Spurgeon: March PM
* 03/13/PM
"Then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in
unto him into the ark."
--Genesis 8:9
Wearied out with her wanderings, the dove returns at length
to the ark as her only resting place. How heavily she flies--she
will drop--she will never reach the ark! But she struggles on.
Noah has been looking out for his dove all day long, and is
ready to receive her. She has just strength to reach the edge of
the ark, she can hardly alight upon it, and is ready to drop,
when Noah puts forth his hand and pulls her in unto him. Mark
that: " pulled her in unto him ." She did not fly right in
herself, but was too fearful, or too weary to do so. She flew as
far as she could, and then he put forth his hand and pulled her
in unto him. This act of mercy was shown to the wandering dove,
and she was not chidden for her wanderings. Just as she was she
was pulled into the ark. So you, seeking sinner, with all your
sin, will be received. "Only return"--those are God's two
gracious words--"only return." What! nothing else? No, "only
return." She had no olive branch in her mouth this time, nothing
at all but just herself and her wanderings; but it is "only
return," and she does return, and Noah pulls her in. Fly, thou
wanderer; fly thou fainting one, dove as thou art, though thou
thinkest thyself to be black as the raven with the mire of sin,
back, back to the Saviour. Every moment thou waitest does but
increase thy misery; thine attempts to plume thyself and make
thyself fit for Jesus are all vanity. Come thou to Him just as
thou art. "Return, thou backsliding Israel." He does not say,
"Return, thou repenting Israel" (there is such an invitation
doubtless), but "thou backsliding one," as a backslider with
all thy backslidings about thee, Return, return, return! Jesus
is waiting for thee! He will stretch forth His hand and "pull
thee in"--in to Himself, thy heart's true home.