Will you labor for salvation?

Duke University Libraries

D037886942

No. 55.

WILL YOU LABOR FOR SALVATION?

BY REV. DAVID SHAVER, RICHMOND, VA.

The present life is a scene of travail — conflict — weariness.
Often, as we pass through it, are we like the Israelites
wandering in the wildorness, when ''the soul of the people
urage'd because of the way." With what
a fainting heart we see the years wear slowly on; wliile,
one after another, toils and trials strew our path, "thick
as autumnal leaves," and sharper than hedges of thorns ?
But, in the life -to come, ''there rernaineth a rest to the
people of G i. ...1;" an unbroken and enduring rest, who^e
sweet dawn oyen* on the soul at the instant of release
from suffering, dying flesh, but whose perfect consum-
mation is reserved for the times when Christ, who is our
lilc, shall appear/' ;:nd His disciples '"shall " also appear
with Him in glory." It was with his eye fixed on that
blissful scene, with his heart panting after it. with his
feet pressing toward it, that the apostle Paul uttered to
his own generation, and through them to us, the solemn
injunction, i;Let us labor, therefore, to enter into thctt
rest." (Heb 4 ; 11) May we ask you, reader, to dwell
with patient thoughtfulness on the lessons which that
injunction conveys to as?

There is an implied lesson in it It clearly proceeds on
the supposition, that we may effect an entrance into the
heavenly rest. If this be not true, the injunction to seek
it, takes form as bitter and shameless mockery, like the
words of the railers who wagging their heads, urged
Christ to descend from the cross, believing all the while
that it was beyond His power to come down. But the
language of the apostle is the language of frankness and
earnestness. He speaks, because "the oity of the bless-
ed" has gates that "stand open day and night" He speaks,
because between those gates and ourselves no barriers rise
which our feet may not surmount, if we steadily tread the
way of truth. And this is most precious doctrine. Hea-
thenism taught men to frame their guilty fears into the
horrible idea of a "Fate," which "had no head and could
not think," which "had no heart and could not feel/' but
which had an iron, resistless hand sweeping a defenceless
race into an inevitable ruin The gospel shines on this
spectre, and as it melts away, we behold, instead, Christ
the only "Fate" of man ; Christ who "came into the world
to save sinners;" Christ who gave His flesh for the life of
the world; Christ, the often rejected, the never reject-
ing I Like nature's sun this Sun of righteousness shines
for all. The water of life flows freely for whosoever will
take it. All may eat of "the bread which cometh down
from heaven ;" for that bread, as our Redeemer himself
declares, "giveth life unto the world'" It stands, then,
as a truth which cannot be shaken, that every one of us
may effect an entrance into the heavenly rest.

But will we? If we would, we must give earnest heed
to the lesson expressed in the apostolic injunction. We
must remenber that to effect an entrance into the heaven-
ly rest demands "labor." Not manual labor; for in this

ease, "bodily exercise profitetli nothing.0 But that har-
der labor of the mind and of the hearty which calls for
greater industry than any merely physical toil. There is
an evil nature that must be changed. There are evil
habits which must be broken off. There are evil maxims
or rules of conduct which must be renounced. There are
evil examples which must be resisted. These things de-
mand the strenuous exercise of the inner man unto godli-
ness. And without this labor of the mind and of the
heart none enter into nthat rest." Thus, it is written :
"Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from hence-
forth j Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from
their labors, and their works do follow them." As if to
proclaim, that none die in the Lord, noue are blessed in
their death, except those who have works which may fol-
low them and labors from which they may rest ! He who
dreams of .saving his soul on any easier term*, will bo
awakened by its loss. Men may slumber while the tide
drifts them toward the gulf of perdition; but the gull*
swallows them up — and there are no slumberers there.
Wrath opens, never to close again, the eyes which were
shut, which were willingly and wilfully blind, to grate.
Many will see, when it is too late to profit by it, that their
destruction is greatly owing to their not perceiving clear-
ly, and deeply feeling, how necessary labor is, in order to
an entrance into the heavenly rest."

Suffer, then, dear reader, from one who loves your
souls, a few exhortations resting on this vital doctrine.

I. Think it not strange that "labor" should be necc-
ifwe would effect an entrance into the heavenly rest.
There is nothing strange about it.

The same law applies to the things of the present life.
77/ < ir price is labor. On this point, revelation, which is

J,-

the only divine teacher, and experience, which is the best
human teacher, read the same lesson to us. An often
({noted text of Scripture might, without violence to the
original, have been translated : "Man is born unto I
as the sparks fly upward." (Job, 5 ) 7.) This is the pen-
alty of sin ; "lathe sweat of thy face shalt thou eat
bread, till thorn return unto the ground." (Gen, 3} 19)
This is the law of righteousness: "Six days -shalt thou
labor and do all thy work." (Ex. 20 0.) Whether we
regard God, therefore, as a Sovereign avenging rebellion
against Him, or as a Legislator prescribing the measure
of obedience to Him, we find equal evidence, that, accord-
ing to His purpose, man, as respects the present life, is,
and must be, w lu borer — in mind, in body, in both. Those
who attempt practically to annuL the "constitution of
nature ,aud the course of Providence" in this regard,
pluck down manifold evils- on themselves. So the pro-
verbs of divine revelation teach : "I went by the field of
the slothful, and by the vineyard of tire man void of un-
derstanding, and lo, it was all grown over with th<
and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone
wall thereof was broken down, Then I^aw, and consider-
ed it well ; I looked upon it, and received instruction.
Vet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the
hands to sleep; so shall thy poverty come as one that
traveleth," that is, eome swiftl)* "and thy want as an
armed man."1 that is, irresistibly. (Frov. 24, 3ft~-34.)
Of like sort is the teaching of the proverbs of human
experience: "Idleness is the key of beggary;" "Sloth is
' the mother of poverty.". As the general rule, then, toil-
some exertion is necessary in order to secure whatever
men of the world set their hearts on. Karth holds all

thing? at that rate, and yields them up into our possession

and enjoyment at no lower cost.

Now, why should not this law apply equally to the
things of the life to come? Why should sloth be the
mother of eternal riches, and idleness the key of heaven t
Why should those who by doing nothing lose all the bl<
of this mortal state, hope nevertheless, while doing
bing, to inherit all the b of the state immor-

tal ? The expect urdity upon its very

Analogy furbids it. The God of nature is the Grod
of the "H ike over the present

world and the next. Is it not reasonable to conclude,
"then, thai be of one and the same

mid be constituted on one and the game
prim hat the necessity for labor, to the

treasures of the one. should apply to the I ofHhe

other also ? that in both, if in either, (rod should suspend %
the thin . ■! uf-on effort and toil ? Itis not stran

Hhen at our Saviour sheul

in at the strait gate." ( Lu. 18j 24 not strange

that one of his disciples ehoul d k oat y

own salvation with fear and trembling;" (Phil. 2;, 12
and another; to make your calling and

ehction sure.' Pet. 1 ; 10.) Tt is not strange that

to effect an entrance into the heavenly restdemands lal

. it would be stran "ountably strange, if this

were not the ease. Who could explain the obvious in-
consistency, if tin nature gave nothing here to
inactivity, and the God of the Bible gave all tilings to it
hereafter? There is no such inconsistency in Jehovah.
It is amazing that even the most heedless of men should

6

instance can be found, of the power of a warped vision to
wink great and vital truth out of sight.

II. Do not refuse to seek an entrance into the heaven-
ly rest, because "labor" is necessary to effect it. The
fruit of that labor would repay you for its weariness — if
this weariness were aggravated a thousand-fold — and if
that fruit were diminished a million-fold. How much
more certain, satisfying, enduring, are its rewards than
the rewards of earthly labor. Let us lay open this thought
together.

(1.) Labor for the things of the present life is uncertain.

lou may prepare yourself for one of the professions.
Much money and years of study may be expended in se-
curing proper qualification for it. And that qualification
may be yours. Still, though you deserve success, you may
not be able to command it. Competitors, perhaps less
competent than yourself, may jostle you aside in the
eager race after professional emolument or professional
distinction ; and while they float on the full tide, you may
lie stranded and wreoked on the beach. "The race is not to
the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread
to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor
yet favor to men of skill ; but time and chance happeneth
to all." (Eccl9; 11.)

You may till the ground ; rising early, sitting up late ;
rivalling the industry of Jacob, who said, "In tho day the
heat consumed me, and the frost by night," But though
you carry much seed out into the field, you may gather
little in.^God may call for a drought upon the land, and
upon the corn, and upon the wheat, and upon all that the
ground brings forth. Your harvest may bo smitten with
blasting, and with mildew, and with hail. Tho toil of
tkey^rmer' . to you eimpi^ba^cL *Wh$t 7®&

have spent your strength for, and your time, may "be as
the grass upon the house-tops, which withereth afore it
groweth up, wherewith the mower filleth not his hand,
nor he that bindeth sheaves his bosom." And if the
heavens grant rain and fruitful seasons to the husband-
man, you may be stricken down ink) a cheerless grave,
while others gather the produce of your fields into the •
barn, and watch the rise and fall of markets, and sell
when prices are at the highest, and count over the abun-
dant profit, won but not enjoyed by you ?

He that earns wages, may earn them, only to put them
into a bag with holes. The gains of a long life, adven-
tured upon some speculation of fair but false promise, or
deposited for safe keeping in a failing bank, or loaned to
one on the verge of insolvency, or eaten by the tongue of
fire, or swept with the besom of merciless war> may perish
in a single hour, and leave behind them nothing but vain
repining and hopeless beggary to your gray hairs.

Such are the uncertainties which hang over earthly
labor. But Jahor for the things of the lif 6 to come cannot
fail of success.

Those who perform this work of the Lord, perform sure
work — the only work which must be crowned with re^
ward. So felt the apostle Paul, when he exhorted his
beloved brethren to be steadfast, unmovable, always a-
bounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as they
knew that their labor was not in vain in the Lord.

It is impossible that repentance and faith should come
to nought. That they should fall as water spilled upon
the ground, without procuring acceptance with the Friend
of sinners, U impossible, Has not that merciful and faith-
ful Saviour said, "Him thai somsth u.nto sie» I m\\ in
qq ^Iss $*§i out F <Jao» 6 j 8?) Ties* %t$ Hi* wds j

and has lie not also said, ''Heaven and earth shall pass

away, but my words shall not pass away?" (Matt. 24:
85.) Faith and repentance, then, cannot fail of success;
but those who exercise them shall be satisfied with favor,
and full with the blessing of the Lord.

Equally is this true of Christian fidelity. Christian
_ fidelity mast abide in Christ's love. "The beloved of the
Lord shall dwell in safety by Him." (I)eut. 33 ; 1CJ
Neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor
powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height,
nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to sepa-
rate Fidelity from the love of Cod Which is in Christ
Jesus our Lord. "My sheep/" said theTvedeemer, "hear
my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I
give untb them eternal life ; and the*y shall never perish ;
neither shall any pluck them out of my hand." (Jno. 10;
27, 28.)

Mark the contrast in this particular. You labor for the
things of the present life, in the midst of great uncer-
tainty ; not knowing whether you shall obtain compen-
sation for your efforts; running the risk of closing a toil-
some life in want and penury. In this you do well. 3^ut
what show of reason can you present for rci using to labor
that you may effect an entrance into the heavenly rest,
assured as you are by the entire word of God, that your
efforts are attended by an absolute certainty of success, —
that there is not anything which can by possibility sub-
ject you to final disappointment ! Are you willing to be
workers where you may gain nothing, and not where you
must gain all things ? Ho not pass this consideration by.
Our Saviour himself appeals to the uncertainty of earthly
things and the certainty of heavenly things, and grounds
o¥e of Ilia own solemn counsels on it-.

yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust
doth corrupt, and where this . through and

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neith-
er moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not
break through, nor steal/* (Matt. 6; 19, 20/)" That is,
prefer the sure labor to the unsure. Give not your su-
preme affection and most strenuous effort to .the things
which may elude your grasp : there are things which can-
not deceive you. give them rather t i these. Oh. if you
will not hear us. hear the Lord Je

The things of the present life lor which we labor,
if we obtain them, are >**m$ati$fying. It is not in their
power to fill the cap quiet th< . heart of

mm". We have n monies to this effect.

