THE SINNER'S INVITATION.
By E. B. Saunders
TEXT.—"Seek ye the Lord while he may be found; call ye upon him while he is near." Isa. lv, 6. SINNER, this gracious invitation to seek the Lord, is to you personally, and is designed to call your attention to the ransom provided for sinful, rebellious man. The invitation is as broad as the ocean of God's love, as we discover, by reading the context, "Ho every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters," which includes all who thirst for the living waters, in every age, in every land; and that it may not exclude any, it reaches even those who find this a hard world, being down-trodden, despised, and poverty-stricken. Listen, ye unfortunate ones; hear what your gracious heavenly Father says to you: "And he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price." Though counted as the offscouring of mankind by your fellow-men, God, the high and lofty One, who inhabiteth eternity, invites you to a table where hunger and thirst will be forever satisfied. Will you accept? Will you come? But the invitation is connected with another promise still more precious than the satiating of our soul with fatness. "Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live." "The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. vi, 23. You have served the Devil for wages; now will you turn and serve God and receive his priceless gift? "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." You have sown to the flesh; have followed the desire of your own heart; gratified every appetite, every lust; have tried to drown all thoughts of God, Heaven, and the Judgment, in the pleasures of this poor, fading earth; you have spent your "money for that which is not bread; and your labor for that which satisfieth not;" have all your life long been sowing to the wind, only to reap, in the end, the whirlwind. The wages for such service will be sure—the dreadful pay-day will come; and now, before the day, long dreaded by the wicked, comes, God, in tender mercy, extends to you another invitation. Will you come? God is long suffering, and of tender mercy, not willing that any should perish, though you have sinned with a high hand and acted as though you thought that he who formed the eye could not see, and he who made the ear could not hear; so that your fellows thought your case hopeless. But God is not man; he does not turn from you; but commissions an angel to once more touch your heart, and urge you to accept the gift of a blissful, unending life in the new earth. Will you have it, or do you still prefer the wages of sin? The context points out the way in which we may seek God, and find acceptance and pardon. Now it is said concerning us, that "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God;" this being our condition, we might well regard it as desperate, were it not for the fact that God hath laid help upon One that is mighty—Jesus—there is sweet music in the name. Jesus says: "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me." John xiv, 6. The context points to him thus: "Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people." Jesus, who tasted death for every man, who endured the agony of the cross for us, is evidence that God means what he says; and now, the ear of God is ever open to his words in behalf of our sinful race. Though we have such an advocate we are not to be idle ourselves. Faith is necessary; faith in Jesus, faith in the promises of God; "without faith it is impossible to please him." We must not only believe in the existence of God, but that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him. And that faith must not consist in word alone, though God will condescend to notice and bless even the confession of it for a time; but eventually he requires obedience to those gospel ordinances by which faith is more certainly manifested. And I would remark here, that God is not to be mocked; he will not accept of any evasion of his requirements, his burden is light. Satan would make us think something else just as good, and in yielding to his suggestions we become his servants. "To whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey." Rom. vi, 16. Satan, the author of all sin, once an honored angel in Heaven, has rebelled against the authority of God; though legions of angels sympathized with him in his jealousy, yet he was soon overthrown and banished from the presence of God. His envy doubtless arose from his not being consulted in regard to the creation of this world, and especially of man; hence, his hatred would lead him to mar, if possible, the beautiful handiwork of God, and to sow the seeds of rebellion in the newly-created province of the empire of Heaven. He succeeded too well in a part of his evil plan, by causing our first parents to disbelieve God and disobey his commandment, given only for a simple test of their loyalty. Satan designed to lead man to partake of the tree of life, and thus perpetuate sin, by causing sinful man to become immortal; but cherubim kept the way of the tree of life; and poor, deceived man must gradually waste away in strength and vigor, till he should return again to the ground from whence he was taken. The fruit of the tree of life would have sent the blood coursing through his veins with more than youthful vigor; but it was too late; his fall was known; he had yielded himself a servant to Satan, and now he must receive the wages of sin, which is death. All the race of Adam have inherited, to a greater or less degree, the same doubting, rebellious spirit, and none of the race have lived without committing some act of sin, for "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Rom. iii, 23. And all must suffer the penalty attached to Adam's transgression. Rom. v, 12. But God, Jesus, angels, and the whole family of Heaven, pitied our race, and sought for some way by which man could be saved, and God could be just, and the authority of his holy law be maintained. Should man be unconditionally pardoned, angels, and the unfallen inhabitants of other planets might infer that