Jesus said to them, "Go into all the world and preach
the gospel to every creature." ~Mark 16:15
Matthew 25:34-40
Jesus said:
“Then the King will say to those on His right hand,
‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink;
I was a stranger and
you took Me in;
36I was naked and you
clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’"
37“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty
and give You drink?
38When did we see You
a stranger and take You in,
or naked and clothe You?
39Or when did we see
You sick, or in prison,
and come to You?’
40And the King will answer and say to them,
‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to
one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’"
Pray for our Ukrainian
sisters and brothers ...
During the month of November, 2009, I taught a 100-hour course on Grace at MATTHEW 25:34-40 Bible College in Dniprodzerzhinsk. I also visited with Vision Ukraine Mission missionaries, and discussed each of their ministries with their leadership.
Vision Ukraine was instrumental in introducing"The Most Excellent Way" to Ukraine. By cooperating with the Ukrainian Family Institute, TMEW Ministry Manuals in Russian and Ukrainian are now in use in over 350 rehabilitation centers across the nation. There are probably about 500 rehab centers in Ukraine, including about 100 state-run rehab hospitals, but the church-run centers prefer TMEW.
Vision Ukraine was also instrumental in using TMEW to minister to the children of alcoholic parents. This special ministry to children, aged 6-14, is now in use by many dozens of Ukrainian churches.
I visited with a number of rehabilitation center directors and graduates of centers. In fact, all of the students in the MATTHEW 25:34-40 Bible College and the Blagodat Missions School are graduates of one of these many rehab centers. Most of the graduates of these schools will found churches in areas where there has never been a church presence before (there are hundreds of such villages in Ukraine).
Alcoholism and drug abuse is still a serious problem in the former Soviet Union, but the rate of addiction has dropped significantly in Ukraine over the past decade (from over 95% down to 80% among adult men; from 90% to under 70% among women).
Ukraine has been badly hurt by the international financial crisis, however, Ukraine remains a hopeful nation. The evangelical Church has seen substantial growth since Ukraine's independence in 1991. The Church has done much to impact this positive hope in the nation. Many Ukrainians have no hope in their government, but they do look to God for deliverance. This is a little surprising given the influence of nearly 80 years of communism in Ukraine.
Report by Pastor John Townsend,
Senior Pastor of “MATTHEW 25:34-40 Ministries”
November 2009
For further information, please email
May our Lord
continue to bless
"The Most Excellent Way" in Ukraine!
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