To spread His glory…"Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, Who alone works wonders. And blessed be His glorious name forever; And may the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen, and Amen." (Ps. 72:18-19)
We finally made it to Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh and began our training conference. Three days of travel make for interesting teaching (tired and dizzy!) but overall things are going well. We found a good place to sleep, the training center was prepared for us, and the men and women had all arrived safely. Many of them had to travel for 16 hours or more to attend and they are very hungry for the Word.
I shared my testimony and heard from many of the guys. They are working hard to spread
One of the groups attending our training conference
the good news of Jesus Christ all over the country. It is difficult work with much persecution but they have a heart for God and a concern for their people that drives them to continue. I also taught the background and introduction to Luke. It was fun to show where Luke is in the story of the Bible and what it contributes to the biography of Jesus’ life and ministry. I also shared how we received the gospel of Luke and this seemed to encourage the guys as they battle the reliability of the NT Texts.
I have been in this part of the world several times and always been able to avoid one of the cultural practices that I find difficult…eating rice and dal with your fingers. Today my avoidance ran out! I was sitting with the guys in the courtyard and I couldn’t bring myself to ask for a spoon. I got out the hand sanitizer and dug in. The guys had a good time as they tried to teach me the proper technique, but overall it was OK. The food actually tastes the same and once you wash your hands its like it never happened, only I think it went along way in connecting with the men.
Our team is doing well but in need of energy. I actually feel pretty good and am teaching a shorter lesson tomorrow. Pray we continue to bond with the men and women, communicate truth with clarity, teach with energy, the translation is accurate, and the Holy Spirit is leading and empowering everything we do and say.
I am headed with a team from Kingsland Baptist Church to Bangladesh. As of this morning, Thursday, Feb. 2, I have made it 2/3rds of the way (we left Houston on Monday afternoon). We are toward the end of our 24 hour layover about to head to our finial destination, Cox Bazaar. I am writing this email from a hotel in Dhaka, Bangladesh, which is the capital city. For an idea of the environment, Bangladesh is the size of Arkansas with a population of 160 million, that is half the population of the entire USA in a country the size of Arkansas. On top of that, although progress is being made, it is one of the poorest developing countries on the planet. Even worse, the religious climate to very dark and you can feel it as you walk the streets. The light of Christ is very dim here.
Our purpose is to show and share that Light through the training and encouragement of national believers who have been chosen to come to this conference. We will lead a three-day training through the gospel of Luke along with leadership and discipleship equipping. These men and women were chosen because they show great faithfulness to Christ and the potential to train others. We hope they begin to spread house churches all over the county and extend the glory of God throughout Bangladesh.
If you could pray for our mission I would enjoy the support!
12 So I turned to consider wisdom, madness and folly; for what will the man do who will come after the king except what has already been done? 13 And I saw that wisdom excels folly as light excels darkness. 14 The wise man’s eyes are in his head, but the fool walks in darkness. And yet I know that one fate befalls them both. 15 Then I said to myself, “As is the fate of the fool, it will also befall me. Why then have I been extremely wise?” So I said to myself, “This too is vanity.” 16 For there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man as with the fool, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And how the wise man and the fool alike die! 17 So I hated life, for the work which had been done under the sun was grievous to me; because everything is futility and striving after wind.
Solomon feels like there is nothing he can add to this world, that everything has already been done. He knows that wisdom is better than foolishness yet he is distressed because both lives end in death. Even further, after death he will be forgotten, just like the man who lived foolish.
Where is Solomon off here?
Does God have a specific work He wants to do through you?
Yes. Eph. 2:10 states, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” God has a unique purpose He desires to accomplish through you. (cf. John 17:4; 1 Co. 12:7-11)
Do the believer and the unbeliever experience the same death?
No. Believers live and die credited with righteousness and are promised to be raised unto eternal life. Our lives do not end in death and death actually gives meaning to our lives. As General Maximus from the movie Braveheart proclaimed, “What we do in life, echoes in eternity.” (cf. Gen. 15:6; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 1 Co. 15:12-19)
Should we hate life because we might be forgotten?
