A Goodly Heritage

Ask what thy work in the world is. That for which thou wast born, to which thou wast appointed, on account of which thou wast conceived in the creative thought of God. That there is a Divine purpose in thy being is indubitable. Seek that thou mayest be permitted to realise it. And never doubt that thou hast been endowed with all the special aptitudes which that purpose may demand. God has formed thee for it, storing thy mind with all that He knew to be requisite for thy life work. I.  The Divine purpose. “I knew thee . . . I sanctified thee . . . I have appointed thee a prophet.” In that degenerate age the great Lover of souls needed a spokesman; and the Divine decree determined the conditions of Jeremiah’s birth and character and life. How this could be consistent with the exercise of personal volition and choice on the part of the youthful prophet we cannot say. We can only see the two piers of the mighty arch, but not the arch itself, since the mists of time veil it, and w...

Peter seeing John saith to Jesus, Lord, what shall this man do? Christ had just foretold to Peter that he should in his old age die a martyr, and with that before him, the apostle left the thought of his own suffering and inquired respecting the destiny of John. 1.  It is not easy to determine the spirit of the question. Some suppose that Peter argued from Christ’s silence that John’s course would be free from fierce trouble, and inquired with a kind of envious dissatisfaction. Not so. Peter’s generous nature would prompt him to forget his own troubles in devotion to his friend, and remembering the recent incident it is hard to infer discontent here. Most probably the question sprang from earnest anxiety. Having learned the glory of his Saviour’s cross, he was concerned lest John should lose the honour. It is easier for such impetuous souls to trust their own lot to God than their brother’s. 2.  It is not easy to explain the reply. Some have emptied the words of al...