Directs listeners to the love of God as the ultimate salvation, warning against misdirection by false teachings. Using an illustration of a mother and child perishing due to being left at the wrong train station, The examples emphasize that sincerity alone is insufficient if the direction is wrong. The core lesson is that true salvation is found not in human efforts or reformed lives, but solely in God's love gift, Jesus Christ, whose sacrifice on the cross demonstrates the immeasurable depth of this love. The message concludes by urging listeners to accept Christ's conquering love, which offers healing, pardon, and rest from burdens.
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For the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patient waiting for Christ. This is spoken primarily to Christians, but I desire to apply the first part of it to those who are not saved. It also has a message for the child of God. How I would love to direct your hearts into the love of God, for there you would find salvation. It would be murderous and satanic to direct you elsewhere. Yet many are up to this cruel game whether they know it or not. Let me use an illustration. During a heavy snowstorm up in Canada, where I came from, a lady was making a journey by train.
With her was her baby held in her arms. She wanted to get off at a certain station, but the thick snow made it difficult for her to see them in mains on the station. Her mind was set at best, however, when a fellow passenger kindly promised to see that she got out at the right place. After a while, the train stopped, and the gentleman said, This is your station, and helped to get off. The train went on and soon stopped again. What station is this? asked the gentleman. On being told, he exclaimed, Why, I thought the last time we stopped, it was at this station. Alas, I have set that poor woman and her child off at the wrong place, the lonely place, a siding where there was no station or place of shelter.
Whatever will become of them. The next day the mother and they were found dead, partially covered with snow. They had perished to being misdirected. I do not refer only to the heathen who follow the direction of their priesthood. and based their hopes of happy hereafter on the vain sacrifices that they bring to their idols. There are only too many in so-called Christian lands who are misdirected themselves, and these are misdirecting their fellow travelers to eternity. It is not that in every case they intended to see, the gentleman of our story certainly had no intention.
He was sincere in his desire to help. It is the same with many of those whom we have in mind. They are sincere but sincerely wrong. One man tells his followers that penance and prayers attended by payments of money will take them to heaven. Another tells those who listen to him that if they only reform and sincerely try to live good lives, it will surely be all right with them. Another boldly declares that since God is a God of mercy, men need not think of the future at all. God will see that they come out all right at the end, to revaptize and join the churches the instruction given some, to keep the Ten Commandments and observe Saturday as the Sabbath is the line of another.
Now we are responsible for what we hear and what we believe. If we believe a lie, we are ourselves to blame. Our sincerity will no more save us from the consequences of a mistake than did the sincerity of the woman who was found dead in the snow in the stormy I just told you. Our Lord Jesus Christ spoke of blind leaders of the blind and declared that both, not the leaders only, but both, would fall into the ditch. Each one of us is responsible to see that he believes the truth and nothing but the truth. Too many folks take a thing for granted just because the preacher said it.
Rest on the word of no man unless he gives you the word of God for his argument. And not just one verse either, but a lot of verses. All the Bible to back it up. Judge all preaching by the word of God. The scriptures are divine truth. Not one verse here and one verse there, but all the scriptures. God's word tells us that nothing we can do will merit or even help to merit salvation. It makes it plain that man's only hope is in God's love gift to this world, our Lord Jesus Christ. His love. What manner of love is this? The Apostle John asks. What should be quoted to prove will describe the love of God.
First the whole Bible with its mysteries and marvels of redemption. Then the whole volume of creation. Then add to these the unknown records of eternity past and the unknown glories of the eternity to come. Then let the angels and archangels and all accompany of heaven sing with all the hearts of God. And still that love will be untold. It will still be the love of Christ and the love of God that passive knowledge. And the gift of his Son for sinners, God's love has been put forth to its utmost extent. This cannot be said of any other attributes of God. His wisdom could devise still greater displays of design and skill than those we now see in his works.
His power could build up countless worlds and systems more glorious than any he has yet made. But when he gave his son his love poured out its richest gift, no better gift was kept in reserve for some future occasion. God's soul loved the world, and eternity of meaning is in that little word so. When it is said that God loved the sinner, this is not to be taken as an approval of his sins, far from it. For example, here is a godly mother who has a guilty, vile, rebellious son who is constantly going on in the ways that fill her heart with loathing.
Now she hates his sins. She hates his daily and hourly acts with perfect hatred. And yet she loves the Son and follows him in his lowest degradation, shame with her tears and prayers, an intense longing for his good. So God hates your sin, but he loves you, your soul. I want to save him. Surely the sufferings and death of Christ is evidence enough that God loves you. Calvary spelt Mara for the Lord Jesus, but the intensity of that bitterness only disclosed the sweetness of that marvelous love which no power could check nor sorrow overwhelm.
That love that many waters of human hatred and divine wrath could not quench nor the floods of grief and pain down. The love of God in Christ will heal your wounds just as the broken box of ointment filled the house with its sweet aroma and perfume. So the broken body of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross sends forth its healing rays, for we read, with his stripes we are healed. Oh, that you would inhale the sweet incense of his love and experience his healing balm for your soul. His love will pardon your guilt like a Wisconsin father waited thirteen years daily at the station to forgive and welcome his wayward boy.
So the love of God awaits to forgive and welcome you. Will you not say like the hymn writer I wandered far away from God, now I'm coming home? I'll trust thy love, believe thy word, now I'm coming home. His love will remove your burden if you go to the world with your cares, troubles, and anxieties. All it can do is put a few more on top of them. If you roll your burdens anywhere but on Christ, they will roll back on you with more weight than ever. Cast them on Christ, and he will carry them for you. For he says, come unto me all, ye that labor are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Again the love of God will conquer your heart and habits. Napoleon, while exile at St. Helena, said Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and myself, founded empires upon force. But Jesus Christ alone pounded his empire upon love, And at this hour millions of men would die for him. Will you right now let this love, the love of Christ, conquer you? The conquering love of Christ as seen at Calvary. And him writer put it thus, And may you be able to say it as he said it, See from his head his hands his feet, Shallow and love flow mingled down, Did air such love and sorrow meet, or thorns composed so richer crown, where the whole realm of nature mine, that were present an offering far too small?
Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.