There once was this turnable bridge which spanned a large river. During most of
the day, the bridge sat parallel with the tracks, allowing ships to pass freely
on both sides. At certain times each day a train would come along, and the
bridge would be turned sideways across the river allowing the trains to cross. A
switchman sat in a small shack on one side of the river where he operated the
controls to turn the bridge and lock it into place as the train crossed.
One day as the switchman was waiting for the last train of the day to come, he
looked of into the distance through the dimming twilight and caught sight of the
train's light , he stepped to the controls and waited until the train was within
prescribed distance when he was to turn the bridge into position. To his horror,
he found that the locking control didn't work. If the bridge was not locked into
position, securely, it would wobble back and forth at the ends when the train
came onto it. This would cause the train to jump the track and go crashing into
the river. It was a passenger train with many people aboard. He left the bridge
turned across the river, and he hurried across the bridge to the other side
where there was a lever he could use to operate the lock manually.
He could hear the rumble of the train now. He took hold of the lever and leaned
backward to apply pressure to keep the mechanism locked. Many lives depended on
this man's strength. Then, coming across the bridge from the direction of his
control shack he heard a sound that made his blood run cold, "Daddy, where are
you?" His four year old son was crossing the bridge to look for him. His first
impulse was to cry out to the child, "RUN RUN" but the train was too close, and
his tiny legs would never make it across the bridge in time. The man almost
lifted the lever to run and snatch up his son , and carry him to safety, but he
realized he could not get back to the lever in time. Either people on the train
or his son must die.
He took only a moment to make his decision. The train sped safely and swiftly on
it's way, and no one aboard was aware of the tiny, broken body thrown
mercilessly into the river by the rushing train, nor were they aware of the
pitiful figure of a sobbing man still clinging tightly to the lever long after
the train had passed. They didn't see him walking home more slowly than he had
ever walked, to tell his wife how he had sacrificed her son.
Now if you can comprehend the feeling that which went through this man's heart
you can understand the feeling of our heavenly Father when He sacrificed His Son
to bridge the gap between us and eternal life.
How does God feel when we speed along through life without giving a thought to
what was done for us through His Son, Jesus Christ? Can there be any wonder that
He caused the earth to tremble and the skies to darken when His only Son died?
Submitted by Pastor David Lydick
Sermons, Stories & Illustrations
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