Chapter III: Section II

Nothing happens by Chance--Dispensations preparatory to the Coming of
Christ--Prophecy of Micah accomplished by Means of the Decree of
Augustus--Mary supernaturally strengthened to attend upon her new-born
Infant--Visit of the Shepherds--Mary's Reflections--Circumcision of the
Child--taken to the Temple--Simeon's Rapture and Prediction--Visit and
Offerings of the Arabian Philosophers--general Considerations.

Chance is a word which ought to be banished from the Christian vocabulary. It is utterly contradictory to reason, opposed to experience, and subversive of revelation. To suppose that he who created the world has wholly and forever abandoned it, is improbable; and to imagine that the regular movements of nature, and the course of events--the whole train of causes, and the incalculable variety of dependent consequences, are merely fortuitous, seems absurd as well as impious. Uncertain and confused as were the opinions of the pagan nations of antiquity, few of them totally denied some kind of superintending providence; and many of their ablest writers reasoned in defence of it in the most forcible manner. "What," said the emperor Marcus Antoninus, "would it concern me to live in a world void of God and without Providence?"

In order to form clear conceptions of this, and of every other subject connected with the peace of our minds and the immortal interests of man, we must apply to the Scriptures for information. Hope, conjecture, plausibility--all became pleasingly absorbed in the splendour of truth; which, with the brightness of a sun beam, writes upon the inspired page the doctrine of an universal and particular providence. It appears, indeed, so fundamental to the system of Christianity, and so consonant to the wisdom and goodness of God, that if it were possible to adduce "solid objections against its reality, one of the richest sources of consolation to the human race would be forever lost--some of our dearest hopes would be undermined, and despondency shed disastrous gloom over the whole scene of life. It is the happiness of Christians to know, that nothing can escape the eye, nothing can disarrange the schemes, or thwart the purposes, of the eternal mind; and that the same general law which regulates the flight of an angel, or the affairs of an empire, connects even the fall of a sparrow with the plans of heaven. It is their privilege to feel assured, that the events which appear contingent or accidental to us, are equally ordained with those which seem the most orderly and regular. The arrow may be shot at a venture, but the Supreme Ruler guides it through the air. So sings the poet;

"Through all the various shifting scene
Of life's mistaken ill or good,
Thy hand, O God, conducts unseen
The beautiful vicissitude.

All things on earth, and all in heaven,
On thy eternal will depend;
And all for greater good were given,
And all shall in thy glory end."

These sentiments will receive additional illustration from the remarkable facts respecting the birth of Christ, which it will be now proper to notice. He who can imagine the correspondence observable between ancient predictions and the occurrences which mark the singular history before us to be mere casual or undesigned coincidences, must possess a mind strangely perverted by prejudice or mean in its conceptions--he must in reality believe greater miracles than he denies, and, in his zeal to be thought rational, become enthusiastic and fanatical, in admitting the most inconceivable absurdities. We hesitate not to say, that even upon the principles of reason there are more difficulties in denying a providence in all the circumstances connected with our Saviour's incarnation, than in allowing its active agency; and that here, the doctrine which is most consolatory is most true. Sophistry may attempt to poison or to stop the streams of spiritual comfort, but they will nevertheless flow with undiminished sweetness and abundance.

The whole period of the past time ought to be considered as a vast preparatory dispensation; every circumstance in the history of the people of Israel essentially depended on each previous occurrence, and stood connected with each succeeding one. We perceive sometimes more distinctly by a prophetic light, sometimes more obscurely through the hieroglyphical characters of the Mosaic economy of types and shadows, a wonderful series of events, that guides the devout inquirer to "God manifest in the flesh;" and, if human penetration cannot always discover the bright concatenation, we feel assured that it exists, and is regularly maintained by supreme wisdom; as we infer from observing the commencement, or discovering some parts of the course, which a mighty river pursues through provinces and empires, that, although the whole may not be accurately ascertained, yet each part, whether it traverses subterraneous passages or pathless forests, is certainly and necessarily connected.

The links of this marvellous chain of providence become more distinctly visible as we approach the last, and witness its glorious termination. Amongst other ancient prophecies, we have this very express declaration of Micah respecting the birth of Christ--a declaration which, after the lapse of seven hundred years, we are now to see verified: "Thou, _Bethlehem Ephratah_, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet _out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel_, whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."

