ll it be,
that Christians and ministers of the Gospel shall arise _self-moved_, or
rather moved by the spirit of Christ within them, and exert all their
powers for the good of the perishing? when they shall not need appeal
upon appeal, entreaty upon entreaty, and the visit of one agent after
another, to remind them of duty, and to persuade them to do it?

It was not a world of penitents that the Saviour pitied, but a world of
_rebels_--proud and stubborn rebels, ready to spurn every offer of
reconciliation. He saw us, not on our knees pleading for mercy, but
scorning the humble attitude of suppliants, and raising our puny arms
against the authority of Heaven. He beheld us, not as the Ninevites once
were, in sackcloth and ashes, but recklessly violating all his holy
laws. It was in view of all the deformity, bitterness, rage and
heaven-daring impiety of our naked hearts, that Christ left his throne
of glory and died on the cross. It was for such beings that he
voluntarily endured humiliation, toil, self-denial and death. He toiled
and died for the ungodly. He came, though men despised his aid. He died
even for his crucifiers.

Are the heathen guilty--covered with blood and black with crime? Do they
exhibit many traits that are repulsive and horrid? Would our visit to
them fill them with rage and bitterness, and tempt them to crucify us?
What then? are we to relax our efforts for them, because they are
ungodly? So did _not_ Jesus Christ. Let us learn from his example, and
imbibe his spirit. That man, who may be called a missionary, and yet is
capable of being alienated in his feelings by ill-treatment, contempt,
abuse and rage from the heathen, is not worthy of the name. That
professed Christian, in whatever land he may reside, who loves a sinner
less on account of the personal abuse he may suffer from him, has not
the true missionary spirit, or, in other words, the spirit of Christ.

And here I would repeat the remark with emphasis, in accordance with all
that I have said, that _there is nothing peculiar_ in the spirit of
missions, except what peculiarity there may be in the spirit of
Christ--that it is what all must possess to be disciples, and without
which no one can enter heaven. It is a spirit humble yet elevating,
self-sacrificing yet joyful, intensely fervent yet reasonable, meek and
yet resolute. It is all this indeed, but yet nothing more than what is
required of every Christian; and therefore no excuse can be