EMORY UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY
FAREWELL SERMON,
PREACHED BY
THE REV. JAMES W. MILES,
(MISSIONARY OF THE PROT, EPIS. CHURCH TO MESOPOTAMIA,)
IN
Mo ®Enm©3ai.
tHe ^u-eivuwj/ op Q/kiw^w/bb 20tfc, T^A3.
CHARLESTON, S. O.
B. B. HUSSEY, PRINTER, 48 B R 0 A D - S T R E E T .
1843,
PREFACE.
It very little becomes a Missionary, whose great work is the preaching
of* Christ crucified, to intermeddle with the .controversies which are daily
agitated. But it is a right and a duty of his Church to inquire what are
the principles upon which he acts. The occasion upon which the following
Discourse was delivered, seemed to present a suitable opportunity for the
declaration of his views by the?Missionary, without the semblance of con¬
troversy or the officious obtrusion of the ideas of a comparatively insigni¬
ficant individual upon the Church. He has desired only to declare, as con¬
ceiving it a duty, his own experience touching the Oxford Theology, without
controversy, as humbly as he could, and without criminating any individual.
And he would record his gratitude to the God of all grace, for rescuing
him from (what to himself he realizes would have been) the fatal snare of
that glittering Theology. Those who like himself, have been led by God
to embrace the doctrines of Grace, as they were once the prevailing doctrines
of the English as well as of the Continental Divines, will readily know
from experience, that they imbue the heart with principles quite at variance
f With, and affording no room for the Ultra-Laudean or Neo-Oxford System.
May all who love the Lord Jesus, pray that God would open an
effectual door in Mesopotamia, for the preaching of the Gospel of Christ,
in its Godly simplicity and sincerity—that God would own and -bless his
truth in the conversion of souls—and strengthen his servant to proclaim
that truth with wisdom and boldness.
St. Mark, xvi, 15,
" Go ye into all the World, and preach the Gospel to every Creature."
The sending out of a Missionary, is always an event of the
deepest and most prayerful interest to the true children.of God.
When the Spirit of the Lord moves his servants to consecrate
themselves to the Missionary Work; it is a living evidence of the
faithfulness of his promise to his Church—" Lo I am with you
alway, even unto the end." For Christ being with his Church
unto the end of the world, must certainly refer to the constant
evidences which he will afford of his Spiritual presence, in the
holiness, zeal, vitality and missionary spirit of his people. For
he who gave the blessed command—" go ye into all the world and
-ft 1
preach the gospel to every creature"—will assuredly testify his
presence by giving grace unto his servants to obey the' mandate.
When then we see men moved to«go forth upon the Missionary
Work, it is not the earthern potsherd which we are called upon to
contemplate; but it is as though the Lord Jesus himself in thus
giving evidence of his grace in the midst of his people, reiterated
unto us with all the solemn force of his Divine authority, the
imperative command—"go ye into all the world and preach the gos¬
pel"—reminding us how much of the world is still destitute of the
glad news, and our most weighty responsibility with regard to it.
All the preparation, and teaching, and fitting of his Apostles, which
the Lptd vouchsafed them by his personal intercourse, was but pre¬
paratory to his final and most important command. In the act of
Ascension he uttered it as though it was the great end of his work
of Redemption^ and the Pentecostal effusion of the Blessed Spirit,
set the seal to that command, and empowered the Apostles to fulfill
it. It was a lost and ruined world unto which Jesus came, to snatch
the brands of his eternal love and mercy from the just wrath of
God; and for this he appointed the preaching of the Gospel.
