Tongues in the Jungle
Hidden away, deep in the jungles of Papua, New Guinea,
primitive tribes that practice cannibalism still exist. It was to these people
that Elder Jim Harris, a missionary to the South Pacific Islands, was seeking to
bring the message of the gospel.
In 1980 he took a 250-mile journey by canoe along the Sepik
River and the May River to a little village called Sari. A little Christian
church of 25 members met in a little thatched roof building in this village that
had been a stronghold of Satan.
Pidgin English is spoken by most of the people in New Guinea,
but these tribes are so isolated that even Pidgin English is unknown to many of
them. Finding someone who knows the tribal dialect as well as English is
virtually impossible, so preaching the gospel usually requires two interpreters
instead of one.
As Elder Harris presented the Gospel in the simple thatch
roof building, the devil worked hard to disrupt the meetings. There was a man in
the village who hated Christians and was determined to destroy their church. He
began by trying to burn the church down. Carefully he made 12 torches. Just one
was more than enough to burn the church like paper since the church was made
only of dry thatch and thin wooden boards. Late at night, when the village was
sleeping, he came stealthily to the church with his 12 torches. He stood
outside, lighted one of the torches, and threw the flaming ball up onto the dry
thatch.
As the torch hit the roof a big ball of flame immediately
shot 30 feet into the air. Everyone in the village woke up and came rushing out
to see what was going on. But the fire went out! The church didn't burn!
Again he tried as the villagers looked on. Again there was a
tremendous flash, and flames leaped high, covering the church with fire. But
just as quickly, the fire went out without burning the church.
The angry man tried the third torch. Then the fourth and the
fifth! He continued until he had used every one of his twelve torches up. Those
simple village people witnessed a marvelous demonstration that led them to
understand that God's power is stronger than Satan's.
The frustrated man went home to sulk. Undaunted, the angry
devil worshiper tried another tactic. He owned an ax--not just a stone ax like
most of the tribal people, but an ax with a steel head. He was determined that
nothing would stop him from destroying the meeting house. If he couldn't burn it
down, he would chop it down! He chose a post at the corner of the building and
took a mighty swing. Before the blade struck the post, the ax handle broke and
the ax head fell useless to the ground. Confused, he went home and carved a new
handle. The next night he tried again, but again the handle broke in mid air.
Once more he retreated to carve a new and better handle. But the same thing
happened the third time. God had intervened.
After the third ax handle had broken, he decided to go in and
learn about the God who was so powerful. Pastor Harris was giving a message to
the people telling them of the hope of eternal life where there is no sickness,
no death, and no hunger. It was a precious message to those needy people.
Their lives are filled with unending sickness. The villagers
contract malaria by the time they are two weeks old. For the rest of their lives
they suffer from recurrences of the malaria. This weakens them leaving them
vulnerable to many other diseases. Food is scarce, so hunger is a constant
companion. Death is a well known visitor to these tribal villages where people
seldom live past 40 years of age and where half of their little ones die in
infancy.
They can hardly comprehend what it would mean to not be
hungry, not be sick, and live in a peaceful land where there is no death. They
know too well the meaning of tragedy, pain, and sorrow.
Pastor Harris announced the title of his sermon, "Our
Father in Heaven." "The Big Pella Masta on Top,"-the first
interpreter echoed. Then the voice of the second interpreter was heard
translating from Pidgin into the tribal language.
"The Big Pella Masta on Top...... Is preparing a place
for you," Elder Harris continued. Again the two interpreters translated. It
was a lengthy, time consuming process. The people had no background in any
religion except devil worship, so even the concept of what heaven is and who
"Our Father in Heaven" is, had to be explained. With two translators,
this simple message would take nearly 1 1/2 hours to give.
About 1/2 of the way through the sermon Pastor Harris noticed
that both translators were standing there silent. "Do you understand what I
am saying?" He questioned them in English.
To his utter amazement, before they could respond, the
gathered people replied. "Yes Pastor, we understand, keep speaking."
Thrilled, but awed by the obvious presence of the Holy Spirit, he completed the
sermon. The people understood every word.
Upon finishing the sermon he taught them to sing two songs in
English. What a sweet sound that must have been to hear those fierce tribal
people as they began to sing the songs of Jesus.
-
"God is so good,
-
God is so good,
-
God is so good,
-
He's so good to me.
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"He answers prayer,
-
He answers prayer,
-
He answers prayer,
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He's so good to me.
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"He's coming soon,
-
He's coming scion,
-
He's coming soon,
-
He's so good to me."
The sound of harmonious singing drifted out over the jungle.
Once again the presence of the Holy Spirit was felt as the people, most of whom
had never even heard English before, sang with perfect understanding and
flawless accents.
Pastor Harris was filled with a quiet, holy joy as he stepped
into the canoe with his companion to return to his humble abode that night. As
the reality of what had happened dawned upon them, they praised God for His
marvelous works to the children of men. God works in mysterious ways His wonders
to perform. Instead of giving just Elder Harris the gift of tongues, he had
given the whole audience the gift of tongue so that they could be taught more
effectively the gospel of God's love. God wants them to know that He is powerful
and that He loves them.
The Missing Translator
In South Africa, there are many different tribes among the
black nationals. Many of the African tribes have their own cultures and dialects
that have been developed over thousands of years. This makes it difficult to
reach the many different tribes there. Learning each dialect and preparing
material in each language would take many people years of labor. Yet Revelation
14:6 says that the gospel is to be taken to every nation, tribe, tongue,
and people. These language differences create a very real problem that ministers
in places like this must grapple with. Reliable translators are often few. They
were for Hugh Stevenson.
One evening while beginning a new series in one of these
tribal villages he began to get anxious as he waited for his translator to
arrive. Time passed and still the translator didn't come. Hugh began to pray.
What should he do? The people were gathering expecting to hear a message. How
could he disappoint them and send them home? Besides, since he was white and
they were black being unable to communicate with them would leave them wondering
why he was there. Hostility might arise.
The situation was serious. The people were there-All
curious--yet no translator. Hugh stepped forward to pray. But as he began to
pray, a strange thing happened. He found himself praying in a new language! And
he understood what he was saying! He looked at the people--they were
understanding too!
Suddenly he realized he knew two languages--English and this
new language of the African tribe. He seemed to know it perfectly. The sermon
that had been prepared in English flowed freely and fluently from his lips in
the dialect of the people. The Holy Spirit was there to move on the hearts of
the people as they listened.
Night after night he continued to speak to the people. Never
again did he need someone to translate for him into that language. God had given
him the ability to speak that language. It was a gift of the Holy Spirit. The
gift of a new language so that he could take the gospel to these people. One of
the amazing things was that from that day on he never forgot that dialect.
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