But they were not to continue to the end of the world; so the command
was intended not only for them but those who would succeed them. Thus
the duty comes home to the Christian church now, and cannot be evaded.
INCREASED INTEREST AND SYMPATHY
And all the Christian churches are agreed that this duty has been laid
upon them, The churches are alive to this duty as they never were
before. And this is one of the most hopeful signs of the age. It does
seem at times as if society were getting worse at the core; yet in
regard to sympathy and helpfulness, especially in regions remote, it is
certainly improving. And this increased interest and sympathy relates
both to the bodies and the souls of men. This age has witnessed marvels
of kindness and enterprise that would have been impossible only a few
years ago.
Surely it is time. It must be confessed that the church in general has
been very slow to take up the subject of missions with any zeal. There
was great activity in the first century of the Christian era, and a
little later. If it had only been sustained until the present time,
possibly the whole world would have been evangelized. But there was a
deplorable lapse of interest and of effort. And it was long continued.
We might say that for sixteen hundred years the church was almost
indifferent on the matter.
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