But time would fail me if I tried to repeat to you half the passages wherein the old Jewish prophets foretold Him who was to come, and in whom all the nations of the earth should be blessed, more and more clearly as the time drew nigh.
Well, my friends, surely you know of whom I have been speakingof whom Moses and the prophets spokeof Him who was born of a village maiden, laid in a manger, proclaimed of angels to the shepherds, worshipped with hymns of glory by the heavenly host on the first Christmas day eighteen hundred and seventy-eight years ago, as we count time. Aye, strange as it may seem, He is come, and in Him all the nations of the earth are blessed. He is comethe Conqueror of Evilthe desire of all nationsthe Law-giverthe Lamb which was to suffer for our sinsthe King of kingsthe Light which should lighten the heathenthe Virgins child, of wondrous wisdom, whose name should be God as well as manwhom all the heathens, amid strange darkness and mad confusions, had still been fearing and looking for.
He is comeHe came on that first Christmas-tide. And we here on each Christmas-tide can thank God for His coming, and say before men and angels, Unto us a child is bornthe Prince of Peace is oursto His kingdom we belongHe has borne about on Him a mans body, a mans soul and spiritHe was born like uslike us He grewlike us He rejoiced and sorrowedtempted in all points like as we are, yet without sinable to the uttermost to understand and help all who come to God by Him. He has bruised the serpents headHe has delivered us from the power of darkness, and brought us into His kingdom. Through His blood we have redemption and forgivenessyes! through Him who, though He was laid in a manger, was yet the image of the unseen God. And by Him, and for Himthat Babe of Bethlehemwere all things created in heaven and earthand He is before all things, and by Him all things consist. All heaven and earth, and all the powers therein, are held together by Him. For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell; and having made peace through the blood of His cross, to reconcile by that child all things unto Himselfall things in heavenall things in earth.
This should be our boastthis should be our gloryfor this do we meet together every Christmas day.
But what is all this to us if that Blessed Man be gone away from us? Our souls want more than I have told you yet. Our souls want more than a beautiful and wonderful story about Christ. They want Christ Himself. Preaching is blessed and useful if it speaks of Christ. Our own thoughts are blessed and useful if we think of Christ. The Bible is most blessed and useful containing all things necessary to salvation, for it speaks of Christ. Our prayers are blessed and useful if in them we call and cry earnestly to Christ. But neither preaching, nor thinking, nor praying are enough. In them we think about Him and speak to Him. But we want Him to speak to us. We want not merely a man to say, your sins may be forgiven you; we want Christ Himself to say, Your sins are forgiven you. We want not merely a wise book to tell us that the good men of old belonged to Christs kingdomwe want Christ Himself to tell us that we belong to His kingdom. We want not merely a book that tells us that He promised always to be with uswe want Him Himself to tell us that He is really now with us. We want not merely a promise from a prophet of old that in Him all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, but a sign from Christ Himself that this nation of England is really now blest in Him. In short, we want not words, however true words, however fine words, about Christ. We want Christ Himself to forgive us our sinsto give peace and freedom to our heartsto come to us unseen, and fill us with thoughts and longings such as our fallen nature cannot give ussuch thoughts and feelings as we cannot explain in words, for they are too deep and blessed to be talked aboutbut thoughts which say to us, as if the blessed Jesus Himself spoke to us in the depths of our hearts, Poor, struggling, sinful brother! thou art mine. For thee I was bornfor thee I diedthee I will teachI will guide thee and inform thee with mine eyeI will never leave thee nor forsake thee.
Wellyou want Himand you want a sign of Hima sign of His own giving that He is among youthis daya sign of His own giving that He has taken you into His kingdoma sign of His own giving that He died for youthat He will feed and strengthen your souls in you with His own life and His own body.
Thenthere is a signthere is the sign which has stood stedfast and sure to youand to your fathersand your forefathers before themback for eighteen hundred years, over half the world. There is the bread of which He said, Take, eat, this is my body which is broken for you. There is the wine of which He said, This cup is the New Covenant in my blood, which is shed for you, and for many, for the forgiveness of sins. There is His sign. Dont ask how. Dont try to explain it away, and fancy that you can find fitter, and soberer, and safer, and more gospel-sounding words than Jesus Christs own, by which to speak of His own Sacrament. But say, with the great Queen Elizabeth of old, when men tried too curiously to enquire into her opinion concerning this blessed mystery
Christ made the Word and spake it,
He took the bread and brake it,
And what His Word did make it,
That I believe, and take it.
He said, This bread is my body which was broken for you. He said, This cup is the New Testament in my blood. Is it? or is it not? And if it is, is not Christ among us now, indeed? Is not that something better than all the preaching in the world? Jesus Christ, the King of kingsthe Saviourthe Delivererthe Lamb of Godthe Everlasting Sonthe Wordthe Lightthe Lifeis here among us ready to feed our souls in the Holy Sacrament of His body and blood, as surely as that bread and wine will feed our bodiesyeato feed our souls and bodies to everlasting life. Ho! every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters and drink. Come, buy wine without money and without price.
III. IS, OR IS NOT, THE BIBLE TRUE?
If I say the truth, why do ye not believe Me?
John viii. 46.Is, or is not, the Bible true? To this question we must all come some day or other. Do you believe that that book which lies there, which we call the Bible, is a true book, or a lying book? Is it true or false? Is it right or wrong? Is it from God, or is it not from God? Let us answer that. If it is not from God, let it go; but if it is from God, which we know it is, how dare we disobey it?
That God, the maker of heaven and earth, should speak to menshould set His commands down in a book and give it to themand that they should neglect it, disobey itit is the strangest sight that can be seen on earth! that God in heaven should say one thing, and a human being, six feet high at most, should dare to do another!
If the Bible is from God, I say, the question is not whether it is better to obey it or not. Better? there is no better or worse in the matterit is infinitely necessary. To obey is infinitely right, to disobey is infinitely wrong. To obey is infinitely wise, to disobey is infinite folly. There can be no question about the matter, except in the mind of a fool. Better to obey Gods word? Better indeedfor to obey is heaven, to disobey is hell. That is the difference. And at your better moments does not the voice within you, witness to, and agree with, the words of that book? When it tells you to care more for your soul than your bodymore for the life to come, which is eternity, than for the present life which lasts but a few yearsdoes not common sense tell you that? The Bible tells you to reverence and love God the giver of all gooddoes not reason tell you that? The Bible tells you loyally to obey, to love, to worship our blessed King and Saviour in heaven. Does not common sense tell you that? Surely if there be such a person as Jesus Christif He is sitting now in heaven as Saviour of all, and one day to be Judge of allby all means He is to be obeyed, He is to be pleased, whoever else we may displease. Reason, one would think, would tell us thatand it is just want of reason which makes us forget it.