So let's read a few verses here
out of Revelation chapter 21. I want to begin with verse 1
and read down through verse 5. And I saw a new heaven and a
new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth was passed
away, and there was no more sea. And I, John, saw the holy city,
New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as
a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out
of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men,
and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people,
and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God
shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be
no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there
be any more pain, for the former things are passed away. And he
that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write, for
these words are true and faithful. Notice verse 8. But the fearful
and the unbelieving and the abominable and murderers and whoremongers
and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars shall have their part
in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone which is the
second death. Over in verse 22, And I saw no
temple therein, for the Lord God Almighty, and the Lamb are
the temple of it. And the city had no need of the
sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it, for the glory of
God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the
nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it,
and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into
it. And the gates of it shall not
be shut at all by day, for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory
and honor of the nations into it, and there shall in no wise
enter into it anything that defile us, neither whatsoever worketh
abomination, or maketh a lie, but they which are written in
the Lamb's book of life. Let me read that verse one more
time. And there shall in no wise enter
into it, that is the heavenly city, the new Jerusalem, that
is heaven above. Anything that defileth, neither
whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie, but they which
are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. While there may be many,
many mysteries in the book of the Revelation, there certainly
isn't any mystery as to who it is and what it is the Lord is
talking about and about the place here that has been described
for us in this particular portion of the Word of God, because it
is heaven itself, that holy city, the New Jerusalem, which is yet
to be revealed. Now this morning I'd like to
dwell a little bit on that Canaan that God has promised to them
that love Him. It is a glorious thing to be
able to look up and anticipate the time when we shall be gathered
to be with the Lord in that eternal and blessed city. And I hope
that by the Spirit of God this morning we would be enabled to
do that. that for just a little while
we'd be able to think away from the things of this world and
to place our attention upon that city, upon that place that the
Lord has gone to prepare for us. It is the best wish of my
heart that all to whom I preach, that they might, when they depart
this life, be gathered with the saints of God and the holy angels
in that blessed, blessed land. On Jordan's stormy banks I stand,
the song says, and cast a wishful eye to Canaan's fair and happy
land where my possessions lie. I am bound for the promised land.
I am bound for the promised land. Oh, who will come and go with
me? I am bound for the promised land. Brethren and sisters, do you
not all hope to go at last to glory? Do you not hope to be
in that fair place for all eternity? There is not one of you here,
I am sure, who do not wish to be happy in eternity. Certainly
you do not want to be where the worm dieth not and the fire is
not quenched. Certainly you do not want to
be in that place where the smoke of men's torment ascendeth up
forever and ever and there is no rest. neither day or night. Surely, you want to be in that
place where the Lamb is the light thereof. Surely, you want to
be in that place of eternal light and eternal blessing. But what
are your hopes of heaven founded? What is your hope? of heaven
and what is it founded upon? What are you trusting? You being
the kind of person you are, I being the kind of person I am, what
are we trusting? What are we hoping in that we're
going to be able to miss the judgment of God that surely is
going to come upon the world of the ungodly, its opponent,
and the man wants to die? And after this, the judgment,
what is our hope? What is the hope that we're going
to miss? Eternal death. Heaven is a prepared
place, and they that dwell there are all of one character, and
the entrance into this city is only by one door, and don't you
ever forget it. Jesus said, I am the door. By
me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and
out and find pasture. That is by me. By me, he is able
to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him, seeing
that he ever liveth to make intercession for them. So, beloved, Jesus
is the door into this heaven. And then, too, in the word of
God, I read of two sorts of hope. There is a good hope and there
is a bad hope. A living hope and there's a dead
hope. The hope of the righteous and the hope of the wicked. Yes,
even the wicked have some manner of hope. There's a true hope
and a false hope. A living hope and a dead hope. The hope of the righteous and
the hope of the wicked. The hope of the believer and
the hope of the hypocrite. I read of some who have hope
through grace. a hope that maketh not ashamed,
and of others who have no hope, and are without God in the world.
