Sermon 3542. A Precious Promise for a Pure People

(No. 3542)

A SERMON PUBLISHED ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 14, 1916.

DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,

AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON.

"Your eyes will see the King in His beauty." Isaiah 33:17.

No doubt these words originally had a timely and strictly literal meaning for the people of Jerusalem. When the city was besiegedby Sennacherib, the inhabitants saw Hezekiah in garb of mourning. How had he torn his clothes in sorrow! But the day wouldcome, according to prophecy, when Sennacherib must fall. Those who counted the resources and estimated the strength or theweakness of the city would be far away-and then there would be times of liberty. The people would be able to travel to theutmost ends of Palestine, so they would see the land that is very far off. Hezekiah, himself, would come out in his robesof excellence and majesty on a joyful occasion to praise the Lord, and thus would the people's eyes see the king in his beauty.The passage, however, has been frequently used with quite another import, and that properly enough if it is thoroughly understoodthat it is by way of accommodation we take it, and that it is typically we trace it out. Have we not by faith seen our Kingin His robes of mourning? Have we not seen Jesus in the sorrowful weeds of affliction and humiliation while here below? Ourfaith has gazed upon Him in the torn garments of His Passion. We have beheld Him in His agony and bloody sweat, in His Crucifixionand His death. Well, now, another and a brighter view awaits us! Our eves will one day see the King in a more glorious array!We will behold Him as John saw Him on Patmos. We will behold the King in His beauty and then we shall enter and enjoy theland which is at present very far off.

I think it meet and right to take such a word as this, tonight, when there are so many in our midst who are seeking and findingthe Savior, because it is very certain that not long after their conversion, they will have to encounter some of the difficultiesof the way. Sometimes within a few hours of their starting on pilgrimage, they are met by some of the dragons, or they fallinto some Slough of Despond, or they are surprised by some Hill Difficulty! Therefore, they ought to be stimulated with encouragements-theyneed to be cheered and consoled by the prospect which lies before them. You will recollect how Christian is represented byBunyan in his famous allegory to be reading in his book, as he went along, concerning the blessed country, the celestial landwhere their eyes should behold the King in His beauty-this beguiled the roughness of the road and made the pilgrim hastenon with more alacrity and less weariness. Now I am going to turn over one of the elementary pages of this Book. I want toshow the young convert a vision pleasing and profitable for all Christians, young or old, the Glory that awaits him, the restwhich is secured by the promise of God to every pilgrim who continues in the blessed road, and holds on, and holds out tothe end! Your eyes, Beloved, you who have lately been converted to God-if by Divine Grace your conversion proves genuine-youreyes shall one day behold the King in His beauty! This may well inspire you with courage and encourage you to endure withpatience all the difficulties of the way. When God brought His servant, Abraham, into the separated position of a strangerin a strange land, it was not long before He said to him, "Lift up, now, your eyes, and look to the north, and to the south,and to the east, and to the west, for all this land will I give to you and to your seed forever," as if to solace and cheerhim in the place of his sojourn by the picture and the promise that greeted him. In like manner, you children of faithfulAbraham, you who have left all for Christ's sake, look upon your future heritage from the spot of your present exile-and yourhearts will exceedingly rejoice!

We shall notice, first, the object to be seen-the King in His beauty! Then, secondly, the nature of this vision, for our eyesshall see the admirable spectacle. And, thirdly, we shall draw your attention to those to whom this favor will be granted.The context will help us to discover of whom it is the Lord speaks when He says, "Your eyes will see the King in

His beauty." Not all eyes, but your eyes shall see the King in His beauty. What is this vision which is here promised to God'speople? They are to see the King. They are to see- I. THE KING IN HIS BEAUTY.

