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Otago Witness, Issue 890, 19 December 1868, Page 20

Public Notice. phesied by seers, witnessed by apostles, -written by evangelists, and published by the ambassadors of God, are not matters of secondary interest, but deserve our solemn, and devout attention. Let all our hearts be awed as we follow the King of kings in hia pathway of shame and suffering. I. Come we, then, to the hall of Caiaphas. After the mob had dragged our Lord from the house of .Annas, they reached the palace of Caiaphas, and there a brief interval occurred before the high priest came forth to question the prisoner. How were these sad minutes spent ? Was the poor victim allowed a little pause to collect; his thoughts, that he might face his accusers calmly 1 Far from it ; Luke shall tell the pitiful story: "And the men that held Jesus mocked him, and smote him. And when they hnd blindfolded him they struck him onthe face, and asked him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that smote thee ? And many other things blasphemously spake they against him." The officers were pausing until the chairman of the court should please to have an interview with the prisoner, and instead of suffering the accused to tuke a little rest before a trial so important, upon which his life and character depended, they spend all the time in venting their bitter malice upon him. Observe how they insult his claim to bhe Messiahship! In effect, they mock him thus : " Thou claimest to be a prophet like unto Moses ; thou knowest things to come ; if bhou be sent of God, prove it by discovering thy foes; we will put thee on thy trial, and test thee, O thou man of Nazareth." They blind his eyes, and then, smiting him one after another, they bid him exercise his prophetic gift for their amusement, and prophesy who it was that amote him. Oh, shameful question ! How grasious was the silence, for an answer might have withered them for ever. The day shall come when all that smite Christ shall find that he has 3een them, though they thought his eyes were blinded. The day shall come, blasphemer, worldling, careless man, when everything that pou have done against Christ's cause and Christ's people shall be published before the eyes of men md angels, and Christ shall answer your question, and shall tell you who it is that smote him. [ speak to some this morning who have forgotten that Christ sees them ; and they have ill-treated iris people ; they have spoken ill of his holy jiuse, saying, "How doth God know? and is there kuowleclge in the Most High ?" I tell you, ;he Judge of men shall ere long point you out, md make you, to your shame and confusion of : ace, confess that you smote the Saviour when fou smote his Church. The preliminary mockery being over, Caiaphas ,he high priest came in ; he began at once to nterrogate the Lord before the public trial, loubtless with the view of catching him in his ipeech. The high priest asked him first of his lisciples. We do not know what questions he tsked ; perhaps they were something like these : 'What meanest thou, to allow a rabble to ollow thee wherever thou goest ? Who art thou, hat thou shoxddst have twelve persons always ittending thee and calling thee Master ? Dost ihou intend to make these the leaders of a band )f men? Are these to be thy lieutenants, to •aiseahoston thy behalf? Or dost thou pre;end to be a prophet, and are these the sons of iho prophets who follow thee, as Elisha did Slias ? Moreover, xvhere are they ? Where are ,hy gallant followers 1 If thou art a good man, ,vhy are they not here to bear witness to thee ? SV&ere are they gone ? Are they not ashamed of ;heir folly, now that thy promises of honour all md in shame? The high priest "asked him of lis disciples." Our Lord Jesus on this point said lot a syllable. Why this silence ? Because it is wt for our Advocate to accuse his disciples. He night have answered, "Well dost thou ask, Where are they?' the cowards forsook me; vhen one proved a traitor, the rest took to their leels. Thou sayest, ' Where are my disciples ?' here is one yonder, sitting by the fire, warming lis hands ; the same who just now denied me vith an oath." But no, he would not utter a vord of accusation ; he whose lips are mighty 0 intercede for his people, will never speak igainst them. Let Satan slander, but Christ Dleads. The accuser of the brethren is the jiince of this world : the Prince of peace is jver our Advocate before the eternal throne. The high priest next shifted his ground, and isked him concerning his doctrine— what it was ;hat he taught— whether- what ho taught was lot in contradiction to the original teachings of iheir great lawgiver Moses— and whether he had lot railed at the Pharisees, reviled the Scribes, md exposed the rulers. The Master gave a loble answer. Truth is never shamefaced ; he joldly points to his public life as his best answer. 'I spako openly to the world ; I ever taught m ;he synagogue and in the temple, whither the Tews always vesort; and in secret have I said lothing. Why asked thou me? ask them .vhich heard me what I have said unto them : behold they know what I said." No sophistries —no attempt at nvasion— the best armour for ;ruth is her own naked breast. He had preached in the market-places, on the mountain's brow, md in tke tomple courts ; nothing had been done in a. comer. Happy is the man who can make so noble a defence. Where is the joint in such liarness ? Whore can the arrow pierce the man n-rayed in so complete a panoply? Little cud Lhat arch-knave Caiaphas gain by his crafty jucstiomng. For the rest of the questioning nuv Lord Jesus said not a word m selfiefence; he knew that it availed not for 1 iamb to plead with wolves; he was well iware that whatever he said would be misconst3-ued and made a fresh source of oecusa- I tion, end he willed, moreover, to fulfil the prophecy, "He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her 'shearers ; is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.' But what power he exerted in thus mi amng silent ! _ Perhaps nothing displays more luUy the omimpotence of Christ than this power of self-control. C-mtjrol the Deity? What power less than divine can attempt the task? Behold, my brethren, the Sou of God does more than rule the winds and command the waves, he restrains himself. And when a word, a whisper, would have refuted his foes, and swept them to their eternal destruction, he "openeth not his mouth, iie who opened his mouth for his enemies, will not utter a word for himself. If ever silence were more than golden, it is this deep silence under infinite provocation. During this preliminary examination, our Lord suffered an outrage which needs a passing notice. When he had j>ajd, "Ask them that hear me, [some over-officious person in the crowd struck him ia the face, The mavgia w Jelm svm, ffA