A Remarkable "Conversion."
By Editor
IN its notices of revival meetings, the Independent gives an account of one where there was much opposition on the part of infidels. By request of one of the unbelievers, a visiting minister preached a sermon on the divinity of Christ, which shook the man's unbelief, so that he and his family publicly professed faith. "Addressing the church, the converted man said: 'Brothers and sisters, I feel proud to worship the great cause of my being, if it be God. Now if I have sinned against our Lord and Saviour, which I suppose I have, I humble myself here before this congregation to beg pardon and ask forgiveness.'" Conversion means a change from one thing to another. In the Bible it means a turning from a life of sin to a life of holiness through Christ. Before a man can become converted, he must acknowledge himself to be a sinner against God, must realize that sin is a hateful thing, and must believe that Jesus alone can save. The enormity of one's guilt, which can be seen only in contrast to the goodness and mercy of God, naturally leads to deep humility. When Peter preached on the day of Pentecost, vividly pointing out the sins of the people, they were pricked in their hearts, and cried out, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" And when Peter told them what to do, they repented and were converted. When the publican went to the temple to pray, he felt that he was a sinner. So great was his sense of sin that he seemed to himself to be the only sinner in the world, and so, filled with shame, he would not so much as lift his eyes unto Heaven, but "smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me the sinner." This man, says Christ, went down to his house justified. How different these Bible conversions from that reported in the Independent. "I feel proud to worship the cause of my being, if it be God." No humility, and only a hypothetical acknowledgment of the existence of God. And again, "If I have sinned against our Lord and Saviour, and I suppose I have." Undoubtedly he has, but he does not seem to more than half believe that he has done anything wrong. But if a man does not feel, not only dissatisfied, but really horrified at his present condition, it is certain that there cannot be a very vigorous "turning away" from that condition. We did not note this circumstance for the purpose of fixing attention upon this individual, but to show what is popularly accepted as conversion. That this man's testimony was accepted as an evidence of genuine conversion is shown by the statement that "when he sat down the immense audience clapped their hands for joy." When we read such things as this, we cannot feel very much elated over the reports of the multitudes of conversions. It is a sad fact that the law of God, which "is perfect, converting the soul," receives so little attention nowadays that it is almost lost sight of as a factor in genuine conversion. The apostle prophesied of this time when he said, "They shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."