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HEAVEN 
 
 WHERE IT IS, ITS INHABITANTS. AND HOVI 
 
 TO GET THERE. 
 
 THE CERTAINTY OF GOD’s PROMISE OF A 
 LIFE BEYOND THE GRAVE, AND THE REWARDS 
 THAT ARE IN STORE FOR FAITHFUL SERVICE. 
 
 AS GLEANED FROM SACRED SCRIPTURE. 
 
 And the city had no need of the son, neither or the moon to shin© Sjt sJi 
 JO* the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” 
 
 THE MOODY PRESS 
 
 153 Institute Place 
 
 Chicago 
 
irrlEted in United Statei ot Amerieo 
 
PREFACEo 
 
 This book, upon a subject that is verj dear to me, is 
 sent forth in the hope that it maj give comfort and edi 
 fication to many; that the weak'may be strengthened, 
 the sorrowing consoled, and the despondent encouraged 
 to look vrith increasing faith to that fairest of fair cities 
 in the Better Land, which is the home of the Kedeemei 
 and the redeemed. 
 
 A leading divine has recently said: “When I v/aa a 
 boy I thought of heaven as a great shining city, with 
 vast walls and domes and spires, and with nobody in it 
 excejit white angels, who were strangers to me. By an,d 
 by my little brother died, and I thought of a great city 
 with walls and domes and spires, and a flock of cold, un~ 
 known angels, and one little fellow that I was acquainted 
 with. lie was the only one that I knew in that country, 
 Then another brother died, and there were two that I 
 knew. Then my acquaintances began to die, and the 
 number continually grew. But it was not until I hau 
 seat one of mv little children back to God, that 1 begrar 
 
to think I had a little interest there mJself^ A second, 
 a third, a fourth went, and by that time I had so many 
 acquaintances in heaven that 1 did not see any more 
 walls and domes and spires. I began to think of the 
 residents of the Celestial City. And now so many of 
 my acquaintances have gone there, that it sometimes 
 seems to me that I know more in heaven than 1 do on 
 earth.” 
 
 May the thought of loved ones gone before give addi¬ 
 tional joy to us as we follow in the way. 
 
Ibeaven: 
 
 ITS HOPE. 
 
<J^*orr]e 
 
 unchangeable home is for you and for me* 
 Where Jesus of Nazareth stands; 
 
 ^e King of ail kingdoms foiever is He, 
 
 And He holdeth our crowns in His hands, 
 
 ■^'□h, how sweet it will be in that beaatiful landi, 
 So free from all sorrow and pain; 
 
 With songs on our lips and with harps in our 
 "oe another agaiiV^ 
 

 CHAPTEE I. 
 
 ITS HOPE. 
 
 We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Chri# 
 ^ * for the HOPE which is laid up for you in heaven. 
 
 Con. i, 3, 5 
 
 A great many persons imagine that anything said 
 about heaven is only a matter of speculation. The^ 
 talk about heaven much as they would about the air. 
 Now there would not have been so much in Scripture 
 on this subject if God had wanted to leave the human 
 race in darkness about it. “ All Scripture,” we are 
 told, “ is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable 
 for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction 
 in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect 
 —thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” II Tim. 
 iii, 16, 17. AYliat the Bible says about heaven is just 
 as true as what it says about everything else. The 
 Bible is inspired. What we are taught about heaven 
 could not have come to us in any other way than by in¬ 
 spiration. No one knew anything about it but God, 
 and so if we want to find out anything about it we have 
 xo turn to His Word. Dr. Hodge, of Princeton, says 
 
 1 
 
8 
 
 HEAVEN^, 
 
 that the best evidence of the Bible being the Word of 
 God is to be found between its own two covers. It 
 proves itself. In this respect it is like Christ, whose 
 character proclaimed the divinity of His person. 
 Christ showed Himself more than man by what He 
 did. The Bible shows itself more than a human book 
 by what it says. 
 
 It is not, however, because the Bible is loriiten with 
 more than human skill, far surpassing Shakspeare or 
 any other human author, and that its knowledge of 
 character and the eloquence it contains are beyond the 
 powers of man, that we believe it to be inspired. Men’^^ 
 ideas differ about the extent to which human skill can 
 be carried, but the reason why we believe the Bible to 
 be inspired is so simple that the humblest child of God 
 can comprehend it. If the proof of its divine origin 
 lay in its wisdom alone, a simple and uneducated man 
 might not be able to believe it. We believe it is in¬ 
 spired because there is nothing in it that could noi 
 have come from God. God is wise, and God is good. 
 There is nothing in the Bible that is not wise, and 
 there is nothing in it that is not good. If the Bible 
 had anything in it that was opposed to reason, or to 
 our sense of right, then, perhaps, we might think that 
 it was like all the books in the world that are written 
 merely by men. Books that are only human, like 
 merely human lives, have in them a great deal that is 
 foolish and a great deal that is wrong. The life of 
 Christ alone was perfect, being both human and divine. 
 Not one of the other volumes, like the Koran, that 
 claims divinity of origin, agrees wdth common sense. 
 There is nothing at all in the Bible that does not 
 
{TS HOPE, 
 
 
 conform to common sense. What it tells us about the 
 world having been destroyed by a deluge, and Noah 
 and his family alone being saved, is no more wonder¬ 
 ful than what is taught in the schools, that all of the 
 earth we see now, and everything upon it, came out ot 
 a ball of fire. It is a great deal easier to believe that 
 man was made after the image of God, than to believe, 
 as some young men and women are being taught now, 
 that he is the offspring of a monkey. 
 
 Like all the other wonderful works of God, this Book 
 bears the sure stamp of its Author. It is like Him. 
 Though man plants the seeds, God makes the flowers, 
 and they are perfect and beautiful like Himself. Men 
 wrote what is in the Bible, but the work is God’s. The 
 more refined, as a rule, people are, the fonder they are 
 of flowers, and the better they are, as a rule, the more 
 they love the Bible. The fondness for flowers refines 
 people, and the love of the Bible makes them betteiv 
 All that is in the Bible about God, about man, about 
 redemption, and about a future state, agrees with our 
 own ideas of right, with our reasonable fears and with 
 our personal experiencos. All the historical events are 
 described in the w^ay that we know the world had of 
 looking at them wdien they w^ere WTitten. What the 
 Bible tells about heaven is not half so strange as wha^ 
 Prof. Proctor tells about the hosts of stars that are be¬ 
 yond the range of any ordinary telescope; and yet 
 people very often think that science is all fact, and that 
 religion is only fancy. A great many persons think 
 that Jupiter and many more of the stars around us are 
 inhabited, wdio cannot bring themselves to believe that 
 ther*i beyond this earth a life for immortal soula 
 
10 
 
 HEAVENS 
 
 The true Christian puts faith before reason, and believes 
 .^hat reason always goes wrong when faith is set aside. 
 If people would but read their Bibles more, and study 
 vhat there is to be found there about heaven, they 
 vould not be as worldly-minded as they are. They 
 jvould not have their hearts set upon things down here, 
 ^^ut would seek the imperishable things above. 
 
 EARTH THE HOME OF SIN. 
 
 It seems perfectly reasonable that God should have 
 given us a glimpse of the future, for we are constantly 
 losing some of our friends by death, and the first 
 thought that comes to us is, “ Where have they gone ?” 
 When loved ones are taken away from, us how that 
 thought comes up before us! How we wonder if we 
 will ever see them again, and where and when it will 
 be! Then it is that we turn to this blessed Book, for 
 there is no otlier book in all the world that can give 
 us the slightest comfort; no other book that can tell us 
 where the loved ones have gone. 
 
 Not long ago I met an old friend, and as I took him 
 Sy the hand and asked after his family, the tears came 
 t'-’ckling down his cheeks as he said: 
 
 “ I haven’t any now.” 
 
 “ What,” I said, “ is your wife dead?” 
 
 “ Yes, sir.” 
 
 “ And all your children, too? ” 
 
 “Yes, all gone,” he said, “ and I am left here deso¬ 
 late and alone.” 
 
 Would any one take from that man the hope that he 
 will meet his dear ones again? Would any one per¬ 
 suade him that there is not a future where the lost will 
 
ITS HOPE. 
 
 11 
 
 be found? No, we need not forget our dear loved ones; 
 but we may cling forever to the enduring hope that 
 there will be a time when we can meet unfettered, and 
 be blest in that land of everlasting suns, where the soul 
 drinks from the living streams of love that roll by God’s 
 high throne. 
 
 In our inmost hearts there are none of us but haV8 
 questionings of the future. 
 
 “ Tell me, my secret soul, 
 
 O, tell me, Hope and Faith, 
 
 ' Is there no resting-place 
 
 From sorrow, sin and death? 
 
 Is there no happy spot 
 
 Where mortals may be blest, 
 
 Where grief may find a balm. 
 
 And weariness a rest? 
 
 Faith, Hope and Love—best boons to mortals given— 
 Waved their bright wings, and whispered: 
 
 Yes, in heaven! ” 
 
 There are men who say tliat there is no heaven. I 
 was once talking with a man who said he thought there 
 was nothing to justify us in believing in any other 
 heaven than that we know here on earth. If this is 
 heaven, it is a very strange one—this world of sick» 
 ness, sorrow and sin. I pity from the depths of my 
 heart the man or woman who has tliat idea. 
 
 This world that some think is heaven, is the home of 
 sin, a hospital of sorrow, a place that has nothing in it 
 to satisfy the soul. Men go all over it and then want to 
 get out of it. The more men see of the world the less 
 they think of it. People soon grow tired of the best 
 pleasures it has to offer. Some one has said that the 
 world is a storray sea, whose every wave is strewed with 
 the wrecks of mortals that perish in it. Every time 
 
12 
 
 HEAVEN. 
 
 we breathe some one is dying. TV e all hnow that we 
 are going to stay here but a very little while. Our life 
 is but a vapor. It is only a shadow. 
 
 “We meet one another,” as some one has said., 
 
 “ salute one another, pass on and are gone.” And an¬ 
 other has said: “ It is just an inch of time, and then 
 eternal ages roll onj” and it seems to me that it is per¬ 
 fectly reasonable that we should study this Book, to 
 find out where we are going, and where our friends are 
 who have gone on before. The longest time man has 
 to live has no more proportion to eternity than a drop 
 of dew has to the ocean. 
 
 CITIES OF THE PAST. 
 
 Look at the cities of the past. There is Babylon. 
 It is said to have been founded by a queen named Semi- 
 ramis, who had two millions of men at work for years 
 building it. It is nothing but dust now. Nearly a 
 thousand years ago, a historian wrote that the ruins of 
 Nebuchadnezzar’s palace were still standing, but men 
 were afraid to go near them because they were full of 
 scorpions and snakes. That is the sort of ruin that 
 greatness often comes to in our own day. Nineveh is 
 gone. Its towers and bastions have fallen. The trav¬ 
 eler who tries to see Carthage cannot find much of it. 
 Corinth, once the seat of luxury and art, is only a 
 shapeless mass. Ephesus, long the metropolis of Asia, 
 the Paris of that day, was crowded with buildings as 
 large as the capitol at Washington. I am told it looks 
 more like a neglected graveyard now than anything 
 else. Granada, once so grand, with its twelve gates 
 and tc^wers, is now in decay. The Alhambra, the 
 
ITS HOPE. 
 
 13 
 
 palace of the Mohammedan kings, was situated there. 
 Little pieces of the once grand and beautiful cities of 
 Ilerculaneeum and Pompeii are now being sold in the 
 shops for relics. Jerusalem, once the joy of the whole 
 earth, is but a shadow of its former self. Thebes, for 
 thousands of years, up almost to the coming of Christ, 
 among the largest and wealthiest cities of the world, is 
 now a mass of decay. But little of ancient Athens, and 
 many more ‘of the proud cities of olden times, remain 
 to tell the story of their downfall. God drives his 
 plowshare through cities, and they are upheaved like 
 furrows in the field. “Behold,” says Isaiah, “the na¬ 
 tions are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted °s the 
 small dust of the balance; behold. He taketh up the 
 isles as a very little thing .... All nations before 
 Him are as nothing; and they are counted to Him less 
 than nothing, and vanity.” 
 
 See how Antioch has fallen. "When Paul preached 
 there, it w^as a superb metropolis. A wfide street over 
 three miles long, stretching across the entire city, was 
 ornamented with rows of columns and covered galler¬ 
 ies, and at every corner stood carved statues to com¬ 
 memorate their great men, wdiose names even we have 
 never heard. These men are never heard of now, but 
 the poor preaching tent-maker who entered its portals 
 stands out as the grandest character in history. The 
 finest specimens of Grecian art decorated the shrines 
 of the temples, and the baths and the aqueducts were 
 such as are never approached in elegance now. Men 
 then, as now, were seeking honor, wealth and renovni, 
 and enshrining their names and records in perishable 
 clay. AVithin the walls of Antioch, we are told, were 
 
HEAVEr^; 
 
 enclosed hills over seven hundred feet high, and rocky 
 precipices and deep ravines gave a vdld and picturesque 
 character to the place of which no modern city affords 
 an example. These heights were fortfied in a marvel¬ 
 ous manner, which gave to them strange and startling 
 effects. The vast population of this brilliant city, com¬ 
 bining all the art and cultivation of (Sreece with the 
 levity, the luxury and the superstition of Asia, was as 
 intent on pleasure as the population of any of our great 
 cities are to-day. The citizens had their shows, their 
 games, their races and dancers, their sorcerers, puz¬ 
 zlers, buffoons and miracle-workers, and the people 
 sought constantly in the theaters and processions for 
 something to stimulate and gratify the most corrupt 
 desires of human nature. This is pretty much what 
 we find the masses of the people in our great cities do¬ 
 ing now. 
 
 Antioch was even worse than Athens, for the so. 
 called worship they indulged in was not only idolatrous, 
 out had mixed up with it the grossest passions to which 
 man descends. It was here that Paul came to preach 
 the glad tidings of the Gospel of Christ; it was here 
 that the disciples were first called Christians, as a nick¬ 
 name; all followers of Christ before that time having 
 been called “saints” or “brethren.” As has been well 
 said, out of that spring at Antioch a mighty stream 
 has flowed to water the world. Astarte, the “ Queen of 
 Heaven,” whom they worshiped; Diana, Apollo, the 
 Pharisee and Saducee, are no more, but the despised 
 Christians yet live. Yet that heathen city, which would 
 not^ take Christianity to its Imart and keep it, fell. 
 Cities that have not the refining and restraining 
 
ITS HOPE, 
 
 16 
 
 influences of Christianity well established in them^ 
 seldom do amount to much in the long run. They grow 
 dim in the light of ages. Few of our great cities ir 
 this country are a hundred years old as yet. For nearlj^ 
 a thousand years this city prospered; yet it felL 
 
 GOING TO EMIGRATE. 
 
 1 do not think that it is wrong for us to think and 
 talk about heaven. I like to locate heaven, and find 
 9ut all I can about it. I exp> ct to live there through all 
 eternity. If I were goii g to dwell in any place in this 
 country, if I were going to make it my home, I would 
 want to inquire about the place, about its climate, aboui 
 the neighbors I would nave, about everything, in fact, 
 that I could learn concerning it. If any of you w^ere 
 going to emigrate, that would be the way you would 
 feel. Weil, we are are all going to emigrate in a very 
 little while to a country that is very far away. We are 
 going to spend eternity in another world, a grand and 
 glorious world where God reigns. Is it not natural, 
 then, that we should look and listen and try to find oul 
 who is already there, and what is the rout^ to take? 
 
 Soon after I Avas converted, an infidel asked me one 
 day Avhy I looked vp when I prayed. He said that 
 heaven Avas no more above us than below us; that 
 heaven Avas eA^erywhere. Well, I Avas greatly beiTib 
 dered, and the next time I prayed, it seemed almost as 
 if I was praying into the air. Sinc^ then I have become 
 better acquainted Avith the Bible, and I have c<.me tc 
 see that heaven is above us; that it is upward, and no» 
 downAvard. The Spirit of God is everywhere, but God 
 la in heaven, and heaven is above our heads. It does 
 
V. 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 uot matter wliat part of the globe we may stand upoLi, 
 heaven is above us. 
 
 In the 17th chapter of Genesis it says that God 
 went up from Abraham; and in the 3d chapter of John, 
 that the Son of Man came dow7i from heaven. So, in 
 the 1st chapter of Acts we find that Christ went up in¬ 
 to heaven (not down), and a cloud received him out of 
 sight. Thus we see heaven is up. The very arrange¬ 
 ment of the firmament about the earth declares the seat 
 of God’s glory to be above us. Job says: “ Let not God 
 regard it from ahovey Again, in Deuteronomy, we 
 find, “ who shall go up for us to heaven ? ” Thus, 
 all through Scripture we find that we are given the 
 location of heaven as upward and beyond the firma¬ 
 ment. This firmament, with its many bright worlds 
 scattered through, is so vast that heaven must be an ex¬ 
 tensive realm. Yet this need not surprise us. It is 
 not for short-sighted man to inquire why God made 
 heaven so extensive that its lights along the way can 
 be seen from any part or side of this little world. 
 
 In Jeremiah H, 15, we are told: “ He hath made 
 the earth by His power; He hath established the world 
 by Bis wisdom, and hath stretched out the heaven by 
 His understanding.” Yet how little we really know of 
 that power, or wisdom or understanding! As we read in 
 Job: “ Tjo, these are parts of his ways; but how little a 
 portion IS heara oi Him ? But the thunder of His power, 
 who can understand? ” 
 
 Tins is tile word of God. As we find in the 42nd 
 chapter of Isaiah: “Thus saith God the Lord, He 
 that created the heavens and stretched them out; He 
 that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out 
 
XTS HOPE, 
 
 11 
 
 of it; He that giveth bread unto the people upon it, and 
 spirit to them that walk within.” 
 
 The discernment of God’s power, the messages of 
 heaven, do not always come in great things. We read 
 in the 19th chapter of the first book of Kings: 
 
 “ And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind 
 rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lordj 
 but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earth¬ 
 quake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earth¬ 
 quake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fiire a 
 still small voice.” 
 
 It is as a still small voice that God speaks to His 
 children. Some people are trying to find out just how 
 far heaven is away. There is one thing we know about 
 it; that is, that is not so far away but that God can 
 
 hear us when we pray. I do not believe there has 
 
 ever been a tear shed for sin since Adam’s fall in Eden 
 to the present time, but God has witnessed it. He is 
 not too far from earth for us to go to Him; and 
 
 if there is a sigh that comes from a burdened heart 
 
 to-day, God will hear that sigh. If there is a cry 
 coming up from a heart broken on account of sin, God 
 will hear that cry. He is not so far away, heaven is 
 not so far away, as to be inaccessible to the smallest 
 child. In II Chronicles we read: 
 
 “ If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble them¬ 
 selves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked 
 ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive them their 
 sins, and will heal their land.” 
 
 When I was in Dublin, they vere telling me about 
 a father who had lost a little boy. This father had not 
 thought about the future, he had been so entirely taken 
 up with this world and its affairs; but when that little 
 boy, hi3 on"y child, ^lied, that father’s heart was brokeru 
 
18 
 
 BEAVEN: 
 
 and every night when he returned from work he 
 might be found in his room with his candle and his 
 Bible, hunting up all that he could find there about 
 heaven. Some one asked him what he was doing, 
 and he said he was trying to find out where his 
 child had gone, and I think he was a reasonable man. 
 I suppose no one will ever read this page who has not 
 dear ones that are gone. Shall we close this Book to¬ 
 day, or shall we look into it to try to find where the 
 loved ones are ? I was reading, some time ago, an ac¬ 
 count of a father, a minister, who had lost a child. He 
 had gone to a great many funerals, offering com¬ 
 fort to others in sorrow, but now the iron had entered 
 his own soul, and a brother minister had come to offici¬ 
 ate and preach the funeral sermon; and after this min¬ 
 ister had finished speaking, the father got up, and 
 standing at the head of the coffin, he said that a few 
 years ago, when he had first come into that parish, 
 as he used to look over the river he took no interest ir 
 the people over there, because they were all strangera 
 to him and there were none over there that belonged 
 to his parish. But, he said, a few years ago a young man 
 came into his home, and married his daughter, and she 
 went over the river to live, and when his child went over 
 there, he became suddenly interested in the inhabitants, 
 and every morning as he arose he would look out of the 
 window across the river to her home. “ But now,’* 
 said he, “ another child has been taken. She has gone 
 over another river, and heaven seems dearer and nearer 
 to me now than it ever has before.” 
 
 My friends, let us believe this good old Book, be 
 confident that heaven is not a myth, and be prepared to 
 
ITS HOPE, 
 
 19 
 
 follow tlie dear ones who have gone before. Thus, and 
 thus alone, can we find the peace we seek for. 
 
 SEEKING A BETTER COUNTRY. 
 
 What has been, and is now, one of the strongest feel¬ 
 ings in the human heart? Is it not to find some bet¬ 
 ter place, some lovelier spot, than Tve have now? It is 
 for this that men are seeking everywhere; and they 
 can have it if they will; but instead of looking down, 
 they must look iij:) to find it. As men grow in knowl¬ 
 edge, they vie with each other more and more in mak¬ 
 ing their homes attractive, but the brightest home on 
 earth is but an empty barn, compared with the man¬ 
 sions in the skies. 
 
 What is it that we look for at the decline and close 
 of life? Is it not some sheltered place, some quiet 
 spot, where, if we cannot have constant rest, we may at 
 least have a foretaste of the rest that is to be ? What 
 was it that led Columbus, not knowing what would be 
 his fate, across the unsailed western seas, if it were not 
 the hope of finding a better country ? This it was that 
 sustained the hearts of the Pilgrim Fathers, driven 
 from their native land by persecution, as they faj*ed ar 
 iron-bound, savage coast, with an unexplored territory 
 beyond. They were cheered and upheld by the hops 
 of reaching a free and fruitful country, where they 
 could be at rest and worship God in peacs. 
 
 Somewhat similar is the Christian’s ho]'e oi heaven^ 
 only it is not an undiscovered country, and In attrac¬ 
 tions cannot be compared with anything wo know oil 
 earth. Perhaps nothing but the shortness of our range 
 of sight keeps us from seeing the celestial gates all 
 
HEAVEN: 
 
 20 
 
 open to ns, and nothing but the deafness of our ears 
 prevents our hearing the joyful ringing of the bells of 
 heaven. There are constant sounds around us that we 
 cannot hear, and the sky is studded with bright worlds 
 that our eyes have never seen. Little as we know 
 about this bright and radiant land, there are glimpses 
 of its beauty that come to us now and then. 
 
 “ We may not know how sweet its balmy air, 
 
 How bright and fair its flowers; 
 
 We may not hear the songs that echo there? 
 
 Through these enchanted bowers. 
 
 “ The city’s sliining towers we may not see 
 With our dim earthly vision, 
 
 For Death, the silent warder, keeps the key 
 That opes the gates Elysian. 
 
 “ But sometimes when adown the western sky 
 A fiery sunset lingers, 
 
 Its golden gate swngs inward noiselessly, 
 
 Unlocked by unseen fingers. 
 
 “ And while they stand a moment half ajar, 
 
 Gleams from the inner glory 
 Stream brightly through the azure vault afar, 
 
 And half reveal the story.” 
 
 It is said by travelers that in climbing the Alps the 
 houses of far distant villages can be seen with great 
 distinctness, so that sometimes the number of panea 
 of glass in a church window can be counted. The 
 distance looks so short that the place to which the trav¬ 
 eler is journeying appears almost at hand, but after 
 hours and hours of climbing it seems no nearer yet. 
 This if oecause of the clearness of the atmosphere. 
 By perseverance, however, the place is reached at last, 
 and the tired traveler finds rest. So sometimes we 
 dwell in high altitudes of iofrace; heaven seems very near^ 
 
ITS HOPE 
 
 21 
 
 and the hills of Beulah are in full view. At other 
 times the clouds and fogs caused by suffering and sin 
 cut off our sight. We are just as near heaven in the 
 one case as we are in the other, and we are just as sure 
 of gaining it if we only keep in the path that Christ 
 has pointed out. 
 
 I have read that on the shores of the Adriatic sea the 
 wives of fishermen, whose husbands have gone far out 
 upon the deep, are in the habit of going down to the 
 sea-shore at night and singing with their sweet voices 
 the first verse of some beautiful hymn. After they 
 have sung it they listen until they hear brought on the 
 wind, across the sea, the second verse sung by their 
 brave husbands as they are tossed by the gale—and 
 both are happy. Perhaps, if we would listen, we too 
 might hear on this storm-tossed world of ours, some 
 sound, some whisper, borne from afar to tell us there 
 is a Heaven which is our home; and when we sing our 
 hymns upon the shores of the earth, perhaps we may 
 hear their sweet echoes breaking in music upon the 
 sands of time, and cheering the hearts of those who 
 are pilgrims and strangers along the way. Yes, we 
 need to look up—out, beyond this low earth, and to 
 build higher in our thoughts and actions, even here! 
 
 You know, when a man is going up in a balloon, he 
 takes in sand as ballast, and when he wants to mount a 
 little higher, he throws out some of it, and then he 
 will mount a little higher; he throws out a little more 
 ballast, and he mounts still higher; and the more he 
 throws out the higher he gets, and so the more we 
 liave to throw out of the things of this world the nearer 
 we get to God. Let go of them; let us not set our 
 
HEAVEN^ 
 
 hearts and affections on them, but do what the Master 
 tells us—lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven. 
 
 In England I was told of a lady who had been bed¬ 
 ridden for years. She was one of those saints whom 
 God polishes up for the kingdom; for I believe there 
 are many saints in this world whom we never hear 
 about; we never see their names heralded through the 
 press; they live very near the Master; they live very 
 near heaven; and I think it takes a great deal more 
 grace to suffer God’s will than it does to do it; and if 
 a person lies on a bed of sickness, and suffers cheer¬ 
 fully, it is just as acceptable to God as if they went 
 out and worked in His vineyard. 
 
 Now this lady was of those saints. She said that 
 for a long time she used to have a great deal of 
 pleasure in watching a bird that came to make its nest 
 near her window. One year it came to make its nest, 
 and it began to build so low down she was afraid some¬ 
 thing would happen to the young; and every day that 
 she saw that bird busy at work making its nest, she 
 kept saying, “Obird, build higher! ” She could see 
 tliat the bii’d was likely to come to grief and disap¬ 
 pointment. At last the bird got its nest done, and laid 
 its eggs and hatched its young; and every morning the 
 lady looked out to see if the nest was there, and she 
 sa\v the old bird bringing food for the little ones, and 
 she took a great deal of pleasure looking at it. But 
 one morning she awoke, looked out, and she saw nothing 
 but featliers scattered all around, and she said: “Ah, 
 xhe cat has got the old bird and all her young.” It would 
 have been v kindness to have torn that nest dowm 
 V-hat ife what God do^s for us very often—just snatches 
 
rrs BOFK 
 
 23 
 
 things away before it is too late. Now, I think that 
 is what we want to say to professing Christians—if 
 you build for time you will be disappointedc God 
 says: Build up yonder. It is a good deal better to 
 have life with Christ in God than anywhere else. I 
 would rather have my life hid with Christ in God than 
 be in Eden as Adam was. Adam might have remained 
 in Paradise for 16,000 years, and then fallen, but M 
 Qur life is hid in Christ, how safe? 
 
^orrje. 
 
 BY ANNA SHIPTON. 
 
 O Lord, ’twas Thine to labor and wear the thorns for me; 
 Thou sharest all my sorrows; Thou knowest what ’twill be 
 To see the Father’s glory, to hear Thy welcome there, 
 
 Where never cross or burden remains for us to bear. 
 
 I seem to pace the ghttering street, and hear the harps of gold, 
 The echo of the new song that never groweth old; 
 
 I hear Thy praise, Lord Jesus, my Life, my Lord, my King, 
 Until my worn heart pineth the strains of heaven to sing. 
 
 Safe in the better co mtry my loved ones I shall find, 
 
 And some in that bright multitude I feared were left behind; 
 Then loud shall sound our praises within the jasper wall. 
 
 As cherubim and seraphim before the Holiest fall. 
 
 With folded wings, expectant, the angel bands will come 
 To hsten to the tale of grace that wooed the children home; 
 And sitting at Thy feet, Lord, my joyful lips shall tell 
 How much He hath forgiven, who “ doeth all things well.” 
 
 Thou blessed Spirit, cheering this valley land for me. 
 
 With ghmpses of the glory of that which soon shall be; 
 
 Each harpstring, dull and broken. Thy gentle breath awaits; 
 Then let me sing of Jesus up to the golden gates. 
 
(sH°ca'?ent 
 
 ITS INHABITANTS. 
 
(jK TsittPe ©y/a^. 
 
 A little way! I know it is not far 
 To that dear home where my beloved are; 
 
 And still my heart sits, like a bird, upon 
 The empty nest, and mourns its treasures gone, 
 Plumed for their flight, 
 
 And vanished quite. 
 
 Ah me! Where is the comfort? Though I say 
 They have but journeyed on a little way. 
 
 “ A little way! At times they seem so near, 
 Their voices even murmur in my ear. 
 
 To all my duties loving presence lend, 
 
 And with sweet ministry my steps attend. 
 
 ’Twas here we met and parted company; 
 
 Why should their gain be such a grief to me? 
 This sense of loss! 
 
 This heavy cross: 
 
 Dear Savior, take the burden off, I pray, 
 
 And show me heaven is but—a little way. 
 
 “ A little way? The sentence I repeat, 
 
 Hoping and longing to extract some sweet 
 To mingle with the bitter; from Thy hand 
 I take the cup I cannot understand. 
 
 And in my weakness give myself to Thee. 
 Although it seems so very, very far 
 To that dear home where my beloved are, 
 
 I know, I know. 
 
 It is not so; 
 
 Oh, give me faith to believe it when I say 
 That they are gone—gone but a little way.” 
 
 —Anon. 
 
KT8 INBAB1TA.NT8 
 
 27 
 
 CHAPTER ri 
 
 ITS INHABITANTS 
 
 The inhabitant shall not say, I am sick. The people that dw^ 
 therein shall be forgiven their iniquity. Isaiah xxxiii, 34. 
 
 The society of heaven will be select. No one who 
 studies Scripture can doubt that. There are a good 
 many kinds of aristocracy in this world, but the aris¬ 
 tocracy of heaven will be the aristocracy of holiness. 
 The humblest believer on earth will be an aristocrat 
 there. It says in the oTth chapter of Isaiah; *‘For 
 thus saith the High and Lofty One, that inhab- 
 iteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the 
 high and holy place with him also that is of a contrite 
 and humble spirit.” Now what could be plainer than 
 that? No one who is not of a contrite and humble 
 spirit will dwell with God in His high and holy 
 place. 
 
 If there is anything that ought to make heaven near 
 to Christians, it is knowing that God and all their loved 
 ones will be there. What is it that makes home so at¬ 
 tractive ? Is it because we have a beautiful home ? Is 
 it because we have beautiful lawns? Is it because we 
 have beautiful trees around us ? Is it because we have 
 beautiful paintings upon the walls inside ? Is it be¬ 
 cause we have beautiful furniture? Is that all that 
 
HEAVENt 
 
 makes home so attractive and beautiful? Nay, it is 
 the loved ones in it; it is the loved ones there. 
 
 I remember after being away from home some time, 
 i went back to see my honored mother, and I thought 
 in going back I would take her by surprise, and steal in 
 unexpectedly upon her, but when I found she had gone 
 away, the old place didn’t seem like home at all. I 
 went into one room and then into another, and all 
 through the house, but I could not find that loved 
 mother, and I asked some member of the family, 
 “ Where is mother ? ” and they said she had gone away. 
 Well, home had lost its charm to me; it was that mother 
 who made home so sweet to me, and it is the loved ones 
 who make home so sweet to every one; it is the presence 
 of the loved ones that will make heaven so sweet to all 
 of us. Christ is there; God, the Father, is there; and 
 many, many 'who were dear to us when they lived on 
 earth are there—and we shall be with them by and by. 
 
 We find clearly in the 18th chapter of Matthew, 10th 
 verse, that the angels are there: “ Take heed that ye 
 despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, 
 that in heaven, their angels do always behold the face 
 of my Father which is in heaven.” 
 
 “Their angels do always behold the Father’s face!” 
 We shall have good company up there; not only those 
 who have been redeemed, but those who have never 
 been lost; those who have never known what it is to 
 transgress; those who have never known what it is to be 
 disobedient; who have obeyed Him from the very morn¬ 
 ing of creation. 
 
 It says in Luke i, when Gabriel came down to tell 
 Zachariah that he was to be the father of the forerunner 
 
ITS INHABITANTS, 
 
 29 
 
 Jesus Christ, Zachariah doubted him; he had never 
 been doubted before; and that doubt is met with the 
 declaration: “I am Gabriel, that standeth in the 
 presence of God.” What a glorious thing to be able 
 to say! 
 
 It has been said that there will be three things 
 which will surprise us when we get to heaven—one, to 
 find many wdiom we did not expect to find there; an¬ 
 other, to find some not there whom we had expected; 
 a third, and perhaps the greatest wonder—to find our¬ 
 selves there. 
 
 A poor woman once told Rowland Hill that the way 
 to heaven was short, easy and simple; comprising only 
 three steps—out of self, into Christ, and into glory. 
 We have a shorter way now—out of self and into 
 Christ, and we are there. As a dead man cannot in¬ 
 herit an estate, no more can a dead soul inherit heaven. 
 The soul must be raised up in Christ. Among the 
 good whom we hope to meet in heaven, we are told, 
 there will be every variety of character, taste, and dis¬ 
 position. There is not one mansion there; there are 
 many. There is not one gate to heaven, but many. 
 There are not only three gates on the north; but on the 
 east three gates, and on the west three gates, and on 
 the south three gates. From opposite divisions of the 
 theological compass, from opposing standpoints of the 
 religious world, from different quarters of human life 
 and character, through various expressions of their 
 common faith and hope, through diverse modes of con¬ 
 version, through different portions of the Holy Scrip¬ 
 ture, will the weary travelers enter the Heavenly City, 
 and meet each other—“not without sui’prise”—on the 
 
30 
 
 HEAVE^; 
 
 shores of the same river of life. And on those shores 
 they will find a tree bearing, not the same kind of fruit 
 always and at all times, but “twelve manner of fruits,” 
 for every different turn of mind,—for the patient suf¬ 
 ferer, for the active servant, for the hohr and humble 
 philosopher, for the spirits of just men now at last made 
 perfect; and “the leaves of the tree shall be for the 
 healing,” not of one single church or people only, not 
 for the Scotchman or the Englishman only, but for the 
 “ healing of the nations,”—the Frenchman, the Ger¬ 
 man, the Italian, the Russian—for all those from whom 
 it may be, in this world, its fruits have been farthest 
 removed, but who, nevertheless, have “ hungered and 
 thirsted after righteousness,” and who therefore “shall 
 be filled.” 
 
 An eminent living divine says: “ When I was a boy, 
 
 I thought of heaven as a great, shining city, with vast 
 walls and domes and spires, and with nobody in it ex¬ 
 cept white-robed angels, who were strangers to me. 
 By and by my little brother died; and I thought of a 
 great city with walls and domes and spires, and a flock 
 of cold, unknown angels, and one little fellow that I 
 was acquainted with. He was the only one I knew at 
 that time. Then another brother died; and there were 
 two that I knew. Then my acquaintances began to 
 die; and the flock continually grew. But it was not 
 till I had sent one of my little children to his Heavenly 
 Parent—God—that I began to think I had a little in 
 myself. A second went, a third went; a fourth went; 
 and by that time I had so many acquaintances in 
 heaven, that I did not see any more walls and domes 
 and spires. I began to think of th^ residents of the 
 
ITS INHABITANTS. 
 
 celestial city as my friends. And now so many of my 
 icquaintances have gone there, that it sometimes seems 
 CO me that I know more people in heaven than I do OB 
 earth.” 
 
 WE SHALL LIVE FOREVER. 
 
 It says in John xii, 26: “If any man serve Me, let 
 him follow Me; and where I am, there shall also My 
 servant be.” 
 
 I cannot agree with some people, that Paul has been 
 sleeping in the grave, and is still there, after the storms 
 of eighteen hundred years. I cannot believe that he 
 who loved the Master, who had such a burning zeal 
 for Him, has been separated from Him in an uncon-, 
 scions state. “ Father, I will that they also, whom 
 Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am; that they 
 may behold My glory, which Thou hast given Me.” 
 This is Christ’s prayer. 
 
 Now when a man believes on the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 he receives eternal life. A great many people make a 
 mistake right there; “ He that believeth on the Son 
 hath—h-a-t-h—hath eternal life; ” it does not say he 
 shall have it when he comes to die; it is in the present 
 tense; it is mine now—if I believe. It is the gift of 
 God, that is enough. You cannot bury the gift of God: 
 you cannot bury eternal life. All the grave-dig¬ 
 gers in the world cannot dig a grave large enough 
 and deep enough to hold eternal life; all the coffin- 
 makers in the world cannot make a coffin large enough 
 and strong enough to hold eternal life; it is mine; 
 it is mine! 
 
 I believe when l^aul said; “To be absent from the 
 
32 
 
 HEAVENi 
 
 body and present with the Lord,” he meant what he 
 said; that he was not going to be separated from Him 
 for eighteen hundred years; the spirit that was given 
 him when he wa^ converted he had from a new life and 
 a new nature, and they could not lay that away in the 
 sepulchre; they could not bury it, that flew to meet its 
 Maker. Even the body shall be raised; this body, 
 sown in dishonor, shall be raised in glory; this body 
 which has known corruption, shall put on incorruption, 
 and this mortal shall put on immortality. It is only a 
 question of time. The great morning of the world 
 will, by-and-by, dawn upon the earth, and the dead shall 
 come forth and shall hear the voice of Him who is “ the 
 resurrection and the life.” 
 
 Paul says: “If our earthly house of this tabernacle 
 were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not 
 made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” He could 
 take down the clay temple, and leave that, but he had a 
 better house. He says in one place: “I am in a strait be« 
 twixt two: having a desire to depart and be with Christ, 
 which is far better, nevertheless to abide in the flesh is 
 7i2iore needful for you. To me. it is a sweet thought to 
 think that death does not separate us from the Ma&. 
 ter. A great many people are living continually in 
 the bondage of death, but if I have eternal life, death 
 cannot touch that; it may touch the house I live in; it 
 may change my countenance and send my body away 
 to ^e grave, but it cannot touch this new life. 
 
 To me It is very sad to think that so many professed 
 Christians look upon death as they do. I received some 
 time ago a letter from a friend in London, and I 
 thought, as I read it, I would take it and show it to 
 
ITS INHABITANTS, 
 
 dg 
 
 other people and see if I could not get them to look 
 upon death as this friend does. He had lost his beloved 
 mother. In England it is a very common thing to send 
 out cards in memory of the departed ones, and they put 
 upon them great borders of black—sometimes a quar¬ 
 ter of an inch of black border—but this friend had put 
 on a gold border; he did not put on black at all ; his 
 mother had gone to the golden city, and so he put on a 
 golden border; and I think it a good deal better than 
 black. I think when our friends die, instead of putting 
 a great black border upon our memorials to make them 
 look dark, it would be better for us to put on gold. 
 
 It is not death at all; it is life. Some one said to a 
 person dying: “ Well, you are in the land of the living 
 yet.” “ No,” said he, “ I am in the land of the dying 
 yet, but I am going to the land of the living; they live 
 there and never die.” This is the land of sin and 
 death and tears, but up yonder they never die. It is 
 perpetual life; it is unceasing joy. 
 
 “It is a glorious thing to die,” was the testimony 
 of Hannah Moore on her death-bed, though her life 
 had been sown thick with the rarest friendships, and age 
 had not so weakened her memory as to cause her to 
 forget those little hamlets among the cliffs of her na. 
 tive hills, or the mission-schools she had with such 
 perseverance established, and where she would be sc 
 sadly missed. 
 
 As James Montgomery has said: 
 
 “ There is a soft, a downy bed; 
 
 *Tis fair as breath of even; 
 
 A’couch for weary mortals spread, 
 
 Where they may rest the aching head- 
 And find repose—in heaven! 
 
HEAVENi 
 
 u 
 
 “ There is an hour of peaceful restj 
 To mourning wanderers given. 
 
 There is a joy for souls distressed^ 
 
 A balm for every wounded breast, 
 
 ’Tis found alone—in heaven! ” 
 
 KNOWING OUR FRIENDS. 
 
 Many are anxious to know if they will recognize their 
 friendo in heaven. In the 8th chapter of Matthew and 
 the 11th verse, we read: “And I say unto you, that 
 many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit 
 down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the king¬ 
 dom of heaven.” 
 
 Here we find that Abraham, who lived so many hun¬ 
 dreds of years before Christ, had not lost his identity, 
 and Christ tells us that the time is coming when they 
 shall come from the east and west and shall sit down 
 with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of 
 God. These men had not lost their identity; they were 
 known as Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And if you will 
 turn to that wonderful scene that took place on the 
 Mount of Transfiguration, you will find that Moses, 
 who had been gone from the earth 1,500 years, was 
 there; Peter, James and John saw him on the Mount 
 of Transfiguration; they saw him as Moses; he had 
 not lost his name, Christ says of him that overcometh, 
 ** I will not blot your names out of the Lamb’s Book of 
 Life.” We have names in heaven; we are going tc 
 bear our names there; we will be known. 
 
 Over in the Psalms it says: “I shall be satisfied 
 when 1 awake in Thy likeness.” That is enough 
 Want is written on every, human heart down here, but 
 ^<here we shall be satisfied. You may hunt the world 
 
ITS INHABITANTS. 
 
 from one end to the other, and you will not find a man 
 or woman who is satisfied; but in heaven we shall want 
 for nothing. In the 2d chapter of the 1st Epistle of 
 John, we read these words addressed to followers of 
 Christ: 
 
 “ Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet ap¬ 
 pear what we shall be; but we know that when He shah, appear, we 
 ■'hall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. 
 
 “ And every man that hath this hope in him purifleth himself, 
 ven as He is pure.” 
 
 Moreover, it seems highly probable, indeed I think 
 it is clearly taught by Scripture, that a great many 
 careless Christians will get into heaven. There will be 
 a great many who will get in “by the skin of their 
 teeth,” or as Lot was saved from Sodom, “ so as by 
 fire.” They will barely get in, but there will be nc 
 crown of rejoicing. But everybody is not going to rush 
 into heaven. There are a great many who will be 
 there. You know we have a class of people who tell 
 us they are going into the kingdom of God whether 
 they are converted or not. They tell us that they are 
 on their way; that they are going there. They tell ug 
 all are going there; that the good, the bad and indif- 
 ferent are all going into the kingdom, and that they 
 will all be there; that there is no difference; and, in 
 other words—if I may be allowed to use plain language 
 —they give God the lie. 
 
