Gilgal’s memorial stones INDIA’S EVANGELICAL NEWS MAGAZINE Online Portal: www.christianmessenger.in | Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com
Vol. 9, No. 5
Pages 28
SEPTEMBER, 2012
The purpose of the news magazine is to report newsworthy religious events and activities within the local community, nationwide and around the world, to increase the awareness and activism of believers regarding the moral issues of today, to provide thought-provoking commentary, and to provide an effective advertising vehicle for Christian ministries and organizations, events and businesses that want to reach the Christian community. - Editor
The Team Managing Editor: Robin Sam Editor & Publisher: Elsy Robin Director (Strategy & Planning): Benjamin Ross Editorial Advisor: P I Samuel Production & Sales: S Saravanan Subscriptions: N Jeyanthi Mission Field: S A Peter, N Solai, T Rajarathinam (Tamil Nadu) Ashok Baghel (Chhattisgarh) Mohinder Lal (Jammu & Kashmir) Guest Columnists: Grace Ida Rajan, Joyce Braganza, Mathews George, Don Davis
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BY ROBIN SAM You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. Deuteronomy 6:7. NE of the greatest things we can teach our children is make them understand that life's lessons are best learned from the Master Himself. He is the greatest teacher ever. Let the Holy Spirit be their guide. Psalm 32:8
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PP JOB GETS HOME CALL Friends, associates pay tributes to ‘India’s Billy Graham’
Greatest Christian revival happens in Iran Reasons why teens abandon Christianity Pics: Medical Camp
says: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.” As parents, we need to tell them of the need to run to Him as often as possible because the Word of God says He is our rock, our fortress, our deliverer, our God, our strength, our buckler, the horn of our salvation and our high tower (Psalm 18:2). Let them learn to listen to the still, small voice of God (1 Kings 19:12). Let His Word be a lamp to their feet and a light to their path (Psalm 119:105). Children will never learn these things on their own. That's why God put parents on earth. The Bible has a command to parents: 'Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.' (Proverbs 22:6). God also wants parents to walk in His way so children will know with all our imperfections we tried to live a life pleasing to God. In their time, they will do better than us. There's an interesting story in the book of Joshua. After crossing the Jordan, Joshua asked his men to pick up 12 stones from the river. The leaders and the people may have been puzzled at this strange command. While crossing the Jordan itself had been quite a challenge, why weigh themselves with stones now? As it turned out, it wasn't a cranky idea. The stones were to be set up as memorial in Gilgal. They were milestones on their way out of bondage into the land of milk and honey. The stones had a tale to tell. Those stones were to tell their children of the amazing act of God that made them cross the river (Joshua 4:21-24). The stones were indeed worth their weight. Are there milestones in our life that our children will learn from? Are we telling our children of the amazing things He has done in our lives? Do our children get a sense of who our God is from the way we live and conduct ourselves? Your children were not born by an accident into your family. The Lord put them there with a purpose. He has entrusted them into your hands because He knows nobody else can give them what they need as good as you can. The memorial in Gilgal also proves another point: They serve as a testimony to all those around us. “That all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.” Joshua 4:24. SEPTEMBER 2012 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER 1
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E encourage you to use these points in your daily prayer as a family, prayer group or an individual. We would be glad if you take copies of these prayer points and share them with other believers in your church, prayer group or workplace. If you have a specific prayer point that you would like us to pray for along with our readers, you can send it to us by email at christianmessengerindia@ gmail.com Blessings, Editor. n What do you want your children or grandchildren to be? There is no greater joy than our progeny knowing the Lord closely and walking with Him. Luke 2:40 says what kind of boy Jesus was. ‘And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.’ May this be our prayer for our children, too. n Will you pray for our ministry today? The Christian Messenger has opened a mission field in Chhattisgarh and is working among tribal people in two districts. The ministry has opened a mission post in Tiruchi in Tamil Nadu. Pray for our mission post in Jammu & Kashmir. Pray for our workers’ health, protection and guidance. Pray that their efforts in reaching the lost will be met with success. n The Bible warns us that love will be a casualty in the last days. Pray that we don’t become dispassionate or disillusioned but be optimists for Christ forever. n Riches in life can often hinder us from coming to Christ. What should be our mind-set when it comes to wealth? Proverbs 30:7-10 has a wonderful prayer that we can emulate. n Matthew 7:19 says every tree that doesn’t grow good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Let us ask God to prune us periodically. n Pray for Bangalore city today. Despite its cosmopolitan outlook and pleasant environs, the city’s pub culture is causing havoc among young IT professionals and others. Two years ago, DNA put out a report that said HIV positive people descend on the city looking for young virgins in the hope that sex with them will cure their disease. n 2 Timothy 2:16 asks us to avoid godless chatters. Those who indulge in it become more and more ungodly. Pray that all believers would pray like David in guarding their mouths. n Pray for good rains in India this year. Although, the Meteorological Department has said the monsoon deficiency is expected to narrow down soon, the current deficiency is 22 percent. Monsoon rains are crucial for the agricultural sector, which contributes about 15 per cent to the country’s GDP.
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n Proverbs 28:19 talks about how hard work fetches good dividends. Let us pray that all the spirit of sloth be removed from our midst. n Pray for peace in Assam today. That state was rocked by ethnic violence in which several lives were lost. Curfew had to be imposed in two districts after Muslims and Bodo tribals clashed with each other. Close to two lakh people are said to be in relief camps while 11 people are still missing. n Growing number of teens and even younger children in the US who think they were born the wrong sex are getting support from parents and doctors who give them sex-changing treatments. According to a report, as many as 97 girls and boys were treated between 1998 and 2010. Pray. n Pray for peace between India and Sri Lanka. In the recent past, the two neighbors have had more than their share of troubles the most niggling being the rights accorded to Sri Lankan Tamils by the government of the island nation. n Pray for peace in Pakistan. The nation continues to be tormented by bomb blasts orchestrated by fundamentalist groups and terrorist outfits. n Let us pray that material blessings of the world will not affect our spiritual growth in Jesus Christ. Proverbs 30:8 has an excellent prayer for an earnest believer. n Pray for all you know who are involved in the Lord’s ministry, for their efforts to bear fruit, for their spiritual growth and for peace and harmony in their homes. n Pray for Goa. Tourists flock the tiny state for not only its idyllic beaches but also for the roaring liquor trade and sex trafficking. According to the book ‘Rape for Profit,’ girls mostly between the ages of 9 and 16 are sold to brothels. Pray for more churches led by the Holy Spirit to come up in Goa. n 2 Peter 3:11 says what sort of people ought we to be in holiness and godliness since the day of the Lord is nearer than we think. Pray that we are not caught up in laying up treasures for ourselves on earth or caught up in the worries of the world. n Pray for respite from heat this summer. Pray for adequate water to be available throughout our country, containment of common summer diseases and God’s canopy of grace over us and our families. n Philippians 4:6 outlines the line of action expected of us by God. ‘Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.’ Let us offer Him thanks, praise and continue to pray. God will meet us at the point of our need. Website: www.christianmessenger.in | Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com
TRIBUTE P P JOB
