Publisher's Synopsis
This book is the full personal account of Livingston's historic travels across the continent of Africa. While Livingston is looked upon as an explorer in an age of explosive cultural and geographical discovery, the fact is often overlooked that Livingstone was first and foremost a Missionary of the Gospel, and his travels were missionary journeys. As Livingstone himself puts it in his introduction to this work, "Great pains had been taken to instill the doctrines of Christianity into my mind, and I had no difficulty in understanding the theory of our free salvation by the atonement of our Savior, but it was only about this time that I really began to feel the necessity and value of a personal application of the provisions of that atonement to my own case. The change was like what may be supposed would take place were it possible to cure a case of "color blindness". The perfect freeness with which the pardon of all our guilt is offered in God's book drew forth feelings of affectionate love to Him who bought us with his blood, and a sense of deep obligation to Him for his mercy has influenced, in some small measure, my conduct ever since. But I shall not again refer to the inner spiritual life which I believe then began, nor do I intend to specify with any prominence the evangelistic labors to which the love of Christ has since impelled me." "This book will speak, not so much of what has been done, as of what still remains to be performed, before the Gospel can be said to be preached to all nations." This is the story of the labors to which the love of Jesus compelled a great man. This is the story of first contact with African tribes, and first charting of the great Dark Continent. This is, first and foremost, the story of the Gospel reaching into Africa.
