When Jesus lay, a helpless Infant, in the manger at Bethlehem, there came strangers from the East and poured rich offerings at his feet - gold and frankincense and myrrh; and now that he was about to leave the world, an unexpected act of homage was done to him, not indeed by a stranger, but by a gentle and unobtrusive disciple. The occasion was this. Our Lord, weary with his journey from the country beyond Jordan, his last long earthly journey, was resting the last sabbath of his earthly life at his favorite Bethany. There they made him a supper, and the disciples were present, and Martha was in waiting, and Lazarus, as might be expected, was a noted guest. It was then that Mary took her pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly - we may well suppose the most precious thing which she possessed - and poured it on Jesus' feet as he reclined at the banquet, and wiped his feet with her hair. The evangelist takes care to note that "the house was filled with the odor of the ointment," and it has been beautifully said that" the Church, which is the house of God, still smells the fragrance, of that woman's spikenard;" for how wonderfully have the words of Jesus, which we may borrow from another Gospel, been fulfilled, "Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be told for a memorial of her"! And how does the consciousness of his own Divine authority burst forth in these words of Jesus! Who else was ever certain that by a simple word he could make an action memorable till the end of time? Consider -

I. THE MOTIVES OF MARY'S ACT OF HOMAGE. One of them at least lies on the surface. Jesus had not been in Bethany since he raised Lazarus from the dead; and when Mary saw her brother sitting at the same table with him who turned her mourning into joy, could any gift be too great or precious to express her gratitude?

"Her eyes are homes of silent prayer,
Nor other thought her mind admits:
But he was dead, and there he sits;
And he that brought him back is there." This was enough; but there was a deeper obligation still. It was not in vain that Mary herself had sat at Jesus' feet and heard his Word. She knew that he was the Christ, the Savior of the world. He had come to deliver her and all believers from a deeper darkness than that of the tomb, and a death more terrible than the death of the body. Gentle and amiable as she was, she could not receive the gift of eternal life without "dying unto sin;" and who can doubt that it was with a contrite and forgiven heart that she poured her precious ointment on the feet of Jesus? This gave the alabaster box its highest value. "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit." But once more. Had Mary the impression that so fitting an opportunity of testifying her gratitude to the Redeemer might never occur again? She was not called, like his disciples, to follow him from place to place as he went about preaching the kingdom, and the visits of Jesus to Bethany were necessarily few in number. She could not, indeed, have foreseen all that was coming so soon - the conspiracy, the betrayal, the cross of agony and shame. She could not have known that on the very next sabbath her beloved Master would be lying cold and still in Joseph's sepulcher. But, on the other hand, Jesus had spoken again and again to his disciples of his approaching death and departure to the Father. They indeed were incredulous; but some report of his words would reach Mary's ears. An undefined presentiment that her Master was not to be long upon earth may well have arisen in her mind, and all the more eagerly would she seize the present opportunity of doing him honor. Hence "she did what she could."

II. THE GENERAL MURMUR. While the house was filled with the odor of the ointment, a murmur of dissatisfaction arose. It came first from the lips of the traitor. "Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred pence [about £10], and given to the poor? and this he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief," etc. This picture of the son of perdition is almost too painful to dwell upon. His blindness to the moral loveliness of Mary's action. His vexation at losing an imagined chance of plunder. His avarice, his jealousy; and, worst of all, his mask so readily assumed of zeal for the cause of the poor! So ripe was he for Satan's last temptation, that the next thing we read of him is his stealing away to the priests at Jerusalem to bargain with them about his Master's blood, and sell his own soul. "When lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." But while Judas stood alone in his covetousness and hypocrisy, we learn from the Gospel of Matthew that others joined him in his censure of Mary of Bethany. The disciples said, "To what purpose is this waste?" Their common thought was, "This sacrifice is too great, too costly for the occasion. The spikenard is of great price. Surely it would have been better to bestow its value on the poor. To spend it on an evanescent fragrance is extravagance and waste." Here pause for a moment. Are we certain that, had we ourselves been present, we might not have joined in the rising murmur? At all events, how often has the spirit of the censure broken out afresh? It is not so long ago since the Churches of our own country awoke to the duty of preaching Christ to the heathen world. But missions are costly things, and often they produce but little visible fruit for many days. They seem to spend their fragrance on the desert air. And how long and loud was this complaint! - "'To what purpose is this waste?' Might not the money and labor of Christian people be better bestowed? Are there not poor at home to be fed and clothed? and are there not home-heathen to be taught? Let such duties as these be exhausted before thinking of 'the regions beyond.'" No! Utility is one standard of action; but both in the service of God and man it is far from being the only standard.

