It was a pleasant Saturday afternoon, and we were down at the shore for a holiday. Several of us wanted to go boating, so we rented a boat and set off. The boatman warned us that we must not go close to the rocks, because the tide was very strong.
All went well for a half hour and we were enjoying ourselves immensely, when one of the oarsmen dropped his oar into the water. Before we could get the boat turned, the oar had floated far away beyond our reach.
Now what was to be done? We could make little progress against the tide with only one oar. To make matters worse, a strong wind was rising. We drifted with the tide toward the shore, and in spite of all our efforts we saw that we would soon be on the rocks.
I never thought I was a coward until that moment of danger and possible death. Every wave seemed as if it would swamp our boat.
Someone on shore saw our danger and sent a boat out to our rescue. Soon we were being towed in to a safe landing—and how thankful we were to reach land again!
That boating incident reminded me how helpless is the position of a soul without Christ, drifting before the power of sin and Satan on to an eternal hell, unable to stop or to alter his course. But help has come from above: the Son of God has come down to save the lost.
The person who has received that salvation has Christ to strengthen and help, and can stand against the tides and current that would rush him on to destruction. Without Christ, one can only drift with the current down to the depths of sin and the deep, dark abyss of the lost.
It may be pleasant sailing now, while all is calm and fair, but there is a time soon to come when the Christless soul must meet death and judgment.
“After the joys of earth—
What then?
After its hours of mirth—
What then?”
“If we tarry till the morning light, some mischief will come upon us” (2 Kings 7:9).