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“Most gladly will I rather glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure . . in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake.’”—2 Cor. ix. 10.
Dr. Fosdick, in his Manhood of the Master, says :—
Jesus made the right attitude toward hostile men not a negative refraining from vengeance, but a positive saviourhood, that prays for them, blesses them, and sacrificially seeks their good.
This is the attitude of Sadhu Sundar Singh in all his work and life of suffering amongst the peoples of Tibet and other hostile states to whom he carries the Gospel of Christ. In the course of his addresses he sometimes gives illustrations from his own experiences. In speaking on the text, ‘‘ He that loseth his life shall save it,” he told this amazing story. He was one day making a journey across some mountains in Tibet on a bitterly cold day when snow was falling. Both he and a Tibetan companion who was travelling with him were almost frozen to death, and despaired of reaching their journey’s end alive. They came to a deep precipice to find a man lying there apparently dead. Sundar suggested they should carry him to a place of safety, but the Tibetan declined, saying it was all they could do to get into safety themselves, and he passed on his way. With difficulty the Sadhu lifted the man on his own back, — and began to struggle forward with his heavy load. Soon the exertion brought warmth to him, and communicated itself to the helpless body over his shoulders. He had not gone very far when he overtook his Tibetan companion, who had fallen stone-dead across the path. Eventually Sundar arrived at the village, by which time the half-dead man had recovered consciousness, and they both thanked God for lives snatched from the jaws of death. The Sadhu said he had never known a better practical exposition of the words, “ Whosoever will save his life shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it.”
On another occasion the Sadhu had been climbing over rough crags when he came to a cave in which he saw a man praying. In order that. he should not fall asleep the man had tied his long hair to the roof of the cave, and with closed eyes he strove hour by hour to meditate and pray. Sundar entered the cave and asked the man why he was thus suffering. Like many others this man had spent most of his life in worldly pursuits, but deep down in his mind there was a haunting fear of a dreadful unknown future. This at length drove him to forsake the world, and he had come to this remote spot in the hope of finding satisfaction in prayerful meditation. He explained that no relief had come to his spirit. The Sadhu opened his Testament and read to him such words as, “Come unto Me... and I will give you rest.”
He proceeded to explain the true way through Jesus Christ. Spellbound the poor fellow listened to the wonderful words, and at last he jumped up crying out, ‘Now is my soul at rest ; make me His disciple, lead me to Him.” He begged hard for immediate baptism at the
Sadhu’s hand, but was persuaded to accompany him to the nearest mission station, where he was left in the care of the missionaries for further instruction.
Sundar tells of another place where his message had met with great hostility and the people were converted into friends by an accident. He was climbing a steep mountain when he slipped and fell, and in his fall a large stone was displaced and rolled over the precipitous cliff on to a place beneath. It happened that just where the stone fell a huge cobra was lying, and was immediately killed. A boy who was herding cattle saw what had happened, and ran to tell the Sadhu, explaining that this very snake had been the cause of some deaths in the village, so that nobody dared to pass along that road. Then he ran to tell the villagers, who were so impressed and so grateful that they welcomed the Sadhu, and here he had the blessed privilege of making known the love of Christ to the ignorant people.
THe FEET THAT BLED.
The rough mountain track had torn his feet, and Sundar sat down to bandage the wounds. Another man traversing the same road and seeing what had happened stopped to ask him how he felt. They entered into conversation, and the stranger learnt how that Sundar for his Master’s sake day by day walked many weary miles to teach people of Him whose feet had bled on Calvary. The two men held sweet converse together, for he found that his companion, Tashi by name, was an earnest seeker after salvation. But in his quest for truth he was perplexed with many doubts, and these the Sadhu tried to solve. Tashi afterwards said to him, “ Looking at your bleeding feet something within me seemed to say there must be some great power behind this happy life of self-denial.” And so Tashi urged Sundar to remain with him, and he spent more than a week at his house instructing him and praying with him.
Tashi then sent him on to a Lama who was friendly with him and kindly disposed to Christianity. When he returned he found Tashi full of hope and happiness, for he had found Christ, and now nothing but baptism would satisfy him. All doubts were gone, and Tashi and his family begged that they might now receive baptism. So before leaving, Sundar had the great joy of beptizing Tashi and his whole family—nine persons in all. Being chief seerctary to the Lama of the district and a man of importance, Tashi has not been called upon to suffer for his faith, but he is under strict orders not to persuade others to follow his example or in any way to propagate the new faith.
Many a time and oft Sadhu Sundar Singh feels the loncliness of soul that must come to all whose entire lives are given to spiritual things. Extreme exaltation. of spirit accompanied with tremendous expenditure of nervous power must be followed by moments of reaction. Ordinary missionarics and ministers may find respite in change of oceupation, but not so the Sadhu. His changes are of place not of work. Day by day his unwearied search for souls continucs, and whether in the churches and conyentions of Christians or amongst the non-Christian peoples the strain never relaxes. A missionary rightly said of him in Travancore, “He must live very near to God to stand it,” and that is the true secret of his being able to continue. Never impatient, never too wearicd to meet people who seck him, always gracious, and ready night or day for the tasks that fall to him, he is a living copy of his Master. Sharing his Master's spirit he also shares His loneliness. Speaking
FURTHER EXPERIENCE IN TIBET of of such a time as this he tells of a day when he was unusually tired, hungry, and footsore. Utterly dejected, he was painfully trudging along when he was joined by a man who entered into conversation with him, and so led him out of himself that he forgot his misery in the charming companionship of his new friend. They went on together until they came close to a village, when much to the Sadhu’s perturbation he found himself once more alone. He cannot explain it, but his own words are, “I now know that it was an angel of the Lord sent to strengthen and uphold me in my hour of weakness.”