ETERNAL LIFE-ITS WORTH by Dudley Marvin Canright

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 30, 1879

ETERNAL LIFE—ITS WORTH.

By Dudley Marvin Canright

BY ELD. D. M. CANRIGHT.

TEXT: “Strive to enter in at the strait gate; for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” Luke 13:24.

There are some statements in this text that are very important; one in particular is that we must “strive.” You know what it is to strive; it is to struggle very hard. The original Greek word signifies to agonize. That is a harder work still. It means to strain every nerve, to be very cautious, and to watch earnestly. You are to strive to enter in at the strait gate. This very idea shows that there will be opposition to meet. There will be struggles; there will be battles; there will be difficulties; there will be enemies, darkness, and doubt. “For many, I say unto you,”—Christ knew what he was saying—“will seek to enter in, but shall not be able.” So in order to obtain an entrance into Heaven, you will have to struggle, you will have to agonize. I understand the Lord to mean this: There are a great many who, as they read the Bible, as they see the beauties of eternal life, as they read of the city of God, of being with the angels and where the Lord is, desire to be Christians. On the other hand, as they read of the wrath of God, the fearfulness of the Judgment, the doom of the ungodly, they wish to be hid in the great and terrible day. They do not want to be lost; hence they are led to make some effort to be saved. They will do something; they will do just enough to have a hope that they will be saved, but not enough to secure a genuine evidence of their acceptance with God. They will not come up to the Bible standard. They will miss the mark, and lose all at last.

This is the point to which I wish to call your attention. My dear brethren, notwithstanding the Father, and the Son, and the holy angels are anxious for us to come, notwithstanding the weakest and vilest sinner can come, notwithstanding we can have our sins all washed away, there is something to be done on our part which we must not overlook. This pardon and blessing from God must be desired earnestly. It must be thus, that the God of Heaven may know that we really desire it. If we come reserving a part of the price, saying, “I will try to be if—” the Lord will never accept us. If you cannot do this duty, or lift that cross, or if you fail to make that sacrifice,—if anything is too precious in your sight to give to God, anything too hard to do for the Lord, he will never bestow his blessing upon you. If I can make you feel this truth as I feel it, I think I can help you. Here are some seeking God, some commencing the Christian life, some talking of being baptized. My brethren, have you the blessing of God? Do you enjoy religion? Do you possess in your heart a clear conscience? Does the light of God shine upon your soul? Some of you say, “No; oh, my leanness! my barrenness!” Let me tell you that I am thoroughly convinced that a large share of so-called Christians have but little connection with Heaven,—very little vital godliness. And it is simply because they do not desire it enough; they are not willing to pay the price for it.

People are too lazy, mentally. When I was at our General Conference last fall, our dear Sr. White made one remark that struck me very forcibly. She said that a great many Christians were lazy—mentally lazy. They would pray a moment, shed a tear or two, sacrifice a few dollars, and then if the blessing of God did not fill their souls they would give up; and thus they were kept weak. There was strength, there was pardon, and there was a blessing for them, had they only sought a little further.

God holds back his blessing, and lets us seek, lets us press, lets us pray, lets us fast, lets us become in earnest; and when God sees that we are in earnest, determined to press the matter, he will not withhold it. Let us illustrate the subject. We will take the case of Israel, the father of the people of God. Do you know why he was called Israel, and what the word means? I want to show you why he received this name. You will find an account of it in the last part of the book of Genesis. Jacob had been living with Laban, his father-in-law. He had, as you remember, lied to his father Isaac, and cheated his brother Esau out of his birthright. Esau was very angry, and had vowed in his heart that he would kill Jacob. Well, as you know, Jacob could not stay with Laban, and hence he had to go home. So with his wives, and servants, and cattle, etc., he started to return to his native land. Esau, hearing of this, quickly prepared a company of four hundred men, and was coming fully determined to kill him. What should he do? See what he did do. He sent his wives and everything that he had across the ford, Jabbok; and now I will read to you Gen. 32:24–28:— “And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel; for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.”

Look at the record. What a wonderful case that was! Here was Jacob—his brother was about to kill him. He knew that he had sinned against his brother Esau, and done that which was displeasing in the sight of God; and that unless the Lord specially interfered, and worked a miracle to soften the heart of Esau, or to protect him in some way, his life would be taken. What did he do?

An angel of God came to him, and Jacob laid hold upon him. Jacob pleaded for a blessing, for pardon, for forgiveness of his sin. How long did he plead? He pressed his request till midnight, but the blessing did not come; he continued to plead until one, two, three, four, and five o’clock; he wrestled all night. How weary he must have been! The angel put forth his hand and touched Jacob’s thigh, exerted his divine power, and in a moment Jacob’s thigh was out of joint. Did you ever have a limb out of joint? If you have, you know how very painful it is. What did Jacob do under these circumstances? Did he give up and leave? No; he paid no attention to it; he held on. “I will not let thee go, except thou bless me,” was his declaration. When the angel saw that Jacob was in earnest, it was enough. “Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel; for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.”