And I think as we reflect upon that, we'll begin to ask ourselves,
upon what is my hope of going to this city? Upon what is it
founded? Surely it were wise and prudent
and safe. to find out what the Bible has
to say to us on this subject and to discover whether or not
our confidence is indeed well founded. And to this end, I bring
this text before you today, verse 27. I want to talk about the
three things in this text that I'll be talking to you about
this morning, God willing. First of all, there's a mention
here of the place itself, which I've already told you, according
to this chapter, is heaven. Second, we're told of the character
of those who will not, certainly will not be there in that place
in eternity. And thirdly, We are told who
alone will be there, and that is those which are written in
the Lamb's Book of Life. May God the Holy Ghost incline
us to examine ourselves while we yet have the time, because
time is fast, fast moving along. Before that great day comes when
the unconverted shall be past all hope, And the saints, past
all fear, may God help us to examine ourselves today. Do you
have a good hope? A real good hope that's founded
upon and based and bottomed on the word of God and upon the
grace of our lovely Lord Jesus Christ. First of all, then, I'm
to talk about the place itself. There is such a place as heaven. Do you believe that? Do you believe
that? Jesus said, I go to prepare a
place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will
come again and receive you unto myself that where I am, there
you may be also. I believe that is heaven. No
truth is more certain, I think, in the whole of scripture. than
this, there remaineth a rest therefore for the people of God. This earth is not our rest, it
cannot be. There is not a man or woman breathing
who ever found it so. Now they might have lied to you
and told you that it is their rest and that they have all the
happiness here that they want build your happiness on earth
if you're so disposed and these people might incline you to believe
that you can do so and be happy here. But what about eternity?
What about eternity? My friend, we need to examine
the Word of God. We need to listen to what the
Word of God says. We can go on and believe whatever
we want to, but your opinion, my opinion, and other men's opinion
are not worth a snap of our fingers. It's the opinion which God utters
that's important. It's what the Word of God teaches.
Choose anything you would. Make your life as enjoyable as
you can. Money, houses, and lands, education,
health, beauty, honor, friends, whatever. And if this is all
you have, then, beloved, if this is all there is for a believer,
then we're of all men indeed, as Paul said in Corinthians,
most miserable. We're miserable if this world
is all there is. We must look past this, we must
examine the word of God and get on that path of life, which is
the person of Christ. This life so full of trouble
and sorrow and care, of worry and labor and toil, this life
of losses and bereavements, of partings and separations, of
mourning and woe, of sickness and pain, this life of which
even Elijah got so tired that he requested that he might die.
Would we not be crushed to the very earth with misery if this
were all and nothing beyond? If I thought there was nothing
for me beyond the dark, cold, silent, lonely grave, how miserable
I would be from hour to hour. I should indeed say it would
have been better for me if I would have never been born and brought
into this world. Thanks be unto God, this life
is not all. thanks be unto God those that
have been baptized for the dead those that have been baptized
and said that's the end of this life as far as I'm concerned
those that have completely abandoned themselves in the hands of the
Lord and said I care not for riches I care not for the pleasures
of this world I abandon them all that I might win Christ I
count all that done that I might win Christ Beloved, there is
a place, there's a glorious rest beyond the tomb for these. And I'm persuaded that this earth
is only the training school for eternity. The grave is but a
stepping stone and halfway house, if you please, to heaven. We
have assurance that these poor bodies of ours shall rise again,
and this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and this mortal
shall put on immortality, and we shall be with Christ. We shall
be with Christ forever. Yes, heaven is a truth and it
is no lie. I'm not more certain of my own
existence than I am of this, that is an eternal home of bliss
and heavenly rest awaits all of those who are genuinely in
Christ. those whose sins have been pardoned
and put away by the shed blood of Christ. Without the shedding
of blood there is no remission, and the blood of Jesus Christ,
God's Son, does cleanse us from all sin. And with this we are
assured of a heavenly home where we can lay aside the armor of
God and say to the sword of the Spirit, rest and be still. Here we're using the Word of
God. Here we're proclaiming the Word of God. Here we're preaching
the Word of God. Here we pray God's blessing upon
the Word. But there'll come a time when
God will no longer be using His Word, i.e., on the earth, to
the bringing in of the lost sheep. And we shall be at rest. Now
we need watch no longer, for we have no spiritual enemies
to fear once we get there. No spiritual enemies to fear.
