![This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United
States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away
or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License
included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you
are not located in the United States, you will have to check the
laws of the country where you are located before using this
eBook.
Title: Consolation in Life and Death, Derived from the Life of
Christ
Author: J. Church
Release date: October 6, 2018 [eBook #58048]
Language: English
Credits: Transcribed from the 1824 R. Weston edition by David
Price
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CONSOLATION IN
LIFE AND DEATH, DERIVED FROM THE LIFE OF CHRIST ***](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/43899-250323235940-c5bb9e95/85/Constraints-in-Discourse-172nd-Edition-Anton-Benz-Ed-26-320.jpg)
![affectionate wife, a kind mother and a good neighbour. Although it
is her eternal gain, it is a grief and affliction to us; but I trust that
this, as well as every other appointed trial, was sanctified for us in
the eternal covenant of grace, and as an evidence of it, produce in
our minds its suitable effects. Death is at all times solemn and
affecting in the world, in the neighbourhood, and amongst our
acquaintance; but when sent more immediately into our families, to
bereave us of those who are very dear to our hearts, we are the
more sensibly touched with the stroke, when the Lord says to us, as
he did to the prophet Ezekiel, “Son of man, behold I take away from
thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke; and at even my wife
died.” [4]
Such painful dispensations are most keenly felt; and while
we deplore the ravages of death, we cannot help reverting to its
instrumental cause—“Sin, which brought death into the world, and
all our woe:” to this king of terrors, and often a terror to kings, all
have submitted but two, Enoch and Elijah; and all must submit,
except those of the people of God, who will be found alive at the
second coming of our Lord; these will probably experience a
momentary change, equivalent to the stroke of death, and be
changed body and soul, in the twinkling of an eye. This great
mystery was revealed to the apostle Paul; perhaps, the first that was
ever led to know it. All beside, the Lord’s people as well as the
world at large, must pass through the gloomy territories of this king:
but, the dear Saviour has engaged to go with all his people, and
conduct them safely through; and though all do not go through with
the same joy, yet all are led on safely. Their enemies keep still as a
stone, while the purchased people passed over. Nothing, in heaven
above or the earth beneath, can possibly prevent the execution of
the decreed sentence, “Dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou
return.” It is the pulling down of the house,—it must come down—
the leprosy is in it,—sin has entered every room in the house; and in
consequence of bad tenants, which occupy it, the Almighty Landlord
has ordered us to quit it; we have received, with many a pain, a writ
of ejectment; but we feel reluctant to leave this house of clay,
though in such a damaged state; the indescribable unity which](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/43899-250323235940-c5bb9e95/85/Constraints-in-Discourse-172nd-Edition-Anton-Benz-Ed-31-320.jpg)
Constraints in Discourse 172nd Edition Anton Benz (Ed.)
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- 5. Constraints in Discourse 172nd Edition Anton Benz (Ed.) Digital Instant Download Author(s): Anton Benz (ed.), Peter Kühnlein (ed.) ISBN(s): 9789027291431, 9027291438 Edition: 172 File Details: PDF, 4.06 MB Year: 2008 Language: english
- 8. Volume 172 Constraints in Discourse Edited by Anton Benz and Peter Kühnlein Editor Andreas H. Jucker University of Zurich, English Department Plattenstrasse 47, CH-8032 Zurich, Switzerland e-mail: ahjucker@es.uzh.ch Editorial Board Shoshana Blum-Kulka Hebrew University of Jerusalem Jean Caron Université de Poitiers Robyn Carston University College London Bruce Fraser Boston University Thorstein Fretheim University of Trondheim John C. Heritage University of California at Los Angeles Susan C. Herring Indiana University Masako K. Hiraga St.Paul’s (Rikkyo) University David Holdcroft University of Leeds Sachiko Ide Japan Women’s University Catherine Kerbrat- Orecchioni University of Lyon 2 Claudia de Lemos University of Campinas, Brazil Marina Sbisà University of Trieste Associate Editors Jacob L. Mey University of Southern Denmark Herman Parret Belgian National Science Foundation, Universities of Louvain and Antwerp Jef Verschueren Belgian National Science Foundation, University of Antwerp Emanuel A. Schegloff University of California at Los Angeles Deborah Schiffrin Georgetown University Paul Osamu Takahara Kobe City University of Foreign Studies Sandra A. Thompson University of California at Santa Barbara Teun A. van Dijk Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona Richard J.Watts University of Berne Pragmatics & Beyond New Series is a continuation of Pragmatics & Beyond and its Companion Series. The New Series offers a selection of high quality work covering the full richness of Pragmatics as an interdisciplinary field, within language sciences. Pragmatics & Beyond New Series (P&BNS)
- 9. Constraints in Discourse Edited by Anton Benz Zentrum für Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaften Peter Kühnlein Rijksuniversiteit Groningen John Benjamins Publishing Company Amsterdam/Philadelphia
- 10. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Constraints in discourse / edited by Anton Benz, Peter Kuhnlein. p. cm. (Pragmatics & Beyond New Series, issn 0922-842X ; v. 172) Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Discourse analysis. 2. Constraints (Linguistics) I. Benz, Anton, 1965- II. Kühnlein, Peter. P302.28.C66 2008 401'.41--dc22 2007048314 isbn 978 90 272 5416 0 (Hb; alk. paper) © 2008 – John Benjamins B.V. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by print, photoprint, microfilm, or any other means, without written permission from the publisher. John Benjamins Publishing Co. · P.O. Box 36224 · 1020 me Amsterdam · The Netherlands John Benjamins North America · P.O. Box 27519 · Philadelphia pa 19118-0519 · usa The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences – Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ansi z39.48-1984. 8 TM
- 11. Table of contents Acknowledgements vii 1. Constraints in discourse: An Introduction 1 part i The Right Frontier 27 2. Troubles on the right frontier 29 Nicholas Asher 3. The moving right frontier 53 Laurent Prévot and Laure Vieu part ii Comparing Frameworks 67 4. Strong generative capacity of rst, sdrt and discourse dependency dags 69 Laurence Danlos 5. Rhetorical distance revisited: A parameterized approach 97 Christian Chiarcos and Olga Krasavina 6. Underspecified discourse representation 117 Markus Egg and Gisela Redeker part iii The Cognitive Perspective 139 7. Dependency precedes independence: Online evidence from discourse processing 141 Petra Burkhardt 8. Accessing discourse referents introduced in negated phrases: Evidence for accommodation? 159 Barbara Kaup and Jana Lüdtke
- 12. Table of contents part iv Language Specific Phenomena 179 9. Complex anaphors in discourse 181 Manfred Consten and Mareile Knees 10. The discourse functions of the present perfect 201 Atsuko Nishiyama and Jean-Pierre Koenig 11. German right dislocation and afterthought in discourse 225 Maria Averintseva-Klisch 12. A discourse-relational approach to continuation 249 Anke Holler 13. German Vorfeld-filling as constraint interaction 267 Augustin Speyer Index 291
- 13. Acknowledgements The contributions collected in this volume are based on the proceedings of the first conference on Constraints in Discourse held at the University of Dortmund. All con- tributions have been reviewed again and thoroughly revised before publication. The conference was organised by the two editors Anton Benz and Peter Kühnlein together with Claudia Sassen. Both editors regret that Claudia Sassen, who did a great job at organising the conference, had to leave the editorial board. We thank Angelika Storrer from the Institute for German Language at the Univer- sity of Dortmund as well as the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft for their financial support. Furthermore, we have to thank our employers, the IFKI at the University of Southern Denmark, the University of Bielefeld, the ZAS in Berlin and the University of Groningen for their help and encouragement. John Tammena has helped reduce the unreadability of our introductory chapter. We want to thank him as well as Paul David Doherty who helped setting up the index. Our special thanks, however, go to Andreas Jucker, the series editor of PBns, and of course to Isja Conen from John Benjamins’ publishing company, for their untiring help and patience.