 But they say, “We believe in the mercy of Gh>d;” 
 so do I. I believe in the justice of God, too; and I 
 think heaven w^ould be a good deal worse than this 
 oarth if unrenewed men were permitted to form pari 
 of it 
 
36 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 "Wny, if a man should live forever in this world in 
 sin, what would become of this world? It seems as if 
 it would be hell itself. Let your mind pass over the 
 history of this country, and think of some who have 
 lived in it. Suppose tliey should never die; suppose 
 they should live on and on forever in sin and rebellion; 
 do you think that God is going to take those men who 
 have rejected His Son, who have spurned the offer of 
 His mercy, who have refused salvation, and have 
 trampled His law under their feet, and have been in 
 rebellion against His laws down here? Do you sup¬ 
 pose God is going to take them right into His King¬ 
 dom and let them live there forever ? By no means. 
 
 NO DRUNKARDS IN HEAVEN. 
 
 “ Be not deceived ^ ^ ^ nor thieves, nor covetous 
 nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall in¬ 
 herit the kingdom of God.” 
 
 “ No drunkard shall inherit the kingdom of God.” 
 Now let those mothers who have sons who are just com¬ 
 mencing a dissipated life, wake up; and rest not day 
 nor night until their boys are converted by the power 
 of God’s grace, because no drunkard shall inherit the 
 kingdom of God. Many of these moderate drinkers 
 will become drunkards; no man ever became a drunk¬ 
 ard all at once. How the devil blinds these moderate’ 
 drinkers! I do not know of any sin more binding than 
 the sin of intemperance; the man is bound hand and 
 foot before he knows it. 
 
 I was reading some time ago an account of snake- 
 worshiping in India. I thought it was a horrible 
 thing. I read of a mother who saw a snake come into 
 
ITS INHABITANTS. 
 
 37 
 
 her home and coil itself around her little infant onlv 
 six months old, and she thought the reptile was such a 
 sacred thing that she did not dare to touch it; and she 
 saw the snake destroy her child; she heard the child’s 
 pitiful cries, but dared not rescue it. My soul revolted 
 as I read the narrative. But I do not know but we 
 have things right here in America that are just as bad 
 as that serpent in India—serpents that are coming into 
 many a Christian home, and coiling around many a 
 son and binding them hand and foot, and the fathers 
 and mothers seem to be asleep. 
 
 Oh, may the Spirit of God wake us up! No drunk¬ 
 ard shall inherit the kingdom of God; nor rum-seller 
 either. Bear that in mind. “Woe unto him that put- 
 teth the bottle to his neighbor’s lips.” I pity any pro¬ 
 fessing Christians who rent their property for drink¬ 
 ing saloons; I pity them from the depths of my 
 heart. If you ever expect to inherit the kingdom of 
 God, give it up. you can never rent your property 
 to better purposes you had better let it stand empty. 
 This idea that all is going well, and that all are going 
 into the kingdom of God, whether they repent or not, 
 is not taught anywhere in the Scripture. 
 
 There will be no extortioners in heaven; none of those 
 men who are taking advantage of their brothers; of 
 those men who have been unfortunate; whose families 
 are sick; who have had to mortgage their property, and 
 had snap-judgment taken against them by some man 
 who has his hand at their throats, and takes every cent 
 that he can get That man is an extortioner. He 
 shall not inherit the kingdom of God. I pity a man 
 who gets money dishonestly. See the trouble he has 
 
88 
 
 HEAVEN*. 
 
 to keep it. It is sure to be scattered. If you got it 
 dishonestly you cannot keep it; your children can’t 
 keep it—they have not the power. Y ou see that all 
 over the country. A man who gets a dollar dishon¬ 
 estly, had better make restitution and pay it back very 
 quickly, or it will burn in his pocket. 
 
 SOME WILL NOT GET IN. 
 
 In the days of Noah we read that he sailed over the 
 deluge. He was the only righteous man, but accord¬ 
 ing to the theory of some people, the rest of those men 
 who were so foul and so wicked—too wicked to live— 
 God took them and swept them all into heaven, and left 
 the only righteous man to go through this trial. 
 Drunkards, and thieves and vagabonds all went to 
 heaven, they say. You might as well go forward and 
 preach that “you can swear as much as you like, and 
 murder as much as you please, and it will come out 
 right—that God will forgive you; God is so merciful.” 
 
 Suppose the Governor of a State should pardon ev¬ 
 ery person that the courts ever convicted, and are now 
 lying in its jails and penitentiaries; suppose he should 
 let them all loose because he is so merciful that he 
 could not bear to have men punished; I think he would 
 not be Governor of that State long. These men who 
 are talking about God being so full of mercy, that He 
 is going to spare, and take ail men to heaven, would 
 be the very men to say that such a Governor as that 
 ought to be impeached—that he ought not to be Gov¬ 
 ernor. Let us bear in mind that the Scripture says 
 there is a certain class of people who “ shall not in^ 
 heirH the hiiigdom of Qody Now, I will srive vou th© 
 
ITS INHABITANTS. 
 
 88 
 
 ra—————— 1 I I — 
 
 Scripture; it is a good deal better to just give the Scrip¬ 
 ture for these things, and then if you do not like it you 
 can quarrel with Scripture, and not with me. Let no 
 man say that I have been saying who is going to 
 heaven and who is not; I will let the Scripture speak 
 for itself: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall 
 not inherit the kingdom of God?” I Cor. vi, 9. 
 
 But the unrighteous—the adulterers, the fornicators 
 1 and thieves—these men may all inherit it if they will 
 only turn away from their sins. “ Let the wicked for- 
 ‘ sake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; ” 
 but if the unrighteous man says: “ I will not turn away 
 from sin; I will hold on to sin and have heaven,” he is 
 deceiving himself. 
 
 A man who steals my pocket-book loses a good deal 
 more than I do. I can afford to let him have my pocket- 
 book a great deal better than he can afford to take it. 
 See how much that man who steals my pocket-book 
 ioses. Perhaps he may get a few dollars; or he may 
 steal my coat; but he does not get much. See how 
 much he has lost. Take an inventory of what that 
 man loses if he loses heaven. Think of it. No thief 
 shall inherit the kingdom of God. To any thief I 
 would say: “ Steal no more.” Let him ask God to for¬ 
 give him; let him repent of his sin and turn to God. 
 If you get eternal life it is worth more than the whole 
 world. If you were to steal the whole world, you 
 would not get much, after all. The whole world does 
 not amount to much, if you have not eternal life with 
 it, to enjoy yourself in the future. 
 
BY ANNA SHIPTON. 
 
 Who are they whose songs are sounding 
 O’er the golden harps above? 
 
 Hark I they tell of grace abounding, 
 
 And Jehovah’s sovereign love. 
 
 Who are they that keep their station 
 Round the great eternal throne? 
 
 They from earthly tribulation 
 To their heavenly rest are gone. 
 
 See their robes of dazzling whiteness, 
 Without blemish, spot, or stain; 
 
 See their crowns that grow in brightness^ 
 Purchased by the Lamb once slain. 
 
 Never neat shall beat upon them, 
 
 Thirst nor hunger reach them there; 
 
 He, whose life from death hath won then^ 
 Bids them now His glory share. 
 
 Feeble hearts are nerved for duty. 
 Faltering feet now firmly stand. 
 
 Palms of heaven’s unfading beauty 
 Mark earth’s once despised band. 
 
 *Tis the Lamb of God who leads them, 
 And they serve Him night and day; 
 
 By the heavenly fount He feeds them. 
 
 He hath wiped their tears away. 
 
 Sweet their theme! ’Tis still, “ SalvatioD 
 Unto Christ, the Holy One 1 ” 
 
 And their sighs of tribulation 
 Change to songs around the thrcHlft 
 
^ea'9eni 
 
 ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
! oKfmoxi)'!' aH’orrje?^ 
 
 ^ What! almost home? ” Yes, almost home,” she said^ 
 And light seemed gleaming on her aged head. 
 
 “ Jesus is very precious! ” Those who near 
 Her bedside stood were thrilled those words to hear. 
 
 ** Toward His blest home I turn my willing feet; 
 
 Hinder me not; I go my Lord to meet.’ 
 
 Silence ensued. She seemed to pass away, 
 
 Serene and quiet as that summer day. 
 
 ^ Speak,” cried through tears her daughter, bending low,r 
 ^ One word, beloved mother, ere you go.” 
 
 She spoke that word; the last she spoke on earth. 
 
 In whispering tones—^that word of wondrous worth. 
 “JESUS! ’ The sorrowing listeners caught the sound, 
 But angels heard it with a joy profound. 
 
 Back, at its mighty power, the gates unfold— 
 
 The gates of pearl that guard the streets of gold. 
 
 The harpers with their harps took up the strain, 
 
 And sang the triumph of the Lord again, 
 
 As through the open portals entered in 
 Another soul redeemed from death and sin. 
 
 And as from earth the spirit passed away, 
 
 To dwell forever in the realms of day. 
 
 Those who were left to mourn could almost hear 
 The strains of heavenly music strike the ear. 
 
 And to their longing eyes by grace was given. 
 
 In such a scene, as ’twere, a glimpse of heaven. 
 
 —Unknowk 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 43 
 
 CHAPTEB III 
 
 ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into tfe€; 
 Heart ot man, the things which God hath prepared for them that 
 4cve him. Isaiah Ixiv, 4 I Cor. ii, 9. 
 
 If there is one word above another that will swing 
 open the eternal gates, it is the name of J esus. There 
 are a great many pass-words and by-words down here, 
 but that will be the countersign up above, Jesus Christ 
 is the Open Sesame ” to heaven. Any one who tries 
 to climb up some other way, is a thief and a robber. 
 But when \ve get in, what a joy above every other joy 
 we can think oi, will it be to see Jesus Himself all ths 
 time, and to be with Him continually. 
 
 Isaiah has given this promise of God to every one 
 who is saved through faith: “Thine eyes shall see the 
 King in His beauty; they shall behold the land that is 
 very far off.” Some of us may not be able to go 
 around the world. We may not be able to see any oi 
 the foreign countries; but every Christian by and by 
 is going to see a land that is very far off. This is oui 
 Promised Land. John Milton says of the saints whc 
 txa\e gone already: 
 
 “ They walk with God 
 BQgh in salvatiom and the climes of bliss.** 
 
HEAVEN: 
 
 14 
 
 It is a blissful climate up there. People down here 
 look around a great deal to find a good climate where 
 they will not be troubled by any of their pains or aches, 
 but the climate of heaven is so fine that no pains 
 or aches can hold out against it. There will be no 
 room to find fault. We shall leave all our pains and aches 
 behind us, and find an everlasting health, such as earth 
 can never know. 
 
 But you know the glory of Christ as reigning King 
 of heaven would be something too much for mortal 
 eyes to endure. In 1st Timothy, vi, we read of Christ as: 
 
 “Tbe blessed and only Potentate, the King of Kings, and Lord of 
 Lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no 
 JUan can approach into* Whom no man hath seen nor can see.” 
 
 As mortals, we cannot see that light. Our feeble 
 faculties would be dazzled before such a blaze of glory. 
 
 In Ezekiel i, 28, we read of that prophet having s 
 faint glimpse of it: 
 
 ** As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of 
 rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This 
 was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And 
 when 1 saw it, I fell upon my face.” 
 
 We are amazed at ordinary perfections now. None 
 of us can look the sun squarely in the face. But when 
 this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, as 
 Paul says, the power of the soul will be stronger. 
 We shall be able to see Christ in His glory then. 
 Though the moon be confounded and the sun ashamed, 
 yet we shall see Him as He is. This is what will make 
 heaven so happy. We all know that great happiness 
 cannot be found on earth. Eeason, revelation, and the 
 experience of six thousand years, all tell us that. N<? 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 45 
 
 human creature has the power to give it. Even doing 
 good fails to give it fully, for, owing to sin in the 
 world, even the best have not perfect happiness here. 
 They have to wait for heaven; although they may be 
 so near it sometimes that they can see heralds of its joy 
 and beauty, as Columbus saw the strange and beautiful 
 birds hovering around his ships long before he caught 
 sight of America. 
 
 All the joys we are to know in heaven will come from 
 the presence of God. This is the leading thought in 
 all that the Scripture has to say on the subject. What 
 life on this earth is without health, life in heaven 
 would be without the presence of God. God’s pres¬ 
 ence will be the very light and life of the place. It is 
 said that one translation of the words describing the 
 presence of God is “ a happy making sight.” It will 
 be a sight like the return of a long-lost boy to his 
 mother, or the first glimpse of your home after you 
 have been a long time away. Some of you know how 
 a little sunshine on a dark day, or the face of a kind 
 friend in trouble, often cheers us up. Well, it will be 
 something like that, only a thousand times better. Our 
 preceptions of God will be clearer then, and that will 
 make us love Him all the more. 
 
 The more we know God, the more we love Him. A 
 great many of us would love God more if we only be¬ 
 came better acquainted with Him. While on earth it 
 gives Christians great pleasure to think of the perfec¬ 
 tion of Jesus Christ, but how will it be when we see 
 Him as He is? 
 
46 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 WE SHALL BE LIKE CHEIST. 
 
 Some one once asked a Christian what he expected 
 to do when he got to heaven ? He said he expected to 
 spend the first thousand years looking at Jesus Christ, 
 and after that he would look for Peter, and then for 
 James, and for John, and all the time he could con¬ 
 ceive of would be joyfully filled with looking upon 
 these great persons. But it seems to me that one look 
 at Jesus Christ will more than reward us for all we 
 have ever done for Him down here; for all the sacri¬ 
 fices we can possibly make for Him, just to see Him; 
 only to see Him. But we shall become like Him when 
 we once have seen Him, because we shall Ixave His 
 Spirit. Jesus, the Savior of the world, will be there, 
 and we shall see Him face to face. 
 
 It will not be the pearly gates; nor the jasper 
 walls, or the streets paved with transparent gold, that 
 will make it heaven to us. These would not satisfy us. 
 If these were all, we would not want to stay there for¬ 
 ever. I heard of a child whose mother was very sick; 
 and while she lay very low, one of the neighbors took 
 the child away to stay with her until the mother should 
 be well again. But instead of getting better, the 
 mother died; and they thought they would not take the 
 child home until the funeral was all over; and would 
 never tell her about her mother being dead. So a while 
 afterward they brought the little girl home. Pirst she 
 went into the sitting-room to find her mother; then she 
 went into the parlor, to find her mother there; and she 
 v ent from one end of the house to the other, and could 
 not find her. At last she said, “ Where is my mamma? ” 
 And when they told her her mamma was srone. the littie 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 41 
 
 tning wanted to go back to the neighbor’s house again. 
 Home had lost its attraction to her since her mother 
 was not there any longer. No ; it will not be the jasper 
 walls and the pearly gates that will make heaven at¬ 
 tractive. It is our being with God. We shall be in 
 the presence of the Redeemer; we shall be forever with 
 the Lord. 
 
 There was a time when I used to think more of 
 Jesus Christ than I did of the Father; Christ seemed 
 to be so much nearer to me because He had become 
 the Days Man between me and God. In my imagina¬ 
 tion I put God away on the throne as a stern judge, 
 but Christ had come in as the mediator, and it seemed 
 as if Christ was much nearer to me than God, the 
 Father. I got over that years ago, when God gave 
 me a son, and for ten years I had an only son, and as I 
 looked at the child as he grew up, the thought came to 
 me that it took more love for God to give up His Son 
 than it did for His Son to die. Think of the love that 
 God had for this world when He gave Christ up! 
 
 If you will turn to Acts vii, 55, you will find that 
 when Stephen Tvas being stoned he lifted up his eyes, 
 and it seemed as if God rolled back tlie curtain of time 
 and allowed him to look into the eternal city, and see 
 Christ standing at the right hand of God AYhen 
 Jesus Christ went on high He led captivity captive, and 
 took His seat, for His work was done; but when Ste¬ 
 phen saw Him He was standing up, and I can imagine 
 He saw that martyr fighting, as it were, single-handed 
 and alone, the first martyr, though many were to come 
 after him. You can hear the tramp of tlie millions 
 coming after him, to lay down their lives for the Son 
 
48 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 of God. But Stephen led the van; he was the first 
 martyr, and as he was dying for the Lord Jesus Christ 
 he looked up; Christ was standing to give him a 
 welcome, and the Holy Ghost came down to bear wit¬ 
 ness that Christ was there. How then can we doubt it ? 
 
 A beggar does not enjoy looking at a palace. The 
 grandeur of its architecture is lost upon him. Looking 
 upon a royal banquet does not satisfy the hunger of a 
 starving man. But seeing heaven is also having a share 
 in it. There would be no joy there if we did not feel 
 that some of it was ours. God unites the soul to Him¬ 
 self. We read in II Peter that we are made partakers 
 of the divine nature. Now if you put a piece of iron 
 in the fire, it very soon loses its dark color, and becomes 
 red and hot like the fire, but it does not lose its iron 
 nature. So the soul becomes bright with God’s bright¬ 
 ness, beautiful with God’s beauty, pure with God’s 
 purity, and warm with the glow of His perfect love, and 
 yet remains a human soul. We shall be like Him, but 
 remain ourselves. 
 
 There is a fable that a kind-hearted king was once 
 hunting in a forest, and found a blind orphan boy, who 
 was living almost like a beast. The king was touched 
 with pity, and adopted the boy as his own, and had 
 him taught all that can be learned by one who is blind. 
 When he reached his twenty-first year, the king, who 
 was also a great physician, restored the youth his sight, 
 and took him to his palace, where, surrounded by his 
 nobles and all the majesty and magnificence of hia 
 court, he proclaimed him one of his sons, and com¬ 
 manded all to give him their honor and love. The 
 once friendless orphan thus became a prince and a 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 49 
 
 sharer in the royal dignity, and of all the happiness 
 and glory to be found in the palace of a king. Who 
 can tell the joy that oyerwhelmed the soul of that young 
 man when he first saw the king, of whose beauty and 
 goodness and power he had heard so much ? Who can 
 tell the happiness he must have felt when he saw his 
 own princely attire, and found himself adopted into the 
 royal family—honored and beloved by all ? 
 
 Now Christ is the great and mighty King who finds 
 our souls in the wilderness of this sinful world. He 
 finds us, as we read in the 3d chapter of Kevelation, 
 “ wi’etched and miserable, and poor and blind and 
 naked.” We read in the 1st chapter of the same book. 
 He “washed us from our sins in His own blood;” and 
 again, in the 61st chapter of Isaiah, He has clothed us 
 with a spotless robe of innocence, “ with the garments 
 of salvation;” He has covered us “with a robe of 
 righteousness as a bridegroom decketh himself with 
 ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with 
 jewels.” 
 
 The mission of the Gospel to sinners, as we find it 
 in the 2Gtli chapter of Acts, was, “ to open their eyes, 
 and to turn them from darkness to light, and from' the 
 power of KSatan unto God, that they may receive for¬ 
 giveness of sins and inheritance among them which are 
 sanctified by faith that is in Me.” This is what Christ 
 has done for every Christian. He has adorned you 
 with the gift of grace, and adopted you as His child, 
 and as it says in the 3d chapter of I Corinthians: 
 
 “All things are yours; whether Paul, or Apollos, or CJephas, or 
 the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come— 
 &11 are yo xts, and ye are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.” 
 
50 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 He lias given yon His own Word to educate you for 
 heaven; He has opened your eyes so that now you see. 
 By His grace and your own co-operation your soul is 
 being gradually developed into a more perfect resem¬ 
 blance to Him. 
 
 Finally, your Heavenly Father calls you home, ‘ 
 where you will see the angels and saints clothed with 
 the beauty of Christ Himself, standing around His 
 throne, and hearing the word that will admit you into 
 their society, “Well done, thou good and faithful serv¬ 
 ant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” In the 
 16th chapter of John, Christ Himself says: “ All things 
 that the Father hath are Mine; therefore, said I, that 
 He shall take of Mine, and shall show it unto you.” 
 All will be yours. Ah, how poor and mean do earthly 
 pleasures seem by comparison. How true those lines, 
 of a Scotch poet: 
 
 “ The world can never give 
 
 The bliss for which we sigh; 
 
 ’Tis not the whole of life to live, 
 
 Nor all of death to die. 
 
 Beyond this vale of tears 
 There is a life above, 
 
 Unmeasured by the flight of years. 
 
 And all that life is love.” 
 
 OVEE THE EIVEE. 
 
 There is joy in heaven, we are told, over the conver¬ 
 sions that take place on earth. In Luke yv, 7, we 
 read: “ I say unto you that likewise joy shall be in 
 heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over 
 ninety-and-nine just persons which need no repent¬ 
 ance. When there is going to be an election for 
 President of the United States, there is tremendous 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 51 
 
 excitement^—a, great commotion. There is probably not 
 a paper from Maine to California that would not have 
 something on nearly every page about the candidate; 
 the whole country is excited; but I doubt if it would be 
 noticed in heaven. If Queen Victoria should leave her 
 throne, there would be great excitement throughout the 
 nations of the earth; the whole world would be inter¬ 
 ested in the event; it would be telegraphed around the 
 world; but it would probably be overlooked altogether 
 in heaven. Yet if one little boy or girl, one man or 
 one woman, should repent of their sins, this day and 
 hour that would be noticed in heaven. They look at 
 things differently up there; things that look very large 
 to us, look very small in heaven; and things that seem 
 very small to us down here, may be very great up yon¬ 
 der. Think of it! By an act of our own, we may 
 cause joy in heaven. The thought seems almost too 
 wonderful to understand. To think that the poorest 
 sinner on earth, by an act of his own, can send a thrill 
 of joy through the hosts of heaven! 
 
 The Bible says: “There is joy in the presence of 
 the angels,” not that the angels rejoice, but it is “ in 
 the presence ” of the angels. I have studied over that 
 a great deal, and often wondered what it meant. “Joy 
 in the presence of the angels?” Now, it is speculation; 
 I admit it may be true, or it may not; but perhaps the 
 friends who have left the shores of time—they who 
 have gone within the fold—may be looking domi upon 
 us; and when they see one they prayed for while on 
 earth repenting and turning to God, it sends a thrill of 
 joy to their very hearts. Even now, some mother who 
 has gone up yonder may be looking down uoon a sou 
 
52 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 or daughter, and if that child should say: “I will meet 
 that mother of mine; I will repent; yes, I am going to 
 join you, mother,” the news, with the speed of a 
 sunbeam, reaches heaven, and that mother may then 
 rejoice, as we read, “ In the presence of the angels.” 
 