THE KING-a sweet title which belongs to our Lord Jesus Christ as His exclusive prerogative, crowned with the crown of thornsonce, but now wearing the diadem of universal monarchy! Other kings there are, but theirs is only a temporary title to temporalprecedence among the sons of men. I had almost said theirs was a mimic sovereignty. He is the real King-the King of Kings-theKing that reigns forever and forever! He is King, for He is God. Jehovah reigns. The Maker of the earth must be her King.He in whose hands are the deep places of the earth and the strength of the hills-He by whom all things exist and all thingsconsist-He must of necessity reign! The government shall be upon His shoulders. His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor,The Mighty God. From the very fact that He is the Son of God, the express Image of His Father's Glory, He must be King! BecauseHe condescended to veil Himself in our flesh, He derives a second title to the Kingdom-He is King now by His merits. ThereforeGod also has highly exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee shouldbow, of things in Heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth! For the suffering of death, He was made, for alittle while, lower than the angels, but now, seeing He has been obedient even unto death, even the death of the Cross, Hehas obtained a more excellent name than the angels and He is crowned with glory and honor. He is Head over all things now.In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. We rejoice to reflect upon Him as King by nature and then as King bydue desert over a Kingdom which He has inherited by Divine right. He is King at this time by virtue of the conquests He hasmade, having spoiled the principalities and powers of darkness. In this world He fought the battle and so bravely did He fightit out that He could say, "It is finished." He made an end of sin! He made reconciliation for iniquity! He trampled deathand Hell beneath His feet, and now He is King by force of arms. He entered into the strong man's house, wrestled with himand vanquished him, for He is stronger than he. He has led captivity captive and He has ascended upon high-King of kings andLord of lords. Moreover He reigns supremely in some of our hearts. We have yielded to the sway of His love. We rejoice tocrown Him. We never feel happier than when our hearts and tongues are singing-

"Bring forth the royal diadem And crown Him Lord of All." I trust there are many more among you who have not yet yielded,who will yet yield your hearts to His power. Fresh provinces shall be added to His empire. New cities of Mansoul will opentheir gates that the Prince Emanuel may ride in and may sit in triumph there. Oh, that it may be so, for a multitude thatno man can number shall cheerfully, joyfully acknowledge His sway and kiss the Son lest He be angry. But mark, the limit ofHis power is not according to the will of man, for where He does not reign by the joyful consent of His people and the mightyconquest of His love, He still exercises absolute dominion! Even the wicked are His servants! They shall be made in some wayor other to subserve His glory, for He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. Why do the heathen rage andthe people imagine a vain thing? The King is anointed upon God's holy hill of Zion. King He is. He has a bit in the mouthof His most violent adversaries and He turns them about according to His own will. What though with mingled cruelty and ragemen attack the Gospel of Christ, they strive in vain to thwart the Divine Decree! In ways mysterious and unknown to us, theLord asserts His own supremacy. He reigns even where the rulers conspire and the people rebel against Him!

Beloved, the Sovereignty of our Lord Jesus Christ, to which He is entitled by inheritance, is due to Him for His merits andin the equitable claim of His conquests-this reign of Christ extends over all things. He is the universal Lord. In this worldHe is Regent everywhere. By Him all things exist and consist. When I think of Him, it seems to me that the sea roars to Hispraise and the trees of the forests rejoice in His Presence. There is not a dewdrop that twinkles on the flower at sunrisebut reflects His bounty. There is not an avalanche that falls from its Alp with thundering crash but resounds with tokensof His Power. The Great Shepherd reigns! The Lord is King! As Joseph was made ruler over all the land of Egypt, even so, accordingunto the word of Jesus, all the people are ruled. He has all things put under His feet, for it was of Him the Prophet sangof old, "You have made Him a little"-(or as the margin has it, a little while-"lower than the angels, and have crowned Himwith glory and honor. You have put all things under His feet, all sheep and oxen, yes, and the beasts of the field, the fowlof the air, the fish of the sea and whatever passes through the paths of the seas." Though we see not yet all things put underman, yet we see Jesus, who, for the suffering of death was made, for a little

while, lower than the angels, crowned with glory and honor. At this hour He rules on earth. Death and Hell are under His scepter.Satan, and the spirits that have followed his leadership, bite their iron bonds while they confess the power of the DivineLord to be paramount. He can crush His enemies and break them with a rod of iron as a potter's vessel. His mighty power isfelt and feared. But, oh, up yonder in Heaven, where the full beams of His Glory are unveiled, He reigns in matchless splendor!The angels worshipped Him when He was brought forth as the Only-Begotten into the world. So spoke the oracle, "Let all theangels of God worship Him." Seraphim and cherubim, are they not His messengers? He makes them like flames of fire. The redeemedby blood, what could they do? What is their joy, their occupation, their delight, but to sing forever, "Worthy is the Lambthat was slain to receive honor, and glory and dominion, and power"? Oh, tell us not of emperors-there is but One Imperialbrow! Tell us not of monarchs, for the crown belongs to the blessed and only Potentate! He alone is King. As such, we thinkof Him and long for His appearing, when we shall hail Him the King in His beauty! I love to see His courtiers. That is a happyhour in which I can talk with one who has my Master's ear. I love to see the skirts of His garment as I come in fellowshipwith Him to His Table. I love to tread His courts. I love to hear His voice, even though I cannot yet see the face of Himthat speaks with me! But to see the King- to see the King, Himself! Oh, joy unspeakable! It is worth worlds, even, to havea good hope of beholding a sight so resplendent with the Glory of God!

