We shall meet again

Heaven will be no strange place to us when we get there. We shall not be oppressed by the cold, shy, chilly feeling that we know nothing of our companions. We shall feel at home. We shall see all of whom we have read in Scripture, and know them all and mark the peculiar graces of each one. We shall look upon Noah, and remember his witness for God in ungodly times. We shall look on Abraham, and remember his faith; on Isaac, and remember his meekness; on Moses and remember his patience; on David and remember all his trouble. We shall sit down with Peter, and James and John and Paul and remember all their toil when laid the foundations of the Church. Blessed and glorious will that knowledge and communion be! If it is pleasant to know one or two saints and meet them occasionally now, what will it be to know them all and to dwell with them for ever!

There is something unspeakable comforting, more over, as well as glorious in this prospect. It lights up the valley of the shadow of death. It strips the sick bed and the grave of half their terrors. Our beloved friends who have fallen asleep in Christ are not lost, but only gone before. The children of the same God and partakers of the same graces can never be separated very long. They are sure to come together again when this world has passed away. Our pleasant communion with our kind Christian friends is only broken off for a small moment, and is soon to be eternally resumed. These eyes of ours shall once more look upon their faces, and these ears of ours shall once more hear them speak. Blessed and happy indeed will that meeting be! Better a thousand times than the parting! We parted in sorrow, and we shall meet in joy; we parted in stormy weather, and we shall meet in a calm harbour; we parted amidst pains and aches, and groans and infirmities: we shall meet with glorious bodies, able to serve our Lord forever without distraction. And, best of all, we shall meet never to be parted, never to shed one more tear, never to put on mourning, never to say good-bye and farewell again. Oh! It is a blessed thought, that saints will know one another in Heaven!

...You will find them all safe, all well, all ready to greet you, all prepared to join in one unbroken song of praise. Then let us take comfort and persevere. With such prospects before us, we may well cry, “It is worth while to be a Christian!”


*Taken from Shall We Know One Another in Heaven? JC Ryle

This post is dedicated to a precious saint, Amy Wilhoite, who went to be with the Lord this week. I hope this encourages all who have lost loved ones and long for the day to be reunited with them.