THE PILGRIM’S PROGRESS
FROM THIS WORLD,
TO THAT WHICH IS TO COMECHAPTER 18
WEEK 6 – MONDAY
Read and pray: "I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it, and because no lie comes from the truth." (1 John 2:21)
The pilgrims meet Atheist, whom they resist with the doctrines of the Bible. They pass through the Enchanted Land, an image of the corruption of this world in times of peace and prosperity. Means by which they escaped it: Watchfulness, Meditation, and Prayer.
They had walked only a few steps when they saw a man approaching them. Christian, upon seeing him, said to Hopeful:
Christian – I see a man coming toward us with his back turned to the city of Zion.
Hopeful – I see him clearly; let us be on guard, lest he be another flatterer.
When he reached them, Atheist (that was his name) asked them where they were going.
Christian – To Mount Zion. (Atheist burst into loud laughter.)
Christian – Why do you laugh?
Atheist – I laugh because of how ignorant you are, undertaking such a troublesome journey, when the only reward you can expect is the toil and hardship of the way.
Christian – So you think we will not be received there?
Atheist – There? Is there even such a place as the one you dream of in this world?
Christian – Not in this world, but in the one to come.
Atheist – When I was at home, in my country, I heard about this place you speak of, and I set out in search of it. I’ve been looking for such places for twenty years and have never found them (Ecclesiastes 10:13–15).
Christian – But we have heard and believed that these places do exist, and that we will find them.
Atheist – If I had not believed at one time, I wouldn’t have gone so far in search of it. But since I have not found it (and surely, if such a place existed, I would have found it, for I have searched more than you), I am now going back home to see if I can comfort myself with the things I once laid aside in hope of what I now believe does not exist.
Christian – (to Hopeful): Could what this man says be true?
Hopeful – What nonsense! This is just another Flatterer. Remember what it already cost us once to listen to such people. Is there not a Mount Zion? Didn’t we see the gate of the city from the Delectable Mountains? And besides all that, shouldn’t we walk by faith? (2 Cor. 5:7). Come on, lest the scourge come upon us again. Let us not forget that important lesson you should remember: Cease, my son, to hear instruction that leads you away from the words of knowledge (Prov. 19:27).
Christian – Dear brother, I did not ask the question because I doubted the truth of our belief, but to test you and to see the sincerity of your heart. As for this man, I know well that he is blinded by the god of this world; let us continue on our way, assured that we hold the faith of the truth, from which no lie can come (1 John 2:21).
Hopeful – Now I rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
And they moved away from that man, who, laughing at them, continued on his way.
Then I saw in my dream that they kept walking until they came to a certain country where the air makes all strangers sleepy.
Hopeful began to feel the effects of the new air he was breathing, and feeling very heavy and drowsy, he said to Christian:
Hopeful – I’m so sleepy I can barely keep my eyes open. Let us lie down and sleep for a while.
Christian – Don’t even talk about that. We might fall asleep and never wake up again.
Hopeful – But why? Brother, sleep is sweet to the laborer! If we sleep a little, we’ll rise refreshed.
Christian – Don’t you remember that one of the shepherds warned us about the Enchanted Ground? In that counsel, he meant that we should avoid sleeping. Let us not sleep, but let us watch and be sober (1 Thessalonians 5:6)
Hopeful – I acknowledge my error and see that, if I had been alone, I might have perished. The Wise Man was right in saying: “Two are better than one” (Ecclesiastes 4:9).
Your company has been a blessing to me, and that is already a good reward for my effort.
Christian – Then, to keep ourselves awake, let’s start a good conversation.
Hopeful – Most gladly.
Christian – Where shall we begin?
Hopeful – Where God began with us. Please, you start.
Christian – Then let me ask you a question: How did you come to think of doing what you’re doing now?
Hopeful – You mean, how did I come to think of the welfare of my soul?
Christian – Yes, that’s what I meant.
Hopeful – For a long time I delighted in the pleasures of what could be seen and bought in our fair—things that, I now believe, would have buried me in ruin and destruction had I continued in them.
Christian – And what sort of things were they?
Hopeful – The treasures and riches of this world. I also greatly enjoyed noise, drunkenness, gossip, lust, breaking the Lord’s Day, and many other things, all of which led to the ruin of my soul. But at last, hearing and reflecting on divine things, which you spoke to me about, and about our good and dear Faithful, who died for his faith and godly life at Vanity Fair, I came to realize that the end of all these things is death (Romans 6:21–23) and that by them comes the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience (Ephesians 5:6).
Christian – And did you immediately become convinced of this?
Hopeful – No, I didn’t want to acknowledge the evil of sin or the judgment that follows. Instead, when my spirit began to be stirred by the word, I tried to shut my eyes to the light.
Christian – But why did you resist the first stirrings of God’s Spirit?
Hopeful – For these reasons: 1) I didn’t know that it was God working in me. I never thought that God began a sinner’s conversion by convicting him of sin; 2) Sin was still very pleasant to my flesh, and I was unwilling to part with it; 3) I couldn’t part with my companions and friends, whose presence and actions delighted me; 4) The hours when I suffered under conviction were so painful and full of terror that my heart couldn’t bear even the memory of them.
Christian – Do you mean you were sometimes able to free yourself from this discomfort?
Hopeful – Yes, but never completely; so I ended up as bad or worse than before.
Christian – And what brought your sins back to your mind again?
Hopeful – Various things. For example: just meeting a good man in the street; hearing a reading from the Bible; a simple headache; hearing that a neighbor was ill; hearing funeral bells; thinking about death; hearing of a sudden death or witnessing one; but especially thinking about my own condition, knowing I would soon have to appear in judgment.
Enjoy more:
Hymn – Assurance and Joy of Salvation – “Redeemed by the Blood”
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