Note well the promise, "Your eyes shall see the King in His beauty." Does not this suggest to us that the King has been seen,though not in His beauty? He was seen on earth as the Prophet foretold, "despised and rejected of men, a Man of Sorrows andacquainted with grief." And as seen then, we are told there is no beauty that we should desire Him. There was a time whenmany were astonished at Him. His visage was more marred than any man, and His form more than the sons of men-that was in theday of His humiliation.

But we are yet to see the King in His beauty, and I know, Beloved, that in part that vision does beam, even now, upon spiritsbefore the Throne of God. I would not exactly say that they have eyes, for they have left these organs of sense behind them.They have not received the fullness of this promise-yet in a measure they see the beauty of the King, that beauty which HisFather has put upon Him, now that He has ascended up on high and returned to the Father, having obeyed all His precepts andfulfilled all His will. His Father has already rewarded Him. He sits enthroned at the right hand of the Majesty on high-Heis adored and worshipped! It is no small sight for our spirits to behold Him and adore. But remember the spirits in Heaven,without us, cannot be made perfect, so says the Apostle. They are waiting for the adoption-to wit, the redemption of the body-waitingfor the trumpet of Resurrection. It is then, I think, that this blessed hope will be fully verified, "Your eyes shall seethe King in His beauty." As Job puts it, "I know that my Redeemer lives and that He shall stand at the latter day upon theearth; and though, after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God, whom I shall see for myself, andmy eyes will behold, and not another." Our bodies shall be raised from the dead-

"These eyes shall see Him in that day, The God that died for me- And all my rising bones shall say- Lord, who is like to Thee?"

From the dark chambers of the grave we shall come forth with all the blood-bought company of the faithful. Then we shall seethe King in His beauty! What beauty that will be! We steadfastly look for His appearing when He shall come the second time!This personal manifestation must be welcome to the saints. To see Him thenmust be to see His beauty! Our senses, relievedof infirmity, will be endowed with full capacity! Our Graces, being increased, our spirits will be lively and vigorous toappreciate His wonderful Person! As God and Man we do now believe in Him, but how little can our faith anticipate the vision!We acknowledge the mystery which is as yet unveiled. How little are we affected by the wonderful information which must astonishangels-that the Infinite can be joined with the finite, that the Godhead can be in perfect union with the manhood-the bushof the manhood burning with the glow of the Godhead, yet not thereby consumed! 'Tis matchless that the Eternal should linkHimself with finite flesh! That He should hang upon His mother's breast who bears up the columns of the universe! Strangeconjunction! Till we wake up in His likeness, we shall never thoroughly understand it. Oh, how amazement will resolve itselfinto admiration as we gaze upon Him who has a Nature that we have been familiar with and yet the proper Divinity which noman has seen or can see! What grandeur to behold! What rapture to experience when our eyes see the King in His beauty! Thesight will overwhelm us. But in other respects

than that which is essential to His Kingly dignity, the spectacle will be illustrious. In the hour of conquest He will takepossession of a Throne which no rival dare dispute. Judas will be there, but he will not think of betraying Him. Pilate willbe there, but he will not think of questioning Him. The Jews will be there, but they will not cry, "Crucify Him." The Romanswill be there, but they will not think of hauling Him away to execution. His enemies in that day shall lick the dust! Theyshall be like chaff before the whirlwind in the day of His coming! And what will be the splendor of His Glory when He shallbe proclaimed King of Kings in His beauty, with all the insignia of His royal power!

