The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1869-04-14
For THE CENTRAL PRESBYTERIAN.
FOREIGN MISSIONS.
Addresses of Rev. Messrs. Lane and Morton.

Addresses Of Rev. Messrs. Lane and Morton.
"a sketch of these addresses, delivered at the
meeting in behalf of Foreign Missions, held in the
I'd Presbyterian church, Richmond, on the after
noon of Sabbath, 4th instant, not having been OBJ.
tanned in time for publication last week, is given in
the present issue.-ED Cen. PREs.]
After the remarks of DR.. j. L. Wilson,
Mr.. Lane addressed the meeting, in substance
as follows:
The first foreign missionary was the Lord
Jesus Christ himself. He came from heaven
to earth to save sinners. To accomplish
this end he laid the foundation of spiritual
kingdom, the building and final completion
of which was to require the interval of time
between his first and second coming, and the
cooperation of all his people who should live
in the successive ages of that period. Hence
the closing act of our Saviour's sojourn in
this world was the solemn command to his
Apostles" preach the gospel to every
creature"
A moments consideration is sufficient to
show that these words are addressed to
Christians of every period with the same
directness and urgency that they were to the
men who heard them from the lips of Christ:
because the same circumstances which rem
dered the command necessary then, exist in
all their force now; because the personal
agency, in one way or other, of every soul
that has or will be redeemed by the blood
of Jesus is included in the work; and be-
cause Christ has pledged himself to be with
his servants to the end of time. "Lo, am
with you alway, even unto the end of the
world" If, however, we would have a
healthful and an abiding sense of our duty
on the subject of missions, we must be
willing to look at the whole truth in the
premises.
The word of God declares that all man.
kind are sinners, and as such are guilty and
condemned to eternal death. Not that all
men have sinned against the same degrees Of
light; nor that the heather will be punished
for the rejection of a gospel which they
have never heard. But every one has come
short of the glory of God. Every man
knows and feels that he has not lived up to
the light he possessed. And when "the
Gentiles which have not the law, do by ma
ture the things contained in the law, these
having not the law, are law unto them.
selves" The burdensome rites, the toilsome
penances, and the bloody sacrifices which
form so important part of nearly every
system of false religion, show with what
terrible weight the guilt of a violated Law
presses upon the conscience of men in Pagan
as well as Christian lands. But can gull
be removed; or in other words can there b
any salvation for sinners without an atone
ment being made for sin? Reason says, no
the Scriptures say, no: and above all th'
sacrifice of Christ excludes every hope O.
delverance that does not have as its bash
vicarious satisfaction for sin. "Withou
the shedding of blood there can be no re
mission" This is not all; man is not onl,
sinful, but unholy also. He is corrupted il
the very seat of his life-the heart H
does not merely sin, but he loves to sin
He not only looks on his Maker with
slavish fear, but he hates him.
From the very necessity of the case, then
the only religion which can save man is tina
which promises an atonement for his trans
gressions, and puts within him divine, effec
tual power to change his will, purify hi
heart, and enable him to love rig ghteousnes
and hate wickedness. And in both thes
particulars every form of religion in tn
world, with one exception, is radically an
fatally defective. The Gospel of ou
Lord Jesus Christ alone brings to light tn
great truth that God hath laid upon his So
the iniquity of us all; that he is the suret
and ransom for perishing sinners, and tha
the Holy Ghost is sent into their hearts ct
open their eyes, to turn them from darknes
unto light, and from the power of Sata
unto God"
Let then this awful but wholesome trut
rest on every Christian heart-that the n,
tions that have not the gospel are perishin
in sin and sinking into hell, but that He hi
given to us the means of saving them. II
wall of dying millions comes laden on ever
breeze to our ears, and above it may
heard the voice of our Saviour speaking
his Word, and by his providence to IL
Christians of to-day-"Go preach my Go
pelto your perishing brethren, tellthem of m
tell them what l have done for you; poi
them to my cross, and whisper in their ca
that 1 shed my blood for them, and that
, "cleanseth from all sim" But the questi'
5 arises, when are we to do this? The on
proper answer is, we must do it now. Wi
: the past we have nothing to do; with t
: future we have only remote concern. 0
9 great business is to do whatever must
|, done to save those who. are perishing, in 0