God but lightly esteemed his law, and they could also venture to trample on his precepts. And if God should destroy the rebellious race, and re-create the earth, or man, Satan would exult, and feel highly gratified over the destruction of work carried forward without his counsel. But the wisdom of God is equal to the case. A plan has been devised wherein "mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other;" and the mercy of God rises far beyond the comprehension of created minds, while the inhabitants of countless worlds comprehend the dreadful nature of sin, when they see the priceless ransom paid for a puny race on a mere atom of creation. Jesus, the Son of God, the highest in Heaven next to the Father, offers to suffer the penalty (death) for guilty man, and is accepted, and must leave all his glory in Heaven to come to this dark world to endure the terrible agony of the cross to save poor, rebellious man. A merciful man will often endure much pain to relieve distress in the unfortunate, especially if it be appreciated by the sufferer; hence, we see our fellow-men going to the land of savages to enlighten and save them, or perhaps going where the noisome pestilence is smiting young and old, or where war's red hand has just been felt, if they can but relieve their suffering fellow-man. If our fallen race, depraved by suffering the curse of disobedience for six thousand years, can yet pity and feel for the suffering, oh, how much more capable of compassion is the great Being whose mercy endureth forever! "Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him."386 "The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children's children; to such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them." Ps. ciii, 17, 18. The tender pity of our God is plainly evident from his dealings with many in the past. His pity saved Noah, and Lot. Israel were often saved from their enemies when they cried unto God in their distress. He pitied them when in Egypt, and brought them out with a high hand; and when they had forgotten him, and wandered after other gods, still he pitied their blindness and ignorance, and raised up a prophet to show them the way; and whenever the crimes and wicked deeds of man call loudly for vengeance upon his guilty head, a compassionate God sends a messenger with weeping eyes and eloquent words to save every honest soul. If in the few mercy-drops of love and kindness that have reached these shores, we see such wondrous sweetness as to captivate our hearts, oh, how surpassing all power of words to express, is the great ocean of his love! Fellow-sinner, will you taste this love? The Christian has some experience in this love. When the cares and disappointments of life vex his soul till he feels without friends, without sympathy, and almost without hope; his misdeeds, like a millstone to his neck, sinking him down to ruin; he tremblingly seeks the Lord, gets a little strength, feels encouraged to pour out his soul before God; the hot tears course down his cheeks while he confesses his want of love, his hardness, his crimes; till, with broken but eloquent words, he has told all, and intreated for pardon through Jesus' blood. Does God turn him empty away? No, never! An angel is commissioned to pour the oil and the wine into his broken heart; the peace of God that passeth understanding begins to fill his heart, and inexpressible joy fills his enraptured soul. Sinner, will you not taste this fountain? You have an invitation. God is waiting to be gracious toward you; only give yourself to him, obey him, and he will give you everlasting life. God will not always hear. Jesus will not always plead. Life is but a vapor; to-day is ours; to-morrow is not. I have seen the young in the flush of youth, with high hopes of long life, cut down in an unexpected moment, even with the gay laugh still upon the countenance. There was no time for repentance; no opportunity to seek God! But the day of probation will sometime close; and possibly we are living in the very generation that will hear the dreadful words, "It is done;" when Jesus will lay off his priestly garments, and put on the garments of vengeance. Then the sinner will have no intercessor—no atoning blood to wipe away those stains of sin upon his character. For nearly six thousand years, a compassionate God has stretched out his hand to a rebellious race, offering a free pardon and unending life to all who will accept of his gracious terms. But few believed God; few accepted his plan; few sought and found acceptance and pardon. Hard-hearted and sinful is our race; they have hardened themselves against God; have mocked and insulted him, have stoned his prophets, derided his ministers, and slain his believing children, till the wrath of the Lord can be restrained but a little longer. While Jesus pleads, the vials of wrath are withheld; but Jesus is performing the last work of his priestly office; the silver trumpet announcing the hour of God's judgment, has sounded, but the inhabitants of the earth will not receive the message. Like haughty Pharaoh, they have hardened their hearts on the first sound of the footsteps of the coming King of kings. Patiently has God borne with us, till now he offers us one more chance for life; 'tis the last opportunity; the last call. He asks us to obey his commandments, and get ready to receive his Son. He waits a little moment for us. Sinners, shall we accept? Shall we seize the golden moment ere it be too late? The Lord will not always show mercy to the hardened sinner. "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; but ye have set at naught all my counsel, and would none of my reproof; I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind, when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me." Prov. i, 24-28. The invitation to "come" requires action on our part. Something more than a mere profession; a change in our habits of life must take place. "Let the wicked forsake his way." Sins long cherished, till they have become almost a part of our natures, must be given up; unnatural appetites, unholy passions, and slovenly habits, must be overcome. Wrongs must be made right, restitution made, forgiveness sought, and justice and judgment done by us, if we would find the knowledge of God. Prov. iii, 1-4; ii, 1-9; Ps. cxix, 97-104. It is not the proud and haughty, but the meek and humble that God loves. Those only who are willing to bow the neck to the yoke of Christ will escape the wrath of God. It must not be a half-hearted, lazy service, but all must be laid on the altar, houses, lands, gold, merchandise, good name, pride, honor, and even our bodies must be presented a living sacrifice to God. Jesus gave much more than this for us; he has purchased our redemption with a ransom more precious than an angel could present; he gave his own valuable life to honor the law before all Heaven, and redeem us from its penalty. The Lord has promised that though our "sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Isa. i, 18. "Let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." Isa. lv, 7. We have felt our grievous weight of sin oppressing us all our lives; stifling every holy desire and crushing us to the dust, so that when we would seek God, we have no courage, no faith. Satan would make us think by calling our sins to mind, that there is no hope for us. But there is hope, there is relief from our burden of sin; there is a balm in Gilead; there is a name given whereby we may be saved. We reason in our minds that man does not thus pass by transgression; that it is contrary to our experience to have those we have mocked and insulted, in return pardon our wrong and bestow some precious blessing. Man is not so ready to pardon insult; will God do it? Hear the answer: "My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isa. lv, 8, 9. But there is another inducement held out to us far more lasting than the joy of feeling our sins forgiven; it is the glorious reward in store for the faithful. It is brought to view in the last part of the chapter containing the text. It is not a vague, shadowy, ethereal, dream-like home; but a real, substantial place in the literal new earth, and a substantial mansion in the New Jerusalem. The curse which has so heavily rested upon this earth for six thousand years, will be removed by the purifying fires of the great day, and from the ashes will come forth the new earth clothed in its Eden beauty, with not one trace of sin's sad story. "Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle-tree." "The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose." It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing; the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God." "And they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a tree [the tree of life] are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands." Isa. lv, 13; xxxv, 1, 2; lxv, 21, 22. Besides this, a mansion in the golden capital of the earth made new, with a right to enter the pearly gates, a right to drink of the waters of the river of life, and eat of the fruit of the tree of life, and then, too, to have our hearts warmed by the sunshine of his love; to feel that God is our everlasting friend; that
"Sickness and sorrow, pain, and death,
Are felt and feared no more;"
and that henceforth we are to live as long as Heaven endures, and eternal life is really ours. Oh, the bliss of Heaven! the bliss of feeling safe at last in our eternal home; safe from the buffetings of Satan; safe from the mocking, Bible-hating multitude, who hate God and despise his law. Oh, how our hearts will overflow with love and gratitude, while our hands sweep the strings of the golden harps, making the high arches of Heaven ring with the song of Moses and the Lamb! Sinner, these joys may be yours if you will accept the gracious invitation to come; if you will leave the foolish frivolities of this world and cleave to the promises of God, and give your affections to him. I cannot leave this subject without referring again to the exceeding shortness of time; but enough scarcely being left us to prepare for the great change, even if we commence now. The prophetic periods are all expired, no prophetic time reaching beyond the present. The signs spoken of by our Lord in Matt. xxiv, are in the past. The corrupt, world-loving church spoken of by Paul in 2 Tim. iii, also chapter iv, 1-4, we now see on every side. And the last great delusion of Satan, by which he will deceive the kings of the earth and the whole world, to gather them to the battle of the great day, has already appeared; and now Spiritualism numbers its votaries by millions in this country alone. The effect of the curse seems to increase every year. Preparation for war; bankruptcy of men and nations; famines, pestilences, earthquakes, whirlwinds, &c., betoken the approaching throes of earth, and that her hour has about come. The question with us is not how we shall spend a long life here; how to multiply riches, and live in pleasure; but how shall we escape the things coming on the earth? What course shall we pursue that we may have the protection of God in the perils of these days? God, ever merciful, has given us notice that the end is at hand; that the work of our great High Priest is closing; that soon there will be no compassionate Saviour to cry, "Spare, spare the sinner a little longer." Soon there will be no precious blood to wipe our sins away; no one with influence at the court of Heaven to advocate our cause! Sinner, what will you do in that day? Be entreated to seek God now. Do not peril your life by delay. Seek Jesus now, before the Spirit of God shall take its flight from the earth, and man be left to feel that he is lost—lost beyond hope of redemption. Then will the sinner realize the anguish of being without hope. Then would they seek God, but the heavens are brass, with no sympathizing spirit to direct, no man of God to teach the way; for they have given their last warning, and borne their last burden for sinners. There is "a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it." Amos viii, 11, 12.