ENTERING THE VALLEY
The following morning there seemed to be a change in Mr. Lü, and
thinking that the end would come that day we stayed on until the
afternoon, for which he was very grateful. Several times he would say,
"I know quite well why you are staying here, it is only for my sake. I
shall never be able to repay you for what you have done for me, but God
will." And yet it seemed so little that one had been able to do for
him, and he had been such a help to us, and to the work in Kucheng.
Towards evening we had to return to the city; so after a parting prayer
and a last farewell, or, rather, a hopeful "We shall meet again up
yonder," we left him smiling his bright farewell. The evangelist
remained with them till the end should come.
Mr. Lü lingered on till Thursday night. During those days many came to
see him, and expressed their regret and pity at his not getting better.
But he answered brightly, "No, I am not sorry that the end is near.
Although I am loth to leave my family, I am still full of joy. There
is no fear of death in my heart, I am prepared for it, and I know my
Saviour is coming to take me to my Heavenly Home, to be with Him, which
is far better. What about you? Take heed and prepare quickly for the
day when you, too, may be called." With these words and many others,
he would testify to the joy he had in Christ, and exhort his neighbours
and friends to seek salvation before it was too late.
The day before his death he had a visit from a Christian distantly
related to him. He greeted him brightly, and said, "Jesus has not yet
come. I wish He would come quickly and take me Home. Our teacher left
the evangelist here to help us, and I know she has other work for him
to do." Up till the very end his thoughts were for others and not for
himself.
Towards midnight he called for his wife. "Please wash me quickly and
put my old garments aside, and help me into my new clothes, for I am
soon going: the Lord is calling me."
"Do not say this," she remonstrated.
But he answered, "Do not hinder me, do not try to delay me. My time
has come, my God is calling me."
So she did as he bid her, and prepared him for the journey. Some days
previously he had asked her to make him a long white robe, as it was in
pure white, within and without, that he wanted to meet his Lord. When
their preparations were ready, his wife wanted to call the evangelist,
but even then Mr. Lü was thoughtful enough to say, "No, do not wake
him; he is getting old, let him sleep. I am all right and need
nothing." He was called, however, and soon stood at the bedside of his
friend, praying for him for the last time. Before that prayer was
ended, Mr. Lü called out, "I am going, Jesus is here," and with that
word upon his lips his spirit had left the mortal body and taken its
flight to God who gave it. There was no pain, no sorrow, no last
struggle. Gently and peacefully he passed over Jordan into the
presence of the King.
The funeral took place a week later. Our hearts were sore and the
tears flowing fast as we remembered we should see his face no more. In
some measure we could sympathize with those who were nearest and
dearest to him, and who had lost so much. But through the whole
service a joy note rang out clearly. We felt the very presence of the
Lord, and even all the outsiders were awed and listened attentively to
the message given, in which the evangelist sought to bring home to
their hearts the necessity for receiving Christ and His redeeming
grace, so that their end might be like the one they had so recently
witnessed. Many of them never forgot the peace that kept Mr. Lü's
heart at perfect rest, even when he stood on the brink of the river.
His joy in the Lord under such circumstances was a surprise and a
mystery which would again and again force itself upon their minds.
They asked each other, and they asked us, where that joy came from.
On the morning of the burial, a heathen man came and told us that he
had seen Mr. Lü in his dream the night before. He was walking on a
beautiful shore which must be Heaven, and was so joyful and beautiful.
Mr. Lü had called to him, begging him to come across, and he decided to
go to that glorious place. When starting to go he felt some change
come over him, and at last reached the glory-land where he conversed
with Mr. Lü. This was his dream; but was it not a clear call to that
man to seek the things above? God grant that he may heed the call.
In other ways, too, the Lord spoke to some of the ignorant, idolatrous
people around. He knew just the state of their minds, and what would
appeal to those who as yet had no light. In His tender mercy He sought
their lost souls, and spoke to them in a language they could
understand. Some of them said to one another, "Well, it is strange,
the God of the Christians does seem to care for them. They refuse to
choose days like we do, and yet every Christian has died on a lucky
day. We can choose our days for the funerals, but we cannot choose
lucky days for those dying. But God does that for those who worship
Him."
Poor benighted souls. They do not know that to the God of the
Christians all days are alike, but in His love He teaches them
according to their understanding. How great is His long-suffering! It
was a great help to me to see how the Lord did not despise their
ignorance, but fitted His voice and doings to their understanding.
While we should have got impatient, God took the trouble of teaching
them in this small way. What a good thing it is that our Father is
more patient than we His children are. We want light and full
understanding straight off; but He does not despise the very smallest
beginning, does not reject the poor soul in darkness, who shows,
perhaps, only a feeble groping after the light. May He make us more
like Himself!
It is true that the "tender mercies of the wicked are cruel." While
Mr. Lü was lying on his death-bed, one of the idols was having its
birthday celebrated, and again the people of the place were collecting
money for the theatre. Mrs. Lü replied again that she would be glad to
give her share for anything which would benefit her fellow-men, and was
even willing to give a double share, but could not give them any money
for idolatry. The men threatened that she should ask them in vain for
help when her husband died. They would not carry the coffin, neither
would they lend her the things needed for carrying it to its
resting-place. She did not reply, but came and told us. We advised
her to act as if no word had been said, for we believed the men would
think better of it, and not carry out their threats. And if they did,
the Church members from other villages would gladly do that service for
her. So she said nothing till after her husband's death, when all of
them came without any refusal. Only one man said that he would not
carry a Christian's coffin, but the others soon made him ashamed of
himself. None could keep up his displeasure with Mrs. Lü for very
long, for she was too much respected by all.
As the funeral procession passed through Kucheng the streets were lined
on both sides with onlookers. But even there a hush seemed to have
fallen on the people. Here and there a quiet remark was heard, "Oh,
the Christians do pay proper respect to their dead. Even all the
missionaries and preachers follow them to the grave, and wear mourning
for them!" Some little boys were walking ahead of the coffin, beating
the gongs and carrying four banners, with the inscription, "He shall
certainly rise again," and, "He shall ascend to heaven and dwell
there." One long banner showed the text, "For there is one God and one
Mediator between God and men." And another, "For God so loved the
world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in
Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." One boy carried a
large white umbrella, then followed the coffin, carried by eight men,
behind which the wife and nearest relatives went weeping and wailing,
recalling all the virtues of the one who had gone from them. Further
behind, other relatives and friends followed, ourselves among the
number, all with white headgear.
The remains of Mr. Lü were put to rest on the quiet hillside, beside
his first wife. Before he died, we had chosen the words for his
gravestone--"He that believeth in Me, though he die, yet shall he
live," and also the word of the Apostle Paul, "For ever with the Lord."
Yes, for ever with the Lord, separated from us for a little while, but
not for ever. Here the short time of warfare apart, there the long
eternity of victory and blessedness together. What a glorious hope is
ours!
God's ways are wonderful, and His thoughts past finding out. To our
finite minds, Mr. Lü seemed needed here. The Lord had put him in a
place where he had many opportunities for service, and those
opportunities were not left unheeded or misused. "Oh, that he might be
spared to us!" that was the cry in the beginning, but already we began
to see the purpose of God in taking His servant away, as so much was
accomplished through his death. God, our God, does not make any
mistakes. He buries His servants but carries on His work. May it be
said at the end of the life of each one of us, as I think it might
truly be written over Mr. Lü's service--"He has done what he could!"