Helen SheridanAdam Tomalin

J U LY 2 0 1 6

C R O S S L I N K S

G O D ’ S W O R D T O G O D ’ S W O R L D

Lucy BuchananAlicia BurgessJonny Burgess

W I T H C O N T R I B U T I O N SF R O M

GOD’S WORDS

Pastor Devender Ida Glaser

‘ I N T H I S I S L O V E , N O T T H A T W E L O V E D G O D B U T T H A T H E L O V E D U S … ’ 1 J O H N 4 : 1 0

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Published byCrosslinks 251 Lewisham Way, London SE4 1XF

Tel 020 8691 6111Fax 020 8694 8023Prayerline 020 8692 5321www.crosslinks.org

Mission DirectorAndy Lines alines@crosslinks.orgOperations DirectorGiles Rawlinson grawlinson@crosslinks.orgBritish and overseas circulationppt@crosslinks.orgIreland circulationIreland@crosslinks.org

Crosslinks works with over a thousand churches in Britain and Ireland. Founded in 1922 as BCMS (TheBible Churchmen’s Missionary Society), Crosslinks isan evangelical mission agency facilitating partnerships largely within the Anglican Communion. In fellowship with churches in Africa, Asia, Europe, South America, Canada and Australia, it provides personnel, sponsorship for theological students and support for local mission wherever it happens.

Crosslinks policy is to use all funds received for the purpose to which they are designated. Crosslinks retains the right to use any surplus funds at the end of deployment or at the end of a project, at its discretion for gospel purposes.

Registered Charity No. 1164474Registered Company No. 00193144

The best of friends

The 19th century writer and philosopher Elbert Hubbard wrote, ‘A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.’ Doesn’t that just about sum up God’s rela-tionship with us?

Well, not quite. It would be better to say that if Hubbard’s friend were God then he knows all about you and still loves you AND has done something to make that friend-ship complete. He gave the gift of the Lord Jesus through whom we are made perfect in God’s sight (to paraphrase Hebrews 10:14).

But back to ‘God’s words’, the theme of this magazine. Google ‘love’ and you get a very wide variety of results, some more wholesome than others, which reflects our complex and often misleading understanding of what love can be. Thank God, then, that he has shown his clearly defined, unchanging and perfect love for us by the one gift of Jesus.

‘For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.’ Hebrews 10:14

Mark Gillespie Communications Manager

COMMENT

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God’s words: LOVE Alan PurserUnconditional and sacrificial love Pastor Devender

God’s love in difficult times Lucy BuchananLove is not optional Ida Glaser

Sharing the love Helen SheridanTransformed by Christ’s love Alicia Burgess

Servants of the Word Jonny BurgessAll you need is love Adam Tomalin

The last word Andy LinesCrosslinks diary and prayer meetings

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The Apostle John wrote, ‘In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.’ (1 John 4:10-11).

Love is the controlling theme of John’s letters and, according to theologian and historian Jerome, the primary focus of his preaching and teaching. In extreme old age, the Apostle would often say ‘Little children, love one another... because it is the Lord’s command, and if this only is done, it is enough.’

There are four different words translated as ‘love’ in our New Testament. CS Lewis explored this in his famous book ‘The four loves’. In 1 John 4:10-11 the Apostle employs the Greek word ‘agape’, signifying ‘other-person centred love’. This kind of love is notably uncharacteristic of the human heart, but it is intrinsic to the character of God. ‘God is love’ writes John (1 John 4:8), and the mark of his love is the sending of his one and only Son into the world, ‘not to condemn but to save’ (John 3:17), giving his life as a sacrificial offering* for our sins.

John urges his ‘beloved’ readers to imitate God’s example and to love as he has loved them. Such love is a remarkable thing, as unexpected as it is undeserved. To love like that will inevitably be a costly thing, requiring self-sacrifice on our part, as we walk in the footsteps of Christ. Yet John makes it clear that it is also an obligatory thing – ‘we also ought...’ to put others’ interests before our own: both for fellow believers (that they might go on believing) and for unbelievers (that they might believe).

