THE TENTH LETTER FROM JAN WOUTERSS, TO HIS OLDEST BROTHER-IN-LAW AND SISTER.
Grace and peace from God the heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord and Savior, and the co-operation of his Holy Spirit, always be multiplied to you both, for the conformation of your faith, and for consolation on your pilgrimage, that you may not weary in the only way of life, but may unwaveringly go on to your rest, so that you may together receive the end of your sure faith, namely, the salvation of your souls. Amen.
After this my cordial brotherly salutation and good wish, be pleased to know, my most cordially beloved oldest brother-in-law, and my most heartily beloved sister, that in this conflict I have constantly remained unchanged in the faith of the truth, once delivered to the saints; for which I now suffer vexation from mortal men, enduring it with a patient heart.
I cannot fully thank the Lord for this great grace that he has thus preserved us as the apple of his eye. Hence I beseech you both, be not dismayed on account of my transient tribulation, but be the bolder in the living faith, which worketh by love, knowing that your labor will not be in vain, but that it will follow you, clothing and adorning you in the day of Christ. Hereunto look constantly, and always follow his footsteps, in humility and meekness of heart; and be ever resolved the longer the more to live still more holy, remembering that we always fall short in many things, as I also experience in my own case; but my hope and refuge is Christ Jesus, who is our salvation, righteousness, perfection, eternal priest, propitiation, and intercessor. I would further inform you my specially beloved brother and sister in the Lord, that I your beloved brother-in-law and weak, unworthy brother, could not well refrain from writing your love a little, though I am conscious that my gift is simple and small, and you have such an abundance of Scripture, and also the anointing, which always teaches you what is right, so that I deem it unnecessary to write you much; but I feel nevertheless constrained thereto, in order that I may, in some measure, show you my unchanging love before I put off this tabernacle; it serves for your consolation and for the strengthening of your faith, and I am confident in my heart, that it will be acceptable to you, though it be little. Thus, my dearest, I present to you nothing new, but beseech and exhort you both, that you take diligent heed to keep the pearl of great price, and to preserve the precious treasure in your earthen vessels. For you know how much it cost you, before you found and obtained it; and in confirmation of it that it still is and remains in you, let your light shine before your enemies, who are terrified thereby, and vanquished before your eyes by the Lord, without your help, as we have an example in Gideon, and others, wherein it is fully shown to us, that the Lord fights his people’s battles. And since it is certain that the almighty Lord is with us, who can be against us? He that spared not his only Son, how should he not with him give us all things? Thus he is a shield to them that seek and trust him with all their hearts, and believe his word to be sure, that he will not forsake us, but [that] the Lord Almighty will be with us unto the end of the world.
But if we do not trust him, and forsake him, and are afraid of the manifold enemies of the truth, and flee on this account, as did the ten spies, he will also forsake us. But if we have a manful spirit, with Joshua, Caleb and David, and remember in our hearts, that God is true, that his hand is not shortened, that he is a faithful succorer of the miserable, who has delivered us from the hand of Pharaoh, from the specious deceptive and insinuating sedition of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, from the strange fire, and from other enemies and perils, and who, according to his promise, for his name’s sake, and for our salvation, will help us further; not only in the beginning, or in the middle, but unto the end will he bruise the head of our enemies, so that through the help of the Lord we shall overcome our enemies. Hence have good courage, and be of good cheer; he who through his great grace began the good work in you, the same is also able (this is certain) to perform it in you, and in all that believe in him and are of good purpose. And consider, do we not see our desire upon our enemies, that, however they stir, labor, strive, despise, beat, threaten, and slander, we through the grace of the Lord nevertheless remain unchanged and undisturbed? I certainly believe that steadfastness is the desire of Christians, for it has the promise of salvation. Thus I unworthy one, in a small degree hereby minister to you, that I may spread and magnify the name of the Lord, and his faithful daily help and power. I also counsel all Christians, when they go walking in their pleasure garden, namely, in the holy Scriptures, that they forget not the Psalms of David, which are left us by the Spirit of God; they serve us especially to righteousness, boldness, a firm confidence, a living hope, and for consolation in our pilgrimage. In short, all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. 2 Tim. 3:16,17. Again: Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we, through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. Rom. 15:4. Hence adhere thereto; you will therein find all that will be necessary to your salvation, as I trust from the heart that there will abide in you that which you have heard and accepted from the beginning, nothing strange, but as declared in the holy Scriptures. For you know what it has wrought in you, how through this heavenly trial you are delivered from your vain conversation, in which the whole world is still sunk; how you have turned from dumb idols to the living God, yea, are passed from death unto life, so that you are enlightened, and your hope made alive, and all this through Jesus Christ. And loving his appearing, we patiently wait for him in good works, which live in us, so that we love our neighbor as ourselves, seek his advantage more than our own, yea, when necessary lay down our lives for the brethren. This is a seal and sign that we love him whom we do not see, and that we yet believe in him, as though we saw him. Again, if we did not love the brethren, whom we see, how could we in truth love God, whom we do not see? But that we from the heart and fearlessly love the brethren and sisters, by this it is known that we are Christ’s disciples; and they that are Christ’s disciples are sometimes tried, as gold in the fire; yet not to destruction, but to purification and greater perfection, for he chastens every son whom he wants to receive and loves. Heb. 12:6. And it is nothing strange to us, that this now in these latter days happens to us unworthy ones; for it has always been so from the time of Abel--darkness has always hated the light, for they will not be reproved in their darkness, but resent it, and in order to defend themselves, and to continue in their own way, they say, “Judge not, that ye be not judged;” but what the apostle says: “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them” (Eph. 5:11); this they passed by.