J 0. J. Vaughan.
ST. MARK 263
duty, tie can hardly find a hymn to make the blood move in his veins. He turns with satisfaction to Psalm i., where the doctrine and the practice correspond. The man who walketh in the law of the Lord, that man shall stand ; the man who does not walk in the law of the Lord, believe what he may or say what he please, will be scattered like chaff before the wind of heaven. ^
4. Was there anything in particular in this young man to elicit love ? There were at least three things.
(1) He had an eye for goodness in others. — He knew real worth when he saw it. He was irresistibly attracted to Jesus. He ran towards Him, and with a gush of admiration exclaimed, " Good Master." It was not easy then to see that Jesus was good. It was not easy to say it. For if the Scribes and Pharisees were good, Jesus was far from good. His " Good Master" was courageous as well as discerning.
(2) He understood the superiority of the ethical over the ritual or ceremonial. — In other words, he understood the importance of the commandments of God as compared with the commandments of the Scribes. Notice the word " which ? " in Matthew's Gospel. It was the lofty morality, not the low, that attracted him. He had kept the great commandments of the Law. He did not say he had kept the little commandments of the lawyers.
(3) He was dissatisfied with himself. — This was a remarkable feature also. He had striven from youth to live an honourable life, but he had not succeeded in realising his own ideal. Self- dissatisfaction is a true sign of moral ability. A self-dissatisfied man all can love. God loves him ; Christ loves him ; the Holy Spirit loves him ; all wise saintly men love him.
^ There are two classes of discontented people, those who are discontented with what they are, and those who are discontented with what they have. To the latter class very many belong, and of these the rich no less than the poor ; for an insatiable desire for more, to mass wealth on wealth, to add land to land, to get more power and more position in the world, often possesses those who have of this world's goods. The young ruler was not of these but of the former class, who are dissatisfied with what they are.*
" Love, we go To the Island of Forgetfulness, for lo! The Islands of Dancing and of Victories Are empty of all power." » J. Watson. « J. B. M. Grimes.
264 THE GREAT TEXTS OF THE BIBLE
"And which of these Is the Island of Content?"
"None know," she said, And on my bosom laid her weeping head.^
II.
One Thing Wanting.
" One thing thou lackest."
1. One thing. — Often have we said, of friend or neighbour, He has but one fault. Perfect in uprightness, in diligence, in devotion, he lacks temper, or he lacks courtesy, or he lacks charity. Perfect in kindness, in consideration, in humility, he lacks strength, or he lacks courage, or he lacks exertion. Some- times we have to say a more serious thing. So faultless in one aspect, in one half of the man — so tender, so generous, so unself- ish, so useful — he cannot quite be trusted when the question is of truth, or of sincerity, or of integrity, or of virtue. He has one fault, and it carries unsoundness into everything. "We all know that there are vices which no number of virtues can counter- balance, in the judgment of the world, or in the judgment of the Christian.
^ I have in my possession a watch, and by competent judges it is pronounced to be one of great excellence. Gold, chains, pivots, stones, are of the first order. Yet if it lacked one thing — the mainspring — it would be of no service to me, in the sense in which a watch is expected to serve, namely, recording the time of day. The mainspring is only " one thing," but that one thing is all- important to the value and usefulness of my watch.
^ Some time ago the writer was travelling on the London and North-Western Kailway from Birmingham to Euston. Among the passengers was a lady. On reaching Willesden tickets were demanded. By some means or other she had mislaid or lost that simple little article. She searched her pockets, satchel, purse, and everywhere she could think of, but it was of no avail. The " ticket " was lost. She had a number of cards, much larger, and more artistic and beautiful, than the simple little " ticket," yet they were of no use. It was the " one thing," in accordance with the London and North-Western Eailway Company's arrangementi,
1 W. B. Yeats.
ST. MARK 265
which was required, and no other card could be taken as an equivalent. It was only " one thing," but very important. ^
^ Many years ago an American whale ship was in the South Seas. A monster of the deep, getting wounded, ran out the distance of a mile by way of getting a run race, and returning, struck the ship with such tremendous force that she began to fill and to sink. The sea was like glass. The crew were not only far from laud, but far from the track of ships, so that there was no probability of rescue until they could regain those latitudes through which the thoroughfare of nations runs. The mandate was given, all went busily to work, and the boats were quickly filled with the necessaries of life. The deck was nearly level with the water when the boats moved away for safety. When about one hundred yards away, two men jumped into the sea, went into the sinking ship, and disappeared down the hatchway. They were after " one thing," and, grasping it with a death grip, returned to the boats with it in their hands. They appeared to value it more than life. It was the compass. It was only " one thing," but vastly important, because their safety and life depended upon having it in their possession. ^