Jesus Only
Cl And when they had lifted up their eyes, they scnu no man, save Jesus only.” — Matt. xvii. 8.
It is when I have lifted up mine eyes that I am impressed with the solitary majesty of the Son of Man; it is in the elevation of my own moral view that I see Him to be what He is — the King of kings. When my moral view was not lofty I thought of Him as of other men; I would have built for Moses and Elias tabernacles by His side. But when the transfiguration glory touched me I awoke to His glory — His solitary, unrivalled glory. I saw Him to be the chief among ten thousand, and fairer than the children of men. Moses and Elias faded from the mountain’s brow, and He stood alone in peerless, unapproachable splendour; I saw no man there save Jesus only. I never knew before that it was so great a thing to be good, for I had not felt before the struggle between the old life and the new. It was only when, like the disciples on the mount, I had fallen prostrate in the struggle to be holy that I learned how really heroic it was to keep the conscience pure. It was from the depth of my conscious abasement that I lifted up mine eyes with longing to the hills of holiness. The Son of Man became to me more than all the sons of men — the first, the last, the only one, the altogether lovely. The strength of Elias paled before Him. I felt that to conquer by fire was easier than to conquer by love, that to shed the blood of enemies required less strength than to shed one’s own, and I lifted up mine eyes in reverence to behold Jesus only.
0 Son of Man, may Thine image ever be thus peerless in my heart. May Thy presence fill all things, so as to leave no room for any other presence. May Thy glory be above the heavens, so that I have no need of the sun. May Thy tabernacle stretch for me over all creation, so that neither Moses nor Elias may build a tabernacle beside Thee. In all the forms of nature, in all the events of life, I would see Thee and Thee only. In all beauty 1 would behold the reflex of Thy beauty, in all wisdom I would see the inspiration of Thy wisdom, in all love I would trace the impress of Thy love. I would meet Thee in life’s cloud alike as in its sunshine; I would feel that in Thy presence the night were even as the day. I would allow no tabernacle to be built beside Thee, in honour of chance or accident; my explanation of all things would be “The Lord reigneth.” I would feel my need of Thy presence more and more. I know that the nearer I come to Thee the more will I experience the sensation of Thy disciple that I am “following afar off.” But I will not shrink from that experience; it comes from the light that comes from Thee. I would be nearer to Thee every day, every hour, every moment, for it is only in being near to Thee that I shall learn how far off I am following Thee, how infinitely thou transcendest me. When I have beheld the summit of the mount I shall find none there but Thee.