"WHAT THINK YE OF CHRIST?" A SERMON, BY THE REV. BEAVER H. BLACKER, M.A., "Hosanna to the Son Of David and of God, Who brought the news of pardon down, "To Christ, th' anointed King, LONDON: WERTHEIM AND MACINTOSH, DUBLIN: W. CURRY AND CO., UPPER SACKVILLE-STREET. 1851. Price One Penny. BY THE SAME. 1. TWO SERMONS on the DUTY of NATIONAL HUMILIATION. 1s. 2. The IMPRECATORY PASSAGES in the PSALMS, and the ATHANASIAN CREED. 4d. 3. CHRISTIAN JOY. 1d. 4. CHRIST THE ONLY MEDIATOR. 1d., or 25 for 1s. 6d. 5. PERFECT PEACE. 2d. 6. The PROPHET JONAH. 1d. 7. The OMNIPRESENCE of GOD. 1d. 8. SOLOMON'S BRIDE a TYPE of the TRUE BELIEVER. 2d. 66 WHAT THINK YE OF CHRIST?" "What think ye of Christ ?"-MATT. xxii. 42. THIS is a question, the final answer to which is to determine the everlasting condition of all who have heard the name of Christ, and have been blessed with an opportunity of learning the truth. It is a question, moreover, which has divided the nations of the earth ever since the promised Messiah came forth in the fulness of prophetic time, and concerning which even the inhabitants of our own land, so favoured in spiritual blessings, alas! are not unanimous. Where error is fatal, such differences of opinion upon so vitally important a subject are sufficient to make us deeply anxious for ourselves, and for those who do not coincide with our views. Let us, however, for the present wave all consideration of other men, Let us not now occupy our minds by thinking on the conflicting sentiments which others entertain. I am addressing a certain number of individuals who have assembled to offer praise and thanksgiving for mercies plentifully received, to pray for further blessings, to hear the cheering promises of heaven, and to be instructed, so far as one sinner can instruct another, in their duty towards God and man. And whatever I shall say, I wish to be applied by every hearer to himself, rather than to be vaguely considered as spoken against the heresies of absent men. My business, at present, lies with you. Ye are "my glory" and "my joy," and, I trust, shall be the "crown of my rejoicing." Forgetting, then, for a little, the errors of your neighbours, "what," my beloved, "think ye of Christ ?" Remember (and this I say to quicken your attention), according to your views of Christ now, shall be your condition hereafter, when this world and its varied attractions shall have passed away. If you think rightly of Him; if, by the Holy Ghost enlightening your minds, and influencing them to receive those Scriptures which bear faithful witness to Him, you can say that Jesus is the Lord, and confess Him to be what those Scriptures have revealed, His word is passed, and the covenant is sealed. But if, on the other hand, you know Him not; if you degrade Him; if you injure Him, even one jot or tittle, by not ascribing to Him the powers and the glories which He possesses, better would it be for you never to have been born: ye shall perish everlastingly, except ye repent and believe the Gospel. He, therefore, "that hath ears to hear let him hear," whilst, in humble dependance upon the grace of God, I exhibit the likeness of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of sinners, as delineated to mankind in Holy Writ. But before we proceed, it may be useful to some to consider briefly the occasion when the words of my text were spoken. By referring to the context we find that certain sects of unbelieving Jews, who were unwilling from worldly motives to admit that Jesus, who addressed them, was the Messiah, had been endeavouring "to entangle Him in His talk." With this view they proposed intricate questions for explanation; and their perseverance compels every candid reader to wonder at the hardihood of man and the kind forbearance of God. But they were completely baffled. He, in turn, inquired of the Pharisees, who, it is stated, were still "gathered together," what they thought concerning the Messiah, of whom the Prophets spake, and for whose advent they professed to wish. "What think ye of Christ? whose son is He?" And they replied (what in one sense was true), "The son of David." (Ver. 42.) Now, it appears from this and other parts of their conduct, that the Pharisees expected in the person of the Messiah a great temporal prince, who was to lead them on to victory, and to re-establish the kingdom of Israel; and that they blindly overlooked those prophecies which intimated that His |
