ADOSS Newsletter
September 2020
Soon to be Published
Dear Brother/Sister
I have not issued anything from A Day of Small Things since May 2020. A few short articles have been added to the website, thanks to our brother Edwin Mutton’s ‘Golden Nuggets’ but there has not been any new summary of J N Darby’s papers or ministry. A few reasons:
1. My neuropathic pain has been very trying. It has limited the number of hours I can work at a time. Thank God for the Great High Priest who sympathises with our infirmities.
2. We have been clearing out and selling the house of a local sister who has had to go into a care home.
3. In some ways, I am not sure of what to add. Most articles I read cover the same ground as summaries already published. Nonetheless, I am always open to suggestions.
But the main reason is that I have been writing a book: ‘After These Things – Summaries of John Nelson Darby’s Papers on Prophecy for Christians waiting to see the Lord of Glory when he Raptures his Church’. When finished it will be about 300 pages long, much of it being revisions of articles I had summarised over the past six years, supplemented with chapters on subjects which Christians often confuse, and which Darby strove tirelessly to clarify. Doctrine is unashamedly premillennial, based on scripture and showing clearly what pertains to the heavenly Church and earthly Israel.
Most of the book has now been written and reviewed. Five brothers, in particular Jim Hibbert of Calgary, have provided invaluable input and helpful comments. A challenging task has been a ‘Timeline’ covering events in heaven or on the earth between the Rapture and the Appearing drawing on scriptures in Matthew, Mark, Luke, Revelation, 1&2 Thessalonians, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel and others.
If you reply to this email, I will send you pre-publication PDF copies of the Timeline, the Table of Contents and a summary of one of Darby’s 1840 Geneva addresses. There is still time to make minor additions or changes, so if you ask questions such as ‘Have you covered/explained . . .?’ or ‘Have you distinguished between X and Y?’ I will certainly take these into account.
It has been quite a mammoth undertaking and I feel the more cast on God for help in this holy subject. I have learned a lot while doing it, but become increasingly conscious of there being so much more to learn. Even Paul said, ‘We see now through a dim window obscurely, but then face to face’ 1 Cor 13:12 Darby). That is why I feel so dependent on the Lord, the Holy Spirit, reliable publications (rejecting what is unsound) and many dear brethren from several countries and denominations.
I hope, if the Lord will, to have it published by November. It will be available on-line at cost in hard copy and Kindle and ebook electronic formats.
2020 has been such an unusual year. Whether you are gathering physically – with restrictions, or on-line – I trust you are feeling blessed and encouraged. As a ‘second wave’ of Covid-19 now appears inevitable, people – some believers even – are fearful. May we all seize the opportunity to point persons to the One on whom we can cast all our cares. We need not fear.
With greetings in our Lord Jesus, your brother
Daniel Roberts (a.k.a. Sosthenes)
