Phil, the animal warden, found the little dog wandering down a road. When he gently approached the pup, the dog got scared, ran up an embankment and onto the railroad tracks. Phil saw a freight train barrelling toward them in the distance, so he tried his best to get a leash on the pup. Instead, all he got was bitten fingers, while the little dog scampered away down the middle of the tracks.
Phil couldn’t catch him in time. He stood to the side and watched in horror as the 60-car freight train passed over the little dog. He could only think that what he would find would be a mangled little body. But when the train finally passed, somehow, the little dog was still alive.
An injured, helpless animal is heartbreaking and makes us want to help them in any way we can. Even more heartbreaking is an injured, helpless person. And as the Lord Jesus looked down and saw sinners, injured and helpless in their sins, it broke His heart. He loved us and knew He was the only one who could save us. He said to God His Father, “Here am I; send Me” (Isaiah 6:88Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. (Isaiah 6:8)).
And Phil was the only one who could save the little dog. As he bent over the pup, he was amazed to find that not only was the little fellow alive, but because of his small size and his huddling down in the center of the tracks, none of the dog’s injuries were life threatening. The little dog had lost his tail, part of an ear, and the fur and skin on his back. When Phil picked him up, he said the dog cuddled right up to him. He took the dog to an animal clinic nearby where doctors treated the dog’s injuries.
A day or so later a kind lady read the story in the newspaper of the little dog that survived after being run over by a train. She called the animal clinic and found that no owner had claimed the dog or even inquired about him. He was an abandoned dog; he had no home and no owner.
When the Lord Jesus saw our abandoned, sinful condition, His love for us would not let Him just turn away. He came down here to earth to show us how much He loves us and to save us. His life of love and kindness led Him to Calvary’s cross where He not only took the punishment for any sinner who will accept His loving offer of forgiveness for their sins, but He died for each one of us. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:1313Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13)).
Kathy, the kind lady, went over to see the little dog with no tail, and to her joy he went right over to her and cuddled up next to her. It was love at first sight for both of them. And now the little dog has a new home and a new name - Joey. But best of all, he has a new owner who loves him just the way he is and is taking good care of him.
Is Joey enjoying Kathy’s love and care? Kathy says Joey wants to be around her all the time and spends a lot of time on her lap.
And one day soon, those of us who have accepted the Lord Jesus as our Saviour will go to our new home in heaven where we will live with our kind and loving Saviour forever. And there is something else very special. The Bible also tells us that He has a new name for each one of us who belongs to Him. He’ll give us those names when we are up there with Him. Meanwhile, we can enjoy His loving care over us right now and spend time learning more about Him from the Bible.
Will you accept the Lord Jesus’ loving offer of forgiveness for your sins and happiness in His home forever? Then you can thankfully say from your heart,
“The Son of
God . . . loved me,
and gave Himself
for me.”
ML-08/01/1999