Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot

‘He that believeth on My Son,’ says God, ‘is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he has not believed on my only begotten Son.”

“This is the simple, plain, and clear Word of God from His book, the Bible. At the price of His only begotten Son, God provided pardon. Therefore He offers us an escape, if we choose to accept it. God is not willing that you or I experience the punishment we justly deserve. And His condemnation does not in any way alter the fact. ‘The wages of sin is death. . .’ One sentence, and one punishment for those who do not believe. God’s condemnation upon all sinners is death. “The fate of the criminal,” Ed said, “is to fulfill the condemnation by being punished-for some this means serving a term of years, for others it means imprisonment for life, for others it means death. “Ed’s sermon explains better than most theological statements the belief shared by all five of the men who were ultimately to combine forces in Operation Auca. This meant simply that Christ was to be obeyed, and more than that, that. To these men, Jesus Christ was God, and had actually taken upon Himself human form, in order that He might die, and, by His death, provide not only escape from the punishment which their sin merited, but also a new kind of life, eternal both in length and in quality. To conform to the perfect life of Jesus was impossible for a human being. It was not a matter of striving to follow the example of a great Teacher.

This double claim on his life settled once and for all the question of allegiance. Each had made a personal transaction with God, recognising that he belonged to God, first of all by creation, and secondly by redemption through the death of His Son, Jesus Christ. Their compulsion was from a different source. Their letters and journals make it abundantly clear that these men did not go out as some men go out to shoot a lion or climb a mountain. Was it the thrill of adventure that drew our husbands on? No. It was a time for soul-searching, a time for counting the possible cost. It was the condition of true discipleship it became devastatingly meaningful now. Each of us knew when we married our husbands that there would never be any question about who came first - God and His work held held first place in each life. We knew that 'when He Putteth forth His sheep, He goeth before them.' God's leading was unmistakable up to this point. What would we do? God gave us peace of heart, and confidence that whatever might happen, His Word would hold. “The other wives and I talked together one night about the possibility of becoming widows.

Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot