."--ACTS iii. 1-6. - - -The Acts of the Apostles considered as the first history of the Church -may be viewed as typical of all ecclesiastical history. It is in this -respect a microcosm wherein, on a small scale, we see represented the -triumphs and the mistakes, the strength and the weakness, of God's -elect people throughout the ages. Thus in the incident before us, -embracing the whole of the third chapter and the greater portion of -the fourth, we have set forth a victory of the Apostles, their -subsequent persecution, together with the blessing and strength -vouchsafed in and through that persecution. The time of these events -cannot be fixed with any great exactness. They occurred probably -within a few weeks or months of the day of Pentecost. That is the -nearest we can approach to a precise date. There seems indeed to have -been a pause after the excitement and success of Pentecost, and for -this we think that we can see a good reason. The Apostles must have -had plenty to do with the vast multitude gathered upon the day of -Pentecost, striving to lead them into a fuller knowledge of the faith. -We are apt to imagine at first sight that supernatural enlightenment -was vouchsafed to these earliest converts, superseding any necessity -for careful and patient instruction, so that upon their baptism the -whole work was completed. But when we reflect upon other cases in the -New Testament, we can easily see that the three thousand souls -converted by St. Peter's speech must have needed and received a great -deal of teaching. The Church of Corinth was one of St. Paul's own -founding, and upon it he lavished careful attention for a year and a -half; yet we see from his Epistles to the Corinthians how much -guidance was needed by them even in elementary questions of morals, -how rapidly the Church fell into grossest licence when deprived of his -personal ministrations. Theophilus again, to whom the Acts were -addressed by St. Luke, is reminded, in the preface of the Gospel, of -the catechetical instruction in Christian truth which he had -received.[74] Assuredly, then, the small band of the twelve Apostles -and their few male assistants must have had their hands full enough -for many weeks after Pentecost, endeavouring to give their converts -such an insight into the great principles of the faith as would enable -them to carry back to their various distant homes a competent -knowledge of the laws and doctrines of the new dispensation. A few -moments' reflection will show that the newly-baptized had much to -learn about Christ,--the facts of His life, His doctrines, sacraments, -the constitution of His Church, and the position allotted to the -Apostles,--before they could be considered sufficiently rooted and -grounded in the faith. And if this was so with converts from Judaism, -then how much more must such careful instruction after baptism have -been found needful in the case of the Gentiles when the time came for -their admission? Much preparatory work had been done for the Jews by -their Old Testament training. They had not much to learn from the -Apostles in practical morality; they had a right conception of God, -His character, and His service. But as for the Pagans, their whole -intellectual and spiritual life, all their notions and conceptions -about God, and life, and morals, were all hopelessly wrong. The -Apostles and the earliest teachers had then, and missionaries amongst -the heathen have still, to make a clearance of the whole pagan ground, -laying a new foundation, and erecting thereon a new structure, -intellectual, moral, and spiritual. St. Paul recognised the vast -importance of such diligent pastoral work and catechetical training -after baptism when writing his pastoral Epistles, because bitter -experience had taught him their value. At Corinth for more than two -years, and at Ephesus for three years, he had laboured diligently in -building up his converts. And notwithstanding all his exertions, how -quickly the Corinthians fell away into pagan habits of unbridled -licence as soon as he left them! The Acts of the Apostles by this -pause in evangelistic work which we here trace, strikes a note of -warning concerning the future missionary work of the Church, speaking -clearly about the necessity of diligent pastoral care, and -prophesying of the certain relapses into wild excesses which may be -expected to occur among those who have only been just rescued from the -mire of paganism. This is one explanation of the pause in apostolic -work we here seem to perceive. - - [74] The apostolic manual called the _Teaching of the Twelve - Apostles_, to which we have already referred, proves that the - Church of the Apostles' day required catechisms and introductory - formularies just as much as we do. - -Again, the analogy of the faith, the laws of human nature, suggest the -need of a period of restful calm after the Pentecostal excitement, and -previous to any new and successful advance. So it has been in God's -dealing in the past. The excitement connected with the first attempts -made by Moses to rescue his people was followed by the forty years' -exile in Midian, which again led to their triumphant rescue from -bondage. Elijah's victory over Jezebel and her idol priests was -followed by the retreat of forty days to Horeb. The excitement of our -Lord's baptism was succeeded by the forty days' fast in the -wilderness. The human mind cannot be ever on the strain. Excitement -must be followed by repose, or else the course of action adopted will -be hurried, imperfect, transient in its results. The works of God in -nature are never such. As a modern poet has nobly sung:-- - - "One lesson, Nature, let me learn of thee; - One lesson which in every wind is blown; - One lesson of two duties kept at one, - Though the loud world proclaim their enmity;-- - Of toil unsever'd from tranquillity; - Of labour, that in lasting fruit outgrows - Far noisier schemes, accomplished in repose, - Too great for haste, too high for rivalry."[75] - - [75] Sonnet by Matthew Arnold on Rural Work. - -There is great calm and dignity in nature; and there was great calm -and dignity in grace when God was laying the foundations of His -kingdom by the hands of His Apostles. There never was an age which -more needed this lesson of nature and grace alike than this nineteenth -century.[76] The religion of the age has been infected by the Spirit -of the world, and men think that the fortresses of sin and ignorance -will fall, provided there be used a sufficient quantity of noise, of -puffing, and of excitement. I do not wish to find the slightest fault -with energetic action. The Church of Christ has been in the past -perhaps a little too dignified in its methods and operations. It has -hesitated, where St. Paul never would have hesitated, to adapt itself -to changed circumstances, and has ofttimes refused, like a timorous -lawyer, to venture on some new and untried sphere because there was no -precedent. The Reformers and their first followers were an -illustration of this. The utter lack of missionary spirit and effort -among the Reformers is one of the darkest blots upon their history. -How sadly they contrast with the Jesuit Society, which started into -existence at the same period of the world's history. No one is more -keenly alive to the faults and shortcomings of that world-renowned -Society than I am, yet I heartily admire the energy and devotion with -which, from its earliest days, the Society of Jesus flung itself into -missionary work, endeavouring to repair the losses which the Papacy -sustained in Europe by fresh conquests in India, China, and America. -The Reformers were so busy in bitter controversies among themselves, -and so intent upon endeavouring to fathom God's decrees and purposes, -that they forgot the primary duty of the Church to spread the light -and truth which it has received; they were deficient in Christian -energy, and thus brought upon themselves the blight and curse of -spiritual barrenness. Controversy evermore brings with it the -desolation of spiritual leanness. Men cease to really believe in a -religion which they only know upon paper, and only think of as a thing -to be discussed. Living contact with human souls and human wants saves -religion, because it translates it from a mere dead dogma into a -living fact. A man who has come to doubt doctrinal statements which he -has never verified, will be brought back to faith by the irresistible -evidence of sinful lives changed and broken hearts comforted. - - [76] This line of thought has been already touched upon in Lect. - IV., pp. 61-3. - -The Church of England has again and again manifested this spirit. In -Ireland she refused to give the nation the Liturgy and the Bible in -the Irish tongue. In Wales she hesitated in condescending to vulgar -wants, and long refused to bestow a native episcopate upon the Celts -of England, because the evil tradition of centuries, down from the age -of the Norman conquest, had ordained that no Welshman should be a -bishop. But still, while I am opposed to the Church binding itself in -fetters of that kind, I am equally of opinion that there is a middle -course between dignified idleness and extravagant carnal -sensationalism. I have heard efforts advocated for home missionary -work which, I am sure, would never have met with the approbation of -the first missionaries of the Cross. The Church must be energetic, but -the Church need not adopt the methods of quack medicine-sellers, or of -the strolling circus. Such methods were not unknown in the primitive -ages of the Church. - -The preachers of the stoic philosophy strove in the second century to -counteract the efforts of the Christian Church by reforming paganism, -and by preaching it vigorously. They adopted every means to attract -the public attention and interest--eccentricity, vulgarity, -coarseness; and yet they failed, and were defeated by a society which -trusted, not in human devices and carnal forces, but in the -supernatural power of God the Holy Ghost.[77] The Montanists again, -towards the close of the second century, fell into the same error. The -Montanists are in many respects one of the most interesting of the -early Christian sects. They tried to retain the customs and the spirit -of apostolic Christianity, but they mistook the true methods of -action. They confounded physical excitement with spiritual fervour, -and strove by weird dances and strange cries, borrowed from the pagans -of the Phrygian mountains, to bind to themselves the sweet influences -of the Heavenly Comforter. The Church of that period diligently -avoided the error of pagan stoics and of Christian schismatics. As it -was in the second century, so was it just after Pentecost. The Church -followed close upon its Master's footsteps, of whom it was said, "He -shall not strive nor cry, neither shall any man hear His voice in the -streets," and developed in quietness and retirement the spiritual life -of the thousands who had crowded into the door of faith which Peter -had opened. - - [77] This episode in the history of paganism in the second century - is very little known. It has been well depicted in an interesting - little book, _The Age of the Antonines_, by the Rev. W. W. Capes, - M.A., which only costs a couple of shillings. Chap. VIII. should - specially be consulted. - -Again there is a lesson in this period of pause and seclusion, not -merely for the Church in its corporate capacity, but for individual -souls. The spirit of interior sanctity is nourished most chiefly -during such times of retirement and obscurity. Obscurity has indeed -many advantages when viewed from the standpoint of the spiritual life. -Publicity and high station and multiplicity of affairs bring with them -many disadvantages. They deprive us of that peace and calm which -enable a man to contrast the things of time with those of eternity, -and to value them in their true light. Over-activity, fussiness, even -in the most spiritual matters, is a dire enemy of true heart belief, -and therefore of true strength of spirit. The Master Himself felt it -so. There were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much -as to eat. Then it was He said, "Come ye into the desert, that ye may -rest awhile." The excitement and strain of Pentecost, and all the -subsequent efforts which Pentecost entailed, must have told seriously -upon the Apostles, and so they imitated the Master, that they might -renew their exhausted vigour at its primal fountain. How many a man, -busy in missions, or preaching, or the thousand other forms which -evangelistic and religious work now takes, would be infinitely better -if this apostolic lesson were duly learned. How many a terrible -scandal has arisen simply from a disregard and contempt for it. If men -will think they can labour, as this passage shows the Apostles could -not, without thought and reflection, and interior communion with God; -if they will spend all their strength in external effort and never -make time and secure seasons for spiritual replenishment, they may -create much noise for a time, but their toil will be fruitless, and if -they are saved themselves it will only be as by fire. - -The period of retirement and obscurity came however to an end at last. -The Apostles never intended to form an order purely contemplative. -Such an idea, in fact, never could have entered into the mind of one -of those early Christians. They remembered that their Master had -expressly said, "Ye are the salt of the earth," and salt is useless if -kept stored up in a vessel by itself, and never applied to any object -where its curative properties might have free scope. When the spirit -of Eastern gnosticism, springing from the dualism of Persia, invaded -the Church, and gained a permanent hold within it, then men began to -despise their bodies and life, and all that life entails. Like Eastern -fanatics, they desired to abstract themselves as much as possible from -the things and duties of the present, and they invented, or rather -adopted from the farther East, purely contemplative orders, which -spent useless lives, striving, like their prototypes of India, to rise -superior to the positions which God had assigned them. Such were not -the Apostles. They used rest, contemplation, they did not abuse them; -and when their tone and power was restored, they issued forth again -upon the field of religious activity, and joined in the public worship -of the crowd. "Peter and John went up together into the temple at the -hour of prayer, being the ninth hour." - -The action of Peter and John in thus frequenting the temple worship -gives us a glimpse into the state of feeling and thought which -prevailed then and for a great many years after in the Church of -Jerusalem. The Church of that city naturally clung longest of all to -the old Jewish connection. Eusebius, in his _Ecclesiastical History_ -(iv. 5), tells us that the first fifteen bishops of Jerusalem were -Hebrews, and that all the members of the Church were Hebrews too. It -was only, in fact, upon the final destruction of Jerusalem, which -happened under Hadrian, after the rebellion of Barcochba, A.D. 135, -that the Church of Jerusalem shook itself completely free from the -trammels of Judaism.[78] - - [78] See the article on Barcochba in the _Dict. Christ. Biog._, - vol. i. - -But in those earliest days of the Church the Apostles naturally could -not recognise the course of the Divine development. They cherished the -notion that Judaism and Christianity would be found compatible the one -with the other. They had not yet recognised what St. Stephen first of -all, and then St. Paul, and most chiefly the author of the Hebrews, -came to recognise, that Judaism and Christianity as full-blown systems -were absolutely antagonistic; that the Jewish dispensation was -obsolete, antiquated, and must utterly and for ever fade before a -nobler dispensation that was once for all to take its place. It is -hard for us to realize the feelings of the Apostles at this great -transition epoch, and yet it is well for us to do so, because their -conduct is full of lessons specially suited for seasons of transition. -The Apostles never seem to me more clearly under the direction of the -Divine Spirit than in their whole course of action at this time. They -proceeded in faith, but not in haste. They held firmly to the truths -they had gained, and they waited patiently upon God, till the course -of His providence showed them how to co-ordinate the old system with -the new truths,--until He had taught them what parts of the ancient -covenant should be dropped and what retained. Their conduct has -instruction very suitable for the present age, when God is giving His -Church fresh light on many a question through the investigations of -science. Well, indeed, will it be for Christian people to have their -hearts grounded, as the Apostles' were, in a spirit of Divine love, -knowing personally in whom they have believed; and then, strong in -that inner revelation of God to the spirit, which surpasses in might -and power all other evidences, they may patiently wait the evolution -of His purposes. The prophetic declaration is true for every age, "He -that believeth will not make haste." - -The circumstances of the first apostolic miracle were simple enough. -Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of the -evening sacrifice. They were entering the temple by the gate well -known to all dwellers at Jerusalem as the Beautiful Gate, and there -they met the cripple whom they healed in the name and by the power of -Jesus of Nazareth. The spot where this miracle was performed was -familiar to the Jews of that day, though its precise locality is still -a matter of controversy. Some hold that this Beautiful Gate was one -described by Josephus in his _Wars of the Jews_ (v. 5, 3) as -surpassingly splendid, being composed of Corinthian brass, and called -the Gate of Nicanor. Others think that it was the gate Shushan, which -stood in the neighbourhood of Solomon's Porch; while others identify -it with the gate Chulda, which led into the Court of the Gentiles. It -was most probably the first of these which was situated on the eastern -side of the outermost court of the temple, looking towards the valley -of Kedron.[79] Here was gathered a crowd of beggars, such as then -frequented the temples of the pagans as well as of the Jews, and such -as still throng the approaches of Eastern and many Western churches. -Out of this crowd one man addressed Peter and John, asking an alms. -This man was well known to the regular worshippers in the temple. He -was a cripple, and one long accustomed to haunt the same spot, for he -was above forty years old. Peter replied to his prayer in the -well-known words, "Silver and gold have I none: but what I have, that -give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk;" and then -he performed one of the few miracles ascribed to the direct action of -St. Peter. Here it may be asked, Why was this miracle of healing the -cripple at the temple gate the only one recorded of those earliest -signs and wonders wrought by apostolic hands? The answer seems to be -threefold: this miracle was typical of the Church's future work; it -was the occasion of St. Peter's testimony before the Sanhedrin; and it -led up to the first persecution which the Jewish authorities raised -against the Church. - - [79] See Lightfoot's _Horae Hebraicae_, Acts iii. 2. De Vogue in his - great work on the Temple of Jerusalem, fully gives the traditions - which attached themselves to this gate. In the fourth century it - was celebrated by the Christian poet Prudentius, and in the fifth - or sixth a gate called the Golden Gate was erected on its site. - This gate still remains, and De Vogue in his plates vii. to xii. - gives a series of views of it. - -Viewing the Acts of the Apostles as a type of what all Church history -was to be, and a Divine exposition of the principles which should -guide the Church in times of suffering as well as in times of action, -we can see good and solid reasons for the insertion of this particular -narrative. First, then, this miracle was typical of the Church's work, -for it was a beggar that was healed, and this beggar lay helpless and -hopeless at the very doors of the temple. The beggar typified humanity -at large. He was laid, indeed, in a splendid position,--before him was -extended the magnificent panorama of hills which stood round about -Jerusalem; above him rose the splendours of the building upon which -the Herods had lavished the riches and wonders of their gorgeous -conceptions,--but he was nothing the better for all this material -grandeur till touched by the power which lay in the name of Jesus of -Nazareth. And the beggar of the Beautiful Gate was in all these -respects the fittest object for St. Peter's earliest public miracle, -because he was exactly typical of mankind's state. Humanity, Jew and -Gentile alike, lay at the very gate of God's temple of the universe. -Men could discourse learnedly, too, concerning that sanctuary, and -they could admire its beauteous proportions. Poets, philosophers, and -wise men had treated of the temple of the universe in works which can -never be surpassed, but all the while they lay outside its sacred -precincts. They had no power to stand up and enter in, leaping, and -walking, and praising God. It is very important, in this age of -material civilization and of intellectual advance, that the Church -should insist vigorously upon the great truth taught by this miracle. -The age of the Incarnation must have seemed to the men of that time -the very acme of civilization and of knowledge; and yet the testimony -of all history and of all literature is that just then mankind was in -the most deplorable state of moral and spiritual degradation. The -witness of St. Paul in the first chapter of the Epistle to the Romans -is amply borne out by the testimony, conscious and unconscious, of -pagan antiquity. A writer of the last century, now to a great extent -forgotten, Dr. Leland by name, investigated this point in the fullest -manner in his great work on the necessity of a Divine revelation, -demonstrating that mankind, even when highly civilized, educated, -cultured, lies like a beggar at the door of the temple, till touched -by the hand and power of the Incarnate God. - -This miracle of healing the beggar was typical of the Church's work -again, because it was a beggar who thus received a blessing when the -Church roused itself to the discharge of its great mission. The first -man healed and benefited by St. Peter was a poor man, and the Church's -work has ever led her to deal with the poor, and to interest herself -most keenly in their well-being. This first miracle is typical of -Christian work, because Christianity is essentially the religion of -the masses. At times, indeed, Christian teachers may have seemed to -rank themselves on the side of power and riches alone; but then men -should take good care to distinguish between the inconsistent conduct -of Christian teachers and the essential principles of Christianity. -The founder of Christianity was a carpenter, and its earliest -benediction pronounced the blessedness of those that are poor in -spirit, and ever since the greatest triumphs of Christianity have been -gained amongst the poor. Christian hagiology, Christian legend, and -Christian history alike, have combined to attest this truth. The -Church calendar is decorated with lists of saints, some of them of -very doubtful character, while others of them have stories connected -with their careers full of meaning and rich with lessons for this -generation. Thus, for instance, October 25th is the feast of a martyr, -St. Crispin, from whom the great trade of shoemakers is designated. -"The sons of St. Crispin" is a title going back to the earliest ages -of the Church's love. St. Crispin was a Roman senator, brought up and -nourished amid all that luxury with which pagan Rome surrounded the -children of the highest classes. Crispin became acquainted with the -faith of the followers of the Carpenter of Nazareth amid the dire -persecutions which marked the final struggle between Christianity and -paganism under the Emperor Diocletian during the earliest years of the -fourth century. He was baptized, and feeling that a life of gilded -idleness was inconsistent with his Master's example, he resigned his -place, position, and property, retired into Gaul, and there devoted -himself to the trade of shoemaking, as being one which could be -exercised in great quietness. Manual toil was at that time considered -an occupation fitted only for slaves, for we ought never to forget -that the dignity of labour is no human invention, nor is it part of -the religions of nature. Nay, rather, the dignity of idleness was the -doctrine of Greek and Roman paganism. St. Crispin recognized the great -law of labour taught by Christ and taught by His Apostles, and became -the most successful of shoemakers, preaching at the same time the -gospel with such success that the persecutors selected him as one of -their earliest victims in that district of Gaul where he resided.[80] -It has been just the same in every age. The true power of the Church -has been ever displayed in preaching the gospel to the children of -toil. An interesting example of this may be gathered from an age which -we are apt to think specially dark. In mediaeval times the secular or -parochial clergy became very lax and careless throughout these -islands. The mendicant friars, the followers of St. Francis, came and -settled everywhere in the slums of the great towns, devoting -themselves to the work of preaching to the poor. And they speedily -attained a marvellous power over men. The Franciscans in the -thirteenth century were exactly like the early Methodists in the last -century. Both societies placed their chapels among the abodes of want; -there they laboured, and there they triumphed, because they worked in -the spirit and power indicated by this first recorded miracle of the -beggar healed at the temple gate.[81] It will be a bad day for -religion and for society when the Church ceases to be the Church and -champion of the weak, the down-trodden, the destitute. Here, however, -lies a danger. Its work in this direction must be done in no one-sided -spirit. Christianity must never adopt the language or the tone of the -mere agitator. I fear that some who now pose as specially the -champions of the poor are missing that spirit of mental balance and -fairness which will alone enable them to be Christian champions, -because seeking to do justice unto all men. It is easy enough to -flatter any class, rich or poor; and it is specially tempting to do so -when the class so flattered chances to hold the reins of political -power. It is very hard to render to all their due, shrinking not from -telling the truth, even when unpleasant, and reproving the faults of -those whose side we favour. A Christianity which triumphs through -appeals to popular prejudices, and seeks a mere temporary advantage by -riding on the crest of popular ignorance, is not the religion taught -by Christ and His Apostles. - - [80] The story of St. Crispin is told at length by the Bollandists - in the _Acta Sanctorum_ for October, vol. xi., pp. 495 to 540. St. - Chrysostom in one of his orations paints a vigorous picture of two - imaginary cities, one where all the people were rich, with an - abundance of slaves, and therefore dependent on others for all the - necessaries and conveniences of life; the other city inhabited by - none but poor freemen, where everyone laboured at manual toil and - provided for his wants by his own exertions. He then asks which is - the happier; unhesitatingly giving the palm to the city of - poverty, labour, and freedom. - - [81] The analogy I have drawn between the early Methodists and the - Franciscans will be amply borne out if one will take the trouble, - in any of our large towns, to notice where the Franciscans have - left traces of their existence. The name Francis Street and the - ruins of Franciscan foundations will almost always be found just - outside the original walls, among the slums of the people. This - point is noticed by Mr. Brewer in his interesting introduction to - the _Monumenta Franciscana_, in the Rolls Series. He says, on p. - xvii, "In London, York, Warwick, Oxford, Bristol, Lynn, and - elsewhere, the Franciscan convents stood in the suburbs and - abutted on the city walls. They made choice of the low, swampy, - and undrained spots in the large towns, amongst the poorest and - most neglected quarters." The Franciscans proved that splendid - material structures are not necessary for great spiritual - triumphs. An investigation of the topography of our older towns - would show exactly the same great truth about early Methodist - chapels. They were almost always placed in poor localities, as the - name of Preaching Lane, often still connected with them, shows. - See my _Ireland and the Anglo-Norman Church_, pp. 331-34, for more - on this point. - -But yet, again, the conversion of this beggar was effected through his -healing; and here we see a type of the Church's future work. The -Church, then, as represented by the Apostles, did not despise the -body, or regard efforts after bodily blessing beneath its dignity. -Spiritual work went hand in hand with healing power. This has been a -lesson which Christian people, at home and abroad, have been slow -enough to learn. The whole principle, for instance, of medical -missions is covered by this action on the part of the Apostles. For a -long time the Church thought it was its solitary duty to preach the -gospel by word of mouth, and it has only been in comparatively modern -days that men have learned that one of the most powerful means of -preaching the gospel was the exercise of the healing art; for surely -if the gift of healing, conveyed from God by supernatural means, could -be an effective help towards evangelistic work, the same gift of -healing, conveyed from precisely the same source by natural channels -indeed, but channels none the less truly Divine, can still be -effective to the same great end. The Church should count no human -interest beyond its sway, and should take the keenest interest and -claim a living share in every portion of life's work. At home or -abroad the bodies of men are her care as well as their souls, because -bodies as well as souls have been redeemed by Jesus Christ, and both -alike await their perfection and glorification through Jesus Christ. -Schools, hospitals, sanitary and medical science, the dwellings and -amusements of the people, trade, commerce, all should be the care of -the Church, and should be based on Christ's law, and carried out on -Christian principles. The Incarnation of Christ has given a deeper -meaning than he ever dreamt of to the pagan poet's words,-- - - "Homo sum; humani nihil a me alienum puto." - -We think, furthermore, that this miracle has been divinely recorded -because it was the occasion of St. Peter's testimony both to the -people and to their rulers. Let us strive to realize the circumstances -and the locality. Peter and John, going up to the temple, met this -impotent beggar at the entrance to the Court of the Women, into which -the Beautiful Gate led. Our modern notions about churches confuse all -true conceptions concerning the temple. The vast majority of people, -when they think of the temple, form to themselves an idea of a vast -cathedral, when they ought instead to think of a large college, with -square succeeding square and court following court. As Peter and John -ascended the temple hill they came first to the Court of the Gentiles, -which served as a market, and in which a crowd of mendicants were -assembled to solicit alms. Out of this Court of the Gentiles the -Beautiful Gate led into the Court of the Women, which was reserved for -the ordinary religious offices of the Jewish people.[82] One of the -beggars addressed the Apostles, soliciting a gift; whereupon the -Apostles worked the miracle of healing. Upon this a crowd collected, -attracted by the excited conduct of the man who had received such an -unexpected blessing. They ran together after the manner of all crowds -which assemble so easily and so rapidly in a city, and then, hurrying -into the cloister, called Solomon's Porch, which was a remnant of the -ancient temple, heard the address of St. Peter. It must have been a -spot filled with cherished memories for the Apostle. Every Jew -naturally venerated this cloister, because it was Solomon's; just as -men in the grandest modern cathedral still love to point out the -smallest relic of the original structure out of which the modern -building grew. At San Clemente, in Rome, the priests delight to show -the primitive structure where they say St. Clement ministered about -the year A.D. 100.[83] At York the vergers will indicate far down in -the crypt the fragments of the earliest Saxon church, which once stood -where that splendid cathedral now rears its lofty arches. So, too, the -Jews naturally cherished this link of continuity between the ancient -and the modern temples. But for St. Peter this Solomon's Porch must -have had special memories over and above the patriotic ideas that were -linked with it. He could not forget that the very last feast of the -Dedication which the Master had seen on earth, He walked in this -porch, and there in His conversation with the Jews claimed an equality -with the Father which led them to make an attempt on His life. - - [82] See Lightfoot on the Court of the Women in his _Chorography - of the Holy Land_, chap. xix. in his _Works_, vol. ii., p. 29. The - best modern description will be found in Count de Vogue's _Le - Temple de Jerusalem_, pp. 53-6 (Paris, 1864), with which may be - compared a paper on the site of the Temple by Colonel Warren in - the _Transactions_ of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, vol. - vii., pp. 308-30. - - [83] In the new edition of _Clement of Rome_, by Bishop Lightfoot, - vol. i., pp. 92, 93, there is an account of this ancient church. - -Here, then, it was that within twelve months the Apostle Peter makes a -similar claim on his Master's behalf, in a discourse which extends -from the twelfth to the twenty-sixth verse of the third chapter. That -discourse has two distinct divisions. It sets forth, first the claims, -dignity, and nature of Christ, and then makes a personal appeal to the -men of Jerusalem. St. Peter begins his sermon with an act of profound -self-renunciation. When the Apostle saw the people running together, -he answered and said, "Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why -look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we -made this man to walk?" The same spirit of renunciation appears at an -earlier stage of the miracle. When the beggar solicited an alms, Peter -said, "Silver and gold have I none: but what I have, that give I thee. -In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." One point is at once -manifest when St. Peter's conduct is compared with his Master's under -similar circumstances. St. Peter acts as a delegate and a servant; -Jesus Christ acted as a principal, a master,--the Prince of Life, as -St. Peter calls Him in the fifteenth verse of this third chapter. The -distinction between the miracles of Christ and the miracles of the -Apostles declares the New Testament conception of Christ's dignity and -person. Compare, for instance, the narrative of the healing of the -impotent man at the Pool of Bethesda, told in the fifth chapter of St. -John, with that of the healing of the impotent man laid at the temple -gate. Christ said, "Rise, take up thy bed, and walk." He made no -appeal, He used no prayer, He invoked no higher name. He simply spake -and it was done. The Apostle Peter, the rock-man, the leader of the -apostolic band, takes the greatest care to assure the multitude that -he had himself neither power nor efficacy in this matter, and that -all the power lay in the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Now, -leaving aside for the moment any question of the truth or reality of -these two miracles, is it not manifest from these two parallel cases -that the New Testament writings place Jesus Christ on an exalted -standpoint far above that of any human being whatsoever; in a -position, in fact, which from the boldness and magnificence of its -claims can only be fitly described in the language of the Nicene Creed -as "God of God, Light of Light, Very God of very God." - -St. Peter's words teach another lesson. They are typical of the spirit -which should ever animate the Christian preacher or teacher. They turn -the attention of his hearers wholly away from himself, and exalt -Christ Jesus alone. And such has ever been and ever must be the secret -of successful preaching. Self-consciousness, in fact, injures the -effect of any kind of labour. The man who does not lose himself in his -work, of whatever kind--political, philanthropic, or religious--his -work may be, but is ever thinking of himself and the results of his -actions upon his own prospects, can never become an enthusiast; and it -is only enthusiasm and enthusiastic action which can really affect -mankind. And surely the preacher of Christian truth who thinks of -himself rather than of the great subject of his mission, who only -preaches that he may be thought clever or eloquent, debases the -Christian pulpit, and must be an awful failure in that day when God -shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ. St. Peter here, John -the Baptist in still earlier days, ought to be the models for -Christian teachers. Men came to the Baptist, did him homage, yielded -him respect; but he pointed them from himself to Christ. He was a -lamp, but Christ was the light; and the Baptist's teaching reached -its highest, noblest level when he turned his disciples' gaze away -from himself, saying, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the -sin of the world." Let me, however, not be mistaken. I do not mean to -say that a Christian teacher, whether writer or speaker, should never -allow a single reflex thought as to his own performances to rise in -his mind, should never desire to preach ably or eloquently. A man who -could set up such a standard must be ignorant of human nature and of -Scripture alike. One cannot, for instance, read St. Paul's Second -Epistle to the Corinthians without noting how sorely he was touched by -his own unpopularity amongst them and the successful machinations of -his opponents. Daily experience will prove that no attainments in the -spiritual life will prevent a man from valuing the esteem and -recognition of his fellow men. But such a desire to please and be -successful must be kept in stern control. It must not be the great -object of a Christian. It must never lead him to keep back one jot or -tittle of the counsel of God. The natural desire to please must be -closely watched. It easily leads men to idolatry, to the installation -of human fame, power, influence, gold, in the place of that Eternal -Saviour whose worship ought to be the great end and the true life of -the soul. - -St. Peter, after his act of abnegation and self-humiliation, then -proceeds to set forth the claims and to narrate the history of Jesus -Christ, and in doing so enters into the particulars of His trial and -condemnation, which he charges boldly home upon his listeners, who, as -distinguished from his audience on the day of Pentecost, were most -probably the permanent residents in Jerusalem. The Apostle narrates -the events of our Lord's trial just as we find them in the -Gospels--His interviews with Pilate, the outcry of the people, the -choice and character of Barabbas. He asserts His resurrection, and -implies, without asserting, His ascension, by the words, "Whom the -heavens must receive until the times of the restitution of all -things." The primitive gospel of St. Peter was just like that taught -by St. Paul, as he puts it forward in the fifteenth chapter of First -of Corinthians, "Brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I have -received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the -scriptures: and that He was buried, and that He rose again." The -earliest message, proclaimed by St. Paul or St. Peter, was one and the -same; it was a declaration of certain historical facts, and what it -was then such it must ever remain. Whenever the historical facts are -disbelieved, then men may speak beautifully of the spiritual ideas and -the moral truths symbolised by Christianity, just as Hypatia and the -Neo-Platonists of Alexandria could speak in picturesque language -concerning the deep poetic meaning of the old pagan legends. Poetry -and legends are, however, the veriest husks wherewith to support an -immortal soul under the great trials of life; and when that day comes -for any soul when the great historical facts set forth in the Creed -are rejected, then Christianity may remain in name and appearance, but -it will cease to be the gospel of joy and peace and comfort, for the -human soul can only sustain itself in the supreme moments of sorrow, -separation, and death by the solid realities of fact and truth. - -St. Peter, again, in this sermon leaves us a type of what Christian -sermons should be. He was plain spoken, yet he was tender and -sympathetic. He was plain spoken. He does not hesitate to state the -crimes of the Jews in the most vigorous language. God had glorified -His servant Jesus, but they delivered Him up to the agents of the -idolatrous Romans; they denied Him, desired a murderer to be granted -in place of the Prince of Life; urged His death when even the Roman -judge would have let Him go,--and all this they had done to the -long-expected and long-desired Messiah. Peter is not wanting in -plainness of speech. And the Christian teacher, whether clergyman or -layman, whether a pastor in the pulpit, a teacher in the -Sunday-school, or the editor of a newspaper at his desk, ought to -cultivate and exercise the same Christian boldness and courage. The -true Christian ideal will be attained by following St. Peter's example -on this occasion. He combined boldness and prudence, courage and -gentleness. He spoke the truth in all honesty, but he did not adopt an -attitude or use language which would arouse unnecessary opposition. -What courtesy, what sympathetic, charitable politeness is manifest in -St. Peter's excuse, which he offers in the course of his sermon for -the Jews, rulers and people alike! "And now, brethren, I wot that -through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers." Some men think -that prudence is an idea which should never enter the head of a -messenger of Christ, though no one impressed more frequently the -necessity of that great virtue than did the Master, for He knew how -easily imprudence may undo all the good that faithfulness might -otherwise attain. Wisdom like the serpent's, gentleness like the -dove's, was Christ's own rule for His Apostles. Boldness, and courage, -and honesty, are blessed things, but they should be guided and -moderated by charity. Earthly motives easily insinuate themselves in -every man's heart, and when a man feels urged on to declare some -unpleasant truth, or to raise a violent and determined opposition, he -should search diligently, lest that while he imagines himself -following a heavenly vision and obeying a Divine command, he should be -only yielding to mere human suggestions of pride, or partisanship, or -uncharitableness. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -_THE FIRST PERSECUTION._ - - "And as they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain - of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them, being grieved - that they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the - resurrection from the dead. And they laid hands on them, and put - them in hold unto the next day: for it was now eventide.... And - it came to pass on the morrow, that their rulers, and elders, and - scribes, and Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John, and - Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest, - were gathered together at Jerusalem. And when they had set them - in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye - done this?"--ACTS iv. 1-3, 5-7. - - -The fourth chapter of the Acts brings the Apostles into their first -contact with the Jewish state organisation. It shows us the secret -springs which led to the first persecution, typical of the fiercest -that ever raged against the Church, and displays the calm conviction -and moral strength by which the Apostles were sustained. The -historical and local circumstances narrated by St. Luke bear all the -marks of truth. - -I. The miracle of healing the lame man had taken place in Solomon's -porch or portico, which overlooked the Kedron valley, and was an usual -resort as a promenade or public walk, specially in winter. Thus we -read, in St. John x. 22, 23, that our Lord walked in Solomon's porch, -and it was winter. Solomon's porch looked towards the rising sun, and -was therefore a warm and sunny spot. It was popular with the -inhabitants of Jerusalem for the same reason which led the Cistercians -of the Middle Ages, when building magnificent fabrics like Fountains -Abbey, to place their cloister garths, where exercise was taken, on -the southern side of their churches, that there they might receive and -enjoy the heat and light of our winter sun. - -The crowd which was collected by Peter soon attracted the attention of -the temple authorities, who had a regular police under their control. -The Jews were permitted by the Romans to exercise the most unlimited -freedom within the bounds of the temple to secure its sanctity. In -ordinary cases the Romans reserved to themselves the power of capital -punishment, but in the case of the temple and its profanation they -allowed it to the Sanhedrin. - -An interesting proof of this fact has come to light of late years, -attesting, in a most striking manner, the accuracy of the Acts of the -Apostles. Josephus, in his _Antiquities_ (xv. xi. 5), when describing -the Holy Place, tells us that the royal cloisters of the temple had -three walks, formed by four rows of pillars, with which they were -adorned. The outermost walk was open to all, but the central walk was -cut off by a stone wall, on which were inscriptions forbidding -foreigners--that is, Gentiles--to enter under pain of death. Now in -the twenty-first chapter of the Acts we read that a supposed breach of -this law was the occasion of the riot against St. Paul, wherein he -narrowly escaped death.[84] - - [84] "Moreover he brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath - defiled this holy place. For they had before seen with him in the - city Trophimus the Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had - brought into the temple" (Acts xxi. 28, 29). - -The Jews were actually about to kill St. Paul when the soldiers came -upon them. To this fact, Tertullus the orator, when speaking before -the governor Felix, alludes, and that without rebuke, saying of St. -Paul, "Whom we took, and would have judged according to our law."[85] -Here comes in our illustration of the Acts derived from modern -archaeological research. Some few years ago there was discovered at -Jerusalem, and there is now laid up in the Sultan's Museum at -Constantinople, a sculptured and inscribed stone, containing one of -these very Greek notices upon which the Apostles must have looked, -warning Gentiles not to enter within the sacred bounds, and denouncing -against transgressors the penalty of death which the Jews sought to -inflict upon St. Paul.[86] Now it was just the same about the other -details of the temple worship. Inside the sacred area the Jewish law -was supreme, and Jewish penalties were enacted. In order, therefore, -that the temple might be duly protected the priests watched in three -places, and the Levites in twenty-one places, in addition to all their -other duties connected with the offering of the sacrifices and the -details of public worship. These guards discharged the duties of a -sacred or temple police, and their captain was called the captain of -the temple, or, as he is denominated in the Talmud, "The ruler of the -mountain of the House." - - [85] Acts xxiv. 6. - - [86] I have never seen a notice of this interesting biblical - discovery in any English magazine or journal. There is an account - of it in the _Revue Archeologique_ for 1885, series iii., t. v., - p. 241, by Clermont-Ganneau, its original discoverer. He calls it - an authentic page of the New Testament. - -Much confusion has, indeed, arisen concerning this official. He has -been confounded, for instance, with the captain of the neighbouring -fortress of Antonia. The Romans had erected a strong square castle, -with lofty walls, and towers at the four corners, just north of the -temple, and connected with it by a covered way. One of these flanking -towers was one hundred and five feet high, and overlooked all the -temple area, so that when a riot began the soldiers could hurry to -quell it. The captain of the garrison which held this tower is called, -in our version, the chief captain, or, more properly, the chiliarch, -or colonel of a regiment, as we should put it in modern phraseology. -But this official had nothing whatever to say to questions of Jewish -law or ritual. He was simply responsible for the peace of Jerusalem; -he represented the governor, who lived at Caesarea, and had no concern -with the disputes which might arise amongst the Jews. But it was quite -otherwise with the captain of the temple. He was a Jewish official, -took cognisance of Jewish disputes, and was responsible in matters of -Jewish discipline which Roman law respected and upheld, but in which -it did not interfere. This purely Jewish official, a priest by -profession, appointed by the Jewish authorities, and responsible to -them alone, appears prominently on three distinct occasions. In the -twenty-second of St. Luke's Gospel we have the account of the betrayal -by the traitor Judas. When he was meditating that action he went first -to the chief priests and the captains to consult with them. A Roman -commander, an Italian, a Gaul, or possibly even a Briton,--as he might -have been, for the Romans were accustomed to bring their Western -legionaries into the East, as in turn they garrisoned Britain with the -men of Syria,--would have cared very little whether a Galilean teacher -was arrested or not. But it was quite natural that a Jewish and a -temple official should have been interested in this question. While -again on this occasion, and once more upon the arrest of the Apostles -after the death of Ananias and Sapphira, the captain of the temple -appears as one of the highest Jewish officials.[87] - - [87] See more on this point in Dr. John Lightfoot's _Horae - Hebraicae_, Luke xxii. 4 and Acts iv. - -II. We see too the secret source whence the opposition to apostolic -teaching arose. The priests and the captain of the temple and the -Sadducees came upon them. The captain was roused into action by the -Sadducees, who were mingled in the crowd, and heard the words of the -Apostles proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus Christ, "being grieved -that they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the -resurrection from the dead." It is noteworthy how perpetually the -Sadducees appear as the special antagonists of Christianity during -these earliest years. Our Lord's denunciations of the Pharisees were -so often repeated that we are apt to think of them as the leading -opponents of Christianity during the apostolic age. And yet this is a -mistake. There was an important difference between the Master's -teaching and that of His disciples, which accounts for the changed -character of the opposition. Our Lord's teaching came specially into -conflict with the Pharisees and their mode of thought. He denounced -mere external worship, and asserted the spiritual and inner character -of true religion. That was the great staple of his message. The -Apostles, on the other hand, testified and enforced above everything -else the risen, the glorified, and the continuous existence in the -spirit world of the Man Christ Jesus. And thus they came into conflict -with the central doctrine of Sadduceism which denied a future life. -Hence at Jerusalem, at least, the Sadducees were ever the chief -persecutors of the Apostles, while the Pharisees were favourable to -Christianity, or at least neutral. At the meeting of the Sanhedrin of -which we read in the fifth chapter, Gamaliel, a Pharisee, proposes the -discharge of the imprisoned Apostles. In the twenty-third chapter, -when St. Paul is placed before the same Sanhedrin the Pharisees take -his side, while the Sadducees are his bitter opponents. We never read -of a Sadducee embracing Christianity; while St. Paul, the greatest -champion of the gospel, was gained from the ranks of the Pharisees. -This fact sheds light on the character of the apostolic teaching. It -was not any system of evanescent Christianity; it was not a system of -mere ethical teaching; it was not a system where the facts of Christ's -life were whittled away, where, for instance, His resurrection was -explained as a mere symbolical idea, typifying the resurrection of the -soul from the death of sin to the life of holiness; for in that case -the Sadducees would not have troubled themselves on this occasion to -oppose such teaching. But apostolic Christianity was a system which -based itself on a risen Saviour, and involved, as its fundamental -ideas, the doctrines of a future life and of a spiritual world, and of -a resurrection where body and soul would be again united. - -Some strange representations have been from time to time put forward -as to the nature of apostolic and specially of Pauline Christianity, -but one of the strangest is what we may call the Matthew Arnold -theory, which makes the apostolic teaching a poor, emasculated thing, -devoid of any real foundation of historical fact. If Christianity, as -proclaimed by St. Peter and St. Paul, was of this type, why, we ask, -was it so bitterly opposed by the Sadducees? They at any rate -understood the Apostles to teach and preach a Jesus Christ literally -risen from the dead and ascended in the truth of human nature into -that spiritual and unseen world whose existence they denied. For the -Sadducees were materialists pure and simple. As such they prevailed -among the rich. The poor, then as ever, furnished very few adherents -to a creed which may satisfy persons who are enjoying the good things -of this life. It has very few attractions, however, for those with -whom life is dealing hardly, and to whom the world presents itself in -a stern aspect alone. It is no wonder the new teaching concerning a -risen Messiah should have excited the hatred of the rich Sadducees, -and should have been welcomed by the poorer classes, among whom the -Pharisees had their followers. The system of the Sadducees was a -religion indeed. It satisfied a want, for man can never do without -some kind of a religion. It recognised God and His revelation to -Moses. It asserted, however, that the Mosaic revelation contained -nothing concerning a future life, or the doctrine of immortality. It -was a religion, therefore, without fear of a future, and which could -never indeed excite any enthusiasm, but was very satisfactory and -agreeable for the prosperous few as long as they were in prosperity -and in health. Peter and John came preaching a very disturbing -doctrine to this class of people. If Peter's view of life was right, -theirs was all wrong. It was no wonder that the Sadducees brought upon -them the priests and the captain of the temple, and summoned the -Sanhedrin to deal with them. We should have done the same had we been -in their position. In every age, indeed, the bitterest persecutors of -Christianity have been men like the Sadducees. It has often been said -that persecution on the part of a sceptic or of an unbeliever is -illogical. The Sadducees were unbelievers as regards a future life. -What matter to them was it, then, if the Apostles preached a future -life, and convinced the people of its truth? But logic is always -pushed impetuously aside when it comes in contact with deep-rooted -human feeling, and the Sadducees instinctively felt that the conflict -between themselves and the Apostles was a deadly one; one or other -party must perish. And so it was under the Roman empire. The ruling -classes of the empire were essentially infidel, or, to use a modern -term, we should rather perhaps style them agnostic. They regarded the -Christian teaching as a noxious enthusiasm. They could not understand -why Christians should not offer incense to the deity of the emperor, -or perform any act of idolatry which was commanded by state law, and -regarded their refusal as an act of treason. They had no idea of -conscience, because they were essentially like the Sadducees.[88] So -was it again in the days of the first French Revolution, and so we -find it still. The men who reject all spiritual existence, and hold a -Sadducean creed, fear the power of Christian enthusiasm and Christian -love, and had they only the power would crush it as sternly and -remorselessly as the Sadducees desired to do in apostolic times, or as -the Roman emperors did from the days of Nero to those of Diocletian. - - [88] Pliny in his _Letters_, x., 97, writes to the Emperor Trajan - expressing this view when telling how he dealt with the Christians - of Bithynia: "I asked them whether they were Christians: if they - admitted it, I repeated the question twice, and threatened them - with punishment; if they persisted, I ordered them to be at once - punished: for I was persuaded, whatever the nature of their - opinions might be, a contumacious and inflexible obstinacy - certainly deserved correction." A philosopher could not understand - a man keeping a conscience in opposition to the law. The martyrs - vindicated the freedom of the Christian conscience. - -III. The Apostles were arrested in the evening and put in prison. The -temple had an abundance of chambers and apartments which could be used -as prisons, or, as the Sanhedrin were accustomed to sit in a basilica -erected in the court outside the Beautiful Gate, and inside Solomon's -porch or cloister, there was probably a cell for prisoners connected -with it. The next morning St. Peter and St. John were brought up -before the court which met daily in this basilica, immediately after -the hour of the morning sacrifices. We can realize the scene, for the -persons mentioned as having taken part in the trial are historical -characters. The Sanhedrin sat in a semicircle, with the president in -the centre, while opposite were three benches for the scholars of the -Sanhedrists, who thus practically learned law. The Sanhedrin, when -complete, consisted of seventy-one members, comprising chief priests, -the elders of the people, and the most renowned of the rabbis; but -twenty-three formed a quorum competent to transact business.[89] The -high priest when present, as Annas and Caiaphas both were on this -occasion, naturally exercised great influence, though he was not -necessarily president of the council. The sacred writer has been -accused, indeed, of a historical mistake, both here and in his Gospel -(iii. 2), in making Annas high priest when Caiaphas was actually -occupying that office, Annas, his father-in-law, having been -previously deposed by the Romans. St. Luke seems to me, on the other -hand, thus to prove his strict accuracy. Caiaphas was of course the -legal high priest so far as the Romans were concerned. They recognised -him as such, and delivered to him the high priest's official robes, -when necessary for the fulfilment of his great office, keeping them -safe at other times in the tower of Antonia. But then, as I have -already said, so long as the Roman law and constitutions were observed -on great state occasions, they allowed the Jews a large amount of Home -Rule in the management of their domestic religious concerns, and were -not keen in marking offences, if only the offences were not thrust -into public notice. Annas was recognised by the Sanhedrin and by the -Jews at large as the true high priest, Caiaphas as the legal or -official one; and they kept themselves on the safe side, as far as the -Romans were concerned, by uniting them in their official consultations -in the Sanhedrin. The Sadducees, doubtless, on this occasion made -every effort that their own party should attend the council meeting, -feeling the importance of crushing the rising sect in the very bud. We -read, therefore, that with the high priest came "John, and Alexander, -and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest."[90] The -priestly families were at this period the aristocracy of the Jews, and -they all belonged to the Sadducees, in opposition to the democracy who -favoured the Pharisees. These latter, indeed, had their own -representatives in the Sanhedrin, as we shall see on a later -occasion,--men of light and leading, like Gamaliel; but the permanent -officials of the Jewish senate were for the most part Sadducees, and -we know how easily the permanent officials can pack a popular body, -such as the Sanhedrin was, with their own adherents, when any special -end is to be attained. - - [89] It would take more space than we can now afford to explain - the constitution of the Sanhedrin. There is an admirable and - concise article on the subject in Schaff's edition of Herzog's - _Cyclopaedia_, and another in Kitto's _Biblical Cyclopaedia_. Dr. - John Lightfoot describes it in his _Horae Hebraicae_, which we so - often quote. The most extensive and minute account of it will, - however, be found in Latin in Selden's treatise _De Synedriis_, - illustrated with plates. - - [90] Dr. John Lightfoot, in his _Horae Hebraicae_, chap. iv., verse - 6, identifies John mentioned in this passage with Rabban Jochanan - ben Zaccai, the priest who lived till after the destruction of - Jerusalem, and prophesied of that event forty years before it - occurred. He was, however, a Pharisee, though the vast majority of - the priests were Sadducees. Lightfoot tells the following story of - him from the ancient Jewish books: "Forty years before the - destruction of the city, when the gates of the temple flew open of - their own accord, Rabban Jochanan ben Zaccai said, O Temple, - Temple, why dost thou disturb thyself? I know thy end, that thou - shalt be destroyed, for so the prophet Zechary hath spoken - concerning thee, Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may - devour thy cedar." He lived to be one hundred and twenty years - old. He was permitted by Titus to remove the Sanhedrin to Jabneh - on the destruction of the city, where he presided over it. - -It was before such a hostile audience that the Apostles were now -called to witness, and here they first proved the power of the Divine -words, "When they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall -speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall -speak."[91] St. Peter threw himself upon God, and found that his trust -was not in vain. He was at the moment of need filled with the Holy -Ghost, and enabled to testify with a power which defeated his -determined foes. He had a special promise from the Master, and he -acted upon it. But we must observe that this promise was a special -one, limited to the Apostles and to those in every age placed in -similar circumstances. This promise is no general one. It was given to -the Apostles to free them from care, anxiety, and forethought as to -the matter and form of the addresses which they should deliver when -suddenly called to speak before assemblies like the Sanhedrin. Under -such circumstances they would have no time to prepare speeches -suitable for ears trained in all the arts of oratory as then practised -amongst the ancients, whether Jews or Gentiles. So their Master gave -them an assurance of strength and skill such as none of their -adversaries could equal or resist. "It is not ye that speak, but the -Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you." This promise has been, -however, misunderstood and abused when applied to ordinary -circumstances. It was good for the Apostles, and it is good for -Christian men placed under similar conditions, persecuted for the sake -of their testimony, and deprived of the ordinary means of preparation. -But it is not a promise authorising Christian teachers, clerical or -lay, to dispense with careful thought and industrious study when -communicating the truths of Christianity, or applying the great -principles contained in the Bible to the manifold circumstances of -modern life. Christ certainly told the Apostles not to premeditate -beforehand what they should say. When relying, however, upon the -promises of God, we should carefully seek to ascertain how far they -are limited, and how far they apply to ourselves; else we may be -putting our trust in words upon which we have no right to depend. A -presumptuous trust is next door to an act of rebellion, and has often -led to unbelief. Our Lord said to the Apostles, "Provide neither gold -nor silver nor brass in your purses," because He would provide for -them; but He did not say so to us, and if we go out into life -presumptuously relying upon a passage of Scripture that does not -belong to us, unbelief may overtake us as a strong man armed when we -find ourselves disappointed. And so, too, with this promise of -supernatural guidance which the Apostles enjoyed, and which saints of -every age have proved true when placed in similar circumstances; it is -a special one for them, it does not apply to us. Christian teachers, -whether in the pulpit, or the Sunday school, or the home circle, must -still depend as completely as the Apostles did upon the Holy Ghost as -the source of all successful teaching. But in the case of the Apostles -the inspiration was immediate and direct. In the case of ordinary -Christians like ourselves placed amid all the helps which God's -providence gives, we must use study, thought, meditation, prayer, -experience of life, as channels through which the same inspiration is -conveyed to us. The Society of Friends, when George Fox established -it, testified on behalf of a great truth when it asserted that the -Holy Ghost dwelt still, as in apostolic times, in the whole body of -the Church, and spake still through the experience of Christian -people. Their testimony was a great truth and a much-needed one in the -middle of the seventeenth century, when Churchmen were in danger of -turning religion into a great machine of state police, such as the -Greek Church became under the earlier Christian emperors, and when -Puritans were inclined to smother all religious enthusiasm beneath -their intense zeal for cold, rigid scholastic dogmas and confessions -of faith. The early Friends came proclaiming a Divine power still -present, a Church of God still energised and inspired as of old, and -it was a revelation for many an earnest soul. But they made a great -mistake, and pushed a great truth to a pernicious extreme, when they -taught that this inspiration was inconsistent with forethought and -study on the part of their teachers as to the substance and character -of their public ministrations. The Society of Friends teaches that -men should speak forth to their assemblies just what the Holy Ghost -reveals on the spot, without any effort on their own part, such as -meditation and study involve. They have acted without a promise, and -they have fared accordingly. That Society has been noted for its -philanthropy, for the peaceful, gentle lives of its members; but it -has not been noted for expository power, and its public teachers have -held but a low place among those well-instructed scribes who bring -forth out of God's treasures things new and old.[92] - - [91] St. Matt. x. 19. - - [92] The decay in the numbers of the Society of Friends may be - traced to several causes. The Society has done its work. Its - testimony has borne its appointed fruit, and, like other systems - which have sufficiently acted their part, it is passing away. One - of the most evident causes of its decline is the decay of - preaching consequent upon their notion of immediate inspiration. - The advance of general education has told on their members, who - cannot endure the unprepared and undigested expositions which - satisfied their fathers. The decay in the preaching power of the - Evangelical party in the Church of England may, in many cases, be - traced to much the same source. No Church or society can now hope - to retain the allegiance of its educated members which does not - recognise that the help of the Holy Spirit is vouchsafed through - the ordinary channels of study and meditation. - -Expositors of Scripture, teachers of Divine truth, whether in the -public congregation or in a Sunday-school class, must prepare -themselves by thought, study, and prayer; then, having made the way of -the Lord clear, and removed the hindrances which barred His path, we -may humbly trust that the Holy Ghost will speak by us and through us, -because we honour Him by our self-denial, and cease to offer burnt -sacrifices unto the Lord of that which costs us nothing.[93] - - [93] As a Sunday school teacher for more than thirty years I feel - bound to say that half the teaching in Sunday schools is useless - from want of preparation on the part of teachers. A large - proportion of them never think of opening their Bibles beforehand - and studying the appointed lessons, jotting down a number of - leading questions to assist their memories. The result is, that - after a few questions suggested by the text, the teacher turns to - read a story or indulge in gossip with his pupils. A well-prepared - teacher will never find an hour too long for the work appointed. I - have already said something on pp. 131, 132, above, upon this - subject, which is an extremely important and practical one. - -IV. The address of St. Peter to the Sanhedrin is marked by the same -characteristics as we find in those directed to the people. It is -kindly, for though the Apostles could speak sternly and severely just -as their Master did at times, yet they have left in this special -direction an example to public speakers and public teachers of truth -in every age. They strove first of all to put themselves in sympathy -as much as possible with their audience. They did not despise the art -of the rhetorician which teaches a speaker to begin by conciliating -the good feelings of his audience towards himself. To the people St. -Peter began, "Ye men of Israel;" he recognises their cherished -privileges, as well as their sacred memories,--"Ye are the children of -the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers." To -the bitterly hostile audience of the Sanhedrin, where the Sadducees -largely predominated, Peter's exordium is profoundly respectful and -courteous, "Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel." The -Apostles and the earliest Evangelists did not despise human feelings -or outrage human sentiment when setting out to preach Christ -crucified. We have known men so wrong-headed that they were never -happy unless their efforts to do good or spread their peculiar -opinions eventuated in a riot. When evangelistic work or any kind of -attempt to spread opinions evokes violent opposition, that very -opposition often arises from the injudicious conduct of the -promoters; and then when the opposition is once evoked or a riot -caused, charity departs, passion and violent feelings are aroused, and -all hope of good evaporates for the time. There was profound practical -wisdom in that command of our Lord to His Apostles, "When they -persecute you in this city, flee ye into another," even taking the -matter only from the standpoint of a man anxious to spread his -peculiar sentiments. - -The Apostle's address was kindly, but it was plain-spoken. The -Sanhedrin were sitting as a board of inquisitors. They did not deny -the miracle which had been wrought. We are scarcely fit judges of the -attitude of mind occupied by an Eastern, specially by an Eastern Jew -of those earlier ages, when confronted with a miracle. He did not deny -the facts brought under his notice. He was too well acquainted with -magic and the strange performances of its professors to do so. He -merely inquired as to the sources of the power, whether they were -Divine or diabolical. "By what power or by what name have ye done -this?" was a very natural inquiry in the mouth of an ecclesiastical -body such as the Sanhedrin was. It was disturbed by facts, for which -no explanation such as their philosophy furnished could account. It -was upset in its calculations just as, to this day, the performances -of Indian jugglers or the weird wonders of hypnotism upset the -calculations of the hard, narrow man who has restricted all his -investigations to some one special branch of science, and has so -contracted his horizon that he thinks there is nothing in heaven or in -earth which his philosophy cannot explain. We should mark the -expression, "By what _name_ have ye done this?" for it gives us a -glimpse into Jewish life and practice. The Jews were accustomed in -their incantations to use several kinds of names; sometimes those of -the patriarchs, sometimes the name of Solomon, and sometimes that of -the Eternal Jehovah Himself. Of late years vast quantities of Jewish -and Gnostic manuscripts have come to light in Egypt and Syria -containing various titles and forms used by the Jewish magicians and -the earlier Christian heretics, who were largely imbued with Jewish -notions. It is quite in keeping with what we know of the spirit of the -age from other sources that the Sanhedrin should ask, "By what power -or by what name have ye done this?" While again, when we turn to the -book of the Acts of the Apostles itself we find an illustration of the -council's inquiry in the celebrated case of the seven sons of Sceva, -the Jewish priest at Ephesus, who strove to use for their own magical -purposes the Divine name of Jesus Christ, and suffered for their -temerity. St. Peter's reply to the question of the court proves that -the Christian Church adopted in all its Divine offices, whether in the -working of miracles then or of baptism and of ordination, as still, -the invocation of the Sacred Name, after the Jewish model. The Church -still baptizes and ordains in the name of the Father and of the Son -and of the Holy Ghost. Christ Himself had adopted the formula for -baptism, and the Church has extended it to ordination, pleading thus -before God and man alike the Divine power by which alone St. Peter -healed the cripple and the Church sends forth its ministers to carry -on Christ's work in the world. - -St. Peter's address was, as we have already said, very kindly, but -very bold and plain-spoken in setting forth the power of Christ's -name. He had learnt by his Jewish training the tremendous importance -and solemnity of names. Moses at the bush would know God's name -before he went as His messenger to the captive Israelites. On Sinai -God Himself had placed reverence towards His name as one of the -fundamental truths of religion. Prophet and psalmist had conspired -together to teach St. Peter that holy and reverend was the name of -God, and to impress upon him thus the power and meaning which lies in -Christ's name, and indeed in all names, though names are things we -count so trifling. St. Peter dwells upon this point all through his -addresses. To the people he had said, "His name, through faith in His -name, hath made this man strong." To the rulers it was the same. It -was "by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, this -man doth stand here before you whole." "There is none other name under -heaven whereby we must be saved." The Sanhedrin understand the -importance of this point, and tell the Apostles they must not teach in -this name. St. Peter pointedly refuses, and prays, when come to his -own company, "that wonders may be done through the name of Thy holy -servant Jesus." - -St. Peter realized the sanctity and the power of God's name, whether -revealed in its ancient form of Jehovah or its New Testament form of -Jesus Christ. Well would it be if the same Divine reverence found a -larger place amongst ourselves. Irreverence towards the sacred name is -far too prevalent; and even when men do not use God's name in a -profane way, there is too much lightness in the manner in which even -religious men permit themselves to utter that name which is the -expression to man of supreme holiness,--"God bless us," "Lord help us -and save." How constantly do even pious people garnish their -conversations and their epistles with such phrases or with the -symbols D.V., without any real feeling that they are thereby appealing -to Him who was and is and is to come, the Eternal. The name of God is -still holy as of old, and the name of Jesus is still powerful to calm -and soothe and bless as of old, and Christian people should sanctify -those great names in their conversation with the world.[94] - - [94] The primitive Christians had a profound reverence for the - names of our Saviour, which they delighted to depict in different - ways, some of them so secret as to defy the curiosity of the - pagans. They used the symbol I.H.S., which I have known to arouse - the susceptibilities of suspicious Protestants, though nothing but - a Latin or Western adaptation of the three first letters of the - Greek word [Greek: IESOUS] written in capitals. The fish, again, - was a favourite symbol, because each letter of the Greek word - [Greek: ichtus] stood for a different title of our Lord, - [Greek: Iesous, Christos, Theos, Huios, Soter,] or Jesus, - Christ, God, Son, Saviour. - -St. Peter was bold because he was daily comprehending more and more of -the meaning of Christ's work and mission, was gaining a clearer -insight into the dignity of His person, and was experiencing in -himself the truth of His supernatural promises. How could a man help -being bold, who felt the Spirit's power within, and really held with -intense belief that there was salvation in none other save Christ? -Personal experience of religion alone can impart strength and courage -and boldness to endure, to suffer, and to testify. St. Peter was -exclusive in his views. He would not have suited those easy-going -souls who now think one religion just as good as another, and -consequently do not regard it as of the slightest moment whether a man -be a follower of Christ or of Mahomet. The earliest Christians had -none of this diluted faith. They believed that as there was only one -God, so there was only one Mediator between God and man, and they -realized the tremendous importance of preaching this Mediator. The -Apostles, however, must be cleared from a misconstruction under which -they have at times suffered. St. Peter proclaims Christ to the -Sanhedrin as the only means of salvation. In his address to Cornelius -the centurion of Caesarea, he declares that in every nation he that -feareth God and worketh righteousness is accepted of Him. These -passages and these two declarations appear inconsistent. Their -inconsistency is only superficial, however, as Bishop Burnet has well -explained in his exposition of the Thirty-Nine Articles, a book not -read very much in these times.[95] St. Peter taught exclusive -salvation through Christ. Christ is the only means, the only channel -and way by which God confers salvation. Christ's work is the one -meritorious cause which gains spiritual blessing for man. But then, -while there is salvation only in Christ, many persons may be saved by -Christ who know not of Him consciously, else what shall we say or -think about infants and idiots? It is only by Christ and through -Christ and for His sake that any soul can be saved. He is the only -door of salvation, He is the way as well as the truth and the life. -But then it is not for us to pronounce how far the saving merits of -Christ may be applied and His saving power extend. St. Peter knew and -taught that Jesus Christ was the one Mediator, and that by His name -alone salvation could be obtained. Yet he did not hesitate to declare -as regards Cornelius the centurion, that in every nation he that -feareth God and worketh righteousness is accepted of Him. It ought to -be sufficient for us, as it was for the Apostles, to believe that the -knowledge of Christ is life eternal, while satisfied to leave all -other problems in the hands of Eternal Love. - - [95] See Burnet's exposition of the eighteenth Article in his - commentary on the Thirty-Nine Articles. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -_THE COMMUNITY OF GOODS._ - - "And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and - soul: and not one of them said that aught of the things which he - possessed was his own; but they had all things common. And with - great power gave the apostles their witness of the resurrection - of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all. For neither - was there among them any that lacked: for as many as were - possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices - of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles' - feet: and distribution was made unto each, according as any one - had need."--ACTS iv. 32-5. - - -The community of goods and its results next claim our attention in the -course of this sacred record of primitive Church life. The gift of -tongues and this earliest attempt at Christian communism were the two -special features of apostolic, or perhaps we should rather say of -Jerusalem, Christianity. The gift of tongues we find at one or two -other places, at Caesarea on the first conversion of the Gentiles, at -Ephesus and at Corinth. It then disappeared. The community of goods -was tried at Jerusalem. It lasted there a very short time, and then -faded from the ordinary practice of the Christian Church. The record -of this vain attempt and its manifold results embodies many a lesson -suitable to our modern Christianity. - -I. The book of the Acts of the Apostles in its earliest chapters -relates the story of the triumph of the Cross; it also tells of the -mistakes made by its adherents. The Scriptures prove their Divine -origin, and display the secret inspiration and guidance of their -writers, by their thorough impartiality. If in the Old Testament they -are depicting the history of an Abraham or of a David, they do not, -after the example of human biographies, tell of their virtues and -throw the mantle of obscurity over their vices and crimes. If in the -New Testament they are relating the story of apostolic labours, they -record the bad as well as the good, and hesitate not to tell of the -dissimulation of St. Peter, the hot temper and the bitter disputes of -a Paul and a Barnabas. - -It is a notable circumstance that, in ancient and modern times alike, -men have stumbled at this sacred impartiality. They have mistaken the -nature of inspiration, and have busied themselves to clear the -character of men like David and the holy Apostles, explaining away the -plainest facts,--the lie of Abraham, the adultery of David, the -weaknesses and infirmities of the Apostles. They have forgotten the -principle involved in the declaration, "Elijah was a man of like -passions with ourselves;" and have been so jealous for the honour of -scriptural characters that they have made their history unreal, -worthless as a living example. St. Jerome, to take but one instance, -was a commentator upon Scripture whose expositions are of the greatest -value, specially because he lived and worked amid the scenes where -Scripture history was written, and while yet living tradition could be -used to illustrate the sacred narrative. St. Jerome applied this -deceptive method to the dissimulation of St. Peter at Antioch of which -St. Paul tells us in the Galatians; maintaining, in opposition to St. -Augustine,[96] that St. Peter was not a dissembler at all, and that -the whole scene at Antioch was a piece of pious acting, got up between -the Apostles in order that St. Paul might have the opportunity of -condemning Judaizing practices. This is an illustration of the -tendency to which I am referring. Men will uphold, not merely the -character of the Scriptures, but the characters of the writers of -Scripture. Yet how clearly do the Sacred Writings distinguish between -these things; how clearly they show that God imparted His treasures in -earthen vessels, vessels that were sometimes very earthy indeed, for -while in one place they give us the Psalms of David, with all their -treasures of spiritual joy, hope, penitence, they in another place -give us the very words of the letter written by King David ordering -the murder of Uriah the Hittite. This jealousy, which refuses to admit -the fallibility and weakness of scriptural personages, has been -applied to the doctrine of the community of goods which finds place in -the passage under review. Some expositors will not allow that it was a -mistake at all; they view the Church at Jerusalem as divinely guided -by the Holy Spirit even in matters of temporal policy; they ascribe to -it an infallibility greater and wider than any claimed for the Roman -Pontiff. He claims infallibility in matters pertaining to faith and -morals, when speaking as universal doctor and teacher of the Universal -Church; but those writers invest the Church at Jerusalem with -infallibility on every question, whether spiritual or temporal, sacred -or secular, because the Holy Ghost had been poured out upon the -twelve Apostles on the day of Pentecost. Now it is quite evident that -neither the Church of Jerusalem nor the Apostles themselves were -guided by an inspiration which rendered them infallible upon all -questions. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit which was granted to them -was a gift which left all their faculties in precisely the same state -as they were before the descent of the Spirit. The Apostles could make -moral mistakes, as Peter did at Antioch; they were not infallible in -forecasting the future, as St. Paul proved when at Ephesus he told the -Ephesian elders that he should not again visit their Church,[97] -while, indeed, he spent much time there in after years. The whole -early Church was mistaken on the important questions of the calling of -the Gentiles, the binding nature of the Levitical law, and the time of -Christ's second coming. The Church of Jerusalem, till the conversion -of Cornelius, was completely mistaken as to the true nature of the -Christian dispensation. They regarded it, not as the new and final -revelation which was to supersede all others; they thought of it -merely as a new sect within the bounds of Judaism. - - [96] See an interesting letter from St. Augustine to St. Jerome on - this question in the _Letters_ of St. Augustine (Clark's edition), - vol. i., pp. 30-2. With which compare Bishop Lightfoot on - _Galatians_, p. 128. - - [97] _Cf._ Acts xx. 25; 1 Tim. i. 3, iii. 14, iv. 13; 2 Tim. i. - 18. St. Paul's address to the Ephesian elder was delivered in the - spring of 58 A.D. He twice revisited Ephesus, six years later, in - 64 A.D. See Lewin's _Fasti Sacri_, pp. 314, 334,--a book of - marvellous learning and research, which every critical student of - the Acts should possess, together with the same author's _Life of - St. Paul_. - -It was a similar mistake which led to the community of goods. We can -trace the genesis and upgrowth of the idea. It cannot be denied that -the earliest Christians expected the immediate return of Christ. This -expectation brought with it a very natural paralysis of business life -and activity. We have seen the same result happening again and again. -At Thessalonica St. Paul had to deal with it, as we have already noted -in the second of these lectures. Some of the Thessalonians laboured -under a misunderstanding as to St. Paul's true teaching: they thought -that Jesus Christ was immediately about to appear, and they gave up -work and labour under the pretence of preparing for His second coming. -Then St. Paul comes sharply down upon this false practical deduction -which they had drawn from his teaching, and proclaims the law, "If any -man will not work, neither shall he eat." We have already spoken of -the danger which might attend such a time. Here we behold another -danger which did practically ensue and bring forth evil fruit. The -first Christian Pentecost and the days succeeding it were a period of -strained expectation, a season of intense religious excitement, which -naturally led to the community of goods. There was no apostolic rule -or law laid down in the matter. It seems to have been a course of -action to which the converts spontaneously resorted, as the logical -deduction from two principles which they held; first, their -brotherhood and union in Christ; secondly, the nearness of Christ's -second advent. The time was short. The Master had passed into the -invisible world whence He would shortly reappear. Why should they not -then, as brethren in Christ, have one common purse, and spend the -whole time in waiting and watching for that loved presence? This seems -a natural explanation of the origin of a line of policy which has been -often appealed to in the practical life of modern Europe as an example -for modern Christians; and yet, when we examine it more closely, we -can see that this book of the Acts of the Apostles, while it tells of -their mistake, carries with it the correction of the error into which -these earliest disciples fell.[98] The community of goods was adopted -in no other Church. At Corinth, Ephesus, Rome, we hear nothing of it -in those primitive times. No Christian sect or Church has ever tried -to revive it, save the monastic orders, who adopted it for the special -purpose of completely cutting their members off from any connection -with the world of life and action; and, in later times still, the wild -fanatical Anabaptists at the Reformation period, who thought, like the -Christians of Jerusalem, that the kingdom of God, as they fancied it, -was immediately about to appear.[99] The Church of Jerusalem, as the -apostolic history shows us, reaped the natural results of this false -step. They adopted the principles of communism; they lost hold of that -principle of individual life and exertion which lies at the very root -of all civilisation and all advancement, and they fell, as the natural -result, into the direst poverty. There was no reason in the nature of -its composition why the Jerusalem Church should have been more -poverty-stricken than the Churches of Ephesus, Philippi, or Corinth. -Slaves and very humble folk constituted the staple of these Churches. -At Jerusalem a great company of the priests were obedient to the -faith, and the priests were, as a class, in easy circumstances. Slaves -cannot at Jerusalem have constituted that large element of the Church -which they did in the great Greek and Roman cities, simply because -slavery never reached among the Jews the same development as in the -Gentile world. The Jews, as a nation, were a people among whom there -was a widely diffused comfort, and the earliest Church at Jerusalem -must have fairly represented the nation. There was nothing to make the -mother Church of Christendom that pauper community we find it to have -been all through St. Paul's ministry, save the one initial mistake, -which doubtless the Church authorities found it very hard afterwards -to retrieve; for when men get into the habit of living upon alms it is -very difficult to restore the habits of healthy independence. - - [98] The communism of the early Christians was not a novel notion. - The Essenes, a curious Jewish sect of that time, had long - practised it; see Bishop Lightfoot's essay on the Essenes in his - commentary on Colossians, 3rd ed., p. 416. Josephus, in his - _Antiqq._, XVIII., i., 5, and in his _Wars_, II., viii., 3, - describes the communism of the Essenes in language that would - exactly apply to that of the early Christians. Thus in the latter - place he says: "These men are despisers of riches, and so very - communicative as raises our admiration. Nor is there to be found - any one among them who hath more than another; for it is a law - among them, that those who come to them must let what they have be - common to the whole order; insomuch that among them all there is - no appearance of poverty or excess of riches, but every one's - possessions are intermingled with every other's possessions, and - so there is, as it were, one patrimony among all the brethren." - - [99] The thirty-eighth Article of the Church of England is - directed against the Anabaptist theory. A paralysis of ordinary - life and action was temporarily produced at Jerusalem after the - day of Pentecost. This quickly led to the community of goods, with - its evil results. The paralysis produced at Jerusalem by the - excitement and expectation of those early days was reproduced in - this century at the time when Irvingism and Plymouthism took their - first rise, some sixty years ago. The best illustration of the - practical effects of such one-sided spiritual expectation will be - found in a book forgotten by this generation, _The Letters and - Papers of Lady Powerscourt_, published in 1838. She was eminent in - the religious world of her day, and was intimately mixed up with - the prophetical movement out of which Irvingism and Plymouthism - were developed. The fundamental doctrine of both these sects was - the immediate personal appearance and reign of Christ on earth. - Lady Powerscourt's correspondence shows the results on an ardent - mind of such an idea. She gave up society, separated herself from - the world in a hermit's cottage at Lough Bray in the deepest - recesses of the Wicklow Mountains, and there occupied herself in - writing to her friends exhortations to cease from life's work, - such as the following, which we find on p. 235: "There is much - seemingly to be said for the things of this world being sanctified - to heavenly uses; yet I cannot help feeling more and more assured - every day that a divorce must take place,--that God and the world - cannot be joined,--that it behoves us to make plain that we are - the risen ones by our portion not being in any degree from - hence,--that we are not struggling upwards through mire and dirt, - but we are as let down from heaven. We take our stand in the - kingdom of heaven, looking from above at earth, not from earth at - heaven." When people begin to "look from above at earth," the step - to communism is not a long one. Vast numbers of persons never - recovered themselves from the strain of that time (A. D. 1830), - but remained all their lives in a state of dreamy disappointment. - I have enlarged on this subject in an article on J. N. Darby in - the _Contemporary Review_ for 1885. - -II. This incident is, however, rich in teaching for the Church of -every age, and that in very various directions. It is a significant -warning for the mission field. Missionary Churches should strive after -a healthy independence amongst their members. It is, of course, -absolutely necessary that missionaries should strive to supply -temporal employment to their converts in places and under -circumstances where a profession of Christianity cuts them off at once -from all communication with their old friends and neighbours. The -primitive Church found it necessary to give such temporal relief, and -yet had to guard against its abuse; and we have been far too remiss in -looking for guidance to those early centuries when the whole Church -was necessarily one great missionary organization. The Apostolic -Canons and Constitutions are documents which throw much light on many -questions which now press for solution in the mission field. They -pretend to be the exact words of the Apostles, but are evidently the -work of a later age. They date back in their present shape, at latest, -to the third or fourth centuries, as is evident from the fact that -they contain elaborate rules for the treatment of martyrs and -confessors,--and there were no martyrs after that time,--directing -that every effort should be made to render them comfort, support, and -sympathy. These Constitutions prove that the Church in the third -century was one mighty co-operative institution, and an important -function of the bishop was the direction of that co-operation. The -second chapter of the fourth book of the Apostolic Constitution lays -down, "Do you therefore, O bishops, be solicitous about the -maintenance of orphans, being in nothing wanting to them; exhibiting -to the orphans the care of parents; to the widows the care of -husbands; to the artificer, work; to the stranger, an house; to the -hungry, food; to the thirsty, drink; to the naked, clothing; to the -sick, visitation, to the prisoners, assistance." But these same -Constitutions recognise equally clearly the danger involved in such a -course. The wisdom of the early Church saw and knew how easily alms -promiscuously bestowed sap the roots of independence, and taught -therefore, with equal explicitness, the absolute necessity for -individual exertion, the duty of Christian toil and labour; urging the -example of the Apostles themselves, as in the sixty-third Constitution -of the second book, where they are represented as exhorting, "Let the -young persons of the Church endeavour to minister diligently in all -necessaries; mind your business with all becoming seriousness, that so -you may always have sufficient to support yourselves and those that -are needy, and not burden the Church of God. For we ourselves, besides -our attention to the Word of the Gospel, do not neglect our inferior -employments; for some of us are fishermen, some tent-makers, some -husbandmen, that so we may never be idle." In the modern mission field -there will often be occasions when, as in ancient times, the -profession of Christianity and the submission of the converts to -baptism will involve the loss of all things.[100] And, under such -circumstances, Christian love, such as burned of old in the hearts of -God's people and led them to enact the rules we have now quoted, will -still lead and compel the Church in its organized capacity to lend -temporal assistance to those that are in danger of starvation for -Christ's sake; but no missionary effort can be in a healthy condition -where all, or the greater portion, of the converts are so dependent -upon the funds of the mission that if the funds were withdrawn the -apparent results would vanish into thin air. Such missions are utterly -unlike the missions of the apostolic Church; for the converts of the -apostolic age were made by men who went forth without purse or scrip, -who could not give temporal assistance even had they desired to do so, -and whose great object ever was to develop in their followers a -healthy spirit of Christian manliness and honest independence. - - [100] An interesting illustration of ancient missionary work and - its likeness to modern efforts turned up a few years ago among the - Fayum papyri. It was a document containing the curse pronounced by - a pagan mother upon her son who had turned Christian, solemnly - cutting him off from his kith and kin. It will be found in a - translated shape in the _Transactions_ of the Society of Biblical - Archaeology for 1884, Part I. Modern converts, too, just like the - ancient, have often to suffer the loss of all things for Christ's - sake. - -III. Then, again, this passage teaches a much-needed lesson to the -Church at home about the methods of poor relief and almsgiving. -"Blessed," says the Psalmist, "is he that considereth the poor." He -does not say, "Blessed is he that giveth money to the poor," but, -"Blessed is he that considereth the poor." Well-directed, wise, -prudent almsgiving is a good and beneficial thing, but indiscriminate -almsgiving, almsgiving bestowed without care, thought, and -consideration such as the Psalmist suggests, brings with it far more -evil than it prevents. The Church of Jerusalem very soon had -experience of these evils. Jealousies and quarrels soon sprang up even -where Apostles were ministering and the supernatural gifts of the -Spirit were present,--"There arose a murmuring of the Grecians against -the Hebrews because their widows were neglected in the daily -ministrations;" and it has been ever since the experience of those -called to deal with questions of temporal relief and the distribution -of alms, that no classes are more suspicious and more quarrelsome than -those who are in receipt of such assistance. The chaplains and -managers of almshouses, asylums, charitable funds, and workhouses know -this to their cost, and ofttimes make a bitter acquaintance with that -evil spirit which burst forth even in the mother Church of Jerusalem. -Time necessarily hangs heavy upon the recipients' hands, forethought -and care are removed and cease to engage the mind, and people having -nothing else to do begin to quarrel. But this was not the only evil -which arose: hypocrisy and ostentation, as in the case of Ananias and -Sapphira, deceit, thriftlessness, and idleness showed themselves at -Jerusalem, Thessalonica, and other places, as the Epistles of St. Paul -amply testify. And so it has been in the experience of the modern -Church. I know myself of whole districts where almsgiving has quite -demoralised the poor and eaten the heart out of their religion, so -that they value religious ministrations, not for the sake of the -religion that is taught, but solely for the sake of the temporal -relief that accompanies it. I know of a district where, owing to the -want of organization in religious effort and the shattered and broken -character of Protestant Christianity, the poor people are visited and -relieved by six or seven competing religious communities, so that a -clever person can make a very fair income by a judicious manipulation -of the different visitors. It is evident that such visitations are -doing evil instead of good, and the labour and money expended are -worse than useless. The proper organization of charitable relief is -one of the desirable objects the Church should set before it. The -great point to be aimed at should be not so much the ministration of -direct assistance to the people as the development of the spirit of -self-help. And here comes in the action of the Christian State. The -institution of the Post Office Savings Bank, where the State -guarantees the safety of the depositor's money, seems a direct -exposition and embodiment of the principle which underlay the -community of goods in the apostolic Church. That principle was a -generous, unselfish, Christlike principle. The principle was right, -though the particular shape which the principle took was a mistaken -one. Experience has taught the Church of Christ a wiser course, and -now the system of State-guaranteed Savings Banks enables the Church to -lead the poor committed to her care into wiser courses. Parochial and -congregational Savings Banks ought to be attached to all Christian -organizations, so as to teach the poor the industrial lessons which -they need. We have known a district in a most thriftless -neighbourhood, where immense sums used to be wasted in indiscriminate -almsgiving, and yet where the people, like the woman in the Gospels, -were never one whit the better, but rather grew worse. We have seen -such a district, in the course of a few years, quite regenerated in -temporal matters, simply by the action of what is called a parochial -Penny Savings Bank. Previously to its institution the slightest fall -of snow brought heart-rending appeals for coal funds, blankets, and -food; while a few years of its operation banished coal funds and -pauperism in every shape, simply by teaching the people the magic law -of thrift, and by developing within them the love and the power of -self-respecting and industrious independence. And yet efforts in this -direction will not be destructive of Christian charity. They tend not -to dry up the springs of Christian love. Charity is indeed a blessing -to the giver, and we should never desire to see the opportunity -wanting for its display. Ill indeed would be the world's state if we -had no longer the poor, the sick, the needy with us. Our sinful human -nature requires its unselfish powers to be kept in action, or else it -quickly subsides into a state of unwholesome stagnation. Poor people -need to be taught habits of saving, and this teaching will require -time, and trouble, and expense. The clergy and their congregations may -teach the poor thrift by offering a much higher interest than the Post -Office supplies, while, at the same time, the funds are all deposited -in the State Savings Bank. That higher interest will often demand as -much money as the doles previously bestowed in the shape of mere gifts -of coal and food. But then what a difference in the result! The mere -dole has, for the most part, a demoralising tendency, while the money -spent in the other direction permanently elevates and blesses.[101] - - [101] It is not generally known that the Post Office offers - special facilities for the establishment of such Penny Savings - Banks as I advocate. The Post Office will supply books for - depositors and permit a deposit account to be opened without any - limit. I have seen in my own parish the beneficial working of such - an institution, increasing annually in its results for the last - twenty years. - -IV. But there is a more important lesson still to be derived from this -incident in the apostolic Church. The community of goods failed in -that Church when tried under the most favourable circumstances, -terminating in the permanent degradation of the Christian community at -Jerusalem; just as similar efforts must ever fail, no matter how broad -the field on which they may be tried or how powerful the forces which -may be arrayed on their behalf. Christian legislatures of our own age -may learn a lesson of warning against perilous experiments in a -communistic direction from the disastrous failure in Jerusalem; and -there is a real danger in this respect from the tendency of human -nature to rush to extremes. Protestantism and the Reformation -accentuated the individual and individual independence. The feeling -thus taught in religion reacted on the world of life and action, -developing an intensity of individualism in the political world which -paralysed the efforts which the State alone could make in the various -matters of sanitary education and social reform. In the last -generation Maurice and Kingsley and men of their school raised in -opposition the banner of Christian socialism, because they saw clearly -that men had run too far in the direction of individualism,--so far, -indeed, that they were inclined to forget the great lesson taught by -Christianity, that under the new law we are members one of another, -and that all members belong to one body, and that body is Christ. Men -are so narrow that they can for the most part take only one view at a -time, and so now they are inclined to push Christian socialism to the -same extreme as at Jerusalem, and to forget that there is a great -truth in individualism as there is another great truth in Christian -socialism. Dr. Newman in his valuable but almost forgotten work on -the Prophetical Office of the Church defined the position of the -English Church as being a _Media Via_, a mean between two extremes. -Whatever may be said upon other topics, the office of the Christian -Church is most certainly a _Via Media_, a mean between the two -opposite extremes of socialism and individualism. Much good has been -effected of late years by legislation based upon essentially -socialistic ideas. Reformatory and industrial schools, to take but one -instance, are socialistic in their foundations and in their -tendencies. The whole body of the State undertakes in them -responsibilities and duties which God intended individuals to -discharge, but which individuals persistently neglect, to the injury -of their innocent offspring, and of society at large. Yet even in this -simple experiment we can see the germs of the same evils which sprang -up at Jerusalem. We have seen this tendency appearing in connection -with the Industrial School system, and have known parents who could -educate and train their children in family life encouraged by this -well-intentioned legislation to fling their responsibilities over upon -the State, and neglecting their offspring because they were convinced -that in doing so they were not only saving their own pockets but also -doing better for their children than they themselves could. It is just -the same, and has ever been the same, with all similar legislation. It -requires to be most narrowly watched. Human nature is intensely lazy -and intensely selfish. God has laid down the law of individual effort -and individual responsibility, and while we should strive against the -abuses of that law, we should watch with equal care against the -opposite abuses. Foundling hospitals as they were worked in the last -century, for instance, form an object-lesson of the dangers inherent -in such methods of action. Benevolent persons in the last century -pitied the condition of poor children left as foundlings. There was, -some sixty years ago, an institution in Dublin of this kind, which was -supported by the State. There was a box into which an infant could be -placed at any hour of the day or night; a bell was rung, and by the -action of a turn-stile the infant was received into the institution. -But experience soon taught the same lesson as at Jerusalem. The -Foundling Hospital may have temporarily relieved some deserving cases -and occasionally prevented some very painful scenes, but the broad -results upon society at large were so bad, immorality was so -increased, the sense of parental responsibility was so weakened, that -the State was compelled to terminate its existence at a very large -expense. Socialism when pushed to an extreme must necessarily work out -in bad results, and that because there is one constant and fixed -quantity which the socialist forgets. Human nature changes not; human -nature is corrupt and must remain corrupt until the end, and so long -as the corruption of human nature remains the best-conceived plans of -socialism must necessarily fail. - -Yet the Jerusalem idea of a voluntary community of goods was a noble -one, and sprang from an unselfish root. It was purely voluntary -indeed. There was no compulsion upon any to adopt it. "Not one of them -said that aught that he possessed was his own," is St. Luke's -testimony on the point. "While it remained, did it not remain thine -own? And after it was sold, was it not in thy power?" are St. Peter's -words, clearly testifying that this Christian communism was simply the -result and outcome of loving hearts who, under the influence of an -overmastering emotion, had cast prudence to the winds. The communism -of Jerusalem may have been unwise, but it was the proof of generous -and devout spirits. It was an attempt, too, to realize the conditions -of the new life in the new heaven and the new earth wherein dwelleth -righteousness, while still the old heaven and the old earth remained. -It was an enthusiasm, a high, a holy, and a noble enthusiasm; and -though it failed in some respects, still the enthusiasm begotten of -fervent Christian love succeeded in another direction, for it enabled -the Apostles "with great power to give witness to the resurrection of -the Lord Jesus." The union of these two points in the sacred narrative -has profound spiritual teaching for the Church of Christ. -Unselfishness in worldly things, enthusiasm about the kingdom of -Christ, fervent love to the brethren, are brought into nearest contact -and united in closest bonds with the possession of special spiritual -power over the hearts of the unbelievers. And then, again, the -unselfishness existed amongst the body of the Church, the mass of the -people at large. We are sure that the Apostles were leaders in the -acts of self-denial. No great work is carried out where the natural -and divinely-sent leaders hang back. But it is the love and enthusiasm -of the mass of the people which excite St. Luke's notice, and which he -illustrates by the contrasted cases of Barnabas and Ananias; and he -connects this unselfish enthusiasm of the people with the possession -of great power by the Apostles. Surely we can read a lesson suitable -for the Church of all ages in this collocation. The law of interaction -prevails between clergy and people still as it did between the -Apostles and people of old. The true minister of Christ will -frequently bear before the throne of God those souls with whom the -Holy Ghost has entrusted him, and without such personal intercession -he cannot expect real success in his work. But then, on the other -hand, this passage suggests to us that enthusiasm, fervent faith, -unselfish love on the people's part are the conditions of ministerial -power with human souls. A people filled with Christ's love, and -abounding in enthusiasm, even by a mere natural process produce power -in their leaders, for the hearts of the same leaders beat quicker and -their tongues speak more forcibly because they feel behind them the -immense motive power of hallowed faith and sacred zeal. But we believe -in a still higher blessing. When people are unselfish, brimming over -with generous Christian love, it calls down a supernatural, a Divine -power. The Pentecostal Spirit of love again descends, and in roused -hearts and converted souls and purified and consecrated intellects -rewards with a blessing such as they desire the men and women who long -for the salvation of their brethren, and are willing, like these -apostolic Christians, to sacrifice their dearest and their best for -it. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -_HONESTY AND PRETENCE IN THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH._ - - "And Joseph, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas (which is, - being interpreted, Son of exhortation), a Levite, a man of Cyprus - by race, having a field, sold it, and brought the money, and laid - it at the apostles' feet."--ACTS iv. 36, 37. - - "But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a - possession, and kept back part of the price, his wife also being - privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the - apostles' feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled - thy heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the - price of the land? Whiles it remained, did it not remain thine - own? and after it was sold, was it not in thy power? How is it - that thou hast conceived this thing in thy heart? thou hast not - lied unto men, but unto God. And Ananias hearing these words fell - down and gave up the ghost; and great fear came upon all that - heard it. And the young men arose and wrapped him round, and they - carried him out and buried him."--ACTS v. 1-6. - - -The exact period in the history of the apostolic Church at which we -have now arrived is a most interesting one. We stand at the very first -origin of a new development in Christian life and thought. Let us -observe it well, for the whole future of the Church is bound up with -it. Christianity was at the beginning simply a sect of Judaism. It is -plain that the Apostles at first thus regarded it. They observed -Jewish rites, they joined in the temple and synagogue worship, they -restricted salvation and God's favour to the children of Abraham, and -merely added belief in Jesus of Nazareth as the promised Messiah to -the common Jewish faith. The Spirit of God was indeed speaking through -the Apostles, leading them, as it led St. Peter on the day of -Pentecost, to speak words with a meaning and scope far beyond their -thoughts. They, like the prophets of old, knew not as yet what manner -of things the Spirit which was in them did signify. - - "As little children lisp, and tell of Heaven, - So thoughts beyond their thought to those high bards were given." - -Their speech had a grander and wider application than they themselves -dreamt of; but the power of prejudice and education was far too great -even for the Apostles, and so, though the nobility and profuseness of -God's mercy were revealed and the plenteousness of His grace was -announced by St. Peter himself, yet the glory of the Divine gift was -still unrecognised. Jerusalem, the Temple, the Old Covenant, Israel -after the flesh,--these things as yet bounded and limited the horizon -of Christ's Church. How were the new ideas to gain an entrance? How -was the Church to rise to a sense of the magnificence and universality -of its mission? Joseph, who by the Apostles was surnamed Barnabas, -emerges upon the scene and supplies the answer, proving himself in -very deed a son of consolation, because he became the occasion of -consoling the masses of mankind with that truest comfort, the peace of -God which passes all understanding. Let us see how this came about. - -I. The Christian leaders belonged originally to the extreme party in -Judaism. The Jews were at this time divided into two sections. There -was the Hebrew party on the one hand; extreme Nationalists as we might -call them. They hated everything foreign. They clung to the soil of -Palestine, to its language and to its customs. They trained up their -children in an abhorrence of Greek civilisation, and could see nothing -good in it. This party was very unprogressive, very narrow-minded, -and, therefore, unfit to recognise the developments of God's purposes. -The Galileans were very prominent among them. They lived in a -provincial district, remote from the influences of the great centres -of thought and life, and missed, therefore, the revelations of God's -mind which He is evermore making through the course of His -providential dealings with mankind. The Galileans furnished the -majority of the earliest Christian leaders, and they were not fitted -from their narrowness to grasp the Divine intentions with respect to -Christianity and its mission. What a lesson for every age do we behold -in this intellectual and spiritual defect of the Galileans. They were -conscientious, earnest, devout, spiritually-minded men. Christ loved -them as such, and devoted Himself to their instruction. But they were -one-sided and illiberal. Their very provincialism, which had sheltered -them from Sadduceism and unbelief, had filled them with blind -prejudices, and as the result had rendered them unable to read aright -the mind of God and the development of His purposes. Man, alas! is a -very weak creature, and human nature is very narrow. Piety is no -guarantee for wisdom and breadth, and strong faith in God's dealings -in the past often hinders men from realizing and obeying the Divine -guidance and the evolution of His purposes amid the changed -circumstances of the present. The Galilean leaders were best fitted to -testify with unfaltering zeal to the miracles and resurrection of -Christ. They were not best fitted to lead the Church into the -possession of the Gentiles. - -There was another party among the Jews whom God had trained by the -guidance of His Providence for this purpose. The Acts of the Apostles -casts a strong and comforting light back upon the history of the -Lord's dealings with the Jews ever since the days of the Babylonish -Captivity. We can see in the story told in the Acts the reason why God -permitted the overthrow of Jerusalem by the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, -and the apparent defeat for the time of His own designs towards the -chosen people. The story of the dispersion is a standing example how -wonderfully God evolves good out of seeming ill, making all things -work together for the good of His Church. The dispersion prepared a -section of the Jews, by travel, by foreign civilization, by culture, -and by that breadth of mind and sympathy which is thereby produced, to -be mediators between the Hebrew party with all their narrowness, and -the masses of the Gentile world whom the strict Jews would fain have -shut out from the hope of God's mercy. This liberal and progressive -party is called in the Acts of the Apostles the Hellenists. They were -looked at askance by the more old-fashioned Hebrews. They were Jews, -children of Abraham indeed, of the genuine stock of Israel. As such -they had a true standing-ground within the Jewish fold, and as true -Jews could exercise their influence from within much more effectually -than if they stood without; for it has been well remarked by a shrewd -observer, that every party, religious or political, is much more -powerfully affected by movements springing from within than by attacks -directed from without. An explosive operates with much more -destructive force when acting from within or underneath a -fortification than when brought into play from outside. Such was the -Hellenistic party. No one could deny their true Jewish character, but -they had been liberalized by their heaven-sent contact with foreigners -and foreign lands; and hence it is that we discern in the Hellenistic -party, and specially in Joseph who by the Apostle was surnamed -Barnabas, the beginnings of the glorious ingathering of the Gentiles, -the very first rift in the thick dark cloud of prejudice which as yet -kept back even the Apostles themselves from realizing the great object -of the gospel dispensation. The Hellenists, with their wealth, their -culture, their new ideas, their sense and value of Greek thought, were -the bridge by which the spiritual life, hitherto wrapped in Jewish -swaddling clothes, was to pass over to the masses of the Gentile -world. The community of goods led Joseph Barnabas to dedicate his -substance to the same noble cause of unselfishness. That dedication -led to disputes between Hellenists and Hebrews, and these disputes -occasioned the election of the seven deacons, who, in part, at least, -belonged to the more liberal section. Among these deacons we find St. -Stephen, whose teaching and martyrdom were directly followed by St. -Paul and his conversion, and St. Paul was the Apostle of the Gentiles -and the vindicator of Christian freedom and Christian liberty. St. -Barnabas and his act of self-denial and self-sacrifice in surrendering -his landed estate are thus immediately connected with St. Paul by -direct historic contact, even if they had not been subsequently -associated as joint Apostles and messengers of the Churches in their -first missionary journeys; while again the mistaken policy of -communism is overruled to the world's abiding benefit and blessing. -How wonderful, indeed, are the Lord's doings towards the children of -men! - -II. We have thus suggested one of the main lines of thought which run -through the first half of this book of the Acts. Let us now look a -little more particularly at this Joseph Barnabas who was the occasion -of this great, this new departure. We learn then, upon consulting the -sacred text, that Joseph was a Levite, a man of Cyprus by race; he -belonged, that is, to the class among the Jews whose interests were -bound up with the maintenance of the existing order of things; and yet -he had become a convert to the belief proclaimed by the Apostles. At -the same time, while we give full credit to this Levite for his -action, we must not imagine that either priests or Levites or Jews at -that period fully realized all the consequences of their decisions. We -find that men at every age take steps blindly, without thoroughly -realizing all the results which logically and necessarily flow forth -from them. Men in religious, political, social matters are blind and -cannot see afar off. It is only step by step that the purposes of God -dawn upon them, and Joseph Barnabas, the Levite of Cyprus, was no -exception to this universal rule. He was not only a Levite, but a -native of Cyprus, for Cyprus was then a great stronghold and resort of -the Jewish race. It continued to be a great centre of Jewish influence -for long afterwards. In the next century, for instance, a great Jewish -rebellion burst forth wherever the Jews were strong enough. They rose -in Palestine against the power of the Emperor Hadrian, and under their -leader Barcochba vindicated the ancient reputation of the nation for -desperate and daring courage; while, in sympathy with their brethren -on the mainland, the Jews in Cyprus seized their arms and massacred a -vast multitude of the Greek and Roman settlers, numbering, it is said, -two hundred and forty thousand persons. The concourse of Jews to -Cyprus in the time of the Apostles is easily explained. Augustus Caesar -was a great friend and patron of Herod the Great, and he leased the -celebrated copper mines of the island to that Herod, exacting a -royalty upon their produce, as we learn from Josephus, the well-known -Jewish historian (_Antiqq._, xvi. iv. 5). It was only to be expected, -then, that when a Jewish monarch was leaseholder and manager of the -great mining industry of the island, his Jewish subjects should flock -thither, and it was very natural that amongst the crowds who sought -Cyprus there should be found a minister of the Jewish faith whose -tribal descent as a Levite reminded them of Palestine, and of the City -of God, and of the Temple of Jehovah and of its solemn, stately -worship.[102] This residence of Barnabas in Cyprus accounts for his -landed property which he had the right to sell just as he liked. A -Levite in Palestine could not, according to the law of Moses when -strictly construed, possess any private landed estate save in a -Levitical city. Meyer, a German commentator of great reputation, has -indeed suggested that Jer. xxxii. 