I Love You, Son! After a few of the usual Sunday evening hymns, the Church’s elderly Pastor slowly stood up, walked over to the pulpit, and before he gave his sermon for the evening, he briefly introduced a guest Minister who was in the service for the evening. The Pastor told the congregation that the guest Minister was a cherished friend of his, and he wanted him to have a few moments to greet the Church and share whatever he felt would be appropriate for the service. With that, the guest Minister stepped up to the pulpit and began to speak... “A Father, his son, and a friend of his son’s were sailing off the Pacific Coast,” he began, “when a fast approaching storm blocked any attempt to get back to the shore. The waves were so high, that even though the Father was an experienced sailor, he still could not keep the boat upright, and the three were swept into the ocean as the boat capsized.” He hesitated for a moment, making eye contact with two teenagers who were, for the first time since the service began, looking somewhat interested in his story. Then he continued with his story... “Grabbing a rescue line, the Father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life: to which boy would he throw the other end of the lifeline. He only had seconds to make the decision. The Father knew that his son was a Christian, but he also knew that his son’s friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves. As the Father yelled out, ‘I love you, Son!’, he threw out the lifeline to his son’s friend. By the time the Father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat, his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the black of the night. His body was never recovered.” By this time, the two teenagers were sitting up straighter in the pew, anxiously waiting for the next words to come out of the guest Minister’s mouth. “The Father,” he continued, “knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus. He could not bear the thought of his son’s friend stepping into eternity without Jesus. Therefore, He sacrificed his son to save his son’s friend. How great is the love of God that He should do the same for us. Our Heavenly Father sacrificed His only begotten Son that we could be saved. I urge you to accept this offer to rescue you and take a hold of the lifeline He is throwing out to you in this service.” And with that, the guest Minister turned and sat back down in his chair, as silence filled the room. The elderly Pastor again walked slowly to the pulpit and delivered a brief sermon with an invitation at the end. However, no one responded to the appeal. Within minutes after the service ended, the two teenagers were at the guest Minister's side... “That was a nice story,” one of the boys said politely, “but I don’t think it was very realistic for a Father to give up his own son’s life in hopes that the other boy would become a Christian.” “Well, you have got a point there,” the man replied, glancing down at his Bible. A big smile broadened his face as he once again looked up at the boys and said..., “It sure isn’t very realistic, is it? But I’m standing here today to tell you that THAT story gives me a glimpse of what it must have been like for God to give up His only Son for me. You see..., your Pastor is the Father in that story and I am his son's friend. |
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