The Proofs of Our Having Been Christians

A selection from a letter by James A. Haldane to his aunt, upon hearing of the sudden death of her husband. In writing to comfort her, he commented on the necessity of godly living so as to be prepared for that day when we shall all stand before the Lord. The letter was written August 14, 1804:

I should wish constantly to connect every word I speak and every action I perform with the judgment-seat of Jesus, for according to our words and actions we shall stand or fall. The holiness of our lives, our deadness to the world, and all that is in it, our constant pressing forward to win Christ, and to be found in Him; esteeming everything else but loss and dung; sacrificing to this great object every inclination of our corrupt nature, and every consideration which would for a moment divert our attention from Christ, these and these alone will in the great day of God be the proofs of our having been Christians. If we be risen with Christ, let us seek the things that are above. Yes, we shall infallibly do so, for in that case we must have the spirit of Christ, and where the spirit of Christ dwells there will be conformity to him, whose whole heart and affections were constantly fixed on his heavenly Father.

The Lives of Robert and James Haldane, by Alexander Haldane, first published in 1852, reprinted by The Banner of Truth, 1990, p. 345.