The Foundering Ship
The Foundering Ship
If a ship were foundering at sea, and if the crew had taken to the water, we would recognize their peril at once. If rescue boats came near and ropes were thrown to the struggling survivors, we would hold our breath in the hope that they might be rescued. How would we feel if we saw one swimming man catch hold of the rope with a free hand and fling it from him with a gesture of defiance? We would find the sight incredible, and we would wonder if the man's reason had tottered, and if he were unaware of the consequences of his act.
There might be some rational explanation for a swimmer refusing to come into a rescue boat, but there can be no such explanation from the divine point of view for men refusing to heed the Word of God and come to salvation through Christ.
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him. He came unto His own, and His own people did not receive Him. (John 1:10,11)
1. Read Romans 1:1823. Why are men so defiant?
2. Read Acts 17:2234 and Acts 24:1322. How do these encounters exemplify human defiance today?
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