Memory Verse: “Cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 25:30
Tom, Dick and Jack were pals, as well as cousins. It was a real treat for Dick and Jack, who were city boys, to spend their summers at Tom’s house in the country outside Albany, New York. They had many adventures together as they grew up. Tom was older than either of the other boys, and it was he who knew about secret spots in the woods where they could play together for hours. He knew where the fishing was good, where there were old Indian trails, and where there were neat caves that boys their age could safely explore. Tom was a great storyteller, so when it rained and they had to stay indoors, the boys would go up to the attic and Tom would tell them about his adventures and the mysteries he had discovered exploring Hale’s Cave in Thatcher Park in the Helderberg mountains.
At last, Tom’s mother felt the boys were old enough to explore the cave on their own. They packed a lunch, a flashlight and some matches. Then Uncle Henry drove them out to the Helderbergs. The boys were excited about exploring the cave, although Jack, who was the youngest, almost changed his mind when they peered into the darkness and suddenly a bat swooped out of a cave, scaring them all a little.
It was fun, though, exploring the cave. After they had gone in quite a distance, Tom suddenly turned off the flashlight, and the three boys now were in the blackest darkness they had ever experienced. Tom pretended he could not get the flashlight to turn on again, and Dick and Jack were really frightened. Jack was glad the others could not see him, as there were tears in his eyes. What if they had to try to find their way out in the dark? Would they have to wait for Uncle Henry to miss them and come in with a rescue party?
All three boys thought about how awful it would be to be cast by God into what the Bible calls “outer darkness,” to be in the “blackness of darkness forever.” Jude 13. The awfulness of being shut out from the presence of God in darkness for all eternity suddenly became very real to them. How glad they were that God in love had sent His only begotten Son to be punished for their sins during those three hours of darkness on the cross of Calvary so that they might never have to know the “outer darkness” of hell!
Simply confessing to God that we are sinners deserving to be shut out from God’s presence, and receiving the Lord Jesus as our Saviour, we pass from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God.
What a relief it was when Tom switched on the flashlight, and the boys were once again able to see their way through the passageways! How good the sunlight looked as they came to the mouth of the cave!
“Ye were sometime darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.” Ephesians 5:8.
“Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light.” Colossians 1:12.
ML-01/22/1984