Pilgrim’s Final Progress

 Our family has been reading through the Pilgrim’s Progress, the Hendrickson Christian Classics version. We had previously read Lithos’ Little Pilgrim's Big Journey Series, which the kids utterly loved, so they were eager to read the original and refused to consider a modern version of this true classic. After about a month of reading, we finished Part 1, and I was struck at how relevant this classic work is to our modern lives. We found ourselves nodding along with some of the temptations the Pilgrims faced. As they debated with other so-called pilgrims, we were saying that the same issues come up today.

John Bunyan knew how to say things about death in amazing ways.

Christian has been through the worst of life. He's been through Vanity Fair and Doubting Castle and the Slough of Despond. And you know, this is it. He’s finally going to cross the river and get to heaven and oh, it's all glory! They have angels that they can see and talk to going along with them.

Yet as they’re crossing through the river that is Death, the Pilgrims, especially Christian, “began to despond in their minds, and looked this way and that, but no way could be found by them, by which they might escape the river.” Bunyan writes Christian as weak and stumbling and sinking in despair. Christian  says, 

 "Ah! my friend, the sorrows of death have compassed me about, I shall not see the land that flows with milk and honey." And with that a great darkness and horror fell upon Christian, so that he could not see before him. Also here he in a great measure lost his senses, so that he could neither remember nor orderly talk of any of those sweet refreshments that he had met with in the way of his pilgrimage. But all the words that he spoke still tended to discover that he had horror of mind, and heart-fears that he should die in that River, and never obtain entrance in at the Gate. Here also, as they that stood by perceived, he was much in the troublesome thoughts of the sins that he had committed, both since and before he began to be a pilgrim. ‘Twas also observed that he was troubled with apparitions of hobgoblins and evil spirits; for ever and anon he would intimate so much by words.

You would think that after all that Christian has been through he’d be more mature than to have his faith falter like this, right? Except Bunyan knew the difficulty our suffering can press on us and how our faith isn’t impenetrable. 

Thankfully, Bunyan gave Chrisitan a companion named Hopeful, who was crossing the river with him. 

Christian began to sink, and crying out to his good friend Hopeful, he said, “I sink in deep waters; the billows go over my head, all his waves go over me!” 

Then said the other, “Be of good cheer, my brother, I feel the bottom, and it is good. My brother, you have quite forgot the text where it is said of the wicked, ‘There are no bands in their death, but their strength is firm; they are not troubled as other men, neither are they plagued like other men.’ (Psalm 73:4, 5). These troubles and distresses that you go through in these waters, are no sign that God hath forsaken you; but are sent to try you, whether you will call to mind that which heretofore you have received of his goodness, and live upon him in your distresses.” 

Hopeful doesn't condemn Christian. He doesn't leave Christian. Hopeful stands with him in that moment; he reminds Christian of the grace of God. 

Do not be surprised, Christian, if you have to keep watching out for sin and relying upon grace until the very end. We are supposed to be walking together on this pilgrimage, to help one another all the way home. One of the saddest things is to watch those who try to walk through the difficult times without the church in their life because they’re embarrassed about their suffering or lack of faith. Whether it is the end of their lives when they have no godly people coming to pray with them, or during trials when it’s easy to isolate, we can be tempted to cut off the very encouragement we need. Our fellow pilgrims are not perfect, yet we must walk together because we need each other. So commit to the church as a fellow pilgrim and be encouraged to look to Christ alone until the very end.