7, where Jeremiah is asked to redeem -his cousin's field in the suburbs of Anathoth, proves that a member of -the tribe of Levi could possess landed estate in Palestine. He -therefore concludes that the old explanation that the landed property -of Barnabas was in Cyprus, not in Palestine, could not stand. But the -simple fact is that even the cleverest German expositors are not -familiar with the text of their Bibles, for had Meyer been thus -familiar he would have remembered that Anathoth was a city belonging -to the priests and the tribe of Levi, and that the circumstance of -Jeremiah the priest possessing a right to landed property in Anathoth -was no proof whatsoever that he could hold landed property anywhere -else, and, above all, affords no ground for the conclusion that he -could dispose of it in the absolute style which Barnabas here -displayed.[103] We conclude then that the action of Barnabas on this -occasion dealt with his landed estate in Cyprus, the country where he -was born, where he was well known, and where his memory is even still -cherished on account of the work he there performed in conjunction -with St. Paul. - - [102] Philo was a contemporary of the Apostles. He has left us - many works dealing with this period. He speaks of the Jews of - Cyprus in the account of his embassy to the Emperor Caius - Caligula. See Milman's _History of Jews_, iii., 111, 112, and - Conybeare and Howson's _Life of St. Paul_, chap. v. - - [103] See Lightfoot's _Horae Heb._, Acts iv. 36; _cf._ Josh. xxi. - 18. - -III. Let us see what else we can glean concerning this personage thus -prominent in the early Church, first for his generosity, and then for -his missionary character and success. It is indeed one of the most -fruitful and interesting lines upon which Bible study can be pursued, -thus to trace the scattered features of the less known and less -prominent characters of Scripture, and see wherein God's grace -specially abounded in them. - -The very personal appearance of Barnabas can be recalled by the -careful student of this book.[104] Though it lies a little out of our -way, we shall note the circumstance, as it will help us to form a -more lively image of Barnabas, the Son of Consolation. The two -Apostles, Paul and Barnabas, were on their first missionary tour when -they came to the city of Lystra in Lycaonia. There the multitude, -astonished at the miracle wrought upon the cripple by St. Paul, -attempted to pay divine honours to the two Christian missionaries. -"They called Barnabas Jupiter, and Paul Mercurius, because he was the -chief speaker." It must have been their physical characteristics as -well as the mode of address used by the Apostles which led to these -names; and from the extant records of antiquity we know that Jupiter -was always depicted as a man with a fine commanding presence, while -Mercury, the god of eloquent speech, was a more insignificant figure. -Jupiter, therefore, struck the Lycaonian people as the fittest name -for the taller and more imposing-looking Apostle, while St. Paul, who -was in bodily presence contemptible, was designated by the name of the -active and restless Mercury. His character again shines through every -recorded action of St. Barnabas. He was a thoroughly sympathetic man, -and, like all such characters, he was ever swept along by the -prevailing wave of thought or action, without allowing that supreme -place to the judgment and the natural powers which they should always -hold if the feelings and sympathies are not to land us in positions -involving dire ruin and loss. He was carried away by the enthusiasm -for Christian communism which now seized upon the Jerusalem Church. -He was influenced by the Judaizing movement at Antioch, so that "even -Barnabas was carried away with the Petrine dissimulation." His -sympathies got the better of his judgment in the matter of St. Mark's -conduct in abandoning the ministry to which St. Paul had called him. -His heart was stronger, in fact, than his head. And yet this very -weakness qualified him to be the Son of Consolation. A question has, -indeed, been raised whether he should be called the Son of Consolation -or the Son of Exhortation, but, practically, there is no difference. -His consolations were administered through his exhortations. His -speech and his advice were of a consoling, healing, comforting kind. -There are still such men to be found in the Church. Just as all other -apostolic graces and characteristics are still manifested,--the -eloquence of a Paul, the courage of a Peter, the speculative flights -of a John,--so the sympathetic power of a Barnabas is granted to some. -And a very precious gift it is. There are some good men whose very -tone of voice and bodily attitudes--their heads thrown back and their -arms akimbo, and their aggressive walk--at once provoke opposition. -They are pugnacious Christians, ever on the look out for some topic of -blame and controversy. There are others, like this Barnabas, whose -voices bring consolation, and whose words, even when not the clearest -or the most practical, speak counsels of peace, and come to us -thick-laden with the blessed dews of charity. Their advice is not, -indeed, always the wisest. Their ardent cry is always, Peace, peace. -Such a man on the political stage was the celebrated Lucius Carey, -Lord Falkland, in the days of the great civil war, who, though he -adhered to the Royalist cause, seemed, as the historian tells us, to -have utterly lost all heart once that active hostilities commenced. -Men of this type appear in times of great religious strife. Erasmus, -for instance, at the time of the Reformation, possessed a good deal of -this spirit which is devoted to compromise, and ever inclined to place -the interests of peace and charity above those of truth and principle, -just as Barnabas would have done at Antioch were it not for the -protest of his stronger and sterner friend St. Paul. And yet such men, -with their sympathetic hearts and speech, have their own great use, -infusing a healing, consoling tone into seasons of strife, when others -are only too apt to lose sight of the sweet image of Christian love in -pursuit of what they consider the supreme interests of religious or -political truth. Such a man was Barnabas all his life, and such we -behold him on his first visible entrance upon the stage of Church -history, when his sympathies and his generosity led him to consecrate -his independent property in Cyprus to his brethren's support, and to -bring the money and lay it down at the Apostles' feet. - - [104] The early history of Barnabas is thus described by - Metaphrastes, an ancient Greek writer. Barnabas was born in - Cyprus, of rich parents, who sent him to be trained at Jerusalem - under Gamaliel. There he formed an early friendship with St. Paul. - He was a witness of our Lord's miracles, and was converted by the - healing of the impotent man at Bethesda. He then was the means of - converting his sister Mary and her son Mark, who was the young man - with the pitcher of water whom our Lord commanded His disciples to - follow when He was sending them to prepare the Passover. Mary's - house was the place where the upper room was situated, and - continued to be the meeting-place of the Christians, as we find - from Acts xii. Metaphrastes had formerly a very bad reputation as - regards truthfulness, but modern investigation has shown that his - _Lives_ contain some very ancient documents, going back to the - second century at least. See Bishop Lightfoot's address to the - Carlisle Church Congress in _Expositor_ 1885, vol. i., p. 3; Prof. - Ramsay in _Expositor_ 1889, vol. ix., p. 265 and refs., and Cave's - _Lives of the Primitive Fathers_, p. 35. - -IV. Now for the contrast drawn for us by the inspired pen of St. Luke, -a contrast we find oft repeating itself in Church history. Here we -have the generous sympathetic Son of Consolation on the one side, and -here, too, we have a warning and a type for all time that the tares -must evermore be mingled with the wheat, the false with the true, the -hypocrites with real servants of God, even until the final separation. -The accidental division of the book into chapters hinders casual -readers from noticing that the action of Ananias and his wife is set -by the writer over against that of Barnabas. Barnabas sold his estate -and brought the price, the whole price, and surrendered it as an -offering to the Church. The spirit of enthusiastic giving was abroad, -and had seized upon the community; and Barnabas sympathized with it. -Ananias and Sapphira were carried away too, but their spirits were -meaner. They desired to have all the credit the Church would give them -for acting as generously as Barnabas did, and yet, while getting -credit for unselfish and unstinting liberality, to be able to enjoy in -private somewhat of that which they were believed to have surrendered. -And their calculations were terribly disappointed. They tried to play -the hypocrite's part on most dangerous ground just when the Divine -Spirit of purity, sincerity, and truth had been abundantly poured out, -and when the spirit of deceit and hypocrisy was therefore at once -recognised. It was with the Apostles and their spiritual natures then -as it is with ourselves and our physical natures still. When we are -living in a crowded city we notice not strange scents and ill-odours -and foul gases: our senses are dulled, and our perceptive powers are -rendered obtuse because the whole atmosphere is a tainted one. But -when we dwell in the pure air of the country, and the glorious breezes -from mountain and moor blow round us fresh and free, then we detect at -once, and at a long distance, the slightest ill-odour or the least -trace of offensive gas. The outpoured presence of the Spirit, and the -abounding love which was produced thereby, quickened the perception of -St. Peter. He recognised the hypocrisy, characterized the sin of -Ananias as a lie against the Holy Ghost; and then the Spirit and Giver -of life, seconding and supporting the words of St. Peter, withdrew His -support from the human frame of the sinner, and Ananias ceased to -live, just as Sapphira, his partner in deceit, ceased to live a few -hours later. The death of Ananias and Sapphira have been ofttimes the -subject of much criticism and objection, on the part of persons who -do not realize the awfulness of their position, the full depths of -their hypocrisy, and the importance of the lesson taught by their -punishment to the Church of every age. Their position was a specially -awful one, for they were brought into closest contact, as no Christian -can now be brought, with the powers of the world to come. The Spirit -was vouchsafed during those earliest days of the Church in a manner -and style which we hear nothing of during the later years of the -Apostles. He proved His presence by physical manifestations, as when -the whole house was shaken where the Apostles were assembled; a -phenomenon of which we read nothing in the latter portion of the Acts. -By the gift of tongues, by miracles of healing, by abounding spiritual -life and discernment, by physical manifestations, the most careless -and thoughtless in the Christian community were compelled to feel that -a supernatural power was present in their midst and specially resting -upon the Apostles. Yet it was into such an atmosphere that the spirit -of hypocrisy and of covetousness, the two vices to which Christianity -was specially opposed, and which the great Master had specially -denounced, obtruded itself as Satan gained entrance into Eden, to -defile with their foul presence the chosen dwelling-place of the Holy -Ghost. The Holy Ghost vindicated His authority therefore, because, as -it must be observed, it was not St. Peter sentenced Ananias to death. -No one may have been more surprised than St. Peter himself at the -consequences which followed his stern rebuke. St. Peter merely -declared his sin, "Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God;" and -then it is expressly said, "Ananias hearing these words fell down, and -gave up the ghost." It was a stern action indeed; but then all God's -judgments have a stern side. Ananias and Sapphira were cut off in -their sins, but men are every day summoned into eternity in precisely -the same state and the same way, and the only difference is that in -the case of Ananias we see the sin which provoked the punishment and -then we see the punishment immediately following. Men object to this -narrative simply because they have a one-sided conception of -Christianity such as this period of the world's history delights in. -They would make it a religion of pure unmitigated love; they would -eliminate from it every trace of sternness, and would thus leave it a -poor weak flabby thing, without backbone or earnestness, and utterly -unlike all other dispensations of the Lord, which have their stern -sides and aspects as well as their loving. - -It may well have been that this incident was inserted in this typical -Church history to correct a false idea which would otherwise have -grown up. The Jews were quite well accustomed to regard the Almighty -as a God of judgment as well as a God of love. Perhaps we might even -say that they viewed Him more in the former light than in the latter. -Our Lord was obliged, in fact, to direct some of His most searching -discourses to rebuke this very tendency. The Galileans, whose blood -Pilate mingled with their sacrifices, the men upon whom the tower of -Siloam fell,--neither party were sinners above all that were at -Jerusalem, or were punished as such. Such was his teaching in -opposition to the popular idea. The Apostles were once quite ready to -ascribe the infirmity of the man born blind to the direct judgment of -the Almighty upon himself or upon his parents. But men are apt to rush -from one extreme to another. The Apostles and their followers were -now realizing their freedom in the Spirit; and some were inclined to -run into licentiousness as the result of that same freedom. They were -realizing, too, their relationship to God as one of pure filial love, -and they were in great danger of forgetting that God was a God of -justice and judgment as well, till this stern dispensation recalled -them to a sense of the fact that eternal love is also eternal purity -and eternal truth, and will by no means clear the guilty. This is a -lesson very necessary for every age of the Church. Men are always -inclined, and never, perhaps, so much as at the present time, to look -away from the severe side of religion, or even to deny that religion -can have a severe side at all. This tendency in religious matters is -indeed simply an exhibition of the spirit of the age. It is a time of -great material prosperity and comfort, when pain is regarded as the -greatest possible evil, softness, ease, and enjoyment the greatest -possible good. Men shrink from the infliction of pain even upon the -greatest criminals; and this spirit infects their religion, which they -would fain turn into a mere matter of weakly sentiment. Against such a -notion the judicial action of the Holy Ghost in this case raises an -eternal protest, warning the Church against one-sided and partial -views of truth, and bidding her never to lower her standard at the -world's call. Men may ignore the fact that God has His severe aspect -and His stern dispensations in nature, but yet the fact remains. And -as it is in nature so is it in grace: God is merciful and loving to -the penitent, but towards the hypocritical and covetous He is a stern -judge, as the punishment of Ananias and Sapphira proved. - -V. This seems one of the great permanent lessons for the Church of -every age which this passage embodies, but it is not the only one. -There are many others, and they most important. An eminent modern -commentator and expositor[105] has drawn out at great length, and with -many modern applications and illustrations, four great lessons which -may be derived from this transaction. We shall just note them, giving -a brief analysis of each. (1) There is such a thing as acting as well -as telling a falsehood. Ananias did not say that the money he brought -was the whole price of his land; he simply allowed men to draw this -conclusion for themselves, suggesting merely by his conduct that he -was doing exactly the same as Barnabas. There was no science of -casuistry in the apostolic Church, teaching how near to the borders of -a lie a man may go without actually being guilty of lying. The lie of -Ananias was a spiritual act, a piece of deception attempted in the -abyss of the human soul, and perpetrated, or attempted rather, upon -the Holy Spirit. How often men lie after the same example. They do not -speak a lie, but they act a lie, throwing dust into the eyes of others -as to their real motives and objects, as Ananias did here. He sold his -estate, brought the money to the Apostles, and would fain have got the -character of a man of extraordinary liberality and unselfishness, just -like others who truly sacrificed their all, while he enjoyed in -private the portion which he had kept back. Ananias wished to make the -best of both worlds, and failed in his object. He sought to obtain a -great reputation among men, but had no regard to the secret eye and -judgment of the Almighty. Alas! how many of our actions, how much of -our piety and of our almsgiving, is tainted by precisely the same -vice. Our good works are done with a view to man's approbation, and -not as in the sight of the Eternal God. - - [105] C. J. Vaughan, D.D., _The Church of the First Days_, pp. - 105-12. - -(2) What an illustration we find in this passage of the saying of the -Apostle, "The love of money is the root of all evil; which while some -coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves -with many sorrows!" The other scriptures are full of warnings against -this vice of covetousness; and so this typical history does not leave -the Church without an illustration of its power and danger. Surely if -at a time when the supernatural forces of the unseen life were -specially manifested, this vice intruded into the special sphere of -their influence, the Church of every age should be on its perpetual -guard against this spirit of covetousness which the Bible -characterises as idolatry. - -(3) What a responsibility is involved in being brought near to God as -members of His Son's Church below! There were hypocrites in abundance -at Jerusalem at that time, but they had not been blessed as Ananias -had been, and therefore were not punished as he. There is a reality in -our connection with Christ which must tell upon us, if not for good, -then inevitably for evil. Christ is either the savour of life unto -life or else the savour of death unto death unto all brought into -contact with Him. In a far more awful sense than for the Jews the -words of the prophet Ezekiel are true, "That which cometh into your -mind shall not be at all, that ye say, We will be as the heathen, as -the families of the countries, to serve wood and stone;"[106] or as -the poet of the _Christian Year_ has well put it in his hymn for the -eighteenth Sunday after Trinity:-- - - "Fain would our lawless hearts escape, - And with the heathen be, - To worship every monstrous shape - In fancied darkness free. - - Vain thought, that shall not be at all, - Refuse we or obey; - Our ears have heard th' Almighty's call, - We cannot be as they. - - We cannot hope the heathen's doom - To whom God's Son is given, - Whose eyes have seen beyond the tomb, - Who have the key of Heaven." - - [106] Ezek. xx. 32. - -(4) Lastly, let us learn from this history how to cast out the fear of -one another by the greater and more awful fear of God. The fear of man -is a good thing in a degree. We should have respect to the opinion of -our fellows, and strive to win it in a legitimate way. But Ananias and -his consort desired the good opinion of the Christian community -regardless of the approval or the watchful eye of the Supreme Judge, -who interposed to teach His people by an awful example that in the new -dispensation of Love, as well as in the old dispensation of Law, the -fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and that they and they -alone have a good understanding who order their lives according to -that fear, whether in their secret thoughts or in their public -actions. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -_GAMALIEL AND HIS PRUDENT ADVICE._ - - "And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them - alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will be - overthrown: but if it is of God, ye will not be able to overthrow - them; lest haply ye be found even to be fighting against God. And - to him they agreed: and when they had called the Apostles unto - them, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of - Jesus, and let them go."--ACTS v. 38-40. - - -We have set forth in these verses an incident in the second appearance -before the council of the Apostle Peter and the other Apostles, -conspicuous among whom must have been James the brother of John. It is -almost certain that James the son of Zebedee was at this time very -prominent in the public work of the Church, for we are told in the -opening of the twelfth chapter that when Herod would vex and harass -and specially weaken the Church, it was neither Peter nor John he -first arrested, but he laid hands on James, and placed on him the -honour of being the earliest martyr from amongst the sacred band of -the Apostles. Peter we may, however, be sure was the centre of -Sadducean hate at this period, and one of the most conspicuous members -of the Church. We should at the same time beware of exaggeration, and -strive to estimate the events of these earliest days of the Church, -not as we behold them now, but as they must have then appeared unto -the members of the Sanhedrin. The deaths of Ananias and Sapphira seem -now to us extraordinary and awe-inspiring, and sufficient to strike -terror into the hearts of all unbelievers; but probably the story of -them had never reached the ears of the authorities. Human life was but -little accounted of among the Romans who ruled Palestine. A Roman -master might slay or torture his slaves just as he pleased; and the -Romans, scorning the Jews as a conquered race, would trouble -themselves but little concerning quarrels or deaths among them, so -long as public order and the stated business of society were not -interfered with. The public miracles which St. Peter wrought, these -were the things which brought matters to a crisis, and called afresh -the attention of the Sanhedrin, charged as they were with all -religious authority, as the miracle of healing wrought upon the -impotent man had led to the arrest of the Apostles on a previous -occasion.[107] It is a mistake often made, in studying the history of -the past, to imagine that events which we now see to have been -important and epoch-making must have been so regarded by persons -living at the time when they happened. Men are never worse judges of -the true value of current history than when they are placed in the -midst of it. It is always the on-lookers who see most of the play. Our -minds are so limited, our thoughts are so completely filled up with -the present, that it is not till we have got away from the events, and -can view them in their due proportion and symmetry, surrounded with -all their circumstances, that we can hope to form a just appreciation -of their relative importance. I have often seen a hill of a few -hundred feet in height occupying a far more commanding position in -men's eyes than a really lofty mountain, simply because the one was -near, the other far off. The deaths of Ananias and Sapphira are -recorded therefore at full length, because they bring eternal lessons -of justice, judgment, and truth along with them. The numerous public -miracles wrought by Peter when "multitudes came together from the -cities round about Jerusalem, bringing sick folk and them that were -vexed with unclean spirits, and they were healed every one," seemed to -the Sanhedrin and the religious public of Jerusalem the all-important -topics, though they are passed wholly over in the Scriptures as -matters of no spiritual interest. If it requires a vast exercise of -patience and wisdom to estimate events aright in their mere worldly -aspect, it requires the operation and guidance of the Holy Ghost to -form a sound judgment upon the relative spiritual value of events -falling within the sphere of Church history; and there indeed it is -most true that matters which seem all-important and striking to man -are judged by God as insignificant and unworthy of notice. So -contradictory are ofttimes the ways of God and the opinions of man. - - [107] Acts v. 12-16 states that St. Peter wrought many miracles, - and further that men sought to place their sick in such a position - that even his shadow might fall upon them, thinking that it - brought healing with it. This statement has been spoken of as a - demonstrative proof of legendary growth by Zeller in his work on - the Acts, and is weakly apologised for by Meyer. But the analogy - of hypnotism at the present time, when cures are wrought and - extraordinary influence exercised without corporeal contact, is - quite sufficient to vindicate St. Luke's account from the charge - of legend. If moderns can produce marvellous results without - immediate touch; if, for instance, hypnotised patients when - blindfolded can read a book by means of their stomachs or their - noses (Moll, p. 366, already quoted), or blisters can be raised by - a piece of white paper merely by suggestion, as stated by Moll, - pp. 114-22, surely the statement of St. Luke is no necessary proof - of legend and old wives' fables. See my remarks on p. 100 above. - -The public miracles wrought by St. Peter had this effect,--the only -one noted at length by the sacred writer: they led to the fresh arrest -of Peter and the other Apostles by the High Priest and the sect of the -Sadducees, and to their incarceration in the public prison attached to -the temple. Thence they were delivered by an angel and sent to speak -publicly in the temple, where their adversaries officially assembled; -just as on a later occasion Peter, when imprisoned by himself, was -released by angelic interference. Men looking back upon the history of -the primitive Church, and judging of it as if it were the history of -an ordinary time and age, have objected to the angelic interventions -narrated here and in a few other places in the New Testament. They -object because they do not realize the circumstances of the time. Dr. -Jortin was a shrewd writer of the last century, now too much -neglected. He remarked in one place that, suppose we admit that a -special revelation of the good powers of the heavenly world was made -in Christ, it was natural and fair that a special manifestation of the -powers of evil should have been permitted at the time of Christ's -Incarnation, in order that the triumph of good might be the greater; -and thus he would account for the diabolical possessions which play -such an important part in the New Testament. The principle thus laid -down extends much farther indeed. The great miracle of the -Incarnation, the great manifestation of God in Christ, naturally -brought with it lesser heavenly manifestations in its train. The -Incarnation raises for a believer the whole level of the age when it -occurred, and makes it an exceptional time. The eternal gates were for -a moment lifted up, and angels went in and out for a little; and -therefore we accept without endeavouring to explain the words of the -narrative which tells us that an angel opened the prison doors for the -Apostles, bidding them go and speak in the temple all the words of -this life. And then from the temple, where they were teaching early in -the morning, about daybreak of the day following their arrest, they -are led by the officers before the Sanhedrin which was sitting in the -city. Here let us pause to note the marvellous accuracy of detail in -St. Luke's narrative. The Sanhedrin used to sit in the temple, but a -few years before the period at which we have arrived, four or five at -most, they removed from the temple into the city, a fact which is just -hinted at in the fifth verse of the fourth chapter, where we are told -that the rulers, and elders, and scribes were gathered together in -Jerusalem, that is, in the city, not in the temple; while again in -this passage we read that when the High Priest came and convened the -council and all the senate of the children of Israel, they sent their -officers to bring the prisoners before them. These officers after a -while returned with the information that the Apostles were preaching -in the temple. If the Sanhedrin were meeting in the temple, they would -doubtless have learned this fact as soon as they assembled, especially -as they did not sit till after the morning sacrifice, several hours -after the Apostles appeared in the temple.[108] When brought before -the council the Apostles boldly proclaimed their intention to -disregard all human threats, and persevere in preaching the death and -resurrection of Christ. The majority would then have proceeded to -extreme measures against the Apostles, and in doing so would only -have acted after their usual manner. - - [108] See Dr. John Lightfoot, _Horae Hebraicae_, on the Acts, iv. 5. - _Cf._ his remarks on St. Mark xv. 1, where that learned Hebraist - seems to support this view, though admitting that there is - something to be said on the other side, viz., that the council met - in the temple as of old. - -The greater part of the Sanhedrin were Sadducees, and they, as -Josephus tells us, were men of a bloodthirsty character, ever ready to -proceed to punish in the most cruel manner. The simple fact is this, -the Sadducees were materialists. They looked upon man as a mere -animated machine, and therefore, like the pagans of the same period, -they were utterly regardless of human sufferings or of the value of -human life. We little recognise, reared up as we have been in an -atmosphere saturated with Christian principles, how much of our -merciful spirit, of our tender care for human suffering, of our -reverent respect for human life, is owing to the spiritual ideas of -the New Testament, teaching as it does the awful importance of time, -the sanctity of the body, and the tremendous issues which depend upon -life. Sadducees and pagans knew nothing of these things, because they -knew nothing of the inestimable treasure lodged in every human form. -Life and time would have been very different for mankind had not the -spiritual principles inculcated by Pharisee and by Christian alike -triumphed over the cold stern creed which strove on this occasion to -stifle the religion of the Cross in its very infancy. When the -Sadducees would have adopted extreme measures, the words of one man -restrained them and saved the Apostles, and that one man was Gamaliel, -whose name and career will again come before us. Now let us apply -ourselves to the consideration of his address to the Sanhedrin. -Gamaliel saw that the large public gathering to whom he was speaking -were thoroughly excited and full of cruel purposes. He therefore, like -a true orator, adopts the historical method as the fittest one for -dealing with them. He points out how other pretenders had arisen, -trading on the Messianic expectations which then existed all over -Palestine, and specially in Galilee, and how they had been all -destroyed without any action on the part of the Sanhedrin. He -instances two cases: Judas, who lived in the days of Cyrenius and the -taxing under Augustus Caesar; and Theudas, who some time previous to -that event had arisen, working upon the religious and national hopes -of the Jews, as the persons now accused before them seemed also to be -doing. He points to the fate of the pretenders he had mentioned, and -advises the Sanhedrin to leave the Apostles to the same test of Divine -Providence, confident that if mere impostors, like the others, they -will meet with the same death at the hands of the Romans, without any -interference on their part. - -It is evident that Gamaliel must have had some special reason for -selecting the risings of Theudas and Judas, beyond the fact that they -were rebels against established authority. The closing years of the -kingdom of Herod the Great were times when numberless rebellions took -place. Josephus gives us the names of several leaders who took part in -them, but, as he tells us (_Antiqq._, XVII. x. 4), there were then -"ten thousand other disorders," into the details of which he did not -enter. All these risings had, however, these distinguishing features, -they were all unsuccessful, and they were all quenched in blood. -Gamaliel must have seen some feature common to the Christian movement -and to those headed by Theudas and Judas some thirty years earlier, -leading him to adduce these examples. That common feature was their -Messianic character. They all alike proclaimed new hopes for Israel, -and appealed to the religious expectations which then excited the -people, and still are embodied in works like the book of Enoch, -produced about that period; while all the other attempts were animated -by a mere spirit of plunder or of personal ambition. But here we are -met with a difficulty. The rationalistic commentators of Germany have -urged that St. Luke composed a fancy speech and put it into the mouth -of Gamaliel, and in doing so made a great historic mistake. They -appeal to Josephus as their authority. He states that a Theudas arose -about A.D. 44, some ten years later than this meeting of the -Sanhedrin, and drew a large number of adherents after him, but was -defeated by the Roman governor. On the other hand, the words of -Gamaliel refer to the case of a Theudas who lived half a century -earlier, and preceded Judas the Galilean. To put the matter plainly, -St. Luke is accused of having composed a speech for Gamaliel, and, -when doing so, of having committed a great blunder, representing -Gamaliel as appealing to an incident which did not happen till ten -years later.[109] - - [109] See, for instance, Zeller on the Acts of the Apostles, vol. - i., p. 228 (Norgate and Williams: London, 1875), where he says: - "We must therefore maintain the possibility that our author, after - the fashion of ancient historians, freely invented Gamaliel's - speech; and it is a question how much of it belongs to history at - all, and especially whether Gamaliel delivered the discourse in - favour of the Christian cause;" with which statement the whole - context, pp. 223-32, should be compared. The report of Gamaliel's - speech is due of course to St. Paul, who was doubtless present - during its delivery. - -This circumstance has long attracted the notice of commentators, and -has been explained in different ways. Some maintain that there was an -older Theudas, who headed an abortive Messianic rebellion previous to -the time of Cyrenius and the days of the taxing. This is a very -possible explanation, and the identity of names constitutes no valid -objection. The same names often occur in connection with the same -movements, political or religious. In the third century, for instance, -the Novatian heresy arose at Carthage, and thence was transferred to -Rome. It was headed by two men, Novatus and Novatian, the former a -Carthaginian, the latter a Roman presbyter. What a fine subject for a -mythical theory, were not the facts too indisputably historical! How a -German critic would revel in depicting the impossibility of two men -with names so like holding precisely the same office and supporting -exactly the same views in two cities so widely separated as Rome and -Carthage! Or let us take two modern instances. The Tractarian movement -is not yet quite sixty years old. It has not therefore yet passed out -of the sphere of personal experience. It started in Oxford during the -thirties, and there in Oxford we find at that very period two divines -named William Palmer, both favouring the Tractarian views, both -eminent writers and scholars, but yet tending finally in different -directions, for one William Palmer became a Roman Catholic, while the -other remained a devoted son of the Reformation. Or to come to still -more modern times. There was an Irish movement in 1848 which numbered -amongst its most prominent leaders a William Smith O'Brien, and there -is now an Irish movement of the same character, and it also numbers a -William O'Brien amongst its most prominent leaders. A Parnell leads -the movement for repeal of the Union in 1890. Ninety years earlier, a -Parnell resigned high office sooner than consent to the consummation -of the same legislative union of Great Britain and Ireland. We might -indeed produce parallel cases without number from the range of -history, specially of English history, showing how political and -religious tendencies run in families, and reproduce exactly the same -names, and that at no distant intervals. But the very passage before -us, the speech of Gamaliel and its historical argument, affords a -sufficient instance. Gamaliel adduced the case of Judas the Galilean -as an illustration of an unsuccessful religious movement. Every one -admits that here at least Josephus and the Acts of the Apostles are at -one. Judas the Gaulonite, as Josephus styles him in one place, or the -Galilean as he calls him in another place, was the founder of the sect -of the Zealots, who "have an inviolable attachment to liberty, and say -that God is to be their only ruler and Lord" (Josephus, _Antiqq._, -XVIII., i. 6). Judas was defeated at the time of the taxing under -Cyrenius, and yet more than forty-five years later we find his sons -Simon and James suffering crucifixion under the Romans because they -were following their father's example.[110] - - [110] The family of Gamaliel himself illustrates the principle for - which we are contending, viz., that families have a tendency to - reproduce exactly the same political and religious tendencies. - Gamaliel himself was grandson of the Jewish patriarch Hillel I., - who presided over the Sanhedrin long before the Christian era. - Gamaliel's grandson, Gamaliel II., was president of the Sanhedrin - during the first twenty years of the second century. He was - distinguished by the same liberal principles as characterised his - grandfather. Gamaliel II. was succeeded by his son Simon. So that - the presidency of the Sanhedrin continued in the same family for - nearly two centuries. It is a notable fact, and not without its - bearing on some modern controversies, that the Jewish canon of the - Old Testament was not finally closed till the time of the - presidency of Gamaliel II., that is, about the year 117 A.D. "Up - to this time the members of the Sanhedrin themselves, in whom was - vested the power to fix the canon, disputed the canonicity of - certain portions of the Hebrew Scriptures. Thus the school of - Shammai excluded Ecclesiastes and the Canticles from the text of - Holy Writ, declaring that they proceeded from Solomon's uninspired - wisdom. It was the Sanhedrin at Zabne which decided that these - books are inspired, and that they form part of the canon."--See - Mr. Ginsburg's article on Gamaliel II. in the _Dictionary of - Christian Biography_, vol. ii., p. 607. - -Another explanation has also been offered. It has been suggested that -Theudas was simply another name for one of the many rebels whom -Josephus mentions,--for Simon, for instance, who had been a slave of -Herod the Great, and had upon his death headed a revolt against -authority. Either explanation is quite tenable, as opposed to the view -which represents St. Luke as committing a gross historical error. And -we are the more justified in offering these suggestions when we -reflect upon the numberless instances where modern research has -confirmed, and is every year confirming, the minute accuracy of this -writer, who doubtless derived his information concerning what passed -in the Sanhedrin, on this occasion, from St. Paul, who either as a -member of the council or a favourite pupil of Gamaliel may have been -present listening to the debates, or even sharing in the final -decisions.[111] - - [111] Upon the question of the historical accuracy of the Acts of - the Apostles, the appendix to the late Bishop Lightfoot's - collected essays on _Supernatural Religion_ (London, 1889) should - be consulted. The opening paragraph bears directly upon our point. - "In a former volume M. Renan declared his opinion that the author - of the third Gospel and the Acts was verily and indeed (_bien - reellement_) a disciple of St. Paul.... Such an expression of - opinion, proceeding from a not too conservative critic, is - significant; and this view of the authorship, I cannot doubt, will - be the final verdict of the future, as it has been the unbroken - tradition of the past. But at a time when attacks on the - genuineness of the work have been renewed, it may not be out of - place to call attention to some illustrations of the narrative - which recent discoveries have brought to light. No ancient work - affords so many tests of veracity, for no other has such numerous - points of contact in all directions with contemporary history, - politics, topography, whether Jewish, or Greek, or Roman." - -Let us now turn from the purely historical side of Gamaliel's speech, -and view it from a spiritual standpoint. - -The address of Gamaliel was so favourable to the Apostles that it has -helped to surround his name and memory with much legendary lore. It -was the tradition of the ancient Greek Church from the fifth century -that he was converted to Christianity and baptized, along with his son -Abibus and Nicodemus, by St. Peter and St. John.[112] This story of -Gamaliel's secret adherence to Christianity goes even much farther -back. There is a curious Christian novel or romance, which dates back -to close upon the year 200, called the _Clementine Recognitions_. We -find the same tradition in the sixty-fifth chapter of the first book -of these _Recognitions_.[113] But the sacred narrative itself gives us -no hint of all this, contenting itself with setting forth the prudent -advice which Gamaliel gave to the assembled council. It was wise -advice, and well would it have been for the world if influential -religious and political teachers in all ages had given similar -counsel. Gamaliel was a man of large scholarship, combined with a wide -mind, and he had learned that time is a great solvent, and the -greatest of tests. Beneath its influence the most pretentious -schemes, the most promising of structures, fade away if built upon the -sand of human wisdom, while opposition only tends to consolidate and -develop those that are built upon the foundation of Divine strength -and power. The policy of patience recommended by Gamaliel is a wise -one, either for the Church or for the state, in things spiritual and -things secular alike. And yet it is one from which the natural man -recoils with an instinctive repugnance. It speaks well for the Jewish -Sanhedrin that on this occasion they yielded accord to the advice of -their president. We are glad to recognise this spirit in these men, -where we so often have to find matter for blame. Well would it have -been for the Church and for the credit of Christianity had the spirit -which moved even the Sadducean majority in the Jewish council been -allowed to prevail; and yet how little have the men of tolerant mind -been regarded in moments of temporary triumph such as the Sanhedrin -just then enjoyed. Gamaliel's advice, "Refrain from these men and let -them alone. If the work be of man it will be overthrown; if of God, ye -will not be able to overthrow them," strikes a blow at the policy of -persecution, which is essentially a policy of impatience. The -intolerant man is an impatient man, not willing to imitate the Divine -gentleness and long-suffering, which waits, endures, and bears with -the sins and ignorance of the children of men. And the Church of -Christ, when she became intolerant, as she did as soon as ever -Constantine placed within her reach the sword of human power, forgot -the lesson of the Divine patience, and reaped within herself, in a -shallow religion, in a poorer life, in a restrained intellectual and -spiritual grasp, the due reward of those who had fallen away from an -imitation of the Divine example to a mere human level. It is sad to -see, for instance, in the case of a man so thoroughly spiritual as St. -Augustine was, how easily he fell into this human infirmity, how -quickly he became intolerant when the secular arm was ranged on the -side of his own opinions. The Church in his own boyhood, during the -days of Julian, had to strive against the intolerance of the pagans; -the orthodox, who upheld the Catholic view of the nature of the -Godhead and the scriptural doctrine of the Holy Trinity, had to -struggle against the intolerance of the Arians. Yet as soon as power -was placed in St. Augustine's own hand he thought it right to exercise -compulsion against those who differed from him. - - [112] We learn this from the _Bibliotheca_ of Photius, Cod. 171. - Photius was a very learned Greek patriarch of the ninth century. - He was a diligent student, and made an analysis of every book he - read. These extracts have been gathered into one volume called his - _Bibliotheca_ or _Library_, and can now be consulted in any - collection of the Greek fathers. Photius reports his story about - Gamaliel and Nicodemus from two earlier writers, Chrysippus and - Lucian, presbyters of Jerusalem. - - [113] For an account of the Clementine _Recognitions_ see Dr. - Salmon's Introduction to the N. T., 4th ed., pp. 14-19, 373-75. - Translations, both of the _Recognitions_ and _Homilies_, can be - consulted in Clark's Ante-Nicene Library. - -It was exactly the same in later days. Men may take up commentators of -the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Protestant and Roman Catholic -alike. There they will find many remarks, acute, devout, -heart-searching, but very few of them will be found to have arrived at -the mental fairness and balance involved in those words, "Refrain from -these men, and let them alone." Cornelius a Lapide was a Jesuit -commentator of those times. He wrote many valuable expositions of Holy -Scripture, including one dealing with this book of the Acts, filled -with thoughts suggestive and stimulating. It is, however, almost -ludicrous to notice how he strives to evade the force of Gamaliel's -words, and to escape the application of them to his own Protestant -opponents. The Sanhedrin were quite right, he thinks, in adopting -Gamaliel's advice, and in showing themselves tolerant of the apostolic -preaching because the Apostles worked miracles; and so, though they -were unconvinced, still they had just reason to suspend their -judgment. But as for the Protestants of his time, they were heretics; -they were the opponents of the Church, the bride of Christ, and -therefore Gamaliel's words had no application to them; as if the very -question that was raised by the Protestants was not this--whether -Cornelius a Lapide himself and his Jesuit brethren did not represent -Antichrist, and whether the Protestants were not the true Church of -God, who therefore on his own principles were quite justified in -persecuting their Romish opponents. It is very difficult to get men to -acknowledge their own fallibility. Every party, when triumphant, -believes that it has a monopoly of truth, and has a Divine right of -persecution; and every party when downcast and in adversity sees and -admires the beauties of toleration. Verily societies, churches, -families, as well as individuals, have good right diligently to pray, -"In all time of our wealth, good Lord, deliver us," for never are men -in greater spiritual danger than when prosperity leads them to vote -themselves infallible, and to practise intolerance towards their -fellow-men on account of their intellectual or religious opinions. - -The sentiment of Gamaliel on this occasion may however be pushed to a -mischievous extreme. He advised the Sanhedrin to exercise patience and -self-control, but he did not apparently go any farther. He did not -recommend them to adopt the noblest course, which would have been -unprejudiced examination into the claims put forward by the Christian -teachers. Gamaliel's advice was good, it was perhaps the best he could -have given, or at least which could have been expected under the -circumstances, but it was not the highest or noblest conceivable. It -was the kind of advice always given by men who do not wish to commit -themselves untimely, but who are waiters upon Providence, postponing -their decision as to which side they shall join until they first see -which side will win. Opportunists, the French call them; men who are -sitting upon the fence, we in homelier phrase designate them. It is -well to be prudent in our actions, because true prudence is only -Christian wisdom, and such wisdom will always lead us to take the most -effectual ways of doing good. But then prudence may be pushed to the -extreme of moral cowardice, or at least the name of prudence may be -used as a cloak for a contemptible desire to stand well with all -parties, and thereby advance our own selfish interests. Prudence -should be united with moral courage; it should be ready to take the -unpopular side, and to champion truth and righteousness even when in a -depressed and lowly condition. It was easy enough to side with Christ -when the multitude cried, "Hosanna in the Highest." But the test of -deepest love and unfailing devotion was when the women stood by the -cross, and when the Magdalen sought out the grave in the garden that -she might anoint the dead body of her loved Lord. - -Finally, let us just notice the conduct of the Apostles under those -circumstances. The Apostles were freed from the pressing danger of -death, but they did not entirely escape. The Sanhedrin were logically -inconsistent. They refrained from putting the Apostles to death, as -Gamaliel advised, but they flogged them as Roman laws permitted; and a -Jewish disciplinary flogging, when forty stripes save one were -inflicted, was so severe that death sometimes resulted from it.[114] -Man is a curiously inconsistent being, and the Sanhedrin showed on -this occasion that they had their own share of this weakness. Gamaliel -advised not to kill the Apostles, but let time work out the Divine -purposes either of success or failure. They adopt the first part of -his advice, but are not willing to allow Providence to develop His -designs without their interference, and so by their stripes endeavour -to secure that failure shall attend the apostolic efforts. But it was -all in vain. The Apostles were living under a realized sense of -heavenly things. The love of Christ, and communion with Christ and the -Spirit of Christ, so raised them above all earthly surroundings that -what things seemed loss and shame and grief to others were by them -counted highest joy, because they looked at them from the side of God -and eternity. Human threats availed nothing with men animated by such -a spirit,--nay, rather as proofs of the opposition of the evil one, -they only quickened their zeal, so that "every day, in the temple and -at home, they ceased not to teach and to preach Jesus as the Christ." -How wondrously life would be transformed for us all did we view its -changes and chances, its sorrows and its pains, as the Apostles -regarded them. Poverty and disgrace, undeserved loss and suffering, -all alike would be transfigured into surpassing glory when endured for -Christ's sake, while our powers of labour and work, and our active -zeal in the holiest of causes, would be quickened, because, like them, -we should walk and live and toil in the loved presence of One who is -invisible. - - [114] St. Paul, as he tells us in 2 Cor. xi. 24, was five times - flogged by the Jews. When the Jews inflicted this punishment the - culprit was tied to a pillar in the synagogue; the executioner, - armed with a scourge of three distinct lashes, inflicted the - punishment; while an official standing by read selected portions - of the law between each stroke. Thirteen strokes of the threefold - scourge was equivalent to the thirty-nine stripes. This was the - flogging the Apostles suffered on this occasion. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -_PRIMITIVE DISSENSIONS AND APOSTOLIC PRECAUTIONS._ - - "Now in these days, when the number of the disciples was - multiplying, there arose a murmuring of the Grecian Jews against - the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily - ministration. And the twelve called the multitude of the - disciples unto them, and said, It is not fit that we should - forsake the word of God, and serve tables. Look ye out therefore, - brethren, from among you seven men of good report, full of the - Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But - we will continue stedfastly in prayer, and in the ministry of the - word."--ACTS vi. 1-4. - - -The sixth chapter of the Acts, and the election of the Seven, mark a -distinct advance in the career of the early Church. This sixth chapter -is like the twelfth of Genesis and the introduction of Abraham upon -the stage of sacred history. We feel at once as if the narrative of -Genesis had come into contact with modern times, leaving the -mysterious period of darkness all behind. So is it with the Acts of -the Apostles. The earliest days of the primitive Church were quite -unlike all modern experience. The Church had received a great blessing -and a wondrous revelation, and had been enriched with marvellous -powers. But just as men act when they have experienced a surpassing -joy or a tremendous calamity,--they are upset for a time, they do not -realize their position, they do not take all the circumstances in at -once, nor can they quite settle what their future course shall be; -they must get a little way distant from the joy or the sorrow before -they make their future arrangements,--so was it with the Apostles -during that space of time which elapsed from the Pentecostal -outpouring down to the election of the Seven. We are so accustomed to -think of the Apostles as inspired men, that we forget that inspiration -did not destroy their natural powers or infirmities, but rather must -have acted in consonance with the laws of their constitution. The -Apostles must, to a certain extent, have been upset by the -extraordinary events they had witnessed. They sought and found daily -guidance in the power of the Spirit; but they had made no settled -plans, had not compared or arranged their ideas, had formed no scheme -of doctrine or teaching, had realized nothing concerning the future of -the society they were unconsciously building up under the Divine -leading. God had His plans; the ascended Lord had spoken to the -Apostles concerning the future of the Kingdom of Heaven; but it would -be making the Apostles more than men of like passions and like -infirmities with ourselves to imagine that during those stirring and -eventful days they had consciously realized the whole scheme of -Christian doctrine and government. That period of a few months--for it -could not have been more--was a period of Divine chaos, out of which -the final settlement of the Church of God began slowly to evolve -itself under the direction of God the Holy Ghost. How long, it may be -asked, did this period of unsettlement last? A question which resolves -itself into the further one bearing directly on our present -subject,--what was the date of the election and subsequent martyrdom -of Stephen? The answer to this throws much light on the apostolic -history and the events recorded in the first five chapters of this -book. - -I. St. Stephen was put to death some time in the year 37 A.D., after -Pontius Pilate had been recalled from the government of Palestine, and -before his successor had arrived to take up the reins of power.[115] -The Jewish authorities took advantage of the interregnum in order to -gratify their spite against the eminent orator who was doing so much -damage to their cause. Under ordinary circumstances the Jewish -Sanhedrin could not put a man to death unless they had received the -fiat of the Roman authorities. Now, however, during this interval, -there was no supreme authority from whom this fiat could be secured, -and so they seized the opportunity and executed Stephen as a -blasphemer, according to the method prescribed in the law of Moses. -This happened in the year 37 A.D., about four years after the -Crucifixion. We must, however, observe another point. During the -latter years of his administration, Pontius Pilate had been acting in -a most tyrannical manner. This fact explains a circumstance which must -strike the most casual reader of the Acts. We there read that the -supreme Jewish council made two attempts to restrain the Apostles; the -first after the healing of the cripple at the Temple Gate, and the -second when Gamaliel dissuaded them from their purposes of blood. -After that they allowed the Apostles to pursue their course without -any hostility. This appears to the casual reader more striking, more -difficult to understand, than it was in reality. We are now obliged to -think of Judaism and Christianity as opposed and mutually exclusive -religions; we cannot conceive of a man being a Jew and a Christian at -the same time. But it was not so with the Apostles and their followers -at the period of which we are writing. This may seem contradictory to -what I have elsewhere stated as to the antagonistic character of the -two religions. But the apparent inconsistency is easily explained. As -full-blown and realized systems, Judaism and Christianity are -inconsistent. The one was a bud, the other an expanded flower. The -same individual bulb cannot be at the same moment a bud and a flower. -But the Apostles had not as yet realized Christianity as a full-blown -system, nor grasped all its consequences. There was no inconsistency -when they made a conjoint profession of Judaism and Christianity. The -Apostles and their followers were all scrupulous observers of the law -of Moses; and no dwellers in Jerusalem were more regular attendants at -the Temple worship than the persons who had as yet no distinct name, -and were known only as followers of the Prophet of Nazareth. To take -an illustration from modern ecclesiastical history, the Apostles and -the early Jerusalem Church must have been simply known to the Jewish -authorities, just as the first Methodists at Oxford were known to the -Church authorities of John Wesley's earlier days, as stricter members -of the Church of England than the usual run of people were. This fact -alone lessens the difficulty we might find in accounting for the -statements made as to the continued activity of the Apostles, and the -freedom they enjoyed even after they had been solemnly warned by the -Sanhedrin. Neither the Apostles themselves nor the Jewish council -recognised as yet any religious opposition in the teaching of Peter -and his brethren. The Apostles themselves had not yet formulated -their ideas nor perceived whither their principles would ultimately -lead them. No one indeed would have been more surprised than -themselves had they foreseen the antagonistic position into which they -would be ultimately forced; and as for the Sanhedrin, the only charge -they brought against the Apostles was not a religious one at all, but -merely that they were challenging the conduct and decision of the -authorities concerning the execution of Jesus Christ, and, as the High -Priest put it, "intend to bring this Man's blood upon us."[116] But -then history reveals to us some other facts which completely explain -the difficulty and vindicate the historical accuracy of the sacred -narrative. St. Stephen was put to death in the year 37. At that time -he may have been acting as a deacon for two, or even three, years, -during which Christian teaching and views made very rapid progress, -all unopposed by the Jewish authorities, simply because their -attention was concentrated on other topics of much more pressing -interest. Pilate was appointed governor of Palestine in 26 A.D. He -ruled it for ten years, till the end of 36 A.D., when he was recalled. -God causes all things to work together for good, and overrules even -state changes to the development of His purposes. Pilate's whole -period of rule was, as I have already said, marked by tyranny; but the -concluding years were the worst. The members of the Sanhedrin were -then specially excited by two actions which touched themselves most -keenly. He seized on the accumulated proceeds of the Temple-tax of -two drachmas, about eighteen pence, paid by every Jew throughout the -world, which then amounted to a vast sum, expending it in making an -aqueduct for the supply of Jerusalem. This action affected the -pecuniary resources of the Jewish authorities. But he attacked them on -a dearer point still, for he set up the images of the emperor in the -Holy City, and thus wounded them in their religious feelings, -introducing the abomination of desolation into the most sacred -places.