CONTENTMENT AND PURSUIT
D. E. Burr
I would just like to say a word, beloved brethren, as to these two matters of contentment and pursuit. I think those of us that have known our brother will bear evidence that they were features that marked him during his life. In a certain sense they may seem a little paradoxical; if one is content, what is one pursuing? Likewise, why pursue if one has reached a state of contentment? But it is clear that the references are on the one hand to what is material and on the other to what is spiritual, and I think we can say, I personally have been local with our brother for nearly forty years, that he was marked by the feature of contentment. Especially this has come out in the last five years when there has been much that might have caused grief and complaint, but these have never been things that marked our brother; he has been marked by the spirit of contentment, and the acceptance of what God has allowed. No doubt he had something himself to learn in this, but then we all would have something to learn too, that we might take account of that particular feature of contentment and let it be the more in evidence.
“But piety” it says, “with contentment” as though it is possible to have the one without the other. It is possible, I suppose, to be pious and yet at the same time to have a spirit of complaint, but the two (piety and contentment), to achieve the great gain, must go along together. So we can think of other examples; our brother has been content with his locality. I do not mean content exactly as it was, but to stay; he has been here throughout his long life,
and as far as I know he had no thought of leaving it; he was content with the place where the Lord had set him. I suppose Ilford, like other places, might have had in the past, and have yet, the feature of what we speak of as Naomi, that which lacked popular appeal, that which is evidence in itself of the breakdown; but our brother was content, content to stay, and hence the more we shall miss him. We shall miss his ever-presence at the meeting here in particular; his ready willingness to see that the local gatherings proceeded, and he too, was ever willing to take on the service of the preaching of the glad tidings. Those of us that have the care of that service would know what it means to have someone that you can rely upon to stand in and fulfil that service.
But then there is the side of pursuit, and I think we would say that we have seen that in our brother too, pursuit, after these desirable and essential objectives. I do not go into them in detail, but our brother surely could be regarded as a man of God who has pursued righteousness, piety, faith, love, endurance, certainly the feature of endurance has been very noticeable of recent years. Then to strive in the good conflict of faith—how much conflict there has been. Those of us that have experienced conflicts, and I think I can say that our brother and I entered into those in some measure together, as a part of the good conflict of faith, would have had in view the maintenance here of the truth and divine standards in all their purity and valuable worth. So, “Lay hold of eternal life, to which thou hast been called”.
I suppose our brother, we could say, has had the final call to eternal life. Of course, he awaits the call, as we all do when the Lord shall come and claim us to be with Himself. But he has gone before, he has, we might say, laid hold of eternal life; he has been called to that, and has confessed
the good confession.
Well, we are not here exactly to speak about our brother, but then, on the other hand the occasion is convened for the simple reason that he has been called home to be with the Lord, and we are to learn from these happenings. I think there is something left behind that we can seek to follow and imitate, and ourselves be here in a contented condition waiting for the final call, but in the meantime in the pursuit of these things, and to lay hold of eternal life. I just suggest these thoughts that we may be stimulated, comforted and encouraged in the remainder of our time here.