The Life of Jesus in English and Hindi

The Life of Jesus  –  in English and Hindi

History’s Great Love Story


The Life of Jesus in Hindi

The Life of Jesus in Hindi with English Headings – PDF

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The Life of Jesus: History’s Great Love Story – PDF

 

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Translator: Nabeel Sharoon

Nabeel Sharoon in Pakistan has translated my book The Life of Jesus into 5 languages:
Hindi, Indian Punjabi, Urdu, Sindhi, & Pakistani Punjabi. Free PDFs are on this page, including links to the English versions and PDFs.
See The Life of Jesus – in 6 languages for more information about Nabeel Sharoon

Other Translations

Hindi


The Life of Jesus in English and Hindi – Blog
The Life of Jesus in Hindi & English Headings – free PDF

Indian Punjabi


The Life of Jesus in English & Indian Punjabi – Blog
The Life of Jesus in Indian Punjabi & English Headings – PDF

Urdu


The Life of Jesus in English and Urdu – Blog
The Life of Jesus in Urdu & English Headings – PDF

Sindhi


The Life of Jesus in English & Sindhi – Blog
The Life of Jesus  in Sindhi & English Headings – PDF

Pakistani Punjabi


The Life of Jesus in Pakistani Punjabi – Blog
The Life of Jesus in Pakistani Punjabi & English Headings
– PDF

The Life of Jesus in Hindi, Indian Punjabi, Urdu, Sindhi, & Pakistani Punjabi.

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Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival: www.renewaljournal.com
Geoff Waugh – founding editor of the Renewal Journal

This book is available in from WestBow Press, a division of Zondervan with this cover:

The Life of Jesus – Blog
WestBow Press version – The Life of Jesus
The Life of Jesus – WestBow Press – PDF
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* This is a very informative, amazing, and powerful book. Thanks to the author for investing hours of research, expressed with his masterful command of language. ~ Alex Johnson (5-stars)
Be enriched. A most helpful telling of the life of Jesus using the biblical text and adding some background and charts. Anyone using this book will be enriched. 
~ Rev Dr John Olley (Amazon 5-stars)
Geoff Waugh has written a very helpful devotional book about the Saviour of the world who is also the loving presence in believers. Having known Geoff for over sixty years I can testify that every word written proceeds from his own heart of love for Jesus and for all God’s children. Geoff has avoided trying to manufacture some theory or new twist to make the book more colourful. He has used Scripture as his main source and has been faithful to both the divinity and humanity of Jesus as expressed in the Gospels. His use of chronology for headings and the many sub-headings makes the book simpler to absorb, even for an enquirer or new believer. It reminds me a little of Leon Morris’s beautiful book The Lord from Heaven. I warmly commend this book. ~ Rev Dr Tony Cupit, Former Director of the Baptist World Alliance.
* The book is beautifully written and I have learned and understood a lot. I am recommending this book. ~ Kattie Mayson (Amazon 5-stars)
I read your book last night. This is a great book. Thanks for writing this for all of us. ~ Nabeel Sharoon (Pakistan)

Facebook Links:
https://www.facebook.com/LifeofJesus.GeoffWaugh
https://www.facebook.com/HistorysGreatLoveStory

The Life of Jesus provides a brief overview of history’s great love story. It gives a summary of the birth and boyhood of Jesus and describes his ministry through three Passover Festivals.
The book includes a detailed chart of a chronology of Jesus’ life and ministry and examines why such a popular, loving, and compassionate young leader would encounter intense hostility and opposition causing his crucifixion.
The mystery and wonder deepen because his resurrection transformed his followers and millions of lives. We date our diaries and calendars from the time of his birth.

Contents

Preface [see below]
Introduction [see below]
1 Birth and Boyhood
2 Ministry Begins
3 First to Second Passover
4 Second to Third Passover
5 Passover to Pentecost
Conclusion
Discussion Questions [see below]
Appendix 1: Chronology Chart
Appendix 2: The Feast Days
Appendix 3: The Gospels
Appendix 4: Alternative Chronology 
Appendix 5: The Shroud of Turin 
Appendix 6: Publications   


Model of Jerusalem in Jesus’ time

Preface

Why would such a good man who loved so profoundly and helped so many people be killed? Why did he provoke opposition?

If God walked among us in the person of his Son, why would people want to kill him? Why did so many vehemently oppose him?

That puzzled me as a boy. It still does.

The greatest love story the world has ever seen led to the excruciating death of crucifixion.

Many people have given their lives for other people as soldiers do in war. They die for others, defending home and country. But Jesus’ death was different. God’s Son chose to die for us because of his immense love for us. He took our place. His death gives us life. He is the perfect, sinless, eternal sacrifice for us. His blood cleanses us from all our sin as we trust in him. We are forgiven.

But why did so many good people, good religious people, hate him? That puzzled and fascinated me, so I explore that mystery in this book. I wanted to write a summary overview that people of all ages could read.

I always believed in Jesus. Even as a small boy I loved to hear and then read stories about him. He was so unique, so different. I believed his story as a boy and trusted in him. I still do and I hope you do too.

Jesus did what was good. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, set people free from addictions and evil, performed miracles, and even raised dead people. Huge crowds followed him and wanted him to be their king.

Now billions follow him, captivated by his love, the greatest love story of all. You can do that also. I invite you to simply pray something like this: Thank you Lord for all you’ve done. Forgive me for any wrong in my life. I trust in you and give my life to you.

Introduction

The year on our calendar or diary reminds us of when Jesus was born, approximately. We count the years from his arrival. So when you look at your diary or calendar you can be reminded again of Jesus.

They called him Yeshua (Joshua/Jesus) of Nazareth, the same name as Moses’ famous general who led God’s people into their Promised Land. Yeshua means God saves, or God is salvation.

That name comes to us in English through many translations from Yeshua or Y’shua in Hebrew and Aramaic, then translated into Iesous in Greek, then to IESVS in Latin and later as IESUS as printed in the first edition of the King James Bible in 1611. Later that century ‘J’ replaced the ‘I’ so the English name became Jesu (vocative) and Jesus (nominative) but eventually just Jesus in English. Other languages have translations such as Jesu, Yesu, and Isa.

