,transcribed from the #ahgi ,hatchards edition by ,david ,price1 email ccx#jgdpglaf4org ,,the ,,faithful ,,servant4 99 99 99 99 99 ,a ,,sermon1 ,,preached ,,in ,,st4 ,,peter',s1 ,,southborough1 ,,on ,,occasion ,,of ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,the ,,rev4 ,,stephen ,,langston1 ,late ,vicar of that ,parish1 ,,by ,,the ,,rev4 ,,canon ,,hoare1 ,vicar of ,trinity1 ,tunbridge ,wells4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,london3 ,,hatchards1 ,,piccadilly4 ,,tunbridge ,,wells3 ,,henry ,s4 ,,colbran1 #i1 ,,calverley ,,road1 ,,near ,,the ,,town ,,hall4 ,a ,,sermon4 8,well done1 good and faithful servant2 thou hast been faithful over a few things1 ,i will make thee ruler over many things2 enter thou into the joy of thy ,lord40--,,matthew ,,xxv4 #bc4 ,,there is something very solemn in the death of any one1 but peculiarly solemn in the death of a minister of ,god2 for when he dies he resigns not his life only1 but his ministry4 ,he gives back the ministerial trust committed to him4 ,so our revered1 and honoured friend1 has not merely fallen asleep in the ,lord ,jesus2 but he has1 as it were1 handed back to ,him who gave it the sacred stewardship of ,god's ministry committed to him by ,god4 ,thus this text seems very appropriate1 for it contains the words of a master who had been faithfully served1 to two servants who had faithfully served him4 ,when they met him face to face1 and resigned the trusts committed to their care1 the master said to each of them1 8,well done thou good and faithful servant3 thou hast been faithful over a few things1 ,i will make thee ruler over many things3 enter thou into the joy of thy lord40 ,and it is no unwarranted stretch of the imagination to believe that a similar welcome was given to our honoured friend when he breathed forth his spirit1 and yielded up his ministry to ,him who had called him by ,his grace1 and commissioned him for his service4 ,i take the words therefore as addressed to him at the end of his course1 and we may consider them at expressing the master's verdict1 and the master's welcome4 ,may ,god be with us in the study1 and may ,he grant that when we are gathered into his presence1 the same words may be addressed to ourselves6 99 99 99 99 99 ,i4 ,,the ,,master',s ,,verdict4 8,thou hast been faithful40 ,it does not say1 8,thou hast been rich10 or 8great10 or 8powerful10 or 8brilliant10 but 8faithful40 ,and it is remarkable that the master said exactly the same words to the servant who had the two talents1 as he did to the one that had the five4 ,they were not equally gifted1 but both were declared to be faithful4 ,this is a great encouragement for those who are conscious that they have not the same gifts as our venerable father4 ,we may not have his powerful1 and melodious1 voice2 his intimate acquaintance with our great ,english divines2 or his marvellous power of exhibiting truth4 ,we may have only two talents1 or perhaps only one1 when he had five2 but ,god may give us grace to be faithful1 and we may faithfully use that one talent to his glory4 ,god said to ,moses1 8,what is that in thine hand80 ,and1 though there was nothing there but a common1 rough1 shepherd's rod1 ,god used it for the performance of the greatest miracles in ,israel's history4 ,so he says to each of us1 8,what is that in thine hand80 ,and whatever it is1 however humble1 he gives us the sacred privilege of using it faithfully in his service4 ,but ,i do not want to consider general principles this morning1 so much as to turn your attention to the special case of him whom we have all known as so faithful a servant of his most blessed ,lord and ,saviour4 7#a7 ,to appreciate that faithfulness1 we must note first1 that ,,it ,,began ,,in ,,early ,,life4 ,his was an early call4 ,there is no age in life at which it does not please ,god to call his people to himself4 ,we see people called sometimes in childhood1 sometimes in middle life1 and sometimes in old age when tottering to the grave4 ,it is difficult to say at which age conversion brings the greatest joy in heaven4 ,there is a marvellous mercy when the old man who has resisted every influence throughout a long life1 is touched at last by the love of ,christ1 and brought with a broken heart to the throne of grace4 ,but there is also a peculiar joy when the spirited boy is led in his boyhood to receive the message which his mother teaches him1 and so to spend his whole life that he may say in his old age1 as ,obadiah did1 8,i thy servant fear the ,lord from my youth40 ,now this was the case with our friend4 ,his faith in the ,lord ,jesus ,christ was not an afterthought late in life4 ,his father and grandfather were both pious men2 and it was in his father's parish1 7for his father was a clergyman17 and in his father's home1 that as a spirited school boy he was first brought to the ,lord4 ,even before he went to ,college he began to conduct cottage lectures in his father's parish4 ,that ministry therefore to which you used to listen with such intense interest1 contained the ripened experience of a long life1 from the beginning consecrated to ,god4 ,is there not a lesson in this for fathers and mothers8 ,is there not an encouragement to train up those committed to them in the ,lord8 ,is there not an illustration of the truth of the promise1 8,train up a child in the way he should go1 and when he is old he will not depart from it80 ,and is there not a word also for young men8 ,does it not call on them to begin early1 and to begin at once1 and in the midst of all the play1 and all the work of early life1 to fall down before ,god's footstool1 and cry1 8,lord save me1 ,lord make me thine1 now1 at once1 and for ever80 7#b47 ,,he ,,was ,,faithful ,,in ,,his ,,stability4 ,it is sixty-three years since he was ordained to the ministry1 but throughout the whole of that long period he was never known to waver4 ,and how full of disturbing causes has that whole period been6 ,the minds of men have been unsettled1 and there has been a general shaking of thought4 ,the stagnation which prevailed when he commenced his ministry has given place to a general fermentation1 and during those sixty-three years we have had wave after wave passing over the ,church4 ,in his early days there was great excitement about the gift of tongues and prophecy under the leadership of that wonderful christian orator ,,edward ,,irving4 ,then followed what we used to call 8tractarianism10 taught by that master mind ,,newman1 and since developed in the open ,romanism of the ,ritualist4 ,then arose those who call themselves 8,the ,brethren10 as if they alone were children in the ,lord's family1 and who have done so much to disturb and unsettle those who have been walking most conscientiously with ,god4 ,and lastly1 there was wafted from ,america what many welcome as a new rule for holiness4 ,in addition to all which there have been from without the steady efforts of ,popery to pervert the purity1 and of ,infidelity to sap the foundations of the faith4 ,so wave has followed wave1 but in the midst of it all our venerable friend was kept firm as a rock with his principles unchanged1 and his faith unshaken4 ,as a consistent and honest ,churchman he rejoiced in the thirty-nine ,articles1 and never for one moment wavered in his fidelity to their clear testimony to the truth of ,god4 ,and as a student of sacred ,scripture1 he clung to the great1 grand distinctive truths of the ,gospel1 such as atonement through the substitution of the ,lord ,jesus1 justification by faith1 new birth by the ,holy ,ghost1 sanctification by the ,spirit1 preservation through ,god's unchanging faithfulness1 and a full salvation in all its parts through the free grace that is in ,christ ,jesus4 ,these were the great principles of his faith and ministry all through his life1 and through ,god's mercy nothing shook him4 ,you may compare the old man of eighty-six with the boy of sixteen1 and you will find no change in principle4 ,you may compare the last ,sermon preached last year with the first ,sermon which was preached in his father's pulpit in the year #ahae1 and you will find the great message substantially the same4 ,as he himself said1 the last time he occupied this pulpit1 8,in the ,church where ,i was baptized1 in the village in which ,i was born1 ,i began my ministry on ,december #bdth1 #ahae4 ,i remember the text was 8,this is a faithful saying1 and worthy of all acceptation1 that ,christ ,jesus came into the world to save sinners1 of whom ,i am chief40 #a ,timothy i4 #ae4 ,there ,i began1 there ,i continued1 there ,i am still1 and there1 ,god helping me1 ,i hope to end glorying in the ,gospel which ,i know to be the power of ,god unto salvation to every one that believeth40 7#c47 ,,he ,,was ,,faithful ,,in ,,the ,,fulness ,,of ,,his ,,teaching4 ,if we are to stand stedfast for seventy years1 we must have something solid on which to rest1 and one great reason why people shift about as much as they do1 is1 that they have no stability in their principles4 ,the