A Word from the pastor
The Mature Soul-winner
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“Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God” (Matt 5:9 NKJV).
This verse constitutes a well of inspiration. Unfortunately, some people incorrectly claim that this is exclusively for the Jews or simply “kingdom teaching”. We, as church age believers, Jews and gentiles alike, will miss much if we adhere to such a misleading interpretation. What Jesus is teaching is “interim ethics”, that is, how should the heirs of the kingdom (the church age believers) behave in this present age (the dispensation squeezed in between the first and second coming of Christ). In this age, we are not building the kingdom. We are rather building the church while we are anticipating the future establishment of the postponed kingdom. In other words, this teaching is indeed applicable in our dispensation (time-period). Yes, the standard is high, but, unlike the Old Testament believers, we have the Spirit of God permanently indwelling us. Several things can be said about this beautiful verse.
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The Mandate
All the synoptic gospels as well as the Book of Acts include the “Great Commission”, which, sadly enough, has become the “Great Omission” in many cases (Matt 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:47-48; Acts 1:8).
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Timothy, perhaps the Apostle Paul’s primary disciple, was encouraged to do “the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim 4:5). It may have been that Timothy shied away from this God-given aspect of his ministry. Most likely, despite his timidness, his chief gift was one of being a pastor-teacher. Certainly, we have been given different gifts (1 Cor 12:4-11). This, however, should never become an excuse for not ministering in the “broader context”.
In other words, I do not need the gift of giving to give or the gift of encouragement to encourage (cf. Rom 12:7-8). Likewise, I do not the need the gift of evangelism to evangelize (cf. Eph 4:11). We do not need to be insecure in the presence of those who excel in certain areas with their particular gift(s). On the contrary, we should consider them to be a source of encouragement, someone to learn from, yes, even hide behind (in the right sense of the word). This is what the Body of Christ is all about, is it not?
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The Mechanics
In John 16:7-11, we find a “blueprint” for effective soul-winning. The Holy Spirit convicts the world (the Greek word kosmos means all the inhabitants of the earth, not just the “elect”) of three things: sin, righteousness and judgement.
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Fortunately, Jesus, in the following verses, explains what He means by that statement (John 16:9-11). Sin is in the singular. It is the sin of unbelief that the Spirit bothers the unsaved about, the only sin that can send an individual to hell.
The Holy Spirit’s agenda is not to “moralize” the unbeliever. He will continue to convict people about sins (plural) when He is on the inside, that is, after they get saved. Concerning righteousness, a person cannot rely on “relative righteousness”. A perfect righteousness that must necessarily be “external”, since it cannot be “produced” within man’s fallen nature, is required to meet God’s perfect standard of holiness (Rom 8:4). This “external righteousness” will be imputed to the sinner at the moment he or she exercises faith in Christ alone (Rom 4:3; 2 Cor 5:21). Finally, He talks about judgement. The ruler of this world has been judged. Unless a person repents (changes his or her mind about the person and work of Jesus Christ), he or she is on the losing side. They will share Satan’s fate in hell.
People do not get saved because we mow their lawn in an attempt to be “Christlike”. They get saved because we open our mouths and share the gospel with them (Rom 1:16-17). As we do, let us bother them with the same issues, sin, righteousness and judgement, that the Spirit already convicts them about. Let us stay focused.
The Maturity
In Matthew 5:9, the word “blessed” (makarios) can also be translated “happy” or “envied”. Peacemakers (eirénopoios), used only here in the New Testament, comes from the word eirēnē, which means to make whole. A lost man is broken, but when he hears the gospel and believes he is made whole again. He is once again connected to his Creator, who has now also become his Saviour. Those who convey this saving truth to their surroundings will be called “sons of God”.
In the Greek, the word for “son” is not teknon but huios, that is, one sharing the same nature as his father. Although there are some exceptions to this (e.g. 1 Pet 3:6), typically, teknon is used to describe the relationship of life brought into being between God and the Christian through the spiritual birth (e.g. John 1:12-13). This makes perfect sense since etymologically teknon means “a born-one”. Huios, on the other hand, is commonly used to describe someone’s character. In Matthew 5:44-45, believers who love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them are sons (huioi).
Therefore, to be a peacemaker, one who makes people whole again, is a clear sign of spiritual maturity. It brings happiness to the one practicing personal evangelism and it is to be envied by those who are not in the habit of doing so. No condemnation here, but certainly a divine challenge.