He will have the beauty of state pageant, too, for He will assume office as Judge of the quick and the dead. Then will thetrumpet sound and all the solemn pomp of the Great Assize will encircle Him round about. The vivid lightning will flash throughthe universe and the roar of His thunder shall awake the dead, while an irresistible summons shall compel them to appear beforeHis dread tribunal! From His searching gaze no creature shall be hid, and every eye shall see Him. They, also, who piercedHim, and all the kindreds of the earth, shall weep and wail because of Him. But to us, that awful pomp will not be appalling,but a fit accessory on which His royal beauty is displayed! We shall admire the hand that holds the scepter, for we shallrecognize it as the same hand that was once pierced for us. We shall admire the voice that condemns the wicked, and bids them,"Depart!" for that voice shall pronounce our welcome, saying, "Come, you blessed." We shall admire the Shepherd's crook withwhich He shall separate the sheep and the goats, for it will apportion us to eternal bliss, though it shall dismiss the goatsto their eternal doom! Thrice happy and most blessed shall we be in that day! Terror and trouble shall be the lot of the world-trustand triumph shall then be the portion of the saints! He shall be admired in all them that believed! And when that final judgmentshall have fulfilled its destined purpose, He shall be in His beauty seen as the Conqueror of all evil, the Conqueror of sin,of death and Hell. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is Death. How shall we see Him in His beauty when Death, itself,shall die! I cannot attempt to describe that beauty. It is far too dazzling for me to picture. I have dreamed of it sometimesin sacred soliloquies. My faith has tried to realize the facts which are revealed unto us by His Spirit. Still, the tonguecannot tell so much as the heart has conceived. There are unspeakable words which greet us in seasons of rapture which itis not lawful to utter. Whenever we are caught up to the third Heaven in rapturous meditation, we have but small news to tellmen. But how inconceivable to us, now, is the Glory of Christ as it shall be when all His people are present with Him in Heaven!

I have not touched upon the millennial age or the latter-day Glory. Your thoughts can fill up the vacancy. But what will bethe beauty of Christ in Heaven in that day "when He shall make up His jewels"? What are the jewels of our King but His redeemedpeople? What will be the ornaments of His state but those for whom He shed His blood? And when they are all there, then weshall see the King in His beauty with all His jewels. Beauty! A shepherd's beauty lies much in his simple garb. A mother'sbeauty-very much of it is to be seen as she appears in the center of a happy and lovely family. So, beyond all doubt, thebeauty of Christ will be most conspicuous when all His saints are with Him! I was in company with some good people lately,who were discussing the question whether we should see the saints in Heaven. I do not know whether they settled the questionto their satisfaction, but I settled it very well to mine. I expect to see and know all the saints, to recognize them andrejoice with them-and that without the slightest prejudice to my being wholly absorbed in the sight of my Lord! Let me explainto you how this can be. When I went, the other day, into a friend's drawing room, I observed that on all sides there weremirrors. The whole of the walls were covered with glass-and everywhere I looked I kept seeing my friend. It was not necessarythat I should fix my eyes upon him, for all the mirrors reflected him. Thus, Brothers and Sisters, it seems to me that everysaint in Heaven will be a mirror of Christ, and that as we look upon all the loved ones, gazing round upon them all, we shallsee Christ in everyone of them, so we shall still be seeing the Master in the servants, seeing the Head in all the members!It is I in them, and they in me. Is it not so? It will be all the Master. This is the sum total of Heaven-"Your eyes shallsee the King in His beauty"-and they shall see the beauty of the King in all His people! Nor does it appear that the manifestationshall be ever withdrawn, or that we shall ever leave off seeing the beauty of our King. There is the mercy. "Your eyes shallsee the King in His beauty," on and on, and on still, and on, forever on, discerning more and more of the beauty, the inexhaustiblebeauty and splendor of the Sun of Righteousness, world without end! The theme grows upon us. We must curb ourselves. We canbut skim the surface as the swallow does the brook. Now, as to-

II. THE NATURE OF THIS VISION, we know it is in the future. "Your eyes shall see the King in His beauty." You poor sinnersmust be content with seeing the King in His majesty. Happy souls who come to see Jesus on the Cross! Oh, it

is joy for them to look unto Him and be saved! Behold the Lamb of God! Behold the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world!Poor sin-sick Soul, are you looking to Jesus to be saved? If it is so in the present, then in the future you shall see Himin His beauty! It will be a vision for all. Their natural sense shall discern the real Savior, "Your eyes shall see the Kingin His beauty." It is not merely your spiritual perception, but your natural eyes. Does not Job express this conviction "whommy eyes shall see"? Oh, yes, not as it now is with this flesh and blood, but still with this body! I call you a vile bodysometimes, my poor flesh and blood, and so you are. Yet in your origin there was something good and in your destiny thereis something better, "Bone of your bone, and flesh of your flesh." Born of a woman as you were, and fed on bread as you mustbe, and though the worms devour you, yet shall you rise again! Oh, body, you are even now the temple of God! Know you notthat your bodiesare the members of Christ? Know you not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit? These eyes shallsee Him! They may be weeping eyes, aching eyes, weary eyes and sleepy eyes, yes, or even blind eyes, or your failing eyeson which the curtain is being drawn about you-your eyes shall see the King! When Heaven is in sight there will be no needfor glasses to assist your vision. Your eyes, all strengthened to bear the light, as the eagle's eyes when the sun shinesin its strength-"Your eyes shall see the King in His beauty." It will be a personal vision. "Whom my eyes shall see, and notanother." It shall not be somebody else repeating another's testimony, "Yes, I see Him." I like to hear what John saw, butI like better to have John's privilege! We shall be like John and shall, ourselves, behold Him. Can you realize it? You recollectin Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress how Mercy laughed in her sleep, and Christiana asked her what made her laugh so. Mercy repliedthat she had seen a beautiful vision. Is it not enough to make us laugh in our sleep, to think that "your eyes shall see theKing in His beauty"? To think that this head shall wear a crown! That these hands shall grasp the palms. That these feet shallstand on the transfigured globe. That these ears shall hear the symphonies of eternity and that this tongue shall help toswell the everlasting chorus! Oh, who would not rejoice? This is the wine which, as it goes down, makes the lips of him whodrinks to speak. Oh, that we may all have a personal sight of the King in His beauty!

