A LITTLE while ago I came across a very interesting story of a boy who was caught stealing apples, and it seems just the sort of story that would interest young readers of this magazine.
A gentleman was walking round his orchard when he caught sight of a boy crouching in the branches of one of his trees. Now when a boy is seen up an apple tree there is only one explanation of presence there. It’s no use his pretending he wants to study the way the tree grows, or that he is admiring the view. He is after the apples, and as they are not his own he is doing wrong. What is more, he knows it.
Well this boy was truly caught, and was made to come down at once. You can guess he came down in a miserable, shamefaced way, fully expecting what he fully deserved. And what was that? Why a good whipping of course, and generally that is what such boys get. This one didn’t however. When he came down and stood before the owner of the apples, no doubt very uneasy and wishing he had never come at all, the gentleman said,
“Now then, my boy, you know you have no business after my apples.” So the boy had to admit that he hadn’t. “And you know you deserve to be punished.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Well I am not going to punish you. Instead, I want you to look round this garden and pick out what you think is the very nicest flower there.” The boy obeyed, wondering very much what the gentleman meant. When he said which flower he liked best, he was told,
“That’s for you. But you won’t come after my apples again, will you?”
I was telling this story to some boys and girls a little while ago and when we came to this point, I asked them,
“What do you think the boy did then?” One boy held up his hand and said,
“He tore up the flower and threw it away.”
I don’t know what put such an idea as that into his head, but our naughty boy wasn’t as bad as that. No, when he found that not only was he not punished, but that he was given the best flower the gentleman had in his garden, he said in a very subdued voice,
“No sir, I won’t. But aren’t there any errands I can run for you?”
“Now isn’t that just what you would expect? He was so overcome with the kindness of the man he had tried to steal from, that he felt he wanted to do something for him. The idea of throwing away the flower never entered his head. Of course it didn’t. Would it not have been worse than his stealing, if he had insulted and hurt his benefactor in such a way?
But, boys and girls, there are thousands of young people—yes and old people too, sad to say—who act much worse even than that towards One who has done far more for them.
God sent His own dear Son to bear our punishment when we were sinners against Him, and now through the work that Jesus has done on the cross, He offers us eternal life through believing in Him, and yet so many refuse to accept Jesus as their Saviour. When we think of how bad our sins look in God’s sight, and how much it cost Jesus to put them away, how dreadful it is to turn away from God’s love. I doubt very much if the gentleman in our story would have forgiven such naughtiness, or have given the boy another chance, and yet God has given you so many chances to come to Jesus.
O, dear boys and girls—and older people too who may read this—don’t treat God’s love like that, but thankfully accept the Saviour He offers. The gentleman gave the best flower he had. That was very kind of him, but after all it did not cost him very much. God has given for you and me the dearest object of His heart, even His only Son. Will you not gladly accept Him and own that He has borne the punishment you deserved?
Then, like our naughty boy, you will want to do something for Him, to show your love. And God can use even boys and girls in His service, if they love Him and seek to do His will.