To Online friends: May 28, 2011

May 28, 2011

Dear Online Friend,

Thanks a lot for the response from most of you for my letter of the 12th April 2011. There’s nothing like the love we have for each other because of the fellowship in the Gospel of Christ. Grace and peace be to you!

(1) Attached please find my latest booklet of 36 pages titled, Unless someone guides me. I will tell you how this came about—

Most of you know how over the past 40 years and more I have been introducing various Study Bibles and Bible Study Aids in Seminars and Study Programmes. The need to put them all together had been long-felt. Those who purchase the materials I recommended don’t know how exactly to introduce the same to others. This booklet was prepared to cater to this need. Please go through it and get an overall picture. Purchase whatever Study Aid you need. Share this booklet with zealous Christians and Christian workers known to you. The hard copy of this booklet printed on artpaper costs Indian Rupees 10/- only. Order bulk quantities to give away to your friends. Do bless your Pastor with a copy. Help create an intense thirst and hunger in God’s people for the in-depth study of His Word. This is available only in English because most of the study materials are in English.

(2) It’s time to book your tickets to attend the Jesus’ Footsteps Retreat, Karaikudi, Tamilnadu, 13-15 August 2011. This is solely dedicated to the restudy of the Life of Jesus in order to learn practical lessons on how we can walk and work like Him in this generation. No other agenda. The Talks will be from English to Tamil. The only fee payable at the Retreat is Rs. 200/-. Boarding and lodging free. No pre-registration required. Dormitory type stay arrangements made, for men and women separately. If you require room accommodation, contact 98947 14702 or 94434 67329 well in advance. Do come with your fellow believers. Pray much for me as I wait at the Lord’s feet to receive messages for the Retreat.

A day of Fasting Prayer for the Jesus’ Footsteps Retreat is arranged on Saturday the 11th June, 9 am to 4 pm, in St. Patrick’s Church, Vadakoor, Tuticorin. The entire time will be spent in prayer with brief Scriptural exhortations. There will be no planning session. God willing I will lead the programme. Do come. The local contact is Mr. Arulraj, 94423 53464. In case you are not able to join us at Tuticorin, please gather with a couple of your friends in your own town for intercessory prayer for the Retreat.

(3) The 13th How not... Series in the Tamilan TV, titled How not to operate Gifts, is being telecast from April 14. Testimonies have already started coming in. God be praised! The recording of the 14th Series has started. I have to spend a minimum of 3 days to prepare every 30-minute Talk. So much has to be said in so short a time on such crucial subjects. I find the exercise first of all edifying me. This is in line with what Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy: “The hard-working farmer must be first to partake of the crops!” (2 Tim 2:6).

As much as we take efforts in producing and telecasting this Sound Doctrine programme, we must mobilize viewers. The other day I was thrilled to hear the testimony from a friend on how his 97-year old daddy did not miss a single Sound Doctrine Telecast on Thursdays till his death, and would urge all at home to watch it saying, “The Talks have lot of sense and substance!” This programme can be watched online (tamilantv.com) on Thursdays, 9.30 to 10 pm Indian time.

One weekly Telecast of 30-minutes costs Rs. 12,500/- which of course does not include our recording and editing expenses. If possible and if God leads you so, you may sponsor oneweekly Telecast sending this amount in lumpsum, or remit Rs.1000/- every month. Either way you would be sponsoring one of the 52 Telecasts each year. Would you consider extending this help for blessing thousands around the globe?

(4) We have lost another true prophet with the sudden death of David Wilkerson (80) on 27 April 2011 in a road accident. He was the Founder of Teen Challenge (World Challenge) which was dedicated to reach out to gangsters and drug addicts, especially in the gritty streets of New York city. He is known world over for his book and film, The Cross & the Switchblade. He later founded the Times Square Church in New York and pastored it till his Homecall. Many gang leaders were angry with him as they lost a number of their associates to this Church. Wilkerson was a good friend of Leonard Ravenhill (1907-1994) and was his neighbour. I had the blessed privilege of meeting with Wilkerson in 2002 in New York. His prayer for me of his own was, “Lord, keep this man and his family under Your wings as he dismantles the enemy’s territory!” How prophetic! You may read his messages and watch his videos in his website.

