Rev. Dr. Michael Lockwood and I are here in Nepal at the request of a rapidly growing network of Christian churches. They desire good theological teaching for their church leaders, many of whom do not have the benefit of any level of theological education. They have specifically requested we teach on the Apostles’ Creed. Rev. Lockwood and I are sharing in that teaching task in two separate areas of Nepal over the next two weeks.
Class size has been limited to about 25 of the nearest church leaders, both men and women. According to cultural standards they all sit on the floor, while Pastor Lockwood and I either sit or stand. They brought in a couple of chairs for us to sit in but I prefer to emulate the local customs.
Of course when you start teaching doctrine and theology other conversations quickly get into the mix. It was a fun day of talking about the creed and other related ideas and Biblical truths. What about the Trinity? What about how we as the Church handle the material blessings God may give to our members?
Both Pastor Lockwood and I enjoy teaching a great deal, which makes this much more fun! Above is Pastor Lockwood explaining some of the heresies associated with the nature of Christ. Next to him is Rabindra, our in-country contact and translator and head of Livingstone Ministries.
We’ll finish our teaching in this area on Thursday. Friday we’ll drive 10 hours (!) to the south where we’ll get situated for another round of teaching. There will also be preaching expectations this coming weekend as well as visiting local churches. It will be a busy couple of weeks before I fly out on November 18th! Please pray for our safety and the safety of those coming to these trainings. There is very open spiritual warfare in Nepal where Christianity is rapidly growing while Hinduism (the traditional religion in Nepal) declines. Satan is obviously unhappy about this and seeks to thwart it. We know our Lord has the victory already though, so please pray that the Gospel might be clearly taught and received so these church leaders can bring it to the thousands of people in their care!
The Nelson Family Indonesia 