English translations of the Bible used the name Jesus for Joshua/Jesus of Nazareth, and the name Joshua for others with that same name.[1]  So in English, the name Jesus became unique and sacred for Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, the Saviour of the world. The angel Gabriel announced his name before his birth to both Mary his mother and to Joseph who married Mary.[2] Gabriel explained that Yeshua (Joshua/Jesus) had that name because he would save his people from their sins.

The great love story had begun. Jesus came to save us and give us eternal life.

His followers recorded that story of his life and his love in the good news of the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The rest of the New Testament explores the mystery and wonder of that amazing life and love.

Scholars have a bewildering array of theories about the Bible and about who wrote what, and when, and where, and why. I’m content to run with traditional explanations that have been used throughout most of history.

Jesus’ unique and wonderful life, his brutal death for us, and his powerful resurrection, all reveal his and God’s eternal love for us all. You could pause and thank him right now even as you read this.

John’s Gospel emphasizes God’s eternal love revealed in Jesus. It includes the most famous passage in the Bible:

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 

For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (John 3:16-17, NKJV).

That love, powerfully shown on the cross, has transformed billions of lives, restoring believers to an intimate and eternal relationship with God and with others.

Three physical metaphors help me to be constantly aware of, and grateful for, God’s presence with us always:

(1) Light surrounds you. By it you can read this. The sun always shines, even when it’s hidden from us. Light shines around us though we may be unaware of it. God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. We can live in his light.

(2) Blood pumps through your body right now, cleansing and healing. We may be unaware of it until reactions like alarm alert us to our beating heart. Jesus’ blood cleanses from all sin, always. We can trust him for he is with us.

(3) We may breathe without being aware of it, or we can be aware and take deep breaths, as you may have done just now! Breath purifies our lungs and body. God is Spirit and like breath or fresh breeze, he can purify us.

May the light of God’s love breathe life in you right now.

We’ve been made in God’s image to have an eternal, loving relationship with him that even transcends death. We can know and experience God’s unconditional love no matter how far we stray from him. Those who stray most are often the most grateful for his forgiveness and love. We all stray in many ways and we all need forgiveness and we can and should be truly grateful.

God knows and loves us as we are. That makes praying or talking to him easy because he already knows our failures and struggles and welcomes us just as we are. The more honestly we come to him the more he can transform us.

If we have trouble believing we can at least say, “God, if you’re there, help me.”

Some thoughts may get in the way when we pray or want to talk to God. Just give him those thoughts. He already knows all about it and loves us as we are.

If we reject God’s love and mercy by ignoring him and going our own way, we condemn ourselves to eternal darkness away from his light and love.

If we accept his love and forgiveness by believing in him, by trusting him, he gives us life, his eternal life. That makes us new. We are transformed.

Vast numbers of people worldwide of all faiths, and of none, have prayed the prayer in the popular hymn by Charlotte Elliot, ‘Just as I am’ which includes these adapted verses:

Just as I am, without one plea
But that Your blood was shed for me
And that You bid me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

Just as I am, though tossed about
With many a conflict, many a doubt,
Fighting and fears within, without,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

God welcomes us and we can all pray that prayer. A title for Jesus, as in that song, is the sacrificial Lamb of God who takes away our sin.

The Life of Jesus is a vast topic with millions of books written about it. I hope my small contribution gives you a helpful overview. I quote from the New Revised Standard Version unless indicated otherwise, and include many footnotes that you can explore to discover more.

Best of all, of course, are the inspired Gospels now in over 700 different languages in Bible translations and a further 3,500 languages have Bible portions, especially the Gospels. Read and respond to those Gospels.

[1] Iesous (Yeshua) is translated as Joshua in these verses: Luke 3:29; Acts 7:45; Hebrews 4:8.

[2] Luke 1:31; Matthew 1:21.

Start of Chapter 1

It began at the beginning, this great love story, for “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”[1]

Why did he do that?  For us.

He did it for you. He loved you so much he created you to know and enjoy him now as you read this, and forever. He offers you intimate, infinite love. He created you through the wondrous union of your parents’ ecstasy.

He made the earth for us to inhabit and care for and rule. He made the heavens (plural) for us to inherit, the physical firmament and also the realms of vast, eternal glory prepared especially for us.[2]

He created us free to accept or reject his astounding love. Sadly we went our own way. We all, like sheep, went astray. We all turned to our own way. So God laid on his Servant, his Son, all our iniquity.[3] God saves us through his Son in their great love for us all. You could pause and thank him now as you read this.

In the beginning, Adam and Eve enjoyed intimate, unashamed relationship with God and each other. Then, like us, they believed lies and went their own way, losing Paradise. But God still blessed and sustained them and their descendants who chose to love him and live for him. Sadly only a few did.

Noah and his family loved and obeyed God and he rescued them from the great flood. People ridiculed him for obeying God and building a huge boat on dry ground – not even in a dry dock. The rainbow became the sign of God’s covenant to Noah and his descendants including us.

Abram, a wealthy sheik from the wide fertile Tigris and Euphrates valleys in western Asia, north-west of the Arabian Peninsula (now Iraq), loved and obeyed God. Renamed Abraham (God’s friend) he journeyed to the Promised Land, now called Israel, from the name given to his grandson who wrestled with an angel or with the Lord.[4] Circumcision became the covenant sign for them and for their descendants through whom God would provide his salvation for us all.

Abraham and his descendants walked that verdant Promised Land, as did Jesus and his followers. So did our family for a month in December-January, 1981-82.[5]

[1] Genesis 1:1.

[2] John 14:1-6; 1 Corinthians 2:9.

[3] Isaiah 53:6. See Isaiah 52:13-53:12, the fourth Servant Song, along with Isaiah 42:1-4; 49:1-6; 50:4-7.

[4] Genesis 17:5; 32:28; 35:9-10.

[5] See Exploring Israel in General Books and Biography on renewaljournal.com

 

Conclusion

The life of Jesus is history’s great love story. The overview in this brief book points you to the great good news of who Jesus is and what he did. That story is told best in the Bible, God’s inspired word.

