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The Gospel of Jesus Christ According to
St. Matthew Pasquier
Quesnel Translated
by the Rev. Daniel Wilson, D.D., Vicar of Islington and now Bishop of Chapter X. The Instruction Of The Apostles. Sect. I.
Their Names. 1. AND when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. To call persons to the ecclesiastical ministry, belongs only to Him who can give power over the
unclean spirit of sin, and over the diseases of the soul. There are three
kinds of these diseases: (1.) Such as are caused by sins of impurity, which are the most obstinate, and like devils
which possess the whole soul. (2.) Sins of habit, which are,
as it were, lingering distempers. (3.) Sins of infirmity, which are the
(lesser) faults of negligence and inclination. 2. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; God often unites by grace those whom he
has before united by nature; to show us, that though nature be not a step toward grace, yet it is not always an
obstacle thereto. St. Andrew, the elder brother of St. Peter, and who knew
Jesus Christ before him, has not the honour to be named first, to teach us,
that God is master of his own gifts, and that nothing but his will gives us a
right to them. James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3. Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alpheus, and Lebbeus, whose surname was Thaddeus; 4. Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him. Let us adore the unsearchable judgment of
God, in the choice of a wicked minister, whose unworthiness he knew. Let us
learn from hence, that no merit gives a right to the ministry, but the sole
choice of God by the church. Christ would not put into the ministry none but saints, to oblige us not to judge of the church’s
holiness by some of her ministers. He would not place in it any of the rich,
noble, powerful, or learned; for fear men should affix ecclesiastical
dignities to temporal advantages. Let us suffer the bad with patience; let us
adore Christ, and his authority abased in them; yet so as that the sacraments
lose not any of their effect thereby; and let us by this believe, that it is
Jesus Christ who does all therein, even by the hands of the most unworthy
workmen. Sect. II. Their Mission, Power, Poverty,
And Preaching. 5. These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: Let us not go where inclination, but where
God’s command carries us. Vocation, mission, instruction, and holiness are
four different gifts, which a man must receive from God by Jesus Christ, to
qualify him for a worthy labourer. The very same instructions are given in
common to all, in order to establish a uniformity of maxims, conduct, and
discipline. Such as God seems at first to have neglected or rejected, are
often those for whom he has designed his greatest mercies. He has his own
proper time to discover and reveal them. 6. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. A good pastor ought to apply himself to
the most diseased of his sheep; and the diseases are the greater, where there
is the more ingratitude and abuse of the divine favours. God is faithful to
his promises, even in respect of the most un worthy; but often, through the
corruption of their heart, and contrary to his design, his faithfulness turns
to their greater condemnation. Men sometimes look upon certain prerogatives
and preferences as an honour, which are no other than a subject of fear and
humiliation. 7. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. See here the first efforts of the apostles
preaching. “Preach,” to establish the faith; “the kingdom,” to animate the
hope; “of heaven,” to inspire the love of heavenly things, and the contempt
of earthly; “which is at hand,” that men may pre pare for it without delay.
Every Christian ought frequently to repeat this to himself, and to live as
continually expecting this kingdom. He who, instead of desiring it, dreads
its approach, has but little of the relish and spirit of it. Pour, Lord, the
love of it into my heart, for thou alone canst do it. 8. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: The word of Christ, so efficacious as to
give what it commands toward the removal of bodily diseases, can it be less
so in the healing of spiritual? He gives them the power of working the same
miracles with himself, to show us that they acted only in his name, and by
virtue of it. Let us learn, in our good works, to join bodily relief to
spiritual. Freely ye have received, freely give. A rule very necessary this, and of large
extent, that we must serve God and his church “freely.” What a shame is it
for a man to traffic with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, of which he is not the
master, but the dispenser! It is a piece of theft, injustice, irreverence,
and disobedience. A man may drive a trade, or traffic with them several ways;
by pride and vanity, when he desires by them to gain esteem and applause; by
avarice, when he makes use of them to enrich himself.
