I again stated to him the plan of salvation, through the redemption of
Jesus Christ; the necessity of a change of heart to render us meet for
heaven; to all which he replied as intelligibly as we could expect from
his weak state and previous ignorance, for he could not read a letter. I
then stated to him some of the invitations of divine mercy, as, Isaiah
lv. 7, “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon
him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.” And, Isaiah i. 18,
“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins
be as scarlet, they shall be as while as snow; though they be red like
crimson, they shall be as wool.” John vi. 37, “Him that cometh unto me I
will in no wise cast out.” Matt. vii. 7, 8, “Ask, and it shall be given
you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for
every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him
that knocketh it shall be opened.” Rev. xxii. 17, “And 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.” I asked him if they were not sweetly suited to the case of
a penitent? He replied, “O yes!”—“Do they suit your case?” “O very
well!” By this time he was so much spent, that speaking appeared almost
impossible; I therefore kneeled down by him, and endeavoured in a short
prayer to plead the promises which are yea and amen in Christ Jesus, on
which we are encouraged to hope. We then left him, and he expressed the
sincerest gratitude for our attentions, as did his family also.
As we turned away, my mind was deeply affected with the scene which
surrounded us; it was a fine evening in May, the landscape was extensive,
and richly diversified with sections of arable and pasture land—the wide
common on which we stood was skirted on one side by a continuous range of
hills, whose sloping sides exhibited the various shades and hues peculiar
to the season, as seen in the fallow ground, the deep foliage of the
copse, the corn, the turnip, and the varying grass; while here and there,
a lengthened bank of chalk was seen beneath the frowning precipice—in the
distance, the parish church raised its neat white spire above the
trees—behind these, another range of hills, though more irregular,
stretched their encircling arms so as completely to bound the
prospect—the sky, with the exception of a few light clouds, was clear and
serene, and the whole beautifully tinged with the rays of the selling
sun.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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