This was also a very good day. There were a lot more private meetings and workshops than plenaries today so my notes will be a little abbreviated. Also, I ended up leaving a bit early today, and didn’t make the evening session (it was focused on Latin America and I was getting close to exhaustion again).
Morning Bible Study: Ephesians 3, John Piper
- There are three scenes.
- The great sovereign cosmic manifestation of the purpose of God to make known the glory of His wisdom to the demonic powers of the universe
- God has chosen some of his servants to be in prison as a way of bringing about his cosmic purpose. God’s design is for the church to be drawn into the glory of God through the suffering of the missionaries and ministers of the Gospel.
- God has chosen that the supernatural power required to display his glory through our suffering comes through prayer.
- Scene 1
- Wisdom of God being made manifest to powers
- The unsearchable riches of the glory of Christ
- The revelation of the mystery of the ages
- Stunning (at the time) that all the promises made in the Bible now apply to everyone, Jew & Gentile
- Nations streaming into the glory through the cross
- how is the cross manifesting God’s wisdom – 1 Cor 1:22
- When Messiah dies on the cross he creates the church out of the nations of the world
- The manifold wisdom of God is a stumbling block and foolishness to the world.
- The church was created by Christ at the cross, and is the tool for showing God’s wisdom
- One day all the evil powers will be forced to say God is wise.
- Why does it require the crucifixion for us to enter the unsearchable riches?
- Different ways to answer it. Look at Eph 2:3 – “Like the rest of mankind” is the phrase.
- All human beings are by nature children of wrath
- Our nature is sinful
- he did not have to die because we are sinners but because God is angry at the world (not sure I wrote that down right?)
- humanity is under wrath
- If God had not put Christ between his wrath and us—became cursed for us—all Jews and Gentiles would perish under his just condemnation
- There are two truths in tension in the church
- When the Gospel takes root, it impels us outward to the alleviation of suffering
- When the Gospel takes root, it awakens us to the horrible reality of suffering in hell and impels us to cry to the nations to flee the wrath of God
- Some love one truth, some the other. Could the global church say, for Christ’s sake we can say we Christians care about all suffering, especially eternal suffering.
- Scene 2 & 3
- God appoints suffering and prayer as a means of drawing people in.
- Suffering shows Christ is more precious than anything.
- Shines not in prosperity but in pain.
- Sees value of riches in Christ when we choose it over prosperity
- No one choose prison, and no one sees the breadth and depth of Christ fully. No one says with Paul count it all as lost… unless power has broken into their lives—through prayer.
- A reflection on the “controversial elements” of Piper’s sermon is here. I’m not going to go into that part.
Libby L., wife of martyred Tom L. (Afghanistan)
I did not know who this lady was when she walked on the stage, but I suspect everyone will know this story now. I thought she spoke with great eloquence and passion and was the highlight of this morning’s talks. I was writing so fast I could not cry. I wish I had time to weep then. Her words were like drops of tears falling into a silence-struck Congress, splashing up on many cheeks.
Update: We have been asked to purge the full name of this speaker. I rather suspect it is a bit of a lost cause because it’s well tweeted and blogged about, but I’m going to honor the request as I can understand the security issues. Please do not repost photos or videos.
On Afghanistan 10, 2010, 10 people were martyred.
(She names them). And my husband, Tom.
(She names bit by bit the vocations of the 10.)
They were returning from a 3 week mobile clinic in Nuristan.
They left Kabul asking us to pray that they would share God’s mercy. That they would have a ready answer for any who should ask. That they would have stamina for the trek.
Every day he would call twice a day for 1 minute with notes on their progress. I’m going to share them with you now.
- Long hiking day.
- Slept under the stars tonight, because we didn’t make it to the shepherd’s hut in time.
- Pass over the mountain treacherous, with freezing rain.
- Never ending stream of people waiting in the rain for our clinic.
- Warm welcome from the leader, with goat cheese.
- Never saw or smelled so many rotten teeth.
- Horrified again <at the condition of a child’s eye.>
- Cheryl & I took turns staying through the night with a teen dying of <tetanus?>
- Made it to the shepherd’s hut beat, exhausted
- Tending oozing feet. One boy with them is weeping, crying, “beautiful feet. beautiful feet.”
