"I did not Consider"

 
OFTEN, before now, the sight of a stranded ship has proved a timely warning to other vessels, even when neither lighthouse nor any other beacon has marked the treacherous hidden reef.
The following extracts have been sent to the writer, and are here inserted in hope that some young man, in like danger, may be warned in time. It is too late to consider the course of your vessel when her keel is grating on some sunken rock, too late when she is shivering from stem to stern as though afraid of the consequences of the dead stand she is about to make.
A little further in the course which you are pursuing, my reader, though all is fair to the outward eye, may find you shivering on the brink of a lost eternity. Is it not time to consider what such a “DEAD STAND” will involve? Here is a beacon for you. Pause and consider.
“A black felt hat and several articles of clothing were discovered yesterday afternoon on the banks of the Thames, near Isleworth, together with the following letter, written in pencil, in a good, bold hand:
“‘Good-bye to friends and enemies. I have come to the end of my journey at last, and life has no further charms for me. Before I go let me give one word of warning, especially to young men. Avoid betting and the race-course as you would avoid poison. Four years ago I was a rich man, possessed of something like £20,000 from one source alone. My fortune reverted to me suddenly, and I lost my head over so much gold, and immediately launched into a fast life. The company of bad women and low and illiterate men was my delight almost as soon as I set foot in London, coming straight from the peaceful village of Upway, in Dorsetshire, where I had resided for years amid good surroundings. My gay companions quickly introduced me to the gambling-table and the turf. Intoxicated with pleasure, I did not consider for one moment whither they were leading me. Every race-meeting I attended; and seldom won as the result of my friends’” (?) advice.
“‘There are thousands of low, cunning blackguards, frequenting the race-course, who live by the stupidity of men like myself. They live to lie, and cheat, and blaspheme, utterly regardless of a hereafter. I have lunched with princes, dukes, and lords, and have assisted to swell their ill-gotten gains. The race-course is a veritable hell upon earth, and betting is England’s curse, and will ruin her in the end.
“ ‘I am about to do as scores of others, in their desperation, have done before me. Poverty and starvation have taken the place of affluence and comfort. My friends have forsaken me, and life is no longer worth living. Please communicate with― Durden Street, Bristol. He knows all. When I am picked up, perhaps― and his pals’ (here the name of a well-known sporting man is mentioned) ‘will subscribe towards giving poor Jack S―a decent burial. Farewell.’”
“The principal room at Monte Carlo Casino was crowded on Thursday night by a throng of fashionable men and women, most of whom were eagerly following the play of an English doctor named S―, who was having an extraordinary turn of luck. The doctor finally accumulated an enormous sum, and was in the act of rising to leave With his winnings, when his pent-up excitement brought on an attack of apoplexy, and he fell dead across the gaming-table. The event caused some sensation, but as soon as the body had been removed, play was resumed as though nothing had happened.”
So much for the world they both seemed to love! “The rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and as an high wall in his own conceit” (Prov. 18:1111The rich man's wealth is his strong city, and as an high wall in his own conceit. (Proverbs 18:11)). But what is the use of his “high wall” if it is not high enough to keep death outside? Of what avail is it that he lives in a “strong city,” if he cannot resist the siege of the “king of terrors”? He may seem safe for the moment, but the believer is safe. Read the previous verse, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.”
“Poor Jack S―” found very soon, yet sadly late, the mocking emptiness of everything in this world. Its riches did not satisfy, and its poverty only drove him to desperation. Sorely oppressed, and utterly disappointed, he found “no comforter.” All he could hope for from the world he had served was a “decent burial”!
Are you serving such a world as this, my reader? Outwardly the course of Dr. S―was a contrast to that of poor Jack S―. Yet, when the end was reached, there was not much to choose between the brilliant winner and the disheartened loser. That fine “run of luck” only proved a blind rush to ruin. What shall it profit a man who has ninety-nine successful throws of the dice, or makes a fortune by as many successful bets, if, at the hundredth throw, or by the last wager, his all is staked and lost? And “what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what, shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Think, my reader, think seriously of this. Had these two young men foreseen the sad end of their sinful course, how they would have recoiled with a shudder from the first step in it!
But they did not consider. And you will do well to remember, my reader, that you cannot enter the devil’s coach and stop just when you think fit, or go to sleep on his couch and fix your own hour for waking. An alarm clock would not serve the enemy’s destructive ends. Should his victim awake, through other means, he either soothingly whispers, “Too soon, sleep on,” or roars defiantly, “Too late, too late. Face the worst; there is no hope now: God will not receive you.”
Is my reader pursuing a path that only seems right? Let me entreat you then not to trust your own understanding in such a vital matter. The world’s best offers are but the devil’s best baits. The fatal barb lies hidden beneath the tempting exterior, and, once “caught,” you will find that the real enjoyment of the bait only existed in your own imagination. Truly, “there is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Prov. 16:2525There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. (Proverbs 16:25)). Again we say, Pause and consider.
But how vastly different the portion of those who are brought to taste the love of Christ Love takes a delight in blessing and honoring its object: and “the blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and He addeth no sorrow with it” (Prov. 10:2222The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it. (Proverbs 10:22)). “In His favor is life” (Psa. 30:55For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favor is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. (Psalm 30:5)). His “lovingkindness is better than life” (Psa. 63:33Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. (Psalm 63:3)). Think of the apostle Paul, as he writes from a foreign prison to the believers in Philippi. What content, what joy, what triumph! (read Philippians 1:21-26; 4:4-1221For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labor: yet what I shall choose I wot not. 23For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better: 24Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. 25And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith; 26That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again. (Philippians 1:21‑26)
4Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. 5Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 8Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 9Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you. 10But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity. 11Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. 12I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. (Philippians 4:4‑12)). To him life was indeed well worth living, since Christ and His saints were well worth serving.
Would you be the possessor of real good? “Acquaint now thyself with Him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee” (Job 22:2121Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee. (Job 22:21)).
“Were the vast world our own,
With all its varied store,
And Thou, Lord Jesus, wort unknown―
We still were poor.
But how can I make God’s acquaintance? He is making Himself known in the gospel of His grace—the gospel “concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 1:1-31Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2(Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) 3Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; (Romans 1:1‑3)). He has declared the love of His heart in the gift of Jesus as a Saviour for sinners. “God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:88But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)). Believe on Him of whom the gospel testifies, and all that is worth having will be yours. Turn to God from the world’s best offers. Christ alone can satisfy an aching heart, and give peace to a guilty conscience. Thank God, tens of thousands of the worst of sinners have been turned to God from their evil ways, and among the number many betting men, and not a few are this day standing as living witnesses to the saving power of the blood of Christ, the satisfying power of His love. Come to the same Saviour. Come now, and you will surely find that life is worth living, for Christ is worth serving.