Now, beloved, are you not aware of the fact that today we're
turning the road here, that you run into somebody that's an enemy
of God? Someone who would tell you that
God is a liar? Let God be true and let every
man be a liar. But do we not run into spiritual
enemies everywhere? Brother, sister, this world is
full of them. The Bible says in 1 John that
the whole world lies in the lap of the wicked one. And it is
true, it's desperately true, that this world is no friend
of grace to help us on to God, but there's coming a time when
there will be no spiritual enemies and we'll pray no more. for there
is no more evil to pray against. Here you got to pray, Lord, keep
me. Lord, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Father,
keep us from all temptation. Deliver us from evil. But when
we get there, there won't be any more praying that way because
there won't be any more evil. And if this verse teaches anything,
before we're done, you'll believe what I'm telling you. There won't
be any evil in that city. There the wicked must cease from
troubling, and their sin and temptation are forever shut out,
and the devil is forever barred from that city. The devil will
never be there. He's here, and he may be on a
chain and we believe that somewhat he is, but he certainly is active
yet in this world. I think the devil is chained
as far as the elect is concerned. He can't keep them from coming
to Christ. They will be brought, all of
them will be brought in. But as far as him still being
the God of this world and in the affairs of this world, the
spirit that works in the children of disobedience, he is indeed. But in heaven, he will not be
there, he'll be forever barred. O Christian, take comfort from
this. Surely this shall be indeed a
blessed rest for which we are going. And we look forward to
it with great anticipation. For there, faith shall be swallowed
up in sight, and hope in certainty. You're hoping this morning, aren't
you? You're hoping. You're hoping and you have faith.
But wouldn't it be wonderful when hope is swallowed up in
certainty, and when we see Him and see Him face to face, the
Lord Jesus Christ, the lover of our soul, that one who so
manifested Himself to us so many, many times, the love of God.
Somebody said, what is it? Well, none but His loved one
knows. None but his loved one knows. They are the only one
that knows and he's manifested himself in holy love and blessed
them in the details of life and how wonderful and merciful it
is to live as a believer in this world and to daily have The kindness
of God manifested, Him showing us His loving kindness. But my
friend, we're going to a place where that shall be uninterrupted. We're going to a place where
it shall be eternal, and it shall be blessed to our souls forever
and ever. Prayer will be turned into praise
and sorrow, all sorrow turned into joy. Now, beloved, in this
world is the school, this time, this season is the time of lesson
and the rod. Then will be the eternal holiday. Now we must endure hardness and
press on, faint, yes, but yet pursuing. Then we shall sit down
at ease, for the Canaanites shall be expelled forever from that
land. Now we are tossed upon a stormy
sea, then we shall be safe in the harbor of God. Now we must
needs bear the cross. But then we shall receive the
crown. Now we're journeying through
the wilderness, but then we shall be at home with our blessed Lord. Here our bodies are wracked with
pain, and we have sorrow. You can look forward to that,
you young people. It's coming. It surely is. Worldly goods take their wings
and fly away, and we have sorrow. Bodies wracked with pain, we
have sorrow. Earthly goods take wings and
fly away. Some of you know about that too.
