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‘And I heard a voice from heaven saving unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours.’
Rev_14:13
I. First and foremost among these will be the noble army of martyrs, men who in all ages were willing to suffer for the truth; then there will be the Apostles and Prophets, the Prophets of the Old Testament, who saw the day of Christ afar off, and the Apostles of the New, who went forth to bear God’s message of love to all the world. There will be the learned Doctors of the Church, who spent their lives in teaching or expounding or harmonising the great truths of God.
II. The state of the dead in Christ is invariably spoken of as a blessed state and a state of rest, both of which are impossible if purgatory is true. ‘Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours, and their works do follow them’; while of those who worship the beast and his image, it is said that ‘The smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever, and they have no rest day nor night.’
III. They are in God’s presence, and therefore they are blessed. They are in God’s safe keeping, and therefore they are at rest. If we could think more of these two truths which are so plainly stated in the Bible, it would utterly recast some of the heathen notions that linger round us still.
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Rev. Canon Aubrey Moore.