THE NEW TESTAMENT. THE GOSPELS.
Mark's Gospel. Here the Lord is looked at more particularly as to His service. We have therefore no genealogy, no account of His birth, and His ways are traced from the baptism of John to His sitting at the right hand of God. Throughout, as the elect and righteous Servant, He is seen doing most perseveringly the will of Him that sent Him. We find the word translated "immediately," "straightway" and "anon" much more frequently than in any other Gospel. The looks and feelings of the perfect Servant are referred to in a way we have not elsewhere. We are told that "He looked round about on them with anger": that "He sighed"; and that "He sighed deeply in His spirit." He went on so diligently serving with His disciples, that "they had no leisure so much as to eat": and again, "They could not so much as eat bread," so that His friends went out to lay hold on Him, for they said, "He is beside Himself." The sufferings of Gethsemane and on the cross are briefly recorded, and, having accomplished the work of redemption, as risen from among the dead, He sends His servants into all the world to preach the gospel to every creature, and afterward, though received up into heaven, and sitting at the right hand of God, He confirms their ministry with signs following.
As has often been remarked, in Mark we have the events of our Lord put before us more in historical or chronological order, while in Matthew they are arranged more in regard to dispensational order, and in Luke they are more in moral order.
Luke's line of things in his Gospel is clearly Jesus as "Son of man." As born of Mary He is contrasted with John who was born of Elizabeth, the son of Zacharias. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born Son of God, and Son of the Highest; but John was only the prophet of the Highest, and though he was honored to be the forerunner of our Lord, his testimony was, that he was unworthy to loose the latchet of His shoe. It is in Luke's Gospel only that we have the account of our Lord at the age of twelve years, and that He "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor With God and man.”
The genealogy of our Lord is traced in Luke to "the seed of the woman." We, therefore, have Mary's line through Heli brought out; through David also, for she was of the house and lineage of David; and Abraham, Noah, and Enos to Adam, because in this Gospel He is looked at as Son of man.
In Luke's account of Him, He is not only brought before us praying on seven different occasions, but in Gethsemane also His humanity is specially marked out in His being in an agony, and praying more earnestly, when His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Here, too, on the cross, He makes intercession for the transgressors, and comforts the penitent malefactor with the assurance of present salvation not mentioned elsewhere. In resurrection also, when some were terrified because they thought He was a spirit, He said, "Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; handle Me and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see Me have. And when He had thus spoken, He slowed them His hands and His feet. And while they vet believed not for joy, and wondered, He said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And He took it, and did eat before them." (Luke 24:38-43) Now, why are these details as to the actual resurrection of our Lord from among the dead given us in Luke's Gospel only? Is it not because He is there by the Spirit of God brought before us as Son of man? But further, after His resurrection, He ministered the word to them, gave commission to preach the gospel, bade them tarry in Jerusalem for the coming of the Holy Spirit to endue them with power from on high, and having led them out as far as to Bethany, and blessed them, He was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. The Man Christ Jesus, whom they had seen and known as incarnate, as dead on the cross, as buried in the sepulcher, and as risen from among the dead, they saw ascend up to heaven, till their eyes could no longer trace Him. Having now their understandings opened to understand the scriptures, they were filled with such joy, that they were continually in the temple praising and blessing God.
In John's Gospel we have the Deity of the Son, and sent by the Father into the world, in richest and abounding grace to us. In it we have the endearing relationship of children of God by faith in Christ Jesus clearly set forth, so that duties and affections might be formed and maintained suitable to such relationship. There is, therefore, no genealogy in John. He was "the Word" in the beginning, before creation, with God, and was God-a person with God, and yet eternally divine, for He was God, and the Creator of everything that was made. In due time. "the Word was made (or became) flesh and dwelt among us." If we have the human side of Jesus as Son of man, born of Mary, in Luke, and as Son of David, "king of the Jews," in Matthew, we have the divine side of our Lord and of His ways in John. He is the Fountain of Life, for "in Him was life" in the John 1; the Source of eternal life to every one that believeth, in the John 3; the One who gives an unending supply of living water in John 4. He, the Son, quickens or gives life to whom He will in John 5; and is the Bread of Life (through His flesh, which He gave for the life of the world,) in John 6. In the John 7, Christ Himself is the alone Source of that living, enjoyment which enables testimony for Him abundantly to flow out. With all His amazing grace to man, His words are rejected in John 8; His works in John 9; and not believed on as the Good Shepherd, because they were not His sheep, in John 10. In John 11, as has been often pointed out, He is rejected as Son of God; in John 12, first as Son of David, and then as Son of man; and after having shown Himself to be the Resurrection and the Life, in bringing Lazarus out of the grave to life again, He willingly goes into death as the Son of man lifted up to save sinners. The Corn of wheat must fall into the ground and die, or He would be alone. Solemn moment beyond all description. He then keeps the passover; Judas goes out; and when alone with His eleven true ones, He instructs us as to our course during the time of His absence, promises to send the Holy Spirit to abide with us forever; bids us to be without fear or care, but to believe on Him; and though the path be one, of tribulation, to be of good cheer; and assures us that He will come again and take us to the Father's house, to be where He is forever. Having said these things, He commends them, and all who shall believe on Him through their word, to the Father, before He goes to Calvary's cross to glorify the Father, and finish the work that He gave Him to do. Gethsemane is only just touched on in John, and at the sound of the Savior's voice, those who came to take Him went backward, and fell to the ground; and on the cross, He is presented as saying, "I thirst," in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled, in bringing Him vinegar to drink, according to Psa. 69. All then being fulfilled as it is written, He said, "It is finished," and bowed His head and gave up His spirit, according to His word in the tenth chapter, when speaking of laying down His life: "No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself; I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of My Father."(John 10:18) It is the Son here glorifying the Father, whose prayer, when under the shadow of the cross, had been, "Father, glorify Thy name.”
In beautiful keeping with this divine side of Christ in John's Gospel, we find only here in John 20:17, the account of His message by Mary after His resurrection, "Go to My brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and your Father, and to My God and your God;" He meets His disciples with "Peace be unto you," fills them with joy, for they "were glad when they saw the Lord," thus giving them a taste of the blessedness of His being in the midst; and communicates risen life by breathing on them, and saying, "Receive ye the Holy Spirit." Eight days after He meets Thomas, a type of the Jewish remnant who will not believe till they see Him; and in John 21, a striking picture is given of millennial blessing when He will formally take His place as the last Adam, and reign before His ancients gloriously.
If it be asked why we have thus glanced at each of the four Gospels, our reply is, In order that it may be clearly seen, that while each honored the Lord, the lines of truth in all differed from each other, though there was nothing contradictory, and all divinely perfect. The most positive proof is afforded by it, that all was written according to the purpose of one Master mind, and could be none other than the ministry of the Holy Spirit. When we consider how much of the Gospels is made up of our Lord's own words, and works, and ways, how frequently the Old Testament scriptures are authoritatively quoted, and how much of their prophetic teaching was actually fulfilled; and when we add to all this, that the spirit of them all is so manifestly according to the operations and testimony of Him who is the Glorifier and Testifier of Jesus, and Guide into all the truth, it is impossible not to discern the clearest possible proof of their being inspired, or God-breathed.
(Continued)