Jesus Paid Ransom for the entire Humanity

A ransom is something that is paid to provide for the release of someone who is held captive. Jesus paid our ransom to free us from sin, death, and hell. Throughout the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy are found God's requirements for sacrifices. In Old Testament times, God commanded the Israelites to make animal sacrifices for substitutionary atonement; that is, an animal's death took the place of a person's death, death being the penalty for sin (Romans 6:23). Exodus 29:36a states, "Each day you must sacrifice a young bull as an offering for the atonement of sin."

God demands holiness (1 Peter 1:15-16). God's Law demands holiness. We cannot give God full holiness because of the sins we commit (Romans 3:23); therefore, God demands satisfaction of His Law. Sacrifices to Him satisfied the requirements. This is where Jesus comes in. Hebrews 9:12-15 tells us "Once for all time he took blood into that Most Holy Place, but not the blood of goats and calves. He took his own blood, and with it he secured our salvation forever. Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people's bodies from ritual defilement. Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our hearts from deeds that lead to death so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. That is why he is the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, so that all who are invited can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant."

Also, read Romans 8:3-4, "The law of Moses could not save us, because of our sinful nature. But God put into effect a different plan to save us. He sent his own Son in a human body like ours, except that ours are sinful. God destroyed sin's control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the requirement of the law would be fully accomplished for us who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit."

Clearly, Jesus paid the ransom for our lives to God. That ransom was His own life, the shedding of His own blood, a sacrifice. Due to His sacrificial death, each person on earth has the opportunity to accept that gift of atonement and be forgiven by God. For without His death, God's Law would still need to be satisfied—by our own death.

What really happened at Calvary?

The death of Jesus on the cross was the greatest and most important event the world will ever see. In a day in which things are being stripped of their importance and trivialized, I want us to look again at the cross and see what the Bible says happened there. Some people refer to John 3:16 as "the gospel in a nutshell." I believe the gospel is too great to be fully grasped so easily. It is simple enough to be understood, yet complex enough to be pondered for a lifetime. Thus the greatness of it's author -- the Lord God Almighty. Just what happened at the cross?

1. Atonement was made for our sins. In the garden, God told Adam that he could eat freely from the fruit of every tree, "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Gen. 2:17). Adam ate of that tree, and he died. He began to die physically that day, but more importantly, he died spiritually. His sin caused a separation between himself and God (Isaiah 59:1-2). He needed to make atonement for this sin, but was powerless to do so. Thus began the great theme of the Bible, God's scheme of redemption.

Death was the penalty for sin, that was the price that had to be paid. The Law of Moses called for the sacrifice of bulls and goats. Their life was given and their blood was shed, but to no effect, "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins" (Heb. 10:4). It couldn't be just any death. It was a man's soul that was lost in the garden, atonement required a man's death. But, it couldn't be just any man. A sinless soul was lost in Eden, only a sinless man could make atonement. Thus, the perfect Son of God had to die. "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21). Only in the death of Jesus is this wrong made right and God's righteous judgment satisfied. In the cross we see the painful reality of what has been said, "He paid a debt He didn't owe because we owed a debt we couldn't pay."

2. Prophecies were fulfilled. Our Lord's death on the cross was no accident. It was planned in the mind of God before time began (Acts 2:23). It was foretold to the world through the prophets. The suffering servant of Isaiah 53, the pierced hands and feet of Psalm 22, no broken bones of Psalm 34, given gall and vinegar in Psalm 69, and beaten and spat upon in Isaiah 50. All of these pointed to Calvary.

One of the proofs of the inspiration of the Bible is fulfilled prophecy. Jesus' death on the cross is a part of that. This wasn't made up, nor was it an accident. Matthew uses fulfilled prophecy to convince the Jews of his day that Jesus was the promised Messiah. Jesus Himself also foretold His death (Matt. 16:21, 17:22-23, 20:18-19). If He hadn't died on the cross, He would have proven Himself a liar and a false prophet (Deut. 18:15-22).

3. The Old Law was put away. "And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross" (Col. 2:13-14). That old law was nailed to the cross with Jesus. When He died, the veil of the temple was torn in two (Matt. 27:51), signifying the end of the law it represented.

That law of Moses was taken out of the way. God said it would be: "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah - not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord" (Heb. 8:8-9). We now live under the law of Christ (Gal. 6:2). We don't live under a combination of the law of Moses and the law of Christ. Some principles are carried over from that old law, but we are living under and new and better covenant.

4. Enmity was abolished. "For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity" (Eph. 2:14-16). The law that separated Jew from Gentile is gone. The gospel truly is for all. "Then Peter opened his mouth and said: 'In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him'" (Acts 10:34-35).

5. The love of God was displayed. "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8). Could God have done any better? What more could He have done? Jesus said, "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends" (John 15:13). Hours after He said this, He did it. He laid down His life for His friends, His enemies, you and me. If you ever begin to doubt God's love for you, ever wonder if He really knows and cares about you, remember the cross. There has never been a greater act of love.

Perhaps you have read the following before: "I asked Jesus how much He loved Me. 'This much,' He answered, then stretched out His arms and died."

6. A perfect example in suffering. Times of suffering are going to come to all of us. We will all face trials various times in our lives. How can we make it though it? Jesus' death on the cross left us both encouragement and an example. "For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness - by whose stripes you were healed" (1 Peter 2:21-24).

Jesus' death on the cross not only paid the penalty for our sin, it also showed us that we can endure any suffering that we have to face. If Jesus can endure the cross for us, then we can endure anything for Him.
 

Building the Kingdom of Jesus

Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. (John 18:36)

     If you were wondering if we are to be building His kingdom, in that text Jesus clearly answered your question.

     The world is getting worse, not better. Everything in this world tends to get worse (e.g. things wear out, rust, rot, decay, erode, etc.) This is called the second law of thermodynamics.

Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed: (Psalms 102:25,26; see also Isaiah 51:6 and Hebrews 1:10-12.)

     In those scriptures God makes it very clear that the world is running down. So now we cannot dispute that:

The world is running down.

     If you are trying to set up "Christ's Kingdom", this seems like a bad place to set it up to me. It does to God too; see the first verse in this article. This place is running down. Why would anyone want to set up a kingdom when they know everything is running down?

     Some "Christian" people are under the false influence that their job is to raise many children, and then to get their children into government, or places of worldly "importance" to make big changes, to turn the world around for Christ. They think this world is going to get better.

     They are waiting for Christ to return to Earth to rule the kingdom they set up. Christ will not come when they want, but someone else will; the Anti-Christ will come and claim to be Christ instead!

