State and Actions

 •  4 min. read  •  grade level: 5
MY DEAR READER, Will you allow me to say an earnest word to you about your state and your actions? The Psalmist, speaking by the Spirit, says, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Ps. 51:5); and Paul, speaking by the same Holy Spirit, says, “And were by nature children of wrath.” (Ephes. 2:33Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. (Ephesians 2:3).) These verses prove beyond doubt that we are all born lost: from the Queen upon her throne to the meanest peasant in his hut; from the philosopher to the clown; from the millionaire to the penniless pauper; from the upper ten thousand of Belgravia to the dregs of society at Blackwall. Yes, whether it be the monarch in his palace, the monk in his cloister, or the mendicant in the streets, “there is no difference” (Rom. 3:2222Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: (Romans 3:22)); all are lost. We have not to go to hell to be lost; WE ARE BORN LOST. God in His mercy give you each to see it, own it, and to accept His remedy! “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was LOST.” (Luke 19:1010For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10).)
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:66All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6).)
“For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was LOST, and is found. And they began to be merry.” (Luke 15:2424For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. (Luke 15:24).)
“But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are LOST: in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” (2 Cor. 4:3, 43But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 4In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. (2 Corinthians 4:3‑4).) These verses show our state.
And now a word about your sinful acts. Perhaps you think that only great sinners go to hell. Will you allow me to ask how many sins Adam committed before God drove him out of Paradise? One! only one! If God was so holy that He could not have Adam in the earthly Paradise with one sin, do you think He will let you into the heavenly Paradise if you have committed one sin? I do not charge you with being a great sinner, but I know you have been guilty of one sin at least; for God says, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Rom. 3:2323For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; (Romans 3:23).)
Now, as sure as God is holy, one sin, not washed away in the blood of Jesus, will keep you out of heaven just as much as one million of sins. It required the death and blood-shedding of the Lord Jesus to put away one sin, just as much as to put away one million of sins, and “the blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanseth us from all sin.” (1 John 1:77But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (1 John 1:7).) Tears, prayers, and good works will not put away sins; there is no blood in these things.
Nothing you have done, or are doing, or ever will be able to do, will avail before God to put away your sins. “Faith in His blood” (Rom. 3:2525Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; (Romans 3:25)) will alone put you in immediate and everlasting possession of the forgiveness of all your sins. Now what will you do? Will you trust Him who came “to seek and to save the lost,” and have “faith in His blood” for the full remission of your sins? or will you go on refusing the love of God, rejecting the Christ of God, resisting the Spirit of God, and spurning the precious blood of Jesus the Son of God? Remember, if you die in your sins you will be put into your coffin in them, you will be buried and raised in them, you will stand before the great white throne in them, you will then have them fastened upon you, and have them as your everlasting companions in the lake of fire.
May the salvation of God be yours, dear reader, prays yours affectionately in the Lord.