Experience of Truth

Many years ago when I met a Christian leader and introduced the ministry books as the book of truth, he asked me a question, "What is Truth?" My innate reply then was, 'Truth is Christ!" Of course, I replied confidently based on John 14:6.

What is the Truth? Truth is God in Christ as the Spirit of reality applying everything of God to us for the accomplishment of God's economy in and through us. Truth is embodied in the Word of God. Interestingly, truth in the Bible is always singular, implying that there is only one unique truth in the whole universe. The truth God gave to us is the Holy Spirit inside of us as the fulfilled promise of the Spirit which He gave to Abraham who today is the pneumatic Christ as the life-giving Spirit, and the Holy Bible outside of us, in our hands, as the written word of God which in Spirit can become the living word of God and further becomes the applied word of God to dispense life to us, the readers. In the Bible is the truth hidden. Thus, the only way to get the truth is by opening the Bible physically, psychologically, and spiritually.

The proper translation for truth in many versions of the Bible should be accurately rendered as reality, instead of truth, as in John 14:6; 1:14. And the Spirit of reality, meaning the Spirit is reality, is found in John 14, 15, 16. In 1 John 5:6, the Spirit is the reality who is the consummation of the Triune God. Apart from the Spirit, there is no reality. 

In 1 John 1:6, the reality is versus vanity. In fact, everything is vanity, the opposite of reality. The only unique reality is the Holy Spirit. Only God is the unique reality, everything else is vanity. To touch Him as the reality, He gave us the Holy Spirit and the Holy Bible. In John 6:63, the word is Spirit and life. Psalms 119:130 says that the opening of the word of God gives light. This implies the need for the word of God to enter into our minds, then shine and renew our minds leading us to transformation. This is what the truth is for, to accomplish God's heart's desire.

The way to God is the Lord as the reality to us, touching Christ as the reality in the Word. When the word becomes reality, we can touch God. Beginning with the reading of the word, then the word becomes life to us. Growing in life is through the word, touched by the Spirit, then the word becoming the Spirit who gives life. This is how the Church can be built by the growth of God through the word of God being opened up to us.

2 Cor. 3:6 says the Spirit gives life and the letter kills. Teaching what was understood is only in letters but supplying what was experienced and enjoyed is by the Spirit. Only the life supply through the spirit can cause growth in life for the building up of the Body of Christ.

A good way to enter into the word of God is to pursue the Life-study of the Bible (1984 messages) and the 347 messages on the High Peak series of messages. These open up the Bible. I have taken up the pursuit of the Life-studies and the High Peaks as my daily and weekly exercises.

In this way, I can be healthy in my Christian life and be supplied organically by the divine life supply. In this way, I can be blended into the Body and contribute to the spreading of the word of God to many others. Then, I can testify the following word of God: 

“Holding to the faithful word, which is according to the teaching of the apostles, that he may be able both to exhort by the healthy teaching and to convict those who oppose.” (Titus 1:9, RecVer)

“If you lay these things before the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, being nourished with the words of the faith and of the good teaching which you have closely followed.” (1 Timothy 4:6, RecVer)

Plan for Growth

“And the word of God grew, and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem multiplied greatly; and a large number of the priests obeyed the faith.” (Acts 6:7, RecVer)

“But the word of God grew and multiplied.” (Acts 12:24, RecVer)

 The conclusion of the ministry of the word through the ministry journey of the apostles in the Jewish region is that the word of God grew and multiplied. Similarly in the gentile region, the word of God grew and prevailed. 

“Thus, the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.” (Acts 19:20, RecVer)

This is the testimony recorded in the Bible concerning the way to increase the number of disciples. Yes, it was purely through the ministering of the word of God. The same principle applies today.  The issue of the constitution of the truth in the saints is for the building up of the Body of Christ and also for the increase of the church.