 In Dublin, after one of the meetings, a man walked 
 into the inquiry room with his daughter, his only one, 
 whose mother had died some time before, and he 
 prayed: “ O God, let this truth go deep into my daugh¬ 
 ter’s heart, and grant that the prayers of her mother 
 may be answered to-day—that she may be saved.” As 
 they rose up she put her arms about his neck and kissed 
 him, and said: “I want to meet my mother; I want to 
 be a Christian.” That day she accepted Christ. That 
 man is now a minister in Texas. The daughter died 
 out there a little while ago, and is now with her mother 
 in heaven. What a blessed and joyful meeting it must 
 have been! It may be a sister, it may be a brother, 
 who is beckoning you over— 
 
 “ Over the river they beckon to me, 
 
 Loved ones who’ve crossed to the farther side; 
 
 The gleam of their snowy robes I see, 
 
 But their voices are drowned in the rushing tide. 
 
 There’s one with ringlets of sunny gold. 
 
 And eyes, the reflection of heaven’s own blue; 
 
 He crossed in the twilight gray and cold. 
 
 And the pale mist hid him from mortal view. 
 
 We saw not the angels who met him there, 
 
 The gates of the city we could not see; 
 
 Over the river, over the river. 
 
 My brother stands waiting to welcome me.” 
 
 Whoever you are, do not delay. 
 
 The story is told of a father who had his little daugh¬ 
 ter out late in the evening. The night was dark, 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 63 
 
 they had passed through a thick wood to the brink of 
 a river. Far away on the opposite shore a light twinkled 
 here and there in the few scattered houses, and still 
 farther off blazed the bright lights of the great city to 
 ^Fich they were going. The little child was weary 
 and sleepy, and the father held her in his arms while 
 he waited for the ferryman, who was at the other side. 
 At length they saw a little light; nearer and nearer 
 came the sound of the oars, and soon they were safe in 
 the boat. 
 
 “ Father,” said the little girl. 
 
 “ Well, my child? ” 
 
 “ It’s very dark, and I can’t see the shore! where are 
 we going?” 
 
 “ The ferryman knows the way, little one; we will 
 soon be over.” 
 
 “ O, I wish we were there, father.” 
 
 Soon in her home loving arms welcomed her, and her 
 fears and her tremor were gone. Some months pass by, 
 and this same little child stands on the brink of a river 
 that is darker and deeper, more terrible still. It is the 
 Kiver of Death. The same loving father stands near 
 her, distressed that his child must cross this river and 
 he not be able to go with her. For days and for nights 
 he and her mother have been watching over her, leav¬ 
 ing her bedside only long enough for their meals, and 
 to pray for the life of their precious one. For hours 
 she has been slumbering, and it seems as if her spirit 
 must pass away without her waking again, but just be¬ 
 fore the morning watch she suddenly awakes with the 
 eye bright, the reason unclouded, and every faculty 
 alive. A sweet smile is playing upon her face. 
 
64 
 
 HEAVENi 
 
 “ Father,” slie says, “ I have come again to the rive^ 
 side, and am again waiting for the ferryman to com« 
 and take me across.” 
 
 “ Does it seem as dark and cold as when you went 
 over the other river, my child?” 
 
 “ O no! There is no darkness here. The river is 
 covered with floating silver. The boat coming toward 
 me seems made of solid light, and I am not afraid of 
 the ferryman.” 
 
 “ Can you see over the river, my darling ? ” 
 
 “ O yes, there is a great and beautiful city there, 
 all filled with light; and I hear music such as the an¬ 
 gels make! ” 
 
 “Do you see any one on the other side?” 
 
 “Why yes, yes, I see the most beautiful form; and 
 He beckons me now to come. Oh, ferryman, make 
 haste! I know who it is! It is Jesus; my own blessed 
 Jesus. I shall be caught in His arms. I shall rest 
 on His bosom—I come—I come.” 
 
 And thus she crossed over the Hiver of Death, made 
 like a silver stream by the presence of the blessed 
 Bedeemen 
 
 SOMETHING MORE. 
 
 There is hardly an unconverted man anywhere, no 
 matter how high up or how rich he may be, but will 
 tell you, if you get his confidence, that he is not happy. 
 There is something he wants that he cannot get, or 
 there is something he has that he wants to get rid of. It 
 is very doubtful if the Czar of all the Bussias is a 
 ^®'PPy man, and yet he has about all he can get. AL 
 though Queen Victoria has palaces, and millions at her 
 
ITS HAPPINESS, 
 
 55 
 
 command, and has besides what most sovereigns lack, 
 the love of her subjects, it is a question whether she 
 gets much pleasure out of her position. If kings and 
 queens love the Jesus Christ and are octvGd, then they 
 may be happy. If they know they will reach heaven 
 like the humblest of their subjects, then they may rest 
 secure. Paul, the- humble tent-maker, will have a 
 higher seat in heaven than the best and greatest sov¬ 
 ereign that ever ruled the earth. If the Czar should 
 meet John Bunyan, the poor tinker, up in heaven, he 
 no doubt would find him the greater man. 
 
 The Christian life is the only happy one. Without 
 it something is always wanting. When we are young 
 we have grand enterprises, but w^e soon spoil them by 
 being too rash. We want experience. When w^e get 
 old we have the experience, but then all the power to 
 carry out our schemes is gone. “ Happy is that people 
 whose God is the Lord.” The only way to be happy is 
 to be good. The man who steals from necessity sins 
 because he is afraid of being unhappy, but for the 
 moment he forgets all about how unhappy the sin is 
 going to make him. Bad as he is, man is the best and 
 noblest thing on earth, and it is easy to understand how 
 he fails to find true happiness in anything lower than 
 himself. The only object better than ourselves is God, 
 aud He is all we can ever be satisfied wdth. Gold, that 
 is mere dross dug up out of the earth, does not satisfy 
 man. Neither do the honor and praise of other men. 
 The human soul wants something more than that. 
 Heaven is the only place to get it. No w’onder that 
 •the angels wdio see God all the time are so happy. 
 
 The publicans v/ent to hunt up John the Baptist in 
 
56 
 
 HEAVEi^: 
 
 the wilderness, to know what they should do. Some of 
 the highest men in the land went to consult the hermit 
 to know how to get happiness. “ Whosoever trusteth 
 in the Lord, happy is he.” It is because there is no 
 real happiness down here, that earth is not worth liv¬ 
 ing for. It is because it is all above, that heaven is 
 worth dying for. In heaven there is all life and no 
 death. In hell there is all death and no life. Here 
 on earth there is both living and dying, which is be¬ 
 tween the two. If we are dead to sin here we will live 
 in heaven, and if we live in sin here we must expect 
 eternal death to follow. 
 
 Do you know that every Christian dies twice? He 
 first becomes spiritually dead to sin—that is the re¬ 
 newed soul. He then begins to feel the joy of heaven. 
 The joys of heaven reach down to earth as many and as 
 sure as the rays of the sun. Then comes physical 
 death, which makes way for the physical heaven. Of 
 course the old sinful body has to be changed. We can¬ 
 not take that into heaven. It will be a glorified body 
 that we will get at the resurrection, not a sinful body. 
 Our bodies will be transfigured like Christ’s. 
 
 There will be no temptation in heaven. If there 
 were no temptation in the world now, God could not 
 prove us. He wants to see if we are loyal. That is 
 why He put the forbidden tree in Paradise; that ac: 
 counts for the presence of the Canaanite in the land oi 
 Israel, When we plant a seed, after a time it disap¬ 
 pears and brings forth a seed that looks much the same^ 
 but still it is a different seed. So our bodies and the 
 bodies of those we know and love will be raised up, 
 looking much the same—but still not all the sama 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 61 
 
 ChriiSt took the same body into heaven that was crucL 
 Bed on the cross, unless He was transformed in the 
 cloud after the disciples lost sight of Him. Thei e 
 must have been some change in the appearance of 
 Christ after His resurrection, for Mary Magdalen^, 
 who was the first one who saw Him did not know Him 
 neither did the disciples, who walked and talked with 
 Him about Himself, and did not recognize Him until 
 He began to ask a blessing at supper. Even Peter 
 did not know Him when He appeared on the sea-shore. 
 Thomas would not believe it was Christ until he saw 
 the prints of the nails and the wound in His side. But 
 we shall all know Him in heaven. 
 
 There are two things that the Bible makes as clear 
 and certain as eternity. One is that we are going to 
 see Christ, and the other that we are going to be like 
 Him. God will never hide His face from us there, 
 and Satan will never show his. 
 
 There is not such a great difference between grace 
 and glory after all. Grace is the bud, and glory the 
 blossom. Grace is glory begun, and glory is grace 
 perfected. It will not come hard to people who are 
 serving God down here to do it when they go up yon¬ 
 der. They will change places, but they will not 
 change employments. 
 
 HIGHER UP. 
 
 The moment a person becomes heavenly-minded and 
 gets his heart and affections set on things above, then 
 life becomes beautiful, the light of heaven shines 
 across his pathway, and he does not have to be all the 
 time lashing and upbraiding himself because he is not 
 
58 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 more like Christ. Some one asked a Scotchman if he 
 was on the way to heaven, and he said: “Why man, 1 
 live there; I am not on the way.” That is just it 
 We want to live in heaven; while we are walking in 
 this world it is our privilege to have our hearts and 
 affections there. I once heard Mr. Morehouse tell a 
 story about a lady in London who found one of those 
 poor, bed-ridden saints, and then she found a wealthy 
 woman who was all the time complaining and murmur, 
 ing at her lot. Sometimes I think people whom God does 
 the most for in worldly things think the less of Him and 
 care less about Him, and are the most unproductive in 
 His service. But this lady went around as a mission¬ 
 ary visiting the poor, and she used to go and visit this 
 poor, bed-ridden saint, and she said if she wanted to 
 get cheered up and her heart made happy she would 
 go and visit her. [There is a place in Chicago, and 
 has been for years, where a great many Christians have 
 always gone when they want to get their faith strength¬ 
 ened; they go there and visit one of these saints. And 
 a friend told me that she thought that the Lord kept 
 one of those saints in most of the cities to entertain 
 angels as they passed over the cities on errands of 
 mercy, for it seems that these saints are often visited 
 by the heavenly host.] Well, this lady missionary had 
 wanted to get this wealthy woman in contact with this 
 saint, and she invited her to go a number of times; 
 and finally the lady consented to go, and when she got 
 to the place, she went up the first flight of stairs, and 
 it was not very clean, and was dark. 
 
 “What a horrible place,” the iady said; ^^why did! 
 you bring me here ? ” 
 
ITS HAPPINESS. 
 
 59 
 
 Til© lady smiled and said: “ It is better higher np.’^ 
 
 And then they went up another flight, and it didn’t 
 ^row any lighter, and she complained again, and the 
 WI 7 said, “It is better higher up.” And then they 
 went up another flight, and it was no lighter; still the 
 missionary kept saying, “ It is better higher up.” And 
 when they got to the fifth story they opened the door, 
 and entered a beautiful room, a room that was carpeted, 
 with plants in the window, and a little bird was in a cage 
 singing, and there was that saint just smiling, and the 
 fiist thing the complaining woman had to say to her was; 
 
 “ It must be very hard for you to be here and suffer.” 
 
 “ Oh, that is a very small thing; it is not very hard,’^ 
 she said, “ it is better higher up.” 
 
 And so if things do not go just right, if they do not 
 go to suit us here, we can say, “ It is better higher up, 
 tt is better further on,” and we can lift up our hearts 
 i&nd rejoice as we journey on toward HOME. 
 
 You know those beautiful lines— 
 
 “ Beyond the smiling and the weeping, 
 
 I shall be soon; 
 
 Beyond the waking and the sleeping, 
 
 Beyond the sowing and the reaping, 
 
 I shall be soon. 
 
 Love, rest, and home! 
 
 Sweet Home! 
 
 Lord, tarry not, but coma 
 
 Beyond the rising and the s'^tting, 
 
 I shall be soon; 
 
 Beyond the calming and the fretting, 
 
 Beyond remembering and forgetting, 
 
 I shall be soon. 
 
 Love, rest, and home! 
 
 Sweet Hope! 
 
 Lord, tarry not, but come. 
 
pirif ^^oiceA 
 
 BY ANNA SHIPTON. 
 
 « 
 
 Nearer and nearer, day by day, the distant voices come; 
 
 Soft through the pearly gate they swell, and seem to call me homa 
 The lamp of life burns faint and low; ay, let it fainter burn; 
 
 For who would weep the failing lamp when birds announce the mom? 
 I saw the faces of my loved gleam through the twilight dim. 
 
 And softly on the morning air arose the heaven-born hymn; 
 
 With looks of love they gazed on me, as none gaze on me now; 
 
 The glory of the Infinite surrounded every brow. 
 
 Fair HHes, star-hke in their bloom, and waving palms they bore. 
 And oh, the smiles of peace and joy those heavenly faces wore! 
 Thou who hast fathomed death’s dark tide, save me from death’^* 
 alarms; 
 
 Beneath my trembhng soul, oh, stretch Thine everlasting arms'^ 
 
 No second cross, no thorny crown can bruise Thy sacred brow; 
 Thou who the wine-press trod alone, o’er the dark waves bear ’inEfe;" 
 now. 
 
 A parting hour, a pang of pain, and then shall pass away 
 
 The veil that shrouds Thee where Thou reign’st in everlasting day 
 
 No sin, no sigh, no withering fear, can wring the bosom there; 
 
 But basking in Thy smile I shall Thy sinless service share. 
 
 How long, O Lord, how long before Thou’lt take me by the handr 
 And I, Thy weakest child, at 1; ',t amon^ Thy children stand? 
 Beyond the stars that steadfast shino my spirit pines to soar, 
 
 To dwell within my Father’s house, and leave that home no 
 O Lord, Thou hast with angel food my fainting spirit fed; 
 
 If ’tis Thy will I hnger here, bless Thou the path I tread; 
 
 And though my soul doth pant to pass within the pearly gate, 
 
 Yet teach me for Thy summons. Lord, in patience still to wait. 
 
Heaven; 
 
 ITS CERTAINTY. 
 
4 
 
 fiine in ffte of 
 
 I shine in the light of God; 
 
 His likeness stamps my brow; 
 
 Through the Valley of Death my feet have 
 And I reign in glory now! 
 
 No breaking heart is here, 
 
 No keen and thrilling pain, 
 
 No wasted cheek where the frequent tes^ 
 
 Hath rolled and left its stauiv 
 
 sis * * * V i' Ti. 
 
 O friends of mortal years. 
 
 The trusted and the true, 
 
 Ye are watching stiU in the valley of teai^ 
 
 But I wait to welcome you. 
 
 Do I forget? O no! 
 
 For memory’s golden chain 
 Shall bind my heart to the hearts belo*M 
 Till they meet to touch again. 
 
 Each link is strong and bright, 
 
 And love’s electric flame 
 Flows freely doAvn, like a river of light,. 
 
 To the world from whence I came* 
 
 Do you mourn when another star 
 Shines out from the glittering sky? 
 
 Do you weep when the raging voice of war 
 And the storms of conflict die? 
 
 Then why should your tears run down, 
 
 And your hearts be sorely riven, 
 
 For another gem in the Savior’s crown. 
 
 And another soul in heaven? 
 
 —From an English Fbieh$>. 
 
 ■V 
 
ITS CERTAINTY. 
 
 m 
 
 , CHAPTEK lY. 
 
 ITS CERTAINTY. 
 
 In My Father’s house are many mansions. ... . I gc 
 
 prepare a place for you. John xiv, 2. 
 
 There are some people who depend so much upon 
 their reason that they reason away God. They say God 
 is not a person we can ever see. They say God is a 
 Spirit. So He is, but He is a person too; and became 
 a man and walked the earth once. Scripture tells us 
 very plainly that God has a dwelling-place. There is 
 no doubt whatever about that. A dwelling-place indi¬ 
 cates personality. God’s dwelling-place is in heaven. 
 He has a dwelling-place, and we are going to be in¬ 
 mates of it. Therefore we shall see Him. 
 
 In I Kings, viii, 30, we read: 
 
 “ And hearken Thou to the Bupphcation of Thy servant, and ot 
 Thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place; and hear 
 Thou in heaven Thy dwelling-place; and when Thou hearest, for¬ 
 give.” 
 
 This idea that heaven is everywhere and nowhere is 
 not according to Scripture. Heaven is God’s habita¬ 
 tion, and when Christ came on earth He taught us to 
 pray: “Our Father, which art in heaven.” This hab¬ 
 itation is spoken of as “ the city of eternal life.” 
 Think of a city without a cemetery—they have no dy- 
 ’ng there= If there could be such a city as that found 
 
m 
 
 BEAVENi 
 
 on this earth what a rush there would be to it! How 
 men would try to reach that city I You cannot find one 
 on the face of this earth. A city without tears—God 
 wipes away all the tears up yonder. This is a time of 
 weeping, but by-and-by there will be a time when God 
 shall call us where there will be no tears. A city 
 without pain, a city without sorrow, without sickness, 
 without death. There is no darkness there. “ The 
 Lamb is the light thereof.” It needs no sun, it needs 
 no moon. The paradise of Eden was as nothing com¬ 
 pared with this one. The tempter came into Eden and 
 triumphed, but in that city nothing that defileth shall 
 ever enter. There will be no tempter there. Think 
 of a place where temptation cannot come., Think of a 
 place where we shall be free from sin; where pollution 
 cannot enter, and where the righteous shall reign for-, 
 ever. Think of a city that is not built with hands, 
 where the buildings do not grow old with time; a city 
 whose inhabitants are numbered by no census, except 
 the Book of Life, which is the heavenly directory. 
 Think of a city through whose streets runs no tido of 
 business, where no hearses with their nodding plumes 
 creep slowly with their sad burdens to the cemetery; a 
 city without griefs or graves, without sins or sorrows, 
 without marriages or mournings, without births or 
 burials; a city which glories in having Jesus for its 
 King, angels for its guards, and whose citizens are 
 saints! 
 
 We believe this is just as much a place and just as 
 much a city as is New York, London or Paris. We 
 believe in it a good deal more, because earthly cities 
 will pass away, but this city will remain forever. B 
 
ITS CERTAINTY, 
 
 m 
 
 has foundations whose builder and maker is God 
 Some of the grandest cities the world has ever known 
 have not had foundations strong enough to last 
 
 TYRE AND SIDON. 
 
 Take for instance Tyre and Sidon. They were risral 
 cities something like New York and Philadelphia, or 
 St Louis and Chicago. When the patriarch Jacob 
 gave his sons his blessing, he spoke of Sidon. In the 
 splitting up of Canaan among the tribes of Israel by 
 Joshua, Tyre and Sidon seem to have fallen to the lot 
 of Asher, though the old inhabitants were never fully 
 driven out We read in Mark: “ Jesus withdrew Him¬ 
 self with His disciples to the sea, and a great multitude 
 from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea and from 
 Jerusalem, and from Idumoea and from beyond Jordan. 
 and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude 
 when they heard what things He did, came unto Himd' 
 We find in Acts xvii, 3, that the Captain of the guards 
 who was taking Paul prisoner to appear before Caesar 
 at Pome, when the ship touched at Sidon let Paul go 
 and visit some of his friends there to refresh himself 
 From this it has been inferred that at that time there 
 must have been a Christian church there, although the 
 people generally worshiped the Queen of Heaven, who 
 was represented as crowned with the crescent moon. 
 
 Tliere are some persons now, you know, who adore 
 a Queen of Heaven, whom they picture with the moor 
 beneath her feet Even the Hebrews, when they saw 
 
 the moon walking in brightness,” along the clear 
 skies of Palestine, impressed by its beauty, fell into the 
 same idolatry.- Jeremiah says: 
 
m 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 ** The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and 
 the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the Queen of 
 Heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods.’* 
 
 In answer to the prophet’s reproof we find them say. 
 ing, in the 44th chapter, beginning at the 16th verse: 
 
 “As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of 
 the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee, but we will certainly do 
 whatsoever thing goeth out of our own mouth, to bum incense 
 onto the Queen of Heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto 
 her, as we have done.” 
 
 Is it any wonder that a little farther on we should 
 find addressed to them this language: 
 
 “ The Lord could no longer bear, because of the evil of your do.- 
 togs, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; 
 therefore is your land a desolation, and an astonishment, and a 
 cnrse, without an inhabitant, as at this day.” 
 
 In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given 
 In marriage, and there will be no “ Queen ” in heaven. 
 
 Tyre is mentioned by Joshua as “ a strong city,’^ 
 and both Isaiah and Ezekiel speak of it. In fact, there 
 is a great deal in Scripture about it. Nebuchadnezzar, 
 Alexander the Great, and other kings have fought over 
 it, and hosts of lives have been lost in taking what is 
 now a ruin. Alexander once destroyed it, but it was 
 afterward rebuilt. We find in the inspired Word of 
 God descriptions of what this city once was, from which 
 we can form some idea of its beauty. The whole of 
 the 27th chapter of Ezekiel is taken up vath Tyrus, as 
 it was called then: 
 
 •• O thoQ that art dtuate at the entry of the sea which art a mer. 
 chant of the people for many isles, thus salth the Lord God; O 
 Xynis, thou hast said, I am of perfect beauty. Thy borders are in 
 the midst of the seas, thy builders have perfected thy beauty. 
 They have made all thy ship boards of fir trees of Senlr; th^ 
 t)%ve taken cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee.** 
 
ITS CERTAINTY. 
 
 tn 
 
 So it goes on: 
 
 “Fine linen with broidered work from Egypt was that which 
 thou spreadest forth to be thy sail; blue and purple from the isles 
 of Blishah was that which covered thee.” 
 
