THE PALM TREE BEARS FRUIT IN OLD AGE
It is a very long-lived tree. At the age of about thirty it seems to
have reached its height in fruitfulness, but will continue its prolific
yield for seventy years more under proper conditions, so that at the
century mark it is still flourishing. It is said that it bears its very
sweetest fruit in its old age.
In the realm of grace God has not planned for spiritual declension in
old age. The free grace of God is just as willingly bestowed then as in
decades before. The next verses which follow the statement: "The
righteous shall flourish like the palm tree," bring out this glorious
truth. "Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in
the courts of our God. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age;
they shall be fat and flourishing" (Psa. 92:13, 14).
Do we not often see old people, after they have possibly professed
holiness for many years, in their declining days, take on a fretful,
cross, murmuring spirit, and make it hard to get along with them?
Instead of the little children delighting to be around them, if they
should express themselves, they would say, "What is the matter with
grandpa; he is getting so crabbed and cross?" One of the saddest and
also one of the most dangerous calamities that can befall an old
Christian, is to lose the sweetness and juice and fruitfulness of early
piety.
"The trees of the Lord are full of sap." This sap life is characteristic
of the palm tree, and he who lacks the sweet juice of fresh life
bubbling up in his heart should inquire into his experience.
One of the most encouraging and soul-inspiring examples to young
converts is the victorious faith and activities of the aged saints. How
it blesses our souls when we stand in the presence of such an
octogenarian. The fire still burning within, he is ready to pray, shout
or testify at a moment's notice. There are many of God's old palm trees,
though they may have the word "superannuated" attached somewhere, yet
they are ever active in bringing forth fruit. Like the old horse that
was superannuated from the fire department, and was used in a delivery
wagon, when he heard the fire bell ring, he champed his bits and struck
off down the road and never stopped till he had backed up to the fire.
Live meetings and revival fires set some of these old war horses going,
and one would think they were surely renewing their youth. They love the
way and will not rust out with advancing years.
Look at the unceasing and untiring activities of John Wesley, much of it
after he had crossed the line of fourscore years. The following
information concerning him is current in religious papers:
"HOW JOHN WESLEY WORKED"
"His travels were immense, amounting to about 290,000 miles, or about
twelve times the circumference of the globe, making about 5,000 miles a
year.
"He preached before the days of steam or electricity, twenty sermons a
week, and often more. Most of these sermons were preached in the open
air, and often amid showers of brickbats, rotten eggs, and personal
violence calculated to test the strongest nerve. A Baptist preacher
recently celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of his pastorate. It was
announced as an unusual fact that he had preached an average of three
sermons a week during the fifty years. But John Wesley preached on an
average, for fifty-four years, three sermons a day. The Baptist
clergyman had preached during the time a little over 8,000 sermons. Mr.
Wesley preached in fifty-four years, more than 44,000 sermons. This did
not include numberless addresses and exhortations on a great variety of
occasions.
"For many years he was editor of the 'Arminian Magazine,' a periodical
of fifty-six pages--the work of one man in these times.
"He wrote and published a commentary on the whole Bible in four large
volumes.
"He compiled and published a dictionary of the English language--no
small undertaking.
"He wrote and published a work of four volumes on natural philosophy.
"He wrote and published a work of four volumes on ecclesiastical
history.
"He wrote and published comprehensive histories of England and Rome.
"He wrote grammars of the Hebrew, Latin, Greek, French, and English
languages.
"He wrote, abridged, revised, and published a library of fifty volumes
known as the 'Christian Library,' and some time after he re-read,
revised, corrected, and published the whole in thirty large volumes.
This library contains one of the richest collections found in the
English language.
"He wrote a good-sized work on electricity.
"He prepared and published for the common people three works on
medicine.
"He published six volumes of church music. His poetical works, in
connection with his brother Charles, amounted to not less than forty
volumes. Charles wrote most of them, but they passed under the keen
revision of John, without which we doubt if Charles Wesley's hymns would
have been what they are--the most beautiful and soul-inspiring to be
found in the English language.
"In addition to these multiplied publications, we have seven large
volumes, including sermons, journals, letters and controversial papers
known as 'Wesley's Works.' It is claimed that Mr. Wesley's works,
including abridgments and translations, amounted to at least two hundred
volumes. It is difficult to understand how a man could have found time
to accomplish so much literary labor while perpetually on the wing.
"In addition to all this, Wesley was a pastor and did more real
pastoral work than nine-tenths of the pastors of these times. One has
only to read his journals to be convinced of this. For a time he visited
all the class and band meetings, and had special charge of the select
societies. He appointed all the class and band leaders, stationed all
the preachers, and had a general oversight of the many thousands of his
followers.
"He improved every moment of the day. Mr. Fletcher, who was for some
time his traveling companion, says of him, 'His diligence is matchless.
Though oppressed with the weight of seventy years, and the care of
30,000 souls, he shamed still, by his unabating zeal and immense labors,
all the young ministers of England, perhaps, of Christendom. He has
frequently blown the gospel trumpet and rode twenty miles before most of
the professors who despise his labors have left their downy pillows. As
he begins the day, the week, so he concludes them, still intent upon
extensive service for the glory of the Redeemer and the good of souls.
"'From four o'clock in the morning until ten at night every moment was
occupied in loving efforts to save the lost; and he never lost ten
minutes from wakefulness at night, as he himself affirmed. His motto
was, "always in haste, but never in a hurry." "Leisure and I have taken
leave of each other." "Ten thousand cares are no more to me than ten
thousand hairs on my head." "I am never weary with writing, preaching or
traveling," are a few of the utterances of this remarkable man. And in
the midst of all this wonderful activity he says, "I enjoy more hours of
private retirement than any man in England."'"
No wonder he could shout on his dying bed with the heavenly halo around
his head and say, "The best of all is, God is with us."
Look at that apostle of faith, George Muller, after he had prayed in
millions of dollars, cared for thousands of orphans, preached in many
lands and sent missionaries throughout the world, still active for God
between eighty and ninety years of age.
Thomas Mayhew was one of those early missionaries to the North American
Indians. When on his way to the old country to seek further aid for his
work, he was lost at sea. His old father, then past his seventieth year,
regarded this sad bereavement as God's call for him to fill the place
made vacant by the death of his son. He immediately began to study the
Indian language, and went forth to carry on the mission of his son,
which he did until his death at the age of ninety-three. In his travels,
the old man would often have to walk twenty miles through the woods to
preach to the Indians. Surely, this was better than idle sorrow. It was
bringing forth fruit in old age. He had the palm tree vitality and
blessing.
I am thinking just now of an aged minister. For over half a century he
has served God in the regular ministry, and now although over six years
past the "allotted time" of life, he is untiring in his work and zeal
for God. He is up to date in all the departments of the work. He is
superintendent of the home department of the Sunday school, and does
work like a pastor in his regular visitations. He enters open doors and
preaches many sermons. He is a most zealous advocate of prohibition, and
stands in the forefront ranks in pushing that important work, and is
president of the prohibition work in his community. His zeal for the
foreign missionary field is most inspiring, and by faith, with all the
other blessings of giving that he takes upon himself, he has just taken
a native missionary to support from his limited means. While he is so
active on all the live issues of the church, and is at his post to push
and pull, yet he is seemingly most at home in the battle for souls. You
can count on him at the revival unless he is providentially hindered.
And when the seekers line up at the altar, he is at hand to pray and
shout the battle on. He has the word "superannuated" applied somewhere,
but we think it a misnomer and that a more appropriate word would be
"superabundant."