THE STORY IS ONE of the oldest in the world! “Come thou and all thy house into the ark” (Gen. 7:1).
Who is to come?
COME THOU!
How urgent are the words! You are either inside or outside the Ark.
“One door and only one,
And yet its sides are two—
Inside and outside,
On which side are you?
One door and only one,
And yet its sides are two—
I’m on the inside,
On which side are you?”
Inside is safety, peace and joy; outside is certain, inevitable destruction. Are you being deceived by the great enemy that you are inside when you still find your enjoyment in the pleasures of sin? “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Cor. 5:17). If “old things” have not passed away, you are not in Christ, and if you are not in Christ, you are not in the Ark.
“Come thou into the Ark!” The door is held wide open by the God of all grace, and over that open door-way is one blessed word, “COME!”
“Yet there is room! The Lamb’s bright hall of song,
With its fair glory beckons thee along.
“Yet there is room! Still open stands the gate,
The gate of love; it is not yet too late.
“Pass in, pass in! That banquet is for thee;
That cup of everlasting love is free.
“Ere night that gate may close and seal thy doom,
Then the last, low, long cry—'No room, no room'!”
At any moment the door may be shut forever, and over its portals one dread word will meet your terror stricken eyes, “Depart!”
“The rising tempest sweeps the sky,
The rain descends, the winds are high;
The waters swell, and death and fear
Beset thy path, no refuge near;
Haste, traveler, haste!
“Oh, haste! a shelter you may gain.
A covert from the wind and rain;
A hiding-place, a rest, a home.
A refuge from the wrath to come,
Haste, traveler, haste!”
When are you to “Come”?
COME NOW! (Isa. 1:18).
How long shall you wait before you come? Even now it is in your mind to come to Christ, but your thoughts carry you to some far-off time, when “earth’s joys grow dim,” and as one of the “last things” to consider, you seek to prepare for Eternity.
Stop! ’Tis the reasoning of fools! What if God sends forth His summons that this night your soul will be required of you? (Luke 12:20). What then?
“Behold, NOW is the accepted time; behold, NOW is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2).
To Whom shall you “Come"?
COME UNTO ME! (Matt. 11:28).
“Art thou weary, art thou languid,
Art thou sore distrest?
‘Come to me,’ saith One, ‘and coming,
Be at rest'!”
Here is the free and unlimited offer of rest from Him who alone has the ability to bestow it. He first offers rest of conscience to those who simply come in faith to Him, and to those who come He has promised “in no wise to cast out.” Then He gives rest of heart from the trials of the way, to all who take His yoke upon themselves and learn of Him. They prove His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matt. 11:30).
When Robert Lamb, an account of whose life is given in “A Casket of Cameos,” returned to Australia after working among the natives of the New Hebrides, he took his place on a log by the roadside to talk to the swagmen as they labored along with the load or “swag” slung by a shoulder-gear to the back. Engaging them with thrilling accounts of his adventures in the South Seas, he won their confidence, and then gave them this text, only he gave it to them in the language they could understand: “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls, for My shoulder-gear is easy and My swag is light” (Matt. 11:28-30).