e he sought?

(3) _The Answer was Sufficient_. Together with the works of
beneficence, the Lord drew John's attention to words he seemed in
danger of forgetting; "Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the
feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong; fear
not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of
God. He will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be
opened; and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped; then shall the
lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall sing; for in
the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert."
"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord hath anointed
Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent Me to bind up the
broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of
the prison to them that are bound." The Lord strove to convince the
questioner that his views were too partial and limited, and to send him
back to a more comprehensive study of the old Scriptures. It was as
though Jesus said, "Go to your master, and tell him to take again the
ancient prophecy and study it. He has taken the sterner predictions to
the neglect of the gentler, softer ones. It is true that I am to
proclaim the day of vengeance; but first I must reveal the acceptable
year. It is true that I am to come as a Mighty One, and my arm shall
rule for Me; but it is also true that I am to feed my flock like a
Shepherd, and gather the lambs in my arm."

We make the same mistake. We have but a partial view of Christ, and
need to get back to the Bible afresh, and study anew its comprehensive
words; then we shall come to understand that the present is the time of
the hiding of his power, the time of waiting, the time of the gentler
ministries. Some day He will gird on his sword; some day He will
winnow his floor; some day He will ride in a chariot of flame; some day
He will sit upon the throne and judge those who oppress the innocent
and take advantage of the poor. We have not yet seen the end of the
Lord: we have not all the evidence. This is our mistake. But our
Saviour is offering us every day evidences of his Divine and loving
power. Last week I saw Him raise the dead; yesterday, before my eyes,
He struck the chains from a prisoner; at this hour He is giving sight
to the blind; to-morrow He will cast out demons. The world is full of
evidences of his gracious and Divine power