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T H E K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S
August 1926
Out of^tlTe'House of^ Bondage REV. R. A. J A F FRA Y Wuchow, South China Lessons from the captivity of our four Chinese brethren who were taken by bandits.,in South China in August 1925, and were held for more than five months.
This is not a fairy story, but a r e a l Twentieth Century “Robber Romance," which takes mj back to the days of Paul, excites our interest, in cites our prayers, intensifies our faith, and increases our conception o f the perils and possibilities o f w o r k in China. I f these brethren could make a tour o f the United States and tell this story as they go; what a re vival o f missionary seal there would be. Read the story to as many groups o f people as possible. Thank God for men like these dnd pray for them.
Kept Pastor Chao told the writer, how ever, that by the Grace of God they were kept, throughout all those five months and five days that they were chained together, from quarrelling one with the other. He said that herein lay the deepest lesson of the whole experience to his own soul. Often they wished that they were not bound so closely the one to the other. Often, as the days grew into weeks, and the weeks into months, they must have been tempted to almost hate and despise one another. During all that long time— nearly half a year— none of them had a bath or a change of clothing. Their clothes were worn to rags and were, of course, foul and filthy. They were covered with ver min, and were tormented day and night in this way. The mosquitos they called “ aeroplanes,” and the lice, they called “ submarines.” Little wonder that under these conditions, they might even abhor one another. Only the Grace of God in their hearts kept them happy and held them to their agreement to love one another, Only the Grace of God in their hearts kept them from being like the heathen pris oners by their side, quarrelling and cursing one another. Yes, chained $bout the neck and fettered about the ankles with about a foot of chain between them! To endure this for 156 days and nights for Jesus’ sake, was the task set these brethren by the Lord Himself. No wonder the lesson that was burned into their souls was one of fellowship and mutual love and forbearance. When no chains bind us at all, we sometimes find It hard enough always to “ Love one another.” What about when we are bound with chains? There is no use struggling or fretting. He would have us meekly submit to the chains, to the uncongenlallty, so that we may learn our lessons. When there is no natural affinity, no likeness of disposition, here is where the fric- Ition of the chains chafe and irritate. Independent There are people* who do not seem to be able to get along with their fel
THERS have written of the experiences of our four brethren, Pastor Chao Liu- tang, Pastor Wong Yuen-so,
Mr. Lei Kin-chi and Mr. Ching Tak- yam, but the writer feels that he has a little message for those who so faith fully stood with us in prayer during those trying days. This message is written on the Pacific Ocean on the way home to America on furlough. There seemed to be no time before leaving China to write what was on one's heart. Though a little delayed, we trust the blessing of the Lord will rest upon what we have to say. Chains During the entire time that our brethren were held by the bandits, they were confined to a small room with a number of other prisoners. They were chained together— the four of them— with chains around their necks and fetters around their ankles. Twice, when the alarm was given that the soldiers were coming, they were loosed from their chains and hurried away to some mountain side in the dead of night. There they shivered with cold till dawn of day, and then were led back to their ‘‘ house of bon dage” and again chained. The other prisoners were also chained, the one to the other, in the same fashion. Our Christian brethren were so grateful that they four were chained together and that they were not chained to others. In fact, it was an answer to prayer that they were not separated throughout their cap tivity. When they saw and heard how the other prisoners— heathen men,— because of the vexation of the chains, quarrelled and cursed one another, they agreed that for their part they could not quarrel or complain the one against the other. There was plenty of cause for continual mutual griev ance, to be sure, for when one moved, all four had to move also. By night, and by day, they were bound together in such a way that every move that affected the one, affected the others. If one arose, all four had to do so. There is room for a good deal of imagination as to detail right here.
low workers. There are missionaries who are not able to work in harmony with their fellow-missionaries, and who have felt constrained to break away and become “ independent” mis sionaries. The writer does not mean at all to condemn all independent mis sionaries. That would be too sweep ing. But there are those who have not been able to “ give and take” with their fellowworkers. Most of them were able to “ take,” but not able to "give.” They had to get away in a work by themselves, where they could have it all their own way, where there was no one to interfere with them or cross their wills. Such “ Independent" missionaries have not learned the les son of the chains. Bound Together in Him There are some people who think that there is always a way out of every hard place. They are ever ready to side step, to “ get around” their diffi culty, Instead of going through it. The favorite device of such is to “ resign.” It is the path of least resistance. It is a way, they think, of breaking the chains and getting past all our troubles. It is not usually God’s way, however. It is His will for us to learn to get on with our fellow-worker, even if being chained to him brings discom fort and trial. We are bound together not with chains of iron, but with the chains of the Love of the Lord Jesus. Those who call upon the same Father in Heaven, who trust in the same precious blood for redemption, who are born of the same Holy Spirit, form a closer brotherhood than mem bers of the same family according to
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