Do you remember the famous sinking ship; the ship that was once called unsinkable? It was considered so unsinkable that the captain would fix his lips to utter the below blasphemous words:
“Even God himself cannot sink this ship”
-A man destined to die
Well, we all know the story of that dreadful ship and the dreadful night of April 15th, 1912.
But, have we heard of John Harper?
John Harper
Born May 29th, 1872, it would be almost forty years to the date of his birth that John would end up on that doomed vessel. He would board the ship heading for a preaching engagement in Chicago and of course we know that he would never make it.
Aboard the doomed ship, John was remembered as a man who was constantly praying and sharing the Gospel with anyone who would listen. He often quoted our Lord’s Word; his verse of choice was taken from the Acts of the Apostles:
"And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." (Acts 16:31 KJV)
When the ship HIT an iceberg, John sprang into action! He placed his daughter on a life boat, handed his life vest to another person and headed to the deck of the ship.
There, he fell to his knees and prayed to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that those dying souls would want to know Christ!
Do you know Jesus?
John had one more thing to do! When the ship finally overturned and John was thrown into the icy water; it is told that he was swimming to the floating bodies. When he would get close enough, he would yell to them the question: “Do you know Jesus?” If the answer was no; he would yell to them “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.”
His last convert recalled seeing John twice. The first time, John floated by asking him did he “believe“, the man said, “No!” The second time John floated near him the man said, “He still did not know”. This was the last time John would be seen in this world.
John would succumb to the icy water and enter his eternal home on April 15th, 1912.
His last convert would tell of John Harper and he would answer John’s last question. Not only did he survive that night, he now “believed on the Lord Jesus Christ”.
Reminder
John serves as a reminder of our ONE MISSION. Our Lord gave all of those who follow Him a great command:
"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen." (Matthew 28:19-20 KJV)
John used the last seconds of his life to tell others about the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Understanding that to die in Christ, is to gain!
"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:21 KJV)
He was not martyred for Christ, he won’t be categorized as one of the world’s greatest saints. BUT, he will forever be remembered for doing what ALL of US are called to do!
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Download my FREE eighteen day devotional titled At the Voice of the Son of God. At the Voice of the Son of God is an eighteen day devotional written to remind a generation that we must ALL stand at the Judgment Seat of Christ!!
Here is the link: FREE 18 Day Devotional: At The Voice of the Son of God
Read more about saints who were too good for this world on atabran. Here are a few quick links:
Not accepting DELIVERANCE instead CHOOSING a BETTER RESURRECTION
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