[117] - - [115] See the authorities for the chronology of this period as - given in Lewin's _Fasti Sacri_, pp. 247-53. - - [116] The Church during its earliest years called itself merely - the Way, not recognising the term Christian at all. This is - brought out clearly in the Revised Version, as in Acts ix. 2, xix. - 9, 23, xxiv. 14. The adoption of the name Christian probably - marked the more distinct separation of the Church from the - synagogue. - - [117] See Josephus, _Antiqq._, XVIII., iii., 1, 2. - -All the attention of the priests, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and -the people, was concentrated upon the violent deeds of Pilate. They -had no time to think of the Apostles,--who, indeed, must themselves -have shared in the national enthusiasm and universal hostility which -Pilate's attempts excited. A common opposition stilled, for the time, -the internal strife and controversy about the prophet of Nazareth -which had, for a little, rent asunder the inhabitants of Jerusalem. -Let us now repeat the dates to which we have attained. St. Stephen was -executed in 37 A.D.; his election took place probably in 34 A.D. The -first seven chapters of the Acts set before us, then, all we know of -the history of the earliest four years of the Church's life and work; -and yet though very briefly told, that history tallies with what we -learn from writers like Josephus and Philo. - -II. Let us now return to the text of our narrative. This sixth chapter -offers a very useful glimpse into the inner life of the primitive -Church. It shows us what led up to the election of the Seven in these -words: "Now in these days, when the number of the disciples was -multiplying, there arose a murmuring of the Grecian Jews against the -Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily -ministration." - -(_a_) The election sprang out of the multiplying, and the multiplying -begat a murmuring among the disciples. There is here teaching for the -Church of all time, plain and evident to every reader, a lesson which -history has repeated from age to age. Increase of numbers does not -always mean increase of happiness, increase of devotion, increase of -true spiritual life, but has often brought increase of trouble and -discontent alone. What a lesson of patient submission under present -trials the wise man may here read. God has made all things double one -against another; and when He bestows such notable increase as He -granted to the apostolic Church, He adds thereto some counter-balancing -disadvantage to keep His people low and make them humble. Undiluted -joy, unmitigated success, is not to be the portion of God's people -while tabernacling here below. How often has the lesson been repeated -in their experience of the past as in our own personal experience as -well! - -The trial of the apostolic Church was typical of the trials which -awaited future ages. The Church in the Diocletian persecution, for -instance, was wasted and torn. The records of that last great trial -through which the Church passed, just prior to her final triumph over -Paganism, are lighted up by the fires of the most determined attempt -ever made to crush the faith of the Crucified One. How often during -that last persecution God's faithful ones must have wept in secret -over the ruin of the holy places and the threatened destruction of the -faith! Yet the trials of the hours of adversity were as nothing -compared with the dangers which beset the Church when the faith -triumphed under Constantine, and the multitude of the disciples was -increased and multiplied by the power of imperial patronage. The -trials of the day of persecution were external, and utterly powerless -to affect the spiritual life of Christ's mystical body. The trials of -a multiplying and enlarging Church were internal; they arose from -unbelief, and hypocrisy, and want of Christian love, and were -destructive of the life of God in the human soul. The dangers of -success, the subtle temptations of prosperity, making us proud, -contemptuous of others, self-conscious, dependent wholly upon man and -independent of God, are the lessons, ecclesiastical, social, and -personal, pressed upon us by the opening words of this sixth chapter. - -(_b_) These words, again, correct a popular mistake, and reproduce a -warning of our Master too often forgotten. When the disciples were -increasing, and the hearts of the Apostles all aglow with the success -vouchsafed them, "a murmuring arose between the Grecian Jews and the -Hebrews." What a glimpse we get here into the very heart and centre of -early Christian social life. It is often the hardest task in -historical researches to get such a glimpse as here is given. We know -the outer life of societies, of families, of dynasties. We see them in -their external form and symmetry: we behold them in their company -dress and in their public appearances; but till we get to know and -realize their common every-day life, how they ate, drank, slept, how -their social intercourse was maintained, we fail to grasp the most -important side of their existence. The primitive Church is often -thought of and spoken of as if its social and spiritual life were -wholly unlike our own; as if sin and infirmity were entirely absent, -and perfect holiness there prevailed. This expression, "Now in these -days there arose a murmuring," shows us that the presence of -supernatural gifts, the power of working miracles and speaking with -other tongues, did not raise the spiritual level of individual -believers above that we find in the Church of the present day. The -distribution of alms is always attended by jealousies and disputes, -rendering the work one of the most unpleasant tasks which can be -undertaken by any man. No matter how earnestly one strives to be fair -and just, no matter how diligently one may seek to balance claim -against claim and righteously to satisfy the wants of those who seek -relief, still there will always be minds that will never be content, -and will strive to detect injustice and wrong and favouritism, no -matter how upright the intention may be. What a comfort to God's -servant striving to do his duty is the study of this sixth chapter of -the Acts! Fretting and worry, weary days and sleepless nights, are -often the only reward which the Christian philanthropist receives in -return for his exertions. But here comes in the Acts of the Apostles -to cheer. It was just the same with the Apostles, for they must have -been the chief almoners or distributers of the Church's common fund -prior to the election of the Seven. The Apostles themselves did not -escape the accusation of favouritism, and we may be well content to -bear and suffer what the Apostles were compelled to endure. Let us -only take heed that like them we suffer wrongfully, and that our -conscience testify that we have striven to do everything in the sight -of the Lord Jesus Christ; and then, disregarding all human murmuring -and criticism, we should calmly proceed upon our work, in no way -discouraged because the recipients of Christian bounty still act as -even the primitive Christians did. This is one important lesson we -gain from this passage. - -(_c_) We may, again, learn another great truth from this incident, and -that is, that the primitive Church was no ideal communion, but a -society with failings and weaknesses and discontent, exactly like -those which exist in the Church of our own times. The favourite -argument with controversialists of the Church of Rome, when trying to -draw proselytes from among Protestants, is, as logicians say, of an _a -priori_ type. They will enlarge upon the importance of religion and -religious truth, and upon the awful consequences which will result -from a mistake on such a vital question, and then they will argue that -God must have constituted a living infallible guide on such an -important topic, and that guide is in their opinion the Pope, as the -head of the Catholic Church. The Scriptures are full of -warnings--unnoticed warnings they often are, but still they are full -of them--as to the untrustworthy character of all such kind of -arguments. In this sixth chapter, for instance, the thoughtful and -meditative student can see a specimen of these providential -admonitions, and a reason for its insertion in the sacred story. -Christ came to establish the Christian Church upon earth. For this -purpose He lived and suffered and rose again. For this purpose He sent -forth the Third Person of the Holy Trinity to lead and guide and dwell -in His Church; and surely, _a priori_, we might as well conclude that -in the Church so founded, so guided, so ruled by Peter and the rest of -the Apostles, there would have been found no such thing as -favouritism, or murmuring, or discontent,--sentiments which might -exist in the unregenerate world, but which should find no place in the -kingdom of the Spirit. But, when we turn to the sacred record of -Christ's sayings, and the inspired history of Christ's Church, we find -that all our _a priori_ presumptions and all our logical anticipations -are put to flight, for the Master warns us in the thirteenth of St. -Matthew, when speaking His wondrous parables concerning the Kingdom of -Heaven, that sin and imperfection will ever find their place in His -Church; and then the history of the Acts of the Apostles comes in to -confirm the inspired prophecy, and we see from this chapter how the -primitive Church of Christ was torn and racked with mere earthly -feelings and mere human infirmities, like the ordinary worldly -societies which existed all around; "there arose a murmuring" even in -the Church where Apostles taught, where the Holy Ghost dwelt, and -where the Pentecostal gifts were displayed. The occasion of the -murmuring, too, is noteworthy and prophetic. It was like the trial -under which man fell and by which Christ was tempted. It was a mere -material temptation. Even in the primitive Church, living as it did in -the region and presence of the supernatural, expecting every day and -hour the return of the ascended Lord, even there material -considerations entered, and the world and the things thereof found a -place, and caused divisions where they would seem to have been -strictly excluded by the very conditions of the Church's existence. -The Church and the world there touched and influenced one another; and -so it must be always. There is a world indeed against which the Church -must ever protest--the world of impure lusts and wicked desires, the -world of which Paganism was the presiding genius; but then there is a -world in which the Church must exist and with which it must deal, the -world which God has created and ordained, the world of human society -and human wants, feelings, desires, appetites. With these the Church -must ever come in contact. Monasticism and asceticism have endeavoured -indeed in the past to get rid of this world. They cut men and women -off from marriage and separated them from society, and reduced human -wants to a minimum; and yet nature asserted itself, and the -corruptions of monasticism have been a divinely-ordered protest -against foolish attempts to separate between things spiritual and -things secular, between the Church founded by Christ and the world -created by God.[118] The murmuring arose on this occasion because the -Apostles made no such mistake, but recognised fearlessly that the -Church of Christ took cognizance of such a question as the daily -distribution and the temporal wants of its disciples. The apostolic -Church did not disdain a mere economic question, and yet the Church of -our own time has been slow enough to follow its example; but, thank -God, it is learning more and more of its duty in this respect. The -time has been when nothing was considered worthy of the notice of the -Christian pulpit or of Church synods and Church courts save purely -spiritual and doctrinal questions. The vast subjects of education, of -the social life, of the amusements of the people, the methods of -legislation or statesmanship, were thought outside the region of -Christian activity, and were utterly neglected or else left wholly to -those who made no profession at least of being guided by Christian -principle. But now we have learned the important truth that the Church -is a Divine leaven placed in the mass of human society to permeate it -through and through; and perhaps the present danger is that the clergy -should forget the apostolic warning, true for every age, that while -the Church in its totality, priests and people, should take an active -interest in these questions, and strive to mould the whole life of man -on Christian principles, it is not at the same time "fit that the -ministry should forsake the word of God and serve tables." - - [118] The term world is one that has very various meanings in - Scripture, and good people have often made serious practical - mistakes by confounding these meanings. I once met a serious young - man disposed to the views of the "Brethren," who gravely told me - that he thought it wrong to admire beautiful scenery because it - was written, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in - the world." There are three distinct uses of the term "world" in - Scripture: as expressing, (1) the material earth, Psalm xxiv. 1, - "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and - they that dwell therein;" (2) the people on the earth, John iii. - 16, "God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son" - for it; (3) the impure lusts and desires which found full scope - under paganism, and still intrude themselves into the kingdom of - Christ, 1 John ii. 15, 16, "Love not the world, neither the things - that are in the world.... For all that is in the world, the lust - of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the vainglory of life, - is not of the Father, but is of the world." It is evident that if - we take the bad meaning of world in this last passage and apply it - to the other two we shall end in the old Manichean view that the - material world and the men on it are the handiwork of a bad or - inferior deity, and therefore should be entirely rejected. I know - that some very grave and serious people have fallen into this - confusion, and have thus banished all sweetness and light from - their own lives and from those of their families. It is a curious - circumstance, too, that we read in ancient writers that the - Manichean heresy always recommended itself to persons of a similar - temperament, who in consequence led lives of a very strict and - puritanical type. They looked upon the world and all that was in - it as the devil's creation. How then could they smile upon, love, - or enjoy anything therein? See the article "Manicheans" in the - _Dict. Christ. Biog._ - -III. But we have not yet done with this murmuring or with the lessons -it furnishes for the Church of the future. What lay at the basis of -this murmuring, and of the jealousy thereby indicated? "There arose a -murmuring of the Grecian Jews against the Hebrews;" a racial question -developed itself, and racial, or perhaps we should rather say, in this -case, social and linguistic, differences found place in the apostolic -Church, and gave rise to serious quarrels even where the Spirit in -fullest measure and in extraordinary power was enjoyed. There was -bitter dissension between Jews and Samaritans, though they believed in -the same God and reverenced the same revelation. Political -circumstances in the past sufficiently explain that quarrel. There was -almost, if not quite, as bitter hostility between the Grecians and the -Hebrews, because they spoke different languages and practised diverse -customs, and that though they worshipped in the same temple and -belonged to the same nation. The origin of these differences in the -Christian Church of Jerusalem goes back to a very distant period. Here -comes in the use of the Apocrypha, "which the Church doth read for -example of life and instruction of manners." If we wish to understand -the course of events in the Acts we must refer to the books of -Maccabees, where is told the romantic story of the struggle of the -Jews against the Greek kings of Syria, who tried to force them into -conformity with the religion of Greece, which then was counted the -religion of civilization and of culture. The result was that the -intensely national party became bitterly hostile to everything -pertaining to Greece and its civilization. The Jews of Palestine of -that period became like the purely Celtic Irish of the Reformation -epoch. The Irish identified the Reformation with England and English -influence, just as the Jews identified Paganism with Greece and Syria, -and Greek influence; and the result was that the Irish became the most -intensely ultramontane nation, and the Palestinian Jews became the -most intensely narrow and prejudiced nation of their time. The -Palestinian or Hebrew Jews, speaking the Aramaeic or Chaldee tongue, -scorned Greek language and all traces of Greek civilization, while -the Jews of the Dispersion, specially those of Alexandria, strove to -recommend the Jewish religion to the Gentile world, whose civilization -and culture they appreciated, and whose language they used. The -opposition of the Hebrew to the Grecian Jews was very bitter, and -expressed itself in language which has come down to us in the Talmudic -writings. "Cursed be he who teacheth his son the learning of the -Greeks," was a saying among the Hebrews; while again, we hear of -Rabban Simeon, the son of Gamaliel, St. Paul's teacher, who used to -embody his hatred of the Grecians in the following story: "There were -a thousand boys in my father's school, of whom five hundred learned -the law and five hundred the wisdom of the Greeks; and there is not -one of the latter now alive, excepting myself here and my uncle's son -in Asia."[119] Heaven itself was supposed by the Hebrews to have -plainly declared its hostility against their Grecian opponents. Hence, -naturally, arose the same divisions at Jerusalem. There were in that -city nearly five hundred synagogues, a considerable proportion of -which belonged to the Grecian Jews. All classes and all the -synagogues, Hebrew and Grecian alike, contributed their quota to the -earliest converts won by the Apostles; and these converts brought -their old jealousies and oppositions with them into the Church of -Christ. The Hebrew or the Grecian Jew of yesterday could not forget, -to-day, because he had embraced a belief in Jesus of Nazareth as the -Messiah, all his old feelings and his old hereditary quarrels, and -hence sprang the Christian dissensions of which we read, prophetic of -so many similar racial and social and linguistic dissensions in the -Church down to the present time. The Acts of the Apostles is a kind of -magic mirror for Church history. In the olden times men dreamt of a -magic mirror into which one could look and see the course of their -future life depicted. We can see something of the same in this -inspired book. The bitter dissensions which racial and linguistic -differences have made in the Church of every age are here depicted in -miniature. The quarrels between East and West, between Greeks and -Latins, between Latins and Teutons, between Teuton and Celt, between -Roman Catholic and Protestant, between the Whites and Negroes, between -European Christians and Hindoo converts; the scandalous scenes still -enacted round the Holy Place at Jerusalem, where peace is kept between -nominal Christians only by the intervention of Mahometan -soldiers,--all turn upon the same points and embody the same -principles, and may best find solution upon the lines laid down by the -Apostles. And what were these lines? They laid down that there are -diversities of functions and of work in the Church of Christ; there is -a ministry of the word, and there is a serving of tables. One class -should not absorb every function; for if it does, the highest function -of all, the ministry of the word and prayer, will inevitably suffer. -Well, indeed, would it have been had this lesson been far more laid to -heart. How many a schism and rent in the visible Church of Christ has -been caused because no work, no spiritual function, was found for a -newly-awakened layman anxious to do something for Him who had done so -much for his soul. The principle here laid down in germ is a very -fruitful one, suitable for every age. A new crisis, a fresh -departure, an unexpected need, has arisen, and a new organization is -therefore at once devised by the Apostles; and well would it have been -had their example found closer imitation. We have been too much in the -habit of looking upon the Church of Christ as if it were once for all -stereotyped in apostolic times, and as if there were nothing to be -done in the living present save to adapt these ancient institutions to -our modern needs. The Roman Catholic Church has been in many respects -more true to apostolic principles than the children of the -Reformation. With all her intense conservatism Rome has never -hesitated to develop new organizations as new needs have arisen, and -that in the boldest manner. It has often been remarked that the Church -of Rome would never have lost John Wesley and the Wesleyans as the -Church of England did. She would have put a brown cassock upon him, -and girded him with a rope, and sent him forth as the head of a new -order, to do the work to which he felt impelled and for which God had -qualified him. Experience has taught us, however, that we cannot -safely neglect apostolic precedent; and the warning implied in the -words of the Apostles, "it is not fit that we should forsake the word -of God and serve tables," has been amply fulfilled. The highest -ministry of the word has been injured by the accumulation of all -public work in the Church on one class alone. What minister of Jesus -Christ does not feel that, even with the wider and more apostolic -views now prevalent, with all the recognition of the service which -godly Christian laymen render, the old tradition is still strong, and -clergymen are too absorbed in the mere serving of tables, to the -neglect of their higher functions? The laity often complain of the -poor, thin, meagre character of the preaching to which they are -compelled to listen; but how can it be otherwise when they demand so -much purely secular service, so much serving of tables from those -whose great work is to teach? The Church of England, in her service -for the ordination of priests, demands from the candidates whether -they will devote themselves to the study of the Word of God, and such -other studies as bear upon the same. I often wonder how her clergy are -now to fulfil this solemn vow, when frequently they have not a night -in the week at home, save perhaps Saturday evening, and when, from -early morning to late at night, all their energies are swallowed up in -the work of schools, and clubs, and charitable organizations, and -parochial visitation, leaving little time and still less energy for -the work of meditation and thought and study. The clergy are the -Lord's prophets, watchmen upon the walls of Zion. It is their great -business to explain the Lord's will, to translate the ideas of the -Bible into the language of modern life, to apply the Divine principles -of doctrine and discipline laid down in the Bible to the ever-varying -wants of our complex modern civilization; and how can this function be -discharged unless there be time for reading and for thinking, so as to -gain a true notion of what are these modern wants, and to find out how -the eternal principles of the Scriptures are to be applied to them? We -require a great deal more organized assistance in the work of the -Church, and then, when that assistance is forthcoming, we may expect -and demand that the highest ministry of all, "the ministry of the Word -and prayer," shall be discharged with greater efficiency and blessing. -The Apostles in meeting this crisis, laid down a law of true -development and living growth in the divine society. The Church of -Christ is ever to have the power to organize herself in face of new -departures, while at the same time they proclaim the absolute -necessity and the perpetual obligation of the Christian ministry in -its highest aspect; for surely if even for Apostles it was needful -that their whole time should be devoted to the ministry of the word of -God and prayer, and the Church of that time, with all its wondrous -gifts, demanded such a ministry, there ought to exist in the modern -Church also an order of men wholly separated unto those solemn duties. - - [119] Lightfoot's _Horae Heb._, Acts vi. 1, where there is a long - and learned discussion, extending over several pages, upon the - distinction between the Hebrew and the Grecian Jews. - -IV. The Apostles having determined upon the creation of a new -organization to deal with a new need, then appeal to the people for -their assistance, and call upon them to select the persons who shall -be its members; but they, at the same time, reserve their own rights -and authority, and, when the selection has been made, claim the power -of ordination and appointment for themselves. The people nominated -while the Apostles appointed. The Apostles took the most effective -plan to quiet the trouble which had arisen when they took the people -into their confidence. The Church has been often described as the -mother of modern freedom. The councils of old time were the models and -forerunners of modern parliaments. The councils and synods of the -Church set an example of open discussion and of legislative assemblies -in ages when tyrannical authority had swallowed up every other vestige -of liberty. The Church from the beginning, and in the Acts of the -Apostles, clearly showed that its government was not to be an absolute -clerical despotism, but a free Christian republic, where clergy and -people were to take counsel together. It is a noteworthy thing indeed, -that even in the Roman Catholic Church, where the exclusive claims of -the clergy have been most pressed, the recognition of the rights of -the laity in the matter of Church councils and debates has found place -down to modern times. The representatives of the Emperor and other -Christian princes took their seats in the Council of Trent, jointly -with bishops and other ecclesiastics; and it was only at the Vatican -Council of 1870 that this last lingering trace of lay rights finally -disappeared. The Apostles laid down by their action the principle of -Church freedom, and the mutual rights of clergy and people; but they -also gave a very practical hint for the peaceful management of -organizations, whether ecclesiastical, or social, or political. They -knew what was the right thing to do, but they did not impose their -will by the mere exercise of authority; they took counsel with the -people, and the result was that a speedy solution of all their -difficulties was arrived at. How many a quarrel in life would be -avoided, how many a rough place would be made smooth, were the -apostolic example always followed. Men naturally resist a law imposed -from without without any appearance of consultation with them or of -sanction on their part; but men willingly yield obedience to laws, -even though they may dislike them, which have been passed with their -assent and appeal to their reason. In Church matters especially would -this rule apply, and the example of the Apostles be most profitably -followed. Autocratic action on the part of the clergy in small matters -has often destroyed the unity and harmony of congregations, and has -planted roots of bitterness which have ruined ministerial usefulness. -While steadily maintaining great fundamental principles, a little tact -and thought, a wise condescension to human feeling, will often win the -day, and carry measures which would otherwise be vigorously resisted. - -Finally, the Apostles enunciate the principles which should guide the -Church in its selection of officials, specially when they have to deal -with the temporal concerns of the Society. "Look ye out therefore from -among you seven men of good report." Attempts have been made to -explain why the number was fixed at seven. Some have asserted that it -was so determined because it was a sacred number, others because there -were now seven congregations in Jerusalem, or seven thousand converts. -Perhaps, however, the true reason was a more commonplace one, and that -was that seven is a very convenient practical number. In case of a -difference of opinion a majority can always be secured on one side or -other, and all blocks avoided. The number seven was long maintained in -connection with the order of deacons, in imitation of the apostolic -institution. A council at Neo-Caesarea, in the year 314, ordained that -the number of seven deacons should never be exceeded in any city, -while in the Church of Rome the same limitation prevailed from the -second century down to the twelfth, so that the Roman Cardinals, who -were the parochial clergy of Rome, numbered among them merely seven -deacons down to that late period. The seven chosen by the primitive -Church were to be men of good report because they were to be public -functionaries, whose decisions were to allay commotions and -murmurings; and therefore they must be men of weight, in whom the -public had confidence. But, further, they must be men "full of the -Spirit and of wisdom." Piety was not the only qualification; they must -be wise, prudent, sound in judgment as well. Piety is no security for -wisdom, just as in turn wisdom is no security for piety; but both must -be combined in apostolic officials. The Apostles thereby teach the -Church of all time what are the qualifications necessary for effective -administrators and officials. Even in charitable distributions and -financial organizations the Church should hold up the high standard -set before her by the Apostles, and seek out men actuated by religious -principle, guided by religious truth, swayed by Divine love, the -outcome of that Spirit whose grace and blessing are necessary for the -due discharge of any office, whether of service, of charity, or of -worship, in the Church of Jesus Christ; but possessed withal of strong -common sense and vigorous intellectual power, for love and zeal -separated from these often fall into mistakes which make religion and -its adherents a laughing-stock to the world and a hindrance to the -cause of truth and holiness. God can indeed make the weak things of -this world to confound the high and mighty, but it would be -presumptuous in us to think that we can do the same, and therefore -must seek out the instruments best suited in every way to do God's -work and accomplish His purposes. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -_ST. STEPHEN AND THE EVOLUTION OF THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY._ - - "And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose - Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, - and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas - a proselyte of Antioch: whom they set before the Apostles: and - when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.... Stephen, - full of grace and power, wrought great wonders and signs among - the people. But there arose certain of them that were of the - synagogue called the synagogue of the Libertines, and of the - Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of them of Cilicia and - Asia, disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to withstand - the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spake. Then they suborned - men, which said, We have heard him speak blasphemous words - against Moses, and against God."--ACTS vi. 5, 6; 8-11. - - -The names of the seven chosen on the suggestion of the Apostles raises -very naturally the question, To what office were they appointed? Did -the seven elected on this occasion represent the first beginning of -that office of deacon which is regarded as the third rank in the -Church, bishops being first, and presbyters or priests second. It is -agreed by all parties that the title of deacon is not given to them in -the sixth chapter of the Acts, and yet such an unprejudiced and fair -authority as Bishop Lightfoot, in his Essay on the Christian Ministry, -maintains that the persons selected and ordained at this crisis -constituted the first origin of the diaconate as it is now -known.[120] The Seven are not called, either here or wherever else -they are mentioned in the Acts, by the name of deacons, though the -word [Greek: diakonein] (serve), which cannot be exactly rendered -into English, as the noun deacon has no equivalent verb answering to -it, is applied to the duties assigned to them. But all the best -critics are agreed that the ordination of the Seven was the occasion -of the rise of a new order and a new office in the Church, whose work -dealt more especially with the secular side of the ministerial -function. The great German critic Meyer, commenting on this sixth -chapter, puts it well, though not so clearly as we should like. "From -the first regular overseership of alms, the mode of appointment to -which could not but regulate analogically the practice of the Church, -was gradually developed the diaconate, which subsequently underwent -further elaboration." This statement is somewhat obscure, and -thoroughly after the manner of a German critic; let us develop it a -little, and see what the process was whereby the distributers of alms -to the widows of the earliest Church organization became the officials -of whom St. Laurence of Rome in the third, and St. Athanasius of -Alexandria in the fourth century were such eminent examples. - - [120] Bishop Lightfoot, commenting on Philippians, p. 186, says: - "I have assumed that the office thus established represents the - later diaconate; for though this point has been much disputed, I - do not see how the identity of the two can reasonably be called in - question. If the word deacon does not occur in the passage, yet - the corresponding verb and substantive, [Greek: diakonein] and - [Greek: diakonia], are repeated more than once. The functions, - moreover, are substantially those which devolved on the deacons of - the earliest ages, and which still in theory, though not - altogether in practice, form the primary duties of the office. - Again, it seems clear, from the emphasis with which St. Luke - dwells on the new institution, that he looks on the establishment - of this office, not as an isolated incident, but as the - institution of a new order of things in the Church. It is, in - short, one of those representative facts of which the earlier part - of his narrative is almost wholly made up." - -I. The institutions of the synagogue must necessarily have exercised a -great influence over the minds of the Apostles and of their first -converts. One fact alone vividly illustrates this idea. Christians -soon began to call their places of assembly by the name of churches or -the Lord's houses, but the old habit was at first too strong, and so -the churches or congregations of the earliest Christians were called -synagogues. This is evident even from the text of the Revised Version -of the New Testament, for if we turn to the second chapter of the -Epistle of James we read there, "If there come into your _synagogue_ a -man with a gold ring,"--showing that in St. James's day a Christian -church was called a synagogue. This custom received some few years ago -a remarkable confirmation from the records of travel and discovery. -The Marcionites were a curious Christian sect or heresy which sprang -up in the second century. They were intensely opposed to Judaism, and -yet so strong was this tradition that even they seem to have retained, -down to the fourth century, the name of synagogue as the title of -their churches, for some celebrated French explorers have discovered -in Syria an inscription, still in existence, carved over the door of a -Marcionite church, dated A.D. 318, and that inscription runs thus: -"The Synagogue of the Marcionites."[121] - - [121] See Le Bas and Waddington's _Voyage Archeologique_, vol. - iii., p. 583, _Inscriptions_, No. 2558; and Dr. Salmon's article - on Marcion in Smith's _Dict. Christ. Biog._, iii., 819. There is - one passage in the Epistles which shows that not merely the name - but the organization of synagogues was adopted by the early - Church. In 1 Cor. vi. 1 it is written, "Dare any of you, having a - matter against his neighbour, go to law before the unrighteous, - and not before the saints?" This verse cannot be rightly - understood unless we remember that every synagogue had its own - judicial tribunal, composed of ten men, who decided on Mondays and - Thursdays every controversy among the Jews, inflicting immediate - corporal punishment on the condemned. The Romans permitted and - supported this domestic jurisdiction, just as the Turkish Empire, - which has inherited so many of the Roman traditions, allows the - Greek and other Eastern Churches to exercise jurisdiction over - their own members in all questions touching religion, supporting - their decisions by force if necessary. St. Paul, in this passage, - wishes the members of the Christian synagogues to act like those - of the Jewish, and avoid the scandal of Christians going to law - with their brethren before pagans. - -Now seeing that the force of tradition was so great as to compel even -an anti-Jewish sect to call their meeting-houses by a Jewish name, we -may be sure that the tradition of the institutions, forms, and -arrangements of the synagogue must have been infinitely more potent -with the earliest Christian believers, constraining them to adopt -similar institutions in their own assemblies. Human nature is always -the same, and the example of our own colonists sheds light upon the -course of Church development in Palestine. When the Pilgrim Fathers -went to America, they reproduced the English constitution and the -English laws in that country with so much precision and accuracy that -the expositions of law produced by American lawyers are studied with -great respect in England. The American colonists reproduced the -institutions and laws with which they were familiar, modifying them -merely to suit their own peculiar circumstances; and so has it been -all the world over wherever the Anglo-Saxon race has settled--they -have done exactly the same thing. They have established states and -governments modelled after the type of England, and not of France or -Russia. So was it with the early Christians. Human nature compelled -them to fall back upon their first experience, and to develop under a -Christian shape the institutions of the synagogue under which they had -been trained. And now when we read the Acts we see that here lies the -most natural explanation of the course of history, and specially of -this sixth chapter. In the synagogue, as Dr. John Lightfoot expounds -it in his _Horae Hebraicae_ (Matt. iv. 23), the government was in the -hands of the ruler and the council of elders or presbyters, while -under them there were three almoners or deacons, who served in the -same capacity as the Seven in superintending the charitable work of -the congregation. The great work for which the Seven were appointed -was distribution, and we shall see that this was ever maintained, and -is still maintained, as the leading idea of the diaconate, though -other and more directly spiritual work was at once added to their -functions by St. Stephen and St. Philip.[122] Now just as our -colonists brought English institutions and ideas with them wherever -they settled, so was it with the missionaries who went forth from the -Mother Church of Jerusalem. They carried the ideas and institutions -with them which had been there sanctioned by the Apostles, and thus we -find deacons mentioned in conjunction with bishops at Philippi, -deacons joined with bishops in St. Paul's Epistle to Timothy, and the -existence of the institution at Corinth, and its special work as a -charitable organization, implied in the description given of Phoebe -to the Roman Christians in the sixteenth chapter of the Epistle to the -Romans. St. Paul's directions to Timothy in the third chapter of his -first Epistle deal both with deacons and deaconesses, and in each case -lay down qualifications specially suited for distributers of -charitable relief, whose duty called upon them to visit from house to -house, but say nothing about any higher work. They are indeed "to hold -the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience;" they must be sound in -the faith like the Seven themselves; but the special qualifications -demanded by St. Paul are those needed in almoners: "The deacons must -be grave, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of -filthy lucre." - - [122] Bishop Lightfoot, in his well-known Essay on the Christian - Ministry, from which we have already quoted, does not admit any - likeness between the office of the diaconate in the Church and any - similar office in the synagogue. He refuses to recognise the - Chazzan or sexton of the synagogue as in any sense typical of - Christian deacons. But he has not noticed the three almoners or - deacons attached to every synagogue, whom his seventeenth-century - namesake, Dr. John Lightfoot, in his tract on synagogues (_Horae - Hebr._, St. Matt. iv. 23), considers the origin of the Christian - deacons. - -So far as to the testimony of Scripture. When we pass beyond the -bounds of the canonical books, and come to the apostolic fathers, the -evidence is equally clear. They testify to the universality of the -institution, and bear witness to its work of distribution. Clement of -Rome was a contemporary of the Apostles. He wrote an Epistle to the -Corinthians, which is the earliest witness to the existence of St. -Paul's Epistles to the same Church. In Clement's epistle we find -express mention of deacons, of their apostolic appointment, and of the -universal diffusion of the office. In the forty-third chapter of his -epistle Clement writes to the Corinthians concerning the -Apostles:--"Thus preaching through countries and cities they appointed -bishops and deacons for those who should afterwards believe," clearly -implying that deacons then existed at Rome, though we have no express -notice of them in the epistle written by St. Paul to the Roman -Church. - -There is a rule, however, very needful for historical investigations. -Silence is no conclusive argument against an alleged fact, unless -there be silence where, if the alleged fact had existed, it must have -been mentioned. Josephus, for instance, is silent about Christ and -Christianity. Yet he wrote when its existence was a matter of common -notoriety. But there was no necessity for him to notice it. It was an -awkward fact too, and so he is silent. St. Paul does not mention -deacons as existing at Rome, though he does mention them at Philippi. -But Clement's words expressly assert that universally, in all cities -and countries, this order was established wherever the Apostles -taught; and so we find it even from pagan records. Pliny's letter to -Trajan, written about A.D. 110, some fifteen or twenty years later -than Clement, testifies that the order of deacons existed in far -distant Bithynia, among the Christians of the Dispersion to whom St. -Peter directed his Epistle. Pliny's words are, "I therefore thought it -the more necessary, in order to ascertain what truth there was in this -account, to examine two slave-girls who were called deaconesses -(_ministrae_), and even to use torture." (See the article Trajanus in -the _Dict. Christ. Biog._, iv., 1040.) It is exactly the same with St. -Ignatius in the second chapter of his Epistle to the Trallians, which -dates about the same period. The spiritual side of the office had now -come more prominently into notice, as the occasion of their first -appointment had fallen into disuse; but still Ignatius recognises the -origin of the diaconate when he writes that "the deacons are not -deacons of meats and drinks, but servants of the Church of God" -(Lightfoot, _Apost. Fathers_, vol. ii., sec. i., p. 156). While again -Polycarp, in his Epistle to the Philippians, ch. v., recognises the -same qualities as necessary to deacons which St. Paul requires and -enumerates in his Epistle to Timothy. Justin Martyr, a little later, -twenty years or so, tells us that the deacons distributed the elements -consecrated in the Holy Communion to the believers that were absent -(Justin, _First Apol._, ch. lxvii.). This is most important testimony, -connecting the order of deacons as then flourishing at Rome and their -work with the Seven constituted by the Apostle. The daily distribution -of the Apostle's time was closely connected with the celebration of -the Eucharist, which indeed in its meal or food, common to all the -faithful, and its charitable collections and oblations, of which -Justin Martyr speaks, retained still some trace of the daily -distribution which prevailed in the early Church, and occasioned the -choice of the Seven. The deacons in Justin Martyr's day distributed -the spiritual food to the faithful, just as in earlier times they -distributed all the sustenance which the faithful required, whether in -their spiritual or their temporal aspect. It is evident, from this -recital of the places where the deacons are incidentally referred to, -that their origin was never forgotten, and that distribution of -charitable relief and help was always retained as the essence, the -central idea and notion, of the office of deacon, though at the same -time other and larger functions were by degrees entrusted to them, as -the Church grew and increased, and ecclesiastical life and wants -became more involved and complex.[123] History bears out this view. -Irenaeus was the disciple of Polycarp, and must have known many -apostolic men, men who had companied with the Apostles and knew the -whole detail of primitive Church government; and Irenaeus, speaking of -Nicolas the proselyte of Antioch, describes him as "one of the seven -who were first ordained to the diaconate by the Apostles." Now Irenaeus -is one of our great witnesses for the authenticity of the Four -Gospels; surely then he must be an equally good witness to the origin -of the order of deacons and the existence of the Acts of the Apostles -which is implied in this reference. It is scarcely necessary to go -farther in Church history, but the lower one goes the more clearly we -shall see that the original notion of the diaconate is never -forgotten. In the third century we find that there were still only -seven deacons in Rome, though there were forty-six presbyters, a -number which was retained down to the twelfth century in the seven -cardinal deacons of that Church.[124] The touching story of the -martyrdom of St. Laurence, Archdeacon of Rome in the middle of the -third century, shows that he was roasted over a slow fire in order to -extort the vast sums he was supposed to have in charge for the purpose -of relieving the sick and the poor connected with the Roman Church; -proving that the original conception of the office as an executive and -charitable organization was then vigorously retained; just as it is -still set forth in the ordinal of the Church of England, where, after -reciting how the deacon's office is to help the priest in several -subordinate positions, it goes on to say, "Furthermore, it is his -office, where provision is so made, to search for the sick, poor, and -impotent people of the parish, to intimate their estates, names, and -places where they dwell, unto the curate, that by his exhortation they -may be relieved by the alms of the parishioners." - - [123] The community of goods may have evolved itself naturally - enough out of the celebration of the Eucharist. Just let us - realize what must have happened, say, on the day of Pentecost and - the few succeeding days. The Apostles seem to have been living a - common life during the ten days of expectation. They dwelt in the - house where the upper room was. The day after Pentecost there must - have been a great deal to do, in prayer, baptism, and celebration - of the Eucharist. Their converts would join with them in the - eucharistic feast, from day to day celebrated after the primitive - fashion at the end of a common meal. Some enthusiast may then have - suggested that, as the Master might at any moment appear, they - should always live and eat in common. After a time, as the numbers - increased, this arrangement had to be modified, and a daily - distribution was substituted for daily common meals. The community - of goods may thus have been developed out of the spiritual feast - of the Eucharist, which they took in common. When the daily - distribution terminated by the exhaustion of the funds, the Agape - or lovefeast took its place, remaining as a fragment or relic of - the earlier custom. Pliny in his letter mentions the Agape, and - rightly distinguishes it from the worship of the Christians which - was celebrated in the early morning. "After these ceremonies they - used to disperse, and assemble again to share a common meal of - innocent food." - - [124] In the twelfth century the number of cardinal deacons was - fixed at fourteen, at which it has ever since remained. - -The only objection of any value which has been raised to this line of -argument is based on a mere assumption. It has been said that the -Seven were appointed for a special emergency, and to serve a temporary -purpose connected with the community of goods which existed in the -early Church of Jerusalem, and therefore when this arrangement ceased -the office itself ceased also. But this argument is based on the -assumption that the Christian idea of a community of goods wholly -passed away, so that services of an order like the Seven were no -longer required. This is a pure assumption. The community of goods as -practised at Jerusalem was found by experience to be a mistake. The -shape of the idea was changed, but the idea itself survived. The old -form of community of goods passed away. The Christians retained their -rights of private property, but were taught to regard this private -property as in a sense common, and liable for all the wants and needs -of their poor and suffering brethren. A charitable order, or at least -an order charged with the care of the poor and their relief, must -inevitably have sprung up among the Jewish Christians. The relief of -the poor was a necessary part of the duty of a synagogue. The Jewish -domestic law enforced a poor-rate, and collected it through the -organization of each synagogue, by means of three deacons attached to -each. Selden, in his great work on _The Laws of the Hebrews_, bk. ii., -chap. vi. (_Works_, i., 632), tells us that if "any Jew did not pay -his fair contribution he was punished with stripes." As soon as the -Jewish Christians began to organize themselves, the idea of almoners, -with their daily and weekly distributions, after the synagogue model, -was necessarily developed.[125] We have an unexceptionable piece of -evidence upon this point. The satirist Lucian lived at the close of -the second century. He was a bitter scoffer, who jeered at every form -of religion, and at Christianity above all. He wrote an account of a -certain Syrian named Peregrinus Proteus, who was an impostor trading -upon the religious principles of various philosophical sects, and -specially on those of the Christians. Lucian tells us that the -Christians were the easiest persons to be deceived, because of their -opinions. Lucian's words are interesting as showing what a -second-century pagan, a clever literary man too, thought of -Christianity, viewing it from the outside. For this reason we shall -quote a little more than the words which immediately bear upon the -subject. "It is incredible with what alacrity these people (the -Christians) support and defend the public cause. They spare nothing, -in fact, to promote it. These poor men have persuaded themselves that -they shall be immortal, and live for ever. They despise death -therefore, and offer up their lives a voluntary sacrifice, being -taught by their lawgiver that they are all brethren, and that, -quitting our Grecian gods, they must worship their own sophist, who -was crucified, and live in obedience to His laws. In compliance with -them, they look with contempt on all worldly treasures, and hold -everything in common--a maxim which they have adopted without any -reason or foundation. If any cunning impostor, therefore, who knows -how to manage matters, come amongst them, he soon grows rich by -imposing on the credulity of those weak and foolish men." We can see -here that the great outer world of paganism considered a community of -goods as still prevailing among the Christians. Their boundless -liberality, their intense devotion to the cause of their suffering -brethren, proved this, and therefore, because a practical community of -goods existed amongst them, an order of men was required to -superintend the distribution of their liberality in the Second Century -just as truly as the work of the Seven was needed in the Church of -Jerusalem. - - [125] See Kitto's _Biblical Cyclopaedia_, articles on Synagogue and - Deacon, or Schaff's edition of Herzog's _Cyclopaedia_, article on - Synagogues. - -II. We thus can see that the office of deacon, as now constituted, had -its origin in apostolic times, and is built upon a scriptural -foundation; but here we are bound to point out a great difference -between the ancient and the modern office. An office or organization -may spring up in one age, and after existing for several centuries may -develop into a shape utterly unlike its original. Yet it may be very -hard to point out any special time when a vital change was made. All -we can say is that the first occupants of the office would never -recognise their modern successors. Take the papacy as an instance. -There has been at Rome a regular historical succession of bishops -since the first century. The succession is known and undoubted. Yet -could one of the bishops of Rome of the first three centuries,--above -all, could a first-century bishop of Rome like St. Clement, by any -possibility recognise himself or his office in the present Pope Leo -XIII.? Yet one would find it difficult to fix the exact moment when -any vital change was made, or any unwonted claims put forward on -behalf of the Roman See.[126] So was it in the case of deacons and -their office. Their modern successors may trace themselves back to the -seven elected in the primitive Church at Jerusalem, and yet the office -is now a very different one in practice from what it was then. Perhaps -the greatest difference, and the only one we can notice, was this. The -diaconate is now merely the primary and lowest rank of the Christian -ministry; a kind of apprenticeship, in fact, wherein the youthful -minister serves for a year, and is then promoted as a matter of -course; whereas in Jerusalem or Rome of old it was a lifelong office, -in the exercise of which maturity of judgment, of piety, and of -character were required for the due discharge of its manifold duties. -It is now a temporary office, it was of old a permanent one. And the -apostolical custom was much the best. It avoided many difficulties -and solved many a problem. At present the office of the diaconate is -practically in abeyance, and yet the functions which the ancient -deacons discharged are not in abeyance, but are placed upon the -shoulders of the other orders in the Church, already overwhelmed with -manifold responsibilities, and neglecting, while serving tables, the -higher aspects of their work. The Christian ministry in its purely -spiritual, and specially in its prophetical or preaching aspect, is -sorely suffering because an apostolic office is practically set aside. -In the ancient Church it was never so. The deacons were chosen to a -life-office. It was then but very seldom that a man chosen to the -diaconate abandoned it for a higher function. It did not indeed demand -the wholesale devotion of time and attention which the higher offices -of the ministry did. Men even till a late period, both in East and -West, combined secular pursuits with it. Thus let us take one -celebrated instance. The ancient Church of England and of Ireland -alike was Celtic in origin and constitution. It was intensely -conservative, therefore, of ancient customs and usages derived from -the times of persecution, when Christianity was first taught among the -Gauls and Celts of the extreme West. The well-known story of the -introduction of Christianity into England under St. Augustine and the -opposition he met with prove this. As it was in other matters, so was -it with the ancient Celtic deacons; the old customs remained; they -held office for life, and joined with it at the same time other and -ordinary occupations. St. Patrick, for instance, the apostle of -Ireland, tells us that his father Calpurnius was a deacon, and yet he -was a farmer and a decurion, or alderman, as we should say, of a Roman -town near Dumbarton on the river Clyde. This happened about the year -400 of the Christian era.[127] - - [126] The College of Cardinals offers another illustration of - this. The Cardinals were originally the parochial clergy of Rome. - As Rome's ecclesiastical ambition increased, so did that of her - parochial clergy, who came to imagine that, standing so close to - the Pope, who was the door, they were themselves the hinges - (cardines) on whom the door turned. I wonder if one of the - original presbyters of Rome would be able to recognise his office - in that of a modern cardinal claiming princely rank and - precedence! - - [127] I have expanded this subject in _Ireland and the Celtic - Church_, ch. ii., viii., ix.; and in _Ireland and the Anglo-Norman - Church_, pp. 352-70. - -Here indeed, as in so many other cases, the Church of Christ needs to -go back to scriptural example and to apostolic rule. We require for -the work of the Church deacons like the primitive men who devoted -their whole lives to this one object; made it the subject of their -thoughts, their cares, their studies, how they might instruct the -ignorant, relieve the poor and widows, comfort the prisoners, sustain -the martyrs in their last supreme hour; and who thus using well the -office of a deacon found in it a sufficient scope for their efforts -and a sufficient reward for their exertions, because they thereby -purchased for themselves a good degree and great boldness in the faith -of Jesus Christ. The Church now requires the help of living agencies -in vast numbers, and they are not forthcoming. Let her avail herself -of apostolic resources, and fall back upon primitive precedents. The -real diaconate should be revived. Godly and spiritual men should be -called upon to do their duty. Deacons should be ordained without being -called to give up their ordinary employments. Work which now unduly -accumulates upon overburdened shoulders should be assigned to others -suitably to their talents, and thus a twofold blessing would be -secured. Christian life would flourish more abundantly, and many a -rent and schism, the simple result of energies repressed and -unemployed, would be destroyed in their very commencement. - -We have devoted much of our space to this subject, because it is one -of great interest, as touching the origin and authority of the -Christian ministry, and also because it has been a subject much -debated; but we must hurry on to other points connected with the first -appointment to the diaconate. The people selected the person to be -ordained to this work. It is probable that they made their choice out -of the different classes composing the Christian community. The mode -of election of the Seven, and the qualifications laid down by the -Apostles, were derived from the synagogue. Thus we read in Kitto's -_Cyclopaedia_, art. "Synagogue:"--"The greatest care was taken by the -rulers of the synagogue and of the congregation that those elected -almoners should be men of modesty, wisdom, justice, and have the -confidence of the people. They had to be elected by the harmonious -voice of the people." Seven deacons altogether were chosen. Three were -probably Hebrew Christians, three Grecian Christians or Hellenists, -and one a representative of the proselytes, Nicolas of Antioch. This -would have been but natural. The Apostles wanted to get rid of -murmurs, jealousies, and divisions in the Church, and in no way could -this have been more effectually done than by the principle of -representation. Had the Seven been all selected from one class alone, -divisions and jealousies would have prevailed as of old. The Apostles -themselves had proved this. They were all Hebrew Christians. Their -position and authority might have secured them from blame. Yet -murmurings had arisen against them as distributers, and so they -devised another plan, which, to have been successful, as it doubtless -was, must have proceeded on a different principle. Then when the seven -wise and prudent men were chosen from the various classes, the -Apostles asserted their supreme position: "When the Apostles had -prayed, they laid their hands on them." And as the result peace -descended like a shower upon the Church, and spiritual prosperity -followed upon internal peace and union. - -III. "They laid their hands on them." This statement sets forth the -external expression and the visible channel of the ordination to their -office which the Apostles conferred. This action of the imposition of -hands was of frequent use among the ancient Jews. The Apostles, as -well acquainted with Old Testament history, must have remembered that -it was employed in the case of designation of Joshua as the leader of -Israel in the place of Moses (Num. xxvii. 