第145章
Once more Paul has an opportunity to uplift before a wondering multitude the banner of the cross.As he gazes upon the throng before him,--Jews, Greeks, Romans, with strangers from many lands,--his soul is stirred with an intense desire for their salvation.He loses sight of the occasion, of the perils surrounding him, of the terrible fate that seems so near.He sees only Jesus, the Intercessor, pleading before God in behalf of sinful men.With more than human eloquence and power, Paul presents the truths of the gospel.He points his hearers to the sacrifice made for the fallen race.He declares that an infinite price has been paid for man's redemption.Provision has been made for him to share the throne of God.By angel messengers, earth is connected with heaven, and all the deeds of men, whether good or evil, are open to the eye of Infinite Justice.
Thus pleads the advocate of truth.Faithful among the faithless, loyal among the disloyal, he stands as God's representative, and his voice is as a voice from heaven.There is no fear, no sadness, no discouragement in word or look.Strong in a consciousness of innocence, clothed in the panoply of truth, he rejoices that he is a son of God.His words are as a shout of victory above the roar of battle.He declares the cause to which he has devoted his life, to be the only cause that can never fail.Though he may perish, the gospel will not perish.God lives, and His truth will triumph.
Many who that day looked upon him "saw his face as it had been the face of an angel." Acts 6:15.
Never before had that company listened to words like these.They struck a cord that vibrated in the hearts of eventhe most hardened.Truth, clear and convincing, overthrew error.Light shone into the minds of many who afterward gladly followed its rays.The truths spoken on that day were destined to shake nations and to live through all time, influencing the hearts of men when the lips that had uttered them should be silent in a martyr's grave.
Never before had Nero heard the truth as he heard it on this occasion.Never before had the enormous guilt of his own life been so revealed to him.The light of heaven pierced the sin-polluted chambers of his soul, and he trembled with terror at the thought of a tribunal before which he, the ruler of the world, would finally be arraigned, and his deeds receive their just award.He feared the apostle's God, and he dared not pass sentence upon Paul, against whom no accusation had been sustained.A sense of awe restrained for a time his bloodthirsty spirit.
For a moment, heaven was opened to the guilty and hardened Nero, and its peace and purity seemed desirable.That moment the invitation of mercy was extended even to him.But only for a moment was the thought of pardon welcomed.Then the command was issued that Paul be taken back to his dungeon; and as the door closed upon the messenger of God, the door of repentance closed forever against the emperor of Rome.No ray of light from heaven was ever again to penetrate the darkness that enveloped him.Soon he was to suffer the retributive judgments of God.
Not long after this, Nero sailed on his infamous expedition to Greece, where he disgraced himself and his kingdom by contemptible and debasing frivolity.Returning to Rome with great pomp, he surrounded himself with his courtiers and engaged in scenes of revolting debauchery.In the midst of this revelry a voice of tumult in the streets was heard.A messenger dispatched to learn the cause, returned with the appalling news that Galba, at the head of an army, was marching rapidly upon Rome, that insurrection had already broken out in the city, and that the streets were filled with an enraged mob, which, threatening death to the emperor and all his supporters, was rapidly approaching the palace.
In this time of peril, Nero had not, like the faithful Paul, a powerful and compassionate God on whom to rely.Fearful of the suffering and possible torture he might be compelled to endure at the hands of the mob, the wretched tyrant thought to end his life by his own hand, but at the critical moment his courage failed.Completely unmanned, he fled ignominiously from the city and sought shelter at a countryseat a few miles distant, but to no avail.His hiding place was soon discovered, and as the pursuing horsemen drew near, he summoned a slave to his aid and inflicted on himself a mortal wound.Thus perished the tyrant Nero, at the early age of thirty-two.