- 15. Constraints in discourse An introduction 1. General remarks For a long time the development of precise frameworks of discourse interpretation has been hampered by the lack of a deeper understanding of the dependencies between different discourse units. The last 20 years have seen a considerable advance in this field. A number of strong constraints have been proposed that restrict the sequencing and attaching of segments at various descriptive levels, as well as the interpretation of their interrelations. An early and very influential work on the sequencing and acces- sibility of expressions across sentence boundaries was concerned with the rfc (Right Frontier Constraint), often associated with a paper by Polanyi (1988). The rfc formu- lates a restriction on the possible discourse positions of pronominal expressions. Another much discussed constraint governing pronominal reference is the centering principle formulated by Grosz and Sidner (1986). In addition to the proposal of new discourse constraints, recent years saw the development of competing formal frameworks for discourse generation and interpretation, most importantly, Rhetorical Structure Theo- ry (rst, Mann and Thompson 1987) and Segmented Discourse Representation Theory (sdrt). Especially the recent publication of Asher and Lascarides (2003), which sum- marises more than ten years of joint research in sdrt, gave a strong impulse to the field of discourse semantics and led to the publication of an increasing number of papers. Constraints play a role not only in diverse fields of linguistics, but in a wide variety of fields of research in general, such as computer science, especially artificial intelli- gence (cf., e.g., (Blache 2000)). What the use of constraints has in common in all these fields is that they describe properties of objects in order to specify whether certain objects are well-formed from the point of view of the background theory. As soon as an object carries the property or properties specified by all of the constraints defined by the theory, it counts as well-formed and is accepted as (part of) a model of the theory. The object is then said to satisfy the constraints set by the theory. Inthepresentcollection,anumberofauthorscontributedtodefineconstraintsthus understood to specify properties that are relevant in the context of research on dis- course. The multiplicity of identified constraints mirrors the multiple facets of this re- search area itself. To give a rough understanding of major issues in discourse research, we will lay out three paradigms in this introduction and relate them to each other and to the texts in this volume. The three paradigms we selected share a focus on rhetorical relations: a discourse is conceived as such only if every part of it is connected to the rest via certain relations
- 16. Constraints in discourse — an introduction that specify its role. This property of discourse is classically related to coherence and cohesion and can be used as a constraint to distinguish well-formed discourses from arbitrary sets of objects. The paradigms were developed during the last 20 years and within their frame- works, a number of such constraints have been proposed for the description and explanation of the multiplicity of dependencies between units of discourse. Segmented Discourse Representation Theory (sdrt), for example, posits a selection principle over interpretations of discourse: among possible interpretations of a discourse the one is selected that renders the discourse as coherent as possible. This is operationalised via the number of rhethorical relations that connect parts of the discourse and an order- ing over preferences for those relations: the more the better, given their type for some discourse. This principle is called Maximise Discourse Coherence (mdc) and of course is a constraint over the selection of interpretations as well as discourses: of those interpretations that can be generated for a given discourse only those are acceptable that have the highest possible degree of coherence. And among objects generally only those count as discourse for which some interpretation establishes coherence. Con- sider what would happen if (1b) and (1c) were exchanged in example (1), taken from (Asher and Lascarides 2003); the resulting discourse would clearly be less acceptable, and one might well argue that this would be due to the loss of coherence. (1) a. One plaintiff was passed over for promotion three times. b. Another didn’t get a raise for five years. c. A third plaintiff was given a lower wage compared to males who were doing the same work. d. But the jury didn’t believe this. One prominent constraint that is recognised by almost all theories of discourse is the so-called Right Frontier Constraint (rfc), see especially the chapters in Part I of this book. This constraint amounts to a restriction over attachment points in a discourse. (We will give a short characterization here and discuss the rfc a little more extensively in Section 3.) Consider Example (1) again. Under any reasonable interpretation, (1d) can only be related to either the immediately preceding utterance (1c) or to the totality of the preceding utterances (1a–1c). In the first case, what the jury didn’t believe was just the fact that one plaintiff was given a lower wage compared to males who were doing the same work. In the second case, the jury wouldn’t believe any of the reported facts. What should not be possible—and that is the claim connected with the rfc—is an attachment of (1d) to (1a) or (1b) alone. These two utterances should be blocked as attachment points. The name Right Frontier Constraint derives from an assumption over representa- tions stating that more recent utterances, or, more general, constituents in a discourse are graphically represented to the right of less recent ones. Discussion of formal repre- sentations of discourse structure and measures of anaphoric distances can be found in the chapters of Part II of this book. The most recent constituents in discourse (1) prior
- 17. Constraints in discourse — an introduction to the utterance of (1d) are either (1c) or the compound constituent (1a–1c), which makes these two being situated on the right hand side of the representation given this assumption. As accordingly all and only those constituents that are accessible for pronominal anaphoric attachment are on the right hand side of the representation, this constraint is called rfc. As a reaction to the variety of constraints, there will be discussions on a broad spectrum of restrictions on well-formedness, be these universal, language indepen- dent restrictions, like the two mentioned seem to be, or language specific constraints. It is one interesting property of constraints that they can be more or less specific, and their effects can add to each other. Thus, one can end up with a very strong filter over admissible structures by combining constraints that pertain to different properties of objects. Exemplarily, there are discussions on language-specific constraints that don’t seem to be readily transferable to other languages from, e.g., German. For more on language specific constraints, see the chapters in Part IV of this book. Other chapters, Part III, deal with psycholinguistic or neurolinguistic reflexes of constraints and their empirical testing. During the processing of discourses by human participants, the linguistic constraints can be expected to produce effects and generate preferences for strategies or solutions. These predictions of course should be empiri- cally testable. 2. The cognitive status of rhetorical relations The theory of rhetorical relations is a cornerstone of discourse analysis. In general, it is undisputed that the meaning of text is more than the conjunction of the meanings of its sentences, but there are different opinions about the cognitive status of rhetori- cal relations. One position assumes that rhetorical relations are part of the linguistic inventory of language users and therefore of their linguistic competence. When faced with a sequence of two text segments, the hearer or reader searches a closed list of Figure 1. A graphical representation of what it means for a node to be on the right frontier: node α represents the last utterance in a discourse. α and every node dominating α (like β) is thus on the right frontier and available for attachment for a subsequent utterance γ. α β γ
- 18. Constraints in discourse — an introduction rhetorical relations and chooses that relation which fits best, where the criterion for fitting best varies from theory to theory. From this we may distinguish positions that assume that the extra information that the reader infers from the concatenation of two text segments is derived e.g., from assumptions about the speaker’s intentions, com- monsense world knowledge, and conversational maxims alone. Rhetorical relations are then not part of our basic linguistic inventory. We may call the first position a non–reductionist position and the second position a reductionist position. Within re- ductionist positions we may roughly distinguish between approaches that take their starting point in plan-based reasoning, and approaches that take their starting point in Gricean pragmatics. The most important frameworks of discourse analysis discussed in this volume are non–reductionist in character, e.g., the Linguistic Discourse Model (Polanyi 1986), Rhetorical Structure Theory (Mann and Thompson 1987), and Seg- mented Discourse Representation Theory (Asher and Lascarides 2003). As an illustra- tion, we discuss the following example: (2) Ann calls a taxi service. Ann: (1) I need a taxi now. (2) Pick me up at the Dortmund railway station and (3) drop me at Haus Bommerholz. The first sentence is a directive speech act asking the taxi service to supply a transpor- tation to Ann. Propositions (2) and (3) provide more information about the lift. They elaborate the content of the first sentence. A non–reductionist would assume that there exists a rhetorical relation Elaboration that is inferred by the addressee. The inference of text coherence begins with an interpretation of the sentences (1), (2) and (3). The addressee then searches a mental library of rhetorical relations. We may assume that it contains the entries Elaboration, Explanation, and Result. Each rhetorical relation defines constraints that must be fulfilled by text segments which are connected by the relation. For example, a text segment β can only elaborate a text segment α if β denotes a sub-eventuality of α, whereas Explanation and Result assume that the eventualities are non-overlapping and that one is the result of the other. Hence, the addressee can infer Elaboration, and therefore text coherence, from the fact that the propositions in (2) and (3) refer to sub-eventualities of the event mentioned in (1). (For more on this cf. Section 6.) A reductionist tries to show discourse coherence without reference to a predefined set of rhetorical relations. Instead, the explanation may for example rest on assumptions about the speaker’s domain plans. Taking a lift with a taxi is an activity which can be bro- ken down into being picked up by the taxi at a certain place, the taxi ride, and being dropped at the destination. Schematically, we can describe this decomposition as follows: → 1 (S ) TakingTaxi(P) PickUp(P, Time1, Place1), TaxiRide, Drop(P, Time2, Place2) An analysis of Example (2) may proceed as follows: Sentence (1) states the speak- er’s domain intention. This activates schema (S1), which is shared knowledge in the
- 19. Constraints in discourse — an introduction relevant language community. In order to make the directive in (1) felicitous, some of the parameters in (S1) have to be specified. This is done in sentences (2) and (3); they state the place of departure Place1 and the destination Place2. Coherence is achieved by direct reference to a schema like (S1). Discourse becomes incoherent if the hearer cannot find a domain schema which connects the text segments, as seen in the follow- ing example: (3) Ann calls a taxi service. Ann: (1) I need a taxi now. (2) I grew up in Bielefeld, Ostwestfahlen–Lippe. A reductionist position which is based on plan recognition is widespread among approaches in artificial intelligence, e.g., (Grosz and Sidner 1986; Litman and Allen 1990). The assumption that rhetorical relations are part of our linguistic inventory has consequences for our understanding of both pragmatics and, especially, conversation- al implicatures (Grice, 1975). For an example we look at:1 (4) Ann: Smith doesn’t seem to have a girl friend. Bob: He’s been paying lots of visits to New York lately. Implicature: Smith possibly has a girl friend in New York (p). In order to understand Bob’s utterance as a contribution to the ongoing conversation, Ann has to find a rhetorical relation that connects his utterance to her contribution. We may assume that there exists a rhetorical relation of Counterevidence. The infer- ence of Counterevidence can proceed from the semantic content of the utterances and their prosodic and other linguistic properties. It is not necessary that the inference takes into account the interlocutors’ intentions. If Counterevidence holds between Ann’s and Bob’s utterances, then Bob’s utterance must provide evidence for the negation of Ann’s claim, i.e., it must provide evidence for the claim that Smith has a girl friend. This is the case if one assumes that Smith possibly has a girl friend in New York. Hence, the construction of a rhetorical relation between the two utterances leads to an accommodation of the implicature (p). We may contrast this reasoning with the standard theory of conversational impli- catures (Grice 1975), (Levinson 1983, Ch. 3), which assumes that the implicatures are derived by reasoning about each other’s intentions. According to Grice, interlocutors adhere to a number of conversational principles which spell out how discourse par- ticipants should behave in order to make their language use rational and efficient. In particular, Grice assumes that each contribution to the ongoing conversation serves a joint goal of speaker and hearer. A possible derivation of the implicature may proceed 1. For a more thorough discussion of this example and the relation between Grice’ theory of conversational implicatures and the assumption of rhetorical relations see (Asher and Lascarides 2003, Sec. 2.6).
- 20. Constraints in discourse — an introduction as follows: (1) Ann’s utterance raises the question whether Smith has a girl friend; (2) Bob’s contribution must be relevant to this question; (3) Bob’s contribution can only be relevant if Smith possibly has a girl friend in New York; (4) as Bob has done nothing in order to stop Ann from inferring that (p), it follows that she safely can infer that (p). In contrast to the first explanation, this explanation infers implicatures directly from joint intentions and a general principle of relevance.2 3. Topics in the analysis of discourse constraints In the previous section, we were introduced to different positions concerning the status of rhetorical relations. Rhetorical relations provide the backbone of some of the most important formal frameworks in discourse analysis. In this section, we want to address some topics in discourse analysis which are related to the investigation of discourse constraints. We start with constraints related to rhetorical relations and the discourse structures constructed by them. In this context, we introduce, for example, the Right Frontier Constraint as first codified by Livia Polanyi (1986) in her ldm (for more detail see Section 4). Text coherence is the result of interconnectedness of text segments. The analysis using rhetorical relations naturally leads to a representation as a graph. The terminal nodes of the graph can be identified with elementary illocutionary acts. The graph in Figure 2 shows an analysis of the following example, in which Ann tells how she came to Haus Bommerholz: (5) Ann: (1) I arrived at 10 am. (2) I took a taxi then. (3) It picked me up at the Dortmund railway station and (4) dropped me at Haus Bommerholz. (5) I thought it might be quite complicated to get to this place but (6) it wasn’t. A natural question that arises concerns the general structure of these graphs. First we may ask, what kind of branches are associated with the different rhetorical rela- tions. Are they always of the same kind or can we distinguish between different types of relations? Closely related to this question is that for the types of graphs that can be generated. For example, the graph in Figure 2 has a tree like structure and only binary branches. A third question concerns the comparability of different representations. The tree in Figure 2 is an rst graph (Mann and Thompson 1987). These trees are dif- ferent from trees which we usually find in syntax. In syntactic trees, the relations that connect two constituents are normally attached to the branching nodes. In rst graphs 2. Asher and Lascarides (2003) point out that any existing theory of conversational implica- tures in the tradition of Grice, has to assume that interlocutors carry out costly computations about each other’s intentions. Hence, a theory of conversational implicatures which is based on the theory of rhetorical relations is attractive from a cognitive point of view as it makes weaker assumptions about the inference capabilities of the interlocutors.