No. Our lives are not about our fame but about God, His story, and His fame. Our purpose is to make Him more famous (Acts 1:8).
Our lives have meaning as they build the kingdom and impact others to do the same. This is our legacy, not for us to be famous and remembered but for God to be famous and remembered by our lives.
Living for personal fame is vanity. Living for the glory of God is LIFE.
Most Bible translations, including the NIV and ESV, do not have the end of Matthew 6:13 in the flow of the Text, which reads, “For Yours is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” However, they do place it as a footnote. Most people are not aware that there are small discrepancies like this in a few places in the Bible.
Let me say from the beginning, this in no way undermines the authority of the Bible you have in your hand. It is absolutely trustworthy in all things.
The reality is we do not have the original documents written by the biblical authors. Our Bibles are dependant of copies of the originals written down by scribes throughout the centuries. Scholars who study Textual Criticism have put together two main compilations of NT manuscripts, Majority Text and the Critical Text.
Majority Text- emphasizes the number of copies and the consistency between them. We have such a high volume with amazing consistency that we get an accurate picture of the original writings. However, to have a great number many of them also have a late date.
Critical Text- emphasizes the early date of the manuscripts. So even though they have a smaller number of copies they value the early date.
The issue is that the end of Matthew 6:13 is not found in any of the early manuscripts but it does show up in a large number of later manuscripts.
The reason we are so familiar with it is because the KJV is based on the Majority Text and this was the popular translation in our American religious history.
Today most NT scholars hold to the critical text and believe the early manuscripts are most reliable. This is what the NASB, ESV, NIV and other popular translations are based on.
We do see the harmony and respect between the two camps as all Bible translations make note of this ending. I like the way the NASB handles it. They have it in the flow of the text in brackets with a footnote. So you kind of get both.
How did this verse get here if it’s not original?
Most likely a scribe who read from his manuscript in the early church wrote in the margin this ending doxology, which the church would proclaim after reading the Lord’s Prayer. As this manuscript was copied it became part of the flow of the prayer.
However, most scholars believe this is a biblical doxology is taken from a very reliable passage of Scripture, 1 Chronicles 29:11.
Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory…this is almost word for word, and it goes on to state… and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth, Yours in the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all.
As you study the Lord’s Prayer you will see that this is exactly what the Lord had in mind.
A few things to consider:
This kind of issue does not mean you need to question every verse in your Bible. That is malicious and unwarranted reaction.
This actually strengthens the credibility of your Bible. This is an authentic and honest evaluation of the inspired Word.
Anything that is questionable is marked in your Bible. There is 98.5% agreement with the over 5,000 early and later Greek manuscripts. We can be confident that the Bible in your hand is 98.5% exactly what the authors originally wrote. This is impossible, screams divine endurance and there is no other ancient document with this kind of consistency.
The 1.5% we are unsure of are finite issues such as spelling of a word, endings and tenses of words, word order in a sentence, and little things like this. When we have phrases like this one we can usually find it almost word for word in another portion of Scripture. Even when we have several verses there are none that overturn any doctrine of belief taught in the rest of the Bible. This is not a doctrinal issue, it’s not even an inspiration issue; it is simply our best effort to get everything exact.
You can be certain that your Bible is 100% true. The Bible you read from is 100% without a doubt trustworthy and reliable.
You have the best copy of the exact inspired Word of God in your hand and this little issue does not change that.
My last post was the list of verses I used in a recent sermon when I filled in for our senior pastor. Here is a clip where I preach those verses. Hope you’re encouraged!
I recently preached a sermon and at the end listed 38 Bible verses that begin to describe what it means to be in Christ (there are many more throughout scripture). In the sermon I only mentioned the book and chapter with the truth they teach, I have included the verse reference here but hope you will take the time read the context and better grasp each truth. I hope to post this video clip from the sermon soon.
What it means to be “in Christ”
Do you realize that the moment we step in to Christ we are not longer the same person but have been born again into a new life as a new person?