Since last Tuesday, the coworkers and full-timers serving ones came together for a time of fellowship and training. One of the burdens of the training was the increase of the saints in the churches inwardly by the constitution of the truth and outwardly too by the increase of the word of God.  For this, the brothers serving in the local churches should pay much attention to the enjoyment of the word of God. One new way to dive into the depth of the truth is the way of pray-reading, studying, reciting, and prophesying. In this way, the saints can be constituted with the truths which will enable them to grow in life and issue in the building up of the Body of Christ which in turn will be manifested as the increase in the number of the believers added into the church. 

For this increase to be practical, there needs to be a proper plan. Our God is a God of planning. Therefore, the responsible brothers must make a five years plan, stage by stage. Even for the church where I am, we made plans for the coming six months and the coming five years with the goal of reaching a hundred saints regularly meeting by next year. If the fellowship from the brothers were to be adhered to strictly, this goal can be achieved. This plan has to be worked out to become a reality. 

I do believe this is a confirmation from the Lord through the Body as we have been praying for the increase in the local church here. Especially in my family prayer, this has been one of our daily prayer burdens, to increase first to a hundred saints regularly meeting. In answer to that prayer, the Lord is now showing us how that prayer can be answered. It is God who answers prayer and it is also God who would execute all the plans, but man must cooperate with God and co-labor with Him step by step until the entire plan is accomplished.

Included in this plan is also the matter of desperately laboring on the saints and the new ones. While expecting the Lord's blessing for the increase, the saints must also live a normal Christian life in normal church life. In such a normal church life, the saints will shepherd one another and shepherd the new ones. Shepherding as a result of the enjoyment of the word of God is the best way to gain an increase in the church life. Shepherding includes laboring faithfully without any selection on who to shepherd, we must simply shepherd the saints, good or bad. The Lord will surely bless such faithful labor in shepherding.

The constitution of the word of God and the laboring in shepherding will make the plan accomplishable. This is the new way we are taking, in fact, I am taking, in my serving in the Body in my local church. All my other brothers will follow suit and we will be recipients of the Lord's blessing for His testimony in Gurugram.

Lord, bless the plan for the church through the constitution of the truth and the shepherding of the saints.

Gospel Preaching in DLF 3

Last weekend, as the church, we have been blessed with the trainees coming over to the meeting hall, staying there, and then coordinating with the saints to preach the gospel. This was a sudden arrangement and we did not really have enough time to consider it thoroughly. Yet, the Lord used this opportunity to revive us in the matter of gospel preaching again. This time, brothers in the church felt it best to preach the gospel in DLF 3 where many young working saints are residing as it is adjacent to the city's Cyber Hub. 

As usual and as always, I simply followed the leading of the Lord through the brothers in all practical detail. It is a blessing indeed to simply follow the Lord through the Body without any opinion. Though I had my opinion, I simply denied them and amen the brother's leading.

With a brand new brother and a sister as my teammates, I led them as I felt led by the Lord, where to preach and whom to preach to. Our first gospel candidate was a person who never heard of the name Jesus Christ. When we reached the gospel to him in Hindi, he readily agreed and received whatever we preached. He even prayed the sinner's prayer and called upon the Lord's name. As we were preaching to him, another man was watching us from a nearby building. After we were done preaching with this one, as we moved forward, this new person was smiling. I approached him and he commented that he saw us preaching the gospel and confessed that he himself is a Christian. He welcomed us to his office and then led us to his home, introducing us to his wife. As he was busy with his work, we had a time of home meeting with his wife; reading the Bible, and praying for the family. This family was so open that they wanted to join us on the Lord's day. Therefore, his wife and the child came to attend the meeting. This family was the fruit of following the Lord's leading this time.

Besides this, one man received the gospel tract, called the church's number, and came to the meeting hall. He had believed into the Lord but was not yet baptized. After he enjoyed the meeting with the saints, and especially with the young people, he decided to be baptized. Praise the Lord, he was baptized! Another blessing of following the Lord!

