Don’t Ignore the Warning
If you walk into a second-hand book shop here in South Africa, you are almost certain to find some of the works of Lawrence G. Green. He was one of our country's great writers of the 1900s, penning over 30 books in which he beautifully captured the spirit of old South Africa. He had an interesting style, blending historical facts with folklore and stories.
As Shereen and I enjoyed a road trip around the Western part of South Africa a few months ago, I read some of Lawrence Green's work and was captured by his descriptive writing, which so perfectly described the scenes we were seeing as we drove. In one of his books, called The Spirit of the Karoo, he wrote a chapter called The Springbok Migrations which describes how in the 1800s, the springbok in our country would migrate in groups of over a million! It’s quite sad to note that now we only see them in small groups of maybe 5-20.
Green says here that he once had a conversation with a travelling farmer named Gert van der Merwe, who told him about a time he and his family were trekking across the country in their wagons, when one of the local bushmen became very agitated, leaving his oxen suddenly and running into the bush on the banks of a river. A little while later, as the family was settling down for dinner, the man came back and urged them to get the oxen going immediately. Green writes "The trekbokke are coming," declared the bushmen. "It will be death to stay in the river bed."
Heeding Life-Saving Warnings
Van der Merwe was unsure if he should heed this warning, but he figured that the man knew the bush, and so he and his family followed the man up to the top of a hill. Soon, they saw a faint cloud of dust, and the bushman suggested they create a barrier of thorn bushes around the cattle and wagons for their own safety. Slowly but surely the dust cloud rose, and got closer and closer. Then came a faint drumming sound, and before they knew it, a group of springbok had appeared, galloping faster than any horse could go, and from then a steady stream of these creatures hurtled around them in their little protected area. For a full hour this went on, and the dust made it difficult for Gert and his family to breathe. Once the main stampede had passed them, lone buck kept running past the wagons all through the night.
It must have been quite the sight! But here's the moral of this story, for me at least: don't ignore a warning. That family could've laughed off that bushman and just kept going, and that stampede would have killed them. But they heeded the warning.
The Ultimate Warning
The Bible contains many startling warnings, about what awaits a person who doesn't accept Jesus into their life. Eternal separation from God is a fate much worse than a springbok trampling. In fact, in Ezekiel 3, God holds Ezekiel accountable for blood that is shed if he does not issue a warning to the people. Christians should not take lightly our call to share the good news, and to warn people of what is promised those for who don't accept it.
Have you accepted Christ as Lord of your life, and as your Saviour? Friends, He is the only way to the Father. He’s the only one who can protect you from eternal separation from God. Like thornbushes around those wagons, His blood alone provides protection from death and separation from God.
Heed the warning! And share the warning. While you still have the time.
