Henry was a boy who lived in the little town of Pine River, Minnesota. His father owned a grocery store there. Henry liked to play ball, but he was also an industrious boy.
One summer when he was about fifteen, during the haying season, he went to work for Mr. Doty, a Christian farmer. Mr. Doty liked Henry because he did his work so faithfully.
Mr. Doty liked nothing better than to speak about the Lord Jesus, and he found in Henry a ready and attentive listener. At noon, while eating their lunch together, they talked about the Holy Scriptures.
From Romans, chapter 3, Henry learned that he was a sinner, and like every other boy in the world (except the Lord Jesus Himself) he too, had “sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (vs. 23).
Then he learned that he could be justified (or cleared of all guilt and made righteous), as verse 24 says, “Being justified freely by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Mr. Doty told Henry that we are saved by faith in Christ, and not by our works, and that eternal life was God’s gift to us when we accepted Christ as our Saviour.
Furthermore, when anyone was saved, he was not to live any more in sin, because those who believed in Christ should reckon themselves as dead to sin, but alive unto God. Now they must live for Him in that new life. (See Rom. 4-8).
The expression on Henry’s face and from his interested manner showed that he was taking into his heart the truth of God’s Word. His ways and life from that time on gave every evidence that he had become a child of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
When the haying was over, Henry went to work for another farmer who was not a Christian. He would poke fun at Henry and say, “You’ve got Doty’s religion.” But Henry was not ashamed by now to own the Lord as his Saviour.
“Mr. Doty is all right,” he replied, “and I have got the same faith in Christ that he has.”
Henry’s parents, who were unsaved, were astonished at their son’s words and asked him where he had learned these things. He related how Mr. Doty had helped him to understand the way of salvation and to know the Lord.
Two months after that Henry and some of his young friends were playing on top of a box car. Some feet above their heads was an electric wire. “Boys,” said Henry, “watch me jump and grab this wire.” He did so and the wire dropped with his weight until his feet touched the box car. The electric current passed through his body and he was killed instantly. The Lord had taken dear Henry home to be with Himself.
In the Pine River cemetery is a beautiful monument marking Henry’s grave and bearing these words: “Be ye also ready, for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh.” Matthew 24:4444Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. (Matthew 24:44).
“Be ready! O be ready!”
His words of warning clear;
Salvation through Christ’s death is offered;
Perfect love will cast out fear.
ML-12/24/1978