I hope this brief commentary points you again to that God-breathed living word. It gave me fresh insights as I researched the harmonized story of these gospels.

Many writers discuss the popular five love languages: affirmation, service, gifts, time, and touch. Jesus demonstrated all these in various ways.

He affirmed and admired faith, especially faith in him for healing and help.
He served daily and showed it dramatically by washing his disciples’ feet.
He gave his life for us and ultimately he gives eternal life to all who believe.
His three years of quality time with his followers prepared them to serve.
His touch brought physical and spiritual healing and freedom to multitudes.

I love the way John summed up the reason for writing his Gospel: “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:31)

That is my prayer for you, my reader. Here is my echoing sonnet, penned over fifty years ago.

Sin stalks the soul, and permeates the whole
Of life lived here where we, while bound by fear,
Hunt far and near for freedom to appear
From pole to pole with our minds in control.
That worthy goal seems mockery.  Sin stole
Our freedom dear, left pain and woe to sear
Each life, a mere heartache, or sob, or tear,
Like a lost mole, blind, dirty in its hole.
God’s love stepped in to fight and conquer sin
Through Christ who bled and died and rose as Head
Supreme of all who claim Him Lord.  Our fall,
Clamour and din may end in Him.  We win
Release from dread, freedom, life from the dead,
Unbound from gall, in answer to His call.

        

Discussion Questions (for use in groups)

Chapter 1: Birth and Boyhood
1. What is one of your favourite Christmas carols and why?
2. What surprises you most about the Christmas story?
3. What challenges you about the boyhood and youth of Jesus?
What would you like people to pray about for you?

Chapter 2: Ministry Begins
1. Why do you think Jesus’ public ministry began after his baptism?
2. What puzzles you most about Jesus’ ministry? (eg casting out spirits)
3. What challenges you about being a disciple of Jesus?
What prayer would you appreciate receiving?

Chapter 3: First to Second Passovers
1. Why do you think John 3:16 is so popular and well known?
2. Who can you identify with in Jesus’ early ministry (eg Nicodemus, Samaritan woman, disciples, religious leaders)
3. What do you think challenged Jesus’ disciples?
What prayer would encourage you just now?

Chapter 4: Second to Third Passovers
1. What impresses you most about Jesus?
2. What challenges you most about Jesus?
3. What surprises you most about Jesus?
What prayer would help you just now?

Chapter 5: Passover to Pentecost
1. What shocks you most about the crucifixion?
2. What helps or challenges you about Jesus’ death and resurrection?
3. What interests you most about the Holy Spirit?
What prayer support would you like now?

Map in the book

See also Devotional Books

A 7 Lion
(7) The Lion of Judah – Blog
The Lion of Judah – PDF

6 books in one volume
READ SAMPLE
* Looking for a great book to help you meditate on the wonder of Jesus in all his richness and grandeur and love? Geoff Waugh has helpfully and thoughtfully brought together wide-ranging biblical passages… Read this book prayerfully and you will not be the same! ~ John Olley.
* This book is full of information, biblical information. I have learned so much from it … If you want to learn more from the Bible, this is the book to read.  ~ A. Aldridge

*
Crucified and Risen – Blog
Crucified & Risen – PDF
The Easter Story
READ SAMPLE

A Holy Week, Passover & Resurrection All1
Holy Week, Christian Passover & Resurrection – Blog
Holy Week, Christian Passover & Resurrection 
– PDF
3 books in 1
READ SAMPLE

A Christian Passover All
Christian Passover Service – Blog
Christian Passover Service – PDF

A Retelling of the Last Supper
READ SAMPLE


RISEN: long version – Blog
Risen! –_PDF

12 resurrection appearances
READ SAMPLE

0 A Mysterious Month All3
Mysterious Month – Blog
Mysterious Month – PDF

Jesus’ resurrection appearances & our month in Israel
READ SAMPLE

A Kingdom Life
Kingdom Life in The Gospels – Blog
Kingdom Life in The Gospels – PDF
4 books in 1
READ SAMPLE

FREE SUBSCRIPTION for new Blogs and free offers

The Book Depository – free worldwide airmail

Popular Books – by Geoff Waugh

Revival Books – gift ideas

Renewal Books – gift ideas

General Books – gift ideas

Devotional Books – gift ideas

GENERAL BLOGS INDEX

Blogs Index 1: Revivals (briefer than Revivals Index)
Blogs Index 2: Mission (international stories)
Blogs Index 3: Miracles (supernatural events)

Blogs Index 4: Devotional (including Testimonies)
Blogs index 5: Church (Christianity in action)

Blogs Index 6: Chapters (Blogs from Books)
Blogs Index 7: Images (Photos & Videos)

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The Life of Jesus: History’s Great Love Story
Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival:
www.renewaljournal.com

Ghana: Jesus Film Riders on a mission

Ghana: Jesus Film Riders on a mission

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Ghana: Jesus Film Riders on a mission
Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival: www.renewaljournal.com

The ministry recently released a video featuring the Jesus Film Riders.

Five young men in Ghana spend their days riding motorbikes across the country on an important mission. Each of them carries a projection kit to show the JESUS Film in different villages, some of them unreached with the Gospel. They are called the Jesus Film Riders.

All of these young men are college graduates, devoted to sharing Christ. Their mission is not easy. They must ride across rugged terrain, often for hours, to reach remote and isolated villages. Each Jesus Film Rider must be willing to go anywhere, sleep anywhere, and eat anything.

Before they can show the JESUS Film in a new village, a visiting Jesus Film Rider has to establish relationships in the village. Sometimes they are able to provide water filtration units to meet practical needs and open relational doors. Once they have built trust and get permission from a “man of peace” in the village, the Jesus Film Rider is able to share the JESUS Film.

OneWay Africa Field Director, Mawunyo Kuuku Win-Tamakloe says, “They can’t believe that the Jesus they’ve heard of can speak their language. It’s always heartwarming when they find out.” Each film showing ends with a time of prayer and an invitation to follow Christ.

