She was named Teeny. Now that would be a good name for a pet gerbil or rabbit or maybe a pet bird. But who would give that name to a pet cow — one that weighed 1,500 pounds? Of course, the answer is that Teeny wasn’t always that big. In fact, when Ted first saw her she was just a newborn calf, barely able to walk. “I don’t know if she will make it or not,” he was saying. “She is very weak, but she is worth trying to save.” The little black and white calf was lying in the corner of the barn. She lay there helpless without any strength in her legs.
“Keep giving her the medicine every day,” advised the vet. “It will take time, but with good care and lots of love she might make it.”
“Can I take care of her myself?” asked Ted. He had looked at the weak little calf with her big black eyes, and he wanted to help her so much.
“Yes, you can,” Dad said. “And if she lives she will belong to you, and any calves she might have will also be yours, Ted. But it’s not going to be easy. She’s just a teeny thing and terribly weak.”
So that is how she got her name. From that time on the little calf was called Teeny.
Several days passed and there did not seem to be much improvement in Teeny. Ted continued giving her the medicine, making sure she was warm, helping her get up to walk a little, and getting milk from her mother and feeding it to her from a nippled bucket. But most of all Ted talked to her, coaxing her to get better and scratching her head to show her he really loved her.
At last after several weeks, Ted could see she was improving. His kind treatment was working, and soon Teeny was not only standing up but running around just like any other frisky calf. The vet had said she was worth it. Now as Ted hugged his little calf he knew that she was worth all the loving care he had given her.
In the Bible we read, “He [the Lord Jesus Christ] is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him.” Hebrews 7:2525Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. (Hebrews 7:25). There is no one whom God considers not worth saving. The Lord Jesus Christ came so that you might have everlasting life if you will accept Him as your own Saviour. God loves you so much that He did everything He could to save you. He sent His only Son, the Lord Jesus, to suffer and die on the cross for sinners. All you have to do is accept His love by confessing that He died for your sins and believing that He is your Saviour. According to Romans 10:1313For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Romans 10:13), “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Won’t you call upon Him right now?
Teeny grew into a large cow, but she still was always called Teeny. Ted continued to give her lots of love and attention. He could still hug her around the neck, but he could no longer pick her up or hold her in his lap.
One day when Teeny was about two years old she had a new little calf of her own. What a cute calf he was, so lively and frisky. Ted was so happy with the new calf. He spent lots of time thinking about a good name for him.
Teeny’s calf was lively all right too lively for his own good. Before he even had a name he scooted under a fence and ran out onto the road and was hit by a pickup truck. Little calves, like little children, do not realize the danger of running off... and this calf was killed. Of course, Ted was very sorry about it. And so was Teeny! She bawled for her calf for several days.
Ted and his dad decided to go to a cattle sale barn not far from them. There they found a day-old calf that was for sale. It was black and white like Teeny’s own calf that had been killed. They bought it and brought it home to Teeny.
Teeny looked it over and took one sniff. Would she accept this little calf who needed a mother? No, she knew it wasn’t her calf. She chased it away and kept on bawling and mooing as loudly as ever.
Ted’s dad came up with an idea. They had saved the hide of the calf that had been killed. Dad punched holes in the edges of the hide and wrapped it around the new little calf, tying it securely with rope strung through the holes in the hide. Then he brought the calf back to Teeny. This changed things right away. Teeny sniffed the calf over a few times and then began licking it. The little calf was accepted.
Are you an orphan? Even though your mother and father are living you could still be an orphan. Your sins make you an orphan. You cannot be accepted as one of God’s children as long as you still have your sins. God loves you very much, but since He hates sin you cannot be accepted as one of His own children until those sins are covered over.
Wouldn’t you like to be accepted knowing that all your sins are gone forever from God’s sight? How can this be done? It is not by being as good as you can be and hoping in the end that the good things in your life will outweigh the bad things. God says, “all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” Isaiah 64:66But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. (Isaiah 64:6). In other words, in God’s eyes our good deeds are worthless! Adam and Eve tried to cover themselves by making fig-leaf aprons, but that did not hide their sin from the all-seeing eye of God. Instead, God provided them with coats made of animal skins, showing them that the only way they could stand before Him was with their sins covered over through the death of another. Of course we know that the death of an animal could never put away sin, but it pointed ahead to what the death of the Lord Jesus Christ would do for sinners. He was the true Lamb of God who shed His precious blood on the cross of Calvary to wash us from all our sins. Teeny would only accept the substitute calf when it was covered with the skin from her own calf. This is a picture of how God will accept you as His own child when your sins are covered by the blood of His own Son, the Lord Jesus. He wants you to accept Him as your Saviour. Won’t you come to Him right now? “To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the beloved.” Ephesians 1:66To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. (Ephesians 1:6).
ML-02/03/1985