On August 5th, the final call: made it to the Land Rovers. Swollen river is receded enough to cross over. We will call you on the other side.
We don’t know who or why they were killed. But we do know the overarching reason they were there. Some were there a long time. Others were in their first term. Some were just visiting.
At a dinner the night before they left, they used words like: “Compelled by God. Called. Great urgency to get back to the valley.”
They all knew the risk. They had extensive permissions for each stage of the route. They went by the safer route even though it was longer and more demanding. Yet several said yes, Jesus, it is worth it.
The team had said on the way back they needed a day of rest. They were to have a day of worship. Later the FBI came and brought me some of the items from my husband’s body. In between lists were sermon notes, stained with blood. Was this what he had shared that day? In the jottings he noted Ephesians 2:8-10, Ephesians 5:2, and 2 Corinthians—we are the aroma of Christ. In the side note he had scribbled, “use the Nuristani Goat Cheese Story.”
Some aromas take some getting used to. Takes time to develop a taste for Nuristani cheese. It spends weeks in animal skins hanging from the sides of donkeys. The smell of men, horses, donkeys, and the cheese itself are all a pungent odor permeating it. You can smell it for miles. Some find it disgusting. Some—when they are hungry enough—try it and found it’s salty flavor enhances the otherwise dry and stale bread. Then you’re hooked and you can’t wait for more.
It was their 5th trip. Tom thought it would be the last. The first time we asked to go. The other times we were begged to come. “Please, please, come and care for us.”
If Tom were here, he would say: in difficult and hard to reach places, grace is not discussed or debated. The incarnation has to be seen and experienced. In powerful and vengeful communities, talk of grace and vulnerability is too foreign—too distasteful—it needs small doses over time. Some have to acquire a taste for grace. They have to be hungry enough. The aroma of grace has to permeate everything. It has to be seen as transforming. It has to change the very flavor of life. It has to bring new life. Those who dare to taste it will say: come back. We like what we have tasted, and we want more.
It takes time. Maybe a whole life time. It takes energy—the willingness to be spent, to be poured out, to wear yourself out. Bob Dylan said, “Die in your footsteps.” It takes patience with those acquiring a new taste.
She quotes John Piper’s poem:
Behold the mercy of our King,
Who takes from death its bitter sting,
And by His blood, and often ours,
Brings triumph out of hostile pow’rs,
And paints, with crimson, earth and soul
Until the bloody work is whole.
What we have lost God will restore -
That, and Himself, forevermore.
May God restore his Kingdom in Afghanistan. May Nuristanis catch a whiff of the aroma of Christ. Taste and See. May the global church be saturated with God’s infinite Christ and spread the aroma of grace in these hard places to the glory of God.
See also:
- Are you willing to suffer again? by Mary DeMuth
Plenary 2, 11 AM.
The following speakers, I have taken notes on, but we were asked not to photograph or record them. I’m not sure if that extends to listing their names, so I have chosen to simply enumerate their speaking identities until I know better.
Speaker 1:
(Had a hard time with this accent so didn’t get a huge amount of notes and may have missed some of the salient points, but the passion came through loud and clear.)
- Convinced we have a Gospel worth living and dying for
- Paul was not just a nonChristian but a radical militant
- After his salvation he was completely changed
- Paul speaks from personal experience of transformation
- The Gospel is total dedication to Christ and obedience to him
- Only way to live is to totally surrender to Christ
- The Gospel is power
- It takes humility and effort to keep teaching the Gospel until it is heard, learned, obeyed
- Those who carry the Gospel will not always be welcome
- Pressing on to get the Gospel out.
- 1987, 100 churches in our city were burned down.
- In ____, 300 homes and businesses were destroyed.
- The Lord asked me to tell the Christians to do nothing. Muslims massacared men, women, children. We begged for no response.
- 2001, 40 killed. They did unspeakable things to my wife. She was left beaten and blind. 6 months later her sight returned.
- A year later they came back to kill us. I begged them to let me pray. They did. I knelt in prayer and a few minutes later my wife and son’s hands were in mine. The killers had fled.