Preachers, and spiritual guides, will never sufficiently comprehend how great
disinterestedness Christ requires of them. How few are there whom a perfect
disengagement from all manner of interest qualifies to say, that they “give
freely!” 9. Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses; An apostolical
workman resigns himself to the divine Providence for the necessaries of life.
If the ministers of Jesus Christ ought to be disengaged from their own
wealth, how much more from that of others? What avails it for a man to have
no gold in his purse, if he have it in his heart? It
is the greatest blindness imaginable in a clergyman, to act quite contrary to
this direction of Christ, in being chiefly solicitous about providing gold
and silver. How many blind persons of this sort are there! 10. Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat. Nothing should detain an evangelical
workman; he ought always to be ready to set forward. The equipage of an
ambassador of Jesus Christ was (at first) only poverty; his provisions, his
trust in the providence of God, and in the charity of the faithful. He who preaches the gospel, ought to make it known by his
life. The maintenance of the clergy is a matter of justice and of divine
right. He who labours in the church, not he who does nothing there, has a
right to live of the church’s revenue, but not therewith to support his
luxury and his vanity. 11. And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence. A priest ought to be very careful of his
reputation; to lodge with persons of a regular life,
and to avoid all suspicion of levity, or of loving good cheer and the
conveniences of life. To receive and entertain workmen truly evangelical, is a favour of which everybody is not worthy.
12. And when ye come into a house, salute it. 13. And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you. The peace of the gospel is that which
charity and a good conscience give. This is to pay the master of the house
largely beforehand to pray for him, and to offer him peace; namely, the
knowledge of Christ, the righteousness of the kingdom of God, and the grace
of faith. A man is not worthy to receive this peace, till chosen by God, and
prevented by his grace and mercy. The merit of a preacher of the gospel does
not depend upon his success. The mortification of a repulse is a gain to a
man of God. There is always great advantage to be made in the service of a
master who requires nothing but a good will and obedience, and who bestows
even that which he requires. 14. And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. Whoever, out of contempt or neglect,
neither reads nor hears the word of God, and whoever does it without
improving thereby, ought he not to fear a more terrible malediction? It is
necessary that the world should know that we do not seek it for the sake of
its riches; and that we would not have any conversation with it, but only in
order to its salvation. When it will no longer hear us speak of this, it is
time for us to retire from it. 15. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city. How great a crime is it not to receive, or
to despise the truth! If men are thus treated for not having received the
preachers of the % gospel, what will it be to despise the gospel itself, to
decry it, to preach the contrary, to hinder the preaching of it, to abuse
those who do it as they ought, and to stop the fruit of it by calumnies? Sect. III. The Wise Simplicity. Boldness
Before Magistrates. The Holy Spirit Speaking In Us. 16. Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. It is but a small thing for a labourer in
the gospel to be prepared for the repulses of the world; he ought to look
upon himself as a “sheep in the midst of wolves.” Such a person must be a
perfect lamb, that he may oppose nothing to the artifices and violence of the
world but the simplicity and meekness of that creature. Where can we find
those, now-a- days, who embrace ecclesiastical dignities only as a state of
labour and suffering? That we may neither draw upon ourselves persecution by
our imprudence, nor endeavour to avoid it against the divine command, and by
ways contrary to the simplicity of the dove, it is necessary to join these two
qualities, wisdom and simplicity, which nothing but the Spirit of God alone
can unite in one soul. 17. But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; Let us not trust or depend upon every one.