BY ROBIN SAM EVERAL years ago, my mother took me to a Gospel meeting in Chennai. I don’t remember how old I was then but I guess I was old enough to know the difference between a crusade and a meeting for the believers. The meeting I attended was intended to strengthen the faith of the believers. Evangelist P P Job spoke at the meeting but he was not the star attraction that day. The main speaker of the day was Richard Wurmbrand, a Romanian preacher of Jewish origin. Wurmbrand came along with his petite wife Sabina. I remember Wurmbrand, a lanky old man, sitting in a chair and sharing his prison experiences as a political prisoner in the Communist Romania of the 1940s. His first imprisonment was for eight and a half years. Most of that time was spent as in solitary confinement. “The only sound I ever heard in my prison cell was the cling-clang of my shackles,” I recall Wurmbrand telling the meeting. Job was instrumental in bringing the Wurmbrands to India. He was by then associated with Torutured for Christ, the ministry of Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand. Job was introduced to the gathering as an evangelist and founder of Sabina Printing Press, the largest Christian press in India. Job was from my home state Kerala (Job hailed from Thrissur) and he was a Marthomite to boot. My father was on the mailing list of Tortured for
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Christ, a leaflet printed at Sabina Press which those days mostly described Richard Wurmbrand’s torture at the hands of the Romanian Communist government and his response to the oppressors. Through those leaflets, I had read a lot about the Wurmbrands, the couple who braved persecution and stood for Christ in their country. So, I was familiar with their story. Yet when Richard Wurmbrand spoke, his life and faith became etched in my memory. I remember wanting to be a missionary and preach the crucified Christ. When it was Job’s turn to speak, he came up the podium. I casually sized him up. He was not too tall, yet he looked gaunt because of the way he had dressed and carried himself. Dressed in a white shirt and black pants, he often patted his forehead that highlighted his receding hairline with a white handkerchief. He had to wipe the sweat off his face every now and then because of the unrelenting Madras summer. He quoted a few Bible verses, referred frequently to Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, talked briefly about his own life and wrapped up without letting the tempo dip. He spoke in chaste English with a liberal smattering of Malayalam words because there were a lot of Malayalis among the assembled. Although I didn’t know it then, Job was wellknown in Christian circles in India and abroad even then. Years later, my interest in Job's magazine Website: www.christianmessenger.in | Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com
renewed when Job talked about his son's deaths. I remember equating him with the Job of the Bible who lost his sons and daughters and yet stood firm in his faith. I felt sorry for the ‘modern-day Job’ and wondered how he would win souls for Christ now when his own nest had been made empty. In February 2006, my journalist friend Vishal Arora interviewed him in his New Delhi office for The Christian Messenger. The interview revealed some hitherto unknown facets of his life and ministry. We have republished the interview in this issue. You will find it on page 11. Despite personal setbacks, Job ploughed on in God’s vineyard and achieved remarkable things. Michael Job Orphanage, Michael Job Memorial Higher Secondary School for Girls, Michael Job College of Arts and Science for Women were all testimonies of Website: www.christianmessenger.in | Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com
When it was Job’s turn to speak, he came up the podium. I sized him up. He was not too tall, yet he looked gaunt because of the way he had dressed and carried himself. He quoted a few Bible verses, referred frequently to Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, talked briefly about his own life and wrapped up without letting the tempo dip. God’s providence to a man who dared to dream big for his Savior. He was also one of the first Indian evangelists who toured over 100 nations with the message of the Gospel. Job has spoken to
crowds of 500,000 people. Millions have been blessed by his books ‘With a dynamic Man of God’, ‘Fifth Gospel’,’ ‘Why God, Why?’ The meeting at Periyar Thidal in Chennai was the only time I ever saw him. Last year, when he was in the news over what the media had dubbed as the ‘fake orphan scandal’, I resolved to meet him in Coimbatore and find out his version of the story. However, that was not to be. There were newspaper reports that said he admitted many of the Nepalese children in his orphanage were not orphans. The saffron brigade was also nipping at his heels. Although I did not doubt his integrity, I thought it was better to let sleeping dogs lie. His death has left a vacuum in the ministries he ran but the work that God had begun in and through him cannot be stopped.
