Gospel, Freshness of

“JESUS, THE SAME”

Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness

from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.”

Psalm 110:8

“Certain leaders in their young days have led their troops to battle, and by the loudness of their voice, and the strength of their bodies, they have inspired their men with courage; but the old warrior hath his hair sown with grey; he begins to be decrepid, and no longer can lead men to battle.  It is not so with Jesus Christ. He has still the dew of his youth. The same Christ who led his troops to battle in his early youth leads them now. The arm which smote the sinner with his word smites now; it is as unpalsied as it was before. The eye which looked upon his friends with gladness, and upon his foemen with a glance trust stern and high-that same eye is regarding us now, undimmed, like that of Moses. He has the dew of his youth. Oh! it does delight us to think that Christ was “God over all, blessed for ever,” in his youth, filled with Almighty power, and he is just the same now. He is not an old Christ a worn out Christ, but our leader still. He is as young as ever. The same dew, the same freshness is about him. . . .  But the Christian religion,-ah! it is as fresh as when it started from its cradle at Jerusalem, it is as hale, and hearty, and mighty, as when Paul preached it at Athens, or Peter at Jerusalem. It is not an old religion. Not one particle of it hath waxed old, though hundreds of years have passed away. How many religions have died since Christ’s began!  How many have risen up, like mushrooms in a night! But is not Christ’s as new as it ever was? I ask you, ye old grey heads, you have known your

Master in your youth, and you thought his religion sweet and precious; do you find it useless now? Do you find now that Christ has not the dew of youth upon him? No; you can say, “Sweet Jesus, the day I first touched thine hand, the day of mine espousals, I thought thee altogether lovely; and thou art not like an earthly friend: thou hast not waxed old; thou art as young as ever. Thy brow hath no furrows on it; thine eyes are not dim.  Thine hair is still black as the raven, not white with age; thou art still unmoved, unaltered, notwithstanding all the years that I have known thee.  Well, beloved, do you see what encouragement this is to us in the propagation of our Master’s kingdom, that we are not preaching an old thing that is out of date, but a religion which has the dew of its youth upon it.”

[Spurgeon, MTP, Vol. 2, 272-73]