Forty Years in South China: The Life of Rev. John Van Nest Talmage, D.D.Fagg, John Gerardus
Religion
Forty Years in South China: The Life of Rev. John Van Nest Talmage, D.D.
Fagg, John Gerardus
Missions -- China; Talmage, John Van Nest, 1819-1892
"By the mercy and grace of God, called to be little children of the Saviour
Jesus, we send this letter to the Public Society, desiring that God our
Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, may bestow grace and peace on all the
saints connected with the Public Society. We desire you to know the
boundless grace and favor of God towards us, and in behalf of us, little
children, heartily to thank God because that the announcement of God's
grace has been conveyed by your nation to our nation, and to our province,
even to Amoy, and to our market-town Peh-chui-ia. We desire the Public
Society to be thoroughly informed, so that they may very heartily thank God
and the Lord Jesus Christ; for we at Peh-chui-ia originally dwelt in the
region of death and gloomy darkness, a place under the curse of God, and
were exposed to God's righteous punishment. But many thanks to God's
compassion and mercy, the Holy Spirit influenced the pastors of your nation
to send holy brethren (Amoy native Christians), in company with the English
pastor, the teacher, William Burns, unto our market town, to unfold the
holy announcement of grace, and preach the Gospel. Many thanks to God,
whose grace called several brethren, by day and by night, to listen to the
preaching of the Gospel, for the space of four months. Many thanks to the
Holy Spirit, who opened our darkened hearts, and led us unto the Saviour
Jesus, whose precious blood delivers from sin. By the grace of God five
persons were received into the Church and baptized. Again, two months
afterwards four persons were received into the Church and baptized. There
are still some ten persons and more, from different quarters, not yet
baptized, who have been operated on, so that they listen to the preaching
with gladness of heart.
"By the will of God, the English pastor has been called to return to his
own nation. Our place is distant from Amoy by water, several tens of
'lis,' [One li is about one-third of a mile] so that it is difficult to
come and go. The two pastors of your nation at Amoy (Messrs. Doty and
Talmage) have not a moment to spare from labor, for the holy brethren there
are many; and it is difficult for them to leave home.
"We, the brethren of the church at our market town, with united heart pray,
earnestly beseeching God again graciously to compassionate us, and send a
pastor from the Public Society of your nation, that he may quickly come,
and instruct us plainly in the Gospel.
"It is to be deplored-the brethren having heard the teacher William Burns
preach the Word for a few months, their spiritual nature only just born
again, not yet having obtained firmness in the faith, that just at this
time, in the seventh month, the pastor should be separated from us.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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