Today's encouragement comes from Acts 27:31, where we read these words:
"Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, 'Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.' "What Paul says (above) regarding the merchant ship on which he and many others were sailing, God would say to all professing Christians: "Unless you stay in the gospel ship (of Christ as His church), you cannot be saved." Why would anybody want to "jump ship"? Because of persecution, trial, fiery fur-naces of affliction, cowardice, unbelief, etc.
The good ship of Jesus sails over the sea of judgment today, as Noah's ark did in the book of Genesis. Let all God's true children stay faithful in Christ and His church—and enjoy the voyage, even when it gets bumpy.
[Puritan quote of the day: "Not one of all God's true soldiers was ever left to perish on the field of battle.” —Thomas Jones, in the preface of Isaac Am-brose's, "The Christian Warrior"]
