W. B. Godbey - Enter His Rest

he did not well understand English.
Now, while the wagon ran those eight miles I had nothing to do but preach to him. Rest assured I did my best.
Before we reached the camp, I saw that the lightning had struck him. Before we dismounted I asked him if he
would attend all of the meetings. He responded in the affirmative. I found him all the time sitting directly in
front of me and giving the most profound attention.
Arriving on Thursday I spent all of my time until Sunday night preaching on sanctification, especially in view of
getting our forces armed and equipped for the oncoming campaign, as I was satisfied that a great multitude were
coming from all parts of that vast wild west. By Sunday we had many tenters on the ground and a vast multitude
of people not only filling the great auditorium but overflowing it. On Sunday night I preached directly to the
unconverted, using as the text, Psa. 9:17, “The wicked shall be turned into Hell with all the nations that forget
God.” The immense audience listened as if the archangel of the final judgment morn had descended and was
sounding his mighty trumpet and calling the nations to the flaming Tribunal of the omniscient Judge of the quick
and the dead.
As that was my first message that I had directed to the unconverted, I took plenty of time, knowing that the great
majority of those people had become exceedingly wicked in that wild country.
While dispensing the living Word, I warned them to flee the wrath to come, at the same time revealing the
appalling horrors of a bottomless Hell, amid penal fires unquenchable. The blessed Spirit wonderfully helped
me to portray the eternity of woe most certainly awaiting the unconverted.
As the moments fled away and conviction settled down on that lost multitude like a nightmare from the eternal
world, groans, sighs, heaves and sobs became distinctly audible. The tide of conviction rising higher and higher,
they began to weep aloud in different places through that great auditorium. The scene intensifies as conviction
comes like an incorrigible paralysis on the people and they begin to fall from their seats, losing the physical
power of locomotion. The moans increase on all sides till they rise like the roar of many waters, so drowning my
voice that I am constrained to open the altar quickly a multitude rush to it and crowd it to overflowing. Looking
round I see an altar out in the auditorium where the people have fallen and seem unable to get away. I look in
the other direction and see another altar and the dear saints pressing the battle. In still a third direction I see
another altar, and oh, how the Christians are toiling to lead the penitents to the Lamb of God that taketh away
the sin of the world! They are actually peregrinating the crowd like the resurrection angels, when the Lord shall
descend to catch away His waiting Bride.
The first one to rush to the altar when I gave the invitation was that German who had carried me to the camp.
Oh, how he prayed to God, for Christ's sake, to forgive his sins and give him a new heart. About ten o'clock he
came through bright as a meridian sunburst and shouting all over the tabernacle. Forgetting that he was in an
English-speaking audience, he fell to exhorting in German and singing songs.
Wonderful was the work of the Lord that memorable Sunday night, when many passed out of darkness into
light, while others were fording the Jordan and entering Beulah Land.
At eleven o'clock I proceeded to dismiss the congregation although I knew many would linger until they found
the Lord. When I was about to pronounce the benediction, this joyful, newly-born German begged me most
importunately not to dismiss, saying, “You see I have got it, but here are my wife and sister at the altar and I
want you to hold on till they get it.” I told him to rest easy for God would surely give it to them, and so He did
in His own good time. The meeting proved a glorious victory; before it was over this German had not only been
converted, but sanctified. At the conclusion of the encampment, when Brother Adams invited people to join the
Church, this German, accompanied by his wife and sister, was among the first, they having forgotten all about
the oath sworn in Germany at the knee of the priest, solemnly obligating themselves to stick to the Catholic
Church and die in it.
This illustrates the great mistake there is in fighting churches. That is not our business. We have all we can do to
fill our regular contract to fight the devil and sin. Holiness people make two mistakes – they fight fireflies
instead of devils, and doctors instead of diseases. Let us take warning and make these mistakes no more. I had to
convince that German that I had no fight with his Church, but only wanted his soul saved. A fight with his