III. THE VERDICT OF JESUS. "Let her alone: against the day of my burial hath she kept this." Instead of directly rebuking the disciple, he contents himself with vindicating her whom they were wounding with their words. But there is more in his words than meets the ear. "Let her alone," he seems to say to Judas," for there is nothing in common between her and you, between a child of light and a child of darkness. And let her alone, ye unthinking disciples. Allow her gratitude to flow unchecked in the channel which it has worn for itself. Why trouble ye the woman at such a moment as this? She hath done what she could, and she hath done more than any of you are aware of, for my hour is near at hand. If ye saw her do this on the day of my burial, would ye say to her then, To what purpose is this waste? Would ye think then of balancing the claims of common charity against the claims of unbounded gratitude? But since she has come beforehand with her offering, it is all the more precious in my sight. She alone has grasped the thought that my earthly ministry is drawing to a close. The poor ye have always with you; she alone has laid it to heart that me ye have not always." Thus Judas was silenced, and the disciples were overawed, and Mary was comforted, and the poor were not forgotten. What lessons are taught by this episode in the gospel history? In its outward form and substance the act of Mary can never be repeated. It stands alone. A few days came and went, and never again was Jesus to be indebted to the sons of men for a place where to lay his head; never again were his feet to be wearied with the hot and dusty paths of this world. Henceforth those who knew Christ in his humiliation were to know him so no more; and we need not say that to idolize his empty sepulcher, or to pray towards it as some do, or, saddest of all, to waste the blood of Christian nations in fighting for its possession, is at best to seek the living among the dead. "Hearts on high!" was the watchword of the ancient Church. "Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him."

1. But ask yourselves - Have you anything of Mary's spirit in your hearts - the spirit of love and gratitude to the Redeemer? Where that spirit exists it will tend to diffuse itself over the ordinary duties and charities of life, so that what you do you will "do heartily as to the Lord, and not unto man." But more than this. It is of the nature of love to be ingenious and original in its ways of expressing itself, and opportunities will sometimes occur of honoring Christ in ways which no one could prescribe to you - it may be in supporting his cause, it may be-in showing kindness to his people; and these you will think it a privilege to embrace simply for his sake. Nothing was further from Mary's thoughts than the fame which followed her action; any such calculation of consequences would have spoiled the sacrifice. And so it will ever be with the good works that spring from love to Christ. The impulse which inspires them comes from within, and not from the world without. Hence they will evermore be spontaneous and free, and yet all the more, in the apostle's language, they will be as "the odor of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable and well-pleasing to God."

2. When you witness any act of self-sacrifice in a great or good cause, beware of the spirit of jealousy and detraction. Let a work be ever so good, it is always possible to find fault with it on one ground or another - to call generosity extravagance, and zeal ostentation. Ah! there is a kind of criticism which sees some mote in the most honest eye, some vein of selfishness in the kindest heart, which is quick to detect unworthy motives, and "vaunteth itself" in its own acuteness in so doing. Verily this wisdom cometh not from above, and yet how strangely congenial it is to our fallen nature! It was in a moment of hallowed enthusiasm that Mary poured her spikenard on Jesus' feet; but even Jesus' disciples murmured till the Master stamped the offering with the broad seal of his approbation, and called it "a good work"!

