I have been very much interested of late in looking at the excellent way in which John the Baptist
met the various questions which came before him, for unfortunately there were questions in his
day just as there are in ours.

It is beautiful to notice, first of all, the self-hiding, retiring spirit displayed by this servant of
Christ as he answered questions concerning himself and his work:"I am the voice of one crying
in the wilderness. … I baptize with water:but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;
He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to
unloose" (John 1:23,26,27).

Thus, as to himself, he was merely a voice. And as to his work, he baptized with water, and was
only too glad to retire behind that blessed One whose shoe’s latchet he felt himself utterly
unworthy to unloose. May each one of us long to know more and more of this self-hiding_this
losing sight of self and its doings_this retiring spirit. Truly it is much needed in this day of
egotistical boast and pretension.

In John 3 we have another kind of question:"Then there arose a question between some of John’s
disciples and the Jews about purifying. And they came unto John, and said unto Him, Rabbi, He
that was with thee beyond Jordan, to Whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and
all men come to Him." (John 3:25,26). Now this was a mistake, for "Jesus himself baptized not,
but his disciples" (John 4:2). But this is not the point here. What strikes me is John’s mode of
settling all questions, right or wrong. He finds a perfect solution for all in the presence of his
Lord. "John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven"
(John 3:27).

How true! How simple! How perfectly obvious! What a complete settlement of every question!
If a man has anything at all, where did it, where could it come from? Surely only from heaven.
What a perfect cure for strife, envy, jealousy, and emulation! "Every good gift and every perfect
gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights" (James 1:17). What a tale this tells
of earth and of man! What a record it bears to heaven and to God! Not one atom of good on earth
but what comes from heaven. Not an atom of good in man but what comes from God. Why, then,
should any one boast, or be jealous, or envious? If all goodness is from above, let there be an end
of all strife, and let all hearts go up in praise to "the Father of lights."

Thus it was the Baptist met the questions of his day. He let all the questioners know that their
questions had but little interest for him. And more than that, he let them know where all his
interests lay. This blessed servant found all his springs in the Lamb of God, in His precious work,
and in His glorious Person. In His presence he found a divine answer to every question_a divine
solution of every difficulty. John lived far beyond the region of questions in the blessed presence
of his Lord, and there he found all his heart could ever need.

Now, it seems to me that we would do well to take a leaf out of John’s book as regards all this.
I need not remind you that in this present day there are questions agitating men’s minds. Yes, and

some of us are called to account for not expressing ourselves more decidedly on some at least of
these questions. But for my part, I believe the devil is doing his utmost to alienate our hearts from
Christ and from one another by questions. We ought not to be ignorant of his devices. He does
not come openly and say, "I am the devil and I want to divide and scatter you by questions." Yet
this is precisely what he is seeking to do.

It matters not whether the question be right or wrong in itself; the devil can make use of a right
question just as effectively as of a wrong one, provided he can succeed in raising that question into
undue prominence, and causing it to come between our souls and Christ, and between us and our
brethren. I can understand a difference in judgment on various minor questions. Christians have
differed about such for many long centuries, and they will continue to differ until the end of time.
It is human weakness. But when any question is allowed to assume undue prominence, it ceases
to be mere human weakness, and becomes a wile of Satan. I may have a very decided judgment
on any given point, and so may you. But what I long for now is a thorough sinking of all
questions, and a rejoicing together in hearing the voice of the Lord, and going on together in the
light of His blessed countenance. This will confound the enemy. It will effectually deliver us from
prejudice and partiality, from cliques and factions. We shall then measure one another, not by our
views of any particular question, but by our appreciation of the Person of Christ and our devotion
to His cause.

In a word, what I long for is that we all may be characterized by a deep-toned, thorough devotion
to the Name, and truth, and cause of Christ. I long to cultivate broad sympathies that can take in
every true lover of Christ, even though we see not eye to eye on all minor questions. At best we
know but in part, and we can never expect people to agree with us about questions. But if Christ
be our one absorbing object, all other things will assume their right place, their relative value,
their proper proportions. "Let us, therefore, as many as be perfect [as many as have Christ for
their one object], be thus minded:and if in anything ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal
even this unto you. Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule
[Christ], let us mind the same thing [Christ]" (Phil. 3:15,16). The moment anything else but Christ
is introduced as a rule to walk by, it is simply the work of the devil. Of this I am as sure as that
I hold this pen in my hand.

May the Lord keep us all close to Himself, walking together, not in sectarianism, but in true
brotherly love, seeking the blessing and prosperity of all who belong to Christ, and promoting in
every possible way His blessed cause, until He come!

"And He said to them all, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his
cross daily, and follow Me" (Luke 9:23).

What a challenge to our hearts, coming from One who had just spoken of His sufferings, His
death, and resurrection! How unselfishly He lived! And in death He thought only of the glory of
God and the blessing of souls. Beloved, what do we know of this? I know the world makes great
demands upon saints of God today. It makes demands upon our time, our energies, and our
affections. We forget that Christ has the first claim upon us. We push the claims of God aside, and
seek to gratify self and follow after our selfish desires rather than deny that sinful self within us.
Oh, if we will heed His voice, "Come after Me," we may lose ourselves in the happy occupation
with Himself. We will desire those things that please Him and thus be able to edify others (Rom.
14:19). Then, if we properly appreciate His death for us, we shall not henceforth live unto
ourselves, but unto Him who died and rose again for us (2 Cor. 5:15).