     As for families, there is absolutely nothing wrong with having a large family, as long as you are raising your children Biblically and not with �big plans�. Please consider for a moment what the Apostle Paul writes:

For I would that all men were even as I myself. [unmarried] But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that. I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It is good for them if they abide even as I. (1Corinthians 7:7,8) for more read entire chapter 7

     If you remain unmarried, you are not going to have a big family for "Christ". Is this not quite obvious? Yes, Paul is saying that it is best for people to remain unmarried (bear in mind that the Bible certainly does not forbid marriage:)

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith... Forbidding to marry... (1 Timothy 4:1,3)

     Because:

...He that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife. There is difference also between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman careth for the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit: but she that is married careth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband. (1 Corinthians 7:33,34)

     Obviously it is better to care for the things of the Lord, which the married person cannot do as well. This is what God�s Word says. Is the world getting more Christian?

     Many people are becoming Christians. Many, many more are being born. People do not want to admit to their sin. This world is wicked, and we will not turn it around this side of Heaven.

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9)

     Do you see any evidence that the world will soon be mostly Christian? I certainly do not. Wickedness is being practiced everywhere in this world. The toys children are playing with are evil. The broadcasts on television are evil. The movies are evil. This world is full of wickedness, and it is not getting more Christian! We Christians are to be doing His work down here, namely:

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. (Matthew 28:19,20)

     Notice that there is no mention of building "His Kingdom".

     If you are reading this and not a believer in Jesus, you can be saved by Jesus Christ, and He alone can save you from hell. If your name is not written in the Lamb's Book of Life, you will go to hell. Only those who trust in Jesus can go to heaven. There is still time to be saved.

Salvation-Where will you spend your eternity in Heaven or Hell?

Do you know where you will spend eternity? The Bible makes it clear that a person can know where they are headed after they die. Do you know? There are only two places that you can spend eternity —heaven and hell. Have you chosen everlasting life in heaven, or have you chosen everlasting death in hell? Remember, you will spend eternity in one of these two places.

This is an all-important decision.

How do I choose?

By rejecting or failing to ask for salvation, you have chosen hell, whether you know it or not. If you don't want to go to hell, you must get saved. The message of salvation is simple enough for a child to understand, and can be summed up simply:

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6)

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Each of us have sinned, and the punishment for sin is death, but by accepting this fact through repenting of our sin, and believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and the work He did on the cross, we can be saved from hell and the wrath to come, and spend eternity with Him in heaven.

Salvation explained with more passages from the Bible:

1. You are a sinner. The Bible says that everyone, which includes you, has sinned (any thing wrong you ever thought, said, or did), and sin separates you from God.
   
   
   For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; (Romans 3:23)
   
   But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. (Galatians 3:22)
   
   Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (Romans 5:12)
   
   All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6)
   
   
2. The payment for sin is death. Sinners rightly deserve death.
   
   
   For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
   
   And you...who were dead in trespasses and sins; (Ephesians 2:1)
   
   Even when we were dead in sins... (Ephesians 2:5)
   
   And you, being dead in your sins... (Colossians 2:13)
   
   ... we, being dead to sins... (1 Peter 2:24)
   
   
3. God loves everyone, including you. God loved the world so much that He sent His Son to die on the cross for your sin.
   
   
   For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
   
   Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:39)
   
   Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us... (1 John 3:16)
   
   In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. (1 John 4:9)
   
   
4. The death of God's Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, in our place is God's only provision for man's sin. The Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross to save you from your sin. His blood was shed on the cross to save you! But that is not the end; He rose from the dead, and is in heaven today!
   
   
   Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)
   
   ...It is finished...[Jesus' last words on the cross] (John 19:30)
   
   Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. (1 Peter 2:24)
   
   For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (2 Peter 1:17)
   
   Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; (Romans 3:24,25)
   
   But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7)
   
   But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7)
   
   But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God. (1 Peter 1:19-21)
   
   
5. You must be born again. To come into the good of what the Lord Jesus Christ did on the cross, you must repent of your sin and believe on Him. This called being born again.
   
   
   Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; (Acts 3:19)
   
   ...God...now commandeth all men every where to repent: (Acts 17:30)
   
   And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. (Acts 16:31)
   
   Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3)
   
   He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. (John 3:18)
   
   But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: (John 1:12)
   
   All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. (John 6:37)
   
   For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8,9)

The Bible clearly states the Gospel — the Good News of Salvation; in the last day you will have no excuse if you do not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repenting and believing in the Lord Jesus Christ is the only way to get saved, no works or sacraments you do will get you to heaven, Jesus did it all on the cross. His innocent blood was shed on the cross for all the sin of the world, and to be saved from the wrath to come you must receive Him as your Lord and Saviour.

The Importance of Preaching the Gospel

     In these end times, many churches are failing to preach the Gospel, the true message of Salvation. This good news tells of the only way to receive eternal life in Heaven and escape eternal death in Hell, and is very needful in society. The very foundational truth that Christianity ought to stand for can scarcely be avoided in a church vigorous for God. Even so, many of today's churches are failing to preach it.
     The good news of the Gospel is that God's righteous Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, paid for all of our sins when He died on the cross, so that if we believe in Him, who also rose from the dead, we can live in Heaven with Him for all of eternity. That is the good news. But unless one first understands the bad news, this good news will not have much significance.
     The bad news is that we have all sinned; we have all disobeyed God's law and thus deserve death. This means we deserve to spend eternity in the lake of fire, separated from God forever. That is the bad news -- our sin and its wages. And until people recognize their plight, why would they repent of their sin? But once they realize that their destiny is Hell, the lake of fire, then they may see their need and accept Christ as Saviour.
     Why are people reluctant to spread the Gospel? It likely boils down to not wanting to offend others. Telling someone that they are a sinner and thus destined for eternal death in the lake of fire can be quite insulting, and as most of us would rather not offend others, we leave them on their path leading to destruction. Although we fail often, we must strive to never be reluctant or ashamed to tell about our Lord and His power to save.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16)

     One of our main purposes ought to be showing the teachings of the Bible, God's inspired Word, to unbelievers, in order that they might understand the Gospel and be saved from what they rightly deserve. Not telling them these things may be less uncomfortable for us now, but after they die they will find out -- when it is too late. We must remember that this is a message we are commanded to preach; it is a message of the utmost importance, and is what one's eternal destiny depends on. It ought to be in love and with accordance to the Lord's commands that we speak to others about their destiny without Him, and what He did for them.

But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. (2 Corinthians 4:3,4)

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15)

     Someone who has been thoroughly persuaded into thinking that this life is it, and that there is nothing afterwards, should be reminded that this is only a jot of time, and that their existence will be eternal. We ought to be trying to bring others to Christ in light of eternity, not this life.
     There are those who preach the Gospel, giving people promises such as if they accept Christ, they will receive peace, joy, and everlasting happiness in this life. Their efforts in the Gospel may be commended, but I cannot endorse their method. Such things may be true, but professing believers are likely to quickly fall away when things in life disappoint them. The Apostle Paul wrote: "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." (1 Corinthians 15:19) Thankfully we have hope in Christ both now and for all of eternity.
     Perhaps a useful illustration is that of a man flying in an airplane, who during the flight is handed a parachute by a stewardess, and told to put it on, as it will make the flight more enjoyable. He tries it on, and wears it for several minutes, but finding it quite uncomfortable, takes it off in disgust. Contrary to what the stewardess had said, rather than make the flight more enjoyable, the parachute had made it less enjoyable. Now suppose that same man is handed a parachute by a stewardess, and told to put it on, as there is a fire in a fuel tank on the left wing. He then quickly puts it on, and does not even notice it being uncomfortable, as he prepares for the jump.
     See the difference? The reason for the parachute in the first scenario is entirely different from the reason in the second scenario. It is similar with the Gospel. If promises are made about this life, people will quickly fall away. However, if we show them the eternal consequence of rejecting the Gospel, those who accept Christ are not likely to fall away. Now while it is unlikely that anyone handed a parachute in the second scenario would reject it, many still choose to reject the Gospel, even though what is offered is much greater than the parachute, which can merely postpone death for perhaps a few more years.
     Why do people choose to reject the Gospel? It could be they believe there is no God. Or perhaps they do not believe the Bible to be God's Word. Or it could even be because they feel they will have to change their ways if they receive Christ. Regardless of their reason, they will soon wish they had listened.
     While great care should be taken to assure that there are not any un-Biblical doctrines or inconsistencies being presented in the message, the manner in which the Gospel is preached is important and should also be considered. Salvation is simple, and we should not make it confusing with hard to understand words in our speech. Often the best Gospel preachers are those who say the least, and those who are very able at defending every doctrine are not necessarily gifted at keeping things simple when preaching. Even young children should be able to understand. The Scriptures give us numerous examples of both Jesus and the apostles preaching, and we would do well to pattern our own after such.

For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. (1 Corinthians 1:17)

     Sometimes raised is the issue of how often the gospel should be preached. Now while this might be debated, particularly when it is preached among those who know it well, neglecting it altogether would certainly be unfortunate. One advantage of having a regular, simple preaching of the Gospel is that it gives ample opportunity to often attending children (and adults) who are not saved to learn about salvation. Another advantage is that those in the church can bring unsaved acquaintances to such meetings knowing that the Gospel will be presented - and that it will not be an appeal for donations.
     Obviously we would prefer that the Gospel be preached to those who have never heard it. But in much of North America, comparatively few will come to meetings presenting the Gospel, as there is little interest in spiritual things. However, even if we may be unable to muster much of a crowd, the possibility of the salvation of even one soul from eternal damnation would make any effort worthwhile, although it does not necessarily make Gospel meetings a particularly effective means of reaching people.
     Finally, we should remember that the Gospel is effectively spread in other ways; with quite likely the most valuable being personal one-on-one witnessing and teaching, hopefully letting our Christian life and conduct shine for others around to see and desire, that they too might receive eternal life.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.(Matthew 5:16)

Ali who saw Jesus in Mecca

 

Ali
(Turkey)

Ali is the oldest of nine children but he doesn’t have many warm memories of being part of such a large family.  They teased him and said that he looked different than everyone else in the family.  His mother said she hated him and that he was the child who resembled her the least.  He always felt rejected by his family and cried a lot as a child.
For four months every year, Ali worked as a shepherd.  This began when he was eight years old and continued until he was 18.  He took the sheep to the mountains and since he spent a lot of time alone he wanted someone to talk to so he “created a god” in his heart.  This god was like a friend to Ali.  Ali would have lengthy conversations with him saying things like, “How beautiful are your creations,” as he looked at the flowers, the sun, the rocks and the grass.  He would also ask this god questions like, “Where does an apple’s sweetness come from?” because he believed that there was a God who made everything good.    
When he was 20, he started drinking alcohol.  By the time he was 25, he was an alcoholic.  Sometimes he started drinking before nine in the morning.  When he arrived home, his wife often asked him if he had been drinking.  This made him angry so he began beating her daily.  His children witnessed this abuse and were afraid to come home after school so they would often go to a friend’s house until they knew their father was asleep.  Ali wanted to stop drinking and he felt bad that he was abusing his wife.  He decided to move to Saudi Arabia to work in construction because he’d heard that alcohol was forbidden there.   However, the first night he was in Saudi Arabia he found alcohol and drank it.
Although Ali wasn’t a religious man—his family said they were Muslims but they didn’t really know much about the religion—he  decided to go to Mecca, hoping that this would free him from alcoholism.  He says, “I made a decision in my heart.  I am going to be a true pilgrim.  I am going to be a true Muslim and I will quit drinking.”  The first night he was at Mecca, Ali had a dream.  In the dream, Jesus took Ali’s hand and said, “You belong to me.”  He also put His finger on Ali’s forehead and said, “You need to leave this place and go right now.”  When Ali woke up, he felt like he was floating so he touched the carpet to make sure that he was still on the ground.  He continued to hear Jesus’ voice saying, “You need to come with me.  You belong to me.”  Ali’s friends saw a shiny spot on his forehead where Jesus had touched him, but when Ali looked in the mirror, he couldn’t see it.  (This spot on his forehead looked like “sim,” a glittery type of makeup that Turkish brides wear.)
Ali decided to continue his pilgrimage.  However, his one-month old car would not start.  He kept hearing Jesus’ voice saying, “You need to go from here.”  Once he changed his mind and decided to leave Mecca, his car started.  He went home to his apartment and heard the same voice again.  This time Jesus told him that he should go back to Turkey.  Within three days, he was at a “welcome home” party in Turkey.  Again, he heard the voice.  This time, Jesus told him to tell everyone at the party that he was now a Christian.  He did this, but the people didn’t really take him seriously. 
It wasn’t until several years after the dream that Ali began to understand what it really meant to be a Christian.  He was listening to the radio when he heard a voice say, “Jesus died, rose from the dead after three days and is seated at the right hand of the Father.”  He called for his wife and told her that he had found the voice of Jesus—inside the radio.  Through this radio program, he received Bible study material and a New Testament.  He was 38 years old at the time and says the day he received the New Testament in the mail was “maybe the happiest moment of my life.”  After completing various correspondence courses, Ali and his family moved to Istanbul so he could attend Bible school.
He continues to share his Christian faith openly and unashamedly.  Alcohol no longer has dominion over him, and he cherishes the wife he once treated so badly.  Truly, he has become a “new creation in Christ.”