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TRIBUTE P P JOB
BY SAJI GEORGE ‘WELL done thou good and faithful servant’, would be the first few words heard by P.P. Job as he would be welcomed into heaven at the Lord’s coming. Evangelist Job slept in the Lord on August 19, 2012. I have known Job for over 20 years; he was my friend and spiritual father/mentor. The world will remember him as a great evangelist, director, author of many books and the founder of the Michael Job Centre. Those who knew him on a personal level will remember him not for the many accolades and awards placed and presented to him by nations and dignitaries, but he will be remembered for his loving heart and contagious smile. He will be remembered for his tireless effort to share the gospel of Christ to the rich and to the poor, downcast and weary, Presidents and the common man. His love for his Savior propelled within him to have an un-ending care for the poor and needy, widowed, orphaned and the down trodden of society. This love for his fellow man took him to over 120 nations spanning almost fifty years. One of Job’s mantra's was “I will go where others cannot or may not want to go”. Where access is difficult and surroundings are dangerous. He took the gospel to the under-ground churches in the 8 THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w SEPTEMBER 2012
Middle East, Eastern Europe and Somalia to name a few places. He took ownership of the gospel. Many a times he has said “It takes courage to say I am an ambassador for Christ” because our lives must reflect such a life. But it is to this calling Christ has called us. Through the many difficulties that Job endured in his life, the One he served sustained him. The difficulties he endured he shared with the world to illustrate how Christ can be your strength and provide hope in the most trying of times. In your difficulties turn to Jesus and let Him console and strengthen you. Job served the Lord for almost 50 years. Job was sold out for Jesus, his life was surrendered to the call of Christ. He touched millions of lives, established a University and Orphanage (to care for young girls) in Coimbatore, India. God used this man to illustrate God’s faithfulness in your time of need. God provides hope in despair, comfort in distress and strength to the broken hearted. Of the many things that I have learned from Job, one stands above the rest. Job taught me through his life and how he handled life situations to view the impossible as possible through Jesus Christ. Saji George is a pilot with Continental Airlines. He is a board member of P P Job’s ministries. Website: www.christianmessenger.in | Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com
BY FLORIN T. CIMPEAN P. P. Job has been promoted to glory. I was so honored to have known him for the last several years as a man of God and as a true friend. Even though we got to know each other only for the last several years, there was a mysterious connection. Forty two years ago, Job visited Romania for the first time. He went there as a messenger of Richard Wurmbrand to visit and inquire about the underground and persecuted church. Because he was not from the West but from India he was allowed to enter one of the most tightly controlled countries. It was the year I was born in Romania. Later on, when the Communist regime fell in 1989 and Richard Wurmbrand visited Romania for the first time after he was expelled from the country, I was the first one to interview him for the Word of Truth magazine. When I met Job for the first time in Chicago, we connected instantly, both standing in the shadow of a great faith giant. He became to me like a father and myself as son, as I was about the same age as his older son. As he was adopted by Wurmbrand, Job adopted me spiritually. Job was a disciple of Wurmbrand and he was raised to stand for the underground and persecuted church around the world. Even when the Voice of the Martyrs was in some way taken away from him, he remained the voice that cries out in the wilderness of the persecuted church, of the oppressed and the abandoned, a voice that no one and nothing could silence. Job was a hero for Christians around the world, a model of leadership, a preacher with spirit-charisma, a man of integrity that stood for justice. He was a titan of faith, yet remained humble and modest. Like a tree planted on the river shore he was fruitful and countless people benefitted from his gifts. Suddenly storms came over his life. He lost his sons, but he never lost the SON. He was sometimes almost crushed but never defeated. He was a voice for the voiceless and he was a force for the powerless and a provider for the hungry. He traveled across the world to represent those who could not represent themselves. He was selflessly giving himself away to others. When