And we have sorrow. We're encompassed with difficulties
and troubles. And we have sorrow. Jesus said,
in the world you'll have trouble, tribulation, but be of good cheer. I've overcome the world. In the
book of Acts, the apostles told us that through much tribulation,
we would enter the kingdom of God through much trouble. Oh,
so we have trouble. We're separated from those that
we love, and we have sorrow. We have sorrow in our hearts. Those on whom our hearts' affections
are set will go down to the grave, will experience it, you have,
and leave us alone. and we have sorrow in this world,
and then too we find our own hearts frail, and we find them
betraying the Lord, we find them full of corruption, and that
brings a measure of sorrow, does it not, to our hearts. We see
those who are near and dear to us refusing to walk with God,
And that brings sorrow and disappointment to our hearts. I'm talking about
here. I'm talking about here and contrasting
that to the place where we're going to go, that place that
John's talking about in Revelation 21. Oh, what a sorrow and grieving
world we live in. Oh, the sadness. If you listen
to the news, Brother Larry mentioned downstairs this morning in his
prayer, the great turmoil over in the east in Israel and the
Palestinians and the deaths and all of the sorrow and lives such
an upheaval at this time. Well, my friend, this is a sorrowing
and a grieving world. It's a very very, very trying
world, and we live in it. We live in it. We cannot escape
it. As long as we're in this world,
we must experience what this world has to offer. But blessed
be God, there shall be no more sorrow in heaven. It'll be all
past. and God will make all things
new and there will be no more sorrow in heaven. There shall
not be one single tear that shall be shed in heaven. They shall
be all wiped away. There shall be no more disease
and weakness and decay. The casket and the funeral and
the grave mourning shall be all unknown over there. We shall
not experience it anymore after this life. That word farewell,
farewell, farewell, goodbye shall never be heard again. How glorious. Isn't that wonderful? Isn't that
wonderful? Never be heard again. There should be no more anxious
thoughts about tomorrow. No more sharp and cutting words
to wound our poor souls. Never ever again shall it be
heard. Our wants will have come to a
perpetual end and all around us shall be harmony and love. Wouldn't you like to live in
a place like that? Where there's harmony and love, true love,
where there's no deceit, where everything is as it ought to
be. Oh, brother, sister, what is
our light affliction when compared with such an eternity that we
have presented to us in the Word of God? What is our few days
here until school is out and we're then ushered in to that
glorious place. Shame on us if we murmur and
complain and turn back with such a heaven before our eyes, such
a heaven before our spiritual eyes. These sayings are faithful
and true. Not any of them shall fail. surely
brethren it is worth a little pain it's worth a little labor
it's worth a little poor if only we may have the lowest place
in the kingdom of god if we can just have the lowest place it'll
be worth all heaven will be worth it all the song says and i believe
that with all my heart now then secondly we've talked a little
bit about heaven and we've heard of heaven but all all to whom
I'm preaching this morning, all shall not enter there. And who
are they who shall not enter? All who are talking about heaven,
there was an old song one time that said, are not going there.
All who are talking about it are not going there. There's
a barrier here erected. And this is sad and painful to
preach. So beloved, the line is not drawn
by the preacher. The line is drawn by the word
of God. Listen to this verse. And there
shall in no wise, in or in, to it anything that defileth, neither
whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie. Now that line
is drawn not by me as a preacher. Not by me. Oh, we're charitable,
are we not? But my friend, we're not so charitable
that we would believe that people that never had a new nature imparted
to them by divine grace would be happy in this city. We don't
believe they would be. We believe that only the redeemed
of the Lord will be happy in this city. And we don't think
that those who are outside of Christ in a state of nature,
that they would ever be happy there, that they would ever enjoy
themselves there. And I don't think they want to
go there. I don't think they do. And if they did, they'd wreck
the place. God will not allow it. He would
not permit it. Nothing but defilement. No person
who defiles, no fallen spirit or sinful man. can enter into
that city. Flesh and blood shall not enter
into heaven. No person, no person, no tendency, no leaning,
no inclination or will to sin can gain admission in that city.
Now you listen carefully to what I'm telling you. No wish, no
desire, no hunger towards that which is unclean shall ever be
found in that perfect city of God. Nor even a thought of evil
can be conceived there, much less a sinful act performed.
