Part Three: The Message… Worshipers in Spirit and in Truth
Seeking to have peace with God is at the heart of Islamic faith. Throughout the day, many Muslims pray for God to bless them in a variety of ways: providing the necessary food, strength or health for the day; granting good crops or success in business affairs; helping keep them and their families on the right path. For most Muslims, what they seek after for themselves and their family is noble and good.
It is important to understand that there are some significant differences between the Christian and Muslim beliefs about God: His character, role in daily life, and our relationship to Him. However, our ultimate goals of correctly worshipping Him and finding ourselves following His will place us in similar situations. Christianity’s relation to Islam is strikingly similar to that of the Jews and Samaritans in Jesus’ day. The story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well in John chapter 4 teaches us some very important truths concerning a right relationship with God.
The Samaritans, like Muslims today, worshiped the God of Abraham. Like the Samaritans, Muslims “worship what they do not know.” Because of the negative history between the Jews and the Samaritans, the woman was shocked that Jesus would even ask her for a drink of water. And when Jesus originally offered her eternal life, she turned it down because she knew that her people could never join the Jewish religion (nor would they want to).
The same problem exists for us today. Almost all Muslims would turn down flat an invitation to salvation through Jesus Christ simply because they could not imagine joining the Christian religion, its supposed enemy for hundreds of years. The thought of any Muslim going to “Church” is equated with apostasy. But Jesus has taught us how we can remove this barrier.
When the Samaritan woman pointed out that her fathers said they must worship on this mountain, but the Jews said the place of worship was Jerusalem, Jesus confronted the heart of the matter. He told the woman, “A time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.” The issue is not about changing religious forms, Jesus clarified that, “A time is coming and has now come when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers God seeks.” (John 4:23)
The message for Muslims today is that it’s not about trading sides, turning against their cultural norms to become a part of the enemy, but worshipping God in spirit and truth within their own cultural context. You don’t have to go to “Church” (their negative idea of an “outsider” hostile religion with different forms) to become a disciple of Jesus Christ. Worshipping in spirit and truth doesn’t mean having to get all the forms done exactly right, but getting your heart right and dealing openly and honestly with God.
The essential truth is that none of us can seek out and find God through our “good works,” because we can never find Him through them. But thankfully He has sought us out as the good shepherd searching for his lost sheep and the Father waiting for his lost son to return home. (Luke 15) Salvation is found through Jesus Christ His Son. And Following Christ and worshipping God can be done in any cultural context. After all, God can speak and understand Arabic too.
(*I must ackowledge Tim and Rebecca Lewis for their article on Church Planting in Muslim contexts in the Jan./Feb. 09 issue of Mission Frontiers. Their pratical experience and insights helped me developed some of the themes in this three part series.)
Friday, July 3, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
EVANGELIZING THE "HOSTILES"
Part Two: The Method... Searching for a Man of Peace
Serving as peacemakers is what we seek to do. First, between the Christian and Islamic faiths, but ultimately our prayer is that Djoula Muslims will find the peace they earnestly seek with their Father, Who seeks them. That being said, how do you evangelize a people who are staunchly against being evangelized and acutely aware of the consequences (not just from conversion, but even in seeming to show interest)?
Hence, we generally avoid going door to door or setting up a stage in the middle of town with microphones. For most Muslim Background Believers (MBBs), accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior is a process... and often a long one at that. Typically, we, the American Church, understand conversion to Christianity as an event. The Gospel message is presented and one either accepts it or doesn't. A Muslim who has been hearing the message put it best, "you prepare the soil, you plant the seed, you wait for rain and then pray that it grows." (Interestingly, this man has yet to be baptised, but expresses the process well... even using biblical imagery - 1 Cor. 3:6-7) We start by preparing the soil, loving our neighbors as Jesus would.