This incident was put on record for our instruction. God was just as willing to bless Jacob at sundown as in the morning, but he wanted to see if Jacob was in earnest; and when he found that he was, he gave the desired blessing, and his name was changed to Israel, because he had power to prevail with God and men.

Dear friends, you and I can be Israel; but how? Not by making a faint effort, faintly offering the prayer, “Lord, bless me,” and stopping when the first straw comes across our path; not by laying down the first cross, and yielding to the first temptation. That will never do. If we take this course, the Lord will let us be carried down to eternal ruin.

Let us take another case,—the case of Daniel and his companions. You know how celebrated Daniel was. Why was it? The reason is that he persevered. He sought God. Read the record of his earnestness as found in the tenth chapter of Daniel: “In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled.” Dan. 10:2, 3.

Many of us in such a case would have wept a little, prayed before God for a short time, and then, if the blessing did not come, we would have given up seeking for it. But look at Daniel’s course. Here is a man seeking God. He did not simply pray one day, one night, but three full weeks. Now see what happened: “Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel; for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.”

Notice this statement. An angel came from Heaven to Daniel, and told him that from the first day that he had set his heart to understand, and to chasten himself before God, his words were heard. But did God answer him at once? No; he wanted to try Daniel. “We will see whether or not Daniel is in earnest.” Daniel prayed all day, then all night; he fasted the next day; he pressed his petition; but still no answer came. He persevered till the first week was gone, but still there was no answer. All Heaven looked upon him. They were interested to see whether Daniel would hold on or not. Daniel continued his petition. Two weeks passed, and the Lord did not appear; but he heard all the time. Daniel held on; he pressed his case still. Most of us would have said, “Oh! the Lord won’t hear me; I cannot be a Christian; I am lost; I can never be saved. Why does not God hear? why does he not bless me?” Twenty-one days had gone by, and Daniel was still holding on. The Lord saw he never would give up, and then he sent an angel to tell him, “O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, . . . from the first day that thou didst set thy heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard.”

For what are these cases put on record? To illustrate my text,—“Many shall seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” The reason we have so many weak Christians, so much darkness, is that persons are urged into the churches; they are petted, the cross is taken away, and the path is lined with flowers. It seems to them an easy thing to be a Christian. The real fact is they do not know what the Christian life is. So, my friends, God has said that if a man will have a blessing, will have his name written in Heaven, will have his sins pardoned, and if he will become a child of God, he must agonize for it. We are sinners, covered with vileness; we are worms of the dust; we have broken the law of God. Now that God should pardon us, wash out the stains of sin, write our names in Heaven, make us the sons of God, give us a place in his kingdom, and let us live eternally, is an amazing mercy. My brother, God does not confer such blessings upon us without some effort on our part; but when he sees that we are really in earnest about the matter, he will do it, and that willingly.

Here is another case: “Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.” Matt. 15:21–23.

Jesus had cast out many devils. Here came a woman to him crying, “O Lord, thou Son of David, my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.” He answered her not a word, paid no attention to it. But she kept entreating, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David.” He did not even look around; but she kept on urging her plea.

By-and-by the disciples became worried. They could not endure to have her crying after their Master. They came, and said to him, “Send her away.” Then he said: “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” She was not a Jew, but a poor Gentile woman, and she was told that she had no right to this favor. But she pressed her case a little further. Then Jesus answered her in this cutting language: “It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs.” It is not right for me to give the children’s meat to you Gentile dogs. Just think of it. You would have become angry then. You would have said, “I never will stand that.” But she did not do so. She had something at stake, and she was determined to have her petition granted. She meekly replied, “Truth, Lord; yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” What humility! what a confession! But what did Jesus say to her then? “Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith; be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.” Did not Jesus want to heal her? I believe his heart yearned over her all the time; but he wanted to prove her to see whether she was in earnest.

These cases, as I said before, are in the Bible to show that if we want the blessing we must make some effort for it, we must make some sacrifice; and when we have done all that lies in our power, we can have the approbation of God. In fact, we value the blessing of God only in proportion to the effort we have to put forth to gain it.

I often hear people say, “I would like to be a Christian, I want to be a Christian; but if I have to do this or that or the other thing I never shall be one.” One says, “I cannot keep the Sabbath;” another, “I cannot be

baptized;” still another, “I cannot give up my tobacco; I cannot take part in meeting.” And others have something else in the way. If you think more of these things,—of your food, your clothing, your appearance,—than of doing the will of God, if you do not lay by your dislikes and petty notions, God will never give you an entrance into his everlasting kingdom. We must come where God can reach us, and can work for us.