Even the best friends are to be suspected, when the business is to consult
whether a man shall show his weakness, together with them, to avoid the
ill-treatment of carnal men, or expose himself to
every thing that he may continue faithful to God. Christ conceals not from
his disciples what they have to undergo in his service, because he will not
deceive any one; and because it belongs to Him to fortify the heart of man,
and to render it invincible to all things. 18. And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles. This is matter of wonderful comfort and
encouragement to such as are sent to preach or
teach, that they can be assured that it is the cause of God and of Christ,
which they have to maintain before the powers of the earth. God never
forsakes him who takes his interests to heart. It is the duty of a preacher
to declare the truth to kings, but with abundance of prudence. He who flatters them, makes himself an accomplice in their
sins. 19. But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. The Holy Spirit is in the heart, in the
mind, and on the tongue of those who are to speak for Christ, and who belong
to him. Neither surprise, nor defect of talent, nor even ignorance, can hurt
the cause of God, when the heart is ready to defend it. This promise banishes
all distrust and disquiet on dangerous occasions, but without encouraging
sloth and negligence, and without dispensing with the obligation we are
under, to prepare ourselves, by the meditation of Christian truths, by the
study of the Holy Scriptures, and by prayer. A promise so positive would more
frequently have its effect, if the incredulity of man did not oppose it. 20. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. The Holy Spirit animates the confessors of
Christ, and makes them speak. The Head speaks in his members by his Spirit.
It belongs to the Spirit of God to speak for God. It is the Spirit of the
Father which speaks, because he works powerfully in the heart of his
children, puts into their mouth what they ought to speak, and causes them to
do it. Mayest thou, Holy Spirit, speak in me upon
all occasions, since on all occasions I ought to speak like a Christian, only
for the glory of God, and by thy impulse and direction! 21. And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. Although good men be
left to the wicked for a while, yet one ought not to be scandalized at it;
Jesus Christ himself was left thus. We accuse the gospel of severity, because
it requires us to renounce our human passions and natural affections; and yet
there is nothing in all this which comes near that which the devil here
causes the wicked to do. Very often by means of detraction, coloured and
disguised under a pretence of piety, men in some manner exercise this
cruelty, arming Christian against Christian, the shepherd against the sheep,
and the sheep against the shepherd. 22. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. Two things are necessary in order to
salvation. The first, to suffer at the hands of the world. The second, to
persevere under suffering. It is grievous to nature to see one’s
self continually exposed to the hatred of carnal men; but when it is for thy
name’s sake, my God for the sake of thy truth, and for being faithful to thee
how lovely is this hatred! Salvation is the fruit of perseverance; but
perseverance is a gift of God, as little due to the sinner as salvation
itself. Sect. IV. Persecution To Be Avoided. 23. But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come. It is prudence and humility, when charity
or righteous ness obliges us not to the contrary, to avoid persecution. To
deprive those who are disposed to do evil of the opportunities of doing it,
to convey the grace which they despise to others, to accomplish the designs
of God’s justice on the former, and of his mercy on
the latter, are consequences of the flight of a persecuted preacher. This
flight is a matter of precept to pastors who are necessary to the church; of
advice to those who would draw upon themselves persecution; and of indulgence
for those who are weak. But this flight is highly criminal in those mercenary
pastors who abandon the flock to the wolf. 24. The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. He
who keeps this saying in his heart, will never complain of what he suffers,
nor seek for any other way to save himself, but humiliation and the cross.
How many irregular thoughts, affections, and motions, is this maxim capable
of restraining! Let us remember, that Jesus Christ is the great Master of
humility, suffering, and poverty; and that we are his disciples. A man is not
such, unless he learn his doctrine; and he does not learn it as he ought,
unless he put it in practice. 25. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? What injustice is it for a Christian,
being a disciple of Christ, to desire to be treated well by the world! What a
shame, not to be able to suffer so much as a word, after all which He has
suffered! This delicacy and tenderness in ministers of the gospel, and in a
Christian; contests about small rights or imaginary prerogatives; and an
excessive sense of injuries, do but little agree with this maxim. This is a
solid consolation for those who are oppressed under the calumnies of false
brethren. 26. Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known. He who can make us suffer nothing but what
Christ has suffered, is not to be feared. Men cannot make any thing die in
us, but what died in him. Had men always been feared, we should never have
had any martyrs. God sees every thing; this is the comfort of good men, and
the despair of the wicked. When a man has once undertaken the ministry of the
word, he ought to consider more the designs of God, as to the truths of the
gospel, which he would have made manifest, than the threats of men, who set
themselves in opposition thereto. It is of small import for one man to be
crushed by another; but it is of the greatest importance that God’s will be
