THE DAY OF REST. THE SECRET OF PEACE: or "Let Go the Twig."

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 239, 28 January 1888, Page 8

THE DAY OF REST.

THE SECRET OF PEACE: or "Let Go the Twig."

(BvC.R,H.)

3/r was Friday evening. The usual weekljf meeting for United Prayer was being hold. For two hours a stream of supplication and .praise had ascended to God, intermingled with two short addresses. Many requests 'for prayer and thanksgiving had been road, and • Glory, honour " had been raised for .several souls converted to God during the week. Mr — had just given an earnest exhortation to enquirers, in the course of -which he alluded to a book entitled, •* Peace in Believing.' Mr — , in closing 6he meeting 1 , said, "I will tell you a story concerning that, little .book. On a certain occasion, in the city of York, I was called to visit a dying man. Having several copies of 'Peace in Believing' before me, I placed one in my pocket and W6pt to the house of my sick friend. I. found he had been lying three months in bed, the whole of which time was spent in the utmost misery on account of bis soul's lost condition. Ho had sought rest but found none. Clergymen and Christian visitors had pointed liim in vain to tho cross for comfort and peace. 'I have prayed,' said he, ( till my knees were sore, and now I am ready to givo up in despair.' I bade him be calm, and seating myself on the bed, read to him several passages from the Word of God, marking some for his future perusal. I then took one of the little books from my pocket, and lead such portions of it as wers calculated to meet his condition. It was not lost ; light burst in upon his eoul. After a week had passed Away I called again and rejoiced to see thß' heaven -lit smile that played upon his features as he greeted my approach— an evidence of the precious change God had wroughtinhissoulduringthosefewdays. Is ■all peace ? I asked. * Yes, in belierinq,' was the happy reply ; ' Not in praying, aa I mainly thought but in believing. Oh ! had I but known this three months ago, what agony it would have saved me,' said ho. "The Word of God had been a sealed book to him till that week ; but now its pages seem lit with a halo of glory, while the Holy Ghost applied it with convincing and quickening power proving it to be the Truth tohich kilhth and maketh alive* 1 This labouring man had been for some time in the employ of the North Eastern Railway Company. His desire now was to be enabled to return to the Works, and tell his fellow- workmen of the Lord's grace toward him. But this was not God's parpose ; for after lingering about three tnonths, during which time he was able to stroll into the garden to hold sweet converse with Christian friends on the things of God, he was called to enter into rest. In his last moments he said to his wife, ' Send for the young man;' (not being acquainted with my name, and on hearing that I was in the country that day, begged them on my return, to assure me, with his affectionate regard, that he still enjoyed 'peace and btlitving.* " I will tell you," said Mr — , " what was particularly helpful to that man's soul in EvißE v iB search for eternal life. It was the following story, entitled, * Let go the Twig.' contained in the little book before alluded to:— " * There was once told to me an account of a lady in Scotland, and of the way in which her doubts and anguish were removed. It was during a revival, in which several known to this lady had been brought to Christ. Among the rest, a particular friend of hers had been converted. Feeling some measure of concern herself, she went to a servant of Christ who was labouring in the plar«, and told him she was unhappy. He replied thai he was ghd to hear it. Astonished at this, and somewhat offended also, she told the minister what efforts she had made to obtain salvation ; how she had read and prayed, but still seemed as far from peace as ever. He told her, that it was not by anything she could do, but by what Christ 'had long since done and finished on the cros3, that she was to be saved. All seemed dark and mysterious to her, and she left; resolving, however, to call on her friend, who had been recently converted. She did so, and asked her what she had done to obtain the peace of which she spoke. c Done ! I have done nothing ! It is by what Cctrtst has done, that I have found peace with God. 1 The lady replied, that this was what the minister had just been telling her, but that she could not understand it. She went home with her distress greatly increased ; and, shutting up herself in her room, she fell on her kness, resolving that she would never rise till her soul found re<jt and peace. How long her agony continued 1 cannot cay ; but nature became quite exhausted and she sank to slumber. While thus asleep she dreamed that she was falling over a frightful precipice, but caught hold of a single twig, which overhung tho abyss beneath. By this she hung, crying aloud for help, when a voice from below, which she knew to be the voice of Jesus, bade her let go the twig, and He would receive and save her. * Lord, save me !' she cried ; but the voice again answered, ' Let go the twig.' Sho felt as though she dare not leave hold, but continued crying, * Lord, save me V At last the One below, whose voice she heard, but whom she did not see, said, in the most tender, solemn tones, '/ cannot save you, vAd&s* you let go the twig !' Self-despfrate, sho let it go, fell into the arms of Jesus, and the joy of finding herself there, awoke hor. The lesson taught by her dream was not lost upon her. She perceived that Jesus was wortihy of all her trust, and that not only did she need no twig of selfdependence, but thab it wa3 holding to thn twig, that kept her away from Christ. She leb all go, and found Jesus all-sufficient. 4< This was to the point : my sick friend had long been clinging to a twig of his own making, and Satan loved to have it so ; but now it was to be left — his soul's earnest cry was, ' What must I do to bo saved V and the answer came : — 'Nothing, either great or small Nothinsr. sinner, no ; Jesus did it, did it all, Long, long ago. When He from His lofty throne Stoop'd to do and die. Kvorytl ing was fully done ; Hearken to His cry :— *Jt is ftntehc&Y Yes indeed, Finiah'd every jot ; Sinner, this is all you need, Tell me, is it not ? "W^ary, workinor, plodding one, Wherefore toil you so 1 Cease your doing ; all was done Long, long ago. Till to Jesus' wouk you cling By a simple faith, *' Dof r,f " is a, deadly thing, "Doing "ends in death. Cast your deadly " doing " down, Down at Jesus' feet; Stand in Him, in Him alone, Gloriously complete 1* "Now had this roan," continued the speaker, " waited to feel at peace, before he wan in a position to enjoy it, he might have died in his sins ; but, by Qpft't rich

