Half-past ten at night found the little town almost as still as a ghost town. A policeman on night duty, standing near a corner, noticed a man walking along talking to himself. Stepping back into the shadow of a wall, he heard the man muttering: “I’ll catch ‘em, maybe, if I wait here.”
The policeman wondered whom he was waiting to “catch”, and what he wanted to do with “them” if he caught them. So he continued to watch and listen.
Soon he heard voices and footsteps, and saw that the man peered cautiously around the corner. He seemed to be a little excited as he saw who approached. Two men appeared and stopped under the streetlight. They shook hands and one said, “Good-by! I hope you will get home safely!”
The waiting man stepped forward quickly and said, “Excuse me, but can I talk to you a minute?”
“Certainly!”
“I was at your meeting tonight, sir! I’m sober the first time for many a year, leastways at night, and I’m real shook up tonight. I saw I was a sinner as you talked, and nobody can help me ’cept it’s Jesus, but where can I go to find Him? I just don’t understand that.”
Both the listening policeman and the two friends were sure that the man’s question was honest and sincere.
“You can find Him right here, under this light,” said the evangelist. “The Bible says, The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Do you really come, sorry for your sin? Do you really want to find Jesus, and to have Him as your Saviour from sin?”
“Yes, I do, for sure.”
“Then He says, Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Will you call upon Him now?”
“Oh, yes!” was the eager reply.
In a minute the two friends were kneeling with the anxious man under the light of that streetlight where they had met, and the latter prayed earnestly, telling God all his need and accepting the Word of God that he was redeemed.
The policeman, who had often seen the man before as he stumbled home from the bar at night, watched him carefully for many months afterwards. He could only admit that there had been a real change in him. He had become a Christian - a real Christian.
It was not because that poor man did such an odd thing as to kneel in a public street under the streetlight that he went home “justified”, but because he believed God. He found Christ - pardon - peace -just where he was. So can you. It is certain that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and therefore to save you. All you need to do is to believe this, and accept Him as your Saviour.
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