What initially drew most people to Jesus during his ministry? His ministry of compassion and healing brought people into contact with the power and love of God. The crowds not only heard messages about the Kingdom of God, but witnessed the difference this kingdom made in people's lives. It's equally important to note that this ministry of compassion and healing was not just for Jesus, but when he commissioned his disciples to go out preaching about the kingdom of God, he also empowered them to do the same ministry as well. (Luke 10:9)
Often, the soil is hard when initially working with Muslims. It can be difficult breaking through the hard layers of mistrust that have compacted over many years. That's why you serve people at their greatest felt needs. That's why we have a clinic open to all people, treating each person with dignity, respect and love that they deserve regardless of their ethnicity, social status or religion. It's why we engaged people on the street and visit them in their neighborhoods, trying to relate to them where they live, not waiting for them to come to us. It's why we seek to help communities start CHE (Community Health and Evangelism) programs to bring about both physical and spiritual transformation. It takes time to work hard soil, but the seed we carry is worth the effort. Its fruit produces eternal life. However, you can't bear fruit if you don't plant seed.
After engaging people with the compassion and love of Jesus, we also seek out those who are ready to receive the seed. In Luke 10, Jesus gives us an essential model to follow when sowing seed. He tells his disciples, "When you enter a house, first say, 'Peace to this house.' If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house." Literally, this is our prayer, that God will lead us to men and women of peace whose hearts He has prepared to receive His message of the kingdom.
So what do we specifically do? Having developed a relationship with an individual or family (we try to reach out to entire families if possible), we ask them if they would be interested in learning what the Bible teaches. For those who accept our offer, we start a CBS (Chronological Bible Storytelling) group teaching about God's story and plan for mankind starting in Genesis and culminating in the resurrection of Jesus, his Son. Some accept the message, others want to continue the dialogue, while others choose not to make a decision.
Our teammates, the Jones and Hauser families (the Jones are heading back home on furlough and the Hausers are now working with the Djoula in Burkina Faso), have headed up the Djoula outreach in Abengourou, ministering to their Djoula friends and contacts. We will continue following-up with these folks. I am also excited about our new project that Dr. Bernie and I are heading up and hope you will join us in praying for a great outpouring of God's Spirit among the Djoula. This month we have been meeting with local leaders from Cocoterrain (translation: Field of Coconut Trees), a district in Abengourou that is heavily populated by Djoula and hit hard by the effects of poverty. On May 25th we will be doing a health screening, assisted by a short-term mission team from FAME and Hazel Dell CC, in Cocoterrain and hopefully following up by starting a new CHE plant in that community.
Pray that our efforts might prepare the soil well for future seed sowing and that God would prepare their hearts to receive His message. Pray that we will find men and women of peace, where we will be welcomed. Pray that good contacts will be made for learning the Djoula language and culture. Pray that the love of God would permeate all that we do.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6)
Serving as peacemakers is what we seek to do. First, between the Christian and Islamic faiths, but ultimately our prayer is that Djoula Muslims will find the peace they earnestly seek with their Father, Who seeks them. That being said, how do you evangelize a people who are staunchly against being evangelized and acutely aware of the consequences (not just from conversion, but even in seeming to show interest)?
Hence, we generally avoid going door to door or setting up a stage in the middle of town with microphones. For most Muslim Background Believers (MBBs), accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior is a process... and often a long one at that. Typically, we, the American Church, understand conversion to Christianity as an event. The Gospel message is presented and one either accepts it or doesn't. A Muslim who has been hearing the message put it best, "you prepare the soil, you plant the seed, you wait for rain and then pray that it grows." (Interestingly, this man has yet to be baptised, but expresses the process well... even using biblical imagery - 1 Cor. 3:6-7) We start by preparing the soil, loving our neighbors as Jesus would.
