Mary Cobb, Author at Baptist Bible Translators Institute, Bowie Texas

The Greatest Book Ever Written

April 27, 2018 No Comments

Were we to survey a group of serious adults and ask them what is the greatest book ever written, I would expect the answer to be “the Bible.” However, there is really no such thing as “the Bible” except the one settled in Heaven (Psalm 119:89). So, we must clarify which Bible. Which Bible has touched and changed more lives over the centuries than the Authorized King James Version, given to the English-speaking world in the year of our Lord 1611? Which Bible has brought more revivals and literally shaped more nations? Which Bible has gone further, carried by holy hands, and turned on the light in so many dark places? Thousands have taken it to the foreign field; or has it taken them there? This Bible traveled 238,900 miles and was read on the moon! Can anyone, friend or foe, deny that the King James Bible is the greatest book ever written?

Even those who dislike and criticize it must admit that no other book has even come close to changing the world. It is the crowning work and the finished product in the line of blood-bought Bibles that came out of the Protestant Reformation. In a relatively short time, it gained acceptance as “the Bible” by English-speaking Christians, maintaining that status for the next three and a half centuries. It standardized the English language and made truly great nations of those who revered it. Unfortunately, as its influence wanes, so does the goodness and greatness of those nations.

Just think, I don’t have to view the world’s greatest book through thick glass in a museum or search through manuscripts in some dark, depressing monastery. I have a copy in my house, written in my heart language. Of the 7,097 languages spoken today, relatively few have all the scriptures—but mine does! I can understand the words of my Bible or easily learn them. I’m on speaking terms with the Author and ask him for help with the deeper meaning of words! Some argue that the Authorized Version is too archaic. I challenge you to open this Bible at any place and begin reading. See how many pages, chapters, and maybe even entire books you read before you find the first truly archaic word. Of course, you will find some words we don’t commonly use. What book of any value does not have some unfamiliar words that expand our learning? Even archaic words are no problem; there are books that give their meaning. It is amazing; I read a book written more than four centuries ago and it still works just like new! It instructs, convicts, comforts, rebukes, exhorts, and guides. I feel absolutely no need for anything newer! Some suggest that we need a newer version without thou, thee, ye, thy, and thine. In five minutes or less I could teach you that thou is the second person singular subject pronoun, thee is the second person singular object pronoun, and ye is the second person plural subject pronoun. (You is the second person plural object pronoun.) Thy and thine are singular possessive pronouns. (Your is the plural.) Without these forms, we have a less precise translation of the Greek and Hebrew scriptures and are left with an incomplete understanding of some passages.

Someone might say, “What about the inspired original autographs, aren’t they the greatest book? Granted, we would not have our Bible without them, but they were never in one book. They were probably read by very few. And certainly, the autographs did not last as long as the King James Bible has.

Longevity in itself does not make the Authorized Version great, but what other Bible has been loved by so many for so long? How long did the English Revised Version maintain its popularity, or was it ever popular? Do you know anyone that still uses it? It was followed by the American Standard Version, and God’s people, with few exceptions, rejected it, too. How about the RSV, the NRSV, the NASV, the NIV, the NKJV, the ESV or any other? Which Bible will change the world, bless God’s people, produce godly fruit, endure four hundred years, and replace the Authorized Version as the greatest book ever written?

The greatest book ever written is great because it was produced by the greatest group of translators who incorporated the greatest source texts and used the greatest translation techniques in the history of writing!
I ought to daily praise the God of Heaven for giving me a copy of the world’s greatest book! I should thank him over and over that I can have it in my house without fear of being killed! Those who read the Tyndale Bible did so under the penalty of death! I ought to honor the memories of Erasmus, Luther, Tyndale (who was burned at the stake), Coverdale, Rogers (who was burned at the stake by Bloody Mary), Reina, Valera, and many others who sacrificed so much to produce great Bibles in our languages. Thank God for those today who dedicate their lives to the work of Bible translation! Thank God for people today who sacrifice to buy paper, ink, and equipment to produce these precious treasures and even assemble them with their own hands! Thank God for churches that give Bible translation and publishing top priority.

“…For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: …” (Luke 12:48). May God help me if I, having the greatest book in the history of mankind, fail to open it. God help me if I have no pity or compassion for the billions who have little or no scripture. God help me if I buy a nice, new Bible every year or two and give nothing to send Bible translators to the mission field. Shame on the church that spends millions on buildings and nothing on producing the word of God for the heathen! Shame on the ministerial student who claims to desire the perfect will of God but is unwilling to consider the mission field, much less a Bibleless people group. Would to God that the world’s greatest book would produce greater obedience to the Great Commission!