It has been related, that at the time of the miraculous conception, Joseph and Mary lived at Nazareth in Galilee, and still continued this residence. If the predicted child had been born in Nazareth, it is obvious that either he could not be the Messiah, or the prophet was not correct. The virgin mother, however, neither disbelieved the communications of Heaven, nor took any extraordinary measures, by a removal of her dwelling-place, to aid the accomplishment of a divine oracle. How she, an inhabitant of _Nazareth_ was to be the mother of him whom so many ages had expected in _Bethlehem_, was indeed mysterious; and yet like Abraham, she hoped against hope; allied in faith, as well as by descent, to that eminent patriarch. Nothing could be more contradictory, to her anticipations than external appearances; but nothing could be more humble, more patient, or more indicative of lively faith in God, than her spirit and conduct. She believed the angel, and she left the event. What an illustrious example to her sex! what confidence in Providence! what trust in God! what a resignation of reason to revelation!

Mark the event. Augustus, at this time emperor of Rome, suddenly published an edict for the registry, or enrolment of the empire; probably with a view to ascertain the state of his dependencies, to exact an oath of fidelity, and perhaps, to determine the amount of money which might be reasonably expected from each province in case of any future taxation. The whole empire being included in this decree, all the families were required immediately to repair to their respective cities, for the purpose of having their names distinctly recorded; and, as Joseph was lineally descended from David, he, with his espoused wife, went into Judea to Bethlehem, because it was the birth place and residence of their illustrious ancestor.

At this remarkable crisis Mary was detained by the full accomplishment of the time for her delivery; "and she brought forth her first born Son, and wrapped him in swaddling-clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." Here then were fulfilled the prophetic descriptions of the place and circumstances of the Redeemer's incarnation. A virgin produces a son--a son who, by the exclusion of his parents from the accommodation of the inn, already began to realize the inspired declaration, "he is despised and rejected of men"--a son identified as the promised Messiah by every thing connected with his birth. Augustus issues a decree which brings Mary to Bethlehem at the precise moment when this removal was requisite; and yet Augustus, ignorant of the designs of Heaven or the condition of Mary, considers only his personal glory and the security of the imperial dominions. He has one purpose, and Providence another; but they both concur to the predestined end. Augustus knew not that his edict was to prove the appointed means of accomplishing the most important event that had ever transpired since the commencement of time, and was, in fact, the wonderful hinge upon which the numerous and concurring prophecies of past centuries were destined to turn. He knew not that his imperial edict for an universal enrolment, was the last of a series of preparatory means by which the great purposes of infinite mercy were to be developed and displayed. Why was not the same policy pursued by the emperor, when it was determined upon seven-and-twenty years before at Taracon in Spain? and why, if he were diverted at that period from the immediate execution of this project by some disturbances in the empire, was it forgotten or neglected for so many years, and revived at so critical a moment? Let infidelity stand abashed, and listen to the voice of revelation: "He worketh all things after the counsel of his own will."

How often has the supreme Disposer made use of those agents to accomplish his purposes, who were themselves the last to acknowledge his superintendence, or perhaps the first to oppose his will! How consolatory to the Christian to reflect, that the passions of the human mind, the madness of ambition, the rage of envy, the misrule of tyrannic power, the animosity of persecution, the decrees of princes, the events of war and of peace, the elements of nature, and the powers of the invisible worlds, are under the perfect control of God! A Pharaoh shall cause his "name to be declared throughout all the earth," by giving occasion to the most transcendent miracles, and the most direct and indisputable interference of Omnipotence--a Cyrus shall pursue a wonderful career of conquest; victory after victory shall enhance his fame; nations shall be subdued, and gates of brass broken before him, for the sake of Israel the elect of God, and Jacob his servant--an Augustus shall unconsciously fulfil a divine decree by means of an edict of his own--the Roman empire shall be enrolled, that Jesus may he born in Bethlehem.

