Great Christian Biographies with John Piper: Adoniram Judson, part 1

The following resource is from desiring God org a couple of preliminaries before I pray for God's help. One is that there are books. And I just want to make sure you know that what I do here in these biographies.

You can do in your church and they can be very helpful because I'm no scholar on any of these people I talk about all I did was read this book and now I'm going to talk to you from what I learned so you can do that.

This book is there to the Golden Shore. That's the only one I've read because that's the only one in print. There are Wayland's two-volume commentary. There are a lot of used ones out there everything Courtney Anderson knows about.

He got from those two volumes. He just doesn't use quote marks anywhere have any footnotes. Because I found sentences. I just found him. And then here's the only book in print by an arm Judson himself it's on baptism and he turned from congregationalist to Baptist on 114 day trip on a boat to India and then and then here are Two books for children.

I didn't know these existed until five minutes ago. So I'll hold these up and if I could get my little seven-year-old to read one of these that would be great. So That's what's available on Judson and I hope you'll Read something with regard to my manuscript.

We'll have this on the web Friday afternoon. So don't feel like oh my god write this source down or that source down because just I would say if I were you I would just put my notes away and and just relax and Soak and and then get convicted and become a missionary that's that's my goal and But if you bother yourself with taking too many notes you might miss the Holy Spirit's Work, and I will tell you up front I the group was just praying for me and and I've been praying that I would have discernment as to how we should close this time because I'm Fully expecting that what I said at the beginning with regard to crossroads is true of you right now and that there are perhaps Hundreds in this room that God does not want to be pastors anymore in America.

And therefore weighty things are going to happen in the next 75 minutes or so, so That's worth praying about. Father I fully believe that you have prepared men in the last decade or so For this moment in their lives and that the Holy Spirit is moving now across this room and Will by the word Dislodge many from present plans and Create a whole new vision for the next chapter perhaps the last chapter of their lives.

So I ask you father to do an absolutely stunning work here for the mobilization of pastors To be frontier missionaries and for the awakening of the rest to produce frontier missionaries and Nobody to be indifferent to this great cause and calling to that in help me to be faithful to your word and to be a Faithful echo of the life and labor and suffering of Adoniram Judson in Jesus powerful name I pray amen our Lord Jesus Said in some very solemn words Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies It remains alone, and if it dies it bears much fruit, and then he followed that with these words he who Loves his life Loses it and he who hates his life in this world Will keep it for eternal life.

Which means that a fruitful life and an eternal life depend on Dying and hating your life in this world more and more I am convinced That God's design For finishing the Great Commission and gathering His elect from all the peoples of the world is through the suffering of his ministers and missionaries dying like a seed hating your life and What overwhelms me as I ponder the scriptures in relation to the life of? Adoniram Judson what overwhelms me is the strategic place of how often He died and how often he hated his life in this world.

The suffering of the ministers and the suffering of the missionaries is a design I'm arguing it's not a mere consequence. It's not a mere result. It's not just a spin-off. I'm arguing it is a divine design that the darkness be penetrated that the Principalities and powers be broken and that God-centered Christ exalting Bible saturated churches be planted through the suffering and martyrdom of his people.

I think that's a divine design To which you some of you are called and all of you in measure. Now, here's my outline of where we're going. One five four things I want to show you and then conclude. Fifthly with a plea to you to join Christ and Judson in dying for the world.

One God's purpose to spread the Gospel to all peoples to God's plan to make suffering a crucial means to accomplish this purpose. Three the position we are now in in the 21st century in regard to world evangelization for the pain of Adoniram Judson as an illustration of all these truths.

And Fifth a plea to you to take the deposit. Around which we have built necessary fences. Because it is so infinitely valuable to the people who need it so badly. If you'd ask me What would be one of the main reasons for the theme of this conference?

I would say because if you don't guard the deposit with fences You will have nothing to take to the nation's in 80 years. Like the American Baptist and the PC USA and the United Methodist Church and the Episcopalian Church and the UCC just like them.

They used to have a gospel. They used to believe in missions. And your little denomination so evangelically vibrant today will be exactly where they are in 80 years without fences. I Want there to be a Message clear and powerful that believes in heaven believes in hell believes in the necessity of Christ and faith in this Christ so that we have something to give.

That would be one of the reasons for having this conference. So here's number one of those five points. The invincible purpose of God is that the gospel of the glory of Christ? Spread to all peoples of the world and take root in God-centered Christ exalting churches.

To all the people's it's his purpose. That this great gospel spread and produce Churches, this is a promise in the Old Testament all the ends of the earth shall remember and Worship the Lord and all the families of the people shall come and bow down for dominion.

Belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations. Psalm 22 verses 27 and 28. It's a Old Testament promise. It is also a promise of Jesus this gospel will be preached Throughout the world as a testimony to all nations and then the end will come.

It's a design of the cross. They sang a new song saying You were slain and by your blood did ransom men for God from every tribe and tongue and people and nation and has made them a Priest or priesthood to our God and they shall reign on earth.

It was a design of the cross. If you love the cross like we sing. You must love what it was designed to do. Namely gather a people from every people group on planet earth. If you don't love that you don't love the cross you're creating it in your own imagination and It was the final command of the risen all-powerful Lord all Authority in heaven on earth has been given to me go therefore and make disciples of all nations.

Baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you and lo I am with you. I will be with you. I will be with you. What more could we ask to the end of the age you take that?

You take that charge and say all right, I'll do it. Will you be with me? He resounds. You don't have to have any extraordinary gift here to know the Word of the Risen All-Authority. Christ coming through this mouth right now is straight into your heart.

I will be with you. And therefore you don't have anything to fear but fear. It was the divine aim of the Apostle Paul and the grace of God in him. Through him Romans 1 5 we have received grace and Apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name.

Among all the peoples all the nations it burned in the Apostle. That this is why grace had come upon him that all the nations would become obedient to King Jesus through faith. It was his holy ambition and here there's something very relevant for us all because we might think well the Apostle.

He had his Damascus Road experience and I've never had anything quite that clear. And so I'm living in limbo and it seems more appropriate to be here. There is a way Paul says this that alters that a bit.

He says in Romans 15 20 I make it my ambition to preach the gospel. Not where Christ has already been named. He's just passionate to get away from America. He's just passionate to get out of here where it's not already been named.

Lest I build on someone else's foundation. Is there anybody in this room with that passion? I don't want to build on my predecessor. I don't want to go to a church that's established. Give me a totally pagan people.

Give me a people that don't want me to come. Oh God grant me to do what Paul did if there's nobody like that in this room. We may as well fold up the shop of Christianity because that job is not done.

But that's my third point and I'm still on point one. I'm still reading in that in that context of Romans 15 20. Lest I build on someone else's foundation. But as it is written Those who have never been told of him.

Nice quoting Isaiah 5215. Isn't this strange? This man had a Damascus Road experience with the Living Christ and he quotes Isaiah to authorize His calling if that doesn't liberate you men to hear the Word of God and I say I don't know what would.

Those who have never heard will understand. He does it again in Acts 13 the divine purpose of the falling and the filling of the Holy Spirit in Acts 1 is. Also to this end you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will therefore Be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the world.

That's why he came. That's why he came. We sing that song. I thank you for leaving your spirit here. Are you Point one. Dan the invincible purpose of God. Is that the gospel of the glory of Christ? Spread To all the peoples of the world and take root in God-centered Christ exalting Bible-saturated churches that bring cultures under King Jesus.

Adoniram Judson Came to faith and was called In about 1812 a little bit before that in a milieu Where the Holy Spirit began to move mightily. The haystack prayer meeting was in 1807 near Williams College and Adoniram Judson went to Andover Seminary where those students from Williams had come and he was caught up into a flame of missionary zeal that was born out of the beginnings of an awakening wherever the Holy Spirit is Quickening and awakening the Church of Christ this kind of passion will be born.

Otherwise, it's a defective awakening. Point number two. God's plan is That this gospel spreading church planting purpose Triumphed through the suffering of his people, especially his ministers and missionaries.

God's plan is that the people's be reached the church be established authentic worship rise to the king through the suffering and martyrdom of his people, especially his ministers and his missionaries.

Jesus said to his disciples Behold I am sending you out like sheep in the midst of wolves. Be as wise as Serpents and as innocent as doves. Nobody nobody doubts what happens to sheep in the midst of wolves and To make it crystal clear that it was not a possibility but a reality.

Paul said We are being killed all day long. We are counted as sheep to be slaughtered. But in all these things in in in all these things We are more than conquerors through him who loved us. And the first thing that cannot separate you from him is death.

That's the calling. Unless a grain of wheat Falls into the ground and dies it remains alone. Jesus said beware of men. For they will deliver you over to courts. Flog you in their synagogues. You will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake to bear witness Before them and the Gentiles do you notice Witness Is not the Thing you do after you've gone to jail to try to make it turn out better.

It's the reason you're in jail. That's what the text says ace Marturian our choice. They will drag you before governors and kings for a Witness to them. They didn't do it for that reason. God did it for that reason.

Nobody's in jail by accident. Nobody is a sheep amid wolves by accident. It's an appointment. It's a promise from the Lord Who laid his life down as a lamb? Among wolves a. A Disciple is not above his teacher.

Nor a servant above his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his own house? Who do we think we are? You can have a nice little church as though the master the Infinitely worthy one the one who is last to be persecuted.

Surely it will not happen to him. Us yes, not him. And it happens to him. And he draws out the implication. You're not above your master. If you would be my disciple you will take up your cross and Get on the Calvary Road and follow me.

There's not another road of ministry. Martyrs are not an accident. Revelation 611 when they cried out from under the altar. How long how long. Until you judge our blood and avenge us. The word comes back.

Rest a little longer until the number of Their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete. Who were to be killed as they themselves had been. Rest a little longer. There's some more of you Planned till the number is complete.

And some are in this room. May God give you strength. May God keep you straight. Might be a sniper. It doesn't like your church. Might be a bomber. It doesn't like where you're headed on the airplane.

Just might be a mob. Might take you down in Yemen after 30 years in a hospital. They're loving people. Might take you down with Martin Burnham In the Philippines. Might take you down with Graham Staines in India.

It won't be an accident. It will be a design to break open. We keep running like we are in the American Evangelical Church from suffering. The Lord will reject us and get it done with 10 ,000 Korean missionaries.

The South Korean Church in the last Ten years has gone from can do ballpark numbers now about 2 ,500 missionaries to 10 ,000 Cross-cultural missionaries putting to shame us dying Westerners who are so Infatuated with our securities and our ease now lest you think we put our martyrdom too close together with Christ's Witness martyrdom.

Listen to this Amazing sentence from Colossians 124. Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake and in my flesh. I am Filling up what is lacking in Christ afflictions. For the sake of his body that is the church.

Brothers, we are called in our sufferings to complete the afflictions of Jesus. You really need to ponder that. That's a design for the in gathering and the up building of the Church of the Living Christ and It does not mean you atone for anybody's sins or that his atoning death was in any way deficient.

It means this I believe. The sufferings of Jesus acted out by him in fully sufficient atoning worth Are meant to be displayed? Portrayed Offered through the sufferings of his body on earth. It's a design.

Which is why I abominate the health wealth and prosperity gospel not just because it gets a few things wrong. It destroys the message of the cross which is designed to come to a suffering church so. The second point is that it is a divine plan or a divine design.

That this gospel spreading church planting purpose triumphed through the suffering of his people, especially his ministers and missionaries.