American Christian

I spent the the best part of June with the Reverend Doctor Sampurna Rao Gujjarlamudi, founder and director of STAR Ministries in Hyderabad, India. Most people who know me know of my intentions to help him and his ministry in whatever way I can for the rest of my life, not merely from feeling compelled by way of obligation but sensing that it is part of my life calling. This is the second year in a row that I have been able to take Sam on part of his yearly fund-raising and update tour in the United States. I am fascinated with the varying response Sam gets while sharing about his life and ministry in India.

If he is sharing somewhere for the first time he starts from the beginning, often telling of his great-grandmother who was killed by the men in her Hindu family when she came to Christ, and moving through his life quickly till he found himself called to the ministry. Quitting a lucrative future in hotel management, he plead for a scholarship to a Bible College where he went on to complete three degrees, finally earning a Masters of Theology before pastoring a small church. While at the Bible College he married Esther, who was also a student. For two years he prayed to God for an opportunity to teach, and one day a man approached him about teaching in a Bible College, but without a guarantee in regards to salary. Sam went there for seven years and never received regulated pay. Before the school finally had to close Sam came with the Director to the U.S. for fund-raising. Sam had $80 in his pocket and a briefcase. During this 1987 trip his goal was to raise money for a printing press to print gospel tracks. He met Dr. Staats and his wife Janet who took him in their care as they have done every year since. It was shortly after this point that Sam planted a church in an area of Hyderabad that previously had no Christian activity. As time passed there were those who from miles away requesting services closer to them. This continued for 20 years until Sam had planted 6 churches. He has only recently purchased a house for the third church, and still has the last three in rented houses. During this time, these churches have faced increasing persecution from groups of radical Hindus. Pastors have been beaten, stabbed, cut up, had acid poured on their faces, thrown into bags and then into a dump or river, weddings are stopped, any singing is stopped and threats made especially in the rented houses, and the list goes on. Sam is now on a hit list and requires escorts when he goes to his daily Bible studies at the different churches.

If you are familiar with the magazine and organization “Voice of the Martyrs” you know that this scenario is not unique to Sam and not unique to India. In many places in the world claiming Christ and trying to spread the Gospel, which goes hand in hand, earns you this kind of struggle. Sam’s son, Jeff, went to Bible College with me and is living with me now as we attend seminary. He was beaten the year before he came to the U.S. and left for dead. When he gained consciousness, he knew God wanted him for to care for the churches his dad had planted. When he first told me his stories it changed the coarse of my life. And while I don’t expect everyone to be called to drop everything their doing at hearing such a testimony to throw the full weight of their resources behind partnering with Christians in these situations, I can’t see how people who live the comfortable American Christian life will not be incredibly challenged when they come face to face with these realities.

I am greatly blessed while traveling with Sam and his family to see people who are truly touched, who make sacrifices on their behalf, and make these persecuted people from the other side of the world part of their family. However, there are so many times I am smitten with shame at how oblivious and and shallow entire churches can be in regards to making Christ so central that death is no object. Churches that claim the New Testament, the authors of which were skinned, beheaded, crucified and stoned, live in complete overabundant affluence and can’t see the value in a humble life lain down for the sake of Christ. Seeing how people and churches react to Sam and Jeff has become a sort of litmus test for me to see whether or not a church is completely cursed or not. Thankfully my home church, which is a perpetual blessing to me, responded way beyond what I expected. There are so many churches and people on both sides, ones who are such a blessing even when they don’t have anything more than a place to stay for while, and ones that are so cursed they would rather have a paved parking lot than see unreached people groups get exposed to the Gospel for the first time. It isn’t that all American or Western Christians are bad or worse than other people from around the world. Sam and his family are not perfect, and just because the threat of death us upon some Christian for preaching the Gospel doesn’t mean they’re purer than one not under that threat. The major difference I’ve noticed in the Christian West compared to the Christian East is pride that comes from affluence or wealth.

The best Biblical example I can think of concerning this comes from the letters to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3. There are two churches that Christ has nothing against in the cities of Smyrna and Philadelphia. The rest he has something against, but the worst is the seventh church in Laodicea. I will quote the passages concerning Smyrna and Laodicea here for you to see the difference.

To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:

These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death. [Revelation 2:8-11]

To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. [Revelation 3:14-22]

The church in Smyrna is in very humble circumstances, and is so strong spiritually all they need is encouragement to endure for the Gospel, and a reminder that death cannot truly harm them. At the same time, the church in Laodicia has wealth, but is weak spiritually and needs to be called to repentance in a bad way. They have been blinded by their wealth by apparently putting more faith in it than in Christ. This is the one of the fundamental differences I see among churches around the globe, just one of the several, and it is a key difference between churches with wealth and churches without it. Christ is clear, being committed to Him while in poverty (or not) is expected and commendable, having wealth and forgetting Him is damnable and calls for urgent repentance. You be the judge for yourself and for your church, but this issue has been at the forefront of my mind since struggling with my faith through Bible College, and having realized my Laodician tendencies I have every intention of banishing that pride from my life.

I have considered writing a book about this subject bearing the same title as this blog. I would love to get feedback on these things, as these are merely my preliminary thoughts in need of further development and organization. My prayer is that we may find in our day more cities with Christians like those in Smyrna, humble and simple servants only needing encouragement in the day of persecution that Christ is worth dying for.