To love as he loved us is to focus our energies on the needs of others, and to calibrate those needs from a divine perspective, so that as many as possible might not perish, but have eternal life.

* NB the word ‘propitiation’ defines Jesus’ saving work on the cross as acting primarily in a Godward direction i.e. satisfying his just wrath against sin. The outcome is ‘the taking away of the sin of the world’ (John 1:29), as a result of God’s wrath being propitiated, rather than as a consequence of sins being expiated.

Alan Purser is Partnership and Promotion Team Leader

GOD’S WORDSA L A N P U R S E R

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The church in North India has grown rapidly - over one million people have turned to Christ in the last decade. Consequently, thousands of small house-churches have formed, each led by an independent but often untrained pastor. North India Bible Training (NIBT) is a programme that trains leaders for these churches, to study, apply and teach God’s word effectively, so that they can train others. NIBT’s small number of Hindi-speaking trainers run around 30 regional workshops and conferences throughout the region with up to 90 participants in each.

Here, Pastor Devender (Director of NIBT since March 2015) shares how NIBT is impacting this large region with God’s unconditional and sacrificial love.

‘GOD SENT HIS ONLY SON INTO THE WORLD, SO THAT WE MIGHT LIVE THROUGH HIM. IN THIS IS LOVE, NOT THAT WE HAVE LOVED GOD BUT THAT HE LOVED US AND SENT HIS SON TO BE THE

PROPITIATION FOR OUR SINS.’ 1 JOHN 4:9-10

In India, almost all religions are conditions-based and are demanding, rather than giving. In stark contrast, the message of generosity in 1 John 4 is profound: we can’t even fathom the depth of God’s love for us. The God of the Bible’s unconditional, sacrificial love for his children, therefore, particularly attracts people to him here in India. In our context, when we teach and show them this kind of unconditional and sacrificial love, people are impressed and are eager to know more.

North India Bible Training’s team of teachers is committed to visiting many remote villages, often both economically and gospel-poor, to teach pastors God’s word, train them to be effective gospel workers, and show them God’s love. Our slogan is ‘The Word of God: Study it! Live it! Teach it!’ We believe that to win people for Christ we need to both teach the gospel and live it out in our lives: when we visit villages, we are not there just as teachers but as brothers in Christ to share ourselves and our resources with them.

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‘...IF GOD SO LOVED US, WE ALSO OUGHT TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER.’ 1 JOHN 4:11

Pastors and evangelists in these types of villages have little resources in terms of study materials and money; they cannot go to bible colleges to learn, neither can they afford to invite teachers to their village to instruct them. As we remember God’s grace to us, then we too are motivated to godly generosity. When we spend our own money and time to go to them, they are encouraged and learn about God’s unconditional, sacrificial love for themselves. Consequently, these pastors become a channel of his love to others in their own community.

One village pastor, Bhanwar Lal from Rajasthan, said in a NIBT workshop that ‘No one in our family and our region has shown us this type of love. But you come all the way from Delhi (an 18-hour journey), spending your money and time to teach us and show us how to live a godly lives.’ In our experience, although many people can give without loving, we cannot love without giving.

Once, we were going to visit a state which had faced severe persecution of believers by some groups: Churches were burnt down, several pastors were killed and Christians’ houses were looted and set on fire. I announced to my church that NIBT was going there to encourage them, pray for them and help them financially. I was deeply moved when I saw the generous heart of an elderly lady from our church, who is very poor and has no family, because her son was murdered and her husband had left her because of her faith. She doesn’t even have a house to live in. She brought a small earthen piggy-bank containing some coins, which she had saved for many weeks, and gave all she had for these persecuted people, to show her love towards them.

NIBT is a new Crosslinks Project seeking partnerships. If you would like to find out more about how to support NIBT financially or in prayer then please contact ppt@crosslinks.org or see www.crosslinks.org/projects/north-india-bible-training

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GOD’S WORDS

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On Saturday, 17 October 2015 our family were enjoying lunch together in the afternoon sunshine when four men broke open our front gate, walked through our lovely house and came out to where we were. Our initial thoughts were uncomprehending; had we invited some members of our church for lunch and left the gate open? We quickly got past the social embarrassment when we realised that they were brandishing weapons in the form of various rusty garden tools. We were actually being robbed!

The next few minutes felt like a blur but God enabled us to stay calm throughout. In many ways we were less nervous than the robbers and could take some control of the situation. Slowly and calmly we stood up from the dinner table and gathered our four children, asking the robbers if we could take them out of the way somewhere. They agreed and I took the children to James’ study, where we sat throughout with a ‘guard’ who was mercifully kind. In fact, when he saw James’ tablet on the desk and I explained that James was a pastor and had his next sermon saved on it – he put it down and let us keep it!

Two other men took James so he could show them where we kept our valuables. They were very upset that we didn’t have a safe and attempted to lock James in the bathroom and make me show them where it was, which would have

made the situation a lot scarier. Again, we were miraculously fortunate in that they chose pretty much the only room in the house which doesn’t have a key and where it is exceptionally difficult even to close the door properly! That meant the robbers just took James back to the room where we were waiting and then left. The whole episode was over within 10 minutes and throughout the whole thing we all felt supernaturally protected. We even joked with the children about what they might take (thankfully not the treasured plastic ‘Elsa’ crown from the front of a magazine!) and the children, all aged between two and eight, remained very calm.

James and Lucy Buchanan have been in Johannesburg since 2013, where James is senior minister at Hope Church Auckland Park. Here, Lucy recounts a

frightening incident which underlined for them God’s sovereign power.

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We give great thanks to God when we reflect on how much, much worse it could have been. No-one was harmed, hurt or really even threatened; none of the children’s things were taken, plus we were insured. The robbers weren’t masked and they didn’t tie us up or have guns.

Our close neighbours and their big dog had been completely unaware so hadn’t been involved, and we hadn’t called our armed guards response team or set off the house alarm – which may have scared the robbers and made the situation more dangerous. But even more than that, our sense of peace had helped to not escalate the situation and we really never felt under any threat. In fact, we realised afterwards, we felt more protected than threatened. How remarkable to be reminded about the things that really matter and those that really don’t!

It has been a good opportunity to talk with our children about the very real truths that Mummy and Daddy cannot protect them from bad things happening, but that we serve a loving and sovereign and powerful God. He may not stop bad things from happening but nothing can separate us from his love and care. When asked about how we felt about moving to Johannesburg, I had often answered that we were trusting God with the safety of our children but it may feel different if something actually happened to them or us. Now that something has happened, albeit nothing too serious, we still feel very much at peace and still in the right place: serving the church in South Africa by pastoring a church at the heart of the student scene in Johannesburg.

And we have a renewed confidence that even if something worse were to happen, we can trust God with our own lives and those of our precious children. ‘He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?’ (Romans 8:32).

CYou can find out more about James and Lucy Buchanan at www.crosslinks.org/mission-partners/james-and-lucy-buchanan

GOD’S WORDS

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Even more vividly, I remember opening up the book of Jonah for my study group the previous day. Our small group of Muslims and Christians had been deeply moved as we read of God’s concern for Nineveh, capital of the area that is today’s Iraq. In Jonah’s time, Nineveh headed a powerful imperial nation and was Israel’s greatest enemy. God did not send an army to conquer Nineveh, but a prophet to call her to repentance. At the end of the book, in response to Jonah’s complaint about his lack of shade, God asks, ‘Should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left?’ (Jonah 4:11).

The ancient Nineveh is the modern Mosul. Christians living there have for centuries kept an annual fast in memory of the repentance of their ancestors at the time of Jonah, and there has long been a shrine to him which has been a centre for prayer for Muslims as well as for Christians. Today, that shrine is no more – it was destroyed by the militant group that calls itself ‘The Islamic State’. I do not know how many Christians, and how many Shi’ite and Sufi Muslims judged by ‘The Islamic State’ also to be infidels, have been killed and put to flight in recent months. I do not know exactly what is motivating the current terrible violence – history, politics, religion, personal anger and despair. And I have no idea what could put a stop to it all. But I can hear God’s voice to all who would prefer sending armies to calling people to repentance, ‘Should not I pity that great city…?’