The Western Cham of Cambodia

April 3, 2018 No Comments

Champa, an ancient empire, was invaded by Vietnam in 1471. Many Cham fled to Cambodia to escape death. Then, in the late 1970’s, hundreds of thousands were massacred under the rule of the Khmer Rouge.

The Cham are a very tight-knit matrilineal community. Polygamy is practiced, but for cultural and religious reasons, there is little intermarriage. One of their customs is digging up a loved one’s grave a year after burial and transferring the bones to a permanent resting place.

As Muslim people, the most faithful dedicate several days each month to study and meditate. Very few have turned to God, and they have no Bible. Literature is highly valued, but the Cham language has no Scripture.

Summer 2007

The Dimili Kurds of Turkey

April 3, 2018 No Comments

The 1,165000 Dimili Kurds live in the Caucasus Mountains. Many are isolated in small villages, accessible only by goat trails; and there is no electricity, medical facilities, or schools. The fertile valleys sustain both farms and animal herds.

The Kurds are not recognized as a people group by the Turkish government and have been victims of forced resettlement and ethnic cleansing. In Turkey, even speaking Kurdish was illegal until 1991.

The Dimili Kurds principle religion is Alevi, a sect of Islam that allows women full participation in religious rituals and gatherings. Followers daily incant hymns while bowing to the rising sun and moon.

Some Turkish Kurds hold Christ in high regard, but deny His deity, and there is no Christian outreach in Dimili (a Kurdish dialect). Open missionary work is forbidden.

Spring 2007

The Daur of China

March 27, 2018 No Comments

The Daur (or “cultivator”) live in the river areas of northeast China. These areas are conducive to farming, hunting, and raising animals. The men enjoy wrestling, horseman-ship and archery. Women are skilled in intricate embroidery and the making of ornate home decorations. Traditional music and dance depict themes from life such as an eagle’s flight or picking potherb.

The family is important. Each clan has their own shaman, or witchdoctor. The dead are buried in the family graveyard along with body ornaments, tobacco pipes, or cooking utensils.

Ninety percent of the Daur still speak their ancient Mongolic language, but they have no Scriptures. An alphabet has never been devised; however, a native Daur scholar has experimented writing in Pinyin, a system of Romanization for standard Mandarin.

Fall 2006

Articulatory Phonetics

March 8, 2018 No Comments

The first class I faced as a student at BBTI was Articulatory Phonetics, a study of how sounds relating to language are produced by the human mouth. The amount of knowledge and enjoyment students get from this class depends on the students’ level of participation. Phonetics is a hands-on, or rather lips-on, course. As well as learning the theory behind how sounds are made, students are required to learn how to record and reproduce all the sounds that they hear. Like any skill, phonetics takes practice, so much class time is spent doing oral drills (which to the uninitiated sounds like an international market).

So what, you ask, is the point? Why should a missionary learn phonetics? The answer is that English, or any language for that matter, is limited in the sounds it utilizes. When a missionary goes to a non-English speaking country, he will often come across sounds in that language which he has never made before. The English speaker’s tendency is to replace new and difficult sounds with English sounding equivalents. The result is a missionary who speaks with a horrendous accent and constantly mispronounces even basic words. With an understanding of phonetics, however, he is able to learn to speak the language like a native regardless of how “difficult” the sounds may be to make. This kind of fluency is important if the gospel message is to be fully understood by the hearers.

If, like me, you plan to go to a non-English speaking nation, you should consider taking a phonetics course first. It’s extremely practical, it’s fun, and what other course gives you credits for successfully purring like an outboard motor?

Cara is a native of the island of New Zealand who was saved as a result of an American missionary. She is currently a student at BBTI, preparing to serve the Lord in Ukraine.

February 8, 2018 No Comments

A missionary preaching in Mexico City from the story of Hannah read where Hannah told her husband that she wouldn’t take the child Samuel up to the tabernacle until he was weaned. Instead of saying “destetado” (weaned), he said “destazado” (to chop up). It was even more hilarious when Elkanah responded, “Do what seemeth thee good; tarry until thou have ‘chopped’ him.”

I Have an Idea!

February 8, 2018 No Comments

In our missionary-minded churches, many children feel called to be missionaries. Some may be drawn by the adventure of missions, others may feel sorry for the poor, hungry children in other countries; no doubt, some genuinely love God and want to do His will. As these children grow into adolescence, they should become more serious and mature in their dedication to Christ and His great commission; sadly this is rarely the case. Many allurements such as boyfriends and girlfriends, cars, jobs, education, etc. become more important than lost souls on the mission field. Often the call to missions is not nurtured by parents, peers, or pastors.

