The Pulpit Commentary — Mark — Volume 1 — Section 245

with the Continent, and one continent with another; that link the Old World with the New, flashing itil messages over more than half the globe, thus facilitating the intercommunion of nations, and expediting the exchange of intelligence from East to West and from West to East; -if those electric wires stretched from one place on tho earth's surface to another hundreds of miles remote, and if they reached very near to that other place, just within a yard, or a foot, or an inch, and yet stopped short by that small interval; no communion could be carried on, and no intelligence conveyed. Its hundreds of miles of extent would be unavailing; that yard, or foot, or inch would render the whole useless, and cause all the labour to be lost. It might as well stretch only three-fourths of the way, or one-half the way, or one quarter of the way, or no part of the way at all. Nothing short of a close and complete uniting of the two places, and that without any interval, will do. Alas;! how many come close up to Christ,, but never close with him. How many are in the throng that never touch him ! How many there are like the young man in the Gospel-that amiable young man whom our Lord loved, who did so much, and went so far, and yet after all came short! They seem to be very close to Christ, and very near his cross; but there is one link wanting -" One thing thou lackest." How many are at the very threshold of the kingdom of heaven, and ready to say with Agrippa, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian; " and yet they never cross the threshold, nor enter the kingdom, nor become Christians, in the true and proper sense, at all I How many are on thP, spot at the very time when Christ is passing by, without ever touching so much as the fringe of his garment I How many frequent the place where his presence is promised and his blessing bestowed ; and yet they never feel the one nor enjoy the other! There is nourishment in food, but you must partake of it; or the most wholesome food will do you no good and give you no strength. There is sweetness in music, but you must have an ear for it and give ear to it; else the sweetest music will be but mere noise-an empty sound. There is fragrance in the rose, but your olfactory nerves must be sound and sufficiently near the odo1iferous flower; or its fragrance will be wasted on desert air! The electric current is a potent agency, as we have seen, but it must needs have the electric wire to pass along; or it loses its practical utility. In view of such facts and considerations, our duty as well as interest is, by grace, to realize union with Christ; we should give no sleep to our eyes, nor slumber to our eyelids, until by grace, through faith, we are united to Christ, and one with him-Christ in us and we in Christ, Christ our life, and our life devoted to Christ. For while Christ is able to save, and waiting and willing to save, and while God sent his Son to seek and save that which was lost; yet there must be faith, or we cannot be saved. Let us, therefore, seek the aid of God's Holy Spirit, that he may form the link of faith between our soul and the Saviour; or, if it already exi.:!t, that he may strengthen and brighten it. 4. How healing virtue is obtainable from Or.rist. There was healing power in the Saviour-inherent in him, in him alone, and in none besides. This poor invalid drew it forth by the touch of faith. The virtue to heal that proceeded from Christ may be compared to the electric current, while the faith of the woman may be likened to the wires aloni: which it passed. Now, if faith be tbe gift of God, as it is, and the operation of his Spirit, as we know from his Word, it may be asked, "Why blame any for the want of it?" We do not, and cannot with fairness, blame for want of it; but we may blame persons for not asking it, for not wishing for it, for not seeking it, or for not accepting it. If God gave his Son before you asked him, and without your asking him, "will ho not with him also freely give you all things;" in other words, will he not give you faith in him for tbe asking? If he have given the greater gift, will he withhold or refuse the less? If he has promised his Spirit to them that ask him, and if he invites us and presses us to ask him, do we not tempt God when we refuse to ask him, seeing it is the Spirit that works faith in the heart of man? \Ve are far, very far, from ignoring or over- looking the sovereign grace of God, whereby he takes one out of a city, and two out of a family, and brings them to Zion: but if we refuse the course that God has prescribe<l to us ; if we reject the conditions on which he offers grace and every mercy ; if we neglect the ordinances where he bas appointed to meet and bless us, or if, attending them, we forget the object for which we aro urged to attend them, or if we use tho means without thinking of the great end we should have in view, or if we are not at pains to examine our motives, or if we have no care to meet Christ in his ordinanoel!r liT. MAUK, B 242 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING '1'0 ST. MARK. [cu. v.1-4.8,