This is an edited extract from the closing section of Ida Glaser’s book ‘Thinking biblically about Islam’. ISBN: 9781783689125 Langham Global Library.

Ida Glaser is director of the Centre for Muslim-Christian Studies, an independent Christian study centre seeking the transformation of Muslim-Christian relationships through shared academic study. It does this by following the example of Jesus Christ, and by equipping leaders, resourcing scholars and developing biblically-based thinking at the Muslim-Christian interface.

Love towards Muslims, like love towards any other human beings, is not optional. It is commanded. We are not to keep this command reluctantly, but from our hearts. Love has already been explained in Romans 12:9–13. It has to be genuine, hopeful, patient and driven by the fire of the Spirit. What does love look like? It looks like Jesus, who loved us and gave himself for us, even when we were his enemies (1 John 3:16; 4:10; Rom 5:6–8). And how can we even begin to love with that love? Only as we are transformed through him.

The key to this kind of living is Jesus’ own exhortation to his disciples to take up the cross daily (Luke 9:23). Jesus suffered as he bore all our guilt and shame by carrying the cross to death at Calvary. We, as disciples, follow. We ‘carry the cross’ as we are prepared to give up everything, even our lives, for Jesus and for the people to whom he calls us. We ‘carry the cross’ in a different way when we explain its meaning to Muslims as witnesses to our crucified and risen Lord.

The cross is at the centre of biblical history and of Jesus’ thinking, but it is almost universally denied by Muslims. A focus on the cross should therefore take us not only to the centre of what it means to think biblically about Islam, but also to the heart of how Christian thought and action should be different from Islamic thought and action. Thinking biblically about Islam is a complex and multifaceted task; however, the ultimate test of our thinking is simple: does it reflect the cross of Christ?

I was in Qatar at a conference of Christian and Muslim scholars on 9 April 2003, when the allied troops toppled the statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad. I remember vividly the shock of the Muslims present as they took in the fact that the ancient centre of the Islamic empire had fallen to non-Muslims: it was as if the Vatican had been taken over by Saudi Arabians. It was not that they had any admiration for Saddam Hussein: they knew that he was a tyrant, and that his rule violated their Islamic principles. It was the loss of a symbol of their people and of their faith that was so difficult.

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84% of the Irish population are registered as Roman Catholic, which is strongly reflected in the national identity. I grew up in a large Roman Catholic family in Liverpool. My Irish parents were conscientious in raising me in the faith with devoted church attendance and Catholic schooling. Holy days of obligation were carefully observed and I was familiar with phrases like ‘Offer it up to the holy souls in purgatory.’ This reinforced the idea that entry to heaven was dependant on good and religious works, with a term in purgatory paying off any sins that hadn’t been cancelled out. There was never any confidence about where one stood before God. That God is Father, Son and Spirit was a given; that Jesus is God incarnate - fully accepted. The love of God shown in giving his Son to avert judgement, bringing forgiveness and the rights of adoption was never understood.

In his kindness, God gave me a Christian friend and then a church who patiently opened up the Scriptures with me until I was humbled in repentance. Now I find there is nothing I enjoy more than to meet people with a shared common background of knowing something about Jesus but not understanding how his death secured God’s love for sinners. Some want to know more and there’s opportunity to read the Bible with them – ‘The Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.’ (2 Tim3:15).

This is the prayerful labour of Calvary Church Westport. As I join with them in making disciples for Jesus I hope that my cultural heritage and Catholic background will help me to connect with many others there.

Helen is currently looking for partners to share in her work through prayer and giving. You can find outmore about what Helen is planning to do at www.crosslinks.org/mission-partners/helen-sheridan

Helen Sheridan has been the Women’s Worker at Grace Church, Dulwich. This

autumn she hopes to move to the Atlantic coast of Ireland to join Calvary Church,

Westport and serve the Lord Jesus as he builds his church there.

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It may seem strange to deploy a missionary to a nearby European community that has a high church attendance and where most households own a bible. But it is absolutely necessary if those bibles are to be more readily opened and God’s word heard and explained.

