This occurs just after Jesus has called Matthew/Levi from the hated (by most of his countrymen) tax collector for Rome position.  “Later when Jesus was eating supper at Matthew’s house with his close followers, a lot of disreputable characters came and joined them.  When the Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company, they had a fit and lit into Jesus’ followers.  [notice they're cowards--they don't take on Jesus directly at this time.]  ‘What kind of example is this from your Teacher, acting cozy with crooks and riff-raff.’

“Jeseus, overhearing, shot back, ‘Who needs a doctor:  the healthy or the sick?  Go figure out what this Scripture means:  “I’m after mercy, not religion.”  I’m here to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders.’”

Paul’s First and Second Corinthians were written in the context of the opposition of the so-called “Super-Apostles” to Paul’s servant leadership and the true Christian faith.

The speaker continued on to share how we are to contextualize our preaching and how we interact with people–especially with people who are not yet Christians.  We are to respect them as individuals made in God’s image without budging an inch on the truth of God and the reality of sin.

The above significantly enhanced my outlook of ministry and evangelism.  I hope it helps you as well.

The entire Book of Acts flows from chapter one verse 8, where Christians are commanded to take the Kingdom message from Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria to the ends of the earth.  It goes from 20 people to thousands on Pentecost to untold numbers to the ends of the then known world (Spain, Africa, Persia, and India are some of the places we know about from church history).

Acts concludes with Paul beginning his two years plus of ministry in Rome–where a Kingdom building church already exists, made up of people of all backgrounds.  Paul lived in a rented room and visited with any one who visited him.  Acts concludes relating how Paul boldly preached the Gospel without hindrance.

Are you engaged in acts of service and love in the Name of Christ?  Good.  Are you giving toward Kingdom work?  Great!  Are you spending time serving Him?  Also wonderful.  But please be aware that your witness as a Christian is not complete unless you regularly verbally share with others the work of Christ on the cross and His call to follow Him as a disciple!  Go write Acts 29!

I thought of that ride when I recently read the outside of a letter from a leader of one of the major Bible translation organizations.  He got me to thinking about how the Bible translation process does involve many steps–starting with first words and concluding (just beginning?) with the final printing of a Bible.

He writes of a family of 5 that was baptized.  They are from a country where there are significant dangers for Christians’ identites to be known.  After their baptism they searched for a Bible in their own language.  It took quite a while but God eventually brought them together with someone from their country who understood their need.  First words have begun in the language of these dear people.

The writer continues on with a story from another language.  After a checking session of the Gospel of Luke in his mother tongue, a pastor said with tears in his eyes, “Up until now, I have never understood the Word to this level, nor been as moved by it.  It penetrated me right to my bones and touched my inner being.”

And then comes the day when New Testaments in three languages are printed.  “This step is the coulmination of years of work, resulting in the translated Word of God accessible to the people in thse languages.”

I hope the above will inspire you to pray for the work of Bible translation around the world.  Perhaps adopt a people group that needs the Bible in its mother tongue or is currently moving toward printing of that kind of a Bible.  Last but not least, consider becoming a Bible translator yourself or being involved in one of the many important fields (teaching, finances, construction, flying and so many more) related to making the Bible translation happen!

The above paragraph is from FMSC's web site.  19 cents pays for one wholesome meal.  Only 6% of income goes to overhead.

I observed an FMSC mobile visit to my community a couple weeks ago.  It was amazing to see people from many churches and no churches come together to pack the meals.  After each two hour shift, people had the opportunity to participate in a prayer that the food would be blessed to others in Jesus' Name.

I highly recommend that you check out the web site and consider that God might want to use you to help bring a mobile unit to your community–to prepare tens of thousands of meals!

Through an internet connection I came into contact with a descendant of Titus Coan.  Through him I met via e-mail two other descendants (then later a fourth one!).

During this process I have had the privilege of getting to know two pastors–one who is working on a Doctor of Ministry dissertation focusing on the Hawaiian Great Awakening of the late 1830's; and the current pastor of the church where "Papa Coan" served.

I've also been in contact with archivists from Washington D.C. (long story short is that the vast majority of TC's papers reside at the Library of Congress) to Hilo to Honolulu (two in that city).

It's been a glorious journey as I begin to have a deepening understanding and appreciation of this man who was sold out to do God's will wherever and whenever He would have him do so.  He was a living example of Romans 12:1–living his life as a living sacrifice to the Lord Jesus Christ.

In upcoming posts I hope to share some winsome stories about the man who came to be known as "The Apostle of the Sandwich Islands."

GreatCommission2020.com, a project overseen by Wilson, ought to astonish even the most optimistic evangelist who has ever dreamed big. Study the site and the number of people it reaches and where they are located, and you will be amazed.

It begins–"Throughout His earthly ministry, Jesus spoke to groups, large and small, using stories.  In fact, the Scriptures say He always taught using stories–stories like the parable of the Good Samaritan, the parable of the Lost Sheep and the parable of the Prodigal Son.  Those stories, recorded in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, still speak to us today.  They were divinely crafted to reveal God's character and provide instructions on how we should live–in a way that's easy to understand, eaasy to remember and easy to share with others.

"In many areas of the world, cultures remain much the same as in Jesus' day.  Many communities still do not have a written language, and even if they do, literacy is very low and people learn orally.  In these oral societies, worldview is shaped by experience, as well as through stories, proverbs and songs."

I hope to continue this subject in my next post.

2010 marks another significant anniversary.  The students who prayed in 1806 applied for advice in 1810 to the General Association of Congregational Ministers of Massachusetts.

Meeting in Bradford, the presenters sought counsel as how best to fulfill Christ's specific directive, "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature."  On June 29, the General Association voted to establish a Board of Commissionders to implement the request made by the students who were at that time in seminary.

To learn more about what God did during the first three decades of the American Board, you can take a look at my dissertation now published as a book by William Carey Library.  "'The Field Is the World'" is available at missionbooks dot org.  Click on the dissertation series link on the lower right hand side.  And enjoy!