After the Lord's day meeting, we went out to preach the gospel again. As we were on the street, there was a heavy downpour. Initially, we were wondering how we could go on preaching the gospel as the streets were flooded. Due to the rains, we have to stop at a building where we met three groups of gospel candidates and preached the gospel to at least 10 of them. The rain opened the door for us to meet people group by group. Had it not been for the rain, we could not have met so many new people for the gospel. 

The Lord is sovereign in His move. O what a blessing to simply obey and follow His leading through the Body! The gospel preaching in DLF-3 is a new level of coordination. And I believe this is an answer to our prayer for the increase in the number of saints meeting in the church here. Praise the Lord!

Brotherly Fellowship

Listening is one of the most important character traits of a servant of the Lord. Anyone who serves the Lord and serves the people of God must learn to listen. Listen to God and also listen to people. Listen to God to know what is in God's mind concerning His service through me. Listen to people to know their situation and discern how to help them according to God. This lesson needs patience and the spirit of discernment.

Today and the past few days, I have had a wonderful experience of listening to my fellow believers who would confide with me about their situation, mostly their concerns, pains, worries, anxieties, etc. A sister had called me, pouring her heart out to me concerning her family situation and how she fellowshipped for help to pray for them and practical help in whatever way I could. Just listening to her pains and grief took me over half an hour. After which I prayed with her over the phone and promised her that I would pray, consider, and do what I could do best.

A brother called me for prayer and after we prayed, he confided with me about all the things he has been going through in his family, especially with his mother. Incident by incident, point by point, he expressed his view of things and I carefully listened to him. Another brother called me for a time of fellowship as he had not called me for a couple of months now. He expressed whatever he felt needful concerning his life, his family, job, children, etc. I could tell from the narration that the Lord has been working on him and his wife and they are now on the progressive stage in their relationship and spiritual life. A sister called me up to pour out her concern for the stiaution of the saints in her local church and how some saints have veered away from the truth, indirectly causing division. In the midst of it, some faitfhful saints have been sincerely pursuing the ministry and standing firm on the ground of oneness for the Lord's testimony. All the three fellowship lasted for more than an hour over the phone.

The Lord has been gracing me with hearing ears to hear and listen to what the saints have to say. I did not comment much unless the Lord led me strongly to do so. I hear the fact and consider carefully first if the facts narrated were indeed true. And if so, what would the Lord want me to do based on the facts, and how and when I should take action. Until these queries from my side were cleared, I choose not to say anything until the Lord in His own time mainfest things more clearly and directly me to take the needed action. 

I have been learning to serve the Lord in this way. I keep myself open to all the saints whom the Lord would burden to fellowship with me. I take such fellowships as lessons for me to learn. And most of the time it turns out, they are blessings in disguise.

What a brotherly fellowship I have been graced to experience! I learn by experience as the Lord has been gracing me. Lord, grace me on and on...

Children: God's Heritage

Behold, children are the heritage of Jehovah,  

The fruit of the womb a reward.  Psalms 127:3

The Lord has sovereignly blessed us with three children. To me, parenting is best practiced by prayers. I and my wife have been praying almost daily for our children. We truly reckon them as God's heritage and we are only the earthly guardian. We do not want to parent our children according to us, but according to God. Though, oftentimes, I inserted my own way into parenting ultimately it has always been God's way that matters most. We, as parents, did make a couple of mistakes yet the Lord also parents us as His children teaching us how to parent our children.

I, as a father, could not really spend as much time with my children as my wife has been doing. But I make sure to pray with them every day whether at home or abroad. I have been doing my best to care for them, show love to them, and try my best to be a proper and normal father. The Lord has been so faithful to me and to us as a family. He has bestowed us with the best family environment where everybody feels really at home with peace and joy, prayer, fellowship, and the word of God, and all provision supplied abundantly not luxuriously though.  Sometimes, I told my wife that our children are so peaceful and joyful. They know no worry nor anxiety, especially like the way I did when I was a kid, and often wonder if they would need some "hardship" positively as a lesson for them to learn. Nevertheless, I am definitely not looking for hardship for my children unless the Lord allows it.

