The Story Of Sadhu Sundar Singh

The Story of Sadhu Sundar Singh His Family & Religious Background His Encounter with Christ His Travel Experiences His Mission & Fate Excerpts of Sayings & Sermons *Receiving Christ into Your Life*

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Sadhu Sundar Singh's True Witness of Christ Introduction: With the large number of "spiritual paths" and "techniques" facing the world of today it is of special value to consider the life and insights of one who truly embraced the simplicity, love and freedom offered through devotion to Christ (Yesu Bhaktan). Sundar Singh was raised a devout Sikh, and consecrated from his youth to become a Hindu sadhu. However, his spiritual longings were not fulfilled until emotional and spiritual turmoil drove him to urgently ask the true living God to reveal Himself fully, lest he take his own life in the hope of finding peace in the next. The outcome was strikingly similar to that described in Acts 9:3-5 of the Bible's New Testament. Thereafter, the born again Sadhu became a living witness of the eternal security, peace and comfort he had freely received. "Come unto Me all ye that labour and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28) The Sadhu spoke of his own experience -- the Rest and Peace which he enjoys (Bisram, Santi, Aram). Previously he had no lack of everything which the world could give -- wealth, family etc., but he did not enjoy Peace through them. But in Christ he had found peace (Santi) when he realized his relationship with Him. A doctor friend of the Sadhu's related that a man whose arm was broken through an accident came to him and said, "Doctor, my arm is very painful. Take the pain away for me." The doctor told him that first of all the two broken bones must be set and be knit together; then the swelling and the pain would go away of themselves. In the same way people want peace and they want blessings but they don't want to come into right 2

relationship with God, the Giver of blessing. When we come into this right relationship with Him, our restlessness will go and in its stead we shall have wonderful peace. "When a man is in a state of sin, he has no sense of sin. A man dives into the water. On his head are lakhs of maunds of water but he does not feel their weight at all. But on coming out of the water if he lifts a vesselful of water he thoroughly understands how heavy the water is. In the same way, when a man is sunk in sin he has no sense of sin, but once he is delivered he is conscious of the least sin." "For the Son of Man has come to seek and save that which was lost." (Luke 19:10) "He was searching for me before I sought Him. Christ whom I had never expected came to me. I was praying, 'If there be a God, reveal Thyself'...I was praying to Hindu gods and incarnations. But when He came there was no anger in His face, even though I had burnt the Bible three days before. None of you have ever destroyed Scripture like me. He is such a wonderful, loving, living Saviour..." "Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me...I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me." (John 14:1-6) "I am wholly and completely satisfied. Those who will follow Him will know Him, but we can't know Him unless we live with Him. For years I tried but I couldn't find. When I used to know about Him I used to hate Him, but He revealed Himself to me..." "Blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed" (John 20:29) "But," said the Sadhu, "the Lord had no other means but to appear to me personally, for there was just half-an-hour left 3

before I should have committed suicide." I am not ashamed to suffer for Him, I know Him whom I have believed -- not I have known about Him or have heard preaching about Him, but I know Him. [Apostle] Paul could say this because he lived with Him and for Him..."

Sadhu Sundar Singh: Excerpts of Sayings & Sermons. Knowing vs. Knowing About Christ "There is a great difference between knowing about Jesus and knowing Him...There is no difference between nominal Christians and non-Christians. When we know Him everything is different and we are living in a new world -- a new atmosphere. Heaven begins on earth for us. Those who know Him know that Jesus is everything to them. They can bear witness because they have been living with Him... If we only know of Jesus as a good man, a great example, it is no help to us. Those who know Him know Who He is. If we live in Him He will reveal Himself to us and we shall bear witness -not for a day or a night only..." "When I used to know about Jesus Christ I used to hate Him because I didn't understand Him; but since I know Him I bear witness and I am not ashamed to suffer...[A friend of mine who was tortured and put to death because he testified of Christ explained to his persecutor,] 'When a Hindu woman is willing to burn herself with her dead husband, should I be ashamed when He is living?...I wish I could show you my heart -- I have such peace in my heart. I can only give my testimony.'"... 4

Seeker: So is it true that, if we do not plead for mercy, God will send us to hell and punish us eternally for our sins? How is this perfect love? Sadhu: Do not suppose that God casts sinners into hell. God is love and has no desire for anyone to suffer spiritual torment. But our own corrupt and sinful life deprives us of spiritual bliss. Heaven or hell is established in our souls and by our own choosing, long before our lives in this world come to an end. Sin is not an illusion or a fantasy. It is a real spiritual state. In this state, the human will separates itself from the divine and thus introduces the seeds of its own destruction. God condemns no one to hell. No, it is we sinners who do the condemning. We condemn ourselves. Too many hearts are in a condition that they can only feel at home in hell – that is, outside the peace of the Master. God allows everyone to come to his kingdom. Indeed, he invites everyone most earnestly to come in, but if we prefer a life of sin, it is torture for us to stay there. Pain and disease are not products of the imagination. They are all too real and we see how some diseases, like smallpox, can in a short time destroy the beauty of human skin, turning it into repulsive ugliness. Whoever longs to escape spiritual torment and death should therefore turn to the Master. He offers us release from sin and its consequences. His presence in our hearts and the influence of his Spirit rescue us from hell and lead us to eternal bliss as God’s spiritual children. Excerpted from Wisdom of the Sadhu, available FREE in e-book format.

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world, we mount on wings of prayer into the spiritual realms where our souls find peace in God’s unfailing love. Seeker: Has not Confucius said that those who respect the main principles of human conduct need not worry about their faults and lapses in smaller issues? They are excused. Why then do you say that all sin is dangerous, even dangerous enough to destroy our souls? Sadhu: Not every organ in the body fails before the body dies. If the heart or brain fails, then life ends even if the other organs are healthy and strong. In the same way, the poisonous effect of one sin may destroy the spiritual life not only of a single soul, but also of a whole family or nation, even of the whole human race. Such was the sin of Adam. But remember, just as one word from the Master was enough to call the dead back to life, so one word is enough to restore spiritual life to those who have lost it. If a wild animal or bird is tamed and then returns to the wild, its own kind may reject or even kill it, rather than accepting it as one of their own. They sense that long association with humans has affected its habits and manners. In the same way, the holy ones of the spiritual world cannot tolerate those who associate with evil and who have thereby corrupted their spiritual nature. Such people are alien intruders in the spiritual realm and they will not be at home there. Even in this world, sinful people despise and avoid the company of spiritual people. How then will they find joy in the eternal world of spirit? For them, heavenly bliss will be a living hell. In this world, a traitor against king and country may escape punishment by seeking refuge in another country. But where shall we flee if we rebel against God? Wherever we go – in the physical or in the spiritual world – God is ever present. Our only refuge is to seek forgiveness and release from God.

"People misunderstand Him when they don't know Him, but when they know Him they love Him. When I knew about Him I used to hate Him. Now I have heaven on earth. Heaven is in my heart..." "Christ is not merely a great man who is dead and gone; He is the incarnation of God, the Saviour of the world. We must live in Him -- then we shall have a message for the world and we shall see Him again in glory. We shall be crowned in this world. It is such a joy to live for Him and bring others to Him." "I was going to commit suicide. Hinduism [offered] no spiritual help. Prayer is the most essential thing. Without prayer we cannot understand Jesus. We are living in Hell. Many know about Him but they do not live in Him."

On World Religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Counterfeits of Christianity) "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at My saying, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." (John 3:5-8) "Christianity [spiritual regeneration through Jesus Christ] is the only religion which is universal."

