A Hero Of The Poor

A Hero Of The Poor

He was a general who spent his spare time ministering to the poor.

CHARLES GORDON, a famous and beloved English general, was born in 1833. His masterful tactical skills, heroic bravery, and tragic death are well known historically, but his unwavering faith in God and tireless work for the poor are less well remembered.

In 1868 Gordon wrote a document called “My experiences showing the order in which God revealed himself to me.” He wrote:

1. Ever since I remember, I had a belief that Jesus was the Son of God, and used to have feelings of deep depression on account of my faults at that time.
2. I knew Jesus to be my Saviour, and had assurance but was not established till I had gone through 10 years of captivity commencing at the Crimean War till 1864.
3. At my father’s death I was brought to think how vain the world was to give satisfaction, but after my brother-in-law’s death, and consequent seclusion at Gosport for a month, God made me count the cost and conclude that His service should be all and that if everything was given up, He would abundantly repay me in this world.
4. After a long dreary struggle (looked back on with horror) for 8 or 9 months of very earnest work, God began to bring under my body in thisway.
5. He gave me first to see that the fruits of the Spirit could be only had by abiding in Christ or being joined to Him, but how joined was still a mystery.
6. [There is no record of number 6.]
7. Next He showed me that He was glorified only so far as those fruits were produced.
8. Next that the Holy Ghost produced them.
9. Next the great truth that it was the Holy Ghost in me which produced them while myself was dead and incapable of producing anything good.
10. Next that God in me gave out faith as the fire gives out heat. . . .

Shortly thereafter he began ministering at a rescue mission in the slums. From then on, almost every waking moment not spent on military duties was devoted to evangelism and work among the poor.

Gordon rescued countless boys off the street, teaching them the Bible and how to read and write. He gave out several hundred suits a year, bought boots by the gross, and helped many find jobs, speaking fondly of his boys as “kings.”

He also helped the elderly, prostitutes, criminals, and the terminally ill.

On May 16, 1870, he was called to the bedside of a dying girl. His tender heart is reflected in a letter he wrote:

There is a very beautiful young girl dying to-night; in a few short hours she will glide into a bright balmy land, and see such sights as would pass our understanding. She suffers much poor thing and makes one feel Oh! If I could soften this pang what would I not do. But still it must be true that it is better for her, that she should; otherwise God who loves her so deeply would alter it.

Of another deathbed visit he wrote:

I went to Polly’s and saw her off to the Golden City. She left at ten minutes to 12, very happily and beautifully. “What are those bands playing for,” she said just before her departure. It was the Harpers with their harps, harping the Song of Moses and the Lamb as she neared the riverbank. Tune, tune your harps Ye saints in glory. All is well.

Reflection

Christians die in different ways. For some, as with the first young girl, there is intense pain and suffering. A few like Polly are welcomed to heaven by the music of the hosts of heaven. Whatever our lot, God will be there.

They were all holding harps that God had given them. And they were singing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb.

Revelation 15:2-3