So many things radically change at the moment of salvation…
Eph. 2:1-5 – once dead but now have been made alive
Titus 3:5 – washed and regenerated by the Holy Spirit
John 14:17 – Spirit of Christ in with you and in you
Eph. 5:18 – as you yield to the Spirit you are filled with the Spirit
Ro. 6:4 – baptized in the death and resurrection of Christ
1 Co. 6:11 – positionally sanctified in Christ
2 Co. 5:18 – reconciled to God
2 Co. 5:21 – imputed with the righteousness of Christ
2 Co. 5:17 – new creation, old things have passed away, and behold, all things have become new.
You are not the same person!
I haven’t mentioned some the basics yet.
Col. 2:13 – forgiven of all your sins
John 3:16 – born again
John 6:47 – given eternal life
John 17:3 – experiential relationship with the Father
Eph. 2:10 – His workmanship created in Christ for His purposes
You are now part of the out working of the eternal plans of God in the world!
And then there is the book of Romans
Ro. 3:24 – justified before God
Ro. 4:5 – credited with righteousness
Ro. 5:1 – at peace with God
Ro. 6:11 – dead to sin and alive in Christ
Ro 7:6 – set free from the bondage of the Law
Ro. 8:15 – adopted into His family
Ro. 8:35-39 – nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus
I wish we had time to go through everything because there is more…
1 Pt. 2:9-10 – become acceptable to God
Eph. 2:13 – brought near to Him
Ro. 5:9 – the object of His “much more” care and love
2 Co. 4:3-4 – delivered from the power of darkness
Col. 1:13 – translated into the Kingdom of His Son
Matt. 7:24-27 – we have been placed on the solid rock of Jesus Christ
1 Co. 12 – Fellowship of the saints, placed in the body of Christ, and uniquely gifted to edify others for His glory
2 Co. 5:20 – ambassador and representative of Christ in the world
John 17:6 – You are now a gift from God the Father to His Son Jesus Christ
You are a gift!
And all of these things are forever secure for us…
Eph. 2:8-9 – salvation is the gift of God to us
Ro. 11:29 – the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable
Listen…
John 10:27-30 – placed in the hand of the Father and no one can snatch us out
John 6:37-39 – Jesus is standing guard making sure none get lost
Eph. 1:13-14 – sealed by the Holy Spirit which is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the day of redemption
The Trinity is a work keeping you secure in Christ!
1 Pt. 1:3-5 – recipients of an inheritance that is imperishable and will never spoil or fade, reserved in heaven for us
Phil. 3:20 – this is where our permanent citizenship is, we are citizens of heaven
Ro 8:1 – no condemnation for those of us who are in Christ Jesus…you have escaped the condemnation of God and you should allow others to experience this escape…especially within the body of Christ. Even further, you should recognize this is true for you and not submit to the condemnation of others.
I wish we had time to go through everything. I have not even mentioned Ephesians chapter 1 or spent time in Romans 8…but I pray that you will.
Go and live out in your practice what is true for you in position.
My Prayer (really it’s Paul’s in Ephesians 1:18-21)
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
I recently went to Bangladesh with a small team from my church, Kingsland Baptist Church, where I serve on the Adult Discipleship team as pastor to college and singles. A significant part of our trip was meeting with about 30 national evangelist and missionaries to encourage and train them. We walked section-by-section through the gospel of Luke. Afterwards we gave them resources and challenged them to share and train others through the gospel of Luke as well (to read more about this trip see our missions blog).
In the first three weeks I have received reports that they have shared with over 100 people, individually and through small groups. However, this effort has not been without persecution. Here is the latest report I just received from our national missionary there (5.9.11). The English is a little broken but you should be able to follow his message.
This group has been lead by Zia’s people (a pastor who attended our training). As I understood that, it was inspired through what you taught because this happening after your training. So that, we realized that, it is an affection of Luke teaching!
I went south of Bangladesh to see my parents, and some other friends. A critical thing has happened to south part of Bangladesh with one of our evangelist. He wasn’t attended our (your) Luke seminar (but was trained by a pastor who did, Zia), he is very close friend of my brother (Joe). Bad people caught him, as he was witness to the village. They insulted him a lot and he was beaten up a lot. They (terrorists) shaved his head and hanged shoes on his neck. Those kinds treating is really bad. He is in the right hospital right now, in town, with Joe (my bro).
Thanks for all kinds of supports and prayers.
These men are truly living for the Great Commission and God is doing a significant work in a dark place where most people are Muslims. Will you join with me in praying for our brothers and sisters living as evangelist and missionaries in their home country of Bangladesh? They are under much persecution but God is advancing His glory, rule, and presence in that country.
To see a short video of your trip click this link: Bangladesh 2011
UPDATE, 5.10.11:
Received this email from our national missionary.
Update of the man who has been persecuted – he is at my brother’s home, at divisional town. released from the hospital. Emotionally he is not OK, as he was insulted badly. his other relatives are still in trouble. they are in the village. Fundamentalist people told the villagers, ‘no one else associate with them’. so that, they could not work, and make living stuffs for them selves!
I wrote a short devotion for our college newsletter and thought I would share it here as well. (If interested, entire newsletter is at www.kingsland.org/college -click on May)
Praising God in all Circumstances
I chose Psalm 113 for this devotion because it is a psalm of descriptive praise. It helps us to realize that we are not called to praise God simply because of our circumstance, but in spite of our circumstance we are always able to give praise to God.
Psalm 113 describes three of my favorite things:
We are called to praise God
Praise celebrates God because He is beyond compare
We are given two illustrations of God’s grace
We are called to praise God. Read Psalm 113 verses 1-3
Verse one states, “Praise the Lord!” This is an imperative, meaning it is a command we are to obey.
Who offers praise? God’s servants
What is to be praised? His name. The name of God represents who He is. No matter our circumstance we can always praise God for who He is.
When is His name to be praised? From this time forth…right now!
How long is He is be praised? Forever
Where are we to praise God? From the place where the sun rises all the way to the place where it sets. We are to praise God wherever we are and in all places.
Can you think of a time or place where it is difficult to praise God? Focus on who He is and continue to praise Him!
We praise God because He is beyond compare.Read Psalm 113 verses 4-6
In these verses the psalmist gives us three reasons why God is to be praised the way He commanded in verses 1-3. Because of His position, His person, and His passion.
Vs. 4 – In position He is over all the nations…He is even over heaven! There is nothing in all existence that has a higher position than God.
Vs. 5 – In His person there is no one who can even be compared to Him. He is enthroned as the king of all creation – yet…
Vs. 6 – In His passion He humbles Himself seeking His servants to engage with on earth. He did this most clearly in the sending of His Son Jesus Christ who offers eternal life to anyone who believes is Him for it.
Life can sometimes make it difficult to praise God. No matter what our circumstance remember that we can praise God because of His position, His person, and His passion.
We praise God because of His grace.Read verses 7-9
Vs. 7-8 – This is literal at times but spiritually God lifts the poor and needy out from under the heap of sin and positionally places us with his righteous saints.
Vs. 9 – The barren woman having children is also literal at times but spiritually this pictures the joy of our salvation.
As believers in Christ we now have what we once did not: Salvation and Joy!
God’s grace is greater than our sin and greater than our need. No matter the time, no matter the place, no matter the circumstance…wether difficult, hurtful, tiring, or discouraging we can always look to God’s position, person, passion, and grace and have reason to praise Him.
I went with the singles from www.kingsland.org to run a 3-mile adventure race in Bastrop, TX. You can check it out more information at www.warriordash.com. This was a great day with the singles but also for our family. Holly and Julia went and we all had a great time of fellowship as we created unique experiences together. I learned an important lesson…never bank on past endurance and strength, we are only as strong today as we have prepared for today. Needless to say, I was hurting but am now re-motivated to get in shape and stay there!
We are excited to post our first newsletter (link below). We hope you will take a few minutes to read the devotion, see the pictures, hear from other students (this month is Joe Work), get a college quick tip, read an encouraging not from Mr. Royce, and get advice on how to navigate college as a Christian.
If you know other college students or parents who would like to receive this newsletter, please let us know. You can leave a comment or email me at bstone@kingsland.org.
