ter Prynne feels as if she belongs to it. Every gesture, every word, and even the silence of those with whom she comes in contact, inplies and often expresses, that she is banished. The token---the sacrlet "A" never grows callous; it seems, on the contray, to grow even more sensitive with daily torture.
All these sufferings intend to remind Hester that, as a sinner, a betrayer of God, she must be tortured until she receives forgiveness from God. All that she can do is bear and bear, and atone for her sin.
Sin is unpleasant and painful. No one in the world wants to suffer. All of us hope that we can stop every kind of suffering some day. That is not just a wish that is far away and can’t be achieved. God’s love is universal and lenient. God has a soft heart, which doesn’t want to see people who are tortured. “Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits--
who forgives all your sins…”(Plasm103,2,3)
Sinners can receive salvation from their sufferings definitely. “'The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion.”(Numbers 14:18) The assurance of salvation is born of confidence in Christ. He has said: “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” God save people out of His love --- His universal love. To doubt salvation is not modest or commendable: it is the sin of distrusting God, or making Him untrue. “But if a wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die. None of the offences he has committed will be remembered against him. Because of the righteous things he has done, he will live. Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?” (Ezekiel 18:21-23) However, salvation is not offered to those who want to be good or religious, nor is it guaranteed to those who hope God will Himself be lenient and gracious in the end. If salvation depends in any degree on personal goodness, there could not be even one saved person in the world. Salvation is offered to all helpless sinners who are willing to believe God. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. This is evident in The Bible:
“Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!”(Luke1, 45)
“So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.”(Acts, 27,25)
“(Abraham)… was strengthened in his faith… being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.”(Romans4, 20,21)
The above three quotations from The Bible help us to realize that faith depends on what God has said or promised to do. Even an honest man tries to fulfill his
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