June 30
Daily Gleanings of the Saintly LifeSunday after the Ascension Day
The end of all things is at hand. I S. PETER iv. 7.
WHEN our Lord ascended into heaven the Angels spake of His return, "He shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven." And indeed our thoughts of His departure are necessarily connected with the subject of His coming again. Scripture is wont to combine the two events together. It was just before His leaving His disciples that they asked Him whether He was then about to restore the kingdom to Israel; for all His preparations looked so like some immediate manifestation of Himself, when He told them that times and seasons were the secret of God, but that they were immediately by the descent of the Holy Ghost to prepare the way. All things in Scripture, all things in nature, all things in the world around, point, as with the finger, to this the Lord's return. And the rapidity with which we seem to pass one after another from this visible scene, suggests to a thoughtful mind that the great winding up of all is to be very soon. Well therefore does our Church on this Sunday take up the warning note with which the Epistle for to-day commences, "Be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer." What better can express the feelings which they ought to have, who after gazing on their Lord ascending into heaven, turn their eyes again down to earth, with the Angels' words in their ears, "Above all things have fervent charity among yourselves"? This brotherly love is the great requisite in preparations for the Last Day; for without it watchfulness and prayer are of no avail, or rather cannot exist, but
The more by thought thou leav'st the crowd behind, Draw near by deeper love to all thy kind; So shall thy heart in lowly peace be still, And earthly wisdom serve a Heavenly will.