mercy, ho was enabled to see that he m eed wait for nothing, but cast himself at once by faith into the arms of Jesus ; that is, upon the atoning sacrifice of the Son of God, and rejoice in the assurance that ' the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Bon, cleanseth us from dtl sin.' (John i.) /fence^ his immediate realization of ' peaoe in believing. 1 " And thus it may be with some of you encjulrers," said Mr — , " this evening. YOU are watting toproduce a feeling ofptact before you can believe thatyouaresaved. Yousay, IE I could only fed that I belie vo, I should be happy ; and thus it is evident that if you had that for which you so long, it would prove to be peace in feeling, nob hi believing ; and this would, I need scarcely say, be false peace. The only true ground of our peace with God is found in Jesus, who 'hath made peace through the blood of his cross' {Col. i. 20) ; and the soul that trusts in that blood is as safe as God can make him. « When I see THE BLOOD I will pass over you,' aaith the Lord ; and again, ' THE BLOOD shall be to you for a token ' (Ex. xv ),— a token of what? -of SALVATION and PEACE. It was not the Israelites 'JecHngs, but the blood of the Lamb, sprinkled upon the lintel and door post, that satisfied (lod, aud spake peace to the "Just so now. The wrath of God has been poured upon the head of Jesus, which led Him to cry, ' All Thy waves and Thy billows have gone over me.' And why was this? Simply becauso Ho then ' bare our sins in His own body on the tree ' (1 Peter ii. 24), for ' the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all' (Isaiah liti. 6). TO Sieve this is to be eternally SAVED. (Sco John Hi. 16, 24; Aots xvi. 31.) And in koeping with this, one lias well written — There is life in a look at the Crucified Ono : There is lifo-at this moment for thee : Then look, sinner, look unto Him and be saved, Unto Him who was nailed to the troo. It is not thy tears of repentance or prayers. But the blood that atones for tho soul : On Him, then, who shed it, thou mayost at once Thy weight ol inquities roll. '• Thi3 is to have peace in believing. Away then from every other refuge ! Tarry not ! ' Let go the twig, ' and you are safe forever.'" All present then joined in singing, ' Are your souls tho Saviour seeking? Poaoo, peace— bo st 11 ; 'Tis the Cord Hltnsolf is spoaking Peace, peaoe— be still. For before tho world's foundation, God secured a full salvation, Happy people— ohoser. nation ; Peace, peace— bo still ; and the meeting closed ; but the word spoken was found not to have been in vain ; the dreamer uses present — the dream realized— the lesson learnt -the 'twig' left; the blessed Spirit had done His work ; for one precious soul rested in the arms of Jesus in peace, and left the rooms rejoicing with these words — 'Tis the blood of Christ hath spoken Peace, peace— be still ; The destroyer sees the token! Peace, peace— be still. On God's Word I boldly venturo, All my hopes on Jesus centro. Into rest my soul can enter, Peace, peaoe— bofatill ; while others have been found, who from that evening, realized more simply and haomly than before, 'Peace in believing. 1 __ Beloved Reader, what say you! Have you this poace through the blood of Jesus Christ? Are you anxious to possess it? [ Jesus calleth thee, saying ' Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest ' ; and adds the precious assurance, 'Him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out.' Wait not, then, like this dreamer, to fed your peace with God, in order to be saved. She had her feelings while yet she clung to the twig ; and of what an agonizing kind they were ! without a prospect of deliverance so long as she wa9 thus waiting ; even as you, dear reader, cannot hope for peace as the result of any feelings you may experience, and which you imagine to be so essential to salvation. Awake ! then, and let go the twig. Cast yourself, with all your sins, doubts, and fears, upon the atoning sacrifice, saying— ' Jesus ! I root in Thbe In Thee myself I hide ; Laden with guilt and misery. Where can I rest beside? 'Tis on Thy meek and lowly breast, My weary soul alone can rest. Thou Holy One of God ! The Father rests in Thoo, And in the savour of that blood Which speaks to Him for me : Tho curse is Kone— thro' Theo I'm blest, God rests in Thoo-in Thee I rest. But let your decision be made at owe ; yea, before this paper passes out of your hand, ' yield yourself to God.' You may never have another invitation. Mere anxiety will not 'secure your salvation. Many who have been anxious about their souls have perished, because they { received not the testimony which God had given of His Son.' Then with all earnestness, 'in Christ's stead,' I solemnly beseech you, dear Reader, rest your soul at once upon the ATONING BLOOD OF JESUS, trusting what God declares concerning it (see 1 John i. 7 ; Eph. iii. 12—17), and you will soon have both JOY and PEAOE IN BELIEVING.