HE ANSWERED HIM NOTHING

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23885, 12 August 1939, Page 10

HE ANSWERED HIM NOTHING

Written for the Otago Daily Times By the Rev. Gardner Miller

For the past day or two I have been following very closely the incidents that took place, one after another, during the closing hours of our Lord’s life. I do not know any drama so tragic, so touching—one might sav so terrific —as the drama of the trial and death of Christ And when we remember —indeed, how could we ever forget it?—that Christ was not playing a part, but was actually experiencing all the horror and shame, we feel as if we. too, had been there, so vividly personal is the story. And no matter how often you read this moving record of His trial and death you feel that you can never take it all in You cannot go back to any other book nearly so often, yet somehow the New Testament throws a spell over you. and every time you go back to it you receive something new to inspire or warn you. I confess the story of the death of Christ draws me like a magnet. The meaning of His death I have never been able to graso fully. I know all *the stock answers and arguments; but they leave me quite unsatisfied. My own hammered-out belief about the death of Christ is quite simple. At the Cross of Christ. God met me and broke the power of sin in my life. That is a personal experience and no argument can take it away from me., I have seen it happen a thousand times in the lives of others. No argument can take away the evidence of my own eyes. And so when I read again and again and again the story of His trial and death I know I am reading something that has something to do with myself. Christianity has never been to me a bundle of beliefs: it is a personal experience. Beliefs always come after salvation and that is why I always insist that what matters most is not what you believe but whom.

What held me, as I very slowly went over all the incidents of the story again, was the attitude of Christ to Herod. Doctor Luke is the only writer who mentions this incident. and you will find it in the twenty-third chapter of his book. When Herod had Jesus before him—sent by Pilate who was wildly trying to find a way out of his dilemma —he goaded . Him and tried to force Him to do tricks, but Jesus met Herod’s clumsy efforts with an awful silence. "He answered Him nothing.” When I got to these words I had to close my New Testament and let the awe-ful significance of the scene take charge of me. Why did Jesus remain silent. Then I remembered what Jesus thought of this petty king. On the only occasion that Jesus ever mentioned Herod, He called him a fox. The disciples of Jesus had tried to prevent Him from returning to Jerusalem because of what Herod had threatened to do. “Go and tell that fox,” said Jesus, “ that he cannot intimidate Me." A fox! What a name to call a man! A fox, an animal that crawls and creeps and steals by night! And so Herod was like that —a thief of another man’s wife, a drunkard, and a sensationalist.

And then finally the two meet face to face. It was Herod who had given orders for the murder of a friend of Jesus, His own cousin John. Before Herod stood Jesus, the Man Whose life was a living protest to his mean, crafty and dispicable soul. Jesus was silent and His silence was a judgment. Words would have been wasted on Herod. The witness _of silent suffering was the only thing left for Jesus to do. Ido not believe that Herod was past redemption. I do not believe anybody ever is. I v/ish all of us would cease from making that terrible statement about anybody. Who are we to pass judgment even on the worst! I cannot think that Jesus left Herod out of that prayer that still moves the world “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Herod was included in it as were also Pilate, Judas, and the careless soldiers and the religious bigots.

There is no limit to forgiveness. But is there a limit to what you must take from the hands of others? Is it right that any of us should be subjected to indignity and scorn and even cruelty, for year after year, and not to retort, especially when we know that we do not deserve such treatment? Such a situation has often been brought to my notice. It is not easy to give an answer. Indeed, I have often felt I had no answer to give, save to pray that the innocent sufferer may be strengthened to remain innocent and still suffer. There are depths that I cannot reach; I can only stand on the brink and hold hard to the hand of my Lord, Who understands. I am convinced of this, however, that there comes a time when we do no good at all by attempting to justify ourselves to those who are treating us shamefully. The best way then to vindicate ourselves is to say nothing and let silence do her perfect work. We are apt when we are hot and rightly angry at our treatment — I say we are apt to forget God Let God handle the situation and you and I be quiet. That is what Christ did. What the results were 1 do not know but I cannot think of God ever being defeated And when you feel that your best witness is to be silent and thus let the waves of misunderstanding. or cruelty, or meanness roll over you, see to it that vour silence is not a sullen silence. There is nothing nice about a selfmade martyr. Let your silence be the silence of a forgiving love that will make you still eager to help the one who hurts you. Leave the results to God.

A DISTINCTIVE BOOK Every now and then a reviewer receives a book that is different. One such came to me last week It is called “ Tyndale Commemoration Volume,” and is published by the Lutterworth Press (7s 6d, English orice). The discriminating reader will have pricked up his ears already. Here is a volume that satisfies the mind and the eye What we owe to Tyndale we can never repay His revised New Testament of 1534 is the basis of our much loved Authorised Version You remember Tyndale’s dying prayer. “ Lord, open the King of England’s eyes ” Your eyes will open in a real sense as vou read the reproduced sections of Tyndale’s actual translations, and as vou look at the old-fashioned woodcut illustrations A short but vivid account is also given of Tvndale’s life and achievements and also a brief assessment of his influence on English literature. If vou have a thought of giving vour minister a gift, buy and present him with this and ask him to give a week night talk on Tyndale. He will eagerly meet your request, and you will realise how real a thing, how living, history is. If you know a young student for the ministry who has not

many books give him this one and vou will make him a friend for life. The appeal of the book is to all lovers of God’s Word, and I cordially commend it to ail my readers The publishers are to be highly commended not only for their enterprise but also for giving us a book of real artistic merit.