It is my privilege to know that you are a person who has the passion for Mission and Evangelism in God’s Kingdom.
As an evangelist, the story where Jesus spoke about going after the one lost sheep until he finds it (Luke 15:4-7) depicts the passion of my heart for the lost. From the New Testament, it is clear that evangelism is the natural function for all followers of Jesus. In fact, evangelism is following Christ because that was His core function while He was on earth. Jesus expressed the heartbeat of Father God, that of His longing and compassion for the lost and desire to save them unto Himself. As followers of Christ, we have no alternative. We must be engaged in telling others about Him or in some way, be involved in God’s business of evangelism.
When God called me to this ministry, the Holy Spirit stirred my heart for the lost in Central Kalimantan. The truth that I am in the plan of God to go out to save the lost suddenly became a reality in my spirit. As the founder of Dehes Ministries, I set as our priority that we will be seekers of the lost and we are committed to use all our resources and efforts to save them at any cost.
How do we know which strategy should we employ to seek the lost in Central Kalimantan? When Jesus called Peter and Andrew in Matt 4:19, he told them, “Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” Jesus was going teach them how to seek the lost and unless we humble ourselves and learn from the True Seeker and Master, we labor in vain. In Dehes Ministries, by the grace of God, Jesus made known to us that the way to seek the lost in that region was by planting new churches in villages and establishing a network of co-operative working relationships between the local pastors, villagers and tribal leaders. He opens opportunities for us to purchase blocks of land and provides the finances through His faithful followers to complete each project.
All the above said and done, seeking the lost to save them is incomplete without the Gospel. “…I became a minister in accordance with divine stewardship which was entrusted to me for you–as its object and for your benefit–to make the Word of God fully known (among you).” (Col 1:25 Amplified Bible). We have an obligation to proclaim the pure, unmodified Word of God and leave the divine task of calling to the Spirit of God. As ambassadors of Christ, we are only given the right to proclaim what our King wants us to say. We have no right to impose our own ideas or pass judgments upon people. The local Dayaks in Central Kalimantan are tribal people who have been entrenched in idol and ancestors worships for generations. In proclaiming the Gospel to them, it is foremost in our mind what we save them with, is what we save them to. If we save them with man-crafted formulas, false promises or assurance of better life, the final result could be detrimental to the soul. Our job is strictly to proclaim the truth of the Gospel and let the Spirit convicts the heart.
Today Jesus is physically absent from the world and the visible church has become His body. As believers, Jesus has entrusted to each one of us the power of attorney to act on His behalf so that His ministry will continue until He returns again.
I pray that as you read my message, God will stir your heart to be a seeker of the lost and you will be actively engaged to save them for His glory. I extend my personal invitation to you to be a part of our exciting ministry in Central Kalimantan Indonesia.
Blessings,
Evangelist Sebastian