of death is not removed, when absolutely there is no such thing as death to to fear-it is really astonishing. Now if I am asked what it is: it is a separation of body and soul from God, to all eternity, and what in Scripture is called the second death; now he is blessed and holy that hath part in the first resurrection, on him the second death shall have no power. Those that are blessed and holy, have part in the first resurrection, for that is to have part in Christ. Hear the expression of our blessed Lord in reference to it, "I am the resurrection and the life," therefore in connection with him there can be no dying; this is what our Lord explained, with respect to Lazarus, when he said to his disciples, "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth, but I go that I may awake him out of sleep (John xi. 11, 14); now the disciples supposed that he was talking about the natural sleep of the body, nor did they understand what our Lord meant therefore they said, "Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well;" but our Lord was obliged to explain himself further, and he says, "Our friend Lazarus is dead." Now respecting this event, Paul calls it sleep, "If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus, will God bring with him" (1 Thess. iv. 14). They are in connection with him, lived in union with him, and died in union with him, and that eternal union never can be broken, so that, strictly speaking, there can be no such thing as death, "As waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up, so man lieth down and riseth not, till the heavens be no more: they shall not awake nor be raised out of sleep" (verses 11 and 12). So not to be raised, till raised out of his sleep; now there is the very expression-sleep, then, "Oh, that thou wouldst hide me in the grave, &c., appoint me a set time and remember me" (verse 13). If a man die, shall he live again? All the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. Well, have you any objection to the doctrine? However, if you have, it will make no alteration in it, for it is a fixed thing, and the words I before quoted will prove it, "Unto man it is appointed once to die, and after that the judgment." Now if a man does not die before he dies (can you understand me?) depend upon it, my friends, there is judgment awaiting him; but if a man does die, and all God's people do die, so that they express themselves in language like Paul, "Yea, I through the law, am dead to the law, that I might live unto God;" he shall live again. "Mors Janua Vita "-"Death is the gate to life;" "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive" (1 Cor. xv. 22). Now mind their death: so that the preacher says in his book,. "The day of one's death is better than one's birth" (Eccles. vii. 1). How can it be? What! think you a man's death better than his birth? My dear souls, what a mercy, and what a blessing it is, for a poor sinner to be brought so to the bar of judgment, as to receive the sentence from Christ's own mouth. THE LAST DAYS OF REV. JAMES HERVEY. DURING his long weakness, he had often reflected on that passage, "The end of all things is at hand." Having occasion to write of the death of the ancient patriarchs, he says, "Enos died, Seth died, &c., and (blessed be God for the privilege of death) so shall I. It helps much to carry us cheerfully through wrestlings and difficulties, through better and worse. We see the land of promise near. We shall quickly pass Jordan and be at home. There will be an end of the many vexations of this life, and an end of sin, and an end of temptations; nay, an end of prayer itself, to which will succeed new songs of endless praises." His dying exercise, at different times, we have expressed in the following words:" Believe me, your letters are far from fatiguing me, even in my greatest weakness; they tell me of Jesus, who was crucified, the only cordial for my drooping soul." To his physician he writes, "I have just been reading Gerhard's Support under all Afflictions,' and a most excellent book it is. If your medicines have not the desired effect, I must seek relief from him. From him, do I say? from a fellow mortal? Oh, what are all the consolations that all the creatures in the universe can afford, in comparison of that grand consolation of our condescending Lord's, Ye are my friends' (John xv. 14); Come and inherit the kingdom prepared for you' (Matt. xxv. 24); 'Where the inhabitant shall not say I am sick' (Is. xxxiii. 2); ' And where there shall be no more sorrow nor death, neither any more pain' (Rev. xxi. 4).' I now spend almost my whole time in reading and praying over the Bible. Indeed, you cannot conceive how the springs of life in me are relaxed and relaxing. 