Lastly. It would be well if the followers of Christ would always, like this ruler, conduct themselves in a becoming, civil, and engaging way. It would be of importance if they would always behave as well as many men of the world. Surely it is to be regretted if there be any who are, on the whole, truly humble and pious towards God, but supercilious, rude, fretful, passionate, and morose towards their fellow-creatures; and who thus, very unnecessarily and hurtfully, expose religion in the eyes of the world. Let all who know and love the truth, and are made heirs according to the hope of eternal life, attend to the apostolic precept," Be courteous;" and let them study to adorn the doctrine of God their Saviour in all things, that others, instead of being repelled, may be won by their conversation. This will be, not only to learn wisdom from the children of this generation, but to resemble some of the finest examples of believers in Scripture. Nay, this will be to resemble the Saviour himself, who "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man;" who was, and is, "the chiefest among ten thousand," "and altogether lovely;" and to whom his admiring people are accustomed to say, "Thou art fairer than the children of men; grace is poured into thy lips; therefore, God hath blessed thee for ever." "Finally, therefore, brethren, whatsoever things are honest," that is, venerable or respectable, "whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

LECTURE XCVII.

LUKE XVIII. 28-34.

"Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee. 29. And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, 30. Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting. 31. Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. 32. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: 33. And they shall scourge him, and put him to death; and the third day he shall rise again. 34. And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken."

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PETER was distinguished among the apostles for readiness, boldness, and sometimes even rashness of speech. He spoke affectionately, but unadvisedly, when he said, on the mount of transfiguration, "It is good for us to be here; let us make three tabernacles." He spoke well, when, in reply to the question, "Whom say ye that I am?" he said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." He spoke well, too, when, in answer to the inquiry," Will ye also go away?" he said, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe, and are sure, that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God." Had it been in an humble spirit, and acted up to, it was a noble declaration which he made, when he led the way for the rest of the disciples, saying, "Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee." And so, though it is possible he may have spoken with some degree of improper self-complacency, which, however, does not appear, and which the favourable reception of what he said by Christ renders improbable, he spoke according to truth, when, for himself and the other apostles, he now said to his Lord, "Lo, we have left all, and followed thee."

This is introduced, not only by Luke, but also by the two preceding evangelists,* immediately after the account *Matthew xix. 27; Mark x. 28.

of the young ruler who came to Christ inquiring how he might obtain eternal life, but who, on being directed to sell all that he had and follow him, went away sorrowful, for he was very rich: which conduct drew from our Lord certain remarks on the obstacles thrown in the way of salvation by riches. In this connection, and with an obvious reference, by way of contrast to the conduct of the ruler, Peter said, "Lo, we have left all, and followed thee." There is, doubtless, here an allusion to the precise circumstances in which several of the apostles were called by Christ. Thus, Peter himself and his brother Andrew were pursuing their occupation as fishermen, when Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men;" "and they straightway left their nets and followed him." James and John, too, were "in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and Jesus called them, and they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him." In like manner, Jesus saw Matthew sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, "Follow me. And he arose and followed him." And so the rest of them renounced their worldly prospects, and followed him in the way of constantly waiting on his ministry; and, with one exception, they all followed him in the way of becoming his believing and obedient disciples. It may, indeed, be said that it was but a poor all they left; still, however, it was their all. He who has but little to leave, sacrifices much by leaving that little, especially when he has the prospect of nothing but penury and hardship in its place. Their calling, such as it was, was their livelihood; and their parents, and other relations and friends, were just as dear to their hearts, as are those of the wealthiest and noblest to theirs. If, in leaving their business, and following Christ, they had had the view of coming to worldly preferment, riches, power, and honour, the step they took would not have been at all remarkable; but it was surely a great sacrifice, humanly speaking, to leave a competency and quietness, for deprivations, labour, poverty, disgrace, sorrow, pain, and death.

According to Matthew, Peter added, "What shall we have therefore?" that is, What reward shall we have for forsaking all, and following thee? None can claim or expect anything at the hand of God, as a reward of debt or merit, in the strict sense of the word; for the best are but unprofitable servants. But this humbling consideration is quite consistent with the encouraging truth that God will

bestow a reward of grace, or will graciously bless those who are brought to faith and holiness; and it is according to the congruity of things that he should connect true happiness with those graces of which he himself is the author. In this there is nothing to elate the creature, but everything to exalt the Creator. "Verily, there is a reward for the righteous," says the Psalmist; and, though every believer is influenced chiefly by gratitude for what he has already received, yet, like Moses, he has also "respect to the recompense of reward." We are to consider Peter, then, in this question, not as negotiating a self-righteous bargain, but as inquiring into the promises made to the people of God; for it is unquestionable that there are "given unto them exceeding great and precious promises," and that all these promises in Jesus Christ are yea, and in him amen, to the glory of God the Father."

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When we look farther to the parallel passage in Matt. xix. 28, we find this part of our Lord's reply to Peter, and through him to all the apostles, which is not given by Luke: "And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye who have followed me, in the regeneration, when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” The meaning to be affixed, in this saying, to the word "regeneration," depends on whether it be immediately connected with what goes before it, or with what follows it. If we connect it with the words which precede it, it will refer to something which was then past, and will signify that personal saving change of which our Lord speaks in the 3d chapter of John, as the only way of entering into the kingdom of God; and thus it will have the same meaning here as in Titus iii. 5, which is the only other passage of Scripture in which the very same word is used, though there are several scriptural expressions of the same import: "According to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost." In this view, our Lord would be considered as asserting that those who had so followed him as to be born again, should obtain the gracious reward afterwards specified; and, no doubt, that is an important truth. But a different idea is conveyed when, according to what the generality of interpreters seem justly to consider more natural, the words, "in the regeneration," are immediately connected with the subsequent clause. In this connection (passing over some

fanciful interpretations relating to Christ's ascension, and to the millennium) the regeneration here spoken of corresponds to the time when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory;" that is, to the time of the general resurrection and judgment at the end of the world; and thus, this "regeneration" is that final and perfect "restitution," or restoration and renovation," of all things," to which previous changes, however necessary, were but steps, and of which they were but imperfect specimens and types.* Without limiting the idea to the apostles, Paul says to the Corinthians,+ "Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?" This seems to indicate that all the redeemed, being first acquitted themselves, shall join, as assessors, in approving the sentence pronounced on the wicked by the Judge of all; some peculiar honour, however, being intended for the apostles. But we shall not enlarge farther on this point here, as a similar declaration occurs in a subsequent part of this Gospel.+

Let us pass on to the consideration of that part of our Lord's reply which is given by Luke: "And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting." Jesus warned his disciples to expect great trials. "If any man will come after me," said he, "let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me;" and he here notices two of the chief trials which the apostles had already sustained, and which many more of his followers were to sustain afterwards. The first trial he notices is that of the loss of property. He here mentions "house," and, according to Matthew and Mark, he added "lands." Now, it is very easy to pretend to make light of such a loss; when it comes, however, it is a real and a great trial. It requires a great mind to bear it calmly, even when it comes in the most unavoidable and least painful way; but, when it comes with heavy aggravations, and when it might be avoided by a slight sacrifice of principle, which is unfaithfulness to Christ, nothing but special grace and strong faith can uphold men in their integrity. And yet, if the loss of property be a heavy trial, the loss of near and dear relations, such as a parent, a partner, brethren, and children—that is, * See Acts iii. 21; 2 Pet. iii. 13; Rev. xxi.

Luke xxii. 28.

+1 Cor. vi. 2.