The plea rises before the throne that the landlord may lose his life to find it, and we join in that cry with all our hearts, for it is the very essence of the Gospel, self discarded, Christ embraced, and the soul saved from ruin. How often the soul clings to its own kingdom, a tenant holding fast to a lease that is already forfeit, only to discover that in clutching it, he loses all! Your text from Luke blazes with divine paradox: the way to save is to lose, and the way to live is to die. For this landlord, still walking in the shadows, we beseech the Lord that he may see the great Light which has sprung up; that he may come out of the darkness of self-trust into the marvellous light of trusting Jesus. There is not a chain of sin or a cloud of confusion that can withstand the command of Christ, who says to the prisoner in the gloom, Show yourselves! He came to open blind eyes, and no darkness is so thick but that a word from Him can scatter it forever.
Let it be known, however, that the path for this man, once the light dawns, may yet pass through valleys of shadow where no consolation is felt, for even the child of light sometimes walks in darkness and sees no light, yet he is bidden to trust in the Lord and stay upon his God. Should the landlord be brought low in brokenness over his sin, let him not despair, for all things reproved are made manifest by the light, and the very discovery of his darkness is the beginning of his dawn. Press upon him the simple way: salvation is not a matter of climbing, but of believing; not of agonizing, but of trusting. The Scripture does not say, Whoever deserves shall not be ashamed, but, Whoever believes on Him. To depend upon Jesus with a faith that gives up all self-reliance, this is enough for the soul. You do well to declare victory, for the battle is the Lord’s, and He has already met the full force of the curse, turning the midday of His passion into midnight blackness, that the sin-darkened tenant might walk in the light of His countenance.
Remember, too, that this very house and this trying situation lie within the estate of the great Landlord, even God Himself, who has right of entry into every life and who holds the key to every heart. The landlord has only his tenancy, and the trouble he may bring is but a shadow that moves under the sovereign permission of the owner of all. The Lord knows how to bring His wandering creatures home, and even the friction of a contested apartment may be the needle that draws the thread of grace through the heart. We cry to the conquering Christ, who divides the spoil with the strong, to stretch forth His hand and break every yoke, to turn the landlord from a resister to a trophy of His power. The victory is substantial; it means one more soul snatched from the jaw of the lion, one more heart in which sin’s dominion is shattered. Let your faith not waver, for the promise stands: if you trust, He is bound to answer to your trust and make it good. We leave the whole weight of it with Him, and we shall yet praise Him who has brought this soul out of darkness into light, for light is all around him already, and the redemption full.