3. We do no dishonor to the affecting words, "Me ye have not always," if we allow them to suggest to us the homely counsel, "Be kind to your friends while you have them." Are there not some who have nearer, dearer claims on you than all others? It may be an aged parent, a brother or a sister, or one closer to you still. Providence marks out that person for your special sympathy, for a tenderness to which the rest of the world has no claim. Do what you can for that friend. The tie may any day be broken, and only the memory of it remain. See that no negligence or impatience on your part may yet tinge that memory with self-reproach. "The poor ye have always with you," but no kindness to the outside world will atone for the neglect of personal claims. There are those who will not be with you always. Christ seems to say to you, "Remember them." - G.B.

Like the prediction of Caiaphas and the inscription of Pilate, an unconscious prophecy is hidden in these words. What the Pharisee affirmed hyperbolically Christ's friends may now affirm almost literally. Note —

I. THE PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL. Four important facts concerning this pro-gross are admitted by friends and foes.

1. That during the first four centuries it was rapid and extensive.

2. That its human instruments were few and feeble.

3. That it was in spite of bitter and persistent opposition.

4. That it was not achieved in the dark, but in the most enlightened age of antiquity, and in the most populous and polished of ancient cities. The company of one hundred and twenty soon became three thousand, then five thousand men alone, then multitudes in Jerusalem only. In less than half a century Christian Churches were planted in all the chief cities of the Roman empire; in less than three centuries more, it was the religion of that empire. And from that day it has continued to spread until the most civilized nations are Christian and become Christian.

II. THE EFFORTS OF INFIDELITY TO STOP THAT PROGRESS. Such was the nature of the opposition to Christianity that if our standpoint had been the first instead of the nineteenth century we should be forced to the conclusion that it would fail.

1. The Jewish world opposed it. The rulers crucified its Author but that effort was unavailing, for Christ rose again. They killed Stephen and James, but the disciples, driven in every direction, spread the gospel. Wherever the apostles went the Jews stirred up the people against them; but being persecuted in one city they fled to another preaching until thousands of Jews, including many priests, became obedient to the faith.

2. The Gentile world opposed it. Polytheism was so firmly enthroned in the hearts of the people, and so completely interwoven with the government, the arts and trade, that Christianity was regarded as treason against religion, the state, common sense and good taste. First, the Christians were slandered and ridiculed, then slaughtered in thousands. But all the efforts of the empire and paganism combined prevailed nothing.

3. The modern world has opposed it. Changing its tactics, infidelity, instead of assaulting men bodily, has assailed their minds and hearts, and marshalled its hosts under the banners of science and literature. But still it prevails nothing.

III. WHY INFIDELITY HAS FAILED. The Christian answer is because the hand of God is in the progress of Christianity. The answer of infidelity — in human instrumentality — refutes itself. Infidelity has failed because —

1. It has dashed itself against the Rock of Ages. There is no successful arguing against such a character as Christ.

2. The evidences of Christianity are too convincing, intelligent people would not continue for nineteen centuries to use a remedy that never cures.

3. Infidelity has no substitute for Christianity.

(W. B. Stewart, D. D.)

It is a confession of defeat, "There has been a long struggle and it has gone against us." The triumphal entry had shown the hold which Christ had on the people.

I. WHAT WAS IT IN CHRIST WHICH SO DEEPLY STIRRED THE ENMITY OF THE PHARISEES?

1. We are in some respects hard on the Pharisees. When Christ called them hypocrites, He meant that sort of doubleness which may be but half conscious, or which may be quite unconscious to the man himself. They were moral men, and it is not hard to reconcile this with their conduct towards Christ. Who are they now, who are most sensitive to the appearance of what they regard as irregular teachers of religion? And who can wonder if the last to give their sympathy to the new doctrine are the established exponents of the old?

