(2.) That the usual bait of reigning sin is the world. The great difficulty of salvation lies in a man's addictedness to worldly things or temporal satisfactions. When these are highest in our esteem, or dearest to our hearts, it weakeneth God's interest and our care of salvation, and our sense of the world to come : 2 Cor. iv. 4, ' In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not ; ' 2 Peter i. 9, ' He that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off;' Phil. iii. 19, 'Whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.' The world taketh us off from the serious pursuit of heaven : Luke x.
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41, 42, * Martha ! Martha ! thou art careful, and troubled about many things ; but one thing is needful ; ' and makes us shrink at trials : 2 Tim. iv. 10, ' Demas hath forsaken us, having loved this present world.'
(3.) That our inclination to worldly things is various according tothe temper and constitution of men. As the channel is cut so the river runs : Isa. liii. 6, ' We have turned every one in his own way.' Some are carried away by pride, some by vainglory, some by sensuality, some by worldliness. Uprightness and sincerity lies in observing_the_ tender part of the soul, and preserving ourselves from that sin which is most natural to us : Ps. xviii. 23, * I was also upright before him, and I kept myself from mine iniquity.'
(4.) That many times, when pretences are fair there is a secret reserve in our hearts. The devil seeketh to deceive men with a superficial change and half reformation, and moveth them to take on the profession of religion, and yet secure their fleshly and worldly interest. The most dangerous cheat of our souls is by halving it between God and mammon : Mat. vi. 24, ' No man can serve two masters ; for either he will hate the one, and love the other, or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other : ye cannot serve God and mammon.' When we are not so mortified as to subject ourselves entirely to Christ's direction upon the hopes of eternal life, or the happiness of the world to come, and to part with all things in the world, when it is necessary so to do ; or else we must part with this salvation. Many think they are not worldly because they have some thoughts of heaven, and do something for it in seeking after it ; but the business is whether you seek it in the first place, and make it your principal end and scope, to which all other things are subordinated and referred ? whether you can forsake all rather than miss heaven ? Jesus Christ, though he prized good beginnings, and would not discourage any, yet admitteth none to the privileges of grace that are but half converted, whose hearts are in secret league with the world, though they seem to be affected with the offers of eternal life.
SERMON IT.
And Jesus said unto Mm, Why callest tliou me good ? there is none good but one, that is God. — Mark x. 18.
We have seen the young man's question, here is Christ's answer, in which observe two things —
1. His expostulation with him, 'Why callest thou me good ?'
2. His instruction of him, ' There is none good but one, that is God.' First, For the expostulation, ' Why callest thou me good ? ' He
doth not simply blame him for giving this title to him, but argueth with him about it —
1. To show that he loves no compliments or fair words, which proceed not from sound faith and love to him. Christ saw that he was
422 SERMONS UPON MARK X. 17-27. [SeR. II.
ignorant of his divine authority, and foresaw that he would not take his counsel, and therefore expostulates with him, ' Why callest thou me good ? ' As elsewhere, Luke vi. 46, ' Why call you me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say ? ' Qui res nomini subjecta negatur, is nomine illuditur — It is a mockery to give titles to any one when we we do not answer it with suitable endeavours ; as those that gave Christ honourable titles, * Hail ! king of the Jews ! ' but buffeted him, and spit upon him ; and so here, ' Why callest thou me good ? '
2. He takes occasion to draw him from his error of conceiving him as a mere man. The attribute of good belongeth truly and properly to none but God. Now, saith Christ, is that thy meaning, to acknowledge me for such ? Our Lord was now about to try his obedience by a special precept, and therefore it was first necessary that he should be appre- hended and acknowledged as God, and lawgiver to the souls of men. Mere moral goodness could not qualify him for that. Christ will be known to be God by those that come to him, or else they cannot worship him aright.