As time passes by, the Lord's blessing has been manifested among all our children. They all are excelling in their studies and have come out with outstanding results in their academic performance in addition to the extra curriculum activities they participated in and won awards for; at school, state, country, and even international level. Positively, I am proud of them, the Lord covers me for saying this. 

On the academic front, the teachers have appreciated all of them and they all have carved a niche in their respective classes as someone the students and teachers can look up to. They all have been given an important role to play in school functions, selection by merit, even to the point that the Principal and Headmistress came to knwo about it.

Last Monday, my wife and I were invited to attend a school function that our son was hosting with one of his seniors. He was applauded openly by the Principal in the meeting. Last Lord's day too, he shared in the Lord's day meeting his enjoyment of the truth concerning the Lord's incarnation, human living, death, resurrection, and ascension in addition to sharing his own experience in the past week. I myself was so shepherded by my son's sharing. I could not control it but had to admit to him how much I appreciated what he shared and frankly told him, "Amana, I am proud of you! May God continue to bless you." 

Likewise, my two daughters have shown extraordinary enthusiasm in their academic fields. I literally have not yet been involved in their studies to help as they could manage their studies all by themselves, or with the help of my wife, or use Google to search their queries. As of now, we have not given any special coaching or tutor as they could manage all by themselves, except for Hindi subject for which they help from a Hindi speaking brother sometimes. Mostly they google all their queries online using even google translate to get the hard meanings of Hindi words.

All these are because of the Lord's grace, mercy, and blessings upon our family. I have nothing to boast about, I am simply stating the fact. 

May the Lord continue to preserve us under His grace and bless His children for His purpose. Indeed,  children are the heritage of Jehovah! And the fruit of the womb a reward!

Praise You, Lord Jesus!

New Testament Recovery Version in Indian Languages

The opening of Your words gives light, imparting understanding to the simple. Psalms 119:130

Thank the Lord for His word! Much more, thank the Lord for the revelation and interpretation of His word! For ages past, in His sovereignty, He has been revealing the hidden truths through many brothers and sisters. And it is indeed wise that we learn from them and inherit the riches of the word of God by being open to what God has already revealed. God has gifted many with the gift of interpreting and giving meaning to His mysterious and profound word. 

And they read in the book, in the law of God, interpreting and giving the sense, so that they understood the reading. Nehemiah 8:8

Such interpretation had been practiced during the Old Testament time itself. Even in the New testament time too, there is such a record of the need to make the word of God known to those in need as seen in the case of an Ethiopian eunuch.

And when Philip ran up, he heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, Do you really know the things that you are reading? And he said, How could I unless someone guides me? And he entreated Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this: “As a sheep He was led to slaughter; and as a lamb before its shearer is dumb, so He does not open His mouth. In His humiliation His judgment was taken away. Who shall declare His generation? For His life is taken away from the earth.” And the eunuch answered Philip and said, I beseech you, Concerning whom does the prophet say this? Concerning himself or concerning someone else? And Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he announced Jesus as the gospel to him. Acts 8:30-35

In a similar manner, today, we have been learning from the church history and also from all our spiritual forefathers what God has revealed to them. Thank the Lord for some faithful brothers who had paid the price to fulfill the burden of making the Word of God known to the children of God today. To my understanding, the New Testament Recovery Version is one such study Bible that has been helping me and many others in interpreting and giving the sense to the word of God. Thereby, opening the word and giving light.

For this study Bible translation from the original Greek to local Indian languages, the Lord has been gracing us for the translation preparation. He wisely and patiently led us through two years of biblical Greek learning, and then the qualified learners were selected for translation from Greek into their target languages which lasted for another five years. Finally, from Jan-Feb 2022 we did the final proofreading. In all these, I had been specially graced to participate in the entire project, from its inception to its completion. What a privilege, what a blessing, and yes, what grace! Now the printed study Bibles have come out in Malayalam, Mizo, Tamil, and Telugu! 

