and the barbarian. But here, too, his
assimilation of himself to those whom he seeks to win is voluntary;
wherefore he protests that he is not without law, though he
recognises no longer the obligations of Moses' law, for he is 'under
[or, rather, "in"] law to Christ.'

'The weak' are those too scrupulous-conscienced Christians of whom he
has been speaking in chapter viii. and whose narrow views he exhorted
stronger brethren to respect, and to refrain from doing what they
could do without harming their own consciences, lest by doing it they
should induce a brother to do the same, whose conscience would prick
him for it. That is a lesson needed to-day as much as, or more than,
in Paul's time, for the widely different degrees of culture and
diversities of condition, training, and associations among Christians
now necessarily result in very diverse views of Christian conduct in
many matters. The grand principle laid down here should guide us all,
both in regard to fellow-Christians and others. Make yourself as like
them as you honestly can; restrict yourself of allowable acts, in
deference to even narrow prejudices; but let the motive of your
assimilating yourself to others be clearly their highest good, that
you may 'gain' them, not for yourself but for your Master.

Verse 23 lays down Paul's ruling principle, which both impelled him
to become all things to all men, with a view to their salvation, as
he has been saying, and urged him to effort and self-discipline, with
a view to his own, as he goes on to say. 'For the Gospel's sake'
seems to point backward; 'that I may be a joint partaker thereof
points forward. We have not only to preach the Gospel to others, but
to live on it and be saved by it ourselves.

HOW THE VICTOR RUNS

'So run, that ye may obtain.'--1 COR. ix. 24.

'_So_ run.' Does that mean 'Run so that ye obtain?' Most people,
I suppose, superficially reading the words, attach that significance
to them, but the 'so' here carries a much greater weight of meaning
than that. It is a word of comparison. The Apostle would have the
Corinthians recall the picture which he has been putting before
them--a picture of a scene that was very familiar to them; for, as
most of us know, one of the most important of the Grecian games was
celebrated at intervals in the immediate neighbourhood of Corinth.
Many of the Corinthian converts had, no doubt, seen, or even taken
part in them. The previous portion of the