Jesus said not—'preach here, until there be no more work, and
then abroad;' but at the very outset, when there being so few
disciples, human policy would have suggested that the Apostles
6
should long labor at home, and widely plant tile gospel there
before going abroad, at the very outset, the command was "go ye
into all the world." The Church which is not a Missionary
Church, '•and the Congregation which is not imbued with a
Missionary Spirit, can not show the evidences of Christ's being
with them. They may content themselves by saying, that when
our Lord declared, " I am with you always even unto the end of the
world," he only meant that some particular external organization
should always be found upon earth, and that having that, they have
the fulfilment of the promise. But Christ is not to^be found in an
organization, for "the kingdom of God is within you," and while
he will ever show that he is always with his Church, according to
his promise, by the exhibition of his grace in his people, none can
warrantably claim that he is with them, in whom his spirit is not
exhibited. "If any man," and hence any church or any collection
of men, "have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Now
the spirit of Christ, was a spirit of love for souls and the desire of
God's glory in their salvation; and the spirit of Christ is the
Blessed Spirit of God, who moves Christ's servants to live unto
him, and to follow in his steps, and to fulfil his commandments.
"If ye love me," saith the Son of God, "keep my command-
ments." His last command, uttered with all the imposing majesty,
emphasis and authority of an ascending God; his last command,
left to ring its divine echos throughout his Church, until his
coming again, his very last command, as though he would 'most
impressively fix the attention of his people upon that which was
chiefest in his thoughts when contemplating his finished work,
was, " go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel,;to everj
creature." There is no limitation, qualification or ^exception
The command is broad as earth and ocean; it is comprehensive
as the millions of souls which are fast fettered by Sin and Death.
What claim then have any to imagine that Christ is with them, or
to be regarded as those who have the Lord Jeius,tif they are
apathetic with regard to the conversion of the world, and deny not
themselves for the sake ol the furtherance of the Gospel throughout
every nation under heaven? Every sending forth of a missionary,
repeats unto us the command, and quickens unto prayer for the
coming of God's kingdom. And if we realize the force of the
command, and pray for the spread of the Gospel and the extension
7
of the Messiah's kingdom; we must be hypocrites indeed, if we
make no exertion or sacrifice for the cause of Missions.
"" The present aspect of the world, with regard to Missionary
operations, is calculated to awaken the liveliest gratitude to God,
and to arouse every energy for the cause of Christ. The hitherto
inaccessible millions of Eastern Asia, are thrown open to Missionary
influence; and the wilds of Tartary may receive the Gospel from
China. God seems to have made bare his arm, to sweep away
the Heathenism of that immense Continent:—while in Western
Asia, he seems to have opened the door for the Gospel sound
reaching the dead and lifeless churches of the East, and the
Isrealites scattered there, as well as the haughty Mohammedan.
This latter, it is true, will not suffer us to preach in his Mosques,
nor perhaps directly to his people: but he will not interfere with
our labors among the nominal Christians in his midst, and thus the
influence of the Gospel must operate upon him. True, the nominal
Christians themselves may oppose the preaching of the Gospel; and
what carnal heart does not ? But if God opens the way there; if
the Government gives us free access to its interior; if we can place
ourselves where they must hear the sound of the Gospel; then duty
is clear, the command is "to every creature—and centuries of
waiting, will never make the Moslem less hostile to Christianity, or
the carnal hearts of the nominal Christians more favorable to the
simple truth of Christ. If the Messiah has ordained the preaching
of the Gospel in all the world, as the great means of saving souls,
and if his kingdom is to be set up over Moslemism, Judaism, and
Formalism, as well as over Paganism; then are we to "go"
wherever a .foot of earth can be obtained upon which- to plant the
Gospel banner, and from which to sound the Gospel trumpet, "and
*pkea,ch the Gospel to every creature." The power, and the might,
and tKe victory belong to Omnipotence; and if his Gospel be indeed
preached, the-message of a crucified Savior to dying sinners,
though he may be pleased of his infinite wisdom to water the seed
with the blood of his servants, yet his Almighty Spirit will glorify
his Son, in the conversion and everlasting salvation of souls. And
what more can we desire ? O ! it seems as though when men had
themselves felt the bondage of sin, and, realized of sovereign grace
the infinite preciousness and unspeakable peace of Christ; when
they realise the awful pit from which they have been snatched, and
8
the unutterable redemption which they have received, that they
would never cease laboring for the extension of the same hope, the
same Saviour, the same salvation, unto the perishing millions who
are yet in the same dreadful natural condemnation. If men realized
more the utter depravity of man, the awful curse of sin and eternal
death, the infinite obligations of love and gratitude to the Omnipo¬
tently saving Spirit of God, and the priceless value of the merits
and imputed righteousness of Christ, could they rest without laboring
for the spread of His Gospel? And could they pause to dispute
whether any of the heathen millions will possibly be saved without
hearing of the truth ? When the love of Christ is in our hearts,
the love of souls must be there; when the love of souls is there,
there also must burn the Missionary spirit—a spirit of love, and zeal,
and self-denial, and faith and prayer; all centered in Jesus, the
Crucified, and reigning Redeemer.
