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A Ministry for the Propagation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ amongst the Indigenous of Guatemala’s Interior
A Ministry for the Propagation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ amongst the Indigenous of Guatemala’s Interior
"The Protestant Church has perhaps taught too exclusively the duty of consecrating to God the life we are born into, and left too little room for the truth that in this present evil world there must be great renunciations as well if there are to be great Christian careers" - James Denny, D.D. - 1910
I first learned of the conditions of Guatemala on a trip in February, 2006, while serving alongside a missionary couple working among the Mayan Kekchi in the northern highlands.
My visit came on the heels of the nine year anniversary marking the nine short years that had passed since the peace accords were signed in December, 1996, marking an official end to Guatemala's 36 year civil war that had begun in 1960 - a war that deeply affected the soul of the nation and all its inhabitants, especially the indigenous population - an event that virtually eliminated the middle class and plunged the indigenous population further into inescapable poverty and broken families. By the early 80s, the Guatemalan government had adopted a scorched-earth policy against the Mayan indigenous and the Guatemalan genocide had begun. By 1983, over 620 massacres had been conducted throughout rural Guatemala. Figures vary, but it is conservatively estimated that over 200,000 people were killed, over 40,000 people were "disappeared", with 85% of the total casualties being Mayan. Sadly, the Guatemalan Civil War has gone down in history as the longest and bloodiest civil war in Latin-American history.
During my initial visit, I was only there 10 days, but second to my conversion in 2003 - just two and a half years prior - this experience in Guatemala become the second single most influential event that the Lord had providentially brought me to, and on the 6th day of the trip I sensed a most remarkable call to spend my life in the service of God through the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in Guatemala.
Guatemala has been steeped in both animism and Roman Catholicism - the former since it's inception and the latter since the Spanish Conquest began in 1521. If a new believer in Guatemala were to ask me, “How long has your country known the biblical Gospel?” Sadly, I would be obligated to tell them the truth..."we have known it for hundreds of years now..."
One night when I was reading a chapter of the Kekchi Bible to my 4 1/2 year old son before bed, he asked me this question, “What if nobody who speaks Kekchi will want to become a Christian?” I responded, "Well, nobody wants to become a Christian until God changes their heart.” And this is what our confidence is in...He who changes the heart!
By missions we speak of that unique deliberate Holy Spirit empowered work of laboring in the distinct proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ—the counsel of God concerning the salvation of mankind from sin and its consequences—for the express purpose of making disciples—baptizing them, gathering them together into local assemblies, teaching them to observe all that Jesus has commanded us, and organizing them into Churches—for the purpose of worshiping and reproducing themselves in like manner. Thus, we define missions and the work of missionaries as primarily Gospel preaching and teaching, while seeing compassion and mercy ministries as the natural byproduct of the Christian life which ought to spring forth as fruit—in the wake of missionary labors—from disciples and their newfound life in Christ.
In light of this understanding of biblical missions we will primarily labor in four related, progressive tasks:
In short this is evangelism > conversions > discipleship > church planting > sending > repeat! We see the plenitude of this Great Commission task, and more specifically the fullness of the context of Ephesians 4:11-16, as the basis of God's design for the harmonious co-laboring of Christ's gifts of evangelists, pastors, and teachers being expressed through the churches' elderships/overseerships.
If there was once a time when one could sum up their biblical theology by the statement, "We just believe the Bible", and it was commonly understood as to what that statement meant, that is not descriptive of the time in which we live now. Convinced it is no longer sufficient nor clear to simply state, "We just believe the Bible", but also what we believe the Bible says, we see the wisdom in holding to a common, orthodox, historic confession. Therefore, Guatemala Interior Mission's biblical theology and convictions are those generally upheld by the 1689 2nd London Baptist Confession of Faith, as the best confession and compendium of our statement of faith and what we believe the Bible says regarding matters of life and faith as God has revealed to us in His holy word.