Jesus appears in Iran

Khosrow
(Iran)

Even as a small child, Khosrow questioned the “meaning of life.”  Everything around him raised questions.  Why do flowers have color?  What’s beyond the stars?  Where do we go when we die?  Who are “those people” inside the TV set?  Where do they go when the TV is shut off?  When no one could answer his many questions satisfactorily, his sensitive nature gave way to a growing depression. One day as a young man, he passed by an Assyrian Christian church and decided to go inside, thinking he might find answers to some of his “questions.”  There were only a few elderly women there and an elderly pastor who gave him a box of books.  The books were all in Farsi and among them was a copy of the New Testament, which Khosrow read from cover to cover.  But the experience of reading alone was not enough to satisfy his search for answers.  He threw the book across his room in despair.  Just then, the form of a man came to him in a vision.  This man extended his hands toward Khosrow and told him:  “Take my hands and everything will change forever.”  Khosrow took the man’s hands and a wave of what he describes as “electricity” flowed through his body.  Kneeling, he began to weep, making such a noise that his parents rushed to the room.  They were flabbergasted to see their son crying for the first time in many, many years. Khosrow’s vision was not a figment of his imagination.  He returned to the Assyrian pastor who had given him the books and described his experience.  Over the following years, Khosrow grew as a disciple of the Lord, eventually becoming a pastor himself.  But the persecution of Christians in Iran forced him to flee to Turkey with his wife and two children.  There were persecutions and difficulties in Turkey as well, but Khosrow and his family won people over through patience and love.  Khosrow planted more churches in Turkey before he and his family were forced to flee again.  This time they sought refuge in Austria. They flew from Turkey to Bosnia and made their way from there on foot through treacherous mountain passes at night.  While crossing a river, Khosrow’s son, Joseph, lost his footing on a makeshift bridge and fell into the freezing water, dragging his father in as well.  The river was fast flowing and deep, and Khosrow flailed about in the dark water, searching in vain for his son.  Meanwhile, his wife had also jumped into the river to help, but was in danger of drowning.  Suddenly, Khosrow felt as if someone put Joseph into his arms.  He also felt as if someone—invisible to his eyes—was  helping him stand in the deep water, then helping him carry Joseph to the river’s embankment.  All were saved and the family, persevering through yet more ordeals, made their way to Austria and safety. Khosrow compares the invisible hands that saved him and his family that night to the hands he saw and felt in his vision of Jesus.  He tells the story of being asked once by a skeptic how he could know the vision wasn’t a product of his own imagination.  Khosrow asked the skeptic if he was wearing clothes.  The man was taken aback by the question, but the analogy was clear.  Khosrow’s vision was as real as that and more.

Jesus appears in Indonesia

Dini
(Indonesia)

As the oldest child in her family, twelve-year-old Dini had always been close to her father; so when he died suddenly, she was devastated.  Her devastation turned to anger when she learned that her father had an affair with her aunt who was now pregnant.  She also learned that her mother was pregnant from her father. 

As a struggling widow, Dini’s mother decided to place her three youngest children in an orphanage.  She also had to sell valuables in the house just so the family would have money to buy food.  About four years later, a relative told Dini that her mother was getting remarried.  Dini was very hurt by this and didn’t understand why her mother hadn’t told her.  She felt like she didn’t have anyone she could depend on since her father had disappointed her, and now her mother had done the same.  
Dini became friends with the troublemakers at school and went through a rebellious period.  She skipped classes, didn’t wear the school uniform and got into fights.  When several of her friends faced serious problems, Dini began to ask questions:  “What is it that I’m looking for?  Religious rules don’t make me happy.  But a free life without the rules of religion isn’t something I want either.” 
The month of Ramadan arrived and Dini became diligent with the religious practices of fasting and prayer.  One night, during Ramadan, she decided to pray the tahajud prayer.  The tahajud prayer is not one of the five required daily prayers.  It is only done at midnight and, in particular, it includes petitions that ask God for signs.  Dini set her alarm clock and woke up to pray.  She says, “I had such strong faith that whatever I asked God for that night, God would listen and give His answer.”  At the end of the prayer which she had memorized, she cried out to God and said, “God, I am confused.  I’m very confused about the way to meet Your approval.”   She continued, “God, if you wish for me to live life within your demands, then tonight show me the right path.  If you do not show me, God, then let me live life the way I want.  I won’t ever again care about the rules of religion.  And if I die, don’t send me to hell.  I didn’t know what was right!  It wouldn’t be fair for me to go to hell, God.  You never showed me the right way.  What I want, God, is to be shown the right path tonight.  I will live my life the way you appoint it.”
A bright light then appeared and she saw a figure standing in front of her.  The man was wearing a white robe but she couldn’t see his face clearly.  She doesn’t know how but she realized that the figure was Isa.  He said, “Follow me,” and she was confused and thought, “Lord, I am a Muslim.  How can I follow you?”  She asked several other questions as she wondered how she could follow the God of the Christians.  She heard another voice saying, “You can’t possibly follow Him.  Forget your prayer!  Forget the intention of leading a good life!”  When she looked at the man in white, she felt calm and peaceful.  Jesus continued to say, “Follow me,” as He stretched out His hand.  Dini struggled over her decision but finally she said, “God, if this is the way of truth, okay.  I want to follow you.”  The moment she said that, she felt as if ice was pouring over her chest.  At the same time, she felt a peace she had never experienced before.  She says, “I felt something extraordinary inside my heart.” 
After Dini became a Christian, she experienced persecution from her family.  She was just 17 years old when they forced her to leave home.  She attended boarding school and supported herself through part-time jobs.  She also pursued reconciliation with her family.  While showing respect for the Javanese traditions, she didn’t back down on her unwavering commitment to Christ.  The greatest test for her was forgiving her deceased father and accepting her half-brother, born out of wedlock to her aunt.  When his mother could no longer take care of him, Dini embraced her half-brother as her own. 
She continues to live as an example of one who can “do all things through Christ who strengthens” her.

