A short time since, in traveling, by an express train, from Glasgow to Bradford, I met with one of those little striking incidents which so frequently prove very suggestive and instructive to the mind. Owing to the opposition of two railway companies, our train had to travel under very high pressure in order to keep time, and every arrangement was made to avoid delay. When we arrived at the junction from which the Bradford line branches off from the Main, instead of the whole train stopping to detach the Bradford carriages, a curious contrivance had been adopted, by which, while the engine was at full speed, the Bradford carriages were, in an instant, detached, and the main body of the train flew on at fifty miles an hour, leaving us, after the impetus had subsided, standing on the line, as though the connecting chain had given way. Not being aware of the arrangement, we felt a little uncomfortable, and a young man who sat opposite to me put his head out of the carriage window and exclaimed, “Oh, we are left behind. I see the train flying round the curve.” We could not imagine what had occurred; and for aught we knew, some other train might come, in a few moments, and dash right into us.
It was a solemn moment, and I thought it right to improve it by speaking to the young man about the immense importance of having the link on. I said to him, “What an awful thing it will be, my friend, to be left behind forever — to find, when too late, that there is no link connecting our souls with Christ. May I ask you this solemn question, “Is the link on?” He looked very serious, and replied, “Well, indeed, sir, I am sorry to say, I have not thought so much about these weighty matters as I should.”
I then went on to explain to him the simplicity of the link; that it was simply believing in the Son of God. “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment; but is passed from death unto life.” (John 5:2424Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24).) Here is the link — the precious, living, eternal link of faith. This link can never be snapped. No power of earth or hell can sever the believer from Christ. In Him is life, and the soul that is linked by faith to Him partakes of His life — “Hath everlasting life.” It does not say, “He shall or may have it at some future time.” No; he hath it now, and can never lose it. The feeblest believer in Jesus is as safe as the blessed Savior Himself.
Dear reader, let me ask you, as I asked my fellow-traveler, “Is the link on?” What a vital question! How much hangs upon it! Your eternal destiny — your weal or woe for countless ages! In our case the suspense lasted but a few moments, for another engine came down along the Bradford line and carried us off to our destination. But, in the case of an immortal soul not linked on by faith to Christ, it is a totally different matter. There is no other arrangement, no other resource, no other hope, there is nothing to fall back upon. If there is so much as the breadth of a hair separating your soul from Jesus, there is no life. The carriage may be so close to the engine as that the buffers are actually touching, but if the link be not on, there is no connection, and hence, when the engine moves on, the carriage will be left behind. So also, as to the soul and Christ; there may seem to be great nearness, the buffers of mere profession may touch, but if the link of faith is not on, there is no personal vital connection, there is no life, no security. We live in a day of immense profession. Bibles are circulated in millions, and religious tracts in billions; and we have to thank God for it. But, oh! reader, think of the awful responsibility! Only reflect, for a moment, upon what it will be to pass into eternal fire from a scene of such accumulated privileges! Do let me urge upon you the need of immediate, close attention to the question which stands at the head of this paper, “Is THE LINK ON?”