sponse was heard: "No more long
pilgrimages to make; no more painful journeys to holy shrines. I may come
to Jesus just as I am, sinful and unholy, and He will not spurn the
penitential prayer. 'Thy sins be forgiven thee.' Mine, even mine, may be
forgiven!"

A tide of sacred joy would fill the heart, and the name of Jesus would be
magnified by praise and thanksgiving. Those happy souls returned to their
homes to diffuse light, to repeat to others, as well as they could, their
new experience; that they had found the true and living Way. There was a
strange and solemn power in the words of Scripture that spoke directly to
the hearts of those who were longing for the truth. It was the voice of
God, and it carried conviction to those who heard.

The messenger of truth went on his way; but his appearance of humility,
his sincerity, his earnestness and deep fervor, were subjects of frequent
remark. In many instances his hearers had not asked him whence he came or
whither he went. They had been so overwhelmed, at first with surprise, and
afterward with gratitude and joy, that they had not thought to question
him. When they had urged him to accompany them to their homes, he had
replied that he must visit the lost sheep of the flock. Could he have been
an angel from heaven? they queried.

In many cases the messenger of truth was seen no more. He had made his way
to other lands, or he was wearing out his life in some unknown dungeon, or
perhaps his bones were whitening on the spot where he had witnessed for
the truth. But the words he had left behind could not be destroyed. They
were doing their work in the hearts of men; the blessed results will be
fully known only in the judgment.

The Waldensian missionaries were invading the kingdom of Satan, and the
powers of darkness aroused to greater vigilance. Every effort to advance
the truth was watched by the prince of evil, and he excited the fears of
his agents. The papal leaders saw a portent of danger to their cause from
the labors of these humble itinerants. If the light of truth were allowed
to shine unobstructed, it would sweep away the heavy clouds of error that
enveloped the people; it would direct the minds of men to God alone, and
would eventually destroy the supremacy of Rome.

The very existence of this people, holding the faith of the ancient
church, was a constant testimony to Rome's apostasy, and therefore excited
the most bitter hatred and persecution. Their refus