Bible Truths Illustrated by J. C. Ferdinand Pittman

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BIBLE TRUTHS ILLUSTRATED
of some atheistic companions, defied the God of heaven to show
Himself in battle. He swung his sword to and fro, and challenged
the Almighty to meet him in single combat. The Almighty
paid no attention to him, of course, but He just commissioned
a little gnat, so small that it could scarcely be seen by a microscope,
to lodge in his windpipe and choke him to death. Dr.
Pierson.
507. "A visitor at the hospice of St. Bernard in the Alps tells
of one of the noble dogs coming in one morning holding his
head and tail to the ground, and slinking away to a dark corner
of his kennel, as if ashamed to look any one in the face. The
monks explained to the visitor that the dog had not been able
to find anybody in the snow that morning to rescue, and therefore
was ashamed to come in from the search. How will it be
with us when we reach the end of our life, if we have not
rescued any one from the storms and the dangers?"
508. "On the banks of Niagara, where the rapids begin to
swell and swirl most desperately preparatory to their final
plunge, is a sign-board which bears the following sign : 'Past
redemption point' Even while one feels the firm soil beneath
his feet, a shiver of horror passes through one's soul as he
looks off upon the turbulent waters, and realises the full significance
of the sign. None can retrace their steps, if past that
point."
JUSTIFICATION
509. To justify is to make just or righteous. It is more
than pardon. A criminal may be pardoned, but he remains
guilty for all that. Nor is it merely a hiding or covering of sin.
The sin remains, however much it may be hidden or covered.
Justification is far richer and better than either or both of these.
David, in Ps. 32 : 1, 2, expresses the distinction between these
blessings, in an ascending scale. "Blessed is he whose transgression
is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man
unto whom Jehovah imputeth not iniquity." The non-imputation
of sin is justification. It is to make the guilty not guilty. This
is indeed a marvel of divine grace.
But how can mortal, sinful man be just with God?
178
How can