THE FIFTY-SECOND LECTURE.

OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.

JOHN, CHAP. XXI.

20. Then Peter turned about, and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which had also leaned on his breast at supper, and had said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?

21. When Peter therefore saw him, he said to Jesus, Lord, what shall this man do?

22. Jesus said unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is it to thee? Follow thou me.

23. Then went this word abroad among the brethren, that this disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not to him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is it to thee?

24. This is that disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote those things; and we know that his testimony is true.

25. Now there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose the world could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.'

WE have heard, brethren, that after the Lord had restored Peter to the dignity of the apostleship, from the which he had

1 The Commentary takes up the same verses.

fallen by his threefold denial of his Master, in the hall of the high priest, he adds to his absolution and restitution a premonition and forewarning, forewarning him that, in the end of his apostleship, when he should become an old man, he should close up and seal his apostleship with his blood. "When thou wast young," says the Lord to Peter, "thou girdedst thyself; thou knittedst thy clothes, when thou wast wont to go any way, and wentedst whither thou pleasedst; but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt not get credence to gird thyself, to put thine girdle about thee; but thou shalt stretch out thine hands, and another shall gird thee with cords and chains, and shall lead thee away, not where it shall please thee, but where it shall please him, he shall lead thee to the death." We heard, John opened up the meaning of these words, and told us, that Christ thereby signified that Peter should glorify God by a violent death; and, thereafter, to encourage him, the Lord goes before him, and bids Peter follow him, signifying thereby, that his death had taken away the bitterness of death, and that by virtue of his resurrection he should live again.

Now, in the words that we have read, in the first place, we have set down a new conference between the Lord and Peter: for while they are in the way, the Lord going before and Peter following, there they fall again in a new conference, and Peter, as he was ay too rash, albeit very zealous, so here rashly he demands a curious question,' and it is about John the writer of this gospel : the question is, "What should John do?" "What shall this man do? Shall he not follow the Lord?" The Lord had not bidden him follow him it might have contented Peter well enough that the Lord had kept silence of John, and he to have done the thing that the Lord bade him. Now, brethren, ere I come to the question, ye must mark the occasions of this curiosity of Peter. I perceive the first occasion that brings Peter to this question is this: When they are going together, Peter looks over his shoulder, and turns him about, and turns his eye from the Lord, and looked to John, that apparently followed afar off: upon which follows this curi

1i. e. A question dictated by idle curiosity.

osity, and this learns us this lesson. If the Lord bid thee follow him in any calling, whatever it be, as he bade Peter follow him to the death, (that was his calling, for a man follows God in his calling, all lawful callings are but a following of the Lord,) learn here to be wiser than Peter; hold thine eye constantly upon him, thine heart upon him; in thy calling follow him foot for foot, tread thou in the same footsteps; so far as he shall give the grace, decline not neither to the right hand nor to the left; and as to thine eye, look that it be never drawn from him, look not over thy shoulder to see what is behind thee,-but look constantly on the Lord :—for if thou do this, thou losest the sight of him, and that of need force shall make thee to settle back in thy calling. Peter but once turning, goes one foot backward, and falls back from the course wherein he should have walked. Paul, Philip. iii. 13, 14, considered this well, and in that race he ran to be partaker of resurrection, and life everlasting, he says, "I never look behind me, I never look over my shoulder to see what is behind, but mine eye is ever upon the mark, to get the prize' of the high calling of God." Seeing then we have taken up a course to walk into that life, Jesus Christ being the forerunner, and breaking up the heaven, hold thine eye continually upon the forerunner: follow him in thine own calling, and see that thine eye go never off him. It is the felicity of the creature to follow him, and thou must follow the Lord in thine own calling: there is the first occasion.

