The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1915, Page 42

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42

Judea, and into Samaria, and to the uttermost
parts of the earth. We may, for the sake of con-
venience, speak of home and foreign missions, but
really, all who know not Christ, wherever they may
be, whether in our own city, within the bounds
of our own state and country, in a neighboring
country, or in the distant lands beyond the seas,
all these, whether near or far, constitute the “out-
land,” the field for missionary endeavor. And in
this “outland” there is none for whom the Gospel
is not- intended. The Gospel of Christ is the power
unto salvation for the most degraded person in
the gutters of our large cities, for the bloodthirsty
cannibals of the Pacific Islands, for the degenerate
inhabitant of the Land of Fire, and for the most
lecherous idolater of India. As Christ was the
gift of God’s love to the whole world, and as He
died for all, so He is to be preached to all, so that,
whosoever believes in Him, may not perish, but
have everlasting life.

Christ summed up the supreme business of His
Church in the one great charge, “Ye shall be My
witnesses . . . unto the uttermost part of the
earth.” “Go ye and teach all nations.” “Go ye
into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every
creature.” Down through the long line of cen-

_turies this command comes to us who are living
now; it comes with an insistent ring and increas-
ing force. It clearly expresses the supreme wish
of our ascended Lord; it is the expression of the
loving Savior’s .all-absorbing longing and desire.
* He is waiting for the fulfilment of this His heart’s
desire at our hands. The task is yet far from being

accomplished. Oh, so much is yet left to be done!

Should not every one of us be ready and willing
to give his share of help toward the attainment
of the Savior’s loving wish? Can we, if our hearts

have learned to beat in sympathy with that heart-

which shed its blood on Calvary, withhold our
help in carrying out His parting wish? No matter
whether our station in life be high or low, the
fact that we are members of that Church to whom
He gave His command must show each one of us
that he has also some share of work in the great
enterprise of missions. :
And how about our congregations? Are they
not by far too self-centered in their interests and
sympathies? Do not too many of them consider
only their home duties and necessities, and thus
forget their duty of bearing witness “unto the
uttermost part of the earth”?
+ Oh, that we would all yield ourselves anew. to

The Lutheran Pioneer.

Christ, and as individuals, congregations, and
Church, in His power and strength, bear witness
of Him unto the uttermost ends of the world!
The work is urgent, and the opportunities for
carrying on the work are better to-day than they
ever were. Almost every land is now open to the
Gospel; the means of reaching the most. remote
places are better than ever; God has provided us
with the necessary financial means to increase our
missionary enterprises. tenfold; the number of
young men in our midst is also sufficiently great
to multiply our mission work in every way. In
short, the task has been set us by our ascended
Lord; the rich Father in heaven has given us the
means to accomplish the task; the mighty Lord
has provided the opportunity to carry it out;—
the question only remains: Will we use the means

He has given us, and take advantage of our oppor--
tunities to carry out His wishes and do His will? -

I, a 1by

Sin

Man’s Shameful Fall.

Spring has again transformed the earth, which
during the winter months had such a sad aspect,
into a glorious garden. ‘The beautiful springtime
reminds us of Adam’s and Iive’s blissful life while
they were in the state of innocence and dwelt in
Eden, which means pleasure or rapture. The rays
of a wondrous sun, their heavenly Father’s pure
and infinite love, caused their hearts to bring forth

-the -buds, blossoms, and fruits of joy, thankful-

ness, love, righteousness, and holiness, so that they
perfectly fulfilled God’s Law, which was written
in their hearts.

Even the ancient heathen believed that there
was once a golden age, when all was peace, kind-
ness, and concord. ‘The time before man’s Fall
was indeed a happy time, a golden age. But alas!
Satan, the liar from the beginning, the arch-enemy
of God and the human race, beguiled Eve through
his subtlety, so that her mind and heart were cor-
rupted from the original simplicity in which God
had made her.

The Lord had permitted Adam and his wife
to eat, to their heart’s content, of every tree of
the garden, with the exception of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil. Concerning this tree
God had said to Adam, “In the day that thou
eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” In order
to stir up distrust in Eve’s heart toward God, and
toward His goodness and kind intentions with re-