THE CHILDREN’S KING
“The Cross is tall,
And I too small,
To reach His Hand
Or touch His Feet;
But on the sand
His foot-prints I have found,
And it is sweet
To kiss the holy ground.”
Until fifty years ago China, like the palace of the Sleeping Beauty,
lay under a spell. Idolatry, love of money and evil customs, like
the thorns and briars of the famous story, had overrun the land. The
sacred names of God and Heaven, were almost forgotten. What wise men
long ago had taught of peace and justice, of kindness and self-denial,
had faded into dreams. The joy of learning, the reverence of father
and mother, and the love of little children, lay under the enchantment
of the Wicked One. Then the Prince came, our princely Lord Jesus, and
China began to waken. At His touch the old-world knowledge of God, of
peace and justice, of kindness and self-denial, stirred in the people’s
hearts and prepared them to welcome the Gospel. Then history, that
wise old story-teller, began to repeat herself. The Kingdom of God,
when once founded in China, like the nation itself in bygone ages,
began to grow. Its conquests were those of peace, and not of war.
Surrounded by enemies, it drew them into itself, spreading light and
love as it widened its borders.
Men and women came to put their trust in the Lord Jesus, and the little
ones learned that He is the children’s King. The King sent forth His
messengers into every province, and, most wonderful of all, wherever
the messengers went, the King went too, and whenever their message
entered a human heart, His own kiss woke it to love and joy.
Churches began to grow, humble enough to look at, but more beautiful
in God’s sight than palaces of gold and precious stones. Schools were
built all over the land, and Christian homes arose in many a village
and town and great city.
You would love to see the children gather in God’s house on the Lord’s
Day in China. Shaved heads and strange clothes would catch your eyes at
first, but you would soon be attracted by the earnest faces and intent
dark eyes of some of the little ones whose attention had been caught by
a story. After service you would see them gather in the Sunday-school,
and perhaps when you heard them repeat their texts, you would long to
borrow their wonderful memories for your own use. If you followed the
little boys and girls after service, you would find that the children’s
King had done much for them in their homes, but you would need to live
with them for a time, to discover how great the change from the old
heathen ways had really been. You would see, if you lived with them
long enough, that the girls did not have their poor little feet pinched
and bound. The babies would not be sent away or sold, unless there was
great poverty, and then they would only be allowed to go into another
Christian family, where they would be loved and cared for. You would
notice that the harsh words and sharp blows which heathen children,
and especially little girls, have to bear, were fewer. There would be
more gentleness and loving family life, less quarrelling and unkindness
among the inmates.
When the family gathered for dinner, the little ones would put their
fat fingers over their eyes, whilst grace was said. In the evenings,
when the shadows fell, no stick of incense would be burnt in the
guest-room, nor stuck in the paper lantern outside the door, but, a
little later, hymn-books would be brought and the family would have
prayers before going to bed. When you went into their room and sat on
the edge of the children’s bed, and got the little ones to nestle dose
up to you, they would whisper, if you asked them in the right way, that
they loved Jesus.
Chinese boys and girls learn to love Jesus, that is the proof that
Christ is the children’s King, that the Prince Himself has kissed them
and wakened them out of sin. And, if you turn back to the story of
Yo-ah and Black Little Sister, you will see that when He calls them
home to Himself, they lovingly go to be with Him.
FINIS
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Dolittle, _Handbook of the Chinese Language_.
[2] When these shoes have the character for ‘King’ on them, they are
called Tiger shoes.
[3] James Legge, _Mencius_, p. 10.
[4] Mrs Lyall, in _The Children’s Messenger_.
[5] The Chinese say that man’s day is the spirit’s night, that is why
a burning rope, or candles, or a lantern, are used at such times, and
when worshipping in temples during the day.
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:
Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_.
Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.
Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized.
Incorrect page reference in the Table of Contents has been corrected.
End of Project Gutenberg's Children of China, by Colin Campbell Brown