That the Missionaries in Western Asia [ See Note A.] will
encounter peculiar and great obstacles, requiring a combination
of great wisdom and prudence, with great simplicity in making
known the plain truth, in a scriptural manner, without compromise
to a single error or corruption, is very unquestionable. And any
man might and must utterly shrink from the field, unless sustained
and led on by the abounding grace of God, enabling him to
realize throughly that God ordains every thing, and uses even
the base things of the world to confound the things which are
mighty. For neither the private Christian, nor (especially) the
Missionary, cari realize what is the truest happiness and the only
strength, until brought by God's grace to have no will of his
own, to feel that he has from the beginning ordained their course,
and to experience the spirit of adoption in Jesus Christ. Then
indeed, they know and experience, that "in the Lord Jehovah is
everlasting strength." We have only to consider the state of
things among ourselves in this country, in order to form some
idea of the nature of some of the difficulties which the Missionary
to the Eastern Christians will encounter. For instance, take any
of our nominal professors of religion, who have never known the
gospel experimentally, and go to them and declare unto them their
utter depravity the necessity of the new-birth by the Spirit of God,
of justification by faith alone, the gift of God, in the merits and
righteousness of Jesus Christ; the futility of their external con-
9
formity to religion, if the heart be unrenewed; the necessity of
a life holy and spiritual as the spontaneous fruit of faith if it be in
them; show them, that they are not looking to Christ for salvation,
while thqy trust as they do, that they will be saved if they strive to
Serfe God, and to look to the merits of Christ to cover all their
service and make it faultless, but declare that Christ does and has
done all, that he lends not His merits to give efficacy to our doings,
that they may be a ground of our salvation, but that the ground and
cause of our salvation and justification is without ourselves, in
Christ alone, Who is our only and our perfect righteousness, and
hence, that all we can do, tends nothing to our justification, but that
the righteousness and salvation of Christ are made ours by God's
gift of faith alone, a living, appropriating, fruitful faith, as the
instrument of union with the Redeemer; that being apprehended
of Christ Jesus, we must love his people, and delight in their
spiritual exercises, and share their experience of the operation of the
Holy Spirit in their hearts; and that a mere profession of religion,
however sincere, can avail nothing, if the spiritual, experimental
knowledge of the Lord Jesus, by the power of the Holy Ghost be
wanting. Speak thus unto a mere nominal professor, who scouts at
the idea of what is termed " such useless strictness,'' and has nfever
*
even thought whether he is converted or not, but is quite satisfied
with his profession, and knows little of increasing longings after
holiness and God, joy in the Holy Ghost, and being more and
more lost in the love of Christ, and living for his glory; and the
offence which he would feel, the dislike which he would exhibit,
the contempt of the truth which he would display; will convey
some idea of the effect of the same truth upon ignorant and carnally
minded churches, which falsely imagine that they possess a know¬
ledge of the true Gospel of Christ.* Still, nothing we know can
starMffieforo the efficacious application of the Gospel, by the Spirit
of God. And if it pleases God to grant an out-pouring of his Spirit
among those Churches, a true revival of evangelical religion, as he
did at the Reformation; the Luthers and Calvins and Swingles
and Farells, and Ridleys and Hoopers, of the Eastern* Churches
will have a Missionary field accessible tq them, extending from the
Mediterranean to India, and from the TPral and Altay mountains to
*
* The Congregational Missionaries however, at Ooromiah in Persia have
found the Christians willing to hear the Gospel. '
10
the sources of the Nile. And why may we not expect a revival
of religion in Mesopotamia, as well as any; where else? Assuredly
we may, in abundant showers of grace, if we faithfully employ the
means which God hath ever been pleased to bless. And that is the
plain preaching of the totally ruined and corrupt state of manj'£&
absolute necessity of conversion by the operation and effectual
calling of the Spirit of God, and Salvation by God's precious gift
of faith alone in a Crucified Saviour, whereby the sinner's sills are
laid upon his Redeemer, and washed away by his precious blood;
and that Redeenier's righteousness is imputed for justification to thet
brand plucked by eternal love from righteous condemnation.