‘ 1 0 S E O É A N G R Á - N Í G U R T H U G A M A R N A G R Á D O D H I A A C H G U R T H U G S E I S E A N G R Á D Ú I N N E A G U S G U R S H E O L U A I D H A M H A C G O M B E A D H I N A Í O B A I R T S Á S A I M H A R Á R B P E A C A Í ’ . 1 E O I N 4 . 1 0

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You can find out more about Alicia at www.crosslinks.org/mission-partners/alicia-burgessC

In a nominally Christian, Greek-Orthodox country where evangelical Christians are considered heretics, IFES Greece equips believing students to live and speak for Jesus at university. Perhaps the single greatest obstacle that we face is that many evangelical students don’t have meaningful relationships with their course mates. Often their churches and families encourage them not to make friends with non-believers at university.

Our job as IFES staff includes lots of persuading (from the Bible) that God calls us to share our life and the gospel with those who don’t know him. Christ’s love for the lost led him to drink the cup of God’s wrath so that sinners might gain eternal life. Therefore those who are in Christ and have tasted this love are compelled to share it. How can we possibly keep this loving offer of eternal life to ourselves?

We strive to model an ‘evangelistic lifestyle’ to them, showing by example that having friendships with non-believers can be part of normal daily life. One example of this is a recent seekers’ bible study group. I invited a few of my non-believing friends and encouraged two of our keener Christian students to invite a couple of people from their course. We prayed lots, we invited, and the Lord graciously brought three seekers along!

Student work here can feel frustratingly slow, even ineffective. Yet I can testify to a handful of students who’ve grasped Christ’s love for the lost and have acted on it, even though it’s been scary. Nefeli was

a timid, gently-spoken believer when she started her degree. On an IFES conference she understood the importance of making friends at university but felt it would be

impossible for her. Even so, she started praying about it. Now in her fourth year, Nefeli is still gently-spoken but has a brilliant boldness when it comes to starting up gospel conversations. She has made several good friends, one of whom agreed to read Mark’s Gospel with her. She is known at university as a follower of Jesus and spends hours each week chatting to non-believers about him! She has been

transformed by Christ’s vast love.

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Alicia Burgess is based in Athens, where she works with the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) encouraging

Christian students to build meaningful friendships with non-believers.

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S E RVA N T SO FT H E

Servants of the Word (SOW) is the name of a bible school in The Gambia, West Africa. In worldly terms, it’s small and unimpressive, with rented classrooms and erratic attendance (there’s a core of around five students in each of the three year groups). Yet we believe this is an important contribution to the cause of the gospel – a vital need here.

The founder and director is Pastor Steven Musa-Kormayea, a Sierra Leonean man whose example of humble servant-leadership has deeply impressed me ever since I first met him in 2005. Last year I had the privilege of being invited to join him in teaching the students at SOW. Here’s what’s going on...

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OUR SITUATION A SMALL CHURCH LACKING LEADERSHIP

Islam dominates West Africa. The Gambia has just 1.8 million people, of whom 78,000 are reportedly Christians (about the same number as in my previous home town of Oxford, England). Of them the majority are nominal Roman Catholics, leaving just 13,000 ‘evangelicals’ - only 0.8% of the population. The majority of these is not Gambian and is in big foreign-led churches (e.g. Nigerian or Ghanaian) where the ‘prosperity gospel’ is rife and stirring rhetoric rules, rather than any clear expression of the gospel.

Christians in general are conscious of being a misunderstood and maligned minority. There’s occasional zeal and passion, but it’s against a backdrop of a rather defeatist and discouraged church. It doesn’t help that the vast majority of pastors are not Gambian (reinforcing suspicion about this ‘foreign’ Christianity), and few of the pastors have had formal training.

There is an urgent need for faithful and courageous gospel-driven leadership. This requires training pastors and potential pastors to be servant leaders who will ‘correctly handle the word of truth’ (2 Timothy 2:15). Especially needed are Gambians, who can most effectively reach their fellow people for the gospel in their religious and cultural context.