he was staying in our house in Chicago I often had the strange feeling that I am hosting an angel. Now I can testify that he was a messenger of God in a world in crisis. Job stood for life, for the persecuted church, for orphans, for the oppressed, for the helpless, for the gospel and ultimately for Christ. Now Christ will stand up for him. The heaven is welcoming home a human being that belongs to a better world, God’s world. Welcome home, saint. I have lost a father, a friend, a partner. The heaven gained a saint. He was long due for a promotion. P. P. Job has been promoted to glory! The writer is the Senior Pastor of the Philadelphia Romanian Church of God in Chicago, US. Website: www.christianmessenger.in | Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com
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TRIBUTE P P JOB
P P Job with his wife Dr. Mary Job, Rev Ilie Tomuta and Ruth Tomuta BY REV ILIE U. TOMUTA During one of our trips to Indiana, I asked him: THERE have been a few occasions in my life “Do you think there is more time before Jesus Christ when I have been blessed, to not only know people comes for his bride—his church?” His response was: of great influence, but also to be a part of the work “I don’t know when Jesus Christ will come. I am too that God called them to do. Today, I can say that P.P. preoccupied on being ready and preparing myself in Job is one of the greatest, influential people that I case God asks me to come home to Him.” His words have met in my life as an evangelist. have remained as one of my favorite mottos in life. I cannot even begin to describe this man of God, Both my daughter and I (we have traveled to India without perhaps missing one of the many and together) will never forget our first day spent at Job’s beautiful qualities he had. He was a humble man. orphanage and with his wonderful daughters in Although it would have been a great honor to meet Christ. Billy Graham, an evangelist that the entire world Although I am grieving over his departure, I am knows by name, God gave me an even better convinced that God has not made a mistake in calling opportunity—to get to know P.P. Job, who has been him home. I cannot even imagine the beautiful, named the ‘Billy Graham of India’, and who has heavenly home reserved for Job. worked next to Richard Wurmbrand, the respected I solemnly promise that I will always remain a evangelist of Romania. servant to the nation that Job so fervently and I have been blessed to know Job. I have been passionately served—India. blessed to work with him in the Christian Board of With a broken, but peaceful heart, I am finally Missions and the Michael Job institutions. Being saying goodbye to one of God's most precious able to work with him, I have realized how much he servants, a true titan of Christian faith. and his wife have dedicated in order to be Christian Goodbye, P.P. Job. We will meet again in heaven. witnesses for India and the world. Our condolences to Dr. Mary and her beloved family I have also traveled with Job to many different from my family, Genesis Mission and the Romanian states in America, where he preached passionately to Church. various Romanian communities. The time I spent with him was a time in which I learned many new The writer is the director of Genesis Romanian principles of my faith. I will never forget these Mission. things. 10 THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER w SEPTEMBER 2012
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TRENDS
GROWING up under the watchful eye of his parents, Eric* loved going to church. Like most kids, he loved the songs, his teachers, and playing with his friends. But even for a kid, church wasn’t just a social thing for Eric. He could clearly remember the summer of third grade during Vacation Bible School when he gave his whole heart to Jesus. He was baptized shortly after. For Eric, Jesus and the Bible weren’t things you had to figure out or question. He had a child-like faith. He knew Jesus loved him and would walk with him throughout his life. The Bible was the moral compass by which he would live his life. A few years later as Eric hit adolescence, his parents thought he would continue to grow in the faith of his childhood. He would discover even more deeply just how Jesus could make a difference to him in his high school years. He would see how his faith would define him. But that’s not what happened. No fairy-tale ending In the car on the way home from church one Sunday, Eric blurted out, “Why do we think we are right and everybody else is wrong about how to get to Heaven?” Over the coming weeks his questions turned to, “Is it fair that God would send everyone else to hell just because they don’t know Jesus?” and “How do we know the Bible is real?” Pretty soon Eric didn’t want to talk much on the way