True Words for Brave Men | Page 3

its fellow men; and therefore it was, that
when the Centurion came into the divine presence of Christ, he knew at
once, instinctively and by a glance, into what a presence he had come.
Christ's mere countenance, Christ's mere bearing, I believe, told that
good soldier who He was. He knew of old the look of great
commanders: and now he saw a countenance, in spite of all its
sweetness, more commanding than he had ever seen before. He knew
of old the bearing of Consuls and of Emperors: and now, in spite of
Christ's lowly disguise, he recognised the bearing of an Emperor of
emperors, a King of kings. He had learnt of old to know a man when he
met one; and now, he felt that he had met the Man of all men, the Son
of Man; and that so God-like was His presence, that He must be
likewise the Son of God.
And so had this good soldier his reward; his reward for the soldierly
qualities which he had acquired; for subordination; for reverence; for
admiration of great and able men. And what was his reward? Not
merely that his favourite servant was healed at his request: but that he
learnt to know the Lord Jesus Christ, whom truly to know is everlasting
life; whom the selfish, the conceited, the envious, the slanderous, the

insolent, the mutinous, know not, and never will know; for they are not
of His Spirit, neither is He of theirs.
But more: What is the moral which old divines have drawn from this
story? "If you wish to govern: learn first to obey." That is a moral
lesson more valuable than even the use of arms. To learn--as the good
Centurion learnt--that a free man can give up his independence without
losing it. Losing it? Independence is never more called out than by
subordination. A man never feels himself so much of a free man as
when he is freely obeying those whom the laws of his country have set
over him. A man never feels so able as when he is following the lead of
an abler man than himself. Remember this. Make it a point of honour to
do your duty earnestly, scrupulously, and to the uttermost; and you will
find that the habits of self-restraint, discipline, and obedience, which
you, as soldiers, have learned, will stand you in good stead for the rest
of your lives, and make you each, in his place, fit to rule, just because
you have learned to obey.
But now go on a step, as the good Centurion went on, and say--If there
is no succeeding in earthly things, whether in soldiering or any other
profession, without subordination; without obeying rules and orders
strictly and without question: then perhaps there is no succeeding in
spiritual and heavenly things. For has not God His moral Laws, His
spiritual Laws, which must be obeyed, if you intend to prosper in this
life, or in the life to come?
"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and soul, and thy
neighbour as thyself. Thou shalt honour thy father and thy mother.
Thou shalt not kill, steal, commit adultery, slander, or covet." So it is
written: not merely on those old tables of stone on Sinai; but in The
Eternal Will of God, and in the very nature of this world, which God
has made. There is no escaping those Laws. They fulfil themselves.
God says to them, "Go," and they go; "Come," and they come; "Do
justice on the offender," and they do it. If we are fools and disobey
them, they will grind us to powder. If we are wise and obey them, they
will reward us. For in wisdom's right hand is length of days, and in her
left hand riches and honour. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all

her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold of her, and
blessed is every one that retaineth her; as God grant you all will do.
But you, too, in time may have soldiers under you. Think, I beseech
you, earnestly of this, and for their sake, as well as for your own, try by
God's help to live worthy of Christian English men. Let them see you
going out and coming in, whether on duty or by your own firesides, as
men who feel that they are "ever beneath their great taskmaster's eye;"
who have a solemn duty to perform, namely, the duty of living like
good men toward your superior officers, your families, your neighbours,
your country, and your God--even towards that Saviour who so loved
you that He died for you on the cross, to set you the example of what
true