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Hinduism: The Sadhu pointed out that Arjuna was more merciful than Sri Krishna. "Sri Krishna commanded Arjuna to kill, but Christ healed the ear of Malchus" [Luke 22:51; John 18:10]. "With regard to the doctrine of Karma, it is true that man receives the consequences of his deeds; but the difference between the teaching of Christ and Hindu teaching is this -- that a Christian performs deeds because he is saved and a Hindu in order to be saved." With regard to Transmigration he said, "Hindu teaching is that God's spirit and man's spirit are both co-existent from eternity. But since in so many cycles of birth I have been unable to attain moksha, what certainty or assurance have I that I shall be able to attain in the future? I do not remember anything at all of my previous existence, so what does it profit me if I am now reaping the rewards and punishments of my deed in that existence? If Transmigration be true we are compelled to believe that sin is the creator of the universe!" He spoke of Hindu yoga. When he was small his father had a Sastri and a Sannyasi in the home, the former to teach the boy the sacred books and the latter yoga practices. "The strange thing is," said the Sadhu, "that a man according to yoga teaching is not to look to God but at the tip of his nose. Moreover, the thoughts which have been the subject of meditation of the yogi previous to entering the state of trance, present themselves in a very vivid way during trance. So we can understand the discrepancies of teaching amongst yogis. One says, 'There is no God,' another, 'There is only one God,' another, 'There are many gods,' another, 'All is God.'"

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forgot everything else and quickly climbed up. The honey was sweet and he was so enchanted by its flavor that he did not notice the alligators waiting in the stream below. Nor did he see that around the foot of the tree, wolves had gathered. Worst of all, he didn’t notice that the tree itself was infested with termites and was not strong enough to bear his weight. While he was still enjoying the honey, the tree fell and the hunter fell prey to the alligators. So too, the human spirit enjoys for a time the pleasant but fleeting delights of the senses, forgetting that the world is like a jungle fraught with dangers of every kind. Sin gnaws at the very foundation of our lives, threatening to fling us to our spiritual deaths. The evil of this world lures us with clever words and beguiling enticements like certain snakes that fascinate small birds with their glittering eyes until they can devour them. Or think of the moth that gives no thought to the burning, destructive power of the fire. Fascinated by the flashing brilliance of the flame, it rushes to its own death. Likewise we often see only the allurements of the material world, seeking quick gratification of our own urges, and so rush headlong into spiritual death. Once in the depth of winter, a bird of prey was busy feasting on a corpse that was floating toward a waterfall. When the bird came near the falls he wanted to leave the corpse and escape. But his claws were frozen to it and he could not fly away. He fell into the roaring waters and died a miserable death. Likewise, if we allow sin to numb our consciences, we become powerless to escape death and danger ahead, no matter how we struggle to escape. By turning to the Master, however, and building our lives on him, we are saved from certain death and granted spiritual life that no one can take away. The Master frees us completely from the life-destroying seductions of this world. He sets our souls free from every bondage. Overcoming the attractions of the 51

Seeker: Modern philosophy, however, teaches that moral values are relative. They are products of history and culture. How then can one say that people are sinful? Sadhu: It is said that a person suffering from jaundice sees everything with a yellow tint. People whose lives are colored by sin or guided only by the understanding of their minds also see reality colored by their own infirmity. When we shape and fashion spiritual truths according to our own ideas, it is not surprising if, in the end, we reject not only moral values, but also the reality of God. But the Master’s work is to release seeking hearts from sin and death. He continues this work in the hearts of those who seek his help without regard to the opinion of others. The blindness that sin brings about can be illustrated in many ways. Leprosy makes one’s limbs numb and insensitive to pain and injury. People affected with this disease unwittingly receive wounds and allow the injuries to fester until the body is no longer able to survive. In the same way, sin deadens the heart and clouds the mind until people no longer have any sense of shame or disgust. Eventually, however, their eyes will be opened and they will see how sin has damaged and ravaged their souls; then there will be great sorrow and pain. Many people are immersed in sin and don’t even notice its great weight – just like a diver may be covered by tons of water without feeling its load. But if when the diver emerges from the water he tries to carry even a small bucket full, he will feel how heavy it is. The Master came to seek and save those who struggle with the burden of sin. He freely gives us rest and release from sin, but first we must feel the weight of it and turn to him for help.

"...it is impossible for those who don't know God to come to Him except through Christ. He is the only Saviour. It is only Jesus who has revealed the Father. The Gyana Marga of the Hindus is only for a few; but if it is true it ought to be for every body." He was asked, "Do you ever ask for food anywhere?" He said, "Hindu sadhus do, but I never do so. When my Heavenly Father sees that I need food, He arranges it for me."

Buddhism: Regarding the Buddha, he said that he respected him for the strength of his intellect and the purity of his life; but in the Sadhu's opinion he was lacking in humility and for that reason did not attain knowledge of God. Had he trly longed for God, he would have gone to the Sannyasi whom he had first met. For it is only through humility that we can know God. "A Buddhist said to me, 'Extinction of desire is salvation'...'No,' said I, 'extinction of evil desire -- I agree with you there. But it is impossible not to have desire. The desire to kill desire is desire and the desire to kill that desire is also desire. Desire has been given to us that it may be satisfied. There is water given to quench my thirst and I am satisfied through prayer'...I have begun to live in heaven now in Jesus Christ. Through prayer I know Him and it is the duty of those who know Him to bear witness."

People may not even be aware of their mortal danger. They are like the hunter who caught sight of a honeycomb on the branch of a tree overhanging a river. Catching sight of the honey, he 50

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Islam: "A Mohammedan preacher went to preach Islam in Scandinavia. There the people asked him what they would have to do in the event of their becoming Moslems. Amongst the five duties prescribed, he mentioned the month's fast when they would have to fast from sunset but feast during the night. They laughed and told him that Mohammedanism was evidently not meant for that part of the world where at one time of the year there is no night!"

Judaism:

existence. Sin is the delusive and destructive state of those who abandon truth and who, in irreverence, seek to satisfy their own selfish desires. We may think that we can obtain happiness by abandoning God’s will and following our own whims and passions, but the result is not true happiness. Think of light and darkness. Darkness is the absence of light. It is the same with sin: sin is the absence of what is good and true. Evil is terrible because people drive themselves to utter destruction – shipwrecked on the rocks for lack of a guiding light. For this reason, the Master who is light became God Incarnate. All who see his guiding light and follow the way it leads will safely pass through to the blessed haven where darkness is no more. Seeker: But if God is almighty, why did he not create human beings so that they could not fall into the dark state of sin?

A Rabbi whom he saw at the Jews' Wailing Place [Wall] in Jerusalem was greatly annoyed when the Sadhu told him that he should weep because of his own stony heart and not on the stone wall of the Temple.

Counterfeits of Christianity: A friend arranged for him to interview the Pope, but when he discovered that many formalities had to be observed, he was unwilling. For he believes neither in the infallibility of the Pope nor that of the Roman Church. "Those who use mental pictures will be ashamed in the end. I derive no help from a crucifix....but make use of whatever whatever helps spiritual progress." 8

Sadhu: Sin arises because people deliberately violate God’s order. Of course, God could prevent this by creating human beings differently. But then we would be like obedient puppets or machines, incapable of experiencing the bliss that can only be reached by freely choosing the good. Adam and Eve lived in sinless bliss, but they were free to choose God’s will and direction or to follow their own appetites. Even Lucifer knew nothing of pride, a state that had never existed before he held himself to be God’s equal. So through the choice of angels and human beings, sin arose. But God is almighty and can even transform evil into an opening for new and glorious ends. Firstly, God became incarnate to release us from the cycle of sin and death, thus revealing God’s boundless, self-giving love in a way that would otherwise have remained unknown. Secondly, since we have tasted the bitterness and inevitable consequences of sin, we delight all the more in our release from its clutches – just as the sweetness of honey gives greater pleasure after the taste of bitterness. In unending unity with God, we are free to serve him with reverence and obedience. 49

parable of the weeds. They became annoyed and cursed him. One of them threw a stone at Sundar's head. At that instant, the stone thrower was struck by such a painful headache that he had to lie down on the ground. Without hesitations, Sundar took over that man's chore and helped them harvest the crops. They soon became friendly to him and invited him home. Their hearts were then open to the Gospel. The next day after Sundar left, they noticed that their harvest became more abundant. Sundar visited Tibet every summer. In 1929, he visited that country again and was never seen since. Sundar manifested into his life the verse written in Mark 8:35 which says, "For whoever wants to save his own life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for me and for the Gospel will save it."

