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THE SAVIOUR CHRIST
179 own real good. They have no desire to know the truth. Clement would have called them evil, as he says :
"Self-love is the foundation of goodness. First of all, then, he is evil, in the judgment of God, who will not enquire what is advantageous to himself. For how can any one love another, if he does not love himself? Or to whom will that man not be an enemy, who cannot be a friend to himself ? "-A.N.C.L. vol. ii. pp. 267-268.
Clement again says, as if to emphasize his point:
"But God alone is eternal, and abideth unchangeable. He, therefore, who will not seek after that which is profitable to himself, is evil, to such an extent that bis wickedness exceeds the very prince of impiety. For he abuses the goodness of God to the purpose of bis own wickedness, and pleases himself; but the other neglects the good things of his own salvation, that by his own destruction he may please the evil one."-Ibia. iii. p. 268.
It is, indeed, hard for the humanity of our day to realize such subtle conceptions of charming allegory as the Saviour Christ, who is not a being bụt an “idea " that should abide in the hearts of all, so that they may be led to follow, in this way, in the footsteps of some real man who, by his own effort, forced open the path of Life and Joy Eternal.
To realize fully the intricate elegance of the idea of the Saviour Christ, the following points should be borne in mind
1) That the kingdom of God is an internal state, not a geographical or historical domain or kingship in the world of men.
2) That no one can help a man, except to the extent of imparting useful instruction.
3) That the blood of another cannot possibly lead
