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The Titanic and Moody Church
While attending the Moody Church Christmas presentation
in Chicago, as a guest of pastor Erwin Lutzer and his wife, Rebecca, I
was given a book on the history of the church, and in it was a story that
stunned me. “In 1910, John Harper, a native of Scotland, was offered
the senior pastorate of Moody Church. He had been pastor of a church in
Glasgow, and then moved to London, where he received an invitation to
preach a month of meetings at Moody Church. During that month, he was
extended a call to become pastor of the Chicago church. (By the way, I
believe this is the best way to call a pastor. Invite him to preach a
revival or a series of meetings. It certainly gives you a better idea
of how deep he is in the Word and how effective his preaching is. The
way we do it today, any prospect has one good shot!) In April of 1912,
after his wife had died, Harper booked passage on the Titanic for ministry
at Moody Church. Harper's daughter and niece, who survived the tragedy,
viewed the sunset together before the ship started sinking. As he looked
out across the ocean, Harper said, “It will be beautiful in the
morning.”
A few years later, a Scotsman related how on that tragic night, he had
been drifting in the icy water when a wave brought him near John Harper,
who was also holding on to a piece of wreckage. “Man, are you saved?”
Harper called. “No, I am not,” was the reply. “Believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved,” Harper said,
before drifting away. Later, drifting back towards Harper, the Scotsman
was asked, “Are you saved now?” “No, I cannot honestly
say I am.” Harper repeated the same verse, and then, losing his
hold, he sank. That Scotsman, with two miles of water under him, believed
on the Lord Jesus Christ, and lived to tell others.
The words, “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a
crown of life,” are certainly appropriate to John Harper's legacy.
And I, too, ask, “Are you saved?” Read John 3:16-17-NOW!
Invite Jamall to Sing in Your Church or Revival
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