im after passing through unknown conflict with principalities and
powers come to resume fellowship with sinful men, standing with all
things under His feet, yet giving His hand to the weak disciple to make
him partake in His triumph.

This was a rare and memorable hour for Thomas, one of those moments that
mark a man's spirit permanently. He is carried entirely out of himself,
and sees nothing but his Lord. The whole energy of his spirit goes out
to Him undoubtingly, unhesitatingly, unrestrained. Everything is before
him in the person of Christ; nothing causes the least diversion or
distraction. For once his spirit has found perfect peace. There is
nothing in the unseen world that can dismay him, nothing in the future
on which he can spend a thought; his soul rests in the Person before
him. He does not draw back, questioning whether the Lord will now
receive him; he fears no rebuke; he does not scrutinise his spiritual
condition, nor ask whether his faith is sufficiently spiritual. He
cannot either go back upon his past conduct, or analyse his present
feelings, or spend one thought of any kind upon himself. The scrupulous,
sceptical man is all devoutness and worship; the thousand objections are
swept from his mind; and all by the mere presence of Christ He is rapt
in this one object; mind and soul are filled with the regained Lord; he
forgets himself; the passion of joy with which he regains in a
transfigured form his lost Leader absorbs him quite: "he had lost a
possible king of the Jews; he finds his Lord and his God." There can be
no question here about himself, his prospects, his interests. He can
but utter his surprise, his joy, and his worship in the cry, "My Lord
and my God."

On such a man even the Lord's benediction were useless. This is the
highest, happiest, rarest state of the human soul. When a man has been
carried out of himself by the clear vision of Christ's worth; when his
mind and heart are filled with the supreme excellence of Christ; when in
His presence he feels he can but worship, bowing in his soul before
actually achieved human perfection rooted in and expressing the true
Divine glory of love ineffable; when face to face, soul to soul, with
the highest and most affecting known goodness, conscious that he now in
this very moment stands within touch of the Supreme, that he has found
and need never more lose perfect love, perfect goodness, perfect
power,--when a man is transported by such a recogni