Читать книгу Plain Words for Christ, Being a Series of Readings for Working Men - Reginald G. Dutton - Страница 6

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"When wounded sore the stricken heart

Lies bleeding and unbound,

One only Hand, a piercèd Hand,

Can salve the sinner's wound."

Mrs. Alexander.

What is temptation? A good man was once asked that question, and he said--"The border-line between sin and holiness. Not sin itself, but the surroundings, the outer crust, as it were, of sin." And that is the best answer I can give you.

Well did the Master know what temptation was; and in His godly wisdom He has given us a special petition in His own Prayer against it. "Lead us not into temptation," we continually pray, and we often say those words thoughtlessly and carelessly enough, but none of us ever know how many temptations these words keep us from. God gives us trials, and they are good for our faith; but it has been well said, that what is a trial in the hand of God becomes a temptation in the hand of Satan.

You should always try and remember, when tempted, that Jesus is near you and looking on--that no temptation can befall you, save what He allows. If you call to Him for help, He will hear you, and answer: not always to remove the temptation, but to give you His grace and strength to withstand it.

There is a story told of a young workman in the Black Country, who was converted to God, and was in consequence subjected to great persecution from those who were employed with him in the forge. One day they stripped him naked, and placed him in front of the furnace fire, while a number of men and lads stood by using filthy language. They threatened to keep him there until he swore, but he remained silent; till at length one, in whom there was more humanity than the rest, freed him from his tormentors. The clergyman happened to hear of it, and sent for him, and asked how he felt when in that fearful case. "Sir," was his simple answer, "I never felt before that Jesus was so near me as then." Don't you think that Christ had given that young man a large portion of His Spirit? Don't you think that he was a martyr--a witness for Christ? It was the same, you know, with those three children thousands of years ago at Babylon. The great King of Babylon had taken them captive; and he commanded them to fall down and worship a golden image which he had set up. There they were in Babylon--far from the temple, where they used to worship God, far from their friends and relatives. They were only three young men among thousands of strangers. And after all, would it have been so very wrong, just for once, to fall down and worship, as the king commanded? Yes, it would have been wrong, very wrong; and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego knew it would have been wrong; and so they refused. And what was the consequence? Why, the names of those three heroes, for heroes they certainly were, have been recorded in the Bible, and translated into every language under heaven, and to this day we hold them up as examples for our sons to follow.

Reader, if you and I resist the devil, and overcome temptation, there is no likelihood of our names being written in the Bible. No children yet unborn will read the records of our history; no scholar will translate the story into other tongues. But our names, and the account of the temptation, and how we resisted it, will all be written down in the Lamb's great Book of Life. And is it not worth striving against any temptation in order to obtain such honour? Is it not worth while bearing witness for Jesus, if in return we wear the martyr's crown? But I would have you look higher than this. Jesus Christ died to save us; and should we not be grateful to Him for that? It is very little we can do for Him Who has done all for us. But we can do this. The weakest, and the poorest, and the most sinful among us can, when the temptation comes, put up a prayer to Jesus to ask His gracious help. And I know of none shorter, and certainly of none better, than the words He Himself has taught us--"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen[#]."

[#] S. Matt. vi. 13.