Last night just prior to the end of shift I was chatting with Allan and Mike, two of my fellow employees under a street lamp and we began dialoguing about our plans after college and/or Seminary. We talked about education, the pastorate, and even the prospect of being a missionary pilot, which my friend Mike hopes to do after training school. In addition, we talked about military chaplaincy and how a former president of the Seminary, James P. Boyce was a confederate chaplain (South Carolina) in the Civil War. I, being from the Boston area jested with these two good ol' boys about who had won the war. Clearly, children of God had died on both sides; those for whom Christ died were slain providentially in the perfect plan of God, in conformity to his will(Ephesians 1:11). Nonetheless, many Christians were spared, including Boyce, in God's plan for God's purposes.
I shared with with these men a time long ago, when I was a child, probably between ages 6 and 8 when I clearly remember coming very close to death. My family had been on a day trip to Jamestown, Rhode Island, which borders the Atlantic Ocean. We had been walking along the edge of a very high rock cliff, and as I glanced down, I could see what looked like an 80-100 ft. drop below with nothing but large jagged rocks and an occasional wave that would pass over them and then subside. As we walked along the edge, I remember my foolish ambition to get as close to the brink of the drop off as I could, and my father's stern warning to keep away from the ledge. Suddenly, one foot tripped over the other and I began to fall. This was like a hi-def, slow motion nightmare. I remember looking down at the rocks below and then looking up in desperation. And then, I will never forget it; my father miraculously reached out and clamped my little hand inside his and pulled me up over the edge to safety. I cried for quite a while and as you can see this experience left and indelible impression on me ever since.
Reflecting on this, I think about the fall that every man takes. A spiritual fall, where the stakes are much higher, the danger below is infinitely more grievous, and much like the above experience, there is nothing you can do to save yourself. This illustration is a bit flawed in a spiritual sense because you and I were totally unable to extend our hands when our heavenly Father took hold, for we are unaware of God, and of His presence and power. Nonetheless, on the Jamestown cliff walk, if it were not for my father, as he displayed athletic abilities and reflexes, the likes of which in him have not been seen since, I would have plummeted to my death on the jagged rocks. You see, I lived because he was sufficient to save me. I lived, because he reached out and grabbed hold of me. Without him, I surely would have come to an end.
The same has occurred for every Christian brother or sister. God has claimed you. And although you are responsible for your fall, he was faithful and his strong arm became fused to yours, almost as if they became one and nothing could break His grip. My dear brothers and sisters, take refuge in the truth that God saved you wholly and completely. Let His mercy and grace wash over you. The glory of God is magnified when all of your counterfeit sufficiency is melted away and you realize that if it weren't for your Father, putting forth his son to take the fall on your behalf, you would have plunged into an eternity of punishment; namely, a constant fix of the wrath of God and torturous alienation from Him, forever. Let us be thankful and dedicate ourselves completely to the heralding of the Gospel and making of disciples near and far; for you have been saved for a purpose.
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