Lessons
from an old oil painting.
The following is an
excerpt from a book.
There was a time when I collected
prints of scenes from the Pacific Northwest. I remember the time that I was
looking through a hardware store in a small town along the Columbia
River. I always enjoy hardware stores, especially in small towns,
and in this case the anticipation of a bargain was high due to the “going out
of business” signs in the windows. It wasn’t long before I spotted something I
had not anticipated. It was a large discarded painting in the back room—in the
“Employees Only” area. It was extremely dirty and dusty but I thought I could
make out that it was a painting of Crater
Lake, Oregon. The
painting had no future and was headed for the dump when the store closed for
the last time.
I found the owner of the store and
asked about it. He was surprised that I had spotted it and amazed that I showed
an interest in it. He brought it out and we blew off some of the dust. I
quickly discovered some prior do-it-yourself efforts to clean the
painting—which were clearly unsuccessful. Apparently someone had used gasoline
or other solvent, smearing the oils—the painting looked beyond repair. But
since my wife and I had honeymooned at Crater Lake and we returned to that
special spot regularly, to his delight I gave the store owner a few dollars and
then left with an original oil painting. My intention was to restore the
painting.
At home I briefly cleaned it the
best I could and hung it in our basement, but it was clearly damaged goods. The
painting hung in our basement for a number of years.
One day through a business contact I
learned of a local oil painting restoration expert. His services turned out to
be far more reasonable than I expected and the beauty of the original creation
was brought back to life. The vibrant colors were amazing. It turned out to be
a painting from the late 1800s by a well-known painter. Some years later we
took it for a formal valuation and confirmed that the painting which had been
headed to the trash was indeed valuable.
The painting now occupies a
prominent spot in our dining room—it is on display for others to see and
admire.
Just like that painting, many lives
have been wasted and now exist in back rooms missing out on the purpose for
which they were created. Many others appear very successful on the outside, but
inside they are empty and missing the most important thing in life. Like the
painting, they are covered with dirt from past experiences, circumstances, and
wrong decisions.
When the surface is cleaned up and a
deeper analysis is made, the evidence of past do-it-yourself improvement
projects is evident. No lasting success was achieved; in fact, often they are
worse off than before their “pulling up by bootstraps” efforts were completed.
I have some good news for you. Jesus
Christ is the Master Restorer. He restores broken and cast-off lives. He also
brings clarity and brilliance to all who come to Him. Bringing your past to
Jesus Christ and trusting Him for the future is the only effective answer. He
has already paid for your restoration at the Cross. You only need to deliver
yourself to the Master Restorer. When He restores, all your stains are removed
and vibrancy is restored. Like my painting, you can be restored to what you
were intended to be.
As you grow in your knowledge of
Him, you take on His character. Like the painting, you can now fulfill the role
for which you were created. Your life will have meaning and purpose, and like
the painting, you will bring joy and pleasure to others. You will no longer be
headed for the trash bin, rather now you have a secure home. Others looking on
will admire what they see.
That painting is a picture of many
individuals today. Because of Adam’s original sin all of mankind is doomed to
sin, suffering, and death. The just and righteous Creator of the universe
cannot overlook crime against His holy nature—the price must be paid!
The Good News is that your penalty
has been paid by Jesus Christ.
The sin of man grieved the heart of
God so much that He sent His only Son to die at Calvary to pay the penalty of your sin. However, there is a simple
requirement in order for you to escape the ultimate judgment and corresponding
eternal suffering. You must make a decision to accept the gift of salvation
that the death of Jesus Christ provided for you.
But please do not take my word for
it—take God at His Word. Consider the following quotations from the Word of
God. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). As
it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10).
“But God demonstrates
His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans
5:8). “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of
God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord” (Romans 6:23). “If we claim to be
without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our
sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from
all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9).
“For God so loved the
world that He gave His one and only Son,
that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For
God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the
world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does
not believe stands condemned already because He has not believed in the name of
God's one and only Son” (John 3:16-18).
~
from “ONE PRECIOUS PEARL: God’s Design
for His Church, pgs 16-17 (ISBN: 9780741462329)
Learn more about this important book at Amazon,
the Publisher,
or the Author’s
website.
~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW
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