The Man with the Book; or, The Bible Among the People

"Are you a new creature in Christ Jesus?"

"That doctrine has no doubt a depth of meaning and much beauty in it, but I can only see the beauty. With me it is not a reality, as the longer I live the more difficult it is for me to conceive of the Almighty God and a vile creature, an unit among hundreds of millions, holding intercourse and affecting a transaction between them."

"And yet such is the fact, established by the verities of the Truth Himself, who has said, 'Your heavenly Father will give His Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.'" And then pressing the arm of the gentleman, the speaker continued, "It is thus: just as matter can influence matter, so can spirit influence spirit. Your body feels the grasp of my hand, and it is as possible for your soul to be touched by the Holy Spirit of God and to be made conscious of that blessed influence."

The conversation was continued, and deepened in interest until the omnibus came to the end of its journey in the suburb. The passengers alighted, and then the gentleman in a most graceful way said, "You have, sir, reproved me wisely, and made the truth, which for years has disturbed me, so plain, that duty to myself requires me to ask your friendship, certainly for the favour of another long conversation."

"I am much occupied," was the reply, "but will gladly spare an hour or so to-morrow evening, should you be disengaged."

"Then I will give you my card, and will remain at home to receive you. I have only to ask you as a point of honour not to mention my foolish remark."

The promise was given, and the gentleman handed his card to the religious teacher, who was startled at the rank of the man to whom he had spoken so faithfully; but addressing him by his title, he endeavoured to fix the Scripture in his mind: "If any man be in Christ he is a new creature: old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

Upon the next evening the promised visit was paid, and the stranger was introduced by his new friend to the family circle. For a time his lady was reserved (as well she might be), but after an hour's converse about "things spiritual," she became genial and kind. Before he left, the servants were called in, and the Missionary read and gave a short exposition of the chapter commencing with the words: "And you hath He quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins;" after which he engaged in extempore prayer.

This was the first of many pleasant visits, and the commencement of a friendship with the family which had its proof of blessing,—certainly with its head, who received the doctrine of regeneration in its fulness. When a believer is impressed with the duty of witnessing for God, opportunities for doing so are sure to occur, and if he keeps simply to the Bible, good will of necessity result. He may speak with conscious feebleness, but his infirmity has nothing to do with the matter. The secret of success in Christian work is humility before God and meekness of wisdom before men, united with firm faith in the truth and power of the Divine Word. That Word can be spoken by, but can gain no improvement or strength from man. All experience gives proof of this, and we add two narratives, in confirmation of others, which show that the lodgment of passages from the Holy Scriptures is sufficient to accomplish the purposes of grace.

A Christian man was in the studio of a celebrated sculptor, fixing upon designs for the first drinking-fountains erected in London. When the order was given for cutting passages of Scripture in the solid granite, the sculptor objected, upon the ground of "leading the vulgar to despise the Scriptures, by making its words common." The point was reasoned with him, and the position taken, "that any word of God may lead the thoughts of men up to Him, and that the honouring of His truth must therefore be attended with beneficial results." The order was carried out, and for years the drinking-fountains of London have at the same time refreshed the people with pure water, and instructed them in words of heavenly wisdom. Upon one of them, in the Edgeware Road, is the Proverb, "The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life." One evening two young men passed it. The eldest was a barman, and the other was his youngest brother, who had just come up from the country. They had planned the robbery of the master in this way: the youth was to enter the bar as a stranger, to call for liquor, and to hand his brother sixpence; change for a sovereign or half-sovereign, according to the money in the till, was then to be handed back to him. This was to be repeated several times during the evening, and next day they were to meet and divide the spoil. As they passed the fountain the eye of the youth caught the inscription, "The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life," and he gazed at it with riveted attention. The teaching received at Sunday-school and a succession of corresponding Scriptures flashed into his mind. Turning to his brother, he said, "God will see us, and I dare not do this thieving." Next Sunday he attended a meeting of "The Young Men's Christian Association," and soon after became a decided Christian. Who can tell how many have been thus blessed by Wisdom making her voice heard in the public ways!

