A ship on her way to Australia met with a very terrible storm and sprang a leak. As troubles seldom come alone, a little while later another tempest assailed her. There happened to be a man on board who was of the most nervous temperament.

When the storm came on, the captain, who knew what mischief might be done by a suspicious and talkative individual, managed to get near him with a view to rendering him quiet. The man, addressing the captain said in a tone of alarm:

"What an awful storm; I am afraid we shall go to the bottom, for I hear the leak is bad."

"Well," said the captain, "as you seem to know it, and perhaps the others do not, you had better not mention it to anyone. Perhaps, as it is a very bad storm, you would lend us your valuable help, and then we may possibly get through it. Would you stand here and hold hard on to this rope; do not leave it, but pull as hard as ever you can till I tell you to let it go."

So our friend clenched his teeth, and put his feet firmly down, and kept on holding the rope with all his might, till he earnestly wished for a substitute.

The storm stopped; the ship was safe, and our friend was released from his rope-holding. He expected the thanks of all the passengers, but they were evidently unconscious of his merits. Even the captain did not seem very grateful; so our hero ventured, in a round-about style, to hint that such valuable service as his, having saved the vessel, ought to be rewarded at least with some few words of acknowledgment, when he was shocked to hear the captain say:

"What sir, do you think you saved the vessel? Why, I gave you that rope to hold to keep you engaged that you might not be in such a feverish state of alarm. The rope was only fastened to one of the masts.

"You did nothing at all, except keep quiet."

The self-righteous may here see how much men contribute to their own salvation apart from Christ. They think they can certainly save themselves, and there they stand holding the rope, with their teeth clenched, and their feet tightly fixed, while they are really doing no more than our officious friend who was thus befooled.

In order to get to heaven you must find that everything you do to obtain your own salvation is as useless as holding the rope. In fact, the safety of your soul lies in the finished work of Christ on the cross, His death and His resurrection—and not in you.

—C.H. Spurgeon