WORD BY MR. E. E. HOYTE
WORD BY MR. E. E. HOYTE
I wish to make just a few brief remarks, dear brethren, on these verses by way of comfort, first, for our beloved sister and the family, and then for ourselves, for we all need comfort. I want to remark on the thought of rest. How sweet is rest after toil! It says, in Genesis 2:2, that God “rested on the seventh day from all his work”, working for six days and on the seventh day finding rest and refreshment. It says, in Exodus 31:17, that He “rested and, was refreshed”. So, dear brethren, if the home-going of our brother to his Lord and Master is a loss to us, we are to regard it as a calculated loss. The Lord Jesus, his Master, surely knows the end from the beginning. We might say that it is a loss to Him, too, for he was His servant; but nevertheless I think it is a calculated loss. The Lord could have sustained him here for 120 years if it were His will; He could have done that. We might say. What a loss it is to the assembly! It is, but the Lord has calculated the loss and has considered for His servant.
I have read from Mark’s gospel because it is the servant’s gospel. I see that the Lord Jesus is very considerate of His servants. They do arduous work, and who can dispute the fact that our beloved [p. 573] brother has done some of the most arduous work — not only in this city, but universally. His has been very arduous, rigorous work, but he has finished it, dear brethren. My point is that the Lord Jesus was considering for His servants in this chapter. It says, “Those coming and those going were many, and they had not leisure even to eat”. Think of that! The work was demanding. I remember our beloved brother often saying, ‘There is much to be done’. Those were his very words. How much he has done! The Lord Jesus takes account of it. He said to His disciples, “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place and rest a little”. So that, dear brethren, the Lord has calculated, and in consideration for His servant, has appointed him rest. And also, we have to regard the fact that his Master had rights over him, and He has exercised those rights. Think of the Lord Jesus exercising His rights over His servant on Lord’s day! It was on Lord’s day, the first day of the week, that He took him to be with Himself. Our brother has thrilled us over and over with those two thoughts — the Lord’s day, and the first day of the week. He was wont to speak of that day. Think of what it meant to him, spiritually! And the Lord Jesus has exercised His rights over His servant on that day! It was on the Lord’s day that He took him to be with Himself, to rest. “Come ye ... apart ... and rest a little”. It is only for a little while, dear brethren; the resurrection time is coming; the Lord is soon to greet us in the air! And our dear brother is resting till then. How wonderful to think of his service finished and his Master having taken him to Himself!
We can remember that on Saturday night last, at the care meeting, our dear brother, as he was wont to do, attended to every matter. He was using all the strength at his disposal. He moved from his seat to speak to one about a matter that had to be [p. 574] attended to. Later, apparently not satisfied that it had been fully attended to, but being assured that it was, our beloved brother sat back in his seat with an air of satisfaction. How wonderful, dear brethren, to think of all this — every matter finished, and taken account of by our dear brother in his characteristic way! In relation to another matter he had asked if we could wait on an erring brother for another month. How characteristic of the grace that has been exemplified in our brother all these years! Not only was he an arduous worker, but one in whom there was grace — the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ — his feelings entered into matters; he was a fatherly person. We all have experienced it, and we shall miss it, dear brethren. But let us give honour to the Lord Jesus; let us recognize His rights over our brother. He has taken him now to be with Himself. How wonderful for him to have the Lord’s own approval, “Well done!” That is a word that he has often used himself, as he commented on one servant and another. And may we not apply these words to him this afternoon? He has served, and served well. But think of the Lord’s own words as He says to His servant, “Well done!” The Lord can rightly appraise all that His beloved servant has done for Him.
Now just a word on the last scripture. The Lord is in heaven; the blessed Spirit is here; there is a voice from heaven which says, “Blessed the dead who die in the Lord from henceforth”. I do not go into the immediate circumstances to which this scripture refers, but it was a time of dying. It says, “Blessed the dead who die in the Lord from henceforth”. The voice is from heaven, but the blessed Spirit, down here in the place of testimony, answers, “Yea ... that they may rest from their labours; for their works follow with them”. Think of that! I just close with it.
[p. 575] The Lord in His consideration for His servant said, “Come ... apart ... and rest a little”. We are glad to know that our brother is taking his rest. The blessed Spirit is with us, dear brethren, and He will help us and comfort us. And then we have this word from the Spirit to comfort us in relation to our brother: “Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours, for their works follow with them”.