It was late in the evening of a quiet Sunday, and the man who was addressing the crowd in the open air had been often moved to speak of Jesus to the multitudes who frequented that breezy spot. He was a simple, earnest man of God with few gifts but much grace; and in hearing the story of the cross told thus, many a head was bent, and many an eye filled with tears. As the last hymn was being sung, the speaker moved quietly about among the people, offering them well selected gospel tracts.
Months passed, and the preacher often wondered whether the seed sown in this and similar services which he had conducted had borne any fruit. One evening in the autumn, he was crossing on the ferry, not far from the spot where he had just spoken, when a rough-looking man in the boat accosted him: "Good evening, sir! I suppose you don't remember me?"
"No, I can't say I do," was the answer, after a close look at him.
"Ah, but I know you," exclaimed the first speaker. "Indeed! How, or where, may I ask, did you ever see me?"
"If I may tell you all about it, I'd like to."
"Do tell me, my friend."
"Do you remember preaching on the hill yonder, one Sunday evening last summer?"
"Yes, I do."
"Well, I was one of your hearers, and I thank God I was! You talked of judgment to come. I thought you must have known what a sinner stood close to you, for you often looked at me. Before you were finished I was completely beaten down. And then you gave me a tract, which I took and carried home. I am not ashamed to tell you that I wept all the way home. Mine was a solitary room, and when I reached it, I sat down to read my tract. That, too, spoke of coming judgment, and my conscience was on fire. But it told of Jesus, the Lamb of God, who takes away sin. Ah! That was what I wanted! I cried to God. I could not sleep, and so for many weary weeks I went on, miserable enough. At last I saw that God's way to me was through Jesus Christ; and that my way to God was just through Jesus Christ, too. One Mediator between God and men. And so, resting on and trusting alone in Him, I found that death had no sting in prospect, and judgment no terror, for by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and through Him alone, even my crimson sins could be made "white as snow."
"How is it now, my friend? Do you ever sin now?" "Oh, sir, I wish I could say no! But I cannot. Yes, I do sin."
"And what do you do when you sin?"
"What can I do, but just go to God, and confess my sin to Him."
"Do you hope to go to heaven when you die?" "Yes, through His grace—not my merit. I am all unworthy, but He is 'faithful and just,' and 'the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanseth us from all sin.' "What will make it heaven to you?"
"There I shall see His face,
And never, never sin;
There from the rivers of His grace
Drink endless pleasures in,"
was the quiet answer.
The questioning ceased; it was enough. The preacher saw the work was of God; and in thus meeting with one saved through his instrumentality, he realized one of the deepest wishes of his inmost soul. His heart was cheered and his courage revived to keep on keeping on.
Seed-sower! Go on sowing "beside all waters," for God both can and will "give the increase."
"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." 1 Cor. 15:5858Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:58).