Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1902-02-05
WALHALLA, s. C.s
WEDNESDAY, FEB..5, 1902.
The Scarlet Thread.

the centrifugal force of love which is
ever flinging out from the center
self-.the hearts best blessings to
others. Anti missions is the centri-
petal power of selfishness which is
ever seeking to draw to the
center, self, all environing good.
Missions is of Christ, the great Self
Giver; anti-missions is the good
of this age. The work of gospeliz-
ing the world is not an annex to the
structure of Christianity it is that
around which all else is built. Re-
move the spirit of missions from the
religion of Christ and this building
of God collapses into colossal ruin.
He who has not learned that mis-
sions is of the essence of our holy
religion knows not the A, B, C's of
the Bible. 1t may be helpful to re-
count few items indicative Of the
fact that, in a true sense, missions is
Christianity. Certain it is, at least,
that the missionary spirit is the scar
let thread running through the Bible,
binding it into blessed unity.
This thread is Gods self giving and
saving love for all men.
The incarnation was stupendous
missionary fact. 1t was the coming
of the first great volunteer Mission
ary into foreign field, utterly re-
pugnant to His divinely sensitive
feelings. lie came to live and love
and die and to preach a saving gos-
pei for all.
The Lords prayer is silent and
age-long witness to world wide mis-
sions. The first petition that must
rise from our heart to ssour Father"
Is not for food or forgiveness, but for
the coming of the kingdom in all the
earth. Let no one opposed to mis-
sions ever dare again to pray the
Lords prayer.
The "little gospel" (John 3: 16(
sweetly testifes to Gods salvational
plan being worldwide in scope. Gods
love, unlike ours ofttimes, is not COM
passed by city, district, State, or
home missions. Gods love leaps
over all barriers and boundaries and
embraces a world. "God so loved
the world"-yes, nothing less than
the whole world. Who dares to
oppose Gods love?
The last words of risen, ascend
ing Christ are an unanswerable argu-
ment for world wide missions. Every
well-informed Bible student knows
that the burden that rested on the
heart of the risen Lord was the Civ
ing of the gospel to the whole world.
We have the record of the giving of
the "great commission" on four diff
ferent occasions. We know not on
how many other occasions lie i'm
pressed it. And as He rose from
Olivet's brow and disappeared from
the gaze of those eleven men, the
last words that died in the sweet
cadences upon their ears was, "Utter-
most part of the earth"
The New Testament is literally q
foreign missionary book. The four
gospels were written by foreign mis-
sionaries, one being medical mis-
sionary, who also wrote Acts. The
nine epistles that follow were written
by foreign missionary to churches
on the foreign field. The pastoral
epistles were penued by a foreign
missionary to younger missionaries.
The rest of the New Testament was
written by Apostles on the foreign
field, except James and Jude, and
possibly Hebrews. Cut the foreign
mission element out of the New
Testament, and you have, at most,
only three of the twenty seven books
left. These facts write their own
commentaries.
The persecution that arose upon
the Death of Stephen was provi-
dental compelling of Gods children
to give up their home mission pro-
clivities. The result was they (the
members of the Jerusalem church)
went everywhere preaching.
Paul and Peter had 20 be set right
on the question of world wide mis-
sions. Peter had his house-top
vision and Paul his temple expert
ence. This only shows that the
heart is not by nature inclined to
foreign missions. This spirit is from
Christ alone. Johns vision (Rev.
z: 81 is one of the last signs of this
scarlet thread Of world-missions. 1t
is the climax of New Testament
testimony. He beheld the trophies
of worldwide missionary effort in
that celestial scene-the innumerable
throng "out of every nation and of
all tribes and peoples and tongues,
arrayed in white robes and palms in