The Church The Bible Built
Many years ago the Rev. Robert Burris, now 92 years of age, worked
for four and one-half years as a missionary in South China. As part
of his ministry he journeyed into the mountains carrying copies of
the Scriptures in Chinese for distribution. In this way, although he
could not speak fluent Chinese, the people were given God's word.
Toward the end of his term Mr. Burris and three companions began a
180- mile journey with 4,000 copies of the Chinese New Testament. In
the first ten days about half of these New Testaments had been
distributed. Then, in the remote countryside, they were stopped by
five armed bandits who took everything--money, clothing, shoes--- and
the remaining 2,000 copies of the New Testament. Mr. Burris and
friends limped home barefooted in their shirts and trousers, glad to
be alive.
Approximately 25 years later when Mr. Burris was the pastor of a
church in Ohio, he and his wife attended a lecture with slides
presented by a missionary to South China. Among the slides shown was
a picture of the very place in which he had been robbed by the
bandits."Now," the missionary said,"we come to the most important
slide in my collection.
I call it The Miracle Church." The picture on the screen showed a
large rough empty building."This is The Miracle Church," the
missionary continued,"Because no one knows who started it, or how,
every Sunday, 400 people attend, each with a copy of The New
Testament in Chinese.
No one knows were they got these New Testaments. So far as is known,
no missionary or distributor ever went into these mountains which are
infested with bandits and robbers. Yet today, the church is there and
the people have God's Word".
Mr. Burris smiled in gratitude. God's Word, taken from him that day
by bandits had been building it's own church in China for 25 years.
[ Author Unknown -- from 'Aiken Drum' (Aiken@AikensLaughs.com) ]
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