- I have lost colleagues, brothers and sisters in the faith. I don’t know why I was spared. But until the day of my death I have a gospel to proclaim!
Speaker 2:
This elderly lady reminded me of my great-grandmother—wonderful to listen to, yet prim and proper and full of fiery backbone. Her testimony was amazing and yet in a way unsurprising to me.
- In Genesis 17, God made an awesome promise. In our days we are blessed to see it fulfilled.
- I was born a Muslim.
- In 1978 in a dramatic way Jesus entered my life, and transformed a daughter of Ishmael to a child of God.
- For 10 years I struggled. Many times thought about going back. Only believer in my house. Not allowed to attend church. But in 1988 everything changed. My husband also came to the Lord.
- People wonder why Jesus would do this. Many hate Muslims. But God is fulfilling John 3:16 which says “all the world.” In all the world there are 1.3 billion Muslims. God loves them.
- My husband and I began to pray. Through other miraculous experiences other family members came to Jesus. Why would Jesus do this? Because he is fulfilling Acts 16:31—“and your households.” Jesus is saving households.
- After 1988 the Lord brought me all over my country and all over the world. As a Muslim woman I never entered a mosque. But Jesus—he gave me the privilege of placing me in the pulpits of so many countries. Why would Jesus do something like this? Because he is fulfilling John 2:28-29: “In that day… all people… sons and daughters.” Including scores of Muslim women.
- In 2003 I became a pastor at [censored]. The Lord challenged me to raise up workers among Muslims. We started a training center called [censored]. We taught people to understand Muslims, love Muslims, witness to Muslims. Why would Jesus do this? Because he is fulfilling Esther 4:14—“for who knows but that you have come to this place for such a time as this.”
- We work with a global initiative. Bible schools in […] and places around the world. House churches in homes of muslim-background believers [MBBs]. A contextual church service. This is not you rordinary church. We do not have a pastor—but an imam. It is full of MBBs. The format of the service is Islamic. Need a paradigm shift just to visit! Muslims place a lot of emphasis on external forms. But in content it is a Christian, Pentecostal, spirit-filled church. Muslims seeking God come to church thinking it was a mosque—but the good news is they stayed when they found out it was a church. We have baptized 25 men and 12 women in the past 7 years.
- Why would Jesus do this? Because he is fulfilling John 4:23 (“a time is now coming when those who worship the Father will worship in spirit and in truth”). Not only in the Baptist or Methodist or Islamic-format churches—but in spirit and in truth.
- Also launching community centers in Islamic neighborhoods. Muslims come to learn skills in these centers. Muslim women come to devotions seeking the true God. They have learned to read the Word with us. Pray with us. Pray like us. Sing Gospel songs. Why would Jesus do this? He is fulfilling Revelation 7:9: “I saw a great multitude, thousands of Muslim women, singing, salvation belongs to God who sits on the throne, and unto the lamb…”
Speaker 3:
This young man was so full of passion.
- Paul said, “I do not count my life of value. None will see my face again.” Acts 21, so he will be bound…
- Bearing witness to the life of Christ.
- I feel like a lion in a room full of Daniels.
- I do not think Paul had tears of self-pity.
- He is a minister to the Gentiles.
- Paul’s Gospel is not pompous self-righteous.
- Knows it will cost him his life. HS constrains him and affirms imprisonment awaits.
- Sad reflection that we look all our lives for models of evangelism that cost nothing.
- Gospel must be lived and proclaimed. We cannot be silent. We have no option.
- Gospel of comfort or one that requires all?
- Full obedience to God.
- A friend’s story is meant to be inspiring. he says, if I found out tomorrow I had cancer, I would say goodbye to everything and go and live in saudi arabia and tell people about Jesus. Is it necessary to have cancer to rise up and speak? Paul counted everything lost.
