Confession followed by Reconciliation - 4

 What is it about the power of confession?

That's something I wondered as I got on the airplane in Cochabamba, Bolivia, returning to Brasilia, Brazil. I had shared two weeks with Bolivian brothers and sisters. We studied the book of Acts for one week, and during that time, I learned an unforgettable lesson in October 1989. 

It came through Bolivian pastors and leaders, not from me as a visiting speaker. 

The topic being discussed was the power of the Holy Spirit to witness. I asked for their opinions on the Bible passage we had been reading during the previous 45 minutes. The complete silence that followed left me feeling uncomfortable, and I wondered if I should step into the conversation to keep that silence from getting unbearable. 

One of the pastors, Emigidio Veizaga, shifted in his seat as if he wanted to say something but couldn't. When he spoke, his comments seemed to have nothing to do with the topic! 

"I didn't want to come to this meeting," he began, "and almost didn't buy the bus ticket." His next words explained the reasons for his discomfort. I learned that stress existed between the various departmentos, or provinces/states, of the country. I can't remember how long he spoke, but his sincerity in desiring unity among the leaders was matched by his distress caused by a few recent occurrences. He wanted to love others but was finding it difficult to do so.

When he stopped speaking, another silence! Wow! Then, first one man and then another came to him, speaking gentle words. They thanked him for his honesty. Expressions of love were given with joy, forgiveness, and not a few tears. Hard feelings began to break down. One man went across the circle to give Emigidio a warm hug. Then another did the same thing. People waited patiently to publically ask for forgiveness. For a while, I felt the power of God. We were in the presence of the Lord. Past hurts were put aside. An atmosphere of genuine love and caring fell over the group. No one wanted to take a coffee break. Just being together in the Lord's work, sitting in the seminary chapel, and basking in the warmth of the Holy Spirit was enough.

Some unplanned events took place in the next few evenings. We had amazing breakthroughs, positive experiences that bound everyone together, men and women, urban pastors and Campesinos, rural pastors. 

That smaller meeting folded into an even larger one during which young people demonstrated their love for the Lord through their beautiful combinations using guitars, Andean flutes, and drums. 

What is it about the power of confession? How can ordinary people know the love of Christ if small problems in churches become big ones? 

Reconciliation between leaders in that experience, and in subsequent encounters, taught me how wonderful are the words of Jesus, "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand." 

Oh, that we, here in our nation of Canada, might repent before the Lord and one another of the attitudes we have sometimes held towards one another, judging without knowing all the facts, being jealous without reason, or putting one region of the country before another. 

Thank you, my dear brother, Emidgio Veizaga. The day you humbled yourself for a few moments taught me more than I could ever teach you. Praise God for the revival that followed. 

A Shameful Act followed by Reconciliation - 3

Many people talk about the beginning of a revival, saying, "It all started when so-and-so confessed a sin publically," or something similarly dramatic.

A great movement towards the Lord Jesus Christ took place in Bolivia. I don't know how many others call it a revival, but I certainly do. I will explore the reason for my deep conviction in various blog posts. 

This revival in Bolivia did not begin with a confession of sin. It happened after the forgiveness of sin!

In 1948, there were only a few thousand evangelical believers in Bolivia, a landlocked nation in the heart of South America. For half a millennium, the Roman Catholic Church dominated all aspects of life, economically, legally, and certainly spiritually. 

"Bolivians celebrate the sixth of August as the date of the emancipation from Spanish colonialism and the birth as a nation, taking the name of their liberator, Simon Bolivar (1783-1830). They enjoy the three days of August 5, 6, and 7 to affirm their national identity with the family of nations." Jaime Goytia R in Bridging Cultures and Hemispheres: The Legacy of Archibald Reekie and Canadian Baptists in Bolivia. 

Those three days in 1949 were chosen by missionary Norman Dabbs and the congregations in Oruro for dynamic, special meetings. On Monday, August 8th, Norman Dabbs and several church members went in an open truck to preach in Merk'Amaya, a mining center high up in the mountains. Unknown to them, a meeting had been held to plan a violent clash. 

In the raid that evening, stones rained down from all sides. Among the bodies were those of Norman Dabbs and Pastor Meneses. Luis Guerrero was pulled from the mission truck, pleading, "Don't kill me! I have six children!" Four members of the Merk'Amaya community were killed. Six were driven to nearby Catavi, three of them women. In all, eight were stoned to death and six badly wounded. 

Time magazine picked up the story and published it on August 22, 1949, reporting that "300 drunken Indians used stones in their attack on a home where Baptist Missionary Dabbs was conducting a Bible Study for some 40 believers."

Walter S. Ridgeway, in the well-known publication Redemption, wrote: "What attitude did the evangelical Christians of Oruro take when they learned about the untimely death of their pastor and their other spiritual leaders? Was it a reaction of hate and vengeance? No, but "Father, forgive them for they know not what they ." This was the biblical text most frequently cited through the whole funeral service." Lorna Dabbs expressed her forgiveness towards the men who took her husband's life. She said she was not there to condemn but to love them and show them the way to a loving, forgiving God.

 This forgiving spirit moved many Bolivians. The flicker of forgiveness and reconciliation grew and spread throughout the land from a cold, distant mining center few had ever heard about. This movement gradually ushered in a growing wave of redemption and reconciliation. The work of the Holy Spirit was evident as numerous lives were changed. Churches were planted, and many came to know the power of salvation. Instead of vengeance and resentment, humble brothers and sisters became bold to speak of their relationship with the Lord. 

On August 8th, 1998, I was one of a delegation of 110 Canadians who met with the nation's highest authorities. The Bolivian Baptist Union leaders were present, too. The event was held to celebrate 100 years of evangelical witness in Bolivia. The nation's highest authorities represented the Judicial, Legislative and Administrative arms of the nation.  Amazingly, these politicians would normally not be with each other on the same platform. In some ways, they promoted opposing ideologies. But during their two-hour presentation that day, they put aside their differences. Each distinguished authority, speaking in their most erudite Spanish, publically recognized the effectiveness of humble, forgiving Christians living honest, productive lives. It was an event I will never forget. The list of social changes and improvements they commented upon deserves a blog post of its own.

From a few solitary evangelical believers in 1898 until today, when about 25% of the nation confesses "Jesus is Lord" within one of a variety of church groups, I positively affirm: revival is at work in Bolivia. It sometimes appears openly in special meetings or events. But most of all, revival in Bolivia, as in the rest of Latin America, is lived out in the ordinary rituals of daily life. Revival in Bolivia takes place through the gradual ingathering of people who repent because the Kingdom of God is at hand. 

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." II Corinthians 5:17-19