Self must be denied. Paul said, "I die daily" (1 Cor. 15:31).The sooner you die the better you will
live. It reminds me of a writer who said, "I went to my own funeral and came back alive. I was
buried with Christ, and am risen with Him. The resurrection life is the one I now live."

Now, I would make a final appeal to all who are Christ’s. Whenever you have spare moments or
times of ease, just ask Him, "Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?" He will fill your heart and
hands with that which will bring honor to Him and blessing to others. Then there will be no idle
time to gratify self, nor any excuse for self-indulgence.

Fellow Christian, accept the challenge of these words. Sinners are perishing, saints are suffering,
and Christ is coming!

Nature often provides a mirror of man’s soul and his relationship to God. Moses, for example,
chose an eagle for the illustration given in Deut. 32:11,12 to clarify God’s dealings with men:"As
an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them,
beareth them on her wings:so the Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with
him."

Those to whom Moses was writing would have little difficulty in picturing an eagle and her care
of her brood, and the parallel of God’s concern for His people. Likewise we also should have little
difficulty in understanding the analogy. It certainly is not beyond our imagination. Yet with all the
obvious comparisons which come quickly to our minds, it would be well for us to pause and
examine carefully some specific examples.

Notice the first action of the eagle. "An eagle stirreth up her nest." When her young have matured
to the point where they are able to learn to fly, the eagle stirs the nest, making it just as
uncomfortable as possible and shaking the eaglets loose to accept the challenges of flight more
readily.

As the eagle must stir up the nest to dislodge the young who will not of their own accord fling
themselves out into space, so the Lord must stir up our nest to free us from the easily acceptable
comforts and securities which we enjoy, so that we may see and accept the challenges of a closer
fellowship with Him.

However, the eagle does not simply shake the eaglets loose and then leave them to their own
resources and experiments to learn the art of flying. Rather she flies over the nest, giving her
brood practical examples to follow. "An eagle . . . fluttereth over her young." Is there a better
parallel to the Lord’s training of us? He never stirs us loose merely to cause grief or ruin, nor
does He leave us without example. If the Lord has stirred your nest, dislodged you from your
comfortable rut, keep your eyes open wide for His training example.

In the third comparison there is a glorious confidence. "An eagle . . . spreadeth abroad her
wings." This speaks of the eagle’s self-sacrificing protection of her brood. Many writers have
indicated that if danger seems imminent the mother bird will place herself in a position to receive
the enemy’s onslaught before her young are attacked. There are few pictures which reveal more
of the Lord’s care and protection for us. Certainly we are aware of this care in the physical realm.
Almost everyone can point to at least one particular event in his life when the Lord demonstrated
His protection unmistakably.

But beyond this, in the spiritual realm, the Lord has placed Himself again and again between us
and our soul’s enemy to keep him from destroying our spiritual life. When he attacked at our
weakest point, when failure seemed inevitable, the Lord Himself hedged us in under His
protection.

The final parallel re-emphasizes and expands the third. "An eagle . . . taketh them, beareth them

on her wings." It has long been noted that when a young eagle is learning to fly and for some
reason, be it lack of strength or confidence, it suddenly flounders in the air, the parent will dive
under the young one and spread her wings, offering support to the infant bird. What a peace-
giving promise this is! As we can expect the Lord’s stirrings, as we can look to Him for a guiding
example, so we can trust for His speedy and sufficient support in time of weakness and failure.
We may not always understand all the Lord is doing. He will provide an example, a call, which
we can not follow in ourselves. Yet He will not desert us. Rather, He has promised to be our ever-
present help. Why then do we hesitate to follow Him?

When we become too attached to the nest of this world He stirs us. When we wonder how or
where to follow He provides an example. When we are overcome by the enemy He protects us.
When our own strength is insufficient He supplies His. And all of this is for one purpose, that
Christ alone would be our God. Can you see yourself in the picture of the lazy, ignorant,
defenseless, frail eaglet? Can you see the Lord’s stirrings, lessons, protection, and provision in
your experience? Are you accepting each of them as best for you? Is Christ alone your God?

A few ladies who had met together to read the Scriptures were reading the third chapter of
Malachi. One of the ladies observed:"There is something remarkable in the expression of the
third verse, ‘He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.’ " Another volunteered to call on a
silversmith and find out what he had to say on the subject. She went, accordingly, and without
telling the object of her visit, asked him to describe to her the process of refining silver.

When he finished the description, she asked, "But do you sit while the work of purifying is going
on?"

"Oh yes, madam," replied the silversmith. "I must sit with my eye steadily fixed on the furnace,
for if the time necessary for refining be exceeded in the slightest degree, the silver is sure to be
injured."

At once she saw the beauty and the comfort of the expression, "He shall sit as a refiner and
purifier of silver." Our Father sees it needful to put His children into the furnace, but Christ is
seated by the side of it. His wisdom and love are both engaged in the best manner for us. Our
trials do not come at random; the very hairs of our heads are all numbered.

As the lady was leaving the shop, the silversmith called her back and said he had still further to
mention that he only knew when the process of purifying was complete by seeing his face reflected
in the silver. Beautiful figure! When God sees Christ’s image in His children, His work of
purifying is accomplished.