Hence, my dear wife, cease not to serve the Lord thy God with the whole heart, and to follow his footsteps; “For we know that, if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven . . . not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon . . . for whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord.” Mark 12:30; 1 Pet. 2:21; 2 Cor. 5:1,2,4,6.
Therefore, my dear wife, give diligence that you pass the time of your sojourning here in fear and trembling (1 Pet. 1:17); not with such fear and trembling as that we should fear the world, and tremble before it, because they rage so against us; but we are to fear and tremble before the Lord, so that we shall keep his commandments and statutes, and thus pass the time of our sojourning here in the fear of the Lord, and receive the end of our faith, even the salvation of our souls; then shall we rejoice forever with the Lord, and go to meet him in the resurrection of the dead. Is. 51:11; Philip. 3:11. Therefore do not fear the world; for the very hairs of your head are all numbered; they have no power, except it be given them from above. Matt. 10:30; John 19:11. And Christ says: Be not afraid of them that kill the body; but fear him, who after he has killed the body has power to cast the soul into hell; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, and their worm shall not die, and they shall have no rest day nor night. Luke 13:28; Is. 66:24; Rev. 14:11. May the Almighty, eternal and strong God so strengthen and comfort you with his blessed word, that you will remain faithful unto the end, and you shall also come under the altar to all the dear children of God, where all tears shall be wiped from our eyes. Rev. 2:10; 6:9; 21:4. There all tribulation will have an end, and there shall our vile body be glorified, and be like unto the image of his glory. Philip. 3:21. Then shall our weeping be turned into laughter, and our sorrow into joy (John 16:20); then shall we, who for a little while have been despised and rejected, yea, persecuted and dispersed, and put to death with great ignominy, pain and reproach, for the testimony of Jesus Christ, triumph forever, and live eternally with the Lord. We shall be clothed with white robes, as John testifies in his Revelation concerning the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held. And they lay under the altar, and they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.” Rev. 7:9; 20:4; 6:9–11.
O what a glorious people shall we be, when we shall be with that great multitude of which Esdras writes, and John in his Revelation, says: “I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which 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. 7:9,10, 14–17. Esdras also declares of the same multitude: “that they stood upon mount Sion, and were clothed in white, and that in the midst of them stood one taller than all the rest, who gave palms into the hands of every one, and set crowns upon every one of their heads.” 2 Esdras 2:42,43,46. And John says: “I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire; and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb.” Rev. 15:2,3. Behold, my dear wife, what glorious promises we everywhere find, which God will give to all his dear and true children who here faithfully adhere to him, who have ended their lives to the praise of the Lord, and washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 1 Cor. 2:9.
O my dearly beloved wife, I cannot thank the Lord enough for all his great goodness shown to me; he gives me such strength and power that I cannot express it. O, now I experience that the Lord is a faithful helper in time of need; he does not forsake those that trust in him, for he that trusts in the Lord shall not be confounded. Isaiah 45:17; Rom. 9:33. He will keep us as the apple of his eye; he will deliver us from all the power of the devil, and the tyranny of this world; yea, he will keep us, that we shall not go into hell, if we remain faithful to him unto the end; for Christ says: “He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Matt. 24:13.
O my dearly beloved wife, continue faithful to the Lord unto death; for the crown is not at the beginning, nor in the middle, but at the end. If you continue faithful to the Lord, he will not forsake you; he will give you the crown of eternal life, and lead you into his kingdom. Jas. 1:12. He will crown you with glory and honor; and will wipe away all tears from your eyes.
Dear Lijsken, if he will wipe away all tears, tears must here first be shed. Matt. 5:4. He will heal us from our sufferings; hence we must first suffer in this world. Yea, we must fight and contend against ferocious lions, dragons, and bears (Ps. 91:13), yea, against the wicked and perverse generations of vipers (Matt. 3:7) and serpent rulers, and against the subtle serpents of this world, and the wicked seed of Cain; for Paul says that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers of darkness, and the principalities and powers of this world, yea, against the spirits that work in the air, which is the old serpent and Satan (Rev. 20:2), who, as Peter says, walks about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 1 Pet. 5:8. Therefore defend yourself diligently, with prayer and supplication to the Lord, and hold fast to the doctrine of Jesus Christ our Savior, that you may receive the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soul. Fight with Paul the good fight. Herewith I commend you, my dearly beloved wife and sister, to the Almighty, eternal and strong God, and to the word of his rich grace, that you may be able to stand against all the gates of hell. Amen.
A LETTER FROM JEROME SEGERS TO THE BRETHREN AND SISTERS.
The eternal joy, peace and grace of God the Father; and the unfathomable mercy, favor, and love of the Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who has been sent through grace, by God the Father, to the salvation of all those that are born again with him, through his imperishable word or gospel, and do his will; and the deep and unspeakable consolation, power, strength, and communion of the Holy Ghost, who is sent by both from heaven, to the everlasting consolation, joy, and gladness of all true, penitent and obedient children of God, who have amended their life, and thus have risen with Christ, through his gospel, into newness of life. May this only God strengthen you all in his eternal truth, and uphold you with the mighty word of his grace in all righteousness, holiness and truth unto the end, and keep your understanding, and your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. To him be praise, honor, glory, might, power, and strength forever and ever. Amen.
My dearly beloved and chosen brethren and sisters, and all lovers of the unfeigned and eternal truth, I wish you the true, penitent faith, which works by love, and avails before God, and a pure, chaste and holy conversation and walk in the fear of God, and an ardent love to God our heavenly Father, and your neighbor, and to his eternal, clear and unchangeable truth. And I pray the Lord for you day and night without ceasing, that he will open the eyes of your understanding, and enlighten your hearts with knowledge, that you may know that it is the truth, and that he will strengthen you with his divine word, and confirm you in the faith, that you may walk in this truth, in all humility and meekness, being a light to all men, and may continue steadfast unto the end. I also pray the Lord, that he will keep you from all ravening wolves, that have gone out from us, and will yet rise up among you, who will not spare the flock, and from all false, heretical and satanic teachers, who rise up under the name of Christ, and come forth in a semblance of holiness, as though they were sent by Christ, while they have proceeded from and are sent by the devil. Acts 20:29; 2 Cor. 11:15.
Therefore, my dear brethren, be vigilant, watch and pray; for it is very necessary; and remember after my departure, that I warned you from prison against false prophets. Thus, with the help of God, I have briefly written to you, and with Peter exhorted you, well knowing that shortly I must put off my mortal clothing and sleep with my brethren and sisters in Christ. Though you are yourselves taught and strengthened in this present truth, I nevertheless deem it profitable to admonish you yet a little more, if haply thereby some one may be bettered, edified and strengthened, the name of the Lord be praised and thanked, and I be remembered, how I have been an example unto you in that which the Lord gave me, and have walked among you in all humility. Tit. 2:7.