- 21. Exploring the Variety of Random Documents with Different Content
- 25. The Project Gutenberg eBook of Consolation in Life and Death, Derived from the Life of Christ
- 26. This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. Title: Consolation in Life and Death, Derived from the Life of Christ Author: J. Church Release date: October 6, 2018 [eBook #58048] Language: English Credits: Transcribed from the 1824 R. Weston edition by David Price *** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CONSOLATION IN LIFE AND DEATH, DERIVED FROM THE LIFE OF CHRIST ***
- 27. Transcribed from the 1824 R. Weston edition by David Price, email ccx074@pglaf.org
- 28. CONSOLATION IN LIFE AND DEATH, DERIVED FROM THE Life of Christ; BEING THE SUBSTANCE OF A SERMON On the Death of Mrs. Turner, PREACHED AT THE SURREY TABERNACLE, ON Sunday Evening, the 15th of August, 1824, BY J. CHURCH. “And blessed is she that believeth, for there shall be a performance of those things which are told her from the Lord.” LONDON: R. WESTON, PRINTER, CROSBY ROW, SOUTHWARK.
- 29. 1824.
- 30. SERMON, c. John, Chap. xiv. Ver. 19. “And because I shall Live, ye shall Live also.” Among the many awful charges brought against backsliding Israel by the prophet Isaiah, this was reckoned not the smallest. “The righteous perisheth, (sleepeth) and no man layeth it to heart; and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous are taken away from the evil to come.” The day of life—of the world —and the professing church—is far spent—the sun is going down over the prophets—the birds are hastening home—the labourer returning—the substance of religion declining, and the shadows of it are stretching out. With these solemn reflections, well may we entreat the company and presence of the dear Redeemer, as the disciples did. Abide with us, for it is towards evening, and the day is far spent; the removal of the Lord’s people from us, although it is their salvation, and affords peculiar joy to the surviving spiritual friends and relatives that have been eye and ear witnesses of their peaceful end; yet demands attention, reflection, self-examination, and solemnity of mind. When God strikes he demands an hearing— when he knocks by his messengers, affliction and death, it is—that we may open the door, receive the message, detain the messenger, and enquire for what purpose he is sent. For the Lord’s voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name; hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it. I consider, therefore it is our duty to pay attention to this present affliction, for the loss of a spiritual friend, a pious and steady member of the church, an
- 31. affectionate wife, a kind mother and a good neighbour. Although it is her eternal gain, it is a grief and affliction to us; but I trust that this, as well as every other appointed trial, was sanctified for us in the eternal covenant of grace, and as an evidence of it, produce in our minds its suitable effects. Death is at all times solemn and affecting in the world, in the neighbourhood, and amongst our acquaintance; but when sent more immediately into our families, to bereave us of those who are very dear to our hearts, we are the more sensibly touched with the stroke, when the Lord says to us, as he did to the prophet Ezekiel, “Son of man, behold I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke; and at even my wife died.” [4] Such painful dispensations are most keenly felt; and while we deplore the ravages of death, we cannot help reverting to its instrumental cause—“Sin, which brought death into the world, and all our woe:” to this king of terrors, and often a terror to kings, all have submitted but two, Enoch and Elijah; and all must submit, except those of the people of God, who will be found alive at the second coming of our Lord; these will probably experience a momentary change, equivalent to the stroke of death, and be changed body and soul, in the twinkling of an eye. This great mystery was revealed to the apostle Paul; perhaps, the first that was ever led to know it. All beside, the Lord’s people as well as the world at large, must pass through the gloomy territories of this king: but, the dear Saviour has engaged to go with all his people, and conduct them safely through; and though all do not go through with the same joy, yet all are led on safely. Their enemies keep still as a stone, while the purchased people passed over. Nothing, in heaven above or the earth beneath, can possibly prevent the execution of the decreed sentence, “Dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return.” It is the pulling down of the house,—it must come down— the leprosy is in it,—sin has entered every room in the house; and in consequence of bad tenants, which occupy it, the Almighty Landlord has ordered us to quit it; we have received, with many a pain, a writ of ejectment; but we feel reluctant to leave this house of clay, though in such a damaged state; the indescribable unity which
- 32. subsists between the soul and the body, like mutual friends, renders parting painful here, although they have often been clogs to each other; but they will meet again under the most glorious and happy circumstances in the resurrection morning. And what soul can conceive the joyful meeting of the glorified spirit, and the newly- raised, beautiful, immortalized body? Each will know its own again. —“Nor shall the conscious soul Mistake its partner, but amidst the crowd, Singling its other half, into its arms Shall rush, with all the impatience of a man That’s new come home; and having long been absent, With haste runs over different rooms, In pain to see the whole. Thrice happy meeting! Nor time nor death shall ever part them more.” But however dear to each other, the union must be dissolved; the bands and ligaments, by which soul and body are united, must be separated; this earthly house must be dissolved;—this tabernacle must be removed—its cords unpinned—its stakes pulled up—and the whole must be taken down. “Knowing,” saith the apostle, “I must put off the earthly house of this my tabernacle.” Death is represented as a departure—it is going from one house to another— it is a loosing from port, and launching into the ocean.—Death is the ship or boat which wafts us over to the shores of eternity. It is going the way of all the earth—going a journey to man’s long home —to an invisible world—through a dark valley, where we need a guide; and a Covenant God has promised to guide us through.—It is going to sleep in hope of waking again, sweetly refreshed in the morning of the resurrection; fresh, lively, active, and divinely fitted for heavenly exercises. The shipwrecked mariner has gained the shore;—the weary traveller—the fatigued labourer—the afflicted child, is at rest. Death, through covenant mercy, is the full, the final deliverance. And John is commanded, by God the Holy Spirit, to write it down, and send it to the churches: “Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, even so saith the spirit, for they rest from
- 33. their labours, and their works of faith and love do follow them.” Like Abraham leaving his native country at the command of God;—like Jacob leaving Padan Aram, with all his substance, to return to his kindred. Such the believer’s death. Perhaps, indeed, a thousand alarms may seize his spirit, hearing that Esau, with his armed men, is coming out against him; but by prayer and faith he obtains the blessings, and meets Esau with comfort. For when a man’s ways, through grace, by prayer and faith, thus please the Lord, he makes even death to be at peace with him. Death is the enemy to our natures, although it is a covenant blessing. The last enemy that shall be destroyed, is death: but its enmity is slain in the death of Christ. Here that serpent that crawled up the hill of Calvary, and entwined round the cross, left his sting in the sacred body of a dying Saviour: nor can all the powers of darkness, all the sins, backslidings, and infirmities of God’s people, ever unite the sting to death again. Sin is abolished; the guilt is gone.—It has been said, that when a bee has fastened its sting in a man’s flesh, it is lost for ever after, and becomes a drone. Death, like such a bee, can only hum and affright, but never sting or hurt: it may, it must destroy the body, but it cannot hurt; like a fierce dog, whose teeth are broken out, it can bark and tear a mere tattered coat, but it cannot bite to the bone. What a feeble weak enemy is death, since it took a walk to Mount Calvary! Unatoned guilt is the sting of death. But the Lord’s dear people are led, in some degree, to see for themselves, that Christ has borne away their guilt, has removed the iniquity of that land in one day; and when we are cheered, quickened, strengthened, and well-established in this pleasing fact, this hope- supporting, spirit-giving, soul-animating assurance, we feel ready to go, to depart, and be for ever with the Lord, in this sweet well- founded confidence:— “Lord, let me rest my head, close last these eyes, Yield thee my breath; and, with exulting soul, Smile a peace-uttered, dying, sweet Amen.”
- 34. But amidst the dissolutions made by death, what an unspeakable mercy it is for the Lord’s dear people, the union betwixt Christ and their souls can never be dissolved: they are his property, his children, his bride; he is precious to them in life and death, as the blessed effect of his love to them, and their value in his sight. Hence, it is said, “Since thou wast precious in my sight thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee;” and precious shall their blood be in his sight; and as they are precious to him living, it is written, “Precious in the sight of the Lord, is the death of his saints;” nor should their death be grievous to us, especially dying in lively hope, cheerful confidence, sweet assurance, clear views, and fervent desires. This is the blessed effect of the glorious union between Christ and the soul, as the eternal spring of life, and the glorious head of his body, the church, who has graciously declared in most positive terms, “Because I live ye shall live also.” These most blessed words were very precious to our dear departed friend; upon one occasion, after a season of peculiar trial, while at the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper, and just receiving the cup, these words were sweetly dropped into her mind—they were ever precious to her afterwards: she chose them for her funeral text; and blessed be God, she most divinely understands them, now in perfect enjoyment; they have been much blest to thousands, and I trust the Lord will bless them to us in noticing the gracious declaration and the precious promise as connected with it. Let us notice the life of our most adorable Saviour. First, as God— He liveth from eternity; he is the living God, he is emphatically called life, the true God, and our eternal life; and this is the eternal life which John says was manifested: the very knowledge of whom is eternal life begun in the soul. In his divine essence, his eternal nature, he is the self-existent, independent Jehovah; underived, unoriginated, and incommunicably God, without beginning, succession, or end; without the shadow of a change; he is eternal, immortal, who only hath immortality from everlasting to everlasting; and of his years there is no end; one in the divine Trinity, co-equal, co-essential, and co-eternal with the Father and the Holy Spirit; one
- 35. in the sacred society of the adorable Trinity, enjoying the most inconceivable delight and complacency in his own divine perfections; and in the holy ones, the Father and the Spirit; the divine nature, essence, and perfections were not communicated to him as God, but were originally, independently, and eternally his own, in conjunction with the Father, and the Holy Spirit—and as the self-existent God, he has solemnly declared to all the enemies of his Godhead—“If ye believe not that “I AM”—ye shall die in your sin.”—This awful truth, one would think, is enough to put to silence all the cavil in the world against the divinity of the Son of God, as God. Some indeed admit all that can be said about his divinity, but they vainly suppose that his Godhead was communicated to him from the Father; but this thought is an awful insult upon him, no better than high treason and daring blasphemy. Let such read again and tremble,—“If ye believe not that I AM—ye shall die in your sins.” “I AM,” is the self-existent, independent God—and as the living God, he is author of all the life which has been, or shall be given to creatures; in him was life, for by him were all things made, and by him do all things subsist, created by him, and upheld by him; and, while I exist as God, ye shall live also. 2.—As the Son of God in his divine person, which implies his eternal relationship to the Father, he lived in eternity as a person existing with the Father; He is in the bosom of the father, the only begotten of the Father, the express image of the Father, the son of God, without the consideration of the human nature, either body or soul. He was a divine person: the human nature did not make him a person; but the Son of God did take the human nature into union with himself, and though possessing two natures he is but one person. As the adorable son of God, he lived before all the world, a life with the Father—a life of inconceivable delight. Hence the Father has said of his dear son, “in whom my soul delighteth;” and the dear Son of God has said of the Father, “I was daily his delight— constantly and invariably rejoicing—always before him—delighting in the Father before the world was rejoicing,” that he possessed the same nature, being, and perfections, and that he stood in such a
- 36. relation to him as the Son of the Father—and “because I live as the Son of God, ye shall live also.” 3.—As the Head of the Church.—In this most blessed relation he ever lived, does now, and ever will; he is their head as a general is head to his army; as a king is head to his subjects; as a husband is head to his wife; as a father is head to his children; as a master is to his servants; but besides these, our most blessed Lord is that to his people as the natural head is to the natural body; and the members of it, of the same nature with it; superior to it; communicates life, sense, and motion to it; overlooks and protects it; he is the representative head of his body, the church; being united to him, we are in him, and have a representative existence in him; he was chosen to be the head of the elect family, out of the boundless love of God the Father; and they were chosen in him. Eternal election gives us a subsistence, a representative being, in Christ; he lives in God’s eternal mind and love, as the head of the church, and his people live in him, and shall live for ever in him; nor sin, nor time, nor death, can part them. Christ as head, and his people were chosen together; He first, in order of nature, as the head, and they as members; as in the womb, head and members are not conceived apart, but together, so was the church and Christ in the womb of eternal election. God views us in him, and never did, nor never will, consider his dear people separate from him as the chosen head of the chosen body. All other blessings flow to us from, and by virtue of, this union. We live in Christ, we have a covenant subsistence and representative being in him; and as the root, the trunk, the branches, and leaves, are folded up in the acorn, so all God’s family are in Christ, and shall be brought forth in their appointed time; their adoption, justification, redemption, preservation, pardon, calling, perseverance, resurrection, and glorification, all depend upon their election union,—and this union depends upon the everlasting love of God; it is not faith that unites to the Lamb, that is only a spiritual faculty given to us by the holy spirit, to discern this blessing, which leads forth the mind, in affection and gratitude, to a covenant God for it. This union is dated from eternity, revealed in the word,
- 37. preached in the gospel, manifested in our effectual calling, enjoyed by faith, and will be celebrated in the most open and glorious manner, in the thousand years personal reign of our Lord Jesus Christ upon earth, and blessed are they that are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb. Nothing done by he church of God, before or after calling, can destroy this union. In the very existence of Christ, as head, they must live—“For because I live, ye shall live also.” 4.—As Mediator—he ever did, now does, and ever will, live for his people; and in his glorious title as the son of God, as God-man, he has received all blessings for his church; and these are comprehended under the term LIFE. The Lord hath commanded his blessing, even life for evermore; and as the Father hath life in himself, even so hath he given to the son to have life in himself. Christ, as God-man lived in the purpose of God from eternity; and though he is compared to many things which have not life—to water, to bread, to a stone, a way, a tree—yet they have these additions, living water, living bread, living stone, living way, tree of life. In this most blessed character the ancient saints saw him by faith, received him, and lived and died upon him. Job’s faith was fixed here, and rose to sweet confidence, to full assurance—“I know that my redeemer liveth”—yes, now—in this character before God for me, and I see my interest in him. Every believer is now more or less thus favoured. God gives, 1st. Faith to believe in him as such— 2ndly. To rely upon him—and, 3rdly. To enjoy interest in him. He lives, the ever-living Mediator; considered as God-man, he is the Mediator of union between God and his creatures—as elect—both angels and men; and he is the Mediator of reconciliation for his church, as fallen; as the Head of the Church, and the Son of God, he was called to act for her as fallen; and when declared Son of God by the Father, he was sworn into his office as High Priest; to which, in the boundless love of his heart, he gave his consent to make reconciliation for the sins of his people, to give perfect satisfaction, and to harmonize all the sacred perfections of Jehovah. In this most sacred character he appeared in heaven as the Lamb slain, from the
- 38. foundation of the world; to him the old testament church looked, and in the fullness of time, he came and began his work in the wonderful and mysterious act of his incarnation:—made of a woman —made under the law, he was circumcised, and became a debtor to fulfil the whole law for his people. The nature that he assumed, although it was perfectly flesh and blood, yet it was perfectly holy. Hence his appeal to God the Judge of all: “Search me, O, God, and try me, and see if there be any wicked way in me.” His human nature was a holy thing; and possessed in it more holiness than all the angels of light; and in it, he did all the churches’ duty in obedience to the law; he obeyed the ceremonial law as the seed of Abraham, and kept the law of God in thought, mind, will, and deed perfectly. He worshipped one God, never bowed to creatures, or profaned the holy name: honored the sabbath and his parents; nor felt a base desire; nor tinged with sinful anger, much less murder; nor with heart or hand did he ever rob God or man; nor ever bore false witness against any; nor could a covetous thought enter his sacred breast; but with his whole nature loved God and his neighbour, and did unto all men what men in their doings ought to do to each other. This he performed for us; and, in consequence of the essential dignity of his person, as God as well as man, He is styled Jehovah, our righteousness. This is imputed and placed to the account of his people by the Father. God the Holy Spirit opens the grand subject to us, we receive it in the mind and affections. Conscience testifying this, we have peace with God. In this righteousness the church is perfected; in it they stand justified before God, and shall never come in to condemnation. But in his glorious character as Mediator, his having become surety for his people, he had to pay the dreadful debt of suffering the awful penalty. As the consequence of the sins of his church, he engaged to endure the hell we had merited. The curse of a broken law, and all which that awful idea contains. He took the bitter draught, the dreadful cup, and drank eternal health to his dear people. “He sunk beneath our heavy woes.”
- 39. All our guilt met on him—the chastisement due to us he bore—the pangs of the damned seized his holy soul; and with convulsive struggles on the ground, with heart-rending sighs, and prayers, and tears; with thorns, scourges, contempt, griefs, and unknown agonies, awful storms, and inconceivable torments, he sweat out, cried out, and bled out the sins of his people. He by himself purged our sins—the physician’s heart was opened by a spear to heal all the diseases of his patients—was ever love like this? “Our ransom paid in blood for deadliest guilt— Oh! hide thy shame-spread face, and turn thy eyes In mournful prospect back to Calvary, now Back to the garden, to the dolorous ground, Grief-moistened with his blood-sweat agony. Ah, what agony! ah! felt for whom? Say, angel, near him then that heard: ‘Behold Thy humbled Maker’—agonized thyself— Asked, but thou canst not say.—No thought can pierce Of man or angel, that profound of pains:— ’Twas the soul’s travail, sorrow’s sharpest throe.” As our surety, sponsor, representative, and mediator, he has put away all our sins; he died, he rose, he triumphed over all his and our foes, and kindly speaks to us—“Fear not, I am he that liveth, was dead, am alive for evermore, and because I live, ye shall also.” While he lived upon earth, he lived a life of faith, hope, dependance, love, humility, and holy zeal, and the believer’s privilege is to live and say, as he lives, “The life I live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the son of God”—a life of faith, dependance, hope, confidence, love, humility, and zeal, though daily interrupted, and the subject of much deadness, carnality, and unbelief; yet as fresh life is given from his fulness, I possess a life that will never die. The Lord has promised to water his people every moment—“every thing liveth where this water comes; and it is in the believer, a well, springing up to eternal life.” And as we use the means, we sing, “Spring up, O, well.” Sing ye unto it: for as well the singers as the players on instruments, shall
- 40. be there. All my fresh springs in Thee, who hast said, “because I live, ye shall live also.” 4.—His life of intercession and advocacy in heaven. Hence the apostle declares, that “he ever liveth to make intercession for all that come unto God by him;” and as we have been redeemed and reconciled to God by his death; much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. He appears in the high court of heaven for us, in the full virtue of his blood, and righteousness— “Looks like a lamb, that’s newly slain, And wears his priesthood still.” This is ever available to the Father for us; he is our priest before the throne, carrying on the work of manifestatives. Salvation, the great sacrifice, once offered, has infinitely more voices for us before God, than all our sins can have against us. His blood is said to speak for us; it cries aloud to the God of justice for the church; yea, for every sensible sinner, that mercy might be shewn, and pardon enjoyed by him upon the ground of strict justice, truth, holiness, righteousness, and judgment; it speaks for us to God—and to us from God—“I have loved thee, I have redeemed thee, I have called thee, thou art mine.” Our great high priest bears all the names of his dear people upon his heart, and though exalted above all principalities and powers, he cannot forget his poor relations on earth. The days of his passion are ended, but not of his compassion. Our spiritual Joseph, though Lord of all, is not ashamed to own his brethren, the poor. Many, when exalted, forget their former poor acquaintances; but our ever-living, ever-loving, everlasting friend, has sworn by himself as the living God—“I will not forget you;” he lives in heaven for his people; by his death he paid the debt; by his resurrection he came out of prison; and by his ascension he shews himself openly to God, the creditor, and pleads satisfaction; he in acting in heaven as our advocate with the Father; he is the faithful friend at the bar of justice, answering all the charges that sin, natural conscience, and Satan, can accuse us of. Hence, for his people, he gives the
- 41. challenge—“who is mine adversary, let him come near,” and by the apostle asks, “who shall lay any thing (unpardoned) to the charge of God’s elect, seeing he maketh intercession with God,” and this precious portion has warned and cheered thousands. “My little children, I write these things unto you, that you sin not; but if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father,” and such an advocate must carry the cause; he has never failed—and demands no fee, but the fruit of the lips giving thanks to his name; and while his personal appearance in heaven has any virtue before God, his mourning disciples are safe, to whom he has said, “and because I live, ye shall live also.” 5.—His life of glory in heaven. He is the very glory of the place. We say at times, of some persons, they are the very life of the company —Christ will be the very bliss, the very joy, the very life of the church above for ever, when he is surrounded with all his blood-bought throng, and with all his holy loving angels; the lamb in the midst will make all their heaven; his person, his glory, his looks, his smile, his love, will feast their happy minds to all eternity; while the glorious majesty of God shall be enjoyed, through the all glorious body of Jesus Christ, as the rainbow round the throne, to behold this glory. The Lord has made choice of his people, set them apart for this very purpose, redeemed them to God, called, fitted, qualified their souls, and will raise them up again in the last day, and for this the Redeemer prays and demands, “Father, I will that those whom thou hast given be with me, where I am, that they may behold my glory,”—and as he smiles, they will sing—or, “Overwhelmed with raptures sweet, Sink down, adoring at his feet.” And what adds a blessing to the whole is, that this bliss, this felicity, will be for ever; yea, lasting as the very existence of him, who, for the everlasting consolation of his people, hath said, “and because I live, ye shall live also.” Our most blessed Lord is the author, giver, and maintainer, of all natural, spiritual, and eternal life, for all live in
- 42. him; he is the root and spring of all the life of sanctification, and glorification of his people, and though they are said to live in him by faith, yet more properly it is Christ living in them. Christ liveth in me —all the blessings of the covenant of grace are in him—the eternal favor of God, which is our life, is in him—and this is the grace which was given us in him before the foundation of the world; he came, that his people might have life, and have it more abundantly in experience and enjoyment; he came that he might abolish death, and bring life and immortality to light by the gospel. Justifying, pardoning, and regenerating grace, is brought to light in the word, and often brought to light in the souls of God’s children, and they by virtue of union to their covenant head, live—live in the love, favour, mind, purposes, decrees, covenant, and promises of God—live in Christ, secured, hid, locked up—where Christ is hid as head, there they are hid—live representatively before God—live spiritually by quickning power, and this life in the soul is the holy spirit as the spirit of life. The Lord and giver of life, producing as an evidence of his indwelling—a spiritual hungring and thirsting after the favor of God, the sense of pardon, holiness, love, and communion, humility, self-abhorrence, spiritual repentance, holy confidence, resignation, and joy—and where these are found in the soul, by divine teaching they are the evidences of being disciples indeed, and it is to such genuine disciples our dear Lord speaks in the sweet language of the text—“ye see me; and because I live, ye shall live also.” Such indeed was our dear departed friend—spiritually quickened and made alive to God, she possessed those immortal principles which supported her through the changing scenes of her pilgrimage— cheered her heart at times—subdued her fears—brought her mind to God—endeared the Saviour—bowed her will to the Lord’s will—and caused her to long to be dissolved, and to be with Christ: to grace, and grace alone, she attributed all her salvation from first to last; her soul hated every system that was calculated to exalt the creature in any sense whatever. Convinced deeply of the depravity of the human heart, she was often led to self-abasement, self- loathing, and self-condemnation, taught out of God’s law—she felt her need of a surety, a mediator, a law fulfiller, a better