The other instance was that of an opportunity being embraced of speaking faithfully to eighteen highly intelligent young men. They had assembled in a classroom at the Royal Polytechnic, to receive instruction from a professor in chemistry. A Christian man had occasion to enter the room, and upon being informed that several of the young men were telegraph clerks, he reminded them that the word "religion" in Latin really meant "binding again,—the re-uniting of a broken communication;" and added, "This is the condition of us all in our natural estate. Communication is cut off between the sinner and the Almighty Creator. Faith in the Lord Jesus and the reception of the Holy Spirit are the only means by which communication can be re-established between the creature on earth and the offended Majesty of heaven; as it is written, 'Ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.'"

More than a year after this circumstance a young man lay upon his death-bed. A rapid consumption had reduced him to a shadow, and when he felt the end drawing nigh, he sent for the Christian visitor, to thank him for speaking so clearly of Jesus in the hall of many sciences. He was at that time "far off," but by faith in the risen Lord he had obtained mercy, and a blessed hope of everlasting life. He spoke of "the comfort of prayer," and "his sweet anticipation of glory," as proofs that communication had been established between him and the Father of his spirit. Soon after this he fell asleep in Jesus. In him the great object of the Church in all her labours was accomplished. Being ignorant, he was instructed in saving truth. Being separated from his God, he was drawn by the cords of Divine love; and then, being assured of resurrection life in Jesus, he laid down his mortal body that he might follow with the ransomed of the Lord, who enter Zion with songs, and everlasting joy upon their heads.

This great good resulted from one Scripture being fixed in the mind of that young man, "But now in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ." To every Christian the Word is committed, and it is the duty of all to use it for the spiritual enlightenment of others. All whose communication with heaven has not been re-established, must be instructed in the saving truths of Holy Scripture. Opportunities to instruct the intellectual and the higher social classes in the grand but simple truths of salvation must not be lost; but to the poor the Gospel must be preached. They were and ever will be the objects of the deep solicitude of our Lord. He in a special manner was their Teacher: for them as for others He lived and agonized and died. They must not be permitted, as in our great cities, to continue in ignorance and sin, and with multitudes to die the death that is eternal. The Church universal must answer, "No!" She must gird on her strength, and convey the Book of God, which sheds the light of His salvation, into every dark dwelling,—that redemption's work may spread, and the people learn righteousness, to their salvation and to the praise of the glory of Divine grace.

APPENDIX

CAN YOU INFLUENCE THE WORLD FOR CHRIST?

TO a large extent it is believed that you can! God in His providence has brought within your reach representatives of the various nations of the Globe; and has placed them in the best possible position to influence the whole earth; so that if you act upon them, you act upon the world!

But where is this great gathering of the representatives of the nations to be found? Our minds at once advert to London, the Metropolis of the United Kingdom and of the whole earth!—the Modern Babylon!—a city which now contains nearly four millions of inhabitants!

Are you a Scotchman? There are about as many Scotch people and their descendants in London, as there are in Edinburgh? Are you an Irishman? There are more Irish and their descendants in London, than there are in Dublin! Are you a Welshman? The Welsh and their descendants living in London about equal the united populations of six of the principal Welsh towns? Or are you an Englishman? The population of six, eight, or ten towns in some of the English counties, represent the number of persons born in those counties, who now live in the great city! You may thus act upon almost every city, town, and village in the United Kingdom by means of their own representatives now living in London.

And if you should specially pity the poor Jew, because he rejects the great Messiah;—then you should remember that there are more Jews in London than there are in Palestine! If, again, you regard Popery as the great Antichrist; you are reminded that there are more Roman Catholics in London than there are in Rome! Its 2,000 Italians can here be prepared to carry home to their countrymen the glad tidings of a completed salvation! Are German Neology and French Infidelity the foes to the Redeemer which you would oppose? It is affirmed that above 60,000 Germans, or their descendants, and about 40,000 French and their children, are now to be found in London! The mighty Russian Empire, with its Sclavonian races, sunk in ignorance, or in the corruptions of the Greek Church, is numerously represented in London! Some 6,000 Mohammedans and East Indian idolaters are also found yearly in London! and there, with perfect safety, can be taught that there is one God, and one atoning sacrifice. There also are found vast numbers of Danes, Dutch, Swedes, Swiss, Spaniards, Portuguese, Greeks, Turks, Africans, Arabians, Persians, Chinese, Brazilians, Americans, American Indians, West-Indian, and South Sea Islanders, and probably from every other nation under heaven! These are brought together by Divine Providence, no doubt, that they may be instructed in the wonderful works of God. These representatives of the nations of the earth are brought within your reach; and through them, by the aid of the London City Mission, you can influence the world for Christ. Alas, that these representative bodies should have entered a city in which a million and three-quarters of its people cannot find room to worship God in its Protestant Churches and Chapels!—a city in which myriads of its inhabitants are addicted to crime.

