However, this is not all, because the new man has not yet come into fullness. Years ago, I met some dear missionaries who happily told me that the gospel had been brought to every continent and every corner of the earth. However, God cannot be so happy because He still has not reached His goal. God’s goal is not that the gospel be preached in every corner of the earth. His goal is to have the new man. The new man is a replacement of the old man. For the replacement of the old man, the new man must be constituted with every people, every tribe, and every nation. In this sense, it was not possible to have the new man to the extent that it is possible today.
One hundred fifty years ago the Americans and Europeans who went to China were considered by the Chinese to be foreign devils. Likewise, one hundred fifty years ago some unlearned Chinese came to this country and were looked down upon by the white people. There was no understanding between the two peoples. At that time for an American missionary to go to China required that he sail the Pacific for six months. In one year he could only travel there and come back. Some missionaries, after six months of sailing, arrived at China sick and exhausted. The communication and the transportation were awkward, and the understanding between the peoples was terrible.
God used the first and second world wars to change the situation. For the purpose of warfare, there were many new inventions, especially in the field of transportation. The first world war was resolved after the United States entered into it. This country was much used by God. President Wilson, after the victory in the first world war, proposed to the other two major powers, Britain and France, that an international organization be formed to oversee the relations between the different peoples of the world. Britain and France instead took the lead to form the League of Nations in Geneva. That League of Nations was not proper, however, and was brought to nought after the Japanese invasion of China from 1931 to 1937, the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in 1935, and the German invasion of Bohemia in 1939. These three invasions buried the League of Nations and ushered in World War II. Eventually God again used the United States to help resolve the situation. This time the United States had the full ground to take the lead to form the United Nations in New York. Through these two wars God raised up the United States to be the leading nation and the number one power on the earth. This was the fourth great item of history, and was not for the sake of the United States, but was for God’s purpose to gain the new man.
Nearly every nation is formed with its own race. Japan was formed with the Japanese race, and China was formed with the Chinese race. But the United States is not a country of race, but a country of different peoples “melted” together. This country also has always had the policy to conduct international exchange in science, medicine, mathematics, and in many cultural matters. This cultural exchange has done much to bring different nations and different people into one understanding.
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