What a pitiful creature he was, this poor debauched product of sin! A big man, originally possessed of a strong body and a keen alert mind, Joe had attained to a high position politically. As an elected official in the big city where he had lived for many years, he was sought after socially and he was also popular among his business colleagues. Prodded by his own ambition as well as by his family's desire for prestige, Joe was climbing, step by step, up the ladder of worldly attainment and power.
Friend, have you followed the false light of Will o' the Wisp in your own search for fame or fortune? If so, you know something of the quagmires and pit-falls that beset the way of the unwary.
As Joe progressed up the ladder of success, he built his life on part of Proverbs 18:24, according to the King James Version: "A man that hath friends must show himself friendly." Many other misguided sons of Adam have made this brief portion of Scripture their slogan too, forgetting-or never knowing-that "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." 2 Tim. 3:16. This latter portion would draw the attention of the aspiring ones to such words as the Apostle Paul's advice in 2 Timothy 2:15: "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
Sad to say, our friend Joe gave no thought to the claims of God nor to His holy precepts themselves. Thus it was that if drink were the "order of the day" with certain groups to whom he catered, he too would have a social glass, a fine cigar, or a "fling" at the racetrack— what harm was in these so-called pleasures? Certainly a "man of the world," such as he, could safely indulge—and he did. Then as the increasing weight of duties and obligations produced more and more tensions in Joe's daily life, the occasional glass became habit, and the habit called for more and stronger indulgence. Soon duties were neglected and obligations grew to unbearable proportions. Joe began to slip down the ladder he had so blithely set out to climb.
As the habit of drink took firmer hold, Joe's erstwhile friends and even his family forsook him. As he sank lower and lower in the estimation of his former associates, drink became, in his now warped thinking, his one object in life. Thus he was classed as a hopeless drunkard, unfit for and unwelcome in any decent society. Found most often pandering for "one more drink," Joe, the gutter-snipe, became a continual nuisance both in and out of the city jail.
Yes, Joe became what was known as a "jailbird," one who was more constantly in than out of the city stockade. Sad it was that one who had showed in early life such promise of worldly success should have made total shipwreck apparently of himself and his future. Broken in health, no friends, no family, no hope of bettering himself, the only sober moments of this poor derelict's life were the few days in jail following each bout with Demon Rum. And so regularly was Joe in and out of the Big Rock, as the huge stone house of detention was called, no wonder he became known as "In Again Out Again Joe."
"But God"! Oh, the power in that Name, and what love for such as "In Again Out Again Joe"!
"But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins." Eph. 2:4, 5.
One Sunday night, when Joe had fairly sobered up and was sitting, sick and despondent, on the side of his cot in the prison cell, a group of young Christians came into the "block" where he was. Soon their fresh voices rang out in prayer and praise to Him who came to "seek and to save that which was lost."
Pleased with the sound of the singing, Joe was drawn to the metal door where through the grating he could get the words more plainly. Simple words they were, but to the intent listener in the jail cell they seemed most profound.
"Precious, precious blood of Jesus,
Shed on Calvary;
Shed for rebels, shed for sinners,
Shed for me.
"Precious, precious blood of Jesus,
Jesus, God's own Son,
Telling that the work is finished;
All is done.
"Though thy sins are red like crimson,
Deep in scarlet glow,
Jesus' precious blood can make them
White as snow."
As the singing ceased, a young man stepped forward and in a clear voice proclaimed the good news of salvation. Several different times he quoted 1 John 1:7: "The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin," and often repeated John 3:16.
The drink-befuddled brain of In Again Out Again Joe could finally comprehend that the "whosoever" embraced poor Joe, and that complete cleansing of his sin-blackened soul could be his through the efficacy of the shed blood of God's Lamb. The marvel of such a gift from God Himself to such as he was slow in penetrating the drink-numbed brain; but when, through the power of the Spirit, the light of life shone into his sin-darkened heart, Joe's whole being responded in worship to the blessed One who had so loved poor, lost sinners.
Do you ask, "Then what?" Well you may, for sorrowful struggles and trials awaited this awakened soul. Like every newly converted child of God, Joe was a fresh target for the arrows of Satan. When he left the city prison, for the last time, as he thought, Joe's heart was full of joy. What a wonderful message he had for all the poor drink-sodden outcasts, the sinful dregs of society in its lowest strata! He would use every ounce of his strength to reach them and tell them what great things God would do for them.
While he was still in jail, the reality of Joe's conversion had become known to several Christian workers. Desiring to help "set him on his feet," they had assembled a wardrobe of decent, warm clothing—not an easy matter for one so large. Especially suited to the winter winds outside the Big Rock was a huge, dark overcoat that wrapped Joe's big frame in warm comfort. Also hated and shod, Joe immediately made his way to the haunts of his old companions.
