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THE KING’S BUSINESS
THE DEVIL, TOO I might go further. I might summon the very devils themselves, and ask them for their testimony. Have they anything to say of Him? Why, the very devils called Him the Son of God! In Mark we have the unclean spirit crying, “Jesus, thou Son of the most high God.” Men say, “Oh, I believe Christ to be the Son of God, and because I believe it intellectually, I shall be saved.” I tell you the devils did that. And they did more than that : they trem bled. Let us bring in His friends. We want you to hear their evidence. Let us call that prince of preachers. Let us hear the forerunner; none ever preached like this man—this man who drew all Jerusalem and all Judea into the wilderness to hear him; this man who burst upon the nations like the flash of a meteor. Let John the Bap-- tist come with his leathern girdle and his hairy coat, and let him tell us what he thinks of Christ. His words, though they were echoed in the wilderness of Palestine, are written in the Book forever, “Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world!” This is what John the Baptist thought of him. “I bear record that He is the Son of God.” No wonder he drew all Jerusalem and Judea to him, because he preached Christ. And whenever men preach Christ, they are sure to have plenty of followers. Let us bring in Peter, who was with Him on the mount of transfiguration, who was with Him the night He was betrayed. Come, Peter, tell us what you think of Christ. Stand in this witness-box and testify of Him. You denied Him once. You said, with a curse, you did not know Him. Was it true, Peter? Don’t you know Him? “Know H im !” I can imagine Peter say ing : “It was a lie I told then. I did know Him.” Afterward I can hear him charging home their guilt upon these Jeru salem sinners. He calls Him “both Lord and Christ.” Such was the testimony on the day of Pentecost. “God had made that same Jesus both Lord and Christ.”
And tradition tells us that when they came to execute Peter he felt he was not worthy to die in the way his, Master died, and he requested to be crucified with the head downward. So much did Peter think of Him! BELOVED DISCIPLE Now let us hear from the beloved dis ciple, John. He knew 'morq about Christ than any other man. He had laid his head on his Saviour’s bosom. He had heard the throbbing of that loving heart. Look into his Gospel if you wish to know what he thought of Him. Matthew writes of Him as the royal king come from His throne. Mark writes of Him as the servant, and Luke of the Son of Man. John takes up his pen, and, with one stroke, forever settles the ques tion of Unitarianism. He goes right back before the time of Adam. “In the begin ning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Look into Revelation. He calls Him “the., bright and the morning star.” So John thought well of Him—because He knew Him well. We might bring in Thomas, the doubt ing disciple. You doubted Him, Thomas. You would not believe He had risen, and you put your fingers into the wound in His side. What do you think of Him? “My Lord and my God!” says Thomas. Then go over to Decapolis and you will find Christ has been there casting out dev ils. Let us call the men of that country and ask what they think of Him. “He hath done all things well,” they say. But we have other witnesses to bring in. Take the persecuting Saul, once one of the worst of His enemies. Breathing out threatenings, he meets Him. “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” says Christ. He might have added, “What have I done to you? 1Have I injured you in any way? Did I not come to bless you ? Why do you treat Me thus, Saul?” And then Saul asks, “Who art thou, Lord?” “I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.” You see, He was not ashamed of His name, although He. had been in heaven; “I am Jesus of Nazareth.” What
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