- 43. righteousness than her own; she saw the way of forgiveness by the great atoning sacrifice of Christ; and was taught to believe, to receive Christ with his whole finished salvation; she loved to hear him extolled; his very name was precious to her; his word was dear to her; she loved his people who stood manifest to her conscience, that they were taught of God; she highly esteemed those ministers, whom she considered faithful to God, to truth, and to souls; she prized the ordinances, because they were of divine appointment, and because the Lord had often met her in them. Her poor mind was often discouraged by heavy trials, within and without; her path, in many instances, was rough; she was often in many waters; the floods at times lifted up their waves; but here she learned the vanity of all things below the stars, the emptiness of the creature, her own weakness, unbelief, and rebellion, these were matters of humility to her; but in this right though rough way, she also learnt the faithfulness, power, wisdom, and goodness of God—the value of a throne of grace to carry her burden to, and empty her ashes at the foot of the altar. Her mind was seldom long from the general infirmity of the Lord’s people, I mean the fear of death; she often gloomily anticipated the last act, the struggle of body and soul at parting her weak nerves, lowness, and dejection. Satan also, taking the advantage, was frequently the cause of great distress in the prospect; yet her dear Lord, in due time, delivered her from these fears; and that same grace which made her willing to be saved in God’s way, made her also willing, yea, desirous of departing, to be with Christ. How true is the language of our poet, “Who can take Death’s portrait true?—Fear shakes the Pencil—Fancy loves excess—Dark ignorance is lavish of Her shades—and these the formidable picture draws: Man forms a death that nature never made; Then on the point of his own fancy falls, And feels a thousand deaths, in fearing one.” None, indeed, return from the grave to tell us what it is; but it is well known, that most of those who have been much troubled in mind all
- 44. their days, have had the most serene moments at last. That God, who has delivered in six troubles, has always been found faithful in the seventh, the last.—Descending into the waters of Jordan, the deep has never swallowed them up: they have found the rock of ages for their feet to stand upon, at the bottom of the brook. I remember, after a season of long and painful affliction our dear friend was enabled to come up to chapel. I was totally ignorant of her coming: but previous to this, I could find no portion of scripture to speak on but this: “And came to deliver them who, all their life- time, were subject to bondage, through fear of death.” This was the last sermon she ever heard: and the truths contained in it, she sweetly felt. Her direful complaint increased. Her sufferings were very great indeed. And as all other persons in like sorrows, so she ebbed and flowed in mind; but her God was with her in her final hour.— “Her final hour brought glory to her God.” In point of gospel principles, she was always at a point: but at times sorely troubled about an interest in Christ, by reason of the cloud that cometh betwixt. But every fresh smile from the Saviour, every sweet word dropped into her mind. Frequently reading the word and precious hymns, the visits of God’s dear people and humble prayer relieved her again. The last visit I paid her, I perceived she was near home. Not being able to speak for a time, I feared she would speak no more: but after waiting a little while, (as a proof of what her mind was fixed upon) she exclaimed, with peculiar solemnity, “By thine agony and bloody sweat, by thy cross and passion, by thy precious death and burial, by thy glorious resurrection and ascension, good Lord deliver me!” Here, on this rock her faith was built in life, and firm in death. A friend asked her if she was happy. After pausing, she said, “Happy, happy! I know that Christ died for sinners, and it is there I am fixed.” She requested the twelfth chapter of Isaiah to be read to her. While reading, she said, “How precious!” and begged to hear it
- 45. again. At the last verse, “Cry out and shout thou inhabitant of Zion,” she said, “Do so, do so; for our God is a great God.” Soon after this, she repeated, in a very peculiar manner, the whole of Mr. Hart’s hymn: “Christ is the friend of sinners, be that forgotten never.” On this she commented as she went on, in a most striking manner. One thing she observed: “Oh, it is easy to say we are sinners, but hard to feel it. Yes it is the righteousness of Christ that I must appear in before God—nothing but the work of a precious Christ wherein I can stand justified before God, and whether I sink or swim I am fixed there.” She then wished to hear the eighth chapter of Acts; and coming to the fifth verse, she seemed delighted. “Philip went down to Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.” “He did not tell them some great nobleman was coming to bestow great riches upon them; but he went simply to preach Christ to poor sinners.” She then repeated the sweet verses: “Not all the blood of beasts, c.” She begged the prayers of the Church when they met; and often asked if she had been remembered by them. To those around her, she said, “Oh, do beg of the Lord to cut the thread, for I long to be with him.” Then she said: “The holy triumphs of my soul, Shall death itself out-brave; Leave dull mortality behind, And fly beyond the grave.” One of her dear daughters telling her, she would soon be with her dear Jesus, she said, “do you think I shall, you have told me so so many times—Oh, why is he so long coming.” Soon after, finding herself very low, nature sinking, and feeling she was going, she said to her daughter: “Are yon alone? call up the rest of the family:” and while standing around her, they witnessed her struggle. But recovering, she burst into tears. “Come back again! dear Lord! I thought that I was going! how long, Lord.” She requested a
- 46. gentleman to fetch a doctor, merely to let her know, by her pulse, the pleasing news, that she was near her end. On being informed she was near, she was more composed. At one time, she exclaimed: “As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O, God.—I want to drink at the fountain.” Lifting up her hands, as if filled with increased joy, she said; “Too much, dear Lord—dear Jesus, I want to embrace thee, as thou dost embrace me.” She begged they would lift her poor suffering arm out of bed, that she might embrace her dear Jesus. Some sweet verses were spoken to her, on the soul’s entrance into glory. She said: “Jesus said unto the woman, ‘Go, and sin no more.’” “Now,” said she, “is the time for that; those words used once to distress me; but Christ the Heavenly Lamb takes all our sins away—that is where I rest.” One of her daughters said, “Upon the rock still, mother?” She answered: “None but Jesus!—look up to the Lord for me.—Why are his chariot wheels so long in coming?” Just before her departure, she said to her husband, waving her hand: “All is well.” Mr. King and Mr. Borrows coming into the room—one of them observed, that though she had lost her sight, what a mercy that the light and holy fire in the tabernacle, should never go out—nor never be put out. On hearing these words, she waved her hand; and presently, without a sigh, she breathed her last. And blessed are the dead which thus die in the Lord: all the Lord’s people die safe—all die in faith. They all die in peace and friendship with God and conscience. But this is meeting death, and finishing the warfare in militant glory. May the dear family, who were kind, affectionate, and perpetually attentive to her, experience the like grace in death—sweetly sleep in Jesus; and whatever may be their fears in life—Oh, that their end may be blessed. “Shudder not to pass the stream, Rest with all thy care on him; Him whose dying love and power, Still’d its tossing, hush’d its roar. Safe is the expanding wave,