'What thou doest, do quickly,' is for me a proper admonition, as I am so apprehensive of my approaching dissolution. My dear friend, attend to the one thing needful." "I have no heart to take any medicines; all but Christ is to me unprofitable; blessed be God for pardon and salvation through his blood. Let me prescribe this for my dear friend." "My cough is very troublesome; I can get little rest; but my never-failing remedy is the love of Christ." He then adds "The gospel bears my spirits up, The "atonement of Jesus" was his darling theme, after he knew the grace of God in truth; and in the appropriating views of this he solaced himself in his dying hours. In this medium death and the grave to him, as a redeemed sinner, were divested of all their gloom; a future judgment appeared to be a joyful solemnity, eternity a delightful, boundless object of pleasing expectation and desire. He employed himself much in prayer for himself and his friends. As to these he says, "This probably is the last time you will ever hear from me; but I shall not fail to remember you in my intercessions for my friends at the throne of grace; and I humbly beg of God Almighty that the love of his Son may sweetly constrain you, and his promises may ever be operative on your mind." To use his own words in the case of others adhering to and glorying in the cross of Christ, he entered the harbour of rest, not like a shipwrecked mariner, cleaving to some broken plank, and hardly escaping the raging waves, but like some stately vessel, with all his sails expanded, and riding before a prosperous gale. His last illness was protracted. It greatly increased in October 1758, and grew very formidable in December following; for on Sabbath, the third of that month, in the evening, after prayer in his own family, he seemed to be arrested by death, so that the united assistance of his sister and servant enabled him with difficulty to get up stairs to his room, whence he never came down. His illness gaining ground every day, he became sensible of his approaching dissolution. He had frequent and violent returns of the cramp, which gave him most acute pain. A hectic cough likewise afflicted him so grievously in the night that he could not lie in bed till four in the morning, and was often obliged to rise at two, especially as opium, how much soever guarded by other medicines, could not agree with him. On the 15th of that month, he complained much of a pain in his side. The Rev. Mr. Maddock, his curate, being with him on the afternoon of that day, Mr. Hervey spoke to him in strong and pathetic terms of his assurance of faith, and of the great love of God in Christ. He declared that the fear of death was taken from him. "Oh," said he, "what has Christ, how much has Christ done for me; how little have I done for so loving a Saviour! If I preached once a week it was at last a burden to me. I have not visited the people of my parish as I ought to have done, and thus have preached from house to house. I have not taken every opportunity of speaking for Christ." These expressions were accompanied with tears, which were too visible not to be observed; and lest his tears should be misinterpreted, as they had been conversing about his expected end, and of his assurance of happiness, he proceeded thus, "Do not think I am afraid to die; I assure you I am not; I know what my Saviour hath done for me; I want to be gone; but I wonder and lament to think of the love of Christ in doing so much for me, and how little I have done for him." In another conversation, discoursing likewise of his approaching dissolution, which he did with the utmost calmness and serenity, and of the little which we know of God's word, he said, "How many precious texts are there big with the most rich truths of Christ, which we cannot comprehend, which we know nothing of; and of those we do know, how few do we remember! A good textuary is a good divine; and that is the armour, the word of God is the sword. Those texts I must use when that subtle and arch adversary of mankind comes to sift me in my last conflict. Surely I need be well provided with the weapon; I had need have my quiver full of them, to answer Satan with texts out of the word of God. Thus did Christ when he was tempted in the wilderness." What Mr. Hervey expected came upon him. The enemy of souls saw him in great weakness of body, and then made a furious onset against faith; but the Captain of salvation was with him, and would not give him over into the hands of his enemy. His faith was tried, and it came like gold out of the fire. Mr. Hervey, the day before he died, went a few steps across the room; but immediately, finding his strength failing him, he sunk rather than fell down, his fall being broken by his sister, who, observing his weakness, ran and caught him; but he fainted away, and was in appearance dead, it being a considerable time before any pulse could be perceived. When he came to himself, Mr. William Hervey said, “We were afraid you were gone;" and he answered, "I wish I had ;" and well he might wish so, for his strength was quite