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From Heaven With Love
he will go forth to work, anointed for his mission, and he succeeds
where many of the intellectually wise would fail.
But when men exalt themselves, feeling that they are a necessity
for the success of God’s plan, the Lord causes them to be set aside.
The work does not stop, but goes forward with greater power.
It was not enough for the disciples of Jesus to be instructed as to
the nature of His kingdom. What they needed was a change of heart.
Calling a little child to Him, Jesus set him in the midst of them;
then tenderly folding the little one in His arms, He said, “Except
ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter
into the kingdom of heaven.” The simplicity, the self-forgetfulness,
and the confiding love of a little child are the attributes that Heaven
values, the characteristics of real greatness. At the feet of Jesus
earthly dignity and display are forgotten. Rich and poor, learned and
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ignorant, meet together as blood-bought souls, with no thought of
caste or worldly preeminence.
God places His own signet on men, not by rank, not by wealth,
not by intellectual greatness, but by their oneness with Christ. “Thou
hast also given me,” said David, “the shield of Thy salvation: ...
and Thy gentleness”—as an element in the human character—“hath
made me great.”
Psalm 18:35
.
The Saviour’s words awakened in the disciples a feeling of self-
distrust. John was led to question whether in one case his action had
been right. “Master,” he said, “we saw one casting out devils in Thy
name, ... and we forbade him, because he followeth not us.”
James and John thought that in checking this man they had in
view their Lord’s honor; they began to see they were jealous for their
own. They acknowledged their error, and accepted the reproof of
Jesus, “Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle
in My name, that can lightly speak evil of Me.” Many had been
deeply moved by the character and work of Christ, and their hearts
were opening to Him in faith. The disciples must be careful not to
discourage these souls. They must manifest the same far-reaching
sympathy they had seen in their Master.
Christ is the Great Teacher; we are to sit at His feet and learn of
Him. Every soul whom God has made willing is a channel through
which Christ will reveal His pardoning love. How careful we should