They are now doing 'International Students Ministry' to African leaders and future leaders who are coming from all across Africa to study in South Africa.
If you’re able to befriend us on facebook we’ve been posting
lots of pictures from our Malawi Trip there. We’ve had a great few weeks reconnecting;
saying goodbye to old friends and visiting churches were we used to attend. It
is always great to be able to worship with our Malawian friends and to preach in
churches that are pastored by former students. We even did a football (soccer)
tournament outreach at Maula prison where we used to take student to minister
for 12 years. We are also very grateful to have been able to move and sell most
of our stuff that we have had stored in Malawi for the past two years.
Saying 'goodbye' to our stuff.
As travel with our whole family back to South Africa today
we have an urgent prayer request. South Africa
has implemented a new law requiring those traveling with children to carry
birth certificates with them. We don’t
have the girls birth certificates with us but we went to the US embassy and to
the South African High Commission and according to the new SA
law each of our girls have valid SA visas so we should be okay. The
girl's visas have the USA passport numbers of both Laura and I so the girls are
clearly identified as our children. So we are confident that we should be able
to get back into South Africa but dealing with immigration in African countries
is always a challenge and we have our concerns.
Maula football tournament.
Besides the challenge of taking two flights across Africa
with three children we are taking 10 of those
black shipping containers (+ carry ons) with us. We are taking a Ford Explorer
and a Toyota land cruiser to the airport Monday morning just to get our family there
with our stuff. If you guys
could pray for our flights we would really appreciate it.
Greetings once again from South Africa! As we write we are packing for our 16 day trip to Malawi. It’s been almost two years since we were there last. We’re traveling as a family which is a challenge, but we aren’t crossing any oceans. We do have two flights 2-3 hours long and have to be at the airport by 5am.
The semester is ending so we’re taking a break from the ‘International student ministry’ to go to Malawi. I’m scheduled to preach at two large Churches in Lilongwe. Both Kafita CCAP and Kapita CCAP are pastored by former students so it should be a nice reunion. The ‘Storyrunners School of Storying’ we hoped to host in Malawi has fallen through. They were willing to go to Malawi due to Ebola in West Africa but now West Africa has reopened so they’ve schedule trainings there.
In Malawi we hope to reconnect with old friends. Our girls are very excited to visit “home”, and we all are looking forward to visiting with many ABC graduates. We also have to move, sell or store our furnishings and other items that we have stored in Malawi. We will be looking for opportunities to teach Biblical Theology through stories and to do our own story training. We ask that you remember us in your prayers while we’re in Malawi.
Zikomo (thanks!),
Jay, Laura, Clara, Katherine and Lauren Stoms
1)Pray for safety as we travel and stay in Malawi.
2)Pray for protection from malaria, and other ailments and injuries.
3)Pray we move things, sell and store our ‘stuff’.
4)Pray for ministry opportunities to teach Biblical Theology through stories.
This is one of the most important stories you could ever
hear. It’s about real events that God uses to change hearts and to change history.
It’s a dramatic story and what
I really like about this story is that it is so shocking. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to
the tomb expecting to find the body of Jesus. Then there’s this ‘great
earthquake’ and an angel comes down from heaven and rolls the stone away. The guards
see the angel’s lightning like appearance and they fall down like they were
dead. The angel tells the women not to be afraid. But the real shock is that Jesus
is alive from the dead just as he had said.
The story is both
shocking and baffling
because even people in the ancient world knew that when people die they stay
dead. But in this story God does something for Jesus He had never done before. Jesus
had told his disciples that he would rise on the third day but none of them,
including these faithful women, were expecting Jesus to be alive. Yet the angel
tells the women that Jesus is alive and they are to tell Jesus’ disciples to
meet Jesus in Galilee. They leave filled with this strange combination of fear
and joy. They run to tell and on the way they meet Jesus. They grasp his feet
and worship him. Then Jesus sends them on to tell his disciples to meet him in
Galilee.
The soldiers
are also filled with fear but they fall down as though dead. They tell the high
priest what happened and the elders meet to discuss what they should do. The perplexing
thing is that they plot to cover of the truth of the resurrection. They offer
the soldiers money to say that Jesus’ disciples stole the body while they were
sleeping. The soldiers accepted the bribe and spread the deception.
