p. 190 | No Cross, no Crown by Mary F. Maxson

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Nov 8, 1864

No Cross, no Crown.

By Mary F. Maxson

LONE pilgrim, traveling Zionward, are you weary with the toilsome journey? Does the night seem long and drear? Do temptations, trials, and persecutions surround you? Are your feet torn with the "sharp set thorns" that are strewn along the rugged path? And are you tempted to turn aside, and rest in the cool refreshing bowers which are built along the narrow way? Oh pause not to rest. Heed not the tempter's siren voice which would lull you to sleep; but toil on, suffer on, and nobly endure all. Your path may be surrounded with perils and dangers: foes may lurk around on every side; but struggle bravely on, and ere long will be received the crown set with gems divinely bright; but never if you grow weary of the warfare and lay down your burden; for only those who bear the cross to the end, shall wear the crown.

Is the cross heavy? and do you tremble beneath its weight? Oh look away to Calvary, and there see, toiling up the rugged mount, Him who bore it for you, until he fainted beneath it. Go to Him with your weakness, and plead for strength to bear the cross of grief and anguish, until he shall bid thee exchange it for an unfading crown of life. He will not turn thee away. "He will be very pitiful to the voice of thy cry;" for he can be touched with a feeling of our infirmities. Thy conflicts and sorrow, thy griefs and pains, thy trials and temptations, are all known to him; and if thou wilt but trust in him, he will give thee grace to bear them in such a manner that they shall work out for thee "a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." Then, weary one, draw near to thy Saviour. Pillow thy weary, aching head upon his bosom, and gain strength for the rest of the journey.

Fierce temptations, and sore trials will come. But keep close to Jesus, and there is nothing to fear. Keep the words of his patience, and he "will also keep thee in the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth; and at last will permit thee to stand among the immortal throng, "that have come up out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."

Oh, tremble not at the cross, but rejoice; and with joy look up and behold the bright morning that ushers in eternal day. That glad morning is fast approaching, and soon will dawn upon us, in all its splendor and glory. Then despair not, faint not, pause not to rest. Shrink not from the cross, but bear it patiently, and ere long a dazzling crown of glory shall encircle thy brow, and thou shalt find rest, sweet rest, in Eden's immortal bowers.

No cross, no crown! Would that these words might ring, in thunder tones, through the hearts of those who fondly dream of entering Heaven "on flowery beds of ease." Oh, deluded soul, awake, awake ere it be too late! Arise, and shake off the stupor with which Satan has enshrouded thee. Tear down the false hopes on which you are resting, and build on the sure foundation. Remember that the path which leads to eternal life, is a narrow one. We cannot walk in it, and carry with us the pride of our hearts, and our love of ease and worldly pleasures. Ah no! these must be crucified and cast from us, or we shall never be among the number that "shall enter in at the strait gate." God will have the whole heart. He requires all. If you will not give up every thing for his sake, and place yourself unreservedly upon his altar, you cannot be his disciple. Do you say the sacrifice is too great? the cross too heavy? Then go with me to the lone garden of Gethsemane, and there, amid the dews of night, see thy Saviour bowed to the earth with anguish. Hear him in low mournful accents pleading, "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me." So bitter was that cup, that even the Saviour shrank from drinking it. Can you think of the great anguish he endured, and feel that your heart, your all, is too much to give in return.

But let us look again and we shall see the lovely form of Jesus drooping beneath the weight of sorrow that rests upon him, while great drops of blood roll off his holy brow, and tears stream from his eyes. The groans that rend the still air, "echoing from hill to hill," seem to say, in mournful accents, the Son of God is suffering untold anguish for thee. O sinful, ungrateful man! He is wrestling with fears, and enduring sorrows that angels vail their faces from—all, all to purchase thee a home where sorrows and tears can never come.

Is thy heart yet unbroken, and wilt thou yet shrink from the cross? Then go with me to Calvary, and there behold the Lord of life and glory stretched upon the cruel cross. See that sacred head pierced with a crown of thorns. How they lacerate his holy temples, causing his precious blood to flow afresh. Hear the cruel nails as they are driven through his tender hands and feet; and see that spear thrust into his side. But we can endure the dreadful sight no longer, and with the sun, vail our faces from it.

Do you now think the cross is too heavy? Oh, how can you refrain from falling down low at the feet of Jesus, and with deepest joy exclaiming, "Love so amazing, so divine, demands my heart, my life, my all?"

If you will still refuse to bear the cross, great will be your anguish at that day, to know that there is no crown for you. The words, "Ye knew your duty, but ye did it not," will fall upon your heart like a death knell, vibrating there in sad, low dirges of sorrow and despair.

O, I beseech of you to listen to the voice of God that is calling you to walk in the way of his truth. How sweetly does he whisper, "This is the way, walk ye in it." Will you not heed that dear voice?

Are you unwilling to bear the shame and reproach, the suffering and toils, the sorrow and dangers which attend the children of God in their earthly pilgrimages? If you are, you cannot share in their blissful reward. There will be no crown for thee—no crown for thee. Piercing thought! How can you bear it?

Once more, let me entreat you, in my Saviour's name, to rest not until you are sure that there is a crown laid up for you. Welcome the cross, and ere long you will be borne to the radiant, happy land, where all trials and sorrows shall be turned into everlasting joy and blessedness.

Dear Christian friends, let us not shrink from the cross, nor sink beneath it. Let us "forget the steps already trod, and onward urge our way." Let us look up and behold, above the cross, a glittering crown; and let us toil, suffer, sacrifice, and endure all things for Jesus' sake, that it may be full of jewels, rich and beautiful, that shall sparkle in the glorious sunlight of God's love, throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity.

MARY F. MAXSON.

Adams' Center, N. Y.