I’ve just come across an interesting article at Christianity Today which picks up the theme of how much of the Bible we should translate. This is well worth a read and shows how powerfully the Old Testament can speak to different groups around the world.
“The assumption was that the New Testament alone was adequate, because it held the gospel message and would be sufficient for evangelization,” said Ralph Hill, international translation coordinator for Wycliffe Bible Translators. The focus on evangelism over church growth, coupled with shortages of personnel and resources and the Old Testament’s sheer, intimidating size, created today’s gap between the testaments. …
“Effective evangelism among unreached people groups needs to start with Genesis,” said Don Pederson, director of field ministry for New Tribes Mission (NTM). “It’s through the story of God’s interactions with man that his character is fully understood and people understand their dilemma, that they need a Savior.”
It’s not just unreached people groups who need to understand all of God’s story – we do too, if we are to really grasp the missional nature of God’s call to us.
In passing, Ralph Hill (mentioned in the quote above) was a colleague of ours in Ivory Coast. We’ve spent many an enjoyable evening together solving all of the world’s problems over a glass of something cold.