THE KING’S BUSINESS
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say unto thee, etc.,” and dt was done, “straightway.” M?ho is this who can speak and it is done? Saturday, May 29. Mark 2 :13, 14. , The crowds are still following Jesus and He teaches them; He uses God’s own tem ple, the open air by the sea, with the sky for a roof. As He passes along, His eye falls on a Jew gathering taxes for Rome, lining pockets at the sacrifice of his patriot ism, Levi, otherwise known as Matthew (cf. Matt. 9:9). This man was to play an im portant part in the establishment of the Gospel. He belonged to a class despised by the Jews but he was to write the distinc tively Jewish Gospel. His business fitted him admirably to write the Gospel. As a tax-gatherer, he had been trained to accu racy, to judge men and to be proof against imposition. It was very humiliating and of- fensive to the. self-righteous religionists of the day that Jesus should choose one of His most intimate disciples from the very class they most despised. Matthew was attend ing faithfully to his business when Jesus called him, while the multitude had for saken 'their usual avocations and resorted to Jesus. This may have been from sturdy | fidelity to business at the time of business, of from indifference to religious enthusi asms. From the fact that Jesus called and that He, so promptly obeyed, it would seem to have been the formeV. The call was.very sudden, very brief, and very much to the point, “Follow Me.” There was a world of meaning in i t ; it involved the renuncia tion of self, gnd taking up of the cross and saying farewell to earthly ambitions and prospects (Matt. 10:24; Luke 9:57, 58; 18: 22), but it would bring reward and honor and blessing immeasurable (John 8:12; 12: 16; Matt. 19:28). There was no hesitation on Levi’s part; he arose at once, forsook all (Luke 5:28 R. V.), and followed Christ It was the voice of Jesus that transformed this keen, money-getting publican into a devoted disciple.
that it aims to remove the effect without touching the cause—to destroy the fruit in stead of rooting up the tree. It seeks to save men who are sin-cursed by free baths and soup kitchens. Friday, May 28. Mark 2:6-12. As always, the professional fault-finder was present; and in this ease, as often, he was a high ecclesiastic and scribe, a theo logical professor (cf. M att.-23:2). The scribes were there for the purpose of find ing something to criticise (Luke 5 :17; John 5:16), and they found it. The real secret of their hostility was envy (John 12:19;, Mark 15 :10). More criticism of successful preachers of the Word and servants of God arises from that source than from any other. The man who draws nobody finds it hard to forgive the man who draws everybody. They made a very heavy and a very com mon charge against Jesus, “He blasphemeth (John 10:33; Mark 14:64). Their reason ing was right up to a certain point; no one but God can forgive sins, and, if Jesus was not God, He was a blasphemer. Granted the Unitarian conception of Jesus and the scribes were right in their logic and His execution justifiable, but if Jesus is God then it is the scribes who are the blas phemers. He demonstrated to His startled accusers that He was Divine and had au thority to forgive sins by reading their se cret thoughts (cf. 2 Chron. 6:30; Jer. 17: 9, 10; Ps. 139:1, 2). Then He gives still another proof that He is Divine and has authority to forgive sins: He heals the palsied man. He wishes men to "know that the Son of man hath power on earth to for give sins” : so He performs an act that we can see and which demands Divine power for its accomplishment, that we may know that He has power for that which we can not see and which demands Divine power for its accomplishment. Would that our modern priests who claim to have authority to forgive sins would also give similar ocular demonstration of their pretended au thority. Jesus simply spoke the word, “I
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