I looked on my right hand, and behold, but there was no man that would know me. Refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul. Psalm 142:4
I sat in a health and safety seminar, listening to an excellent instructor provide interesting examples for the points that he was making. The class was discussing the reality that businesses often look only to the profit-and-loss figures when assessing whether to take a product to the market. The instructor mentioned a particular automobile company that, some years before, began producing a small car that had a sizable risk of bursting into flames if it were struck by another car from behind. The company determined that it would sell enough of the cars to afford to pay the legal expenses involved in the accidents that would occur. This company determined that the fiery crashes would probably result in five people being killed. But that was OK, it could afford to deal with that. How horribly callous of that company to place profit above the lives of customers! This company proved it did not care about the souls of drivers. Unfortunately, this glaring example is closer to the norm than we would like to believe. We live in a world that has no regard for our souls. But God is not like that. And neither should we be.
David’s observation was based on his look about himself. He could see nothing but greed and selfishness. Nobody really cared whether David lived or died, it seemed. Then David looked upward, as the next verse shows: he cried unto the Lord and found Him to be a refuge and a portion. This was a great source of comfort to David. It should also be a great source of comfort to us, as we step into the realization that the Lord really cares, and has done all to save our souls. This is why we need to remind the unsaved about us that there is One Who cares for their souls.
A consistent and godly testimony is necessary to let people know there is a God who cares. So too are Gospel tracts and invitations to Gospel meetings. We need to remain faithful in presenting the Gospel, which is the glorious account of God’s care for the souls of the lost.
Do I appreciate that the Lord cares for my soul even if nobody else does? Do I remind others of their availability of the same comfort? -Jim MacIntosh