1. Anno Domini 2012

When we have lost a dear one, we do sometimes look at a photograph and say –sometimes many years later – “If she or he would still be with us, he would be so many years old now.” My wife and I thought on the 24^th of November of our daughter Grace for it was 42 years ago that she was born, but we lost her at a young age. We know that many who lost a dear one know such moments, when they think about the one they lost and that often it is thought or said: “If she or he would be still alive....”

However, when we think of the Lord, we do not think about his life as one from us. Of course, we miss Him here on earth, but He is alive for He was resurrected and went to heaven, but in His Spirit He is with us and works amongst us. That is the reason why we write A.D. before or after the year. Now it is 2012 A.D. A.D. stands for ‘Anno Domini,’ the year of the Lord. He is alive and with us. Notice that He said: “I am with you until the end of this age,” (Matthew 28:20). This is the great difference with all other people who died. They are not any longer with- and amongst us. They do not seek contact with us and we have no contact with them. But Jesus Christ wants to have contact and fellowship with us and as God’s children we with Him. There are many testimonies of believers from long ago and up to this day that tell of His active and real presence with them, even helping them in situations which seemed impossible to be solved. Many sick believers have seen Him appearing at their bedside. Sometimes He told them that He would call them home, but others were healed by Him.

Jesus appears also to people of other religions. There are testimonies of converted Buddhists and Islamists, they saw Jesus, saw His nail pierced hands, heard His wonderful words of love, felt their hearts strangely warmed, and became believers in Him.

Jesus is sitting at the right hand of the Father, but He is also present on earth and working. As Divine person He is present everywhere; He is omnipresent. This is a mystery we cannot understand. The sphere of the spiritual realities keeps his secrets till the moment we have also arrived in the spiritual world.

Gladly I encourage you to live in 2012 in such a way that in and through you the presence of Jesus Christ will become reality for others. With Him before and with you, 2012 A.D. will surely become a blessed year.

January 2012, T. J. de Ruiter in The Netherlands

Contact? E-mail:  info.tjderuiter@telfort.nl

Internet: http://home.telfort.nl/tdruiter

2. Christianity is the fastest growing religion

In the “Status of Global Mission 2012” is confirmed that Christianity is the fastest growing religion in the world, even in China. The State Department of Religion of China has voiced her concern about the ‘explosive growth’ because one of ten Chinese is now a Christian. The number of Christians in China is now 130 million; there live about 1.3 people.

A new study of ‘Pew Forum on Religion &Public Life’ shows that the greatest growth is now taking place in Africa in countries under the Sahara desert, especially in countries as the Congo, Ethiopia and Nigeria. In 1910 lived only 1.4 percent of all Christians in Africa, but in 2010 24 percent! African churches send missionaries to other continents and many large churches in Europe are now filled by African believers who fled their countries to escape persecution and poverty.

3. As it was in the ministry of Jesus so it is now in Africa

A report from CFaN (Christ for All Nations)

December 2011

Daniel Kolenda, an evangelist of CFaN finished an evangelisation crusade in Ughelli, a town in southern Nigeria. He reported that an unsane man, who had completely lost his mind and welknown in the town because he wandered naked through the town came one night to our crusade rally. When he arrived in the meeting he  came suddenly to his right mind and was totally free. Our mechanics gave him clothes and later on he came to the platform to testify of his liberation. One night I preached about the blood of Christ and broke the powers of the local idols. Three barrels were filled with fetishes, witchcraft items, amulets, jujus and images of idols. We poured petrol over everything and burned all things in the Name of Jesus! I believe that a mighty work of liberation took place and the evidence of this came quickly. Deaf and dumb and crippled people were healed and we registered 470.230 thousand conversions. Our team rejoiced and with us the angels in heaven!

Internet: Go to ‘Christ for All Nations’: http://www.cfan.org/

4. Translation or explanation of a Bibleverse

.2 Corinthians 3:13, ”Who used to hang a veil over his face to keep the children of Israel from gazing at the last rays of a fading glory.” (James Moffat translation).

Paul used in this sentence the word ‘telos’ in the Greek, which can be translated as ‘end’ (see the King James and other translations, or as purpose, height (in a figurative sense) or conclusion.’ The point Paul makes in this portion of second Corinthians is that the Israelites still have a covering – but now over their heart – so that they do not see now the radiation, the glory, of Jesus Christ. But those that believe in Christ have no covering and reflect His glory and will be changed from glory to glory until they radiate from their inner man the full the glory of Christ. Of course, the radiance from the face of Moses faded away, but the glory of the believers increases, (verse 18). Verse 13 is very well translated in the Authorized and other versions. ’End,’ has however here more the meaning of purpose or height.

T. J. De Ruiter