COMITY.
REV. W. C. POND, SAN FRANCISCO.
From the first I have conducted the operations of our mission on principles of denominational comity. There are five distinct missions at work for the Chinese of California, besides our own. The Presbyterian has schools in San Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento, San José, and, perhaps, I may add, at Napa and Santa Rosa, though I am not aware that the work done in these two places is directly connected with their Board; the Methodist mission has schools also in San Francisco, Oakland, Sacramento, and San José, and one besides, at Chico; the Baptist and Episcopal missions conduct each one school in this city; the United Presbyterian mission has schools in Oakland and Los Angeles. The total number of schools sustained by all these missions—so far as I am informed—is thus 15. Our mission has six schools in San Francisco, and ten elsewhere. Sacramento and Oakland are the only points outside this city occupied by us and by other missions also. At each of these points our schools were first established, and we have not felt it due to comity to abandon our work begun and carried on for years because others came in to divide it with us. But we have never yet planted a school in any field already occupied, unless San Francisco be an exception, where the occupation was so incomplete, that we, ourselves, having one school, have established five others. I am led to these remarks partly because the facts, it seems to me, are worth reporting, and partly because, just now, questions of comity have been and are still before us to be answered. Thus, in accordance with a purpose expressed at the close of our last fiscal year, to do something this year for the large colony of Chinese that has established itself in the town of Chico, I visited that town last month. I heard of a school as already established—though its existence had been before unknown to the pastor with whom I had corresponded. I visited the school; found four pupils present, and learned that it was sustained by the Methodist Mission. There was room for so much more to be done that I made conditional arrangements for planting a school there. The condition was that the Methodist Mission should give us cordial welcome and divide the field with us territorially. But our Methodist brethren say that they would prefer to occupy the whole territory, and promise to do so in adequate force, and therefore we have withdrawn. The large town of Vallejo has a Chinese population somewhat exceeding 200, and no one was caring for their souls. I determined to put into that field the work which I had intended to do at Chico. I have made arrangements accordingly—renting a mission-house, engaging a teacher, and arranging for a helper to go there as soon as the building can be made ready. But the school will be in special relation with the Presbyterian Church, there being no Congregational Church, except at South Vallejo, nearly two miles distant. I have accordingly said to our Presbyterian friends that I would establish and carry on the school, subject to transfer at any time when their Board will assume the care of it, and will reimburse our treasury for expenses incurred up to the time of the transfer. At Los Angeles we had sustained a school for two or three years, and several of our pupils had been brought so clearly into Christian light and life that almost immediately after the establishment of a Presbyterian mission there and the transfer of our work to its care, they were baptized and received into the Presbyterian church. But the brother to whose care the work was committed removed, after about two years, to Oakland, and left it in other hands. This field has now become so large that it need involve no criticism upon the mission already existing there to say that there is room for another, and that souls in large numbers are walking in darkness that might be led into light, if we should resume the work we unwisely (I now think) laid down. I propose, therefore, to do this as soon as I can command the time necessary to visit Los Angeles, unless I should then find that the facts have been incorrectly represented to me.
Two principles of denominational comity suggest themselves as the outcome of my thought on these questions and these fields. The first is no crowding; the mission already at work in a field, to be left in sole possession, provided it will render the service needed there; the second is, no possession without occupation; no leaving of souls to perish because somebody’s dog is in the manger, and a field has been entered but not worked. Am I right?
SOUND DOCTRINE.
The following sermon-sketch was read for criticism by our helper, Lee Sam, at our regular exercise last Wednesday afternoon. I ventured to ask him whether he found what he had written in some commentary, or whether it came from his own study of the text and of related passages. He told me that it was what he himself had thought out in Bible study. It may be interesting to see what views of human depravity a thoughtful man unschooled in theology, unbiassed by ancient traditions, untrammeled by any standards or any creeds, has drawn forth for himself from the Word of God. The text was in Romans, 5:21.
“That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.”
1. What is meant by reigning unto death and reigning unto eternal life? It means the work of Christ and the work of Adam. What was the work of Adam? What is the work of Christ? The work of Adam was the work of death. The sin of Adam brought death upon all our race. In the 17th verse of this chapter “By one man’s offence death reigned by one,” because Adam transgressed God’s command by eating the forbidden fruit, so God turned him out of the Garden of Eden. But we are of the race of Adam. He transgressed God’s will and brought sin upon us all. But some say our hearts are full of good when we are born, but, by and by, we learn the evil from the others. But we don’t believe that; we see sometimes the little baby when he begins to talk, then he tell lies; when he begins to walk then he fight with others; when he know his parents then he disobeys them; when he grow to be a man then he walks his own way, it may be “committing adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envying, murders, drunkenness, revelings.” So we know the evil is not learned from the others, we have it when we are born. By getting away from God and doing those wicked things we cause the death of both soul and body.
2. What is the work of Christ?
“In Christ shall all be made alive.” It is said, John, 5:21, “For as the Father raiseth up the dead and quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.” In Adam all die, but in Christ shall all be made alive.
How can we reign unto eternal life? If we want to obtain eternal life we must come to Jesus and trust in Him. Jesus says, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” In 1st John, 2:1, “If any man sin we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous.” Though we are sinners, and far from God He can bring us back. But our God hates sin, he loves us, and would save us from our sin, and bring us near to Him. “For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him might not perish but have everlasting life.” Jesus came into the world to save us. His whole life was spent in doing good, and at last he died on the cross to give his life a ransom for many, for all who will come to him and be saved. He is able to save us. We are commanded to love the Lord with all our hearts and with all our minds and with all our souls. Adam loved God with all his heart, but lost God’s love. The Lord Jesus, by his holy spirit, restores this love in our hearts, so that we do love him with all our hearts and souls, and through Christ we can do all things. Without Jesus we can do nothing. Christ gives us victory over death. In 1st Cor., 15:55, 56, 57, “O death where is thy sting! O grave where is thy victory! The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”