done, and his truth known, honoured, and defended by men. 27. What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. A man ought to preach only that which he
has learned from God, in the secret exercise of prayer, of meditation on the
Scriptures, and of the study of the holy fathers. In this lies the obligation
of the ministers of the gospel, who should be the disciples of God, and of
his word, before they become the instructors of the faithful. The church has
now no more hidden mysteries, nor secret truths; and it is now the time to
reveal all the knowledge and grace which Christ has committed to her. It is
to injure religion, to imagine that it contains some truths or mysteries
which ought to be concealed. It is to do wrong to Christians, to deprive them
of that which is designed for their sanctification and salvation. This is to
resist the Holy Ghost, who is given to the church on purpose to teach it all
truth. Sect. V. God Only To Be Feared And
Trusted. 28. And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. It is prudence, to deliver up the body in
order to save the soul; this is to cast the lading of the vessel into the
sea, to preserve the men from destruction. A man loses nothing when he loses
that only which must perish. That which is visible in me is in the power of
men; but it is not by this that I am what I am. Let us fear none but him, who
can make the invisible and immortal part of us suffer and die. My God is my
life; I die not, but when I lose him. What strange blindness is it, to expose
that part of ourselves which should enjoy God eternally, to save that by
which we enjoy nothing but the creatures, and them only for a moment! It is
not hell which we must fear, but that Almighty Being who there punishes those
eternally, who have been so far from loving him above all things, that they
have preferred a mere trifle to him. 29. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. All things are ordered by the will of God;
this is the great consolation of those who suffer. The belief of his
providence is a powerful support under the most grievous accidents of life.
Nothing escapes his observation, not even the smallest things, of which he is
only the Creator; how much less those, whereof he is the Father, the Saviour,
and the eternal felicity! 30. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Nothing is more wonderful, or more
incomprehensible, than the care and concern of God for his elect. The least
circum stances of their life are regulated, not by the general providence,
which extends to all things, but by a particular providence, which fits and
directs all things to the design of their salvation. Every thing is happy in
the death of a true Christian, how sudden, unfortunate, and calamitous soever it appear, because every
thing therein promotes his salvation. 31. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. How great is the value of a soul for which
Christ has given his blood and his life! What confidence ought it not to have
in his goodness! It is just, Lord, that he should have nothing but fear and
disquiet who will not rest in thy providence. How sweet is it to trust to
thee, and to leave thee to act as thou pleasest! Sect. VI. Jesus Christ Is To Be Confessed.
32. Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I con fess also before my Father which is in heaven. To confess Jesus Christ, is to follow his
precepts and example; to suffer for his sake; to love, teach, and practise
his doctrine. We have but little faith, if such a promise is not capable of
encouraging us to bear testimony to the truth at the expense of all things.
We own Christ, when we own his doctrine, his ministers, his servants, and
when no fear hinders us from supporting and assisting them in the time of
necessity. We refer this great truth to the times of the martyrs for no other
reason, but only because we will not ourselves be martyrs for the truth. It
belongs to all times, and to all sorts of per sons:
every one in his proper way. 33. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. Whoever prefers his interest to his duty,
with relation to truth and justice, he sets a greater value upon the
friendship of men than upon that of God, and in some
manner denies Jesus Christ. What confusion will it be to those, who shall not
have confessed Christ before men, to see themselves denied by him before God!
Did we thoroughly conceive, that to be denied by
Christ, is to have him neither for a Mediator nor a Saviour, but to be
treated as reprobates; human respects, and the fear of men, could have no
influence upon us. To appear before the tribunal of God, without having
Christ for our advocate; and on the contrary, to have him there as a party, a
witness, and a Judge: how can we think of it, and not expire with horror! 34. Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. Notwithstanding this declaration of
Christ, it is this earthly peace and repose which all the world seek. If it
be a sin, to think that this repose, built on secular desires and a false
peace of conscience, is consistent with the gospel of Christ, what will it be
to teach this doctrine, to preach it, and by means of dangerous maxims to
confirm and encourage souls therein. 35. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. The truths of the gospel set at variance
in order to unite to God, and oppose the false peace of concupiscence, for no
other end but to establish that of charity. It is very hard to deprive
ourselves of the comfort of these relations; but we shall receive ample
amends, by that incomprehensible union with God and Christ which attends us
in heaven, and by the society of angels and saints which is promised us by
truth itself. 36. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. Our relations then are oftentimes the
greatest enemies of our salvation. The greater our fondness is toward earthly
things, the more capable are they of hurting us in respect of our salvation.