18-23; compare Deut. xxxiv. -9), that it was used even in the synagogue in the appointment of -Jewish rabbis, and had been sanctioned by the practice of Jesus -Christ. The Apostles naturally, therefore, used this symbol upon the -solemn appointment of the first deacons, and the same ceremonial was -repeated upon similar occasions. Paul and Barnabas were set apart at -Antioch for their missionary work by the imposition of hands. St. Paul -uses the strongest language about the ceremony. He does not hesitate -to attribute to it a certain sacramental force and efficacy, bidding -Timothy "stir up the gift of God which is in thee through the laying -on of my hands" (2 Tim. i. 6); while again when we come down a few -years later we find the "laying on of hands" reckoned as one of the -fundamental elements of religion, in the sixth chapter of the Epistle -to the Hebrews. But it was not merely in the solemn appointment of -officials in the Church that this ceremony found place. It was -employed by the Apostles as the rite which filled up and perfected the -baptism which had been administered by others. Philip baptized the -Samaritans. Peter and John laid their hands on them and they received -the Holy Ghost. The ceremony of imposition of hands was so essential -and distinguishing a point that Simon Magus selects it as the one he -desires above all others effectually to purchase, so that the outward -symbol might be followed by the inward grace. "Give me also this -power, that on whomsoever I lay my hands, he may receive the Holy -Ghost," was the prayer of the arch-heretic to St. Peter; while again -in the nineteenth chapter we find St. Paul using the same visible -ceremony in the case of St. John's disciples, who were first baptized -with Christian baptism, and then endued by St. Paul with the gift of -the Spirit. Imposition of hands in the case of ordination is a natural -symbol, indicative of the transmission of function and authority. It -fitly indicates and notifies to the whole Church the persons who have -been ordained, and therefore has ever been regarded as a necessary -part of ordination. St. Jerome, who was a very keen critic as well as -a close student of the Divine oracles, fixes upon this public and -solemn designation as a sufficient explanation and justification of -the imposition of hands in ordinations, lest any one should be -ordained without his knowledge by a silent and solitary prayer. Hence -every branch of the Church of Christ has rigorously insisted upon -imposition of hands after the apostolic example, in the case of -ordinations to official positions, with one or two apparent and very -doubtful exceptions, which merely prove the binding character of the -rule. - -IV. The list of names again is full of profit and of warning. How -completely different from human histories, for instance, is this -Divine record of the first doings of the Church! How thoroughly shaped -after the Divine model is this catalogue of the earliest officials -chosen by the Apostles! Men have speculated whether they were Hebrews -or Grecians, whether they belonged to the seventy sent forth by Christ -or to the hundred and twenty who first gathered into the upper room at -Jerusalem. All such speculations are curious and interesting, but they -have nothing to do with man's salvation; therefore they are sternly -put on one side and out of sight. How we should long to know the -subsequent history of these men, and to trace their careers! yet Holy -Writ tells us but very little about them, nothing certain, in fact, -save what we learn about St. Stephen and St. Philip. God bestowed Holy -Scripture upon men, not to satisfy or minister to their curiosity, but -to nourish their souls and edify their spirits. And surely no lesson -is more needed than the one implied in the silences of this passage; -there is in truth none more necessary for our publicity-seeking and -popularity-hunting age than this, that God's holiest servants have -laboured in obscurity, have done their best work in secret, and have -looked to God alone and to His judgment for their reward. I have said -indeed that concerning the list of names recorded as those of the -first deacons, we know nothing but of St. Stephen and St. Philip, -whose careers will again come under our notice in later chapters. -There is, however, a current tradition that Nicolas, the proselyte of -Antioch, did distinguish himself, but in an unhappy direction. It is -asserted by Irenaeus in his work _Against Heresies_ (Book I., ch. 26), -that Nicolas was the founder of the sect of Nicolaitans denounced in -the Revelation of St. John (ch. ii., 6, 16). Critics are, however, -much divided upon this point. Some clear Nicolas of this charge, while -others uphold it. It is indeed impossible to determine this matter. -But supposing that Nicolas of Antioch was the author of this heresy, -which was of an antinomian character, like so many of the earliest -heresies that distracted the primitive Church, this circumstance would -teach us an instructive lesson. Just as there was a Judas Iscariot -among the Apostles, and a Demas among St. Paul's most intimate -disciples, so was there a Nicolas among the first deacons. No place is -so holy, no office so sacred, no privileges so great, but that the -tempter can make his way there. He can lurk unseen and unsuspected -amid the pillars of the temple, and he can find us out, as he did the -Son of God Himself, amid the wilds of the desert. Official position -and exalted privileges confer no immunity from temptation. Nay, -rather, they bring with them additional temptations over and above -those which assail the ordinary Christian, and should therefore lead -everyone called to any similar work to diligent watchfulness, to -earnest prayer, lest while teaching others they themselves fall into -condemnation. There is, however, another lesson which a different -version of the history of Nicolas would teach. Clement of Alexandria, -in his celebrated work called the _Stromata_ (Book II., chap. 20, and -Book III., chap. 4), tells us that Nicolas was a most strictly -virtuous man. He was extreme even in his asceticism, and, like many -ascetics, used language that might be easily abused to the purposes of -wickedness. He was wont to say that the "flesh must be abused," -meaning that it must be chastised and restrained. One-sided and -extreme teaching is easily perverted by the wicked nature of man, and -men of impure lives, listening to the language of Nicolas, interpreted -his words as an excuse for abusing the flesh by plunging into the -depths of immorality and crime. Men placed in official positions and -called to the exercise of the clerical office should weigh their -words. Extreme statements are bad unless duly and strictly guarded. -The intention of the speaker may be good, and a man's own life -thoroughly consistent, but unbalanced teaching will fall upon ground -where the life and intention of the teacher will have no power or -influence, and bring forth evil fruit, as in the case of the -Nicolaitans. - -V. The central figure of this whole section of our narrative is St. -Stephen. He is introduced into the narrative with the same startling -suddenness which we may note in the case of Barnabas and of Elijah. He -runs a rapid course, flings all, Apostles and every one else, into the -shade for a time, and then disappears, exemplifying those fruitful -sayings of inspiration, so true in our every-day experience of God's -dealings, "The first shall be last, and the last first." "Paul may -plant, Apollos may water, but it is God alone that giveth the -increase." Stephen, full of grace and power, did great signs and -wonders among the people. These two words, grace and power, are -closely connected. Their union in this passage is significant. It was -not the intellect, or the eloquence, or the activity of St. Stephen -which made him powerful among the people and crowned his labours with -such success. It was his abundant grace. Eloquence and learning, -active days and laborious nights, are good and necessary things. God -uses them and demands them from His people. He chooses to use human -agencies, and therefore demands that the human agents shall give Him -of their best, and not offer to Him the blind and lame of their flock. -But these things will be utterly useless and ineffective apart from -Christ and the power of His grace. The Church of Christ is a -supernatural society, and the work of Christ is a supernatural work, -and in that work the grace of Christ is absolutely necessary to make -any human gift or exertion effectual in carrying out His purposes of -love and mercy. This is an age of organizations and committees and -boards; and some good men are so wrapped up in them that they have no -time to think of anything else. To this busy age these words, -"Stephen, full of grace and power," convey a useful warning, teaching -that the best organizations and schemes will be useless to produce -Stephen's power unless Stephen's grace be found there as well. This -passage is a prophecy and picture of the future in another aspect. The -fulness of grace in Stephen wrought powerfully amongst the people. It -was the savour of life unto life in some. But in others it was a -savour of death unto death, and provoked them to evil deeds, for they -suborned men "which said, We have heard him speak blasphemous words -against Moses, and against God." - -We get in these words, in this false accusation, even through its -falsehood, a glimpse into the character of St. Stephen's preaching. A -false accusation need not be necessarily altogether false. Perhaps -rather we should say that, in order to be effective for mischief, a -twisted, distorted charge, with some basis of truth, some semblance of -justification about it, is the best for the accuser's purpose, and the -most difficult for the defendant to answer. St. Stephen was ripening -for heaven more rapidly than the Apostles themselves. He was learning -more rapidly than St. Peter himself the true spiritual meaning of the -Christian scheme. He had taught, in no ambiguous language, the -universal character of the Gospel and the catholic mission of the -Church. He had expanded and applied the magnificent declarations of -the Master Himself, "The hour cometh, when neither in this mountain, -nor in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father;" "The hour cometh, and -now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit -and in truth." And then the narrow-minded Grecian Jews, anxious to -vindicate their orthodoxy, which was doubted by their Hebrew brethren, -distorted Stephen's wider and grander conceptions into a charge of -blasphemy against the holy man. What a picture of the future of -Christ's best and truest witnesses, especially when insisting on some -nobler and wider or forgotten aspect of truth. Their teaching has been -ever suspected, distorted, accused as blasphemous; and so it must ever -be. And yet God's servants, when they find themselves thus -misrepresented, can realize to themselves that they are but following -the course which the saints of every age have run, that they are being -made like unto the image of Stephen the first martyr, and of Jesus -Christ Himself, the King of Saints, who suffered under a similar -accusation. The mere popularity-hunter will, of course, carefully -eschew such charges and suspicions. His object is human praise and -reward, and he shapes his teaching so as to carefully avoid giving -offence. But then the mere popularity-hunter seeks his reward here -below, and very often gets it. Stephen, however, and every true -teacher looks not for reward in this world. Stephen taught truth as -God revealed it to his soul. He suffered the consequence, and then -received his crown from that Almighty Judge before whose awful -tribunal he ever consciously stood. Misrepresentation must ever be -expected by God's true servants. It must be discounted, borne with -patiently, taken as a trial of faith and patience, and then, in God's -own time, it will turn out to our greater blessing. One consideration -alone ought to prove sufficient to console us under such -circumstances. If our teaching was not proving injurious to his cause, -the Evil One would not trouble himself about it. Let us only take good -heed lest our own self-love and vanity should lead us to annoy -ourselves too much about the slander or the evil report, remembering -that misrepresentation and slander is ever the portion of God's -servants. Jesus Christ and Stephen were thus treated. St. Paul's -teaching was accused of tending to licentiousness; the earliest -Christians were accused of vilest practices; St. Athanasius in his -struggles for truth was accused of rebellion and murder; the Reformers -were accused of lawlessness; John Wesley of Romanism and disloyalty; -William Wilberforce of being an enemy to British trade; John Howard of -being an encourager of crime and immorality. Let us be content then if -our lot be with the saints, and our portion be that of the servants of -the Most High. - -Again, we learn from this place how religious zeal can overthrow -religion and work out the purposes of evil. Religious zeal, mere party -spirit taking the place of real religion, led the Hellenists to suborn -men and falsely accuse St. Stephen. They made an idol of the system of -Judaism, and forgot its spirit. They worshipped their idol so much -that they were ready to break the commandments of God for its sake. -The dangers of party spirit in matters of religion, and the evil deeds -which have been done in apparent zeal for God and real zeal for the -devil, these are still the lessons, true for the future ages of the -Church, which we read in this passage. And how true to life has even -our own age found this prophetic picture. Men cannot indeed now -suborn men and bring fatal charges against them in matters of -religion, and yet they can fall into exactly the same crime. Party -religion and party zeal lead men into precisely the same courses as -they did in the days of St. Stephen. Partisanship causes them to -violate all the laws of honour, of honesty, of Christian charity, -imagining that they are thereby advancing the cause of Christ, -forgetting that they are acting on the rule which the Scriptures -repudiate,--they are doing evil that good may come,--and striving to -further Christ's kingdom by a violation of His fundamental precepts. -Oh for more of the spirit of true charity, which will lead men to -support their own views in a spirit of Christian love! Oh for more of -that true grasp of Christianity which will teach that a breach of -Christian charity is far worse than any amount of speculative error! -The error as we think it may be in reality God's own truth; but the -violation of God's law implied in such conduct as Stephen's -adversaries displayed, and as party zeal now often prompts, can never -be otherwise than contrary to the mind and law of Jesus Christ. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -_ST. STEPHEN'S DEFENCE AND THE DOCTRINE OF INSPIRATION._ - - "[The Grecian Jews] stirred up the people, and the elders, and - the scribes, and came upon him, and seized him, and brought him - into the council, and set up false witnesses, which said, This - man ceaseth not to speak words against this holy place, and the - law: for we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall - destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses - delivered unto us."--ACTS vi. 12-14. - - "And the high priest said, Are these things so? And he said, - Brethren and fathers, hearken."--ACTS vii. 1, 2. - - -St. Stephen and St. Philip are the two prominent names among the -primitive deacons. Stephen, however, much surpasses Philip. Devout -expositors of Scripture have recognised in his name a prophecy of his -greatness. Stephen is Stephanos, a garland or crown, in the Greek -language. Garlands or crowns were given by the ancient Greeks to those -who rendered good services to their cities, or brought fame to them by -winning triumphs in the great national games. And Stephen had his name -divinely chosen for him by that Divine Providence which ordereth all -things, because he was to win in the fulness of time an imperishable -garland, and to gain a crown of righteousness, and to render highest -services to the Church of God by his teaching and by his testimony -even unto death. St. Stephen had a Greek name, and must have belonged -to the Hellenistic division of the Jewish nation. He evidently -directed his special energies to their conversion, for while the -previous persecutions had been raised by the Sadducees, as the persons -whose prejudices had been assailed, the attack on Stephen was made by -the Grecian Jews of the synagogues belonging to the Libertines or -freedmen, in union with those from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and -Asia. The Libertines had been slaves, Jewish captives, taken in the -various wars waged by the Romans. They had been dispersed among the -Romans at Rome and elsewhere. There in their captivity they had -learned the Greek language and become acquainted with Greek culture; -and now, when they had recovered their freedom through that suppleness -and power of adaptation which the Jewish race has ever displayed, they -returned to Jerusalem in such numbers that a synagogue of the -Libertines was formed. Their captivity and servitude had, however, -only intensified their religious feelings, and made them more jealous -of any attempts to extend to the Gentiles who had held them captives -the spiritual possessions they alone enjoyed. There is, indeed, an -extremely interesting parallel to the case of the Libertines in early -English history, as told by Bede. The Saxons came to England in the -fifth century and conquered the Christian Celts, whom they drove into -Wales. The Celts, however, avenged themselves upon their conquerors, -for they refused to impart to the pagan Saxons the glad tidings of -salvation which the Celts possessed.[128] But the Libertines were not -the only assailants of St. Stephen. With them were joined members of -synagogues connected with various other important Jewish centres. -Jerusalem was then somewhat like Rome at the present time. It was the -one city whither a race scattered all over the world and speaking -every language tended. Each language was represented by a synagogue, -just as there are English Colleges and Irish Colleges and Spanish -Colleges at Rome, where Roman Catholics of those nationalities find -themselves specially at home. Among these Hellenistic antagonists of -St. Stephen we have mention made of the men of Cilicia. Here, -doubtless, was found a certain Saul of Tarsus, enthusiastic in defence -of the ancient faith, and urgent with all his might to bring to trial -the apostate who had dared to speak words which he considered -derogatory of the city and temple of the great king. - - [128] See Bede's _Ecclesiastical History_, Book ii., chap. 2. - -Saul, indeed, may have been the great agent in Stephen's arrest. It is -a nature and an intellect like his that can discern the logical -results of teaching like St. Stephen's, and then found an accusation -upon the deductions he makes rather than upon the actual words spoken. -Saul may have placed the Church under another obligation on this -occasion. To him may be due the report of the speech made by Stephen -before the Sanhedrin. Indeed, it is to St. Paul in his unconverted -state we feel inclined to attribute the knowledge which St. Luke -possessed of the earlier proceedings of the council in the matter of -the Christians.[129] After St. Paul's conversion we get no such -details concerning the deliberations of the Sanhedrin as we do in the -earlier chapters of the Acts, simply because Saul of Tarsus, the -rising champion and hope of the Pharisees, was present at the earlier -meetings and had access to their inmost secrets, while at the later -meetings he never appeared save to stand his trial as an accused -person. The question, How was Stephen's speech preserved? has been -asked by some critics who wished to decry the historic truth of this -narrative, and to represent the whole thing as a fancy sketch or -romance, worked up on historic lines indeed, but still only a romance, -written many years after the events had happened. Critics who ask this -forget what modern research has shown in another department. The -_Acts_ of the martyrs are sometimes very large documents, containing -reports of charges, examinations, and speeches of considerable length. -These have often been considered mere fancy history, the work of -mediaeval monks wishing to celebrate the glory of these early witnesses -for truth, and sceptical writers have often put them aside without -bestowing even a passing notice upon them. - - [129] I have already said something on p. 181 of the meetings of - the council, but not perhaps quite enough to explain St. Paul's - relation to St. Luke as far as the Acts of the Apostles is - concerned. The Sanhedrin sat in a semicircle. In the centre of the - arc the president was placed; at either extremity there sat a - scribe, while the disciples or pupils of the Sanhedrists were - arranged in three rows appropriate to their respective - attainments. In Selden's _Works_, i., 1323, in his treatise on the - _Assemblies of the Hebrews_, the reader can see a plan of the - Sanhedrin when sitting. St. Paul, as a favourite pupil of the - President Gamaliel, would have the best place among the disciples, - if he were not actually one of the council. Selden says that the - disciples were arrayed in this prominent position not only that - they might be instructed in law, but also might be available for - serving on the council if any member died suddenly or was taken - ill. St. Paul probably made numerous notes of the speeches - delivered before him, and could supply St. Luke with notices - written and verbal. The article in Schaff's _Theological - Cyclopaedia_ on Sanhedrin should be consulted for more information - and references on this point, as well as the other references on - p. 181. - -Modern investigation has taken these documents, critically -investigated them, compared them with the Roman criminal law, and has -come to the conclusion that they are genuine, affording some of the -most interesting and important examples of ancient methods of legal -procedure anywhere to be found. How did the Christians get these -records? it may be asked. Various hints, given here and there, enable -us to see. Bribery of the officials was sometimes used. The notaries, -shorthand writers, and clerks attendant upon a Roman court were -numerous, and were always accessible to the gifts of the richer -Christians when they wished to obtain a correct narrative of a -martyr's last trial. Secret Christians among the officials also -effected something, and there were numerous other methods by which the -Roman judicial records became the property of the Church, to be in -time transmitted to the present age.[130] Now just the same may have -been the case with the trials of the primitive Christians, and -specially of St. Stephen. But we know that St. Paul was there. Memory -among the Jews was sharpened to an extraordinary degree. We have now -no idea to what an extent the human memory was then developed. The -immense volumes which are filled with the Jewish commentaries on -Scripture were in those times transmitted from generation to -generation simply by means of this power. It was considered, indeed, a -great innovation when those commentaries were committed to writing -instead of being intrusted to tradition. It is no wonder then that St. -Paul could afford his disciple, St. Luke, a report of what Stephen -said on this occasion, even if he had not preserved any notes -whatsoever of the process of the trial. Let us, however, turn to the -consideration of St. Stephen's speech, omitting any further notice of -objections based on our own ignorance of the practices and methods of -distant ages. - - [130] M. Le Blant is one of the greatest living authorities on - ancient art and history. He has been head of the French - Archaeological School at Rome. He has published an extremely able - work on the subject of the _Acts_ of the martyrs, in which he - treats them in a strictly scientific manner. He confronts them - with the processes of Roman law, the facts of chronology and - history, and triumphantly shows the vast amount of truth contained - in these documents. He also explains how the Christians got - possession of the Roman magistrates' notes, which they then - inserted in the local Church records, and dispersed amid other - Churches, after the manner of the Epistle of the Lyonnese Church, - to which reference has been already made. Le Blant, on p. 9 of his - memoir, quotes one ancient document, which incidentally mentions - that "inasmuch as it was necessary to collect all the records of - the martyrs' confessions, the Christians paid one of the javelin - men two hundred denarii for the privilege of transcribing them." - We are apt to forget that both Jews and Romans conducted all their - persecutions under strict judicial forms. We sometimes think that - the persecutions were mere outbursts of popular rage, managed - after the manner of a street riot. The examples of the magistrates - at Corinth and Ephesus in the Acts of the Apostles ought to dispel - this illusion. The Romans had a perfect horror of civil - commotions, and sternly repressed them. If a sect was to be put - down, it should be put down in a legal manner, with questions and - answers and due records of the proceedings. - -I. The defence of St. Stephen was a speech delivered by a Jew, and -addressed to a Jewish audience. This is our first remark, and it is an -important one. We are apt to judge the Scriptures, their speeches, -arguments, and discussions, by a Western standard, forgetting that -Orientals argued then and argue still not according to the rules of -logic taught by Aristotle, nor by the methods of eloquence derived -from the traditions of Cicero and Quinctilian, but by methods and -rules essentially different. What would satisfy Westerns would have -seemed to them utterly worthless, just as an argument which now seems -pointless and weak appeared to them absolutely conclusive. Parallels, -analogies, parables, mystical interpretations were then favourite -methods of argument, and if we wish to understand writers like the -authors of the scriptural books we must strive to place ourselves at -their point of view, or else we shall miss their true interpretation. -Let us apply this idea to St. Stephen's defence, which has been often -depreciated because treated as if it were an oration addressed to a -Western court or audience. Erasmus, for instance, was an exceedingly -learned man, who lived at the period of the Reformation. He was well -skilled in Latin and Greek learning, but knew nothing of Jewish ideas. -He hesitates not, therefore, to say in his Annotations on this passage -that there are many things in Stephen's speech which have no bearing -on the question at issue; while Michaelis, another German writer of -great repute in the earlier days of this century, remarks that there -are many things in this oration of which we cannot perceive the -tendency, as regards the accusation brought against the martyr. Let us -examine and see if the case be not otherwise, remembering that promise -of the Master, given not to supersede human exertion or to indulge -human laziness, but given to support and sustain and safeguard His -persecuted servants under circumstances like those amid which Stephen -found himself. "But when they deliver you up, be not anxious how or -what ye shall speak; for it shall be given you in that hour what ye -shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your -Father that speaketh in you." What, then, was the charge brought -against Stephen? He was accused of "speaking blasphemous words against -Moses, and against God," or, to put it in the formal language used by -the witnesses, "We have heard him say that Jesus of Nazareth shall -destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered -unto us." Now Stephen, if merely a man of common sense, must have -intended to reply to this indictment. Some critics, as we have just -noted, think that he failed effectually to do so. We are indeed often -in great danger of paying too much attention and lending too great -weight to objections of this kind urged by persons who assume to -themselves the office of critics; and to counteract this tendency -perhaps it is as well to note that a leading German writer of a -rationalistic type, named Zeller, who has written a work to decry the -historical character of the Acts, finds in St. Stephen's words an -oration "not only characteristic, but also better suited to the case -and to the accusation raised against him than is usually supposed." - -Disregarding, then, all cavils of critics whose views are mutually -destructive, let us see if we cannot discern in this narrative the -marks of a sound and powerful mind, guided, aided, and directed by the -Spirit of God which dwelt so abundantly in him. St. Stephen was -accused of irreverence towards Moses, and hostility towards the -temple, and towards all the Jewish institutions. How did he meet this? -He begins his address to the Sanhedrin at the earliest period of their -national history, and shows how the chosen people had passed through -many changes and developments without interfering with their essential -identity amid these changes. His opponents now made idols of their -local institutions and of the buildings of the temple, but God's -choice and God's promise had originally nothing local about them at -all. Abraham their great father was first called by God in Ur of the -Chaldees, far away across the desert in distant Mesopotamia. Thence he -removed to Charran, and then, only after the lapse of years, became a -wanderer up and down in Canaan, where he never possessed so much of -the land as he could set his foot upon. The promises of God and the -covenant of grace were personal things, made to God's chosen children, -not connected with lands or buildings or national customs. He next -takes up the case of Moses. He had been accused of blasphemy and -irreverence towards the great national law-giver. His words prove that -he entertained no such feelings; he respected and revered Moses just -as much as his opponents and accusers did. But Moses had nothing to -say or do with Canaan, or Jerusalem, or the temple. Nay, rather, his -work for the chosen people was done in Egypt and in Midian and on the -side of Horeb, where the presence and name of Jehovah were manifested -not in the temple or tabernacle, but in the bush burning yet not -consumed. - -The Grecian Jews accused Stephen of irreverence towards Moses. But how -had their forefathers treated that Moses whom he recognised as a -divinely-sent messenger? "They thrust him from them, and in their -hearts turned back again into Egypt." Moses, however, led them onward -and upward. His motto was hope. His rod and his voice ever pointed -forward. He warned them that his own ministry was not the final one; -that it was only an intermediate and temporary institution, till the -prophet should come unto whom the people should hearken. There was a -chosen people before the customs introduced by Moses. There may -therefore be a chosen people still when these customs cease, having -fulfilled their purpose. The argument of St. Stephen in this passage -is the same as that of St. Paul in the fourth chapter of Galatians, -where he sets forth the temporary and intermediate character of the -Levitical law and of the covenant of circumcision. So teaches St. -Stephen in his speech. His argument is simply this:--I have been -accused of speaking blasphemous words against Moses because I -proclaimed that a greater Prophet than he had come, and yet this was -only what Moses himself had foretold. It is not I who have blasphemed -and opposed Moses: it is my accusers rather. But then he remembers -that the accusation dealt not merely with Moses. It went farther, and -accused him of speaking blasphemous words against the national -sanctuary, "saying that Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place." -This leads him to speak of the temple. His argument now takes a -different turn, and runs thus. This building is now the centre of -Jewish thoughts and affections. But it is a mere modern thing as -compared with the original choice and promise of God. There was no -chosen dwelling-place of the Almighty in the earliest days of all; His -presence was then manifested wherever His chosen servants dwelt. Then -Moses made a tent or tabernacle, which abode in no certain spot, but -moved hither and thither. Last of all, long after Abraham, and long -after Moses, and even after David, Solomon built God an house. Even -when it was built, and in all its original glory, even then the -temporary character of the temple was clearly recognised by the -prophet Isaiah, who had long ago, in his sixty-sixth chapter, -proclaimed the truth which had been brought forward as an accusation -against himself: "Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool; what -house will ye build Me, saith the Lord, or what is the place of My -rest? Hath not My hand made all these things?"--a great spiritual -truth which had been anticipated long before Isaiah by King Solomon, -in his famous dedication prayer at the opening of the temple: "But -will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold the heaven and the heaven -of heavens cannot contain Thee; how much less this house that I have -builded" (1 Kings viii. 27). After St. Stephen had set forth this -undeniable truth confirmed by the words of Isaiah, which to the -Pharisaic portion of his audience, at least, must have seemed -conclusive, there occurs a break in the address. - -One would have thought that he would then have proceeded to describe -the broader and more spiritual life which had shone forth for mankind -in Christ, and to expound the freedom from all local restrictions -which should henceforth belong to acceptable worship of the Most High. -Most certainly, if the speech had been invented for him and placed in -his mouth, a forger would naturally have designed a fuller and more -balanced discourse, setting forth the doctrine of Christ as well as -the past history of the Jews. We cannot tell whether he actually -entered more fully into the subject or not. Possibly the Sadducean -portion of his audience had got quite enough. Their countenances and -gestures bespoke their horror of St. Stephen's doctrine. Isaiah's -opinion carried no weight with them as contrasted with the -institutions of Moses, which were their pride and glory; and so, borne -along by the force of his oratory, St. Stephen finished with that -vigorous denunciation which led to his death: "Ye stiffnecked and -uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: -as your fathers did, so do ye." This exposition of St. Stephen's -speech will show the drift and argument of it as it appears to us. But -it must have seemed to them much more powerful, plain-spoken, and -aggressive. He vindicated himself to any right-thinking and fair mind -from the accusation of irreverence towards God, towards Moses, or -towards the Divine institutions. But the minds of his hearers were -not fair. He had trampled upon their prejudices, he had suggested the -vanity of their dearest ideas, and they could not estimate his reasons -or follow his arguments, but they could resort to the remedy which -every failing though for the present popular cause possesses,--they -could destroy him. And thus they treated the modern as their ancestors -had treated the ancient prophets. What a lesson Stephen's speech has -for the Church of every age! How wide and manifold the applications of -it! The Jewish error is one that is often committed, their mistake -often repeated. The Jews identified God's honour and glory with an old -order that was fast passing away, and had no eyes to behold a new and -more glorious order that was opening upon them. We may blame them then -for their murder of St. Stephen, but we must blame them gently, -feeling that they acted as human nature has ever acted under similar -circumstances, and that good motives were mingled with those feelings -of rage and bigotry and narrowness that urged them to their deed of -blood. Let us see how this was. Stephen proclaimed a new order and a -new development, embracing for his hearers a vast political as well as -a vast religious change. His forecast of the future swept away at once -all the privileges and profits connected with the religious position -of Jerusalem, and thus destroyed the political prospects of the Jewish -people. It is no wonder the Sanhedrin could not appreciate his -oration. Men do not ever listen patiently when their pockets are being -touched, their profits swept away, their dearest hopes utterly -annihilated. Has not human experience often repeated the scene acted -out that day in Jerusalem? On the political stage men have often seen -it,--we ourselves have seen it. The advocates of liberty, civil and -religious, have had to struggle against the same spirit and the same -prejudices as St. Stephen. Take the political world alone. We now look -back and view with horror the deeds wrought in the name of authority -and in opposition to the principles of change and innovation. We read -the stories of Alva and the massacres in the Netherlands, the bloody -deeds of the seventeenth century in England and all over Europe, the -miseries and the bloodshed of the American war of independence, the -fierce opposition with which the spirit of liberty has been resisted -throughout this century; and our sympathies are altogether ranged on -the side of the sufferers,--the losers and defeated, it may have been, -for the time, but the triumphant in the long run. - -The true student, however, of history or of human nature will not -content himself with any one-sided view, and he will have some -sympathy to spare for those who adopted the stern measures. He will -not judge them too harshly. They reverenced the past as the Jews of -Jerusalem did, and reverence is a feeling that is right and blessed. -It is no good sign for this age of ours that it possesses so little -reverence for the past, thinks so lightly of the institutions, the -wisdom, the ideas of antiquity, and is ready to change them at a -moment's notice. The men who now are held up to the execration of -posterity, the high priest and the Sanhedrin who murdered Stephen, the -tyrants and despots and their agents who strove to crush the -supporters of liberty, the writers who cried them down and applauded -or urged on the violent measures which were adopted and sometimes -triumphed for the time,--we should strive to put ourselves in their -position, and see what they had to say for themselves, and thus seek -to judge them here below as the Eternal King will judge them at the -great final tribunal. They knew the good which the old political -institutions had worked. They had lived and flourished under them as -their ancestors had lived and flourished before them. The future they -knew not. All they knew was that changes were proposed which -threatened everything with which their dearest memories were bound up, -and the innovators seemed dangerous creatures, obnoxious to God and -man, and they dealt with them accordingly. - -So it has been and still is in politics. The opponents of political -change are sometimes denounced in the fiercest language, as if they -were morally wicked. The late Dr. Arnold seems a grievous offender in -this respect. No one can read his charming biography by Dean Stanley -without recognising how intolerant he was towards his political -opponents; how blind he was to those good motives which inspire the -timorous, the ignorant, and the aged, when brought face to face with -changes which appear to them thickly charged with the most dangerous -results. Charity towards opponents is sadly needed in the political as -well as in the religious world. And as it has been in politics so has -it been in religion. Men reverence the past, and that reverence easily -glides into an idolatry blind to its defects and hostile to any -improvement. It is in religion too as in politics; a thousand other -interests--money, office, expectations, memories of the loved and -lost--are bound up with old religious forms, and then when the prophet -arises with his Divine message, as Stephen arose before the Sanhedrin, -the ancient proverb is fulfilled, the corruption of the best becomes -the worst, the good motives mingle with the evil, and are used by the -poor human heart to justify the harshest, most unchristian deeds done -in defence of what men believe to be the cause of truth and -righteousness. Let us be just and fair to the aggressors as well as to -the aggrieved, to the persecutors as well as to the persecuted. But -let us all the same take good heed to learn for ourselves the lessons -this narrative presents. Reverence is a good thing, and a blessed -thing; and without reverence no true progress, either in political or -spiritual things, can be made. But reverence easily degenerates into -blind superstitious idolatry. It was so with the Sanhedrin, it was so -at the Reformation, it has ever been so with the opponents of true -religious progress. Let us evermore strive to keep minds free, open, -unbiassed, respecting the past, yet ready to listen to the voice and -fresh revelations of God's will and purposes made to us by the -messengers whom He chooses as He pleases. Perhaps there was never an -age which needed this lesson of Stephen's speech and its reception -more than our own. The attitude of religious men towards science and -its numerous and wondrous advances needs guidance such as this -incident affords. The Sanhedrin had their own theory and -interpretation of God's dealings in the past. They clung to it -passionately, and refused the teaching of Stephen, who would have -widened their views, and shown them that a grand and noble development -was quite in accordance with all the facts of the case, and indeed a -necessary result of the sacred history when truly expounded. What a -parable and picture of the future we here find! What a warning as to -the attitude religious men should take up with respect to the progress -of science! Patience, intellectual and religious patience, is taught -us. The Sanhedrin were impatient of St. Stephen's views, which they -could not understand, and their impatience made them lose a blessing -and commit a sin. Now has it not been at times much the same with -ourselves? Fifty or sixty years ago men were frightened at the -revelations of geology,--they had their own interpretations of the -past and of the Scriptures,--just as three centuries ago men were -frightened at the revelations and teaching of modern astronomy. -Prejudiced and narrow men then strove to hound down the teachers of -the new science, and would if they could have destroyed them in the -name of God. Patience here, however, has done its work and has had its -reward. The new revelations have been taken up and absorbed by the -Church of Christ. Men have learned to distinguish between their own -interpretations of religion and of religious documents on the one hand -and the religion itself on the other. The old, human, narrow, -prejudiced interpretations have been modified. That which could be -shaken and was untrue has passed away, while that which cannot be -shaken has remained. - -The lesson taught us by these instances of astronomy and geology ought -not to be thrown away. Patience is again necessary for the Christian -and for the scientist alike. New facts are every day coming to light, -but it requires much time and thought to bring new facts and old -truths into their due correlation, to look round and about them. The -human mind is at best very small and weak. It is blind, and cannot see -afar off, and it is only by degrees it can grasp truth in its fulness. -A new fact, for instance, discovered by science may appear at first -plainly contradictory to some old truth revealed in Scripture. But -even so, we should not lose our patience or our hope taught us by this -chapter. What new fact of science can possibly seem more -contradictory to any old truth of the Creeds than St. Stephen's -teaching about the universal character of God's promise and the -freeness of acceptable worship must have seemed when compared with the -Divine choice of the temple at Jerusalem? They appeared to the -Sanhedrin ideas mutually destructive, though now we see them to have -been quite consistent one with another. Let this historic retrospect -support us when our faith is tried. Let us welcome every new fact and -new revelation brought by science, and then, if they seem opposed to -something we know to be true in religion, let us wait in confidence -begotten of past experience that God in His own good time will clear -up for His faithful people that which now seems difficult of -comprehension. Patience and confidence, then, are two lessons much -needed in this age, which St. Stephen's speech and its reception bring -home to our hearts. - -II. We have now spoken of the general aspect of the discourse, and the -broad counsels we may gather from it. There are some other points, -however, points of detail as distinguished from wider views, upon -which we would fix our attention. They too will be found full of -guidance and full of instruction. Let us take them in the order in -which they appear in St. Stephen's address. The mistakes and -variations which undoubtedly occur in it are well worthy of careful -attention, and have much teaching necessary for these times. There are -three points in which Stephen varies from the language of the Old -Testament. In the fourteenth verse of the seventh chapter Stephen -speaks thus: "Then sent Joseph, and called his father Jacob to him, -and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls;" while, if we turn -to the Pentateuch, we shall find that the number of the original -Hebrew immigrants is placed three times over at seventy, or threescore -and ten, that is in Gen. xlvi. 27, Exod. i. 5, and Deut. x. 22. This, -however, is only a comparatively minor point. The Septuagint or Greek -version of the Pentateuch reads seventy-five in the first of these -passages, making the sons of Joseph born in Egypt to have been nine -persons, and thus completing the number seventy-five, at which it -fixes the roll of the males who came with Jacob. The next two verses, -the fifteenth and sixteenth, contain a much more serious mistake. They -run thus:--"So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our -fathers, and were carried over into Sychem, and laid in the sepulchre -that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Emmor the father -of Sychem." Now here there occur several grave errors. Jacob was not -carried over and buried at Sychem at all, but at the cave of -Machpelah, as is plainly stated in Gen. l. 13. Again, a plot of ground -at Sychem was certainly bought, not by Abraham, however, but by Jacob. -Abraham bought the field and cave of Machpelah from Ephron the -Hittite. Jacob bought his plot at Sychem from the sons of Emmor. There -are in these verses, then, two serious historical mistakes; first as -to the true burial-place of Jacob, and then as to the purchaser of the -plot of ground at Sychem. Yet, again, there is a third mistake in the -forty-third verse, where, when quoting a denunciation of Jewish -idolatry from Amos v. 25, 26, he quotes the prophet as threatening, "I -will carry you away beyond Babylon," whereas the prophet did say, -"Therefore I will cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus." St. -Stephen substituted Babylon for Damascus, two cities between which -several hundred miles intervened. I have stated the difficulty thus -as strongly as possible, because I think that, instead of constituting -a difficulty, they are a real source of living help and comfort, as -well as a great practical confirmation of the story. Let us take this -last point first. I say that these mistakes, admitted mistakes which I -make no vain attempt to explain away, constitute a confirmation of the -story as given in the Acts against modern rationalistic opponents. It -is a favourite theme of many of these writers that the Acts of the -Apostles is a mere piece of fancy history, a historical romance -composed in the second century for the purpose of reconciling the -adherents of St. Paul, or the Gentile Christians, with the followers -of St. Peter, or the Jewish Christians. The persons who uphold this -view fix the date of the Acts in the earlier half of the second -century, and teach that the speeches and addresses were composed by -the author of the book and put into the mouths of the reputed -speakers. Now, in the mistake made by St. Stephen, we have a -refutation of this theory. Surely any man composing a speech to put -into the mouth of one of his favourite heroes and champions would not -have represented him as making such grave errors when addressing the -supreme Jewish senate. A man might easily make any of these slips -which I have noticed in the heat of an oration, and they might have -even passed unnoticed, as every speaker who has much practice in -addressing the public still makes precisely the same kind of mistake. -But a romancer, sitting down to forge speeches suitable to the time -and place, would never have put in the mouth of his lay figures grave -errors about the most elementary facts of Jewish history. We conclude, -then, that the inaccuracies reported as made by St. Stephen are -evidences of the genuine character of the oration attributed to him. -Then again we see in these mistakes a guarantee of the honesty and -accuracy of the reports of the speech. The other day I read the -objections of a critic to our Gospels. He wished to know, for -instance, how the addresses of our Lord could have been preserved in -an age when there was no shorthand. The answer is, however, simple -enough, and conclusive: there was shorthand in that age.[131] -Shorthand was then carried to such perfection that an epigram of -Martial (xiv. 208), a contemporary poet, celebrating its triumphs may -be thus translated:-- - - "Swift though the words, the pen still swifter sped; - The hand has finish'd ere the tongue has said." - - [131] See p. 108 above, where I have touched on this point. - -While even if the Jews knew nothing of shorthand, the human memory, as -we have already noted, was then developed to a degree of which we have -no conception. Now, whether transmitted by memory or by notes, this -address of St. Stephen bears proofs of the truthfulness of the -reporter in the mistakes it contains. A man anxious for the reputation -of his hero would have corrected them, as parliamentary reporters are -accustomed to make the worst speeches readable, correcting evident -blunders, and improving the grammar. The reporter of St. Stephen's -words, on the contrary, gave them to us just as they were spoken. But -then, I may be asked, how do you account for St. Stephen's mistake? -What explanation can you offer? My answer is simple and plain enough. -I have no other explanation to offer except that they are mistakes -such as a speaker, filled with his subject, and speaking to an excited -and hostile audience, might naturally make; mistakes such as truthful -speakers every day make in their ordinary efforts. Every man who -speaks an extemporaneous discourse such as Stephen's was, full of -references to past history, is liable to such errors. Even when the -memory retains the facts most accurately, the tongue is apt to make -such lapses. Let a number of names be mingled up together in a speech -or sermon where frequent mention has to be made of one now and of -another again, how easily in that case a speaker substitutes one for -another. But it may be objected that it is declared of Stephen that he -was "full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom," that "he was full of faith -and power," and that his adversaries "were not able to resist the -wisdom and the spirit with which he spake." But surely this might be -said of able, devoted, and holy men at the present day, and yet no one -would say that they were miraculously kept from the most trivial -mistakes, and that their memories and tongues were so supernaturally -aided that they were preserved from the smallest verbal inaccuracies. -We are always inclined to reverse the true scientific method of -enquiry, and to form notions as to what inspiration must mean, instead -of asking what, as a matter of fact, inspiration did mean and involve -in the case of the Bible heroes. People when they feel offended by -these mistakes of St. Stephen prove that they really think that -Christianity was quite a different thing in the apostolic days from -what it is now, and that the words "full of the Holy Ghost" and the -presence of the Divine Spirit meant quite a different gift and -blessing then from what they imply at the present time. I look upon -the mistakes in this speech in quite a different light. St. Luke, in -recording them exactly as they took place, proves, not merely his -honesty as a narrator, but he also has handed down to us a most -important lesson. He teaches us to moderate our notions and to chasten -our _a priori_ expectations. He shows us we must come and study the -Scriptures to learn what they mean by the gift and power of the Holy -Spirit. St. Luke expressly tells us that Stephen was full of the Holy -Ghost, and then proceeds to narrate certain verbal inaccuracies and -certain slips of memory to prove to us that the presence of the Holy -Ghost does not annihilate human nature, or supersede the exercise of -the human faculties. Just as in other places we find Apostles like St. -Peter or St. Paul spoken of as equally inspired, and yet the -inspiration enjoyed by them did not destroy their human weakness and -infirmities, and, full of the Holy Ghost as they were, St. Paul could -wax wroth and engage in bitter dissension with Barnabas, his -fellow-labourer; and St. Peter could fall into hypocrisy against which -his brother Apostle had publicly to protest. It is wonderful how -liable the mind is, in matters of religion, to embrace exactly the -same errors age after age, manifesting themselves in different shapes. -Men are ever inclined to form their theories beforehand, and then to -test God's actions and the course of His Providence by those theories, -instead of reversing the order, and testing their theories by facts as -God reveals them. This error about the true theory of inspiration and -the gifts of the Holy Ghost which Protestants have fallen into is -exactly the same as two celebrated mistakes, one in ancient, the other -in modern times. The Eutychian heresy was very celebrated in the fifth -century. It split the Eastern Church into two parts, and prepared the -way for the triumph of Mahometanism. It fell, too, into this same -error. It formed an _a priori_ theory of God and His nature. It -determined that it was impossible for the nature of Deity to be united -to a nature which could feel hunger and thirst and weakness, because -that God cannot be affected by any human weakness or wants. It denied, -therefore, the real humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ and the reality -of His human life and actions; teaching that His human body was not -real, but merely a phenomenal or apparent one, and then explaining -away all the statements and facts of Gospel history which seemed to -them to conflict with their own private theory. In the West we have -had ourselves experience of the same erroneous method of argument. The -adherents of the Church of Rome argue for the infallibility of the -Pope in the same way. They dilate on the awful importance of religious -truth, and the fearful consequences of a mistake in such matters. -Hence they conclude that it is only natural and fitting that a living, -speaking, teaching, infallible guide should be appointed by God to -direct the Church, and thence they conclude the infallibility of the -Pope; a method of argument which has been amply exposed by Dr. Salmon -in his work on the Infallibility of the Church. The Roman Catholics -form their theory first, and when they come to facts which conflict -with their theory, they deny them or explain them away in the most -extraordinary manner. - -Protestants themselves, however, are subject to the same erroneous -methods. They form a theory about the Holy Ghost and His operations. -They conclude, as is true, that He is Himself right, and just, and -true in all His doings, and then they conclude that all the men whom -He chose in the earliest age of the Church, and who are mentioned in -Scripture as endued with His grace, must have been as free from every -form of error as the Holy Spirit Himself. They thus fashion for -themselves a mere _a priori_ theory like the Eutychian and the -Romanist, and then, when they apply their theory to passages like St. -Stephen's speech, they feel compelled to deny facts and offer forced -explanations, and to reject God's teaching as it is embodied in the -divinely taught lessons of history. Let us be honest, fearless -students of the Scriptures. St. Stephen was full of the Holy Ghost, -and as such his great, broad, spiritual lessons were taught by the -Spirit, and commend themselves as Divine teaching to every Christian -heart. But these lessons were given through human lips, and had to be -conveyed through human faculties, and as such are not free from the -imperfections which attach themselves to everything human here below. -Surely it is just the same still. God the Holy Ghost dwells with His -people as of old. There are men even in this age of whom it still may -be said, that in a special sense "they are full of the Holy Ghost," a -blessing granted in answer to faithful prayer and devout communion and -a life lived closely with God. The Holy Spirit speaks through them and -in them. Their sermons, even on the simplest topics, speak with power, -they teem with spiritual unction, they come home with conviction to -the human conscience. Yet surely no one would dream of saying that -these men are free from slips of speech and lapses of memory in their -extemporaneous addresses, or in their private instructions, or in -their written letters, because the Holy Ghost thus proves His presence -and His power in His people as of old. The human heart and conscience -easily and at once distinguish between that which is due to human -weakness and what to Divine grace, according to that most pregnant -saying of an Apostle himself gifted above all others, "We have this -treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be -of God and not of us." This view may be startling to some persons who -have been accustomed to look to the Bible as some persons look to the -Pope, as an oracle which will give them infallible guidance on every -topic without the exercise of any thought or intelligence on their own -part. Yet it is no original or novel notion of my own, but one that -has been luminously set forth by a devout expositor of Scripture, -dealing with this very passage many years ago. Dr. Vaughan, in his -lectures on the Acts, preaching at Doncaster when vicar of that place, -thus states his conclusions on this point:--"Now I will address one -earnest word to persons who may have noticed with anxiety in this -chapter, or who may have heard it noticed by others in a tone of cavil -or disbelief, that in one or two minor points the account here given -of Jewish history seems to vary from that contained in the narrative -of the Old Testament. For example, the history in the book of Genesis -tells us that the burying-place bought by Abraham was in Mamre or -Hebron, not at Sychem; and that it was bought by him of Ephron the -Hittite, Jacob (not Abraham) being the purchaser of the ground at -Shechem of the sons of Hamor, Shechem's father. My friends, can you -really suppose that a difference of this nature has anything to do, -this way or that, with the substantial truth of the gospel revelation? -I declare to you that I would not waste the time in endeavouring (if I -was able) to reconcile such a variance. It is to be regretted that -Christian persons, in their zeal for the literal accuracy of our Holy -Book, have spoken and written as if they thought that anything could -possibly depend upon such a question. We all know how easy it is to -get two witnesses in a court of justice to give their stories of an -occurrence in the same words. We know also how instant is the -suspicion of falsehood which that formal coincidence of statement -brings upon them. Holy Scripture shows what I may indeed call a noble -superiority to all such uniformity. Each book of our Bible is an -independent witness; shown to be so, not least, by verbal or even -actual differences on some trifling points of detail. And they who -drink most deeply at the fountain head of Divine truth learn to -estimate these things in the same manner; to feel what we might -describe as a lordly disdain for all infidel objections drawn from -this sort of petty, paltry, cavilling, carping, creeping criticism. -Let our faith at last, God helping us, be strong enough and decided -enough to override a few or a multitude of such objections. We will -hear them unmoved; we will fearlessly examine them; if we cannot -resolve them, then, in the power of a more majestic principle, we will -calmly turn from them and pass them by. What we know not now, we may -know hereafter; and if we never know we will believe still." These are -wise words, very wholesome, very practical, and very helpful in this -present age. - -III. Let us briefly gather yet another lesson from this passage. The -declaration of the Church's catholicity and the universal nature of -Christian worship contained in verses 47-50 deserve our attention. -What did St. Stephen say?--"But Solomon built Him a house. Howbeit the -Most High dwelleth not in houses made with hands; as saith the -prophet, The heaven is My throne, and the earth the footstool of My -feet; what manner of house will ye build Me? saith the Lord; or what -is the place of My rest? Did not My hand make all these things?" -These words must have sounded as very extraordinary and very -revolutionary in Jewish ears, because they most certainly struck at -the root of the exclusive privilege claimed for Jerusalem, that it was -the one place upon earth where acceptable worship could be offered, -and where the Divine presence could be manifested. It seems no wonder -that they should have roused the Sanhedrin to the pitch of fury which -ended in the orator's judicial murder. But these words have been at -times pressed farther than Stephen intended. He merely wished to teach -that God's special and covenanted presence was not for the future to -be limited to Jerusalem. In the new dispensation of the Messiah whom -he preached, that special covenanted presence would be found -everywhere. Where two or three should be gathered in Christ's name -there would God's presence be found. These words of Stephen have -sometimes been quoted as if they sounded the death-knell of special -places dedicated to the honour and glory of God, such as churches are. -It is evident, however, that they have no such application. They -sounded the death-knell of the exclusive privilege of one place, the -temple, but they proclaimed the freedom which the Church has ever -since claimed, and the Jewish Church of the dispersion, by the -institution of synagogues, had led the way in claiming teaching that -wherever true hearts and true worshippers are found, there God reveals -Himself. But we must bear in mind a distinction. Stephen and the -Apostles rejected the exclusive right of the Temple as the one place -of worship for the world. They asserted the right to establish special -places of worship throughout the world. They rejected the exclusive -claims of Jerusalem. But they did not reject the right and the duty of -God's people to assemble themselves as a collective body for public -worship, and to realize Christ's covenanted presence. This is an -important limitation of St. Stephen's statement. The absolute duty of -public collective worship of the Almighty cannot be too strongly -insisted upon. Men neglect it, and they support themselves by an -appeal to St. Stephen's words, which have nothing to do with public -worship more than with private worship. The Jews imagined that both -public and private worship offered in the Temple had some special -blessing attached, because a special presence of God was there -granted. St. Stephen attacked this prejudice. His words must, however, -be limited to the exact point he was then dealing with, and must not -be pressed farther. Private prayer was binding on all God's people in -the new and freer dispensation, and so, too, public worship has a -special covenant blessing attached to it, and the blessing cannot be -obtained if people neglect the duty. Public worship has been by -Protestants looked at too much, as if it were only a means of their -own edification, and thus, when they have thought that such -edification could be as well or better attained at home, by reading a -better sermon than they might chance to hear in the public -congregation, they have excused their absence to their own conscience. -But public worship is much more than a means of edification. It is the -payment of a debt of worship, praise, and adoration due by the -creature to the Creator. In that duty personal edification finds a -place, but a mere accidental and subsidiary place. The great end of -public worship is worship, not hearing, not edification even, though -edification follows as a necessary result of such public worship when -sincerely offered. The teaching of St. Stephen did not then apply to -the erection of churches and buildings set apart for God's service, -or to the claim made for public worship as an exercise with a peculiar -Divine promise annexed. It simply protests against any attempt to -localise the Divine presence to one special spot on earth, making it -and it alone the centre of all religious interest. St. Stephen's words -are indeed but a necessary result of the ascension of Christ as we -have already expounded its expediency. Had Christ remained on earth, -His personal presence would have rendered the Church a mere local and -not an universal institution; just as the doctrine of Roman Catholics -about the Pope as Christ's Vicar, and Rome as his appointed seat, has -so far invested Rome with somewhat of the characteristics of Jerusalem -and the Temple. But our Lord ascended up on high that the hearts and -minds of His people might likewise ascend to that region where, above -time, and sense, and change, their Master evermore dwells, as the -loadstone which secretly draws their hearts, and guides their -tempest-tossed spirits across the stormy waters of this world to the -haven of everlasting rest. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -_THE FIRST CHRISTIAN MARTYRDOM._ - - "And they cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the - witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man - named Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon the Lord, and - saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and - cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. - And when he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul was - consenting unto his death."--ACTS vii. 58-60; viii. 1. - - -The apology of Stephen struck the keynote of Christian freedom, traced -out the fair proportions of the Catholic Church, while the actual -martyrdom of Stephen taught men that Christianity was not only the -force which was to triumph, but the power in which they were to -suffer, and bear, and die. Stephen's career was a type of all martyr -lives, and embraces every possible development through which Christ's -Church and His servants had afterwards to pass,--obscurity, fame, -activity, death, fixing high the standard for all ages. - -I. We have in this passage, telling the story of that martyrdom, a -vast number of topics, which have formed the subject-matter of -Christian thought since apostolic times. We have already remarked that -the earliest quotation from the Acts of the Apostles connects itself -with this scene of Stephen's martyrdom. Let us see how this came -about. One hundred and forty years later than Stephen's death, towards -the close of the second century, the Churches of Vienne and Lyons -were sending an account of the terrible sufferings through which they -had passed during a similar sudden outburst of the Celtic pagans of -that district against the Christians. The aged Pothinus, a man whose -life and ministry touched upon the apostolic age, was put to death, -suffering violence very like that to which St. Stephen was subjected, -for we are told expressly by the historian Eusebius that the mob in -its violence flung missiles at him. "Those at a distance, whatsoever -they had at hand, every one hurled at him, thinking it would be a -great sin if they fell short in wanton abuse against him."[132] The -Church of Lyons, according to the loving usage of those early times, -sent an account of all their trouble to the brethren in Asia and -Phrygia, that they might read it at the celebration of the Eucharist -for their own comfort and edification. They entered into great -details, showing how wonderfully the power of God's grace was -manifested, even in the weakest persons, sustaining their courage and -enabling them to witness. The letter then goes on to note the -marvellous humility of the sufferers. They would not allow any one to -call them martyrs. That name was reserved to Jesus Christ, "the true -and faithful Martyr," and to those who had been made perfect through -death. Then, too, their charity was wonderful, and the epistle, -referring to this very incident, tells how they prayed "like Stephen, -that perfect martyr, Lord, impute not this sin to them." The memory of -St. Stephen served to nerve the earliest Gallic martyrs, and it has -ever since been bound up with the dearest feelings of Christians. The -arrangements of the Calendar, with which we are all familiar, are -merely an expression of the same feeling as that recorded in the -second-century document we have just now quoted. Christmas Day and St. -Stephen's Day are closely united,--the commemoration of Christ's birth -is joined with that of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, because of a -certain spiritual instinct. Christmas Day records the fact of the -Incarnation, and then we have according to the order of the Calendar -three holy days, St. Stephen's, St. John's, and the Holy Innocents' -Day, which follow one another in immediate succession. Many persons -will remember the explanation of an old commentator on the Calendar -and Liturgy, of which Keble makes a very effective use in his hymns in -the _Christian Year_ set apart for those days. There are three classes -of martyrs: one in will and deed like St. Stephen,--this is the -highest class, therefore he has place next to Christ; another in will, -but not in deed, like St. John the Divine, who was ready to suffer -death but did not,--this is the second rank, therefore his place comes -next St. Stephen; and lastly come the Holy Innocents, the babes of -Bethlehem, martyrs in deed but not in will, and therefore in the -lowest position. The Western Church, and specially the Church of -Northern Europe, has always loved the Christmas season, with its -cheerful fires, its social joys, its family memories; and hence, as it -was in the Church of the second century, so with ourselves, none has a -higher or dearer place in memory, doubtless largely owing to this -conjunction, than the great proto-martyr. Men have delighted, -therefore, to trace spiritual analogies and relationships between -Stephen and Christ; fanciful perhaps some of them are, but still they -are devout fancies, edifying fancies, fancies which strengthen and -deepen the Divine life in the soul. Thus they have noted that -Christmas Day and St. Stephen's Day are both natal days. In the -language of the ancient Church, with its strong realizing faith, men -spoke of a saint's death or martyrdom as his _dies natalis_. This is, -indeed, one of the many traces of primitive usage which the Church of -Rome has preserved, like a fly fixed in amber, petrified in the midst -of her liturgical uses. She has a Martyrology which the ordinary laity -scarcely ever see or use, but which is in daily use among the clergy -and the various ecclesiastical communities connected with that Church. -It is in the Latin tongue, and is called the _Martyrologium Romanum_, -giving the names of the various saints whose memories are celebrated -upon each day throughout the year, and every such day is duly styled -the natal or birthday of the saint to whom it is appropriated. The -Church of Rome retains this beautiful custom of the primitive Church, -which viewed the death-day of a saint as his birthday into the true -life, and rejoiced in it accordingly. That life was not, in the -conception of the primitive believers, a life of ghosts and shadows. -It was the life of realities, because it was the life of eternity, and -therefore the early Christians lived for it, they longed for it, and -counted their entrance upon it their true natal or birthday. The -Church brought the two birthdays of Christ and Stephen into closest -union, and men saw a beautiful reason for that union, teaching that -Christ was born into this lower world in order that Stephen might be -born into the heavenly world. The whole of that dreadful scene enacted -at Jerusalem was transformed by the power of that beautiful -conception. Stephen's death was no longer a brutal murder; faith no -longer saw the rage, the violence, the crushed body, the mangled and -outraged humanity. The birthday of Jesus Christ, the Incarnation of -the Master, transfigured the death-scene of the servant, for the shame -and sufferings were changed into peace and glory; the execrations and -rage of the mob became angelic songs, and the missiles used by them -were fashioned into messengers of the Most High, ushering the faithful -martyr through a new birth into his eternal rest. Well would it be for -the Church at large if she could rise to this early conception more -frequently than she commonly does. Men did not then trouble themselves -about questions of assurance, or their Christian consciousness. These -topics and ideas are begotten on a lower level, and find sustenance in -a different region. Men like Stephen and the martyrs of Vienne and -Lyons lived in the other world; it was the world of all their -interests, of all their passionate desires, of all their sense of -realities. They lived the supernatural life, and they did not trouble -themselves with any questions about that life, no more than a man in -sound physical health and spirits cares to discuss topics dealing with -the constitution of the life which he enjoys, or to debate such -unprofitable questions as, How do I know that I exist at all? -Christians then knew and felt they lived in God, and that was enough -for them. We have wandered far enough afield, however; let us retrace -our steps, and seek to discover more in detail the instruction for the -life of future ages given us in this first martyr scene. - - [132] Epistle of the Church of Lyons in Eusebius, _Eccles. Hist._, - v. 1. This letter relates the earliest Celtic martyrdoms of which - we have any knowledge. They took place at the annual Convention of - the Celtic tribes of Gaul, which assembled at Lyons and Vienne. - These conventions were much the same as the assembly at Tara in - Meath, where St. Patrick began the work of converting Ireland. See - my _Ireland and the Celtic Church_, chap. iv., and also p. 9 - above. - -II. We have brought before us the cause of the sudden outburst against -Stephen. For it was an outburst, a popular commotion, not a legal -execution. We have already explained the circumstances which led the -Sanhedrin to permit the mob to take their own course, and even to -assist them in doing so. Pilate had departed; the imperial throne too -was vacant in the spring or early summer of the year 37; there was an -interregnum when the bonds of authority were relaxed, during which the -Jews took leave to do as they pleased, trusting that when the bonds -were again drawn tight the misdeeds of the past and the irregularities -committed would be forgotten and forgiven. Hence the riot in which -Stephen lost his life. But what roused the listeners--Sanhedrists, -elders, priests, and people alike--to madness? They heard him -patiently enough, just as they afterwards heard his successor Paul, -till he spoke of the wider spiritual hope. Paul, as his speech is -reported in the twenty-second chapter, was listened to till he spoke -of being sent to the Gentiles. Stephen was listened to till he spoke -of the free, universal, spiritual character of the Divine worship, -tied to no place, bounded by no locality. Then the Sanhedrin waxed -impatient, and Stephen, recognising with all an orator's instinct and -tact that his opportunity was over, changes his note--charging home -upon his hearers the same spirit of criminal resistance to the -leadings of the Most High as their fathers had always shown. The older -Jews had ever resisted the Holy Ghost as He displayed His teaching and -opened up His purposes under the Old Dispensation; their descendants -had now followed their example in withstanding the same Divine Spirit -manifested in that Holy One of whom they had lately been the betrayers -and murderers. It is scarcely any wonder that such language should -have been the occasion of his death. How exactly he follows the -example of our Saviour! Stephen used strong language, and so did -Jesus Christ. It has even been urged of late years that our Lord -deliberately roused the Jews to action, and hastened His end by His -violent language of denunciation against the ruling classes recorded -in the twenty-third chapter of St. Matthew. There is, however, a great -lesson of eternal significance to be derived from the example of St. -Stephen as well as of our Lord. There are times when strong language -is useful and necessary. Christ's ordinary ministry was gentle, -persuasive, mild. He did not strive nor cry, neither did any man hear -His voice in the streets. But a time came when, persuasion having -failed of its purpose, the language of denunciation took its place, -and helped to work out in a way the Pharisees little expected the -final triumph of truth. Stephen was skilful and gentle in his speech; -his words must at first have sounded strangely flattering to their -prejudices, coming from one who was accused as a traitor to his race -and religion. Yet when the gentle words failed, stern denunciation, -the plainest language, the keenest phrases,--"Stiff-necked and -uncircumcised in heart and ears," "Betrayers and murderers of the -Righteous One,"--prove that a Christian martyr then, and Christ's -martyrs and witnesses of every age, are not debarred under certain -circumstances from the use of such weapons. But it is hard to know -when the proper time has come for their employment. The object of -every true servant and witness of Christ will be to recommend the -truth as effectually as possible, and to win for it acceptance. Some -people seem to invert this course, and to think that it is unworthy a -true follower of Christ to seek to present his message in an -attractive shape. They regard every human art and every human motive -or principle as so thoroughly bad that men should disregard and -despise them. Human eloquence, or motives of policy and prudence, they -utterly reject. Their principles lead some of them farther still. They -reject the assistance which art and music and literature can lend to -the cause of God, and the result is that men, specially as they grow -in culture and civilisation, are estranged from the message of -everlasting peace. Some people, with a hard, narrow conception of -Christianity, are very responsible for the alienation of the young and -the thoughtful from the side of religion through the misconceptions -which they have caused. God has made the doctrines of the cross -repugnant to the corrupt natural feelings of man, but it is not for us -to make them repugnant to those good natural principles as well which -the Eternal Father has implanted in human nature, and which are an -echo of His own Divine self in the sanctuary of the heart. It is a -real breach of charity when men refuse to deal tenderly in such -matters with the lambs of Christ's flock, and will not seek, as St. -Stephen and the apostles did, to recommend God's cause with all human -skill, enlisting therein every good or indifferent human motive. Had -St. Stephen thought it his duty to act as some unwise people do now, -we should never have had his immortal discourse as a model for -faithful and skilful preaching. We should merely have had instead the -few words of vigorous denunciation with which the address closed. At -the same time the presence of these stern words proves that there is a -place for such strong language in the work of the Christian ministry. -There is a time and place for all things, even for the use of strong -language. The true teacher will seek to avoid giving unnecessary -offences, but offence sharp and stern may be an absolute duty of -charity when prejudice and bigotry and party spirit are choking the -avenues of the soul, and hindering the progress of truth. And thus -John the Baptist may call men a generation of vipers, and Paul may -style Elymas a child of the devil, and Christ may designate the -religious world of His day as hypocrites; and when occasion calls we -should not hesitate to brand foul things with plain names, in order -that men may be awakened from that deadly torpor into which sin -threatens to fling them. The use of strong language by St. Stephen had -its effect upon his listeners. They were sawn asunder in their hearts, -they gnashed their teeth upon the martyr. His words stirred them up to -some kind of action. The Gospel has a double operation, it possesses a -twofold force--the faithful teaching of it cannot be in vain. To some -it will be the savour of life unto life, to others the savour of death -unto death. Opposition may be indeed unwisely provoked. It may be the -proof to us of nothing else save our own wilfulness, our own folly and -imprudence. But if Christian wisdom be used, and the laws of Christian -charity duly observed, then the spirit of opposition and the violence -of rage and persecution prove nothing else to the sufferers than that -God's word is working out His purposes, and bringing forth fruit -though it be unto destruction. - -III. Again, the locality, the circumstances, and the surroundings of -Stephen's martyrdom deserve a brief notice. The place of his execution -is pointed out by Christian tradition, and that tradition is supported -by the testimony of Jewish custom and of Jewish writings. He was tried -in the Temple precincts, or within sight of it, as is manifest from -the words of the witnesses before the council, "He ceaseth not to -speak against _this_ holy place. We have heard him say that this -Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy _this_ place." The mob then rushed -upon him. Under ordinary circumstances the Roman garrison stationed in -the neighbouring town of Antonia, which overlooked the temple, would -have noticed the riot, and have hastened to intervene, as they did -many years after, when St. Paul's life was threatened in a similar -Jewish outburst. But the political circumstances, as we have already -shown, were now different.[133] Roman authority was for the moment -paralysed in Jerusalem. People living at great centres such as Rome -once was, or London now is, have no idea how largely dependent distant -colonies or outlying districts like Judaea are upon personal authority -and individual lives. In case of a ruler's death the action of the -officials and of the army becomes necessarily slow, hesitating; it -loses that backbone of energy, decision, and vigour which a living -personal authority imparts. The decease of the Roman Emperor -synchronising with the recall of Pontius Pilate must have paralysed -the action of the subordinate officer then commanding at Antonia, who, -unaware what turn events might take, doubtless thought that he was -safe in restraining himself to the guardianship and protection of -purely Roman interests. - - [133] See chap. xiii., p. 248, above. - -The scene of Stephen's murder is sometimes located in the Valley of -Jehoshaphat, near the brook Kedron, under the shadow of Olivet, and -over against the Garden of Gethsemane. To that spot the gate of -Jerusalem, called the Gate of St. Stephen, now leads.[134] Another -tradition assigns the open country north-east of Jerusalem, on the -road to Damascus and Samaria, as the place consecrated by the first -death suffered for Jesus Christ. It is, however, according to the -usual practice of Holy Scripture to leave this question undecided, or -rather completely disregarded and overlooked. The Scriptures were not -written to celebrate men or places, things temporary and transient in -themselves, and without any bearing on the spiritual life. The -Scriptures were written for the purpose of setting forth the example -of devotion, of love, and of sanctity presented by its heroes, and -therefore it shrouds all such scenes as that of Stephen's martyrdom in -thickest darkness. There is as little as possible of what is merely -local, detailed, particular about the Scriptures. They rise into the -abstract and the general as much as is consistent with being a -historical narrative. Perhaps no spot in the world exhibits more -evident and more abundant proofs of this Divine wisdom embodied in the -Scriptures than this same city of Jerusalem as we now behold it. What -locality could be more dear to Christian memory, or more closely -allied with Christian hope, than the Holy Places, as they are -emphatically called--the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and its -surroundings? Yet the contending struggles of Roman Catholics, Greeks, -and Armenians have made the whole subject a reproach and disgrace, and -not an honour to the Christian name, showing how easily strife and -partisanship and earthly passions enter in and usurp the ground which -is nominally set apart for the honour of Christ Jesus. It is very hard -to keep the spirit of the world out of the most sacred seasons or the -holiest localities. - - [134] See _Survey of Western Palestine_, iii., 126 and 383-88, - where an account is given of the ruins of the ancient church - erected in honour of St. Stephen by the Empress Eudocia, about - A.D. 440. It is on the north side of Jerusalem. - -Stephen is hurried by the mob to this spot outside the Holy City, and -then they proceed in regular judicial style so far as their fury will -allow them. Dr. John Lightfoot, in his great work _Horae Hebraicae_, -dealing with this passage, notes how we can trace in it the leading -ideas and practices of Jewish legal processes. The Sanhedrin and their -supporters dragged St. Stephen out of the city because it was the law -as laid down in Lev. xxiv. 14--"Bring forth him that hath cursed -without the camp." The Jews still retained vivid memories of their -earlier history, just as students of sociology and ethnology still -recognise in our own practices traces of ancient pre-historic usages, -reminiscences of a time, ages now distant from us, when our ancestors -lived the savage life in lands widely separated from our modern homes. -So did the Jews still recognise the nomad state as their original -condition, and even in the days of our Saviour looked upon Jerusalem -as the camp of Israel, outside of which the blasphemer should be -stoned. - -Lightfoot then gives the elaborate ceremonial used to insure a fair -trial, and the re-consideration of any evidence which might turn up at -the very last moment. A few of the rules appointed for such occasions -are well worth quoting, as showing the minute care with which the -whole Jewish order of execution was regulated: "There shall stand one -at the door of the Sanhedrin having a handkerchief in his hand, and an -horse at such a distance as it was only within sight. If any one -therefore say, I have something to offer on behalf of the condemned -person, he waves the handkerchief, and the horseman rides and calls -the people back. Nay, if the man himself say, I have something to -offer in my own defence, they bring him back four or five times one -after another, if it be a thing of any moment he has to say." I -doubt, adds Lightfoot, they hardly dealt so gently with the innocent -Stephen. Lightfoot then describes how a crier preceded the doomed man -proclaiming his crime, till the place of execution was reached; where, -after he was stripped of his clothes, the two witnesses threw him -violently down from a height of twelve feet, flinging upon him two -large stones. The man was struck by one witness in the stomach, by the -other upon the heart, when, if death did not at once ensue, the whole -multitude lent their assistance. Afterwards the body was suspended on -a tree. It will be evident from this outline of Lightfoot's more -prolonged and detailed statement that the leading ideas of Jewish -practice were retained in St. Stephen's case; but as the execution was -as much the act of the people as of the Sanhedrin, it was carried out -hurriedly and passionately. This will account for some of the details -left to us. We usually picture to ourselves St. Stephen as perishing -beneath a deadly hail of missiles, raised upon him by an infuriated -mob, before whom he is flying, just as men are still maimed or killed -in street riots; and we wonder therefore when or where St. Stephen -could have found time to kneel down and commend his spirit to Christ, -or to pray his last prayer of Divine charity and forgiveness under -such circumstances as those we have imagined. The Jews, however, no -matter how passionate and enraged, would have feared to incur the -guilt of murder had they acted in this rough-and-ready method. The -witnesses must first strike their blows, and thus take upon themselves -the responsibility for the blood about to be shed if it should turn -out innocent. The culprits, too, were urged to confess their sin to -God before they died. Stephen may have taken advantage of this -well-known form to kneel down and offer up his parting prayers, which -displaying his steadfast faith in Jesus only stirred up afresh the -wrath of his adversaries, who thereupon proceeded to the last -extremities.[135] - - [135] Dr. John Lightfoot in his _Horae Hebraicae_ on Acts vii. 58, - when dealing with this incident, enters into copious details as to - the Jewish method of execution by stoning. - -Stephen's death was a type of the vast majority of future martyrdoms, -in this among other respects: it was a death suffered for Christ, just -as Christ's own death was suffered for the world at large, and that -under the forms of law and clothed with its outward dignity. -Christianity proclaims the dignity of law and order, and supports -it--teaches that the magistrate is the minister of God, and that he -does a divinely-appointed work; but Christianity does not proclaim the -infallibility of human laws or of human magistrates.[136] Christianity -does not teach that any human law or human magistrate can dictate to -the individual conscience, or intrude itself into the inner temple of -the soul. Christianity indeed has, by a long and bitter experience, -taught the contrary, and vindicated the rights of a free conscience, -by patiently suffering all that could be done against it by the powers -of the world assuming the forms and using the powers of law. -Christians, I say, have taught the dignity of law and order, and yet -they have not hesitated to resist and overturn bad laws, not however -so much by active opposition as by the patient suffering of all that -fiendish cruelty and lust could devise against the followers of the -Cross. Just as it was under the forms of law that our Saviour died and -Stephen was executed, and Peter and Paul passed to their rest, so was -it under the same forms of law that the primitive Church passed -through those ten great persecutions which terminated by seating her -on the throne of the Caesars. Law is a good thing. The absence of law -is chaos. The presence of law, even though it be bad law, is better -than no law at all. But the individual Christian conscience is higher -than any human law. It should yield obedience in things lawful and -indifferent. But in things clearly sinful the Christian conscience -will honour the majesty of law by refusing obedience and then by -suffering patiently and lovingly, as Stephen did, the penalty attached -to conscientious disobedience. - - [136] The termination of St. Clement's Epistle to the Corinthians, - discovered some few years ago, is most instructive on this point. - It is a litany or liturgical prayer used in the primitive Roman - Church. Bishop Lightfoot, in his new edition of Clement, vol. i., - p. 382, commenting on it, has some very interesting thoughts on - the relation between early Christianity and the Roman State. - -IV. Let us now briefly notice the various points of interest, some of -them of deep doctrinal importance, which gather round St. Stephen's -death. We are told, for instance, that the martyr, seeing his last -hour approaching, "looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the -glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God." Surely -critics must have been sorely in want of objections to the historical -truth of the narrative when they raised the point that Stephen could -not have looked up to heaven because he was in a covered chamber and -could not have seen through the roof! This is simply a carping -objection, and the expression used about St. Stephen is quite in -keeping with the _usus loquendi_ of Scripture. In the seventeenth of -St. John, and at the first verse, we read of our Lord that "lifting up -His eyes to heaven" He prayed His great eucharistic prayer on behalf -of His Apostles. He lifted His eyes to heaven though He was in the -upper chamber at the time. The Scriptural idea of heaven is not that -of the little child, a region placed far away above the bright blue -sky and beyond the distant stars, but rather that of a spiritual world -shrouded from us for the present by the veil of matter, and yet so -thinly separated that a moment may roll away the temporary covering -and disclose the world of realities which lies behind. Such has been -the conception of the deepest minds and the profoundest teaching. St. -Stephen did not need a keen vision and an open space and a clear sky, -free from clouds and smoke, as this objection imagines. Had St. -Stephen been in a dungeon and his eyes been blind, the spiritual -vision might still have been granted, and the consolation and strength -afforded which the sight of his ascended Lord vouchsafed. This view of -heaven and the unseen world is involved in the very word revelation, -which, in its original Greek shape, apocalypse, means simply an -uncovering, a rolling away of something that was flimsy, temporary, -and transient, that a more abiding and nobler thing may be seen. The -roof, the pillars, the solid structure of the temple, the priests and -Levites, the guards and listeners, all were part of the veil of matter -which suddenly rolled away from Stephen's intensified view, that he -might receive, as the martyrs of every age have received, the special -assistance which the King of Martyrs reserves for the supreme hour of -man's need. The vision of our Lord granted at this moment has its own -teaching for us. We are apt to conjure up thoughts of the sufferings -of the martyrs, to picture to ourselves a Stephen perishing under a -shower of stones, an Ignatius of Antioch flung to the beasts, a -Polycarp of Smyrna suffering at the stake, the victims of pagan -cruelty dying under the ten thousand forms of diabolical cruelty -subsequently invented; and then we ask ourselves, could we possibly -have stood firm against such tortures? We forget the lesson of -Stephen's vision. Jesus Christ did not draw back the veil till the -last moment; He did not vouchsafe the supporting vision till the need -for it had come, and then to Stephen, as to all His saints in the -past, and to all His saints in the future, the Master reveals Himself -in all His supporting and sustaining power, reminding us in our humble -daily spheres that it is our part to do our duty, and bear such -burdens as the Lord puts upon us now, leaving to Him all care and -thought for the future, content simply to trust that as our day is so -shall our grace and our strength be. Stephen's vision has thus a -lesson of comfort and of guidance for those fretful souls who, not -content with the troubles and trials of the present, and the help -which God imparts to bear them, will go on and strive to ascertain how -they are to bear imaginary dangers, losses, and temptations which may -never come upon them. - -Then, again, we have the final words of Stephen, which are full of -important meaning, for they bear witness unto the faith and doctrine -of the apostolic Church. They stoned Stephen, "calling upon the Lord, -and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit;" while again a few moments -later he cried, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." The latter -petition is evidently an echo of our Lord's own prayer on the cross, -which had set up a high standard of Divine charity in the Church. The -first martyr imitates the spirit and the very language of the Master, -and prays for his enemies as Christ himself had done a short time -before; while the other recorded petition, "Lord Jesus, receive my -spirit," is an echo likewise of our Lord's, when He said, "Father, -into Thy hands I commend My spirit." We note specially about these -prayers, not only that they breathe the spirit of Christ Himself, but -that they are addressed to Christ, and are thus evidences to us of the -doctrine and practice of the early Church in the matter of prayer to -our Lord. St. Stephen is the first distinct instance of such prayer, -but the more closely we investigate this book of the Acts and the -Epistles of St. Paul, the more clearly we shall find that all the -early Christians invoked Christ, prayed to Him as one raised to a -supernatural sphere and gifted with Divine power, so that He was able -to hear and answer their petitions. St. Stephen prayed to Christ, and -commended his soul to Him, with the same confidence as Christ Himself -commended His soul to the Father. And such commendation was no chance -expression, no exclamation of adoring love merely. It was the outcome -of the universal practice of the Church, which resorted to God through -Jesus Christ. Prayer to Christ and the invocation of Christ were notes -of the earliest disciples. Saul went to Damascus "to bind all that -called upon the name of Jesus" (ch. ix. 14). The Damascene Jews are -amazed at the converted Saul's preaching of Jesus Christ, saying, "Is -not this he that in Jerusalem made havoc of them which called on this -name?" (ch. ix. 21). While again Rom. x. 12 and 1 Cor. i. 2 prove that -the same custom spread forth from Jerusalem to the uttermost parts of -the Church. The passage to which I have just referred in the -Corinthian Epistle is decisive as to St. Paul's teaching at a much -later period than St. Stephen's death, when the Church had had time to -formulate its doctrines and to weigh its teaching. Yet even then, he -was just as clear on this point as Stephen years before, addressing -his Epistle to the Church of God at Corinth, "with all that call upon -the name of the Lord Jesus Christ in every place;" while again, when -we descend to the generation which came next after the apostolic age, -we find, from Pliny's celebrated letter written to Trajan, describing -the practices and ideas of the Christians of Bithynia in the earliest -years of the second century, that it was then the same as in St. -Paul's day. One of the leading features of the new sect as it appeared -to an intelligent pagan was this: "They sang an hymn to Christ as -God." St. Stephen is the earliest instance of such worship directly -addressed to the Lord Jesus Christ, a practice which has ever since -been steadily maintained in every branch of the Church of Christ. It -has been denied, indeed, in modern times that the Church of England in -her formularies gives a sanction to this practice, which is -undoubtedly apostolical. A reference, however, to the collect -appointed for the memorial day of this blessed martyr would have been -a sufficient answer to this assertion, as that collect contains a very -beautiful prayer to Christ, beseeching assistance, similar to that -given to St. Stephen, amid the troubles of our own lives. The whole -structure of all liturgies, and specially of the English liturgy, -protests against such an idea. The Book of Common Prayer teems with -prayer to Jesus Christ. The Te Deum is in great part a prayer -addressed to Him; so is the Litany, and so are collects like the -prayer of St. Chrysostom, the Collect for the First Sunday in Lent, -and the well-known prayer for the Third Sunday in Advent--"O Lord Jesu -Christ, who at Thy first coming didst send Thy messenger to prepare -Thy way."[137] The Eastern Church indeed addresses a greater number -of prayers to Christ directly. The Western Church, basing itself on -the promise of Christ, "Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in My Name, -He will give it you," has ever directed the greater portion of her -prayers to the Father through the Son; but the few leading cases just -mentioned, cases which are common to the whole Western Church, -Reformed or unreformed, will prove that the West also has followed -primitive custom in calling upon the name and invoking the help of the -Lord Jesus Himself. And then when Stephen had given us these two -lessons, one of faith, the other of practice; when he had taught us -the doctrine of Christ's divinity and the worship due to Him, and the -practice of Christian charity and the forgiving spirit which flows -forth from it, even towards those who have treated His servants most -cruelly, then Stephen "fell asleep," the sacred writer using an -expression for death indicative of the new aspect which death had -assumed through Christ, and which henceforth gave the name of -cemeteries to the last resting-places of Christian people. - - [137] See on this point a note in Liddon's _Bampton Lectures_, - 14th edition, pp. 531-43, on the worship of Jesus Christ in the - services of the Church of England. - -V. The execution of St. Stephen was followed by his funeral. The -bodies of those that were stoned were also suspended on a tree, but -there was no opposition to their removal, as afterwards in the great -persecutions. The pagans, knowing that Christians preached the -doctrine of the resurrection of the body, strove to prove the -absurdity of this tenet by reducing the body to ashes. The Christians, -however, repeatedly proved that they entertained no narrow views on -this point, and did not expect the resurrection of the identical -elements of which the earthly body was composed. They took a broader -and nobler view of St. Paul's teaching in the fifteenth of 1st -Corinthians, and regarded the natural body as merely the seed out of -which the resurrection body was to be developed. This is manifest from -some of the stories told us by ancient historians concerning the -Christians of the second century. The martyrs of Vienne and Lyons have -been already referred to, and their sufferings described. The pagans -knew of their doctrine of the resurrection of the body, and thought to -defeat it by scattering the ashes of the martyrs upon the waters of -the Rhone; but the narrative of Eusebius tells us how foolish was this -attempt, as if man could thus overcome God, whose almighty power -avails to raise the dead from the ashes scattered over the ocean as -easily as from the bones gathered into a sepulchre. Another story is -handed down by a writer of Antioch named John Malalas, who lived about -A.D. 600, concerning five Christian virgins, who lived some seventy -years earlier than these Gallic martyrs, and fell victims to the -persecution which raged at Antioch in the days of the Emperor Trajan, -when St. Ignatius perished. They were burned to death for their -constancy in the faith, and then their ashes were mingled with brass, -which was made into basins for the public baths. Every person who used -the basins became ill, and then the emperor caused the basins to be -formed into statues of the virgins, in order, as Trajan said, that "it -may be seen that I and not their God have raised them up."[138] - - [138] See Malalas' _Chronographia_, lib. xi., and the article on - Malalas in the _Dict. Christ. Biog._, where this story is given at - length. - -But while it is plainly evident from the records of history that the -earliest Christians had no narrow views about the relation between the -present body of humiliation and the future body of glory, it is -equally manifest that they paid the greatest attention to the mortal -remains of their deceased friends, and permitted the fullest -indulgence in human grief. In doing so they were only following the -example of their Master, who sorrowed over Lazarus, and whose own -mortal remains were cared for by the loving reverence of Nicodemus and -Joseph of Arimathea. Christianity was no system of Stoicism. Stoicism -was indeed the noblest form of Greek thought, and one which approached -most closely to the Christian standpoint, but it put a ban upon human -affection and feeling. Christianity acted otherwise. It flung a bright -light on death, and illuminated the dark recesses of the tomb through -the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the prospect for humanity which -that resurrection opens up. But it did not make the vain attempt of -Stoicism to eradicate human nature. Nay, rather, Christianity -sanctified it by the example of Jesus Christ, and by the brief notice -of the mourning of the Church for the loss of their foremost champion, -St. Stephen, which we find in our narrative. Such a gratification of -natural feeling has never been inconsistent with the highest form of -Christian faith. There may be the most joyous anticipation as to our -friends who have been taken from us joined with the saddest -reflections as to our own bereavement. We may be most assured that our -loss is the infinite gain of the departed, and for them we mourn not; -but we cannot help feeling that _we_ have sustained a loss, and for -_our_ loss we must grieve. The feelings of a Christian even now must -be thus mixed, and surely much more must this have been the case when -"devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentation over him." - -The last results we note in this passage of Stephen's death are -twofold. Stephen's martyrdom intensified the persecution for a time. -Saul of Tarsus was made for a while a more determined and active -persecutor. His mental position, his intellectual convictions, had -received a shock, and he was trying to re-establish himself, and -quench his doubts, by intensifying his exertions on behalf of the -ancient creed. Some of the most violent persecutions the Church has -ever had to meet were set on foot by men whose faith in their own -systems was deeply shaken, or who at times have had no faith in -anything at all. The men whose faith had been shaken endeavoured, by -their activity in defence of the system in which they once fully -believed, to obtain an external guarantee and assurance of its truth; -while the secret unbeliever was often the worst of persecutors, -because he regarded all religions as equally false, and therefore -looked upon the new teachers as rash and mischievous innovators. - -The result then of Stephen's martyrdom was to render the Church's -state at Jerusalem worse for the time. The members of the Church were -scattered far and wide, all save the Apostles. Here we behold a -notable instance of the protecting care of Providence over His infant -Church. All save the Apostles were dispersed from Jerusalem. One might -have expected that they would have been specially sought after, and -would have been necessarily the first to flee. There is an early -tradition, however, which goes back to the second century, and finds -some support in this passage, that our Lord ordered the Apostles to -remain in the city of Jerusalem for twelve years after the Ascension, -in order that every one there might have an opportunity of hearing the -truth.[139] His protecting hand was over the heads of the Church -while the members were scattered abroad. But that same hand turned the -apparent trial into the Church's permanent gain. The Church now, for -the first time, found what it ever after proved to be the case. "They -that were scattered abroad went about preaching the word." The -Church's present loss became its abiding gain. The blood of the -martyrs became the seed of the Church. Violence reacted on the cause -of those who employed it, as violence--no matter how it may -temporarily triumph--always reacts on those who use it, whether their -designs be intrinsically good or bad; till, in a widely disseminated -Gospel, and in a daily increasing number of disciples, the eye of -faith learned to read the clearest fulfilment of the ancient -declaration, "The wrath of man shall praise God, and the remainder of -wrath shalt Thou restrain."[140] - - [139] See Eusebius, v. 18; Clem. Alex., _Strom._, vi. 5. - - [140] St. Augustine, in his sermons on the festival of St. - Stephen, concisely puts the matter thus: "Si Stephenus non nasset, - ecclesia Paulum non haberet" ("If St. Stephen had not prayed, the - Church would not have had St. Paul"). - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -_SIMON MAGUS AND THE CONVERSION OF SAMARIA._ - - "And Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and proclaimed unto - them the Christ.... But there was a certain man, Simon by name, - which beforetime in the city used sorcery, and amazed the people - of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: to whom - they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This - man is that power of God which is called Great."--ACTS viii. 5, - 9, 10. - - -The object of the earlier part of this book of the Acts is to trace -the steady, gradual development of the Church among the Jews, the -evolution, never ceasing for a moment, of that principle of true -catholic and universal life which the Master implanted within her, and -which never ceased working till the narrow, prejudiced, illiberal -little company of Galileans, who originally composed the Church, -became the emancipated Church of all nations. This process of -development was carried on, as we have already pointed out, through -the agency of the Hellenistic Jews, and specially of the deacons who -were so intimately connected with that class. We have in the last few -lectures surveyed the history of one deacon, St. Stephen; we are now -led to the story of another, St. Philip. His activity, as described in -the eighth chapter, runs upon exactly the same lines. St. Stephen -proclaims the universal principles of the gospel; St. Philip acts upon -these principles, going down to the city of Samaria, and preaching -Christ there. The prominent position which the deacons had for the -time taken is revealed to us by two notices. Philip leaves Jerusalem -and goes to Samaria, where the power of the high priest and of the -Sanhedrin does not extend, but would rather be violently resisted. -Here he is safe for the time, till the violence of the persecution -should blow over. And yet, though Philip has to leave Jerusalem, the -Apostles remain hidden by the obscurity into which they had for a -little fallen, owing to the supreme brilliancy of St. Stephen: "They -were all scattered abroad except the Apostles." The deacons were -obliged to fly, the Apostles could remain: facts which sufficiently -show the relative positions the two classes occupied in the public -estimation, and illustrate that law of the Divine working which we so -often see manifesting itself in the course of the Church's chequered -career, the last shall be first and the first last. God, on this -occasion, as evermore, chooses His own instruments, and works by them -as and how He pleases. - -I. This reticence and obscurity of the Apostles may seem to us now -somewhat strange, as it certainly does seem most strange how the -Apostles could have remained safe at Jerusalem when all others had to -fly. The Apostles naturally now appear to us the most prominent -members of the Jerusalem, nay, farther, of the Christian Church -throughout the world. But then, as we have already observed, one of -the great difficulties in historical study is to get at the right -point of view, and to keep ourselves at that point under very varying -combinations of circumstances. We are apt to fling ourselves back, or, -if the expression be allowed, to project ourselves backwards into the -past, and to think that men must always have attributed the same -importance to particular persons or particular circumstances as we -do. We now see the whole course of events, and can estimate them, not -according to any mere temporary importance or publicity they may have -attained, but according to their real and abiding influence. Viewing -the matter in this light, we now can see that the Apostles were much -more important persons than the deacons. But the question is, not how -we regard the Apostles and the deacons, but how did the Sanhedrin and -the Jews of Jerusalem in Stephen's and Philip's time view these two -classes. They knew nothing of the Apostles as such.[141] They knew of -them simply as unlearned and ignorant men who had been once or twice -brought before the Council. They knew of Stephen, and perhaps, too, of -Philip, as cultured Grecian Jews, whose wisdom and eloquence and -persuasive power they were not able to resist; and it is no wonder -that in the eyes of the Sadducean majority, who then ruled the Jewish -senate, the deacons should be specially sought out and driven away. - - [141] The very name Apostle connotes for us an extraordinary - office and dignity, placing the Twelve upon an exalted plane far - above all others. But the Jewish Council knew nothing of this. The - term Apostle was in common use amongst the Jews. To us it seems - almost presumptuous to apply the name to any but the Twelve, - though the New Testament applies it more widely. The title Apostle - was given among the Jews to the legate or Church officer who - attended on every synagogue and discharged its commands. It was - also specially bestowed upon the messengers of the Jewish high - priest or patriarch who collected the temple tax while the temple - existed, and afterwards the poll tax or tribute paid by every Jew - throughout the world towards the support of the patriarch and the - Sanhedrin. The name Apostle is found in this sense in the - Theodosian Code down to so late a period as the fifth century. Our - Lord and the early Church simply adopted this title Apostle from - the synagogue, as they adopted so many other rites and usages, - baptism, holy communion, the various orders of the ministry, and a - liturgical service. - -The action of the Apostles themselves may have conduced to this. Here -let us recur to a thought we have already touched upon. We are -inclined to view the Apostles as if the Spirit which guided them -totally destroyed their human personality and their human feelings. We -are apt to cherish towards the Apostles the same reverential but -misleading feeling which the believers of the early Church cherished -towards the prophets, and against which St. James clearly protested -when he said, "Elijah was a man of like passions with ourselves." We -are inclined to think of them as if there was nothing weak or human or -mistaken about them, and yet there was plenty of all these qualities -in their character and conduct. The Apostles were older than the -deacons, and they were men of much narrower ideas, of a more -restricted education. They had less of that facility of temper, that -power of adaptation, which learning and travel combined always confer. -They may have been somewhat suspicious too of the headlong course -pursued by Stephen and his fellows. Their Galilean minds did not work -out logical results so rapidly as their Hellenistic friends and -allies. They had been slow of heart to believe with the Master. They -were slow of heart and mind to work out principles and to grasp -conclusions when taught by His servants and followers. The Apostles -were, after all, only men, and they had their treasure in earthen -vessels. Their inspiration, and the presence of the Spirit within -their hearts, were quite consistent with intellectual slowness, and -with mental inability to recognise at once the leadings of Divine -Providence. It was just then the same as it has ever been in Church -history. The older generation is always somewhat suspicious of the -younger. It is slow to appreciate its ideas, hopes, aspirations, and -it is well perhaps that the older generation is suspicious, because it -thus puts on a drag which gives time for prudence, forethought, and -patience to come into play. These may appear very human motives to -attribute to the Apostles, but then we lose a great deal of Divine -instruction if we invest the Apostles with an infallibility higher -even than that which Roman Catholics attribute to the Pope. For them -the Pope is infallible only when speaking as universal doctor and -teacher, a position which some among them go so far as to assert he -has never taken since the Church was founded, so that in their opinion -the Pope has never yet spoken infallibly. But with many sincere -Christians the Apostles were infallible, not only when teaching, but -when thinking, acting, writing on the most trivial topics, or -discoursing on the most ordinary subjects. - -II. Let us now turn our attention to Philip and his work, and its -bearing on the future history and development of the Church. Here, -before we go any farther, it may be well to note how St. Luke gained -his knowledge of the events which happened at Samaria. We do not -pretend indeed, like some critics, to point out all the sources whence -the sacred writers gathered their information. Any one who has ever -attempted to write history of any kind must be aware how impossible it -often is for the writer himself to trace the sources of his -information after the lapse of some time. How much more impossible -then must it be for others to trace the original sources whence the -sacred or any other ancient writers derived their knowledge, when -hundreds and even thousands of years have elapsed. Our own ignorance -of the past is a very unsafe ground indeed on which to base our -rejection of any ancient document whatsoever. - -It is well, however, to note, where and when we can, the sources -whence information may have been gained, and fortunately this book of -the Acts supplies us with instruction on this very point. A quarter of -a century later the same Saul who, doubtless, helped to make St. -Philip fly on this occasion from Jerusalem, was dwelling for several -days beneath his roof at Caesarea. He was then Paul the Apostle of the -Gentiles, who bore in his own person many marks and proofs of his -devotion to the cause which Philip had proclaimed and supported while -Paul was still a persecutor. The story of the meeting is told us in -the twenty-first chapter of this book. St. Paul was on his way to -Jerusalem to pay that famous visit which led to his arrest, and, in -the long run, to his visit to Rome and trial before Caesar. He was -travelling up to Jerusalem by the coast road which led from Tyre, -where he landed, through Caesarea, and thence to the Holy City. St. -Luke was with him, and when they came to Caesarea they entered into the -house of Philip the Evangelist, with whom they abode several days. -What hallowed conversations St. Luke must there have listened to! How -these two saints, Paul and Philip, would go over the days and scenes -long since past and gone! How they would compare experiences and -interchange ideas; and there it was that St. Luke must have had -abundant opportunities for learning the history of the rise of -Christianity in Samaria which here he exhibits to us. - -Let us now look a little closer at the circumstances of the case. The -place where Philip preached has raised a question. Some have -maintained that it was Samaria itself, the capital city, which Philip -visited and evangelized. Others have thought that it was a city,--some -indefinite city of the district Samaria, probably Sychar, the town -where our Lord had taught the Samaritan woman. Some have held one -view, some the other, but the Revised Version would seem to incline to -the view that it was the capital city which St. Philip visited on this -occasion, and not that city which our Lord Himself evangelized. It may -to some appear an additional difficulty in the way of accepting Sychar -as the scene of St. Philip's ministry, that our Lord's work and -teaching some five years previously would, in that case, seem to have -utterly vanished. Philip goes down and preaches Christ to a city which -knew nothing of Him. How, some may think, could this have possibly -been true, and how could such an impostor as Simon have carried all -the people captive, had Christ Himself preached there but a few short -years before, and converted the mass of the people to belief in -Himself? Now I maintain that it was Samaria, the capital, and not -Sychar, some miles distant, that Philip evangelized, but I am not -compelled to accept this view by any considerations about Christ's own -ministry and its results. Our Lord might have taught in the same city -where Philip taught, and in the course of five years the effect of His -personal ministry might have entirely vanished. - -There is no lesson more plainly enforced by the gospel story than -this, Christ's own personal ministry was a comparatively fruitless -one. He taught the Samaritan woman, indeed, and the people of the city -were converted, as they said, not so much by her witness as by the -power of Christ's own words and influence. But then the Holy Ghost was -not yet given, the Church was not yet founded, the Divine society -which Christ, as the risen Saviour, was to establish, had not yet come -into existence; and therefore work like that done at Samaria was a -transient thing, passing away like the morning cloud or the early dew, -and leaving not a trace behind. Christ came not to teach men a Divine -doctrine, so much as to establish a Divine society, and, till this -society was established, the work done even by Christ Himself was a -fleeting and evanescent thing. The foundation of the Church as a -society was absolutely necessary if the doctrine and teaching of -Christ was to be preserved. The article of the creed, "I believe in -the Holy Catholic Church," has been neglected, slighted, and -undervalued by Protestants. I have heard even of avowed expositors of -the Apostles' Creed who, when they came to this article, have passed -it over with a hasty notice because it did not fit into their narrow -systems. And yet here again the Supreme wisdom of the Divine plan has -been amply vindicated, and the experience of the New Testament has -shown that if there had not been a Church instituted by Christ, and -established with Himself as its foundation, rock, and chief -corner-stone, the wholesome doctrine and the supernatural teaching of -Christ would soon have vanished. I am here indeed reminded of the -words and experience of one of the greatest evangelists who have lived -since apostolic times. John Wesley, when dealing with a cognate -subject, wrote to one of his earliest preachers about the importance -of establishing Methodist societies wherever Methodist preachers found -access, and he proceeds to urge the necessity for doing so on -precisely the same grounds as those on which we explain the failure of -our Lord's personal ministry, so far at least as present results were -concerned. Wesley tells his correspondent that wherever Methodist -teaching alone has been imparted, and Methodist societies have not -been founded as well, the work has been an utter failure, and has -vanished away. - -So it was with the Master, Christ Jesus. He bestowed His Divine -instruction and imparted His Divine doctrine, but as the time for the -outpouring of the Spirit and the foundation of the Church had not yet -come, the total result of the personal work and labours of the -Incarnate God was simply one hundred and twenty, or at most five -hundred souls. It constitutes, then, to our mind no difficulty in the -way of regarding Sychar as the scene of Philip's teaching, that Christ -Himself may have laboured there a few years before, and yet that there -should not have been a trace of His labours when St. Philip arrived. -The Master might Himself have taught in a town, and yet His disciple's -preaching a few years later might have been most necessary, because -the Spirit was not yet given. The plain meaning, however, of the words -of the Acts is that it was to the city of Samaria, the capital city, -that Philip went; and it is most likely that to the capital city a -character like Simon would have resorted, and not to any smaller town, -as affording him the largest field for the exercise of his peculiar -talents, just as afterwards we shall find, in the course of his -history, that he resorted to the capital of the world, Rome itself, as -the scene most effectual for his purposes.[142] - - [142] Samaria, the capital, was at this period called by the - Romans Sebaste. Herod the Great rebuilt it in honour of the - emperors, and erected a splendid temple there, which he - inaugurated with games and gladiatorial shows. It was a suitable - spot for the peculiar talents of a man like Simon Magus, as in - turn it would have been specially repugnant for every reason to a - strict Jew. But a Divine instinct was leading Philip on to the - revelation of God's purposes of love and mercy. See Joseph., - _Antiqq._, XV., viii., 5; Stanley's _Sinai and Palestine_, p. - 245. - -III. St. Philip went down, then, to Samaria and preached Christ there, -and in Samaria he came across the first of those subtle opponents with -whom the gospel has ever had to struggle,--men who did not directly -oppose the truth, but who corrupted its pure morality and its simple -faith by a human admixture, which turned its salutary doctrines into a -deadly poison. Philip came to Samaria, and there he found the -Samaritans carried away with the teaching and actions of Simon. The -preaching of the pure gospel of Jesus Christ, and the exercise of true -miraculous power, converted the Samaritans, and were sufficient to -work intellectual conviction even in the case of the Magician. All the -Samaritans, Simon included, believed and were baptized. This is the -introduction upon the stage of history of Simon Magus, whom the -earliest Church writers, such as Hegesippus, the father of Church -history, who was born close upon the time of St. John, and flourished -about the middle of the second century, and his contemporary Justin -Martyr, describe as the first of those gnostic heretics who did so -much in the second and third centuries to corrupt the gospel both in -faith and practice. The writings of the second and third centuries are -full of the achievements and evil deeds of this man Simon, which -indeed are related by some writers with so much detail as to form a -very considerable romance. Here, then, we find a corroborative piece -of evidence as to the early date of the composition of the Acts of the -Apostles. Had the Acts been written in the second century, it would -have given us some traces of the second-century tradition about Simon -Magus; but having been written at a very early period, upon the -termination of St. Paul's first imprisonment, it gives us simply the -statement about Simon Magus as St. Luke and St. Paul had heard it -from the mouth of Philip the Evangelist. St. Luke tells us nothing -more, simply because he had no more to tell about this first of the -celebrated heretics. When we come to the second century Simon's story -is told with much more embellishment. The main outlines are, however, -doubtless correct. All Christian writers agree in setting forth that -after the reproof which, as we shall see, Simon Peter the Apostle -bestowed upon the magician, he became a determined opponent of the -Apostles, especially of St. Peter, whose work he endeavoured -everywhere to oppose and defeat. With this end in view he went to -Rome, as Justin Martyr says, in the reign of Claudius Caesar, and as -other writers say, in the time of Nero. - -There he successfully deceived the people for some time. We have early -notices of his success in the Imperial city. Justin Martyr is a writer -who came close upon the apostolic age. He wrote an Apology for the -Christians, which we may safely assign to some year about 150 A.D. At -that time he was a man in middle life, whose elder contemporaries must -have been well acquainted with the history and traditions of the -previous century. In that first Apology Justin gives us many -particulars about Christianity and the early Church, and he tells us, -concerning Simon Magus, that his teaching at Rome was so successful in -leading the Roman people astray that they erected a statue in his -honour, between the two bridges. It is a curious fact, and one, too, -which confirms the accuracy of Justin, that in the year 1574 there was -dug up on the very spot indicated by Justin, the island in the Tiber, -a statue bearing the inscription described by Justin, "Semoni Sanco -Deo Fidio." Critics, indeed, are now pretty generally agreed that -this statue was the one seen by Justin, but that it was originally -erected in honour of a Sabine deity, and not of the arch-heretic as -the Apologist supposed; though there are some who think that the -appeal of Justin to a statue placed before men's eyes, and about which -many at Rome must have known all the facts, could not have been made -on such mistaken grounds. It is not altogether safe to build theories -or offer explanations based on our ignorance, and opposed to the -plain, distinct statements of a writer like Justin, who was a -contemporary with the events of which he speaks. It seems indeed a -plausible explanation to say that Justin Martyr mistook the name of a -Sabine deity for that of an Eastern heretic. But there may have been -two statues and two inscriptions on the island, one to the heretic, -another to the ancient Sabine god. Later writers of the second and -third centuries improved upon Justin's story, and entered into great -details of the struggles between Simon and the two Apostles, St. Peter -and St. Paul, terminating in the death of the magician when attempting -to fly up to heaven in the presence of the Emperor Nero. His death did -not, however, put an end to his influence. The evil which he did and -taught lived long afterwards. His followers continued his teaching and -proved themselves active opponents of the truth, seducing many -proselytes by the apparent depth and subtlety of their views. Such is -the history of Simon Magus as it is told in Church history, but we are -now concerned simply with the statements put forward in the passage -before us.