Jewels #21 (Dec. 8, 2008)
My Jewels # 21
"And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up MY JEWELS." (Malachi 3:17)
To my dear grand children,
Some years ago the people living near Niagara Falls were startled by the cry: "Man in Niagara! Man in Niagara!" They all ran, thronging the Suspension Bridge and crowding the cliffs nearby. Some one cried out: "See, see, over there - he is hanging on a rock!" pointing as he spoke to a low water washed rock about sixty yards below the great falls.
The question went through all the shocked crowd; "Can we save him? Can we save him?" They brought a long rope ladder and threw it over the cliff, but there were some bushes growing out of a crevice down in the rocks. As the rope ladder fell, it tangled in the bushes, and they could not free it.
They asked another question; "Who will go down and clear the rope ladder and try to save that man?" It would be a terrible thing to try to do. The man who dared would do so at the greatest risk of his own life.
At last a brave young fellow stepped forward and said, "I'll go." Carefully he climbed down the rope ladder to the bushes. With great difficulty he got the ladder clear and dropped it near the trapped man. The rope ladder swung and swayed. Below the young man, were the dashing boiling waters. One missed grasp, or one misstep, and he would plunge to his death on the rocks below. He went slowly and steadily down, down, down.
At last he reached the spot where the drenched, battered, weakened man was clinging. With one hand he firmly held the swaying ladder. He put his foot as firmly as possible on the low rocks over which the water was dashing. With the other hand he took hold of the poor fellow, and, with words of comfort persuaded him to take hold of the rope ladder and try to climb to the cliffs above.
Slowly, painfully, resting often to gain strength, the poor man climbed up. The brave helper below steadied the ladder as best he could. At last he was in reach of the top, and strong arms, reaching over, seized him and lifted him to safety, mid the tears and shouts of joy from the crowd.
The story illustrates, though in a poor way, what our Lord Jesus has done for sinners. He was the One Who came down from Heaven to us, amid all the storm and death and judgment our sins deserved.
He came down to us. He did not stand, like the people on the cliffs, away off in the far heavens shouting to us to climb up. He was like the brave helper in the story; from the far heavens He Himself came down to us.
But our Lord Jesus does not simply bring the ladder of escape to us. he takes us up in His arms of love and lifts us up completely our of the place of danger and judgment. It was "while we were yet without strength, Christ died for us." Let us not resist Him, but with deep trust rest our fainting souls on Him. Our Lord Jesus is the One Who comes to us; and there is not one of us who may not be saved because... He came!
Come Now, before it is too late.
