The Compulsion of Lcn?e T ke Dutj) of Pressing Home tke Message of Salvation in Personal Work
Bj> REV. B. D A V ID SO N
T HE long-suffering of God waited long until the cup of the iniquity of Sodom and Gomorrah was full, then He determined that fiery judgment should fall on the sinners. He sent two angels to save Lot and his family from the impending destruction. How unwilling they were to leave their home and friends even though terrible judg ment was ready to hurst upon them. The angels pled with Lot and urged him to hasten away with his family lest they be consumed. Yet they delayed and while Lot lingered, the angels laid hold upon his hands and upon the hands of his wife and daughters and brought them out of the city. “ The Lord being merciful to him.” Oh, the depth of the divine, mercy! it was a love that would not let them go. I wish to call special attention to those words, “While he lingered, the angels laid hold upon his hand.” They pled and reasoned .with Lot, they did all that words could do, and yet he lin gered; then they went a step further and laid hold on his hand and brought him out of the danger zone. Thus was Lot saved. God will never violate a man’s free will, yet there is a place for Divine, An gelic Compulsion when words and per suasion fail. When a soul has been dealt with faithfully and is lingering in indecision, what he needs is not more words, but a loving, strong hand laid upon him, leading him out of the city of destruction, and placing him at the foot of the Cross. We are too apt when dealing with souls to be content with words, and if they have not the desired effect we say, “What more can I do?” God says, “ pulling them out of the fire,” Jude 28.
The, angels hastened Lot, then laid their hands on him and pulled him out of the fire. I do not mean that this should be taken too literally, but there is a place for Divine Compulsion, which goes be yond words; that holy thing we know too little of, and if we had more of it we would have more souls saved. Our lack of compelling power is caused by the lack of love. Those angels also believed in the coming judgment. We need clear and vivid views from Scrip ture of the nearness and reality of com ing judgment, and then we shall have more compelling power. In the parable of the great Supper, Luke XIV: 16, when the first invitation was met with excuses, and the second invitation to the poor and blind only half filled the house with guests, the Lord said, “ Go out into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in.” If people see that it is the'com pulsion of love for their good they will usually obey; if it is the compulsion of self will they will rebel against it. We need to learn more of this sacred and Divine loving compulsion, which goes beyond words. “ Compel them to come in” is a Divine command. The master of souls knows that words alone are not enough, and He calls us to compel them. May we ask Him to teach us what He means when He bids us “ compel them.” It is not so much a set of rules as the possession of a spirit; and if we have the spirit we will know how to respect the sinner’s free will, and yet “ compel him to come in.” * If Jesus did not mean-us to compel men He would not have said those words. May we not have lost souls on
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