Of Karma - Bondage A Conversation

Sadhu Sundar Singh Seeker: Sadhu-ji, you say that it is our sinfulness that has broken our spiritual oneness with God. Why did God allow such evil to enter the world? Sadhu: Apart from God nothing can be created, for God is the author of all that is. God is good and has created nothing harmful or detrimental, for that would be against his nature. Evil does not create, but only corrupts and perverts what God has created. Sin is not a part of God’s creation. It has no independent 48

He was asked about Theosophy. He called it Anglicized Hinduism. In America he found many people who had sorely repented their having ever accepted it.

On Rationalism, Skepticism & Philosophy Experience must precede reasoning. In the snows of the Himalayas he showed a fellow-traveller a hot-water spring. The man began to argue and to reason that the thing was impossible, when the Sadhu invited him to put his hand in the water. On discovering for himself that the water was really hot as the Sadhu had said, the man now began to adduce many reasons as to why it should be hot. Asked what he thought of Higher Criticism and Modernism, he replied that it was all "spiritual influenza" -- it would pass away, but not before killing a good many people. He thanked God that he had been enabled to go to the West. Before he went, he thought that there must be something in Modernist theories, otherwise so many men would not write so many books. Besides, Christianity had been in force for so many centuries in the West. But when he discovered how busy these scholars were and how much of their knowledge was secondhand and not the fruit of their experience with Christ, he announced that all their speculations would not move him an inch from his faith. "It is not by education or philosophy that we know Him. When I was in Australia, I was asked, 'What do you think of our civilization?' -- I said, 'Do you mean your education or your manners of society? In that case I say, you are trained animals, trained to do a certain thing in a certain way.' "Man, know thyself" -- and he who knows God knows himself. He is the truly civilized man in the image of God in which he was created..."

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"Trying to understand spiritual truth through the intellect means increase of self. Men search for God and find Him unknowable... But: He is known through the heart, not through philosophy. The only way for us to understand the infinite God is by becoming infinite and that is impossible. He must become finite and He is so in Jesus." "How are we to deal with people who are utterly indifferent to religion?" He replied, "God Himself can do nothing with such people so what can you and I do? Orthodox and strict Hindus and Mohammedans are better than many of the reformed liberals. The latter are stones in their own community and if they come over into the Christian Church they will be stones there too. Far better a man who is strict in the observance of his own religion."

On Western Post-Christianity "I have been asked, 'Is Christianity a failure in Europe? I have seen some true servants of Christ in Europe.' Christ has not been a failure, but people have failed to understand Him. Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness know Him. He reveals Himself to such people -- those who spend time in prayer. We see our face sometimes not in a mirror but in a river, but when there are waves in the river we are not able to see ourselves. When our lives are full of hurry and bustle we fail to see ourselves, but in a quiet place we see ourselves and we shall be entirely changed -- a new life. Then we shall not be ashamed. We shall know Him by living with Him -- and we must live in Him through a life of prayer." A friend arranged for him to interview the Pope, but when he discovered that many formalities had to be observed, he was unwilling. For he believes neither in the infallibility of the Pope nor that of the Roman Church. 10

In 1918, Sundar visited Madras where thousands of people gathered to listen to him preach. There Sundar focussed his preach on Jesus Christ the redeemer. He testified, "Jesus' presence always brought astonishing peace to me no matter how bad the situations I was in. Whenever I was in a prison, he was always there for me. He transformed the jail into a heaven and the burdens became blessings. There are many Christians who do not feel His glorious presence as something real. Because for them Jesus only occurs in their minds and not in their hearts. Only when someone surrenders his heart to Jesus can he find Him." Sundar often used parables in his preachings. He once said, "One day after a long journey, I rested in front of a house. Suddenly a sparrow came towards me blown helplessly by a strong wind. From another direction, an eagle dived to catch the panicky sparrow. Threatened from different directions, the sparrow flew into my lap. By choice, it would not normally do that. However, the little bird was seeking for a refuge from a great danger. Likewise, the violent winds of suffering and trouble blow us into the Lord's protective hands." Sadhu Sundar Singh journeyed much. He travelled all over India and Ceylon. Between 1918-1919, he visited Malaysia, Japan and China. Between 1920-1922 he went to Western Europe, Australia and Israel. He preached in many cities; Jerusalem, Lima, Berlin and Amsterdam among others. Sundar remained modest despite his fame. His attitude made his father repent. Sundar never thought of himself. He only desired to follow Jesus' example: to repay evil with kindness and to win over his enemies by love. This attitude often caused his enemies to feel ashamed of themselves. Once, he was preaching in a public market when a fanatic from a different religion suddenly punched his right cheek. Calmly, Sundar turned his left cheek towards the assailant. The attacker left. But that night Sundar received a message >from the attacker asking for forgiveness. On another occasion, Sundar told some harvesters about the 47

If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, let him slap your left cheek too." (Matthew 5:39). One day in Nepal, Sundar was ambushed by four robbers in the middle of a jungle. One of them brandished a sword. Meekly, Sundar bowed his head thinking that his life was about to end. This attitude surprised the perpetrators. Since he was penniless, they took his blanket away from him and let him go. But then, one of the robbers called him back and curiously asked his name. Sundar introduced himself, opened his Bible and started telling him the story of the rich man and Lazarus the poor. The robber said that the end of the rich man's life was unpleasant and asked what would happen to himself. Sundar then told him about the Gospel and God's forgiveness. The robber took Sundar home with him and repented. In 1912 Sundar decided to imitate Jesus' seclusion and fasting for 40 days even though his friends advised him against it. He failed to fast for 40 days because he became weak. However the experience strengthened his spirit. He could thus overcome all doubts, anger and impatience. In the following years, he was often persecuted but he was also miraculously delivered by the Lord. In 1914, Sundar preached in Nepal, a country with a very strong root of Buddhism. In the town of Rasa, he was sentenced to death by a local Lama on the grounds of spreading a foreign religion. He was thrown into a dry well the top of which was then covered and locked from the outside. He was without food and drink, naked inside the well together with corpses of executed murderers. He stayed in the horrible well for 2 days until a stranger came and helped him out of the well. After relocking the well, the stranger left without saying anything. Not long after that, Sundar was recaptured and taken to the Lama. The Lama was very surprised since he had always kept the only key to the well with him. Realizing that Sundar was under the protection of a very powerful God, they became fearful of him and begged him to leave them. 46

