Sabha Tschand was the oldest son of a nobleman of Rona. From this village (about 40 miles distant from Delhi) in the year 1861 he went at one time to the city to transact some business, and heard there for the first time, the gospel preached. This was something new to him. He bought a Testament in the Hindu language, and took it with him to his village. For six months he read it daily in secret (as there they would have nothing to do with Christians), generally in a field, or under a tree, where, too, he began to pray to the Lord. And so he found the truth, or rather, as a lost sheep, the Good Shepherd found him. (Luke 15:4,74What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? (Luke 15:4)
7I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance. (Luke 15:7).) He read too in God’s Word, that he ought to be baptized, and confess publicly his Lord. For this he went to Delhi, told the Missionary Evans of his conversion, and according to his dire was baptized in the Januma.
He remained a few days with his new friends, and then saying that he must tell his old friends about the Saviour he had found, he left, taking with him a number of books.
But what a noise was made when he declared to his people, that he was a Christian. In vain did he defend himself against those who wanted to throw him out of the village, of which he was part owner. He showed them that his belief had nothing to do with eating meat, that he would have nothing to do with false gods, but that he loved his family as dearly as ever.
They would not listen to him, and pushed him as an outcast out of the village. His wife and children were sent away to another village, and all his cattle were taken to his father-in-law. The uncle took possession of his property, and so he was obliged to put up a tent under a tree in the wilderness, where he spent eight months alone—alone with his God and his Bible. He was sometimes much discouraged. Once he remarked: “I have now taken up my cross for Christ’s sake, and I often ask myself, if I shall be able to carry it.” But God helped him, so that the cross did not become too heavy for him.
“The Lord is on my side; I will not fear; what can man do unto me?”
Every day he visited the village, although he was not permitted to take water from the fountain. He let them insult him and curse him, but seized every opportunity of testifying for the Lord, remembering his Master’s word: “Whosoever shall confess Me bore men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God.” Luke l2:8.
At last people were amazed at his patience and perseverance. Some came by night to his hut, to hear him read, pray and sing. The prejudices they had against him, slowly melted away. Tremblingly his wife approached the miserable hut one evening, and asked timidly: “Will you take me back?” She expected blows; but was surprised when taking her by the hand, he welcomed her warmly.
“But,” said she, “my father has sold the best of the livestock, and spent the money.”
“That doesn’t matter,” was his answer, “I am glad to have you with me again.”
After this, the children returned to their father; he was also given back some of his land, and allowed to come back to his home in the village. When his friends visited him now, they found that by his meekness and cheerfulness he had gained many friends in the country around. But not his near relatives; his uncle was so bitter that he threatened the missionaries’ lives. In spite of his poverty, 35 families joined him. Because they refused to break off with him, they were excluded by the caste to which they belonged. They said: “How can we reject him, he has become another man?”
All the land there is irrigated by canals, but the rulers of the village kept back the water from his rice-fields. What must he do? He laid the matter before the Lord in prayer. His rice plants were drying up, and behold, suddenly the dam of the river broke through, and a stream of water poured over his fields, only over his—and his crop was saved.
Once in the village he had spoken against idols; now there was in that place the tomb of a famous holy personage, and crowds of people came there to worship. He explained to them how foolish and wrong it was.
“All right,” they said, “if this holy one is nothing, then destroy his grave, and if you are alive ten days after doing that, then we will never come here again to worship.”
This was hard for him, how could he lay hands on a place that he had been taught from a child to honor? Again he prayed to God for wisdom to act right. The following morning he spoke to the villagers and asked if they wished him to throw down the memorial pillar. “Yes,” they said, “destroy it, and if in ten days you are still living, then that holy thing is nothing.”
To the horror of the crowd he dug round the sacred object, and broke the indestructible stone to pieces.
Then ten days passed and nothing happened to him. From that time the villagers in his neighborhood gave up going to that place to worship. But all sorts of enemies complained about him, and tried to have him killed, but God guarded him wonderfully; from experience he could say: “The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them.”
ML 02/18/1968