2. Doubtless it was the sin of the Pharisees to be prejudiced against Christ, but we lose the lesson if we regard them as monsters of the past, which is the danger of prejudice in things of the soul. We ought not to be so wedded to one form or formula as to be incapable of profiting by any new light.

II. WHAT WAS IT THAT MADE THE WORLD GO AFTER HIM.

1. Reality. We may trifle with Christ; but He never trifles with us. The Pharisees were triflers, as are their modern representatives, whether of wealth, literature, or the Church. Men then, as now, were weary with childish discussions, and were then, as now, ready to follow a real man who meant and lived what he said.

2. Unworldliness. It is a mistake for a religious teacher to court popularity by compromise with the world, "All things to all men." The people see through it all and despise the man who flatters himself that he has won them. The secret of John the Baptist's power was his unworldliness, and it was the incomparable unworldliness of Christ that attracted the world after Him.

3. Wonderful love. It was new to publicans and sinners to be treated with love, and still more strange that with the love of Christ there should be blended such an inflexible righteousness. But the people followed Him because of the love which won them from the sin which purity condemned.

(Dean Vaughan.)

Our curiosity is naturally prompted to inquire by what means the Christian faith obtained so remarkable a victory over the established religions of the earth. To this inquiry an obvious but satisfactory answer may be given, that it was owing to the convincing evidence of the doctrine itself, and to the ruling providence of the great Author.

(Gibbon.)

During the decay of the Roman Empire, a pure and humble religion gently insinuated itself into the minds of men, grew up in silence and obscurity, derived new vigour from opposition, and finally erected the triumphant banner of the Cross on the ruins of the capitol. Nor was the influence of Christianity confined to the period or to the limits of the Roman Empire. After a revolution of thirteen or fourteen centuries that religion is professed by the nations of Europe, the most distinguished portion of the human kind in arts and learning as well as in arms. By the industry and zeal of the Europeans, it has been widely diffused to the most distant shores of Asia and Africa, and by the means of their colonies has been firmly established from Canada to Chili, in a world unknown to the ancients.

(Gibbon.)

Andrew, Esaias, Isaiah, Jesus, Judas, Lazarus, Martha, Mary, Philip, SimonBethany, Bethsaida, Galilee, Jerusalem, ZionDinner, Guests, Honor, Honour, Lazarus, Laz'arus, Martha, Meal, Meat, Ministering, Reclining, Sat, Seated, Served, Serving, Supper, Table, Waited1. Jesus excuses Mary anointing his feet.
9. The people flock to see Lazarus.
10. The chief priests consult to kill him.
12. Jesus rides into Jerusalem.
20. Greeks desire to see Jesus.
23. He foretells his death.
37. The people are generally blinded;
42. yet many chief rulers believe, but do not confess him;
44. therefore Jesus calls earnestly for confession of faith.

John 12:2

     4410   banquets
     5573   table
     7430   Sabbath, in NT

John 12:1-2

     4476   meals
     8122   friendship, with God

John 12:1-3

     5699   guests
     8447   hospitality, examples

John 12:1-8

     5745   women

Easter Day
Chester Cathedral. 1870. St John xii. 24, 25. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal." This is our Lord's own parable. In it He tells us that His death, His resurrection, His ascension, is a mystery which we may believe, not only because the Bible tells us of it, but because …
Charles Kingsley—All Saints' Day and Other Sermons

December 28 Evening
We would see Jesus.--JOHN 12:21. O Lord, we have waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee. The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.--I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.--Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

September 8 Evening
Christ the firstfruits.--I COR. 15:23. Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.--If the firstfruit be holy the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.--Now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.--If we have been planted together in the likeness of his death we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.--The Lord Jesus Christ . . . shall change our vile …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

September 22 Evening
O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.--MATT. 26:39. Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.--He . . . became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.--In the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

May 8 Morning
It pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief.--ISA. 53:10. Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.--Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. Being found in …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

