by: Steve Schwarz
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let
the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is
thirsty come; let the one who wishes take the water of
life without cost (Revelation 22:17). In December I
(Steve) began entering the Maround Compound of
Mbala (pictured below) to share the good news of Jesus
Christ with all who would listen. These initial trips
into the area showed that an adjustment needed to be
made in the approach I was using. There is a veneer of
religiosity in most people resulting from years of programs,
events, and crusades. The first home visits revealed
that every person is affiliated with a church,
they all know Jesus, and they are all bound for heaven.
But just in case they needed to do something more for
their salvation, most would pray to receive Christ
again. Something was clearly not right.
The change of approach in January was very
simple but powerful. Instead of quickly entering into
the gospel in one visit, I began slowly working through
the issues on multiple visits while building relationships.
The people are so gracious and accepting that
they readily welcome many visits to their homes. The
first visit includes “get to know you” dialogue and basic
spiritual questions like Do you attend a church?, What
is religion ?, What is Christianity?, What is the Bible?,
and Who is God? The answers to these questions reveal
a great deal about spiritual condition of a person and
give direction for future visits. The second visit continues
to build relationship while going a bit deeper with
questions like Who is Jesus Christ?, What is sin?, Are
you a good person?, and How does a person go to
heaven? At the ready are stories of Adam and Eve and
the Fall of man as well as the encounter of Nicodemus
with Jesus. A third visit provides opportunity for my
personal testimony or a Creation to Christ presentation. All along love of Christ is demonstrated and gospel truth is being communicated.
A basis fact is that the people here have heard
gospel presentations many times but not as a part of a
complete biblical context. As a result, many who claim
to be saved don’t know who God is or what He is like.
They have no foundation on which to build gospel
truths so the good news becomes a false, legalistic security.
The general consensus is that all a person needs to
do is go to church and pray and he will be made right
with God.
So, what is the answer? A clear, simple understanding
of God’s Word from Genesis through Christ
will be a good place to start. To that end, I will be starting
a weekly Bible study on Saturday February 12th at
one of the local schools. Our prayer is that men and
women will begin to see God as He has revealed Himself
in Scripture and fall in love with Him. By the time
the New Testament is reached in the teachings, there
will be no doubt that Jesus Christ is the only answer to
the sin that separates us all from our loving Father in
Heaven.
This type of teaching will take some time but
those who respond will be true born again believers.
Jesus commanded His followers to make disciples not
get decisions. Praying a prayer does not make someone
a Christian any more than just reading a Bible or going
to church does. I thank the Lord for the direction He has
given us in reaching Mbala for the cause of Christ. May
the result be many Mambwe-Lungu people joining
those from other tribes, tongues, and nations in worshiping
the Lamb at the throne of God (Revelation 5).
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