Rescue the Perishing

By Paul Chappell

"So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul."

Ezekiel 33:7–9

Fanny Crosby loved sharing the Gospel with anyone who would listen. In 1869 she penned the words to “Rescue the Perishing.” When asked about the song, she explained, “It was written following a personal experience at the New York City Bowery Mission.” She went on to explain that she would go one night a week to talk to “her boys.”

One night while speaking to them, she kept having the thought that there was a boy present who had wandered away from his mother and must be rescued that night, or he would be eternally lost. She made a plea to each boy that was there that night. At the end of the service, one of the young men came forward and said, “Did you mean me, Miss Crosby? I promised my mother to meet her in Heaven, but as I am now living that will be impossible.” She prayed with him and led him to Christ. As they finished, he said, “Now I am ready to meet my mother in Heaven, for I have found God.”

There are many things in life that are important, but the greatest task we have been assigned is to do our part to rescue those who are perishing before it is eternally too late. The sacrifices that we make for the sake of the Gospel, whether they are physical or financial, are worth it. Do not allow anything to deter you from reaching those in danger of spending eternity in Hell.