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John Chau, missionary to the Sentinelese: martyr or madness?

You've probably seen it in the news lately: John Chau, the American guy who tried to evangelise the secluded Sentinelese tribe off the coast of India. Much of the debate in secular media has centered around the grief of his friends and family; how he could have brought outside disease to the tribespeople and potentially killed them all (despite this not being their first contact with outsiders, with no known ill effect), or that he ventured there completely in ignorance with no preparation or wisdom — something which the missionary agency, All Nations, has recently debunked. But the question I want to look at is this: was Chau's mission total madness or is...

The Coming of Jesus: The Olivet Discourse – Part 1

...of Paul's missionary journeys, we can see that the Gospel was spread throughout the known world, and thus brought about the end of the birth pangs, giving birth to the wrath of God which was to come upon the nation of Israel. Paul's Third missionary Journey, returning to Asia Minor and Greece c AD53-58   Even in writing his letters to the churches, Paul appears to believe that he has spread the Good News to all the world, which would seem to show that in Paul's mind, "the world" wasn't the whole globe as we might think of it today. Col 1:23 ...provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope p...

From Paradise to Presents: The Christian Story Behind the Christmas Tree

...n English missionary whose evangelistic efforts in 8th-century Germany played a pivotal role in shaping this enduring custom. According to tradition, Boniface encountered a group of pagans venerating an oak tree dedicated to Thor, the Norse god of thunder. In a bold act to demonstrate the supremacy of the Christian God, Boniface felled the sacred oak. Amazingly, as the oak crashed to the ground, it split into four parts, revealing a young fir tree at its centre. Seizing this moment, Boniface proclaimed the fir tree as the new symbol of faith, pointing to its evergreen nature as a representation of eternal life in Christ. He is said to have declared: “This lit...

Fasting: A spiritual and physical discipline

...his first missionary journey, and if he had not done that, the faith may never have spread as far and fast as it did, nor would we have the majority of our New Testament! Fasting is a vital church discipline, I believe. Similar, history changing events, also happened from prayer and fasting in 2 Chronicles 20, and the post-Acts early church. Here’s a quick quote from Tertullian (c.198) and Irenaeus (c.180), respectively, on the power of prayer and fasting: “When, indeed, have droughts not been put away by our kneeling and our fastings?” “When the entire church in that particular locality entreated God with much fasting and prayer, the spirit of...

Is fasting an expectation for Christians?

...ons about missionary work and who to send (Acts 13:2–3), before appointing leaders (Acts 14:23) and oftentimes fasting preceded receiving visions from God, which we see in both Old and New Testaments (Acts 10:10; 11:5; 22:17). Fasting was also used for various other needs people wanted from God, like petitioning for answers in prayer, for protection, forgiveness or simply for humbling yourself (Ezra 8:21; Nehemiah 1:4; 9:1; Esther 4:3; Psalm 35:13; 69:10; Daniel 9:3; Joel 2:12; Zechariah 8:18–19). As you can see, fasting has a long and active tradition within Judaism, which passed on into Christianity quite naturally. During Second Temple Judaism, biweekly...

Great Lent: The Season of Fasting

...his first missionary journey, and if he had not done that, the faith may never have spread as far and fast as it did, nor would we have the majority of our New Testament! Fasting is a vital church discipline, I believe. Similar, history changing events, also happened from prayer and fasting in 2 Chronicles 20, and the post-Acts early church. Here’s a quick quote from Tertullian (c.198) and Irenaeus (c.180), respectively, on the power of prayer and fasting: “When, indeed, have droughts not been put away by our kneeling and our fastings?” “When the entire church in that particular locality entreated God with much fasting and prayer, the spirit of the...