John 3:16-21 - What about those who have not heard?

With Chief Mulbah Killinpowen and friends, May 2014

In 2014, I was at the City of Refuge orphanage in Belimu, Bong County, Liberia. During the course of the week, I met Town Chief Mulbah Killinpowen, the oldest living person in Bellemu, and the chief zoe of his area, wielding great spiritistic power over the people. He had lived all his life without hearing a clear witness to Christ until he saw the JESUS film in Kpelle. During the invitation to follow Christ, Chief Mulbah did something unprecedented for a tribal elder or a zoe.

The Old Cox Barn

Just north of Mount Airy, North Carolina, in southwest Virginia, near Hillsville, there is a wonderful retreat designed for missionaries and ordained pastors.

Geraldine and Sam Smith host there a rest stop for Christian missionary workers and ordained pastors. Best of all, it is free to them.

They bought an old barn several years ago and remodeled it into a beautiful mountain retreat with lots of light and friendliness.

The Smiths live in the home, too, but you always have as much privacy as you want.

We had the privilege of staying there in 2013 after a very difficult period in pastoral ministry.

We weren't the best guests because we were not in a great place emotionally at that time, having just left a very difficult pastorate. However, we very much appreciated the hospitality at the Old Cox Barn, even if we had a hard time receiving it at the time.

The Smiths provided two meals a day for our whole family in a nice bed and breakfast setting -- at no charge -- because we were in full-time ministry.

Because of all the nice, fragile things the Smiths have in their home, it is not the best lodging for small children we discovered, but for a small group retreat for adults it would be awesome as well as for missionaries or pastors looking for a quiet (really quiet) place to go and pray or study or write.

Close to the Blue Ridge Parkway and in the beauty of the Blue Ridge mountains, let me recommend this place to you.

I don't have permission to give out their phone number publicly, so you will have to find them on your own, but when you do, you will find a very kind couple and a quiet retreat.

There is a creek in the field below the house.

The creek and old field extend down to another old barn.

John 3:22-36 - The Humility of John the Baptist

John the Baptist

Dr. George Washington Carver said, "When I was young I was walking along a dusty dirt road. I said to God, 'God, tell me the mystery of the universe.' But God answered, 'That knowledge is reserved for me alone.' Then on that dusty road I kicked a peanut. So I said, 'God, tell me the mystery of the peanut.' Then God said, 'Well, George, that's more nearly your size.' And he told me." The young African-American scientist went on to develop hundreds of useful products from the peanut.[1]

M.R. DeHaan, the founder of Radio Bible Class and co-editor of the daily devotion Our Daily Bread, used to say, “Humility is something we should constantly pray for, yet never thank God that we have it," because then we would have to repent for pride! Tonight, I have been assigned to preach on humility, and I suppose the Lord knew I need a lesson on it most of all. Our lesson tonight focuses on the humility of John the Baptist. We will give a sketch of his life but focus on a moment in John’s life when his humility was most on display – the day he realized it was time for him to step out of the spotlight.

March 2016 Liberia missions prayer letter

Liberia coat of arms (Wikipedia)

Our March 2016 Liberia mission prayer letter is out. Click here: http://eepurl.com/bTdoyz

Giving, squandering, and missions

Poor giving and churches squandering Kingdom resources has consequences. Missions suffers.

Eighty-five cents of every dollar given in a church offering stays at that church.That might not be so bad, especially if they are using it to minister to their community. But what follows is not good.

In 2000, 97 dollars of every 100 of the entire income ($269.61B) of all Christian organizations was spent on, and primarily benefited, other Christians at home or abroad. 

Church spending on ministering to already-evangelized non-Christians was $2.90 of every $100 ($7.8B). 

We spent 3 cents ($0.81B) of every $100 on unevangelized non-Christians. [1] In 2010 that spending dropped to 2 cents per $100.[2] (Where did the other 7 cents go?)

Is this a focus on investing in missions? I think we can do better.

US: Where we live and who we are

Diversity index of the contiguous United States by block (Photo: Eric Fischer)

Half Of The United States Lives In These Counties, and if we place one dot on the map for in a color showing the ethnicity of every person who registered in the 2010 US Census (The Racial Dot Map), we see a much more colorful map than three decades ago.

Are we using this 2010 Census data to inform our North American church planting efforts?

