Before It Is Too Late
Illustration★★★★A large chunk of ice on which a carcass of a calf had been thrown, was floating down the great Niagara River toward the falls. An eagle circling overhead came down and landed gracefully upon the dead animal, eager for a good meal. Closer and closer the ice flow came to the treacherous falls, but the eagle had no fear. He new the power of his mighty wings would put him to flight in a moment of time.
On the shore a group of winter tourists held their breath as the ice shelf began to swirl in the strong current. Why didn’t that eagle forget the calf and take off? A few seconds before the drop, the great bird spread out his massive wings for the lift-off—those wings that would lift him high into the air and clear him of the dangerous falls. But this time the wings were powerless. Unnoticed by the eagle, his talons had frozen into the ice and he could not escape. While the crowd on shore watched in stunned silence, the helpless eagle frantically flapped his great wings again, but to no avail. The ice and the eagle were dashed to pieces on the rocks below.
The saddest spectacle in all the world—much sadder than the tragic and unnecessary fate of that eagle—Is the man or woman who has committed the unpardonable sin.
The point
An eagle lands on a dead calf floating on ice toward Niagara Falls, confident his wings will let him escape when needed. But as the ice approaches the falls, his talons have frozen in place and he cannot take flight—a tragic illustration of how the unpardonable sin traps those who persist in rejecting God's grace.