THE POISONED BOOT.

Hoa Maori, Issue 12, 1 April 1889, Page 1

THE POISONED BOOT.

CTOHE Island of St. Lucia, .which is cele(SK : brated for its beauty and fertility, is however, infested by serpents of the. most venomous kinds. . ' ; .0 Not long, since a calamity hefel a poor old negro and his family, caused by the sting of one of these fearful creatures. , .■> :& The old man had left his daily work, and was returning to his home late in the evening, when suddenly a dreadful hissing alarmed him. He sprang back and fled,' supposing he 1 had 1 escaped without' being stung by the serpent which had lain Coiled . upon the path, and sprung at him as 1 he> approached, • Alas! he was deceived. Shortly ' after reaching ■ home alarming symptoms began to make their appearance,' and soon he succumbed to the effects of- the poison, none ‘ knowing, ! however, ’where he had been wounded.'- 1 ■' *' :

In many of the West Indian Islands the negro population are very poor, the wages of an able-bodied man being only six or seven shillings a week. Yery often, with a large family to support upon so small a sum, the privations endured are great; indeed, sometimes one pair of hoots has to serve three or four members of the family, and in the case just mentioned, the one pair of boots the poor negro wore was the only pair possessed by the household. When he had died the hoots were used by his wife. Soon the same symptoms appeared, and she followed her husband to the grave. The boots then became the property of the eldest son, and before long he too was dead. Then they descended to the next, and he died; and so on down to the eighth son, and each had fallen a victim to a deadly poison. None had as yet suspected the boots. The ninth and last member of the family received them, and soon the poisonous effects became apparent, and the doctor, searching for the cause of this mortality, at last examined the boots. After a very careful inspection he discovered in the toe of one, protruding through the leather, just far enough to scratch the skin of any who wore it, the point of a serpent’s deadly fang. It was this which had wrought such havoc in the family. The poor father in his fright had not noticed the blow he had received on the toe of his boot, and, being quick in his movements, had hoped he had not been stricken. His toe was only slightly touched; and it was never for a moment thought that there the cause of his death was to be found. Such, however, is the virulence of the venom that one slight scratch of a fang is sufficient to cause death, as it proved in all these eases. How virulent, too, is the poison of sin. To how many has the death-blow been dealt by that serpent. By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. —Rom. v. 12. Yes, one after another we have stepped into i our fore-father’s shoes, we have followed him in his sin. The poison of sin is within

us, a nature contrary to God. Is there any remedy ? Is there any antidote ? ■ Yes, thanks he to God, He has provided one. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so Jesus, the Son of man, has been lifted up, that ■whosoever' believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting —John hi. 14, 15. Yes, He who knew no sin has been made sin , so that poor sinners “might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”— Cor. v. 21. We who believe can say, “He bore our sins in His own body on the tree.” He was delivered for our offences, He has been raised again for our justification, and now is seated in the glory of God. The Lord Jesus took our place, and suffered in our stead Death was the penalty of sin, and the Saviour, Himself all sinless, went down into death for us. Now He has glorified God about sin, and is risen again; the believer is not only cleansed from all charge of guilt, but is seen by God as having died with Christ, and being risen with Him is called to walk here in newness of life ; and so walking in the Spirit he will not fulfil the lusts of the flesh. Have you yet found in Christ the divine antidote to the poison of sin? If so, proclaim Him far and wide, for He nevgr fails, however far a poor soul is gone in sin. One touch in faith can heal, can restore; and it is the happy privilege of all who are healed by His stripes to tell His praise, and to sound forth His glories.

“ Then Jesus said again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins. . I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins.” How dreadful a clothing! To be seen of men in shabby clothes is thought by many a disgrace; to be in rags is worse; but to be seen of God “in our sins is terrible indeed. How personal the words are: In your sins.” They do not speak of a thief’s sins or of a murderer’s sins, but of your sins; little sins, as you may think of them; but no sins are little in God’s sight. We read in the Gospels bow the Lord Jesus, in fulfilment of God’s promises to Israel, came into the world that His own hands had made. His goodness and tenderness were shown, His power overdisease and death and demons was displayed, but His truth and faithfulness brought out the enmity, and shewed the hypocrisy of the religious chiefs, and for His love they gave Him hatred. He knocked at the door of their hearts, but they rejected Him; they would not have Him. Is there one of my readers closing the heart’s door against the Lord Jesus Christ ? Is there one who his not thanked Him for what He has done ? Some opened their hearts to Him when He was here, and to them He gave the unspeakable privilege of becoming sons, or children of God.—John i. 12. The Lord had found them in their sins ; now He was leaving them in their sins , and warns them, “ Ye shall die in your sins." To live in sin is indeed fearful, for “The way of transgressors is hard”; but how much more fearful to die in sins. Does God see you clothed in that dreadful dress, your sins ? Oh! dear young people, ask yourselves the question to-day; Am I still in ray sins ?” How are sins to be washed away? Only God can do that; you cannot, though you may try very hard. Come to the Lord Jesus Christ just as you are, and he will wash you “IN HIS OWN BLOOD.” (Rev. i. 5). If you could have washed your

own sins away, he would not have left the glory. But you could not; so the i.ord Jesus came. I love to trace His pathway kero how He went about doing good; how He fed the five thousand men, besides women and children; cured that poor boy who had an evil spirit; raised Jairus’ little daughter; blessed the little ones brought to Him; cured the blind, the deaf, the dumb, the lame ; and healed the lepers. Yet all His perfect life could not wash away your sins. He must die ; His precious blood must be shed in order that believers might say, “ He loves me, and has washed me from my sins in His own blood.” Can you i say that? If so, you belong to the third “in,” “IN CHRIST JESUS.” “ There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Rom. viii. 1. There is the new place “in Christ ” that God gives to every one who is washed in the blood of His Son, Every believer in Him may say, “ I have a new place, and God has | accepted me in Christ .’’ Can the Lord Jesus ever he condemned now ? No, no, indeed! He is no longer under judgment on the cross. Often we may see pictures of Christ on the cross, and crucifixes representing Him there; but He is not there now. He has been there; but now he is in glory, sitting at God’s right hand, because the work has been done. He was counted as the sinner once, when he became the sinner’s substitute. He was forsaken once. Yes, the holy God forsook the Lord Jesus once, and that Blessed One cried, “ Eli, Eli, lama sabaehtkani ?” Why did God forsake Him ? Because I was a sinner; the Lord Jesus Christ was suffering for my sins. He was my substitute ; He bore the judgment I deserved. But God has raised Him from the dead, and set Him in glory, where judgment can never reach Him, and I am in Sim, accepted in the Beloved. All believers are ACCEPTED IN CHRIST. (Eph. i 6.) BLESSED IN CHRIST. (Eph. i. 3.) COMPLETE IN CHRIST. (Col. ii. 10.)

One who is in Christ needs nothing to be added, because he is complete in Him. All ot you either belong now, or have belonged once, to the first in; “in your sins." But many can say, “I have been washed from my sins 1 in Sis own Hood' and am now • in Christ,' accepted, blessed, ‘ complete in Him.’ There is one other “in to which all who can truly speak thus are hastening : “IN GLORY.” “ When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in Glory.” Col. iii. 5. That is the believer’s home, with Christ in glory. What a home! With Himself ARE YOU GOING THERE? We know not how soon He may come and take His loved ones to be throughout eternity with Simelf.