TOM JONES was a bad boy. Out 1 in the country where he grew up he caused no little sorrow to Miss Lane, the school teacher, as he sought to thwart her efforts for good among the boys and girls in the village.
Miss Lane was an earnest Christian who had a Sunday school class in the little one-roomed schoolhouse where she taught. In the wintertime, on Sunday afternoons, she would come an hour earlier to start the fire and get the room warmed up before the children arrived. Miss Lane had sought to win Tom to the Lord but he would have none of it. Instead he fired out ways to plague Miss Lane and even to break up her Sunday class.
One day he hit upon a first-rate idea (he thought!) to stop her Sunday school. He would “smoke ‘er out.”
That weekend, when no one was around, he made his way to the little schoolhouse, armed with a hammer and some nails in his pocket. The school stood in a small clearing and was surrounded for the most part with big trees, so he was sure of not being seen. Climbing up on a window sill he hammered a couple of nails into the slots of the window. Then he went to the next window and did the same. He went from one to the other until he had nailed up all the windows so he thought. This done he climbed onto the roof and stuffed an old bag down the chimney. Chuckling to himself, he went home to await the fun.
Naughty boy! What poor fun it was after all, to oppose gentle Miss Lane’s Sunday school efforts! But he did not realize then that he was really fighting against God, who would bring him into judgment for his deeds that day.
Sunday afternoon found bad Tom behind the big trees near the school where he could watch without being seen. Faithful as ever, Miss Lane arrived at the schoolhouse and immediately set about to start the fire. But for some reason there was no draft; the smoke instead of going up the chimney began to pour out into the school room. The room began to fill with smoke. Miss Lane went to open a window, but to her surprise it refused to open. She tried another, and another, and still another, but without success. Out behind the big tree, Tom grinned with satisfaction.
Poor Miss Lane! What could she do? The children would be coming at any moment. But Miss Lane had a resource. She sent up a silent prayer to Him she loved and who she knew would help her. She tried the last window, and oh joy! it flew open. Out poured the smoke like a funnel. By the time the children arrived the room was almost cleared. It wasn’t quite as warm as usual, but the happy children sat down around the old stove and the Sunday school went right on as usual.
Out under the trees naughty Tom could scarcely believe his eyes. The smoke was pouring out of the open window, and the sweet voices of the children singing gospel hymns sound a triumphant note as they floated across the schoolyard. All his bravado was gone now, and instead a dial feeling of dismay took possession of him. Utterly defeated he slunk off home in shame, like a dog with his tail between his legs.
The feeling of dismay in his heart now gave place to one of solemn dread, as he pondered what had happened, for it suddenly came home to him that God was on the side of Miss Lane. His failure to nail up that last window was but the overruling hand of God. He had been fighting against Him, and how great was his sin now! The arrow of conviction entered deep into his soul. His conscience was plowed up. For the first time in his life the sinful boy felt he was in the presence of that holy One who had seen all he had done, who knew all that was in Tom’s heart, and who now revealed to him the wickedness that was there.
The burden of his sins now became almost too great for Tom to bear. He had heard Miss Lane speak of the mercy of God, but would He forgive a boy so wicked as he? This question remained unanswered in his soul for a time, but folks began to see a great change had come over Tom, the mischief-maker.
Repentance, it is said, is taking sides with God against one’s sins, and conversion is “right about face.” Both became true of Tom. To the wonder of all one Sunday he showed up at Miss Lane’s Sunday school, not to disturb the peace, but to sit quietly and listen eagerly while the children sang and Miss Lane told afresh the story of how “Christ died for the ungodly.” For “God commendeth His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Rom. 5:88But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8).
Tom confessed his sins to God who sent him a message of peace. By faith he looked away to Calvary and saw in Jesus a Saviour who was greater than all his sins, and he claimed Him as his own. In a moment of time, “all his sins so great so many, in His blood were washed away,” in that ocean of love, and peace flooded into his heart.
Tom was saved — saved to live for that One who gave Himself for him on the cross — saved to help win others to that blessed Saviour.
ML-06/30/1963