We are not a nation of one language. This map illustrates: 

Top 20 Countries with fastest growing Christianity

 
 Quoted from The Top 20 Countries where Christianity is Growing the Fastest

"Where is Christianity growing the fastest? The Center for the Study of Global Christianity, based at Gordon Conwell Seminary, published In June 2013 an excellent report regarding Christianity in its Global Context. The full report can be found online at www.globalchristianity.org/globalcontext. 

The Top 20 Countries Where Christianity Has the Highest Percentage Growth Rate

Rank	Country	Continent	Christian  AAGR	Years to double	Majority Religion	Percent Christian 1970	Percent Christian 2020
1	Nepal	Asia, South Central	10.93%	6.6	Hindu	0.1%	3.8%
2	China	Asia, Eastern	10.86%	6.6	Non-religious	0.1%	10.6%
3	United Arab Emirates	Arabian Peninsula	9.34%	7.7	Muslim	5.9%	12.9%
4	Saudi Arabia	Arabian Peninsula	9.27%	7.8	Muslim	0.3%	4.6%
5	Qatar	Arabian Peninsula	7.81%	9.2	Muslim	4.5%	9.5%
6	Oman	Arabian Peninsula	7.62%	9.4	Muslim	0.5%	4.6%
7	Yemen	Arabian Peninsula	7.09%	9.1	Muslim	0.0%	0.2%
8	Mongolia	Asia, Eastern	5.96%	12.1	Buddhist	0.3%	2.0%
9	Cambodia	Asia, South-eastern	5.87%	12.3	Buddhist	0.5%	3.6%
10	Bahrain	Arabian Peninsula	5.49%	13.1	Muslim	3.9%	7.9%
11	Benin	Africa, Western	4.85%	14.8	Christian	18.1%	47.8%
12	Burkina Faso	Africa, Western	4.81%	15.0	Muslim	9.0%	24.8%
13	South Sudan	Africa, Eastern	4.67%	15.4	Christian	22.7%	63.8%
14	Bhutan	Asia, South Central	4.60%	15.7	Buddhist	0.3%	1.1%
15	Mali	Africa, Western	4.54%	15.9	Muslim	1.4%	3.8%
16	Brunei	Asia, South-eastern	4.49%	16.0	Muslim	5.8%	14.1%
17	Guinea	Africa, Western	4.44%	16.2	Muslim	1.3%	3.8%
18	Kuwait	Arabian Peninsula	4.26%	16.9	Muslim	5.1%	9.2%
19	Singapore	Asia, South-eastern	4.12%	16.3	Buddhist	7.8%	21.7%
20	Turks and Caicos Islands	Caribbean	3.97%	18.1	Christian	99.5%	91.6%

Some key observations by Russ Mitchell of Disciple All Nations:

• Nineteen of the top 20 nation-states are in Asia and Africa.
• Eleven of the top 20 list are Muslim majority nation-states.
• The majority of the top 20 are clustered in three areas: Eastern Asia, Western Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.
• Not one country from Europe, Northern America or Latin America makes the top 20.
• The world’s newest country, South Sudan (July 2011), made the list.
•  The highest Christian growth rates are found among all major non-Christian religious groups: Hindus, Non-Religious, Buddhists, Muslims and Ethno-religionists (Benin and South Sudan).

More analysis at The Top 20 Countries where Christianity is Growing the Fastest

Pastor: When to put up a fight

Charge at Trevilian Station, Virginia

We all know the expression, “choose your battles.” Some choose no battles. Some fight every battle. Great leaders know how to choose them.

Here are some guidelines for choosing the battles we must fight, and avoiding the battles we shouldn’t.

6 Times When You Should Put Up a Fight (and 3 Times You Shouldn’t)

1. Those in which a person or group attacks leadership in a way that threatens, legitimately, the unity of the Body.
2. Those in which a person is bearing false witness.
3. A situation in which a voiceless person is being attacked.
4. Core doctrinal differences.
5. Where the church’s mission is at stake.
6. Battles only you can fight.

   

Related articles

Church Growth: Not with THOSE people

Cover of Coneheads

"We would like them to attend our church -- but we're not sure they would fit in here. They are coneheads. " 

Sonny Holmes exposes our prejudices that lead fifteen SBC churches to hold their final service each Sunday morning, many of them in growing communities.

In fact, Bill Elliff says that the SBC alone is closing 6,000 churches a year and only starting 4,000. To keep pace with the population, we must start 10,000 a year."

