how sorry he was that she evident- ally wasn’t home when he had come to call and give her the assist ance. When she heard this, she threw up her arms and wailed, “Was that you? Why, I was there all the time, but 1 thought it was the landlord; that’s why I kept the door locked.” I wonder if we, too, don’t keep the doors to our souls locked, when the Lord wants to pour out His blessings upon us. You see God has come to pay your debt of sin and to meet your spirit ual needs. “Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God, even our Fa ther . . . hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace!” (11 Thessalonians 2:16). * * * The Christian should be like the postage stamp, for itsticks to one thing until it gets there. * * * MEDICAL TERMS FOR LAZINESS A man went to see his family physician. A fter a series of ex haustive tests, he earnestly im plored, “Please doctor, if there’s anything wrong with me, don’t scare me by giving it some compli cated, scientific term. Just tell me in plain English so I can under stand. 1 want to know the truth.” The doctor scratched his head, then smilingly declared, “Well, as long as you’ve asked, the fact of the matter is you’re just plain lazy.” The patient breathed a sigh of re lief and then added, “Oh, thanks for that good word. Now will you give me a scientific name for it so I can go home and tell my wife.” All sorts of scientific terms are being used for troubles today. Yet the basic difficulty of man can be simply understood in the one word “sin.” Of all the ailments for which scientists labor diligently to effect a cure, sin is the only disease which is fatal to the soul and for which there is only one cure which can ever be successfully applied, that is the blood of Jesus Christ.
The Bible says, “For all have sin ned and come short of the glory of God,” “for there is none righteous no not one,” “therefore the wages of sin is death, but the g ift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord,” “for by grace are ye saved through faith, and that, not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” * * * Don't be looking for thrilling en tertainment but the filling of the Spirit. * * * COLLARS OF IRON A missionary brought back an interesting report concerning the word natives of a certain tribe in Africa use to make clear the mean ing of the freeing power of Christ’s salvation. They translate “redemp tion” as meaning, “The Lord has taken our heads out.” Years ago these people had been made slaves. Huge iron collars w e r e placed around their necks to keep them from running away. You can ima gine what inhumane treatment this was, and how severe the punish ment. Often their throats became tender and breathing was frequent ly shut off. When they were finally granted their freedom, the best part of it was the fact that these cruel collars were gone once and for all. How fitting therefore that in defining what it means to know the forgiving, pardoning grace of God, following their bondage to their cruel slavemaster, Satan, they expressed salvation by declaring, “He has taken our heads out!” The Bible rightly assures us, if the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed! “Christ hath de livered us from the power of dark ness . . . we have redemption (our necks have been loosed), through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:18, .H) . - * To be rich in God is better than to be rich in goods. * *
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