BDJ

How would you respond if someone told you that a plot had been arranged to kill you shortly at a special event you were attending? That was the case with King Gustavus III of Sweden. On March 16, 1792 he was attending a masquerade ball at the opening of the Grand Opera House in Stockholm. Dressed in a cloak and mask, he moved among the dancers when some unknown person came close to him and quickly slipped a note into his pocket. It revealed an assassination plot. Some dissatisfied nobles planned to kill him in that very ballroom shortly. The note urged him to leave immediately.

After reading the note carefully the King quietly put it in his pocket. He seemed lost in his own thoughts for a few minutes. Among the dancers an anxious face watched the king. Why wasn't he hurrying to leave, so that he would be safe? What was he doing? Confident of his own invincibility the king stepped into the brilliant glow of the chandeliers, admiring the stage scenery and the costumes of the masqueraders. Looking around he couldn't imagine that any of those attending would actually try to kill him. And if they did try he certainly was too great a king to be harmed by them.

Then suddenly coming from behind the curtains five men draped in dark costumes surrounded him. One of them drew out a pistol wrapped in raw wool to silence the bang, then fired. The king rolled to the floor holding his chest as the blood gushed from the bullet wound. The five men quickly mingled back among the dancers and a few friends of the king rushed to carry him out of the building to a hospital. The ballroom doors were all shut and sealed. The ringleader, Count Ankarstrom, escaped but was arrested the next day. King Gustavas III lived only a few days longer. On March 29 he died.

This king was a great man and considered to be a wise leader, but he made a foolish choice that night at the ball. If only he had taken the advice of that little note, he could have saved his life.

The greatest choice of all time was posed by the Roman Governor as the Lord Jesus stood before him. "WHAT SHALL I DO WITH JESUS WHICH IS CALLED CHRIST?" You too have this choice to make, to accept is joy and blessing, to reject is sadness and eternal loss.