Richard Dawson, 1 April 2014

Hope 2014; It’s been 200 years since Samuel Marsden first preached the Gospel on these shores. Marsden was a remarkable man despite his rather fearsome reputation. He laid virtually everything on the line to bring the Gospel to the Tangata Whenua of Aotearoa. Born in 1765 Marsden was recruited by evangelical Anglicans who trained him and who oversaw his rise to be assistant chaplain of the new colony of New South Wales. Whilst engaged in the work Marsden became interested in the Maori people some of whom visited and stayed with him in Sydney. So he returned to London set on establishing a Mission station and team in New Zealand. He left London in 1809 but was greatly frustrated by a lack of cooperation from his head office who would not give him permission to go on to New Zealand once he’d arrived in Australia. In February 1814 facing further delay he bought his own ship the Active for £1400 (a huge sum in those days) and still he wasn’t able to leave till December of that year. On Christmas Day Marsden led off with the Old Hundredth (Psalm 100) and then preached from Luke 2:10 – 'behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy' – to a large, well-drilled congregation. Ruatara translated for him. It was a message born of a passion to see another people introduced to the love and grace of Jesus Christ and it arrived on the back of an amazing sacrifice of this man. Have we got that same passion and hope that the gospel might change someone else? O that we might desire it as Marsden did!