God gave Michele Bass a burden for missions at a young age; her godly parents and church encouraged it, and as she matured, the desire to be a missionary increased. Growing up, she had access to good missionary books, and the Bass home was always open to visiting missionaries.

Michele heard of Baptist Bible Translators Institute at age fifteen and knew she wanted to attend. In the Lord’s good timing, she did attend and graduated in 2003. Upon graduation, she spent a month in the Huastecan Mountains of Mexico putting into practice the language and culture-learning skills she had learned. She improved her Spanish and learned much of the sound system of the Náhuatl Indian language. Later that year, Michele made a trip to Thailand and Mongolia.

In the fall of 2004, Michele joined the BBTI staff and did an excellent job teaching Phonetics, Morphology/Syntax, and TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language). I am convinced that she believes in the work of BBTI as much as any of us and has done her utmost to convince new missionaries to avail themselves of this training opportunity. She is constantly thinking of new ways to promote the school or improve it to more effectively train God’s servants. Numerous times she has said to me, “Brother Rex, I have an idea!” I may jokingly say, “Oh no, what is it going to cost this time?” However, her ideas are always good, and we have implemented several of them. For instance, Michele took the initiative to conduct a class for MK’s to prepare them for their difficult transition to the foreign field. She thought of making a mosaic of the world in front of our new multipurpose building, and that has become a reality. The beautiful missionary posters that are now available at VictoryBaptistPress.com were her idea too! Thank God for people with new ideas!

Besides her training at BBTI, Michele is also a graduate of Faith Bible Institute and the intensive medical training EQUIP.

If it were up to us, we would keep Michele here at BBTI indefinitely, not only because she is so valuable to the work and has great ideas, but also for her sweet, godly spirit and her musical talent. However, her heart is on the mission field, and we would not discourage her from going. After all, that is our sole purpose, to train workers for the foreign field. God has burdened her for the South Pacific country of Vanuatu. She will teach women and children under the authority of veteran missionary Philippe Pinero and help in their health clinic. Pray for her. She will have to learn French and Bislama, and then perhaps other languages later. Michele is sent from Park Meadows Baptist Church in Lincoln, Illinois, and her pastor is Dr. S.M. Davis. I know that once on the field God will give her more insight concerning ways to improve our missionary training program, and I will receive a letter or phone call saying, “Brother Rex, I have an idea!”

Summer 2006

From Bombs to Bibles

January 26, 2018 No Comments

On April 18, 1942, Corp. Jacob DeShazer of Col. Doolittle’s raiders was the B-25 bombardier on the last plane to leave the aircraft carrier USS Hornet. They were on a bombing mission to avenge the attack on Pearl Harbor. The plan was to hinder the advance of the Japanese army and show them that blind faith in the emperor-god Hirohito and his guarantee of success was unfounded.

Jacob grew up in a devout Christian home but didn’t think the Bible was for him. He had volunteered for this mission, but as they neared Japan he wondered about his possible death and eternal destiny.

Prior to take-off, his plane, the Bat Out of Hell, was damaged. A hole in the fusalage slowed the plane, causing increased fuel consumption. Their target was Nagoya, south of Tokyo. They successfully bombed an oil refinery, a gasoline storage facility, and a large factory. They then headed for the safety of Choo Chow Lishui, China, but ran out of fuel and were forced to parachute from the plane. (Incidentally, at the exact time Jacob was descending into a Japanese occupied area of China, his mother awoke and earnestly prayed for her son!) For the next forty months, he and his crew were prisoners of the Japanese. Nothing in this world could be worse than the horrors of Japanese prison life. Thirty-five percent of POWs died of disease, torture, starvation, or forced labor. Many were decapitated or killed by bayonet; some simply gave up and died.

Not surprisingly, Jacob was full of hatred. Most guards were sadistic and extremely cruel, but there were rare exceptions. In May 1944, while in solitary confinement, Jacob was given a Bible by a guard. He was allowed to keep it three weeks, and he read it constantly. A fellow prisoner, Lt. Robert Meder died in captivity, but he had been a good testimony before DeShazer. Now the Bible was working on him! On June 8, 1944, he trusted Christ.

