Present Prospects

Improvement era Vol. XXII JULY, 1919 No. 9

The First-Born, the Resurrection and the Life*

By President Charles W Penrose .

When we have to part with go good a soul, so valiant a soldier in the army of the Lord, so warm-hearted and genial a companion and friend as Brother John A. Knight, we feel inexpressibly sad. Not that we should mourn, as the term is generally used, but we feel sorry to have to say goodbye to him. All that has been said concerning his character and the certainty of a reunion with him is true. I bear testimony to it. The Spirit of the Lord, that giveth life and testimony, stamps these words upon our souls, and we feel that all the promises that have been made in the gospel, concerning the future of mankind, will be verified. Sentiment of Sadness in Parting. But at the same time, we can not help feeling a sentiment of *Sermon at the funeral services of Patriarch John A. Knight, Eleventh ward chapel, Salt Lake City, 2 p. m., April 22, 1919. This sermon made a deep impression upon the large congregation and is printed in the Era by request of many hearers, and at the desire of the bereaved family. The force and inspiration attending its delivery were remarkable, considering the age of the beloved Church leader, who is in his eighty-eighth year. The discourse is only one among many of his published utterances during more than sixty-eight years of ministerial life, in which he traveled over many lands, sailed over many seas, and preached the gospel among many nations. He is still in active service with vigor and devotion unimpaired, rend ring valuable counsel in the cause of the great Latter-day work. We present to our readers in this number a recent photograph of him, and also a poem written in London, England, in 1855, and published in the Millennial Star in 1858. The poem is reproduced now as a foreshadowing, at that early date, of events of recent occurrence. It is one of the many poetic contributions of President Penrose that has escaped general attention. It may be sung to the tune of "Ye Banks and Braes of Bonny Doon." Editors.]

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sadness and sorrow when we have to part with such a dear, good friend as our brother whose earthly remains lie before us here, this afternoon. I shall miss him very much, not as much as his family and immediate relatives will feel, but whenever I came to the Eleventh ward, even in the old times, when we were in the old building, just as much as lately when I have met him here, I have always felt glad to take him by the hand, and to feel that his spirit went with his body to me, and mine to him. There was a congeniality between us that I cannot express, neither could I explain, only that I know that it existed and I feel it today. I feel that he is my brother in the spirit; that he was my friend in the body and in the spirit; that he was a great soul. There was a personality about him different from other people. He was distinct as an individual, to me. I can see him now in mind, when I came to meeting here, and after the close to have him come up and say: "Brother Penrose, God bless you," and feel that he meant it, to feel that it went unto me and strengthened me. But he is gone. I am sorry that I shall not see him again in the flesh, but I feel sure that I will meet him in the spirit, when I pass away, and on that glad morning of the resurrection day, when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, and we shall appear with him in glory. I believe with all my heart that Brother Knight has fought the good fight and has kept the faith, and that he has finished his course. Now there is laid up for him a crown which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give him at that day, the day of his appearing in his kingdom. Of course, it is not for me to judge in regard to this, nor to say what will become of Brother Knight in the sphere into which he has gone, what his work will be, who his associates will be, nor what will be his glory or power in the world to come. That is for the righteous Judge to determine, the Judge who is full of integrity and honor and justice and mercy, combined in their proper relationships, and he will deal out to all of us, when our proper time comes, that which belongs to us, that which we have merited by our good works with the aid of the Spirit of the Lord, that to which we are entitled as a beginning for our everlasting future. Some of us may be bereaved of such things here in this life, but the honors of this world are transitory. The honors that shall come to Brother Knight, and to us, if we are faithful and true, will be eternal and everincreasing, worlds without end. Brother Knight has gone to his rest so far as his body is concerned,— and his spirit, too, in one sense of the term. "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord",— so John the Revelator heard in that glorious vision that — was given to him "for they rest from their labors, and their works do follow them."