And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness to all nations, then shall the end come.
The above passage is often adduced as a prediction which remains to be fulfilled. If it refers to the end of the gospel dispensation, it is evident it cannot be presented as an objection to the immediate expiration of prophetic time. It is also an unanswerable argument, that one thousand years of millennial glory cannot intervene prior to the personal advent of Christ, for when the gospel shall be preached in all the world for a witness [only] to [not the conversion of] all nations, then [immediately] shall the end come.
Can any of our readers point to a nation which has not been visited by the gospel? If we inquire of those who are conversant with our missionary operations, "if they know of any nation which never has had the gospel?" they frankly tell you they "do not."
At the present time the most, if not all the nations of the earth have been presented with the gospel. If we glance at the four quarters of the globe, we find that Asia, the extreme eastern section, was first illuminated by it. In the first century of the gospel dispensation, Asia, had the light. In the third, Africa was enlightened by its dissemination; then Europe was visited—to her was the gospel proclaimed. America caught the hallowed fire; to her people the Bible has been dispensed—light has been diffused—truth has progressed—the Rocky Mountains are passed—indefatigable missionaries have penetrated the western wilds, and the shores of the Pacific are reached; the isles of the sea have heard the gracious message—the standard of the cross has been raised in every clime, the banner of love has been unfurled in every section of the inhabited world. When the gospel has been preached as a witness, then shall the end come.
The far east was first illuminated by the gospel, and westward it has made its way; as it has advanced in the one direction light has increased, and darkness has enshrouded the other. Where light recedes the nations retrograde; where truth prevails, their course is onward. It is a well known fact that the western portions of the globe have been more successfully visited than the eastern,—there much good has resulted from missionary efforts. Or if we view this subject in another light the result is materially the same. The car of missions has been propelled: some portions of the Bible have already been translated into every language known. Since the angel [John saw] has been flying through the "midst of heaven having the everlasting gospel to preach," Missionary, Bible, and other efficient societies have been instituted, and their influence has been everywhere felt.
The glad tidings of the kingdom at hand have also reached every shore. The warning has been given. Wherever missionary stations are to be found, Second Advent publications have been forwarded; the midnight cry has been heard. "Behold the Bridegroom cometh," has been preached far and near. Many an ambassador has sounded the alarm. In our own country, the hills of New England, the far west, the sunny south, have heard the message; and distant isles and foreign lands have reverberated the sound.