CHAPTER XXII.CONCLUSION.
Of the countless gifts which God bestows upon man, the rarest, the most divine, is an ability to take supreme interest in human welfare. If any pious soul will accurately ascertain what it is in the character of the Man Christ Jesus, the contemplation of which fills his heart with rapture and his eyes with tears, that pious soul will know what is here meant by the expression “supreme interest in human welfare.” Most of us, alarmed at the dangers which beset our lives, distracted with cares, blinded with desires to secure our own safety, are absorbed in schemes of personal advantage. Only a few men go apart, ascend the heights, survey the scene with serene, unselfish eye, and make discoveries which those engaged in their own selfish pursuits could never arrive at. But for such, the race of mankind would long ago have extirpated itself in its mad, blind strife. But for such, it never would have been discovered that no individual can be safe in welfare while any other individual is not.
In summing up the life story of Dr. Walker, I ask myself what it is that has given this man of God such a place in the affection, regard and sincere esteem of those who know and love and honor him. Is it mere intellectual ability? Great as is his intellectual strength, there are many men in his same calling of greater intellect but they are not known and loved as he is. Is it official station? He holds no office except that of an humble minister of the gospel. Is it wealth? Dr. Walker is a poor man. In his case, I believe that the secret lies in active Christian charity, or what might be called the magnetism of simple goodness. I need not say that Dr. Walker’s heart is as large as his brain—that love for humanity is an inwrought element of his nature. It is manifested in a kindness and regard that keep a silent record in many hearts; in a hand ever open and ready to help; in one of the kindest faces ever worn by man, the expression of which is
“A meeting of gentle lights without a name.”
“A meeting of gentle lights without a name.”
How wide, how manifold is the circle of interests which he has touched! How many, many minds has he instructed with practical wisdom! How many lives has he stimulated to wholesome energy! How many young men gratefully acknowledge him as their teacher and guide! How many aged people, how many orphans have looked up to him for succor! How many precious souls have been saved for truth, for righteousness, for God! His pen never idle, his lips never still, his feet never weary, what a blessing he has been to his day and generation! In his eyes, the noblest career is that which is given up to others’ wants. The successful life is that which is worn out in conflict with wrong and woe. The only ambition worth following is the ambition to alleviate human misery and leave the world better—a little better for one’s having lived in it.
And this, verily, is the greatness which the world at last acknowledges, confesses, honors—the greatness of goodness. Those who read this story of Dr. Walker’s life ought, therefore, to be encouraged, not discouraged, because the greatness of goodness is a communicable power for the goodness of mankind and, unlike intellectual power, unlike official station, unlike wealth, may be attained by all. Let the reader, then, drink from this story inspiration for his best endeavors, while he thanks God that the achievement in Dr. Walker’s case has been so large and so effective. The real forces of the world are not those which science chiefly delights to celebrate, but those other inward spiritual forces, such as righteousness, justice and truth, which lie behind the more visible energies, giving them all the real power that they possess, and guiding them, not blindly, but intelligently, to rational and beneficent ends.