Filling up the Afflictions of Christ: The Cost of Bringing the Gospel to the Nations in the Lives of William Tyndale Adoniram Judson and John Paton
When Augustine handed over the leadership of his church in AD 426, his successor was so overwhelmed by a sense of inadequacy that he declared, “The swan is silent,” fearing the spiritual giant’s voice would be lost in time. But for 1,600 years, Augustine has not been silent—and neither have the men who faithfully trumpeted the cause of Christ after him. Their lives have inspired every generation of believers and should compel us to a greater passion for God.
In his fifth book in The Swans Are Not Silent series, John Piper explores the lives of William Tyndale, John Paton, and Adoniram Judson—a Bible translator, a missions organizer, and a front-line missionary.
In their lifelong willingness to plant seeds of faith and hope with tears of blood, they not only embraced Christ’s suffering for them but powerfully joined with Christ in his afflictions—all for the sake of the gospel. Understanding that God’s strategy for reaching unreached peoples includes the sufferings of his front line heralds, these faithful servants let nothing deter them from their mission. May their faithfulness and sacrifice intensify your passion to make Christ’s love and value known among the nations.
Publisher: Crossway
Type: Paperback
ISBN: 9781433533839
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John Piper is founder and lead teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. He served for thirty-three years as the pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is the author of more than fifty books, including Desiring God; Don’t Waste Your Life; and Reading the Bible Supernaturally.
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Filling up the Afflictions of Christ is a book about three men who took seriously the command to take up their cross daily and follow Jesus (Luke 9:23). In it, Piper contends that "...suffering is part of God's strategy for making known to the world who Christ is, how he loves, and how much he is worth" (pg. 14). He seeks to explain, through the Scriptures, what it means to fill up the afflictions of Christ and to exemplify his primary thesis, "...that missionary sufferings are a strategic part of God's plan to reach the nations" (pg. 19), through the lives of William Tyndale, John Paton, and Adoniram Judson...Piper highlights God's providence and the importance of theology and doctrine. He includes relevant warnings for our day. Furthermore, the reader will be encouraged to count the cost of following Christ and to persevere in the midst of criticism and opposition, regardless of whether fruitfulness is readily apparent.
Perhaps one of the most rewarding themes throughout Filling up the Afflictions of Christ is that Piper demonstrates how theology shapes practice. Of John G. Paton, Piper writes: "The courage to risk the loss was remarkable. But the courage to experience the loss and press on alone was supernatural" (pg. 60). He then quotes Paton's autobiography to give the reader a "...glimpse of the theology that we will see underneath this man's massive courage and toil" (pg. 60). E. Hankins