Participants: Jon Wood
Series Code: IFF
Program Code: IFF000006
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00:18 Trying to get in shape for my trip to India.
00:20 Christ said to go into all the world and preach the gospel 00:25 to every creature. 00:26 The problem is we have no idea who they are. 00:32 How are we supposed to effectively communicate 00:34 the gospel to a people we know nothing about; how they think, 00:37 what kind of pressures they have in their daily lives. 00:41 Come with me and let's meet India Face to Face. 01:17 Welcome to Madras, probably one of the nicest, least crowded 01:22 cities in India. 01:25 It's November and we're in the middle of the rainy season. 01:28 But even though I'm getting wet it's about 85% outside, 01:31 and I'm loving it. 01:32 There are a lot of people living here in India. 01:35 For a country less than half the size of the U. S., 01:38 there are over three times the population, and many of these 01:41 people aren't just open to the gospel, they're eager for it. 01:45 As a matter of fact, if the whole country was exposed to 01:48 Jesus in a positive way, we would see a new church born 01:52 whose membership would equal the entire population 01:54 of the United States. 01:56 How are we going to reach all of these people scattered 01:59 throughout the 400,000 towns and villages of India? 02:02 There just aren't enough missionaries willing to go from 02:05 the Western countries to get the job done, and there isn't enough 02:08 money to send them. 02:09 Time for a new approach. 02:12 The seed that was planted years ago in blood, sweat, and tears 02:15 is ready to be enabled to do a work we have not been willing or 02:18 able to do ourselves. 02:20 And today we'll have the privilege of getting a little 02:24 taste of what the indigenous missionary can do through Christ 02:27 and this partnership made in heaven. 02:35 Beautiful, beautiful! 02:36 This is a new shed. 02:37 It protects from rain at least. 02:38 So how long has this shed been here? 02:40 It's just a newly built shed within the last 02:43 twenty days time. 02:45 How much did the shed cost? 02:47 This cost about $400.00, I'm sorry, $400.00 of course. 02:53 That's about a little over 20,000 rupees. 02:55 Uh huh. 02:57 So this can hold about fifty to sixty people here, 03:00 along with the children, for every Sabbath worship. 03:03 And it's raining like crazy outside, and we can still meet. 03:06 Yeah, it's raining, and still we have a good time inside. 03:08 Yeah. 03:11 When I saw this hut, I was amazed at the wisdom of the 03:13 local missionary. 03:15 Here was a structure that met the people where they were, 03:17 and could be duplicated all over India in any 03:20 small town or village. 03:24 I would never have thought of building a structure like this. 03:27 I'm used to air conditioning, padded pews, and nice sound 03:31 systems, unlike this rented sound system with the speaker 03:34 out in the rain that has to be moved in so it doesn't 03:37 get ruined. 03:40 I really miss these church services. 03:46 I was here ten months ago during the dry season. 03:49 We had no problem at that time worshipping under the 03:51 shade of a tree. 03:58 But as you can see, now that it's raining, it would be 04:00 impossible to hold a worship service outside. 04:05 Hallelujah! 04:11 Imagine little houses of prayer like this throughout all of 04:13 India, with faithful worshippers gathering every week to learn 04:16 about Jesus. 04:17 And on weekdays teachers coming to teach the children 04:20 how to read, write, and pray. 04:39 This is an excellent place for this prayer house because right 04:42 outside is the neighborhood water supply where everyone 04:45 gathers to discuss the days events, and watch the rich 04:47 foreigner drive away. 05:04 Where are we going now? 05:05 We are going to the next spot; a place called Chambrabockum. 05:09 Actually, these people are all not preached to. 05:14 They have not been reached by our gospel yet. 05:17 So they are Hindus who are willing to listen to the word of 05:20 God and fall in love with Jesus Christ. 05:32 The prayer house we're going to now is actually the home of the 05:35 local missionary. 05:37 The main purpose for my being there is to build up the 05:42 credibility of the local missionary in the 05:44 eyes of the people. 05:47 They can do all the work very well, but a white person 05:50 can draw a crowd. 05:51 And they'll be more likely to accept the message if a white 05:54 person is saying the same thing. 06:05 We are delighted to have Elder John Wood with us, 06:09 and our church is indeed privileged to have here. 06:14 And it is our great privilege to have him here. 06:17 And as an Indian tradition, we want to welcome him 06:20 on behalf of our church, and we give this bonito to him also. 06:30 This gift is a symbol of love and acceptance, 06:32 and they're hoping to hear how to have a better life in Jesus. 06:35 And when you see their eyes, you know their souls are 06:38 drinking in the message. 06:39 So the Lord unites our hearts all over the world. 06:47 And it is wonderful to be part of the Seventh-day Adventist 06:51 Jesus for India Christian family. 07:03 Jesus for India is all about Jesus. 07:10 Hallelujah! 07:21 What a wonderful group here! 07:22 Yeah, thank you. 07:23 So how long have you been working with this group? 07:26 Ah, from February. 07:28 Okay, alright! 07:30 So what do you teach them about? 07:33 What do you instruct them? 07:47 Uh huh. 07:48 So I've started telling them that. 09:41 So if we built a big church then it would be filled? 09:43 Of course! 09:44 I have no doubt about it! 09:47 It will be filled. 09:48 Praise the Lord! 09:50 That girl wants a special prayer. 10:29 Here's the girl. 10:35 Charmela is her name. 10:37 Father in Heaven, you are the God, you are the creator of 10:40 the entire universe. 10:44 Thank you for that. 10:45 Thank you. 10:46 God bless you. 11:08 Father God, I pray for Your healing upon this man. 11:15 May he hide his life and his thoughts in You. 11:20 Does he have a Bible? 11:21 Yes. 11:23 Okay. 11:26 He needs to spend at least three hours a day reading from it. 11:32 And fill your mind with the promises. 11:36 That is bringing Christ into your life. 11:41 And He will drive out all of those other problems. 11:45 It works, trust me. 11:52 Praise God! 12:03 Jesus is more powerful than Satan. 12:05 Jesus will flush Satan out. 12:12 Praise God! 12:13 Amen, Hallelujah! 12:14 Hallelujah! 12:21 As I was leaving, I realized that none of this ministry 12:23 could have taken place without the local Bible worker. 12:26 He was the one that gathered the group. 12:28 He'll be there after I leave. 12:32 He'll nurture them and lead them into all the teachings 12:35 of Christ. 12:46 Every day a hundred thousand people in India die 12:50 without hope. 12:52 Yet there are hundreds and thousands of people like the 12:55 one you met today that are willing to be sent to their own 12:58 people to present a sin pardoning Savior. 13:01 And all it takes is a couple of dollars a day to send them. 13:05 When we support them, and encourage them, they bring an 13:08 average of two to three souls to Christ every month. 13:11 It's a partnership made in heaven. 13:28 This generation of believers that you and I are a part of 13:31 is responsible for reaching this generation of people 13:34 around the world today. 13:37 God has provided the tools and He's provided the means 13:41 to accomplish this task. 13:42 All it takes is our decision to obey. |
Revised 2014-12-17