Mohammed from Nigeria Saw Jesus

Mohammed grew up in a Fulani tribe and started rearing cattle when he was six years old.  He did this for almost 10 years until he went to an Arabic school to study the Qur’an.  Prior to this, Mohammed had learned about Islam from his father. After several years of schooling, he returned home.  One night he had a frightening dream.  He saw people along the roadside who were suffering.  He entered a gate and people took him and beat him.  Then he was locked in a room that was very hot.  It was so hot that his flesh began to peel off his body.  As he began screaming and trying to kick the door open, he woke up.  He couldn’t sleep for the rest of the night.  The next night, he had another dream.  This time he was on a different road and he saw decaying bodies.  He came to the same gate, was beaten and taken to the same room.  His flesh was melting off his body when a man dressed in white appeared.  Suddenly, the room became cold and the people who were beating him disappeared.  The man stretched his hand out and held Mohammed’s hand, saying, “My son, what are you doing here?  Do you want me to take you home?”  Mohammed says, “Within a second I was back home and he said to me, ‘I love you, my son.’” Two weeks later, Mohammed had a third dream.  He was in the bush and there was a deep hole in front of him and he didn’t know how to cross it.  When he looked into the pit he became scared and thought he would probably fall in and die.  He saw a man dressed in black walking quickly.  This man told him that a lion was coming behind him (Mohammed) and that he should jump over the pit before the lion reached him.  Mohammed could hear the lion’s roar.  Just as he was about to jump, the man in white from his previous dream appeared in front of him and asked, “My son, where are you going?”  The man in black disappeared and the lion’s roar stopped.  Mohammed told the man in white that he was going home.  He asked Mohammed if he wanted help.  The man in white stretched his leg across the whole pit.  As he did this, the hole closed and he told Mohammed to cross over and go home.  When they were close to Mohammed’s house, the man said, “I love you, my son.” For the next six nights, Mohammed had similar dreams.  Each time, he saw himself in different places and, regardless of where he was, the same man in white came and helped him.  In the last dream (dream #9), Mohammed was sitting under a tree reading books that he couldn’t understand.  The man in white (Jesus) was sitting beside him.  He asked Mohammed what he was reading and Mohammed told him that he was trying to acquire knowledge.  Jesus asked Mohammed if he wanted help and told him that he could show him specific things to read.  Jesus took a book and said, “This book comes from the Lord and it has the message of God inside of it.  In this book, I will show you verses which will help you.”  Jesus read scriptures to Mohammed, including John 14:6, which says, “I am the way, the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”  He explained this to Mohammed and told him that He was the way and the Savior of the world.  Jesus also told him that he would face many trials after becoming a Christian.  He told Mohammed He wanted to be his Savior and explained that He was the man in Mohammed’s dreams, the man who had rescued him.  When Jesus told Mohammed he wanted to give him salvation, and asked, “Do you accept?” Mohammed said yes and Jesus disappeared. The next day Mohammed went to meet a Christian acquaintance to tell him about this dream.  This friend introduced him to some young men from another church and they led Mohammed to Christ.  He told his parents that he was now a Christian.  After several months, Mohammed’s father forced him to drink poison.  He ordered men in the village to surround Mohammed so he couldn’t escape.  Interestingly, two days earlier Jesus had appeared to Mohammed and told him that whatever difficulties he faced, He would make a way for him.  Mohammed asked his father if he could pray before he swallowed the poison. He prayed, swallowed the poison, and went to bed.  The next morning, to his father’s dismay, Mohammed was still alive.  Later, his family tried to kill him by shooting him with a poisoned arrow.  He spent a month in the hospital, but he survived this experience as well. After these attempts to end his life, his family tried other tactics to persuade him to leave Christianity.  His father gave him a hundred cows and told him he could have three wives if he were to abandon the Christian faith.  Eventually, Mohammed made his choice – but it was to leave the family home.  He thanked his father for the cows and the offer of three wives and said, “You still have not met the needs that Jesus promised to meet.  If you promise and agree to meet those needs, fine.  Do you have means of giving me life forever?”  His father said no.  Mohammed told his father since he couldn’t provide eternal life, there was no way that he could leave Jesus Christ. A few years later, while on his deathbed, Mohammed’s father asked Mohammed for forgiveness and said he was ready to receive Jesus as his Savior.  Mohammed led his father in the sinner’s prayer and three hours later, his father died.  On one hand, the passing of his father was a sad event, but on the other hand, it was cause for rejoicing.  Not only had father and son been reconciled with each other before Mohammed’s father left this world, but he left this world in peace, knowing that in the world to come, he would be with Jesus for all eternity, and—at some future date—be with his son again in heaven.

Unquenchable Fire and sinners will be held there forever

Fire! Fire!

