J. Hudson Taylor: A Man in Christ
Roger Steer

Learning about a great Christian's life is thoroughly uplifting. Their devoted, sacrificial service testifies to God's transformative power and his desire to use us despite ourselves.

James Hudson Taylor was born in Yorkshire in 1832 to faithful Methodist parents but was filled with doubts about God in his youth. However, God raised him up into one of the most effective and pioneering missionaries in history. He founded the China Inland Mission, and worked tirelessly in China for 51 years, often at his great peril. His ministry led to many thousands of conversions, and his strategies still have much to teach about effective missions.

Taylor was famously sensitive to Chinese culture: he adopted the Chinese native dress and hairstyle which caused quite a stir but did much to ingratiate him with the Chinese. He wisely befriended locals and, of course, learnt local languages. Also, his practices were quite forward-thinking: China Inland Mission was a non-denominational organisation, welcoming anyone willing to give up everything for Christ's sake, including, rather unusually for the time, single women.

Though his methods and cultural sensitivity were new, his message was the age-old gospel - a gospel he preached with bold candidness. The book recounts a time when a priest asked Taylor to kneel on a stool before Buddha.

Taylor, without hesitation, proceeded to stand on the stool, denounce idolatry and preach the gospel.

Medical students in particular will find Taylor's life interesting. He had only partially completed his medical studies before he first set sail for China. This would come to cause him difficulty, something which mission-ready medical students should consider.

A Man in Christ describes the life of a godly man who faithfully obeyed God's commands and calling. However, his life was hard; in fact it was filled with danger, hostility, ill-health and heartbreak (Taylor lost two of his children and his wife). Despite these struggles, Taylor persevered and made great headway for Christ in China.

This fascinating book will do much to spur you on to mission. You will be awed and humbled by this great man's faith, obedience and holiness, and you will share in his sorrows and joys. His methods were unorthodox, but the gospel he preached was true, and his legacy persists as the Overseas Missionary Fellowship International.

When alive, Taylor sought Christians who were willing to forgo a comfortable life to reach China's lost. Were he alive today he would exhort us with these words: 'The highest service demands the greatest sacrifice, but it secures the fullest blessing and the greatest fruitfulness'.

Toni Saad is a medical student in Cardiff.