OBJECTS: Two Small Bundles Containing a Number of
Articles Described in this Chapter=
Text, 1 Samuel 25:29: "But the soul of my lord shall be bound in the
bundle of life with the Lord thy God."
Many long years ago David had fled from the angry King Saul who was
seeking to kill him. He and a few of his faithful followers had taken
refuge at Carmel.
While there the Elect Lady by the name of Abigail brought David and
his hungry men "good things to eat." Her gift was 200 loaves, 2
bottles of wine, 5 sheep, 5 measures of parched corn, 100 clusters of
raisins, and 200 cakes of figs.
What a wonderful housekeeper she must have been, as we note this fine
mixture of good things she had; she prepared for David because she
was loyal and true. She was also a brave woman as she broke through
the enemy's line to find one who was to be her king and help him. She
did more than prepare a table for him in the presence of his enemies,
for she comforted his soul not a little. She fell down at David's
feet and said: "Jehovah will certainly make my lord a sure house,
because my lord fighteth the battles of Jehovah, and evil shall not
be found in thee all thy days, and although men be risen up to pursue
thee to seek thy soul, the soul of my lord shall be bound in the
bundle of life with the Lord thy God." Perhaps when she used the word
"bundle" she was thinking of the bundle of good things she had
brought him, so she comforted her king by her strong words of truth.
Why should he fear his enemies? He was safe indeed, because he was
wrapped up as in a bundle with his Lord.
Yes, Abigail was right, there is a bundle of life, all of us like
pilgrims must carry this "pack" to the end of life's journey.
To illustrate this truth prepare two bundles wrapped up as an
ordinary bundle. Place them both on the platform table where they can
be seen by all the audience. The first bundle you call the "Sinner's
Bundle of Life." It contains the following articles: A small paper
serpent; a small bottle; a bag with the bottom left open representing
a bag with holes in it; a cardboard heart with a large black spot on
it. Around this bundle in place of the common cord place a small
piece of chain to hold it together. When you are ready to consider
this package hold it up and say, "This is The Sinner's Bundle of
Life. Note it is bound together by this chain. This teaches us that
the sinner is in bondage to sin. He is a slave and chained to the
evil one. He is held captive to all the dark things we shall find in
his life's bundle." Now unwrap the bundle and produce first the
serpent. This teaches us sin is an ugly thing, a deadly serpent. It
crept with the bundle of life far back in the garden of Eden and has
been there ever since. Only Jesus can cast it out. Now produce the
"bag" with holes in it. Drop in it some coins, and they pass out of
the holes in the bottom. This illustrates the truth that the sinner's
life is one of constant losses. God gives him great opportunities to
do right and be right, but instead of holding on to them and making
good, he lets them slip out of his life, and they are lost. He is
like the children on the sands by the seashore; they gather up a
handful of sand, then open their little fingers and let it slip
through and back again to the sands of the sea and their little hands
are empty. His gold also on the wings of dissipation and foolishness
flies away from him and is lost.
Next take out the small-sized bottle. This we will call the tear
bottle; in the Scriptural times the ancients bottled their tears and
kept the bottle and its contents as a remembrance of their sorrow. So
the sinner has his sorrows also. Outwardly he is gay and happy, but
if the door of the heart could be open we would behold a house of
mourning. A hopeless sorrow, the saddest of all sadness, because
there is no Jesus there to bear his sorrow with him. At last produce
the heart with a black stain on it; this is to teach us that down in
the depths of life, so long as the heart is wrong, all else is wrong,
for "out of the heart are the issues of life." What will the angels
do with this bundle if it remains as it is until the last day? They
will cast it into the pit of destruction, the place where all evil
works must go at last.