Since OneWay’s Jesus Film Campaign began in 2016, over 225,000 villagers have seen the JESUS Film. And 28,226 have committed their lives to Christ.

However, the ministry doesn’t stop there. After showing the JESUS Film, the rider will continue small group discipleship meetings in the village using tools such as the Bible Plus audio players. Eventually, the small group grows and often establishes a new church. Over several months, the Jesus Film Rider continues to support the village and trains new believers to disciple others. Then he moves on to the next village that needs the Gospel.

See a video featuring the Jesus Film Riders.

Source: Lyndsey Koh, JESUS Film Project

Joel News # 1266, July 12, 2022

SEE


Terrorist saved by JESUS film

The JESUS Film


Ghana: Jesus Film Riders


Radicals can’t stop the Jesus Film

NEW BOOK – $5
A Discipleship & Evangelism Resource


The Life of Jesus: History’s Great Love Story – Blog
The Life of Jesus: History’s Great Love Story – PDF

Contents of The Life of Jesus

Preface
Introduction
1 Birth and Boyhood
2 Ministry Begins
3 First to Second Passover
4 Second to Third Passover
5 Passover to Pentecost
Conclusion
Discussion Questions
Appendix 1: Chronology Chart
Appendix 2: The Feast Days
Appendix 3: The Gospels
Appendix 4: Alternative Chronology 
Appendix 5: The Shroud of Turin 
Appendix 6: Publications   

GENERAL BLOGS INDEX

BLOGS INDEX 1: REVIVALS (BRIEFER THAN REVIVALS INDEX)

BLOGS INDEX 2: MISSION (INTERNATIONAL STORIES)

BLOGS INDEX 3: MIRACLES (SUPERNATURAL EVENTS)

BLOGS INDEX 4: DEVOTIONAL (INCLUDING TESTIMONIES)

BLOGS INDEX 5: CHURCH (CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION)

BLOGS INDEX 6: CHAPTERS (BLOGS FROM BOOKS)

BLOGS INDEX 7: IMAGES (PHOTOS AND ALBUMS)

BACK TO MAIN PAGE

Reaching an entire village from your desk

 

Reaching an entire village from your desk

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Reaching an entire village from your desk
Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival: www.renewaljournal.com

“What if you could reach an entire village with the Gospel… from your desk? This is what happened to our teammate, Amin,” reports German church planter Jürgen Kramer, who ministers in Hamburg among refugees from Syria and Iraq.

During the lockdowns in Hamburg, Amin asked God: “What should I do? I’m at home and not allowed to go out. How do I reach people with the Gospel?” The answer came quickly with a phone call from a Yazidi friend in Northern Iraq. This friend shared how they were struggling against evil spirits. Black magic is unfortunately part of Yazidi culture, and many Yazidi have also been traumatised by ISIS.

“I prayed that God would release them and bring them freedom from these spirits,” Amin said. I urged my friend: ‘Please accept Jesus in your life, and ask the Holy Spirit to fill you and be with you forever.’ My friend agreed, and I told him: ‘If you don’t connect with God every day, those evil spirits will be back, and they will be even more powerful.’ After this conversation, my friend in northern Iraq decided he wanted to study the Bible together with me. He also invited a friend and their two sisters. God had answered my prayer.”

‘The two sisters went from house to house to share Jesus’

“For 4 months, we spent 3 hours every day reading and studying the Bible together. We also prayed, and I encouraged them to share Jesus with their friends in the university. During this time, we also decided to fast and pray that the glory of God would go from house to house among the Yazidi people. We would skip one meal each day for 10 days and spend that time in prayer. We would pray that each person in this community would know and experience the true love of God.”

“Two or three months after we completed this Bible study, I started receiving good news from my friends there. The two sisters had been going from house to house to share Jesus in their Yazidi community. I got to know more and more new believers who had learned of Jesus from these two women. When the sisters encountered someone who had questions they couldn’t answer, they would direct them to me, and we would search the Bible together for answers.”

As a result, there is now a vibrant Yazidi house church planted in this community, and more and more Yazidis are coming to know the love of Jesus Christ. This house church has formed a couple of teams that go out and visit villages and camps. “Please join us in praying that this Yazidi church will continue to grow!” Amin asks.

Source: Jürgen Kramer, All Nations Hamburg

 Joel News # 1264, June 28, 2022

Included in BLOGS INDEX 2: MISSION (INTERNATIONAL STORIES)

See also:


The Life of Jesus: History’s Great Love Story – Blog
The Life of Jesus: History’s Great Love Story – PDF

New Christian’s Guide – Blog
New Christian’s Guide – PDF

UK: Black churches thrive like never before

UK: Black churches thrive like never before

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UK: Black churches thrive like never before

Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival:  www.renewaljournal.com
In the UK there has been a 5% national drop in church attendance, but a corresponding 18% increase in Black church membership.

According to the Evangelical Alliance’s Census, ‘Ethnicity and Regular Church Going’, this growth is reflected in Black church attendance being at least three times their proportion in the population. London is the best place to see this as 48% of all churchgoers are now Black, with the London Borough of Southwark having the largest concentration of African churches anywhere in the country. It has an estimated 240 Black Majority churches, with over 20,000 congregants.

What do we know about African churches, their Christianity and their rapid growth? Here are five things worth knowing:

1. African Christianity is active and engaged
African churches expect their members to become fully engaged and involved in the life and activities of the church. Their Christianity is part of everyday life, every aspect of it.

2. African Christians have a positive outlook on life
African church leaders are generally inspirational and often charismatic. Members are aspirational and have a positive outlook on life. They see prosperity as God’s blessing and find it empowering to pursue this.

3. African churches think big and stylish
African Christians think big. They love the term ‘my God is a big God’, which shows the limitless power of what God can do. Many of their churches started with a few members and in record time have grown into big churches. When African churches put on events and conferences, they are likely to be on a grand scale. When they buy warehouses, abandoned buildings, bingo halls, or former churches, they refurbish them to a high standard with a ‘wow’ factor.

