communication between nations in these days? Seventy years ago, to
Does any reader ask what I mean by "signs of the times"? Let him weigh well the following points, and he will see what I mean.
1. What shall we say to the missions to the heathen which have been set on foot in these latter days? Seventy years ago the Protestant Churches seemed thoroughly asleep on the subject of missions. There was hardly a single missionary sent forth to the heathen from the whole of Great Britain. The idea of preaching the Gospel to savages and idolaters was ridiculed. The first promoters of missions were treated coldly by many who ought to have known better. But now the feeling is completely changed. We are employing hundreds of missionaries in every quarter of the globe. And what says the Scripture? "The Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations — and then shall the end come" (Matthew 24:14).
2. What shall we say to the surprising interest taken in the Jewish nation in these latter days? Seventy years ago, to be a Jew was a taunt and a bye-word and a proverb. No man cared for the souls of the children of Abraham. They were a people despised, and scorned, and trampled underfoot. It might truly have been said, "This is Zion, whom no man seeks after" (Jeremiah 30:17). But now the feeling is completely changed. The spiritual interests of Jews are a subject of deep concern to true Christians. The civil rights of Jews are cared for even to an extreme. The very city of Jerusalem has weight in the councils of kings. And what says the Scripture? "You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her; the appointed time has come. For her stones are dear to your servants; her very dust moves them to pity. The nations will fear the name of the LORD, all the kings of the earth will revere your glory. For the LORD will rebuild Zion and appear in his glory!" (Psalm 102:13-16).
3. What shall we say to the wonderful spread of knowledge and communication between nations in these days? Seventy years ago, to find a poor man who could read, was rather an uncommon thing. In a few years a man who cannot read, will be a rare sight. Seventy years