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One of my favorite experiences is boating along the rivers of the Peruvian
Rainforest. The rivers and trees are immense. Butterflies, monkeys and birds abound. Words cannot do the beauty of the jungle justice. But, then we stop the boat, the breeze goes away and the bugs begin to feast. Few endure the heat and bugs except the Indians who live in much the same way as they have for hundreds of years. They live off the land with no electricity or running water and extremely little communication with the outside world. They are largely forgotten.

Jorge Alvarez who directs AMFA does not forget these people. Jorge has been working in this jungle for over 20 years meeting two fundamental needs of these people—clean water and Christ. MCC has teamed with Jorge to sponsor the installation of one or two water wells per year. This past year a sponsored well was drilled in Nuevo Panailll serving a community of 459 souls. While in the community hygiene training, kids camps, movie night and the well dedication were all used as opportunities to share God’s word.

The engagement does not end with freshwater. Rather, MCC is also working to seed churches in the jungle. We are sponsoring Edgar, Fernando and their families to minister to villages where wells were drilled. We are supporting Edgar, Fernando and their wives to attend a Bible Seminary focused on equipping indigenous pastors. Edgar, Fernando and their entire families travel from their homes deep in the jungle to Pucallpa three times each year to attend Seminary. This involves a difficult 200-mile trip by boat and bus. Although their education was suspended by the Pandemic they are back on track and have finished about 1.5 years of their three-year program. We hear that they are very good students and are very eager for the Gospel. When they are not at school they are back home putting their new skills to practice. MCC has also helped in the construction of church buildings for the new pastors.

The remoteness of these jungle villages makes it difficult for churches and pastors. Toward this need MCC is sponsoring Pastor Victor to travel around to these isolated churches to encourage, teach and reinvigorate the body. Pastor Victor will travel tens of miles by boat and foot to visit these communities every month. Alternatively, Pastor Victor will organize revivals and workshops where pastors and Christians alike will gather to study and worship together.

The most exciting part of my boat trips in the jungle is to see how the villagers come running to the riverbank waving their hands and shouting Jorge or Victor. This is highly uncommon as the Indians rarely trust the Peruvians. But through Jorge and Victor’s hard work and dedication they have earned the Indian’s trust and more importantly they are putting their faith in God.

You can play a part in this ministry by praying for Jorge, Victor, Edgar, Fernando, their families and the whole AMFA team. You can also help support the ministry through designated gifts. Finally, cards or notes (in Spanish) are always welcome.

I love any sort of prompt or beautiful resource that sets a stage for the seasons.  I think it helps me embrace time and holidays with purpose. Amy Gannett of Tiny Theologians has beautiful cards to help those of us with younger kids prepare for Easter. 

She has her line of ABC’s of Easter cards that have a Scripture and a small definition on the back of the card.  It can be an additional way of telling the Resurrection story at the breakfast table or during reading time.  They can be kept in a basket or bowl so it’s easy to grab and read through.

Another fun resource she has available is her Road to Redemption coloring sheet. Cards give a daily Scripture reference and a timeline of key events in Easter week. Kids can follow along and color the huge 6ft by 3ft  sheet that corresponds with the events being read.

I hope you find small ways to fill the Redemption season with joy and beauty.  We have so much to celebrate!

Since last year, I have been working with the East Mountain Food Pantry - an organization that provides for the needs of up to 650 families in the East Mountains. In reflecting upon the work there and how I integrate my faith with the work of the pantry, I have been convicted in understanding the mission of mercy and what it means to the Christian believer. Luke 10:25-27 describes the radical parable of the Good Samaritan.

It's a familiar story to all of us yet how many of us actually take it to heart and fully grasp the meaning of it? Samaritans were the bitterest of enemies with the Jews. Yet, there along the Jericho road, it was a Samaritan who sacrificed personal safety, to show great deeds of mercy towards a bitter enemy and someone of a different race. Christ points to the parable of the Good Samaritan in answering the question, What must I do to inherit eternal life? 

Tim Keller summarizes the parable in his book, Ministries of Mercy - Along the Jericho Road. He states that in this parable, the Lord directly attacks the complacency of comfortably religious people who protect themselves from the needs of others. After all, it was the priest and the Levite who passed by the injured Jewish person. 

