Leonard Ravenhill wrote in Why Revival Tarries (p.32):
"Charlie Peace was a criminal. Laws of God or man curbed him not. Finally the law caught up with him, and he was condemned to death. On the fatal morning in Armley Jail, Leeds, England, he was taken on the death-walk. Before him went the prison chaplain, routinely and sleepily reading some Bible verses. The criminal touched the preacher and asked what he was reading. "The Consolations of Religion," was the reply. Charlie Peace was shocked at the way he professionally read about hell. Could a man be so unmoved under the very shadow of the scaffold as to lead a fellow-human there and yet, dry-eyed, read of a pit that has no bottom into which this fellow must fall? Could this preacher believe the words that there is an eternal fire that never consumes its victims, and yet slide over the phrase without a tremor? Is a man human at all who can say with no tears, "You will be eternally dying and yet never know the relief that death brings"? All this was too much for Charlie Peace. So he preached. Listen to his on-the-eve-of-hell sermon:
"Sir," addressing the preacher, "if I believed what you and the church of God say that you believe, even if England were covered with broken glass from coast to coast, I would walk over it, if need be, on hands and knees and think it worthwhile living, just to save one soul from an eternal hell like that!"
When I first read this excerpt from Ravenhill’s classic I was truly rebuked. For so long my life was marked by an uneasiness about sharing my faith, especially with unsaved family members, co-workers or neighbors. It is actually easy to share the Gospel with people in planes or who you don’t know. You likely will only see them for 2 or 3 hours at the most and don’t have to worry about if they think you are weird or a fanatic. Ah, but family and those close to you are a completely different story. The know your shortcomings, inconsistencies and history. But none of these reason absolve us from sharing the Gospel with any and all who are in need of the free gift of grace. Mark 8:38 has no loop holes and no exceptions.
Today I am filled with mixed emotions; this afternoon is my Uncle Walter’s funeral and while I mourn his loss I can rejoice because he is today in heaven listening to the angels sing “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” The Lord granted me the supreme gift and highest honor of sharing the Gospel with my Uncle and I just stood by and watched in awe as God pursued and drew my Uncle to Himself and the Holy Spirit convicted him of his need of a Savior.
If you have a loved one or close and dear friend don’t let time pass without sharing what Christ has done for you and how He has changed your life. The most sobering thought to me is that what if someone I know or a family member catches my eye at the Judgment Seat of Christ and looks at me with the painful realization that I could have told them about Christ. Praise the Lord that I will not have to face that withering glance when I see my Uncle Walt. I look forward to seeing him again some day in Heaven. Today I don’t say goodbye but simply “so long for now…”
Walter Lee Ott
Born: September 24, 1940
Died: February 10, 2010
For more on Charlie Peace visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Peace
Born: May 14, 1832
Died: February 24, 1879
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