Nothing shall ever be done within those gates of pearl contrary
to the perfect and holy law of God, nor anything imagined in
opposition to the spotless holiness of the triune God who occupies
that place. The term anything but defiler
includes even an idea or a memory of the thought of evil. Falsehood
is an abomination. This means that all who practice
those sins of life which God has pronounced abominable, and
take pleasure in them, and countenance those who practice them, and
those who live in them, will not be in heaven. Now beloved,
we recognize it on this earth that there are many people who
get into churches, they get into churches, they slip in, and we're
not God, we don't know. We can't separate the tares from
the wheat. But in this place, they cannot
get through the gate unless their names are written in the Lamb's
Book of Life. Like we said, they may be allowed
in some churches here, but they will not be allowed in that city. And notice that no untruth can
enter, neither whatsoever maketh a lie. Verse 8, we read it said,
all liars shall have their part, all the fearful and the unbelieving,
and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth
with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. In this
world, my friend, you just got to be careful. You cannot go
through a day without, if you're around the people of this world,
without seeing obvious deceit and seeing the obvious lying
that's going on. And certainly, whatsoever maketh
a lie will not be found in that city. All liars shall have their
part. And whatever makes a lie is what
we read there in verse 27. Nothing can enter heaven which
is not real. Nothing erroneous will enter
there. Mistaken, conceited, hollow, professional, pretentious, unsubstantial
can be smuggled through the gates. Nothing like that can enter into
those gates. Only truth can dwell with the
God of truth. And the God of truth will be
the one who decides who comes in to this place. This takes
in the case of the hypocrite and the false professor, the
lip servants. And they say they know God, but
Paul said, but in works they deny him. They're like barren
fig trees that are all leaves and no fruit. Many, many of those
professors in this world, they're like tinkling cymbals, all sound,
but hollow, empty, and without the root of the matter being
in them. They have an aim to live while
dead, and they have a form of godliness. Without the powers,
the way Paul described them, they say much. And they do little. They have none of the grace of
God in them. Their religion is public. It's
not private. Plenty abroad, but none at home.
Plenty without, but none within. Plenty in the tongue, but none
in the heart, where it counts. Salvation is hard work. In short, none in the state of
nature will ever get past the eye of God at the gate. They'll
all be turned back. You've been born one time, huh?
One time. You'll never get past the gate.
You'll never get past the gate. You're in a state of nature.
You've never been regenerated by the Spirit of God, quickened.
You've never been given life by the Lord Jesus Christ. You've
never been born again. Then you'll not enter in at the
gate. That's the short of it all. You
must be born again. You must be regenerated by God's
Spirit. You must have come to Christ. And all that He is must have
become yours. or else you cannot enter into
this city. And there is in all of us a lusting
after evil of some sort or another. Is there not? Us living in these
bodies? There ain't no one of us that
can get through a day without having some kind of a desire
towards something of the world or something around us that we
lust at. That's what the word means, desires. Desire. But the flesh longs after forbidden
things. It longs for it. Your flesh,
it always will. Even though you're a believer
in Christ, your flesh will long after forbidden things. And there
are times when we weep, and we ought to weep our eyes out when
we discover while a palate for pleasurable sin our old nature
still retains, a longing for the very sin of which we must
bitterly repent and from which we long to be delivered. Sin
is a part of every one of us. Which brings me to the last point,
and thank God there is a last point. I'm glad there is. And then The last thing is, but
who will occupy this city? Who's going to heaven by and
by? Who's going to ascend up into that city? Well John says,
but they which are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. They
which are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. Now there is a
book. there is a book prepared from
all eternity i'm not interested is what i heard one preacher
say many years ago he said i don't want the books got out he said
i want the book i don't want the books now you see there could
be books written on every one of us books but that the book
there is a book There is a book prepared from all eternity which
God the Father keeps sealed, the book of His election. Of
that book man knows nothing except this blessed truth that there
is such a book. There is such a book. Revelation
13.8 talks about the Lamb's book of life. Revelation 20 verses
12 and 15, Revelation 17 and 8, all these verses talk about
the Lamb's Book of Life, which was written before the foundation
of the world. These verses teach us that this
writing took place, my friend, back in the Council Halls of
Eternity, and only the wisdom and mind of God is expressed
in that book. And certainly the Word of God
is clear that unless your name is written in that book, unless
it is written in that book, you cannot ascend up unto this city. Your name must be in that book.