reason of this again very frequently is that they take partial views of truth4 ,they are one-sided christians1 and so lose their balance2 whereas we want our foundation to be well built1 and to rest all round with an even pressure on the rock4 ,surely this was most remarkably the case with the ministry of this faithful man4 ,he did not clip1 or twist1 the sacred ,scripture to fit his system1 but he was ready to sacrifice the symmetry of his system in order to bring out the whole teaching of ,god himself in his inspired ,word4 ,he rested absolutely on ,scripture as the only and sufficient rule of faith1 and wherever ,scripture led him there he was prepared to follow4 ,it was this that gave such a richness1 such a fulness1 and such a comprehensiveness to his ministry4 ,nothing1 for example1 could exceed his exhibition of the love of the ,lord ,jesus4 ,it was his joy to exalt him as a ,saviour1 and to hold converse with him as a friend4 ,but with all that the love of the ,father was always prominent4 ,the ,father's holy law1 and the ,father's purpose1 the ,father's gift1 the ,father's covenant1 and the ,father's home1 were always in view4 ,and so with reference to the what are termed the doctrines of ,grace4 ,it was the joy of his heart to exalt the grace of ,god in all its forms of application3 redeeming grace1 predestinating grace1 grace in the call1 grace in the pardon1 grace in the gift of faith1 grace in the new birth1 grace in holiness1 grace in preservation1 grace never failing till it ends in glory6 ,and this grace he would preach in its peculiar1 limited1 and special application to the ,church of ,god's elect4 ,but that did not prevent his proclaiming with unlimited freedom the great offer of eternal life to the sinner1 and throwing on the sinner the whole responsibility of the acceptance or rejection of the offer4 ,as an illustration1 ,i never can forget a magnificent ,sermon of his1 the grandest ,sermon ,i ever heard from the lips of man1 on ,eph4 v4 #be1 and never can ,i forget the way in which he quoted the text1 8,christ also loved the ,church10 the church of ,god's elect1 8and gave himself for it10 or how he pointed out to us the special and most tender love of the ,lord to his chosen people2 but neither on the other hand can ,i ever forget the thrilling power with which he gave forth the grand words of our blessed ,saviour1 8,god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten ,son1 that whosoever believeth in him should not perish1 but have everlasting life10 and on the strength of these words threw broadcast over the congregation the free offer of life to the sinner4 ,it was this grand harmony of gospel truth that gave such a wonderful power to his ministry4 ,he was not afraid of letting ,scripture tell its own tale1 and proclaim its own message4 ,what he found there1 that he taught1 and taught fearlessly1 even though he knew in some instances that it was beyond man's power to fit all the parts together4 ,he believed the ,gospel to be ,god's message1 revealed in ,god's word1 perfected in ,god's purpose1 and taught in ,god's own way2 so by ,god's help he gave the whole just as he found it1 and left it to the infinity of ,god himself to bring to light the perfect harmony of the various parts4 7#d47 ,,there ,,was ,a ,,blessing ,,on ,,his ,,faithfulness4 ,the faithful servants in the parable were able to present to their master the talents which they had gained during the period of their trust4 ,in their case therefore1 faithfulness led to fruitfulness4 ,their work was successful1 and there were talents gained4 ,can we doubt for one moment that ,god blessed in the same manner the faithfulness of our revered friend8 ,whatever others may do1 ,i cannot4 ,i have heard of the deep interest excited by his ministry wherever he has laboured1 in ,sheffield1 in ,jersey1 and amongst yourselves4 ,i am told by a clergyman at ,sheffield that his ministry there was followed by most blessed results in the awakening and salvation of souls4 ,i am told also that 8when upwards of thirty years afterwards he visited that town1 not only were there crowds to hear him1 but many came forward to relate the blessings which either themselves1 or their parents and friends had received through his instrumentality40 ,the ,lord alone knows how many talents were gathered in all those places1 and presented as a thankoffering to ,god4 ,but ,i know a little of what took place at ,richmond4 ,,mr4 ,,langston went there very soon after the commencement of his ministry4 ,before he went there every thing in that place was dark1 cold1 and dead4 ,the glorious ,gospel was almost an unknown message4 ,his ministry there lasted1 ,i believe1 about three years1 and after an interval of nearly twenty years1 ,i followed him as curate of the parish4 ,i have always regarded it as one of the greatest blessings of my life that ,i did so1 for there ,i found a large body of persons from all classes of society1 living consistent1 holy lives1 and full of faith in the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 who owed their conversion to ,mr4 ,langston's ministry4 ,like ,barnabas1 ,i 8saw the grace of ,god10 and ,i am not ashamed of acknowledging that what ,i there witnessed as the fruit of his labours has helped to give a tone to the whole of my subsequent ministry4 ,most truly then may ,i say of that faithful man1 8,he rests from his labours1 and his works do follow him40 7#e7 ,he was faithful in ,,his ,,childlike ,,trust ,,at ,,the ,,end2 when his work was done1 and as a little child he was simply resting in the arms of his most blessed ,saviour4 ,i do not attach much importance to the last words of such a man4 ,when a person has been walking with ,god for seventy years and more1 we do not want last words to assure us of his faith4 ,but it is pleasant to see how the old foundations bear1 and to watch the last earthly intercourse of the faithful servant with the faithful ,saviour4 ,it was delightful in this instance to do so4 ,he was sure1 perfectly sure1 of his ,lord's fidelity2 and when it was said to him1 8,he will never leave us10 his reply was 8,no1 never1 never40 ,on another occasion as he lay in the deepest weakness1 he said1 8,i am thinking of that good ,scotchman who said1 8,there is nothing so sweet in all this universe as ,christ to die with1 and nothing dearer than his love40 ,nor was this merely a matter of feeling1 or experience2 for he was calmly and intelligently resting on the great principles of the ,gospel4 ,these solid foundation principles he had preached from the beginning4 ,on these principles he had lived1 and on these principles he died4 ,it was the thought of redeeming mercy that filled his heart with gratitude4 ,so that he was heard saying1 8,he became a curse for me--left alone--deserted by his own40 ,that was his one resting place1 and resting there he used to delight in the hymn-- ,,oh6 ,saviour1 ,i have nought to plead1 ,in earth1 beneath1 or heaven above1 ,but just my own exceeding need1 ,and ,thy exceeding love4 ,the need will soon be past and gone1 ,exceeding great--but quickly o'er1 ,the love unbought is all ,thine own1 ,and lasts for evermore6 ,till at length nothing could be heard but a few detached words1 but those words were quite sufficient to shew where his heart was resting4 8,dear ,saviour0--8,looking0--8,covenant0--8,or dered and sure0--8,thy blood and righteousness0--8,hope0--8,end0--8,comin g soon0--and then came the message from heaven itself1 8,enter thou into the joy of thy ,lord10 and the ransomed spirit was free from the burden of the flesh4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,ii4 ,for our second subject1 ,,the ,,master',s ,,welcome1 ,i have no time left1 and perhaps it is well1 for who can attempt either to describe or imagine it8 ,the words of this passage seem to indicate that the joys are beyond all proportion greater than any thing seen here4 ,there are but few things here1 but many joys there1 and the many cannot be measured by our notions of the few4 ,then again the expression 8the joy of the ,lord10 seems to raise us far above all earthly thoughts1 and introduce us as it were into the very mind of the ,lord himself4 ,it may be understood as the joy which the ,lord feels4 ,we are taught that he has special joy even in heaven4 ,there was a joy set before him to attain which he endured the cross4 ,and what is the joy8 ,is it not in the ingathering of souls8 ,is it not when souls are saved1 and many justified1 that he sees of the travail of his soul1 and is satisfied8 ,now surely there must be the same blessed happiness in those who share his joy4 ,if we rejoice in the joy of the ,lord ,jesus1 we shall rejoice with those whom he has gathered around him4 ,as ,,mr4 ,,langston said in his ,sermon on ,rev4 vii4 #ae4 8,the meeting with those ,saints will add no little accumulation of blessedness4 ,i shall see ,abel1 the first martyr for ,christ2 the first witness to the atonement by his precious blood4 ,i shall see ,enoch the first great prophet who