1) Black Screen Logo 2 tag line
2)] Thank you for the privilege of speaking with you today. Has anyone here been to Wayumi?
3) [Daan Borneo]
It was pitch black. I was laying on a cold wet rock in the middle of the river, in the middle of the night, in the middle of Borneo, in the middle of a tribe known for taking heads; headhunters. We had nearly lost our canoe climbing the waterfall below us. I was straining to see something, anything, but it was too dark. My ears strained to hear anything moving in the jungle or water. The roar of water falling over rocks masked everything. A billion insects were screeching above the roar of the rapids. It was obvious that the jungle was teeming with life, but I could see none of it.
Occasionally, I could hear a bird squawking above the noise. I wondered if something was eating bird for dinner.
What’s next? Me?
At midnight the insects stopped screeching, I wondered why. Did something disturb them?
4) [Canoe]
I was 17. My father and I had traveled for a day and a half on the river in our dugout canoe. Our canoe was 30 feet long with an outboard motor on the back. We had come to ask permission to live among the Da’an people.
The Da’an people were one of the most feared tribes in this area of Borneo. The Da’an people were known for their witchcraft, sorcery, poisoning visitors, feeding them broken glass, and for taking human heads. Nobody had told them about the God of the Bible and what Jesus Christ did for them. We wanted to tell them.
5) [Map]
Borneo is the worlds third largest island. Borneo stretches six hundred miles along the equator straight north of Australia’s west coast. It is home to many different language groups of people, lumped together under the title of Dayak headhunters.
We were in the middle of the island about fifteen minutes from our destination; the Da’an village of Nanga Raun.
6) [Croc]
I couldn’t see anything. It was too dark to go anywhere. On the equator there is about 11 hours of darkness, so I had a lot of time to think.
We saw crocodiles downriver.
Do crocodiles climb rapids this far upriver?
Later we were told that these rocks were their favorite spot to lay in the sun.
I wondered, “What else come to the river for a drink at night?
We had seen black bears, ocelots, orangutans, zillions of ants, and many different kinds of snakes.
I don’t like snakes.
A month before I had stepped over a log in the jungle trail and the guy behind me killed it. It was a thirteen-foot-long python.
I knew those things were all over this jungle. If one of those things was sneaking up on me now, I wouldn’t know it until it was too late.
7) [Psalm 23]
I wondered if the headhunters heard us coming. We hoped they were former headhunters.
Outboard motors make a lot of noise. Did they hear us coming?
Were they friendly? Was there a house on the riverbank we could not see where people were watching us even now?
I was alert but not letting my imagination run wild.
A scripture verse came to mind that goes like this, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” Psalm 23. I wasn’t so sure a rod and staff were the right weapons.
1 Peter 5:7 says, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
I remembered reading about Moses at the burning bush. God told him to go speak to Pharoah.
Moses told God he was not the right man for the job, saying, “I don’t speak well.”
God asked Moses, “Who made your mouth?”
I thought, “If God made my mouth and the mouths of the snakes, crocodiles, and other things, then I must trust Him with when and where those mouths bite.”
In Mark 16:15, Jesus told us to go into all of the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
In Acts 1:8, Jesus told His disciples to go to the ends of the earth.
In Matthew 28:20, Jesus told His disciples to all ethnic groups and teach people to obey all that He commanded them.
That is what we were doing. Obeying.
If we die doing what Jesus told us to do, isn’t that His business?
We kept one eye open much of that night, but we rested.
8) [Jungle Glow]
At first light, we were back on the river in the rapids moving upstream in our dugout canoe.
9) [Nanga Raun]
Fifteen minutes later we arrived at the village of Nanga Raun.
10) [House Totem]
The village chief called a meeting. The leaders agreed that we could live there.
11) [Long House]
The chief showed us the room in the longhouse where we would live.
We stored some belongings in the room, promising that we would soon return with the whole family.
12) [Motor Canoe]
An hour later we were winding our way downriver to our home in among the Embaloh people,
13) [Embaloh Dancers]
The Embaloh people were also former headhunters who had recently learned about Jesus.
14) [Women]
My parents worked hard to build relationships and learn the Da’an language so they could teach them about Jesus Christ.
Today there are churches in the villages of the Da’an people.
We pioneered the work and other missionaries followed to finish planting churches there.
It takes a team to establish thriving churches where Christ has been unknown.
15) [Ethnos360 Logo]
Hello my name is Randy Smyth. My lovely wife Diana is here with me. It’s Diana, just like the princess.
For the past thirty-two years I have worked as a career missionary with Ethnos360, formerly known as New Tribes Mission.
Now I serve as a mobilization representative primarily in the Northeastern USA.
Ethnos360 is a name drawn on the Greek word “ethnos” which in the English Bible is translated as “nations” or “Gentiles”.
Our words “ethnic” and “ethnicity” come from this word. It means people groups or ethnic groups of people.