- 47. Gentle as a summer’s eve; Not an object of his care Ever suffered shipwreck there.” And while we thus record the riches of sovereign grace, as experienced in life and death, by our dear departed friend, we must not, we cannot, forget the memory of departed worth. Again, another friend in the Lord, a lover of his truth, a respectable member of the church, Mrs. Walton, who sat just before Mrs. Turner, in the chapel; a debtor to grace indeed; she was the daughter of a most respectable and pious deacon of a church, who was much esteemed for his piety and usefulness—beloved of his God, and by those who knew him—and after a life of usefulness in the church, was suddenly called home to a grace-provided glory. While at chapel, he had joined in singing the hymn before the sermon; the minister gave out his text—“Oh come taste and see that the Lord is gracious; blessed is the man that trusteth in him,”—when he was seized with death, and shortly after expired; to the grief of his family, the church, and the neighbourhood. Our departed friend was of course religiously educated, which is no small mercy impressed by grace; at a very early period of her life, the Lord led her to see her own state, as a sinner before God, and gradually drew her mind into a spiritual acquaintance with divine truth—led her soul to the glorious person, and finished work of Christ, as her refuge, surety, atonement, righteousness, and advocate—here she often found rest and peace—these important truths were the very delight of her soul, when she thought, read, conversed, or heard of them—she loved the truth, as it is in Jesus, nor would she attend any place of worship where she thought the Minister was shy of any precious doctrine of the gospel—she was decided, though far from being disputatious; and as grace made her so, the Lord fulfilled his promise in her soul’s experience—“Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee in the hour of temptation, and if any man love me, and keep my words, I also will love him” (manifestatively); but like almost all the family of God, she often experienced much lowness, dejection, fear, unbelief, and doubtings; sweetly revived again, the
- 48. graces of the holy spirit gained the victory over these sad corruptions of the human heart. Sinking and rising, rising and sinking in mind, was her experience till victorious grace gained the conquest in death. For “To patient faith the prize is sure, And all, who to the end endure The cross, shall wear the crown.” Her attendance upon the word was early, constant, and uniform—as a wife, a relation, a neighbour, and a friend, few could equal her— diffident, humble, and serious, loving, kind, peaceable, and benevolent, none perhaps exceeded her; and this she was by the power of electing grace. How great her gain, how deep the loss of all who were related to her in her respectable family, and in the church of God; possessing a spiritual knowledge of Christ, precious faith in him, a hope that maketh not ashamed, founded alone on the person, blood, and righteousness of the Son of God, love to his person, to his truth, his people, his ministers, his ways, and works, evidenced her eternal election of God, her complete redemption from the ruins of the fall, and that the work of grace was genuine on heart, carried by the arms of divine power and faithfulness. She persevered, because carried to the end of her days; this is indeed the privilege of all the Lord’s people. For in his love, and in his pity, he saved them, bare them, and carried them all their days; nor can there be any final perseverance of the saints, but as they are carried — “But he that hath loved them, bears them through, And makes them more than conquerors too. Hallelujah.” However dear the Lord’s people may be to their families, or to the church on earth; as sinners, all must bow to the awful sentence of “dust thou art, and to dust thou must return.”—Even
- 49. “An angel’s arm can’t snatch me from the grave; Legions of Angels can’t confine me there.” An old divine of the last century remarks that “mankind are like sheep grazing upon a common—death is the butcher appointed to take away first one and then another.” Surely then we may ask who next shall be summoned away, my merciful God is it I? What a mercy for the people of God they cannot die unprepared— none unfit; the grace that provided the kingdom has provided a fitness for it, in the person and work of the dear Redeemer, and in the effectual operations of the holy-making God the Divine Spirit; and without this holiness no man shall see the Lord—without this holy change of state, of principle, and of pursuit, none can enjoy either the liberty of the Gospel now, or the glory beyond the grave; and however the wicked may be driven away in his wickedness, the righteous hath hope in his death, “for thou shalt come to thy grave in full age, like a shock of corn, that cometh in his season, fully ripened for the heavenly garner.” Such was our dear departed friend —deeply afflicted in body, such as baffled all human skill; she gradually descended to the grave, sweetly supported, kept up by mighty grace, and consoled by the word of truth. She beheld her pious and affectionate family around her. On one occasion she had been remarkably low in thinking of death, when the Lord kindly, but very powerfully whispered to her heart, “blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, even so saith the Spirit.” This sweet sentence being clothed with such energy delivered her mind from all fears of death. Often did she exclaim “oh! why is the Lord so long in coming? come, come Lord, I long to be at home;” and although her sufferings were great, her faculties were kept amazingly strong, so much as to enable her to repeat the whole of her favorite hymn she had often heard sung at the chapel, on preparation to meat God, ending with — “And if pale death to me appears, Creating new alarming fears,
- 50. My last appeal to Calvary’s blood, And I’m prepar’d to meet my God.” One of her affectionate family read to her the 40th Isaiah, and sweetly commented upon it, which she very much enjoyed. Her desire to depart and be with Christ seemed to increase, and her affliction continuing still, she hastened quickly to meet the last enemy of her nature, though the covenant friend of her soul; prayerful, sincerely, solemnly, and composedly she breathed her soul into the hands of her redeeming Lord; she slept in peace—she fell asleep in Jesus, and experienced all that is contained, in the precious declaration, “blessed are the dead which die in the Lord.”— Her sun sweetly set to rise in another horizon, where it will never be clouded—never set again—never, no never go down: but there the Lord is her everlasting light—her God—her glory; and the days of her mourning are for ever over. “Forbear the righteous to deplore, They enter into rest; Released from care, and sin, and woe, To everlasting bliss they go, And learn what they might doubt below, To die is to be blest.”
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