ce.

Now, why, I wonder, didn't Jonathan feel about this matter as many of
us would? Why did he not hold aloof and say, "If David fails and loses
his chance it is no fault of mine. If he fails it will only mean that
he will not take away the throne that by right belongs to me." No
attitude would have been more human than this. I do not know how many
nights Jonathan spent in prayer to be delivered from the bondage of his
selfishness. But I do know this, that he was delivered.

And I want you to watch him as he goes down into this forest to see
David to-day to strengthen his hand in God. I said we do not know his
conversation with David. We do know a bit of it, and that is this,
that he encouraged David to believe God, to believe this one particular
promise at least, that God was going to see to it that David was king.
And when you see Jonathan going thus into the woods he is going for the
deliberate purpose of taking the crown off his own brow and putting it
upon the brow of another. He is abdicating the throne in behalf of
this outcast friend of his who is hiding here in the forest.

You will doubtless agree, therefore, that this old world has not been
blessed with many visits so beautiful as this. Watch this Prince as he
goes into the wood. His stride is like that of another:

"Into the woods my Master went,
Clean forspent, forspent;
Into the woods my Master came,
Forspent with love and shame.
But the olive trees were not blind to Him,
And the little gray leaves were kind to Him,
And the thorn tree had a mind to Him,
When into the woods He came.

"Out of the woods my Master went,
And He was well content;
Out of the woods my Master came,
Content with death and shame.
When death and shame would woo Him last,
From under the trees they drew Him last,
'Twas on a tree they slew him--last
When out of the woods He came."

Yes, Jonathan went into the woods to uncrown himself! to empty himself
for his friend! Truly "the spirit and mind was in him that was also in
Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God thought it not a thing to be
clung to to be equal with God, but emptied Himself and became obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross."

But the "practical" man stands aside and looks on and says, "Jonathan,
you have made a great mistake. You never wore a crown and you never
wielded a scepter. You took your opportunity for earthly greatness and
threw it away. I