The London City Mission enables Christians to act on individuals of every class and nation resident in this most important spot of the earth, this diseased heart of the body politic of the world. The simple object of the Society is to take the Gospel to every house, garret, and cellar, and to beseech men to be reconciled to God. It knows nothing of sects nor parties, nor does it seek to proselytize in any other way than to make the wicked holy, and the worthless valuable members of society. Its Missionaries, 450 in number, communicate the Gospel in twenty-three languages, each to about 2,000 persons. But if each Missionary employed continues to have about 2,000 persons to visit, at least 400 more Missionaries are required for the monster city. Who then is willing to endeavour—by personal consecration, or by helping an agency that is ready at hand, fitted for the work, and blessed in the doing of it—to influence the world for Christ?

COMMITTEE OF THE LONDON CITY MISSION

Treasurer.—Joseph Hoare, Esq

Secretaries.

Auditors.

Examiners of Missionaries.

Country Secretary for the South—Rev. W. Lionel Green

Country Secretary for the North—Mr. Francis Palin, 15, Chichester Street, Chester

District Secretary—West (portion of) and North London.—

Mr. Charles M. Sawell

District Secretary—West (portion of) and East London.—

Mr. J. M. Weylland

District Secretary—South London.—Mr. Hugh Pearson

Accountant—Mr. Thomas R. Marrison

General Superintendents of Missionaries

CONSTITUTION

I. The name—"The London City Mission."

II. The object of this Institution is to extend the knowledge of the Gospel among the inhabitants of London and its vicinity (especially the poor) without any reference to denominational distinctions, or the peculiarities of Church Government.

III. To effect this object, Missionaries of approved character and qualifications, who shall give themselves entirely to the work, shall be employed and paid by the Institution. Their duty shall be to visit from house to house in the respective Districts that shall be assigned to them, read the Scriptures, engage in religious conversation, and urge those who are living in the neglect of religion to observe the Sabbath and to attend public worship. They shall also see that all persons possess the Scriptures, shall distribute approved religious tracts, and aid in obtaining Scriptural education for the children of the poor. By the approval of the Committee, they shall hold meetings for reading and expounding the Scriptures and prayer, and shall adopt such other means as the Committee may think necessary for the accomplishment of the Mission.

IV. As the object of the Mission is to extend the knowledge of the Gospel, it is a fundamental law that the following doctrines be prominently taught by the Agents and publications of the Mission. They are given, "not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth."[3 - I Cor. ii. 13.] "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God."[4 - Rom. iii. 23.] "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us."[5 - John i. 1, 14.] "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."[6 - John iii. 3] "The blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanseth from all sin."[7 - I John i. 7.] "Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."[8 - Rom. v. 1.] "Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."[9 - Acts v. 12.] "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord."[10 - Heb. xii. 14.] "Ye are sanctified—by the Spirit of our God."[11 - I Cor. vi. 11.]

V. The general business of the London City Mission shall be conducted by a Committee consisting of an equal number of members of the Established Church and of Dissenters; and the Examiners of Missionaries shall consist of an equal number of Clergymen and Dissenting Ministers, all of whom, with the Treasurers, Secretaries, and Auditors, shall be members of the Committee, ex officio.

VI. Persons subscribing one guinea annually; every donor of £10; an executor on the payment of a legacy of £50 and upwards; and Clergymen of the Established Church, and Dissenting Ministers, as representatives of their congregations, who subscribe or collect for the Mission the sum of £5 annually, shall be members of the Institution.

