Are You a Christian Martyr for the Lord?

From the time the church was birthed on the day of Pentecost,
the followers of the Lord have willingly sacrificed themselves. 

 

China House Churches Mean World's Largest Christian Body, over 90 Million.

From the time the church was birthed on the day of Pentecost,
the followers of the Lord have willingly sacrificed themselves.
Tens of thousand have died that the gospel might prosper,
As such they have obtained the crown of life. 
(chorus) 
To be a martyr for the Lord, to be a martyr for the Lord,
I am willing to die gloriously for the Lord. 

Those apostles who loved the Lord to the end
Willingly followed the Lord down the path of suffering.
John was exiled to the lonely isle of Patmos.
Stephen was stoned to death by an angry crowd.

Mathew was stabbed to death in Persia by a mob.
Mark died as horses pulled his two legs apart.
Doctor Luke was cruelly hanged.
Peter, Philip, and Simon were crucified on a cross.

To be a martyr for the Lord, to be a martyr for the Lord,
I am willing to die gloriously for the Lord. 

Bartholomew was skinned alive by the heathen.
Thomas died in India as five horses pulled his body apart.
The apostle James was beheaded by King Herod.
James the Less was cut in half by a sharp saw.

James the brother of the Lord was stoned to death.
Judas was tied to a pillar and shot by arrows.
Matthias had his head cut off in Jerusalem.
Paul was a martyr under Emperor Nero.

To be a martyr for the Lord, to be a martyr for the Lord,
I am willing to die gloriously for the Lord. 

I am willing to take up the cross and go forward
to follow the apostles down the road of sacrifice
That tens of thousands of precious souls can saved.
I am willing to leave all and be a martyr for the Lord.

To be a martyr for the Lord, to be a martyr for the Lord,
I am willing to die gloriously for the Lord. 

--Mainline China Christian song.
Request a free copy of the book “The Heavenly Man”
about the true persecutions of Brother Yun from
Asia Harvest, 353 Jonestown Road # 320,
Winston Salem, NC  27104 USA
<office@asiaharvest.org>
This book will give new life to your Christianity.
There are now well over 90 million disciples in China
through house church growth.       
Blessings, Merry Christmas!
Bill 
    

Strong Churches, Weak Churches

No church is a perfect church. But what do you do when things seem severely less than perfect?

The Early Christian Church was Marked with Love.

  (By Unknown Illustrator, www.artbible.net)

Mary and I saw problems as we strived to serve one church ministry. We labored and toiled to affect this ministry, but as the months passed on, most results seemed hopelessly futile. We could not please the people no matter how we tried. The congregation's agendas were very different from our own.

A ministry's true condition will ultimately reflect in its finances. That's where you meet weakness, failure, and problems head-on. However, the main point is, God did not leave us in the face of these tribulations. He worked with us. Wonderfully, a few Christians responded to grace and stepped forward to help us.

For one, a retired couple in the town noticed our low salary levels and supplemented our monthly income with a personal gift. This couple's generosity blessed us month after month as we worked through our trials. They were a very gentle couple, and unknown to others, they determined to help.

Praying the Money in.

I resolved, most of all, to pay our modest monthly payroll with God's help on time. I felt it would be unfair to have our self-sacrificing staff miss a paycheck. Well, I learned to work together with God. I found myself with no other recourse than to pray the money in. Invariably, payday after payday, the ministry checks arrived in the last nick of time.

Up and down I would pace the institution's hallways praying for hours "storming heaven's gates," spiritually commanding the checks to come in. Pentecostals call this "praying through." I found out it works. Sometimes, the funds totaled the day before payday. Sometimes, the checks arrived in the evening when people drove by and noticed the lights still on. Sometimes, the money wouldn't arrive until that very payday morning. God tested my faith. But payday after payday, month by month, I prayed the receipts in.

Never did the Funds fail to total.

The miracle was this. Never, ever, did the funds fail to total so I could pay the staff on time. God never failed me, not even once. I learned how faithful God is in answering prayer.