The story shows
us what we are all capable of apart from God’s grace. The guards are filled with fear;
fall as though dead and they go tell the news to those who condemned Jesus. The
high priest and the elders bribe the soldiers to twist the story and promote a
false account. Left to ourselves we would rather live a lie than repent and
admit the errors of our ways!
By contrast
the women respond to the shocking news by running to tell Jesus’ disciples. On their
way they meet the resurrected Jesus, they grasp his feet and worship him. The
women tell the eleven disciples who go to a mountain in Galilee where they meet
the ‘resurrected Jesus’. Their response, however, is also a bit perplexing because
some worship him while ‘some doubted!’ Did they doubt that it was Jesus? Or did
they, as worshipers of the one true God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, doubt
that they should actually worship Jesus?
So what does
the story tell us about God and about Jesus? The story tells me that Jesus is alive and that he really is God’s
King, the Messiah. The differing responses to the same story tells me that ‘genuine
faith’ is not simply agreeing with the evidence. We must respond in faith but
faith is not from ourselves; it is the gift of God. God must foretell, God must
fulfill, God must grant faith and repentance because apart from Him we can do
nothing. Then we see that all power and all authority belong to the risen
Christ Jesus; who is here revealed as the proper object of worship.
So what is
the appropriate response
to the ‘good news’ of the resurrected Jesus? What is our respond to the one who
has been given ‘all power and all authority’ in heaven and on earth? The women
were filled with this strange mix of fear and joy and they are propelled to
tell others. The story compels us to trust Jesus and to worship him with great
fear and great joy. First we worship then we get up from our knees willing to play
our part to see the ‘great commission’ fulfilled. We should not be content
until the nations are baptized and taught to obey everything Jesus has commanded.
We are to proclaim Jesus with our mouths and with our lives. We are to make disciples
and baptize them in the name of the Triune God and we are to devote ourselves
to learning, teaching and applying the gospel to every aspect of life. We are
to cling to the promise that all power and authority belong to Jesus and that
he will be with us always even to the end of the age.
In Mark's gospel the story of
Jesus' being ‘tried, mocked and crucified’ (Mk 15:16-32) is followed by the
rest of Mark’s account of Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection (Mk 15:33-16:8).
Watch the video and or listen the story and then read the comments below.
At the third hour Jesus was crucified and from the sixth hour to the
ninth darkness covered the land. Everything went dark which reminds us of the
plague of darkness at the Exodus from Egypt. At the ninth hour Jesus cried out,
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus cries out in faith but in
despair asking his father why. Then in anguish Jesus breathed his last and
died.
The curtain of the temple was torn in two indicating that Jesus’ death
opened direct access to God and ushers in God’s kingdom. A battled hardened
Roman soldier heard Jesus’ cry and saw how Jesus died, and confessed, “Surely
this man was the Son of God!” The way Jesus died led the centurion to confess what
God had said at both Jesus’ baptism and transfiguration.
Some of the faithful women followers of Jesus who cared for him watched
him die from a distance. Joseph of Arimathea was a member of the Sanhedrin that
condemned Jesus, but he was waiting for God’s kingdom. Joseph went to Pilate
and asked for Jesus’ body. Now Joseph was willing to put himself at risk and
make himself ritually unclean to ensure that this man condemned by the
Sanhedrin received a proper burial.
Pilate was surprised that Jesus was already dead but the centurion
confirmed that he was. So Pilate permitted Joseph to take the body down. Joseph
wrapped the body in linen and placed it in a tomb. Then he rolled a stone
before the tomb which Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed. Mark mentions three women who watched the
crucifixion and two who saw where he was buried. This isn’t a detail someone
would make up since women weren’t even considered valid witnesses in the
ancient world.
Early on the first day of the week, the women went with spices to the
tomb to anoint the body of Jesus. On their way they asked each other, “Who will
roll the stone away?” They were going to the tomb to complete the burial, not
to witness Jesus’ resurrection. When they arrived at the tomb the stone was
already rolled away so they entered the tomb and saw a young man in a white
robe. The man told them not to be afraid and that that Jesus had been raised
from the dead.
Jesus had repeatedly taught his disciples that he would be killed and
then rise again. Yet the disciples just couldn’t seem to comprehend this. Now
the visitor in white sat where Jesus’ body had been laid and told them that
Jesus was alive. The angelic messenger explained that they should go to Galilee
where they would see Jesus; as Jesus had said. He specifically mentions Peter
to ensure Peter that after denying Christ he would not be excluded. Bewildered
and scared the women fled the tomb and while they must have passed people on
the way, they said nothing.
Two of the best and earliest manuscripts end after verse 8 and actually
how the text was intended to end remains a matter of debate. Whatever the
actual ending, God challenges us to put our faith in the risen Jesus. So what
is our response to the news of the risen Lord and of his ‘gospel of the
kingdom’?
Greetings from Stellenbosch, South Africa. Hope you are all well. We
have had our story group with International students going on the University of
Stellenbosch campus now for about three months. We have had students from a
dozen African countries attend. We've worked almost all the way through storyline
of Mark's gospel and we’ve been having some good discussions. The number
of those attending fluctuates with about a dozen regular attenders. This has
been a bit humbling since in the past I’ve used to teach classes of 40-80
students at the African Bible College in Malawi.
Those attending our group are typically graduate students. One Malawian
attending is the brother of a former ABC student. Two other Malawians who
attend are lecturers from Chancellor College (U of Malawi) who are here getting
their doctorates. An interesting development to our group has been the addition
of some Korean students. This has led us to consider begin some informal
English lessons using Biblical stories and scripture as a text. People here are
responsive to our storytelling method, but we realize that it is best suited
for an environment like Malawi.
Our Korean friends, Ki Woon and Sun.
Since arriving here we have had two kindles stolen from our apartment. Also a
car we had borrowed was broken into twice. This has made the transition to
living here more challenging than anticipated and particularly for our
daughters. The reality of crime along with seeing people who are living on the
streets is a bit frightening for them. On the bright side Christ Church
Stellenbosch has been very gracious to us. I've been able to lead some worship
services and I've preached here on several occasions. Christ Church has an
excellent program for children which our girls enjoy. They do appreciate going
to one church each week but they really do miss their grandparents and close
friends.
VWs are a common target for thieves.
We plan to visit Malawi as a family in June. God willing we
will be arriving there June 14th and staying through June 30th. I’ll be preaching
at both Kafita CCAP and Kapita CCAP and I hope to do some teaching
of Biblical Theology through stories as well. While we are there we
will have to move our things and sell some of our items that we have
stored at our old place at ABC. We do have access to a container where we can
store some things but we have to move what we have at ABC by July. Please pray
for us especially as we make our plans to visit Malawi (see below).
In Mark's gospel the story of Jesus' being tried before
Pilate (Mk 15:1-15) is followed by the account of Jesus being ‘mocked and
crucified’ (Mk 15:16-32). Watch the video and or listen the story and then read
the comments below.
The whole company of soldiers gathered around Jesus. They were
used to using force to keep the peace. The Roman soldiers would have resented
the Jewish fighters violently rebelled. Jesus would have been an easy target for their
frustrations. They put a purple robe normally reserved for kings and nobles and
put a crown of thorns on Jesus’ head. They fell on their knees and mocked Jesus
saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” Compared to a Roman Emperor Jesus would have
looked to them like a rather impotent king and not worthy of their respect.
They spit on him and beat him repeatedly with a centurion’s staff. When they
were done mocking and laughing at Jesus they led him away to face Rome’s weapon
of intimidation, the cross!
Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was
coming into Jerusalem from the country. He was likely a Jew from Cyrene in
North Africa on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Often a prisoner would have to carry
the cross-beam on which they were to be hung. The vertical pole would have already
been at site of crucifixion. Jesus must
have been too weak to carry his own cross-beam after being repeatedly beaten. That
Simon carried Jesus’ cross reminds us how Jesus had called people to take up
the cross and follow him. Simon was forced to carry the cross of Jesus to
Golgotha, the ‘Place of the Skull’. There, at the third hour, Jesus was
crucified on the charge of claiming to be ‘THE KING OF THE JEWS’.
At Golgotha Jesus refused to drink the drugged wine for he
had chosen to drink the ‘cup’ given him by his Father (10:38; 14:36). The soldiers
stripped Jesus and they gambled for his clothes (Psalm 22:19). They crucified
Jesus as a rebel king between two rebels, one on his right and one on his left.
He would die the death that was reserved for those who tried to take up arms to
overthrow Rome. These were the reserved seats on Jesus’ right and left when he would
come into his kingdom as God’s true king (10:40). Those passing by insulted
Jesus by referring to how he had said that he would destroy the temple and
build it again in three days. They misunderstood what he had said about the
temple, but what he did say must have seemed ridiculous as he hung suspended
apparently defeated on a Roman cross.
At his crucifixion Jesus looks like he could not rescue
himself, let alone destroy and rebuild the Temple in three days. The Messiah
was to defeat the Romans but Jesus dies the death of a failed Messiah on a
Roman cross. The chief priests and the
teachers of the law want Jesus to come down from cross to save himself. They mock
Jesus by saying let this Christ, this king of Israel, come down from the cross
so that they might believe in him. But precisely because he was the Christ he chose
not to come down. Because he was and is the King of the Jews, he must stay on
the cross. To those looking on at the naked and despised Jesus, he would have looked
foolish, feeble and weak. Even the thieves crucified beside Jesus hurled
insults at him. But none the less God was using the foolishness of the cross to
save those who would believe. This is
the story of the crucified Messiah who was forsaken of God in order to ransom
and rescue his people. This is how the kingdom of God would come.
In Mark's gospel
the story of Jesus' arrest and trial before the high priest and of Peter’s
denial of Jesus (Mk 14) is followed by the account of Jesus being tried before
Pilate (Mk 15:1-15). Watch the video and or listen the story and then read the
comments below.
Early in the morning the Sanhedrin came
to a consensus regarding Jesus.
They bound Jesus and turned him over to Pilate. Pilate wanted to
know if Jesus was the king of the Jews. Jesus
said, ‘yes’ but he said nothing regarding the accusations of the high priests. As Isaiah had foretold Jesus was silent like
a lamb being led to be slaughtered. Pilate would have
dismissed a charge of blasphemy as meaningless but to claim to be a king was to
defy Rome. Pilate would have to take a challenge like this seriously. Pilate wasn’t interested in holding a fair
trial. His concern was controlling
the crowds. With so many visitors in Jerusalem for the
Passover week what Pilot wanted was to prevent a riot.
It was the custom
at the Feast to release a prisoner requested by the crowd. Pilate gave them the
opportunity to have the one he called 'the king of the Jews' released. He didn’t
care about their religious beliefs but he knew the chief priests were acting
out of envy. Jesus had been popular among the crowds but the chief priests used
their influence to manipulate the crowd. They stirred up the crowd to have
Pilate release Barabbas, who was in prison for committing murder during an uprising,
instead of Jesus. When Pilate asked what he should do with the king of the Jews
the crowd shouted, ‘crucify
him’. But Pilate
wanted to know what crime deserving death Jesus had committed, but they shouted
louder, “crucify him”.
Pilate knew that Jesus wasn’t leading a military revolt. But Pilate wasn’t
interested in justice; he was interested in crowd control. Consequently, Pilate
had Barabbas released to satisfy the crowd but he had Jesus flogged and handed over to be crucified. Rome had crucified numerous Jewish rebels and they would crucify thousands
more in coming Jerusalem War (ad 66-70).
The cross was one of the ways Rome used the threat power of death to control those
under their rule. Now Jesus would face the judgment of Rome that would soon
come upon Jerusalem and its Temple within
a generation. Barabbas was a typical Jewish rebel who had tried to use violence
to drive out the Romans. But Jesus would end up dying instead of Barabbas who ends
up going free. The story is a picture of the gospel of grace in which the innocent
Jesus is crucified as a substitute so that the guilty can go free.
In Mark's
gospel the account of Jesus celebrating the Passover with his disciples (Mk
14:12-31) is followed by the story of Jesus being arrested and tried by the
high priest (Mark 14:32-72). Watch the video or listen the story and then read
the comments below.
