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Николай, 1 апреля 1888 года 1000
Иван, 2 апреля 1888 года 1100
Станислав, 5 апреля 1888 года 1200
Юрий, 11 апреля 1888 года 1300
Никита, 12 апреля 1888 года 1400
Николай, 13 апреля 1888 года 1500
Иван, 24 апреля 1888 года 1600
Станислав, 5 мая 1888 года 1700
Юрий, 11 мая 1888 года 1800
Никита, 12 мая 1888 года 1900
Николай, 21 мая 1888 года 2000
Иван, 25 мая 1888 года 2100
Станислав, 5 июня 1888 года 2200
Юрий, 11 июня 1888 года 2300
Никита, 12 июня 1888 года 2400
25,500
Кто может заплатить такой ольшой долг?
Czar Nicholas of Russia often used to wander about his military camps and barracks, dressed as an ordinary officer, in order that he might know, without being recognized, what was going on.
Late one night, when all lights were supposed to be extinguished, the Czar was making one of these tours of inspection. He noticed a light shining under the paymaster’s door, and, quietly opening it, he stepped inside, intending to have the offender punished. A young officer, the son of an old friend of the Czar, was seated at a table, his head resting on his arms, sound asleep. The Czar stepped over to awaken him, but before touching the officer, he noticed a loaded revolver, a small pile of money, and a sheet of paper with a pen that had fallen from the hand of the sleeping man. The light of the little candle let the Czar read what had just been written, and in a moment he understood the sad situation.
On the sheet of paper was a long list of debts—gambling debts and other evil debts. The total ran into many thousands of rubles. The officer had used army funds to pay these wicked, reckless debts; and now, having worked till late into the night trying to get his accounts straight, he had discovered for the first time how much he owed. It was hopeless; the pitifully small balance on hand left such a huge deficit to be made up! On the sheet of paper, below the terrible total, he had written this question: “Who can pay so great a debt?”
Apparently, because he was unable to face the disgrace, the officer had intended to shoot himself, but completely worn out with sorrow and remorse, he had fallen asleep.
As the Czar realized what had happened, his first thought was to have the man immediately arrested and in due course brought before a court-martial. Justice must be done in the army, and such a crime could not be passed by. But as he re-membered the long friendship with the young officer’s father, love overcame judgment; and in a moment he devised a plan whereby he could be just toward the army and yet justify the culprit. The Czar took up the pen that had dropped from the hand of the wearied, hopeless offender, and with his own hand answered the question with one word: “Nicholas.”
Yes, Czar Nicholas himself could pay that debt, and he voluntarily undertook to do so. The young officer woke up soon after the Czar had gone, and he took up his revolver to blow out his brains; but then his eye caught the answer to his awful question. In be-wildered astonishment he gazed on that one word, “Nicholas.” Surely such an answer was impossible! He had some papers in his possession which bore the genuine signature of the Czar, and quickly he compared the names, for it seemed too good to be true. To his intense joy, and yet bitter humiliation, he realized that his Czar knew all about his sins— knew the total of his great debt—and yet, instead of inflicting the penalty he deserved, had assumed the debt himself and thereby justified the debtor.
Joyfully and peacefully he lay down to rest; and early the next morning bags of money arrived from the Czar sufficient to pay the last ruble of “so great a debt.”
You and I also have a very great debt. We may well ask, “Who can pay it?” Thank God, His love has provided an answer, and like the answer given by the Czar it is encompassed and expressed in one word—“Jesus”!
Yes, Jesus knows all about your debt. He knows how great it is. He knows how you came by it. He knows all the shame of it. He knows the cost of payment, and in spite of such intimate knowledge of you and it, He has assumed the full liability of it Himself. One word, “Nicholas,” set the heart of that young man at rest—even filled it with joy. One word, “Jesus,” has set my heart at rest and filled it with joy. Has that “one word”—that one blessed name—filled your heart with rest, peace and joy? It can, and it should.
Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: and by Him all that believe are justified from all things. Acts 13:38-39.
For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. Romans 5:6
This article is one of a series of large print gospel brochures and is also available as a full-color gospel tract (BTP #41568).