[143] There Simon appears as a teacher who led the -Samaritans captive by his sorcery, which he used as the basis of his -claim to be recognised as "that power of God which is called Great." -Magic and sorcery have always more or less prevailed, and do still -prevail, in the Eastern world, and have ever been used in opposition -to the gospel of Christ, just as the same practices, under the name of -Spiritualism, have shown themselves hostile to Christianity in Western -Europe and in America. The tales of modern travellers in India and the -East, respecting the wondrous performances of Indian jugglers, remind -us strongly of the deeds of Jannes and Jambres who withstood Moses, -and illustrate the sorcery which Simon Magus used for the deception of -the Samaritans. The Jews, indeed, were everywhere celebrated at this -period for their skill in magical incantations--a well-known fact, of -which we find corroborative evidence in the Acts. Bar-Jesus, the -sorcerer who strove to turn the proconsul of Cyprus from the faith, -was a Jew (Acts xiii. 6-12). In the nineteenth chapter we find the -seven sons of Sceva, the Jewish priest, exercising the same trade of -sorcery; while, as is well known from references in the classical -writers, the Jews at Rome were famous for the same practices. - - [143] The story of the quarrels between Simon Magus and St. Peter - has been used by the Tuebingen school of critics in Germany to - support their theory of a fundamental opposition between St. Paul - and St. Peter. See Dr. Salmon's _Introduction_, chap. xix., for a - full statement of this strange view. - -These statements of writers sacred and secular alike have been -confirmed in the present age. There has been a marvellous discovery of -ancient documents in Egypt within the last twelve or fifteen years, -which were purchased by the Austrian government and duly transferred -to Vienna, where they have been investigated. They are usually called -the Fayum Manuscripts.[144] They contain some of the oldest documents -now existing, and embrace among them large quantities of magical -writings, with the Hebrew formulae used by the Jewish sorcerers when -working their pretended miracles. So wondrously does modern discovery -confirm the statements and details of the New Testament! - - [144] See about the Fayum MSS. and their contents a series of - articles in the Records of the _Contemporary Review_ from December - 1884, and in the _Expositor_ for 1885 and 1888. These Fayum - documents go back to the remotest times, one of them being dated - so long ago as 1200 B.C. It is very curious that this - extraordinary discovery has been apparently overlooked by the - great majority of English learned societies. - -It is not necessary now to discuss the question whether the -achievements of sorcery and magic, either ancient or modern, have any -reality about them, or are a mere clever development of sleight of -hand, though we incline to the view which admits a certain amount of -reality about the wonders performed, else how shall we account for the -doings of the Egyptian magicians, the denunciations of sorcery and -witchcraft contained in the Bible, as well as in many statements in -the New Testament? A dry and cold age of materialism, without life and -fire and enthusiasm, like the last century, was inclined to explain -away such statements of the Scriptures. But man has now learned to be -more distrustful of himself and the extent of his discoveries. We know -so little of the spirit world, and have seen of late such strange -psychological manifestations in connection with hypnotism, that the -wise man will hold his judgment in suspense, and not hastily conclude, -with the men of the eighteenth century, that possession with devils -was only another name for insanity, and that the deeds of sorcerers -were displays of mere unassisted human skill and subtlety.[145] As it -was with the Jews, so was it with the Samaritans. They were indeed -bitterly separated the one from the other, but their hopes, ideas, and -faith were fundamentally alike. The relations between the Samaritans -and the Jews were at the period of which we treat very like those which -exist between Protestants and Roman Catholics in Ulster,--professing -different forms of the same faith, yet regarding one another with -bitterer feelings than if far more widely separated. So it was with -the Jews and Samaritans; but the existing hostility did not change -nature and its essential tendencies, and therefore as the Jews -practised sorcery, so did Simon, who was a native of Samaria; and with -his sorcery he ministered to the Messianic expectation which -flourished among the Samaritans equally as among the Jews. The -Samaritan woman testified to this in her conversation with our Lord, -and as she was a woman of a low position and of a sinful character, -her language proves that her ideas must have had a wide currency among -the Samaritan people. "The woman saith unto Him, I know that Messiah -cometh, which is called Christ: when He is come, He will declare unto -us all things." Simon took advantage of this expectation, and gave -himself out to be "that power of God which is called Great;" -testifying by his assertion to the craving which existed all through -the Jewish world for the appearance of the long-expected deliverer, a -craving which we again find manifesting itself in the many political -pretenders who sprang up in the regions of more orthodox Judaism, as -Josephus amply shows. The world, in fact, and specially the world -which had been affected with Jewish ideas and Jewish thought, was -longing for a deeper teaching and for a profounder spiritual life than -it had as yet known. It was athirst for God, yea, even for the living -God; and when it could find nothing better, it turned aside and strove -to quench the soul's desires at the impure fountains which magic and -sorcery supplied. - - [145] Moll's work on hypnotism, which we have already several - times quoted, admits the reality of Eastern magic, accounting for - the mango trick which Indian jugglers perform, and which every - Indian resident has seen, on the ground that even vegetables can - be hypnotised. It may be hard for us to admit it, but such books - compel us to allow that there may be more in heaven and earth than - is dreamt of in our philosophy. The presence of the grand heathen - temple at Sebaste or Samaria would have made it the fitter scene - for Simon's magical incantations. Magic and Paganism always - flourished side by side, as we see at Ephesus. - -IV. Philip the Evangelist came with his teaching into a society which -acknowledged Simon as its guide, and his miracles at once struck the -minds of the beholders. They were miracles worked, like the Master's, -without any secret preparations, without the incense, the -incantations, the muttered formulae which accompanied the lying wonders -of the magician. They formed a contrast in another direction too,--no -money was demanded, no personal aims or low objects were served; the -thorough unselfishness of the evangelist was manifest. Then, too, the -teaching which accompanied the miracles was their best evidence. It -was a teaching of righteousness, of holy living, of charity, of -humility; it was transparently unworldly. It was not like Simon's, -which gave out that he himself was some great one, and treated of -himself alone; but it dealt with "the kingdom of God and the name of -Jesus Christ;" and the teaching and the miracles, testifying the one -to the other, came home to the hearts of the people, leading them -captive to the foot of the Cross. It has often been a debated -question whether miracles alone are a sufficient evidence of the -truth of a doctrine, or whether the doctrine needs to be compared with -the miracles to see if its character be worthy of the Deity. The -teaching of the New Testament seems to be plainly this, that miracles, -in themselves, are not a sufficient evidence. Our Lord warns His -disciples that deceivers shall one day come working mighty signs and -wonders, so as to lead astray, if it be possible, even the very elect; -and He exhorts His disciples to be on their guard against them. But -while miracles alone are no sufficient evidence of the truth of a -doctrine, they were a very needful assistance to the doctrines of the -gospel in the age and country when and where Christianity took its -rise. Whether the sorcery and magic and wonders of Simon, and the -other false teachers against whom the Apostles had to contend, were -true or false, genuine or mere tricks, still they would have given the -false teachers a great advantage over the preachers of the gospel, had -the latter not been armed with real divine supernatural power which -enabled them, as occasion required, to fling the magical performances -completely into the shade. The miraculous operations of the Apostles -seem to have been restricted in the same way as Christ restricted the -working of His own supernatural power. The Apostles never worked -miracles for the relief of themselves or of their friends and -associates. St. Paul was detained through infirmity of the flesh in -Galatia, and that infirmity led him to preach the gospel to the -Galatian Celts. He did not, perhaps he could not, employ his -miraculous power to cure himself, just as our Lord refused to use His -miraculous power to turn stones into bread. St. Paul depended upon -human skill and love for his cure, using probably for that purpose -the medical knowledge and assistance of St. Luke, whom we find -shortly afterwards in his company.[146] Miraculous power was bestowed -upon the first Christian teachers, not for the purposes of display or -of selfish gratification, but simply for the sake of God's kingdom and -man's salvation. - - [146] See Acts xvi. 6-10, compared with Gal. iv. 13. - -And as it was with St. Paul so was it with his companions. Timothy was -exhorted to betake himself to human remedies to cure his physical -weakness, while when another apostolic man, Trophimus, was sick, he -was left behind by the Apostle at Miletus till he should get well (2 -Tim. iv. 20). Miracles were for the sake of unbelievers, not of -believers, and for this purpose we cannot see how they could have been -done without, under the circumstances in which the gospel was launched -into the world. Man's nature had been so thoroughly corrupted, the -whole moral atmosphere had been so permeated with wickedness, the -whole moral tone of society had been so terribly lowered, that the -Apostles might have come preaching the purest morality, the most -Divine wisdom, and it would have fallen on ears so deaf, and eyes so -blind, and hearts so seared and hardened, that it would have had no -effect unless they had possessed miraculous power which, as occasion -demanded, served to call attention to their teaching. But when the -preliminary barriers had been broken down, and the miracles had -fulfilled their purpose, then the preaching of the kingdom of God and -the name of Jesus Christ did their work. Here again a thought comes -forward on which we have already said a little. The subject matter of -Philip's preaching is described in the fifth verse as Christ, "Philip -went down to the city of Samaria, and proclaimed unto them the -Christ," and then in the twelfth verse it is expanded for us into "the -kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ." These two subjects are -united. The kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. The Apostles -taught no diluted form of Christianity. They preached the name of -Jesus Christ, and they also taught a Divine society which He had -established and which was to be the means of completing the work of -Christ in the world. Our Lord Jesus Christ and His Apostles recognised -the great truth, that a mere preaching of a philosophical or religious -doctrine would have been of very little use in reforming the world. -They therefore preached a Church which should be the pillar and ground -of the truth, which should gather up, safeguard, and teach the truth -whose principles the Apostles set forth. To put it in plain language, -the Evangelist St. Philip must have taught the doctrine of a Church of -Jesus Christ as well as of a doctrine of Jesus Christ. Had the -doctrine of Jesus Christ been taught without and separate from the -doctrine of a Church, the doctrine of Christ's person and character -might have vanished, just as the doctrine of Plato or Aristotle or -that of any of the great ancient teachers vanished. But Jesus Christ -had come into the world to establish a Divine society, with ranks, -gradations, and orderly arrangements; He had come to establish a -kingdom, and they all knew then what a kingdom meant. For the Greek, -Roman, or Jewish mind, a kingdom meant more even than it does for us. -It meant in their conceptions a despotism where the king ordered and -did just what he liked. The Romans, in fact, abominated the name king, -and invented the term emperor instead, because for them the word king -connoted what it does not connote for us, the possession and exercise -of absolute power. Yet, for all this, the Apostles preached Christ as -a King and His society as a kingdom, because in that new society which -He had called into existence, the graces, the gifts, the offices of -the society are totally dependent upon and entirely subservient to -Jesus Christ alone. - -How wondrously the life, the activity, the fervour and power of the -Church would have been changed had this truth been always recognised. -The Church of Jesus Christ, as regards its hidden secret life, is a -despotism. It depends upon Christ alone. It depends not upon the -State, not upon man, not upon wealth or position or earthly influences -of any kind: it depends upon Christ alone. The Church has often forgot -this secret of its strength. It has trusted in the arm of flesh, and -has relied upon human patronage and power, and then it has grown, -perhaps, in grandeur and importance as far as the world is concerned; -but, as it has grown in one direction, it has lost in the other, and -that the only direction worthy a Church's attention. The temptation to -rely on the help of the world alone has assailed the Church in various -ways. It assails individual Christians, it assails congregations, it -assails the Church at large. All of them, whether individuals, -congregations, or churches, are apt to imagine that power and -prosperity consist in wealth, or worldly position, or the number of -adherents, forgetting that Christ alone is the source of power to the -Church or to individual souls, and that where He is wanting, no matter -what may be the outward appearance, or the numerical increase or the -political influence, there indeed all true life has departed. - -V. The results of Philip's teaching and work in Samaria were -threefold. - -(1) The Samaritans believed Philip, and among the believers was Simon. -There are some people who teach faith and nothing else, and imagine -that if they lead men to exercise belief then the whole work of -Christianity is done. This incident at the very outset of the Church's -history supplies a warning against any such one-sided teaching. The -Samaritans believed, and so did Simon the Magician, who had for long -deceived them. The very same word is used here for the faith exercised -by the Samaritans and by Simon, as we find used to describe the belief -of the three thousand on the day of Pentecost, or of the Philippian -jailer who accepted St. Paul's teaching amid all the terror of the -earthquake and the opened prison. They were all intellectually -convinced and had all accepted the Christian faith as a great reality. -Intellectual faith in Christ is the basis on which a true living faith -which works by love is grounded. A faith of the heart which is not -based on a faith of the head is very much akin to a superstition. Of -course we know that there are people whose faith is deep-rooted and -fruitful who cannot state the grounds of their belief, but they are -well aware that others can thus state it, that their faith is capable -of being put into words and defended in argument. Intellectual faith -in Christianity must ever be regarded as a gift of the Holy Ghost, -according to that profound word of the Apostle, "No man can say, Jesus -is Lord, but in the Holy Ghost." But intellectual faith in the truth -and reality of Christ's mission may exist in a heart where there is no -sense of sin and of spiritual want, and then belief in Christ avails -nothing. There were cravings after righteousness and peace in -Samaritan bosoms, but there was none in one heart, at least, and that -heart was therefore unblessed. The results of St. Philip's work teach -us that faith is not everything in the Christian life. - -(2) Again we find that another result was, that the Samaritans were -all baptized, including their arch-deceiver Simon. Philip, then, in -the course of his preaching of Christ, must have told them of Christ's -law of baptism. The preaching of the name of Jesus Christ and of the -kingdom of God must have included a due setting forth of His laws and -ordinances. We do no honour to Christ when we neglect any part of His -revelation. If God has revealed any doctrine or any practice or any -sacrament, it must be of the very greatest importance. The mere fact -of its revelation by Him makes it of importance, no matter how we, in -our short-sighted wisdom, may think otherwise. Philip set forth -therefore the whole counsel of God, and as the result all the -Samaritans were baptized, including Simon; but then again, as Simon's -case taught that faith by itself availed not to change the heart, so -Simon's case teaches that baptism, neither alone nor in conjunction -with intellectual faith, avails to convert the soul and purify the -character. God offers His graces and His blessings, faith and baptism, -but unless there be receptivity, unless there be consent of the will, -and a thirst of the soul and a longing of the heart after spiritual -things, the graces and gifts of the Spirit will be offered in vain. - -(3) And then, lastly, the final and abiding result of Philip's work -was, there was great joy in that city. They rejoiced because their -souls had found the truth, which can alone satisfy the cravings of the -human heart and minister a joy which leaves no sting behind, but is a -joy pure and exhaustless. The joys of earth are always mixed, and the -more mixed the more unsatisfying. The joy of a Christian soul which -knows Christ and His preciousness, which has been delivered by Christ -from deceit and impurity and vice, as these Samaritans had, and which -feels and enjoys the new light thrown on life by Christ's revelations, -that joy is a surpassing one, ravishing the soul, satisfying the -intellect, purifying the life. There was great joy in that city, and -no wonder, for as the poet has well sung, contrasting the "world's gay -garish feast" with God's sacred consolations bestowed upon holy -souls,-- - - "Who, but a Christian, through all life - That blessing may prolong? - Who, through the world's sad day of strife, - Still chant his morning song? - - "Such is Thy banquet, dearest Lord; - O give us grace, to cast - Our lot with Thine, to trust Thy word, - And keep our best till last."[147] - - [147] _The Christian Year_, 2nd Sunday after Epiphany. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -_THE APOSTLES AND CONFIRMATION._ - - "Now when the Apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria - had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: - who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might - receive the Holy Ghost: for as yet He was fallen upon none of - them: only they had been baptized into the name of the Lord - Jesus. Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the - Holy Ghost."--ACTS viii. 14-18. - - -In the last lecture we noticed the work of Philip in Samaria, the -present one will deal with the mission of the Apostles Peter and John -to complete and perfect that work. - -The story, as told in the sacred narrative, is full of instruction. It -reveals the ritual of the apostolic Church, the development of its -organization and practice, the spiritual lessons which the earliest -gospel teachers imparted and the latest gospel teachers will find -applicable. Philip converted the Samaritans and laid the basis of a -Christian Church. Word was at once brought of this new departure to -the Apostles at Jerusalem, because it was a new step, a fresh -development which must have given a great shock to the strict Jewish -feeling, which regarded the gospel as limited by the bounds of -orthodox Judaism. The Apostles may have felt some surprise at the -news, but they evidently must have acknowledged the Samaritans as -standing on a higher level than the Gentiles, for they do not seem to -have raised any such objections to their baptism as were afterwards -urged against St. Peter when he preached to and baptized Cornelius. -"Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised," was the objection of the -Jerusalem Church urged against St. Peter as regards Cornelius. The -Samaritans were circumcised, and therefore this objection did not -apply. The Jews, indeed, of Judaea and of Galilee hated the Samaritans -with a perfect hatred, but neither hatred nor love is ever guided by -reason. Our feelings always outrun our judgment, and the judgment of -the Jews compelled them to recognise the Samaritans as within the -bounds of circumcision, and therefore the Apostles tolerated, or at -least did not except against, the preaching of the gospel to the -Samaritans, and their admission by baptism into the Messianic kingdom. -It is a phenomenon we often see repeated in our own experience. A -brother or a relation alienated is harder to be won and is more -bitterly regarded than a total stranger with whom we may have -quarrelled, though, at the same time, reason, perhaps even pride and -self-respect and regard for consistency, compel us to recognise that -he occupies a different position from that of a perfect stranger. The -conversion of the Samaritans must be viewed as one of the -divinely-appointed steps in the plan of human unification, one of the -divinely-appointed actions gently leading to the final overthrow of -the wall of partition between Jew and Gentile which the earlier -chapters of this book trace for us. How beautiful the order, how -steady and regular the progress, that is set before us! First we have -the call of the strict Jews, then that of the Hellenistic Jews, next -that of the Samaritans, and then the step was not a long one from the -admission of the hated Samaritans to the baptism of the devout though -uncircumcised Gentile, Cornelius. God does His work in grace, as in -nature, by degrees. He teaches us that changes must come, and that -each age of the Church must be marked by development and improvement; -but He shows us here in His word how changes should be made,--not -rashly, unwisely, impetuously, and therefore uncharitably, but gently, -gradually, sympathetically, and with explanations abundantly -vouchsafed to soothe the feelings and calm the fears of the weaker -brethren. This method of the Divine government receives an -illustration in this passage. God led the Church of the first age very -gradually, and therefore we see the apostolic college steadily, though -perhaps blindly and unconsciously, advancing on the road of progress -and of Christian liberality. - -We have in this section of primitive Church history a two-fold -division: the action of the Apostles on one side, the attitude and -conduct of Simon Magus on the other. Each division has quite distinct -teaching. Let us in this chapter take note of the Apostles. - -I. The Apostles who were at Jerusalem heard of the conversion of -Samaria, and they at once sent thither Peter and John to supervise the -work. The deacons had, for a time, appeared to supersede the Apostles -before the world, but only in appearance. The Apostles retained the -chief government in their own hands, though to the men of the time -others seemed the more prominent workers. The Apostles gave free scope -to the gifts entrusted to their brilliant subordinates, but none the -less they felt their own responsibility as rulers of the Divine -society, and never for a moment did they relinquish the authority over -that society which God had entrusted to them. They felt that Christ -had instituted an organized society with ranks and offices duly -graduated, with officials--of whom they were themselves the -chief--assigned to their appointed tasks, and never did they surrender -to any man their divinely-given power and authority. Philip might -preach in Samaria; but though he was successful in winning converts, -the Apostles claimed the right of inspecting and controlling his -labours. They successfully solved a problem which has often proved a -very troublesome one. They combined the exercise of power with the -free play of enthusiasm, and the result was that the enthusiasm was -shielded from mistakes, and the power was vivified by the touch of -enthusiasm and prevented from falling into that cold, heartless, -ice-like thing which autocratic rule, in Church and State alike, has -so often become. What a picture and guide we here behold for the -Church of all ages! What a needed lesson is here taught! What errors -and schisms would have been avoided throughout the long ages which -have since elapsed, had the example of the apostolic Church been more -closely followed, had power been more sympathetic with enthusiasm, and -enthusiasm more loving, obedient, and submissive as regards authority! - -The Apostles recognised their own responsibility and acted upon their -own sense of authority, and they sent forth Peter and John to minister -in Samaria and supply what was wanting as soon as they heard of the -work done by St. Philip. The persons whom the college of Apostles thus -despatched are worthy of notice, and have a direct bearing on some of -the great theological and social problems of this age. They sent Peter -and John. Peter, then, was the messenger of the Apostles,--the sent -one, not the sender. We can find nothing of the supremacy of Peter in -these early apostolic days of which men began to dream in later years. -The supreme authority in the Church and the burden of the Christian -ministry were laid upon the twelve Apostles as a whole, and they, as a -body of men entrusted with co-equal power, exercised their functions. -They knew nothing of Peter as the prince of the Apostles; nay, rather, -when occasion demanded, they sent Peter as well as John as their -delegates. The choice of these two men, just as their previous -activity, depended again upon spiritual grounds, upon their love, -their zeal, their Christian experience, not upon any official -privilege or position which they enjoyed above the other Apostles. - -Surely in this view again the Acts of the Apostles may be regarded as -a mirror of all Church history. The pretended supremacy of St. Peter -above his brethren has been the ground on which the claim of Roman -supremacy over all other Christian Churches has been urged. That claim -has been backed up by forgeries like the False Decretals, where -fictitious letters of Popes dating from the first century downwards -have been used to support the papal assertions. But plain men need not -go into abstruse questions of Church history, or into debates upon -disputed texts. We have one undoubted Church history, admitted by all -parties who profess and call themselves Christians. That history is -the Acts of the Apostles, and when we examine it we can find nothing -about St. Peter, his life or his actions, answering in the remotest -degree to that imperial and absolute authority which the papacy claims -in virtue of its alleged descent from that holy Apostle. The Acts -knows of St. Peter sometimes as the leader and spokesman of the -Apostles, at other times as their delegate, but the Acts knows -nothing and hints nothing of St. Peter as the ruler, the prince, the -absolute, infallible guide of his fellow Apostles and of the whole -Church. - -Peter and John were the persons despatched as the apostolic delegates -to complete the work begun by Philip. We can see spiritual reasons -which may have led to this choice. Peter and John, with James his -brother, had been specially favoured with Christ's personal -communications, they had been admitted into His most intimate -friendship, and therefore they were spiritually eminent in the work of -Christ, and peculiarly fitted to do work like that which awaited them -in Samaria,--pointing Christian men to the great truth, that eminence -in Christ's Church and cause will evermore depend, not upon official -position or hierarchical or ministerial authority, but upon spiritual -qualifications and the vigour of the interior life. How wonderfully -has the prophecy involved in the pre-eminence of Peter, James, and -John been fulfilled. When we look back over the ages of Christian -labour which have since elapsed, whose are the foremost names? Whose -fame as Christian workers is the greatest? Not popes or princes, or -bishops of great cities, but an Augustine, the bishop of an obscure -African see; an Origen, a presbyter of Alexandria; a Thomas a Kempis -whom no man knows; or presbyters like John Wesley, or George Herbert, -or Fletcher of Madeley, or John Keble;--men like them, holy and humble -of heart, obscure in station or in scenes of labour, they have lived -much with God and they have gained highest places in the saintly army, -because they were specially the friends of Jesus Christ. The world -knew nothing of them, and the men of affairs and the children of time, -whose thoughts were upon rank, and place, and titles, knew nothing of -them; and such men had their reward perhaps, they gained what they -sought; but the despised ones of the past have had their reward as -well, for their names have now become as ointment poured forth, whose -sweet fragrance has filled the whole house of the Lord. - -II. And now why were Peter and John sent to Samaria from Jerusalem? -They were doubtless sent to inspect the work, and see whether the -apostolic approval could be given to the step of evangelizing the -Samaritans. They had to form a judgment upon it; for no matter how -highly we may rate the inspiration of the Apostles, it is clear that -they had to argue, debate, think, and balance one side against another -just like other people. The inspiration they enjoyed did not save them -the trouble of thinking and the consequent danger of disputation; it -did not force them to adopt a view, else why the debates we read of -concerning the baptism of Cornelius, or the binding character of -circumcision? It is clear, from the simple fact that controversy and -debate held a prominent place in the early Christian Church, that -there was no belief in the existence of infallible guides, local and -visible, whose autocratic decisions were final and irreversible, -binding the whole Church. It was then believed that the guidance of -the Holy Spirit was vouchsafed through the channel of free discussion -and interchange of opinion, guided and sanctified by prayer. Peter and -John had to go down to Samaria and keenly scrutinize the work, so as -to see whether it bore the marks of Divine approval, completing the -work by the imposition of their hands and prayer for the gifts of the -Holy Ghost. The Apostles duly discharged their mission, and by their -ministry the converts received the gift of the Holy Spirit, together -with some or all of those external signs and manifestations which -accompanied the original blessing on the day of Pentecost at -Jerusalem. This portion of our narrative has been always regarded by -the Church, whether in the East or the West, as its authority for the -practice of the rite of confirmation. The assertion of the Church of -England, in one of the collects appointed for use by the bishop in the -Confirmation Service, may be taken as expressing on this point the -opinion of the Churches--Roman, Greek, and Anglican. "Almighty and -everliving God, who makest us both to will and to do those things that -be good and acceptable unto Thy Divine Majesty; We make our humble -supplications unto Thee for these Thy servants, upon whom (after the -example of Thy holy Apostles) we have now laid our hands, to certify -them (by this sign) of Thy favour and gracious goodness towards them." -Let us reflect for a little on these words. The reference to apostolic -example in this collect is not, indeed, merely to this incident at -Samaria. The example of St. Paul at Ephesus, as narrated in the -nineteenth chapter, is also claimed as another case in point. There we -find that St. Paul came to a place where he had previously laboured -for a short time. He discovered in Ephesus some disciples who had -received the imperfect and undeveloped form of teaching which John the -Baptist had communicated. A sect had apparently been already formed to -continue John's teaching, such as we still find perpetuated amid the -wilds of distant Mesopotamia, in the shape of the semi-Christian -society which there practises daily baptism as a portion of its -religion.[148] St. Paul explains to them the richer and fuller -teaching of Christ, commands them to be baptized after the Christian -model, by one of his attendants, and then, like Peter and John, -completes the baptismal act by the imposition of hands and prayer for -the gift of the Spirit. These two apostolic incidents are not, -however, the only scriptural grounds which can be alleged for the -continued use of confirmation. It might be said that the practice of -the Apostles was not sufficient to justify or authorize confirmation -as a scriptural rite, unless it can be shown that the imposition of -hands, after baptism and as its completion, passed into the ordinary -usage of the early Church. Let me here make a brief digression. The -New Testament cannot be used as a guide-book to the whole life and -practice of the early Church, because it was merely a selection from -the writings of the Apostles and of their companions. If we possessed -everything that the Apostles wrote, we doubtless should have -information upon many points of apostolic doctrine and ritual -concerning which we now can only guess, some of which would doubtless -very much surprise us. Thus, to take an example, we should have been -left without one single reference to the Holy Communion in all the -writings of St. Paul, had not the disorders at Corinth led to grave -abuses of that sacrament, and thus caused St. Paul incidentally to -mention the subject in the tenth and eleventh chapters of his first -epistle to that Church. - - [148] See about this curious sect of the Hemero-baptists - Lightfoot's _Colossians_, pp. 402-407. - -Or to take another case. The _Teaching of the Twelve Apostles_ has -been already referred to and described. It is manifestly a manual -dealing with the Church of apostolic times, and there we find -reference to customs which were practised in the Apostolic Church, to -which no reference, or at least very slight reference, is made in the -Epistles or other books of the New Testament. The Apostles practised -fasting as a preparation for important Church actions, as we learn -from the account of the ordination of Paul and Barnabas at Antioch. -The _Teaching of the Apostles_ shows us that this practice, derived -from the Jews, was the rule before baptism (of this we read nothing in -the New Testament), as well as before ordination (of this we do read -something), and that not only by the persons to be baptized, but by -the ministers of baptism as well.[149] It mentions Wednesday and -Friday fasts as instituted in opposition to the Monday and Thursday -fasts of the Jews; it shows us how the lovefeasts of the Primitive -Church were celebrated, and sheds much light upon the Order of -prophets and their activity, to which St. Paul barely alludes. If we -could regain the numberless writings of the Apostles and other early -Christians which have perished, we should doubtless possess -information upon many other practices and customs of early Church life -which would much surprise us. The New Testament cannot then be used as -an exhaustive account of the Primitive Church; its silence is no -conclusive argument against apostolic origin or sanction as regards -any practice, any more than the Old Testament is to be regarded as an -exhaustive history of the Jewish nation. And yet, though we speak -thus, confirmation or laying on of hands upon the baptized as the -completion of the initial sacrament is not left without notice in the -Epistles. The imposition of hands as the complement of baptism did not -cease with the Apostles and was not tied to them alone, any more than -did the use of water in the sacrament of baptism itself cease with the -Apostles, as some of the Society of Friends have contended, or the -imposition of hands in ordination terminate with apostolic times, as -others have argued. This appears from two passages. St. Paul, in the -twenty-second verse of the fifth chapter of 1 Timothy, when dealing -with Timothy's conduct in the usual pastoral oversight of the Church, -lays down, "Lay hands suddenly on no man." These words referred not to -ordination, for St. Paul had passed from that subject and was treating -of Timothy's ministerial conduct towards the ordinary members of his -flock, directing how he was to care for their souls, reproving -publicly the notorious transgressor, and putting him to open shame. We -admit, indeed, at once that this notice of the imposition of hands may -refer to another use of it which was practised in the early Church. -St. Paul may be referring to the imposition of hands when a lapsed or -excommunicated member was readmitted into the Church; or both uses of -the ceremony, in confirmation as well as in absolution, may be -included under the one reference. But in any case we have another -distinct, though incidental, mention of this rite, and that at a time, -in a manner, and in a book which clearly proves the practice to have -passed into the general custom of the Church. Let us see how this is. - - [149] The order for adult baptism in the Book of Common Prayer was - drawn up by the divines of the Restoration. They must have been - well skilled in Christian antiquity, for they lay down expressly - the same rule as the _Teaching of the Apostles_. They order that - notice shall be given of an adult's baptism a week at least - beforehand, that the persons to be baptized may be duly exhorted - to prepare themselves by prayer and fasting for that holy - ordinance. - -The Epistle to the Hebrews was written by one of the second generation -of Christians, one of the generation who could look back to and wonder -at the miracles and gifts of the apostolic age. The writer of the -Hebrews tells us himself that he was in this position; for when -speaking, in the opening of the second chapter, concerning the danger -of neglecting the Gospel message, he describes it as a "great -salvation; which having at the first been spoken through the Lord, was -confirmed unto us by them that heard; God also bearing witness with -them, both by signs and wonders, and by manifold powers, and by gifts -of the Holy Ghost, according to His own will." So that it is evident -that the Church of the Hebrews was the composition of a man who -belonged to a time when the Church had passed out of the fluid state -in which we find it in the earlier chapters of the Acts. It had passed -into a condition when rites and ceremonies and Church government and -ecclesiastical organisations had crystallised, and when men repeated -with profoundest reverence the forms and ceremonies which had become -associated with the names and persons of the earliest teachers of the -faith; names and persons which now were surrounded with all that -sacred charm and halo which distance, and above all else, death, lend -to human memories. There is an interesting passage in Tertullian which -shows how this feeling worked among the early Christians, making them -anxious in divine worship to repeat most minutely and even absurdly -the circumstances of the Church's earliest days. In Tertullian's works -we have a treatise on Prayer, in which he expounds the nature of the -Lord's Prayer, going through it petition by petition, proving -conclusively that Tertullian and the Christians nearest the apostolic -age knew nothing of that modern absurdity which asserts that the -Lord's Prayer should not be used by Christians. He then proceeds to -explain certain useful customs, and to reprove certain superstitious -ceremonies practised by the Christians of his day. He approves and -explains the custom of praying with hands outstretched, because this -is an imitation of our Lord, whose hands were outstretched upon the -cross.[150] He disapproves of the practice of washing the hands before -every prayer, which Tertullian says was done in memory of our Lord's -Passion, when water was used by Pilate to wash his hands, and -designates as superstitious the custom of sitting down upon their -couches or beds after they had prayed, in imitation of Hermas who -wrote the _Shepherd_, of whom it was said, that after finishing his -prayer, he sat down on his bed.[151] Now this last instance exactly -illustrates what must have happened in the case of the second -generation of Christians, to whom the Epistle to the Hebrews was -directed. Men at the end of the second century, when Tertullian lived, -looked back to the Shepherd of Hermas with the same profound reverence -as to the Apostles. They imitated, therefore, every action and -ceremony practised by the Shepherd, whom they regarded as inspired, -reading his writings with the same reverence as those of the Apostles. - - [150] There is no ceremony which proves more conclusively the - identity between the ritual of apostolic ages and, say, of the - year 200, than this custom of standing at public prayer with hands - outstretched. St. Paul, writing to Timothy (1 Tim. ii. 8), says, - "I desire therefore that the men pray in every place, lifting up - holy hands," and then he prescribes rules for the women. This - passage will not be understood in its full force till one grasps - the notion of an early Christian at prayer, as described by - Tertullian in the treatise on Prayer to which I have referred. - Tertullian lays down, with other writers of the second century, - that Christians should pray in public on the Lord's Day standing - with the hands lifted up and the arms stretched out horizontally. - On this point the practices of the East and West alike were - identical, and had not changed one atom from St. Paul's to - Tertullian's time. From the way some people speak one would think - that the Christians of the second century were wild - revolutionaries, who were only too anxious to change the ritual - derived from apostolic days. Tertullian's works prove that they - were, on the other hand, almost too slavish in their adherence to - ancient customs. Human nature is the same in every age, and a - moment's reflection will show us that whether in England, - Scotland, or Ireland, the ritual of old-fashioned congregations of - every denomination is the same to-day as in the seventeenth - century. A few instances occur to me which illustrate this. Dean - Hook, in a letter dated April 5th, 1838, tells us that the old - Presbyterian way of administering the Holy Communion, carrying the - elements to the communicants sitting in their pews, still existed - in the parish church of Leeds. The custom had been introduced - early in the seventeenth century, and never was discontinued, - notwithstanding a plain rubric forbidding it. I have read that the - same custom prevailed at St. Mary's in Oxford, when Newman became - Vicar. Again, down to a few years ago, in the country parts of - Ulster and Connaught, the separation between the sexes in public - worship continued among the Methodists, in obedience to John - Wesley's law made one hundred and twenty years before. It is two - hundred years since Sternhold and Hopkins' version of the Psalms - was authoritatively laid aside, and Tate and Brady substituted. - Yet I have within the last ten years seen Prayer-books in use at - Bolton Abbey in Yorkshire, with Sternhold and Hopkins attached to - them. Surely the early Christians were at least as Conservative as - their modern followers. - - [151] See Tertullian on Prayer, in his Works, vol. i., pp. 188-92, - as translated in Clark's Ante-Nicene Library. - -Human nature is ever the same. The latest sect started in the present -generation will be found acting on the same principles as the -Christians of the apostolic age. The practices and ceremonial of their -first founders become the model on which they shape themselves, and -every departure from that model is bitterly resented. Human nature is -governed universally by principles which are essentially conservative -and traditional.[152] So it must have been with the immediate -followers of the Apostles; they conformed themselves as exactly as -they could to everything--rite, ceremony, form of words--which the -Apostles delivered or practised. And the Apostles certainly delivered -precepts and laid down rules on various liturgical questions, of which -we have now no written record. St. Paul expressly refers to traditions -and customs which he had delivered or intended to deliver, some of -which we know, others of which we know not.[153] Now wherefore have we -made this long excursion into the dim regions of primitive antiquity? -Simply to show that it is _a priori_ likely that the writer of the -Epistle to the Hebrews, and men like him of the second and third -generation of Christians, would have followed the example of the -Apostles, and practised imposition of hands together with prayer for -the gift of the Spirit in the case of those baptized into Christ, -merely because the Apostles had beforetime practised it. And then, -when we come to the actual study of the Epistle to the Hebrews, and -read the sixth chapter, we find our anticipations fulfilled. In the -first two verses of that chapter the writer lays down the first -principles of Christ, the foundation doctrines of the Christian -system, which he takes for granted as known and acknowledged by every -one; they are, repentance from dead works, faith towards God, the -teaching of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of the -resurrection of the dead and of eternal judgment. Here the imposition -of hands cannot refer to ordination, because, as all the other points -are matters of personal religion and individual practice, not of -ecclesiastical organisation, so we must restrict the imposition of -hands referred to as a principle of the Christian religion, to some -imposition of hands needful for every Christian, not for the few -merely who should be admitted to the work of the ministry. While, -again, its close connection with baptism clearly points to the -imposition of hands in Confirmation, which the Apostles practised and -the primitive Christians adopted from their example. And then, when we -pass to ecclesiastical antiquity and study the works of Tertullian, -the earliest writer who enters into the details of the practices and -ritual established in the Churches, we find imposition of hands -connected with baptism exactly as stated in the Epistle to the -Hebrews, and viewed as the channel by which the gift of the Holy Ghost -is conveyed,[154] not in the shape of miraculous gifts, but in all -that edifying, consoling, and sanctifying power which every individual -needs, and in virtue of which the New Testament writers, in common -with Tertullian, call baptized men temples of the Holy Ghost and -partakers of the Holy Ghost.[155] - - [152] I was much struck the other day with a modern instance of - this. The Plymouth Brethren boast themselves as the least - traditional of sects. They are, however, just at present split all - the world over into two divisions, the great subject of debate - being the writings of a Mr. Raven. He has ventured upon some - perilous speculations concerning the nature of Christ's person. I - have seen a formal indictment drawn out by his opponents, in which - his opinions are contrasted with statements in the writings of - their founder, the late J. N. Darby, which are evidently the final - authority and standard of appeal for them. - - [153] Thus in 1 Cor. xi. 2 St. Paul says, "Now I praise you that - ye remember me in all things, and hold fast the traditions, even - as I delivered them to you," and then goes on to discuss the - question of veiling of women, showing the character of the - traditions thus delivered. With this verse may be compared similar - references in 1 Cor. vii. 17, 2 Thess. ii. 15 and iii. 9. - - [154] See Tertullian on Baptism, chap. vi., where he says, "Not - that in the waters we obtain the Holy Spirit, but in the water, - under the influence of the angel, we are cleansed, and thus - prepared for the Holy Spirit." And again, in chap. viii. he - describes the course followed after baptism thus: "In the next - place the hand is laid on us, invoking and inviting the Holy - Spirit through the words of benediction." To pass from Tertullian - to a very different witness, we may note that Calvin in his - commentary on Heb. vi. 2 says, "This one place abundantly - testifies that the origin of this ceremony (imposition of hands on - the baptized) came from the Apostles." He differs from Tertullian, - however. Calvin does not view it so much as a channel of Divine - grace as a rite for profession of faith and solemn prayer, and as - such would have confirmation continued as a necessary complement - of infant baptism. - - [155] Compare 1 Cor. vi. 19 with Heb. vi. 4, 5. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -_ST. PETER AND SIMON MAGUS._ - - "Now when Simon saw that through the laying on of the Apostles' - hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, saying, - Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay my hands, he - may receive the Holy Ghost."--ACTS viii. 18, 19. - - -We have in the last exposition endeavoured to explain the origin of -the rite of Confirmation and to connect its development in the second -century with the first notice of its rise in germ and principle at -Samaria. There have been from time to time modifications and changes -in the ordinance. The Church has availed itself of the power she -necessarily possesses to insist upon different aspects of Confirmation -at different periods. The Church of England at the Reformation brought -out into prominence the human side of Confirmation as we may call it, -which views the rite as a renewal and strengthening of the baptismal -vows of renunciation, faith, and obedience, which had fallen too much -out of sight, while still insisting on the Divine side as well, which -regards Confirmation as a method of Divine action, a channel of Divine -grace, strengthening and blessing the soul. Yet no one can imagine -that the Reformers invented a new ordinance because they insisted on a -forgotten and latent side of the old rite. So it was during the second -century and in Tertullian's time. The exigencies of the Christian -Church of that age had led to certain modifications of apostolic -customs, but the central idea of solemn imposition of hands continued, -and was regarded as of apostolic appointment. If we descend a little -lower this is plain enough. St. Cyprian, the contemporary and disciple -of Tertullian, expressly attributes the institution of the rite to the -action of the Apostles at Samaria, a view which is subsequently -attested by those great lights of the ancient Church, St. Jerome and -St. Augustine.[156] As my object is, however, not to write a treatise -on Confirmation, but to trace the evolution and development of -apostolic customs and ritual, and to show how they were connected with -the Church of the second century, I restrain myself to Tertullian -alone. - - [156] The evidence from these writers will be found in a collected - shape in Bingham's _Antiquities_, book xii., chap. iii., sec. vi. - St. Augustine, in his Tract VI., on 1 St. John iii., expressly - deals with the objection that because the Apostles imparted - miraculous gifts by the imposition of hands, therefore their - conduct forms no precedent for us. "In the first age the Holy - Ghost fell on them that believed; and they spake with tongues - which they had never learned, as the Spirit gave them utterance. - These were signs proper for that time; for then it was necessary - that the Holy Ghost should be thus demonstrated in all kinds of - tongues, because the gospel was to run throughout the whole world - in all sorts of languages. But this demonstration once made, it - ceased." I have above called Cyprian the disciple of Tertullian, - because we learn from St. Jerome that Cyprian when asking for the - works of Tertullian always said, "Da Magistrum," "Give me the - master." - -I cannot see how this argument is to be evaded without rejecting the -testimony of Tertullian and denying what we may call the historic -memory and continuity of the Church at the close of the second -century. Upon the testimony of Tertullian we very largely depend for -our proof of the canonicity of the books of the New Testament. Men -when impugning or rejecting Tertullian's witness on this or any -similar question, should bear in mind what the results of their -teaching may be; for surely if Tertullian's clear evidence avails not -to prove the apostolic character of confirmation, it cannot be of much -use to establish the still more important question of the canon of the -New Testament or the authorship of the Gospels and Acts. We think, on -the other hand, that Tertullian's references to this practice are -naturally and easily explained by our theory that the Churches -established by the Apostles followed their example. The first converts -that were made after the Apostles had founded a Church were treated by -the resident bishop and presbyters exactly as the Apostle had treated -themselves. Timothy at Ephesus acted as he had seen St. Paul do. -Timothy completed his converts' baptism by the imposition of hands, -and then his successor followed the example of Timothy, and so -confirmation received that universal acceptation which the writings of -the Fathers disclose. - -I. Let us now return to the consideration of the actual doings of -Peter and John at Samaria, and the lessons we may draw from thence as -touching the manner in which men should follow the example left by -them at this crisis in Church history. The Apostles prayed for those -that had been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus, and then they -laid their hands upon them, and the baptized received the Holy Ghost. -Prayer went before the imposition of hands, to show that there was -nothing mechanical in their proceedings; that it was not by their own -power or virtue that any blessing was granted, but that they were only -instruments by whom the Lord worked. The Apostles always acted, -taught, ordained, confirmed, in the profoundest confidence, the surest -faith that God worked in them and through them. St. Paul in his -address to the elders of Miletus and Ephesus, whom he had himself -ordained, spoke of their ordination, not as the work of man, but of -the Holy Ghost. He pierced the veil of sense and saw, far away and -behind the human instrument, the power of the Divine Agent who was the -real Ordainer. "Take heed unto yourselves and to all the flock, in the -which the Holy Ghost hath made you bishops." And so again in his words -to Timothy there was not a shadow of doubt when he bid him "stir up -the gift of God, which is in thee through the laying on of hands:" a -gift which was doubtless no miraculous power, but the purely spiritual -endowment, needful now as in ancient times for the edification and -strengthening of human souls. As it was in ancient times so is it -still, the Church of Christ unites prayer with imposition of hands. -She cannot recognise any difference in the methods of God's dealing -with human souls in apostolic times and in modern ages. Human wants -are the same, human nature is the same, the promises of God and the -ministry of God are the same; and therefore as in Samaria, so in -England, the work of baptism is completed when further prayer is -offered, and the imposition of hands by the chief ministers of God's -Church signifies her holy confidence in the abiding presence and work -of the Divine Spirit. - -We desire to insist upon this devotional side of confirmation, because -the rite of confirmation has been too often treated as a mere -mechanical function, just indeed as men in times of spiritual deadness -and torpor come to regard all spiritual functions in a purely -mechanical aspect. The New Testament brought to light a religion of -the spirit; but human nature ever tends to become formal in its -religion, and therefore has persistently striven, and still -persistently strives, to turn every external function and office in a -mechanical direction. The Apostles prayed and then laid their hands -upon the Samaritan converts, and we may be sure that these prayers -were intense personal supplications, dealing directly with the hearts -and consciences of the individuals. Confirmation, united with fervent -prayer, public and private, with searching addresses directed to the -conscience, with personal dealing as regards individual hearts, -followed by public imposition of hands,--surely every one must -acknowledge that such a solemnisation and sanctification of the great -crisis when boyhood and girlhood pass into manhood and womanhood must -have very blessed effects. Experience has, indeed, proved the wisdom -of the ancient Church concerning this ordinance. Confirmation has not -developed itself exactly in the East as we know it in the West. In the -Eastern Church, as amongst the Lutherans of Germany, confirmation can -be administered by a presbyter as well as by a bishop, to whom alone -the Western Church limits the function. But whether in the East or -West, confirmation is regarded as the transition step connecting -baptism and the Eucharist. Christian bodies which have rejected the -ancient customs have felt themselves obliged to adopt a similar -method. Preparation for first Communion has taken the place of -confirmation. There has been the same earnest dealing with conscience, -the same fuller instruction in Christian truth and life, and the one -thing lacking has been that following of the apostolic example in -solemn imposition of hands, which would have thrown back the young -mind to the days of the Church's earliest life, and helped it to -realize something of the continuity of the Church's work and -existence. - -Many, as I know, ministering in societies where confirmation after the -ancient model has been rejected, have bitterly lamented its disuse as -depriving them of a solemn appointed time when they should have been -brought into closer contact with the lives, the feelings, and the -consciences of the lambs of Christ's flock. I am bound to confess, at -the same time, that no one is more alive than I am to the many defects -and shortcomings in the modes and fashions in which confirmation is -sometimes viewed and conferred. The mere mechanical view of it is far -too prevalent. Careful and prayerful preparation, systematic -instruction in the field of Christian doctrine, is still in many cases -far too little thought of. Confirmation offers a splendid opportunity -when an earnest pastor may open out to young minds eager to receive -truth, a fuller acquaintance with the deep things of God. Alas! how -miserably such earnest young minds are sometimes met. It is stated -that it was by injudicious treatment at such a time that the ardent, -enthusiastic mind of the late Charles Bradlaugh was alienated from -Christian truth. Intelligent sympathy is what the young desire and -crave for at such seasons. Then it is that the man who has kept his -mind fresh and active by wide and generous study finds the due reward -of his labours. He does not attempt to meet doubts and difficulties by -foolish denunciations. He knows that such doubts are in the air; that -they meet the young in the newspapers, magazines, conversations of the -day. He proves by his instructions that he knows of them and enters -into them. He encourages frank discussion of them, and thus often -proves himself at a very trying time the most helpful and consoling -friend to the young and troubled spirit. - -Confirmation, if viewed merely from the purely human side, and if we -say nothing at all about a Divine blessing, offers a magnificent -opportunity for a wise pastor of souls. He will, indeed, treat -different ranks in different ways. A class of ploughboys or of village -lads and girls need plain speaking on the great facts of life and of -the Gospel, while the higher and more educated or sharper inhabitants -of cities and towns require teaching which will embrace the problems -of modern thought, as well as the foundation truths of morals. A -perfunctory repetition of the Church Catechism, as in some parishes, -or a brief study of a portion of the Greek Testament, as in some of -our public schools, is a miserable substitute for that careful -preparation embracing devotional as well as intellectual preparation, -which such an important function demands.