The helmet is of continual use. We shall need it as long as our war with sin and Satan lasts. The Christian is not beneath Hope, so long as above ground; nor above Hope so long as he is beneath heaven. Indeed, when once he enters the gates of that glorious city, then farewell Hope, and welcome Love, for ever. He may say with the holy martyr: “Armour becomes earth, but robes heaven.” Hope goes into the field, and waits on the Christian till the last battle be fought, and the field cleared; and then Faith and Hope together carry him in the chariot of the promise to heaven’s door, where they deliver up his soul into the hands of Love and Joy, which stand ready to conduct him into the blissful presence of God.
—William Gurnall.
In the Memorial volume to the Rev. John Sinclair, the highly-respected minister of the Australian Free Presbyterian Congregation of Geelong, there is an interesting note in his diary of a conversation he had with Rev. Alexander MacIntyre, whose labours were so abundantly owned of heaven in Lochaber and also in N.S.W., after he emigrated to Australia. Mr. Sinclair, whose father was born in Oban, was a faithful adherent of the Free Church of Scotland. This is the extract from Mr. Sinclair’s diary:—”Had long walk in afternoon with Mr. MacIntyre, and much profitable conversation. Speaking of, Ye are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God, he said that the believer was dead (1) to the law as his covenant; (2) to sin as his element; (3) to the world as his portion; (4) to Satan as his master, and (5) to hell as his destination.”—The Rev. John Sinclair: Memorial Vol., p. 44.
LET NO MAN TAKE THY CROWN.
I remember having read at the time of the Pagan persecution, about twelve men, Christians, who were under sentence of death, and the jailor of the prison had a strange dream just before the execution was to take place. He saw an extraordinarily fine-looking man coming into the prison, and he had twelve crowns with him, and he went and tried the crowns on the head of the first prisoner, and the second, and right on to the eleventh, and the crown fitted the head of everyone. At last he came to the twelfth and the crown did not fit him at all, and he told the jailor to come over and he put the crown on his head and it fitted him perfectly and he left it there in his dream. The next day the prisoners were taken away to be burned but when it came to the twelfth man he recanted and cursed Christ and when the jailor saw that he said, “That is not what Christ deserves.” He was asked, “And would you recant?” “No,” he said, and took that man’s place at the stake and got the Crown which awaited him. And so ought you, and so ought I to see that we would not lose this crown of eternal life, for all the people of God, however contemptible they may be looked upon in the world, they are kings and shall reign with Christ on His throne. They shall be raised from the dunghill—”He will raise the poor out of the dust, and the beggar out of the dunghill, and set them with the princes of His people.”—Rev. Neil Cameron.