MidnightCall Magazine
.jpg)
News From Israel MagazineIndia
“Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:12).
The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is called the Good News. In general, it is very positive, after all, who wouldn’t want to go to heaven or
want his or her life to change for the better? Many souls throughout the centuries who have experienced Ephesians 1:13 can testify that their life had changed but the change had not always been for the better. In Paul’s case, his life changed from good to bad. Apparently Paul was a well respected man, a learned Pharisee. He testified that he was blameless when it came to keeping the law. He was so eager
to protect the law that he became a persecutor of the Jewish believers in Christ Jesus. But now read his testimony: “Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me” (2 Timothy 3:11). Let’s also read 2 Corinthians 11:24-28: “Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in
perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.” Talk about persecution, suffering, and being much worse off than before his rebirth! He went from having a good life, from being a respected law abiding citizen to one who was mistreated, punished and persecuted, yet he makes this prophetic statement: “All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”
It is wrong to assume that the persecution Paul suffered should likewise come upon each of us. That is not the case because Scripture specifically says those who “will live godly in Christ Jesus.” Thus, this type of persecution is not due to our wrong doing but to our doing right “in Christ Jesus.” Therefore, do not confuse general difficulties, tribulation, disappointment and loss with genuine persecution in Christ Jesus.
One thing becomes clear each day: our time on earth is limited. We have no future on this earth, and only our time invested in the will of Christ our Lord will bring forth fruit for eternity.
We have deliberately abstained from giving examples regarding persecution and suffering because we have found that much of the reports we hear and read, even in the Christian media, are vastly exaggerated. With this in mind, let us read the report of our missionary John Ishmael who serves our Lord in his country of India.
India
John Ishmael
Dear Prayer Partner,
Greetings to you in the name of our soon coming Lord Thank you for faithfully reading our monthly prayer letter and praying for the prayer points mentioned therein. Apart from the ministry accomplished during the month, I wish to share with you a special prayer concern that is on my heart.
In my past e-mails I shared with you several instances where the Christian meetings and crusades were cancelled because the foreigners were the resource leaders or the preachers. The Hindu organizations forcefully closed these meetings because these foreign preachers had
tourist visas, which do not legally permit them to preach. In some cases these foreigners were arrested and imprisoned because of the violation of the visa rules. These actions have closed the doors for foreigners to preach freely in public in India.
It has not only become difficult for foreigners to preach in India, but even the Indian evangelists and missionaries are being targeted. Some organizations appointed full time Hindu missionaries to safeguard Hinduism. The duty of these missionaries is to visit rural India and camp there for a month to identify Christians and missionaries and then threaten them with dire consequences if they continue in their faith or preach the Gospel. They even warned them that the shopkeepers will be instructed not to sell anything to them if they continue in their Christian activities. In some cases, Christians were forcibly taken to the temples and were commanded to bow to the idols. They were beaten badly when they refused to do so. At the end of the month a huge rally is conducted in which the Christians are targeted and attacked because of their conversion activities. After a month of their stay and before they move to the next town, the follow-up is handed over to the local police.
As a result of this activity, the local police summoned one of our missionaries to the police station and strictly warned him to limit his Christian activities within the four walls of the church building and not beyond. The villagers were instructed by the police to report to them if he visits the villages, either to conduct prayer meetings in a house or to preach outdoors. This happened in our state of Karnataka while
the freedom still exists in the neighboring state of Andhra Pradesh. Please pray that the Lord will take control of this situation so that His will is fulfilled in this matter.
Conference in Philippines: I had the opportunity to minister in a pastor’s conference on Bible prophecy in the Philippines. The conference was held in Luzon in northern Philippines. More than 150 pastors and leaders attended the conference. Brother Dennis taught in three sessions each day, while I taught in one session. It was a great blessing for me to minister to these pastors who have great hunger for the endtime messages. The pastors shared the blessings they received through their teachings. It was the first time an Indian visited them to minister God’s Word. I praise God for the wonderful opportunity He has given to me to minister in this Asian country. I express my heartfelt thanks to Spirit of Grace Ministries for the privilege given to me to teach in the conference and to sponsor the trip.
Weekend Ministry: After the conference in Luzon, I traveled to Mindanao the southern part of the country, for a weekend ministry. The Lord blessed the ministry on the subject of the endtimes. The local pastors were blessed with the ministry and felt that all the pastors in the region should have the privilege of hearing these messages. The president of the local pastor’s fellowship called all the members of the pastors fellowship together from various denominations and organized a few teaching sessions to the members present. I had the privilege of ministering to the pastors in a small town called Kitacharao for two days. Most of the pastors testified while there has been a lot of confusion in Philippines on this subject, they were blessed with the teachings as they were crystal clear and biblically sound. The pastors expressed their desire for me to return for a conference to allow other pastors to receive the teachings. Please pray that the Lord will open doors for me for a greater ministry in this beautiful land.
I deeply appreciate all those who write encouraging notes to me. Thank you for your prayers. Please continue to uphold our ministry in your prayers, especially the status of our missionary work, which is going through a real crisis. I close for now and look forward to hearing from you sometime.
Sincerely in Him,
John Ishmael