"And when it is said of them, `They shall never thirst,' I suppose it
means they shall be satisfied out of God's fulness. Having His best
gift, all the rest seems of little account. `Blessed is the man whom
Thou choosest, and causest to approach near unto Thee, that he may dwell
in Thy courts: he shall be satisfied with the goodness of Thy house, and
of Thy holy temple.' And in another place, `My soul shall be satisfied
as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise Thee with joyful
lips.'" And then, as she was rather apt to do when deeply in earnest,
breaking into the old familiar Scottish version, she added--
"`They with the fatness of Thy house
Shall be well satisfied;
From rivers of Thy pleasures Thou
Wilt drink to them provide.
Because of life the fountain pure
Remains alone with Thee;
And in that purest light of Thine
We clearly light shall see.'"
She stopped, partly because she thought she had said enough, and partly
because it would not have been easy just then to have said more. Her
face drooped over her work, and there was silence again.
"Well," said Miss Gertrude, with a long breath, "it must be a wonderful
thing to be _satisfied_, as you call it."
"Yes," said Christie, softly; "and the most wonderful thing of all is
that all may enjoy this blessedness, and freely, too."
"I have heard you say that before," said Miss Gertrude; "but it is all a
mystery to me. You say all who will may have this blessedness; but the
Bible says it is the man whom God chooses that is blessed."
"Well," said Christie, gravely, "what would you have? `By grace are ye
saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.'
`The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.' There
is nothing in all the Bible clearer than that. And surely eternal life
is a gift worthy of God to give."
"But He does not give it to all," said Miss Gertrude.
"To all who desire it--to all who seek for it in Jesus' name," said
Christie, earnestly.
"But in another place it says, `No man can come unto Me, except the
Father, who hath sent Me, draw him.'"
Gertrude did not speak to-night, as she had sometimes done of late, in
the flippant way which thoughtless young people often assume when they
talk on such subjects. Her voice and manner betrayed to Christie that
she was very much in earnest, and she hesitated to answer her; not, as
at other times, because she thought silence was the best reply, but
because she longed so earnestly to say just what was right.
"This change which is so wonderful must be God's work from beginning to
end, you once said," continued Gertrude. "And since we have no part in
the work, I suppose we must sit and wait till the change comes, with
what patience we may."
"It is God's work from beginning to end," repeated Christie,
thoughtfully. "We cannot work this change in ourselves. We cannot save
ourselves, in whole or in part. Nothing can be clearer than that."
"Well?" said Gertrude, as she paused.
"Why, it would be strange indeed if so great a work was left to
creatures so weak and foolish as we are. None but God could do it. And
if a child is hungry or thirsty or defiled, what needs he to know more
than that there is enough and to spare for all his wants in the hands of
a loving Father? There would be no hope for us if this great change
were to be left to us to work. But the work being God's, all may hope.
I suppose I know what you mean," she added. "I have heard my father,
and Peter O'Neil, and others, speak about these things. Peter used to
say, `If God means to save me He will save me; and I need give myself no
trouble about it.' That is true in one sense, but not in the sense that
Peter meant. I wish I could mind what my father used to say to him, but
I cannot. Somehow, I never looked at it in that way. It seemed to me
such a wonderful and blessed thing that God should have provided a way
in which we could be saved, and then that He should save us freely,
that, it never came into my mind to vex myself with thoughts like these.
I was young, only a child, but I had a great many troubled unhappy
thoughts about myself; and to be able to put them all aside--to leave
them all behind, as it were, and just trust in Jesus, and let Him do all
for me--oh, I cannot tell you the blessed rest and peace it was to me!
But I did not mean to speak about myself."
"But I want you to tell me," said Gertrude, softly.
"I cannot tell you much," said Christie, gravely. "I am not wise about
such things. I know there are some who make this a stone to stumble
over--that we can do nothing, and we must just wait. But don't you
remember how it is said, `Seek ye the Lord while He may be found; call
ye upon Him when He is near.' `They that seek Me early shall find Me.'
And in the New Testament, `Ask, and ye shall receive; seek, and ye shall
find.' And Jesus Himself said, `If any man thirst, let him come unto Me
and drink.' And in another place it is said, `The Spirit and the bride
say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is
athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life
freely.'
"Surely all this means something. God would never bid us come unless He
was willing to receive us. Having given His Son to die for us, how can
we doubt His willingness to receive us? Surely no one who is weary and
heavy-laden need stay away, when He bids them come. He says, `I will
heal your backslidings; I will receive you graciously; I will love you
freely. A new heart will I give to you, and a right spirit will I put
within you.' Ah, that is the best of all!"