There was one family that shone with the extreme light of kindness and love. In my most solitary and lonely times when I was most discouraged, this bright, cheerful woman would unexplainably show up with her daughter, her son, or her gentle, executive husband to share wise advice or a cheerful word. She was a beautiful angel who came at the dreariest of times. Each time, my face and heart warmed from her Godly love as she departed her visit.

She'd cast Love as a force.

Her children and her husband always wore joyous eyes, blessed with this amazing kindness. She'd cast love as a force and leave it clinging to my person as she left. I knew God sent her each time.

"By this, all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (John 13:35 NIV)."

Yes, there are healthy churches and there are sick churches, and there are churches somewhere in between. The two great commandments give us the first standard of measure, love. I remember our favorite small churches and our favorite large churches. Great love supernaturally marked these.

Like Early New Testament churches, some churches we served were small home churches and some were large like Antioch and Jerusalem. These churches built on the manifestations of the person of the Holy Spirit. They functioned in the fruits, gifts, and ministries. I experienced the building of the Body of Christ as the work of the Holy Spirit.

“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph 4: 3-6 NIV).

--Bill Hunt

If you have an experience, a note, or a question to share,

please write a comment below or email us.

For more information, click Miracle Faith.

 

What Makes a Loving Church?

Church 

See how the qualities of a true church body touch so much on Christian Love.

We Face the Trials of Life Unexpected. Photo by Bill Hunt (c)

 2010.

Mary and I sprouted in the garden of spiritual life like tiny new green sprigs. We learned the precious blessings of God's love can overcome the hard trials in life. We underwent financial, employment, and pregnancy challenges. Each time, the prayer groups we belonged to locked arms with us and poured forth amazing love.

Disaster struck. My wife and I returned home from a week long Thanksgiving vacation. Mary traveled the long drive suffering the flu as well as enduring her pregnancy condition. She was miserable. She couldn't wait to arrive home to her own soft, comfortable bed.

As we finally drove up to our house in the trees, everything appeared normal. But when we opened the door to our home, terror struck our hearts. It was raining inside the house! Unbelievable! Strange! Peculiar!

Everywhere, water was dripping heavily from the ceiling. The house was soaked, the furniture was soaked, the clothes in the closets were soaked.

It looked as if a demon from hell 

raided our house!

I called the repairmen. They discovered our furnace supported a humidifier automatic control valve which malfunctioned. The humidifier continued pumping water into the atmosphere of the two-story house the whole week long we were absent.

Prayer group friends from our church came to our rescue and hosted us overnight. Next day, working together, we dried out the house, dried off the furniture, and dried up the clothes. A certain husband tried to do a lot of talking to reassure his pregnant wife. 

As cool weather approached, being a country girl from Upstate New York, my wife somewhat fretted about the clothes her growing children wore while we lived on Philadelphia's exclusive Main Line.

One day a lady from the prayer group delivered three green garbage bags she said contained "used clothes." Her own two daughters outgrew them, she said, but these would likely now fit our two young daughters, Monica and Emily.

Looking at the garbage bags, Mary waited for her husband to return home from work before she emptied them out on the living room carpet. When he arrived, she dumped the bags, looked, and gasped!

She started going through them 

like it was Christmas morning!

The clothes actually arrived in store mint condition, three piles of clothes for her two little daughters! Beautiful matching dresses. White gloves. Assorted play clothes. And two beautiful navy blue fall coats with gold buttons. Even son Brian received a tough pair of play blue jeans.

As a husband, I just sat pleased watching my wife's delight, amazed at God's gift to my family. I asked one major question in my heart, though.

"If God can take care of all our needs so well, why do we fear?"

– Bill Hunt © 2010

NOTE: Please let us know your thoughts in the comment box. Have you gone through severe trials and found Christians would show love?

For life, meditate on the Word day and night recommends scripture. We need the power the Bible and prayer give us for everyday living.  Read the Bible in your own language, the one you are most comfortable with. Francis A. Schaeffer considered the New International Version the most accurate translation. To carry, you might like the best selling NIV Compact Thinline Bible.