WHAT SHOULD WE DO NOW?
Dear friends of the Whole Word Institute-Institute for Biblical Languages & Translation,
He is risen! It happened three days after the Passover ‘seder’ and the crucifixion of the sacrificial lamb. Yet, Jesus’ followers were still torn between bewilderment and expectation. When would they see him again? What should they do now? This year I find myself in a similar season. I know that He is the risen Lord and that we can always trust Him. So what does that mean when we are all in a state of suspension knowing that so much has changed and that our loved ones and ministries seem to be at risk?
In Luke 24: 44-52 we learn that the risen Lord gave priority to teaching his disciples from the Hebrew Word as one of His last acts before the ascension. He was teaching them from the Original Testament (or Old Testament) and preparing them for future ministry. During this time of waiting and social isolation it is tempting to let our fields lie fallow and turn inward. But when I ponder and pray about what was important to Jesus after His resurrection I am renewed with energy about His call on us to prepare teachers and translators of the Word. As Dr. Randall Buth said recently, “We are to work hard to teach God’s Word accurately (2 Tim. 2:15), but how can anyone teach God’s Word accurately without a whole Bible? And how can translators accurately prepare a whole Bible for those teachers unless those translators know the source language as well? If we are to worship the risen Lord with understanding we must have an accurate, complete Bible.” It is important to “prepare the good soil” for the future harvest. The theme of our 2019 annual report below is Preparing the Good Soil based on Jesus’ Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13. In this report, I hope you find encouragement about how your faithful giving helps bring the whole Word to the whole world.
With you in His service,
David
David Swarr PhD
President/CEO
Institute for Biblical Languages & Translation
A program of Whole Word Institute
The Whole Word for the Whole World
P.S. As we all take time to pause and reflect, you may be asking how the Lord is directing you to respond to the needs of Whole Word Institute. Here are three ways you can consider:
REJOICE
Take time now to click on and read our new Annual Report. Because of you, we have much to be thankful for. 73 student translators from the first 3 cohorts of the School of Biblical Hebrew will be working on translations in 60 languages with the potential to impact 12 million people in this generation alone.
PRAY
Take time now to pray for our students and faculty as they continue studies amidst the quarantine to accomplish this critical task.
GIVE
As the Lord enables, would you consider giving an extra gift now to help students through this challenging time? If you were planning to give your gift later in the year, would you consider investing now as we plan and strategize how best to respond to the needs of ongoing training moving forward?
Your faithful service helps bring the whole Word to the whole world