 A little farther on it says: 
 
 ‘‘Thy riches, and thy fairs, thy merchandise, thy mariners, and 
 thy pilots, thy calkers, and the occupiers of thy merchandise, and 
 all thy men of war, that are in thee, and in all thy company which 
 is in the midst of thee, shall fall into the midst of the seas in the 
 day of thy ruin. Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beautyi 
 thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of the brightness: I 
 will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they 
 may behold thee.” 
 
 The terrible prophesies of its downfall have all been 
 literally fulfilled. We find them in the 26th chapterv 
 beginning with the 3d verse: 
 
 “Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I am against thee,O Tyrus. 
 and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea 
 causeth his waves to come up. And they shall destroy the walls of 
 lyrus, and break dowh her towers j I will also scrape her dust from 
 her, and make her Hke the top of a rock. It shall be a place fox 
 the spreading of nests in the midst of the sea; for I have spoken it^. 
 saith the Lord God; and it shall become a spoil to the nations ” 
 
 Travelers now describe the site of Tyre as “ a heap 
 of ruins, broken arches and vaults, tottering walls and 
 towers, with a few starving wretches housed amid tha 
 -fubbish.’’ A large part of it is under water, a portion 
 of the ruins a place to spread nests upon, and the rest 
 has become indeed “ like the top of a rock.” 
 
 Thus passes away the glory of the world. This Book 
 tells us of the glory of a city that we no longer see, 
 but which has been. It tells us also of the glory of a 
 greater City that w'e have not seen, but shall see if wa 
 but follow in the way 
 
HEAVEN: 
 
 
 ** O happy harbor of God’s saints! 
 
 O sweet and pleasant soil! 
 
 In thee no sorrow can be foiindj 
 Nor grief, nor care, nor toil. 
 
 Thy gardens and thy goodly walks 
 Continually are green, 
 
 Where grow such sweet and pleasant floweia 
 As nowhere else are seen. 
 
 No candle needs, no moon to shine, 
 
 No glittering star to light, 
 
 For Christ, the King of Righteousness, 
 
 Forever shineth bright.” 
 
 OUE NAMES EECORDED THERE, 
 
 ; 
 
 We are told that one time just before sunrise, two 
 men got into a dispute about what part of the heavens 
 the sun would first appear in. They became so excited 
 over it that they began to fight, and beat each other 
 over the head so badly that when the sun arose neither 
 of them could see it. So there are persons who go on 
 disputing about heaven until they dispute themselves 
 out of it, and more who dispute over hell until they 
 dispute themselves into it. 
 
 The Hebrews in their writings tell us of three dis¬ 
 tinct heavens. The air—the atmosphere about the earth 
 —is one heaven; the firmament where the stars are is 
 another, and above that is the heaven of heavens, where 
 God’s throne is, and the mansions of the Lord are— 
 those mansions of light and peace which are the abode 
 of the blessed, the homes of the Kedeemer and the 
 ipedeemed 
 
 This is the heaven where Christ is. This is the place 
 we read of in Deuteronomy: “ Behold the heaven and 
 the heaven of heavens is the Lord thy God’s, the earth 
 also with all that therein is*” 
 
ri'S CERTAINTY, 
 
 t)9 
 
 In II Corinthians, Paul, speaking of himself, says: 
 
 “ I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in 
 the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell, 
 God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.” 
 
 Some people have wondered what the third heaven 
 means. That is where God dwells, and where the 
 storms do not come. There sits the incorruptible Judge. 
 Paul, when he was caught up there, heard things that it 
 was not lawful for him to utter, and he saw things that 
 he could not speak of down here. The higher up we 
 get in spiritual matters, the nearer we seem to heaven. 
 There our wishes are fulfilled at last. We may cry out 
 like the psalmist: 
 
 ‘‘ One thing have 1 desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that 
 I may dwell in the house of the Lord all. the days of my life to be¬ 
 hold the beauty of the Lord, to inquire in His temple. 
 
 We are assured by Christ Himself that our names 
 will be written in heaven if we are only His. In the 
 10th chapter of Luke and the 20th verse it reads: “Not¬ 
 withstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are 
 subject unto you: but rather rejoice, because your 
 names are written in heaven.” A little while before 
 these words were uttered by the Savior, calling to¬ 
 gether seventy of His disciples, sent them forth in 
 couples to preach the gospel in the cities of Galilee 
 and Judea. There are people nowadays who have no 
 faith in revivals. Yet the greatest revival the world 
 ever saw was during the five or six years that John the 
 Baptist and Jesus were preaching, followed by the 
 preaching of the apostles and disciples after Christ left 
 the earth. For years the country was stirred from one 
 to the other* There were probably men then whc 
 
HEAVEN: 
 
 stood out against the revival. They might have called it 
 “ spasmodic,” and refused to believe in it. Perhaps 
 they said, “It is a nine days’ wonder and will pass 
 away in a little while, and there will be nothing left of 
 it.” No doubt men talked in those days just as they 
 talk now. All the way down from the time of Christ 
 and His apostles there have been men who have op¬ 
 posed the work of God, and some of them professing 
 to be disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, all because it 
 has not been done in their way. When the Spirit of 
 God comes. He works in His own way. We must learn 
 the lesson that we are not to mark out any channels for 
 Him to work in, for He will work in His own way when 
 He comes. 
 
 These disciples came back after their work. The 
 Spirit had worked with them, and the devils were sub¬ 
 ject to them, and they had power over disease, and they 
 had power over the Enemy, and they were filled with 
 success. They were probably having a sort of jubilee 
 meeting, and Christ came in and said: “Rejoice not 
 that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice 
 because your names are written in heaven.” This 
 brings us face to face with the doctrine of 
 
 ASSURANCE. 
 
 I find a great many people up and down Christendom 
 who do not accept this doctrine. They believe it is 
 impossible for us to know in this life whether we are 
 saved or not. If this be true, how are we going to get 
 over what Christ has said as we find it here recorded? 
 if my name is written in heaven, how can I rejoice over 
 it unless I know it? These men were to rejoice that 
 
ITS CERTAINTY. 
 
 n 
 
 their names were already there, and the name of each 
 one who is a child of God his name is there, sent on 
 for registry before. 
 
 A party of Americans a few years ago, on their way 
 from London to Liverpool, decided that they would 
 stop at the Northwestern Hotel, but when they arrived 
 they found the place had been full for several days. 
 Greatly disappointed, they took up their baggage and 
 were about starting off, when they noticed a lady of 
 the party preparing to remain. 
 
 “ Are you not going, too ? ” they asked. 
 
 “ Oh no,” she said, “ I have good rooms all ready.” 
 
 “ Why, how does that happen?” 
 
 “ Oh,” she said, “ I telegraphed on ahead, a few days 
 ago.” 
 
 Now that is what the children of God are doing; 
 they are sending their names on ahead; they are secur¬ 
 ing places in the mansions of Christ in time. If we 
 are truly children of God our names have gone on be¬ 
 fore, and there will be places awaiting us at the end of 
 the journey. You know we are only travelers down 
 here. We are away from home. When the war was 
 going on, the soldiers on the battle-field, the Southern 
 soldiers and the Northern soldiers, wanted nothing bet¬ 
 ter to live in than tents. They longed for the war to 
 ^lose that they might go home. They cared nothing 
 to have palaces and mansions on the battle-field. Well, 
 there is a terrible battle going on now, and by-and-by 
 when the war is over, God will call us home. The tents 
 are good enough for us while journeying through this 
 world. It is only a night, and then the eternal day 
 will dawn. 
 
12 
 
 HEAVENi 
 
 THE BOOK OF LIFE. 
 
 Two ladies met on a train not long ago, one of them 
 going to Cairo and the other to New Orleans. Before 
 they reached Cairo they had formed a strong attach¬ 
 ment for each other, and the Cairo lady said to the lady 
 who was going to New Orleans: 
 
 “ I wish you would stay for a few days in Cairo; I 
 Would like to entertain you.” 
 
 “ Well,” said the other, “ I would like to very much, 
 but I have packed up all my things and sent them ahead, 
 and I haven’t anything except what I have on, but 
 they are good enough to travel in.” 
 
 I learned a lesson there. I said, “ Almost anything is 
 good enough to travel in, and it is a great deal better 
 to have our joys and comforts ready for us in heaven, 
 waiting until we get there, than to wear them out n 
 our toilsome, trying, earthly journey.” 
 
 Heaven is the place of victory and triumph. This 
 IS the battle-field; there is the triumphal procession. 
 This is the land of the sword and the spear; that is 
 the land of the wreath and the crown. Oh, what a 
 thrill of joy will shoot through the hearts of all the 
 blessed when their conquests will be made complete in 
 heaven; when death itself, the last of foes, shall be 
 slain, and Satan dragged as captive at the chariot 
 wheels of Christ! Men may oppose as much as they 
 will this doctrine of Assurance, nevertheless it is clearly 
 taught in Scripture. 
 
 THE OPENING OF THE BOOKS. 
 
 A great many laugh at the idea of there being books 
 in heaven; but in the 12th chapter of the prophecy 
 of Daniel, and the Ist verse, we find» 
 
ITS CERTAINTY, 
 
 73 
 
 ** And at that tim© shall Michael stand up, the great prince which 
 etandeth for the children of thy people; and there shall be a tim© of 
 trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that 
 same time; and at that tim© the people shall be delivered, every one 
 Uiat shall be found written in the book.” 
 
 There is a terrible time coming upo^ the earth; darkej 
 days than we have ever seen, and they whose names 
 are witten in the Book of Life shall be delivered Ther 
 again, in Philippians iv, 3, we read: 
 
 “ And I entreat thee, also, true yoke-fellow, help those womet 
 w'hich labored with me in the Gospel, with Clement also, and witb 
 other of my fellow-laborers, whose names are in the Book of Life." 
 
 Paul, writing to the Christians at Philippi, where he 
 had so much opposition, and where he was cast into 
 jail, says in effect: Just take my regards to the good 
 brethren and sisters who worked with me, and whose 
 names are written in the Book of Life. This shows 
 that they taught the doctrine of Assurance in the verj 
 earliest days of Christianity. Why should we not teach 
 it and believe it now? 
 
 I am told by travelers in China, that the Chinese 
 have in their courts two great books. When a man is 
 tried and found innocent, they write his name do^vn it 
 the book of life. If he is found guilty, they v/rite his 
 name down in the book of death. I believe firmly that 
 every man 3 )r woman has his or her name in the Booh 
 of Death or the Book of Life. Your name cannot be 
 in both books at the same time. You cannot be ic 
 death and in life at the same time, and it is your own 
 prmlege to know which it is. 
 
 In Bevelation xiii, S, we read: 
 
 “ And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him [that is, 
 the Anti-Christ] whose names are not written in the Book of lAft 
 af the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” 
 
74 
 
 HEAVEN! 
 
 — —- ^ _ XI - 
 
 And again, chapter xx, 12: 
 
 ** And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the 
 hook was opened; and another book was opened, which is the Book 
 (rf Life; and the dead were judged out of those things which were 
 written in the books, according to their works.” 
 
 Again, chapter xxii, 27: 
 
 “ And there shall in no wise enter into it [the Holy City] any- 
 ihing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or 
 maketh a lie; but they which are written in the Lamb’s Book of 
 
 Life.” 
 
 There can be no true peace, there can be no true 
 hope, there can be no true comfort, where there is un« 
 certainty. I am not fit for God’s service, I cannot go 
 out and work for God, if I am in doubt about my own 
 salvation. 
 
 NO BOOM FOR DOUBT. 
 
 A mother has a sick child. The child is just hang¬ 
 ing between life and death. There is no rest for that 
 mother. You have some friend on a train that is 
 wrecked, and the news comes that twenty have been 
 killed and wounded, and their names are not given; 
 you are in terrible uncertainty, and there is no rest or 
 peace until you know the facts. The reason why there 
 are so many in the churches who will not go out and 
 help others, is that they are not sure they have been 
 saved themselves. If I thought I was dying myself, 
 I would be in a poor condition to save anyone elsa 
 Before I can pull anyone else out of the water, I must 
 have a firm footing on shore myself. We can have 
 this complete Assurance if we will. It does not do to 
 feel we are all right, but we must know it. We must 
 read our titles clear to mansions in the skies; the 
 
ITS CERTAINTY. 
 
 
 Apostle John says: “Beloved, now are we the sons of 
 God.” He does not say we are going to be. 
 
 People, when asked if they are Christians, give some 
 of the strangest answers you ever heard. Some will 
 say, if you ask them: “ Well—well—^well, I—I hope I 
 am.” Suppose a man should ask me if I am an Amer¬ 
 ican. Would I say, “Well I—well I—I hope I am?” 
 I know that I was born in this country, and I know I 
 was born in the Spirit of God more than twenty years 
 ago. All the infidels in the world could not convince 
 me that I have not a different spirit than I had before 
 1 became a Christian. “ That which is born of the flesh 
 is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit,” and 
 a man can soon tell whether he is born of the Spirit by 
 the change in his life. The Spirit of Christ is a spirit 
 of love, joy, peace, humility and meekness, and we can 
 soon find out whether we have been born of that spirit 
 or not; we are not to be left in uncertainty. Job lived 
 back there in the dark ages, but he knew. The dark 
 billows came rolling and surging up against him, but 
 iu the midst of the storm you can hear his voice say¬ 
 ing; “ I know that my Bedeemer liveth.” He had 
 something better than a hope. 
 
 A man may have his name written in the highest 
 chronicles down here, but the record may be lost; he 
 may have it carved in marble, and still it may perish; 
 some charitable institution may bear his name, and yet 
 he may be soon forgotten; but his name will never be 
 erased from the scrolls that are kept above. Seeking 
 to perpetuate one’s name on earth is like writing on the 
 sand by the sea-shore; to be perpetual it must be vTih^ 
 on the eternal monuments. It has been said that 
 
76 
 
 EEAVENt 
 
 Ihe way to see our names as they stand written in the 
 Book of Life, is by reading the work of sanctification 
 in, our own hearts. It needs no miraculous voice from 
 heaven, no extraordinary signs, no unusual feeling. We 
 need only find our hearts desiring Christ and hating 
 sin; our minds obedient to the divine commands. 
 
 We may be sure that belonging to some church is not 
 going to save us, although every saved man ought to be 
 sonnected with one. When Daniel died in Babylon, no 
 one had to hunt up any old church record to find out if 
 he was all righi When Paul was beheaded by Nero, 
 ao one had to look over the register. On the other 
 hand, no one thinks Pontius Pilate was a saint because 
 his name is in the creed. 
 
 They lived so that the world knew what they were. 
 Paul says? am persuaded that He is able to keep 
 what I have committed unto Him against that day.” 
 There is Assurance. Who shall separate us from the 
 love of Christ?” he says; “neither life, nor death, not 
 angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things pres, 
 ent, nor things to come.” He just challenges them aH 
 hut they could not separate him from the love that wa| 
 In Christ. 
 
 It is dishonoring to God to go on hoping and only 
 hoping that w^ “ are going ” to be saved, 
 
 FALSE PEOFESSOBS. 
 
 Yet there are some who ought not to have assurance, 
 ft would be an unfortunate thing for any unconverted 
 church member to have assurance. There are some 
 who profess great assurance who ought not to have it 
 —those whose lives do not 'correspond. This class is 
 
JTS CERTAINTY, 
 
 11 
 
 fepresented by the man at the wedding feast who did 
 not have on a wedding garment. 
 
 They are like some lilies—fair to see but foul of 
 smell. They are dry shells with no kernel inside. 
 The crusaders of old used to wear a painted cross upon 
 their shoulders. So there are a good many nowadays 
 who take up crosses that sit just as lightly—mere 
 things of ornament—passports to respectability, cheap 
 make-believes, for a struggle that has never been made, 
 and a crown that has never been striven for. 
 
 You may very often see dead fish floating with the 
 stream, but you never saw a dead fish swimming against 
 it. Well, that is your false believer; that is the hyp¬ 
 ocrite. Profession is just floating down the stream, 
 but co?zfession is swimming against it, no matter how 
 strong the tide. The sanctified man and the unsancti¬ 
 fied one look at heaven very differently. The unsanc¬ 
 tified man simply chooses heaven in preference to hell. 
 He thinks that if he must go to either one he would 
 rather try heaven. It is like a man with a farm who 
 has a place offered him in another country, where there 
 Is said to be a gold mine, He hates to give up all he 
 has and take any risk. But if he is going to be ban¬ 
 ished, and must leave, and has his choice of living in a 
 wilderness or digging in a coal pit, or else take the 
 gold mine, then there is no hesitation. The unregen¬ 
 erate man likes heaven better than hell, but he likes 
 this world the best of all. When death stares him in 
 the face, then he thinks he would like to get to heaven. 
 The true believer prizes heaven above everything else, 
 and is always willing to give up the world. Everybody 
 wants to enjoy heaven after they die, but they don’t 
 
78 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 want to be heavenly-minded while they live. To the 
 Christian it is a sure promise, with no room for doubt, 
 and there is no reason for hesitation. 
 
 The heir to some great estate, while a child, thinks 
 more of a dollar in his pocket than all his inheritanca 
 So even some professing Christians sometimes are more 
 elated by a passing pleasure than they are by their 
 title to eternal glory. In a little while we will be thera 
 How glorious is the thought! Everything is prepared 
 That is what Christ went up to heaven for. In a Httfe 
 while we will be gone. We are— 
 
 “Only waiting till the shadows 
 Are a little longer grown, 
 
 Only waiting till the glimmer 
 Of the day’s last beam has flownj 
 Then from out the gathered darkneeSi, 
 
 Holy, deathless stars shall rise, 
 
 By whose light our souls shall gladly 
 Tread their pathway to tl^ 
 
J^ea'sen: 
 
 ITS KICHEa 
 
^erux«)aPerTj, ^ome. 
 
 Jerusalem, my Home, 
 
 Where shines the royal throne; 
 
 ^"^ach king casts down his golden crown 
 Before the Lamb thereon. 
 
 Thence flows the crystal river, 
 
 And flowing on forever. 
 
 With leaves and fruits on either hand, 
 The Tree of Life shall stand. 
 
 In blood-washed robes, all white and fair, 
 The Lamb shall lead His chosen there, 
 While clou ds of incense fill the air— 
 Jerusalem, my Home! 
 
 Jerusalem, my Home! 
 
 Where saints in glory reign, 
 
 Thy haven safe, O when shall I, 
 
 Poor, storm-tossed pilgrim, gain? 
 
 At distance dark and dreary. 
 
 With sin and sorrow weary, 
 
 Por thee I toil, for thee I pray, 
 
 For thee I long alway. 
 
 And lo, mine eyes shall see thee, too; 
 
 Oh, rend in twain, thou veil of blue, 
 
 And let the Golden City through— 
 Jerusalem, my Home! 
 
 —Hopkins. 
 
ITS RICHES, 
 
 ^5} 
 
 OHAFrEB V, 
 
 ITS RICHES. 
 
 up ios jonrselves treasures in heaven j for where your treae- 
 ire is, there will your heart be also. Matt, vi, 20. 
 
 No man thinks himself rich until he has all he wants. 
 Very few people are satisfied with earthly riches. If 
 they want any thing at all that they cannot get, that is 
 a kind of poverty. Sometimes the richer the man the 
 greater the poverty. Somebody has said that getting 
 riches brings care; keeping them brings trouble; abus¬ 
 ing them brings guilt; and losing them brings sorrow. 
 It is a great mistake to make so much of riches as we 
 do. But there are some riches that we cannot praise 
 too much? that never pass away. They are the treas¬ 
 ures laid up in Heaven for those who truly belong to 
 God. 
 
 No matter how rich or elevated we may be here, 
 there is always something that we want. The greatest 
 chance the ricli have over the poor is the one they en- 
 |oy the least—that of making themselves happy. 
 Worldly riches never make any one truly happy. We 
 all know, too, that they often take wings and fiy away. 
 It is said of Midas that whatever he touched turned into 
 gold, but with his long ears he was not much the 
 better for it There is a great deal of truth in some 
 
82 
 
 HEAVENS 
 
 •- ct 
 
 of these old fables. Money, like time, ought not to be 
 wasted, but I pity that man who has more of either 
 than he knows how to use. There is no truer saying 
 than that man by doing good with his money, stamps, 
 as it were, the image of God upon it, and makes it pass 
 current for the merchandise of heaven; but all the 
 wealth of the universe would not buy a man’s way 
 there. Salvation must be taken as a gift for the ask. 
 ing. There is no man so poor in this world that he 
 may not be a heavenly millionaire. 
 
 GOLD A BAD LIFE-PRESEEVEE. 
 
 How many are worshiping gold to-day! Where war 
 has slain its thousands, gain has slain its millions. Its 
 history in all ages has been the history of slavery and 
 oppression. At this moment what an empire it has. 
 The mine with its drudges, the manufactory with its 
 misery, the plantation with its toil, the market and ex¬ 
 change with their haggard and care-worn faces-—these 
 are but specimens of its menial servants. Titles and 
 honors are its rewards, and thrones are at its disposal. 
 Among its counsellors are kings, and many of the great 
 and mighty of the earth are its subjects. This spirit 
 of gain tries even to turn the globe itself into gold. 
 
