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recovery, after there had been decline and the carrying away,
the rebuilding had begun. And, dear brethren, dear friends, the
rebuilding is going on. Are you having a part in it? Are you
having a part in it positively so that the divine presence can be
known among the people of God? I would seek to encourage
our hearts to have a part in it, as our beloved sister has had a
part in it. We have enjoyed the company of our sister; times
come to mind when we have been with her and shared in the
joy of the work of the Lord in recovery and it stimulates our
hearts now to reflect upon it. So the Lord would say to us, as
He does through the prophet here, speaking not only to the
governor and to the high priest, but to the remnant of the
people. That would include us all, it includes you and it
includes me; where do we stand today in relation to what the
Lord is doing at the present time, a time of recovery?
Oh, it is precious to read these words, “Who is left among you
that saw this house in its former glory?” Well, reflect back over
the testimony, you have seen the former glory, precious, very
precious. Books of ministry available to us reflect it. Go over
the preciousness of what the Lord has given through a
beloved servant in this city who served the saints universally,
and reflect on some of those moments when you sat in that
hall down there on Nostrand Avenue and enjoyed the
presence of the Lord and an experience of the glory.
Well, how do you see it now? It is still available. One would
encourage every one of us to lift up our eyes and see the
presence of the glory of the Lord among His people. I was
reading this morning a letter that was written from this city
ninety-eight years ago at a time of sorrow when it came down
to the point where the beloved brethren who wrote the letter
said that they enjoyed the sense of the Lord’s presence
among the two or three into whose presence He was prepared
to come because there was faithfulness to the testimony of the
Lord amidst sorrow (J.T. ‘Letters’, Vol. 1, p.3). Oh, may the
Lord help us to go on in the presence of sorrow and decline to
value what is dear to the heart of Christ, the One who has