Written by J.C. Ryle

When a house is on fire, what ought to be done first? We ought to give the alarm and wake the inhabitants. This is true love to our neighbor. this is true charity. Reader, I love your soul, and want it to be saved. I am therefore going to tell you something about hell. There is such a place as hell. Let no one deceive you with vain words. What men do not like, they try hard not to believe. When the Lord Jesus Christ comes to judge the world, he will punish all who are not his disciples with a fearful punishment. All who are found impenitent and unbelieving; all who have clung to sin, stuck to the world, and set their affections on things below; all who are without Christ; all such shall come to an awful end. Whosoever is not written in the book of life shall be "cast into the lake of fire." Rev 20:15. The punishment of hell shall be most severe. There is no pain like that of burning. Put your finger in the candle for a moment if you doubt this, and try. Fire is the most destructive and devouring of all elements. Look into the mouth of a blast furnace, and think what it would be to be there. Fire is of all elements most opposed to life. Creatures can live in air, and earth, and water; but nothing can live in fire. Yet fire is the portion to which the Christless and unbelieving will come. they will be "cast into the lake of fire." The punishment of hell will be eternal. Millions of ages will pass away, and the fire will never burn low and become dim. The fuel of that fire will never waste away and be consumed. it is "unquenchable fire." O reader, these are the sad and painful things to speak of. I have no-pleasure in dwelling on them. I could rather say with the apostle Paul, "I have great sorrow." But they are things written for our learning, and it is good to consider them. They are part of that Scripture which is all profitable, and they ought to be heard. Painful as the subject of hell is, it is one about which I dare not, cannot, and must not be silent. Who would desire to speak of hell-fire if God has not spoken of it? When God has spoken of it so plainly, who can safely hold his peace? I dare not shut my eyes to the fact, that a deep rooted infidelity lurks in men's minds on the subject of hell. I see it oozing out in the utter apathy of some: they eat, and drink, and sleep, as if there was no wrath to come. I see it creeping forth in the coldness others about their neighbor's souls: they show little anxiety to awaken the unconverted, and pluck brands from the fire. I desire to denounce such infidelity with all my might. Believing that there are "terrors of the Lord," as well as the "recompense of reward." I call on all who profess to believe the Bible, to be on their guard. I know that some do not believe there is any hell at all. They think it impossible there can be such a place. They call it inconsistent with the mercy of God. They say it is too awful an idea to be really true. The devil of course, rejoices in the views of such people. They help his kingdom mightily. They are preaching up his old favorite doctrine, "Ye shall not surely die." I know furthermore, that some do not believe that hell is eternal. They tell us it is incredible that a compassionate God will punish men for ever. He will surely open the prison doors at last. This also is a mighty help to the devil's cause. "Take your ease, "he whispers to sinners-" if you do make a mistake, never mind, it is not for ever." I know also that some believe there is a hell, but never allow that anybody is going there. All people with them are good, as soon as they die, all were sincere, all meant well, and all, they hope, got to heaven. Alas! what a common delusion is this! I can well understand the feeling of the little girl who asked her mother where all the wicked people were buried, for she found no mention on the gravestones of any except of the good. And I know very well that some believe there is a hell, but never like to hear it spoken of. It is a subject that should always be kept back, in their opinion. They see no profit in bringing it forward, and are rather shocked when it is mentioned. This also is an immense help to the devil. "Hush! hush!" says Satan, "say nothing about hell." The fowler wishes no noise to be made when he has laid his, snares. The wolf wold like the shepherd to sleep, while he prowls round the fold. The devil rejoices when Christians are silent about hell. reader, all these notions are the opinions of man. What is it to you and me what man thinks of religion? Man will not judge us at the last day. There is but one point to be settled, "what says the word of God?" do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell is real and true. it is a true as heaven, as true as justification by faith, as true as the fact that Christ died upon the cross. There is not a fact or doctrine which you may not lawfully doubt, if you doubt hell. Disbelieve hell, you unscrew, unsettle, and unpin everything in the Scripture. You may as well throw your Bible aside at once. From "no hell" to "no God" is but a series of steps. Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell will have inhabitants. The wicked shall certainly be turned into hell, and all the people that forget God. The same blessed Savior who now sits on a throne of grace, will one day sit on a throne of judgement, and men will see there is such a thing as "the wrath of the Lamb." The same, lips which now say, Come, come unto me," will one day say, "Depart, ye cursed" Alas! how awful the thought of being condemned by Christ himself, judge by the Savior, sentenced to misery by the lamb! Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell will be intense and inalterable woe. It is vain to talk of all the expressions about it being figures of speech, the pit, the prison, the worm, the fire, the thirst, the blackness, the darkness, the weeping, the gnashing of teeth, the second death, all these may be figures of speech if you please. But Bible figures mean something beyond all questions, and here they mean something which man's mind can never fully conceive. O reader, the miseries of mind and conscience are far worse than those of the body. The whole extent of hell, the present suffering, the bitter recollection of the past, the hopeless prospect of the future, will never be thoroughly known except by those who go there. Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell is eternal. It must be eternal, or words have no meaning at all. "For ever and ever," "everlasting," "unquenchable," "never-dying" all these are expressions used about hell, and expressions that cannot be explained away. It must be eternal, or the very foundations of heaven are cast down. If hell has an end, heaven has an end too. They both stand or fall together. It must be eternal, or every doctrine of the gospel is undermined. If a man may escape hell at length without faith in Christ, or sanctification of the Spirit, sin is no longer an infinite evil, and there was no such great need of Christ's making an atonement. And where is the warrant for saying that hell can ever change a heart, or make it fit for heaven? It must be eternal, or hell would cease to be hell altogether. Give a man hope, and he will bear any thing. Grant a hope of deliverance, however distant, and hell is but a drop of water. Alas! for that day which will have no tomorrow - that day when men shall seek death and not find it, and shall desire to die but death shall flee from them! Do you believe the Bible? Then depend upon it, hell is a subject that ought not to be kept back. It is striking, to observe that none say so much about it as our Lord Jesus Christ, that gracious and merciful Savior, and the apostle John, whose heart seems full of love. Truly it may well be doubted whether we ministers speak of it as much as we ought. I cannot forget the words of a dying hearer of Mr. Newton: "Sir, you often told me of Christ and salvation: why did you not remind me of hell and danger?" Let others hold their peace about hell if they will; I dare not do so. I see it plainly in Scripture, and I must speak of it. I fear that thousands are on the broad, way that leads to it, and I would fain arouse them to a sense of the peril before them. What would you say of the man who saw his neighbor's house in danger of being burned down, and never raised the cry of "fire?" What ought to be said of us as ministers if we call ourselves watchmen for souls, and yet see fires of hell raging in distance, and never give the alarm? Call it bad taste, if you like, to speak of hell. Call it charity to make things pleasant, and speak of smoothly, and soothe men with constant lullaby of peace. I have not read my Bible. My notion of charity is to warn men plainly of danger. My notion of taste in the ministerial office, is to declare all the counsel of God. If I never spoke of hell, I should think I had kept back something that was profitable, and should look on myself as an accomplice of the devil. Reader, I beseech you, in all tender affection, beware of false views of the subject on which I have been dwelling. Beware of new and strange doctrines about hell and the eternity of punishment. Beware of manufacturing a God of your own: a God who is all mercy, but not just; a God who is all love, but not holy; a God who as a heaven for every body, but a hell for none; a God who can allow good and bad to be side by side in time, but will make no distinction between good and broad in eternity. Such a God is an idol of your won, as truly an idol as any snake or crocodile in an Egyptian temple. The hands of your won fancy and sentimentality have made him. He is not the God of the Bible, and beside the God of the Bible there is no God at all. Your heaven would be no heaven at all. A heaven containing all sorts of characters indiscriminately would be miserable discord indeed. Alas! for the eternity of such a heaven. There would be little difference between it and hell. Ah! reader, there is a hell! There is a fire! Take heed lest you find it out to your cost too late. Beware of being wise above that which is written. Beware of forming fanciful theories of your own, and then trying to make the Bible square with them. Beware of making selections from your Bible to suit your taste. Dare not to say, "I believe this verse, for I like it. I refuse that, for I cannot reconcile it with my views." Nay! but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? By what right do you talk in this way? Surely it were better to say, over every chapter in the word, "Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth." Ah! if men would do this, they would never deny the unquenchable fire.

Let Us Go Faster - By General William Booth

You're Going Too Fast!

