The Spurgeon Series 1855 & 1856. Charles H. Spurgeon
himself and Jesus. This will he do, forgetting all he has attained, he will press forward, crying, Excelsior! going upwards still, desiring to be conformed more and more to the image of Christ Jesus.
5. First then, a Christian should be like Christ in his boldness. This is a virtue nowadays called impudence, but the grace is equally valuable by whatever name it may be called. I suppose if the Scribes had given a definition of Peter and John, they would have called them impudent fellows.
6. Jesus Christ and his disciples were noted for their courage. “When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.” Jesus Christ never fawned upon the rich; he did not stoop to the great and noble; he stood erect, a man before men, — the prophet of the people; speaking out boldly and freely what he thought. Have you never admired that mighty deed of his, when going to the city where he had lived and been brought up; knowing that a prophet had no honour in his own country, the book was put into his hands; he had only then commenced his ministry; yet without tremor he unrolled the sacred volume and what did he take for his text? Most men, coming to their own neighbourhood would have chosen a subject adapted to the taste, in order to earn fame. But what doctrine did Jesus preach that morning? One which in our age is scorned and hated — the doctrine of election. He opened the Scriptures, and began to read thus: “Many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; but to none of them was Elijah sent, except to Sarepta a city of Sidon, to a woman that was a widow. And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and not one of them was cleansed, except Naaman the Syrian.” Then he began to tell, how God saves whom he pleases, and rescues whom he chooses. Ah! how they gnashed their teeth upon him, dragged him out, and would have cast him from the brow of the hill. Do you not admire his intrepidity? He saw their teeth gnashing; he knew their hearts were hot with enmity, while their mouths foamed with revenge and malice: still he stood like the angel who shut the lion’s mouths; he did not fear them; faithfully he proclaimed what he knew to be the truth of God, and still read on, despite them all. So it was in all his discourses. If he saw a Scribe or a Pharisee in the congregation, he did not keep back part of the price, but pointing his finger, he said, “Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites”; and when a lawyer came, saying, “Master, in speaking thus, you condemn us also”; he turned around and said, “Woe to you, lawyers, for you bind heavy burdens upon men, while you yourselves will not touch them with so much as one of your fingers.” He dealt out honest truth; he never knew the fear of man; he trembled at no one; he stood out as God’s chosen, whom he had anointed above his fellows, careless of man’s esteem. My friends, be like Christ in this. Have none of the time serving religion of the present day, which is merely exhibited in evangelical drawing rooms, — a religion which only flourishes in a hotbed atmosphere, a religion which is only to be perceived in good company. No; if you are the servants of God, be like Jesus Christ, bold for your Master; never blush to own your religion; your profession will never disgrace you; take care you never disgrace that. Your love to Christ will never dishonour you; it may bring some temporary slight from your friends, or slanders from your enemies: but live on, and you shall live down their calumnies; live on and you shall stand among the glorified, honoured even by those who hissed at you, when he shall come to be glorified by his angels, and admired by those who love him. Be like Jesus, very valiant for your God; so that when they shall see your boldness, they may say, “He has been with Jesus.”
7. But no one feature will give a portrait of a man; so the one virtue of boldness will never make you like Christ. There have been some who have been noble men, but have carried their courage to excess; they have thus been caricatures of Christ, and not portraits of him. We must amalgamate with our boldness the loveliness of Jesus’ disposition. Let courage be the brass; let love be the gold. Let us mix the two together, so shall we produce a rich Corinthian metal, fit to be manufactured into the beautiful gate of the temple. Let your love and courage be mingled together. The man who is bold may indeed accomplish wonders. John Knox did much, but he might perhaps have done more if he had had a little love. Luther was a conqueror — peace to his ashes, and honour to his name! — still, we who look upon him from a distance, think that if he had sometimes mixed a little mildness with it, — if while he had been fortiter in re brave in conduct, he had been also suaviter in modo sweet in method, and spoken somewhat more gently, he might have done even more good than he did. So, brethren, while we too are bold, let us ever imitate the loving Jesus. The child comes to him: he takes him on his knee, saying, “Suffer little children to come to me, and forbid them not.” A widow has just lost her only son: he weeps at the bier, and with a word restores life to the dead man. He sees a paralytic, a leper, or a man long confined to his bed; he speaks, they rise, and are healed. He lived for others, not for himself. His constant labours were without any motive, except the good of those who lived in the world. And to crown all, you know the mighty sacrifice he made, when he condescended to lay down his life for man — when on the tree, quivering with agony, and hanging in the utmost extremity of suffering, he submitted to die for our sakes, that we might be saved. Behold in Christ, love consolidated! he was one mighty pillar of benevolence. As God is love, so Christ is love. Oh, you Christians, be loving also. Let your love and your beneficence beam out on all men. Do not say, “Be warmed, and be filled,” but “give a portion to seven, and also to eight.” If you cannot imitate Howard, and unlock the prison doors — if you cannot visit the sad house of misery, yet each in your proper sphere speak kind words, do kind actions; live out Christ again in the kindness of your life. If there is one virtue which most commends Christians, it is that of kindness; it is to love the people of God, to love the church, to love the word, to love all. But how many have we in our churches of crab tree Christians, who have mixed such a vast amount of vinegar, and such tremendous quantity of gall in their constitutions, that they can scarcely speak one good word to you; they imagine it impossible to defend religion except by passionate ebullitions; they cannot speak for their dishonoured Master without being angry with their opponent; sad if anything is awry, whether it is in the house, the church, or anywhere else, they conceive it to be their duty to set their faces like a flint, and to defy everyone. They are like isolated icebergs; no one cares to go near them. They float about on the sea of forgetfulness, until at last they are melted and gone; and though, good souls, we shall be happy enough to meet them in heaven, we are heartily glad to get rid of them from the earth. They were always so unamiable in disposition, that we would rather live an eternity with them in heaven, than five minutes on earth. Be not thus, my brethren. Imitate Christ in your loving spirits; speak kindly, act kindly, and do kindly, that men may say of you, “He has been with Jesus.”
8. Another great feature in the life of Christ, was his deep and sincere humility; in which let us imitate him. While we will not cringe or bow — (far from it; we are the freemen whom the truth makes free; we walk through this world equal to all, inferior to none) — yet we would endeavour to be like Christ continually humble. Oh, you proud Christian, (for though it is a paradox there must be some, I think; I would not be so uncharitable as to say that there are not some such people) if you are a Christian, I bid you look at your Master talking to the children, bending from the majesty of his divinity to speak to mankind on earth, tabernacling with the peasants of Galilee, and then — indeed depth of condescension unparalleled — washing his disciples’ feet, and wiping then with the towel after supper. This is your Master, whom you profess to worship; this is your Lord, whom you adore. And you, some of you who count yourselves Christians, cannot speak to a person who is not dressed in the same kind of clothing as yourselves, who has not exactly as much money per year as you have. In England it is true that a sovereign will not speak to a shilling, and a shilling will not notice a sixpence, and a sixpence will sneer at a penny. But it should not be so with Christians. We ought to forget caste, degree, and rank, when we come into Christ’s church. Remember, Christian, who your Master was — a man of the poor. He lived with them; he ate with them. And will you walk with lofty heads and stiff necks, looking with insufferable contempt upon your inferior fellow worms? What are you? The most inferior of all; because your trickeries and adornments make you proud. Pitiful, despicable souls you are! How small you look in God’s sight! Christ was humble; he stooped to do anything which might serve others. He had no pride; he was a humble man, a friend of tax collectors and sinners, living