We echo the words of C.H. Spurgeon who said:
"This ancient document is the most excellent epitome of the things most surely believed among us. It is not issued as an authoritative rule or code of faith, whereby you may be fettered, but as a means of edification in righteousness. It is an excellent, though not inspired, expression of the teaching of those Holy Scriptures by which all confessions are to be measured. We hold to the humbling truths of God's sovereign grace in the salvation of lost sinners. Salvation is through Christ alone and by faith alone."
The Great Commission was given to the Church
· We believe the totality of the Great Commission was given to the corporate church, not to individual Christians as individuals. Discipleship making, therefore, is a corporate body responsibility. The responsibility is appropriated by Christ to individuals, yes, but as members of the local church in accordance with their measure of gifting and graces. The single mother of three does not have Great Commission expectations laid upon her that she is not physically capable of carrying out, that a single man, for example, may in fact be capable of doing. However, in the large scope of the fulfillment of the Great Commission, this single mother may take part in the Great Commission by doing what she is enabled to do, just as faithfully as the single man, in our example. Together, we as a church make disciples. (Rom. 12:3, 6; 15:15; 1 Cor. 3:10; 12:7-8; Gal. 2:9; Eph. 3:2, 7-8; 4:7; Jas 1:5; 2 Pet. 3:15)
The Great Commission Commands Us to Go and Make Disciples
· We believe that by concentrating on making disciples, we equip our members to focus on the simple (though not easy) task of making disciples by the initial responsibility of sharing their testimony and the gospel with unbelievers, rather than the complex task of the final work of planting churches, which belongs to the corporate church as a whole. By focusing on making disciples through personal evangelism, individual Christians—as individuals—are not made to feel alone in their participation in the Great Commission by having the Great Commission’s fulfillment unduly pressed upon their individual conscience. (Matt. 28; Acts 14:21)
The Great Commission Ought to Primarily Produce New Church Plants, Not Transplants
· We believe that because of the extremely difficult and demanding task of making disciples, some churches have sought to labor to construct church services in place of laboring to make disciples. Because of our natural proclivity to avoid confrontation, rejection, and the reproach of Christ—circumstances often associated with commanding people, through the Gospel, to repent and believe on Christ—many have sought to take the path of least resistance by sidestepping these difficulties and offenses all together by simply reverting to the process of starting a new church service in a chosen locale in place of making new disciples. However, this inversion of process is guilty of mistaking the shell for the kernel. Sadly, the motto of some American churches is: If you “build it” they will come. In light of this departure from biblical missions, we resolve firstly to labor for the kernel rather than the shell. By prioritizing the prime-product of making disciples we trust that the byproduct of organized established local churches who gather for worship will have its proper place. We desire to see healthy churches planted through new converts. (The witness of the entire Book of Acts)
The Local Church is the Mission Society and the Sending Agency
· We believe that the local church, rightly ordered and rightly understood, is the missionary society and a sending agency. The church may wisely utilize mission societies or mission sending agencies, but not at the cost of ceasing to be one itself. The church must be discriminate in this utilization lest she forgo her responsibility of being the sending entity and authority of her missionaries and their ministry. Thus, missionaries properly originate from, are overseen by, and are accountable to the local church. (Acts 9:30-31; 11:22, 26-27, 30; 12:25; 13:1-5; 14:26-28; 15:3-4, 40-41)
Missionaries Are Gospel Heralds Who Are Sent To Preach and Teach
· We believe that missionaries are sent ones of the local church who cross linguistic and/or cultural boundaries for the purpose of evangelism and making disciples, unto the eventual establishment of local churches, and all this ultimately for the purpose of worship. In a day and age where the common motto in the church is often, “Every Christian is a Missionary,” we want to stand on the firm example and definition of a biblical missionary. It is true that a great many of wonderful godly men and women have gone to the nations engaged in incredible work and witness of the Lord Jesus Christ, many of whom have been used by God and have become great examples of a life well spent in the service of our Savior, many of which have born the title missionary and have been considered historically as such. However, with great respect and gratefulness for these servants, we will endeavor, nonetheless, to jealously guard the term missionary in order to preserve its biblical scope and function—preaching and teaching the Gospel. Compassion and mercy ministries are a good and natural fruit of the Christian life, and a missionary may naturally engage in such service at times and as he sees fit, but it is secondary to gospel ministry and is not in and of itself the primary work of a sent missionary. (Ps. 67:4, 96:2; Hab. 2:14; Rom. 10:13-15; 2 Cor. 8:22-23; the witness of the entire Book of Acts—particularly Acts 13:1-4)
