DEAR little fellow was reading in the Gospel of John, third chapter, and when he came to the 15th verse he could not make it out at all. He thought he understood the verse bore, which says, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up;” but when he came to the next verse and read on till the big word “believeth,” he stopped and said to himself, “I must ask papa what ‘believeth’ means. I am sure he can tell me, for I know he loves Jesus, and knows a great deal about Him.”
Soon the little boy’s father came home. “Please, papa, will you tell me what ‘believeth’ means? It is in John, third chapter and fifteenth verse;” and quickly the little hands turned over the pages of the large type Bible, and when the verse was found little Henry put the Bible down on his father’s knee, and read “that whoever believeth on Him should not perish,” and then looked up in his face as much as to say, “Now, papa.”
“Will my dear little Henry turn to the book of Numbers, chapter twenty-one, the eighth and ninth verses, and he will find the word ‘believeth’ explained.”
Henry read the verses, “And the Lord said unto Moses, make thee a fiery serpent and set it upon a pole, and it shall come to pass that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass and put it upon a pole, and it come to pass that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.”
“Now,” said his father, “we will read the verse in John, taking out the word ‘believeth’ and putting in instead the word ‘looketh:’ ‘Whosoever looketh on him should not perish, but have everlasting life.’”
“But, papa,” said Henry, “the people bitten by the fiery serpent could look upon the brazen serpent lifted up upon the pole, but we cannot look upon Jesus, for He is in heaven.”
“Yes, my boy, we can look upon Jesus although He is in heavenly glory. Do you not remember, Henry, when your papa was away, that you said to mamma more than once, ‘O, I just see papa?’”
“O yes, I remember very well; I was thinking so much about you and wearying to see you, and sometimes you looked as if you were quite close to me, and then I said to mamma, “O, I just see papa.’”
“But, Henry, you did not see me with your eyes, for I was in London.”
“No, no, papa, but then I saw you with my mind, for I could not help thinking and thinking about you, because I loved you so.”
“That’s it, my child; now believing on Jesus is thinking upon Jesus—looking un Jesus with your mind—just as you thought upon me with your mind. Jesus died on the cross, was lifted up like the serpent in the wilderness, for any poor sinner to look upon, and all who look are saved,”
My dear children, do not get troubled about “what is believing?” Had the bien Israelites looked upon their wounds, and cried ever so much, would that have saved them? No! The Bible says, “Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else.” Isaiah 45:2222Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. (Isaiah 45:22).
Is that not very plain that God—not myself—is the One I am to look to; and if I look, what then? Why, salvation is for me, and salvation forever; for there is life in a look at the Crucified One.
ML-01/13/1935