In Germany he was asked about the survival of the fittest. He told them it was not a strange thing at all -- the fit will survive of themselves. "But in my experience," he said, "what I have seen is the survival of the unfit. And that is where God's glory comes in." "How are we to deal with people who are utterly indifferent to religion?" He replied, "God Himself can do nothing with such people so what can you and I do? Orthodox and strict Hindus and Mohammedans are better than many of the reformed liberals. The latter are stones in their own community and if they come over into the Christian Church they will be stones there too. Far better a man who is strict in the observance of his own religion." "A great professor in America once asked me, 'Why do we need to go to the Father through Christ?' I answered, 'Did Jesus lie when He said, "No man cometh to the Father but by Me?"'... 'But,' said he, 'there is no mediator in the Parable of the Prodigal Son'... I replied, 'Are you so wise and cannot understand that? There was no need of a mediator there. The son had lived with the father before leaving him. He had enjoyed his fellowship. He knew him and new the way back to him. But it is impossible for those who don't know God to come to Him except through Christ. He is the only Saviour. It is only Jesus who has revealed the Father. The Gyana Marga of the Hindus is only for a few; but if it is true it ought to be for every body.'" He thanked God that he had been enabled to go to the West. Before he went, he thought that there must be something in Modernist theories, otherwise so many men would not write so many books. Besides, Christianity had been in force for so many centuries in the West. But when he discovered how busy these scholars were and how much of their knowledge was secondhand and not the fruit of their experience with Christ, he 11

announced that all their speculations would not move him an inch from his faith. "We are called to work for Him. Are we misled by Modernists and Higher Criticism? Is our faith shaken? If we believe that Christ was merely a great man then we have no message for the world. We will have to jump down into Hell to hide ourselves for every shame. We are to be fishers of men and are we still fishermen? The angels would have been glad to preach the Gospel in this world for five minutes, and that would have been enough. But the privilege is not granted to them. Only saved sinners can preach the Gospel." "The Gospels are genuine; we find proof of that in the Gospels themselves. They were written by simple unlettered men. If the Gospels were not genuine, more care would have been taken in their composition and arrangement; there would have been more method. For example, the parables would all have been arranged in one place, the miracles in another and so on; but they all have been mixed up!" People read many books about the Bible, but very few read the Bible itself. The Sadhu himself read very little besides the Bible.

On Women Also see Pandita Ramabai (A great woman liberated through Christ) He was asked about the position of women. He spoke of the great and good work which women have accomplished in the past in the world, going on to speak of many women of today through whom the world has greatly benefited in every aspect of 12

Having become a Christian, he was renounced by his father and ostracized by his family. On October 16 1905, Sundar wearing a yellow robe, barefooted and without provisions, resumed his nomadic life from village to village, but this time he followed in Jesus' footsteps. In 1906, he went to Tibet for the first time. That country attracted him, primarily because of the great challenges it presented against evangelism. "There will be very strong opposition and persecution there. High above the tranquil snowclad Himalayan peaks, there will be a lot of time and opportunities to meet God and to read the Bible," he thought. On his way to Tibet, he met Stoker, an American missionary who also wore a yellow robe. Sometimes they spent the night together under a tree or in a mountain cave at an altitude of 5000 meters above sea level, without enough food. Happily they endured all the hardship for the sake of spreading the Gospel. When Sundar became ill, Stoker got them a place to stay in a house belonging to a European. Inspired by Sundar's faithfulness towards God and sincere love towards other people, the host repented his sins and gave his life to serving the Lord. Following the advice of his friends, Sadhu enrolled himself in St.John School of Theology in Lahore. After studying for two years there, he resumed his travel. An eyewitness reported his experience with Sundar, "I encountered Sundar Singh as he was walking down a mountain trail to proclaim the Gospel to us. He then sat on top of a tree, wiped the sweat off his face and sang a hymn about the love of Jesus to us. The audience was not impressed by the song. One man came forward from the audience, pulled Sundar down from the tree and knocked him to the ground. Silently, Sundar got to his feet and began praying for these hostile people. He then told us about the love of Jesus who had died to redeem all sinners. Because of that I repented and so did the attacker." That was not the only time when Sundar won souls for the Lord by adhering to Jesus' instruction which says, "Do not take revenge on someone who wrongs you. 45

His mother died when he was 14 years old. Since then his life changed dramatically. Convinced that what Jesus had taught was completely wrong, he tore the Bible apart and burned it. He even threw stones at preachers and encouraged others to do likewise. Still, however hard he tried, he couldn't find the peace he had been seeking for in his own religion. He reached a point in his life where committing suicide crossed his mind. Three days after he burned the Bible in front of his father, he woke up at 3 a.m. and said to himself, "Oh God, if you do exist, show me the right way, or I will kill myself." He was thinking of throwing himself in front of a train that usually passed at 5 a.m. every morning behind their house in the hope that he would find peacefulness in his future reincarnation. He repeated his prayer once again. All of a sudden he saw a brilliant light. At first he feared that the room was on fire. But nothing happened. He then thought that it might be an answer to his prayer. While watching the light, he suddenly saw Jesus' figure in the radiance. He then heard a voice in Hindi saying, "How much longer are you going to search for me? I have come to save you. You prayed for the right path. Why have you not followed it?" At that time, Sundar realized that Jesus had not died and that He was alive. Sundar fell on his knees before Him and experienced an astonishing peacefulness which he had never felt before. The vision disappeared, but peace and joy lingered within him. Thereafter his life was transformed. He wanted to be baptized. Although his family tried to prevent him from his intention, he was determined. In 1905, on his birthday, he was baptized in an English church in Simla. At that time, he decided to become a Sadhu Christian, so that he could dedicate himself to the Lord. As a Sadhu, he wore a yellow robe, lived on the charity of others, abandoned all possession and maintained celibacy. He was convinced that this was the best way to introduce the Gospel to his people since it was the only way which his people were accustomed to. In addition, he also wanted to be free to devote himself to the Lord. 44

life, especially the religious. Then he added significantly, "Spirit has no gender". He often speaks of his mother and of what he owes to her. "My mother's lap was the best university in the world for me". Someone asked him whether he thought it would be advisable to have Hindu women who have come to believe in Christ as their Saviour, baptised in the seclusion of their own homes. He said he did not believe in baptising secretly; there was no meaning in accepting Christ unless He were publicly confessed. The persecution and suffering which that entails, whether for a man or a woman, is the very best thing for the testing and strengthening of the new believer's faith and love towards the Lord. The Sadhu constantly stressed the importance of confessing our Lord before men and bearing testimony to Him; while at the same time recognizing the great difficulties which women in especial must face in India in order to confess Christ, because of social conditions and social customs, referring in this connection to some of his own relatives. The Sadhu has a sister. He tells her sometimes, "You are my sister after the flesh but do you know that I have many sisters in the world who are real sisters of mine and we shall dwell together in Heaven? In this spiritual sense you have not become my sister yet."

Parables of Truth "When a man is in a state of sin, he has no sense of sin. A man dives into the water. On his head are lakhs of maunds of water but he does not feel their weight at all. But on coming out of the 13

water if he lifts a vesselful of water he thoroughly understands how heavy the water is. In the same way, when a man is sunk in sin he has no sense of sin, but once he is delivered he is conscious of the least sin." "It may take a long time to know about a flower, but it doesn't take long to smell its sweet fragrance. It doesn't take long to enjoy Him. I know Him -- that is enough for me. People have been quenching their thirst with water, not knowing that it is hydrogen and oxygen. So with the water of life. If salvation is for a few then it is not universal, and if it is not universal it is not true." "'How can I believe there is life hereafter? -- Heaven and Hell?' I was asked by a professor. 'But,' said I, 'we find the proof in ourselves.' 'Can you give a proof about the future life?' he asked. 'Certainly. Eggs at first contain only liquid matter, then a young bird is gradually formed. Supposing the mother-bird tells the young one, "You will come out of this shell. You will see mountains, hills, clouds, fields and also your mother." What if the chicken says, "No, you are telling a lie. What proof have I?" "Why, those wings, those eyes have been given to you. You can't use them in the egg shell. You can't see anything but yourself. Your eyes and wings are proof that you are being prepared for a world to come." When the chick came out of his shell he saw everything and his mother and he could enjoy everything.'