4. Africans market and promote relentlessly on social media
African churches have a good grasp of modern communication and information technology. Typically, they are on all the leading social media platforms to grow their churches and attract young people to their services. Many are likely to have had an online experience before going through the doors.

5. ‘Reverse Mission’
Reverse Mission is a concept prevalent among many African Christians, who see their mission in Britain as a reversal of how the missionaries once brought Christianity to Africa. They now believe Britain needs re-evangelising and are committed to doing so.

Source: Roy Francis

Joel News # 1259, May 23, 2022

FREE SUBSCRIPTION for new Blogs and free offers

The Book Depository – free worldwide airmail

Popular Books – by Geoff Waugh – free PDFs

Revival Books – gift ideas

Renewal Books – gift ideas

General Books – gift ideas

Devotional Books – gift ideas

GENERAL BLOGS INDEX

BLOGS INDEX 1: REVIVALS (BRIEFER THAN REVIVALS INDEX)

BLOGS INDEX 2: MISSION (INTERNATIONAL STORIES)

BLOGS INDEX 3: DEVOTIONAL (INCLUDING TESTIMONIES)

BLOGS INDEX 4: CHAPTERS (BLOGS FROM BOOKS)

BLOGS INDEX 5: CHURCH (CHRISTIANITY IN ACTION)

BLOGS INDEX 6: CHAPTERS (BLOGS FROM BOOKS)

BLOGS INDEX 7: IMAGES (PHOTOS & VIDEOS)

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UK: Black churches thrive like never before

Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival:
www.renewaljournal.com

 

How Ukraine became a missions hub for Russia

How Ukraine became a missions hub for Russia

Heroes of faith

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How Ukraine became a missions hub for Russia
Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival:  www.renewaljournal.com

At the beginning of the last century, a young immigrant from Russia to the US named Ivan Voronaev found himself in the midst of a revival.

This revival had started in a little store-front church on a street named Azusa in Los Angeles, but quickly spread across the nation and also impacted New York where in 1917 Voronaev pastored a small Russian Baptist congregation. He encountered the work, power and leading of the Holy Spirit there, as described in the New Testament.

Photo: The Voronaev family

Several months later at a home prayer meeting, Voronaev received a prophetic message, “Voronaev, Voronaev, go to Russia!” This would not be an easy task. The tsar recently had been overthrown by the bolsheviks, and political, religious, and social turmoil had produced much suffering.

In 1920 Voronaev went to Ukraine with his message of revival and set up headquarters in the port city of Odessa. In a few years of preaching, teaching and mobilising, he saw over 17,000 people encountering the Holy Spirit and following Christ. They fanned out across the Soviet Union, preached the gospel, and established Pentecostal churches. In 1926, Voronaev organised the General-Ukrainian Union of Christians of Evangelical Faith, which provided fellowship for the growing number of churches. By 1928, the Union consisted of about 400 congregations with approximately 20,000 members.

Shortly after this revival, Voronaev and his wife Katherine were arrested by the communists and sent to the gulag where he died. His wife sat out her sentence of 25 years. Their story is shared in more detail on the website of the Assemblies of God.

Photo: Odessa before the Russian invasion

Meanwhile, Stalin uprooted millions of Ukrainians (as Putin is doing today), scattering them across the Soviet Union to Siberia and beyond to the Far East, unwittingly spreading the revival. Voronaev’s disciples became the foundation of the underground church of Russia. At the same time Stalin replaced the Ukrainians with millions of Russians, thus creating the problem we are facing today.

Ukraine has long been the spiritual center of Eastern Europe and beyond. Seven out of ten evangelical churches in Russia today have Ukrainian pastors. Ukrainian churches can be found all over the former Soviet Union; and all across Europe, the US and the world.

As the leadership of the Ukrainian Pentecostal Church met this week in Kyiv representing 1800 congregations, their senior bishop, Mykhailo Panochko, shared the belief of state officials that the church was a key element in the healing of their nation. “Don’t miss your chance to be part of great things God is performing,“ he told them. “God’s plans are surely higher than ours!”

Sources: Jeff Fountain, AG News

Joel News # 1259, May 23, 2022

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Argentina: Faith flourishes behind bars

Argentina: Faith flourishes behind bars

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Argentina: The amazing transformation at Los Olmos prison
Prison Revival in Argentina

 

In Argentina between 2008 and 2019 the percentage of Evangelicals grew from 9% to 15.3%. This revival is most remarkable in the nation’s prisons.

The evangelical advance in Argentina occurred, as in most Latin American countries, in all sectors of society, but especially “in the most vulnerable, including prison inmates,” says researcher Verónica Giménez of the National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET). There are similar developments in Brazil, where the huge Universal Church of the Kingdom of God has 14.000 people working with prisoners.

As an example, 40% of the approximately 6,900 inmates in the province of Santa Fe live in evangelical wards, estimates Walter Gálvez, Undersecretary of Penitentiary Affairs, who is also a Pentecostal. The Puerta del Cielo (‘Heaven’s Door’) and Redil de Cristo (‘Christ’s Sheepfold’) congregations are among those that exert strong influence in Santa Fe’s prisons. They began to evangelise inmates in the late 1980s and today have more than 120 pastors working inside prisons.

From hired killer to pastor

Rosario, a city with 1.3 million inhabitants, has high levels of poverty and crime. Violence between gangs seeking to control territory and drug markets has helped to fill its jails. Eighty percent of crimes in Rosario are carried out by young hitmen who provide services to the drug gangs, whose bosses are imprisoned and maintain control of the criminal business from the jails.

Jorge Anguilante from Piñero prison was sentenced to 12 years for murder. He has been allowed to head home every weekend to minister in a small evangelical church he started in a garage in Argentina’s most violent city. As he leaves, the former criminal-turned-pastor greets the guards with a single word: “Blessings!” His violent life is behind him, the word of God made him “a new man.”

His story, of a convicted murderer embracing an evangelical faith behind bars, is common in the dungeons of Argentina’s Santa Fe province and its capital city, Rosario. Many began selling drugs as teenagers and were caught in a spiral of violence that sent some to their graves and others to overcrowded prisons divided between two forces: the evangelicals and the drug traffickers.