The father is the enemy of his son, when, through a bad education, an
irregular love, and a cruel indulgence, he leaves him to take a wrong bias,
instructs him not in his duty, and puts ambition into his head. The son is
the father’s enemy, when he is the occasion of his doing injustice, in order
to heap up an estate for him, and to make his fortune. The mother is the
daughter’s enemy, when she instructs her to please the world, breeds her up
in excess and vanity, and suffers any thing scandalous and unseemly in her
dress. The daughter is the mother s, when she becomes her idol, when she engages
her to comply with her own irregular inclinations, and to permit her to
frequent plays and balls. The master is the enemy of his servant, and the
servant that of his master, when the one takes no care of the other’s salvation,
and the other is subservient to his master’s passions. Sect. VII. The Predominant Love. Contempt
Of Life. 37. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. He who loves not Christ above all things
is not worthy to have him for his Head. The life and the works are the things
which show plainly, which of all these affections reigns in the heart. He whom we love the most, is he whom we study most to
please, and whose will and interests we most commonly prefer. Let us judge
ourselves by this rule. He who is not worthy of Christ, that is, to be a
Christian and member of Christ, is unworthy of any thing but hell. A soul,
raised above all earthly things, is that which is worthy of Jesus Christ. 38. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. To take the cross and follow after Christ, is not a bare matter of advice, but a necessary
means of salvation. It is not sufficient, in order to be really worthy of
Christ, for a man not to be fond of any of the sweets of life; he must also
be prepared for all the bitterness of the cross. A wicked person refuses,
instead of taking it; a philosopher seems to take it, but not in following
Christ. Only the Christian takes it, either by choice or acceptance, and
bears it for the sake of Christ, in his spirit, and after his example. 39. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it. He who despises his life in time, preserves it to eternity. The love of life is the most sensible and
the most violent temptation; and it is even the love of life, which should
make us surmount it; because we should be ready to give up our mortal life,
in order to obtain that which is immortal. What ever a man sacrifices to God
is never lost, because he finds it again in God. That person may be said to
lose his life for the sake of God, who sacrifices it by a state of repentance
and mortification, or who employs it for God in that state and condition to
which he has been pleased to call him. Sect. VIII. The Reward Of Charity. 40. He that receiveth you receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. 41. He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward: and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. In our neighbour whom we assist, we must
direct our eyes toward Christ by faith, if we would find him there by charity.
It is no small honour, or slight advantage, to receive into one’s house a
minister of Jesus Christ. The less personal merit such minister has, the
greater is faith which discovers that of Christ in him. Everybody is not
admitted to exercise the sacred ministry; but none are excluded from
partaking of its grace, its spirit, and its reward. No one can tell how far
the charity of those extends, who contribute to the instruction of their
neighbours; by being concerned in the maintenance of colleges, schools,
catechetical lectures, missions, good pastors, and other truly evangelical
workmen. But how much the more useful such a workman is, and the more service
he does the church, so much the greater must his reward be, who entertains,
receives, and supports him, for the sake of Christ and his church. 42. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward. Charity heightens the smallest actions. It
is this which recommends good works. Under a just and merciful God, no sin is
unpunished, no good action is unrewarded. It belongs to men to reward what is
done upon human motive; and to God, to crown that which proceeds from a
Christian disposition. Jesus Christ confirms this last promise with an oath;
to this end, that we should not doubt but that the
most indigent may exercise works of mercy, and that the least of such works
will be rewarded. In the world, a man must make his court to great persons,
and do them very great services, in order to receive a great reward for them.
In the kingdom of God, a man, in doing the smallest services to the meanest
persons, may justly hope for a very great reward. |
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