Los Angeles herald., 1906-11-19
TALMAGE TALKS
Of BRIGHT SIDE
SHOWS REWARDS OF THOSE
WHO ARE KIND
Says 6arbarlans Are open-Hearted
and Treat Missionaries with the
Greatest Difference and
Respect

A great book Is yet to be written,
under the title "The Bright Side of
a Foreign Mssionarys Life" When
famous missionaries like Bishop Will
liam Taylor used to visit my fathers
home when / was a boy, 1 would
stand afar off and look at them, as
the Florentine people used to watch
the passing Dante After the famous
italian author returned to the city
of his youth his neighbors always
said, when he appeared on the streets:
There goes the man who has been In
hell" So for years / felt that a for
eign missionary field was such an
infero as Dante described. 1 felt that
1t was q place inhabited by savages
and fierce cannibals. l felt that when
man like Doctor Duff, or William
Carey, or David Livingstone decided
to go to India, or Persia, or Africa, or
to the Fill islands, they went to live
among monsters. They cut adrift from
all heart affections. They forever sep
arated themselves from the humani-
ties and the kindnesses and the loves
of their fellow men. But after / took
q journey around the world and WIS.,
tied a few of the great missionary
stations, L had complete change in
reference to my ideas of a mission
ary's sacrifices True, the missionary
But what he gives up is small to the
joys which he has in missionary serv-
1 ice. The faithful foreign missionary
has the same kind of daily kindnesses
shown to him in his missionary labors
as the home pastor has by his congre-
cation which surrounds him week by
week, year by year. The only difference
between the home pastor and that Of
the missionary to the heather is that
i1 Y1atf 1fctn
pulpit in civilized land, while the
foreign missionary labors In virgin
soil, and, like Hunter Corbett or Bish
op Thoburn, Is a travelling evangelist
with many native pastors under his
control, of whose work he is superin-
tendent.
Missionaries Joys
Though the foreign missionary may
have many joys, I can think of not
one greater than his opportunity Of
travelling from place to place to meet
and commune with the Christian ma
| tive workers who have been laboring
in Christ's vineyard during his abb
sence. I have heard my uncle, the
late Rev. John Talmage, the famous
! missionary to Annoy, China, tell how
the native pastors and the Chinese
Christian workers would come out to
greet him when he took his mission
ary tours. They would come forth
with smiles and gospel salutations
They would send messengers every
where to tell their absent members
that their spiritual leader was coming
Then these Christian workers woul ]
gather about the missionary and tell
him how the church was getting along,
and how many new converts were
made, and what a glorious revival
they had been having. My Uncle
John would turn to my father and
say: Dewitt. their greetings make
a regular Christian love feast. Oh,
those missionary tours are mighty
trips to me for spiritual inspiration.
When L see what some of those poor
native Christian workers are willing
| to do For Christ, 1t does seem as
though I could never do enough for the
Master" Such waws one of the joys
! think Paul, the great foreign mis-
sionary, had when he was on his
missionary tours.
| Whenever Paul thought of going
to Ephesus, or Philippi, or Galatia, or
Thessalonica, or to the churches at
Laodicea, or Corinth, I think he be-
gan to say to himself, "Oh, If 1 can
only take that trip I shall be able to
preach the gospel to thousands who
have never heard it preached, and
shall also meet the consecrated men
and women Of God who are laboring
in these churches. Yes, they will all
be there. They will greet me with
their prayers and happy smiles. They
will tell me about the successful cam
lpaigns for Christ in which they have
been engaged. 1 can already see
them gathering around me and hear
the glorious talks we will have after
the preaching of tine day is over.
We shall meet together in some upper
chamber, as Christ went off again and
again in quiet place with his dis
ciples alone to teach them and to have
Christian communion" Such, l be-
lieve. were the joyful anticipations
with which the mighty Paul, the for
eign missionary, went forth on his
missionary tours.
Paul as a Missionary
Such; / believe, was one of the joys
which was thrilling his heart when
on his last journey to Rome. He
knew he was to preach Christ under
the shadow of Caesars palace. He
knew that he would be welcomed in
Rome by the saints who were living
in Caesars household, Yes, Phebe.
and Priscilla, and Aquila, the women
who labored with him in the gospel,
were there. Epaenetus was there ana
Andronicus and Junia and Amplias
ana UrDane and StachyS and many
other Christian workers were in Rome.
He distinctly tells this in the last
chapter of his Epistle to the Romans.
They were all there and ready to greet
him. "Oh," / think / hear him say as
he was pacing up and down the Alex
andria corn ship. what a glorious
time we will have together. Why
cannot this boat have the wings of a
bird, instead OF a heavy keel, that
our reunion might come the sooner?"
But hardly had he said these words
than the Mediterranean euroclydon
blew up, and the ship was tossed about
by the hurricane, and at last II was
wrecked upon the island of Melita,
which we call Malta. There the ves-
sci was destroyed among the strange
people who knew nothing Of Paul,
neither did he know of them. Then
Paul writes the words OF my text,
"And the barbarous people showed us
no little kindness" He might natu-
rally have expected his friends to
show him kindness. But here he re-
cords the fact, as a grateful surprise,
that the barbarians We're just as kind
as friends could have been to the