Shouting from the rooftops
Shouting from the rooftops
When we have some important message to be conveyed to the public, we normally shout the message to get it across.
In a city like Mumbai, many deaths occur due to illegal rail track crossing, and if anyone crosses the railway track unaware of the approaching train, then people standing on the platform shout at the top of their voices to alert the person. People do it with all sincerity and in the hope of saving a life.
Human beings are in great danger. He is destined to land in the abyss or Hades (yamalokam or pathalam) once his spirit and soul leave his body at the last breath of his life. Man is enslaved by Satan.
God had pity on man. Therefore, he sent Jesus Christ, a member of the Trinity, to become man and pay the price of sin on the cross. He became a man, enjoying being born of a virgin without any sinful traits in him. He was tempted as our first parent but remained sinless. He died, and on the third day, God raised him from the grave. Thus, Jesus Christ defeated Satan and death. Whoever repents and seeks forgiveness of sin will not be touched by Satan. Thus, when the person takes his last breath on earth, Satan will have no hold on the soul of the believer. This is the message of the gospel, or good news. You can choose your destiny today!
Man has hope in Jesus Christ. He will set man free if he repents and believes in him. It is a message of personal relationship and not some religion.
The disciples of Jesus Christ were with him for three and a half years and listened to his teachings. The teachings were done in different scenarios. Many times it was in closed chambers and as personal talk in secret.
What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light; and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops (Mathew 10:27, KJ21).
He told his disciples to proclaim it on rooftops after his resurrection and when they had received the holy spirit. The disciples had logos, the spoken word within them. When the holy spirit descended on them, the logos became rhema, and they could communicate with power.
Jesus Christ wants all who believe in him to be his disciples. There are no different classes of membership with him. He wants all who believe in him to be his disciples. A disciple is one who emulates the master or guru. It is possible only when the believer in Jesus Christ spends time reading and meditating on the word of God. By this way, the word assimilates and becomes part of the inner man. It is like how the food we take for the body becomes part of our body after digestion, absorption, and assimilation.
The whole commandment in the Bible can be said in two verses, as in Matthew 22:37–40.
37] Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. [38] This is the first and great commandment. [39] And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. [40] On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Our Daily Bread puts the above in simpler form: “Love God, love people.” Love for the people is incomplete without sharing the gospel. If you really love people, you will share the gospel and inform them of their destiny if they do not have Jesus Christ in their life. Thus, proclaiming gospel from the rooftop, is the work of all believers.
When one becomes a disciple of Jesus Christ, his final commission he gave to the disciples is binding on him too: “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. .” (Mathew 28:19-20).
The disciples preached the gospel from rooftops and turned the world upside down. Down through the ages, crusades and public preaching were conducted.
In India, crusades are banned, and public meetings require prior permission from the authorities. At times, distribution of tracts also faces hostility. Some people consider gospel preaching for converting people to Christianity.
Against such a backdrop, MEEISATCODE, an institute that caters to the needs of the spirit, soul, and body of man, found that the gospel communicators have failed to present the gospel in the Indian context. The American way of preaching for Americans or for Westerners says, “The Bible says.” A sentence like this is alright for the west because their system was developed on the basis of biblical principles. In India, when such a sermon is made, the obvious question people ask in their minds is, “Why should we believe in the Bible when we have our own books?”
We at MEEISATCODE try to understand the beliefs of different faiths and try to present the role of Jesus Christ in the salvation of man.
Last year we put two hoardings at Tiruvalla railway station.
Hoardings at Tiruvalla railway station
We address them with some profound questions or observations of life and present the gospel to them. These are in the form of tracts or publications in the newspaper. This is how we were able to proclaim the gospel from the rooftop in the past. We published our message in the tabloid and local publications. All the residents in the Juhu area received the gospel message at their home. It was an expensive affair (1). But God enabled us to go for it.
We produce and distribute booklets that are of general interest, such as Zero Garbage Home: A Practical Manual to Keep Houses Free of Garbage and use them for Asset Building.
We manage it through advertisements.
We are promoting our article on ‘What is the Gospel?’
Now we prayerfully consider putting digital LED hoardings inside local trains and on the platforms.
As you know, lakhs of people pass through each station. Eg., Churchgate station has over 5 lakh people passing in a day.
Daily passenger traffic in various railway stations
We are looking for some advertisements from the commercial world to cover the cost of gospel presentation creative art.
Trying out LED screen at Santa Cruz station in Mumbai.
The cost for one day is about Rs. 2000/- or 60,000/- for one month. We offer you a 75% discount and accept advertisements at 15,000/- for one month.
In case you want to advertise with us, kindly let me know.
You can support gospel message visuals for Rs. 500/- for one day.
Come join us to proclaim the gospel from the rooftop.
If interested, kindly contact me at jeteapen@gmail.com or whatsapp me on 7798726749.
References.
- Four observations on life. The Juhu Citizen March 05-12.