So we shall come out and see our Heavenly Mother-Father. Why these desires? Longings for peace? There is no room to satisfy all human desires in this life. But we shall see our Saviour and the saints in Heaven. In this body we could not see them. But all eggs do not get hatched. They need the Mother's warmth. So too 14

Sadhu Sundar Singh http://www.csichurch.com/article/sad huS.htm One hundred and four years ago on September 1889, Sundar Singh was born in Rampur, in the region of Patiala northern India. He was raised in the luxury of his family's wealth. As a Sikh, Sundar was taught about Hinduism and came along with his parents to Hindu temples. By the age of seven he had already memorized Bagawadgita, the songs of blissful people, which is a long and intricate verse containing lessons of life. At sixteen, not only had he mastered Veda, the ancient sacred books of Hinduism, but he had also read Koran, the sacred book of Islam. He then got acquainted with some Sadhus who taught him Yoga. A Sadhu is a Hindu who devotes his entire life to his religion and forsakes all the worldly pleasures. Sundar remained single and jobless. He travelled all over India wearing a yellow robe without any food and without having any permanent residence. He lived only on the charity of others. It was his mother who first encouraged him to become a Sadhu. She once told him, "Do not be selfish and materialistic like your brothers, but seek for your peace of mind and hold steadily onto your faith. Be a Sadhu." However, he never achieved peacefulness in his meditations. Owing to his mother's connections with some women from a British mission in Rajpur, Sundar was able to enter the school run by the missionaries. It was there that Sundar was first exposed to the Bible. He wasn't interested in the Bible at that time. Instead, he ardently buried himself in the occult art of Hinduism. 43

receiving baptism you are professing that you have died to sin and are pledging a good conscience before God, and thus the start of a new life in Jesus Christ. The early disciples were baptized by complete immersion (just as the Lord Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist) immediately following their new faith in Christ, regardless of any previous baptisms. They were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Although the Holy Spirit had enlightened them when they believed on the Lord Jesus, many received the baptism of the Holy Spirit (with manifestations of spiritual gifts) by the laying on of hands by the apostles:

"...Paul...found some disciples, and he said to them, 'Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?' And they said to him, 'No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.' And he said, 'Into what then were you baptized?' And they said, 'Into John's baptism.' And Paul said, 'John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.' And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking with tongues and prophesying." (Acts 19:1-6)

If you have not been baptized since you were born again in Christ, or if your baptism did not involve full immersion, express to your born again Christian pastor that you would like to be biblically baptized...

Other testimonies 42

we need the baptism of the Holy Spirit to make us warm. We must receive the warmth and heat from Him in prayer." "When I was in America a wealthy man was telling me of his experience. 'What do you think is the most precious thing in this drawing room?' he asked, 'Some say it is that beautiful picture or these precious stones. But the most precious thing in my house is that tiger skin. One day when I was hunting with my brother a tiger was shot. But he was not killed -- only wounded and still breathing. My brother fired and the tiger jumped on him and so my brother was killed but the tiger was killed too. These scars are my brother's blood. My brother gave his life for me. So this is the most precious thing in my house.' So when we read the word of God we learn that our Brother gave His life for us. There is no precious thing in the world than this. It has the mark of our Brother's blood." "I have a stone in my hand. I hit somebody with it -- the man's head is broken and he dies. As long as the stone was in my hand it was in my power, but once the stone was out of my hand it was out of my power. And it was too late, the man was dead. If I repent -- that only means I won't throw any more stones in the future. But the man is already killed! In the future, we shall receive strength, but we must hold fast for the present otherwise we are in danger of losing what we have. There is a danger of losing the gifts or the blessings which we have been receiving from our Heavenly Father. If there had been no danger of losing our crown, our Lord would not have given warnings. So, 'Watch and pray.' Gifts, blessings, spiritual life and crown, there is a difference between having these things and receiving them again. Those who repent may obtain forgiveness if they go to our Heavenly Father, but those who postpone may find it too late." 15

"It is an excellent plan to entertain noble and lofty thoughts in the mind at all times; for by the Law of Association one good and noble thought attracts another." "A tree grows and develops in the light and heat of the sun. There is infinite space above the tree, yet when the tree has reached a certain height it cannot increase any more. Why cannot it increase? The power of gravitation of the earth draws it down. We are spiritual beings and are to grow upwards and not downwards though things in this world draw us down.

The heat of the sun makes a tree grow, but by the heat of the same sun another tree dries up. When a worm or an insect has entered a tree, the life of the tree is being gradually destroyed; then the heat of the sun instead of giving it strength helps the process of decay. We have life within us and are to grow through the light of the Sun of Righteousness. To what degree is it possible for us to increase? To this degree, 'Be ye therefore perfect as your Father which is in Heaven is perfect.'" "When government began to mint coins, men began to make counterfeit coins. So in the Spiritual life, the Evil One provides counterfeits of every virtues. In the spiritual life we can do much harm when we fully intend doing good; just like the man in Burma who rushed to pour buckets of water in his house which had suddenly caught fire and found that in that great oil-region he was pouring kerosene oil instead."

On Prayer 16

"Since therefore, brethren, we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus...let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our body washed with pure water" (Hebrews 10:19,22) "He saved us...by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior..." (Titus 3:5,6) "Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come" (2Corinthians 5:17)

When you first believed, you received the inward witness of the Holy Spirit (see Assurance of Salvation). Baptism is the outward witness that your sins have been forgiven and your conscience has been washed clean by the blood of Jesus Christ.

"Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life...knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be made powerless, that we should not longer be slaves to sin...For the death that He died, He died to sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus." (Romans 6:4,6,10-11)

Just as Jesus was raised from the dead unto eternal life, so baptism testifies that your old life died with Christ, and through faith in Him you are raised to a new "resurrection life". By 41

regeneration in Christ) are man-made traditions, having no value in God's sight (the Bible gives no spiritual authority to these).

"Those who think that prayer is asking are only beggars. I have not seen any beggar understand the truth of Christianity."

However, if you have been born again through faith in the saving power of Jesus' death and resurrection, nothing (except being at your deathbed at the time you accept Jesus Christ) should hinder you from being baptized as soon as possible. Your obedience to Jesus' command to be baptized is the outward sign that you have wholeheartedly repented of your sins and believed upon Him...

"Every day whenever we spend time in prayer and realize His presence, we must hold these things fast in our heart. Without prayer it is impossible. Prayer is not asking for this thing or that thing, but for the Giver of blessing Himself -- that He may live in us. See how wonderful our Saviour is!"

"...in Him you have been made complete...having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead." (Colossians 2:10,12) "For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in order that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit... And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you - not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience - through the resurrection of Jesus Christ..." (1Peter 3:18,21)

Baptism is not the physical washing away of your sins. Your sins were completely washed away by the once-and-for-all shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ when you accepted Him as your Saviour: "...how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (Hebrews 9:14) 40

"Some people are very thankful when their prayer is answered. But the people who think that prayer is merely asking are greatly mistaken. God gives Himself. Even wicked are receiving all kinds of things from God. If the Holy Spirit were given without prayer, we should not be able to appreciate Him. But the people who receive Him can't live without prayer. They may fall, they may make mistakes, but they know the value of prayer; and those who know the value of a life of fellowship will never cease." "Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness know Him. He reveals Himself to such people -- those who spend time in prayer. We see our face sometimes not in a mirror but in a river, but when there are waves in the river we are not able to see ourselves. When our lives are full of hurry and bustle we fail to see ourselves, but in a quiet place we see ourselves and we shall be entirely changed -- a new life. Then we shall not be ashamed. We shall know Him by living with Him -- and we must live in Him through a life of prayer." "Prayer is to live in Him for others. We can't stop breathing in the air of the Holy Spirit, and by the Holy Spirit we are being prepared for the world to come -- for the Kingdom of God where we are going to spend eternity. We have not been created to live in this world forever but to get ready for our Heavenly Home." "A child two or three days old does not know anything about this world -- about his mother and about milk, but he knows how 17

to suck milk. He does not know Khasi or Hindi, but he knows how to suck. God has provided milk for the child in his mother's breast, but it does not flow into the child's mouth. He has to suck and he gets stronger and stronger every day. God is our spiritual Mother and we experience that when we lead a life of prayer. We have desire. This desire is to be satisfied, and only He can meet the needs of the human heart. Everybody knows something about prayer. A child can cry."

the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life" (1John 5:13)

"St. Paul was such a practical man of God that he didn't tell others to do what he didn't try to do himself. He lived a life of prayer, he never ceased to pray. When on a long journey, he prayed. He knew the value of prayer from experience. He knew how important and essential it is. Just as breathing and circulation of the blood are functions of the body, so prayer is a function of the soul. The circulation of the blood will not continue forever, the beating of the heart will stop, but prayer will continue. Prayer is to breathe in God -- to breathe in the air of the Holy Spirit. Those who cannot breathe are dead. We breathe in our sleep, so , 'Pray without ceasing.' To live in Him we are to breathe in Him Who is our life."

"Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God; and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him" (1John 4:5) "We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren" (1John 3:14) .

"A naturalist noticing that certain beautiful birds flew away to a hot country at the beginning of winter, had a great desire that the birds should stay, but was unable to retain them. So he thought of another plan. He got some of these birds' eggs from a hot country. He thought that if these young ones were born in a cold country they would think they belonged to the cold country. But when the winter came they flew away. No one told them, but they went back again to the country whence they had come. They had that instinct, that sense which told them. So we too are going to fly away from here." "If eggs are not properly hatched they become rotten. So we too are in danger of perishing from sin. But we are being prepared and we shall fly from our shell into our heavenly home. Even animals know their master but we don't know our Creator. We 18

By your attitude toward other Christians

Baptism: The Outward Witness If you have believed on Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, your sins have been forgiven and you have been saved from eternal condemnation (see Assurance of Salvation). The next step in obedience to the Lord Jesus is to be baptized... "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned." (Mark 16:16)

The Lord Jesus made clear that by believing one is saved (and likewise by not believing one already stands condemned). Baptism does not save, and has no value apart from prior saving faith in Christ - for example, infant baptism (an infant or young child is not held accountable for sin) or ritualistic baptism into a religion or denomination (without experiencing spiritual 39

By the witness of personal experience "The one who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself... And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding, in order that we might know Him who is true, and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life." (1John 5:10,20) .

By the witness of the Holy Spirit "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God... in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words..." (Romans 8:16,26) But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who indwells you" (Romans 8:11)

cannot change His will but through prayer we can understand His will. What is necessary for His will, will be given to us to carry out His plans. We are being changed. When the egg is being hatched it is changed; then, in time, the chick will become like the mother-bird. The liquid matter is changed until it becomes a young bird which becomes like its mother. In prayer we are being hatched and changed and prepared to be like Him. ...all eggs do not get hatched. They need the Mother's warmth. So too we need the baptism of the Holy Spirit to make us warm. We must receive the warmth and heat from Him in prayer." "Why doesn't God give spiritual blessings without prayer? There was Saul. Saul received a kingdom and the Holy Spirit, but he did not pray for the Holy Spirit and was not anxious. The result was that he lost both. Through prayer we are being prepared. We are receiving a blessing through the prayer of preparation. Instead of donkeys Saul found a kingdom. If we receive the Holy Spirit before we are ready we shall lose Him. But if we are ready then our lives will be entirely changed. But if we lose Him we are worse than before. Such men are the incarnation of the devil -- their condition afterwards is worse."

"But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name: who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13) "These things I have written to you who believe in the name of

"This is a warning from the Lord Himself. 'Hold fast thy crown.' All will be clear if we live a life of prayer. We must spend time in prayer -- then we shall know who our Saviour is. We receive blessings even through our mistakes. But our God works quietly. He never makes a noise... God give me strength and power that I may not lose this blessing. My prayer is to continue. Then Heaven will begin on earth for all who have had this experience. Then we shall see others entering into the kingdom of God. We shall see with our spiritual eyes and fly away and be with our Saviour and be in His Kingdom forever. May God help us so that we may live in Him in this life -- and that is only possible through prayer which is the vital breath of life -- before we enter into the Heavenly Kingdom where we are going to live with Him forever.

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By the witness of the Word

We must begin in our home on earth, otherwise we shall feel out of place in Heaven. If we live in Him now, we shall be prepared to live with Him forever..."

slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame" (1Peter 3:15-16)

"May God help us to pray without ceasing."

Assurance of Salvation On Persecution, Suffering and Discipleship.

"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life." (John 5:24)

"...a little girl thirteen years of age was going from her village to another when she was met by a Lama who said to her, "Your father has become a Christian and that is, I suppose, why you are a Christian too."

"Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come..." (2Corinthians 5:17)

She replied, "A Christian Sadhu came to our village to tell of Christ. My family has become Christian -- I am a Christian because I know from my own experience that Christ is my Saviour." The Lama seized her and shut her up in a dark room with the door locked for twenty-four hours without food or water. At the end of the twenty-four hours the Lama though she would ask to be freed. To his great amazement he found her singing. He shut her up for three days more without food or water. When he opened the door this time he didn't find her singing but she was on her knees in a corner of the room talking to somebody. He could see her lips moving but her eyes were shut. He began to listen to what she was saying. "Lord, I thank Thee for this honour of suffering for Thee." Christ was living in her otherwise it would have been impossible for her. "Lord, forgive that Lama. Open his spiritual eyes that he may see Thy glory." 20

"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death." (Romans 8:1-2)

When you come to the Lord on His Word's basis for salvation, He redeems you. You become His child: "But as many as received Him to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name" (John 1:12). He cleanses us from all sin: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1John 1:9). You are no longer bound for Hell (eternal separation from God) but are on your way to Heaven. Satan will try to contest your experience with the Lord Jesus Christ. He will try to rob you of the "peace of God." He will try to drive you back into the world of despair, doubt and defeat. But God has a message for you that will enable you to know you are saved and to maintain assurance of salvation. 37

"Call to Me, and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know." (Jeremiah 33:3) "The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much" (James 5:16)

GROW by talking about Him to others - that is witnessing "Every one therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 10:32) "Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Let the redemed of the LORD say so, whom He has redeemed from the the hand of the adversary..." (Psalm 107:1-2) "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and rise again from the dead the third day; and that repentance for forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all the nations..." (Luke 24:46-47)

The Lama burst into tears, and taking off his turban he laid it on her feet and said, "I am like your grandfather in age, but today you have become my guru." To the Sadhu whom he met afterwards, he said, "I didn't learn as much from you as I learnt from the girl." "I was so thankful. Can't we have that experience? She is on her way to perfection and has given her life to work for her Saviour." "When I was preaching between Nepal and Tibet, I was asked in one place not to preach Christianity. But I said, 'I must give my testimony to what my Saviour has done for me.' I was arrested and put in prison for six months. An excellent opportunity of preaching the Gospel! I preached to the criminals but was forbidden.

The jailer said, 'You were put into prison on account of your preaching and here you are preaching again!' I said, 'I can't keep quiet, I must tell about my Saviour.' Then he told the prisoners not to listen.

"Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ, and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their tresspasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ..." (2Corinthians 5:1720)

They said, 'You have failed to make us better. If listening to him makes us better you ought to be glad.' The jailer was terrified lest all the criminals become Christians and took me away. This time I was put into the jailer's cowhouse as there was no other separate room. The place was full of mosquitoes. My clothes were taken away and my legs and arms put into stocks. Then a basketful of leeches were put on my body. There were leeches round my eyes shutting them, and they were sucking away all my blood. It was very painful. I confess my weakness.