Leaning Forward: The coneheads next door

Related articles

• A Five-Fold Strategy Guaranteed to Kill Your Church (by Joel Rainey)

Use your degree on the mission field

Scholar (tim ellis)

Use your advanced degree on the mission field

Between The Times: The Academy as a Mission Field

Tom Wright: Prayer Warrior

Tom Wright of Clinton, SC

Our friend Tom Wright of Clinton, SC, passed away unexpectedly on September 12, 2013. He was a servant-minded man with a passionate call to prayer in the last half of his life. 

In 2005, Tom and his sweet wife Judy helped our family move to Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC, to begin our North Carolina adventure. I will never forget us arriving there in a over-burdened moving truck. We were dog tired, and there was no energy to unload that truck. 

Tom looked at me and said, "Gene, we need to pray for help. We can't do this by ourselves. I agreed, and Tom gathered us in a circle to pray, thanking the Lord for a safe trip, but telling Him matter-of-factly that were were worn out from days of packing and loading and a five-hour trip. He prayed, "Lord, we need help. Please send us help to unload this truck. Amen." 

When we opened our eyes, there stood a dozen seminary students smiling at us. One of them said, "Need some help?" They had that truck unloaded and the furniture in place within an hour. 

That was Tom Wright and his faith at work. 

In 2002, I wrote a sidebar article about Tom Wright for Pray! Magazine about his call and ministry of intercession on behalf of a forgotten unreached people group in southwest China. Following is that article and the story of the man whose faith was simple but monumental.

In your Witness: Are you reflecting Christ?

Mirror reflecting a vase (Wikipedia)

"Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" (Colossians 1:2b)

Paul's salutation to the Colossians is his standard greeting in most of his  epistles. Paul greets the believers at Colossae in two ways, a Greek way (grace, χαρις, meaning “favor”) and a Jewish way (peace, ειρηνη, meaning “concord, safety, and prosperity”). 

The church at Colossae, like nearly all the churches Paul wrote, was a multicultural church. Paul is greeting them in their cultures and affirming their culture as part of who they are. 

Luke 19:45-20:8 - Jesus' Authority Questioned

Tissot: Jesus' Authority Questioned

Key Truth: Luke wrote Luke 19:45-20:8 to teach believers to trust Jesus because He stands by His Word with ultimate authority.

Key Application: Today I want to show you what God’s Word says about Jesus’ authority.

Pray and Read:  Luke 19:45-20:8

Shouwang Church, Iran, Syria's refugees

AP: Raw video frame of PSB breaking up Shouwang service

CHINA – Beijing’s Shouwang Church continues to meet outdoors in defiance of the Chinese government’s crackdown on their meeting space. On July 22, Shouwang held the 29th outdoor worship service of this year. It was a hot day. 

At least 16 believers were arrested near the outdoor service platform. Seven believers were released on the way to the police station or sent to sub-district offices directly. Nine believers were sent to three different local police stations. All were released by 6pm Sunday except for an elder sister released Monday morning after 24 hours detainment. 

Luke 10:1-24 - Jesus Sends out the Seventy

The front side of folios 13 and 14 of a Greek papyrus manuscript of the Gospel of Luke containing verses 11:50–12:12 and 13:6-24, P. Chester Beatty I (Gregory-Aland no. P 45 ). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Pray and Read:  Luke 10:1-24

Key Truth: Luke wrote Luke 10:1-24 to teach believers that Jesus sends us in victory into His harvest in the midst of opposition to find His blessing.

Key Application: Today I want to show you what God’s Word says about the way Jesus sends us into the harvest.

Sermon Points:

1.   Jesus sends us in victory into His harvest (Luke 10:1-7)

2.   Jesus sends us in victory into His opposition (Luke 10:8-16)

3.   Jesus sends us in victory into His blessing  (Luke 10:17-24)

Look for new Fair Trade logos

These logos on products like coffee and tea tell you that they were produced without the use of child or slave labor or involved in human labor trafficking. 

Look for them and buy products with these labels.

New logo

Old logo

Luke 2:21-40 - The Presentation of Jesus

Presentation in the Temple (Philippe de Champaigne, 1648)

Luke begins his gospel in the Temple with an unbelieving priest, Zechariah, and he ends the birth narrative at the Temple with a believing man, woman, and the boy Jesus. Joseph and Mary are careful to keep the requirements of the Law. His circumcision was apparently in Bethlehem but for the purification they had to travel to the Temple in Jerusalem. There they are greeted by two remarkable individuals, both aged and devout, Simeon and Anna, who speak about the future of the child.