Before his release on August 20, 1945, he felt an overwhelming love and sympathy for the Japanese people and a great desire to tell them of Christ. After the war, General Douglas McArthur, seeing the Japanese’s disillusionment in their emperor-god, issued a plea for one thousand Christian missionaries to teach them about the true God. DeShazer was already planning to return to Japan to do just that!

Jacob was much in demand as a public speaker. People wanted to hear of his POW experience and his conversion. He married Florence Matheny who would serve thirty years beside him in Japan. On December 8, 1948, six years and eight months after boarding the USS Hornet to bomb Japan, DeShazer boarded the USS General Meigs to deliver Bibles. More amazing than DeShazer’s conversion is that of Mitsuo Fuchida who was saved after reading a tract of the DeShazer story. Fuchida had led the 353 plane attack on Pearl Harbor. He and Jacob became dear friends and traveled together preaching the gospel.

Not in Vain

January 18, 2018 No Comments

Envision yourself living in a tiny room, furnished with one stool. The only heat you can obtain is by burning animal waste in an iron stove. You have ample funds in the bank to sustain your hungry family, but you can’t access the money. You are friendless and stuck in a foreign country with little hope of getting home. As a child of God, what would your attitude be?

Arthur and Wilda Matthews were serving in China with the China Inland Mission when the Communists began forcing Westerners to leave the country in 1950. However, a church in Northern China invited the Matthews to work with them. Believing it to be God’s will, Arthur and Wilda stayed. They soon discovered that the situation was not as it had seemed. The Chinese were afraid to associate with them, and the government forbade them to preach or go out among the people. Since their presence was only endangering the Chinese church, the Matthews requested exit permits.

One of the last CIM groups to be sent – Philadelphia 1948

In the meantime, these missionaries found themselves in the situation previously described. What was their attitude? At first, they were determined to steadfastly endure their afflictions, knowing that God was in control. But gradually, the Matthews realized that trials are not sent to simply be endured, but to demonstrate in us the joy of complete obedience. Arthur Matthews wrote four things that encouraged his family during their time of testing: 1) God brought me here. It is by his will I am in this difficult place, and in that fact I will rest. 2) He will keep me here in his love, and give me grace to behave as I should. 3) He will make the trial a blessing, teaching me the lessons he intends for me to learn. 4) In his good time he can bring me out again—how and when, he knows.

God did bring them out. After two years, Wilda and their daughter, Lilah, were permitted to leave. They sailed to America where they waited until Arthur was finally released. Truly God was faithful to His own.

The Matthews’ trials were far from pointless; a loving heavenly Father planned that their very lives preach the message they were forbidden to speak. “The message above all others which the Chinese church needed was to see the truth lived out under circumstances equally harrowing with their own.”¹ Be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

¹Read the entire story in Green Leaf in Drought-time, by Isobel Kuhn.

Living Water

January 18, 2018 No Comments

“And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17).

I wonder if the two evangelists from North Ireland ever learned of the full effects of the meeting they held in Inverary, Scotland, in November of 1859. For in their audience sat a wild young man of eighteen who came to break up the meeting but found himself compelled to accept their offer of Living Water. Because of hearing the call to come, this young man, James Chalmers, was saved a few days later.

Born in a small fishing village in Scotland in 1841, young James loved adventure and welcomed danger. In this we see God preparing Chalmers for the pioneer missionary work awaiting him. After his salvation, he knew he must tell others of the Living Water that had quenched his thirst. James and his wife, Jane, set sail for the South Sea Island of Rarotonga on January 4, 1866. The Chalmers worked there for ten years, but James’ heart was set on preaching Christ in unreached regions. So, in September of 1877, James reached his permanent field of service—Papua New Guinea.

His work was slow, but not unfruitful. Many natives, after hearing the preaching of the Gospel, laid aside their pagan beliefs and the gory rites of cannibalism to drink of the Living Water that Jesus gave. However, danger was predominant in this savage land. On one occasion, while traveling with a native teacher, Chalmers was followed all day by two bands of cannibals. Chalmers asked the teacher what they were saying. “They are saying they intend to kill us. Let us kneel and pray!”

“No, no!” James answered. “Let us walk and pray.” One cannibal followed directly behind James, his club ready to fall, but God protected his missionary, and the native never struck.

Chalmers served our Lord faithfully until he was killed and eaten on April 8, 1901, while working to quench the thirst of the cannibals he loved. Thousands of souls today are still thirsting. Let us follow the footsteps of James Chalmers, and give our all to take the Water of Life to the uttermost parts of the earth!

NOTE: Chalmers was born in 1841, and died in 1901. He served on the field from 1886 until 1901.