exhausted, his body extremely emaciated, and his bones so sore, that he could not bear one to touch him, when it was necessary to move him about. Yet, under all his sufferings, he was still praising God for all his mercies; insomuch that he never received a morsel of lemon to moisten his mouth, without thanking God for his bounty and goodness, in creating so many helps and refreshments to a sick and decaying body. But especially did he praise God for endowing him with patience, in which he possessed his soul. Indeed, his patience was eminent in his long illness he was never known to fret or be uneasy, nor did those about him observe him utter a hasty or angry word. On the 25th of December, on which he died, in the morning, his brother coming into his room to inquire after his welfare, he said, "I have been thinking of my great ingratitude to my God." Mr. Maddock also paying him his morning visit, Mr. Hervey lifted up his head, and opening his eyes as he sat in his easy-chair, to see who it was, said, "Sir, I cannot talk with you." He complained much this day of a great inward conflict which he had, laying his hand on his breast, and saying, "Ah! you know not how great a conflict I have." During this time, he constantly lifted up his eyes toward heaven, with his arms clasped together in a praying form, and said two or three times, "When this great conflict is over, then-" but said no more, though it was understood he meant would go to rest. Dr. Stonehouse came to him about three hours before he expired. Mr. Hervey urged strongly and affectionately the doctor regarding his eternal interests. The doctor, seeing the difficulty with which he spoke, and finding by his pulse that the pangs of death were then coming on, desired him that he would spare himself. "No," said he with peculiar ardour, "Doctor, no; you tell me I have but few minutes to live; oh let me spend them in adoring our great Redeemer!" He then repeated this verse," Though my heart and flesh faileth, God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever;" and he expatiated in a most delightful manner on the words of St. Paul," All are yours, whether life or death, things present or things to come." "Here," said he, "is the treasure of a Christian; death is reckoned among this inventory, and a noble treasure it is! How thankful am I for death, as it is the passage through which I go to the Lord and giver of eternal life, and as it frees me from all the misery which you see me now endure, and which I am willing to endure as long as God thinks fit; for I know that he will, by and by, in his own good time, dismiss me from the body. These light afflictions are but for a moment, and then comes an eternal weight of glory. Oh, welcome, welcome death! thou mayest well be reckoned among the treasures of the Christian; to live is Christ, and to die is gain." After which, as the doctor was taking his final leave of him, Mr. Hervey expressed much gratitude for his visits, though it had long been out of the power of medicine to cure him. At this time Mr. Hervey lay for a considerable time without seeming to breathe; the company in the room thought he was gone; Dr. Stonehouse took a looking-glass and placed it before his mouth, and observed he was still living a little after he revived. Having paused a short time, he with great serenity and sweetness in his countenance (though the pangs of death were upon him) being raised a little in his chair, repeated these words, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy most holy and comfortable word, for mine eyes have seen thy most precious and comfortable salvation. Here, doctor, is my cordial; what are all the cordials given to support the dying in comparison of that which arises from the promises of salvation by Christ? This, this supports me!" About three o'clock he said, "The conflict is over; now all is done;" after which he scarcely spoke any other word intelligibly, except " precious salvation." Some years before his death, when he found himself bowed down with the spirit of weakness and infirmity, he was afraid he would disgrace the gospel in his languishing moments; he earnestly prayed to God, and desired others to unite in the same petition, that he might not then dishonour the cause of Christ. His own and his friends' prayers were heard; for, notwithstanding his lingering weakness and depressed spirits, which at length gave him up into the hands of death, yet he triumphed over all his fears, and over the grand tempter and enemy of souls, and in no common way glorified his God in dying. During the last hour he said nothing. Meanwhile, it may justly be supposed, though men could no longer hear the dear name of Jesus, as the salvation of God, reverberating on his feeble dying lips, his meditation on him would be sweet, till in a little he cried, with the ransomed millions about the throne, "Salvation to our God and the Lamb, for ever |