A young man with whom I conversed on a journey had been earnestly seeking the knowledge of the forgiveness of his sins for many years. That very morning he had been reading his Testament, and thirsting for the water of life.
"Would you be willing," I asked, "to be saved in God's own way? And would now, in this very car, be too soon for you to become a Christian?”
"Let God save me in any way He will," was the reply, "and now!”
"You have been looking for evidence where you will not find it," I said. "God's Word, sealed by the Spirit, is God's evidence. None other is needed. If you received by the mouth of an angel the message from God that your sins were all blotted out of God's record, you would believe that Christ had saved you. If you were suddenly filled with a flood of light and joy, you would believe that you had received remission of sins.”
He assented, and I continued: "But in the first place your confidence would be founded on sight, and the second on feeling. It pleases God to save by faith, founded on the evidence of His own Word, not by either sight or feeling. It is your privilege now, as you sit in this car, calmly to appropriate the promise of our Lord.
"'He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.' John 6:4747Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. (John 6:47). Through faith in the atoning sacrifice of Christ, you will find 'forgiveness of sins.'”
"It never seemed so simple," the young man exclaimed.
Knowing that the Spirit of God was dealing with him, I dropped into silence and prayer for him.
After an interval he turned to me, his face beaming with joy, and said: "I'm not afraid now! Those trees are not more clear to my eye than it is certain to my soul that Christ is my Savior!”