Holy Spirit, Gontleness of
Illustration★★★It is curious to remark, that wherever the Holy Ghost is spoken of in the Bible, he is spoken of in terms of gentleness and love. We often read of “the wrath of God” the Father, as Rom.
1:18; and we read of the wrath of God the Son, as Ps. 2; 12; but we nowhere read of the wrath of God the Holy Ghost.
M’ Cheyne. 9560. HOLY SPIRIT Grieved. A chaplain in passing through ‘one of the wards of a hospital thought he sawa familiar face.
He rec ognized the youth as one of his Sabbath school boys, his father a deacon in the Congregationalist church, and his mother a praying woman. It was understood that he could not live, and the chaplain was anxious to know if he was ready to exchange worlds. He met a clear intellectual response to all that was said of Christ as a Saviour, but insisted upon saying that “he knew he was going to perdition.”
He was told that there was hope in Christ, if he would but cast himself upon him. He responded, “ I know that, but I don’t want to go to Christ.
I don’t have any interest in him.” “But can’t you pray, ‘God be merciful to me a sinner?’”’ asked the chaplain.
“ Yes,” he replied, “I can say the words, but I don’t feel it. My time has passed. Last year I thought that I was a Christian, and my father wanted me to join the church. Then I made up my mind that I’d see a little more of the world before I bound myself down, and now it is too late.”
He continued in this state about three weeks and then died, begging the chaplain not to tell his mother the state of his mind, and desiring him to implore his younger brother to take warning by his awful end. Gentle and winning in all his ways, he lacked a preparation to meet his God.
The point
The Holy Spirit alone in Scripture is never described in wrath, yet a dying young man who delayed his decision a year too long admits he feels nothing for Christ and dies unprepared.