VII. A General Meeting shall be held annually in May (and oftener if necessary) to appoint the office-bearers, and receive a Report of the proceedings of the Mission and of the state of the funds. All matters proposed shall be determined by the majority of the Members present. The Meeting shall be opened and concluded by prayer, and the President for the day shall sign the Minutes of the proceedings. In connection with the Annual Meeting, one Sermon, or more, shall be preached, of which due notice shall be given.

VIII. The funds of the Mission, arising from donations, legacies, subscriptions, collections, etc., shall be expended, under the direction of the Committee, upon the salaries of Missionaries, the purchase of tracts, and in meeting all necessary charges in conducting the business of the Mission.

IX. That no alteration be made in this Constitution, except at an Annual Meeting, or General Meeting, specially convened by the Committee, upon a requisition stating the nature of the alteration, signed by fifty of the members, and to be held within twenty-one days of the receipt of such requisition.

We give the following extract of speeches delivered at the last, or Forty-third Annual Meeting of the London City Mission, which was held in Exeter Hall, on Thursday, May 2nd, 1878; Lord Kinnaird in the Chair.

The large assembly having sung three verses of the hymn,

"All hail the great Immanuel's name,"

the Rev. Josiah Miller read a portion of Scripture and offered prayer, after which—

The Meeting was addressed by the Chairman as follows:—

I have been asked to preside on this special occasion from the fact that I believe I am one of the oldest members on service on this Committee. For upwards of forty years I have been permitted to join in this great and important work, and I can only say that each year, as it rolled on, I felt more and more thankful that this work was flourishing and advancing. When it began its work in London, the principles on which it was founded were not so generally recognised as they are now. I well remember, for instance, when we had to contend for the very principle of lay agency in quarters where now it would be frankly recognised. Three principles seem to underlie all our work. First, that evangelical truth has the only claim for recognition as being in full accordance with the Word of God, and as being fitted to persuade men to be reconciled to God. Secondly, that the duty of proclaiming it does not exclusively rest on ordained ministers, but that all men share the obligation, which flows from the Divine command to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, and also to go into the lanes and hedges and invite men to the Gospel feast. And thirdly, that the members of the one Church of Christ, though connected with various denominations, should combine in the work of evangelization, thus manifesting in some degree the unity for which the Saviour prayed, and proving to men that the points on which they agree are of far more deep and lasting importance than those on which they differ. The steady growth of our London population, which, when Mr. Hoare and myself began, was about a million and a half, but which is now rapidly approaching four millions, makes the need of this Society, in some respects, even greater than it was when it first started. We may be very thankful that so much has been accomplished through its instrumentality, and very thankful, too, that other kindred Societies have sprung into existence following in our steps. But I would impress upon you that there must be no relaxation of effort on our part. Perhaps no claim could be stronger than that connected with the evangelization of special classes, which is the peculiar feature of this Society. It has been my privilege at different times to superintend many missionaries, and especially those to foreigners. That work is continuing, and we may thank God for it. What should we now do without the City missionary? In any moment of perplexity, when new difficulties arise, one generally has to seek the aid of an experienced missionary to help in starting a movement for the relief of some evident spiritual want. My own experience is, that it has pleased God in a marvellous way to use this Society for the advancement of His kingdom. We must not, however, try to monopolize. There are Scripture readers, and, above all, there is that wonderful instrumentality of the Bible-woman and the Bible-nurse. The idea of these has been taken from us. We were the pioneers in the work. God has blessed it, and it is apparently prospering. There are fields of labour amongst our increasing population, which, but for such an agency as this, would make us tremble for our great City. I had hoped to have seen here our excellent friend Mr. Garwood, whose labours have been perfectly indefatigable. But though he is absent in body he is with us in spirit. It has been very refreshing during the past year to see him constantly attending our Committees, as earnest and warm a friend to the work as ever he was in his younger days. Long may he be spared to us, to give us the benefit of his sage counsels. I have now to call upon the Secretary to read the Report. It is one full of deep interest, and I trust that you will give it your earnest attention.