Pray for Dr. Billy Graham (92) who has just recovered from pneumonia. Christianity needs more of such men with character calibre and charisma who walk with God and move their generation for Him.

(5) I’ve received a supply of an excellent book for teenagers titled, Heroes who changed the World. The biographies of David Livingstone, St. Augustine, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Francis of Assisi, Martin Luther, William Carey, Hudson Taylor, Dietrich Bonhoffer and Florence Nightingale are presented in this attractive hardcover edition with colour photographs and portraits. This is imported from Scandinavia. Our youth have mostly seen “reel” heroes only and not the “real” heroes! This makes an ideal graduation gift. Price Rs. 500/-, plus Rs.50/- for postage. Order today.

(6) The Assembly Election results are the talk of the town. I have given a brief write-up explaining what the response of Christians should be to the polls outcome, whatever. Make copies of that write-up for distribution to the Christians in your locality.

I read in one of the leading Newspapers that the outcome of the recent polls is a victory for the Election Commission! How true! How I long for such a set-up to flush out the malpractices in our Church elections! Distribution of money and materials to influence the voters has become commonplace during election of office bearers in our Churches. When will the politics of regionalism and casteism end? God placed the Church in the world; but the devil has put the world into the Church. Instead of the Church teaching the righteous laws of God to the world, it’s learning the corrupt ways of the world (Mt 5:13,14). As the Church goes, so goes the world!

When Jesus made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the Jewish people shouted, “Hosannah!” They meant, “Save us from the Roman rule!” To their surprise, instead of taking a right turn to whip the Romans, Jesus turned left to the Temple and started His Operation Decommercialisation! Yes, judgement begins at the House of God! (1 Pet 4:17).

I would appreciate an acknowledgment from you for this letter. Thank you.

—R. Stanley


Election Results

R. Stanley

The results of the Assembly Elections, declared on the 13th May 2011, for the States of Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamilnadu and West Bengal are both expected and unexpected. They are the talk of the town. How should Christians respond to the polls outcome, whatever?

(a) As far as my knowledge goes, the people of God all over India, and even overseas, prayed much for these decisive Elections. As such we must accept the results as from the hand of the Lord. We can ask God what we “desire,” but He will answer as He “wills.” God does answer our prayers, but not always as we desire. He knows what’s best and He knows which candidate would perform how. As the One who knows “the end from the beginning,” He says, “My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure” (Isa 46:10). Having prayed for the choice of candidates, let’s now pray specifically for each of the elected candidates.

It’s immaterial for us whether the ruler is Herod or Pilate! Because, we believe that “the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses” (Dan 4:25). We are to only pray for whoever is in authority so that “we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence” (1 Tim 2:1-3).

Corruption has become the order of the day, especially in our country. But the Bible declares, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a shame to any people” (Prov 14:34). When there’s corruption at high levels, the worst affected are the poorer sections of the society. Let’s lift our voices to the God of the poor that no one goes to bed hungry because of the love of money of the rulers.

(b) Just as God has allowed so many “anti-Christs” to be roaming around, He also lets many “anti-Christians” to be working against the Church and His people (1 Jn 2:18). It was clearly predicted by Jesus that hostility to the Gospel and missionary work will be only on the increase towards the end of endtimes (Mt 10:16-33; 24:9- 14). We are to simply cry before God so the Church would witness for her Lord with a greater power and intensity, and go on with her job. This is what the early Church did when persecuted (Acts 4:23-31). When necessary, God on His own would “reprove kings” for the sake of His people and prophets (Psa 105:14,15). Not persecution but its absence must surprise the Church!

We are to sow the seeds of the Gospel whether the conditions are favourable or not. The Biblical admonition is: “He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap... In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening do not withhold your hand” (Eccl 11:4,6). We will obey the Government in all things except when it goes against God’s Commandments and the Great Commission (Acts 4:18-20).

(c) The chief enemies of the Church are not without but within. Jesus said that a nation or a family divided against itself shall not stand (Mt 12:25). The kingdom of Satan is not divided (v26). What about the Church that’s divided??? Let’s take the warning of the apostles seriously: “If you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!” (Gal 5:15).