February 29 Morning
Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.--PROV. 27:1. Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.--Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

June 12. "We Would See Jesus" (John xii. 21).
"We would see Jesus" (John xii. 21). Glory to Him for all the things laid up for us in the days to come. Glory to Him for all the visions of service in the future; the opportunities of doing good that are far away as well as close at hand. Our Saviour was able to despise the cross for the joy that was before Him. Let us look up to Him, and rise up to Him till we get on high and are able to look out from the mount of vision over all the land of far distances. There shall not a single thing come to …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

November 19. "We Would See Jesus" (John xii. 21).
"We would see Jesus" (John xii. 21). When any great blessing is awaiting us, the devil is sure to try and make it so disagreeable to us that we shall miss it. It is a good thing to know him as a liar, and remember, when he is trying to prejudice us strongly against any cause, that very likely the greatest blessing of our life lies there. Spurgeon once said that the best evidence that God was on our side is the devil's growl, and we are generally pretty safe in following a thing according to Satan's …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

May 8. "Except a Corn of Wheat Fall into the Ground and Die" (John xii. 24).
"Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die" (John xii. 24). Death and resurrection are the central ideas of nature and Christianity. We see them in the transformation of the chrysalis, in the buried seed bursting into the bud and blossom of the spring, in the transformation of the winding sheet of winter to the many tinted robes of spring. We see it all through the Bible in the symbol of circumcision, with its significance of death and life, in the passage of the Red Sea and the Jordan …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

April 14. "I if I be Lifted up from the Earth Will Draw all Men unto Me" (John xii. 32).
"I if I be lifted up from the earth will draw all men unto Me" (John xii. 32). A true and pure Christian life attracts the world. There are hundreds of men and women who find no inducements whatever in the lives of ordinary Christians to interest them in practical religion, but who are won at once by a true and victorious example. We believe that more men of the world step at a bound right into a life of entire consecration than into the intermediate state which is usually presented to them at the …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

After Christ: with Christ
'If any man serve Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there shall also My servant be.'--John xii. 26. Our Lord was strangely moved by the apparently trivial incident of certain Greeks desiring to see Him. He recognised and hailed in them the first-fruits of the Gentiles. The Eastern sages at His cradle, and these representatives of Western culture within a few hours of the Cross, were alike prophets. So, in His answer to their request, our Lord passes beyond the immediate bearing of the request, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Universal Magnet
'I, if I be lifted up ... will draw all men unto Me.'--JOHN xii. 32. 'Never man spake like this Man,' said the wondering Temple officials who were sent to apprehend Jesus. There are many aspects of our Lord's teaching in which it strikes one as unique; but perhaps none is more singular than the boundless boldness of His assertions of His importance to the world. Just think of such sayings as these: 'I am the Light of the world'; 'I am the Bread of Life'; 'I am the Door'; 'A greater than Solomon is …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Son of Man
'... Who is this Son of Man?'--JOHN xii. 34. I have thought that a useful sermon may be devoted to the consideration of the remarkable name which our Lord gives to Himself--'the Son of Man.' And I have selected this instance of its occurrence, rather than any other, because it brings out a point which is too frequently overlooked, viz. that the name was an entirely strange and enigmatical one to the people who heard it. This question of utter bewilderment distinctly shows us that, and negatives, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Love's Prodigality Censured and vindicated
'Then Jesus, six days before the passover, came to Bethany, where Lazarus was which had been dead, whom He raised from the dead. There they made Him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with Him. Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment. Then saith one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

A New Kind of King
'On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm-trees, and went forth to meet Him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. And Jesus, when He had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written, Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass's colt. These things understood not His disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

