Last Years
By 1878, Oncken was growing physically weaker daily. In physical weakness and suffering, he drew comfort from knowing "that Christ, having loved him, loved him to the end." He resigned as agent for the various tract and Bible societies that he was serving, but continued to pastor. The Scottish Bible Society gave him a pension. Late in 1879, Oncken suffered a stroke. His physical condition compelled him to retire in 1881. He moved to Zürich where he died peacefully on January 2, 1884. He told his family that his name "was inscribed in Heaven's roll, and that his hope was sure." His body was taken to Hamburg for interment. Köbner preached the funeral sermon from Psalm 73:24, "Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel, and afterwards receive me to glory." J. G. Oncken was then buried in the Reformed Church Cemetery in Hamburg. Two verses of Scripture were placed on his grave: "One Lord, one faith, one baptism" (Ephesians 4:5), and "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread and in prayers" (Acts 2:42).
Read more about this topic: Johann Gerhard Oncken
Famous quotes containing the word years:
“America is a great country. It has many shortcomings, many social inequalities, and it’s tragic that the problem of the blacks wasn’t solved fifty or even a hundred years ago, but it’s still a great country, a country full of opportunities, of freedom! Does it seem nothing to you to be able to say what you like, even against the government, the Establishment?”
—Golda Meir (1898–1978)
“In two or three hundred years life on earth will be unimaginably beautiful, astounding. Man needs such a life and if it hasn’t yet appeared, he should begin to anticipate it, wait for it, dream about it, prepare for it. To achieve this, he has to see and know more than did his grandfather and father.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)