Among them too, especially, the futility of a formal religion, and
carnal reliances, and of a legal spirit, and of self-righteousness in
every subtle phrase, and of the emptiness of mere rites, will need
to be thoroughly exposed; so that in no field perhaps will the
minister of Jesus, in whose heart God puts a spirit of faithfulness,
be enabled and required by the circumstances of the case,
more exclusively to devote his attention and energies to purely
spiritual, experimental and doctrinal matters. And, however
unbecoming it may seem to thrust myself upon your notice at this
timd, when our souls should be occupied with Christ and his cause;
yet the soberist conviction of duty to God, and to those who have had
any design of supporting the mission, impell me now to do so, as
this is perhaps, the last occasion which will occur when I may
publicly speak to the Christian community of my own denomina¬
tion in this place. I may misjudge, if so, my Christian bretheren
will know how to exercise gentleness and charity. I may be wrong,
if so, my bretheren will know how to pray for me. But that
there may be no misapprehension or disappointment with regard
to the views which will govern me in the prosecution of the mission,
I desire now to speak upon this subject. V
At this day, I am persuaded that our trumpets should give no
uncertain sound, and that there are things between which no
compromise can be made; and although it may be a matter of very
much insignificance what may be the views of so unimportant
and feeble a workman as your preacher, the youngest and most
inexperienced perchance of all his bretheren, yet it is not insig¬
nificant in the eyes of, God, who careth for the meanest of his
creatures, and who will require an account at the hand of the
11
poorest of his stewards. While I go forth then, establishing by
personal experience, wfought as I most humbly and most firmly
trdfet and believe, by the Spirit of God, in the doctrines which (with
deference to those very far better and wiser than myself,) were the
theology of the Church of England,•'until the time of Bishop
LailEl; the doctrines of Philpot, and Bradford, and Ridley, and Row¬
land Taylor, and Ferrar, and Hall, and Davenant, and Ward, and
Wlfegift, and Hutton, and Parker, and Grindall, and Bancroft, and
Abbott, and Nober, and Beveridge, and Hooker and an host of like
men; and in later times adorned by names like Scot's and Newton's,
and Romain's, and Simeon's: at the same time praying a merciful
judgment of my bretheren (since I must conscientiously speak) I
feel as though I should be ungrateful to God, did I not confess that
there was a time, and that too reaching into the exercise of my mi¬
nistry, when some of the mists of a new-fangled Theology from a
distant Island, cast around all my views a cloud, and placed me in
a position as vacillating to myself, as it seemed ambiguous, and
perchance uncandid to others. But God, who is, rich in mercy,
pursuing me with his grace through diverse means, was pleased to
relieve every ambiguity, to disperse every cloud, to settle every
vacillation, and to establish me upon the ancient rock of his Word,
and what I believe to have been the sound views of the Reformers.
