On July 27, Pastor James Hudson Taylor IV, the fifth-generation descendant of Hudson Taylor, spoke as a guest on the theme "Abounding in the Work of the Lord" and reviewed the missionary history of the China Inland Mission (CIM) during an online mission conference.
To commemorate the 120th anniversary of the death of Hudson Taylor, founder of the China Inland Mission, the Global Chinese Mission held a three-day online mission conference from July 25 to 27, 2025.
James Hudson Taylor IV, also president of the China Evangelical Seminary, recounted the story and background of the Taylors: how immeasurable the impact on missions can be when a person wholly surrenders to the Lord. Hudson Taylor gathered outstanding talents from all walks of life to China, and they founded the China Inland Mission to open a new chapter in missions there.
When speaking of Hudson Taylor's spiritual background, Pastor Taylor IV highlighted a crucial piece of history that traced back to the great-grandfather of Hudson Taylor. From that point on, God's grace came upon the Taylors, marking the beginning of a spiritual legacy.
Hudson Taylor's great-grandfather was named James Taylor, who lived in the 18th century when John Wesley was preaching widely throughout England. On one occasion, Wesley's team came to Yorkshire, where James lived. At that time, he was not a believer and even strongly opposed Christianity. However, during one of the evangelistic gatherings, the preacher quoted a verse from Joshua: "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." This brief but powerful verse touched James's soul and prompted a decision to believe in the Lord. Later, his wife also came to Christ.
Hudson's father was also named James Taylor. Before Hudson was even born, his parents had dedicated him to God, hoping he would one day go to China as a missionary. Pastor Taylor remarked, "That was an extraordinary vow!"
Despite being raised in a devout Christian family, Hudson did not come to his faith as a child. It was not until he was seventeen that he truly accepted Jesus. One day, when he was off work from the bank, he happened to read a gospel leaflet on his father's desk. He resisted and skipped over the messages, which read, "You should believe in Jesus." He only chose touching stories to read. Yet when he came across Jesus' words on the cross, "It is finished," the Holy Spirit moved in his heart. At that moment, he made a prayer of decision, dedicating his life to the Lord.
Remarkably, on that very same day, his mother was praying earnestly for her son's salvation from afar. The Holy Spirit was at work in both places: moving the mother to pray for her son and moving her son to repent and turn to Christ.
Speaking of Hudson's missionary calling, Pastor Taylor emphasized that at just seventeen, Hudson resolved to go to China, giving himself wholly to God. He was deeply convinced that he must go to China. This firm call drove him to abandon his comfort zone and to journey to a distant land.
He was still studying medicine in England when he departed for China without completing his program. On May 19, 1853, Hudson Taylor set sail from England and arrived in China after 163 days at sea. Pastor Taylor reflected, "Today we can cover that distance in a few hours by fast trains or planes, but in those days, missionaries spent half a year."
Upon arriving, he encountered overwhelming culture shock. The clothing, food, and living conditions were vastly different. Beyond discomfort, he faced the immense challenge of language. His mission organization often forgot to send him money. He also experienced heartbreak when a girl he cared for broke off their relationship because her father opposed his missionary work in China.
He had an unfulfilled ordination, incomplete medical studies, and an unreliable mission organization. Such setbacks could discourage anyone. Yet in a letter to his sister, he wrote that he often meditated on God's attributes. He said, "When we are discouraged, we can think upon God's attributes, behold His glory, and let our cold hearts be rekindled."
On January 20, 1858, Hudson Taylor married Maria, with whom he lived for twelve years until her passing. Later, he married fellow CIM missionary Jennie Faulding, with whom he spent thirty-three years. Hudson hoped his sister and brother-in-law would also come to China. In a letter to her, he wrote, "If I had a thousand pounds, China should have it—if I had a thousand lives, China should have them."
In reviewing CIM's history, Pastor Taylor pointed out Hudson's deep burden for souls, especially the unreached souls of inland China.
In the first three years, Hudson was based in Shanghai and made eighteen preaching journeys to surrounding regions. On one occasion in Ningbo, a young man was deeply moved and accepted the gospel, saying that he believed it was the faith his forefathers had long sought but never found. He then asked a striking question: "How long has this religion been in your country?" Hudson replied, "For hundreds of years." The young man continued, "Then why did you wait so long before coming?" This pierced Hudson's heart.
At that time, nearly 300 million people lived in inland China without hearing the gospel. Confronted with this vast spiritual wilderness, Hudson began gathering provincial data and making detailed records. His burden was concrete and active. In his writings, he described the unreached with the haunting phrase "hastening toward Christless eternity."
This burden gave birth to the China Inland Mission, whose core vision was to send missionaries into China's unreached regions.
Pastor Taylor challenged the audience: Do we today carry the same burden for souls? When we speak of global missions, do we still burn with grief for the lost? He noted that as of 2025, there are still over 7,000 "unreached people" groups worldwide where Christians make up less than two percent of the population. Even in advanced nations like Japan, truly born-again believers number less than 0.4%.
One hundred and sixty years ago, Hudson's burden was China's inland. Today, the challenge of global mission lies among unreached peoples.
In describing Hudson Taylor's missionary strategy, Pastor Taylor highlighted his boldness and wisdom in the environment. He explained, "Hudson's Western clothing often became an unnecessary barrier to the gospel." To remove the barrier, Hudson made a radical decision by abandoning his Western dressing code and donning Chinese robes and even keeping a horsetail hairstyle.
Though many missionaries misunderstood him, he believed clothing was not a moral issue. He was willing to give up cultural preferences to draw closer to the Chinese people. When he returned to England in 1860, he cut off his queue, wove it into a watch chain, and presented it to his parents. This keepsake remains with Taylor's descendants to this day.
On cultural adaptation, Pastor Taylor stressed, "We hope every Chinese church will be self-administered by Chinese believers, worshiping the one true God in their own language and manner." This vision for an indigenous church was one of Hudson's central goals, though the church today is still under training on this vision.
Speaking of Hudson's reliance on prayer for finances, Pastor Taylor remarked, "This reminds me that the missionary work for Muslims today is total humble reliance on the Lord. In China, there are ten Muslim minority groups totaling 25 million people. Hudson's advice remains the only way."
In the early days of CIM, none of Hudson's recruits were ordained ministers. He deliberately avoided mobilizing pastors, not wishing to compete with other mission societies. Pastor Taylor showed photos of early CIM missionaries, saying, "We may not all be preachers by title, but we are all people who preach the gospel." Indeed, none were professional clergy. They were doctors, carpenters, blacksmiths, and others.
He further elaborated, "At that time, the church was very conservative. Without mobilizing sisters, the gospel could not have spread well. Hudson greatly valued the role of women missionaries. For this, he faced harsh criticism, but he saw clearly: to enter Chinese homes, to reach women and children, only women missionaries could do so. That is why, at the time, a 'women's mission district' was especially established in Guangxi Province."
Finally, Pastor Taylor urged more men to serve God. He said, "Over a hundred years ago, we needed sisters to step into missions. However, in the 21st century, we need brothers. We need wholly dedicated men to stand up because far too few brothers are laboring in the mission fields today."
Originally published by the Christian Times
- Edited by Karen Luo and translated by Charlie Li