Well, they are all believers in Jesus Christ. all these because
you don't get in the Lamb's Book of Life and when that book is
opened and the contents of that book are revealed, only those
who have come to Christ, only those who are in Christ and have
obtained like precious faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, only
they will be able to enter into this city. They found out the
excellency of the Word. that he did to save them, and
they cast themselves and their burden, the burden of their souls,
they have in time cast the burden of their souls upon the Redeemer. Have you laid the weight of your
soul entirely upon Christ? Mike mentioned that verse there
in John about, it's finished, it's finished. What a glorious
word that is. Glorious word, it's finished.
Have you cast the burden of your soul, your sin, all that you
are? Have you cast yourself upon the
Lord Jesus Christ, the God-man? The Father has given life to
the Son and said you can quicken whom you will. Has He quickened
you? Has it been the will of the Father that you should be
saved by Christ and that He should lose nothing, lose you? Is that
the will of God for you? And so those who have had their
names penned in this book in their lifetime, they discover
the excellences of the Lord Jesus Christ. They discover the saving
efficacy of the work and life of the Lord Jesus Christ. They
discover His righteousness and the glory in His righteousness. They have taken Christ for their
all in all, their righteousness, their justification, their forgiveness,
and their redemption. They've taken Christ for all
of that. And all of this is demanded by
a holy God before you can enter into heaven. No, our tears will
not avail in that day. Our tears are just so much salt
water that is wasted. No bath for sin. Tears are no
bath for sin. You said, I've done a little
crying, preacher. Well, until you get to that fountain filled
with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins, you have no bath for sin. Tears will not avail. These people were, they're washed
in the blood Their robes have been made clean, they are white.
And this fountain, they have entered into this fountain. I
read the other day about a woman, many years ago, who put a handkerchief
in one of the streams, it's a hot water stream that's bubbling
up down in the park down in Yellowstone.
and she put this handkerchief that was all soiled in there
and it goes down and then it comes out another place and you
go down and pick it up just white as snow. And beloved, we need
to be washed in the blood so we'll be clean before the Lord.
There is a bath and you can take it. And these whose names are
written in the Lamb's Book of Life, they're those that are
trusting the Lord. They're those that are believing
in Christ. Now, I want to think just a little
bit more with you about this, because I believe this morning
that eternity is a prepared place for a prepared people, and I
believe that only Christ can prepare us for that city. We must learn the preciousness
of Christ. And we must not only just hear
about it, but we must come to that place where we rest ourselves
wholly upon what He's done. Wholly upon what He's done in
pleasing the Father. You know, as I think often, I
think often about how that surely as the Lord looks upon His children,
us still having the general bit and bias of our life in the flesh
toward sin, we know that God sees all, but yet He does not
see all when we're in Christ. We know that the Father looks
upon us and sometimes I say to the Lord, Lord, you know, I'm
sure you get tired looking at me. I'm sure you get tired and
weary of looking at me. Lord, look away from me. Lord,
look at your beloved son. Lord, look at Christ. Lord, look
at him because he's your beloved son and he always did those things
that were pleasing to you. He always satisfied you. He glorified
you. He honored the law. He magnified
the law. He established the law and honored
it. And so look to him. Look to Him
instead of me. Look through Jesus' wounds on
me is the way a poet put it. Look through the wounds of Christ
on me. Now, beloved, I'm talking about
going to heaven. I'm not talking about you going
to some shindig out here in the world. I'm talking about if you're
going to get to heaven, you're going to have to have a substitute.
