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THE MESSAGE IN INDIA

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Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 31, 1901

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 78, No. 53.

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THE MESSAGE IN INDIA.

By J. L. Shaw

OUR FIRST CHURCH.

It is with feelings of thanksgiving to God that we report the organization of our first church in India. Many of our brethren and sisters in America have had a deep interest in the carrying of the message in this country, and have given of their means for the forwarding of the truth among this people; and no doubt they will rejoice with us in another evidence of God’s working in this darkened land. To be sure, the company of Sabbath-keepers who have taken a firm stand on all points of present truth is not large; and when all join that are in India, the number will be but few. Nevertheless a start has been made, the truth has gained a foothold, and we cannot but believe that this small nucleus is the beginning of something greater in the future.
For centuries the minds of the millions of India have been swayed by the teachings and traditions of men, and ever since the gospel was first introduced by William Carey, there has been a determined opposition to it, preferring rather to follow the words of men than the word of God. The opposition to present truth has been even more fierce, and the evil one has done all in his power to hinder it. As we have been visiting and talking with the brethren and sisters here, they have told us of the experiences of our workers when the message was first proclaimed, and of the bitter spirit of opposition manifested. Instead of receiving the rays of advanced light as from the Lord, many turned against it, and tried to heap reproach upon the servants of God, and many reports were circulated of a derogatory character about Seventh-day Adventists, which tended very much to prejudice the minds of the people against our work and workers. Notwithstanding this, God gave freedom to the proclamation of the message, and Calcutta was thoroughly aroused by the discourses of our Brother Robinson, who is now dead, and many were convinced of the Sabbath truth.
When the Bengali Christians found that the Bible taught that the seventh day is the Sabbath, they began to ask the missionaries how it was that they had been teaching them to keep Sunday instead of the seventh day, and the missionaries were thrown into perplexity in the endeavor to show the native Christians that what they had been teaching them was the truth. Just recently a woman—a missionary who has been working in India nineteen years—said that if she were at home, she might keep the Sabbath; but if she were to do so now, and tell the people whom she had been teaching all these years that what she had been telling them was not true, they would lose confidence in her, and that was more than she could bear. No doubt there are many missionaries who are honest at heart, and will sooner or later obey their convictions; but it is a great cross to them to turn about and tell their converts that what they have been telling them is wrong, and that the “seventh day is the Sabbath.”
Our little church is composed of English, Eurasian, and Bengali members, so it can be seen that the message has made a beginning among different nationalities, and by the blessing of God we hope to see it go forward among these multitudes. The fire has been kindled, and no forces of man can stop it or crush it out. We long to see this flame arise and sweep through India from west to east and from north to south.

BOOK AND PAPER WORK.

The seeds of truth have not only been sown in Calcutta, but through our books and the Oriental Watchman, people’s minds have been led to inquire concerning the truth, and some have even begun to obey. A large number of “Patriarchs and Prophets,” besides other books, have been placed in the different cities and towns in India and Burma, and it is encouraging to see what a favorable impression “Patriarchs and Prophets” has made; we meet with this book everywhere, and we might almost say it has found friends in every house that it has entered. The writings of Sister White in the various books and papers that have been sold are influencing the people, and preparing the soil for a harvest of souls in the future.
The health books have met with a warm reception in Burma. The Burmese and Chinese purchase them readily. Our agent in that field, Brother Meyers, took seventy-seven orders in two weeks for “Ladies’ Guide” and “Man, the Masterpiece,” and out of these delivered seventy-four books, and sold three additional copies. The health literature is without doubt a great means of reaching the people in the Orient, and opening the way for lines of gospel truth.
The good news has just reached us that more workers are on their way from America. This rejoices our hearts, and our prayers are that they and all others who come will be filled with the Spirit of God, and be possessed with a burning desire to labor for souls. J. L. SHAW.