home from church and seemed agitated whenever anyone else would bring up faith in daily conversation. It all came to a head when his parents asked him about his plans for the youth group’s summer camp. Eric nonchalantly announced, “Mom, Dad, I think that stuff like church and Jesus is fine for you, but I'm just not sure if I believe all that anymore.” Discovery of self in Christ Adolescence is the phase of life in which everything seems up for grabs. Teens discover new friendships, try out new interests, and develop new beliefs about everything from family to faith. For most, it’s perfectly natural to gravitate toward a new passion one day but then drop a lifelong interest almost overnight. A teen’s faith is a big part in the puzzle of discovering his or her newly developing identity. Many parents struggle watching the forwardbackward see-saw development of a teen’s faith. For many teens, this journey of identity will result in a deeper faith. Except when it doesn’t. Why kids leave Several studies have been conducted to answer that important question-why are they leaving? The Website: www.christianmessenger.in | Email: christianmessengerindia@gmail.com
results can be found in book such as “Sticky Faith,” “Soul Searching,” “Generation X-Christian,” and “Almost Christian.” All of them conclude that there is no one answer for a teen’s exodus from the faith community. At the same time, the books cite similar reasons why some young adults walk away. 1. Shallow belief system In her book “Almost Christian,” Kenda Creasy Dean explains that many times, the Church offers nothing more than a “Moralistic Therapeutic Deism.” In short, we’ve taught teens that there is a disinterested divine power who wants to give them personal peace and prosperity and to help teens “be nice.” The result is a faith that cannot withstand the scrutiny of trials or intellectual questions. A robust faith is replaced by a code of conduct-we “do” these things (read our Bibles, pray, and go to church) and “don’t” do those (watch wrong movies, cuss, drink or have sex). Conduct replaces relationship with Christ. 2. No room for doubt Those who leave the faith sometimes do so because they had questions and the church didn't help answer them. In some cases, their questions were ignored. In others, doubt was considered a sin to be squelched quickly. Their questions varied from “Why do bad things happen to good people?” (intellectual doubt) to “If God cared about me, then I wouldn’t feel so (depressed, sad, lonely, etc.)” (emotional doubt) to “Why do Christians not believe in evolution?” “Why does the Bible contradict itself?” to “Why didn’t God answer my prayer for my parents not to divorce?” (experiential doubt). These are the types of questions the intellectual doubter needs to answer. Unfortunately, many times they either get poor answers from Christians or bad answers (which can sound convincing) from outside the Christian faith. 3. Exclusive faith Scripture makes no apologies for the centrality of Christ. Those who turn to Christ in faith are saved. Those who do not are condemned to hell. In a culture that lauds tolerance, acceptance, and openmindedness, claiming Christ as the only Way (John 14:6) is a hard truth to swallow. Unfortunately, many well-meaning believers twist this truth into a club to verbally (and physically) bash those with viewpoints different than theirs. Unfortunately, Christianity is often equated with bigotry, racism, homophobia, and sexism. Today’s generation wants nothing to do with that brand of faith. 4. No answers for opposition SEPTEMBER 2012 w THE CHRISTIAN MESSENGER 19
THINK ABOUT IT
Don’t believe the one who says numbers don't matter to God. They do! The numbers that matter to Him: ONE sinner: “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (Luke 15:10) TWO in agreement: “Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 18:19) TWO or THREE: “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:20) TWO or THREE: “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.” (2 Corinthians 13:1) THREE gates each in every direction in the Holy City: “There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west.” (Revelation 21:13) FOUR: Indicates completeness. There were four rivers in Paradise (Genesis 2:10); the four winds of heaven (Ezekiel 37:9; Daniel 8:8; Daniel 11:4); four corners of the earth (Isaiah 11:12; Revelation 20:8) FIVE: Five loaves of bread fed five thousand people (Mark 8:19); the man who received five talents gained five more and was commended by the master (Matthew 25:16).
Psalms 71:15 My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness [and] thy salvation all the day; for I know not the numbers [thereof].
,g;NghJ tpw;gidapy;!
Mz;L / MAs; re;jh nrYj;jp ,e;j khj ,jiog; ngw;Wf;nfhs;Sq;fs;.
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