 It is related that Tarpeia, the daughter of the Gov¬ 
 ernor of the fortress situated on the Capitoline Hill in 
 Eome, was captivated with the golden bracelets of the 
 Sabine soldiers, and agreed to let them into the fort¬ 
 ress if they would give her what they wore upon theii 
 left arms. The contract was made; the Sabines kept 
 their promise. Tatius, their commander, was the first 
 to deliver his bracelet and shield. The coveted 
 
ITS RICHES. 
 
 83 
 
 treasures were thrown upon the traitress by each of the 
 soldiers, till she sank beneath their weight and expired. 
 Thus does the weight of gold carry many a man 
 down. 
 
 When the steamship “ Central America” went do^m. 
 several hundred miners were on board, returning to 
 their early homes and friends. They had made their 
 fortunes, and expected much happiness in enjoying 
 tliem. In the first of the horror gold lost its attraction 
 to them. The miners took off their treasure-belts and 
 threw them aside. Carpet bags full of shining gold 
 dust were emptied on the floor of the cabin. One of 
 them poured out one hundred thousand dollars’ worth 
 in the cabin, and bade any one take it who would. 
 Greed was over-mastered, and the gold found no takers. 
 Dear friends, it is well enough to have gold, but some¬ 
 times it is a bad life-preserver. Sometimes it is a 
 mighty weight that crushes us down to hell. 
 
 The Rev. John Newton, one day called to visit a fam¬ 
 ily that had suffered the loss of all they possessed by 
 fire. He found the pious mistress, and saluted her 
 with: 
 
 “I give you joy, madam.” 
 
 Surprised, and ready to be offended, she exclaimed: 
 
 “ What! Joy that all my property is consumed?” 
 
 “ O no,” he answered, “ but joy that you have so 
 much property that fire cannot touch.” 
 
 This allusion to her real treasures checked her grief 
 and brought reconciliation. As we read in Proverbs 
 15, 6: “In the house of the righteous is much treas¬ 
 ure; but in the revenues of the wicked is trouble.” I 
 have never seen a dying saint who was rich in heavenly 
 
84 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 treasures who had any regret; I have never heard 
 such a one say he had lived too much for God and 
 heaven. 
 
 GETTING WATEE-LOGGED. 
 
 A friend of mine says he was at the River Mersey, 
 in Liverpool, a few years ago, and he saw a vessel which 
 had to be towed with a great deal of care into the har¬ 
 bor; it was clear down to the water’s edge- and he avoii- 
 dered why it did not sink. Pretty soon thei’e camp 
 another vessel, without any help at all; it did not need 
 any tug to tow it in, but it steamed right up the Mer¬ 
 sey past the other vessels; and he made inquiry, and 
 he found the vessel that had to be towed in was what 
 they call water-logged—that is, it was loaded with lum¬ 
 ber and material of that kind; and having sprung a 
 leak had partially sunk, and it was very hard Avork to 
 get into the harbor. Now, I believe there are a great 
 many professed Christians, a great many, perhaps, who 
 are really Christians, who have become water-logged. 
 They haA^e too many earthly treasures, and it takes near¬ 
 ly the whole church—the whole spiritual power of the 
 church to look after these worldly Christians, to keep 
 them from going back entirely into the world. Why, 
 if the whole church were, as John Wesley said, “ hard 
 at it, and ahvays at it,” Avhat a power there w^ould be, 
 and how soon we would reach the world and the masses; 
 but we are not reaching the Avorld, because the church 
 itself has become conformed to the world and Avorldly* 
 minded, and because so many are wondering why they 
 do not grow in grace while they have more of the earti 
 in their thoughts than God. 
 
ITS RICHES. 
 
 85 
 
 Ministers would not have to urge people to live for 
 heaven if their treasures were up there; tliey could 
 not help it; their hearts would be there, and if their 
 hearts were there their minds would be up there, and 
 their lives would tend toward heaven. They could 
 not help living for heaven if their treasures were 
 there. 
 
 A little girl one day said to her mother: “Mamma, 
 my Sunday-school teacher tells me that this world is 
 only a place in which God lets us live a while, that we 
 may prepare for a better world. But, mother, I do not 
 see anybody preparing. I see you prepai’ing to go 
 into the country, and Aunt Eliza is preparing to come 
 here; but I do not see anyone preparing to go there; 
 why don’t they try to get ready ? ” 
 
 A certain gentleman in the South, before the.war, had 
 a pious slave, and when the master died they told him 
 he had gone to heaven. 
 
 The old slave shook his head, “ I’s ’fi’aid massa no 
 gone there,” he said. 
 
 “But why, Ben?” he was asked. 
 
 “ Cos, when Massa go North, or go a journey to the 
 Springs, he talk about it a long time, and get ready. 
 I never hear him talk about going to heaven; never see 
 him get ready to go there! ” 
 
 So there are a good many who do not get ready. 
 Christ teaches in the Sermon on the Mount to— 
 
 “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth 
 and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal; 
 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth 
 nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through 
 nor steal, for where your treasure is, there will your heart be 
 
86 
 
 HEAVEN; 
 
 TREASURES OF THE HEART. 
 
 It does not take long to tell where a man’s treasure 
 is. In fifteen minutes’ conversation with most men you 
 can tell whether their treasures are on the earth or in 
 heaven. Talk to a patriot about the country, and you 
 will see his eye light up; you will find he has his heart 
 there. Talk to some business men, and tell them where 
 they can make a thousand dollars, and see their inter* 
 est; their hearts are there. You talk to fashionable 
 people who are living just for fashion, of its affairs, 
 and you will see their eyes kindle; they are interested 
 at once; their hearts are there. Talk to a politician 
 about politics, and you see how suddenly he becomes 
 interested. But talk to a child of God, who is laying 
 up treasures in heaven, about heaven and about his 
 future home, and see what enthusiasm. “ Where your 
 treasure is, there will your heart be also.” 
 
 Now, it is just as much a command for a man to ‘Gay 
 up treasure in heaven ” as it is that he should not steal 
 Some people think all the commandments are in those 
 ten that were given on Sinai, but when Jesus Christ 
 was here. He gave us many other commandments. 
 There is another commandment in this Sermon on the 
 Mount: “ Seek first the kingdom of God and His right¬ 
 eousness, and all these things shall be added unto you 
 and here is a command that we are to lay up treasure 
 in heaven and not on earth. The reason there are so 
 many broken hearts in this land, the reason there are so 
 many disappointed people, is because they have been 
 laying up their treasures down here. 
 
 The worthlessness of gold, for which so many are 
 striving, is illustrated by a story that Dr. Arnot used 
 
ITS RICHES. 
 
 87 
 
 to tell. A ship bearing a company of emigrants has 
 been driven from her course and wrecked on a desert 
 island, far from the reach of man. There is no way 
 of escape; but they have a good stock of food. The 
 ocean surrounds them, but they have plenty of seeds, 
 a fine soil, and a genial sun, so there is no danger. 
 Before the plans are laid, an exploring party discovers 
 a gold mine. There the whole party go to dig. They 
 labor day after day and month after month. They get 
 great heaps of gold. But spring is past, and not a 
 field has been cleared, not a grain of seed put into the 
 ground. The summer comes and their wealth increases; 
 but their stock of food grows small. In the fall they 
 find that their heaps of gold are worthless. Famine 
 stares them in the face. They rush to the woods, they 
 fell trees, dig up the roots, till the ground, sow the 
 seed. It is too late! Winter has come and their seed 
 rots in the ground. They die of want in the midst of 
 their treasures. 
 
 This earth is the little isle; eternity the ocean round 
 it; on this shore we have been cast. There is a living 
 seed; but the mines of gold attract us. We spend 
 spring and summer there; winter overtakes us in our 
 toil; we are without the Bread of Life, and we are lost. 
 Let us then who are Christians, value all the more the 
 home which holds the treasures that no one can take 
 away. Dr. Muhlenberg, a Lutheran clergyman, has 
 vritten beautifuPy' 
 
 Who would live alway, away from his God. 
 
 Away from yon heaven, that blissful abode; 
 
 Where the rivers of pleasure flow o’er the bright plams. 
 
 And the harps of gold pour out their glorious strains; 
 
 X 
 
HEAVEN^ 
 
 
 
 And the saints of all ages in harmony meet 
 Their Savior, and brethren transported, to greet; 
 
 While the anthems of rapture unceasingly roil, 
 
 And the smile of the Lord is the feast of the soul? 
 
 That heavenly music, what is it I hear? 
 
 The notes of the harpers ring sweet on my ear. 
 
 To see soft unfolding those portals ot gold— 
 
 The King, all arrayed in His beauty, behold! 
 
 Oh give me, oh give me, the wings of a dove. 
 
 Let me hasten my flight to those mansions above! 
 
 Ay, ’tis now that my soul on swift pinions would soar. 
 
 And in ecstacy bid earth adieu evermore.” 
 
 A BLACK-BOAED LESSON, 
 
 When I was in San Francisco, I went into a Sabbath.', 
 school the first Sunday I was there. It was a rainy 
 day, and there were so few present that the Superin¬ 
 tendent thought of dismissing them, but instead, he af¬ 
 terward invited me to speak to the whole school as one 
 class. The lesson was that passage from the Sermon 
 on the Mount: “Lay not up for yourselves treasures 
 upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and 
 where thieves break through and steal.” 
 
 I invited a young man to the blackboard, and we 
 proceeded to compare a few things that some people 
 have on earth, and a few things that other people have 
 in heaven. 
 
 “ Now,” said I, “ name some earthly treasure.” 
 
 They all shouted “ Gold.” 
 
 “Well, that is so,” I said, “I suppose that is your 
 greatest treasure out here in California. Now let us 
 go on; what is another ? ” 
 
 A second boy shouted, “ Lands.” 
 
 “Well,” I said, “we will put down Lands'®’ 
 
ITS EICHES. 
 
 89 
 
 “What else do the people out here in California 
 think a good deal of and have their hearts set on ? ” 
 
 They said “Houses.” 
 
 “Put that down; what else?” 
 
 “Pleasure.” 
 
 “ Put that down.’’ 
 
 “ Honor—fame.” 
 
 Put them down.” 
 
 “ Business.” 
 
 “Yes,” I said; “a great many people have their 
 hearts buried in their business—put that down.” As 
 if a little afraid, one of them said “dress,” and the 
 whole school smiled. 
 
 “Put that down,” I said. “Why, I believe there 
 are some people in the world who think more of 
 dress than any other thing. They just live for 
 dress. I heard not long ago from very good author¬ 
 ity, of a young lady who was dying of consumption. 
 She had been living in the world and for the world, 
 and it seemed as if the world had taken full possession 
 of her. She thought she would die Thursday night, 
 and Thursday she wanted them to crimp her hair, so 
 that she would look beautiful in her coffin. But she 
 didn’t die Thursday night. She lingered through Fri¬ 
 day, and Friday she didn’t want them to take her hair 
 down, but to keep it up until she passed away. And 
 the friends said she looked very beautiful in the coffin! 
 Just what people wear—the idea of people having their 
 hearts set upon things of that kind!” 
 
 “And what else, now?” Welb they were a litth^ 
 ashamed to say it, but one said: 
 
 “ Kum ” 
 
90 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 •-snz 
 
 “Yes,” I said, “put that down. There is many © 
 man thinks more of the rum-bottle than he does of the 
 Kingdom of God. He will give up his wife, he will 
 give up his home and his mother, character and repu* 
 tation forever for tlie rum-bottle. Many a man by hk 
 life is crying out, ‘ Give me rum., and I will give you 
 heaven, and all its glories. I will sell my wife and 
 children. I will make them beggars and paupers. 1 
 will degrade and disgrace them for the rum-bottla 
 That is my treasure.’ 
 
 “ ‘ Oh, thou rum bottle! I worship thee,’ is the cry 
 of many—they turn their backs on heaven with all its 
 glories for rum. Some of them thought, when that 
 little boy said ‘ rum,’ that he made a mistake, that it 
 was not a treasure, but it is a treasure to thousands.” 
 Another one said: 
 
 “ Fast horses.” 
 
 Said I, “ Put it down. There is many a man who 
 thinks a good deal of fast horses, and he wants to go 
 out and take a fast horse and drive Sunday, and spend 
 his Sabbath in this way.” And after we finished, and 
 thought of everything we could, T said: “Suppose we 
 just take down some of these heavenly treasures. 
 
 “And,” said I, “What is there now that the Lord wants 
 us to set our hearts and affections on ?” And they all said 5 
 
 “Jesus.” 
 
 “ That is good; we will put Him down first at the 
 head of the list. Now what else? ” And they said: 
 
 “Angels.” 
 
 “ Put them down. We will have their society when 
 we go to heaven. That is a treasure up there, really. 
 What else?” 
 
ITS KICHES, 
 
 91 
 
 *"The friends who have died in Christ, who have 
 fallen asleep in Christ.” 
 
 “ Put them down. Death has taken them from us 
 now, but w'e will be with them by and by. What else ? ” 
 
 “ Crowns.” 
 
 “Yes, we are going to have a crown, a crown of 
 glory, a crown of righteousness, a crown that fadeth 
 not away. What else?” 
 
 “ The tree of life.” 
 
 “ Yes,” I said, “ the tree of life. We shall have a 
 right to it. We can go to that tree and pluck its fruit, 
 eat, and live forever. What else?” 
 
 “ The river of life.” 
 
 “Yes, we shall walk upon the banks of that clean 
 river.” 
 
 “ Harps,” one said. 
 
 Another one said “ palms.” 
 
 “Yes,” I said, “put them down. Those are treas¬ 
 ures that we will have there.” 
 
 “ Purity.” 
 
 “Yes, there will be none but the pure there. White 
 robes, without spot or wrinkle on our garments. A 
 great many find many flaws in our characters down 
 here, but by and by Christ will present us before the 
 Father without spot and without wrinkle, and we shall 
 stand there complete in Him,” I said. “ Can you 
 think of anything else?” And one of them said: 
 
 “ A new song.” 
 
 “ Yes, we shall have a new song. It is the song of 
 Moses and the Lamb. I don’t know just who wrote it 
 or how, but it will be a glorious song. I suppose the 
 «finging we have here on earth will be nothing 
 
92 
 
 I^EAVEN: 
 
 compared with the songs o£ that upper world. Do you 
 know the principal thing we are told we are going tc 
 do in heaven is singing, and that is why men ought to 
 sing down here. We ought to begin to sing here so 
 that it will not come strange when we get to heaven. 1 
 pity the professed Christian who has not a song in his 
 heart—who never ‘feels like singing.’ It seems te 
 me if we are truly children of God, we will want to 
 sing about it. And so, when we get there, we cannot 
 help shouting out the loud hallelujahs of heaven.” 
 
 Then I said: “Is there anything else?” Well, they 
 went on. I cannot give you all, because we had to have 
 two columns put down of the heavenly treasures. We 
 stood there a little while and drew the contrast between 
 the earthly and the heavenly treasures. We looked at 
 them a little while, and when we came to put them aK 
 down beside Christ, the earthly treasures looked small, 
 after all. What would all this world full of gold be 
 compared with Jesus Christ? You who have Christ, 
 would you like to part with Him for gold? Would you 
 like to give Him up for all the honor the earth can 
 bestow on you for a few months or a few years ? Think 
 of Christ! Think of the treasures of heaven. And 
 then think of these eartlily treasures that we have our 
 hearts set upon, and that so many of us are living for. 
 
 God blessed that lesson upon the blackboard in a 
 marvelous way, for the man who had been writing down 
 the treasures on the board happened to be an uncon 
 verted Sunday-school teacher, and had gone out there 
 to California to make money; his heart was set upon 
 gold, and he was living for that instead of for God 
 That was the idol of his heart, and do you know God 
 
ITS MICHES. 
 
 95 
 
 convicted him at that blackboard, and the first convert 
 that God gave me on the Pacific coast was that mam 
 and he was the last man who shook hands with me when 
 I left San Francisco. He saw how empty the earthly 
 treasures were, and how grand and glorious the riches 
 of heaven. Oh, if God would but open your eyes— 
 and I think if you are honest and ask Him to do it 
 He wull—He will show you how empty this world is in 
 comparison with what He has in store. 
 
 There are a great many people who are wondering 
 why they do not mount up on wings, as it Tvere, and 
 why they do not make some progress in the divine life; 
 why they do not grow more in grace. I think one 
 reason may be they have too many earthly treasures. 
 We need not be rich to have our hearts set on riches. 
 
 We need not go in the world more than other people 
 to have our hearts there. I believe the Prodigal 
 was in the far country long before he put his feet thera 
 When his heart reached there he was there. There is 
 many a man who does not mingle so much in the w^orld 
 as others do, but his heart is there, and he would be 
 there if he could, and God looks at the heart. 
 
 Now, what we need to do is to obey the voice of the 
 M aster, and instead of laying up treasures on earth, 
 lay them up in heaven. If we do that, bear in mind, 
 we shall never be disappointed. 
 
 It is clear that idolaters are not going to enter the 
 kingdom of God. I may make an idol of my business; 
 I may make an idol of the wife of my bosom; I may 
 make idols of my children. I do not think you need 
 go to heathen countries to find men guilty of idolatry, 
 i think you will find a great many right here who have 
 
HEAVENS I 
 
 idols in their hearts. Let us pray that the spirit ol 
 God may banish those idols from our hearts, that W6 
 may not be guilty of idolatry; that we may worship 
 God in spirit and in truth. Anything that comes 
 between me and God is an idol—anything, I don’t care 
 what it is; business is all right in its place, and there 
 is no danger of my loving my family too much if I love 
 God more; but God must have the first place; and if 
 He has not then the idol is set up. 
 
 ALL ETERNITY FOR REST. 
 
 Not the least of the riches of heaven will be the sat¬ 
 isfaction of those wants of the soul, which are so much 
 felt down here but are never found—such as infinite 
 knowledge, perfect peace and satisfying love. Like s 
 beautiful likeness that has been marred, daubed all 
 over with streaks of black, and is then restored to its 
 original beauty, so the soul is restored to its full beauty 
 of color when it is washed with the blood of Jesus Christ, 
 The senseless image on the canvas cannot be compared, 
 however, in any other way with the living, rational souL 
 
 Could we but see some of our friends who have gone 
 on before us we would very likely feel like falling down 
 before them. The Apostle John had seen so many 
 strange things, yet, wnen one of the bright angels stood 
 before him to reveal some of the secrets of heaven, 
 fell down to worship him. He says in the last chapter 
 of Hevelation: 
 
 “And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had 
 heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel 
 which shewed me these things. Then saith he unto me, see thou dc 
 it not; for I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren the prophetSj 
 and of them which keep the sayincrs of this book. Worship Gkxi'’*' 
 
ITS RICHES. 
 
 95 
 
 Among the wants which we have on earth is the 
 thirst for knowledge. Much as sin has weakened man’s 
 mental faculties, it has not taken away any of his de¬ 
 sire for knowledge. But with all his efforts, with all 
 that he thinks he knows about astronomy, chemistry 
 and geology, and the rest of the sciences, his knowl¬ 
 edge of the secrets of nature is yet limited. 
 
 There are very many things we do not know. Thous¬ 
 ands of astronomers have lived and died, and the ages 
 of the world have rolled on, and it was only the other 
 day, as it were, that they found out that the planet 
 Mars had Wo moons. Perhaps in ages to come some 
 one will find out that they are not moons at all. This 
 is what most of our human knowledge amounts to. 
 
 There is not one of our college professors, and many 
 of them have gone nearly everywhere in the world, but 
 is anxious to learn more and more, to find out new 
 things, to make new discoveries. If we were as fa¬ 
 miliar with all the stars of the firmament as we are 
 with our own earth, still we would not be satisfied. 
 
 Not until we are like God can we comprehend the 
 infinite. Even the imperfect glimpses of God that we 
 get by faith, only intensify our desire for more. For 
 now, as Paul says in 1st Corinthians xiii, 12: 
 
 "Now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face; 
 DOW I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.’* 
 
 The word Paul used, properly translated, is “mir- 
 ror.” Now we see God, as it were, in a looking-glass— 
 but then face to face. 
 
 Suppose we knew nothing of the sun except what we 
 saw of its light reflected from the moon? AVould we 
 not wonder about its^ immense distance, about its 
 
m 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 dazzling splendor, about its life-giving power? Now 
 that we see, the snn, the moon, the stars, the ocean, 
 the earth, the flowers, and above all, man, are a grand 
 mirror in which the perfection of God is imperfectly 
 reflected. 
 
 Another want that we have is rest We get tired of 
 toiling. Yet there is no real rest on earth. We And in the 
 4:th chapter of Hebrews, beginning with the 9th verse: 
 
 “ There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. Poj 
 he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his owe 
 works, a® God did from His. Let us labor, therefore, to enter inte. 
 that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbeliet.^’' 
 
 Now, while we all want rest, I think a great many 
 people make a mistake when they think the church is 
 a place of rest; and when they unite with the church 
 they have a false idea about their position in it. There 
 are a great many who come in to rest. The text tells 
 us: “There remaineth a rest for the people of God/’ 
 but it does not tell us that the church is a place of rest; 
 we have all eternity to rest in. We are to rest by and 
 by; but we are to work here, and when our work is fin¬ 
 ished, the Lord will call us home to enjoy that rest. 
 There is no use in talking about rest down here in tha 
 enemy’s country. We cannot rest in this world, "where 
 God’s Son has been crucified and cast out. I think 
 that a great many people are going to lose their re¬ 
 ward just because they have come into the church with 
 the idea that they are to rest there, as if the church 
 was working for the reward, instead of each one build¬ 
 ing over against his own house, each one using all hift 
 influence toward the building up of Christ’s kingdom. 
 