The Model
Soul-winning does not come easy to many of us. Although one can cut the Bible anywhere and it will bleed evangelism, it still does not always convince us. Personally, I have been very helped by observing examples. Paul encouraged the Corinthians to imitate him as he imitated Christ (1 Cor 11:1). I have been privileged to have men in my life who have been soul-winners. I have seen it in P. Stevens, P. Schaller, P. Matti and many others. In their lives, I have seen the joy that comes with it, the desire to make people whole as well as the maturity that it undoubtedly signifies. This coming summer is loaded with opportunities to be wise soul-winners, both at home and abroad. Prov 11:30 says that “he who wins souls is wise”. Let us consider this verse as well as Matthew 5:9 and thus reap the blessings God has in store for us.
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P. Mikael Toll
Contact: stockholm@ggwo.se
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Get to Know the Johansson Family
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This faithful family consists of five members. Well, seven, if one would include the dogs, Balder and Eskil. However, on this particular day, they did not feel photogenic enough to participate in the photo session. Consequently, they refused to be in the picture. So, from left to right in the picture you see Elias, Caroline, Johannes, Felicia and Hans (or Hasse).
About two decades ago, Hasse and Caroline got married in the beautiful Stockholm archipelago. After that memorable moment, they decided to spend their “extended honeymoon” in Budapest, Hungary, studying and serving under the leadership of P. Schaller and others. That academic year, 2000-2001, turned out to be life-changing for them in so many ways. It has indeed served as a launchpad for their future plans, purposes and preferences. Hasse is a graduate from our local Bible College in Stockholm (1998).
The rest of the family came into being in the 21st Century. They are all active in various ways. Johannes studies art, Elias focuses on technology and Felicia, who is also studying, has not yet had the opportunity to choose her field of study. The family resides in Mullsjö, a small town about 30 kilometers northwest of Jönköping. Every time we minister in their neck of the woods, the whole family serves the body of Christ beautifully as a team. We are thankful and blessed to have them around as a resource in building the body of Christ in Sweden. Read more about them under “Focus on the Mission Field”.
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Focus on the mission field & prayer
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In our ministry, we have always been taught that the mission field also includes our own town, city and native country. I once saw a creative sign outside a church. It was tactically placed by the exit of the parking lot and read “you are now entering the mission field”. Having said that, I would like to promote the City of Jönköping, a place that has been on our minds for many years. Being a good size city on its own, a regional capital, it is also strategically placed right between the three biggest population centres in Sweden, Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö.
Over the years, due to its strategic location, we have arranged numerous conferences in the vicinity. Periodically, we have also conducted Bible studies in the Johansson family’s home in Mullsjö, which is located just a (long) stone’s throw outside of Jönköping.
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Please, pray for two things concerning this region. First, that the Lord will raise up team members so that a church could be established soon. Second, that we will find the time to visit on a regular basis. There is already a team in place ready to take the work to the next level. Would you like to be part of it? It is not only possible but desirable. Why not start with prayer.
Speaking about prayer, if you desire to pray for God’s work around the globe, please, find the June 2021 Prayer Calendar:
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What exactly is included in the eschatological term “the Day of the Lord” in 1 Thessalonians 5:2? Is it a literal 24-hour day or does it have reference to a longer time-period?
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Obviously, there are different theological views concerning this. Can we convincingly ensure the true meaning of this biblical term? Find out by reading Dr. Mikael’s paper ‘The Scope of the Phrase “The Day of the Lord” in 1 Thessalonians 5:2’.
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Well, we know that we are not supposed to count our chickens before they hatch. In other words, many of the announced events below are still uncertain in the current circumstances. However, let us trust the Lord that these conferences will take place. There are plenty of other things taking place this summer. For more information, please, visit GGWO Events and GGWO Mission events.
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June 21-26 International Convention in Baltimore, USA
July 9-11 “Summer Days” Conference in Kiljava, Finland
July 13-21 Summer Harvest in Riga, Latvia
July 16-18 Russian Conference in St. Petersburg
August 3-13 Summer Harvest in Scotland
Augusti 6–9 LappiCon (Summer Conference in Finnish Lapland)
September 17–21 RuskaCon (Autumn Conference in Finnish Lapland)
OBS! In order to register for the conferences in Lapland, please, contact either P.Matti Sirviö pmsirvio@yahoo.com or Mission Team Arto arto@niukkanen.net.
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Sermons on Youtube and Facebook
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Please contact stockholm@ggwo.se for more information about meetings.
We try to publish a sermon in Swedish and English on Youtube and Facebook every Sunday around 10:30 AM. Our Youtubeaccount.
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