It is a dark, foggy night and a man is groping his way along the wharf when he takes a wrong turn. Another few moments and he is over the edge! A splash—a frantic cry for help—and silence.
Confused efforts are made to locate him, but all in vain. The next day his body is recovered, and at the inquest he is identified. A very able and skillful man is no more! He knew ten thousand things. What he did not know about docks and ships and navigation was not worth knowing, but the one thing of supreme importance in those critical five minutes he did not know. He could not swim!
None of us knows everything, but all of us know something. A few of us know a great many things. Some of us know the one thing of supreme importance. Do you know it?
To be right with God is the matter of supreme importance. It matters little what you are or what you know if you are not right with God. To have "all knowledge" of things that count in this life will not help you if you remain in ignorance of this one thing that counts in eternity. The question of questions is—Are you right with God?
God's Word clearly shows us the way.
FIRST: justification before God cannot be earned. It cannot be deserved. If a soul is to be justified at all, it must be by the grace of God and by that alone.
SECOND: the only way of having justification is through the redemption work accomplished by the Lord Jesus Christ when He died on the cross. His atoning death, His resurrection, alone can meet the guilt of your sins and put you right with God.
THIRD: you can only be justified before God if and when you believe in Jesus. Then God reckons to your account the value of His Son's death and you are positively justified.
FOURTH: when you do believe in Jesus, you are justified freely. God justifies not only without charge, but also without grudging.
Trusting in Christ for yourself, definitely accepting Him as your Savior and Lord, you can say, "By faith in Jesus I am right with God." Then truly you will know the one thing of greatest importance.
You may not know much of the world's wisdom and knowledge, but you will know how to "swim" if death's waters should rise about you!
"Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus... that He might be just, and the Justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." Rom. 3:24, 26.
Hoping or Believing?
"Are you a Christian?" we asked a young girl whom we knew to be anxious about her soul's salvation.
"I hope so," she answered.
"Have you eternal life?"
At this second question her face fell and she was silent.
Again we asked, "Did you ever thank God for the gift of eternal life?"
"I pray," she said.
We then read to her this text: 'These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life!" 1 John 5:13. Having read it we asked our little friend, "Do you believe on the name of the Son of God?"
"I do," she answered, and we believed she did so most truthfully.
"You believe that He died for your sins on the cross?"
"I do."
"Let us read the text again. 'These things have I written unto you'—now put your own name here—`that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.' "
The darkness rolled away, and her eyes were opened. God gave her faith to believe, and she took the gracious word to herself. She now had peace, and was always thankful afterward for that night when she passed out of darkness into God's marvelous light.
Can you put your name there, or are you still just "hoping"?
"And by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." Acts 13:39.