Take that of the Caliph Abdalrahman. An authentic
memorial, found in his close: ♦] have

now r< i ove fifty years in victory or ; eloVted

by my subjects, dreaded by my enemies, and respected
by m)- allies. Riches and honor . asure,

have waited on my call, nor does any earthly b;

fro have been wanting to my felicity.
tion 1 have diligently numbered the days of pur
genuine 1 which have fallen to my lot; they

amount to fourteen. O man! place not thy confidence in
the present

No less emphatic is the result of the experience oi
omon, as. recorded by itimself. "What hath man of al]
his labor, and of the vexation of his heart, wherein lie
hath labored under the .nun ? For all s are sor-

rows and his travail grief; bis heart taketh not rest in the
night." (Eccl 2 j 22, 23) "He that loveth silver
not be sat: • loveth

* .10 •

is the language of one, who, as the Scriptures tell us, ''ex-
ceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wis-
dom." His riches placed him in circumstances in which
he might form an intelligent judgment as to the value of
earthly things ; his wisdom qualified him to judge cor-
rectly. And the conclusion he reached has been em-
bodied in the memorable sentence, "Vanity of vanities,
all if vanity!" *

Our labor, then, if given to the present world, and if
successful, secures that which does not, cannot, satisfy the
soul immortal. But labor for the^ things of the life to
come secures joy unspeakable and full of glory.

When these laborers are "beautified with salvation,"
God shall set Jthem before His face, and Christ shall set
them on His throne. "They shall hunger no more, neith-
er thirst any more, neither shall the sun light on them,
nor any heat. For the Lamb that is in the midst of the
throne shall feed them, and shall lead them .unto living
fountains of waters : and God shall wipe, away all tears
from their eyes," (Rev. Y; 16, 17). No deferred or dis-
appointed hopes are there. No fears cloud the spirit.
No shafts of regret pierce the bosom. No .separations
invade that hallowed fellowship; no warring passions em-
bitter it; no ster'nestrangements chill it. All is love, and
purity, and peace. Sin, out of which every sorrow flows,
shall be there unknown; for the spirits of just men are
made perfect there. Heaven shall be their home; and
their inheritance, God. Oh, to say that such an abode
and such a reward are "satisfying," is language too tame
and cold for Christian ears to endure it ! And we must
find angelio lips to speak its glories forth,

Lay this difference to heart* You labor for the things
0? the present life tepiie their unsatisfying aaturo—de*

11

spite their inability to make up for the so%l a portion
which shall content it — despite the universal testimony of
experience that as they increase, cares, and pains, and
disappointments, increase with them. In this, you act
rightly. But how can you justify yourselves, in that you
refuse to labor to effect an entrance into the heavenly rest
— that rest on which no shadow of discontent or grief can
ever fall— that rest which shines with all the rays of an
unalloyed and an infinite blessedness? Are you willing
to be workers for that which leaves you destitute of suf-
ficing happiness, and not for that which guarantees such
happiness, in fuller measure than human heart can now
conceive? Disregard not this thought. God has deemed
it of sufficient importance to be spoken by the mouth of
His prophet: — "Wherefore]do you spend money for that
which is not bread ? and your labor for that which satis-
fieth not? Hearken diligentlv unto me, and eat ye that
which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness."
(Isa. 55; 2) Oh, if this question be of such worth, that
one of the sons of men was fitly inspired to urge it, it
should claim your instant, earnest meditation. Can you
innocently refuse to ponder it?

(3) The things of the present life, for which we labor,
if we obtain them, an^ if they might satisfy jis, can be
ours but for a little ichile.

Death removes them out of our possession. Man, when
summoned from thisworld, leaves them all behind him.
"As he came forth from his mother's womb, naked shall
he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his
labor which he may carry away in his hand. In all points,
as he came so shall he go ; and what profit hath ho that
hath labored for the wind?" (Eoe) 16) "We

brought nothing into %W% worl^ and it is cwtaia w§ can

L2

carry nothing x>ut." (1 Tim. G; 7) All are poor in the
grave. Houses and lands, gold ami silver, honor, and
pleasure, and friends, — these are withdrawn from every
one that "giveth up the gho'sfe" Other eyes than the
eyes of the miser will look upon 'his hidden stores then;
other hands than his, buy, and sell, and get gain, with
them. The last hour comes; and in the twinkling of an
eye, the millionaire is penniless. The dead are owners of
nothing on the whale lace of the earth — of nothing ex-
cept so much ground .as may supply «• resting place to their
mouldering forms — aiid not always of that I Now, this is
what you labor for, as respects the present life — this in-
stant and total bank this absolute destitution of
the grave — this losing all things — this having nothing..

But labor for the things of the life to dome secures :,;:n
inheritance incorruptible and undeliled, ;.nd that fadeth
not awal/."

"This is the promise that God hath promised

I life," (1 Jn'o. 2; 25,) -life that ends not ever.
The worshippers in the Upper Temple "shall go no more
out." (Rev. 3; 12.) fifteen hundred vears after the
death of Abel, a flood of waters jVom the fountains of the
great deep and from the windows of heaven, was sweep-
ing the old world that sinned, into a righteous destruc-
tion. But during those fifteen hundred years Abel had
been in the unbroken enjoyment of the heavenly rest,
arid looked down upon f the sea without 'a shore" which
■uried all nations underneath its waves, and saw- the-
ark which floated with eight persons above, the universal
grave. Yet other two thousand three hundred years —
»r at Bethlehem a little child was lying,

13

iour of sinners. But Abel's enjoyment of ,the heavenly
rest had been prolonged without a pause, through these
two thousand, three hundred year.-, and he took up the
echo of that song 'before the Throne', and struck his lyre
of praise aire- h with gla I :i hundred and

sixty years more — and tl a which. we have fallen

are spreading out the strange mystery of their good,
stranger mystery of then fore the eye of IL

But through their long la njoyment of the L

ly re>r . w,ho can picture to his

imagination th ] ven Centuries during which that

martyr has walked in white before the Father's pres-
ence— holy — happy — without one stain of sin, however
slight — vithou

en Centuri th« be*-

ginning of the beginning- of I and (he joy which

have :, vhieh await y h yon be the humb-

lest of all I

ou.dy consider tin r for the

things of the present Hi if you obtain them, and

if you enjoy them, that death shall i
their | b j not dre » even in th »t mo-

ment, that iliev can be ; d it;

sure that an inevitable hour, an hour at hand to

come. rike them every one fn p. In

this, you are without blame. B i\ li what plea will

X.CUS9, even to yo;: tlure to hrbo

you may effect an entrance into the heavenly rest; may

.!..' '-rich unto God • in the unJ iceter-

natinherii fcre you ^ ■ be workers where

the fruit of your tjili mast, by and bye* pass froui
forever, and not where it shall be for over
enhancing

14

He whoso blood was shocLin yotfr behalf accounted it not
unmeet for utterance by Himself. "Labor not for the
meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth
unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give unto
you : for Him hath God the Father sealed." (Jno. (5;
27) Oh, shall He speak, and not gain your ear, and not
subdue your heart?

