"HOMEWARD BOUND I GO"
 

1927-1928

The words of Chinese poet Ouyang Hsiu, "Homeward bound I go," sang in John Sung's ears as he packed up for his homeland. It was a high autumn day, the 4th of October, when the yellow leaves on the trees were turning into orange, and from orange into red. John Sung said good-bye to Dr Walker his "American father" and friend in need with mixed emotions like the changing mood of the autumn leaves.

From Cincinnati in Ohio he headed westwards to Seattle in Washington State on the West Coast. His ship lifted anchor on the 11th of October, and by the 8th of November 1927, after a smooth sea trip, he stepped back onto his native soil of Hinghwa --- after an absence of seven years and nine months, short of two days.

During the prolonged days of sailing, a spiritual battle was waged once again in his soul. With his scientific achieve­ments many openings in the national universities in China were waiting for him. Especially, in the sphere of chemistry. As it was expected of him to earn a good sum first to help the family, should he not take up a job for a season before launching out into preaching? As he felt drawn to this line of action, the Holy Spirit brought to remembrance the various deep experiences he had had even before his thorough conversion on Feb 10th, 1927. But one that stood out most prominently during the voyage was the dream he had a few days after Feb 10th. In this dream he was looking into an open coffin. Lying inside was a corpse dressed in academic cap and gown, its hand clasping a diploma. A voice said, "John Sung is dead." But, no sooner was the voice receded than the corpse began to stir. At this, the angels in heaven began to weep. Suddenly the corpse stopped moving and a voice said, "Weep not, ye angels, I will remain dead here --- dead to the world and dead to my selfish ambitions. "Should John Sung now rise again to return to the world?

"No, No; No!" he resolved in his heart. Digging into his baggage he took out every diploma (save the one with the PhD to present to his parents in filial piety) and every decoration, medals and gold keys. As the ship ploughed through the Pacific Ocean, nearer and nearer to Shanghai her destination, John Sung recited with the Apostle Paul, "But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ" (Phil 3:7,8). Then, like casting a floral wreath on the wave for some loved one lost at sea, he threw them likewise as an act of burial of his old self "into the depths of the sea" (Micah 7: 19).

Amidst the joys of home-coming one cloud of sadness that floated across Sung's eyes were the many wrinkles added to his father and mother --- wrinkles no doubt of the fears and anxieties of loving parents for their long lost child. Never­theless, every springing step he took in and out of the house, into the street or to the waterfront, was accompanied by a joyful throb in his heart. There is no place like home!

Immediately after his setting foot on Hinghwa Mrs. Sung prepared a big home-cooked feast, with the help of many female hands, to welcome their son. After the meal, howev­er, Pastor Sung had to divert their lighter talk at table to one big subject obviously looming before their American­-returned son.

"Chu Un," old Pastor Sung opened up, "Now that you have returned with all your degrees and diplomas, we hope you will take up some high position offered to people like you by the national universities. You know too well that as a pastor my present salary remains at only $30 a month. Unless your mother has worked hard and stingied every cent, it had not been possible to feed a family of twelve mouths. I hope you will help to educate your younger brothers."

Having settled in his mind to serve the Lord, come what may, after throwing away his degrees, etc into the ocean, Chu Un replied curtly, "I have already died. The one now returned is not my former self."

"Not you? Who then? Are you a ghost?"

"God has called me to be a preacher."

"If you wanted to be a preacher why need you go all the way to America?"

"No wonder they say you are mad. You are alive, how is it you say you are dead?" chimed his four younger brothers.

All left off speaking to Chu Un save his loving mother: "You know how your father and brothers have waited for your return, that you should bring fame and honor to your ancestors. Why did you say all those words?"

"God wants me to be a preacher." Chu Un maintained.

That night he could not sleep. Then came the Word of the Lord to him, "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me ... (Matt 10:37) Since you love Me you should give all you have to your parents and brothers."

Now there was brought back from America among John Sung's possessions the sum of US$1,768.00. This whole sum he gave up to his dad: "This sum was earned by Sung Shang Chieh before he died. This sum can be divided among the younger brothers for their education." Moreover he gave over to the younger brothers all his clothes and books. As to the PhD diploma, that he presented to his Mother. All that he now possessed was his body, bought by the precious blood of Christ, to be used henceforth for His glory.

As it had been communicated to his parents that Shang Chieh was mentally deranged, the whole family kept a watching brief on him in all his movements. After one week all in the house were assured in their observation that he was sane and sound. Therefore Pastor Sung gave his blessings to his son's decision to serve God fulltime. He encouraged him to go forth, in the strength of the Lord.

Though "man shall not live by bread alone" (Matt 4:4) it is also true that "if any will not work, neither should he eat" (II Thess 3: 10). To upkeep himself he got a job with the Methodist Christian High School as a part-time chemistry and Bible teacher, three times a week. The rest of the week he was free to do the Lord's work in his own sphere.

For a young man like John Sung with all his academic qualifications, coming home meant also getting married. It has been noted earlier that according to Chinese custom, to him had been betrothed a young lady since their school days. Had he not gone abroad their marriage would have been consummated earlier.

Without further delay, Dr Sung Shang Chieh and Miss Yu Chin Hua both of Hinghwa were united in holy matrimony at the Methodist Church, early 1928.

In John Sung's autobiography published in 1933, while he talks at length of his training in God's appointed Seminary, he mentions not a word about his marriage. But during a visit, three days after the wedding, to Rev and Mrs. Frances P Jones, his former high school teachers, John was heard to say, "I wish I were not married." Nevertheless Mrs. Sung became his "wise internal helper" without whose assistance "the external partner" could not have gone so far in the work of the Lord. For, a bishop must be "the husband of one wife" (1 Tim 3:2) in the primary sense that "it is not good that the man should be alone" (Gen 2:18)

There is no doubt that it was a successful marriage, for three daughters and two sons were born to them in their eighteen years of married life. Though Dr Sung lived with his wife at most one to two months a year during the heyday of his ministry, his sermons were full of illustrations from his family life. He often used the first love of a newly married couple to illustrate the love of Christ and His Church.

Apart from Chinese names, father Sung attached Biblical names to each of his five children. These were called in order of the Five Books of Moses: Genesis (girl); Exodus (boy); Leviticus (girl); Numbers (girl). But when he came to the fifth and last, a boy, he named him Joshua. Some say the fifth child was not called Deuteronomy because "Deutero" which means "second" might connect him with the first son who died in early infancy. It is more likely that Joshua was chosen because this reflected his zeal to finish his crusade against sin inasmuch as Joshua was to conquer the heathen tribes of Canaan. To name the second son Joshua was to remind him also that "there remaineth yet very much land to he possessed" (Josh 13:1). When he spoke to us in Singa­pore in his subsequent campaigns he told how God had given him only fifteen years to finish his work. Did he gather this from the life of King Hezekiah (Isa 38:5)? He was very conscious of the shortness of his days, showing us how his fifteen years were made up of cycles of three. William E Schubert his missionary friend whose booklet "I Remember John Sung" was entrusted to our publication, whom when we visited in his last days in Los Angeles 1980, verified: "The five times three years of his ministry consisted of the periods of Water, Door, Dove, Blood and Tomb." "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom" (Ps 90:12). Without a "wise internal helper" the apostle of China could not have lived and worked through those crucial cycles of his life, particularly the Tomb period, as we shall see.