Upon this follows another: for, piece and piece, he comes to his curiosity. Turning himself about, and looking to John, "whom the Lord loved," who was very familiar with the Lord, and apparently hath used the Lord more homely than any of the rest, for he was "the man which leaned on Jesus' breast at supper;" (for when the Lord forewarned them, that one of them should betray him, Peter winks upon John, and beckons unto him, as he leaned upon the Lord's breast, to ask who it was: John said, "Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?")-now Peter, remembering this love of the Lord towards John, and this great familiarity, he marvels why that dis1 In original, price.

ciple should have been left behind, and should not have been required to follow him as well as he, and so he falls out in this curious question, and forgets in a manner his own calling. There is the ground: Peter looking to John, he sees him not so soon, but he finds in him the matter of his curiosity. Wilt thou leave off thine own calling, and take leisure to look about thee here or there, to this man or that man, when the Lord hath bidden thee strictly follow him, and forbidden that thou shouldst look about thee, thou shalt not so soon do this, but as soon thou shalt find matter of curiosity. No, if thou take thee that leisure to look to another, thou shalt get a stumbling-block to stay thee from thy calling: therefore, if thou be called by God to any calling, look that thine eye be never off the Lord; as thou wilt be answerable to him, hold thine eye upon him, take thee not so much leisure from thine own calling as to look once to another man. O, the strict life that is required of a Christian! Men think that they may live loosely as they please. No, but thou must walk circumspectly and precisely in thy calling, holding thine eye upon the Lord.

Another thing I mark. Peter, when he sees John following after, wonders that the Lord bids not him also follow, he thinks that the Lord's homeliness with John is failed. It will be at times. that these men that have found in greatest experience the love of Christ, and familiarity with him,—and blessed are they that have found his love, and are homely with him; if thy acquaintance begin not here, thou shalt never be acquainted with him hereafter, let no man beguile himself,-it will be that men will think the Lord has forgot them, has left them, and cast them off, and they themselves will begin to doubt of the Lord's favour: the smallest thing that can be will make us to doubt. But there is no cause why either thou shouldest doubt, or other men should think so; for whom he loves, he loves to the end ;-the answer which the Lord gives here to Peter testifies his love was as great now as ever it was before. If thou gettest once his love, it shall not fail thee; it will appear, indeed, to thy sense, that it fails, but measure thou not the favour of God by these things that are outward; thou must not judge

rashly, either of thyself or of others, by these outward things. Now, come to the question; upon these occasions follows this question, "What shall this man do?" "Shall not John thy beloved disciple follow thee? Wilt thou leave him behind thee? If thou givest me this honour to die for thee, wilt thou not give him the like?" Ye see here an example of curiosity, not only superfluous, but hurtful; he hurt himself, and did no good to John. What was the ground of it? he took him leisure from his vocation, which was to look to Jesus, and to follow him to scanse upon' John. Upon this he falls upon this inconvenient.' Paul, 2 Thess. iii. 11, speaking of them who lived inordinately, he joins these together, "They work nothing themselves;" again, "They are curious about other men's affairs;"-meaning, that all this curiosity about other men's affairs comes from idleness in their own calling. Upon this it comes to pass, that thou settest thy mind on other folk; if thou wert busy in thy own calling, thou wouldest not be curious in other folks' affairs. And this ye shall find, that these men that busy their heads about other men's adoes, finding fault with this man and that man, they are most idle, and careless of their own adoes: fy upon this curiosity, fleeting and flowing hither and thither. Then set thy mind on thine own calling, and so thou shalt not get time to trouble and vex thy mind with other men's adoes. This is the curious question. Folk would think that this is but a light word which Peter speaks; but it is not so, for, beside this curiosity, there is another fault in him,—he hath a sinistrous judgment of the Lord's doing, he thinks all men should be called to one calling; he is called to die for him, and so he thinks should John also; but the Lord lets him see that he is beguiled. There are many in this warfare, but all these have not one station and calling,-he hath one, and he hath another, he hath this, he hath that. The

1 i. e. To make an injurious insinuation against.

2 i. e. He falls into this scandal.

3 i. e. This, viz. "What will this man do?" is the question put by Peter, dictated by idle curiosity. Commentary: Hic autem quid? subaudi faciet; annon sequetur te dilectus iste tuus discipulus? Hæc est curiosa illa Petri interrogatio, et curiositas non solum superflua, sed etiam noxia.-P. 1166.