During World War II, my uncle was in the U.S. Army and was on a U.S. Navy ship in the Pacific Ocean. The ship stopped at a tropical island, and the sailors went ashore. There they found a monkey which they brought back to the ship to be a pet and to provide some entertainment. (Monkeys can be very entertaining.) Soon the ship and the monkey left the island.
No doubt the monkey enjoyed having the run of the ship. However, one day the monkey fell overboard into the Pacific Ocean.
Quickly, one of the sailors threw a life preserver (sometimes called a “life ring”) to the monkey. It landed near the monkey, and all the monkey had to do was to grab hold of it. Then the sailors would pull the monkey back to the ship, using the long rope attached to the life preserver. But, the monkey ignored the life preserver and continued to thrash around in the water as the ship continued to move away. Sadly, as the sailors watched, the poor monkey drowned.
Are you wondering why the ship didn’t stop or at least slow down so they could rescue the monkey?
Because the ship was under orders to keep up with its wartime convoy of ships. No captain was going to stop his ship to save a monkey. But the greatest problem was that the monkey did not have the sense to grab hold of the life preserver. It did not know what a life preserver was or how it could be used to save its life. And so the poor monkey drowned.
Most of us know what life preservers are. I assume that if any of us were in the monkey’s situation, we would make every effort to grab hold of the life preserver! And we would hang on tightly to it until we were safe on the ship!
But there are many, many people very much like this monkey. They swing carelessly through life, unaware of the danger surrounding them. And when they become aware that they are in difficulty, they still do not realize how serious their danger is—that judgment for their sins awaits them! So they ignore the help which is so close to them. It is likely that although the monkey did not like being in the ocean, he did not know that he would soon drown. And that’s exactly what happened . . . he drowned!
Maybe you are like that monkey. You are surrounded by sin, and you are in danger of eternal judgment for your own sins. But for you there is good news! God has seen your need and has sent a Savior into this world just for you—just to meet your need. If you didn’t need a savior, God would not have sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for you. All that poor monkey needed to do was to grab onto that life preserver. And all a sinner has to do is turn to the Lord Jesus Christ who is waiting to save him or her. He’s the One who died to pay for our sins and rose again, and today He is in heaven.
You may pity the monkey, but don’t be like the monkey—don’t make the monkey’s mistake! By faith, lay hold on the Lord Jesus Christ right now! He loves you and died for you on Calvary’s cross, shedding His blood that can wash away every one of your sins. Won’t you accept Him as your Savior right now? You will have the promise of a home in heaven with Him when your life on earth is over.
Messages of God’s Love 2/2/2020