The Attraction of His Person

"Draw me after thee, and let us run" (Song of Songs 1:4).

What a great attraction must have been in the person of the Lord to the eye and heart that were illuminated by the light of the Holy Spirit, and the apostles are the best witness of that.

They knew little of Him from the educational point of view, and they gained nothing from their stay with Him from the material point of view, yet they held fast to Him, and clung to His person. It cannot be said that they benefited from His power to work miracles.

We have reason to judge that He did not usually use this power for them, yet they remained with Him, and for His sake they left their homes and families. What influence did His character have upon the souls whom the Father gave Him! We need to know Him personally more than we do now.

The apostles had this knowledge in those early days, and their souls felt the power and authority of that knowledge over them. We need much of it. We may be busy knowing facts about Him, and we may be clever in that, but the disciples, with their simplicity, leave us with all our information behind them, and far from them in the field of their love and affection for Him.

I do not hesitate to say that it is good for us that our hearts should be led to Him by the attraction of His person, rather than by our knowledge of Him (I mean the educational knowledge). One of the most special features of the Christian faith and the secret of its strength is that all that it contains and all that it offers is gathered together in one person.

This has made it strong where everything else has weakened, for we have not only salvation, but also a Savior; we have not only redemption, but also a Redeemer. What a difference there is between submitting our souls to a complex constitution full of laws, and throwing ourselves upon a beating heart! Between accepting a system, and clinging to a person present and living for all ages and generations. His person called me, His blood redeemed me, His love brought me to the cross, O great is the grace of the Beloved.

Written by/ Balalt