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1. How much is contained in the face of Jesus Christ? Everything — the glory of God, for Christ is the Son of God; all that pertains to ideal humanity, for Christ is true man; the history of everything pertaining to redemption is written there.

2. The Bible is a photographic album. It is full of faces taken from God's camera. Chief among these is the face of Jesus. It is a remarkable thing that nowhere have we any clue to Christ's physical identity. We have no portrait of His person, nor have we any authentic description of it. Coins and statues reveal the features of some contemporaries of Jesus, and history gives pen-pictures of Socrates, etc.; but of Him, the one historic personage of whose form and face the whole world most desires some knowledge, there is not a trace in the Bible.

3. Why this absence of Christ in marble or on canvas? Why this silence of inspired biographers? I believe it was from God. God sets Christ forth as man, and not as any particular man, so that He may not be localised.

4. We are satisfied with this way of presenting the face of Jesus Christ. While we do not have His features, we have His mind, His moral qualities, His spiritual nature. After all, is it not the aim of true art to set forth these qualities? A true artist is not satisfied with putting mere physical beauty upon the canvas. Let us turn the pages of the Bible album and look into some of the faces of Jesus Christ. There is —

I. THE HEROIC FACE (Luke 9:41).

1. That face turned Jerusalem-ward is a mirror. He kept His face fronting awful realities. That fixed face ought to move our souls, and react in our fidelity to Him and His cause.

2. Do not undervalue His heroism as seen in this face. He did not find it easy to walk to Jerusalem. The shrinking of His sensitive humanity stood in the way. The words imply a desperate conflict, and victory won only by means of it.

3. This heroic face helps to set forth the fierceness of the battle of Calvary, which He won as our champion.

II. THE FACE BRUISED BY HUMAN CONTEMPT AND INTOLERANCE. This picture is a revelation of the patience of Jesus. He was keenly sensitive, and yet He bore all this indignity without a murmur.

III. THE FACE IN THE DUST (Matthew 26:39). Gethsemane was to the prostrate form Calvary before its time. Gethsemane means simply Christ shrinking from sin.

IV. THE FACE AWFULLY MARRED (Isaiah 53.). This is the face of Christ when sin and suffering have completed their work. The hand of time takes the human face and works into it every experience through which the man passes, just as the sculptor works his thoughts into a piece of marble. His earthly career was enough to mar any face, and especially a face which belonged to a nature so exquisitely constructed.

V. THE TRANSFIGURED FACE. This revelation is better than the face of God in nature. When we look into the face of history the different attributes of God seem to clash; but in the life of Jesus all the attributes of God are brought into play, and they work together in perfect harmony.

VI. THE FACE IN THE WHITE THRONE. We can only recognise the fact that this face is there.

VII. THE FLASHING FACE AMID THE GOLDEN CANDLESTICKS (Revelation 1.). In the face buried in the dust we saw a reflection of the dark past; in the flashing face amid the golden candlesticks we see a reflection of the glorious future. Conclusion:

1. Our treatment of the face of Jesus Christ is an index of our character. Among our privileges is access to the face of Jesus Christ. If we avail ourselves of this privilege we indicate a familiarity with Christ, and a knowledge of Christ, and a desire and a love toward Christ. We indicate that we are born from above and are the sons of God.

2. The face of Christ affords an inexhaustible and soul-satisfying study. Looking forward to his awakening from the grave, the Hebrew poet sings, "As for me, I shall behold Thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake with Thy likeness." The highest prayer which Christ found it possible to pray for us was, "Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am; that they may behold My glory."

(D. Gregg.)

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KJV: For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.

WEB: For we don't preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake;