You often hear people refer to “the good old days.”
It’s hard to know exactly when the good old days were. Maybe it was back when it seems people had more respect for institutions and clung more firmly to family values. Which equates to about the same time period as Jim Crow and the Cold War and cigarettes being considered healthy. The good old days.
You might think that 500 years ago was the good old days. There were no cars, no planes, no plastic, and no industrial pollution. But there were no computers, no internet, no United States, no x-rays, no antibiotics, no anesthetic… and no Bible available to the people.
Imagine a world with no Bible! Consequently, there was no understanding of the plan of salvation, no hope, and no knowledge of the true God. But along came people like William Tyndale of England, driven by God to translate the Bible into English. Tyndale’s translation provided a lot of what we read today in the King James Version and other translations of the Bible. Translating the Bible caused Tyndale to be banished from his home country and executed for his work of bringing God’s word to the people.
While Martin Luther is rightly remembered as a great reformer, what’s often forgotten is that Luther was a Bible translator, translating the Bible into German. Luther’s New Testament was published in 1522, four years before Tyndale’s English New Testament.
Psalm 119:130 says, “The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.”
This week, the Reformation takes center stage at It Is Written. 500, our nine-part series on the Reformation, has begun airing and tonight Solo Cinque starts in Rome, Italy, just one mile from the Vatican City.
Rome has long been one of the great cities of the world. It is featured in the prophecies of the Bible, and it was the church of Rome that was the object of reform during the Reformation. Now, in commemoration of the events 500 years ago, I’ll be presenting a series of six messages in the heart of the Eternal City.
Like many of the world’s major cities, Rome is in desperate need of a revelation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Please pray that the meetings held over the next week or so—and our follow-up meetings next year—will introduce many people to the beauty of God’s word and the gift of salvation in Jesus.
While I’m presenting God’s word in Rome, It Is Written’s Associate Speaker Eric Flickinger is sharing the Bible in Stuttgart, a major city in Luther’s Germany. So far, God has done great things in these meetings.
“Our attendance has been growing,” Pastor Flickinger said. “Even though the church is active in Stuttgart, it’s a tough city to reach with the everlasting gospel. Germany is a very secular country. But people responding, and we’re encouraged by what God is doing.”
As Eric speaks in Germany, the Holy Spirit is impressing hearts. And not always in ways you might consider to be the most obvious.
“Early in my series, I made the statement that the Bible can be trusted. At home, we take statements like that for granted, but it’s different here. One man heard me say that and it had a major effect on him. He had never, ever considered that the Bible could be trusted. That simple thought has changed his life and he has continued to attend the series. We’re praying hard for him and many others like him.”
The lands where the Reformation occurred are now mired in spiritual darkness. But we know that the everlasting gospel will go to “every nation, kindred, tongue, and people” (Revelation 14:6).
Thank you for praying for these initiatives. Our 500 TV program series will be seen all over the world, taking viewers through the major themes of the Reformation. Our Every Word devotionals focus on this month on the Reformation. And our Reformation evangelistic meetings in Germany and Rome, Italy and going to present Christ and the power of His word.
We desperately need God’s blessing, so I’m asking sincerely that you would pray.
When we look back on opportunities like these, we’ll see that these are the good old days.
Watch the 500 series on It Is Written TV.
Watch the series in Rome at 8:00 p.m. local time: http://hopechannel.it/diretta-roma-lungotevere/
Topic schedule:
Wednesday, October 25
Sola Scriptura
Is the Bible the final authority?
Thursday, October 26
Solus Christus
What do you know about Jesus?
Friday, October 27
Sola Fide
Does it matter you believe?
Saturday, October 28
Sola Gratia
You are greatly loved
Sunday, October 29 OFF
Monday, October 30
Soli Deo Gloria
God in your life today
Tuesday, October 31
Non Solo (Never alone)
You can make a difference
