Page:Village life in Korea (1911).djvu/16

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Village Life in Korea.

lions of simple-minded country people with the gospel. We have not primarily to do with civilization, or with Christian education, as important as the latter is; but the tremendous burden of responsibility of the hour is the evangelization of the great masses of people gathered in villages. This is to be done by a man with a message, and that man must be a native Christian whose heart is aflame with the love of Jesus Christ.

It is a cause for profound gratitude that at a time when there is a religious awakening as wide as the nation nearly every man and woman who has found Christ is ready to plunge at once into the darkness of heathenism to bring his own people to Him who is the light of the world.

It is said that a bishop of the Church of England once asked a returned missionary: "How many missionaries have you on your station?" "One thousand," was the answer. "I did not ask you how many converts you had," explained the bishop, "but how many missionaries." "I understand you," replied the brother. "I mean one thousand, for all our converts are missionaries."

Happy is the missionary body which can say this of the native converts, who have been so filled with the truth and so burdened for the salvation of their own people that they go from house to house and from village to village testifying to the work of grace in their own hearts and to the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ to save unto the uttermost. The white banner flies from the flagpole of many a Christian village in Korea on a Sabbath morning, and is the invitation to-