It appears that Mary was supernaturally strengthened to perform the necessary duties to her infant charge, in the cold and comfortless situation in which she was thrown. No one seemed at hand to commiserate her sufferings, to supply her wants, or to assist her weakness. Her own life was endangered; but maternal tenderness struggled for the life of her firstborn, and a divine faith in God and his promises sustained her amidst the privations of her desolate abode. Let not his people permit despondency to becloud their days or extinguish their hopes; but, relying on his assurance, "As thy day is, so thy strength shall be"--an assurance so remarkably verified in the mother of Jesus, and so often corroborated by the experience of Christians--let them imitate the patience and faith of this illustrious woman, who was at once the ornament of religion and the glory of her sex.

Every thing is marvellous in this sacred story. No sooner was this child introduced into the world, than his virgin mother received an unexpected visit in her lonely dwelling. A company of shepherds came, with unceremonious eagerness, to her asylum. Mary and Joseph were together in the stable, conversing doubtless, upon this astonishing birth; and probably might have been alarmed at the intrusion of strangers. Were they come to remove them from this poor lodging, as they had been already excluded from the inn, and occupy their places?--were other barbarians come to pour the last drop into the cup of maternal wo, by expelling Mary, her husband, and her offspring, from their wretched, but still acceptable shelter? If this were the case--if, when the strangers obtruded, these had been the just apprehensions of the afflicted family, they knew where to find consolation; and she who held the babe in her arms, and pressed it to her bosom, was no doubt prepared to adopt a similar strain with that by which Simeon afterward proclaimed his ecstasy--"Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." But fear not, Mary! It is no ruffian band that approaches thee! These are no idle strangers, impelled by a vague curiosity; but they are the commissioned messengers of Providence and the ambassadors of peace! They have heard "glad tidings," and they are come to verify the visions they have seen, and to renew the joys they have felt!

In the neighbouring fields these shepherds were watching their flocks by night; when suddenly an angelic messenger made his appearance in a blaze of celestial light. They were of course astonished and alarmed; but, from the first, perceived it was no illusion of the senses, since all distinctly saw, and were equally affected by the splendid reality. The benevolent spirit bade them dismiss every apprehension, and proceeded to open his glorious commission. It consisted of an assurance, that in the city of David the long-predicted Messiah was actually born, and on that very day; [7] and that this was the sign by which they should discover the truth of this revelation, that if they went immediately to Bethlehem they should find the Babe wrapped in swaddling-clothes, lying in a manger. This angel, probably Gabriel, who had already appeared to Zacharias and Mary, was in a moment joined by a multitude of the heavenly host, whose enraptured bosoms could no longer repress the intensity of joy, and who were permitted to strike their golden harps and unite their angelic voices in those ever memorable strains, "GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST, AND ON EARTH PEACE, GOOD WILL TOWARDS MEN."

The shepherds instantly hastened to Bethlehem. They beheld the heaven-born Babe. They explained to Joseph and the virgin what they had seen and heard; and then circulated the wonderful news in every direction. Astonishment filled the whole vicinity; but it is probable a great diversity of opinion prevailed respecting the degree of credit due to the testimony of these witnesses; and the impression would soon vanish from those whose prejudices, whose ignorance, or whose temporal interests, prevented their immediate acknowledgment of the mighty fact. And must we not deeply lament, that to this hour similar reasons operate to produce a similar infidelity or rejection of the well-substantiated claims of the Son of God upon the affections and obedience of mankind?

In the mean time, as the evangelist states, "Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart." With a modesty and a piety so truly characteristic of this eminent woman, she left it to others to publish to the world the extraordinary manifestations of divine favour which she had received, content to observe in silence the movements of Providence, and to allow the mysterious fact to be gradually developed. As she took no measures at first to screen herself from reproach, but left the defence of her integrity to him whose wisdom was working all these wonders; so she did not avail herself of the present opportunity to extend her fame. From the astonishment or the applauses of the multitude she willingly retired into the shades; and instead of indulging vanity, gave herself to solemn meditation. Connecting together the vision of Zacharias, the language of Elizabeth, the visitation of the celestial spirit to herself, the miraculous conception, the unexpected occasion of her removal at this crisis to Bethlehem, the recent account of the shepherds, the language of ancient prophecy respecting the lowly birthplace of the Saviour of mankind, and the peculiar accordance of its minute descriptions with her present circumstances; she perceived the amazing conclusion to be drawn, and humbly adored the God of her salvation.