Written by General William Booth

They say we go too fast! This accusation comes from all directions. Our enemies do not like our speed and our friends are afraid of it. What do they mean? If they had complained that we did not go fast enough, I could understand them. If our enemies had argued that after all we say about the evils of sin, the terrors of the Judgment Day, and the damnation of hell, we do not believe in these things ourselves, I could understand that, and feel humbled under their indictment. If our friends came together and said, "Why don't you increase the speed? Look at the dying millions at home and abroad. You have evidently got a wonderful way of reaching the masses. You have accomplished what no other organization has. You can adapt yourselves to all peoples and countries and climates. Why don't you push on faster? Why don't you train more cadets-send out more officers-hunt up more criminals, drunkards and fallen women? Go faster; get up more steam!" Now, this seems to me would be the natural way of talking for both foes and friends. But no! The cry is not "Go faster" but "You go too fast!" What do they mean? Speed is a good thing, and, if combined with safety, the faster the better. It is reckoned good in traveling. I don't know of any train that goes fast enough for me. Time is so precious that unless it can be spent in sleeping or working, every minute of it is begrudged. My feeling whenever I am in a train is, "Now, engine driver, do your best, and fly away!" Speed is reckoned a good thing in money-making. Who would complain if we were an Investment Company developing a profitable gold mine? The same people who complain of our speed in spreading salvation and saving men would all want to buy shares, become our partners or buy us out... Because God has given us a little success in saving men and women from endless damnation, and extending the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, there is a great outcry-especially from those who every morning pray "Thy Kingdom come!" -that we are going too fast; they say we are ambitious and seeking great things. Can we go too fast, my comrades in saving souls? I will not attempt to answer that question. No soldier in the Salvation Army would ask such a question. It is an insult to the Bible-to the teachers of Christianity. I refuse to reply to it. If anyone still wants a reply, let him ask the lost souls in Hell whose brothers and sisters are following them there. Let him go and ask the blood-washed throng in Heaven, whose eyes are wide open at last to the value of salvation. Let him anticipate the Judgment Day, and in spirit stand before the Throne and propose, if he dares, the question to God Almighty. I think from Hell, Heaven and the Great White Throne, the answer would come back; "More speed! Go faster!" If it should entail the stopping of legislature, pleasure, business, and all the employments and occupations of time, push forwards! Hurry onwards! Save the world! Some warn us, "but there is danger with great speed". Perhaps there is, but that is not certain; and even if so, I refuse to abate the speed to avoid the risk. If this thing is worth doing, let us do it with all our might. They say, "but if you go on at this pace a smash will come". Well, perhaps it will. Perhaps God will let the devil and those who help him smash The Salvation. Army. They smashed Jesus Christ. There were slanders and riots and injuries terminating with the Crucifixion. Then a great number looked on and said, "I told you so!" If they smash The Salvation Army, there will also be a great number looking on and telling them to do it, and saying the same thing. However, there are no evident signs of this terrible danger. For twenty years we have gone on paying our debts, breaking up and taking possession of new ground, and holding it when occupied; and, thank God! We are more closely bound together-more wrapped up in the spirit of sympathy and unity today than ever we were before. Is our speed really too great after all? Is not all this talk a delusion? Speed is a relative thing, and the accuracy of the estimate depends upon the standard you measure it by. The coach is a rapid vehicle compared with the old carrier's cart, but it is very slow when put alongside a royal express train. What do our objectors measure us by? Anyhow, I object to be measured by the standard of the carrier's cart. Does salvation travel as fast as sin? See how wickedness spreads. Talk about a prairie fire - it devours everything before it. Does Salvation keep pace with our ever-growing population? Make the calculation in your most favored Christian cities, and you will find we are terribly behind in the race. Do we keep pace with the devils in energy and untiring labor? Do we go as fast as death? Oh, say no more! We'll close our ears to this cold, unfeeling, stony-hearted utterance of unbelief. LET US GO FASTER! We must increase the speed if we are to keep pace with the yearnings of the Almighty Heart of Love that would have all men to be saved. We must go faster if we are to have a hand in the fulfillment of the prophecies. Read the sixtieth chapter of Isaiah, and think of the speed that must be reached before all that comes true. We must go faster if we would wipe out the reproach and taunts of the mocking unbelievers who are ever asking for living proof of God's existence. We must increase our pace before our own prayers are answered, our own expectations realized, our own relations converted, and our own consistency proved. My comrades, the General issues the command to every country, and to every division, and to every corps, and to every soldier-to advance. The pace of the past is to be no standard for the future. We must go faster. Obstacles, difficulties, and enemies shall be swept before us, and the mouths of those who condemn us shall be forever stopped before the Lord. Reference: "The General's Letters," Published by Salvationist Publishing and Supplies, London, England (1886). Reprinted from The War Cry March 28, 1885 (Edited & Abridged by David Smithers)

The Weapon of Prayer

The Weapon of Prayer

Written by Amy Carmichael

"Oh, Amma! Amma! Do not pray! Your prayers are, troubling me!" We all looked up in astonishment. We had just had our Band Prayer Meeting, when a woman came rushing into the room and began to exclaim like this. She was the mother of one of our girls, of whom I told you once before. She is still in the Terrible's den. Now the mother (A devote Hindu) was all excitement and poured out a curious story. "When you went away last year I prayed. I prayed and prayed, and prayed again to my god to dispel your work. My daughter's heart was impressed with your words. I cried to my god to wash the words out. Has he washed them out? Oh no! And I prayed for a bridegroom for my daughter, and one came; and the cart was ready to take her away, and a hindrance occurred; the marriage fell through. And I wept till my eyes well-nigh dissolved. And again another bridegroom came, and again an obstacle occurred. And yet again did a bridegroom come, and yet again an obstacle; and I cannot get my daughter married, and the neighbors mock, and my Caste is disgraced" - and the poor old mother cried, just sobbed in her shame and confusion of face. "Then I went to my god again and said, 'What more can I offer you? Have I not given you all I have? And you reject my prayer!' Then in a dream my (demon) god appeared, and he said, 'Tell the Christians not to pray, I can do nothing against their prayers. Their prayers are hindering me!' And so, I beseech you, stop your prayers for fourteen days - only fourteen days - till I get my daughter married !" "And after she is married?" We asked. "Oh, then she may freely follow your God! I will hinder her no more!" Poor old mother! All lies are allowed where such things are concerned. We knew the proposed bridegroom came from a place three hundred miles away, and the idea was to carry the poor girl off by force as soon as she was married. We have been praying night and day to God to hinder this. And He is hindering! Reference: Things As They Are; Mission Work In Southern India by Amy Carmichael

The Greatest Commandment

"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with ALL thy heart." God will have the whole heart. We must not divide our love between Him and sin. The true mother would not have the child divided, nor will God have the heart divided; it must be the whole heart. We must love God for Himself, for His own intrinsic excellencies. We must love Him for His loveliness. It is a harlot's love to love the portion more than the person. Hypocrites love God because He gives them corn and wine: we must love God for Himself; for those shining perfections which are in Him.

Love to God must be active in its sphere. Love is an industrious affection; it sets the head studying for God, hands working, feet running in the ways of His commandments. It is called the labor of love. 1 Thess. 1:1-3 Mary Magdalene loved Christ, and poured her ointments on Him. We think we never do enough for the person whom we love. If we love God, our desire will be after Him. "The desire of our soul is to thy name." Isa. 26:8. He who loves God, breathes after communion with Him. "My soul thirsts for the living God." Psa 42:2. Persons in love desire to be often conferring together. He who loves God, desires to be much in His presence.

He who loves God cannot find contentment in any thing without Him. Lovers faint away if they have not a sight of the object loved. A gracious soul can do without health, but cannot do without God, who is the health of His countenance. Psa. 43:5. If God should say to a soul that entirely loves Him, "Take thy ease, swim in pleasure, solace thyself in the delights of the world; but thou shalt not enjoy My presence:" this would not content it. Nay, if God should say, "I will let thee be taken up to heaven, but I will retire into another room, and thou shalt not see my face;" it would not content the soul. It is hell to be without God. The philosopher says there can be no golden joy in the soul without God's sweet presence and influence.

He who loves God, weeps bitterly for His absence. Mary comes weeping, "They have taken away my Lord." John 20:13. One cries, "My health is gone" another, "My estate is gone" but he who is a lover of God, cries out, "My God is gone! I cannot enjoy Him whom I love." If Rachel mourned greatly for the loss of her children, what can shadow out the sorrow of that Christian who has lost God's sweets presence? Let us be persuaded to love God with all our heart and might. O let us take our love off from other things, and place it upon God. Love is the heart of Christianity, the fat of the offering; it is the grace which Christ inquires most after. "Simon lovest thou me?" John 21:15. 

