THE following occurrence I give nearly in the words of a servant of the Lord trusting it may be useful as a warning to some careless soul whose eyes may glance over these pages “One Sunday, not long since, I met foul young men. I offered them some tracts which three of them took, but the fourth refused, saying he had plenty of papers like that at home, and he did not want it. I asked him if he had read them, and if he was saved, and he said, ‘I am as good as you are. It is not because you go about with papers like that that you are better than me.’
‘No,’ I said, ‘I am not better than you, but I believe what God says, and you do not. Will you take this tract and read it? It may be for your eternal blessing.’ He angrily refused it. Whereupon I said, ‘You are in a terrible condition—you don’t care at all about yourself, whether you go to hell or not. I speak to you as a friend. If you do not change your course, in a short time God may put His hand on you and crush you.’ He answered in an indifferent way, ‘Let Him do it if He likes. What do I care?’ I left him, and said no more.
On the following Tuesday this poor, godless young man was taken ill, and became unconscious. His sufferings were intense, and he was continually screaming and swearing until his death, which took place on the ensuing Monday. Thus only eight days after he despised the warning he was a corpse!”
What a solemn lesson this brief narrative conveys! Men are apt to think that God does not hear their irreverent expressions. Soon all will be brought to light. The rejector of Christ will perish everlastingly! “Beware, therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish.” (Acts 13:40, 4140Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; 41Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you. (Acts 13:40‑41).) E. W. T.