“So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ ” Exodus 3:4 NKJV
“There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore He says: ‘When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.’ … And He Himself gave some to be … evangelists, and some pastors and teachers.” Ephesians 4:4-8, 11 NKJV
In the book “Reaching a Generation for Christ,” Mark Senter III wrote: “Dwight L. Moody began his ministry as a youth worker. A Sunday school teacher, to be exact. Later world renowned as an evangelist, Moody volunteered to teach God’s Word to boys on the north side of Chicago while working as a shoe salesman. Unlike much of youth ministry today, Mr. Moody was not given his own class of young men from Christian homes. Instead his Sunday school superintendent brusquely told the young entrepreneur to go out onto the streets of Chicago and recruit his own class and then he would be given a place to teach the boys. Into the streets he went, first gaining the friendship and then the loyalty of young boys who had not known him a few days before. Moody played with the boys, gave them prizes for bringing friends, and eventually became dynamic in the way he taught the lesson. More came. Some left, but most returned week after week. The Sunday school grew to more than six hundred children, which is an impressive number by any youth worker’s standard. The year was 1859.”
When Jesus gave gifts to believers – some evangelists, some pastors, and some teachers – the gifts were not necessarily isolated.
D.L. Moody, who became one of the great evangelists, began his ministry building a Sunday school class to teach the Gospel to boys on the Chicago streets.
As the Civil War involved more and more young men, Moody went directly to the front lines with the Gospel and an invitation to “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.” That was always the center part of Moody’s ministry. He recruited young men and young women to attend the schools he built in New England and in Chicago, where the Chicago Evangelization Society was prayed into existence by Emma Dryer and others. While Moody helped build churches, he was never a pastor. He recruited others to fill that position.
One of the greatest contributions D.L. Moody made for the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ was his ability to locate, recruit, and give opportunities for many to use their God-given gifts by working together.
Wrapping up an evangelistic series in Great Britain, Moody stopped at the Mount of Olives to overlook Jerusalem and pray about the forthcoming World’s Fair to be hosted in Chicago.
He envisioned putting together teams of evangelistic speakers and singers to scatter across Chicago, taking God’s glorious gospel to gathering after gathering across the entire region, when people from around the world would gather to attend the World’s Fair.
Moody used the headquarters of the Chicago Evangelization Society (later to become known as Moody Bible Institute) as the training center and headquarters for organizing outreaches and follow up from the teams that were going forth with God’s Good News.
Many speakers and singers, hearing of the opportunity during the World’s Fair happenings, echoed Isaiah 6:8: “… ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’ Then I said, ‘Here am I! Send me.’ ” Isaiah 6:8 NKJV
The aftermath is the continuing worldwide Moody Bible Institute ministries that have continued to expand from Chicago, across America and around the world today.
TTT Christian Youth Ministries teams will be going with the Gospel (God-willing) to 10 Tri-state county fairs and street festivals. July 7-11: Gibson County, Indiana (Princeton); White County, Illinois (Carmi); Lawrence County, Illinois (Sumner); and McLean County, Kentucky (Calhoun). July 14-18: Knox County, Indiana (Bicknell); Posey County, Indiana (New Harmony); and Warrick County, Indiana (Boonville). July 21-25: Richland County, Illinois (Olney). July 28 – August 1: Edwards County, Illinois (Albion); and Wabash County, Illinois (Mt. Carmel).
Will you respond to the True Light? Will you “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ”? With whom will you share?