Saved or Lost?
Table of Contents
Saved or Lost
The question of whether you are saved or lost requires your serious attention. Though very short, the importance of it cannot be overestimated. Under one or the other of the terms you must certainly find yourself, and your eternal happiness or misery depends on which it is.
Believe me, there is no possible middle ground between these two conditions. There is no neutral ground upon which you can place your feet. Either you are SAVED, and, therefore, waiting for that moment which shall usher you into a state of eternal blessedness, or, dreadful alternative, you are LOST. You are in the condition of those who are fast hurrying on to that moment which must settle for eternity their destiny and consign them beyond the reach of hope to the region of outer darkness where there is weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth!
We would press upon you the words of God to Israel of old: “Thus saith the Lord of hosts; consider your ways” (Haggai 1:5). Most surely you are rapidly advancing on the journey of life, and how near you may be to its close, who can tell?
Oh! if you are unprepared for the end of the journey, pause and think seriously on that important future. The end may be near. But near or remote, what can be more certain, what can be more solemn, what can be more your immediate concern than your own eternity? Where is it to be spent and with whom? Is it to be in the bright glories of heaven or the dark miseries of hell? Will it be in your Father’s house at your Saviour’s side, with all the saved from every land and with all the holy angels who never sinned? Or, awful thought, will it be in the prison-house of hell, with the devil and his angels and all the impenitent of every age? Oh! what an eternity of misery this must be! The very thought of it is overwhelming.
Now, we may forget our sorrow, or even our misery, for a little while in welcome sleep, but there will be no sleep in hell. We may find a quiet corner and weep alone, and find relief, in solitude, but no quiet, no solitude, no relief will ever be found there. The eyes that are distressed at every sight shall never be closed — the ear shall never grow dull of hearing — the weary soul shall never find one moment’s rest. All hope shall flee away, and despair shall complete its awful work.
But the wonderful news is that the door of repentance and salvation is open — wide open — for you, yes, for you. Will you not turn to Jesus now? Will you not flee to Him now while your sad case is before you and all the solemn realities of the future are pressing on your mind? Don’t wait till you have finished this paper. As you are, where you are, lift up your heart to Jesus.
“Come unto Me . . . I will give you rest” are His words of tenderest love and richest grace.
“Him that cometh to Me,” He says, “I will in no wise cast out.”
You can never be more fit to come or more welcome to your Saviour than now, and never more welcome to your Father’s arms, your Father’s house and your Father’s sweetest welcome there. His joy and delight in receiving the prodigal is a thousand times greater than the prodigal’s in being received. What wondrous grace and love! What wondrous long-suffering and mercy! He is worthy of all the praise!
It is difficult — more than difficult—to fully realize the force of these two words: SAVED — LOST. All this is solemn, weighty, important—all that is blessed or miserable, both for time and eternity, to the immortal soul is included in these words. These two words describe all who have read or heard the gospel. There is no third class — no middle ground in Scripture. “The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was LOST” (Luke 19:10).
Those who believe in Him are saved; those who do not believe in Him are lost.
It has been said, “Young, brave, polite, intelligent, but LOST. Beautiful, amiable, honored, beloved, but LOST. Wealthy, idolized, caressed, flattered, but LOST. Serious, courteous, moral, affectionate, but LOST. Discreet, benevolent, educated, a church-goer, but LOST!”
Remember, then, that although every qualification and advantage here mentioned most truthfully applied to you, you are still LOST if not a believer in Jesus Christ. Nothing short of His blood can cleanse your sins away. We are saved through faith in the blood of Christ, which cleanses us from all sin. SAVED! Yes, saved —saved with God’s great salvation.
All blessing is included in the one word, SAVED: eternal life, pardon, justification, sanctification, reconciliation, adoption into God’s family, acceptance in the Beloved, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, standing in grace, and waiting for glory!
May this rich portion be yours.
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36).