OUR VISION COMMUNITIES TRANSFORMED BY THE GOSPEL

As in much of the developing world, there is an overwhelming number of very great needs here (The Gambia ranks 168th of 182 in the UN’s Human Development index). But above all, the greatest need is for the forgiveness, peace, hope and love of God that come through faith in Christ Jesus. Then individuals, families and communities, despite their many challenges, can glorify God in all kinds of ways as they begin

to live and speak for Jesus. In the church, the gospel is often buried underneath mountains of confusion and lies. At SOW we are constantly seeking to help people understand and embrace the truth and, as preachers and pastors, to feed people with the good news of Jesus.

OUR FOCUS DISCIPLESHIP AND PREACHING

These are the two priorities that will lead to gospel fruit. It’s an often repeated observation that much of the African church is full of converts but not disciples. Well, it’s painfully true here in The Gambia. Believers are vulnerable to all kinds of deception, discouragement, confusion and fear, instead of living fruitful lives for Jesus. Colossians 2:6-7 is key for us: ‘Just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.’

Further, clear preaching of God’s word is essential for his people to grow and be transformed. Yet it is so rare to find preaching here that is faithful to the Bible’s message of God’s unfailing love, exalting Christ as the only and sufficient Saviour. Paul’s dying charge to Timothy is vital: ‘Preach the word!’ (2 Timothy 4:2). We long to see people understand and cherish the unique power and full sufficiency of God’s word over and above empty rhetoric and exhortation.

Crosslinks Mission Partner Jonny Burgess teaches Biblical Theology, preaching and discipleship at ‘Servants of the Word’ in The Gambia. Currently, SOW borrows classrooms to hold classes and some students, who have to travel a long way to attend, find it difficult to attend regularly. A plot of land has been brought with the aim of building classrooms, dormitories, a kitchen, a dining room, an admin block and a library. It’s a big project which needs a lot of planning and resources. Could you partner with SOW to help?

You can find out more about SOW and Jonny at www.crosslinks.org/mission-partners/jonny-burgess

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Adam Tomalin was in South Africa from January to June 2016 as part of a gap year placement. If you would like to know

more about short-term mission opportunities for individuals and groups, contact short-term@crosslinks.org or see

www.crosslinks.org/short-term/opportunities

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. . . A N D M A Y B E S O M E E X T R A S ?

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Andy Lines is Crosslinks Mission Director

THELASTWORD

What motivates us in mission? There would appear to be no one single motivation but rather a mixture of different ones, some of them admirable, some deplorable, reflecting the fallenness even of Christ’s followers.

Among the more questionable motives that have been evident in history have been:

• the desire to civilise; • as part of colonialism; • the hunger for power; • a self-denial that serves us rather than those we seek to serve; • condescending pity; • the desire for adventure; • a desire for self-realisation coupled with a lack of job satisfaction.

Perhaps these latter two are some of the less acceptable faces of short-termism in mission1.

The fact is that God can use even those with ungodly motives, as the Apostle Paul observed to the Philippians: ‘Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. The latter do it out of love...The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.’2

Taking a leaf out of Paul’s attitude we need to be careful before pointing the finger at others and rejoice in what has been done even with impure motivations. But whilst

we would do well to be cautious we do need to remember the primary motive for mission. As Ott and Strauss say: ‘The highest motive must remain rooted in the

person of God himself: his love for the world, his redemptive work in Christ, and his promise that all nations will hear and that his glory will fill the earth.’3

This is nowhere shown more clearly than in the most famous verse in the Bible: ‘For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.’4 Such love for a world that is hostile to him, with such a consequence of giving his only Son to be lifted up on the cross, for such a purpose: eternal life for whoever believes.

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1 For more see ‘Encountering Theology of Mission’by Craig Ott and Stephen J Strauss (Baker Academic) 2010. 2 Phil 1:15-18 3 Ott and Strauss p191. 4 John 3:16

M E E T I N G SP R A Y E R

Regional Prayer Meetings take place around Britain and Ireland throughout the year. Do get in touch with your nearest Crosslinks office for more details.

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ANNUAL MEETING OF MEMBERS Tuesday 21 June, 5pm London, St Botolph’s without Aldersgate, Little Britain, London EC1A 4EU

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