“He is Faithful that Promised.”

Encouragement to the Desponding.

“Cast out!” My soul! how oft might this have been thy history! Thou hast cast off thy God,—might He not oft have “cast out” thee? Yes! cast thee out as fuel for the fire of His wrath,—a sapless, fruitless cumberer. And yet, notwithstanding all thine ungrateful requital for His unmerited forbearance, He is still declaring, “As I live, saith the Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth.” Thy sins may be legion-like,—the sand of the sea may be their befitting type,—the thought of their turpitude and aggravation may be ready to overwhelm thee; but be still! thy patient God waits to be gracious! Oh! be deeply humbled and softened because of thy guilt, resolve to dedicate thyself anew to His service, and so coming, “He will by no means cast thee out!” Despond not by reason of former shortcomings,—thy sins are great, but thy Saviour’s merits are greater. He is willing to forget all the past, and sink it in oblivion, if there be present love, and the promise of future obedience. “Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” Ah! how different is God’s verdict from man’s! After such sins as thine, man’s sentence would have been, “I will in nowise receive!” But “it is better to fall into the hands of God, than into the hands of man;” for He says, “I will in nowise cast out!”

“REMEMBER THIS WORD UNTO THY SERVANT, UPON WHICH THOU HAST CAUSED ME TO HOPE!”