Outline of a sermon preached by Rev. D. A. Easton, pastor of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston.
Philip saith unto him, Lord show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. John xiv. 8.
PHILIP here is speaking for the twelve disciples. It is easy enough to say that Philip in this request voiced a larger truth than the disciples realized, and one, for which if it had been suddenly granted, they would not have been prepared. They were not yet on a plane of thought where the knowledge of God would supply every want, because it would be a knowledge of God unaccompanied by the intermediate steps of demonstration. Under the tutelage of Jesus they had made rapid strides in spiritual growth. At an earlier stage of their discipleship they were disputing as to which should be first in Christ's kingdom. They were eager to call down fire from heaven on the inhospitable Samaritans. Their conception of the rewards of Christ's discipleship were crude and material; but gradually their thought had become spiritualized, until now they say, " Show us the Father and it sufficeth us." Even if they did not realize the full import of their request, the fact that they made it, showed a great advance out of material beliefs into spiritual realization. In order that they might enter into the full realization of the wonderful truth voiced in the request, it was only necessary that they keep themselves under the guidance of the same Christ-Truth that had brought them up to this point. The subsequent history of the Apostles showed that all but one of them did continue to be students of the Christ-Truth, following whithersoever it led. The result was that they finally stood by demonstration on that elevated plane of thought where they could say with Paul, that they counted all things but loss if they could gain the knowledge of God in Christ. It was on this plane of thought that John realized a mental condition where all tears were wiped away and where there was no more pain, and where there was no night, and a city with no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb were the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. Coming down from this high pinnacle of thought, and going back to the early history of these apostles, the question naturally arises, what is the explanation of this marvelous spiritual growth? Were they men who started with an unusual endowment of spirituality? Or was it the exceptional advantage of Jesus' personal instruction and example. Neither of these explanations seem to be adequate. When Jesus called them they were plain average men, sharing the current Jewish opinions and prejudices of their time, and clear up to the resurrection of Jesus, they occasionally lapsed back into human weaknesses and foibles, that seem almost incredible for men who had been under Jesus' personal instruction for three years. The personal instruction of Jesus was of priceless value but did not Jesus, seeing that his personality was a stumbling block, say that it was expedient that he go from them in order that they might have instead, the impersonal teachings of Spirit?