Christ calls us to love God and love our neighbor. The parable of the Good Samaritan clearly defines our neighbor as anyone at all--acquaintance, friend, next door neighbor, stranger or enemy. Scripture does provide us with some sense of priority in this matter with our first obligation being to family. However, it is clear from the parable of the Good Samaritan that we are to show mercy to all. Each of us individually can only do so much (after all, millions across the globe are suffering from hunger) and if you are like me, it's easy to become overwhelmed.

However, together as believers we have great power through the Holy Spirit to make a difference in the mission of mercy. We are all along the Jericho road surrounded by those in need whether in our backyard or across the globe. While we are saved only by God's grace,  in the name of Christ, we can all serve and glorify his name through our works of mercy.

Transmission - Do we still have the Bible?

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around, does it make a sound?

You’ve heard that one, no doubt.  But here’s another question like it, that’s even more important.

What if God spoke, but there was no one around to hear it?  Or, what if He spoke, but that was so long ago and today no one can hear what He said?

If you’re a believer, you would answer, “That’s why we have the Bible.”

And therein is our question.

            How do I know that the Bible I hold today, is a faithful representation of what God spoke thousands of years ago?

Today, we do not possess even a single original scroll of any of the writings of Scripture.  Not even a scrap. 

Should we despair?

No, not at all.  Remember that the writings, as they were originally received, were seen as being from God.  And so, they were cared for and guarded; they were copied and they were distributed. 

So today, we have thousands and thousands of very, very, very close copies.  And we can compare this body of manuscripts (copies) against those of any other ancient writing, to see how confident we should be about its preservation.  If we do that, we will find that the manuscript evidence for Scripture is many times more voluminous, and many times closer in time to the original writing, than any other document from antiquity.  We can be very confident that the original words of Scripture have been preserved with profound accuracy.

Books are written on this topic, but here is an excellent short resource.  This article does a solid job in a very brief space.  It has some of the relevant data points, and a couple of graphics that are very helpful.  Skip over the first few lines, though - which were an ad for a separate book that was released a few years ago.

Our church also did a message some time back that gives more information on this topic.  Click here to listen to “From God to Us - Part II”, from February of 2012.

Finally, if you would like an easily-accessible deep-dive into this fascinating topic, there is a great seminar coming soon to the Abq area.  Check out https://www.signupforms.com/registrations/31631

May the Lord continue to enrich your love for His Word, and deepen your confidence in His faithfulness.

In Christ our great Savior,

Frank

How do we know if the Bible that we read is composed of the right books?  When it comes to the New Testament, how did the church know which of these were from God, and which were just other writings floating around by the 2nd and 3rd centuries? Canon, is the collection of books that we regard as the inspired Word of God. 

There were several criteria that were used to help make this determination of making a book 'canonized'.  Of course, the church prayed, and sought the Lord’s help in this process.  But they didn’t merely rely on their subjective, Spirit-led understanding alone.  Below is an example of four objective criteria, which helped them to determine what God’s authority had spoken, versus what was merely ‘a nice letter’, or maybe even a false one.

• Apostolicity - To be included in what we now call the New Testament, the letter had to either be written by an apostle, or have come through the authority of an apostle.  Why was this necessary?  Well, because the Lord Jesus personally chose His apostles, gave them authority, and commissioned them to teach in His name (Mk. 3:13-19, Mt. 10:1-8).

• Universality - That means the writing enjoyed early, widespread, and continual acceptance by the church, from the time of the first believers.

• Veracity - This meant that the writing was consistent with the truth and the revelation of both the Old Testament, and also with the other apostolic writings. 

• Antiquity - Finally, the writing had to pass the test of antiquity.  This criteria ensured that the writing was in circulation during the lifetimes of the apostles.  It helped to ensure that the teaching was known by the apostles and overlapped with those who witnessed and first believed in Christ.

Because of its importance, entire books are written about this topic! If you would like a little more explanation and encouragement on this, you can click here to check out the message from February of 2012, “From God to Us - Part II”.

Also, if you would like an easily-accessible deep-dive into this fascinating topic, there is a great seminar coming soon to Albuquerque at Desert Springs Church.  Check out https://www.signupforms.com/registrations/31631 for more information.

May the Lord continue to enrich your love for His Word, and deepen your confidence in His revelation.

In Christ our great Savior,

Frank