The Church Ought To Send Elder Qualified Missionaries
· We believe that because missionaries are Gospel heralds, who are sent to preach and teach, and this being the work of an elder, missionaries therefore ought to be mature men who exemplify the New Testament elder qualifications. However, this does not mean that the church cannot send out additional men and women that are gifted Christian workers who work in a foreign context or even directly aid the ministry of established missionaries. The Apostle Paul often had co-laborers with him who did not have the same gift as he did. They were a great and invaluable service to him, and to the Lord’s work. (Acts 13:5; 2 Cor. 8:22-23; Eph. 4:11-16)
Missionaries Go As Elder Qualified Evangelists, Pastors, or Teachers
· We believe that Jesus Christ has given to the church certain gifted men who serve to equip the saints through the qualified office of the eldership/overseership—some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some as pastors, and some as teachers—in order to build the superstructure upon the successfully laid foundation of the apostles and the prophets—these two gifts having ceased, being revelatory and being mentioned by themselves in Eph. 2:20. (Matt. 24:14, 28:18; Mk. 16:15; Acts 21:8; Rom 10:13-15; 2 Cor. 8:23; Eph. 2:20, 4:11-16; 1 Tim. 3:1-7; 2 Tim. 4:5; Titus 1:1-9; 1 Pet. 5:1-2)
What is our method of support raising? In short, it is faith missions. It is our conviction and resolve to utterly depend upon God for the provision of all necessary resources. This is not arrogance or presumption on our part, but a humble and faithful way of living that we believe God has personally called us to. Therefore, we believe it is our responsibility not to be presumptuous nor anxious, but to labor earnestly in prayer, and this will be our work in support raising. It is our desire that we confidently make our requests known to God. If we live by faith and trust in our heavenly Father’s care for us, it seems inconsistent and unnecessary to be about the business of also asking man for that same provision. This is not a novel idea that has originated with us, and there are many missionaries who have had this same conviction throughout history. It is with confidence and joy that we hope to be a witness and testimony to the church and world that God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply. We desire that God be glorified and many testimonies be garnered even in how Guatemala Interior Mission is supported. God has already proved Himself thus far regarding this. We trust He will continue to do so, until He is finished with us.
We do not consider ourselves to be a taxi for hire. We do not carry a price tag for which we must be paid before we are willing to answer the call and be obedient to God and the call to advance the gospel in the Nations. As we see it, there is only but to do, and trust that He will provide for what He has willed.
We see no precedence laid forth in the Scriptures that missions ought to be held up until there is guaranteed up front a certain amount of financial funds before gospel ministry is to be engaged. We do not believe that guaranteed money is the driving force behind world missions. We know that people are perishing without Christ, that the need is urgent, and so we are compelled to go and trust that as we are going into all the world, God's Sovereign hand will supply all that is necessary and that our faith will be tested, tried, and proven as we witness the supply of His daily bread as we are going, not before we go. However, this does not mean that we do not rely on the body of Christ for support, but we seek to do that through the LORD. We do not hide our ministry and the opportunities for the body of Christ to respond in faith and obedience to be a part of world missions and their desire to invest in the kingdom of God and their heavenly accounts - it is these churches, these brothers and sisters in Christ that we desire to partner with and entrust our rope to!
Philippians 4: 10-20
"But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Nevertheless, you have done well to share with me in my affliction.
You yourselves also know, Philippians, that at the first preaching of the gospel, after I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving but you alone; for even in Thessalonica you sent a gift more than once for my needs. Not that I seek the gift itself, but I seek for the profit which increases to your account. But I have received everything in full and have an abundance; I am amply supplied, having received from Epaphroditus what you have sent, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen."
We find these principles to be true:
Excerpt taken from “The Autobiography of George Müller,” pp. 226-227
If anyone desires to live a life of faith and trust in God he must: