gather from records of obscure and mysterious origin,
transcriptions, it would seem, of something oral and traditional,
Christ aimed at bringing religion within the reach of the humblest and
simplest souls. Whatever doubt men may feel as to the literal accuracy
of these records in matters of fact, however much it may be held that
the relation of incidents was coloured by the popular belief of the
time in the possibility of miraculous manifestations, yet the words and
sayings of Christ emerge from the narrative, though in places it seems
as though they had been imperfectly apprehended, as containing and
expressing thoughts quite outside the range of the minds that recorded
them; and thus possess an authenticity, which is confirmed and proved
by the immature mental grasp of those who compiled the records, in a
way in which it would not have been proved, if the compilers had been
obviously men of mental acuteness and far-reaching philosophical grasp.

To express the religion of Christ in precise words would be a mighty
task; but it may be said that it was not merely a system, nor primarily
a creed; it was a message to individual hearts, bewildered by the
complexity of the world and the intricacy of religious observances.
Christ bade men believe that their Creator was also a Father; that the
only way to escape from the overwhelming difficulties presented by the
world was the way of simplicity, sincerity, and love; that a man should
keep out of his life all that insults and hurts the soul, and that he
should hold the interests of others as dear as he holds his own. It was
a protest against all ambition, and cruelty, and luxury, and
self-conceit. It showed that a man should accept his temperament and
his place in life, as gifts from the hands of his Father; and that he
should then be peaceful, pure, humble, and loving. Christ brought into
the world an entirely new standard; He showed that many respected and
reverenced persons were very far indeed from the Father; while many
obscure, sinful, miserable outcasts found the secret which the
respectable and contemptuous missed. Never was there a message which
cast so much hope abroad in rich handfuls to the world. The astonishing
part of the revelation was that it was so absolutely simple; neither
wealth, nor intellect, nor position, nor even moral perfection, were
needed. The simplest child, the most abandoned sinner, could take the
great gift as easily as the most honoured statesm