My experience satisfies me that the well known Theology to which
I refer, is incompatible with the doctrine of justification as delivered
by St. Paul, and defended by Luther and the other Reformers, a
doctrine in the experimental apprehension of which, the sinner can
alone find true peace and the spirit of adoption; and that that Theo¬
logy moreover, (wherever men may be enabled to stop) lead legiti¬
mately to Romanism. I do not desire to occupy you with myself,
or to obtrude upon you the experiences by which God's Spirit has
established me in the ground, to which at the outset of my religious
course I was led, as I believe, by God—but which became obscured
by the dogmas of the new Theology, and which the blessed grace
of God has made entirely clear and settled; but I have only
spoken as I felt it an imperative duty to do, and less I could not
well have said. Perchance some of my brethern may judge that
even this ought not to have been said—may they then forgive me
an error of judgment—but that there might be no misunderstand¬
ing or disappointment on the part of any, after God has suffered
12
me to enter the Missionary work, I have felt it an urgent duty to
declare at this time, upon what principles my future course will,
by God's grace, be conducted. And realizing as I do, the merciful
goodness of God, in delaying me, until by the experience of His
Spirit, I have become clearly settled -in so important a matter.
I beseech my bretheren to accord me that liberty, which, according
to common opinion, our Church grants, and to forgive my having
said so much about myself—and so I humbly entrust it all wthe
hands of God, who is able to establish His own work, and to make
His saving health known unto the ends of the earth.
The nature of the Missionary work in Western Asia, (the revi¬
val of a lifeless form of Christianity) will, under God we may
humbly trust, rouse us up at home to the full apprehension of the
awful danger of a dead and formal religion, and so quicken us
unto increased watchfulness and prayer, that we be never delivered
for our sins into so dreadful a condition. And the Missionaries
there will need our smypathies and prayers, in an especial manner;
for surrounded by every thing hostile to the Gospel; coming in
conflict with powerful proselyters, who perchance would scruple
at no means of silencing the truth; and exposed to all the dangers
of misrule, war, predatory expeditious, even at times to a state of
anarchy, and the blind and furious out-breaking of Moslem preju¬
dice and hatred,—the missionary must take his life in his hand and
go forth. But then the Missionary cut off from all Christian inter¬
course, must experience a comfort and enjoyment, that are unknown
to us at home; when he dan look to none but God, and realize the
nearness of his communion, and the power of his support, and
the love of Christ, with a vividness and life, which must joyously
support him, in the fulfilment of the gracious promise—"according
to thy day, so shall thy strength be." Yea! glorious is the privilege
of the Missionary, and glorious the gifts of grace poured out unto
him by the Lord. What consolations—what joys—what sup¬
port—what comfort—what communings are his ! For without
. father and mother, and sister and brethren—and with Satan en¬
trenched in the mighty bulwarks of the carnal, benighted, self-
righteous heart, to combat—he finds every thing in Christ his right¬
eousness—his comfort—his power—his wisdom—his only coun¬
sellor and solace—the procurer of the special grace necessary for
his circumstances his ever-present help and friend—his king, his
guide, his God, his all.
13
Remember, my brethren, that the Gospel of Christ must be
aggressive. It must follow Satan into the strong holds of his
^kingdom and boldly attack him in the stoutest of his entrenchments.
The soldiers of the cross—(and every Christian is a soldier—)
must rest not, until the kingdom of darkness be broken down, and
tlie triumphs of their Lord and Captain be every where proclaimed.
^Te must not say that already is the battle field extensive enough.—
We must extend the battle we must seek new conquests—for the
whole earth is given unto our Messiah, and He graciously honors us
by sending us forth to gather in to Him his posession. His Gospel
must prevail, but we are accountable for the part we bear in laboring
for its furtherance or retardment. His Gospel ijgust triumph. Con¬
ceived in Eternity—Almighty God its author—||Jis coequal Son its
great atoning Sacrifice—the Omnipotent Spirit its might—and eterni¬
ty embraced in its object and influences—it rolls onward in its destined
course, breaking down the bulwarks of a thrice vanquished foe—
vanquished by God's bright Hosts in the hour of the first rebellion
—vanquished by God's only Son, in the hoijr <?f His agony and
triumph—vanquished by God's Holy Spirit, in his gracious war¬
fare in the lives of His Saints. Onward rolls the Gospel's course,
trampling over sin—making captives to a glorious servitude, with¬
out carnal violence—commanding the respect and homage of the
world, without the sword—proclaiming victory and a kingdom to
the furtherest nations, with the trump of peace. No. hostile array
swells its ranks—and yet they are filled with soldiers, bold to com¬
bat sin and fight for souls. No warlike trophies can it boast—and
yet it shows a countless train of willing captives. No glitter of
armed bands does it display—and yet it is resplendent with the
noble ranks of the army of Martyrs. The persuasion of God's
Spirit is itg violence—the truth of God's Word, is its compulsion.
Sublime in its origin—great, magnificent and infinite in its objects—
its weapons are of the grandest order—not carnal, and yet omni¬
potently mighty. Persecution it quenches with its unresisting
blood—argument it confutes by its irrefutable facts—hatred and
calumny it belies by its peaceful holiness and iovf—souls does it
conquer and win unto Jesus, by the sweet and Almighty power of
the Spirit of God. And its message of a crucified Saviour to
perishing souls, is delivered into your hands with the solemn and
divine injunction—"go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel
to every creature." Oh! that you had hundreds of Missionaries
14
to send forth, who, with the Word of God in their hands, and the
Spirit of God in their hearts, would go forth in the Lord's name
and the Lord's might, to lead the blinded Oriental Christian from
his tradition, and his reliance upon rites and sacraments and ceremo¬
nies—to the spiritual knowledge of Jesus—to the sole rule of Faith,
the Bible—to teach him that his Fathers are to be tried and inter¬
preted by the Word of God, and not the Word of God by the Fa¬
thers—to preach Jesus and him crucified, not as the latitudinariahs
after the Restoration, who cast him out of their pulpits—but as did
the sound Divines, of the Early Reformed Church of England—
as did the Reformers, English and Continential—yea, as did the
Lord's Apostles—to^proclaim the same truths to the Heathen, with
the demonstration^- the Spirit, that the Lord might be glorified in
their work! And pray for your Missionaries, that an entrance
may be abundantly ministered unto them, in the lands whither they
go—to open their mouth boldly—to make known the mystery of
the (5ospel—that they may be preserved from all fear of man or
Satan—that th^y may be enabled to know nothing but Jesus Christ
and him Crucifien—that God's Spirit would witness the truths
which they deliver, in sealing souls unto the day of redemption—
that God would reflect back upon ourselves at home, a blessing,
from our work abroad. And oh! may all who support Missions
by pecuniary contributions, be sure that they are not assisting to
send abroad a Gospel, which as yet has never been revealed by the
Holy Ghost unto their own hearts! May the Lord make bare His
arm in Mesopotamia, for the revelation of His Son ; and may every
account of His converting a soul in that land, while it comforts and
imparts joy to your hearts, also write upon them deeper, and
arouse many to realize fully, the weight of responsibity imposed
"upon all, by that last command, "go ye into all the world, and
preach the Gospel to every creature." And may every remem¬
brance of this evening, my brethren, make many seriously inquire
with themselves, have I a more vital religion than the Christians
of Mesopotamia—have I a better hope—have I a reason for the
hope that is in me—have I been taught by God's Spirit to know
Christ—am I yet converted, without which no man can seethe king-,
dom of God—and may it make us all more alive to the great
work of converting the world, and more zealous in the imperative
duty, and the glorious privilege of sending the Gospel throughout
the world, and preaching it to every creature.
15
Note A.
There is scarce a field of Missionary labor so interesting as the South-
Western part of Asia. There the human race had its origin—therein the
federal representative of that race, it sinned, and fell, and was cursed ; there
God first declared his promises, and displayed his purpose according to
election, in the calling of his chosen from the darkness of apostacy unto the
saving knowledge of himself—and there the Almighty Redeemer displayed
the settled purposes of eternity for the salvation of sinners.