We must pronounce Mary, then, a thoughtful observer and a humble inquirer, free from the levity of her age, and superior in mental character to the poverty of her condition. She had, indeed, superior advantages, and was in a sense placed under divine discipline and instruction: but she possessed a docility of spirit which rendered these singular means so conducive to her rapid improvement in knowledge and piety. Happy for us if we make a proper use of whatever religious privileges we enjoy, so that the spiritual opportunities and blessings which enhance our responsibility, do not, by our negligence, aggravate our condemnation!

It is probable that we forfeit much enjoyment, and lose much attainable wisdom, by suffering the events of providence to pass unnoticed. The habit of investigating their connections, and tracing their consequences, would no doubt both improve the faculty of observation, and spare us many perplexities. Diligence in this sacred study would be repaid by pleasure and profit. We should "know," if we "followed on to know the Lord." The deep shadows which overcast the scenes of life, and are so impervious to the human sight, would be easily penetrated by the eye of faith; a new and glorious scene would present itself; objects and arrangements, before unseen, would gradually become visible; what was previously obscure in form and shape, would appear in just proportions; and many of the sources of our present anxiety might become the means of our richest satisfaction. Let us imitate the noble examples upon record; remembering that no place or time is unsuitable to a devout temper, or impossible to be improved to pious purposes. Isaac meditated in the _fields_, and Mary in the _stable_; and a devout spirit will transform either into a temple of praise and prayer.

On the eighth day after his birth, this immaculate Child was circumcised, both because he was a Jew, and the predicted Messiah. All the descendants of Abraham were required to submit to this institution; and, therefore, the parents of JESUS, for so he was named on this occasion, according to the previous intimation of the angel, could not omit this service without forfeiting their privileges; and as he was afterward to become the great preacher of righteousness to his own nation, it was necessary that he should not be exposed to the punishment of excommunication as a stranger. Thus, according to the apostle's allusion, he was "made under the law," and evidently partook of flesh and blood.

At the expiration of forty days, the parents of Jesus went up to Jerusalem, to present their Infant before the Lord in the temple, conformably to the Mosaic law, to offer the sacrifices required upon such an occasion, and to pay the stipulated sum of five shekels for the eldest son. [8] Led by a divine impulse, a certain venerable saint, named Simeon, came into the temple at this moment; and taking the wondrous Child into his aged arms, exclaimed, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word; for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel!" Some have, with useless curiosity, inquired into the birth, parentage, and station of this enraptured believer; and with that mistaken prejudice so common to the world, by which greatness of character is perpetually associated with eminence of rank, and nobility of birth, they have endeavoured to prove him to have been a priest, or the son of Hillel, who was chief of the sect of the Pharisees, and president of the sanhedrim forty years; and he has even been represented as the father of that Gamaliel who brought up the apostle Paul. Whereas the narrative of Luke introduces him as a person of no considerable notoriety, but as one who possessed an infinitely greater claim to distinction in the inspired page, a man of exemplary conduct and piety, who was waiting for him who was so long expected as 'the consolation of Israel.' He was not the favourite of princes, but the servant of God; and this was his best distinction, that "the Holy Ghost was upon him; and it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ." Growing infirmities might have awakened, in an ordinary mind, some suspicion of the reality of that assurance which he had received. Delay seemed to mock his patience, time dimmed his eyes, and suspense might well have sickened his heart--but at last the hour arrives, the ancient oracles are fulfilled--celestial revelations, after the lapse of four hundred years from the days of Malachi, relume a benighted world--Zacharias, Mary, Simeon, received the prophetic spirit; and death becomes disarmed of his terrors, amidst the bright gleamings of approaching day.

Turning to the astonished parents, and addressing himself particularly to his virgin mother, he said, "Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign, which shall be spoken against, (yea, and a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." Anna, an aged prophetess, at the same instant joined this happy group, and "gave thanks, likewise, unto the Lord:" the glad tidings were circulated, and the parents returned into Galilee.

