It was a beautiful winter day in February. Snow was falling softly when Rover, a 13-year-old dog, went into the woods. He knew the woods and liked the snow. What started as an ordinary walk soon turned into the worst day of this aging dog’s life.
As Rover crossed a stream, the ice broke and he fell into the icy water. He quickly sank up to his neck in the very cold water.
Poor Rover. Although he was very close to the bank of the stream he was unable to climb out. He struggled and whined and struggled some more, but all it did was tire him. He was far from his home and his loving master. What he really needed was a strong person to help him out.
This is a little picture of sinners like you and me. We are wandering far away from a loving God. We take our first steps away from Him as little children, because we are all born with a sinful nature and begin to disobey God and our parents when we are very young. The Bible says, “All have sinned” (Romans 3:2323For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; (Romans 3:23)). We continue to sin all our lives, and the Bible tells us that we become trapped with the cords of our sins (Proverbs 5:2222His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins. (Proverbs 5:22)). Try as hard as we can to do what is right, we still continue to do wrong things, which God calls sin. We, too, need a strong Rescuer to break those cords of sin and bring us back to our loving God.
Some time later a father and daughter decided to take a walk in the woods in the beautiful snow. They took the same path that Rover had taken earlier. Mr. Dwight and Mia came to the stream and began to look for a safe place to cross over. As they were walking they heard an unusual whining noise. They soon discovered poor old Rover with only his head above water. He was so worn out that all he could do was weakly whine for help.
Mr. Dwight and Mia were both anxious to help Rover, but he was such a big dog he was too heavy for them. Even if they could get him out of the water, they wondered how they could get him the 1-1/2 miles home again. Mr. Dwight decided to go for help, while Mia stayed and talked encouragingly to Rover.
Soon two neighbors, Fred and his brother Richard, arrived on their all-terrain vehicles. Looking over the situation, Fred realized that in order to help Rover he would have to get right into the icy water. And that’s exactly what Fred did. We are so glad that he didn’t just look at Rover and say “too bad,” and leave him there. He jumped down into the icy cold water and lifted Rover out. By this time Rover was so weak, wet and muddy that he could barely stand.
And our sins have put us in the same condition. The Bible says in Psalm 14:22The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. (Psalm 14:2), “The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.” Sadly, this is what He saw: “They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
We are very thankful that when God looked down from heaven and saw us in our sinful condition, getting farther and farther away from Him, He was willing to do something for us. The Bible tells us “the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world” (1 John 4:1414And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. (1 John 4:14)). The Lord Jesus Christ, God’s Son, came down into this sinful world to save us. When He was here He was treated shamefully. Men hated Him, mocked Him and nailed Him to a cross. While on that cross, in the middle of the day there were three hours of total darkness. During that darkness God punished His Son for sins He did not commit. They were the sins of people like you and me. Now all we have to do is reach out to the Lord Jesus Christ for forgiveness. “If we confess our sins, He [God] is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:99If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)). He can forgive us because the price of our pardon (or forgiveness) was paid with the blood of His own Son. “The blood of Jesus Christ His [God’s] Son [cleanses] us from all sin” (1 John 1:77But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (1 John 1:7)). God and His Son have paid a great price for your forgiveness. Please do not ignore His offer, but let Him save you from your sins today. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:3131And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. (Acts 16:31)).
We are thankful to say that Rover’s life was saved. He was pulled from the icy water and placed on the back of the all-terrain vehicle. Then Fred and Richard took Rover all the way home. He was placed in front of a warm fire, and a loving family dried him off and took good care of him.
What a beautiful picture of what our Saviour, the Lord Jesus, can do for us. Not only does He save us from our sins and the punishment we deserve for them, but He saves us for heaven and will take us there. His own words are, “In My Father’s house are many mansions. . . . I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:2-32In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:2‑3)). He’s an all-the-way-home Saviour!
Will you let Him save you?
ML-09/22/1996