Pandit Ramabai- Who helped the destitute women

   

 

"Fire kindles more fire"

 

Born On: April 23, 1858
Born In: Gangamul, Karnataka
Died On: April 5, 1922
Career: Poet, Scholar & Social Reformer
Nationality: Indian

Pandita Ramabai was born during those times when the women folks of India were considered a little more than slaves, to serve their husband and bear children. They were not allowed to study, or go out on their own and a majority of Hindu women were married off when they were children to men who were decades older. Naturally there were large number of child widows who were made to live the most punishing lives. Pandita Ramabai was fortunate in many ways. Though she was born in a Brahmin family her father was a liberal. Her father had married his wife when she was nine years old and he was forty. But defying social pressures he educated both his wife and children. Her father even refused to get Ramabai married until she becomes an adult. It was from him that she was inspired towards social reform. During her travels first with her father and then with her brother, she saw how cruelly women were treated. Disgusted she decided to do something about it. She also lost her faith in Hinduism which she though supported the degradation of women by men. She converted to Christianity and spent her life rescuing women and widows from poverty, ostracization and death and giving them a new life through education.

Childhood
In the year 1858, in a village nestled amidst the thick forests of Gangamul was born a girl who would become one of the earliest and foremost champions of woman rights. The girl was christened Ramabai by her father, Anant Shastri Dongre who was a wealthy and orthodox Brahmin scholar. Unlike other Brahmins of his village Anant Shastri Dongre was quite a liberal, who considered that every woman has the right to education. So, he took it upon himself to educate first his wife after marriage and then his daughter, Ramabai. But such liberal views were anathema to the high caste villagers. As such, when he took to teaching his wife, they ostracized him, forcing him to move outside the village and live in a hut in the forest. Later, he traveled widely with his family from village to village reading the Puranas at temples, fairs and holy places. By the age of twelve Ramabai had memorized eighteen thousand verses from the Puranas becoming proficient in Sanskrit.

Early Life
When Ramabai was sixteen years old, her parents died due to an outbreak of famine. Being all alone she decided to travel throughout India with her older brother, giving discourses from the Holy Scriptures and preaching social reform. The brother and sister first went to Calcutta where Ramabai impressed the high caste Brahmins with her knowledge of the Puranas. So astonished were they with her wisdom, particularly as very few women could read at that time that they bestowed the title Pandita (scholar) and invited her to give lectures and visit places of learning. It was during these travels that she saw the plight of women particularly child-widows. It was then that she resolved to devote her life to work towards the upliftment of women. Soon her brother too passed away and she married his friend, in 1880, Bipen Behan Das Medhavi, who, though of a lower caste, sympathized with her selfless resolve. Soon after, they had a child whom they named Monorama. Along with her husband, Pandita Ramabai decided to set a school for widows but even before the plan could materialize, her husband passed away due to cholera, just eighteen months after marriage. According to the custom prevalent at that time, a Hindu widow could not stay at her husband's house, so, Padita Ramabai left Calcutta and went to Pune. Here she established the Arya Mahila Samaj to promote female education and also work towards eradicating child marriage. She also started learning English and wrote a book called Stree Dharma Niti (Morals for Women). While setting up the Samaj, Ramabai realized that she required more training in order to successfully pursue her work and decided to go to England.

Travels Abroad
In 1883, Pandita Ramabai went to England along with her friend the English missionary Miss Hurford, and was made a professor of Sanskrit at Cheltenham Female College. There she also learned English and studied higher education as well as English Literature. In England, already distraught with the rot in Hinduism that she saw in India, Padita Ramabai converted to Christianity. In 1886, she received an invitation to attend the graduation ceremony of her cousin, Dr. Anandibai Josh. There she befriended Dean Bodley of the Women's Medical College who encouraged her to work in America. Pandita Ramabai got the opportunity to study the American public school system and also received industrial training. Pandita Ramabai also spent her time in America giving lectures. During this time she wrote the book "High Caste Hindu Woman". She started networking with influential people and lobbying for aid to start a secular school for child widows in India. Because of her repeated appeals a public meeting was held in 1887 in the Channing Hall of the American Unitarian Association Building. With her keen wit and flair for speaking, Pandita Ramabai was able to move the audience and Rev. Charles G. Ames appointed a provincial committee of women to consider her plan and act on it. The result was the formation of an association to act as the custodian of funds that Ramabai could use for her work.

Return To India & Social Work
In 1889, Pandita Ramabai returned to India after a period of six years, she continued her crusade for the betterment of the women. She wrote about her American experience in a book titled 'United States Chi Lokasthiti Ani Pravasvrutta' (Status of Society of United States and a travelogue). Within six weeks of her return to the country, pandita Ramabai had established a school called Sharada Sadan in Bombay. During this time she also became more involved in Christianity famously noting that "One thing I knew by this time," she wrote, "that I needed Christ and not merely His religion... I was desperate... What was to be done? My thoughts could not and did not help me. I had at last come to an end of myself, and unconditionally surrendered myself to the Saviour; and asked Him to be merciful to me, and to become my righteousness and redemption, and to take away all my sin...." Pandita Ramabai faced considerable opposition from many Indian reformers and the press for they perceived that she was influencing her students to Christianity. In 1904 she started translating the Bible in Marathi and by 1913 the New Testament was published and by 1924 the complete Bible was published. From 1896-97 and from 1900-01, India was devastated by two famines in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat respectively. Ramabai rescued about 2000 women and girls from perishing from hunger and housed them at a 100 acre farm at Kedgaon, which came to be known as the Mukti Mission (The Home of Salvation).

Recognition
For her services to the community the British Raj in 1919 awarded her the Kaiser-I-Hind medal. Ramabai is also honored with a feast day on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church (USA) on April 5. The Government of India recognized her contributions for the upliftment of women in India and issued a commemorative stamp on 26th October 1989.

Death
In July 1921 her daughter Manorama passed away and in April the next year Ramabai too breathed her last at the age of sixty four. For almost twenty years Pandita Ramabai had pursued her mission to uplift the women particularly the child widows of India inspiring many and saving countless.

Timeline
1858: Pandita Ramabai was born in Gangamul, Karnataka.
1880: Married Bipen Behan Das Medhavi, a friend of her brother.
1883: Left for England and became a Professor of Sanskrit at Cheltenham Female College.
1886: Moved to America.
1887: An association was formed to fund her works in India.
1889: Returned to India to work towards the upliftment of women.
1904: Started translating the Bible to Marathi.
1919: Conferred the Kaiser-I-Hind medal for her community service.
1989: A commemorative stamp was launched in her honor by the Government of India.
1922: Died at the age of sixty four.