16) [Witness]
The name reminds us that, as our founders stated,
“Our efforts shall be directed where no witness of the Gospel has yet reached.”
Ethnos360 teams work to glorify God by establishing thriving churches among language groups where no witness of the Gospel has yet reached. Ethnos360 has about 2300 missionaries sent by churches in 36 countries. Ethnos360 has engaged more than 440 people groups around the world, translated the New Testament into 100 (one hundred) languages with about 120 Bible translations in progress.
Career missionaries serving with Ethnos360 receive two years of training from experienced missionaries.
With your skills as a teacher, mechanic, carpenter, accountant, IT specialist, or supply buyer you can serve the team from six months to two years as a skilled associate.
We have opportunities for you in internships, short-term trips, and Wayumi Retreats.
Come sign up at my table so that I can send you more information.
Ethnos360 Smyth TU Intro
“C:\Users\ransm\OneDrive\Desktop\USBEthnos360\Wolbi-vids\001-Ethnos360-Smyth-TU-Kiosk.mp4”
17) [Aircraft]
I lived in Papua New Guinea for 17 seventeen years, flying aircraft as a missionary bush pilot.
18) [Map]
Papua New Guinea is located north of the east coast of Australia. Borneo is located straight north of the West Coast of Australia on the equator.
19) [Diana]
Diana had the nerve to marry me, so I married her and snatched her away from Mercedes-Benz to work in the jungle. She was my flight follower for nine years, keeping track of my position over the jungle and relaying messages to other missionaries.
We lived there because God has a wonderful message that He wants us to deliver to all people. Papua New Guinea has hundreds of people groups who know nothing about the identity and work of Jesus.
We were serving other missionaries, God’s messengers to the precious people He loves in the country of Papua New Guinea.
We also provided medical evacuation services to many people in Papua New Guinea.
During 17 years of ministry in Papua New Guinea we had a part in establishing churches among 38 people groups who had no access to the Gospel, supporting ministry among people of about seventy different languages.
20) [Baby Flight]
A baby was born on one of my flights.
Place of birth: right middle seat Cessna 206.
You know all of us started out as babies.
We did not know the things we know now.
Like the little baby we had to learn how to walk, run, fight, and serve.
It’s the same thing for Christians. We were enemies of God and someone told us about Jesus. We believed, then we began the journey of learning.
Jesus told his disciples on the highest authority in heaven and earth to go to all ethnic groups, preach, baptize, and teach people to obey all that he commanded.
That is the model that JESUS has set for us since his resurrection. We are to teach people all that Jesus tie his first disciples.
That is how we know what we are supposed to do to glorify God.
We learn from other disciples of Jesus.
21) [Missions]
Everybody who is a missionary wasn’t. We were not missionaries before we were.
We had to learn a bunch of things before we could know what we could do, where we were needed and how to serve.
We wanted to bring glory to God and serve Him in the most effective way possible.
22) [People Group]
One of the first things we had to learn is, “What are people groups?”
We learned that there are entire language groups of people who are isolated and don’t know anything about Jesus.
The International Mission Board has a website at peoplegroups.org where they define people groups.
A people group is an ethnolinguistic group. That means a group of individuals, families or clans who share a common language and ethnic self-identity.
“For strategic purposes it is the largest group within which the Gospel can spread without encountering barriers of understanding or acceptance.”
It’s a group of people who are us and not them.
The IMB lists 12,243 people groups in the world at their web site peoplegroups.org.
23) [Unreached]
The next thing we needed to learn is, “What are Unreached People Groups?”
We define unreached people groups or UPGs as people groups without adequate access to clear, culturally relevant teaching of the gospel in the language they know best (their heart language).
It also includes groups that, once hearing the gospel, are without ample opportunity, as a body of believers, to grow to maturity in their knowledge of Christ.
The IMB defines an unreached people group is one that has a population of less than 2% Christian.
That means there are just not enough Christians in that people group to share the Gospel with everyone at least once in a lifetime.
The IMB lists 7,322 Unreached People Groups in the world at their web site peoplegroups.org.
24) [Unengaged]
An Unreached Unengaged People Group is an ethnolinguistic group of people who have no access the message of the Gospel and have nobody working to tell them about Jesus. They are unreached with the Gospel and unengaged by the global church. They will not hear about Jesus Christ until one of us who knows the message goes to tell them.
The IMB lists 3,222 ethnolinguistic people groups in the world who have no access to the Gospel and nobody on the way to tell them. (about eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ.)
25) [Unreached Vs Unengaged]
Right now there is a lot of confusion in the western churches about unreached people groups.
One person said this to me, “Unreached people groups, yes, we have one of those right here next to our gymnasium. There are a bunch of basketball players there that do not know Jesus.
Another person told me, “We have a lot of those unreached people groups right here in our inner city. The nations are coming to us. We don’t even need to go. All we need to do is build relationships and learn enough of their language to tell them about Jesus.”
This not what we are talking about.
