JOHN HARPER
True Hero on the Titanic
John Harper was born to a pair of solid Christian parents on May
29th, 1872. It was on the last Sunday of March 1886, when he was thirteen
years old that he received Jesus as the Lord of his life. He never knew
what it was to "sow his wild oats." He began to preach about four years
later at the ripe old age of 17 years old by going down to the streets
of his village and pouring out his soul in earnest entreaty for men to
be reconciled to God.
As John Harper's life unfolded, one thing was apparent...he was consumed
by the word of God. When asked by various ministers what his doctrine
consisted of, he was known to reply "The Word of God!" After five or six
years of toiling on street corners preaching the gospel and working in
the mill during the day, Harper was taken in by Rev. E. A. Carter of Baptist
Pioneer Mission in London, England. This set Harper free to devote his
whole time of energy to the work so dear to his heart. Soon, John Harper
started his own church in September of 1896. (Now known as the Harper
Memorial Church.) This church which John Harper had started with just
25 members, had grown to over 500 members when he left 13 years later.
During this time he had gotten married, but was shortly thereafter widowed.
However brief the marriage, God did bless John Harper with a beautiful
little girl named Nana.
Ironically, John Harper almost drowned several times during his life.
When he was two and a half years of age, he almost drowned when he fell
into a well but was resuscitated by his mother. At the age of twenty-six,
he was swept out to sea by a reverse current and barely survived, and
at thirty-two he faced death on a leaking ship in the Mediterranean. Perhaps,
God used these experiences to prepare this servant for what he faced next...
It was the night of April 14, 1912. The RMS Titanic sailed swiftly
on the bitterly cold ocean waters heading unknowingly into the pages of
history. On board this luxurious ocean liner were many rich and famous
people. At the time of the ship's launch, it was the world's largest man-made
moveable object. At 11:40 p.m. on that fateful night, an iceberg scraped
the ship's starboard side, showering the decks with ice and ripping open
six watertight compartments. The sea poured in.
On board the ship that night was John Harper and his much-beloved
six-year-old daughter Nana. According to documented reports, as soon as
it was apparent that the ship was going to sink, John Harper immediately
took his daughter to a lifeboat. It is reasonable to assume that this
widowed preacher could have easily gotten on board this boat to safety;
however, it never seems to have crossed his mind. He bent down and kissed
his precious little girl; looking into her eyes he told her that she would
see him again someday. The flares going off in the dark sky above reflected
the tears on his face as he turned and headed topiano coversds the crowd of desperate
humanity on the sinking ocean liner.
As the rear of the huge ship began to lurch uppiano coversds, it was reported
that Harper was seen making his way up the deck yelling, "Women, children
and unsaved into the lifeboats!" It was only minutes later that the Titanic
began to rumble deep within. Most people thought it was an explosion;
actually the gargantuan ship was literally breaking in half. At this point,
many people jumped off the decks and into the icy, dark waters below.
John Harper was one of these people.
That night 1528 people went into the frigid waters. John Harper was
seen swimming frantically to people in the water leading them to Jesus
before the hypothermia became fatal. Mr. Harper swam up to one young man
who had climbed up on a piece of debris. Rev. Harper asked him between
breaths, "Are you saved?" The young man replied that he was not.
Harper then tried to lead him to Christ only to have the young man
who was near shock, reply no. John Harper then took off his life jacket
and threw it to the man and said, "Here then, you need this more than
I do..." and swam away to other people. A few minutes later Harper swam
back to the young man and succeeded in leading him to salvation. Of the
1528 people that went into the water that night, six were rescued by the
lifeboats. One of them was this young man on the debris.
Four years later, at a survivors meeting, this young man stood up
and in tears recounted how that after John Harper had led him to Christ.
Mr. Harper had tried to swim back to help other people,yet because of
the intense cold, had grown too weak to swim. His last words before going
under in the frigid waters were, "Believe on the Name of the Lord Jesus
and you will be saved." Does Hollywood remember this man? No. Oh well,
no matter. This servant of God did what he had to do. While other people
were trying to buy their way onto the lifeboats and selfishly trying to
save their own lives, John Harper gave up his life so that others could
be saved.
"Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for
his friends..." John Harper was truly the hero of the Titanic!
Author Unknown. Sources for this article: "The Titanic's Last Hero"
by Moody Press 1997," John Climie, George Harper, & Bill Guthrie from
"Jesus Our Jubilee Ministries" in Dallas, Oregon
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