Fruit to Harvest. Edited by Gene Daniels et al. William Carey P, 2019.

Fruit to Harvest goes along with two other books we have reviewed recently: Bhojpuri Breakthrough and 24:14. This contains powerful testimonies and examples of how God is using ordinary “nameless” people to bring the Gospel to many unreached and “unengaged” people in the second and third world.

The book’s purpose is to share with the first world church what is working. As with the Bhojpuri revival, the most effective ministry is performed by people in the same or proximate people group. The late Bob Finley and K. P. Yohannan promoted this idea for years. Yes, there is definitely a place for workers who move longer distances, either because they can provide physical support or a needed expertise or because they also have connections. Each chapter is an article or essay written by different men and women writing from experience.

Perhaps most striking is that these modern Christian workers usually have a regular occupation and do not generally imitate a Western church model. For example, a group filmed a life of Jesus film with Jesus sitting in a circle sharing his teaching in discussions with His disciples. This actually is likely the way many teachings from the Gospels happened, rather than Jesus proclaiming or declaiming the way He is often shown by Hollywood and the West. This is the way, after all, many cultures study their scriptures, so this portrayal is something many audiences instinctively understand.

Even filming Jesus to look more Middle Eastern or Asian helps audiences connect. Years ago, Christians in India made a film of the life of Jesus using professional actors from that country. None of the actors were Christians at the time, but in a few years most of them had come to the Lord because of the character they saw portrayed in the film.

This reviewer found chapters 13 and 17 most fascinating. Chapter thirteen was written by two men who have ministered to refugees in Africa. A lot of what they share could be applied to ministries that share with refugees from the Muslim world in other places as well. I believe some of the things they share are already being used elsewhere.

Chapter 17 helps Western readers understand the role of shame and honor in most Muslim cultures. I believe much of this could be applied to other Asian shame-based cultures as well. When Adam and Eve fell, there were three immediate responses: they were afraid, they were ashamed, and they felt guilty. Now in the Western culture imbued with Greek philosophy and Roman law, the emphasis has been on guilt. The Gospel deals with that, yes, but that means little to a group culture based on shame.

However, the Gospel also does deal with the question of shame. Adam and Eve tried to cover themselves, just as most people would today out of embarrassment. They were ashamed—prior to their sin we are told they were naked but not ashamed. They, too, were kicked out of God’s garden the way that a shamed person is humiliated and shunned. Chapter 17 shares some dramatic examples that illustrate shaming and how the Gospel can “clothe” people in God’s righteousness. A Biblical example is the woman at the well in John 4. She was shamed by the people in her town, but Jesus restored her.

This reviewer notes that a third kind of culture that Western missionaries have had more success in penetrating are the fear-based cultures. Most animistic and totemic cultures are like that. They are aware of the spiritual dimension of life and are trying to placate demanding spirits. The Gospel demonstrates God’s greater power through Jesus and peace with God through faith (see Romans 5:1).

There is much else here. Again, the Western church can learn a lot from this. Yes, we can perhaps learn how to share better with visitors and immigrants who come from these cultures. Perhaps we can also rethink how we go about with our witness to others even in our own setting. Are we meeting their felt needs? Are Western churches putting on a show more than sharing?

Years ago, I recall listening to a tape shared by a men’s discipleship group I have attended for years saying that the spiritual army God would be raising up would be a nameless and faceless army. Paul criticizes the early Corinthian church for noting personalities:

Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” (I Corinthians 1:12)

Many of our brothers and sisters in modest home meetings just look to Jesus and His Word. Please do not misunderstand me, men like Jonathan Edwards and Billy Graham had very fruitful lives, and we are thankful for their legacy in North America. But much of God’s work is done literally on the streets where, like the memorial to the unknown soldiers, their names are known only to God.

Among wealthy Muslims such as many in Arabia and Persian Gulf, third-world Christians come for work, often service jobs that the local people will not do. These “dhimmis” are sometimes not treated much better than slaves, but they can have an effective witness. We are reminded of the slave girl who told the general Namaan about the prophet Elisha. That high-ranking gentile official would come to worship God through her modest advice. Such servants are truly nameless.

There is much more, of course. And the illustrations are very striking. Their wavy, impressionistic effect reminds me of the promise that “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:9) Even so, keep coming, Lord Jesus (see Revelation 22:20).