'Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.'

A parable from the prophet Isaiah shows major limitations placed by God upon human life when He is left out of consideration. Here are the consequences of a materialistic life, and the great release that comes from turning to the Lord.

Conversion is an intensely personal experience. It is a conscious awareness of Christ intervening in our life. We become certain that Christ, in incomprehensible love, bore away the punishment of our sin in His sufferings on Calvary's cross. It is to become truly related to Him.

Coming to Christ brings us to taste and feel and experience His power and kindness. It is far deeper than head-knowledge or mere sentimentality. Here, from the prayer of Scripture, we show what Christ gives to all who trust in Him.

'Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I resemble it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in…

'Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.'

When Christ healed a paralysed man, He first pronounced that his sins were forgiven. To prove that He had power to forgive, He then healed the body, giving life where all had been limp and motionless; illustrating the changes in conversion to Christ.

Surely nothing is more tragic than to believe life is peaceful and secure without God, only to discover one day that one faces eternal disaster. Here is the false peace that imprisons us in this material world and keeps us from seeking and finding the Lord.

David traces the reasons for personal sin in a life, the phenomenon of God's mercy, the benefits of trusting Him, and the tragic result of rejecting His kindness. There is no treatment of sin and salvation as profound and uplifting as this psalm.

'Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.'