A CHILDREN’S Gospel Meeting was held lately in Dublin by a servant of Christ who takes a great interest in the spiritual welfare of the young. He spoke from four verses, in all of which the word behold occurs. “But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord; and be sure your sin will find you out” (Num. 32:2323But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out. (Numbers 32:23)); “Behold 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)); “Behold, thou art fair” (Song of Sol. 1:1515Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes. (Song of Solomon 1:15)); “Behold, the bridegroom cometh” (Matt. 25:66And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. (Matthew 25:6)). He opened the wordless book then, and showed how the black page tells us what we are by nature, “dead in trespasses and sins”; the red page, what the blood of Christ can do for us; making us like the snowy-white page, whiter than snow; and then the golden page, a picture of divine righteousness, and the glory to which the children of God are hastening home.
After the meeting was over, I had a chat with some of these same little boys and girls on what the preacher had been saying. “Well, Kathleen,” said I, “what does the white page mean?” “It means,” said little Kathleen, in a very sober tone of voice, “that we must be awfully good.” “Oh! no,” said Litton, her brother; “it means that if Jesus has washed our souls in His precious blood, our sins are all gone, and we are whiter than snow.”
And now, dear children, I want you to tell me which of these dear children answered right. I hope I hear you all saying, “Litton gave the right answer.” Yes; Kathleen evidently had not understood the words of the preacher, and thus answered as she did. If a child loves the Lord Jesus as his own dear Saviour, who loved him and gave Himself for him, he will, through love to Jesus, find it his joy to be “awfully good,”―like his Saviour, who, when down here on earth, always did those things which pleased His Father, and who has left His people an example that they should follow His steps (1 Peter 2:2121For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: (1 Peter 2:21)).
M. S. S.