 In Kevelation xiv, 13. we read: 
 
I7.^S RICHES, 
 
 97 
 
 j ■■ ■■- ' — ^. ■ — — 
 
 ** And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed 
 are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth; Yea, saith the 
 Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works dc 
 follow thenL*’ 
 
 Now, death may rob us of money. Death may rob 
 as of position. Death may rob us of our friends; but 
 there is one thing death can never do, and that is 
 rob us of the work that we do for God. That will live 
 on forever^ “Their works do follow them.” How 
 much are we doing ? Anything that we do outside of 
 ourselves, and not with a mean and selfish motive, that 
 IS going to live. \Ye have the privilege of setting in 
 motion streams of activity that will flow on when we 
 sre dead and gone. 
 
 It is the privilege of everyone to live more in the 
 mture than they do in the present, so that their lives 
 will tell in fifty or a hundred years more than they do now. 
 
 John Wesley’s influence is a thousand-fold greater 
 to-day than it was when he was living. He still lives. 
 He lives in the lives of thousands and hundreds of 
 thousands of his spiritual descendants^ 
 
 Martin Luther lives more truly to-day than he did 
 three centuries ago, when he awakened Germany. 
 He only lived one life, and that for a little while. But 
 aow, look at the hundreds and thousands and millions 
 of lives that he is living. There are between fifty and 
 sixty millions of people who profess to be followers of 
 th.e Lord Jesus Christ, as taught by Martin Luther, 
 who bear his name. He is dead in the sight of the 
 world, but his “ works do follow him.” He still lives. 
 
 The voice of John the Baptist is ringing through 
 the world to-day, although nearly nineteen hundred 
 
98 
 
 HEAVENi 
 
 years have 'passed away since Herodias asked for hifi 
 death. Herod thought when he beheaded him that he 
 was hushing his voice, but it is ringing throughout the 
 earth to-day. John the Baptist lives, because he lived 
 for God; but he has entered into his rest, and “his 
 works do follow him.” 
 
 And if they up yonder can see what is going on 
 upon the earth, how much joy they must have to think 
 that they have set these streams in motion, and that 
 this work is going on—being carried on after them. 
 
 If a man lives a mean, selfish life, he goes down to 
 the grave, and his name and everything concerning him 
 goes down in the grave with him. If he is ambitious 
 to leave a record behind him, with a selfish motive, his 
 name rots with his body. But if a man gets outside 
 of himself and begins to work for God, his name will 
 live forever. Why, you may go to Scotland to-day, 
 and you will find the influence of John Knox over every 
 mountain in Scotland. It seems as if you could almost 
 feel the breath of that man’s prayer in Scotland to-day. 
 His influence still lives. “ Blessed are the dead who 
 die in the Lord. They rest from their labors and their 
 works do follow them.” Blessed rest in store; w'e will 
 rest by and by; but we should not waste time talking 
 about rest while we are here., c » . . 
 
 If I am to wipe a tear from the cheek of that father* 
 less boy, I must do it down here. It is not said in 
 Scripture that we shall have the privilege of doing that 
 hereafter. If I am going to help up some fallen man 
 who has been overtaken by sin, I must do it here. We 
 are not going to have the privilege of being co-workers 
 wth God in the future—-but that is our privilege 
 
XTS EXCHEa. 
 
 99 
 
 5JMiay. We may not have it to-morrow. It may be 
 iiaken from us to-morrow; but we can enter into the 
 nneyard and do something to-day before the sun goes 
 down. We can do something now before we go to 
 
 glory. 
 
 Another want that we feel here is Love. Heaven is 
 the only place where the conditions of love can be ful* 
 Slled. There love is essentially mutual. Everybody 
 loves everybody else. In this world of wickedness and 
 sin it seems impossible for people to be all on a perfect 
 equality. When we meet people who are bright and 
 beautiful and good, we have no difficulty in iovino 
 them. All the people of heaven will be like that There 
 will be no fear of misplaced confidences there. There 
 jV 9 shall never be deceived by those we love. When 
 suspicion of doubt fastens upon any one who loves, theii 
 happiness L’om that moment is at an end. There wifi 
 D6 no suspicion there. 
 
 Beyond these chilling ^yinds and gloomy skifle. 
 
 Beyond death's cloudy portal, 
 
 There is a land where beauty never dies-” 
 
 Where k»ve becomes immortal" 
 
©nie 5e)a^. 
 
 BY TIMOTHY POLAND. 
 
 Ye ken, dear bairn, that we maun part. 
 When death, canid death, shall bid us start; 
 But when he’ll send his fearfu’ dart 
 We canna say. 
 
 So we’ll mak’ ready for his dart 
 Maist onie day. 
 
 We’ll keep a’ right and guid wi’in, 
 
 Our wark will then be free frae sin. 
 
 Upright we’ll walk through thick and thin, 
 Straight on our way. 
 
 Deal just wi’ a’, the prize we’ll win 
 Maist onie day. 
 
 Te ken there’s Ane, wha’s just and wise, 
 
 Has said that a’ His bairns should rise. 
 
 An’ soar aboon the lofty skies, 
 
 And there shall stay. 
 
 Being well prepared we’ll gain the prize 
 Maist onie day. 
 
 When He wha made a’ things just right. 
 Shall call us hence to realms of light. 
 
 Be it morn or noon, or e’en or night 
 We will obey. 
 
 We’ll be prepared to tak’ our flight 
 Maist onie day. 
 
 Our lamps we’ll fill brimfu’ o’ oil, 
 
 Thet’s guid and pure, that wadna spoil, 
 
 And keep them burning a’ the while. 
 
 To light our way. 
 
 Our wark bein’ done we’U quit the soil, 
 Maist onie day. 
 
 100 
 
eH’ea'sen: 
 
 ITS REWARDS. 
 
riot ^erel, flof Jfefe-*’ 
 
 Not here! Not here! Not where the sparkling watar^ 
 Fade into mocking sands as we draw near; 
 
 Where, in the wilderness, each footstep falters i 
 “I shall be satisfied;” but oh, not here! 
 
 There is a land where every pulse is thrilling 
 With rapture earth’s sojourners may not know, 
 
 Where heaven’s repose the weary heart is stilling. 
 
 And peacefully life’s storm-tossed currents floT7. 
 
 ^ Satisfied! Satisfied! ” The spirit’s yeai u mg 
 For sweet cS^EJpanionship with kindred minds^ 
 
 The silent lorn that here meets no returning, 
 
 The inspirati&n which no language finds. 
 
 ’• 1 shall be satisfied.” The soul’s vague longings 
 The aching void which nothing earthly fills! 
 
 Oh! What desires upon my soul are thronging 
 As I look upward to the heavenly hills. 
 
 Thither my weak and weary steps are tending; 
 
 Savior and Lord, with thy frail child abide; 
 
 Guide me toward Home, where, all my wanderings endei^ 
 I then shall see Thee^ and *^be satisfied,'* 
 
ITS REWAMDS. 
 
 103 
 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 ITS REWARDS. 
 
 Every man shall receive his own reward according to his own 
 labor. I Cor. iii, 8. 
 
 My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his wor^ 
 shall be. Eev. xxii, 12. 
 
 If I understand things correctly, whenever you find 
 men or women who are looking to be rewarded here 
 for doing right, they are unqualified to work for God,; 
 because if they are looking for the applause of men, 
 looking for reward in this life, it will disqualify tliom 
 for the service of God, because they are all the while 
 compromising truth. 
 
 They are afraid of hurting some one’s feelinga 
 They are afraid that some one is going to say some¬ 
 thing against them, or there will be some newspaper 
 articles written against them. Now, we must trample 
 the world under our feet if we are going to get our re¬ 
 ward hereafter. If we live for God we must suffer per 
 secution. The kingdom of darkness and the kingdom 
 of light are at war, and have been, and will be as long 
 as Satan is permitted to reign in this world. As long 
 as the kingdom of darkness is permitted to exist, there 
 will be a conflict, and if you want to be popular in the 
 
104 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 kingdom of God, if you want to be popular in heaven, 
 and get a reward that shall last forever, you willTiave 
 to be unpopular here. 
 
 If you seek the applause of men, you can’t have the 
 Lord say “Well done” at the end of the journey 
 You can’t have both. Why ? Because this world is at 
 war with God. This idea that the world is getting bet¬ 
 ter all the while is false. The old natural heart is just 
 as much at enmity with God as it was when Cain slew 
 Abel. Sin leaped into the world full grown in Cain. 
 And from the time that Cain was born into the world to 
 the present, man by nature has been at war with God. 
 This world was not established in grace, and we have to 
 fight “the world, the flesh and the devil;” and if we 
 fight the world, the world won’t like us; and if we fight 
 the flesh, the flesh won’t like us. We have to mortify 
 the flesh. We have to crucify the old man and put 
 him under. Then, by and by, we will get our reward, 
 and a glorious reward it will be. 
 
 We read in Luke xvi, 15; 
 
 And He said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves 
 before men; but God knoweth your hearts; for that which is highly 
 Bsteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.” 
 
 We must go right against the current of this world. 
 If the world has nothing to say against us, we can be 
 pretty sure that the Lord Jesus Christ has very little to 
 say for us. There are those who do not like to go 
 against the current of the world. They say they know 
 this and that is wrong, bat they do not say a wwd 
 against it lest it might make them unpopular. If we 
 expect to get the reward we must fight the good fight 
 of faith= For all such, as Paul has said, “ there is laid 
 
ITS REWARDS, 
 
 lO- 
 
 up a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the right 
 eons Judge, shall give us at that day.” 
 
 FEAR OF DEATH. 
 
 How little do we realize the meaning of the word 
 ETERNITY ! The wliole time between the creation of the 
 world and the ending of it would not make a day in 
 eternity. In time, it is like the infinity of space, whose 
 center is everywhere and whose boundary is nowhere. 
 We read in the Epistle to the Hebrews: 
 
 “ Forasmuch, then, as the children are parta.feers of flesh and 
 blood, He, also Himself, likewise took part of the same; that 
 through death He might destroy Him that had the power of death 
 —that is the devil—and deliver them who, through fear of death, 
 were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” 
 
 There are a great many of God’s professed children 
 who live in continual bondage, in the constant fear of 
 death. I believe that it is dishonoring God. I believe 
 that it is not His will to have one of His children live 
 in fear for one moment. If you know the truth as it ia 
 in Christ, there need be no fear, there need be no dread, 
 because death will only hasten you on to glory; and your 
 names are already there. 
 
 And then the next thought is for those who are dear 
 to us. I believe that it is not only our privilege to 
 have our names written in heaven, but those of the 
 children whom God has given us; and our hearts ought 
 to go right out for them. The promise is not only to 
 us, but to our children. Many a father’s and many a 
 mother’s heart is burdened with anxiety for the salva¬ 
 tion of their children. If your own name is there, let 
 your next aim in life be to get the children whom God 
 has given you, there also. 
 
HEAVENt 
 
 A mother was dying in one of onr Eastern cities a 
 tew years ago, and she had a large family of children. 
 She died of consumption, and the children were 
 brought in to her one by one as she was sinking. She 
 gave the oldest one her last message and her dying 
 blessing; and as the next one was brought in she put 
 her hand upon its head and gave it her blessing; and 
 then the next one was brought in, and the next, until 
 at last they brought in the little infant. She took it to 
 her bosom and pressed to her loving heart, and her 
 friends saw that it was hastening her end; that she was 
 excited, and as they went to take the little child from 
 her, she said: ^“My husband, I charge you to bring 
 all these children home with you.” Ana so God 
 charges us parents to bring our children home with us; 
 not only to have our own names written in heaven, but 
 those of our children also. 
 
 An eminent Christian worker in New York told me 
 a story that affected me very much. 
 
 A father had a son who had been sick some time, but 
 he did not consider him dangerously ill; until one day 
 he came home to dinner and found his wife weeping, 
 and he asked, “ What is the trouble?” 
 
 “ There has been a great change in our boy since 
 morning,” the mother said, “ and I am afraid he is 
 dying; 1 wish you to go in and see him, and, if you think 
 he is, I wish you to tell him so, for I cannot bear to.” 
 
 The father went in and sat down by the bed-side, ' 
 and he placed his hand upon his forehead, and he could 
 feel the cold, damp sweat of death, and knew its cold, 
 icy hand was feeling for the cords of life, and that 
 his boy was soon to be taken away, and he said to him: 
 
ITS REWARDS 
 
 ** My son, do you know you are dying ? 
 
 Tlie little fellow looked up at him and said: 
 
 *‘No; am I? Is this death that I feel stealing am 
 me, father?” 
 
 ** Yes, my son, you are dying.” 
 
 “ Will I live the day out ? ” 
 
 “ No; you may die at any moment” 
 
 He looked up to his father, and he said: WeE^ I 
 
 yhall be with Jesus to-night, won’t I, father?” 
 
 And the father answered: “Yes, my boy, you will 
 spend to-night with the Savior,” and the father turned 
 away to conceal the tears, that the little boy might noi 
 see him weep; but he saw the tears, and he said: 
 
 “Father, don’t you weep for me; when I get tc 
 heaven I will go straight to Jesus and tell Him that eves 
 since I can remember you have tried to lead me to Him.'^ 
 
 I have three children, and the greatest desire of m^ 
 heart is that they may be saved; that I may know tlia"^ 
 their names are written in the Book of Life. I ma]^ 
 be taken from them early; I may leave them in this 
 changing world witliout a father’s care; but I would 
 rather have my children say that of me after I am 
 dead and gone, or if they die before me I would 
 rather they should take that message to tlie Master— 
 that ever since they can remember I have tried to lead 
 them to the Master—than to have a monument over mt 
 reaching to the skies. 
 
 AVe ought not to look upon death as we do. Bishop 
 Heber has written of a dead friend: 
 
 "Thou art gone to the grave! but we will not deplore 
 Though sorrow and darkness encompass the tomb; 
 
 Thy Savior has passed through its portals before thee, 
 
 ^nd the lamp of His love is thy guide through the gloooi 
 
108 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 **Thoti am gone to the grave! We no longer behold thee,, 
 
 Nor tread the rough paths of the world by thy side; 
 
 But the wide arms of Mercy are spread to enfold thee, 
 
 And sinners may die, for the Sinless has died.” 
 
 The roll is being called, and one after another sum¬ 
 moned away, but if the names of our loved ones are 
 there, if we know that they are saved, how sweet it is, 
 after they have left us, to think that we shall meet them 
 by and by; that we shall see them in the morn when 
 the night has worn away. 
 
 During the late war a young man lay on a cot, and 
 they heard him say, “ Here, here! ” and some one went 
 to his cot and wanted to know what he wanted, and he 
 said, “Hark! Hush, don’t you hear them?” “Hear 
 whom ? ” was asked. “ They are calling the roll of 
 heaven,” he said, and pretty soon he answered, “Here!” 
 —and he was gone. If our names are in the Book of 
 Life, by and by when the name is called, we can say 
 with Samuel, “Here am II” and fly away to meet 
 Him. And if our children are called away early, 
 O, it is so sweet to think that they died in Christ; that 
 the great Shepherd gathers them in His arms and car¬ 
 ries them in His bosom, and that we shall meet them 
 by and by. 
 
 PAUL, THE CHRISTIAN HERO. 
 
 The way to get to heaven is to be saved through faith 
 in Jesus Christ 
 
 We get salvation as a gift, but we have to work it 
 out, just as if we got a gold mine for a gift 
 
 I do not get a crown by joining the church, or rent 
 lug a pew. 
 
 There was Paul. He won his crown. He had many 
 i hard fight; he met Satan on many a battle-field, and 
 
ITS REWARDS. 
 
 109 
 
 fae overcame him and wore the crown. It would take 
 about ten thousand of the average Christians of 
 this day or any other to make one of Paul. When I 
 read the life of that Apostle, I blush for the Christian¬ 
 ity of the nineteenth century. It is a weak and sickly 
 thing. 
 
 See what he went through. He five times was 
 scourged. The old Roman custom of scourging was to 
 take the prisoner and bind his wrists together and bend 
 him over in a stooping posture, and the Roman soldier 
 would bring the lash, braided with sharp pieces of steel 
 down upon the bare back of the prisoner and cut him 
 through the skin, so that men sometimes died in the 
 act of being scourged. But Paul says he was scourged 
 five different times. Now if we should get one stripe 
 upon our backs what a whining there would be; there 
 would be forty publishers after us before the sun went 
 down, and they would want to publish our lives, that 
 they could make capital out of them. But Paul says, 
 “Five times received I forty stripes, save one.” That 
 was nothing for him. Take your stand by his side. 
 
 “Paul, you have been beaten by these Jews four 
 times, and they are going to give you thirty-nine stripes 
 more; what are you going to do after you get out of 
 the difficulty? What are you going to do about it all? 
 
 “Do ?” says he. “I will do this one thing; I will 
 press toward the mark of the prize of my high calling; 
 1 am on my way to get my crown.” He was not going 
 to lose his crown. “ Don’t think that a few stripes will 
 .turn me away; these light afflictions are nothing.” 
 
 And so they put on thirty-nine more stripes. 
 
 lie had spining into the race for Clirist, as it were, 
 
110 
 
 HEAVEN^ 
 
 and was leaping toward heaven. If you will allow ma 
 the expression, the devil got his match when he met 
 Panic He never switched off to a side-track. He 
 never sat down to write a letter to defend himself. All 
 the strength that he had he gave to Christ. He never 
 gave a particle to the world nor to himself to defend 
 himself, “ This one thing I do,” he said, “ I am not 
 going to lose the crown-” See that no man take your 
 crown. 
 
 “Thrice beaten with rods.” Take your stand again 
 beside him, 
 
 “ Now, Paul, they have beaten you twice, and they 
 are going to beat you again. What are you going to 
 do? Are you going to continue preaching? If yoi^ 
 are, let me give you a littl advice. Now, don’t be 
 quite so radical; be a little more conservative; just use 
 a little finer language, and, so to speak, cover up the 
 cross with beautiful words and fiowery sentences, and 
 tell men that they are pretty good after all; that they 
 are not so bad, and try and pacify the Jews; make 
 friends with them, and get in with the world, and the 
 world will think more of you. Don’t' be so earnest; 
 don’t be so radical, Paul; now come, take our advice, 
 What are you going to do? ” 
 
 “Do?” he says, “I do this one thing —J press 
 toward the mark of the prize of my high calling,” Sc 
 they put on the rods, and every blo-w lifts him nearer 
 God. 
 
 Take your stand with him again. They begin to 
 stone him. That is the way they killed those who did 
 Biot preach to suit them. 
 
 It seems as if he was about to be paid back in hk 
 

 J[TS REWABDS. 
 
 Ill 
 
 y^n coin, for when Stephen was stoned to death, Patil, 
 *ii8a known as Sanl, cheered on the crowd. 
 
 **Now, Paul, this is growing serious; hadn’t you bet- 
 cer take back some of the things you have said about 
 Jesus? What are j’ou going to do?” 
 
 “Do?” he says, “if they take my life I will only 
 get my crown the sooner.” 
 
 He would not budge an inch. He had something 
 that the world could not give; he had something it 
 could not take away; he had eternal life, and he had in 
 store a crown of gloryc 
 
 THESE LIGHT AFFLICTIONS. 
 
 Three times was he shipwrecked; a day and a night 
 in the deep. Look at that mighty apostle, a whole 
 day and night in the deep. There he was—ship¬ 
 wrecked, and for what? Was it to make money? He 
 was not after money. He was just going from city to 
 city, and town to town, to preach the glorious gospel of 
 Jesus Christ, and to lift up the cross wherever he had 
 opportunity. He went down to Corinth and preached 
 eighteen months, and he didn’t have a lot of the lead¬ 
 ing ministers of Corinth to come on the platform and 
 sit by his side when he preached. There was not a 
 man who stood by him. When he reached Corinth he 
 had none of the leading business men to 3tand by him 
 and advise him; but the little tent-maker arrives in 
 Corinth a perfect stranger, and the first thing he does 
 is to find a place where he can make a tent; he does not 
 go to a hotel; his means will not allow it; he goes where 
 he can make his bread by the sweat of his brow. Think 
 of that great apostle making a tent, and then getting 
 
112 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 on the corner of a street and preaching, and perhaps 
 once in a while he would get into a synagogue, but -the 
 Jews would turn him out; they did not want to hear 
 him preach anything about Jesus the Crucified. 
 
 When I read of the life of such a man, how I blush 
 to think how sickly and dwarfed Christianity is at the 
 present time, and how many hundreds there are who 
 never think of working for the Son of God and honor¬ 
 ing Christ. 
 
 Yet when he wrote that letter back to Corinth, we 
 find him taking an inventory of some things he had. 
 He is rich, he says, “ In journeying soften, in perils of 
 waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by my own coun¬ 
 trymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, 
 in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils 
 among false brethren.” This last must have been 
 the hardest of all. “ In weariness and painfulness, in 
 watchings often; in hunger and thirst, in fastings of ter ; 
 in cold, in nakedness; and besides those things that are 
 without, the care of all the churches.” (II Cor. xi, 26- 
 28.) These are only some of the things that he summed 
 up. Do you know what made him so exceedingly hap¬ 
 py ? It was because he believed the Scripture; he be¬ 
 lieved the Sermon on the Mount. We profess to be¬ 
 lieve it; we pretend to believe it; but few of us more 
 than half believe it. Listen to one sentence in that 
 sermon: “Eejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is 
 your reward in heaven,” when you are persecuted. 
 Noav persecution was about all that Paul had. 
 
 That was his capital, and he had a good deal of it; 
 he had laid by a good many persecutions, and he was 
 to get a great reward Christ says: “Eejoice and be 
 

 ITS REWARDS. 
 
 113 
 
 exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven.” 
 If Jesus Christ spoke of it as “great” it must be 
 indeed wonderful. We call things great that may look 
 very small to Jesus Christ; and things that look very 
 small to us may look very large to Him. When the 
 great Christ, the Creator of heaven and earth. He who 
 formed the heavens and the earth by His mighty power, 
 when He calls it a great reward, what must it be? 
 
