GENTLEMAN said to me the other day,— “During the twenty-six years I lived in Australia, I lost five cows, one horse, four dogs, and twelve cats through the bites of serpents; and I knew a young lady residing there who received a similar bite from a viper, that came out of a piece of wood and fastened on her hand. She was then fourteen miles from the doctor who kept the antidote, and as soon as a horse could be saddled for her, she galloped off at full speed to the place.
On her arrival the doctor gave her the required bottle of powerful liquid, which she took to counteract the poison in the blood. When the lady was cured and on her way home, I met her, when she remarked to me, —’ Some time before I reached the doctor I began to feel considerable dizziness in my head, which caused me to use my whip and speed on in my increasing anxiety; and if the distance had been much longer, it must have been all over with me before I reached the remedy.'”
“Well, Mr. S—," I said," what occurred to that young lady physically, is just like what has happened to every one of us spiritually. Though this may not be an over-pleasant subject to turn to, I believe it is always the wisest way to be safe and at once to face the worst. The old serpent, the devil, inserted his deadly poison into our first parents in Eden, and what a terrible devastation was that to the whole human race!
This is what God, in His Word, says of all, without exception, and it is true. Do you believe it, Mr. S—?”
"Well," he replied, "I often have serious thoughts about these things.”
“That's right," I said," as far as it goes, but it does not go far enough. Had that young lady settled down with merely having serious thoughts,' she would very soon have been beyond the reach of remedy, and the consequences were inevitable.
But just look for a moment at one or two things that specially marked her.
“She was real, and knew she was bitten. She was certain of the consequences, and was anxious. She knew of the remedy, and was responsible. She believed in the remedy, accepted it, and received the benefit.”
“Very true, sir," answered Mr. S—;" we are all bitten.”
“Thank God," I said," I am glad to hear you say so. Man has sinned, but God, in His love, has provided the Remedy for all who will receive it; and knowing this, we are responsible. Those, and only those, get the blessing who know they are bitten, and who are really anxious and accept Christ, God's Remedy for man's sin. ‘It is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul' (Lev. 17:1111For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. (Leviticus 17:11)); 'and without shedding of blood is no remission' (Heb. 9:2222And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. (Hebrews 9:22)).
It is the blood alone that shelters from judgment and brings the soul nigh to God. For example:— When God's people, Israel, were in Egypt, they were oppressed by the Egyptians, and God therefore brought judgments upon Egypt. God sent the destroying angel to destroy the first-born, but told the Israelites to kill a lamb and sprinkle the blood on the door-posts and lintels of their houses where they were, and He said, When I see the blood, I will pass over you ' (Ex. 12:1313And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:13)); and it was so, that those who believed God and acted upon what God said, were sheltered.
“What mercy! Afterward, when the same people were in the wilderness, they sinned against God in murmuring about the manna He gave them daily from heaven, and, in His holiness, God sent fiery serpents amongst them which bit them, and many of the people died of their bites. But when they became conscious of their sin, and confessed it, God showed them a remedy, namely, a brazen serpent raised upon a pole, for the bitten ones to look at, and as many as believed God, looked and lived. What grace I Jesus has been lifted up on Calvary's cross for bitten sinners to look at. Do you accept His finished work, and trust His precious blood, Mr. S—?”
“Yes, I do," he said.
“Then God says you are saved. Praise His name!
“There is life in a look at the crucified One;
There is life at this moment for thee;
Then look, sinner,—look unto Him and be saved,
And know thyself spotless as He.’”
Stop, dear unsaved soul, two or three lines for thee! God says thou art bitten. Post thou believe it? Art thou anxious? Wilt thou receive God's Remedy? Wilt thou take the divine Antidote, and live,—yea, more than live, have ETERNAL LIFE AND GLORY I Adopt, for your soul's salvation, the principles acted upon by the Australian young lady for the cure of her body. Oh, think of what it cost Christ, in His love to us, to become our Antidote. He bore the wrath and the shame. He paid the debt, and drank the bitter cup to the dregs, on Calvary's cross. And think of what must be the consequences of delay, and the benefits of receiving “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:3131It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:31)).
It was no use that young lady trying to extract the poison from the blood, or to doctor her finger; she must have nothing short of the remedy.
Neither is it of any use your attempting to get rid of your sins by any efforts of your own, or by "doing your best," as people so often say.
“There is a stream of precious blood
Which flowed from Jesus' veins;
And sinners, washed in that blest flood,
Lose all their guilty stains.”
For your soul's salvation no horse has to be saddled, no distance to be traveled. “It is finished” (John 19:3030When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. (John 19:30)). Make no delay then, my friend, I beseech you. Time is short; eternity is near. The Lord is at hand, and very soon you will be either in eternal joy or eternal woe. Speed on to the Great Physician of your perishing soul, or soon it will be "all over with you" forever.
“They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Mark 2:1717When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. (Mark 2:17)). The loving heart of Jesus is still waiting to bless. He is still willing, and His own invitation is as true as ever, " Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest " (Matt. 11:2828Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)).
The door of heaven and eternal glory, which now stands wide open for you, will soon be shut forever; and are you going to be outside then, and left to perish in your sins in the eternal lake of fire prepared for the devil and his angels?
Oh, think of it, and be real. God is real, heaven is real, death is real, judgment is real, hell is real, and Satan is real; and will you alone be unreal?
Surely not! Do not let that old serpent, the devil, deceive you any longer with his tinseled wiles; but may God, by His Spirit, beloved soul, give you to feel your deep need of a Savior, and accept Him as your only Remedy while it is called today. Then you may go on your way rejoicing to your home in glory (where Satan's trail can never enter), to dwell forever with the Blessed One, who has conquered everything and purchased every blessing for all who receive Him as their Antidote; and then you can tell your friends what a narrow escape you had, and what great things the Lord has done for you, and has had compassion on you.
“Of Satan's deadly poison
There'll be no traces there;
The gates of pearl once entered,
Farewell to every care
With stainless footsteps gliding,
Along the golden street,
How pure will be the praises
Our blameless lips repeat!”
J. N.