And you're going to have to have somebody that's pleased the Father
to stand in for you. because you've not pleased him
and our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life if so
be that we've had an experience in the grace of God we must live
in him and we must not we must not die and leave this world
except we're convinced of our title and can read our title
clear to mansions in the sky now God will not alter heaven
merely to take you or your loved ones in, unless their names are
written in the Lamb's Book of Life. You must love the things
of heaven before your death, or else you cannot enter heaven
when you die. Well, worthy is the Lamb that
was slain. Blessing, honor, and glory, and
power be unto the Lamb forever and ever. Amen. It's glorious
that he penned our names in that book. and he knew us before the
world ever began. Recently I heard an excerpt from a funeral sermon
that was preached by an African-American preacher down in Louisiana, I
believe it was, and he was preaching a sermon on a funeral sermon
for a lady by the name of Caroline and it was a blessed, blessed
excerpt from that funeral sermon and I got it on tape and I'm
going to see if I can get you to all listen real carefully. I'd like you to hear what this
man has to say. I think it'd be a blessing if
you didn't expect to die and if you don't expect to die, you're
foolish. You listen to what this says. Harold. Weep not. Weep not. She is not dead. She is resting
in the bosom of Jesus. Heartbroken husband, weep no
more. Weep, stricken son. No more. She'd only just gone
on. Day before yesterday morning,
God was looking down from his great high heaven, looking down
on all his children. And his eye fell on Sister Caroline,
tossing on her bed of pain. And God's big heart And God sat back on his throne,
and he commanded that tall, bright angel standing at his right hand,
call me dead. And that tall, bright angel cried
in a voice like a clap of thunder, call dead, call dead. And the echo sounded down the
streets of heaven till it reached the way back where Death waits
with his pale white horses. And Death heard the summons,
and he lit on his fastest horse. There he was as a sheep in the
moonlight, up the golden street, dead gallant. And the hooves
of his horses struck fire from the gold, but they didn't make
no sound. Death rode to the great white
throne and waited for God's command. And God said, go down there,
go down, down in Yamicraw, and find Sister Caroline. She's borne the burden and the
heat of the day. She's labored long in my fibula,
and she's tired, she's weary. Go down, death, and I'll let
you be. Loosened the reins on his pale
white horse and he Clamped the spurs to his drumless sides Out
and down he rode Through heaven's perfect gates Past suns and moons
and stars On death's road leaving the lightning flash behind Straight
down he came While we were watching round her bed Turned her eyes
and looked away. She saw what we couldn't see. She saw old Ben. She saw old
Ben coming like a falling star. to her like a welcome spring. And she whispered to us, I'm
going home. And she smiled and closed her
eyes. And death took her up like a
baby. And she lay in his icy arms. But she And death began to ride
again, up beyond the evening star, into the shimmering light
of glory, onto the great white throne that there he sat. And Jesus took his own hand and
wiped away her tears. And he smoothed the pearls from
her face. And the angels sang the little
song. And Jesus wrapped her in his
arms and kept us saying, take your rest. Take your rest. Wait not. Wait not. She is not dead. He is resting in the bosom of
Jesus. Amen. It's all right to die. Yes. If you've got this hold. It's a little like this one. And it remains in the land for
a while. The Lord is pleased. I mentioned the other day that
verse in the Psalms. The Lord even said, say unto
my soul, I am thy salvation. And the Lord tells you that you're
His, and you know the meaning of that word. And your character
has been changed. And if you've been part of Jesus'
divine life, you know that you love Christ. You love Christ. If you were gonna love Christ,
you're not going to get it. You're not going to get it. It's damn easy. Talk about how
it's blocking you as it comes to the walls. And there's their
soul waiting for their license to get permission. That's another
side of this. May the Lord be pleased to hold
what you heard this morning and use it for His glory and honor. Let's stand and be dismissed.