It is refreshing to turn from man to God, from the foolishness which is poured out from the mouth of fools (such as by nature we all are) to the rivers of living water that flow forth from the heart that believes in Jesus. Let us listen now to some words of William Farel, taken from two letters written by him in that spring of 1534.
“Grace, peace, and mercy, from God our Father, by our Lord Jesus, the One only Savior and Redeemer, who died for us, and who reigns in the glory of Heaven, where we must seek Him. For He alone is our true heavenly treasure—the which, if by true faith we possess it, cannot be taken away from us, although all may rise up against Him. And this do we find by experience day by day, according as it pleases the Eternal Father to open the door for us to proclaim His Son. And if God increased our courage, we should see yet more; but we have so many restive horses, who instead of going forward go backwards: not only useless themselves, but hindering others, that it seems to me the words of Jesus are fulfilled which He spoke to the Pharisees, namely, that they take away the key of knowledge, and that those who would enter in they hinder. But, whatever may be the cross and the hindrance, God will not leave His work unfinished; He will perfect His holy will, and bring the wicked to light.
“The enemy ceases not to contrive new inventions and falsehoods; but God will turn all to their confusion, for lies cannot conquer truth. The light must shine at last, and the darkness give place to it. You know how the Lord has visited my house, allowing my brothers to be put to the test, chiefly the one younger than I, who has been a long time in prison. He has been condemned to imprisonment for life and with the loss of all his goods.”
This brother was Walter. He and his wife had both made an open confession of Christ. His imprisonment was a great sorrow to William, not only for his brother’s sake, but for the sake of his old mother, now left a widow. Walter, it would seem, had been living with her, or, in any case, in the neighborhood. He was imprisoned at Gap.
In the next letter William says, “Grace, peace, and mercy, from God our good Father, by His only Son Jesus, our salvation and life—who is the stone of stumbling, against whom, both in His own Person, and that of His Members, the world has risen up in battle from the beginning, and does so still, and will do so in the time to come—but all in vain: for there is no counsel, nor device, nor wisdom against God; and when the wicked lift up their horns, it is that they may be broken. And whatever it may be that happens to the righteous, let them not lose courage: let them say with the holy prophet, in full faith and assurance, ‘The Lord is my helper, I will not fear what man can do unto me.’ O how happy is the man to whom the Lord gives this grace! How nobly all goes on, when all is lost as to the world! Then we make experience of the power of God, who mightily helps His own, when they are trusting in none other than in Him.
“But when we go down into Egypt, and trust in men, God shows Himself to be true, by letting us feel what men are. I have made this experience as to my brother, who has been long in prison. He, desiring to have help from some, and I thinking that those to whom he was looking were better friends than they are, God knows how it then came to pass. I had given in to the judgment of others against my own judgment. But God be praised! May His good pleasure be done! If the blessed Father, of His own will, desires to set him free, He has all power in His hands and He will do it; if otherwise, let it be as is good in His eyes, and it will be so; but I will not cease to pray for him, as the faithful did when Peter was in prison, nor to use such means as Paul used.
“And may we honor and adore our God with more purity than we have hitherto done, fearing the Lord more than heretofore; and may all fear of man be cast out from us; may we stand in fear of the curse of God, which falls upon all who have their confidence elsewhere than in God; and may we take with both hands, the blessing prepared for those who suffer for Jesus. And, oh, that it may please the Lord to show this clearly to the poor prisoner, so that, having full knowledge, he may come forward and declare that which there is to declare about the blessed Savior; for that which troubles me most is that he has not yet been well taught, and I fear he understands but little. And the poor widow, the poor sorrowing mother, do not let her be forgotten in your prayers. And may He who can do all things, order all for His own glory, leading us by His Holy Spirit. And may we be willing to be led by the Spirit, giving up all other prudence, all other wisdom, all other guidance, so that all that is in us, all thoughts, all deeds, and all words, may be to the honor and glory of God, and the furtherance of His holy Word!”