Christian missionary

“ Now, where in the Bible do you find, that a spirit of self-denial and of consecration is enjoined peculiarly upon missionaries more than upon others? Where do you find it intimated, that a missionary spirit is a thing superadded to Christian character? An entire consecration of our children to Christ is not a test of missionary spirit, but a test of discipleship. ”

“ These missionary societies should aim to cultivate in the churches the spirit of missions as a Christian principle. Advocates of the missionary cause strongly feel that the interest of the Church in missionary work today is too little based upon the real and fundamental principle of missionary work as a necessity of the life of the Church itself, and too much dependent upon exciting narrative, tearful appeal and poetic romance. ”

“ If our missionaries feel constrained to repudiate it as their own work, history will be more just to them than they themselves.19 262 And if not as the work of Christian missionaries, it will be recognized hereafter as the work of those missionary Christians who have lived in India, as examples of a true Christian life, who have approached the natives in a truly missionary spirit, in the spirit of truth and in the spirit of love; whose bright presence has thawed the ice, and brought out beneath it the old soil, ready to blossom into new life. ”

“ May my days be spent with renewed ardour and watchfulness in my Christian profession; never yielding to supineness and discouragements in my Ministerial labours, and toils in the wilderness. Of all men, the Missionary most needs strong faith, with a simple reliance upon the providence and promises of God in the trials that await him. ”

“ And all of the work should be done through the missionary society which alone can rightly coördinate and unify the whole work of the particular mission.
Faith Missions, so called, represent a genuine and a worthy spirit among many of God's people today. To them the somewhat lumbering business methods of the large missionary organizations savour too much of worldly prudence and seem subversive of the deepest Christian faith. They maintain that the old method is one that looks too much to men and too little to God for support. ”

“ But, could we turn to you the other view, show the work done, acquaint you with the trials, the sacrifices, the glorious victories over fiery temptations, the patient continuance in well-doing in the face of obstacles almost insurmountable, then, indeed, you might be tempted to [10] take the other extreme and feel that missionaries are hardly needed among a people whose Christian record shines brighter than our own. ”

“ If our readers will look carefully at this, and preserve it for future reference, they will come into sympathy more easily and truly with those who have gone from our Christian homes and churches in the name of Christ and for his sake.
These pages of names and places represent many things:
First.—The work. Our missionaries are among four races, the white, the black, the red and the yellow. These are children of a common Father; they are under the dominion of a common sinfulness; they are the possible heirs of a common Saviour. ”

“ We ought to have, then, at least one American missionary—not necessarily a great man, but a man of earnest piety and business capacity, and sound common sense—a man who would give to his mission the atmosphere, which, I am sure, our brethren recognize in the mission here, of Christian kindliness and brotherly love—not that of a condescending benevolence, but that of a hearty Christian brotherhood. ”

“ The mission ought not to be three separate things but one thing; for the impression produced upon the non-Christian population is the result of the combination of all the various forms in which the one missionary spirit expresses itself. The spirit which produces them all is one, and it is that one spirit which influences and converts the heathen.
Now we already know the proportion in which workers and funds are divided between the three branches (p. 68) . We already know something of the work done by evangelists in hospitals (p. 83) , and by doctors in evangelistic tours (p. 84) ”

“ The missionary is sent forth as a messenger of the Churches, after undergoing the scrutiny and securing the approbation of a host of Christian ministers, who, by their own talent and worth, have risen to the pastorate over the most intelligent and influential churches in the land, and who, moreover, can have no motive to influence their selection but the desire to secure the most efficient instrumentality for the missionary work. ”

“ The first consideration in a missionary work should be to get souls converted to God. With much prayer and great faith upon the Almighty, I began my work, and when the Spirit spread all round that community and the sinners began to flock into the fold of Jesus, there was a change in a very short time. The old debt was paid, and we had comfortable quarters to lay our heads; and the roll-call of the Corps increased, and God was glorified, and there is a Corps, till this day, in Chicago, which they call the big 4 of the Salvation Army. ”

“ Christians, whether considered individually or corporately, who are not missionary in desire and intention, are Christians only in name, getting little from and contributing nothing to the religion of the Incarnation. If the foregoing contention be true, the definition of "missionary" stands sadly in need of revision. A missionary is an honourable title not to be reserved only for those who work for God in the waste places of His vineyard, but the coveted possession of every Christian who strives to bear a wide witness, as well as deep, to Christ among men. ”

“ The missionary should, as far as possible, present in his own character all Christian graces. He will be looked upon as a product of the faith he represents, and will exercise more influence by his life than by his words. He must not be impatient, quarrelsome, or wilful, and, above all, he must not be proud. ”

“ The brooding Spirit of God is especially near the Christian worker in foreign lands, and imparts to him much joy and peace.
Another of the missionary's joys is to see the gospel gradually taking hold of the hearts of the people and renewing and transforming them. It {232} is passing pleasant to tell the gospel story, so full of hope and joy, to these people whose religious ideas and aspirations are only dark and gloomy. ”

“ That this is not enough to bring the churches to their full effectiveness has been conclusively proved by the experience of foreign missionaries during the past hundred years. In proportion to the number of their missionaries, the missionary societies which have believed that proclaiming the Christian message is the only function of the church, have not made as many converts nor built up as strong churches as those which engage also in the work of healing the sick and teaching. ”

“ We rejoice that "the most prolific missionary field ever opened to any Christian people— right here at our doors," is gaining upon the interest and benevolence of the churches year by year. Never were the friends of the cause mote responsive; never was the work more hopeful. The work enlarges, and the people's faith enlarges. ”