- There are no closed countries—only countries where we are unwilling to stand up for the Gospel
- I was in a setting I cannot describe. Best I could do is explain the Gospel. Final question by an imam in training. You Christians say Jesus had to die. I have talked to my Imam. He says it makes no sense. I have talked to others. They say it makes no sense. What do you have to say? I told my translator, please be sure of your answer. I don’t want to be shot for a bad answer. To be shot for the Gospel is a grave thing. To be shot for a bad answer is just terrible. I said, “Thank you for your question. I was hoping someone would ask that.” Part of what I said: God is merciful. Mercy is a challenge for God. We come to court and the judge says that we are guilty. Everyone knows we are. But mercy says, “I will let you go.” Mercy is at the expense of justice. When laws collapse, everything collapses. But in this case, God has chosen to dispense mercy through justice. God himself is the sacrifice. Mercy as a gift. It was a joy to pray with the man and several others in the room when they said yes to Jesus that day.
- Hard to preach but must find a way.
- Do not do this thinking our lives will be spared.
- Do we love Christ more than anything?
- Are we crucified? Are we truly prepared to live for him?
- “Live in a way Christ should be seen in us” is true. Not to diminish this. But when I engage in acts of compassion: do I do it to look good, or to show Christ? The temptation is to do it in our name. Not what we are called to do.
- Truly resolved to make ourselves Christ’s servant?
- Story from Iran. A man and his wife were in Iran. They were traveling and stopped at a place to get food. The woman saw a man leaning against the building, with a long beard and a gun. She told her husband, you should give that man a Bible. He looked at the bearded man and said, “No.” She said, “I’m serious. You should give him a Bible.” The husband said, “No. It’s not right.” She insisted. He went into the store to get the food. The bearded man followed him in, hung around, and followed him out, then leaned against the store. The husband and wife got in the car, an as they drove off, she said, “You didn’t give him a Bible, did you?” He said, “No. It wasn’t right.” She began to pray: “Lord, on judgment day, let that man’s blood be on my husband’s head. He was the one who did not give him the Bible.” At that point the car stopped, and the two had a marital discussion which ended with the phrase, “Do you want to kill me?” But they went back to the town, and the husband got out a beautiful Bible, and took it, and presented it to the bearded man. The bearded man began weeping. He told a story: “I had a dream in my village that I was to come to this city, on this day, and someone would bring me the word of life.” Five years later, the bearded man was martyred for his faith.
- Our life is not worth preserving. But the Gospel is certainly worth proclaiming.
Speaker 4:
This young man—I wish he had more time. I wish he went a little slower. I wish I could have recorded the whole thing. I think his content was likely as good as Renee Padilla’s but I probably missed 25% of it. I hope they put his video on the web but I doubt they will for security’s sake.
- When I was young I read an article in a paper about how Christians lured men to convert with hundred dollars bills, lots of wine, and offers of young women. So I went to the church. Sadly, the deal turned out to be untrue. There were no eligible women, they did not allow me to drink the wine at the front of the church, and they took my money in the collection. [But I became a Christian anyhow.]
- I am an earthly man, unsainted, trapped on the fault lines between Christianity and Islam.
- I see three failures in the church.
- Failure to understand the nature of our world and how to face it.
- Mistakenly think of Islam as a single entity.
- Demonize Muslims.
- Failure to realize the 20th century ended and with it the modern mission movement.
- Must cope with complexity of today.
- Confuse methdology with the Gospel, and fail to change.
- Failure to understand and respond correctly to the state of the church in the Muslim world.
- Publishers are only interested in ridiculous conversion stories.
- We lead a Muslim to Christ like checking off a list without wondering what happens next
- 60% of MBBs leave the faith after 2 years.
- The church is often wiped away by persecution and martyrdom.
- MBB church is struggling to survive.
- Failure to understand the nature of our world and how to face it.
- What does it mean to be a convert in this day
- How do we communicate this
- Fate of MBBs depends on reaction of Global church to Islam
- Get carried away in security issues
- Doesn’t demonstrate the love and peace of the Gospel
Any mistakes or miscommunications in these notes is my fault. I was scribbling notes. I will try and go back to confirm or correct some of these notes when I get other information or see the videos again. But I think I’ve honestly captured the tone and essence of most of these sessions. If you get a chance what Libby Little’s testimony – it is so moving and beautiful.
Here’s a detailed blog of tonight’s session (which I didn’t attend).
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