Poor Joe, how little he knew of Satan's wiles and devices! The Scriptures were still almost unknown to him, and the Book of Proverbs (heavenly wisdom for the earthly pathway) held the very treasures he so much needed now. In his own strength and wisdom he was poorly equipped to contend with the enemy of souls; and to lean on his own understanding—or lack of it—was to insure failure in his very admirable undertaking. "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths." Prov. 3:5, 6.
Scarcely had he contacted a group of his old companions before Joe realized that now his outward respectability and decent appearance antagonized them toward him. Taunts and sneers greeted his efforts to speak well of Christ; and everywhere he went among his old haunts, jeers and derision discouraged and silenced him.
Finally, weary and disheartened, Joe sought out a "free lunch" place. There, with the good food, he was served a tempting glass of beer, a satanic snare for any one like Joe. Ignorant of Satan's devices, Joe's appetite for drink was whetted by this seemingly innocent beverage and coin after coin of his small store was soon spent for more and stronger refreshment.
Heartbreakingly sad it was to watch again the downward path of poor Joe. Again the habit of drink overcame him, and, piece by piece, his garments of respectability were sacrificed to Demon Rum.
Ere long the joy of his salvation was but a memory; and time after time he was "In Again Out Again Joe" at the city jail, always repentant, always eager for another chance to prove his sincerity. Deep in his subconscious mind was rooted the knowledge that God loved him, while equally persistent in his sobering-up days was the humiliating fact of his utter unworthiness.
Where were his Christian friends now? Had they given him up to Satan? Or had they forgotten him? To both questions we can answer an emphatic "no." Joe himself, in his new sense of degradation and unfaithfulness to God, shrank from any further contact with those who had helped him. Indeed they were ready to help him again, but not in their own strength. They too had learned a lesson and had been brought to realize as never before that only the Savior of sinners has power to shepherd and to keep His sin-battered ones. The very helplessness of these Christians to aid poor Joe had cast them on their knees at the throne of grace. Many and fervent were the prayers ascending for him, and God graciously heard and answered in His own blessed way.
So it was that Joe was "in-again," following a long bout with drink and the thievery that supported him in his vicious habit. The time for his discharge was near, and, in these almost sober moments preceding the day he would be free, a sense of dread and of frustration engulfed him.
Seated on the side of his cot, Joe took stock. What awaited him now? Out in the world all he could anticipate was his overwhelming urge to drink. These degrading sessions were increasingly hard on what had been a strong physique; and Joe still had sense enough to know that the poison of liquor would someday take its full toll of both mind and body. What could he do?
As this question presented itself, he heard the noises that accompany the advent of a new prisoner—shuffling feet, muttered curses, clanging doors and grating keys. An unaccustomed feeling of pity rose in Joe's heart, a sense of oneness with another slave of sin. Was he on the same downward path Joe had followed so long? Who would warn him of its final bitterness?
Who, indeed? Joe remembered with sorrow the jeers and taunts that he had received when attempting to tell other down-and-outers of Christ. He had accepted all their insults for himself, not knowing that in such rejection the blessed Son of God was also identified (Matt. 10:40). Now, he dreaded another such rebuffing, yet longed desperately to interpose himself and his broken life between others and a prospect such as his.
How could he reach them? Poor, failing Joe knew that, once beyond the shelter of the Big Rock, his opportunity to speak for Jesus would inevitably be nullified by his own rank failures.
Then, why go beyond his present shelter? In the natural course of their dissolute lives, practically every one of his old companions eventually fell into the hands of the law. The Big Rock became their way-station to the stockade or other places of punishment. Here, Joe reasoned, he would be on a level with the lowest, and able to talk freely to any of them. And only here, in the shelter of "the law" could he find refuge from the overwhelming evils that beset him outside. So he reasoned—and so he acted.
Next day, when the "turnkey" came to set Joe free, he requested to see a judge who had often "sent him up." To this man, a kindly soul, well-acquainted with the frailties of humanity, Joe entered his plea. Almost weeping, he begged for a little corner in the prison, a place of refuge for himself. Eagerly he promised to earn his "board and keep" by doing odd jobs of cleaning and up-keep within the huge building.
"Well, Joe," the judge finally said; "if the warden takes you in on your terms, do you expect to get anything more out of this job?"
His face shining and his voice now firm, what an answer Joe gave! "Yes, your honor. Every chance I have, when you send my old buddies up, I want to speak a word for Jesus."
Needless to say, Joe got the job! In the years that followed, he contentedly mopped and swept, scrubbed and cleaned throughout the Big Rock. Many were his opportunities to "speak a word for Jesus." In his frequent exercise of what he daily gleaned from the Bible, Joe himself "grew in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord." He used these precious portions of holy writ to advise, admonish, and to encourage his humble listeners, trusting the Lord for the results. Who can say, till the judgment seat of Christ, how many poor souls were thus stopped in their sinful course and saved from going down to the pit?
"He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again, with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him." Psa. 126:6.