So far in Mark’s
gospel Jesus has always been under control. But now we see Jesus so sad and so distressed
that he felt like dying. In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus fell down and prayed, “Abba, Father, everything is
possible for you. Take this cup from me, but not my will, but your will be done.”
Jesus glimpsed the horror of the cup of God’s
wrath and pleads with his ‘Abba, Father’ that he might be spared the cup of God’s wrath. Yet after a period of
agonizing prayer Jesus surrenders his will to the father and arises committed to the Father’s will. Yet now
all Jesus’ disciples will shamefully abandon him. When the shepherd is struck, the
sheep will abandon him. Jesus must now drink the cup of God’s wrath alone and no
one else can give their life as a ransom for many.
Jesus found his disciples
sleeping three times but now they must be awakened to the reality of Jesus’
betrayal. Judas, one of the Twelve, led a crowd armed with swords and clubs sent
by the religious leaders, and they
arrested Jesus. Neither Judas nor Peter really understood Jesus’ kingdom. The revolution that Jesus
was leading would come about not by the sword but by means of the word of God. Jesus
had taught daily in the temple courts and now what would happen would fulfill
the Scriptures. Now, as foretold, Peter and all the rest would flee and one even
fled naked shamefully. Are we prepared to keep watch and wait upon the Lord in watchful prayer?
Are we willing to agonize in prayer to see the Father’s will be done? Surely,
we must admit that we are all capable of deserting Jesus when he doesn’t validate
our plans.
They took Jesus to
the high priest and the religious leaders met to condemn Jesus. Many testified
falsely against Jesus but their testimonies didn’t agree. The high priest asked
Jesus to response but Jesus said nothing. Yet when asked directly if he was the
Christ, Jesus not only said he was the Christ but he said, “You’ll see the Son
of Man sitting at the right of God and coming on the clouds of heaven.” They all condemned Jesus as worthy of death.
Then they spit at Jesus, they blindfolded him and mocked him saying ‘Prophesy’
the guards beat Jesus. Here Jesus makes it clear that he is the ‘son of God’ which recalls for
us the voice from heaven both at the beginning of Mark’s gospel and at the transfiguration. Moreover, Jesus’ statement combines
the image of his enthronement at the right hand of God (Psalm 110, Mark 12:36) with
the idea that God would judge is enemies (Daniel 7:13, Mark 13:26).
Meanwhile the high
priest’s servant girl saw Peter in the courtyard by the fire and said, “You were with
Jesus.” Peter denied it and claimed he
didn’t know what she was talking about. Sometime later she again said that
Peter was one of Jesus’ followers but Peter again denied it. Later those standing
near Peter said, “You’re a Galilean, you’re one of them.” This time Peter
called down curses and swore, “I don’t
know the man you’re talking about.” The
rooster crowed a second time and Peter remembering Jesus’ words broke down and wept.
Three times
Jesus surrendered to the will of his father which cost him his life. By contrast
Peter denied knowing Jesus three in order to save his own life. Jesus had been betrayed
by a close friend, abandoned by his own followers, condemned, taunted and
beaten by the religious authorities. Now Jesus is being publicly renounced by Peter,
his closest friend. They blindfolded Jesus and mocked him saying, ‘Prophesy’ so
that he looked like a false prophet and a failed Messiah. So now is their time
to present Jesus to Pilate as a rebel king, a claim that would have to be violently
suppressed by the Roman governor.
In Mark's gospel after Jesus is anointed at Bethany and Judas decides to betray Jesus we find the account of Jesus celebrating the Passover with his disciples (Mk 14:12-21). In Mark this is followed by the institution of the Lord's Supper and Jesus foretelling Peter's denial (Mk 14:22-31). Watch the video or listen the story and then read the comments below. https://www.dropbox.com/s/2ne5wkuot1vjxdi/The%20Lord%27s%20Supper%20%28Mk%2014%29..MP3?dl=0
Sharing a meal
can help bind people together and strengthen their relational ties. The
Passover meal did this by retelling the story of the Exodus when God rescued Israel from
Egyptian slavery. As faithful Jews, Jesus’ disciples wanted to know
from Jesus where they should prepare for the Passover meal (Exodus 12). Jesus
told them to go into the city and follow a man with a water jar into a house
and ask the owner about his guest room. The disciples went into the city and
found things as Jesus had told them (Mk 14:16). Jesus was well aware of all
this and even knew that the owner of the house had a guest room set apart for
his use (Mk 14:14).