In a church service in prison pop-style hymns blared from loudspeakers while three TV cameras recorded the ceremony for other worshippers watching at home via a YouTube channel. “No one else is going to jail. Not your children, not your grandchildren,” the pastor shouted to the crowd. “Change is possible!”

Inmate Ruben Luna, who is serving a 14-year sentence for murder, embraces Sebastian Monje, who has been in prison for eight months for attempted murder and robbery, before being baptised inside an evangelical cellblock at the penitentiary in Pinero.

Each evangelical unit at Pinero is run by 10 prisoners who have about 15 assistants for the 190 inmates. They’re in charge of controlling everything and keeping the peace. “We don’t use knives, but the Bible to take over a cellblock,” says Pentecostal pastor Sergio Prada. Prisoners who want to be allowed in must comply with rules of conduct, including praying three times a day, giving up all addictions and fighting.

Oasis inside prison

For the past 20 years, Argentine prison authorities have encouraged, in one way or another, the creation of units effectively run by evangelical inmates, sometimes granting them some additional special privileges, such as more time in the open air. The wards are much like those in the rest of the prison: clean and painted in pastel colors, light blue or green. They have kitchens, televisions and audio equipment, here used for prayer services. But they are safer and quieter than the regular units. Violating rules that prohibit fighting, smoking, alcohol or drugs can get an inmate sent back to the regular prison.

“We brought peace to the prisons. There were never any disturbances inside the evangelical wards. And that’s better for the authorities,” said Rev. David Sensini of the Redil de Cristo church, one of Rosario’s largest Pentecostal churches. Access is controlled by both prison officials and ward leaders who function as pastors and are wary of gang attempts to infiltrate.

Source: Evangélico Digital

Joel News International, # 1248, February 22, 2022

Revival behind bars
How God’s grace transformed Los Olmos, Argentina’s largest maximum-security prison. This inspiring e-book describes in detail how the revival in Los Olmos prison started, which changes it brought, how inmate leadership emerged and how the prison church was organized. Specific attention is given to the role of the prayer watches and how the revival influenced other prisons across Argentina. Detailed growth statistics are included. | order here

See also

Prison Revival in Argentina

Argentina: The amazing transformation at Los Olmos prison

Christian missionary tortured in prison led 40 to Christ

Iran: How two women brought hope in Tehran’s brutal Evin Prison

Remember those in prison

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‘The Lord reached me right in the mosque’

‘The Lord reached me right in the mosque’

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“But when I got to the fifth chapter of Matthew something supernatural and unusual happened in my mind.” He read: “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” After reading this verse, he believes the Holy Spirit fell upon him – and filled him – as his heart and mind were regenerated.

Pakistan: ‘The Lord reached me right in the mosque’

Like other boys in his Pashtun tribe along the Pakistan-Afghan border, he was sent to a madrasa at age four, where he was compelled to read, recite and memorize the Koran. “The children mimic or copy the mullah,” says John Taimoor, founder of The Crossbearers, a ministry devoted to presenting biblical Christianity within an Islamic context.

By age 14 he stumbled across the name ‘Isa,’ the Arabic name for Jesus in the Koran. “I read the name of Jesus and became curious,” he says. “The Lord reached me right in the mosque.” When he asked the mullah about Jesus, he was told that he should find ‘The Book of Isa.’ “Nobody had ever heard of a Bible.”Taimoor searched for a ‘Book of Isa’ for two years. When he asked his teacher or inquired at the library he was met with suspicion. “What are you up to boy? Do you want to become a Christian?” they asked.

“I begged him to get me a Book of Isa.”

He met a young man at school rumored to be a Christian. “I begged him to get me a Book of Isa,” he says. “He got so scared he never returned to school again. He thought they would stone him or kill him.” There were times Taimoor rode his motorbike 30 to 40 miles because he heard about a gathering of Christians. “No one was willing to give me a Bible, they were so scared. But being strong-willed, the more people stopped me, the more determined I became,”Taimoor adds.

One day he happened to meet a missionary passing through the area north of Islamabad handing out small New Testaments. Taimoor spied the man from a distance and hurriedly rode his motorbike toward him. “He looked at me and greeted me like a Muslim and said, ‘This is the Book of Isa.’”

“It hit me like a bullet,” Taimoor says. “I was almost paralyzed.”

Hesitantly, he asked the missionary the cost of the book. “Nobody can pay the price for it,” he said. “If you want it, you can give me whatever you would like to give.” Taimoor fished into his pocket and pulled out the U.S.equivalent of 20 cents.

“The Holy Spirit fell upon him”

Racing home, Taimoor underwent a ritualistic cleansing, deciding this would be appropriate before reading such a book. “I didn’t understand it in the beginning,” he says. “But when I got to the fifth chapter of Matthew something supernatural and unusual happened in my mind.” He read: “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” After reading this verse, he believes the Holy Spirit fell upon him – and filled him- as his heart and mind were regenerated.

“I got saved without the help of any individual,” Taimoor recalls. “I didn’t say the sinner’s prayer or go to any altar call,” he says. “Within six months I discovered Jesus Christ is God in human flesh.”

It would be five years before Taimoor had any meaningful contact with other Christians or saw the entire Bible. In the meantime, he set out to memorize the New Testament. “As a Muslim, I thought every good Muslim memorizes the Koran,” he recalls. “Naturally, Christians must be memorizing their books.” He thought he should memorize the books before meeting other Christians. He also feared the book might be taken away from him at any time.

When his mother found out about his new faith she told him, “If I had known you would become a Christian I would have strangled you as a baby.” Several years later, Taimoor’s mother and brother both became believers.

“My ministry is to establish new communities of ‘messianic Muslims’ “

Because Taimoor’s faith developed outside of mainstream Christendom, some of his views would be considered provocative to Christians. “I respect Muhammad and use him next to the Bible and the church as the third great witness of the glory of Christ,” Taimoor says. “I am proving to the Muslims the God they worship is the same God as ours,” he says. He believes Muslims are like Jews – they worship the same God as Christians – but reject Jesus as Messiah. Many Christians will not understand John’s strategy because it sounds like compromise. “To some degree it is,” he admits. At the same time, he emphasizes his main thrust is to prove that Jesus Christ is God in human flesh. “We worship Him as the Creator and the Savior.”

