With the Cross of Jesus
by Joe B. Hopper
Description:
Several outlines or manuscripts from a folder entitled "Missionary Talks".
Quote:
The basic motive for missions is Christ. A prominent minister once asked me about a problem that seemed to vex him, "Why are missionaries as a group so conservative?" My reply was impromptu but I think it was correct, for I said, "Well, isn't it what makes him a missionary in the first place? His response to the call of Christ is primarily because he believes that all men are hopelessly lost in sin, that the Son of God died on a cross to save those sinners, and that is is our business to tell this news to the whole world. There you have the heart of the Gospel—call it conservativism if you like. So the missionary is a 'conservative' from the start, or he wouldn't be a missionary. Those who sail for foreign lands with only lesser motives either do not remain in the service long, or (as is often the case) have their convictions deepened as the come face to face with the raw sin of heathenism and see the utter hopelessness of mankind without Christ and the inadequacy of their 'native' religions."