walked with ,god1 and was not1 for ,god took him4 ,i shall see ,noah1 the ,preacher of righteousness2 ,melchizedec1 king of righteousness and peace2 ,moses1 ,samuel1 and all the ,prophets1 ,evangelists1 and ,saints40 ,does he not see them now8 ,is he not with them now8 ,but does he not also see multitudes of precious souls1 from ,hastings1 from ,richmond1 from ,sheffield1 from ,jersey1 and from ,southborough1 to whom he was permitted to convey ,god's message1 and who are now rejoicing with him before the throne8 ,how many were there to welcome him at heaven's gate8 ,and may not the joy of such a meeting be well termed the joy of the ,lord8 ,but besides this1 the joy of the ,lord must be the joy that is realized in the presence of the ,lord himself4 ,it is all very well to be with ,abel1 and ,enoch1 but what must it be to be with ,christ8 ,this it is that will fill heaven with praise1 and make even eternity too short for our thanksgiving4 ,do you remember what he said of the prospect1 in the last ,sermon he ever preached to you1 8,oh60 he said1 8,what joy to see him face to face6 ,what joy to see him even now through the lattice6 ,but what to enjoy that love without interruption1 and without a cloud ever rising between the soul and the sunshine of his love6 ,then the seven-fold promises of revelation1 all his own gracious words1 will be fulfilled--8,the crown of life40 8,the tree of life40 8,the new name40 8,the morning star40 8,the white raiment40 8,the abiding pillar40 8,and the share in the throne of the ,son of ,god40 ,is not that the joy of the ,lord8 ,and is not that the joy in which the faithful servant has now entered8 is he not there now8 ,is he not face to face with his ,saviour8 ,does he not even now see him as he is8 ,has he not already experienced the truth of the words1 8,in thy presence is fulness of joy2 at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore80 ,and now what would he say if he could speak to us from that presence chamber of ,god8 ,do you think he would change his note1 or withdraw his testimony8 ,what would he say to you believers8 ,do you think he would tell you to give up for that your faith is in vain8 ,would he not rather say1 that the half was not told you1 no not the thousandth part1 and that there is such a fulness in ,christ ,jesus as when on earth he never had had the least idea of8 ,would he not entreat you to cleave to him1 to follow him1 to love him1 to serve him1 to labour for him1 and to clasp him to your heart as the strength of your life1 and the joy of your soul8 ,and what would he say to the unconverted8 ,would he say to them that it does not matter whether they are converted or not1 and that he finds that he was mistaken8 ,you may remember what he said in his farewell ,sermon1 8,i think with grief of those who have not submitted to the ,gospel of ,christ4 ,to such1 the minister stands in a very awful position as a witness4 ,oh1 those words1 8,son remember60 ,you ,see how the ,father of the faithful addressed him1 owned him as a son1 and one of the family1 so that he might have shared its blessing2 but he had cast them away4 ,my unconverted brethren1 if you die without ,christ1 oh the bitterness of the anguish1 and remorse6 ,what must be the worm that never dies1 the fire that is never quenched8 ,o consider this ye that forget ,god4 ,he that being often rebuked1 and invited1 hardeneth his neck1 shall suddenly be destroyed1 and that without remedy4 ,my hearers1 what ,i want is that your hearts may be given to the ,lord4 ,i want ,christ to be enthroned in your hearts4 ,i want you to become ,his1 to enter in while the door of mercy invites your approach1 and to share all the blessings of everlasting salvation so freely offered through ,christ ,jesus the ,saviour60 ,do you think he would say less now1 now that he has seen the great realities8 ,oh6 how would he plead with you1 and how would he persuade you1 and how would he point you to the ,lord ,jesus ,christ for life6 ,but we shall hear that voice no more on earth1 and we can never again listen to him pleading with souls4 ,nevertheless1 the message remains1 the ,redeemer remains1 the salvation remains1 the open door still remains1 and may ,god grant that there may be such a work in each one of us1 that when we pass beyond the veil1 we may be welcomed1 as we are sure that he has been1 with the words--8,enter thou into the joy of thy ,lord60 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 ,,henry ,s4 ,,colbran1 ,,printer1 ,,tunbridge ,,wells4