"Yes, my dear, but not because she was good, but because Jesus died to save her. 'This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners.' If we were able to save ourselves by our own good works, then Jesus need not have died. No, Ella, we cannot do anything at all to merit salvation, but must accept it as God's free gift, 'not of works, lest any man should boast.' 'By their fruits ye shall know them;' it is not said they shall be saved by their fruits, but by them they are to be known; they are the evidence of their acceptance with God. 'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved:' we are to be saved by faith, not by works; but unless we do good works, unless we love God's commandments and try to keep them, we have no reason to think we have any faith, for it must be a living faith that saves us, and the apostle James tells us that 'faith without works is dead.' Your mother professed to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and she showed by her works that hers was not a dead faith, and therefore we may rest assured that she is in heaven; but if she had expected to be saved on account of her own good deeds, we could have had no such assurance concerning her."
"I think I understand it now, Miss Layton," said Ella, "and I remember that mother always seemed to think herself very wicked, though I don't think I ever saw her do anything wrong; but she said she was not afraid to die, because Jesus had died to save her."
"Yes, Ella, this is the experience of all true Christians. But come, it is time for us to be going; it is growing quite dark, and the stars are beginning to come out in the sky."
"How pretty the stars are! Miss Layton," said Ella, gazing up into the sky; "I love to look at them. Mother used to like to look at them too, and she told me that some of them were great large worlds, a great deal bigger than ours, and some were suns with worlds moving around them. Miss Layton, what is that white streak up in the sky, that they call the Milky-way? I asked aunt Prudence the other evening, and she said, 'Nonsense! go away, and don't bother me with such silly questions.' Do you think it's a silly question, Miss Layton?"
"No, my dear, not at all silly. The Milky-way is said to be composed of millions of stars, which, though they are very large indeed, are at such an immense distance from us as to appear very small, and though they are at great distances from each other, so much farther are they from our world, that they look to us as though they were quite close together, and the rays of light coming from such a multitude of stars, mingle together, and cause that white appearance."
"How very great and wise God must be, to be able to take care of so many worlds at once!" said Ella.
"And remember, Ella, that he not only keeps all these worlds in their orbits, but takes the same care of each one of the innumerable beings which inhabit them, as though there was but that one for him to watch over and protect. You recollect that Jesus said, 'Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall to the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.' Then we need not fear that we are too insignificant for God to notice, or that he will forget us, because he has so many creatures to care for."
"How strange," said Ella, "that God can see everything, and take care of everybody, when he has so many, so very many people to watch!"
"There is another thing I want you to think of, Ella," said Miss Layton. "Our little world, compared with the millions of other worlds, is but as one leaf compared to all the leaves on all the trees of the forest, or as one grain of sand to all that are on the sea-shore; and yet the great God, who is the Creator and Ruler of all these mighty worlds, sent his own Son down to our little earth to suffer, and bleed and die to save us, who are rebels against him our Creator and lawful sovereign. 'When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. God commendeth his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.' What amazing love and condescension! With what wonder and astonishment must the angels have beheld it! And now, Ella, is it not strange that any of us should be guilty of such base ingratitude, as to refuse to love this precious Saviour, who has shown such wondrous love and condescension toward us? How can you refuse to give him your heart now—to forsake your sins and devote your life to his service? It is a reasonable service, a service he has a right to demand of each one of us. And it is a delightful service; his yoke is easy, and his burden light."