 Perhaps some people said to the Apostle to the Gen¬ 
 tiles: “Now, Paul, you are meeting with too much 
 opposition; you are suffering too much.” 
 
 Hear him reply: “ Our light affliction, which is but 
 for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and 
 eternal weight of glory.” 
 
 “ Our light affliction,” he calls it. We would have 
 called it pretty hard, pretty heavy, would we not? ” 
 
 But he says: “These light afflictions are nothing; 
 think of the glory before me, and think of the crowning 
 time; think of the reward that is laid up for me. I am 
 on my way; the Bighteous Judge will give it to me 
 when the time comes;” and that is what filled his soifi 
 with joy; it was the thought of reward that the Lore 
 had in store for him. 
 
 Now, my friends, let us just for a minute think of 
 what Paul accomplished. Think of going out, as it 
 were, among the heathen; the first missionary to preach 
 to these men, who were so full of wickedness, so full or 
 enmity and bitterness, the glorious gospel of Jesus 
 Christ, and to tell them that the man who died outside 
 the walls of the city of Jerusalem the death of a com. 
 mon prisoner, a common felon, in the sight of tha 
 world, was the promised Christ; to tell them that they 
 8 
 
114 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 had to believe in that crucified Man in order to enter 
 the kingdom of God. Think of the dark mountain that 
 rose up before him; think of the opposition; think of 
 the bitter persecution, and then think of the trifles in 
 our way. 
 
 SONGS IN PRISON. 
 
 But a great many worldly people think Paul’s life 
 was a failure. Probably his enemies, when they put 
 him in prison, thought that would silence him; but do 
 you know that I believe to-day Paul thanks God more 
 for prisons, for stripes, for the persecution and opposi¬ 
 tion that he suffered, than for anything else that hap¬ 
 pened to him here? 
 
 The very things we do not like are sometimes the 
 very best for us. 
 
 Christians probably might not have these glorious 
 Epistles, if Paul had not been thrown into prison. There 
 he took up his pen and wrote letters to the Christians 
 in Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, Colossae, and to Phile . 
 mon and Timothy. Look at the two Epistles that he 
 vrote to the Corinthians. How much has been done 
 loT the world by these Epistles. What a blessing they 
 have been to the church God; how great a light they 
 have thrown on many a man’s life. But we might not 
 have had those Epistles if it had not been for persecu¬ 
 tion. 
 
 Perhaps John Bunyan blesses God more to-day for 
 Bedford jail than anything that happened to him. 
 Probably we would not have the Pilgrim’s Progress it 
 he had not been thrown into that prison. Satan thought 
 he accomplished a great deal when he shut up Bunyan 
 
ITS REWARDS. 
 
 115 
 
 for twelve years and six months; but what a blessing 
 it was to the world; and I believe Paul blesses God to¬ 
 day for the Philippian jail, and for the imprisonment 
 he suffered in Eome, because, it gave him time to write 
 those blessed letters. Talk of Alexander making the 
 world tremble with the tread of his armies, and of Caesar 
 and Napoleon’s power, but here is a little tent-maker, 
 who, without an army, turned the world upside down. 
 
 Why? 
 
 Because God Almighty was with him. 
 
 Paul says in one place: “None of these things move 
 me.” (Acts xx, 24.) They threw him in prison, but it 
 was all the same; it did not move him. When he was 
 at Corinth and Athens preaching, it made no difference. 
 He just “pressed toward the mark of the prize of his 
 high calling.” If God wanted him to go throu ^h 
 prisons to win the prize, it was all the same to him. 
 They put him in prison, but they put the Almighty in 
 with him, and Paul was so linked to Jesus that they 
 could not separate them. He would rather be in prison 
 with Christ than out of prison without Him. He 
 would a thousand times rather be cast into prison with 
 the Son of God and suffer a little persecution for a few 
 days here, than to be living at ease without Him. 
 
 He heard the cry, “Come over into Macedonia and 
 help us.” He went over and preached, and the first 
 thing that happened to him was that he was put into 
 the Philippian jail. Now, if he had been as fainb 
 hearted as most of us, he would have been disappointed 
 and cast down. There would have been a great com¬ 
 plaint. 
 
 Me would have said: “ This is a strange Providence: 
 
116 
 
 HEAVEN: 
 
 
 whatever brought me here ? I thought the Lord called 
 me here; here I am in prison in a strange city;"how 
 did 1 ever get here ? How will I ever get out of this 
 place? I have no money; I have no friends; I have no 
 attorney; I have no one to intercede for me, and here 
 I am.” Paul and Silas were not only in prison, but 
 their feet were made fast in the stocks. There they 
 were, in the inner prison, a dark, cold, damp dungeon. 
 But at midnight the other prisoners heard a strange 
 sound. They had never heard anything like it before. 
 They heard singing. I do not know what song those 
 two imprisoned evangelists sang, but I know one thing, 
 it was not “ a doleful sound from the tombs.” You 
 know we have a hymn, “ Hark, from the tombs a dole¬ 
 ful sound.” They did not sing that, but the Bible tells 
 u[ they sang praises. That was a queer place to sing 
 piaises, was it not? 
 
 I suppose it was time for the evening prayers, and 
 that they had just had their evening prayer and then 
 sang their evening hymn. And God answered their 
 prayers, and the old prison shook, and the chains 
 dropped, and the prison doors were opened. Yes, yes; 
 I have no doubt that in glory he thanks God that he 
 went to jail and that the Philippian jailer became con- 
 verted. 
 
 SWEPT INTO GLOEY. 
 
 But look at him at Borne. Nero has signed hL 
 death warrant. Take your stand and look at the little 
 man. He is small; in the sight of the world he is 
 contemptible (II Cor. xii, 10); the world frowns upor 
 him. Go to the palace of the king and talk about thai 
 
ITS BEWATDS. 
 
 117 
 
 jjriminal—about Paul—and you will see a sneer on 
 their countenances. 
 
 “ Oh, he is a fanatic,” they say; “ he has gone mad.” 
 I wish the world was filled with such fanatics. I tell 
 you what we want to-day is a few fanatics like him; 
 men who fear nothing but sin and love no one but God. 
 
 Rome never had such a conqueror within her walls. 
 Rome never had such a mighty man as Paul within her 
 boundaries. Although the world looked down upon 
 him, and perhaps he looked very small and contempti¬ 
 ble, yet in the sight of heaven he was the mightiest 
 man who ever trod the streets of Rome. Probably 
 there will never be another one like him traveling those 
 streets. The Son of God walked with him, and the 
 form of the Fourth was with him. But go into that 
 prison; there he is; officials come to him and tell him 
 that Nero has signed his death-warrant. He does not 
 tremble; he is not afraid. 
 
 ‘‘ Paul, are you not sorry you have been so zealous 
 for Christ ? It is going to cost you your life; if you 
 had to live it over again, would you give it to Jesus of 
 Nazareth? ” What do you think the old warrier would 
 reply ? 
 
 See that eye light up as he says: “ If I had ten thous¬ 
 and lives I should give every one of those lives to 
 Christ, and the only regret I have is that I did not 
 commence earlier and serve Him better; the only regret 
 I have now is that I ever lifted my voice against Jesus 
 of Nazareth.” 
 
 “ But they are going to behead you.” 
 
 ‘ Well, they may take my head, but the Lord has my 
 heart I care nothing about my head; the Lord has 
 
118 
 
 n±]AVEN: 
 
 my heart and has had it for years. They cannot sep¬ 
 arate me from the Lord, and when my head is taken 
 off, I shall depart to be with Christ, which is far better.’^ 
 
 And they led him out. I do not know at what hour i 
 perhaps it was early in the morning. There is a tra¬ 
 dition tells us that they led him two miles out of the 
 city. Look at the little tent-maker as he goes through 
 the streets of Kome with a firm tread. Look at that 
 giant as he moves through the streets. He is on his 
 way to execution. Take your stand by his side and 
 hear him talk. He is talking of the glory beyond. 
 
 He says: “Henceforth there is laid up for me a 
 crown of righteousness. I shall see the King in His 
 beauty to-night. I have longed to be with Him; I 
 have longed to see Him. This is the day of my 
 crowning,” 
 
 The world scoffed at him, but he did not hee dits 
 scofiing. He had something the world had not; burn¬ 
 ing within him he had a love and zeal which the world 
 knew nothing about. Ah, the love that Paul had for 
 Jesus Christ! But, oh, the greater love the Lord Jesus 
 had for Paul! 
 
 The hour has come. The way they used to behead 
 them in those days was for the prisoner to bend his 
 head, when a Eoman soldier took a sword and cut it 
 off*. The hour had come, and I seem to see Paul, with 
 a joyful countenance, bending his blessed head, as the 
 soldier’s sword comes down and sets his spirit free. 
 
 If our eyes could look as Elisha’s looked, we might 
 have seen him leap into a chariot of light like Elijah; 
 we would have seen him go sweeping through limiliess 
 space. 
 

 ITS REWARDS, 
 
 11^ 
 
 Look at him now as he mounts higher and higher; 
 V)ok at him, see him move up; up—up—up—ever 
 apward. 
 
 Look at him yonder! 
 
 See! He is entering now the Eternal City of the 
 glorified saints, the blissful abode of the Savior’s 
 redeemed. The prize he so long has sought is at hand. 
 See the gates yonder; how they fly wide open. See the 
 herald angels on the shining battlements of heaven. 
 Hear the glad shout that is passed along, “ He is com¬ 
 ing! He is coming!” And he goes sweeping through 
 the pearly gates, along the shining way, to the very 
 throne of God, and Christ stands there and says: “ Well 
 done, thou good and faithful servant; enter thou into 
 the joy of thy Lord.” 
 
 Just think of hearing the Master say it. Will not 
 that be enough for everything ? 
 
 O friends, your turn and mine will come by-and-by, 
 if we are but faithful. Let us see that we do not lose 
 the crown. Let us awake and put on the whole armor 
 of God; let us press into the conflict; it is a glorious 
 privilege; and then to us too, as to the glorified of old, 
 will come that blessed welcome from our glorified Lord: 
 
 Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” 
 
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PSALM 23 
 
 JOHN 3: 1—16. 
 
 Lord is my shepherd; I shall 
 -*• not want. 
 
 2 He maketh me to lie down in 
 e^-een pastures: he leadeth me beside 
 the still waters. 
 
 3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth 
 me in the paths of righteousness for 
 his name’s sake. 
 
 4 Yea, though I walk through the 
 valley of the shadow of death, I will 
 fear no evil: for tliou art with me; 
 thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 
 
 5 Thou preparest a table before me 
 in the presence of mine enemies; thou 
 anointest my head with oil; my cup 
 runneth over. 
 
 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall 
 follow me all the days of my life: and 
 I will dwell in the house of the Lord 
 forever. 
 
 ISAIAH 55; 1—7. 
 
 TIO, every one that thirsteth, come 
 ye to the waters, and he that hath 
 no money; come ye, buy and eat; yea, 
 come, buy wine and milk without 
 money and without price. 
 
 2 Wherefore do ye spend money for 
 that which is not bread? and your 
 labour for that which satisfieth not? 
 hearken diligently unto me, and eat 
 ye that which is good, and let your 
 soul delight itself in fatness. 
 
 3 Incline your ear, and come unto 
 me: hear, and your soul shall live; 
 and I will make an everlasting cov¬ 
 enant with you, even the sure mercies 
 of David. 
 
 4 Behold, I have given him for a 
 witness to the people, a leader and 
 commander to the.»people. 
 
 o Behold, thou shalt call a nation 
 that thou knowest not, and nations 
 that knew not thee shall run unto 
 thee, because of the Lord thy God, 
 and for the Holy One of Israel; for he 
 hath glorified thee. 
 
 6 Reek j'e the Lord while he may 
 be found, call ye upon him while he 
 is near: 
 
 7 Ivet the wicked forsake his way, 
 and the unrighteous man his thoughts: 
 and let him return unto the Lord, and 
 he will have mercy upon him; and to 
 our God, for he will abundantly pardon. 
 
 'T'HERE was a man of the Pharisees, 
 named Nicodemus, a ruler of the 
 
 Jews: 
 
 2 The same came to Jesus by night, 
 and said unto him. Rabbi, we know 
 that thou art a teacher come from 
 God; for no man can do these miracles 
 that thou doest, e.xcept God be with 
 him, 
 
 3 Jesus answered and said unto him. 
 Verily, verily, I say unto thee^ E.xcept 
 a man be bom again, he cannot see 
 the kingdom of God. 
 
 4 Nicodemus saith unto him. How 
 can a man be bom when he is old? 
 can he enter the second time into his 
 mother’s womb, and be bom? 
 
 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I 
 say unto thee, Except a man be born 
 of Avater and of the Spirit, he cannot 
 enter into the kingdom of Go.d. 
 
 6 That AA^hich is bom of the flesh is 
 flesh; and tliat which is born of the 
 Spirit is spirit. 
 
 7 Marv'el not that I said unto thee. 
 Ye must be bom again. 
 
 8 The Avind bloweth where it listeth, 
 and thou hearest the sound thereof, 
 but canst not tell whence it cometh, 
 and whither it goeth; so is every one 
 that is bom of the Spirit. 
 
 9 Nicodemus answered and said un¬ 
 to him. How can these things be? 
 
 10 Jesus ansAV'ered and said unto 
 him, Art thou a master of Israel, and 
 knoAA'est not these things? 
 
 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, 
 We speak that we do know, and testtfy 
 that Ave have seen; and ye receive not 
 our Avitness. 
 
 12 If I have told you earthly things, 
 and ye believe not, how shall ye be¬ 
 lieve, if I tell you of heavenly things? 
 
 13 And no man hath ascended up 
 to heaven, but he that came down 
 from heaven, even the Son of man 
 which is in heaven. 
 
 14 And as Moses lifted up the 
 serpent in the Avildemess, even so 
 must the Son of man be lifted up:_ 
 
 15 That whosoever believeth in him 
 should not perish, but have eternal life. 
 
 Ifi For God so loved the world, that 
 he gave his only begotten .Son, that 
 whosoever believeth in him should 
 not perish, but have everlasting life. 
 
DEPTH OF MERCY! 
 
 EPTH of mercy! csan there be 
 Mercy still reserved for me? 
 Can my God His wrath forbear? 
 
 Me, the chief of sinners, spare? 
 
 I have long ^vithstood His grace, 
 I/ong provoked Him to His face; 
 Would not hearken to His calls; 
 Grieved Him by a thousand falls. 
 
 Now incline me to repent. 
 
 Let me now my sins lament; 
 
 Now my foul revolt deplore. 
 Weep, believe, and sin no more, 
 
 * ❖ * 
 
 I WAS A WAND'RING SHEEP. 
 
 T WAS a wand’ring sheep, 
 
 I did not love the fold: 
 
 I did not love my Shepherd’s voice, 
 
 I would not be controlled. 
 
 [ was a wayward child, 
 
 I did not love my home; 
 
 I did not love my Father’s voice; 
 
 I loved afar to roam. 
 
 The Siepherd sought His sheep, 
 
 'The Father sought His child, 
 
 They followed me o’er vale and hill. 
 O’er deserts waste and ^v^ld; 
 
 They found me nigh to death. 
 Famished and faint, and lone; 
 
 They bound me with the bands of love; 
 l^ey saved the wand’ring one. 
 
 Jesus my Shepherd is, 
 
 ’Twas He that loved my soul, 
 
 'Twas He that washed me in His blood, 
 ’Twas He that made me whole; 
 
 ’Twas He that sought the lost. 
 
 That found the wand’ring sheep, 
 
 ’Twas He that brought me to the fold, 
 ’Tis He that still doth keep. 
 
 I was a wand’ring sheep, 
 
 I would not be controlled; 
 
 But now I love the Shepherd’s voice, 
 
 I love, I love the fold; 
 
 I was a wayward child, 
 
 I once prefeiTed to roam: 
 
 But now I love my Father’s voice, 
 
 I love, I love His home 
 
 WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN 
 JESUS! 
 
 ^^lAT a Friend we have in Jesus, 
 
 ” All our sins and griefs to bear! 
 
 What a privilege to cany 
 
 Ev’rything to God in prayer! 
 
 0 what peace we often forfeit, 
 
 O what needless pain we hear. 
 
 All because we do not cany 
 Ey’rything to God in prayer. 
 
 Have we trials and temptations? 
 
 Is there trouble anywhere? 
 
 We should never be discouraged. 
 
 Take it to the Lord in prayer. 
 
 Can we find a friend so faithful. 
 
 Who will all our sonows share? 
 
 Jesus knows our ev’iy weakness. 
 
 Take it to the Lord in prayer. 
 
 Are we weak and heavy laden. 
 Cumbered with a load of care? 
 
 Precious Saviour, still our refuge,— 
 Take it to the Lord in prayer. 
 
 Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? 
 Take it to the Lord in prayer. 
 
 In His arms He’ll take and shield thee 
 Thou wilt find a solace there. 
 
 , ♦ ♦ 
 
 O HAPPY DAY! 
 
 O HAPPY day that fixed my choice 
 On Thee, my Saviour and my God I 
 Well may this glowing heart rejoice. 
 And tell its raptures all abroad. 
 
 CHORUS: 
 
 Happy day, happy day. 
 
 When Jesus washed my sins away! 
 He taught me how to watch and pray. 
 And live rejoicing every day; 
 
 Happy day, happy day, 
 
 When Jesus washed my sin away! 
 
 0 happy bond that seals my vows 
 To Him who merits all my love! 
 
 Let cheerful anthems fill His house. 
 While to that sacred shrine I move. 
 
 ’Tis dope, the great transaction’s done; 
 
 I am my Lord’s and He is mine; 
 
 He drew me, and I followed on. 
 
 Charmed to confess the voice divine. 
 
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JUST AS I AM. 
 
 UST as I am, without one plea 
 But that Thy blood was shed for me, 
 And that Thou bid’st me come to Thee; 
 0 Ijamb of God, I come, I come! 
 
 Just as I am, and waiting not 
 To rid my soul of one dark blot. 
 
 To Thee, whose blood can cleanse each 
 
 spot, 
 
 0 Lamb of God, I come, I come! 
 
 Just as I am—Thou wilt receive. 
 
 Wilt welcome, pardon, cleanse, 
 relieve; 
 
 Because Thy promise I believe, 
 
 0 Lamb of God, I come, I come! 
 
 Just as I am—Thy love unknown 
 Has broken ev’rj’- bander dowm; 
 
 Now to be Thine, yea. Thine alone, 
 
 O Lamb of God, I come, I come! 
 
 JESUS. LOVER OF MY SOUL. 
 
 J EISUS, Lover of my soul. 
 
 Let me to Thy bosom fly 
 While the nearer waters roll. 
 
 While the tempest still is high! 
 Hide n>e, 0 my Saviour, hide 
 Till the storm of life is past; 
 
 Safe Into the haven guide; 
 
 0 receive my soul at last! 
 
 Other refuge have I none. 
 
 Hangs my helpless soul on Thee; 
 Leave, 0 leave me not alone. 
 
 Still support and comfort me! 
 
 All my trust on Thee is stayed, 
 
 All my help from Thee I bring; 
 Cover my defenceless head 
 
 With the shadow of Thy wing! 
 
 Thou, 0 Christ, art all I want. 
 
 More than all in Thee I find! 
 
 Raise the fallen, cheer the faint. 
 
 Heal the sick, and lead the blind. 
 Just and holy is Thy name, 
 
 I am all unrighteousness; 
 
 False and full of sin I am. 
 
 Thou art full of truth and grace. 
 
 Plenteous grace with Thee is found, 
 Grace to cover all my sin; 
 
 Let the healing streams abound. 
 
 Make and keep me pure within; 
 Tbou of life the fountain art, 
 
 Preelv let me take of Thee; 
 
 Spring Thou up within my heart. 
 
 Rise to all eternity. 
 
 BEHOLD A STRANGER. 
 
 15EH0LD a Stranger at the door: 
 
 He gently knocks, has knocked 
 before; 
 
 Has waited long, is waiting still: 
 
 You treat no other friend so ill. 
 
 Oh, lovely attitude! He stands 
 With melting heart and laden hands; 
 Oh, matchless kindness! and He shows 
 This matchless kindness to His foes. 
 
 But will He prove a friend indeed? 
 He willj the very friend 3 mu need— 
 The Friend of sinners; j'es, ’tis He, 
 With garments dyed on C^vary. 
 
 Rise, touched with gratitude divine. 
 Turn out His enemy and thine; 
 
 That soul-destroying monster, sin; 
 
 And let the heavenly Stranger in. 
 
 GLORY TO HIS NAME! 
 
 WN at the cross where my Saviour 
 died, 
 
 Dowm where for cleansing from sin I 
 cried. 
 
 There to my heart was the blood 
 applied— 
 
 Glory to His name! 
 
 CHORUS: 
 
 Glory to His name. 
 
 Glory to His name! 
 
 There to my heart was the blood 
 applied— 
 
 Glory to His name! 
 
 r am sp wondrously saved from sin,— 
 
 Jesus so sweetly abides within,— 
 
 There at the cross where He took me in— 
 Glory to His name! 
 
 0 precious fountain that saves from 
 sin, 
 
 I am so glad I have entered in; 
 
 There Jesus saved me and keeps me 
 clean— 
 
 Glory to His name! 
 
 Come to this fountain so ridi and 
 sweet. 
 
 Cast thy poor soul at the Saviour’s 
 feet, 
 
 plunge in today, and be made com¬ 
 plete— 
 
 Glory to His name! 
 
I 
 
Jl 
 
WORD OF LIFE HOUR 
 
 Jack Wyrt 2 en, Director 
 Box 511 
 
 New York 8, New York