All of us were shocked to learn of the collapse of the bridge on the Connecticut Turnpike, Interstate 95, over the Mianus River. As a bus driver I had driven over that bridge many times in the last few years. Most of the time the bus carried 45 to 49 passengers, and I never once questioned the safety of the bridge.
It will take many months of study to find out exactly what caused the bridge to collapse. But one thing is clear—there were many warning signs before it collapsed, and it seems that some of them, at least, were ignored. How solemn to think of the possibility that, if the warnings had been taken seriously, perhaps the bridge could have been repaired in time to avoid the terrible disaster and loss of life.
Boys and girls, all around us there are warnings that this world is headed for punishment by a holy God. And what is so sad is that men and women, boys and girls do not take the warnings seriously. Some mock and some simply ignore what God says in His precious Word, the Bible, about the coming judgment.
I heard recently something very sad about the Mianus River disaster. Right after the bridge collapsed, one driver who was able to stop his car, parked it at an angle across the roadway to try to block others from going over the edge of the road into the river. Soon another car came up fast to the scene. The man tried to flag it down to warn the driver about the bridge. But the car simply swerved around him and his car. As it passed, the driver cursed at the man and then plunged suddenly over the edge to an almost instant death!
Maybe we gasp at such a terrible thing. Oh, boys and girls, how sad to think that there are many people rushing on to the awfulness of an eternity in hell without Christ! When someone—a parent, a Sunday school teacher, a friend—tries to warn them of what is ahead, they won’t listen. They mock or curse the person who faithfully brings the warning and then hurry on their reckless way, seeming not to care about the awful end ahead of them.
God has not left you without warning. Before it is forever too late, listen to God’s voice to you, and receive the Saviour He has provided. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:22(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succored thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) (2 Corinthians 6:2).
ML-01/08/1984