“It was to a world suffering under such wretchedness as had been spoken of, that the Lord Jesus Christ, in compassion for mankind, descended in the reign of the despotic and abandoned Herod. Amid such scenes He mingled, till He expired on the cross. If His Gospel is able to effect all that we have seen, to transform the ignorant, sensual, and degraded heathen, and to elevate a nation to such a height of dignity and enjoyment, and all this in a world still so full of sin, how will its power appear in the world to which we are advancing? If here, where sin yet reigns, so great a contrast can be wrought, how much greater the contrast between this imperfect state and heaven, free from every defilement!
“In Burmah, after all that has been done, there is still the same prison at Ava, with its manacled convicts. The same Bengalee Juggernaut is still surrounded by its countless worshippers. The same orgies are still celebrated in the Karen jungles; and scenes innumerable, as revolting as these, are witnessed in all heathen lands. O, let us pray for the millions who know nothing of a God or a Saviour, a heaven or a hell.”
Before the Boardman Missionary Society at Waterville College he spoke as follows:
“Upon an occasion like this, dear brethren, a multitude of thoughts crowd upon me, so that I know not where to begin or what to select. Probably many of you have the ministry in view, and some perhaps look forward to a missionary life. You will expect me to speak of missions and missionary life. I have seen so much of the trials and responsibility of missionary labors that I am unwilling to urge any one to assume them. The urging must come from a higher source. One important thought just occurs to me. You have but one life to live in which to prepare for eternity. If you had four or five lives, two or three of them might be spent in carelessness. But you have one only. Every action of that one life gives coloring to your eternity. How important, then, that you spend that life so as to please the Saviour, the blessed Saviour, who has done everything for you!
“If any of you enter the Gospel ministry in this or other lands, let not your object be so much to ‘do your duty,’ or even to ‘save souls,’ though these should have a place in your motives, as to please the Lord Jesus. Let this be your ruling motive in all that you do. Now, do you ask, how you shall please Him? How, indeed, shall we know what will please Him but by His commands? Obey these commands and you will not fail to please Him. And there is that ‘last command,’ given just before He ascended to the Father, ‘Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.’ It is not yet obeyed as it should be. Fulfil that, and you will please the Saviour.
“Some one asked me, not long ago, whether faith or love influenced me most in going to the heathen. I thought of it a while, and at length concluded that there was in me but little of either. But in thinking of what did influence me, I remembered a time, out in the woods back of Andover Seminary, when I was almost disheartened. Everything looked dark. No one had gone out from this country. The way was not open. The field was far distant, and in an unhealthy climate. I knew not what to do. All at once that ‘last command’ seemed to come to my heart directly from heaven. I could doubt no longer, but determined on the spot to obey it at all hazards, for the sake of pleasing the Lord Jesus Christ.
“Now, my dear brethren, if the Lord wants you for missionaries, He will set that command home to your hearts. If He does so, you neglect it at your peril.”
And thus to the students at Hamilton, N. Y.:
“Brethren, look to Jesus. This sight will fill you with the greatest consolation and delight. Look to Him on the cross; so great is His love that, if He had a thousand lives, He would lay them all down for your redemption. Look to Him on the throne; His blessed countenance fills all heaven with delight and felicity. Look to Him in affliction; He will strengthen you. Look to Him in temptation; He will succor you. Look to Him in death; He will sustain you. Look to Him in the judgment; He will save you.”
But Mr. Judson did not belong exclusively to any one city or section of the country. Not only in New England and in the Northern States was his name revered. His memory was most warmly cherished by Southern hearts. The eminent Dr. Jeter, in a meeting held at Richmond, Va., on the 8th of February, 1846, welcomed Mr. Judson in an eloquent and affectionate address, the closing words of which are appended: