Beautifully situated on the wooded hillside, standing in its own grounds, sheltered by the high hills on its western side, stands the house of a wealthy city merchant, from which he travels every morning to his business in the city. Across the valley, hid among a clump of trees, is the cottage of a day-laborer who works on the estate of a farmer, whose herds of cattle graze on the hillside and broad acres of pasture land, which have been possessed by his family for generations.
The wealthy farmer, the city merchant, and the day-laborer had all sons about the same age, who in their younger days ascended school in the village, a short distance off. The boys were “chums,” and although Ronald, the laborer’s boy, was poor, he was not on that account looked down upon by the others, but rather esteemed, because of his noble spirit and straightforward ways. Ronald had from his earliest years been taught to fear God, and although nothing more than a moral, upright boy—for he had not then been born of God—he was exemplary in all his conduct.
For several years the boys went to and came from school together, enjoying themselves in thorough schoolboy fashion, until the day came when they had to part company: Ronald, the laborer’s boy, going to farm service; Oliver, the merchant’s son, to learn his father’s business; and Alfred, the wealthy landowner’s heir, to complete his education at college. They were sorry to part, but full of the buoyancy and bright hopes of youth, they entered upon their new paths in life, and soon were fully occupied in their varied spheres, all but forgetting each other as companions at school.
In a certain city the gospel of the grace of God, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and His work of atonement on the cross for sinners, was being preached, and God had saved a number of young men. Some of whom came to testify for their new Master and tell the young men what grace had done for their souls. Among them was Alfred, grown up to young manhood, converted just in time to save him from making shipwreck by a fast life, and now fully and decidedly on the Lord’s side. In the company who listened to the testimony of the students that evening, was a tall, slender youth who had been invited to accompany a cousin who had been converted under the preaching, and was now anxious —as all newly saved folks are—that his kinsman should be brought to the Lord. Although in no degree in sympathy with the Revival movement, but rather inclined to laugh at it, Oliver did not wish to “fall out” with his “religious cousin,” as he called him, so he accompanied him to the meeting. As one after another of the students gave his testimony, telling how grace had saved them and how bright and happy they found the path of discipleship to be, Oliver was undoubtedly interested. He had always thought of “religion” as a thing for old maids and “soft” young men, but something to be avoided by fellows who wanted to see and enjoy life. But the testimony of these students—not to religion but to Christ, possessed, enjoyed, and confessed, which they took care to explain, was something entirely different from a religious profession or a morose, Sunday Christianity—opened up to the young warehouseman a view of the subjet he had never seen before. The climax of his interest was reached, when a tall, fair-haired young man stood up to add his testimony to the rest, and did so, in few, but well-chosen words. The speaker was Alfred, and it was only at the close, in what turned out to be a memorable “after meeting,’’ that he found his old schoolmate Oliver was one of his hearers, and, what was better still, had accepted Christ as his Saviour, and confessed Him as his Lord during that after meeting.
It was indeed a joyful meeting when the two former schoolmates clasped hands in the vestibule of the building, and greed each other as “brothers” in the Lord. And their cup of joy fairly ran over, when, at the station, a ruddy young man joined them, and told that he too had been “saved by grace,” in another part of the country, and had come to the city to be present at that meeting. The speaker was Ronald, making the trio of village school days once more complete, and joined in closer bonds, as children of the same Father, and fellow-disciples of the same Master.
They arranged that the three should spend a Sunday together in their native parish, and testify together in the old schoolroom to the Gospel’s saving power, which they did, God blessing their testimony to the conversion of others. In different paths of earthly life, all leading onward to the same glorious City, the three thus saved in early years, still joyfully pursue their way.
Dear children, do not think you can wait till you are grown young men and women, as the coming of the Lord Jesus to take all of those who know Him as their own Saviour through His work on the cross, to be with Himself in His glory, and ALL who are left behind, will have nothing but certain judgment for all eternity.
Do not lose any time in accepting Him as your own precious Saviour, and be ready to go with Him when He comes, ALL who know Him are happily expecting Him every day.
ML 05/09/1943