IN a large city in one of the western states of America, God was working very blessedly, especially in the families of Christians, saving their sons and daughters, and thereby answering their prayers, and the prayers of their Sunday school teachers. It was blessed to see one by one brought under conviction, or to see previous conviction deepened; and, finally, to hear the confession of the Name of Jesus, and of salvation through His precious Name.
It was felt by all that God's Spirit was at work; opening blind eyes, turning souls from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God, that they might receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among all them that are sanctified by faith that is in Christ. It was a blessed season of divine visitation, of soul saving, and refreshing from the presence of the Lord, for the hearts of His people. Truly it is not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord. One passage of scripture was especially on our hearts, the beautiful 59th of Isaiah, 1st verse: —" Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear." Blessed be His name, no; it is as mighty to save now, as ever; and His ear as open as ever to hear the prayers of His saints, or the cry of the repentant sinner. Ah, yes; it is as true now as ever, that “him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:3737All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. (John 6:37)).
In one family God wrought very blessedly. They had recently come from Holland; the parents could not understand the English language. The young people were learning it, and it was these who attended the gospel meetings.
The father was built up in his own righteousness, very much so; and when some of his children were saved by grace, he said it was too easy a way to get saved; forgetting that grace reaches us through the infinite sorrows and sufferings, and on the ground of the atoning death, of Christ on the Cross.
The mother, a dear soul, was not much troubled with her supposed goodness, for it was her badness that she felt; and when her daughter was saved, she wept all day long about her sins.
John, the eldest son, naturally a nice fellow, but fearfully built up in self-righteousness, and with all the zeal possible, was seeking to establish his title to heaven by his law keeping. His face would often be the picture of misery and despair as he would listen to the gospel and feel his foundation of sand give way, and all his props going from under him, and his, as he thought them, beautiful garments of self-righteousness turned into filthy rags, as the light of divine truth shone upon them. His high notions of self, of being better than others, and being able to be saved by the law, were discovered to be the production of a corrupt heart and perverted mind, rather than the fruit of God's Spirit. "Oh, father, I have been altogether wrong!” be exclaimed. “I once thought myself better than you," said he to his younger brother;" but now I see I am not. Oh, that I had known nothing of the law:" referring to his law-keeping for salvation. He had mistaken altogether the mission of the law; it was given of God to teach men that they could not be saved by their works; it gave the knowledge of sin, and cursed the sinner when he broke it; but this dear soul, with many more, had looked to it for justification in part, if not altogether.
At the close of the meetings, he had advanced in the right direction somewhat. He had cried, “Oh, wretched man that I am!"—but, still occupied with self in some way, had failed to add: “Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" and consequently knew not the blessedness of the answer: “I thank God, through Jesus Christ our Lord." “There is therefore now no condemnation to them that are IN Christ Jesus" (Rom. 7:24, 25; 8:124O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. (Romans 7:24‑25)
1There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:1)).
The younger son, and the sister, the youngest of the family, were brought under deep conviction, which was apparent to all. For some time they wore faces of despair, and their hearts were the hearts of those who had felt the arrow of conviction, but as yet knew not the solace of divine grace. As yet they were strangers to the balm of Gilead, and the Physician there.
The Lord's coming was dwelt upon, and the thought of being left behind, as all unbelievers will, brought forth weeping and wailing from the distressed and unhappy sister.
But when God begins a work, He finishes it, blessed be His name. The time came for the deliverance of the youngest brother. In the quiet of the Sunday school class, while the earnest teacher— a Christian grown gray in the service of his Master— was pointing out the way of salvation through the death of the divine Substitute, Jesus was revealed to him as his Saviour; and he was free, and saved forever. Afterward he said," Now I can say with Mary: My soul cloth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.'" There was the individual appropriation of the Lord Jesus; the eating of the flesh of the Son of Man, and the drinking of His blood; and the consequent possession of eternal life. (John 6) Life through the death of another.
Jesus was known and confessed by this precious soul. Now as a sheep in the flock, he will be kept by the Great Shepherd, and led into the green pastures and by the still waters, his soul revived by His love, and his feet led into the paths of righteousness, until He come.
After finding Jesus as his Saviour, or rather being found of Him, he spent the rest of the day at a Christian's house, and did not reach home until after the evening preaching; and on reaching home found his parents in bed. He went in and told them that he was saved, and was now happy in Jesus.
They had been watching the work in their son, and on one occasion when they noticed his misery, thinking that it was misery of the body instead of the soul, advised him to see a doctor. But now he had met with the Great Physician of souls, and was healed and saved forever. His sin-malady was cured, and his face, instead of depicting misery, was now the picture of joy. “It is only in believing on the Lord Jesus," he would often say;" He has finished the work, we can do nothing but believe.”
The parents, though it was now late, got up, and began to weep; and after a while the father said: “How is it that you, the worst in the family, have of it so soon, and so easily, and I have been seeking for it for sixty years and have not found it?”
Dear reader, that mystery is easily solved. By the way of the law, or human righteousness, it can never be found; but by the way of “Jesus Christ, and Him crucified," it can be found and known at once, since by that way it is "Look, and live;”
“Believe, and thou shalt be saved.”
How like Israel has been the history of this old gentleman. “But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law ... As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumbling-stone and rock of offense: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed” (Rom. 9:31-3331But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. 32Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone; 33As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. (Romans 9:31‑33)).
Oh, why will not men trust the blessed Christ of God rather than their own miserable doings, and, flinging aside the rags of their own righteousness, be clothed with the righteousness of God in Him? (2 Cor. 5:2121For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (2 Corinthians 5:21).)
The sister was not forgotten. On Christmas morning she was at the meeting, with her usual sorrow and weeping, and as she wept the passage came to the preacher's mind, “Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?". (Jere 8:22.) In the evening that passage was the preacher's text, and during the preaching she cried to God to save her in that meeting, and, faithful to His word, He received and saved her; and her face, picture of despair before, was now beaming with a new found joy; and her tears, expressions of distress before, were now tears of thankfulness and joy. You can well imagine the happiness of those who had watched her misery, and prayed for her salvation, when they heard the blessed confession of Christ, and salvation from her lips.
Thus God commenced at the youngest end of that family,—the end, too, where no self-righteousness could be claimed, but where God was slighted and the world courted,— and made them the monuments of His mercy, and trophies of His grace; thus, in one sense, fulfilling that scripture, which says: “So the last shall be first, and the first last.”
Fruits of the new life were soon to be seen, in prayer for others, and the desire to remember the Lord in the breaking of bread, as well as the relinquishing of the world. May the Lord keep them, and lead them on until He comes.
Beloved reader, how fares it with you in the light of eternity? How will you meet God? As a Friend, or an awful Judge? Look to it now, I entreat you, for "the time is short." E. A.