A Parting Warning
'Jesus therefore said unto them, Yet a little while is the light among you. Walk while ye have the light, that darkness overtake you not: and he that walketh in the darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have the light, believe on the light, that ye may become sons of light.'--JOHN xii. 35,36 (R.V.). These are the last words of our Lord's public ministry. He afterwards spoke only to His followers in the sweet seclusion of the sympathetic home at Bethany, and amid the sanctities of the upper …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Praise of Men.
"They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."--John xii. 43. This is spoken of the chief rulers of the Jews, who, though they believed in Christ's Divine mission, were afraid to confess Him, lest they should incur temporal loss and shame from the Pharisees. The censure passed by St. John on these persons is too often applicable to Christians at the present day; perhaps, indeed, there is no one among us who has not at some time or other fallen under it. We love the good opinion …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII

The Saviour Lifted Up, and the Look of Faith.
"As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life."-John iii. 14, 15. "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. (This he said, signifying what death he should die.)"-John xii. 32, 33. IN order to make this subject plain, I will read the passage referred to-Num. xxi. 6-9. "And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much …
Charles G. Finney—Sermons on Gospel Themes

On the Words of the Gospel, John xii. 44, "He that Believeth on Me, Believeth not on Me, but on Him that Sent Me. " against A
1. What is it, Brethren, which we have heard the Lord saying, "He that believeth on Me, believeth not on Me, but on Him that sent Me"? [4174] It is good for us to believe on Christ, especially seeing that He hath also Himself expressly said this which ye have now heard, that is, that "He had come a Light into the world, and whosoever believeth on Him shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." [4175] Good then it is to believe on Christ; and a great evil it is not to believe on …
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament

Christ Lifted Up
We have three things to notice. Christ crucified, Christ's glory. He calls it a lifting him up. Christ crucified, the minister's theme. It is the minister's business to lift Christ up in the gospel. Christ crucified, the heart's attraction. "I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto me." His own glory--the minister's theme--the heart's attraction. I. I begin then: CHRIST'S CRUCIFIXION IS CHRIST'S GLORY. He uses the word "lifted up" to express the manner of his death. "I, if I be lifted up, will …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 3: 1857

Israel and Britain. A Note of Warning
Her rejection of the Lord Jesus is the more amazing because Isaiah gave so clear an account of the Messiah, and so clearly pictured Jesus of Nazareth. Descriptions of him could not have been more explicit than were the prophecies of Isaiah. It would be very easy to construct an entire life of Christ out of the book of Isaiah, beginning with "a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel," and ending with "he made his grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death." …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 31: 1885

Sermon for St. Stephen's Day
Of three grades of those who learn to die unto themselves, like corn of wheat, that they may bring forth fruit; or of those who are beginners, those who are advancing, and those who are perfect in a Divine life. John xii. 24.--"Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." BY the corn of wheat we understand our Lord Jesus Christ, who by His death has brought forth much fruit for all men, if they are but willing not only to reign …
Susannah Winkworth—The History and Life of the Reverend Doctor John Tauler

Answer to the Jewish Rabby's Letter.
WE Are now come to the letter of Mr. W's Jewish Rabby, whom Mr. W. calls his friend, and says his letter consists of calm and sedate reasoning, p. 55. I on the other hand can see no reason in it. But the reader than not need to rely upon my judgment. Therefore I will transcribe some parts of it, and then make some remarks. The argument of the letter is, that the story of Lazarus's being raised is an imposture; or else the Jews could not have been so wicked, as to be on that account provoked against …
Nathaniel Lardner—A Vindication of Three of Our Blessed Saviour's Miracles

Our First Proposition Was, that There is Satisfactory Evidence that Many Pretending to be Original...
Our first proposition was, That there is satisfactory evidence that many pretending to be original witnesses of the Christian miracles, passed their lives in labours, dangers, and sufferings, voluntarily undertaken and undergone in attestation of the accounts which they delivered, and solely in consequence of their belief of the truth of those accounts; and that they also submitted, from the same motives, to new rules of conduct. Our second proposition, and which now remains to be treated of, is, …
William Paley—Evidences of Christianity

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