The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1898-02-19
APPEALED TO THE HEROIC.
Christ's Call Is One Away from Our
Old Selfishness.


ice Christ did not appeal to the motives
which usually influence human choice.
He did not say; Follow me, and |
will give you wealth, power, pleasure,
place, ease, safety" but virtually, the
converse was true. With an absolute
frankness which would have frightened
men who were not of heroic fiber He
told His disciples that in leaving all
10 become His followers they were in
vited to become sharers with Him in
poverty, homelessness, detraction, per-
secution; that He would lead them into
the midst of a conflict in which earth
and hell would turn their worst weap'
ons against Him and His followers;
that the time would come when to kill
the disciples of the hated Nazarcne
would be regarded as pious act; that
they were called to tribulation, cross
bearing, hatred Of self, martyrdom.
ships of His service at any one time,
yet He made it plain to possible disci-
pies, that in following Him they must
be ready to forsake anything, accept
anything, endure anything-even to
the loss of life itself-follow Him I'M
conditionally, without stopping to
count the costs of this or that action.
But, strange as it would seem to a
Caesar or Sybarite, Christ's methods
of appeal grappled to His soul with
something much stronger than hooks
of steel men and women not few who
we're willing to follow Him even unto
death. Such method of appeal at
tracted them. 1t touched the heroic
in them. 1t made them uncomfortable,
for how can a NAH DE overcome who
regards death for Christ's sake as the
browning incident of his victory?
Christ, who knew what is in man, did
not make a mistake when He enlisted
soldiers for the conquest of the world
by appealing to the heroic in man.
Christ's appeal is still to the heroic in
man. The external conditions of dis
cipleship have greatly changed since
Jesus, the Hero above all heroes, fought
the greatest Conflict of the Ages alone;
but the essential conditions of disciple
ship are now and always will be the
same. Christ never invited man to be
saved for his own sake, and never will.
He will not lift selfishness into Heaven
to sit there in the eternal enjoyment of
egoistic felicity.
But are we not in danger of being
made selfish by the very affluence of
modern Christianity? Christianity has
made certain favored circles of life eX-
ceedingly pleasant. In her train fol-
low law, liberty, education, industry,
competence, art, and all the comforts
and elegancies of life. 1t requires no
self-denial to be a Christian in these
days, so far as the external conditions
| of life are concerned. Indeed, Chris
| tianity is now so rich and increased in
goods that she is in danger of bidding
against her old rival, the World, by
| Offering great temporal advantages to
those who are wise enough to enter
within her sheltered fold. This is well
enough if the blessings of our Chris
tan civilization are regarded as Incl
dental and subsidiary, but the danger
is that they will be regarded as pri-
mary, and that the possession of them
will unfit Christians for that daily self
denial without which religion is the
most hateful form of selfishness.
| Christ's tonic for this malaria of mod,
ern ife-selfishness-is the same as OF
old, the heroic, the soul of which is
self-denial for the advancement OF
worthy ends. And there are so many
opportunities for heroism, even in low
ly life, that anyone who is Christ-Iike
in his station is thereby qualified tt
take from Christ's own hand the Holy
Grail of the heroic, and drink with Hin
Of His cup.
When Victor Hugo desired to find {
hero around whom to group the serie!
of books which form his great work
lies Miserables," the election did no
fall on the great Napoleon, the chic
character in one of the books, but OF
Jean Vatican, the eX-convict, the maj
who was lifted out of criminality by
the help of the good bishop" who lieC
so heroically to save his guest from ar
rest as a robber, the convict who be
came wealthy manufacturer and al
honored citizen, but again was returned
to the galleys by knowingly betrayins
himself to keen-eyed detective Will
using his enormous strength to save
man from being crushed to death un
der a loaded cart; Jean Vatican, wh'
for many years lived a life of complete
self-effacement, dead to the world, liv
ing for Cosette, Marius and others, VIII
cid not understand the worth of hi
sacrifices, only to have the heroism o
his life discovered when he was foun,
dying alone, dying for lack of human
sympathy, staying his lonely soul b.
praying to the Grand Sufferer" o
Calvary, whose example he had 70
many years initiated.
And the life of our day furnishe
many opportunities for the exercise o
Christian heroism. Christ knows then
and they know Christ, and gladly fol
low Him whithersoever He goeth; me
and women who go to the most distan
posts of our Captains 'far-fung' bat
tie line; workers in the obscure HON
missionary churches, or in social SET
Elements, among the poor, or in an
service great or small which give
promise of filling place in Christ's re
demptive plan. The world has need c
such heroes, who will place others BIZ