Key Truth: Luke wrote Luke 2:21-40 to teach believers how the Presentation of Jesus is a call to consecration for his people, a call to the Glory of the Lord among the nations, and a call to worshiping intercession before the Lord of the nations.

Key Application: Today I want to show you what God’s Word says about God’s call to us in the New Year.

Key Verse: Luke 2:31-32

Pray and Read:  Luke 2:21-40

Sermon Points: In this New Year we have a

1.   Call to Consecration to the Lord among His people (Luke 2:21-24)

2.   Call to Glory of the Lord among the nations (Luke 2:25-35)

3.   Call to Prayer before the Lord of the nations (Luke 2:36-40)

Psalm 9 - My Part and God's Part

Think about the challenges that have been laid before you. Family challenges. Financial challenges. Workplace challenges. Health challenges. Relationship challenges. And then there are the challenges that you have brought on yourself. Did you know that the Lord is sovereign, too, over those challenges, all those challenges? 

If He is sovereign, then it means He is in charge. If He is in charge, then that means He has taken responsibility for them. If He has taken responsibility for them, then He has adequate resources to take up and handle those challenges. Now the question is, do you trust Him to take responsibility for your challenges? Or would you rather handle them on your own?

Persecution in Iran and India

Heydar Moslehi

House churches "a threat to youth"

IRAN - It seems that the gloves are finally off. Iran's Minister of Intelligence Heydar Moslehi calls house churches "a threat to youth." He also says they're working to stop the growth of Christianity. 

Only 2-3 years ago, the government ignored the Church. Now, because of a great awakening in Iran, they feel threatened because so many people are coming to Christ. 

Although Iran is arresting believers under the apostasy law, Christmas season usually brings a yearly spike in persecution. Why? Christians are celebrating. They are sharing the Gospel and the Christmas story. 

Prayer is needed. This is yet another confirmation of what an incredible work God is doing in Iran." Full story here

Seven newly baptized converts from Islam detained, beaten

INDIA – Police in India’s Kashmir Valley detained and beat 7 newly baptized Christians who converted from Islam, and they are seeking the arrest of the Christian leaders responsible for converting them. 

Police identified the converts and pastors from a video recording of the baptism posted on YouTube and obtained by Kashmir's grand mufti (the highest official of Islamic law), Bashir-ud-din Ahmad. 

Ahmad alleged that Pastor Chander Mani Khanna of All Saints Church (Church of North India), was bribing young Muslims to convert, saying that the video, showing only the baptism ceremony) proves Muslims are being "lured" to Christianity. 

The pastor said the Muslim youths attended the church on their own initiative and asked to take Communion. Pastor Chander told them they must be baptized to join the Supper, and they asked for baptism. 

Pray that Pastor Chander will not be charged, and that the young converts will remain steadfast in their faith. Pray that the gospel will spread throughout Kashmir despite opposition and oppression.

Related articles

• Send Christmas cards to imprisoned, persecuted believers (genebrooks.blogspot.com)
• Police Detain, Beat Converts from Islam in India (creepingsharia.wordpress.com)
• Persecuted Church: Iran, Libya, Azerbaijan (genebrooks.blogspot.com)
• Pastor admits to conversion by missionaries in Kashmir (thehindu.com)
• Pastor held on conversion charge (thehindu.com)

Send Christmas cards to imprisoned, persecuted believers

Send a Christmas card to a believer among the Persecuted Church. Your words are never wasted when it comes to writing a letter to our brothers and sisters of the persecuted Church. Mail sent by concerned believers can have a profound impact on those who are suffering and even on their persecutors.  You can be an encouragement by sending a card or a letter to bring them hope. 

Your letters to prisoners can do five things:

1.       Provide tremendous encouragement. Letters touch our persecuted brethren right where they are, demonstrating that they're not forgotten and that someone somewhere cares for them and is praying for them.

2.       Indicate to authorities that you are aware of a Christian’s situation, and you care!

3.       Testify of the love and unity found among followers of Jesus Christ worldwide. This is especially true when letters are opened and censored. God can use your letter to work in the lives of those in authority.

4.       Prove our persecuted family is not forgotten. Through isolation and loneliness, the devil can prey on imprisoned Christians’ faith. When a prisoner receives a letter, whether they can read it or not, they know someone cares.

5.       Lead to better treatment of Christian prisoners. Prison officials and government authorities know someone is watching them.