[157] Then, again, the method -in which confirmation is administered calls for improvement and -change. The confirmation of immense crowds at central churches tends -to confirm the mere mechanical idea about confirmation. Parochial -confirmations, a confirmation of the young of each congregation in -presence of the congregation itself, that is the standard at which we -should aim. The Church of Rome can give us wise suggestions on this -point. Some time ago I noticed an account of a Roman Catholic -confirmation in the west of Ireland. It was held in a town of twelve -or fifteen thousand inhabitants. The bishop took a week for the -confirmations in that town, examining all the children beforehand, -bringing them thus into direct contact with himself as their supreme -pastor, and assuring himself of the sufficiency of their preparation. - - [157] It seems to me a great pity that, owing to the modern public - school system, the confirmation of boys of the upper and middle - classes is almost entirely passing from their own home pastors to - the masters of public schools, and not always with happy results. - This tends to increase the hard mechanical view of confirmation - against which I protest. - -II. We have now noted some of the defects connected with modern -confirmations; but the conduct of Simon Magus and this incident at -Samaria remind us that defects and shortcomings must ever exist, as -they existed in the Church of the Apostles. We note here Simon's offer -and St. Peter's address. Simon Magus had believed, had been baptized, -and doubtless had also been confirmed by the Apostles. In the case of -some of the Samaritans, at least, the presence of the Holy Ghost must -have been proved by visible or audible signs, for we are told that -when Simon _saw_ that through the imposition of apostolic hands the -Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money to enable him to do the -same. His offer sufficiently explains the nature of his faith. He was -convinced intellectually of the truth of certain external facts which -he had seen. He knew nothing of spiritual want, or the power of sin, -or a desire for interior peace and sanctity. He looked upon the -Apostles as cleverer jugglers and sorcerers than himself, accessible -to precisely the same motives, and therefore he offered them money if -they would endow him with the knowledge and power they possessed and -exercised. The Acts of the Apostles, as a mirror of all Church -history, thus selects for our instruction an event which sounds a -warning needful for every age. - -Simon Magus had a mere intellectual knowledge of the truth, and that -mere intellectual knowledge, apart from a moral and spiritual -conception of it, plunged him into a deeper fall than otherwise might -have been the case. Simon Magus was a typical example of this, and -successive centuries have offered many notable imitations. Julian the -Apostate was brought up as a Christian clergyman, and used to read the -lessons in Church, whence he would adjourn to join in the polluting -rites of paganism; and so it has been from age to age, till in our own -time some of the bitterest opponents of Christianity, at home or in -the mission field, have been those who, like Simon, knew of the Gospel -facts but had tasted nothing of the Gospel life. - -We may derive from this incident guidance in a difficult controversy -which has of late made much stir. Men have asserted that Christian -missionaries were giving far too much time to mere intellectual -training of pagans, instead of devoting themselves to evangelistic -work. A writer who has never visited the mission-field has no right to -pass judgment on such a matter. But cannot we read in this passage a -warning against such a tendency? Intellectual conviction does not mean -spiritual conversion. Of course we know that no human effort can -ensure spiritual blessings, but if intellectual training of clever -pagan youths, and not spiritual work, be regarded as the great object -of Christian missions; if the Holy Ghost be not honoured by being made -the supreme lord of heart and life and work, we cannot expect any -blessed results to follow. We read very little in the earliest ages of -the Church about educational missions. The work of education was not -despised. The school of Alexandria from the earliest times held high -the standard of Christian scholarship. But that school, though open, -like all ancient academies, to every class, was primarily intended for -the training of Christian youth, placing before all other studies the -Divine science of theology. - -The offer, again, of Simon Magus has given a name to a sin which has -been found prevalent in every age and in every country. The sin has, -indeed, taken different shapes. Simony, throughout the Middle Ages, -was a common vice against which some of the more devout popes strove -long and vigorously. In England and according to English law simony -means still the purchase of spiritual office or spiritual functions. -It would be simoniacal for a bishop to receive money for conferring -holy orders or for appointment to a living. It would be an act of -simony for a man to offer or give money to attain either holy orders -or a living. How then, it may be said, does the unhallowed traffic in -Church livings continue to flourish? Simply because, through -colourable evasions, men bring themselves to break the spirit of the -law while they keep within its strict letter. Simony, however, is a -much more extensive and far-reaching corruption than the purchase of -ecclesiastical benefices. Simony can take subtler shapes and can adapt -itself to conditions very different from those which prevail under an -established Church. Every one recognises, in word at least, the -scandalous character of money traffic in Church offices. Even those -who really practise it, hide from themselves, by some device or -excuse, the character of their action. But the simoniacal spirit, the -essence of Simon's sin, is found in many quarters which are never -suspected. What is that essence? Simon desired to obtain spiritual -power and office, not in the Divine method, but in low earthly ways. -Money was his way because it was the one thing he valued and had to -offer; but surely there are many other ways in which men may -unlawfully seek for spiritual office and influence in the Church of -Christ. Many a man who would never dream of offering money in order to -obtain a high place in the Church, or would have been horrified at the -very suggestion, has yet resorted to other methods just as effective -and just as wrong. Men have sought high position by political methods. -They have given their support to a political party, and have sold -their talents to uphold a cause, hoping thereby to gain their ends. -They may not have given gold which comes from the mine to gain -spiritual position, but they have all the same given a mere human -consideration, and sought by its help to obtain spiritual power; or -they preach and speak and vote in Church synods and assemblies with an -eye to elections to high place and dignity. An established Church, -with its legally-secured properties and prizes, may open a way for the -exercise of simony in its grosser forms. But a free Church, with its -popular assemblies, opens the way for a subtler temptation, leading -men to shape their actions, to suppress their convictions, to order -their votes and speeches, not as their secret conscience would direct -them, but as human nature and earthly considerations would tell them -was best for their future prospects. How many a speech is spoken, how -many a sermon is preached, how many a vote is given, not as the Holy -Ghost directs, but under the influence of that unhallowed spirit of -sheer worldliness which led Simon to offer money that he too might be -enabled to exercise the power which the unworldly Apostles possessed. -The spirit of simony may just as really lead a man to give a vote or -to abstain from voting, to make a speech or keep silence, as it led -men in a coarser and plainer age to give bribes for the attainment of -precisely the same ends. In this respect, again, as warning against -the intrusion of low earthly motives in the concerns of the Divine -society, the Acts of the Apostles proves itself a mirror of universal -Church history. - -Then we have the address of St. Peter to this notorious sinner. It is -very plain-spoken. The Apostle had been himself a great sinner, but he -had not been harshly or roughly dealt with, because he had become a -great penitent. St. Peter was most sympathetic, and could never have -spoken so sharply as he did to Simon Magus had he not perceived with -quick spiritual insight the inborn baseness and hollowness of the -man's character. Still he does not cut him off from hope. He speaks -plainly, as Christ's ministers should ever do when occasion requires. -Simon Magus was a man of great influence in Samaria, but there was no -"fear of man which bringeth a snare" about the Apostles, and so St. -Peter fearlessly tells Simon his true position. "He was in the gall of -bitterness and bond of iniquity." He indicates to him, however, the -steps which, whether then or now, a person in that position should -take if he desires to escape from the due reward of his deeds. "Repent -therefore of this thy wickedness." Repentance, then, is the first step -which a man whose heart is not right in God's sight has to take. There -was no hesitation, as we have already remarked when speaking of St. -Peter's preaching at Jerusalem, about pressing upon men the duty of -hearty, sincere repentance, embracing sorrow for sin and genuine -amendment of life. Then having exhorted to repentance, the Apostle -proceeds, "And pray the Lord, if perhaps the thought of thy heart -shall be forgiven thee." Prayer is the next step. First comes -repentance, then prayer, and then forgiveness. There was nothing in -St. Peter's teaching which lends the least countenance to the modern -error which teaches that an unconverted man should not pray, that his -one duty is to believe, and, till he does so, that his prayer is -unacceptable to God. Simon Magus was as estranged from God as a human -soul could well have been, yet St. Peter's word to him then, and his -word to every sinner still, would be an exhortation to diligent -prayer. "Pray God if perhaps the thought of thine heart shall be -forgiven thee." The exhortation of Peter was blessed, for the time, to -the sinner. It awoke a temporary sense of sin, though it wrought no -permanent change. It has left, however, an eternal blessing and a -permanent direction to the Church of Christ. In his preaching on the -day of Pentecost to the Jews of Jerusalem, he shows us how to deal -with those who are not as yet partakers of the Christian covenant. -"Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus -Christ," was his message to the devout Jews of Jerusalem; "Repent and -pray" is his message to the sinner who has been brought, all unworthy, -into the kingdom of light and grace, but knows nothing of it in heart -and life. St. Peter valued the blessings of belief in Christ and -admission by baptism into His kingdom, but he knew that these benefits -only intensified a man's condemnation if not realized in heart and -lived in practice. St. Peter's visit to Samaria in company with St. -John has much to teach the Church on many other points, as we have -pointed out, but no lesson which can be derived from it is so -important as that which declares the true road for the returning -sinner to follow, the value of repentance, the efficacy of heartfelt -prayer, the supreme importance of a heart right in the sight of God. - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - -_EVANGELISTIC WORK IN THE PHILISTINES' LAND._ - - "But an angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and - go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem - unto Gaza: the same is desert. And he arose and went: and behold, - a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace, - queen of the Ethiopians, who was over all her treasure, who had - come to Jerusalem for to worship; and he was returning and - sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet - Isaiah."--ACTS viii. 26-8. - - "And it came to pass, as Peter went throughout all parts, he came - down also to the saints which dwelt at Lydda."--ACTS ix. 32. - - -I have united these two incidents, the conversion of the Ethiopian -eunuch and the mission of St. Peter to the people of Lydda, Sharon, -and Joppa, because they relate to the same district of country and -they happened at the same period, the pause which ensued between the -martyrdom of St. Stephen and the conversion of St. Paul. The writer of -the Acts does not seem to have exactly followed chronological order in -this part of his story. He had access to different authorities or to -different diaries. He selected as best he could the details which he -heard or read, and strove to weave them into a connected narrative. -St. Luke, when gathering up the story of these earliest days of the -Church's warfare, must have laboured under great difficulties which we -now can scarcely realize. It was doubtless from St. Philip himself -that our author learned the details of the eunuch's conversion and of -St. Peter's labours. St. Luke and St. Paul tarried many days with St. -Philip at Caesarea. Most probably St. Luke had then formed no intention -of writing either his Gospel or his apostolic history at that period. -He was urged on simply by that unconscious force which shapes our -lives and leads us in a vague way to act in some special direction. A -man born to be a poet will unconsciously display his tendency. A man -born to be a historian will be found, even when he has formed no -definite project, note-book in hand, jotting down the impressions of -the passing hour or of his current studies. So probably was it with -St. Luke. He could not help taking notes of conversations he heard, or -making extracts from the documents he chanced to meet; and then when -he came to write he had a mass of materials which it was at times hard -to weave into one continuous story within the limits he had prescribed -to himself. One great idea, indeed, to which we have often referred, -seems to have guided the composition of the first portion of the -apostolic history. St. Luke selected, under Divine guidance, certain -representative facts and incidents embodying great principles, typical -of future developments. This is the golden thread which runs through -the whole of this book, and specially through the chapters concerning -which we speak in this volume, binding together and uniting in one -organic whole a series of independent narratives. - -I. The two incidents which we now consider have several representative -aspects. They may be taken as typical of evangelistic efforts and the -qualifications for success in them. Philip the deacon is aggressive, -many-sided, flexible, and capable of adapting himself to diverse -temperaments, whether those of the Grecian Jews at Jerusalem, the -Samaritans in central Palestine, or the Jewish proselytes from distant -Africa. Peter is older, narrower, cannot so easily accommodate -himself to new circumstances. He confines himself, therefore, to quiet -work amongst the Jews of Palestine who have been converted to Christ -as the result of the four years' growth of the Church. "As Peter went -throughout all parts, he came down also to the saints which dwelt at -Lydda." This incident represents to us the power and strength gained -for the cause of Christ by intellectual training and by wider culture. -It is a lesson needed much in the great mission field. It has hitherto -been too much the fashion to think that while the highest culture and -training are required for the ministry at home, any half-educated -teacher, provided he be in earnest, will suffice for the work of -preaching to the heathen. This is a terrible mistake, and one which -has seriously injured the progress of religion. It is at all times a -dangerous thing to despise one's adversary, and we have fallen into -the snare when we have despised systems like Buddhism and Hindooism, -endeavouring to meet them with inferior weapons.[158] The ancient -religions of the East are founded on a subtle philosophy, and should -be met by men whose minds have received a wide and generous culture, -which can distinguish between the chaff and the wheat, rejecting what -is bad in them while sympathising with and accepting what is good. The -notices of Philip and Stephen and their work, as contrasted with that -of St. Peter, proclaim the value of education, travel, and thought in -this the earlier section of the Acts, as the labours of St. Paul -declare it in the days of Gentile conversion. The work of the Lord, -whether among Jews or Gentiles, is done most effectually by those -whose natural abilities and intellectual sympathies have been -quickened and developed. A keen race like the Greeks of old or the -Hindoos of the present, are only alienated from the very consideration -of the faith when it is presented in a hard, narrow, intolerant, -unsympathetic spirit. The angel chose wisely when he selected the -Grecian Philip to bear the gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch, and left -Peter to minister to AEneas, to Tabitha, and to Simon the tanner of -Joppa; simple souls, for whom life glided smoothly along, troubled by -no intellectual problems and haunted by no fearful doubts. - - [158] The primitive Church never made this mistake. The great - missionaries who dealt with the heathen in the second century were - profoundly skilled in philosophy, several of them being - philosophers by profession. Aristides, whose long-lost _Apology_ - has just been recovered, Justin Martyr, and Tatian were Christian - philosophers in the second century, and consecrated their powers - to missionary labours. Pantaenus, Clement, and Origen, profound - scholars of Alexandria, took the greatest trouble to understand - Greek paganism before they proceeded to refute it. I think that - candidates in training for foreign missions might be taken with - great advantage through a course of the second century apologists. - Clement and Origen never poured indiscriminate abuse on the system - they opposed; their teaching was no bald negative controversy; - they always strove, like St. Paul at Athens, to ascertain what was - good and true in their opponents' position, and to work from - thence. See pp. 214, 215 above, where much the same line of - thought has been insisted upon. - -II. Again, we may remark that these incidents and the whole course of -Church history at this precise moment show the importance of clear -conceptions as to character, teaching, and objects. The Church at this -time was vaguely conscious of a great mission, but it had not made up -its mind as to the nature of that mission, because it had not realized -its own true character, as glad tidings of great joy unto _all_ -nations. And the result was very natural: it formed no plans for the -future, and was as yet hesitating and undecided in action. It was with -the Church then as in our every-day experience of individuals. A man -who does not know himself, who has no conception of his own talents -or powers, and has formed no idea as to his object or work in life, -that man cannot be decided in action, he cannot bring all his powers -into play, because he neither knows of their existence, nor where and -how to use them. This is my explanation of the great difference -manifest on the face of our history as between the Church and its life -before and after the conversion of Cornelius. It is plain that there -was a great difference in Church life and activity between these two -periods. Whence did it arise? The admission of the Gentiles satisfied -the unconscious cravings of the Church. She felt that at last her true -mission and her real object were found, and, like a man of vigorous -mind who at last discovers the work for which nature has destined him, -she flung herself into it, and we read no longer of mere desultory -efforts, but of unceasing, indefatigable, skilfully-directed labour; -because the Church had at last been taught by God that her great task -was to make all men know the riches hidden in Christ Jesus. We have in -this fact a representative lesson very necessary for our time. Men are -now very apt to mistake mistiness for profundity, and clearness of -conception for shallowness of thought. This feeling intrudes itself -into religion, and men do not take the trouble to form clear -conceptions on any subject, and they lapse therefore into the very -weakness which afflicted the Church prior to St. Peter's vision. The -root of practical, vigorous action is directly assailed if men have no -clear conceptions as to the nature, the value, and the supreme -importance of the truth. If, for instance, a man cherishes the notion, -now prevalent in some circles, that Mahometanism is the religion -suited for the natives of Africa, how will he make sacrifices either -of time, of money, or of thought, to make the Gospel known to that -great continent? I do not say that we should seek to have sharp and -clear conceptions on all points. There is no man harder, more -unsympathetic with the weak, more intolerant of the slightest -difference, more truly foolish and short-sighted, than the man who has -formed the clearest and sharpest conceptions upon the profoundest -questions, and is ready to decide offhand where the subtlest and -deepest thinkers have spoken hesitatingly. That man does not, in the -language of John Locke, recognise the length of his own tether. He -wishes to make himself the standard for everyone else, and infallibly -brings discredit on the possession of clear views on any topics. There -are vast tracts of thought upon which we must be content with doubt, -hesitancy, and mistiness; but the man who wishes to be a vigorous, -self-sacrificing servant of Jesus Christ must seek diligently for -clear, broad, strong conceptions on such great questions as the value -of the soul, the nature of God, the person of Jesus Christ, the work -of the Spirit, and all the other truths which the Apostles' Creed sets -forth as essentially bound up with these doctrines. Distinct and -strong convictions alone on such points form for the soul the basis of -a decided and fruitful Christian activity; as such decided convictions -energised the whole life and character of the blessed apostle of love -when writing, "We know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth -in the evil one." - -III. Now turning from such general considerations, we may compare the -two incidents, St. Philip's activities and St. Peter's labours, in -several aspects. _We notice a distinction in their guidance._ Greater -honour is placed on Philip than upon Peter. An angel speaks to Philip, -while St. Peter seems to have been left to that ordinary guidance of -the Spirit which is just as real as any external direction, such as -that given by an angel, but yet does not impress the human mind or -supersede its own action, as the external direction does. Dr. -Goulburn, in an interesting work from which I have derived many -important hints,[159] suggests that the external message of the angel -directing Philip where to go may have been God's answer to the -thoughts and doubts which were springing up in His servant's mind. The -incident of Simon Magus may have disturbed St. Philip. He may have -been led to doubt the propriety of his action in thus preaching to the -Samaritans and admitting to baptism a race hitherto held accursed. He -had dared to run counter to the common opinion of devout men, and one -result had been that such a bad character as Simon Magus had crept -into the sacred fold. The Lord who watches over His people and sees -all their difficulties, comes therefore to his rescue, and by one of -His ministering spirits conveys a message which assures His fainting -servant of His approval and of His guidance. Such is Dr. Goulburn's -explanation, and surely it is a most consoling one, of which every -true servant of God has had his own experience. The Lord even still -deals thus with His people. They make experiments for Him, as Philip -did; engage in new enterprises and in fields of labour hitherto -untried; they work for His honour and glory alone; and perhaps they -see nothing for a time but disaster and failure. Then, when their -hearts are cast down and their spirits are fainting because of the -way, the Lord mercifully sends them a message by some angelic hand or -voice, which encourages and braces them for renewed exertion. - - [159] _The Acts of the Deacons_, p. 276. This work discusses - Philip's dealings with the eunuch at very great length. The reader - desirous of seeing the spiritual teaching of that incident fully - drawn out should consult it. - -An external voice of an angel may, in the peculiar circumstances of -the case, have directed St. Philip. But the text does not give us a -hint as to the appearance or character of the messenger whom God used -on this occasion. The Old and New Testament alike take broader views -of Divine messengers, and of angelic appearances generally, than we -do. A vision, a dream, a human agent, some natural circumstance or -instrument, all these are in Holy Scripture or in contemporary -literature styled God's angels or messengers. Men saw then more deeply -than we do, recognised the hand of a superintending Providence where -we behold only secondary agents, and in their filial confidence spoke -of angels where we should only recognise some natural power. Let me -quote an interesting illustration of this. Archbishop Trench, -speaking, in his _Notes on the Miracles_, of the healing of the -Impotent Man at Bethesda, and commenting on St. John v. 4, a verse -which runs thus, "For an angel of the Lord went down at certain -seasons into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first -after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole, with -whatsoever disease he was holden," thus enunciates the principle which -guided the ancient Christians, as well as the Jews, in this matter. He -explains the origin of this verse, and the manner in which it crept -into the text of the New Testament. "At first, probably, a marginal -note, expressing the popular notion of the Jewish Christians -concerning the origin of the healing power which from time to time the -waters of Bethesda possessed, by degrees it assumed the shape in which -we now have it." The Archbishop then proceeds to speak of the Hebrew -view of the world as justifying such expressions. "For the statement -itself, there is nothing in it which need perplex or offend, or which -might not find place in St. John. It rests upon that religious view of -the world which in all nature sees something beyond and behind nature, -which does not believe that it has discovered causes when, in fact, it -has only traced the sequence of phenomena, and which everywhere -recognises a going forth of the immediate power of God, invisible -agencies of His, whether personal or otherwise, accomplishing His -will."[160] The whole topic of angelic agencies is one that has been -much confused for us by the popular notions about angels, notions -which affect every one, no matter how they imagine themselves raised -above the vulgar herd. When men speak or think of angelic appearances, -they think of angels as they are depicted in sacred pictures. The -conception of young men clad in long white and shining raiment, with -beautiful wings dependent from their shoulders and folded by their -sides, is an idea of the angels and angelic life derived from mediaeval -painters and sculptors, not from Holy Writ. The important point, -however, for us to remember is that Philip here moved under external -direction to the conversion of the eunuch. The same Spirit which sent -His messenger to direct Philip, led Peter to move towards exactly the -same south-western quarter of Palestine, where he was to remain -working, meditating, praying, till the hour had come when the next -great step should be taken and the Gentiles admitted as recognised -members of the Church. - - [160] The verse John v. 4 of the Authorised Version has now been - relegated to the margin of the Revised Version. - -IV. This leads us to the next point. Philip and Peter were both -guided, the one externally, the other internally; but whither? They -were led by God into precisely the same south-western district of -Palestine. Peter was guided, by one circumstance after another, first -to Lydda and Sharon, and then to Joppa, where the Lord found him when -he was required at the neighbouring Caesarea to use the power of the -keys and to open the door of faith to Cornelius and the Gentile world. -Our narrative says nothing, in St. Peter's case, about providential -guidance or heavenly direction, but cannot every devout faithful soul -see here the plain proofs of it? The book of the Acts makes no attempt -to improve the occasion, but surely a soul seeking for light and help -will see, and that with comfort, the hand of God leading St. Peter all -unconscious, and keeping him in readiness for the moment when he -should be wanted. We are not told of any extraordinary intervention, -and yet none the less the Lord guided him as really as He guided -Philip, that his life might teach its own lessons, by which we should -order our own. And has not every one who has devoutly and faithfully -striven to follow Christ experienced many a dispensation exactly like -St. Peter's? We have been led to places, or brought into company with -individuals, whereby our future lives have been ever afterwards -affected. The devout mind in looking back over the past will see how -work and professions have been determined for us, how marriages have -been arranged, how afflictions and losses have been made to work for -good; so that at last, surveying, like Moses, life's journey from some -Pisgah summit, when its course is well-nigh run, God's faithful -servant is enabled to rejoice in Him because even in direct -afflictions He has done all things well. A view of life like that is -strictly warranted by this passage, and such a view was, and still -is, the sure and secret source of that peace of God which passeth all -understanding. Nothing can happen amiss to him who has Almighty Love -as his Lord and Master. St. Peter was led, by one circumstance after -another, first to Lydda, which is still an existing village, then, -farther, into the vale of Sharon, celebrated from earliest time for -its fertility, and commemorated for its roses in the Song of Solomon -(Cant. ii. 1, Isa. xxxiii. 9), till finally he settles down at Joppa, -to wait for the further indications of God's will. - -But how about Philip, to whom the Divine messenger had given a -heavenly direction? What was the message so imparted? An angel of the -Lord spake unto Philip, saying, "Arise, and go toward the south, unto -the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza: the same is desert." -Now we should here carefully remark the minute exactness of the Acts -of the Apostles in this place, because it is only a specimen of the -marvellous geographical and historical accuracy which distinguishes it -all through, and is every year receiving fresh illustrations. Gaza has -always been the gateway of Palestine. Invader after invader when -passing from Egypt to Palestine has taken Gaza in his way. It is still -the trade route to Egypt, along which the telegraph line runs. It was -in the days of St. Philip the direct road for travellers like the -Ethiopian eunuch, from Jerusalem to the Nile and the Red Sea. This man -was seeking his home in Central Africa, which he could reach either by -the Nile or by the sea, and was travelling therefore along the road -from Jerusalem to Gaza. The Acts, again, distinguishes one particular -road. There were then, and there are still, two great roads leading -from Jerusalem to Gaza, one a more northern road, which ran through -villages and cultivated land as it does to this day. The other was a -desert road, through districts inhabited then as now by the wandering -Arabs of the desert alone. Travellers have often remarked on the local -accuracy of the angel's words when directing Philip to a road which -would naturally be taken only by a man attended by a considerable body -of servants able to ward off attack, and which was specially suitable, -by its lonely character, for those prolonged conversations which must -have passed between the eunuch and his teacher. Cannot we see, -however, a still more suggestive and prophetic reason for the heavenly -direction? In these early efforts of the Apostles and their -subordinates we read nothing of missions towards the east. All their -evangelistic operations lay, in later times, towards the north and -north-west, Damascus, Antioch, Syria, and Asia Minor, while in these -earlier days they evangelised Samaria, which was largely pagan, and -then worked down towards Gaza and Caesarea and the Philistine country, -which were the strongholds of Gentile and European influence,--the -Church indicated in St. Luke's selection of typical events; the -Western, the European destiny working strong within. It already -foretold, vaguely but still surely, that, in the grandest and -profoundest sense, - - "Westward the course of Empire takes its way;" - -that the Gentile world, not the Jewish, was to furnish the most -splendid triumphs to the soldiers of the Cross. Our Lord steadily -restrained Himself within the strict bounds of the chosen people, -because His teaching was for them alone. His Apostles already indicate -their wider mission by pressing close upon towns and cities, like -Gaza and Caesarea, which our Lord never visited, because they were the -strongholds and chosen seats of paganism.[161] The providential -government of God ordering the future of His Church and developing its -destinies can thus be traced in the unconscious movements of the -earliest Christian teachers. Their first missionary efforts in -Palestine are typical of the great work of the Church in the -conversion of Europe. - - [161] See Dean Stanley's _Sinai and Palestine_, p. 263, where this - thought is further worked out. It is curious that notwithstanding - the preaching of St. Philip and St. Peter in its neighbourhood, - Gaza remained true to paganism longer than any other city of - Palestine. The old Philistine opposition to Israel seems to have - perpetuated itself in a pagan opposition to Christianity. Even in - the fifth century, when St. Jerome boasted that Bethlehem was so - completely Christian that the very ploughmen sang psalms and hymns - as they laboured, Gaza still remained devoted to idol-worship. The - inhabitants of Gaza, in union with those of Askelon, even rose in - rebellion in defence of paganism towards the end of the fourth - century (see Neander's _Church History_, iii., 105, Bohn's ed.). - An interesting illustration of its obstinate paganism has come to - light of late years. There were in Gaza eight public temples of - idols, including those of the Sun, Venus, Apollo, Proserpine, - Hecate, Fortune, and Marnas, dedicated to the Cretan Jupiter, - believed by the people to be more glorious than any other temple - in the world. All these temples were destroyed by the influence of - the Empress Eudoxia, about A.D. 400; the words of the edict which - overthrew the temples of Gaza can be read in the Theodosian Code, - book xvi., title x., law 16. The statue of Marnas was then hidden - by the pagans in the sand outside the city, where it was - discovered in 1880. It is now figured and described in the _Survey - of Western Palestine_, Memoirs, vol. iii., p. 254. It is - especially interesting to us Christians, as being a statue which - was almost certainly seen by St. Philip. See Selden, _De Dis - Syris_, p. 215, and Murray's _Handbook for Palestine_, pp. 271-73. - -V. St. Philip was brought from Samaria, in the centre, to the Gaza -road leading from Jerusalem to the coast; and why? Simply in order -that he might preach the Gospel to one solitary man, the eunuch who -was treasurer to Candace, Queen of the Ethiopians. Here again we have -another of those representative facts which are set before us in the -earlier portion of this book. On the day of Pentecost, Jews from all -parts of the Roman Empire, and from the countries bordering upon the -east of that Empire, Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and Arabians, came in -contact with Christianity. Philip had ministered in Samaria to another -branch of the circumcision, but Africa, outside the Empire at least, -had as yet no representative among the firstfruits of the cross. But -now the prophecy of the sixty-eighth Psalm was to be fulfilled, and -"Ethiopia was to stretch out her hands unto God." We have the -assurance of St. Paul himself that the sixty-eighth Psalm was a -prophecy of the ascension of Christ and the outpouring of the Holy -Ghost. In Eph. iv. 8 he writes, quoting from the eighteenth verse, -"Wherefore He saith, when He ascended up on high, He led captivity -captive, and gave gifts unto men." And then he proceeds to enumerate -the various offices of the apostolic ministry, with their blessed -tidings of peace and salvation, as the gifts of the Spirit which God -had bestowed through the ascension of Jesus Christ. And now, in order -that no part of the known world might want its Jewish representative, -we have the conversion of this eunuch, who, as coming from Ethiopia, -was regarded in those times as intimately associated with India. - -Let us see, moreover, what we are told concerning this typical African -convert. He was an Ethiopian by birth, though he may have been of -Jewish descent, or perhaps more probably a proselyte, and thus an -evidence of Jewish zeal for Jehovah. He was an eunuch, and treasurer -of Candace, Queen of the Ethiopians. He was like Daniel and the three -Hebrew children in the court of the Chaldaean monarch. He had utilised -his Jewish genius and power of adaptation so well that he had risen -to high position. The African queen may have learned, too, as Darius -did, to trust his Jewish faith and depend upon a man whose conduct was -regulated by Divine law and principle. This power of the Jewish race -leading them to high place amid foreign nations and in alien courts -has been manifested in their history from the earliest times. Moses, -Mordecai and Esther, the Jews in Babylon, were types and prophecies of -the greatness which has awaited their descendants scattered among the -Gentiles in our own time. This eunuch was treasurer of Candace, Queen -of the Ethiopians. Here again we find another illustration of the -historical and geographical accuracy of the Acts of the Apostles. We -learn from several contemporary geographers that the kingdom of Meroe -in Central Africa was ruled for centuries by a line of female -sovereigns whose common title was Candace, as Pharaoh was that of the -Egyptian monarchs.[162] There were, as we have already pointed out, -large Jewish colonies in the neighbourhood of Southern Arabia and all -along the coast of the Red Sea. It was very natural, then, that -Candace should have obtained the assistance of a clever Jew from one -of these settlements. A question has been raised, indeed, whether the -eunuch was a Jew at all, and some have regarded him as the first -Gentile convert. The Acts of the Apostles, however, seems clear enough -on this point. Cornelius is plainly put forward as the typical case -which decided the question of the admission of the Gentiles to the -benefits of the covenant of grace. Our history gives not the faintest -hint that any such question was even distantly involved in the -conversion and baptism of the Ethiopian. Nay, rather by telling us -that he had come to Jerusalem for the purpose of worshipping God, it -indicates that he felt himself bound, as far as he could, to discharge -the duty of visiting the Holy City and offering personal worship there -once at least in his lifetime. Then, too, we are told of his -employment when Philip found him. "He was returning, and sitting in -his chariot read Esaias the prophet." His attention may have been -called to this portion of Holy Scripture during his visit to the -temple, where he may have come in contact with the Apostles or with -some other adherents of the early Church. At any rate he was employing -his time in devout pursuits, he was making a diligent use of the means -of grace so far as he knew them; and then God in the course of His -providence opened out fresh channels of light and blessing, according -to that pregnant saying of our Lord, "If any man will do God's will, -he shall know of the doctrine." The soul that is in spiritual -perplexity or darkness need not and ought not to content itself with -apathy, despair, or idleness. Difficulties will assault us on every -side so long as we remain here below. We cannot escape from them -because our minds are finite and limited. And some are ready to make -these difficulties an excuse for postponing or neglecting all thoughts -concerning religion. But quite apart from the difficulties of -religion, there are abundant subjects on which God gives us the -fullest and plainest light. Let it be ours, like the Ethiopian eunuch, -to practise God's will so far as He reveals it, and then, in His own -good time, fuller revelations will be granted, and we too shall -experience, as this Ethiopian did, the faithfulness of His own -promise, "Unto the righteous there ariseth up light in the darkness." -The eunuch read the prophet Esaias as he travelled, according to the -maxim of the rabbis that "one who is on a journey and without a -companion should employ his thoughts on the study of the law." He was -reading the Scriptures aloud, too, after the manner of Orientals; and -thus seeking diligently to know the Divine will, God vouchsafed to him -by the ministry of St. Philip that fuller light which he still grants, -in some way or other, to every one who diligently follows Him. - - [162] See the article "Meroe" in Smith's _Dictionary of Greek and - Roman Geography_, for a long account of the land whence the eunuch - came. - -And then we have set forth the results of the eunuch's communion with -the heaven-sent messenger. There was no miracle wrought to work -conviction. St. Philip simply displayed that spiritual power which -every faithful servant of Christ may gain in some degree. He opened -the Scriptures and taught the saving doctrine of Christ so effectually -that the soul of the eunuch, naturally devout and craving for the -deeper life of God, recognised the truth of the revelation. -Christianity was for the Ethiopian its own best evidence, because he -felt that it answered to the wants and yearnings of his spirit. We are -not told what the character of St. Philip's discourse was. But we are -informed what the great central subject of his discourse was. It was -Jesus. This topic was no narrow one. We can gather from other passages -in the Acts what was the substance of the teaching bestowed by the -missionaries of the Cross upon those converted by them.[163] He must -have set forth the historic facts which are included in the Apostles' -Creed, the incarnation, the miracles, death, resurrection, and -ascension of Christ, and the institution of the sacrament of baptism -as the means of entering into the Church. This we conclude from the -eunuch's question to Philip, "See, here is water; what doth hinder me -to be baptized?" Assuredly Philip must have taught him the appointment -of baptism by Christ; else what would have led the eunuch to propound -such a request? Baptism having been granted in response to this -request, the eunuch proceeded on his homeward journey, rejoicing in -that felt sense of peace and joy and spiritual satisfaction which true -religion imparts; while Philip is removed to another field of labour, -where God has other work for him to do. He evangelised all through the -Philistine country, preaching in all the cities till he came to -Caesarea, where in later years he was to do a work of permanent benefit -for the whole Church, by affording St. Luke the information needful -for the composition of the Acts of the Apostles.[164] - - [163] Justin Martyr's _Dialogue_ with Trypho the Jew was written - about a hundred years after the eunuch's conversion. It is a good - specimen of the methods adopted by the early Church in dealing - with the Jews. St. Philip's teaching was doubtless of much the - same kind. Justin upheld the application to Christ and its - fulfilment in Him alone of the fifty-third of Isaiah, repeatedly - quoting large portions of it, in the _Dialogue_, as, for instance, - in chap. xiii. The apology of St. Stephen furnished the model upon - which all subsequent missionaries to the Jews framed their - arguments. They all dealt largely with the transitory and typical - character of the Levitical law. The apologies addressed to the - Gentiles were quite different, as was natural. They dealt with the - true nature of God, the conceptions men ought to form of Him, and - the immoralities of the pagan deities. The newly-discovered - _Apology_ of Aristides, which I have described in the preface, - dating from about 124 A.D., set a fashion which we find reproduced - in Justin Martyr, Tatian's _Oration to the Greeks_, and in - Tertullian's Apology and Address, _Ad Nationes_. The moral proofs - of Christianity and its adaptation to the soul's wants are their - leading topics. I have treated more of this point in the preface. - - [164] The eunuch's name, according to Ethiopian tradition, was - Indich or Indicus. He is believed by the Abyssinians to have - converted Queen Candace, and then to have departed into India, - where he taught in Ceylon. See Ludolf's _History of Ethiopia_, - book iii., chaps. i. and ii.; and Bzovius' continuation of - Baronius' _Annals_, A.D. 1524, where there is a long - correspondence between the pope and the king of Abyssinia in that - year. The Abyssinians retain to this day a great many Jewish - customs mixed with their Christianity. The Abyssinian tradition is - incorrect, however. Modern Abyssinia is not the same as the - ancient Meroe. The conversion of Abyssinia is due to the labours - of a shipwrecked merchant in the time of St. Athanasius, and - derived its faith from Egypt. The Coptic Church retains still many - Jewish rites. See "Ethiopian Church" in _Dict. Christ. Biog._, - vol. ii. - -VI. Let us in conclusion note one other point. Our readers will have -noticed that we have said nothing concerning the reply of Philip to -the eunuch's question, "What doth hinder me to be baptized?" The -Authorized Version then inserts ver. 37, which runs thus: "And Philip -said, If thou believest with all thy heart, thou mayest. And he -answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." -While if we take up the Revised Version we shall find that the -Revisers have quite omitted this verse in the text, placing it in the -margin, with a note stating that some ancient authorities insert it -wholly or in part. This verse is now given up by all critics as an -integral part of the original text, and yet it is a very ancient -interpolation, being found in quotations from the Acts as far back as -the second century. Probably its insertion came about somehow thus, -much the same as in the case of John v. 4, to which we have already -referred in this lecture. It was originally written upon the margin of -a manuscript by some diligent student of this primitive history. -Manuscripts were not copied in the manner we usually think. A scribe -did not place a manuscript before him and then slowly transcribe it, -but a single reader recited the original in a scriptorium or -copying-room, while a number of writers rapidly followed his words. -Hence a marginal note on a single manuscript might easily be -incorporated in a number of copies, finding a permanent place in a -text upon which it was originally a mere pious reflection. Regarding -this thirty-seventh verse, however, not as a portion of the text -written by St. Luke, but as a second-century comment or note on the -text, it shows us what the practice of the next age after the Apostles -was. A profession of faith in Christ was made by the persons brought -to baptism, and probably these words, "I believe that Jesus Christ is -the Son of God," was the local form of the baptismal creed wherever -this note was written. Justin Martyr in his first _Apology_, chap. 61, -intimates that such a profession of belief was an essential part of -baptism, and this form, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of -God," may have been the baptismal formula used in the ritual appointed -for these occasions. Some persons indeed have thought that this short -statement represented the creed of the Church of the second century. -This raises a question which would require a much longer treatment -than we can now bestow upon it. Caspari, an eminent Swedish -theologian, has discussed this point at great length in a work which -the English student will find reviewed and analysed in an article by -Dr. Salmon published in the _Contemporary Review_ for August 1878, -where that learned writer comes to the conclusion that the substance -of the Apostles' Creed dates back practically to the time of the -Apostles. And now, as I am concluding this volume, an interesting -confirmation of this view comes to us from an unexpected quarter. The -_Apology_ of Aristides was a defence of Christianity composed earlier -even than those of Justin Martyr. Eusebius fixes the date of it to the -year 124 or 125 A.D. It was at any rate one of the earliest Christian -writings outside the Canon. It has been long lost to the Christian -world. We knew nothing of its contents, and were only aware of its -former existence from the pages of the Church History of Eusebius. Two -years ago it was found by Professor J. Rendel Harris, in Syriac, in -the Convent of St. Catharine on Mount Sinai, and has just been -published this month of May 1891 by the Cambridge University Press. It -is a most interesting document of early Christian times, showing us -how the first Apologists defended the faith and assailed the -superstitions of paganism. Professor Harris has added notes to it -which are of very great value. He points out the weak points in -paganism which the first Christians used specially to assail. -Aristides' _Apology_ is of peculiar value in this aspect. It shows us -how the first generation after the last Apostle was wont to deal with -the false gods of Greece, Rome, and Egypt. It is, however, of special -importance as setting forth from a new and unexpected source how the -early Christians regarded their own faith, how they viewed their own -Christianity, and in what formularies they embodied their belief. -Professor Harris confirms Dr. Salmon's contention set forth in the -article to which we have referred. In the time of Aristides the -Christians of Athens, for Aristides was an Athenian philosopher who -had accepted Christianity, were at one with those of Rome and with the -followers of Catholic Christianity ever since. Aristides wrote -according to Eusebius in 124 A.D., according to Professor Harris in -the earliest days of Antoninus Pius, that is, before 140 A.D.; but -still we can extract from his _Apology_ all the statements of the -Apostles' Creed in a formal shape. Thus Professor Harris restores the -Creed as professed in the time of Aristides, that is, the generation -after St. John, and sets it forth as follows:-- - - We believe in one God Almighty, - Maker of Heaven and Earth: - And in Jesus Christ His Son, - - * * * * * - - Born of the Virgin Mary. - - * * * * * - - He was pierced by the Jews, - He died and was buried: - The third day He rose again: - He ascended into Heaven. - - * * * * * - - He is about to come to judge.[165] - - * * * * * - - [165] _Texts and Studies_, edited by J. A. Robinson, M.A. - (Cambridge: University Press, 1891). There are several passages in - Justin's _Dialogue_ with Trypho which seem to be extracts from the - primitive Creed. Thus in chap. xvii. we read the following words - of Justin to Trypho: "For after you had crucified Him ... when you - knew that He had risen from the dead and ascended into heaven." In - chap. xxxviii. Trypho objects to Justin: "For you utter many - blasphemies, in that you seek to persuade us that this crucified - Man was with Moses and Aaron, and spoke to them in the pillar of - the cloud; that He became man, was crucified, and ascended up to - heaven, and comes again to earth and ought to be worshipped." The - date of the _Apology_ of Aristides is fixed by the Armenian - version of the _Chronicle_ of Eusebius at 124 A.D. The _Paschal - Chronicle_ apparently assigns it to 134 A.D. - -This _Apology_ of Aristides is a most valuable contribution to -Christian evidence, and raises high hopes as to what we may yet -recover when the treasures of the East are explored. The _Diatessaron_ -of Tatian was a wondrous find, but the recovery of the long-lost -_Apology_ of Aristides endows us with a still more ancient document, -bringing us back close upon the very days of the Apostles. As this -discovery has only been published when these pages are finally passing -through the press, I must reserve a farther notice of it for the -preface to this volume. - - - - -INDEX. - - - Abercius, St., vi. - - _Acta Sanctorum_, 111, 162. - - _Acts of the Apostles_, authenticity of, 11. - - ---- authorship of, 8, 11. - - ---- title of, 1. - - Altus, centurion, 110. - - Ananias and his wife, chap, xi., 225-228. - - Antinomians, 134. - - _Apocryphal Acts_, 2. - - ---- _Gospels_, 79. - - Apollinarian heresy, 124. - - Apostles' Creed, 417. - - _Apostolic constitutions_, 201. - - Arian heresy, 124. - - Aristides' _Apology_, see Preface and 400, 419. - - Aristotle's _Ethics_, 132, 298. - - Arnold, Dr., 306. - - Arnold, Matthew, _Sonnets_, 151, 178. - - _Ascension of Isaiah, The_, 119. - - Assumption of B. V. Mary, 68. - - _Assumption of Moses, The_, 119. - - Athanasius, St., 270, 291, 416. - - Augustine, St., _Letters_, 195, 242, 386. - - - Barcochba, 157. - - Barlaam and Joasaph, viii. - - Barnabas, early life of, 218. - - ---- personal appearance of, 219. - - Baxter, 134, 137. - - Bede, _Eccles. Hist._, 294. - - Beveridge, 134. - - Bingham, _Antiquities_, 67, 386. - - Bollandists, 111, 162. - - Brady, Tate and, _Psalms_, 381. - - Brownlow and Northcote, _Roma Sotteranea_, 112. - - Buddhism, 400. - - Bull, 134. - - Bunting, Jabez, 3. - - Burgess, Rev. H. W., LL.D., xiii. - - Burnet, Bishop, _Commentary on the Thirty-Nine Articles_, 192. - - Butler, Bishop, 18. - - Bzovius, _Continuation of Baronius' Annals_, 415. - - - Calvin, 384. - - Candace, 411, 412. - - Capes, Rev. W. W., M.A., _The Age of the Antonines_, 154. - - Cardinals, College of, 280. - - Cato, _de Re Rustica_, 58. - - Cave, _Lives of Fathers_, 219. - - Charteris, Dr., 11. - - Chrysostom, St., 113. - - Cicero, _Tusc. Disp._, 56, 298. - - Cistercians, 174. - - Clarke, Adam, 3. - - Clement of Alexandria, 286, 344. - - Clement of Rome, 3, 273, 280, 400. - - Clementine literature, 79. - - Coke, Thomas, 3. - - Columbanus, St., 7. - - Confirmation, rite of, chaps. xviii., xix. - - _Contemporary Review_, 199, 359, 417. - - Conybeare and Howson, _Life and Epistles of St. Paul_, 217. - - Coptic Church, 416. - - Cornelius a Lapide, 242. - - Court of the Gentiles, 158. - - Crisp, Tobias, Dr., _Sermons_, 134. - - Crispin, St., 161. - - Cyprian, St., 386. - - Cyprus, 216. - - Cyril, St., of Jerusalem, 66. - - - Darby, J. N., 382. - - David, tomb of, opened, 125. - - Deacons, choice and work of, chaps. xiii., xiv. - - De Vogue, _Le Temple de Jerusalem_, 158, 165. - - _Dictionary of Christian Biography_, xi, 2, 16, 25, 32, 65, 79, - 112, 120, 125, 157, 239, 257, 259, 270, 274, 342. - - ---- ---- _Antiquities_, 144. - - ---- ---- _Greek and Roman Geography_, 412. - - _Didache_, 97, 139, 149, 377. - - Douket, in _Rev. des Quest. Hist._, viii. - - - Ebionites, 120. - - Emania, 110. - - Egypt, 38. - - _Enoch, Book of_, 25, 28, 119. - - Epiphanius, _on Weights and Measures_, 66. - - Ethiopian eunuch, chap. xx. - - Eusebius, _Chronicle of_, vii, 65, 419. - - ---- _Hist. Eccles._, viii, 9, 79, 102, 156, 323, 344, 418. - - Eutychianism, 48, 314. - - _Expositor, The_, 359. - - - Fabricius, _Cod. Apoc._, 79. - - ---- _Cod. Pseud. V. T._, 25. - - _False Decretals_, 373. - - Fayum MSS., 359. - - Ferguson, Sir S., _Lays of Western Gael_, 110. - - _Fingal and its Churches_, 6. - - Fisher, _Marrow of Modern Divinity_, 134. - - Fox, George, 185. - - Franciscans, 163. - - Friends, Society of, 185, 186. - - Fuller, Rev. J. M., 120. - - - Gamaliel, 232-242. - - Gate of Temple (Chulda), 158. - - Gaza, 401. - - Gibbon, _History_, 57. - - Golden Gate, 158. - - Goulburn, Dean, _Acts of the Deacons_, v., 404. - - Gwynn, Dr., 2. - - - Hadrian, Emperor, 66. - - Hall, S. C., 5. - - Harnack, _Texte u. Untersuch._, x, xi. - - Harris, Professor, vii, viii, 418. - - Helena, Empress, 66. - - Herzog, _Encyclopaedia_, 137, 181, 278. - - Hippolytus, vii. - - Hook, Dean, 381. - - Howard, John, 291. - - Hyreanus, 125. - - - Indich, 415. - - Irenaeus, 13, 276, 286. - - ---- _Adv. Haer._, 121. - - Irish longevity, 5. - - Irvingites, 198. - - - Jason and Papiscus, xi. - - Jerome, St., x, xii, 6, 110, 194, 386. - - Jesuits, 152. - - John, St., _Acts of_, 2. - - Jortin, 232. - - Josephus, _Antiqq._, 125, 174, 198, 217, 235, 236, 238, - 251, 274, 354. - - ---- _Wars_, 125, 158, 198. - - _Jubilees, Book of_, 25, 28. - - Judas Iscariot, 80, 81. - - Julian the Apostate, 393. - - Justin Martyr, ix, x, xi, 275, 355, 400, 414, 417. - - - Keble, John, _Christian Year_, 21, 227, 324, 368. - - Kingsley, Charles, 206. - - Kitto, _Bib. Cyclop._, 25, 181, 278, 282. - - - Le Bas and Waddington, _Voyage Archeolog._, 270. - - Le Blant, 297. - - Leslie, Charles, _Short and Easy Method with the Deists_, 77. - - Lewin, _Fasti Sacri_, 196, 248. - - Liddon, Canon, _University Sermons and Bampton Lectures_, - 55, 340. - - Lightfoot, Bishop, _Apostolic Fathers_, 274. - - ---- ---- _Clement of Rome_, 166, 335. - - ---- ---- _Essays_, 268. - - ---- ---- _Supernatural Religion_, 239. - - ---- ---- _Commentaries on Epistles_, v, 195, 269, 376. - - Lightfoot, Dr. J., _Horae Hebraicae_, 64, 84, 97, 125, 147, 158, - 177, 181, 182, 233, 260, 272, 333, 335. - - Lipsius, Professor, 25. - - Locke, J., 402. - - Lucian, 278. - - Ludolf, _Hist. of Ethiopia_, 415. - - Luke, St., authorship of Gospel, 10. - - _Lyons, Epistle of the Church of_, 8. - - - Mahometanism, 314, 402. - - Malalas, _Chronographia_, 342. - - Marcion, 10, 270. - - Marnas, the God of Gaza, 410. - - Martial, _Epigrams_, 312. - - _Martyrologium Romanum_, 325. - - Matthias, election of, 73, 77, 78, 79. - - Maurice, F. D., 206. - - Mechitarites, viii. - - Mede, Joseph, _Works of_, 64, 67, 84. - - Meroe, 412. - - Metaphrastes, Simeon, vi, 218. - - Meyer on the Acts, 98, 217, 230. - - Mill, J. S., _Logic_, 132. - - Milles, Bishop, _Works of St. Cyril_, 67. - - Milman, _History of the Jews_, 217. - - Mithraism, 32. - - Mivart, St. George, _Genesis of Species_, 60. - - Moll, Dr. A., on _Hypnotism_, 100, 123, 230, 360. - - Montanists, 154. - - _Monumenta Franciscana_, 163. - - _Muratorian Fragment_, 7. - - - Nelson, _Fasts and Festivals_, 79. - - Neo-Caesarea, 266. - - Nestorianism, 48. - - New Testament, Canon of, 16. - - Newman, Cardinal, 381, 206. - - Newton, Robert, 3. - - Nicanor, Gate of, 158. - - Nicodemus, 240. - - Nicolas, proselyte of Antioch, 286. - - Northcote, _Epitaphs of the Catacombs_, 112. - - Novatianus, 237. - - Novatian heresy, 237. - - Novatus, 237. - - - Origen, 79, 101, 400. - - Otto, _Corp. Apologet._, x. - - Overbeck, x. - - - Palmer, William, 237. - - Pantaenus, 400. - - Papias, 80. - - Papiscus, xi. - - Patrick, St., _Confession_, xii. - - ---- his family, 281. - - Paul, St., _Acts of_, 2. - - ---- at Thessalonica, 37. - - Peregrinus Proteus, 278. - - Peter, St., _Acts of_, 2. - - ---- character of, 71. - - Phelps, W. E. C., xiii. - - Philip, St., chaps. xvii.-xx. - - Philo, 30. - - Photius, vi. - - Pilate, Pontius, 250. - - Pitra, Card., _Analecta Sacra_, viii, 240. - - Pliny, _Letters_, 108, 180, 274, 276. - - Plymouth Brethren, 133, 198, 382. - - Polycarp, 3, 274. - - ---- teaching of, 14. - - Pothinus, 9. - - Powerscourt, Lady, _Letters and Papers of_, 198. - - Prudentius, 158. - - - Quadratus, _Apology of_, vii, viii, ix. - - Quaresmius, Fr., _Terrae Sanctae Elucidatio_, 67. - - Quinctilian, 298. - - - Ramsay, Professor, _Historical Geog. of Asia Minor_, 103. - - ---- in _Jour. Hellenic Studies_, vi. - - Reformers, 152. - - Renan, viii, 53. - - _Revue Archeologique_, 175. - - Robinson, J. A., _Texts and Studies_, 419. - - Routh, Dr., _Reliquiae, Sacrae_, 81. - - - Salmon, Dr., _Introduction to N.T._, 2, 8, 10, 11, 69, 79, 358. - - ---- in _Cont. Review_, 417. - - ---- _Sermons_, 135. - - Sanday, Dr., 10. - - Savings Banks, 205. - - Schaff, _Theological Encyclopaedia_, v, 296. - - Schwegler, x. - - Scillitan Martyrs, 15. - - Second coming of Christ, discussion about, 36. - - Selden, _De Synedriis_, 181, 278, 295. - - _Shepherd of Hermas_, 97, 382. - - Shushan Gate, 158. - - Simon Magus, chaps. xvii., xix. - - Simony, 394. - - Solomon, _Psalms_ of, 25. - - Speratus, St., 15. - - Stanley, Dean, _Sinai and Palestine_, 354. - - Stephen, St., chaps. xiv., xv., xvi. - - Sternhold and Hopkins, _Psalms_, 381. - - Stewart and Tait, _The Unseen Universe_, 47. - - Stillingfleet, 134, 137. - - Stoics, 153, 342. - - Stokes, G. T., _Celtic Church_, 111, 282, 323. - - ---- ---- _Norman Church_, 163, 282. - - _Survey of Western Palestine_, 331. - - - Tacitus, _Annals_, 58, 130. - - _Talmud_, 175. - - Tatian, vii, 65, 400, 415, 419. - - Taylor, Jeremy, _Holy Living_, 89. - - Telemachus, St., 56. - - Tertullian, 3, 7, 56, 109, 381, 382, 384, 386, 415. - - ---- _De Carne Christi_, 121. - - _Texts and Studies_, viii, 419. - - Theodoret, _Eccles. Hist._, 57. - - Theodosian Code, 348. - - Theophylact, 81. - - Thomas, St., _Acts_ of, 2. - - Tischendorf, _Acta Apoc._, 79. - - Tractarian movement, 237. - - _Transactions of the Society of Bibl. Arch._, 166, 202. - - Trench, Archbishop, _Notes on the Parables_, 47. - - ---- ---- _Notes on the Miracles_, 405. - - _Twelve Apostles, Teaching of_ (see Didache), 97, 139, 149, 377. - - - _Unseen Universe, The_, by Messrs. Stewart and Tait, 47. - - - Vatican Council, 265. - - Vaughan, C. J., D.D., _The Church of the First Days_, 226, 317. - - Victor I., Pope, 14. - - - Watson, Richard, 3. - - Wesley, John, 3, 137, 291, 381. - - Wilberforce, William, 291. - - Williams, Dr., 134, 135, 137. - - - Zeller, _Acts of the Apostles_, 230, 326. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Expositor's Bible: The Acts of the -Apostles, Vol. 1, by G. T. 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