Recently a lady took an oil painting by L.S. Lowry (1887-1976) to an ‘Antiques Roadshow’ to be valued. After inspection by a knowledgeable connoisseur of art she was informed that it could be worth £100,000. The lady was shocked and said, “I had no idea it was so valuable.” For years it had been in the house and few people even cast a second glance at it but the name of the artist so clearly visible at the bottom of the painting meant it was a treasure.
After reading this story I began to think of the people, many of whom have heard the gospel from infancy, who should know how valuable God’s salvation is, and who only discover its importance when it is too late to obtain it and they have found themselves in Hell, on the wrong side of the “great gulf fixed” of which the Lord Jesus spoke in Luke 16.26. For years they were deceived into thinking that salvation was something only for the religiously inclined, a pleasant addition to life but not absolutely necessary; to them it was a mere badge of respectability, but they never considered it a ‘must-have’ in view of an unending eternity.
My friend, you can live quite successfully and happily without salvation but you can never be in Heaven without it; that is a complete impossibility. The main reason for its importance is the name which is linked to salvation. It was the Lord Jesus Christ Who provided salvation at an infinite cost: the giving of His life. Only by accepting Him can you obtain the salvation of your soul. Salvation is not obtained in any place, practices, prayers or piety; it is linked to the Person of the Lord Jesus, God’s only begotten Son. To receive Him as personal Saviour is the only way by which your sins can be forgiven.
No monetary value can be placed on salvation; its worth cannot be estimated or calculated but, amazingly, you can receive it “without money and without price” Isaiah 55.1. You cannot pay for it or earn it in any way; you will never deserve it but you can claim it as a free gift. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” Romans 6.23. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” Ephesians 2.8,9.
In Revelation 20.10 the archenemy of souls is identified as “the devil that deceived them” and multitudes have succumbed to his deception, resulting in them missing out on the greatest blessing in life and the one thing which is vitally important to reaching Heaven. My friend, be persuaded that the one thing you need now, more than anything else, is the salvation of your soul and the forgiveness of your sins; trust Christ and instantaneously receive God’s forgiveness and the peace that inevitably comes with it. Do not allow yourself to be deceived another day, for “how shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation …?” Hebrews 2.3. There is nothing of greater value!
- There’s a Saviour now waiting for thee,
- With His heart and His arms open wide;
- Will you come, and from judgment be free
- Through the Lamb who on Calvary died?
- Used by kind permission of Assembly Testimony
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