"...sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to every one who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and respect; and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are

God wanted to show me myself. I almost wanted to cry. 'By tomorrow,' I thought, 'I shall be dead from loss of blood.' When I was praying, however, I felt something like electricity all through my body and my prison was changed to Heaven. 'Will

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heaven be better than this?' I forgot the leeches, and though I am no singer I began to sing a Hindi hymn. Such wonderful joy! In the midst of suffering I had no external comfort of any kind but I experienced such wonderful peace from my living Saviour. I had given St. Mark's Gospel to the man who had reported me, who immediately tore it up. He came to look at me in astonishment with the jailer. 'What do you think of him?' he asked the jailer.

'I think he is mad,' replied the jailer. 'If by becoming mad one can become so happy, then I should like to become mad too,' said the man." "These eighteen years He is everything to me -- the life of my life and I am never sorry. My relations ask, 'Are you not sorry now that you have to suffer?' 'I am only sorry I did not follow Him before eighteen years ago.'"

"...like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow in respect to salvation" (1Peter 2:2) "It is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God." (Matthew 4:4) "Thy word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against Thee... Thy word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path" (Psalm 119:11,105) "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth" (2Timothy 2:15) "...let the one who is taught the word share all good things with him who teaches" (Galatians 6:6)

GROW by talking to Him - that is prayer "It is a great pity any of us are living without this wonderful Saviour. We must follow Him. We must be with Him and then we shall be on our way to perfection. Unless we follow our Saviour we cannot be saved. There is a wonderful fish which can change its colour, but a blind fish cannot change its colour." "Nobody will be allowed to enter into Heaven who has not a face like Jesus Christ. That is the only ticket, otherwise we shall find ourselves out of place there. Only those who follow Him will feel at home there. Are we willing to follow Him? There will be no hiding place in Heaven -- only in Hell. I who used to persecute Him, I who used to tear up Scripture, I must follow Him."

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"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them; and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of My hand." (John 10:27-28) "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me...If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you." (John 15:4,7) "For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, 'Abba! Father!' The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God." (Romans 8:15-16)

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"And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ" "...if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin" (1John 1:7) "Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed." (James 5:16) "And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against any one; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you; with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." (Colossians 3:12-17)

His Family & Religious Background One hundred and twelve years ago on September 1889, Sundar Singh was born to Sher Singh of Rampur, Punjab in northern India. His mother, a deeply religious woman, nurtured him in the noble traditions of the Sikhs. Sundar often spoke of his mother with much love and respect because of the good foundation she laid for his life to come. Little did anyone know what God was about to do with this keenly intelligent and disciplined young man. He was raised in the luxury of his family's wealth. As a Sikh, Sundar was taught about Hinduism and came along with his parents to Hindu and Sikh temples. By the age of seven he had already memorized Bhagavadgita, the intricate Hindu dialogue containing spiritual life lessons. At sixteen, not only had he mastered the Vedas, the ancient sacred books of Hinduism, but he had also read Qur'an, the sacred book of Islam. He then got acquainted with some sadhus who taught him Yoga. A sadhu is a Hindu who devotes his entire life to his religion and forsakes all the worldly pleasures. Sundar remained single and jobless. He travelled all over India wearing a yellow robe without any food and without having any permanent residence. He lived only on the charity of others.

GROW by allowing Him to talk to you - that is Bible study (Read the New Testament first, beginning with John's Gospel)

The life of Sadhu Sundar Singh was most remarkable in its Christ-likeness. Being born amidst the depths of Indian culture and religion, and into a Sikh family, during the early part of his life Sundar's mother would take him week by week to sit at the feet of a sadhu, an ascetic holy man, who lived some distance away in the rainforest. It was his mother who first encouraged him to become a sadhu. She once told him, "Do not be selfish and materialistic like your brothers, but seek for your peace of mind and hold steadily onto your faith. Be a sadhu." However, he never achieved peacefulness in his meditations. Owing to his mother's connections with some women from a British mission in Rajpur, Sundar was able to enter the school run by the

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missionaries. It was there that Sundar was first exposed to the Bible. He wasn't interested in the Bible at that time. Instead, he ardently buried himself in Hinduism and yogic practices.

His Encounter with Christ But with the death of his beloved mother when he was only fourteen years old, his life had changed dramatically. The young Sundar grew increasingly despairing and aggressive. Convinced that what Jesus had taught was completely wrong, he tore the Bible apart and burned it. He even threw stones at preachers and encouraged others to do likewise. His hatred of the local missionaries and Christians culminated in the public burning of a Bible which he tore apart page by page and threw into the flames. Still, however hard he tried, he couldn't find the peace he had been seeking for in his own religion. He reached a point in his life where committing suicide crossed his mind. Yet before long Sundar was intent on taking his own life. Sundar had arrived at a point of desperation: he had decided to throw himself under the Ludhiana express if God did not reveal to him the true way of peace.

Now that the saving Gospel of Christ has been presented to you, will you sincerely make the following prayer to God?

"Jesus, I believe you are Lord. I am a lost sinner, and

I want to become a Christian. I trust in the blood that you shed on Calvary for the cleansing of my sin. I believe you alone rose from the dead, and I open the door of my heart to receive you as my personal Saviour. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for saving me now."

Growing in Christ The Bible speaks of new Christians as "babes in Christ." It also clearly teaches that it is not the will of God for Christians to stay in a state of spiritual infancy but to experience spiritual development. "But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" (2Peter 3:18)

GROW by meeting with other Christians - that is fellowship Regularly attend a Bible-believing and born-again Christian church/fellowship:

Three days after he burned the Bible in front of his father, he woke up at three in the morning and went out into the moonlit courtyard for the ceremonial bath observed by devout Hindus and Sikhs before worship. He then returned to his room and knelt down, bowed his head to the ground and pleaded that God would reveal himself. Yet nothing happened. He was thinking of throwing himself in front of the train that would pass at 5 a.m. every morning behind their house, in the hope that he would find peacefulness in his future reincarnation.

"For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body...and we were all made to drink of one Spirit... And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are Christ's body, and individually members of it." (1 Corinthians 12:13,26-27)

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"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8)

How to make the Lord Jesus your Saviour "And we have beheld and bear witness that the Father has sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world...And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son." (1John 4:14; 5:11) To become a Christian it is necessary for a definite transaction on the part of the sinner. God will do His part but you also have a responsibility. When you realize you are a lost sinner, that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Saviour you need, the next step is to believe the truth of God's Word, confess your sin and need of a Saviour and simply ask Him to save you. "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Rom. 10:13) "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved, you and your household" (Acts 16:30) "That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved...For the Scripture says, 'Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed." (Rom. 10:9,11) "All that the Father gives Me shall come to Me; and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out." (John 6:37)

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He had not known what to expect: a voice, a vision, a trance? Still nothing happened, and it was fast approaching the time for the Ludhiana express. He repeated his prayer once again. He lifted his head and opened his eyes, and was rather surprised to see a faint cloud of light in the room. It was too early for the dawn. He opened the door and peered out to the courtyard. Darkness. Turning back into the room he saw that the light in the room was getting brighter. At first he feared that the room was on fire. But nothing happened. He then thought that it might be an answer to his prayer. While watching the light, he suddenly saw Jesus' figure in the radiance. To his sheer amazement he saw not the face of any of his traditional gods, but of Jesus the Christ.

