John Flavel was a minister in Dartmouth, England. One day he preached from these words: "If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema, Maranatha." 1 Cor. 16:2222If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha. (1 Corinthians 16:22).
The discourse was unusually solemn, particularly the explanation of the curse. At the conclusion, when Mr. Flavel rose for a final prayer, he paused and said: "How can I ask God to bless this whole assembly, when every person in it who loves not the Lord Jesus is Anathema Maranatha?" The solemnity of this address deeply affected the audience.
In the congregation that day was an unsaved lad named Luke Street, about fifteen years old, a native of Dartmouth. Shortly afterward, he went to sea, and sailed to America where he remained the rest of his life.
Luke's life was lengthened far beyond the usual term. When he was a hundred years old he was still able to work his farm, and his mind was not at all impaired. He had lived all this time in carelessness and sin: he was a sinner a hundred years old and likely to die accursed. One day as he sat in his field, he busied himself in reflecting on his past life. He thought of the days of his childhood. His memory fixed on Flavel's sermon, a considerable part of which he remembered. The earnestness of the preacher—the truths spoken—the effect on the people all came fresh to his mind.
He knew that he had not loved the Lord Jesus; he feared the dreadful anathema; he was deeply convinced of sin. At last, through deep exercise, he was brought to trust the blood of Jesus. He lived the rest of his hundred and sixteen years as a "born again soul,"— a real child of God.