And it will be a near sight, because it will be clear and distinct. "Your eyes shall see the King in His beauty." This doesnot imply a distant view of a remote object-a dim vision of the dazzling splendor-but you will behold Him in such close proximitythat you can discern every feature of His Person, every phase of His comeliness! You shall discern all the insignia of Hisoffices, His conquests, His titles, His dominion and His Glory! Now you only see a picture of Him reflected as in a glass,darkly-then you shall see Him face to face! Oh, that the curtain might be drawn up, the veil rent, the vision unfolded! Itwill be a delightful sight. When He shall appear in His beauty, we cannot wear the vestments of our mourning and sorrow. AsHe is, so are we in this world. As He shall be revealed, so shall we be, also, in that world! "It does not yet appear whatwe shall be, but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like He, for we shall see Him as He is." Thus we shall bebeautiful when we shall see Him in His beauty! He shall say to us, "You are all fair, My love; there is not a spot in you."Oh, the delight, the pure unclouded joy, reflective as the light of Heaven! What an introduction to eternal happiness thiswill be when your eyes shall see the King in His beauty! There is no period, no finale, no end put to it. This is no transientspectacle. His beauty never fades. Our festival can never terminate. As long as He appears in His beauty we shall see Himand be enamored of His loveliness! Is it not written, "Because I live, you shall live also"? Without His people, without thecomplement of His saints with Him, He would not be a full Christ at any time. "Know you not that the Church is the fullnessof Him who fills all in all?" So all His disciples must be forever with Him, and they must forever see His face, and be partakersof His Glory!

III. TO WHOM IS THIS VISION GIVEN?

We find a remarkably full description of these people. Read the 15th verse. Their ordinary gait distinguishes them. "He whowalks righteously." "The pure in heart shall see God." But if your deportment disgraces you, how deep will be your dishonor?Unholy creatures will never see a holy God! It is not possible! Oh, Sinners, what do you think of this? You must be changed!You must be cleansed! You must be converted! The Holy Spirit must regenerate you! You must be born-again! Otherwise you cannotwalk uprightly or stand in the Presence of the King in His beauty!

Next to this they are known by their tongues, "and speaks uprightly." No liar shall enter into Heaven. Those who talk lasciviously,those who swear profanely, the singers of idle songs, those who lend their lips to slander, backbite their neighbors and circulateevil reports in malice-these and such as these can have no inheritance in the Kingdom of God! Oh, may the Lord wash your tongues,rinse your mouths and make them sweet and clean-otherwise you will never sing

the songs of Heaven. "He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly" is so far approved. But let him take heed to his commercialcharacter, for it is further said, "He that despises the gain of oppressions," or, as the margin has it, of deceit. A manthat gets money by squeezing others, by oppressing the poor by hard bargains, shall not enjoy the Beatific Vision. If youbuy and sell, and get gain by lying, by false pretences, by tricks of the trade-yes, even by the customs that are commonlyallowed, though they would look fraudulent if thoroughly exposed-you shall have no inheritance in the Kingdom of God! Howcan you be gracious when you are not honest? He that is not able to hold the scales lightly, measure out an even yard, ormake out a bill equitably, may well tremble at being poised in the balances of the sanctuary! When such as these are weighed,they will be found wanting. Thorough integrity must stand the test of disinterestedness. "He that shakes his hands from holdingof bribes" Some men cannot help preferring coin to conscience. This is the way of bribery. Palm oil was largely used whenIsaiah wrote. It is still much in vogue-perhaps not so much in this country as in others-but there are plenty of ways of receivingbribes besides selling one's vote at the polling booth. How many men are bribed by a smile or a crown-bribed to Sabbath-breaking-bribedto the follies of the world-bribed to I know not what of error! But drop a shilling into a conscientious man's hand and heshakes it from his hand! He does not like the feel of it. He is like Paul, who shook off the viper into the fire. So the manwho is to see the King in His beauty shakes his hand from holding bribes. Moreover, "He stops his ears from hearing of blood"He does not like to hear of cruelty, of outrage, or wantonly causing pain. He stops his ears-he will not listen to any proposaleither to gratify a resentment or to seek a personal advantage whereby his neighbor would be injured. In this wicked worldit is often wise to stop one's ears. A deaf ear is a great blessing when there is base conversation in the neighborhood.

