IT was from the lips of a gray-haired sinner that the above words fell, at the close of a Gospel meeting in the city of Rochester, N.Y.
They reminded me of the fate of the R.M.S. “Royal Charter.” She was homeward bound from Australia, carrying, besides her crew, a large quantity of gold, and about four hundred passengers. In the English Channel she was caught in a furious gale, her engines broke down, and she was at the mercy of the raging sea. A vessel was hailed, the captain of which offered to tow her into port for a certain sum. “Too much,” answered the captain of the ill-fated vessel, “I’LL RUN MY CHANCES.”
A couple of days afterward the papers contained the sickening account of a fearful wreck on the Welsh coast. The “Royal Charter,” with the greater part of her living freight, was engulfed in the howling deep. The captain ran his chances, and lost his ship. You, my reader, may run your chances, and lose your soul!
My soul? Yes, your soul. Have you thought of it? Hell’s flames are intense reality, and you are in danger of spending your eternity amid them.
There is a loving Saviour in the bright glory, who wants to conduct you freely into havens of eternal rest. Don’t turn away. Do not, we beseech you, trifle with God’s offers of mercy. For if you neglect this great salvation there is no escape for you. You may run your chances, like many do, but it will mean hell forever for you.
But Christ has died. His blood can give you a clear title to glory. God has raised Him from the dead, and offers salvation through Him to you, guilty though you be. Accept His offer now, and be sure of salvation.
J. T. M.