THE following letter, from a lady in New Zealand, is well worth reading. Whether we think of the testimony of the dying Christian described therein, or that of his Christian widow, the writer of the letter, being so sustained that she could write of the death-bed of her husband― “None of us could shed a tear round that bed”―the tribute and the reality of God’s sustaining grace is remarkable.
“It was my husband’s heart’s desire―I may say his dying wish―that his joy in going to be with the Lord should be a testimony to many of the reality of salvation. He was so low that I could only just catch what he said by putting my ear close to his mouth. I heard him murmur, ‘Not my will but Thine be done!’ He seemed to doze for a moment or so, and then with a shining face and rapturous tone, exclaimed, ‘JESUS!’ and then, ‘I thought I was with Him’! No human words can convey the tone of rapture, or show out how that poor wasted face was lit up with heavenly joy. It was glorious; it seemed, as it were, a step beyond faith―a glimpse of the joys beyond. ‘In Thy presence is fullness of joy.’ He must have seen JESUS, the Person of CHRIST entranced him.
“From then on, it was to say ‘Good-bye,’ and to impress on all the reality of the joy he was entering into.
“The little children, who were sleeping at a friend’s house, were brought home in the middle of the night. They came in sobbing, but he hushed them. ‘Don’t cry, darlings; I’m so happy, I’m going to Jesus, and we’ll soon meet again.’
“My old father came up―broken down. ‘Good-bye, dear grandfather; take a long, deep draught; drink deep of the joy I am entering into.’
“It was the love of Christ and the reality of the joy he tried to impress on all. He spoke to the doctor, the nurse, to all his own children, and sent messages to all his brothers and sisters.
“A friend made a remark as to having had love and fellowship together. His voice rang out, ‘Don’t speak of our love; what a miserable thing! It is His love to us!’
“None of us could shed a tear round that bed; it did not seem like death; it was entering into LIFE; it was wonderful! He seemed to feel no sorrow at leaving us; the joy eclipsed it all, and we could only listen in wonder and rejoice with him.
“After all ‘good-byes’ were sent, he said: ‘Now I want the dear grandfather to pray with just the family,’ and I feel he left us all in God’s hands; then he said, ‘Now, I am ready Lord Jesus, come!’
“These were the last words we heard him utter again and again.”
Reader, what shall your end be like? It must come. You must enter eternity. But how?
Christianity is a reality. The catacombs of Rome―the fires of Smithfield―the records of the Spanish Inquisition prove it. The persistent attacks on Christianity prove it. There are ten thousand times ten thousand proofs. Apologetics for Christianity are overwhelming and irrefutable.
May I beseech you, reader, to inquire earnestly and diligently into these, matters? You cannot afford to postpone the inquiry. For soon your end will come, and then?
A. J. P.