The _accomplishment_ of that event, which in former ages was only the subject of _prediction_, constitutes part of the happiness of gospel times. True, indeed, as those predictions proceeded from God, there existed from the beginning a certainty of their being fulfilled. It was as impossible that God should lie, as that he should cease to exist; and having declared the decree, that his Son should "sit upon his holy hill of Zion," no human violence, no providential vicissitudes, no Satanic devices, could prevent it. No one of them, nor all of them combined, could effectually obstruct the march of omnipotent goodness to the completion of its purposes. But the saints of old suffered a material disadvantage from "his day" being as yet "afar off;" a disadvantage which could not possibly be remedied. It is evident that, except in cases of immediate inspiration, a suspicion might exist in the pious mind, that the prophecy might be partially, if not entirely misunderstood, as the most penetrating mind cannot, at this day, with the longest line of research, fathom the deeps of futurity. Time alone can, with perfect certainty, interpret the visions of prophecy.

It is also plain that no description, however minute and glowing, could perfectly represent the life and love of the Redeemer, as displayed in his own person. The imperfection of language rendered it impossible to portray the glorious reality. What inspired or seraphic pen, though dipped in heaven, could display all that was seen when they "beheld his glory?" Had Omnipotence remanded back the flood of ages, and recalled from the invisible state the illustrious saints that had been carried down the stream, from the time of Adam, in order to have witnessed the incarnation, the life, the death, and the resurrection of Jesus; with one voice they would have exclaimed, "The half was not told me."

In proportion to the approach of the Messiah, hope glowed with increasing ardour. Standing on the mount of prophecy, the pious Jews eagerly waited, and triumphantly hailed the rising of this bright day of grace. How many "prophets and righteous men" desired to behold this eventful period, but "died without the sight!" With what sacred pleasure did Moses record the first promise, though at the distance of many centuries! What rapture thrilled through the patriarch's veins, when he spake of the coming of _Shiloh_, "unto whom the gathering of the people should be;" and how did his languid eyes brighten with new lustre in the dying hour, when he exclaimed, "I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord!" In what strains of holy joy did the "sweet singer of Israel" declare, "My heart is inditing a good matter; I speak of the things which I have made touching the King; my tongue is the pen of a ready writer. Thou art fairer than the children of men; grace is poured into thy lips; therefore God hath blessed thee for ever!" How did Isaiah's heart glow with transport, while his lips were touched with inspiration, and triumph played on his prophetic harp, "Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this!" But neither the sacred pleasure of Moses, when he recorded the first promise, nor the rapture that thrilled through the patriarch's veins, nor the holy joy of the sweet singer of Israel, nor the glow of transport that animated the heart of Isaiah, and inspired his lays, can equal the joy of the Christian church. Hope, indeed, presented to the early ages a lively _picture_ of future times, and prophecy described them; but "blessed are our eyes, for they see; and our ears, for they hear ... many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which we see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which we hear, and have not heard them."

The visit of the shepherds to Mary, already recited, was succeeded by another, perhaps equally remarkable. A company of Magi, or Magians, [9] probably from Arabia, having seen a remarkable light, resembling a star, suspended over Bethlehem, hastened to pay suitable homage to the illustrious personage whose birth it indicated. These philosophers, who were particularly addicted to the study of astronomy, being doubtless incited by a divine influence to repair to the country over which this new star or meteor seemed to shed its glory, immediately went to Jerusalem, where they began to make the most anxious inquiries. The news of their arrival soon reached the ears of Herod, a man whose cruelties had often exasperated his subjects, and kept him in a state of constant suspicion; so that he naturally apprehended fatal consequences to his crown, from this report of the birth of a king. Having first consulted the priests and scribes respecting the birthplace of Christ, he procured a private interview with the Magians, for the purpose of ascertaining the time of the meteoric appearance; and, with all the policy of all experienced statesman, requested them to go and find out the extraordinary Child, then return to bring him word, that he might come and worship him. This was a contrivance, by which he expected to accomplish, with greater certainty, the destruction of Jesus.

The Arabian philosophers instantly proceeded on their journey--the star moved before them, as the cloudy pillar once guided the marches of Israel in the wilderness; till at length it became stationary over the place where the Infant lay: then, having fulfilled the design of its creation, totally and forever disappeared.