That portion of Asia is, as it were, the centre of the world, and opens an
immense field for Missionary operations. Her.ce Missionaries might spread
forth to Persia and on to India on the East—to the vast regions of Central
Asia and Russia on the North and North-West—to European Turkey and
the most important part of the Mediterranean coast on the West—and even
to Arabia and Africa on the South and South-West. Thus Missions in this
part of Asia, will bear upon nominal Christianity—Moslemism—Judaism,
and Paganism ; and while the Missionaries in Mesopotamia are preaching
the Gospel of the Son of God to the nominal Christians in the centre of the
Turkish Empire—its sound will reach the ear of the surrounding Mohamme¬
dan ; it can be directly urged upon the scattered sons of Isreal; and the
Scriptures, and tracts, and books of instruction, will find their way into
Armenia and even into the very heart of Arabia—thence to spread still on
and on the glad tidings of good. It would be impossible to select any
portion of the earth, more favorable for spreading abroad the news of salva¬
tion to the many climes and tongues of Asia and Northern and Eastern Africa;
and God has now given us free access to these regions, where twenty years
ago, a traveller would scarce have*ventured without a strong escort. Con¬
template his wonderful providence in thus opening at the same time the two
doors for the evangelization of Asia—China in the East, whose position and
written language opens the entireeastern coast of the Continent to the influ¬
ence of the Missionaries—Mesopotamia in the west, whence the same
influence has channels open, flowing to numerous surrounding and far spread
nations: and if there be any love of Christ and of souls in your hearts—you
must send up grateful adoration for these signs of the Lord making bare his
arm, to glorify his Son, and gather in the nations to Messiah's kingdom.
Our church contemplates turning her attention in Western Asia, primarily
to the bodies of nominal Christians there existing. The Mohammedan can
only contemn Christianity, while he sees it only in the degraded and lifeless
aspect which it presents in his midst. But God has preserved such bodies
among a people more hostile than the heathen to Christianity, and more
deeply prejudiced against it—affording us a foothold in the very midst of the
strong hold of the false Prophet. The Missionary goes to the heathen who
have never heard of Christianity, and their very ignorance and curiosity are
by God made the means of their being brought to hear the message of the
Preacher. But the Mussulman knows already that Christianity is opposed to
his religion, claims superior authority, and sole allegiance: while the prevalent
and deeply rooted erroneous notions respecting certain doctrines of Christian¬
ity—at the very outset, cause the Mohammedan to refuse the Missionary a
hearing. But if we follow the guidance of Providence, and sow the incor¬
ruptible seed among those in the midst of Mohammedanism, who are ready
to hear—the Moslem can not shut himself up from the influence of Christi¬
anity, when the converting grace of the Holy Spirit is poured out in its
might among them. With only five or six languages at his command, the
Missionary in the centre of South-Western Asia, would be able to subject
many millions of people to the influence of the truths of the Gospel. 1 do
not mean that every soul of this vast number would even hear of the truth
as it is in Jesus—God makes his truth known when and where he will,
according to his secret and eternal purposes—but such a population would in
one manner or other be accessible to the labors of the Missionary. For
beyond the limited circle to which the Gospel could orally be preached—the
Word of God and tracts in the Arabic, Turkish, Peisian and Armenian
languages might be circulated to an incalculable extent: while moreover from
that point, the Missionaries might also put in circulation those versions of
the Scriptures and parts thereof which have been made in the Kurdish, Geor¬
gian and six of the Tartar dialects. This could not be accomplished without
much personal risk and 1 <bor on the part of the Missionaries; but a Bible, or
even only a tract distributing journey into Georgia and Tartary would surely
not be deemed a superfluous labor, when we remember that the Lord God
does use such means in a wonderful way; as we learn, when called upon to
bless his narue, for the con version of some precious soul by his Omnipotent
Spirit, through the instrumentality of a tract, wending its way from hand to
hand, under his guiding Providence, from the Missionary in Calcutta or
Rangoon, unto the subject of grace in the interior of Hindoostan or Burrnah,
who is taught by God's Spirit bis condition as a sinner, and his everlasting
salvation of eternal love, in the righteousness and merits of Chris tjesus;
without ever having heard the Gospel from human lips.*
See Annual Reports of the American Tract Society.