The Pulpit Commentary — Mark — Volume 1 — Section 361

the inward echo of Christ's outward voice, is a rule allowing of no relaxation, even under the most favourable religious influences. 'l'he true idea of the disciple suggests the absolute, unconditional self-surrender-the whole life laid at the feet of the· Master. II. The subsequent words point to a buying of the life at the expense of the life. A paradox designed to awaken thought, and that finds its solution in the dual character of life. The outward and visible, the inward and spiritual; the life temporal, and the- life eternal. In Jesus' view a man might suffer, be rejected of men, be killed, and yet truly "save his life" and "find it;" while, on the other hand, a man might save. his life from the toils, the sacrifices, the self-inflictions and self-denials which discipleship would require, from the cruelties of men, from the death which human hands could inflict, and yet "lose his life "-lose life in the truest, highest, best, and therefore only real sense. Jesus saw that, so far from losing all, a man might gain all-all the world could give him-the "whole world" itself; yet all this might be at the forfeiture of the life. And if he forfeit his life, "what shall a man give in exchange for" it again?- Once forfeited, it is forfeited for ever. There is no possibility of returning to regain it. Well were it, therefore, for his disciples to carry a cross daily, a symbol of dying to self, to sin, and the world, and in the patient endurance of that self-inflicted death to find the true life-the life in Christ, the life in the region of righteousness, and the pledge of a being "raised up" to life everlasting. Before the words were formulated, the disciples of Jesus attained the high estate, "I have been crucified with Christ; yet I live; and yet no longer I, but Christ liveth in me: and," with a reaching far and forward, "that life which I now live in the flesh, I live in faith." IIl. It was in this spirit of unflagging obedience--even to a hard, self-restraining, self-denying, and self-crucifying rule-that the disciple was, with his far-reaching and fore-reaching vision, to "live in faith," anticipating the time when " the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and render unto every man according to his deeds." After these hard sayings with which Jesus had shaken the hearts of the disciples, and proclaimed to the " great multitude" the severity of his rule, he comfortingly assures them of the nearness of his kingdom, by declaring " some- of them " should " in no wise taste of death" till they had seen it " come with power."-G. Ven. 1-10.-Oompassionfor the many. -L CHRIST'S COMPASSION FOB THE llUNV a>NTR.A.STED WITH THE N.A.BJIOW BE.A.BT& OF THE DISCIPLES. 1. Narrow hearts often are cansed by narrow means. Alas I grinding poverty makes even naturally kind hearts indifferent to others' sufferings. Where there is" little to eam and many to keep," this will be so. There are circumstances in which the whole kindly current of the man's being is frozen, and he becomes utterly egotistic. 2. The Divine heart is of boundleBB compassion. All those ancient pictures of God as unwearied and unworn after all his creative activity, may be used of his redemptive activity. There is no exhausting the Divine intelligence, no draining the resources of the Divine heart. lL CHRIST'S ACTION ON THIS OCCASION A PARABLE OF THE CALL OF THE GENTILES. The present feeding of the multitude differs from the former; the numbers given are different. Again, the present work was done after a long journey in heathen lands. ., The one miracle was chiefly, if not entirely, for Jews; the other chiefly, if not entirely, for Gentiles. The feeding of the five thousand was an exceptional miracle, which Jesus had refused to repeat on behalf of Jews. It was therefore quite natural that the apostles should not at once receive the intimation of J~sus re~pec~i~g what he WIil! willing to do for the multitude. 'l'hey spoke only of their own 1Ilab1hty to supply the wants of the people; but they did not forget what he had done a few weeks before. There were only a few miraculous cures for the Ge?tiles, while those for the Jews w:er1> innumerable• and it mighi therl!t'ore be doubted 1f Jesus would now do for Gentiles what he had' only once done for Jews" (J. H. Godwin). 'l'he Divine compassion and love exceed our noblest and largest thoughts, and are extended alike to all peoples.-J. Vers. 11-21.-Oravingfor signs. L WHENCE THE CRAVING SPRING~. "The ~ews 186k after a sign." It is the spirit we nowadays term "sensationahsm." It 1s a. natural desire for a certain p't'aeure of the mind. Fixed ideas, a sameness of mental, cm. vm. 1-38.) THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK. 359