Oswald Chambers first encountered the Oriental Missionary Society when he met a Japanese evangelist in 1905 Perth, Scotland.
Many people considered that Japanese evangelist, Juji Nakada, “the D.L. Moody of the Orient.”
The two became fast friends and traveled through the United Kingdom speaking on Holiness Movement issues.
The 19th century Holiness Movement was based on the teachings of John and Charles Wesley:
At its heart, the theology of John Wesley stressed the life of Christian holiness: to love God with all one’s heart, mind, soul, and strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself.
Wesley’s teaching also stressed experiential religion and moral responsibility.”
Commonplace Holiness: Wesley & Methodism
The Oriental Missionary Society (OMS) and Holiness
As explained in Bridge Across the Century by Edwin W. Kilbourne:
No one can long be associated with any church of the OMS-related holiness churches in Asia without hearing the phrase: ‘the Fourfold Gospel.’
“In simple terms, this is a belief in the biblical teachings of (1) the new birth or regeneration.
(2) Sanctification, sometimes referred to as the fulness or baptism of the Holy Spirit. It’s a second work of God’s grace wrought by the Holy Spirit subsequent to regeneration.
(3) Divine healing, and
(4) The Second Coming of Christ.
These were the emphases of the holiness movement of which OMS was born.”
Kilbourne quoting from Dr. John Merwin’s dissertation: A History of the OMS Holiness Church of North America.
This teaching resonated with Oswald Chambers and he spoke on similar issues for the Pentecostal League of Prayer.
Nakada encouraged Chambers to visit the OMS Bible Training Institute in Tokyo, Japan:
“You must come to Japan . . . We need a man like you to teach at our pastors’ Bible Training Institute.”
Bridge Across the Century
Chambers yearned to either serve as a missionary or encourage missionaries, he wanted to go.
In late 1906, Nakada (and the Holy Spirit) encouraged Chambers to travel to the United States to speak and to teach at God’s Bible School.
Upon arrival, Nakada spoke at camp meetings to raise funds for the Oriental Missionary Society.
Chambers taught a semester at God’s Bible School. He received a stipend sufficient to pay for transportation to Japan.
I wrote about the Nakada-Chambers trip here.
The Oriental Missionary Society in Japan
Oriental Missionary Society founders Charles Cowman and Ernest Kilbourne met the boat when it arrived in Japan.
The enthusiastic Chambers described the visit:
We took a train and what a reception we had at the station on arrival.
All the Bible School students were there, and they escorted us to the premises and we had a welcome meeting. . . God was mightily present.
I spoke through an interpreter. It was splendid but restraining.”
Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God by David McCasland
Chambers quickly recognized the value of the Oriental Missionary Society in proclaiming the Gospel.
I cannot hope to state the impressions and sensations of the place. It is unbearably pathetic to see the temples with their god of healing. The idol is worn quite smooth with the hands of the people.
Oswald Chambers: Abandoned to God
Chambers and Nakada both spoke at the YMCA and he thought everything interesting.
As he wrote in his diary, the eagerness of the people to hear what the missionaries said, “is simply wonderful, one sees nothing like it in the homeland.”
He appreciated the OMS ministry. “I never expected such an elaborate, splendidly organized work as it is.”
A lasting Impression
Chambers ended his trip to Japan when Charles and Lettie Cowman realized they needed to travel to England to raise funds.
Because Chambers did not speak Japanese, they invited him to join them on their trip, rather than try to teach at their Bible Training Institute.
They felt he could better help the mission by talking about it in the United Kingdom.
Ultimately, Chambers did not speak on their behalf, but what he observed affected him deeply.
In 1911, he opened a Bible Training College in London.
He never forgot his fondness for the Cowmans, Juji Nakada, and the OMS.
Long after Oswald Chambers’ death, his widow Biddy and the Oswald Chambers Publication Association donated funds to Lettie Cowman and the Oriental Missionary Society.
(The Oriental Missionary Society changed its name in 1973 to One Mission Society).
Tweetables
Oswald Chambers and the Oriental Missionary Society. Click to Tweet
How observing a missionary organization influenced Oswald Chambers. Click to Tweet
Thanks for sharing this information!
Very interesting! Where did you access Dr. John Merwin’s dissertation: A History of the OMS Holiness Church of North America? I wouldn’t mind taking a look.