The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1891, Page 22

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22 The Lutheran Pioneer.
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With the Lord. field, preparing young men for the Gospel | boy and a blind girl. Some days afterwards
ministry. The many students that have sat at|the missionary came again: this time the boy
The picture which you see in this number | his feet are witnesses to his disinterested labors, | was gone and only the blind girl was there.
of the ProNEER is a picture of the late Prof.|his untiring zeal, his great faithfulness, his|‘‘ Where is your boy?’ said he to the mother.
A. Craemer, who departed this life at Spring-| wonderful energy and eelf-denial. His aim at|‘‘I have thrown him into the river Ganges,”
field, Ill., May 3, 1891. Our- Pioneer is a| all times was to fill his students with the true|said the poor mother. ‘‘I did it to appease my
missionary monthly, and we gladly comply) oissiona:y, spirit, so that they in all their labors | god.’’ The missionary heard the woman’s an-
with the request of some of our readers by | might say, “The love of Christ constraineth | swer with a shudder. ‘‘But,’’ said he, ‘if you
presenting the picture of a man who has been/|us.’’ He would often say to them: If you} really must make an offering to your god, why
a zealous laborer in the mission work of our| must live in the most miserable hut, and have | did you not offer your blind girl?’’ ‘‘O,’’ said
Lutheran Church in America. | nothing else to eat than bread and salt, and | the woman, ‘‘it would have only made my god
The Rev. A. Craemer came to this country | nothing else to drink than water, you must not| more angry, if I had not given him the best.’’
in the year 1845 with a small colony of German | consider that a great sacrifice, but must thank And then she cried out in the anguish of her
Lutherans, to carry on mission work among the| God upon your knees that you are considered | heart again and again, ‘‘My dear sweet boy!
Indians. He settled in the northern part of | worthy to labor in His Church for the salvation | My dear sweet boy!”’
Michigan and labored among the Chippewa | of immortal soule: So the heathen think about giving. They
tribe. One of the Indian chiefs was astonished| In the true missionary spirit he himself | must offer to an angry god the very best they
that a man had come “‘from a far-off country | labored faithfully, And now the Lord has|have, to appease his'anger and to make peace

to do good to the Indians.’’ These soon
learned to Jove the missionary, who spoke
to them of the way of salvation and gath-
ered their children in his cabin, where he
daily instructed them in reading, writing,
and arithmetic, and taught them Bible
stories, the catechism, and Christian hymns.
His heart rejoiced when his first Indian ©
pupils had advanced so far as to be able
to recite the principal parts of Luther's
catechism and to sing the grand old Lu-
theran hymns. He labored under many
difficulties, but with a joyful heart; for
he loved the wild children of the wilder-
ness. When he for the first time attended
the sessions of synod and returned to his
field of labor after an absence of a few
weeks, his greatest joy was to see the In-
dian children, as he neared his dwelling,
come rushing towards him with joyful
faces and jubilant voices, welcoming their “
beloved missionary home.

He earnestly appealed to the churches
for support of this important mission work,
upon which the blessing of God was evi-
dently resting. And when asked how a
greater zeal for mission work might be awakened
among the people, his reply was: Preach the
Word, which isa power of God! Depict in living
colorsthe deep misery of sin, so that the hearers
become alarmed at their sinful state. Then
preach also the Gospel in all its sweetness, point-
ing the people to Christ crucified, so that they
come to a living faith in their Saviour. From
the knowledge of their own misery of sin they
will come to know the great spiritual misery
of the Indian heathen, and by faith in their
Saviour they will become cheerful and willing
givers—givers who will not look upon their
contributions as great sacrifices, but who will
thank God that they are considered worthy to
help in the spread of the Gospel by which they
have been saved. Thus their gifts will be a
blessing, not only to the heathen, but also to
themselves.

In 1850 the Rev. Craemer received an urgent

call as Professor in our Lutheran Practical

Seminary. He accepted the call and for forty

; years faithfully labored for our Home Mission

Prof. A. Craemer.

called His faithful servant home to his eternal
rest. Trusting only in the grace of Jesus he
fell asleep. His soul entered the eternal joys
of heaven, and his body is resting in the grave
until Jesus comes. And He will soon come.
As the faithful witnesses, who ‘‘shine as lights
in the world,” are disappearing, those who
know the word of God rejoice in the increasing
evidence that the dawn of the resurrection
morning is at hand; ‘‘For yet a little while,
and He that shall come will come, and will not
tarry,’ (Heb. 10, 37); ‘‘He which testifieth
these things saith, surely I come quickly;
Amen. Even s0, come, Lord Jesus,’’ (Rev.
22, 20).

——s ~<a oe

A Hindoo Idea of Giving.

A Hindoo mother had two children who were
twins, one a fine boy and the other a blind girl.
To a missionary who called on her she com-
plained bitterly that her god was angry at her,
else he would give her two boys, instead of one

with him. But such is not the Christian’s

idea. He knows that God is not angry.

God islove. No gifts are needed to pay

for our sins or to appease His anger. The
great price for our sins has been paid long
ago. The blood of Jesus was payment
enough. That paid the whole price. God
asks no more. Nor could we with all our
giving pay anything better. The payment
has been made once for all, and we do not
need to pay itagain. If the poor Hindoo
woman had only known that, she might
have kept her boy. Ifshe had only known
the true God, and Jesus Christ whom His
love has sent into the world, she would
not have murdered her boy. But they
know not that God is love. They know
nothing of the great price that has been
* paid; and so they think they must pay it
themselves.

Now Christians also know that it is
their duty to give. But they do not give
to appease the wrath of God. Their
motive is something altogether different.
They give for gratitude to God. The
Christian’s gift is his sacrifice of thanks-
giving. ‘“‘I believe that God has made me and
all creatures; that He has given me my body
and soul, eyes, ears and all my members, my
reason and all my senses, and still preserves
them ;—and all this purely out of fatherly, di-
vine goodness and mercy, without any merit
or worthiness in me; for all which it is my duty
to thank and praise, to serve and obey Him.”
No merit or worthiness in me can appease our
God. Nothing that I give or do can repay
Him. But what I give and what I do, I give
and do out of gratitude to Him, ‘‘to thank and
praise, to serve and obey Him.”’

Lutheran Child’s Paper.

————s + oo +

Ask not how, but trust Him still;
Ask not why, but wait His will;
Simply on His word rely;

God shall all your need supply.

As of old the manna fell

Day. by day for Isracl,

So to you shall grace be given,
Till you rise from earth to heaven.