justified.” Received by Jesus, faith enters heaven, and again she cries, “Who,” even here among the spotless and ransomed, “shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” Now the law is satisfied; sin is gone; and now surely we need not fear the sting of the dragon, but we may say as Paul did, when he rose into the majesty of poetry — such beautiful poetry, that Pope himself borrowed his words, only transposing the sentences — “Oh grave, where is your victory? Oh death, where is your sting?”
19. If it were necessary tonight, I might speak to you concerning the resurrection, and I might tell you how much that takes away the sting of death, but I will confine myself to the simple fact, that “the sting of death is sin,” that “the strength of sin is the law,” and that Christ gives us the victory, by taking the sting away, and removing the strength of sin by his perfect obedience.
20. And now, sirs, how many are there here who have any hope that for them Christ Jesus died? Am I coming too close to home, when most solemnly I put the question to each one of you, as I stand in God’s presence this night, to free my head of your blood; as I stand and appeal with all the earnestness this heart is capable of. Are you prepared to die? Is sin pardoned? Is the law satisfied? Can you view the flowing
Of Christ’s soul redeeming blood,
With divine assurance knowing,
That he made your peace with God?
Oh, can you now put one hand upon your heart, and the other upon the Bible, and say, “God’s word and I agree; the witness of the Spirit here and the witness there are one. I have renounced my sins; I have given up my evil practices; I have abhorred my own righteousness; I trust in nothing but Jesus’ doings; simply do I depend on him.
Nothing in my hands I bring,
Simply to your cross I cling.”
If so, were you to die where you are — sudden death would be sudden glory.
21. But, my hearers, shall I be faithful with you? or shall I belie my soul? Which shall it be? Are there not many here who, each time the bell tolls the departure of a soul, might well ask the question, “Am I prepared?” and they must say, “No.” I shall not turn prophet tonight, but if it were right for me to say so, I fear not one half of you are prepared to die. Is that true? Yes, let the speaker ask himself the question, “Am I prepared to meet my Maker face to face?” Oh, sit in your seats and catechise your souls with that solemn question. Let each one ask himself, “Am I prepared, should I be called to die?” I think I hear one say with confidence, “I know that my Redeemer lives.” “Let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” I hear another say with trembling accents —
A guilty, weak, and helpless worm,
On Christ’s kind arms I fall;
He is my strength and righteousness,
My Jesus and my all.
Yes, sweet words! I would rather have written that one verse than Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” It is such a matchless picture of the true condition of the believing soul. But I hear another say, “I shall not answer such a question as that. I am not going to be dull today. It may be gloomy weather outside today, but I do not want to be made melancholy.” Young man, young man, go your way. Let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; but for all this the Lord shall bring you to judgment. What will you do, careless spirit, when your friends have forsaken you, when you are alone with God? You do not like to be alone, young man, now, do you? A falling leaf will startle you. To be alone an hour will bring on an insufferable feeling of melancholy. But you will be alone — and a dreary alone it will be — with God an enemy! What will you do in the swellings of Jordan? What will you do when he takes you by the hand at eventide, and asks you for an account; when he says, “What did you do in the beginning of your days? How did you spend your life?” When he asks you, “Where are the years of your manhood?” When he questions you about your wasted Sundays, and enquires how your latter years were spent? What will you say then? Speechless, without an answer you will stand. Oh, I beseech you, as you love yourselves, take care! Even now begin to weigh the solemn matters of eternal life. Oh! do not say, “Why so earnest? why in such haste?” Sirs, if I saw you lying in your bed and your house was on fire, the fire might be at the bottom of the house and you might slumber safely for the next five minutes; but with all my might I would pull you from your bed, or I would shout, “Awake! awake! the flame is under you.” So with some of you who are sleeping over hell’s mouth, slumbering over the pit of perdition, may I not awaken you? May I not depart a little from clerical rules, and speak to you as one speaks to his fellow whom he loves? Ah! if I did not love you, I would not need to be here. It is because I wish to win your souls, and if it is possible, to win for my Master some honour, that I would thus pour out my heart before you. As the Lord lives, sinner, you stand on a single plank over the mouth of hell, and that plank is rotten. You hang over the pit by a solitary rope, and the strands of that rope are breaking. You are like Damocles of old, whom Dionysius placed at the head of the table: before him was a dainty feast, but the man did not eat, for directly over his head was a sword suspended by a hair. So are you, sinner. Let your cup be full, let your pleasures be high, let your soul be elevated. Do you see that sword? The next time you sit in the theatre, look up and see that sword; the next time you are in a tavern, look at that sword; when next in your business you scorn the rules of God’s gospel, look at that sword. Though you do not see it, it is there. Even now you may hear God saying to Gabriel, — “Gabriel, that man is sitting in his seat in the hall; he is hearing, but as though he did not hear; unsheathe your blade. Let the glittering sword cut through that hair; let the weapon fall upon him, and divide his soul and body.” Stop! oh Gabriel, stop! Spare the man a little while. Give him yet an hour, that he may repent. Oh, let him not die. True, he has been here these ten or a dozen nights, and he has listened without a tear; but stop; perhaps he may repent yet. Jesus backs up my entreaty, and he cries, “Spare him yet another year, until I dig around him, and fertilize him, and though he now encumbers the ground, he may yet bring forth fruit, that he may not be hewn down and cast into the fire.” I thank you, oh God, you will not cut him down tonight; but tomorrow may be his last day. You may never see the sun rise, though you have seen it set. Take heed. Hear the word of God’s gospel, and depart with God’s blessing. “Whoever believes on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved.” “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved.” “He is able to save to the uttermost all who come to him.” “Whoever comes to him he will in nowise cast out.” “Let every one that hears, say come; whoever is thirsty, let him come, and take of the water of life, freely.”
{a} Escutcheon: Shield containing a coat of arms. OED.
{b} Perseus: He was the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty there, was the first of the mythic heroes of Greek mythology whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters provided the founding myths in the cult of the Twelve Olympians. Perseus was the hero who killed Medusa and claimed Andromeda, having rescued her from a sea monster. See Explorer “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perseus”
Forgiveness
No. 24-1:181. A Sermon Delivered On Sunday Morning, May 20, 1855, By C. H. Spurgeon, At Exeter Hall, Strand.
I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and will not remember your sins. {Isaiah 43:25}
1. There are some passages of sacred writ which have been more abundantly blessed to the conversion of souls than others. They may be called salvation texts. We may not be able to discover how it is, or why it is, but certainly it is the fact, that some chosen verses have been more used by God to bring men to the cross of Christ than any others in his Word.
