03.06. THE SAVIOR IN HIS CRUCIFIXION contd
You pilgrims, who are journeying through a dry and thirsty land where there is no water, come to this fountain for refreshment; here wash your robes, and make them white, that you may be prepared to sit down at the marriage-supper of the Lamb, and to walk with Christ in white, as those who are worthy. Behold the water of endless life flowing from the side of the blessed Jesus, the true smitten Rock; and as you journey through the burning sands of life, keep close by this Rock- the Rock of our salvation.
Amid all the changing scenes of our earthly pilgrimage- in the sunshine of prosperity- in the gloom of adversity- when blessed with health, and when prostrated on beds of affliction- may we turn our eyes with gratitude and love to the cross of Christ, around which beam the most resplendent rays of divine love. On that peaceful mount, where all is sprinkled with atoning blood, may we always rest; and when we come to yield our breath, may our last thoughts be of Calvary, and our last words those of the apostle, ’As for me, God forbid that I should boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world died long ago, and the world’s interest in me is also long dead.’
When on Calvary I rest,
God, in flesh made manifest,
Shines in my Redeemer’s face,
Full of beauty, truth, and grace.
Here I would forever stay,
Weep and gaze my soul away;
You are heaven on earth to me,
Lovely, mournful Calvary.’
How differently does the blessed Jesus now appear in His state of exaltation! Lift up your eyes from the scene of His humiliation and suffering on earth, and by faith behold Him in heaven. His head, which was once encircled with the crown of thorns and smitten with a reed, now wears ’many crowns’ of glory. His visage, which was once marred more than any man, now shines like the sun in his strength. His eves, which were once suffused with tears and swelled with grief, are now ’as a flame of fire.’ His voice, which once uttered those doleful cries in the garden and on the cross, is now ’as the sound of many waters.’ He, who was once nailed to the cross, and derided as the King of the Jews, has now on His robe and on His thigh a name written, ’King of Kings and Lord of Lords.’ He, who was once hurried away by His insulting and persecuting foes, with faint and weary steps, to the scene of His crucifixion, is now followed by the armies of heaven with unending hallelujahs. He who was once crucified on Calvary, in the midst of the two thieves, now appears in the midst of the heavenly throne as the Lamb that was slain, radiant in all the glory of His divine and human nature, while the voice of the great multitude before the throne is saying, ’Alleluia! for the Lord God omnipotent reigns.’ ’Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are Your ways, Oh King of saints. Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? for You only are holy.’ ’Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him who sits upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, forever and ever.’
Blessed Jesus, may the consideration of Your sufferings and death make a deep and permanent impression on our hearts, leading us to forsake the ways of sin, and to look to You for the blessings of grace and glory. We adore You for becoming our representative, and for removing the guilt of our sins by Your vicarious death. Oh, may we be drawn to You by the sweet, attractive influence of the cross, and be conformed to Your blessed image in all things. Fulfill in us Your words, ’And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto myself.’ May we incline our ear, and come unto You; may we hear, that our souls may live; and make with us an everlasting covenant, even Your sure mercies. Draw us, we beseech You, by the bonds of a living faith to the cross; and may we ever dwell beneath its peaceful, refreshing, and life-giving shadow. Fill our souls with spiritual light and comfort; sanctify us with Your blood; and give us Your Holy Spirit to abide with us forever. May we repair, without delay, to that healing fountain which has been opened to the house of David, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness. And while resting in devout meditation on Calvary, may our hearts be pervaded with Your love, and our tongues extol the riches of Your redeeming blood. There, in that serene and sacred light which beams around the believing soul, may we learn much of the mystery of Your boundless grace, in expiring upon the Cross, that we might be embraced in the arms of divine mercy, and raised from the pit of the lost, to the throne of heaven, to reign with You forever and ever.
There may we see the infinite evil of sin in Your death- how highly displeasing it is in the sight of God. There may we see that it was our sins which prostrated You in Your mysterious agony in the garden, and nailed You to the cross. There may we see mercy and truth meeting together- righteousness looking down from heaven- the law honored- justice satisfied- man reclaimed, and grace abounding to the very chief of sinners. And forbid that we should trample under foot Your precious blood, by which the Church has been redeemed. May it be sprinkled on our hearts, so that the destroying angel will spare us in the day of divine wrath, when all the enemies of the Lord shall perish. May we have a saving interest in Your sufferings and death. Clothe us in Your perfect righteousness; and may we rely with implicit confidence on the infinite merits of Your atonement. While passing through this valley of sin and sorrow, may we always enjoy the precious fruits of Your redeeming love; and when we pass the river of death, may we be arrayed in the robes of glory, and forever partake of those blessings which are the purchase of Your death, and which exceed all that the eye has seen, or the ear heard, or the heart conceived. With cheerful hope may we now approach the grave, praising You for disarming death of his terrors, and for illuminating the dark valley by Your own passage through it.
Oh, may we spend our most delightful earthly moments in celebrating Your death, until we arrive at the realms of everlasting light, and peace, and joy, where, amid the unfading beauties and pleasures of the heavenly Canaan, You shall feed us, and lead us unto living fountains of waters- while the arches of heaven are ringing with the sweet notes of the song of redemption on Calvary: ’Unto Him who loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever! Amen.’
’Come to Calvary’s holy mountain,
Sinners ruined by the fall;
Here a pure and healing fountain
Flows to you, to me, to all,
In a full perpetual tide,
Opened when our Savior died.
Come in poverty and sinfulness,
Come defiled without, within;
From infection and uncleanness,
From the leprosy of sin,
Wash your robes, and make them white:
You shall walk with God in light.
Come in sorrow and contrition,
Wounded, impotent, and blind;
Here the guilty, free remission,
Here the troubled, peace may find;
Health this fountain will restore,
He that drinks shall thirst no more.
He that drinks shall live forever;
It is a soul-renewing flood,
God is faithful- God will never
Break His covenant in blood;
Signed when our Redeemer died,
Sealed when He was glorified.’