In the
evening Jesus arrived at the house with his disciples. At the meal he told the
twelve that one of them would betray him. Jesus knew of passages in the Psalms which spoke of
being betrayed by a friend (Ps.41:9) and he knew which one of the twelve
would betray him. This news saddened the disciples and they each said,
“Surely not I?” (Mk 14:19). The betrayer would be one of
the twelve who would dip bread into the bowl with Jesus. Things
would go according to God’s plan but the one betraying the ‘Son of Man’ would
be held responsible (Mk 14:19). But the news of his betrayal and of
his death turned this Passover celebration in a solemn meal.
Clearly, Jesus
wanted his disciples to understand the Passover in the light of his death. His reference to
Daniel’s ‘son of man’ and Isaiah’s ‘suffering servant’ connect
his death to the coming of God’s kingdom (Dan. 7:13, Isa. 53:12).
Jesus took the bread, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to his disciples
saying that the bread was his body. The bread of affliction (Dt.16:3)
in the Passover story would be replaced by the broken body and the cup would
now represent his own blood that would fulfill God’s covenant (Mk14:24,
Ex.24:8). Then Jesus vowed not drink again of the fruit of the vine until he
would drink it anew in the kingdom of God (Mk 14:21).
After all
this, they sang a hymn, and went out to the Mount of Olives. Jesus told
the rest of his disciples that they would all fall away
(Zech.13:7). Peter said he would not, but Jesus said Peter would deny him
three times that night. Again, Peter adamantly denied this and the others did
likewise. This episode and the meal Jesus instituted challenges us to locate
ourselves somewhere between denying Jesus and betraying him. This meal was given to be perpetually observed in the church
to help us to continually look by faith to Christ to enable us to live out of the
benefits of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
This story takes place just before the Passover when the Jewish people would
retell the story of their Exodus
from Egypt. This was the time
to celebrate God’s past faithfulness and renew their hope that God would bring a
‘New Exodus’. But the chief priests were not interested in Jesus being a leader
of any movement of this kind. So they looked for clever way to arrest Jesus and
kill him without stirring the people up into a riot (Mk 14:1-2). Meanwhile, Jesus
was in Bethany sharing table fellowship with a man who he had probably healed known
as Simon the leper.
While Jesus
was reclining at a table a woman came, broke a jar of expensive perfume and
poured it out on Jesus’ head (Mk 14:3). In love she acted spontaneously and, though probably unknowingly,
she anointed Jesus for his imminent death. This was an act of extravagant devotion beyond any necessary benefit to
Jesus. Therefore the others rebuked her harshly thinking the perfume should have
been sold for a year’s wages to help the poor (Mk 14:4-5). They thought pouring such a valuable amount of perfume on Jesus was a waste,
particularly when it could have been used to help the poor.
Jesus told them to leave
her alone. He went on to say that the poor would always be with them so they
could help them whenever they wanted. But, they wouldn’t always have Jesus with
them (14:7) and therefore she had done a ‘beautiful thing’. Whether she knew it
or not she had poured perfume on Jesus in preparation for his burial. None of the disciples seemed to realize that Jesus was really going to die just as
he had been telling them. Jesus honors her by saying that her beautiful act
would be told in her memory wherever the gospel would be preached throughout
the world (Mk 14:9).
This extravagance along
with Jesus’ clear statement of his pending death was too much for Judas. For Judas it time to cut his losses and
salvage what he could monetarily by betraying Jesus. This delighted the chief
priests who were more than happy to pay to get rid of Jesus. After this Judas looked
for an opportunity to turn Jesus over to the chief priests (Mk 14:10-11). The
story contrasts the woman, Mary (see John 12), and her devotion to Jesus with
Judas and his betrayal of Jesus. As we reflect on it we must ask ourselves who
it is that we are really serving and if we are ready to give our all to honor Jesus.