One of Taimoor’s ministry objectives is to establish new communities of ‘messianic Muslims’ throughout the Middle East based on the Book of Ephesians. He likes to say his travel style is patterned after John Wesley. “I work in a circuit and then move on. I move fast,” he says. “Some will follow along.”

“If I had not become a Christian I would have been a Taliban,” Taimoor says. His houses near the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan are lined with prayer rugs, and have the feel of an Eastern worship center. They’re completely filled with Islamic books except for one – the Bible. People can stay there for extended periods while they read and memorize the Scriptures. “When people come here they want to know what this black book is all about,” Taimoor says. “If they’re serious, I tell them they can stay.”

Group meetings in his homes can last up to six hours, but he refuses to call this ‘church,’ instead preferring the term ‘Jaamat Rabaani’ – which means‘ gathering of the people of God.’ “If it looks like a church they will burn it,” he says.

“There are a lot of people in the Middle East who are really hungry and seeking,” he notes. “They only fear Western missionaries because they think they are cultural terrorists. We need to be one of them and go in on their level.”

Source: John Taimoor

Joel News 893,  November 2, 2014

There is an ongoing underground revival in the Muslim world. Over the past 20 years more Muslims have found Isa (Jesus) than in all the previous centuries together. See links:
Iran: where Christianity is growing fastest
Iran – fastest growing evangelical population
Iran: How two women brought hope in Tehran’s brutal Evin Prison
Many Muslims are turning to Christ

Jesus and Muslims: Life in the desert
18,000 Muslim leaders led to Christ in West Africa
Jesus appears to a Middle Eastern Muslim for a month
Iman hated Christians until Jesus raised him from the dead
Muslim woman returns from the dead to tell about Jesus

If you want to know more about following Jesus, go here

Now on

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‘The Lord reached me right in the mosque’

Mexico: Thousands of migrants meet Jesus at the border

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
– Matthew 25:40
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Share this link on your media, eg Facebook, Instagram, Emails:Mexico: Thousands of migrants meet Jesus at the border

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Mexico: How thousands of migrants meet Jesus at the border

When Gustavo Banda opened his small church in a poor neighbourhood in Mexico, little did he know that it would become a refuge for tens of thousands of migrants on transit to the USA.  

Six miles west of Tijuana, and a short distance from the U.S.-Mexico border, lies one of the city’s poorest neighbourhoods. There are no paved roads, no sewage system. The hillside is strewn with garbage and crime is rampant. “When we moved here there were only people with a lot of needs,” pastor Gustavo Banda recalled. In 2011, he and his wife, Zaida Guillén, moved to Cañón de Alacrán, or Scorpion’s Canyon, after hearing from the Lord in a dream. “It was a clear mandate from God to move here even though there was absolutely nothing in this place.”

The Mexican couple was touched by the overwhelming needs of the community. “Most folks here were poor subsistence farmers. God gave me a dream that I had to build a church. We worked for eight months, day and night. We knew God was going to do something special, but nobody had a clue about what was really going to happen.” That year, Templo Embajadores de Jesús, or Ambassadors of Jesus Church, was born. Banda held services on Sunday, then hit the rugged roads the rest of the week going house-to-house, ministering to physical and spiritual needs.

‘We knew God was going to do something special, but nobody had a clue about what was really going to happen’

In 2016, the church’s focus drastically changed when thousands of Haitians, escaping poverty and back-to-back natural disasters, began to carve a dangerous 7,000-mile path through Latin America to the U.S. Many landed on the church’s doorsteps, less than 30 minutes from the San Ysidro border. “Within months, 22,000 Haitians had arrived in the city of Tijuana.” The church became a place of refuge. “I did not know, nor did I ever imagine, that there would be so many people in the church.”

Since then, Banda provided a refuge to migrants from all parts of the world. “It started with migrants coming from Haiti, Africa, Pakistan, and the Middle East. Today, we mainly have people from El Salvador, Guatemala, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Colombia, and some from Mexico. We estimate about 35,000 people have come through the church. We feed them 3 times a day. We try to help them with all their needs. At nighttime, the entire church becomes one big giant dorm where everyone sets up their beds on the floor.”

Jaqueline Ortiz, 24, from Guatemala is here with her two girls. She said, “I’m so thankful to God because without the church, I don’t know where I would be. I don’t go hungry here, my daughters don’t go hungry, we have a warm place, we have a roof. All thanks to God and to the people that help us.” Most migrants stay here an average of six months before trying to legally cross the border.

‘We feed them, are family to them, baptise them, and send them on’

Church volunteers run a school for the children, oversee computer training and provide other skills that will help migrants prepare for their new life in America. Area churches and NGOs also pitch in with food and other essential supplies. “The most important thing we try to provide to the migrants is hope and to be a family to them,” Banda said. “We have only little time with them, so I want them to know as much as they can about Jesus, baptise them, and send them on.”

Banda once had a desire to be a missionary to Haiti, but Haiti came to him. And after Haiti came, all the other nations followed.

Source: George Thomas, CBN

Joel News International # 1242, January 14, 2022

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Mexico: Thousands of migrants meet Jesus at the border

God’s Grace Can Reach Any Heart

God’s Grace Can Reach Any Heart

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God’s Grace can reach any heart
Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival: www.renewaljournal.comThe story of Pastor Bessarab, a former criminal who became an evangelist, pastor, and martyr. 

Dear Brother or Sister in Christ,

In eternity, I believe we may see how God wrote chapters into the lives of people we knew on earth and also into the lives of our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ.

In 2004, I traveled to Tajikistan [northern neighbour to Afghanistan] a few months after a pastor named Sergei Bessarab was shot to death in a small city called Isfara, where Bessarab had planted a church. In my book When Faith Is Forbidden, I share Bessarab’s story and introduce readers to his widow, Tamara. In addition to meeting Tamara, I also met the man — also named Sergei — who had prayed for Bessarab’s salvation. The two men had met in prison while Bessarab was serving time for his criminal activities.

In prison, Sergei prayed every day that Bessarab would come to Christ. But Bessarab was less than grateful for his friend’s concern. “Don’t waste time praying for me,” Bessarab told him.

Sergei remained steadfast in prayer, however, and Bessarab did eventually bend his knee to Christ. The former criminal became a bold witness for his Savior both inside the prison walls and, after his release, as a pastor on the outside. In addition, he made frequent return visits to the prison to share the gospel with inmates.

Soon after Bessarab and Tamara moved to Isfara and planted a church, which began to grow as Muslims turned to Christ, a headline in the local paper asked the pointed question, “What’s Going to Be Done About Sergei Bessarab?”

On Jan. 20, 2004, the son of a local mosque leader answered the question, shooting and killing Bessarab as he strummed his guitar during his nightly time of worship, Scripture reading, and prayer.

In my book, I close Bessarab’s story with words spoken to me by his friend Sergei just months after the shooting: “One day we will meet this person who killed [Pastor Bessarab] because we have a prison ministry all over Tajikistan. And we will be ready to tell him about Jesus.”

A front-line worker in Central Asia recently met with Bessarab’s widow, Tamara, who told him how God has extended her husband’s legacy.

When the young man who killed Bessarab was convicted and sent to prison, Christians were waiting there to meet him, just as Sergei had promised. In God’s amazing providence, the killer was eventually assigned to a cell with a Christian prisoner who had been led to Christ and discipled by Bessarab!

And over time, the mosque leader’s son became Bessarab’s spiritual grandson, placing his trust in Christ.

Bessarab was once a convicted criminal. Many would have written him off spiritually. His killer was also far from God, and some may have written him off as well. But God’s grace can reach any heart. If you need a reminder of that today, picture the final chapter of this story: Pastor Sergei Bessarab stands worshiping before God’s throne for all eternity — side by side with the man who ended his earthly life!

In Christ,

Todd Nettleton's signature
Todd Nettleton
Host of VOM Radio [Voice of the Martyrs]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJcGaHil8Ao&t=3s

This is an update from a story in When Faith Is Forbidden: 40 Days on the Frontlines with Persecuted Christians. Receive a complimentary copy for a donation of any amount at vom.org/forbidden.

When Faith is Forbidden book

 

See also

Iran – fastest growing evangelical population

Many Muslims are Turning to Christ

Jesus appears as a bus driver to a Muslim pilgrim

Miraculous Movements – among Muslims

Hope in Iran’s notorious Evin Prison

Iraq: Muslim from Ninevah discovered the Bible’s magnetism

Jesus and Muslims: Life in the Desert

Christians reach out to Muslims in UK

Muslim Woman returns from the dead to tell about Jesus

I saw Jesus Christ

 

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I saw Jesus Christ

I saw Jesus Christ

By Edmund Sim

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I saw Jesus Christ
Renewal Journal – a chronicle of renewal and revival: www.renewaljournal.com

Edmund Sim has a Ph.D. degree in Biochemistry from the University of Queensland and is a Professor at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak.

Su-Hie, Edmund’s girlfriend (now his wife, both Ph.D. students then), invited Edmund to a Renewal meeting at Gateway Baptist Church in Brisbane which I was leading with Hilary Mackerras and some of their band providing the music.  During the worship, many would go to the front to receive prayer from the prayer team. We had an open baptistry available there for anyone desiring to obey Jesus in baptism. Edmund was baptized that night. This is part of his testimony, from Chapter 1, ‘I saw Jesus Christ’, in his book The Faithful and the Faithless, by Edmund Sim, Methodist Church in Malaysia, 2013, pp 5-8.


Gateway Baptist Church in Brisbane

On the evening of October 26 of 1997, Su-Hie and her home group brought me to a revival meeting and worship night at the Gateway Baptist Church. It was located at Mount Gravatt on the outskirt of Brisbane city. Ordinarily I would not have agreed to go for such a thing, but on that night, strangely, I did not protest. However, I went with an intention of doubt. I wanted Christ to prove tangibly that He is real to me. Silently, I cried out to Him for proof. I needed to see and feel that He can save me from misery.

The session started in a typical fashion with prayers, a few readings from the Gospel, and songs of praise. There was nothing out of the ordinary. Then as the evening progressed, the crowd grew more upbeat. …

I doubted whether any of the attendees were genuine in their faith, and thought that they may have faked a good show. I thought I would wait and see if there were more events to critique. Silently in my mind, I was still asking God for a sign – just one simple and obvious sign.

Then, all of a sudden, I saw a vision in front of me – a persistent and clear image amidst the echoes of the music and singing. The vision was the image of a tall thin man in a white shining robe. He had a long face, a beard, but I could not make out the facial details because of the bright glare. His arms were opened, reaching out to each side. There was so much light around him. In an instance, I knew who I saw. There was no doubt in my heart and mind that I saw JESUS CHRIST.

As I was still awestruck by the whole experience, the Lord who stood in front of me gently bowed down. I was calm and unafraid, but I was not happy. Tears filled my eyes, and I started to cry. I felt so ashamed of myself. It was my arrogance and pride that blocked me from Christ all this while. Yet as a terrible sinner I dared to ask God for a sign. But He came.

He came for this sinner, and He showed me the greatest humility I have ever seen. He is a God, and King above all kings, yet He bowed down before me. It was such perfect humility that I began to see the reality of my sinfulness. I cried thinking of the many sins and wickedness of my past. I felt unworthy thinking of how I allow pride to lead me instead of Him. Finally I saw His magnificent power – not in physical brawn, but in the strength to bow down to a lowly sinful creature like me.

There was no question what I should do next. I knew I had to repent, and accept Christ as my Lord and Saviour. Not only had He given me a sign, He had revealed the truth of my nature before me, and through the most magnificent of ways compelled me to willingly acknowledge my sins, to repent and believe in Him. It was all clear to me. I know that I could never be separated from Him. …

What is clear to me now is that I saw Jesus Christ, and now it is my turn to help others see Him too.


Gateway Baptist Church in Brisbane

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