yet with them. Thus, on the one hand, He was enabled to correct their mistakes. Thus, on the other, they were trained for the work they were one day to do, and were not novices, when finally left to themselves. Well would it be for the church, if all ministers of the Gospel were prepared for their duty in like manner, and did not so often take up their office untried, unproved, and inexperienced. Let us observe, in these verses, how our Lord Jesus
of the light it throws on another scriptural expression, which is often grievously misunderstood. I refer to the expression, " no man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him." (John vi. 4.4.) The words, " no man can come," are often much misapprehended.
The text is a plain declaration of man's natural corruption and help- less impotence. Man is dead in sin. He cannot come to Christ, ex- cept the Father draws him. In a word, he is unable to come. But what is the precise nature of his inability ? This is the very point on which misapprehension exists.
Once for all, let us clearly understand that man's inability to come to Christ is not physical. It is utterly untrue to say that a man can have a strong decided will to come to Christ, and yet be stopped by some mysterious physical obstacle — that he can really and honestly have a will to come, and yet have no power. Such a doctrine entirely overthrows man's responsibility, and leads, in many cases, to wicked continuance in sin. Thousands of ignorant people will tell you that " they wish to believe, and wish to come to Christ, and wish to be saved" — and yet say that " though they have the will, they have not the power." It is a fatal delusion, and ruinous to many souls.
The truth is, that man's inability to come to Christ, and impotence to that which is good, is moral, and not physical. It is not true that he has the will to come to Christ, but is unable. He is unable, doubt- less, and has no power ; but it is simply because he has no will. His will is the principal cause of his unconverted state, and until his will is changed by the Holy Ghost, he will never alter. He may not like this. But it.is true. The fault of his condition is his own will. Say what he pleases, the blame lies there. He may pretend to have many good wishes, but in reality he has no honest, sincere will to be bet- ter. He " will not come to Christ that he may have life."
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Christ sent forth His apostles u two and two" St. Mark is the only evangelist who mentions this fact. It is one that deserves especial notice.
There can be no doubt that this fact is meant to teach us the advantages of Christian company to all who work for Christ. The wise man had good reason for saying, " Two are better than one." (Eccles. iv. 9.) Two men together will do more work than two men singly. They will help one another in judgment, and commit fewer mistakes. They will aid one another in difficulties, and less often fail of success. They will stir one another up when tempted to idleness, and less often relapse into in- dolence and indifference. They will comfort one another in times of trial, and be less often cast down. " Woe to him that is alone when he falleth ; for he hath not an- other to help him up." (Eccles. iv. 11.)
It is probable that this principle is not sufficiently remembered in the church of Christ in these latter days. The harvest is undoubtedly great all over the world, both at home and abroad. The laborers are unquestionably few, and the supply of faithful men far less than the demand. The arguments for sending out men " one by one," under existing circumstances, are undeniably strong and weighty. But still the conduct of our Lord in this place is a striking fact. The fact that there is hardly a single case in the Acts, where we find Paul or any other apostle working entirely alone, is another remarkable cir- cumstance. It is difficult to avoid the conclusion, that if the rule of going forth " two and two" had been more strictly observed, the missionary field would have yielded larger results than it has.