| The Beauty of Self Control |
Chapter 2 |
Page 3 |
God himself does a great deal of ploughing. His word is a plough. It cuts its way into men’s lives, crushing the heart, revealing sinfulness, producing penitence. It finds men impenitent and leaves them broken and contrite, confessing sin and asking for mercy. David tells us, in one of his penitential Psalms, how he tried for a long time to hide his sins, but how his pain became unbearable, until he confessed. God’s plough went deep into his heart. Then when at length he confessed his sin, forgiveness came and peace and joy. David became a new man after that. God’s Spirit had ploughed up his heart.
A Bible found its way into a home where a Bible had never been before. The man of the house began to read it aloud to his wife in the evenings, and the words entered their hearts. One night, after reading aloud portions of the book, the man said, “Wife, if this book is true, we are wrong.” The book condemned them. They became troubled. The word was ploughing its way in their hearts. Next evening, as they read again, the sense of sin in them became still deeper, and the man said, “Wife, if this book is true, we are lost.” They became very greatly distressed. The words they had read had shown them that they were sinners, guilty, lost. Next night they read again, and found something of hope – they had read of divine love and mercy, and the man said, “Wife, if this book is true, we can be saved.” The word of God does mighty plough work in men’s hearts before they can be made fruitful.
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