What initially drew most people to Jesus during his ministry? His ministry of compassion and healing brought people into contact with the power and love of God. The crowds not only heard messages about the Kingdom of God, but witnessed the difference this kingdom made in people's lives. It's equally important to note that this ministry of compassion and healing was not just for Jesus, but when he commissioned his disciples to go out preaching about the kingdom of God, he also empowered them to do the same ministry as well. (Luke 10:9)
Often, the soil is hard when initially working with Muslims. It can be difficult breaking through the hard layers of mistrust that have compacted over many years. That's why you serve people at their greatest felt needs. That's why we have a clinic open to all people, treating each person with dignity, respect and love that they deserve regardless of their ethnicity, social status or religion. It's why we engaged people on the street and visit them in their neighborhoods, trying to relate to them where they live, not waiting for them to come to us. It's why we seek to help communities start CHE (Community Health and Evangelism) programs to bring about both physical and spiritual transformation. It takes time to work hard soil, but the seed we carry is worth the effort. Its fruit produces eternal life. However, you can't bear fruit if you don't plant seed.
After engaging people with the compassion and love of Jesus, we also seek out those who are ready to receive the seed. In Luke 10, Jesus gives us an essential model to follow when sowing seed. He tells his disciples, "When you enter a house, first say, 'Peace to this house.' If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house." Literally, this is our prayer, that God will lead us to men and women of peace whose hearts He has prepared to receive His message of the kingdom.
So what do we specifically do? Having developed a relationship with an individual or family (we try to reach out to entire families if possible), we ask them if they would be interested in learning what the Bible teaches. For those who accept our offer, we start a CBS (Chronological Bible Storytelling) group teaching about God's story and plan for mankind starting in Genesis and culminating in the resurrection of Jesus, his Son. Some accept the message, others want to continue the dialogue, while others choose not to make a decision.
Our teammates, the Jones and Hauser families (the Jones are heading back home on furlough and the Hausers are now working with the Djoula in Burkina Faso), have headed up the Djoula outreach in Abengourou, ministering to their Djoula friends and contacts. We will continue following-up with these folks. I am also excited about our new project that Dr. Bernie and I are heading up and hope you will join us in praying for a great outpouring of God's Spirit among the Djoula. This month we have been meeting with local leaders from Cocoterrain (translation: Field of Coconut Trees), a district in Abengourou that is heavily populated by Djoula and hit hard by the effects of poverty. On May 25th we will be doing a health screening, assisted by a short-term mission team from FAME and Hazel Dell CC, in Cocoterrain and hopefully following up by starting a new CHE plant in that community.
Pray that our efforts might prepare the soil well for future seed sowing and that God would prepare their hearts to receive His message. Pray that we will find men and women of peace, where we will be welcomed. Pray that good contacts will be made for learning the Djoula language and culture. Pray that the love of God would permeate all that we do.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6)
Saturday, April 4, 2009
EVANGELIZING THE "HOSTILES"
(That’s for all you fellow LOST fans out there)
“How does one start a church among a people who have been hostile to the church for many centuries?” On more than one occasion someone has asked me this or a similar question in regards to our evangelistic outreach among the Djoula Muslims. From our Western, especially American perspective, this question seems incredibly valid. If there is a part of the world that is most hostile to the church or the “American way,” it is the Islamic world.
Since there is a lot to this question that I would like to tackle, I think it will be best to address it in three parts. Part one I will discuss our mindset, Part two will cover our method we use and Part three will discuss our message. My hope is that it might help us understand Muslim people not as hostiles, but like anybody else, those in need of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Part One: The Mindset… Our Struggle is not against Flesh and Blood
It is really easy to slip into an “us” vs. “them” attitude, no matter what the situation may be. We tend to be self-centered in our thinking… whether we like it or not. Throw in a history of negative interactions and bad feelings, and you get a situation ripe for mistrust and suspicion. It’s the Christian and Muslim world’s version of the Hatfield’s and the McCoy’s family feud.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Andy's Kenya Trip
Greetings all, the Gable clan in Ivory Coast is doing well and have enjoyed being together again this past week after my full week away in Kenya. 8 days is a long time to be away, more for my wife than anybody. But both Stephanie and all five children survived the week (I was more worried about all the children making it). A part of me wishes I could say I suffered through the week, but the weather and landscape in and around Nairobi, Kenya were beautiful. The days were nice and comfortable and the evenings cool. I let David Giles, CMF’s Director of Church Planting and my “boss”, know that if he took potential recruits for West Africa to Nairobi first, I might have to hunt him down and shoot him. (Feeling called to Africa? How about hot West Africa where they speak French or beautiful Nairobi, Kenya where most speak English? Hmm... Tough choice.)