Is it for us to question the wisdom of God in any of the productions of nature, because _we_ do not perceive their utility? Shall we venture to arraign his goodness, because he has not only supplied the necessities of man, but filled the caves of ocean, and spread the pathless wilderness with a rich variety of existence, the specific purposes of which the researches of man have hitherto failed to discover? Shall we dare to say that the impenetrable forest, or the untenanted island, was made in vain? or that the grass grows, in the valley, the shrub sprouts on the inaccessible height, or the flower expands its beauties and diffuses its fragrance over the desert uselessly, because _we_ have not discovered the reasons of their formation? Who, excepting the philosophers of Arabia, that had seen the new luminary shine for a few days and expire, but would have disputed the necessity or questioned the design of such a phenomenon? The ignorant, vulgar, and even the rest of the sages of Arabia, might have surveyed it with idle wonder or incurious eye; very few followed the splendour, or knew the intention of its appearance. And may not other beings be acquainted with many of those mysteries of nature which we fail to penetrate? or may not secret connexions and combinations, both in the animate and inanimate creation, exist, which, however important, it is not necessary for us to know? In reference both to nature and providence--

"One part, one _little_ part, we dimly scan,
Through the dark medium of life's feverish dream;
Yet dare arraign the whole stupendous plan,
If but that little part incongruous seem."

BEATTIE.

The figure of Balaam, in predicting the birth of a Saviour, probably contained a prophetic allusion to the phenomenon in question; "There shall come a star out of Jacob, and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel;" and with similar reference, we read in the apocalyptic vision, "I am the bright and morning star."

As soon as the Magians saw the young Child, with Mary his mother, they "fell down and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way."

This narrative suggests many instructive considerations, some of which we shall briefly notice.

1. Many of those who have possessed the fewest means of moral and spiritual improvement, will appear in judgment against multitudes who enjoy the greatest variety of religious advantages. These Arabian sages acted up to what they knew, and followed the light which was afforded them; in consequence of which they made discoveries of the most valuable description, such as could have been attained by no other proceeding, and such as were totally concealed from the unobservant mass of mankind. It was indeed a small "star" that first attracted their notice, but it led to the "Sun of Righteousness." O that we were equally wise and diligent in the use of our opportunities and privileges--we should then be equally successful!

2. A specimen is here presented to us of the discriminating proceedings of the grace of God. Those who were "far off" were "brought nigh," while those who were "nigh" really, were placed "far off." These Pagans were conducted to Jesus; while the infatuated Jews, unaffected by his appearance and subsequent miracles, opposed his influence, and gloried in their shame. Thus was fulfilled the ancient oracle, "I am found of them that sought me not." The star which failed to excite attention in Judea, darted an attractive and effectual splendour into Arabia.

3. It is truly deplorable, that those signs and wonders of Almighty mercy, which will fill eternity with praise, should be so little observed or appreciated by the great proportion of mankind. How different were the engagements that occupied the inhabitants of Jerusalem, from those of the Arabian philosophers! The star of Bethlehem excited the respectful attention only of a few strangers, who saw and followed it, and "found the Messiah." The Saviour they sought was despised and rejected of men, when emerging from the obscurity of his early life, he dwelt amongst them, distributing blessings, and imparting salvation.

Is not this the case to the present hour? Where are the travellers to Zion? Where are the followers of Christ? Where are those happy individuals to be found, who, renouncing the speculations of philosophy, and the suggestions of a depraved and perverted mind, are led by the star of divine revelation to Jesus? Where are those who forsake ALL for him? Where the company of inquirers, whom no frowns and no flatteries can induce to relinquish the pursuit? Alas, how thinly scattered! The multitude, attracted by the glare of worldly glory, can see, indeed, the glitter of gold, and hear with approving readiness the accents of pleasure; but are unable to discern the excellencies of Christ, and will not listen to his voice! They are enchanted by other charms, and lulled into dangerous repose by other music!

4. Though the star of Bethlehem, which guided the Arabian sages to the Son of God, be extinguished, the clear light of truth still shines as in a dark place, and points us to the same object. "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." Whoever follows this light, will be led to Jesus; whoever neglects it must wander in the wilderness of error and perplexity. It sheds the clearest radiance on the path of the traveller, who is pressing to the "Prince of Peace." Let us not pay attention to those deceptive lights which the world holds out to allure and destroy. This only is from heaven, and will guide the inquirer thither, where the illumination it has diffused over the path of life, will be lost amidst the splendours of eternal day.