WHAT language can express the joy that fills the mariner’s breast, when for the last time on a foreign shore, he hears the welcome command, “Up anchor!”
Homeward bound! Every heart leaps for joy, every man springs to his station, the capstan is manned, the cable runs in, the anchor is weighed, and the good ship, obedient to her helm, points her bows to the far-off haven. Homeward bound! Who can fathom the depth of meaning contained in that sentence to one who for weary months and years has been parted from all that the heart holds dear? But now there is hope of seeing them once more — God speed the ship, and send fair winds and a prosperous voyage, and fond hearts will be united again.
Dear reader, are you one whose lot is cast upon the mighty deep? If so, I know your heart responds to what I have just written, and I pray God that it may respond to the rest I have to say.
Such were the circumstances in which the writer was placed some years ago, when the British man-of-war “J―,” after a long and weary service in the East Indies, received orders to proceed to England.
Among that ship’s crew was a seaman by the name of W―, who, at the moment when the welcome command to “Up anchor!” was given, turned to the writer, and, with an expression of affectionate interest in his countenance, said, “Now I shall see the old folks at home, whom I have not seen for nine years.” I remember him well — a smart seaman, a thorough sailor, a brave and energetic man, yet one who knew not God, whose soul was unsaved, and, so far as I know, he never fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope that God has set before the sons of men. “For the grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-1311For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; (Titus 2:11‑13)).
Yes, fellow-mariner on the ocean of life, it is the grace of God, not the works of men, that has brought the salvation you need. For whom has this salvation appeared? For all who feel their need of a Saviour, and in the deep sense of that need, confess the Lordship of Christ, believing in their heart that God hath raised Him from the dead.
And with a heartfelt prayer to God that you may be saved, I proceed to relate the remainder of this narrative.
Up anchor! homeward bound! every stitch of canvas set to catch the welcome breezes; and after a prosperous voyage, at length we sight the white cliffs of old England, and steaming round the Isle of Wight, drop anchor at Spithead.
The long-expected and longed-for moment has come, and W — springs lightly on shore to visit the “old folks at home.” The desire of his heart was satisfied; he saw them, stayed with them a few days, and returned. Poor fellow, little reckoned he of the sad end that awaited him.
Our ship was again ordered to proceed to the East; we had just weighed anchor for that purpose, and W —, having just returned from the shore in the second gig (a boat used for taking officers to and from the shore), proceeded to hook her on to the boat’s falls (ropes for hoisting boats up to the davits). The order was given to hoist, the crew ran away with the falls, and when about twenty feet out of the water the foremost fall carried away, letting the bows of the boat fall with a crash, pitching W — into the sea, where, before help could reach him, he rose to the surface and then sank again, to rise no more till the sea shall give up its dead.
And now, dear reader, may I, with affectionate solicitude, ask you the solemn question, Are you prepared to die? are you prepared to meet God? O man, whoever you may be, neither the howling tempest nor the rolling billows may ever have dismayed you; the breaking sea, the falling mast, the dismantled ship, may never have wrecked a nerve like yours; you may have faced death with heroic courage; but what will it all avail when the appointed moment arrives, for “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment”? (Heb. 9:2727And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: (Hebrews 9:27)). How precious, then, is the truth contained in the next verse: “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of Many: and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” Yes, Christ was offered to bear the sins of many. He becomes the heart’s portion of all who believe, and the hope and anchor of the soul for all who love Him, — yes, for all “who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before them; which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil” (Heb. 6:18, 1918That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: 19Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; (Hebrews 6:18‑19)). W. S.