Anyway, it was nice to be around the other CMF field team leaders from around the globe. Many of them we have met previously, but a few were new to me. They truly were a joy and encouragement to be around. I learned a lot in both our formal and informal discussions. We also were able to visit one of the slums of Nairobi where CMF is involved in a GREAT work among the urban poor. In the slum of Mathare Valley, about 800,000 people live in one square-mile. As difficult and heart wrenching it could be to see the vast and utter poverty it was equally encouraging to see the tremendous work being done through CMF’s HOPE partnership. It was a wonderful reminder that the Church shines brightest in the bleakest of situations, void of hope. Not only was it encouraging, but I learned a few things about their CHE program, church planting methods among the poor, child sponsorship program, and many other helpful things as well.
We also took one afternoon to go to the Nairobi Game Park. Even though we live in Africa, the extent of the wildlife that we see in Ivory Coast is mostly lizards, snakes, various rodents and occasionally a pet monkey. We have hippos in country, but they are rarely seen. I was looking forward to it, and we did get to see a lot of things, but missed out on the lions, elephants, rhinos and hippos.
Just before leaving, Clay put a picture of Superman that we drew and painted together in my backpack as a surprise. It was a wonderful gift, so I made sure that Superman followed along on the journey with me during the trip. Check out the “Superman in Kenya” pictures to see where we went.
This past week I have just been running errands around town and working on a paper for my Master’s degree course. So there isn’t much to talk about. It has been good to be home, even if it’s stinkin’ hot. Thanks for your prayers and support. I truly believe that your prayers are the foundation and pillars for the work going on here in Abengourou. Please continue to lift up the work of the Kingdom here to our loving heavenly Father. Blessings and peace to you all.
Anyway, it was nice to be around the other CMF field team leaders from around the globe. Many of them we have met previously, but a few were new to me. They truly were a joy and encouragement to be around. I learned a lot in both our formal and informal discussions. We also were able to visit one of the slums of Nairobi where CMF is involved in a GREAT work among the urban poor. In the slum of Mathare Valley, about 800,000 people live in one square-mile. As difficult and heart wrenching it could be to see the vast and utter poverty it was equally encouraging to see the tremendous work being done through CMF’s HOPE partnership. It was a wonderful reminder that the Church shines brightest in the bleakest of situations, void of hope. Not only was it encouraging, but I learned a few things about their CHE program, church planting methods among the poor, child sponsorship program, and many other helpful things as well.
We also took one afternoon to go to the Nairobi Game Park. Even though we live in Africa, the extent of the wildlife that we see in Ivory Coast is mostly lizards, snakes, various rodents and occasionally a pet monkey. We have hippos in country, but they are rarely seen. I was looking forward to it, and we did get to see a lot of things, but missed out on the lions, elephants, rhinos and hippos.
Just before leaving, Clay put a picture of Superman that we drew and painted together in my backpack as a surprise. It was a wonderful gift, so I made sure that Superman followed along on the journey with me during the trip. Check out the “Superman in Kenya” pictures to see where we went.
This past week I have just been running errands around town and working on a paper for my Master’s degree course. So there isn’t much to talk about. It has been good to be home, even if it’s stinkin’ hot. Thanks for your prayers and support. I truly believe that your prayers are the foundation and pillars for the work going on here in Abengourou. Please continue to lift up the work of the Kingdom here to our loving heavenly Father. Blessings and peace to you all.
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