HAVE you ever thought why, when God made the leopard, He covered him with black spots?
I think one reason is that it might speak to us about our sins. When we were born as little babies we had no sins, but very soon we began to say and do wrong things and gradually became covered with black spots! Other people may not know much about them, but God sees them, and God says, "Can the Ethiopian (black man) change his skin, or the leopard his spots?” Jer. 13:2323Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. (Jeremiah 13:23). We know that both are impossible, and neither can we change the black spots of our sins.
The leopard is amongst the unclean animals, and is thus a picture of ourselves, but amongst the clean animals is the lamb. The lamb has no black spots, it is white; and is a figure to us of Jesus. The Scriptures speak of Him as a "lamb, without blemish and without spot," 1 Peter 1:1919But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: (1 Peter 1:19). He is perfect. He is also called “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world," John 1:2929The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. (John 1:29). In order to do this, He had to die. Jesus died for YOU—He died for me; and the Scriptures assure us that, if we put our trust in Jesus and His finished work on Calvary's cross, God can forgive our sins.
Will you not trust Him and become—instead of a leopard—one of the lambs of Jesus' flock?
L. M.
Precious, precious blood of Jesus,
Shed on Calvary,
Shed for rebels, shed for sinners,
Shed for me.
Though thy sins are red like crimson,
Deep in scarlet glow,
Jesus' precious blood can make them
White as snow.