THE KING’ S BUSINESS-
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for his rash daring (cf. Matt. 26:52). Jesus bade Peter put up the sword into the sheath. This sets forth Christ’s view of propagating the gospel by thè sword. The sword with which a Christian should do his fighting is the sword o f the Spirit (v. 36; 2 Cor. 10:4; Eph. 6:17). The cup from which Peter was seeking to keep Jesus was bitter, but the Father gave it and Jesus was ready to drink it. No mat ter how bitter the cup the Father gives, let us ever echo Christ’s triumphant words, “ shall I not drink it?” The Father gave this-cup to Jesus by the hands o f wicked men, but it was none the less from the Father (cf. Acts 2:23). Jesus was seized and bound. There was no need o f binding Him. If He had seen fit not to go the bonds would have been o f no avail. Thursday, August 22 John 18 : 13 - 15 . Indignity upon indignity was heaped upon our Lord. They treated Him as a dangerous criminal. The cohort and the colonel, together with the officers o f the Jews huddled around Jesus, seized Him and tied Him for fear that He would tear away from them. They first led Him before Annas and from Annas before his father- in-law, Gaiaphas. Caiaphas had already determined upon His death and had urged upon the Jews that even though He were innocent it was expedient that He should die, for otherwise the people might be destroyed. “ Simon Peter followed Jesus,” that sounds well. W e should all follow Jesus always. But Peter followed Jesus without really following Him. His feet followed Him, but His heart did not fol low in the sense o f renouncing self (Matt. 16:24). It was doubtless affection for Jesus that led Peter to follow Him, but there had not been as yet utter renuncia tion o f self and devotion to Christ. There was affection, but not love in the deepest sense, so Peter’s following, instead o f doing any good, got him into trouble. A • mere outward following without real heart following is always bound to get a man into trouble. Peter ought not' to have
gone after his Lord at all at this time, except in heart. It was an act o f pride on his part, for Jesus had already warned him o f his weakness and his coming fall (ch. 13:38). Furthermore, just before this our Lord had given His disciples a hint that they were to go'away (v. 8 ), and on the preceding evening He had told Peter he could not follow Him at this time, but that he should later (ch. 13:36). But Peter had turned a deaf ear to all this. He had .asked, “Why cannot I follow thee now?” and started out to do so against his Master’s warning. He had boasted, “I will lay down my life for thy sake,” and now undertakes to make good his boast arid prove his Master mistaken in His estimate o f him. But our Lord knows us all bet ter than we know ourselves. Friday, August 23 . John 18 : 16 - 18 . Peter had started out to follow Jesus but was now in the camp o f His enemies. O f course he does not sympathize with them, and what they are saying about his Master grieves his soul, nevertheless he is not pro testing. He ought to have stood altogether separate from them (Ps. 1:1; 26:4-10; 2 Cor. 6:14-17), but that would have at tracted too much attention to him and made him appear singular and exposed him to danger. The same arguments for con formity to the world are advanced today, and they are o f as little value as in Peter’s day. A fter all Peter escaped none o f the danger he sought to avoid. He only got away by denying his Lord. And that is the only way any one can escape who makes friends with the world (Jas. 4 :4 ; 1 Cor. 15:33, R. V .; Eph. 5:11, 12). Bad company is a good thing to keep out of, unless one goes into it with a definite pur pose to win it for Christ and keeps that purpose distinctly in mind at every moment. Peter had no such purpose here. But alas! Peter not only went into the society o f Christ’s enemies, he warmed himself at the enemies’ fire. Wh?n a fol lower o f Jesus seeks to warm himself at the enemy’s fire we may set it down as cer-
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