Read the history of our Lord Jesus Christ. Did you ever think of his self-sacrificing life? Jesus represented the sinner, and in his life he represented the course the sinner must take to secure the blessing of God. I will read: “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” Mark 1:35. His was a life of prayer. He did not wait for the sun, he did not wait to have family prayers; but he rose a great while before day, and while others slept he prayed. My friends, he wanted strength from God. Do you do so? Do you pray to God as much as you should?

Again I read: “And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.” Luke 6:12. Did you ever pray that length of time? You pray a few minutes, and then ask, “Why does not God bless me? Why do I not have light? Why does not an angel of God come and visit me?” My brother, you do not persevere. Remember how Jacob wrestled with God, how long Daniel continued his supplications, and how the Gentile woman pressed her request. See what Christ has done. Will an exception be made in your case? O my friends, how the Judgment will deceive some of us!

Now let us read again: “Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared.” Heb. 5:7. Christ prayed all night; in tears and agony he called upon the God of Heaven, who was able to save him, and he was heard because of his importunity.

The more I study the Bible and its spirit, and consider the example of holy men of old, the more I become satisfied that there is light for us that we live without; that there are blessings we do not enjoy; and that Heaven is full of liberty, and light, and glory, if we will only seek God as we should. I am afraid there are many who read about these things, and do not realize them.

Let me read another text: “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.” Matt. 11:12. Christ illustrates the entrance upon a Christian life by the figure of storming a fort. The soldiers rush upon it, but are repulsed. They make another charge, and again are driven back. The commander leaps to the front, and exclaims, “Come life or death, we must take this fort;” and the men, thus urged on, scale the walls and capture it, and triumphantly march off with the trophies of their victory. This is the way the kingdom of God must be taken. But the trouble with most of us is that when we encounter trials, we immediately give up, and exclaim, “I cannot be a Christian; I cannot serve God.” Such a person will never be saved.

The point is this, brethren and sisters,—how much of the peace of God do you have? how much of the light of Heaven? Did you ever imitate the Lord Jesus? Did you ever pray until God heard you? The trouble with most of us is, we are too indolent to seek the blessing of God effectually. We pray a little, and then stop. No wonder the blessing does not come.

In Matt. 13:44 I read: “Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.” Notice the illustration. Christ says that when a man found a treasure in a field, he hid it, and sold all his possessions that he might buy that field. This does not mean that a man is to sell everything that he has; but it does mean that if a man wishes the favor of God he must be willing to give up anything he requires of him, whatever that may be.

A very simple story will illustrate the point I wish to make. A little girl ten or twelve years of age came to seek the Lord. She was really convicted of her sins; but the minister said it was wrong to be proud, to dress richly. Just a few days before, a kind friend had made her a present of a pretty silk parasol, really finer than she was able to have. She was proud, and she knew it. The very first thing that came up was, “Little Mary, you are proud of your new parasol; your heart is not right—you must give up your parasol.” Several days passed, but little Mary did not get the blessing. By-and-by she felt that she must have the blessing of God, she must have pardon; and she knelt down and cried out, “O Lord, I will give up everything, even my silk parasol.” When she said that, the blessing came, and she was happy. She was truly converted to God, because she had yielded the dearest object she had, the one that stood between her and God.

It is just so with you. If it is a ring on your finger or a feather on your hat, if it is your tobacco or your tea and coffee,—anything, no matter what, that is more precious in your eyes than the blessing of God, you will never receive pardon till that idol is given up. Everything must be surrendered for Christ. Is it not worth something to gain eternal life, a home in the kingdom of God, the favor of the great Eternal, and the pardon of all our sins? Is it not worth everything? The Lord illustrates this in what seems to be very strong language, and yet it is true. “If any man come to me, and hate not his father [in the original the idea is, love his father more than me], and mother [this is a very tender relation], and wife [the dearest tie we have], and children [the objects of strong affection], and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26. If you value this short life of a few days, full of sickness, full of labor, full of tears, full of pain and distress,—if you prize a life of this kind, which is only lent to you, more than you prize an endless life with the holy angels, God will permit you to take your choice. Perhaps you fear that your business will decline. Well, what if it does? Did not God give you your life? Can he not give you eternal life? How many millions have been burned at the stake, and that alone for God! Did not Jesus Christ lay down his life for you? Yes; he suffered a terrible death. Then can you not trust God for the things of this life? If not, how can he trust you with eternal life? In Luke 14:26 we are told that he will not. These are not my words, but those of the Lord Jesus. We must comply with the conditions, or we can have no hope of eternal life.

ETERNAL LIFE—ITS WORTH.*

ETERNAL LIFE—ITS WORTH.