Tuesday, July 19, 2005

"All Over The World"

"All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth"  (Colossians 1:6).

I have always liked maps and globes. One Christmas a few years ago the church I pastored gave me a real nice globe on a stand, which has been one of my best gifts ever. I try to imagine the people living in various parts of the world and the continued impact of the Gospel even in the hardest places. I have found this also useful as a prayer guide.

One year during a mission's convention we used a large, inflatable globe to illustrate the work of Christ's ministry taking place all over the world. It seems kind of odd now but I recall that we passed the large globe through the congregation sort of like they do at concerts. I suppose there might be several that would remember that particular service!

The statement made in the daily text by the Apostle Paul to the early believers at Colosse illustrates the rapid spread of the Gospel.  It had extended into every quarter of the Roman empire within three decades of Pentecost when this book was written. As I prepare this message I have members of my spiritual family working literally all over the world. I have personal friends working among the natives on Papua New Guinea and rejoice that in several weeks a young man whom I mentored will be going to work among the tribal groups in Peru.

It's so fulfilling that readers of this devotional perspective come from all over the world and I am so blessed to receive feedback from these international readers. I am astounded at some of the countries readers come from, including many countries that are closed to traditional missions outreach. I have on my heart today a special encouragement for these readers.

We are citizens of a variety of different countries and there is a sense of national pride that most all of us experience.  But all of us who have accepted Jesus Christ as our Saviour have an infinitely greater citizenship.  Paul, writing from a prison to the believers in the Roman colony of Philippi, declares a citizenship we all share and can rejoice in today, "But our citizenship is in heaven" (Philippians 3:20).  Although he found his Roman citizenship a helpful defense in a time of trial, undoubtedly he considered his heavenly citizenship of incomparably greater value.  And so should we!

How Paul rejoiced as he wrote the daily text.  Indeed "all over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing". I thank God that this remains true today.  But the part of the verse that I especially note expresses the assurance Paul had that it was true in the lives of the Colossian believers, "Just as it has been doing among you."

I hope that the gospel is indeed bearing fruit and growing in your life today!


Be encouraged today,


Stephen C. Weber

Brooksyne's note: When Ester was about three years old we had a guest speaker in our church who had very dark skin.  We were living in a rural community where it was a very rare occasion to see an African American.  Our guest was sitting next to me with Ester sitting on my lap.  She leaned toward him and placed her arm next to his.  Then she said to me, "Mommy, he my brother?"  Well, I had a very good chuckle and so did our visitor that morning.  Since Ester was somewhat darker than those around her due to her Mayan Indian blood she assumed that she must have been related by blood to our visitor.  I've drawn from that experience on more than one occasion to remind me of what the Body of Christ is – where all colors, cultures and races blend together to bring honor and glory to the One who created us!

"Father, would You broaden our circle so that we embrace those of other nationalities.  As we travel or see these people through the newscast or read about their struggles through the media help us to be burdened for their souls.  Give us hearts of generosity to bless, pray and support our missionaries who travel to foreign soil reaching the lost for Jesus Christ.  And may we always have a missionary heart to reach our neighbor next door or our co-worker whom we see daily in the marketplace.  In Jesus' Name, Amen."

Brooksyne would like to share a song that we both recall singing way back in our Bible school days that still so true.

I recently compiled a listing of countries in which I have a record of the daily encouragement series impacting. I also worked on a map, although I was not able to locate all the countries or in some cases they were so small the map did not show them.