“ The missionary fire is beginning to burn in their hearts. When they go forth, bearing the sacred [406] symbol of our Lord’s love to men, every Christian man and woman in our land should help them. That movement—and it is coming—will, at no distant day give your colonization and missionary societies all they can do. ”

“ Next to God I am grateful to the American Missionary Association for having received training in a Christian school, where I was led to Christ and felt called to the Christian ministry. When I lived on the plantation, before I went to Mobile and received instruction in the Christian school, I had heard the uneducated colored ministers preach and they had endeavored to lead me to Christ, but I could not accept Christ in the way they had presented Him to me. ”

“ A wise missionary will take care to have always about him a number of young disciples, whom he is training or trying to train, and into whom he is endeavouring to infuse as much as he can of himself, and the Christian training of centuries past which he embodies,—his knowledge, methods, thoughts and aspirations, together with his spirit and example. ”

“ Anything, they think, which makes for the amelioration of life, everything which tends to enlighten and uplift the bodies, the souls, and the minds of men, is a proper object for the missionary to pursue, and the missionary should assist every movement towards a higher life in the heathen community as well as in the Christian, and should introduce every method and plan, industrial, social, or political, literary, or artistic, which tends to ennoble the life of men. ”

“ To the modern Christian world, missionary work implies missionary societies, paid agents, subscriptions, reports and journals; and missionary enterprise without a regularly constituted and continuous organisation seems a misnomer. The ecclesiastical constitution of the Christian Church has, from the very beginning of its history, made provision for the propagation of Christian teaching among unbelievers; its missionaries have been in most cases, regularly ordained priests or monks ”

“ It is especially important that the missionary's doctrinal development be full and rounded. He should see all the doctrines of the Christian system in their proper relation to one another, and should give due importance to each. A one-sided, eccentric man, who has struck off from the main line of doctrinal development and is on a {199} side-track, having exalted some one phase of the Christian teaching or life to the exclusion of others, is not fitted for mission work. ”

“ And when the Church has had that possession of the Spirit, has it not been especially her inspiration to cry out with the Gospel message? The great figure in this Association work in the past has been the teacher. We have had a gifted line of men and women in this work, and to them all honor be given. It would be impossible for us to give them the honor which is their due; but in the future the great figure is to be the missionary preacher, the man who can reach masses of men with the Gospel message. We are lifting this race, and what has been true in the past will be true in the future. ”

“ It seems to me they must make excellent missionaries; they appear to realize so fully the sad condition of their heathen friends, and are so simple and unquestioning in their faith in the God revealed to them by our Bible. All their teaching and preaching is the love of Christ, and what we should do in return for such love. ”

“ What may she not do for Christ? And these heathen are in our own country; they are our own people. These young missionaries are very peculiarly ours, and it is through the Northern churches that they are trained for their work. ”

“ Not all people can be aroused into interest for missionary work by any methods; whatever the zeal of the pastor, some indifference will remain. But if he has the missionary spirit, he will not be contented with an occasional preaching. He will determine the tone of worship and the direction of all endeavors by his enlarged view of God’s plan for the redemption of men. New suggestions, allusions, illustrations and prayers will swell the current of sympathy for missions, and increase contributions under any method of giving. ”

“ And should the record of my poor and broken life lead any one to consecrate himself to Mission work at Home or Abroad that he may win souls for Jesus, or should it even deepen the Missionary spirit in those who already know and serve the Redeemer of us all—for this also, and for all through which He has led me by His loving and gracious guidance, I shall, unto the endless ages of Eternity, bless and adore my beloved Master and Saviour and Lord, to whom be glory forever and ever. ”

“ Missionary work, however, in the usual sense of the word, is only one manifestation of that spirit; for the same spirit which fills the heart of the missionary with daring abroad, gives courage also to the preacher at home, bearing witness to the truth that is within him. ”

“ It is begun with a missionary purpose and is carried on in the name of Christ to disciple the people, that they may know Him who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. All of our teachers are sent to be missionaries. Many are returning now to their fields of service with which they are well acquainted, and some are going for the first time. ”

“ It is a matter of great satisfaction to me to know that my talk in general has been well received, and that many a heart has been made glad to know that their labour of love in the cause of Missions to the heathen has not been in vain. A fine Missionary spirit prevails in every part of this kingdom, and in this feeling they pray for the conversion of the world, and send Missionaries to all parts of the globe. ”

“ But men of American sectarian preacher stamp never knew and never will know what a missionary spirit is. It is foreign to their habits as well as to their creed. When we hear of {358} American Protestant missionaries going forth with barely a change of clothes; when we learn that they abandon father, mother, family, house and home to preach the Gospel ”

“ The best plan seems to be to put each man into that category in which he spends most of his time, and in cases of doubt to use fractions, e.g. a doctor may be as keen an evangelist and may preach and strive to convert his patients as eagerly as his colleague who is called an evangelistic missionary. ”

“ Tuesday evening of last week one of the associate members [i.e., of the new C. E. society] became active. Last night we have meeting, and he rose and gave testimony. Said he: 'I am glad to-night, for I believed in Jesus Christ, and He will save my soul.'"
But my space is more than filled. We rejoice and take courage.
[Pg 48]
TRIBUTE TO OUR MISSIONARIES.
Apropos of the roll of our missionaries and teachers we quote an eloquent tribute from one of the children of the American Missionary Association who is now the strong pastor of a strong church in the South. ”