The word went throughout the land that Jesus was coming to this mountain; and a great mult.i.tude of people gathered in the hollow place between its two crowns, all waiting to see Jesus. He came to the mountain and went up alone to one of its hill-tops. All night Jesus was there in prayer with his heavenly Father; for he had an important work to do, and before any great work Jesus prayed to G.o.d. In the morning he called forth out of the vast company of people before him twelve men, who were to be with him all the time, go with him wherever he should go, listen to his teachings, and learn them by heart, and be ready to preach his words when he should send them out. These twelve men Jesus afterward called "apostles," which means "men sent out"; but they were generally named "the twelve." They are also spoken of as "the disciples," although the word "disciples" is also used of all the followers of Jesus.

Most of the twelve men had been called before, and had been for some time with Jesus. Others were new men whom Jesus called now for the first time. Their names are arranged in pairs, two of them together.

They were Simon Peter and Andrew his brother; James and John, the sons of Zebedee; Philip and his friend Bartholomew, also called Nathanael; Thomas and Matthew, who had been the tax-gatherer; James the son of Alphaeus; another Simon, who was called "the Zealot," and Judas Iscariot, the one who afterward became the traitor and sold his Lord to his enemies. About most of these men we know very little, but some of them in later years did a great work for the church of Christ. Simon Peter was always a leader among the Twelve, being a man of quick mind and ready words; and John long after that time wrote "The Gospel according to John," one of the most wonderful books in the world.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Kurn Hattin, where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: In the morning he called forth out of the vast company of people before him twelve men.]

In the sight of all the people Jesus called these men to stand by his side. Then he came down from the mountain-top to the hollow place between the two summits. He sat down, with his twelve chosen men around him, and beyond this a great crowd of people. To the Twelve and to the listening mult.i.tude Jesus preached that great sermon which is called "The Sermon on the Mount." Matthew wrote it down, and you can read it in his gospel, the first book of the New Testament, in the fifth, sixth and seventh chapters. How fortunate it was that Jesus called the tax-gatherer to be one of his disciples, a man who could remember and write this great sermon for all the world to read! We give here only a few parts from this Sermon on the Mount. Jesus began with words of comfort to his followers:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see G.o.d. Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called sons of G.o.d. Blessed are they that have been persecuted for righteousness' sake; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Then he spoke to his disciples of what they were to be among men:

"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt have lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men."

He went on, perhaps pointing to a town not far away, built on the top of a hill and seen everywhere around:

"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.

Neither do men light a lamp, and put it under a bushel, but on the stand; and it giveth light to all the house. Even so let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."

He told his disciples how they should feel and act toward those who had done wrong to them:

"Ye have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who do you wrong, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven: for he makes his sun to rise on the bad as well as the good, and sends rain alike on the just and on the unjust. For if you love only those who love you, what reward do you have? Why, the tax-gatherers whom you despise do as much. And if you speak only to your friends, wherein are you better than others? For even the Gentiles do the same. You should be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

He spoke also of the aims which men should seek in their lives:

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroy, and where thieves do not break through nor steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

"No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve G.o.d and Mammon, who is the G.o.d worshipped by this world. Therefore I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink; nor for your body, what you shall put on. Surely, life means more than food, surely the body means more than clothes! Look at the birds flying above you; they do not sow, nor reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth more than the birds?

"And why should you be anxious about your clothing? Look how the lilies of the field grow: they neither toil nor spin, and yet Solomon in all his glory was never robed like one of these! Now, if G.o.d so clothes the gra.s.s of the fields, which blooms today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you who trust G.o.d so little?"

"Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we have to eat?' or 'what shall we have to drink?' or 'how can we get clothes to wear?' Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. Seek the kingdom of G.o.d, and do right according to his will: then all these things will be yours. Do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Each day's own trouble is enough to be anxious over."

Here is what Jesus said as the ending of his sermon:

"Everyone who hears these words of mine, and acts upon them, is like a wise man, who built his house upon rock. The rain fell, the floods rose, the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, for it was founded upon rock.

"And every one that hears these words of mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods rose, the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell, and great was its fall."

When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were filled with wonder at his way of teaching. He spoke with the authority of a Master, unlike their own scribes. Most of the scribes when they were teaching would speak in the name of earlier teachers, and say, "Rabbi Jonathan said this," or "Rabbi Hillel said that." But Jesus spoke in his own name, saying, "I say this to you."

[Ill.u.s.tration: Jesus receives the message from the army captain: "Lord, do not trouble yourself to come to my house, for I am not worthy to have one so great under my roof; but only speak a word where you are, and my servant shall be healed."]

The Good Army Captain

CHAPTER 30

AT CAPERNAUM there was an officer of the Roman army, a captain, having under him a company of one hundred men. This man was not of the Jewish people, but a Gentile, which was the name that the Jews gave to all people outside of their own race. All the world, except themselves, the Jews called Gentiles.

This army captain was a good man, and he was very friendly to the Jews, because through them he had heard of the true G.o.d, and had learned to worship him. Out of his love for the Jews he had built for them with his own money a church, and had given it to them. This may have been the very church in which Jesus taught on the Sabbath days.

The army captain had a young servant, a boy whom he loved greatly; and this boy was very sick with the palsy and near to death. The army captain had heard that Jesus could cure those who were sick; and he asked the chief men of the church, who were called its "elders," to go to Jesus and ask him to come to the captain's house, that he might lay his hands on the boy and make him well. The elders spoke to Jesus soon after he came again to Capernaum, after preaching on the mountain. They asked him to go with them to the captain's house and cure his servant, and they added:

"He is a worthy man, and it is fitting that you should help him, for though a Gentile, he loves our people, and he has built for us our church."

Then Jesus said, "I will go and cure him."

But while Jesus was on his way to the captain's house, and with him the elders and a company of people, who hoped to see another wonderful cure, he was met by some friends of the captain, who brought this message:

"Lord, do not take the trouble to come to my house: for I am not worthy to have one so great as you are under my roof; and I sent to you, because I am not worthy to speak to you myself. But speak only a word where you are, and my servant shall be made well. For although I am myself a man under authority and rule, I have soldiers under me to carry out my will. I say to one man 'Go,' and he goes; I say to another man 'Come,' and he comes. I tell my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it. You, too, have power to command and be obeyed. Only speak the word and my servant shall be cured."

When Jesus heard this he wondered at this man's faith. He turned to the crowd that followed and said:

"In truth I say to you all, I have not found such faith as this in all Israel. And I tell you further, that many like this man, who are not Israelites, shall come from places in the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of G.o.d. But many of those who are the children of Israel, because they have not believed, shall never enter into G.o.d's kingdom, but shall be thrust forth into the darkness outside."

And Jesus said to those who came from the captain's house:

"Go back and say to this man in my name, 'As you have believed, even so shall it be done to you.'"

They went to the captain's house, and found his servant, who had been at the point of death, now free from his palsy and brought back to perfect health.

How Jesus Stopped a Funeral

CHAPTER 31

JESUS WENT on a journey for preaching through the southern parts of Galilee, as before he had visited the villages among the mountains near the sea. He walked out of Capernaum with the twelve disciples and a crowd of followers which grew larger as he went on. They pa.s.sed by Mount Tabor, and just before sunset they came to a small city at the foot of another mountain, the Hill Moreh. This place was named Nain. Outside the gate Jesus and his followers paused to allow a funeral procession to pa.s.s by. In front were women wailing aloud, flinging their arms up and down and chanting a song about the young man who had died. The body was wrapped in long strips of linen, and was lying upon a couch, carried by bearers. After it walked an old woman, the young man's mother, who was a widow, burying her only son; and with her were many of the people in the city, showing their sorrow for the widow at the loss of her son.

When Jesus saw this weeping mother, he felt a great pity for her and said to her, "Do not weep." He stepped forward and touched the couch on which the body was lying. The men who were carrying it stood still with wonder at the coming of this stranger, whose look showed power. Standing beside the dead young man, he said:

"Young man, I say unto you, Rise up!"

Instantly the young man sat up and began to speak. Jesus took him by the hand and gave him to his mother. She received him into her arms, and found his cold body now warm with life, the dull eyes now bright. Her son that had died that day was alive once more.

The people who were looking on now felt that indeed a marvelous work had been done. Many of them had seen Jesus before, and knew him; and even those who had not seen him had heard of him, and said, "This must be that great teacher from Nazareth!" Many fell on their faces before him; and some said, "A great prophet has come among us," and others said, "Surely G.o.d has visited his people!"

[Ill.u.s.tration: Ruins of Nain, near which Jesus restored to life the widow's son]