The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1896, Page 10

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10 The Lutheran Pioneer.

Luther’s Dying Prayers.

On the 18th of February of the present year |all comfort, I thank Thee that Thou hast re-| God.
many of our Lutheran congregations com-| vealed Thy dear Son Jesus Christ unto me,| wrought by him.

memorated the 350th anniversary of Luther’s
death, and many writers presented to the
readers of church papers the peaceful and
Christian ending of the great Reformer. One
of them well said: Luther was a man of
prayer. He was a most prominent example of
a man who combined working with praying.
He prayed all his life long. He constantly
breathed the spirit of devotion. He prayed
much in the chamber at Eisleben,
in which he died February 18th,
1546. Those prayers which he ut-
tered in his dying chamber, and
within a few hours of his departure
from earth to heaven, are rich lega-
cies left tothe church. They reveal
the working of faith in his heart.
They present to us the man as he
was, strong in the faith, devout in
spirit, self abased in soul, and faith-
ful to the end in the work that God
gave him to do.

_ The following was uttered by him
a few hours before his death, as he
stood at the window of the little
room of the house at which he
stayed at Eisleben. It was his cus-
tom in summer and winter, to stand
at the window, and looking out,
and up towards the heavens, to
offer his prayers. This one was
uttered with a clear voice, and was
written down as he spoke it. It is
as follows:

OQ Lord God, heavenly Father,
Limplore Thee, in the name of Thy
dear Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
whom I have, by Thy grace, con-
fessed and preached, that, accord-
ing to Thy promise, and to the
glory of Thy name, Thou wilt be
pleased graciously to hear these my
prayers. Thou wilt hear me, since
Thou hast, in Thy great mercy, ac-
cording to Thy gracious will, re-
yealed to me the apostasy, blind-
ness, and gross errors of the popes,
before the great day, which is not far off, but
just at the door, and which shall follow the
light of the Gospel, which now shines in all
the world. Be graciously pleased to preserve
the church of my dear fatherland, even to the
end, without any falling away, in the pure
truth, and in the constant and faithful con-
fession of Thy word, so that the whole world
may know, that for this Thou hast sent me.
Grant this, O dearest Lord God. Amen.

Lord, T

. Amen.”’

The next was uttered hy him soon after,
when he could no longer stand, but lay on
his bed in his chamber, only a short time be-
fore he breathed his last. His mind was still
clear, and he spoke these words very distinctly : !

“(My burden, in Thy passion,

For it was my transgression,
Which brought this woe on Thee.

|

“QO my Father in heaven, the God and|simple faith he trusted wholly in Him. His
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the God of}soul was in most intimate communion with

confessed, whom I have loved and adored,
whom the malicious pope and all the ungodly
|dishonor, persecute and blaspheme. I be-
seech Thee, O my Lord Jesus Christ, receive
|my poor soul. O my heavenly Father, though
I have to forsake this body and have to be
taken away from this life, yet I am assured

hou hast borne for me.

that no one shall take me out of Thy
hands.’’ .

Then he thrice repeated the words dis-
tinctly, ‘‘God so loved the world that He
gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in Him should not perish, but have
everlasting life.’’ And then he added three
times in quick succession: ‘‘Father, into Thy
hands I commit my spirit, for Thou hast re-
deemed me, Thou God of truth.’?

These, except the word ‘‘yes,’’ in answer to
the question whether he was still determined
to stand fast in Christ and in the doctrine
which he had preached, were his last words.
They prove that he was not only a great, but
also a godly man. Christ was his all. With

jin whom I believe, whom I have preached and|a godly man.

I cast me down before Thee,
Wrath were my rightful lot,
Have mercy, I implore Thee,
Redeemer, spurn me not!’?

He was a chosen instrument. God
As he lived, so he died,
With St. Paul he could say:
“Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of
Christ.’’

(For the LuTIERAN PIONEER.)

Lutheran Mission at Charlotte, N. C.

Dear ProneEn: —It has been somé time

that I shall dwell with Thee forever, and|since your readers have had any news from

our Mission in Charlotte, N. C.
1895 was an active year with our
little congregation; we have built
a schoolhouse costing $155.00, and
paid the same, all but nine dollars;
and we have paid the current ex-
penses of the church thus far. So
much for our financial success in 95.
By this your readers can see that
we are trying to train our people to
help themselves. True, most of our
people are very poor, yet if they
are taught they cheerfully do what
they can.

Now to our gain of souls in the
past year. Nine were added to our
list of souls in the church: three
adults by confirmation, six children
by baptism. Others made applica-
tion, but have not been received.
Your readers can see that the Lord
is adding His blessings to our
humble efforts. May the Lord fill
us with still greater missionary zeal
and continue to bless our labors.

We have been greatly strength-
ened and encouraged through the
year by the presence of Rev. N. J.
Bakke, of Concord, N. C., who
comes with the blessed word of God
and at all times gives us good ad-
vice. May the Lord richly bless him.

Our schools are well attended.

average daily attendance is 65. This
is a good attendance considering
our chances. The Graded School

between nine hundred and a thousand children
and ten teachers. One block west is the Bap-
tist High School. Nine blocks south is the
Baptist Normal School. So we must be doing
well under the circumstances. We have a
good Sunday school enrollment of 107 pupils.
Time and more earnest work is all we need to
make a better report.

Iam also glad to inform your readers that
we have commenced another mission three
miles east of the city, and with God’s bless-
ings I feel sure we shall accomplish something
for the Lord and the Church. We have at
this station 40 children on roll with an average
attendance of 30 each Sunday. We there hold
Sunday school and then deliver a short sermon.

We have on our roll 79 pupils. The _

is just three blocks from us. It has,