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May's featured article

A Believer's Last Day, His Best Day

"You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory." Psalm 73:24

"Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart." Psalm 97:11


The Epistle Dedicatory

To my worthy and beloved friends, Mr. And Mrs. John Russell, and to Mr. Thomas Randall; all happiness in this world, and in that which is to come. The ensuing sermon was preached upon your importunity, and printed also upon the same account. You know that nothing would satisfy your spirits but the printing of it, which at last made me unwillingly willing to answer your desires; not that I did delight to deny your desires, nor because I prized it—but because I thought it not good enough for you, nor worthy of that weight which you laid upon it—it being but the fruit of some short broken meditations. I have now published these notes, which in all love I present to you. They were once in your ear, they are now in your eye—may the Lord keep them ever in your hearts! If there is anything in this sermon worth the having, it is not mine but the Lord's, through grace.

Dear friends, you know we must all die in the wilderness of this world, be gathered to our fathers—leave this earth, and be seen no more. Abraham and Sarah must part, Jacob and Rachel must be separated, David and his child must be severed. Our days are numbered, our period of time is appointed, and our bounds we cannot pass. "All flesh is as grass, and the glory thereof as the flower of the field," Psalm 103:15; therefore do not mourn as people "without hope," neither be like Rachel, who would "not be comforted." To that purpose take this counsel.

1. First, Dwell much upon the sweet behavior of others, under the loss of their near and dear relations. When God had passed the sentence of death upon David's child, "Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate." 2 Samuel 12:20. When his servants questioned this action, he answers, "Now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again?" verse 23.

Just so, when Aaron's sons were destroyed by fire for their offering up strange fire, Lev. 10:22-23, Aaron holds his peace; he bridled his passions, and submitted sweetly and quietly to divine justice. Just so, when it was told Anaxagoras that both his sons, which were all he had, were dead, being not terrified at the sad news, he answered, "I knew I begat mortal creatures!" The people in Thrace, bury their children with great joy—but at their birth lament grievously, in regard of the miseries which are like to befall them while they live.

2. Secondly, In time of crosses, losses, and miseries—it is the wisdom of believers to look more upon the crown—than upon the cross; to dwell more upon glory—than upon misery; to eye more the brazen serpent which is lifted up—than the fiery serpent which bites and stings. [2 Cor. 4:16-18; Heb. 10:34, 11:24-26, 35, and 12:1-3.] Basil speaks of some martyrs who were cast out all night naked in a frigid time, and were to be burned the next day, how they comforted themselves in this manner: "The winter is sharp—but paradise is sweet; here we shiver for cold—but the bosom of Abraham will make amends for all." Galen writes of a fish called Uranoscopos, which has but one eye—and yet looks continually up to heaven. A Christian under the cross should always have an eye looking up to heaven, so that his soul may not faint, and he may give glory to God in the day of visitation. It is recorded of Lazarus, that after his resurrection from the dead he was never seen to laugh; his thoughts and affections were so fixed in heaven, though his body was on earth, that he could not but slight temporal things, his heart being set upon eternal things. [Let heaven be a man's object—and the earth will be his abject.] "A man," says Chrysostom, "who would dwell in the contemplation of heaven, would be loath to come out of it." "Nay, says Augustine, "a man might age himself in the contemplation of heaven, and sooner grow old than weary."

3. Thirdly, Compare your mercies and your losses together, and you shall find that your mercies will wonderfully outweigh your losses. You have lost one mercy, you enjoy many mercies. What is the loss of a wife, a child, or any other temporal mercy, compared to a soul's enjoyment of the favor of God, pardon of sin, peace of conscience, hopes of heaven, etc.? Besides, you enjoy many temporal mercies, which many of the precious sons of Zion lack, etc.

4. Fourthly, Consider seriously of the reasons of God's stripping his people of their nearest and their dearest mercies. They are these—

[1.] For a trial of the strength and power of their graces. It is not every cross nor every loss, which tries the strength of a Christian's graces. Job held bravely in the face of many afflictions for a time—but when he was thoroughly afflicted in his body, then he acts like a man void of grace, rather than like a man who did excel all others in grace. [God tried the strength of Abraham's faith, and the strength of Job's patience, and the strength of Moses' meekness, and the strength of David's zeal, and the strength of Paul's courage—to the utmost. God will not only try the truth—but he will also, sooner or later, try the strength of every grace which is in a believer. Exod. 12:27, 30-31.]

When God burns up the shed—but leaves the palace standing; when he takes away the servant—but leaves the child; when he gathers here a flower and there a flower out of men's gardens—but leaves the flowers which are the delight of their eyes and the joy of their hearts; they bear it patiently and sweetly. But when he burns up the palace, and takes away thechild, and gathers the fairest flower in all our garden—then we usually show ourselves to be but men, yes, to be weak men, passionately crying out, "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! O that I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!" 2 Sam. 18:33.

A Believer's Last Day, His Best Day

How Prophecies are Fulfilled

God reveals to his servants the prophets what is to come. That much is plain from the pages of the old testament. But prophecies were not always fulfilled in the way their recipients expected. God's ways are higher than our ways, and this is particularly true in the fulfilment of prophecy. Let us look then at how some ancient prophecies were fulfilled.

From the book of Genesis on there are prophecies of the coming Messiah. God told Eve that her offspring would bruise the serpent's head. Eve was greatly consoled and encouraged with this word from God, but she had no idea how it would happen. Probably she imagined some physical conflict. Perhaps she envisaged dead snakes lying around on the ground. With hindsight we can look back on events enormously greater and more significant than anything she could have imagined. Her far off descendant defeated all the powers of darkness, not by force of physical arms, but by offering himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the world.

God told Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore, and that through his offspring all nations on earth would be blessed. Millions of people today claim Abraham as their physical ancestor, and probably this is what Abraham understood the promise to mean. Four thousand years on we know that God's eye rested primarily on the multitudes of spiritual descendants that would be followers of Abraham's faith. The true fulfilment of the prophecy was better and higher than Abraham could have seen at the time.

God told Moses to tell the people that he would raise up a prophet like him from among their brothers. Jesus was like Moses in ways that a spiritual mind would understand. In other ways he was very different and many people would have totally failed to recognise the similarity. Moses delivered his people from the yoke of slavery in Egypt. Jesus did not deliver his people from their hated Roman overlords. Instead he delivered them from a far worse tyranny. He broke the yoke of sin and Satan from their backs.

God told David that he would establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I imagine David was wonderfully happy to think of his descendants for hundreds and thousands of years sitting on his throne in Jerusalem. The fulfilment was very different, but much better than he had imagined. His throne was occupied for several hundred years by his descendants, but not for ever. A tragic day came when after a long siege the Babylonians breached the walls of Jerusalem. They put out king Zedekiah's eyes and led him captive to Babylon. They set fire to the royal palace and every important building in the city. What had happened to the prophecy God gave to David? The physical throne of David became desolate, but the spiritual throne of David will be occupied for all eternity. Jesus will reign, and his saints will reign with him, till he has put all enemies beneath his feet. The earthly Jerusalem has been trodden down by the gentiles for centuries and its throne left vacant, but the heavenly Jerusalem has Jesus on its throne. The fulfilment of the prophecy was better than David could have ever dreamt.

We can learn from these past fulfilments of prophecy. Before events take place we may know that wonderful things are coming, and we must prepare ourselves as best we can to play our part in God's purposes. Only with hindsight if ever will we fully understand God's plans, and, like the faithful of old, we will find they are far greater and more wonderful than we have ever imagined.

To Read More Category: Revelation

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