THE Master's parting command to his disciples, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature," is commonly cited as unimpeachable authority for the establishment of missionary movements in all parts of the world. When, however, it is taken into consideration how great a proportion of the Master's own ministry to the children of men was given over to the healing of their bodily ills, coupled, as it is so often recorded, with the command, "Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee," it is surely pardonable to ask if, in all the ages since that divine command went forth, the whole gospel has been preached.
The question is one peculiarly productive of thought in view of the declarations that so closely follow, of the power that should attach to "them that believe." In the name of the Master they were to cast out evils and heal the sick, make whole in mind and body those who should appeal to them for relief from the ills of the flesh. The writer of this Gospel concludes with the significant statement that as the disciples went forth, preaching everywhere among the people, the Lord worked with them, confirming the preaching of the word "with signs following" — the promised signs which were to attend "them that believe."
Back in the days when the Master first sent his disciples forth "as sheep in the midst of wolves," his definition of the word they were to preach was simple and to the point: "The kingdom of heaven is at hand," — the kingdom where all is harmony and happiness, is "within you." They were to preach, and put their preaching into practice by the healing of the sick and the casting out of evils, — helping their fellow-men to realize this kingdom within.