The good man who thus keeps guard over his hands and his feet, his tongue and his ears, is likewise known by his eyes. "Heshuts his eyes from seeing evil." He shuns the temptations to which a vain curiosity would expose him. Oh, if only our motherEve had shut her eyes when the serpent pointed out yon rosy apple on the tree! Oh, that she had shut her eyes to it! Oh, thatshe had said, "No, I will not even look at it." Looking leads to longing and longing leads to sin. Do you say, "There canbe no harm in looking, just to see for yourself-are we not told to prove all things?" "Just come here, young man," says thetempter, "you do not know what life is! One evening will suffice to show you a little gaiety and let you see how the frolicis carried on. You need not share in it, you know. You may learn a thing or two you never dreamed of before. Surely a manis not to go through the world a baby-just come for an hour or two and look on!" "Ah, no," says the man whose eyes are tosee the King in His beauty-"the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil never brought any man good, yet, so please leave me alone!I shut my eyes from the sight of it. I do not want to participate, even as a spectator. I do not care to look upon that whichGod will not look upon without abhorrence! I know that His love has put my sins behind His back-what, then, He puts behindHis back, shall I put before my face? That were ingratitude, indeed!" Perhaps you say, "Well, if this is the character ofsuch as shall see the King in His beauty, I shall never come up to the standard." "No, but you must, otherwise you will neverenjoy the Beatific Vision." "But I cannot convert myself after this fashion." I know you cannot, but there is One who can!Has not Jesus Christ come into the world to make us new creatures? It is His objective and intent-"Behold, I make all thingsnew." He changes a man, gives him new desires, new longings and new hopes.

And He can change you! Let me ask you, have you ever seen, by faith, the King? Have you ever looked to Jesus on the Crossand did you ever recognize that Jesus Christ, if He is to be your Savior, must be your King? You say you have believed inJesus. Yes, but did you take Him to be your King? Did you mean to obeyHim as well as to trust Him? Did you intend to serveHimas well as to lean upon Him? Remember, you cannot have a half of Christ. You cannot have Him as your Redeemer, but not asyour Ruler! You must take Him as He is. He is a Savior, but He saves His people from their sins. Now, if you have ever seenChrist as your Savior, you have seen beauty in Him. He is lovely in your eyes, for the loveliest sight in the world to a sinneris His Savior! "What is the latest news," said a certain squire to a companion, accustomed to hunt with him, who had comeup to the Metropolis-"what is the latest news you have heard in London?" "The latest news, and the best news I have ever heard,"was the quick reply, "is that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners." "Tom," he said, "I do think you are mad!""William," said Tom, "I know you are. I only wish you were cured of your insanity as, by the Grace of God, I have been!"

Oh, that we did but all of us know Jesus Christ in His beauty and could, every one of us, rejoice in Him as those do who arecharmed by the sight! If you have not your eyes opened, you cannot see the King in His beauty. But if they are

opened, now, so that you greet Jesus as your King and see beauty in Him, then, whatever your former life may have been, itssins are forgiven-they are blotted out! Your Savior's Sacrifice that offered such satisfaction to God for your sins shallgive sweet solace to your conscience. By the gracious help of the Holy Spirit, you shall start a fresh career and begin anew life! Be it so and you will henceforth shut your eyes from seeing, stop your ears from hearing, shake your hands fromall iniquity, and turn aside your feet from it to live the life you live in the flesh by the faith of the Son of God, to Hishonor and Glory! So shall your eyes, poor Sinner-weeping, sorrowing, mournful eyes as they may now be-your eyes shall seethe King in His beauty! The Lord grant that we, all of us, may have a present earnest and a future fruition of this delightfulpromise, for His name's sake. Amen.