Jesus Christ was there in the room, shining, radiating an inexpressible joy and peace and love, looking at him with compassion and asking, "Why do you persecute me? I died for you ..." [Acts 9:1-5] At that time, Sundar realized that Jesus was not dead but alive. Sundar fell on his knees before Him and experienced an astonishing peacefulness which he had never felt before. The vision disappeared, but peace and joy lingered within him. Thereafter his life was transformed. He wanted to be baptized. Although his family tried to prevent him from his intention, he was determined. In 1905, on his birthday, he was baptized in an English church in Simla. At that time, he decided to become a sadhu, so that he could dedicate himself to the Lord Jesus. As a sadhu, he wore a yellow robe, lived on the charity of others, abandoned all possession and maintained celibacy. He was convinced that this was the best way to introduce the Gospel to his people since it was the only way which his people were accustomed to. In addition, he also wanted to be free to devote himself to the Lord. 25

Having become a Christian, he was renounced by his father and ostracized by his family. On October 16 1905, Sundar wearing a yellow robe, barefooted and without provisions, resumed his nomadic life from village to village, but this time he followed in Jesus' footsteps. From here on the life of Sundar Singh became most Christ-like. Being unwilling to denounce his Master in the face of his family's rejection, Sundar took the saffron robes of the sadhu and began a life of spreading the simple message of love and peace and rebirth through Jesus. He carried no money or other possessions, only a New Testament. "I am not worthy to follow in the steps of my Lord," he said, "but like Him, I want no home, no possessions. Like Him I will belong to the road, sharing the suffering of my people, eating with those who will give me shelter, and telling all people of the love of God."

His Travel Experiences In 1906, he went to Tibet for the first time. That country attracted him, primarily because of the great challenges it presented against evangelism. "There will be very strong opposition and persecution there. High above the tranquil snowclad Himalayan peaks, there will be a lot of time and opportunities to meet God and to read the Bible," he thought. On his way to Tibet, he met Stoker, an American missionary who also wore a yellow robe. Sometimes they spent the night together under a tree or in a mountain cave at an altitude of 5000 meters above sea level, without enough food. Happily they endured all the hardship for the sake of spreading the Gospel. When Sundar became ill, Stoker got them a place to stay in a house belonging to a European. Inspired by Sundar's faithfulness towards God and sincere love towards other people, the host repented his sins and gave his life to serving the Lord. 26

distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:10-11,22-23) "All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way" (Isa. 53:6)

Jesus Christ

is the Saviour

"God...desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony borne at the proper time." (1Timothy 2:3-6) "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins." (1John 4:10) A religion, temple or church cannot save you. A Christian loved one or friend cannot save you. Fraternal organizations cannot save you. Founders of religious paths cannot save you. Even your pious/good life and deeds cannot save you, for "all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment" (Isa. 64:6) in the presence of God's holiness. The Lord Jesus Christ is the only One Who can save your lost soul. "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12) "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 6:23)

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peace and rebirth through Jesus. He carried no money or other possessions, only a New Testament. "I am not worthy to follow in the steps of my Lord," he said, "but like Him, I want no home, no possessions. Like Him I will belong to the road, sharing the suffering of my people, eating with those who will give me shelter, and telling all people of the love of God." He travelled India and Tibet, as well as the rest of the world, with the message that the modern interpretation of Jesus was sadly watered down. Sundar visited Tibet every summer. In 1929, he visited that country again and was never seen since. Sundar manifested into his life the verse written in Mark 8:35 which says, "For whoever wants to save his own life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for Me and for the Gospel will save it."

You need a Saviour "For the Son of Man has come to seek and save that which was lost." (Luke 19:10) You cannot be saved without first realizing that you are lost. People who are trusting in the golden rule, good works or selfrighteousness are following a way "which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death" (Proverbs 14:12). God saves sinners. You must see yourself as a lost sinner, doomed to eternal separation from God except for the saving grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. "...it is appointed for men to die once, and after this comes judgment" (Heb. 9:27) "There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God...there is no 30

Following the advice of his friends, Sadhu enrolled himself in St.John School of Theology in Lahore. After studying for two years there, he resumed his travel. An eyewitness reported his experience with Sundar, "I encountered Sundar Singh as he was walking down a mountain trail to proclaim the Gospel to us. He then sat on top of a tree, wiped the sweat off his face and sang a hymn about the love of Jesus to us. The audience was not impressed by the song. One man came forward from the audience, pulled Sundar down from the tree and knocked him to the ground. Silently, Sundar got to his feet and began praying for these hostile people. He then told us about the love of Jesus who had died to redeem all sinners. Because of that I repented and so did the attacker." That was not the only time when Sundar won souls for the Lord by adhering to Jesus' instruction which says, "Do not take revenge on someone who wrongs you. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, let him slap your left cheek too." (Matthew 5:39). One day in Nepal, Sundar was ambushed by four robbers in the middle of a jungle. One of them brandished a sword. Meekly, Sundar bowed his head thinking that his life was about to end. This attitude surprised the perpetrators. Since he was penniless, they took his blanket away from him and let him go. But then, one of the robbers called him back and curiously asked his name. Sundar introduced himself, opened his Bible and started telling him the story of the rich man and Lazarus the poor. The robber said that the end of the rich man's life was unpleasant and asked what would happen to himself. Sundar then told him about the Gospel and God's forgiveness. The robber took Sundar home with him and repented. In 1912 Sundar decided to imitate Jesus' seclusion and fasting for 40 days even though his friends advised him against it. He failed to fast for 40 days because he became weak. However the experience strengthened his spirit. He could thus overcome all doubts, anger and impatience. 27

In the following years, he was often persecuted but he was also miraculously delivered by the Lord. In 1914, Sundar preached in Nepal, a country with a very strong root of Buddhism. In the town of Rasa, he was sentenced to death by a local Lama on the grounds of spreading a foreign religion. He was thrown into a dry well the top of which was then covered and locked from the outside. He was without food and drink, naked inside the well together with corpses of executed murderers. He stayed in the horrible well for 2 days until a stranger came and helped him out of the well. After relocking the well, the stranger left without saying anything. Not long after that, Sundar was recaptured and taken to the Lama. The Lama was very surprised since he had always kept the only key to the well with him. Realizing that Sundar was under the protection of a very powerful God, they became fearful of him and begged him to leave them.

great danger. Likewise, the violent winds of suffering and trouble blow us into the Lord's protective hands." Sadhu Sundar Singh journeyed much. He travelled all over India and Ceylon. Between 1918-1919, he visited Malaysia, Japan and China. Between 1920-1922 he went to Western Europe, Australia and Israel. He preached in many cities; Jerusalem, Lima, Berlin and Amsterdam among others. Sundar remained modest despite his fame. His attitude made his father repent. Sundar never thought of himself. He only desired to follow Jesus' example: to repay evil with kindness and to win over his enemies by love. This attitude often caused his enemies to feel ashamed of themselves. Once, he was preaching in a public market when a fanatic from a different religion suddenly punched his right cheek. Calmly, Sundar turned his left cheek towards the assailant.

In 1918, Sundar visited Madras where thousands of people gathered to listen to him preach. There Sundar focussed his preaching on Jesus Christ the redeemer. He testified, "Jesus' presence always brought astonishing peace to me no matter how bad the situations I was in. Whenever I was in a prison, he was always there for me. He transformed the jail into a heaven and the burdens became blessings. There are many Christians who do not feel His glorious presence as something real. Because for them Jesus only occurs in their minds and not in their hearts. Only when someone surrenders his heart to Jesus can he find Him."

The attacker left. But that night Sundar received a message from the attacker asking for forgiveness. On another occasion, Sundar told some harvesters about the parable of the weeds. They became annoyed and cursed him. One of them threw a stone at Sundar's head. At that instant, the stone thrower was struck by such a painful headache that he had to lie down on the ground. Without hesitations, Sundar took over that man's chore and helped them harvest the crops. They soon became friendly to him and invited him home. Their hearts were then open to the Gospel. The next day after Sundar left, they noticed that their harvest became more abundant.

Sundar often used parables in his preachings. He once said, "One day after a long journey, I rested in front of a house. Suddenly a sparrow came towards me blown helplessly by a strong wind. From another direction, an eagle dived to catch the panicky sparrow. Threatened from different directions, the sparrow flew into my lap. By choice, it would not normally do that. However, the little bird was seeking for a refuge from a

His Mission & Fate

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Being unwilling to denounce his Master in the face of his family's rejection, Sundar took the saffron robes of the sadhu and began a life of spreading the simple message of love and 29