The Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ has been spread around the world by people proclaiming that word “in season and out of season,” in good times and bad times, with determination, creativity, and ‘great patience.’ Here are just two examples of such dedicated preachers.
Corrie Ten Boom (1892-1983) and her family were Christians who owned a watch repair and jewelry shop in Haarlem, Netherlands. The Nazis had conquered the Netherlands and began deporting all Jews to concentration camps. The Ten Booms opened their home to Jews who were hiding from the Nazis, until they could arrange to leave the country. They were shrewd and diligent in their deceit of the Nazis as they tried to save the lives of these
innocent people. Eventually, they were betrayed by a neighbor, and arrested. They, along with the Jews they were hiding, were sent to concentration camps. Several of Corrie’s family members died there, but she survived. Corrie then spent the rest of her life telling others about the love of Jesus that enabled her to, first of all, have the courage to hide Jews, and then, to forgive even the worst of her prison guards. She wrote books about her experiences and traveled all over the world speaking to huge crowds.
Near the end of Corrie’s life, the Soviet Union began to allow some Christian speakers into their country. The elderly Corrie was eager to go. There were many restrictions and visitors faced constant surveillance by the KGB secret police. She was told by friends ahead of time to not hold any private conversations in her hotel room, because it was certainly being bugged. Personal evangelism was forbidden or restricted. This irritated Corrie because that is what she was there to do.
But Corrie decided on a way to fulfill her mission, even in a bugged hotel room. She looked all over her room and located the hidden microphone. She left it undisturbed, but brought her chair up to it and sat down. She then greeted her KGB listeners warmly, and began reading to them from the Bible. For hours she would read to them, along with telling them about the love of Jesus and their need to repent of their sins and come to faith in him. She never heard of the results of this effort, but without breaking the law and without getting thrown out of the country, she shrewdly and persistently did what she came to do– to a very unexpected and unsuspecting audience.
John Wesley (1703-1791) was an English church reformer whose ministry led to the founding of the Methodist Church. His intense faith and evangelistic enthusiasm were too much for the formal and proper church of England in the 1700s, so even though he was ordained in the Church of England, he was not permitted to serve as a pastor. Determined to still proclaim the Gospel, he proceeded to call “the whole world my parish,” and for 60 years rode horseback all over the British Isles proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ with a vitality that the church of England had not seen for years. He had no congregation, and was usually not allowed in anyone else’s church. So, Wesley preached anywhere and everywhere– in factories, in
barns, in fields, or on the street– wherever he could get a few people to stop and listen. And his persistent and diligent ministry single-handedly changed the England of the 1700s. Some of his students then came to the United States, and these Methodist circuit riders were the single, most significant religious presence on the growing American frontier.
For a glimpse into John Wesley’s determined ministry, here are a few brief entries from his diary. He describes the early days of his work and the kinds of obstacles he faced; and then, how his persistence in the face of these obstacles was blessed by the Lord. These entries are from five consecutive Sunday mornings:
Sunday a.m. May 5. Preached at St. Anne’s, was asked not to come back ever again.
Sunday p.m. May 5. Preached at St. Johns; deacons said, “get out and stay out.”
Sunday a.m. May 12. Preached at St. Luke’s; deacons called a special meeting and said I could not return.
Sunday p.m. May 19. Preached on the street. Kicked off the street.
Sunday a.m. May 26. Preached in a meadow. Was chased out of the meadow, as a bull was turned loose on us during the service.
Sunday a.m. June 2. Preached out at the edge of town. Kicked off the highway.
Sunday p.m. June 2. In the afternoon I preached in a pasture. Ten thousand people came out to hear me.
In the frontier days, people were amazed at the hardships the Methodist circuit riding preachers faced from Indians, disease, bad weather, and unreliable maps. One old minister described the reason for their dedication in these words: “Fur traders, miners, and land speculators endure all of these hardships and risks in order to make some money, and no one thinks it odd. Should we not be able to endure the same hardships in order to obey God and save souls for all eternity?”
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II Timothy 4:2 — Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage; with great patience and careful instruction.
Galatians 6:9 — Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
II Thessalonians 3:13 — As for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.
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Lord Jesus, send a spiritual revival throughout our nation. Stir the hearts of millions of unbelievers so that they might come to a saving knowledge of you. Inspire a moral revival as well, so that renewed consciences may lead to upright lives. Renew your churches so that they would have new energy and desire to share the Gospel with those outside the faith. May you raise up evangelists and pastors in each generation whose passion it is to spread your word. Amen.
–Pastor Kent Groethe
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