Ill Hope not that by refusing to labor to effect an en-
trance into the heavenly rest, you shall escape all labor.
A far sorer travail of soul awaits you, in working out your
ruin. Christ, in the days of his flesh, cried, "Come unto
me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give
you rest." From these words we gather — first, that sin-
ners are laboring under their sins, which, as a burden
grievous to be borne, are bound upon their souls — and
secondly, that in comparison with this laboring under sins,
the Christian's labor to be delivered from them is itself
a rest. Oh, turn then on this truth a serious eye : Ye
who will not labor to enter into the heavenly ?'cst, labor, and
shall labor, under your sins.

(1.) You labor under their power. They rule you.
You serve them. Their evil.pleasure will they constrain
you to do. All the iniquitous deeds ' which blacken the
annals of the world, are proofs of the power of sins.
What may they not bring you to perform? Much from
which vou once recoiled, they make vou do now; much
from which you recoil now, they will make you do here- .
after. There are no such hard task-masters under the
sun as they !

(2) You labor under their guilt. They condemn you.
They waken all the thunders of Sinai against you. They
point the sword of Infinite Justice at your bosom. All
the displays of God's wrath, which light up warning fires,

15

as it were, along the path of man's history, are proofs of
the guilt of sins. They drowned the old world under the
flpod. They rained down devouring flame on Sodom and
Gomorrah. What may they not cause you to endure on
earth ? "What must they not compel you to suffer in hell?

(3.) You labor under their shame. They dishonor you.
When God is the Father — how great the reproach of
being a disobedient child ? When Christ is the King-
how great the reproach of being a rebel against the throne?
All the infamy which crimsons the pages of the paet> is
proof of the shame of sins. What deep disgrace may
they not fix on your name yet ?

(4.) You labor under their disappointment. They de-
ceive and betray you. They make promises which they
cannot keep. They inspire hopes which they cannot ful-
fil. Thorns are under* their flowers ; their apples turn to
ashes on the lips: you lean upon their reea, it breaks,
and pierces your side. All the sighs which havo ever
burst from human bosoms, all the tears which have ever
fallen from human eyes, all the regrets, disquietudes and
fears which have ever shed gall and bitterness on human
hearts, are proofs of the disappointment of sins. Oh, is
there a sorrow into whose turbid stream they may not
plunge you !

Such is your labor, under the power, the guilt, the
shame, the disappointment of sins. And you have no
helpers like those who stand by the feeblest subject and
servant of Christ. Conscience is against you, in labor-
ing under your sins — conscience, which would be on your
side in laboring to enter the heavenly rest. And he
whose conscience is against him cannot be strong ! God
is against you in laboring under your sins — God, who
would be on your side in laboring to enter the heavenly

. Ki

And lie who has God against him must fee weak —
unutterably weak !•

Consider now, these different kinds of labor — this wurk
of Satan on the one hand — this work of God on the other.
The one or the other must be done. We must enter heav-
ven laboring, or laboring enter hell. Make your choice
between them.- Which master will you serve — God or
Which wages will you have1 — eternal life or
eternal death? Oh, determine wisely. Determine now:
"to-morrow's sun may shine upon your grave."

Decide now whether you will perform the "labor" neces-
sary to effect an entrance' into the heavenly rest. Every
promise of Holy Scripture asks that question, i
drop of the blood of Christ asks.it. Every monition of
the Spirit of grace asks it. Everyday of the forbearance
of God asks it. How will you answer? If you are moved
to answer aright, there are three things that you will do.

(1) YoU will begirt your labor at once. You will dread
delay as the very gate of perdition, "Choose you this day
whom you will serve. ,; £Jdsh.;24j 15.) Immedktte labor
alone is wise. *

(2) You will suffer no obstruction to interrupt your labor*
A half-hearted performance will strike you as real neglect.
You will see self-murder in it. "I am doing a great work,
so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease
while I leave it and come down to you?" (Neb. G; 3.)
Diligent labor alone can accomplish anything.

(>]) You iv ill cease from yov.r labor only with' the ceas-
ing of life. To abandon it before death, will seem to you
irse than death itself. "We are made partakers of
Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stead-
fast unto the end." (IXeb. 3; 14.) Persevering labor
alone jayaita hand on the crown of glory.

Hollinger Corp,
pH8.5