| Devotional Hours with the Bible |
Chapter 18 |
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“Verily I say unto you, all their sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men.” This is a wonderful saying. Mrs. Stowe, in Uncle Tom’s Cabin, draws a picture of a slave, weary and worn, toiling in the sultry sun. On quotes to him the words, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). “Them’s good words,” said the old slave; “but who says ‘em?” All their value depended upon who said them. If it was only a man, there was little comfort in them. But it was Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who said them; and therefore, they were of infinite value. The same thought applies to these words: “All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men.” They are good words, but who said them? It was the same Jesus; and therefore, they are true.
“He that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness.” Learned men do not agree in their idea of what it is to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit. But no matter about the exact meaning of the words; they stand here as a warning against a terrible danger. They are like a red light hung over a most perilous rock. While we may not know just what constitutes the sin here warned against so solemnly, it certainly is our duty to keep as far from its edge as possible. And surely all willful and determined resistance to the influence of the Spirit is a step toward this point of awful peril. This utterance of our Lord should lead us to treat with utmost reverence every appeal, persuasion, or bidding of the Holy Spirit; never to resist, but always to yield and submit to His guidance. We have no other Friend in this world who can guide us home. If we drive Him away from us forever we shall be left in the darkness of eternal night. How long we may continue to reject Him and not go beyond the line that marks the limit of hope, we know not; but the very thought that there is such a line somewhere ought to startle us into instant acceptance of the offered guidance.
“Whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is My brother, and My sister, and mother.” This seems too good to be true. To be the brother or the sister of Jesus — did you ever stop to try to think out what it means? Then, for every Christian to be taken by Christ into as close and tender a relationship as His own mother sustained to Him — did you ever try to think that out, remembering that you are the one taken into this loving fellowship? Thousands of women have wished that they could have had Mary’s honor in being the mother of Jesus. Well, here it lies close to their hand. They cannot have her distinction in this world, but they can have a place just as near to the heart of Christ as she has. How wonderful is divine grace! How strange it is that sinful creatures can be taken thus into the very family of God, and have all the privileges and joys of children of God! We cannot understand it, but let us believe it and think of it until it fills our hearts with warmth and gladness. But we must not overlook the first part of this verse that tells us who are received into this close relationship. If we would be the brothers and sisters of Christ, we must do the will of God.
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