The following thoughts have pressed upon me concerning our Lord:John 5:23 says, "That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father." Do we give the Lord Jesus His full proper place when we assemble together ?

Suppose we belong to the Dominion of Canada and the King of England one day sends his son the Prince of Wales there. Suppose he does a wonderful thing for us, something so great that it has saved us from utter ruin for all time:would we not fall down and thank and praise him for it ? And would we not thank and praise the king for sending him ?

Then suppose that before he leaves again for home, he says to us:I want you to remember me, and to show out to all the world what I have done for you. I want you to celebrate this every year, and when you do, I will be there.

Suppose the day comes; every thing is ready; the city is gaily decked with flying flags, and wires are strung from the city way off to the king's palace. The Prince comes, but no one pays much attention to him, whilst the wires are busy sending messages of thanks to the king for once sending the Prince and saving them from ruin. All this looks good, but how would the father feel in knowing that his son was being slighted in any measure ? To him that son is as the apple of his eye, and if men will please the father they must give his son no inferior honors -no secondary place. But no city in the world would do such a thing. The first glimpse of the Prince would cause shout after shout to go up, and the city as one man would say, All honor to the one that saved us! For the moment they might almost forget the king, in being so entirely occupied with the Prince. But soon, out of the fulness and gratitude of their heart, messages would be sent during the celebration to thank the king too, for sending his son.

Should not this describe our coming together to remember our Lord ? God sent His Son into the world that we might be saved from eternal ruin. We praise and worship God for sending His Son, and we fall down at Jesus' feet, owning the lost and helpless condition in which He found us and out of which He took us. We own Him Lord and we worship Him. His holy Name is our center of gathering. To such He says, "Where two or three are gathered together unto My name, there am I in the midst" (Matt. 18:20). What a glorious assemblage this is to the eye which can see as God sees! But, beholding the emblems of His sorrow and humiliation because of our sins, a lowly mind will mark each one of such a company.

Could any of us who have thus come together to remember our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and have truly drank into such a meeting, ever allow anything else to take its place, or anything to deprive us of its bliss ? How far our souls would have to fall away before this could be.

Without set rules, then, we come together primarily to remember our Lord, to empty our baskets of praises unto Him and unto the Father who sent Him. And He took the bread and gave thanks, likewise the cup. How simple. No set words nor flowery phrases. No religious ceremony. Nothing but absolute reality and sincerity. This always makes us simple and reverential.

If we only realized more who it is to whom we gather, and what it is for which we gather together, then would our praises and hymns and prayers be indeed sweet incense filling the Holy of holies in the power of the Holy Spirit. That a measure of this has been attained is joy to the heart, but may we not seek a greater measure ?