The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-03-20

but a few rare souls care for truth in the abstract, and dissociated from time | and place. Even historical truth has it's chief value as 1t Is linked to the present. The reason for the weekly study of the Sunday School Lesson by twenty-five millions of persons Is not the desire to acquire certain amount of historical data so much as | 1t Is to btain motive power for cur rent conduct. and light upon contemp- oraneous problems The life depicted | in the old Book is needed as a help for the life that Is lived in this year 1909s | For three months the Sundav-schools have been working In the Book of Acts. considering the beginnings of Christianity. Now. at the end of tn" quarter. they pause for backward look.
 The story unfolded in these nine chapters Is the story of an expanding Church. At once the observing reader Is struck by the parallel between this ancient narrative and present condi- tions in some mission lands. A per- fectly proper as well as an eminently interesting method of presenting the underlying truths of the quarter s lessons Is by a frank contemplation of modern missionary growth. ever keep ing In mind. of course. this first mis- sionary story.
 Ine kkOmuHee OI NOECas
 mere handful of inconsiderable persons held the foreground in the opening of this story. The faitb-filled company of disciples was very small. They were like the apparently negli- gible missionary force that has dared to go up against entrenched error in many lands Yet as result of their character and teaching and witness. multitude of others were influenced t,, ff.a tnr little Church grew like a snowbail. even as 1t has grown in the past dog en years in Korea.
 The romance of Korea should be an ever-recurring theme in Christian churches. There the reality of Christ and the power of his Gospel. have ta- ken hold of the lives of the natives in transforming fashion. The very faces of the Christians show that they possess a treasure which old Korea never knew. In consequence. 1t is their meat and drink to tell the story of the Gospel. Now there Is in Korea church of more than one hundred thousand members. that may be said to constitute the dominating factor in the nations life. Even Prince Ito recognizes this so clearly that a few days ago he dismissed a member of the Korean cabinet for criticising the missionaries. saying that the critic did not know what he was talking about. Many persons are prophesying that Korea will be the first of the Oriental nations to be wholly Christ ianized. and that 1t will. In turn. be the evangelist of the orient.
 Some Wonders of Missions.
 The conspicuous event in the early Church was Pentecost This Is stumbling block to the materially minded. Simply because spiritual things are spiritually discerned." they can find no parallel or rational ex- planation for this supernatural endue- Inent of the infant Church. Just So recent events in India. China and Ko- req have. staggered observers. The first equipment of a strong. growing church must be a profound and mem- orable spiritual experience.
 There have been in the growing Christian community of Northern h. dia such manifestations of the pres ence of the Divine Spirit as are all most too strange to be told to Occi- dental ears. l heard Bishop Warne. Methodist Episcopal bishop of India. narrating some experiences in the In dian revival to great congregations at Ocean Grove last summer. In con- versation with him afterward l asked why he had not described certain phases of the revival about which we had talked together in India. He frankly admitted that the American churches were scarcely able to bear such testimony. their incredulity so he had to feed them with milk. rather than with meat.
 Up in sordid, material, unimagina- tive Manchuria there is at present in progress a revival like unto nothing which the Western world knows. Whole villages are gripped by spirit ual power; strong men fall prostrate and writhing. confessing their sins and crying aloud for mercy. Christ lans are being baptised with con sciousness of peace and jov which sends them gladly out to neighboring villages as evangels of their faith. Of like fashion. and even more exten- sive. was the revival that began to sweep over Korea two years ago. puri- flying the native church. causing men to bring forth fruits meet for repent ance. and confounding skeptics every wherd.
 Inexplicable all this may be upon grounds of human reasoning, yet no man ready to accept credible testimo- ny can doubt 1t. It fs the infant Church's Pentecost repeated; also. 1t would seem to be in order that. like the company of disciples of old. they may pc equlppeu TOT tHe pTopdBdH0H of their faith.
 Persecution and Progress.
 Easy times make soft characters. The sturdiest Christians are those who are called upon to stand and with stand most for the sake of the Name. The deepest prosperity and steadiest development of the Christian Church have been in the face of adverse con- ditions. Men prize the truth for which they must suffer. Throughout all the ages the principle has held true. even as 1t did in Jerusalem. that the fidel- ity of persecGted Christians has meant the substantial development of the Church.
 Opposition attracts attention. It makes Christianity a living issue. When men have to fight for their faith they, and the world around them. be- gin to realize its significance Unbe- lievers are won to a religion which Is worth suffering for. The eternal ap- peal to the heroic has its effect. A young Philadelphia ohurchman has gone to India to be friar, or a Christ Ian sadhu or holy man" His method Is to seek out the worst possible pla- ces-plaKue villages. pest camps, leper settlements. and such Hke--and there give himself to the service of the low est,--to the men utterly beyond caste. He was spat upon. reviled. despised by A h T..