Praise the Lord!

On the 15th of July, we formally made the announcement of the availability of these study Bibles after laboring to bring out the brochures and a one-minute scriptures reading for each language. The announcement made was:

Amana Literature is pleased to announce the release of the New Testament Recovery Version in Malayalam, Mizo, Tamil, and Telugu.

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Discover eye-opening insight into God’s Word with this outstanding study Bible.

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Complete Detail

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Malayalam Bible – The New Testament Recovery Version https://www.amanaliterature.in/mznrcvbible

Mizo Bible – The New Testament Recovery Version  https://www.amanaliterature.in/malntrcvbible

Tamil Bible – The New Testament Recovery  Version  https://www.amanaliterature.in/tentrcvbible

Telugu Bible – The New Testament Recovery Version  https://www.amanaliterature.in/tantrcvbible

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A One-minute Scripture Reading with Commentary

Tamil Scripture & Commentary - https://www.amanaliterature.in/taomsc

Telugu Scripture & Commentary - https://www.amanaliterature.in/teomsc

Mizo Scripture & Commentary - https://www.amanaliterature.in/mzomsc

Malayalam Scripture & Commentary - https://www.amanaliterature.in/mlomsc

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BROCHURES: New Testament Recovery Version

RecVer Malayalam - https://www.amanaliterature.in/malayalamrcvbrochure

RecVer Mizo - https://www.amanaliterature.in/mizorcvbrochure

RecVer Tamil - https://www.amanaliterature.in/tamilrcvbrochure

RecVer Telugu - https://www.amanaliterature.in/telugurcvbrochure

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Punjabi Translation

Generally, the Punjabi speakers also understand Hindi. A decade ago, we used to translate the ministry books into Punjabi, yet not one book was published. Later, we dropped the translation into Punjabi due to lack of proper translator, at the same time we did not sense the urgent need then, as compared to today. 

During recent the ministry journey to Jammu, Kashmir, and Punjab, we discovered the need for Punjabi ministry materials as many Punjabi speakers prefer to read in Punjabi though they still listen messages in Hindi. Now that lakhs of people have been saved in Punjab, the need for ministry material grows all the more. 

This time, in my personal fellowship with the local Punjabi speaking believers, I was convinced of the urgent need for the ministry to be in this language. Though there are many new believers, many of them are very shallow as they have been so much influenced by signs and wonders, miracles and healings, clubbed with the so-called worship songs. But the one thing that can best make the belieber grow in life is the word of God, yes, the properly interpreted word of God. 

In fact, in a Christian leaders gathering that I attended, a good number of leaders acknowledged the need for healthy Christian materials in Punjabi to help the Punjabi believers grow in the divine life by the pursuit of the truth and by having a proper revelation of the word of God, such  as revealed in the ministry literature.

At least three Christian leaders have fellowshipped with me the need for good Christian library or bookstore for the believers. The reason being, many shallow and even wrong doctrines have crept in among Christians, especially with those claiming to have thousands and thousands of believers, as they gain people through healing and demon casting out with the promise of prosperity rather than the proper feeding on the healthy word of God.

According to the need, the Lord also provided a brother who started translating the ministry books into Punjabi. This one also referred his wife as another potential translator in addition to the one we met in Anantnag, a Punjabi brother, with whom we fellowshipped for Punjabi translation. On top of all these, I fellowshipped with a brother who used to do the translation many years ago to consider his service in the literature again. He then confirmed that he had been thinking of the same even before I fellowshipped with him. As he went to visit many pastors in the villages, he discovered that many believers urgently need proper ministry materials for their growth in life. Therefore, the Lord work all things together at the some time to meet the need for the many believers in Punjab.

The Lord has thus began a new step to gain North India, especially, Punjab with the initiation of the Punjabi ministry literature translation!

Lord, prepare the healthy spiritual food for Your Punjabi speaking children! And bless the translation service.