Two Great Discoveries
What wonderful discoveries have been made during the last few hundred years! Columbus said, “If God hung the earth upon nothing (Job 26: 7) I can go around it.” He pointed his ships westward and held them there until October 12, 1492, when he discovered the New World. What a discovery that was! Galileo turned his telescope toward the heavens and found so many stars that it was impossible to count them (Ps 147:4). In 1629, Sir William Harvey discovered that the blood circulates through the body, and that it contains the life principle (Lev 17:11.) Before that, the air was thought to be the prime factor in physical life. These are but a few of the many great discoveries made by man.
In the spiritual realm, many men and women have also made great discoveries in regard to their state and standing before God, and the mighty provision which He has made for them through the death of His Son upon the cross of Calvary. When the writer was eighteen years of age, he made two such discoveries himself; and these have affected his whole life.
In my father’s home, the Word of God was read and reverenced. My parents diligently schooled me in the doctrines of the church of my forefathers, which in turn led me on in the endeavor to establish my own righteousness. I sincerely believed that Christ, by His death on the cross, would atone for whatever I failed to do. Like many thousands, I was making a fatal mistake.
I had reached the age when the world began to attract my attention. Also I had tasted some of the pleasures of sin. But God had His eye upon me, and through His guidance I was led to read a booklet entitled, “Good Tidings for the Anxious.” From the reading of this book, I was led to the Holy Scriptures. There I saw I was spiritually unclean and that all my righteousnesses were as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). This was my first real discovery! The door of heaven was shut against me.
Through the Holy Spirit of God who was sent into the world to convince men of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment I had discovered that in my natural state I stood before God destitute of all righteousness, and defiled by sin. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23).
This blessed, tender Spirit of Grace that convicted me of sin also opened my eyes to see that I could do nothing to save myself. “To him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Rom 4:5).
I saw from this that God could cleanse me from all my sins and clothe me in His own divine righteousness, through the work of His Son upon the cross of Calvary; and upon that work alone, finished by Christ to God’s eternal satisfaction, I rested my weary soul. John 19:30 records the Savior’s cry on the cross, “It is finished.”
This was my second great discovery! The discovery of personal sin brought conviction and concern into my heart, but the discovery of salvation brought lasting joy and peace into my soul. False professions abound on every hand today. Men call themselves Christians who never truly have received Christ into their hearts. They profess to be Christians, but they have never been born into the family of God. They have a form of godliness but know nothing of its power (II Tim 3:1-6). “Woe unto them for they have gone in the way of Cain” (Jude 11), and have built on the false foundation of a religion without Christ, a religion without blood. The blood of our bodies is the life of the flesh. The blood of Christ is the life of Christianity.
Dear reader, do you know the cleansing power of the blood of Christ? Have you discovered your sinful condition before God? God is speaking loudly today in a variety of ways; the Holy Spirit is striving with many, but the Lord says, “My Spirit shall not always strive with man” (Gen 6:3).
Many changes are taking place in world affairs, but the greatest change of all is coming soon. Jesus said, “Behold I come quickly.” This outstanding event will close the door of mercy upon all Christ-rejecters. They will discover then, when it is too late, that their doom is sealed. How terrible! The desire and prayer of the writer is that all who read these lines may come to know Christ as their own personal Savior for He speaks peace to the troubled conscience, satisfies the longing soul, and gives joy to the sorrowful heart. All these blessings may be yours through faith in Christ (Acts 13:38-39).