Most of the people coming to our country already have churches in their communities, Bibles in their language, evangelistic radio broadcast, web pages, youTube videos, and Christians in their workplace.
They may not have trusted in Jesus, but they are engaged by the global church.
They do need to hear about Jesus and God placed them among the North American churches.
But what about those people who have no way at all to learn about Jesus?
Should we keep telling the same people about Jesus ten, twenty, thirty times when there are people who have never heard about Jesus one time?
We do need to share the Gospel with all people wherever we are.
But Jesus gave us clear instructions that we have not yet fulfill in two thousand years.
If we are looking for the will of God for our lives, maybe we should look at what He told us to do.
26) [Mark 16:15]
Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. Mark 16:15
Jesus to us to go into all the world.
Two thousand years later, how are we doing in fulfilling His command?
27) [Who are the UUPG?]
If we are going to do what Jesus told us to do, we will need to work as a Body, a team.
We will need to learn, “Who are the Unreached Unengaged People Groups?” Where do they live?
Some of the UUPG are nomadic or seminomadic tribes in the Amazon rainforest. A very large number of them are in the jungles of Indonesia, Philippines, Africa, and Papua New Guinea. Some are in Siberia, Northern Canada, or the tall mountains of Nepal. Many live behind political barriers in North Korea, China, Cambodia, and Brazil. Some live behind religious barriers in North Africa, Iraq, Indonesia, Russia, and Pakistan.
Many websites list Papua New Guinea as completely reached or significantly reached with the Gospel. That simply is not true. Many religions have penetrated the jungles where 895 language groups of people live, but they have not taught in the heart language so you will have tribes of people singing songs you would recognize from North American Sunday School, but when you learn the language and culture you discover that these people groups have no understanding of the Holy God of the Bible, their personal helplessness as sinners, and the sufficiency of Jesus Christ alone to save them from eternal condemnation.
28) [Where are the UUPG?]
If we are going to do what Jesus told us to do, we will need to work as a Body, a team.
We will need to learn, “Who are the Unreached Unengaged People Groups?” Where do they live?
Some of the UUPG are nomadic or seminomadic tribes in the Amazon rainforest. A very large number of them are in the jungles of Indonesia, Philippines, Africa, and Papua New Guinea. Some are in Siberia, Northern Canada, or the tall mountains of Nepal. Many live behind political barriers in North Korea, China, Cambodia, and Brazil. Some live behind religious barriers in North Africa, Iraq, Indonesia, Russia, and Pakistan.
Many websites list Papua New Guinea as completely reached or significantly reached with the Gospel. That simply is not true. Many religions have penetrated the jungles where 895 language groups of people live, but they have not taught in the heart language so you will have tribes of people singing songs you would recognize from North American Sunday School, but when you learn the language and culture you discover that these people groups have no understanding of the Holy God of the Bible, their personal helplessness as sinners, and the sufficiency of Jesus Christ alone to save them from eternal condemnation.
29) [IMB Map]
Where are the Unreached Unengaged people groups?
Maps vary greatly due to definitions and data sources, but you can get a glimpse of the needs from this IMB map. They list 3222 people groups who have no access to the Gospel and no messenger.
We would move all of the reds dots from the USA to Papua New Guinea.
The point of the map is to show that there are great needs all over the world for missionaries to go tell people about Jesus Christ.
30) [Why Still Unreached?]
Why do you think many of these people groups remain unreached with the Gospel?
31) [Murray]
In many cases, it is just very difficult to get to where they live.
32) [Roads]
If there are roads, those roads are often poorly maintained.
33) [Aziana]
Most don’t have airstrips to fly to where they live.
34) [Helicopter]
If you have access to a helicopter, that is faster, if you know where they live.
In recent years, God has provided much better equipment, but aviation is not always a good solution.
35) [Big City]
Some language groups of people are isolated ethnolinguistic people group living within a larger population in big cities.
36) [Why Still Unreached 2][Obstacles there]
Why do you think many of these people groups remain unreached with the Gospel?
They are not easy to reach
- Unwritten Language – Language is probably the biggest barrier to communicating the Gospel. Even most mission organizations will not take the time to learn the language of the people they serve.
- No Bible in the Language – If the Bible does not exist in the language, what are you going to tell people? Without a Bible translation, most languages have no easy way to communicate ideas like eternity, heaven, hell, salvation, love, faith, hope, salvation, or eternal life. What will you teach them?
- Geography – It is physically difficult to travel to where they live
- Red Tape – Some governments are hostile to Christians and most governments have absurdly difficult processes for permission to enter, travel, and live there.
- Religion in Politics – Communism, Hinduism, Islam actively oppose the advance o Christianity wherever they are able.
- Caste systems – Racism – Many people groups have systems to demean, diminish and depress other people groups.
- Cultural barriers – racism, war, prejudice – Most people do not want to travel where there is a high probability of losing your life.
37) [Why Still Unreached 3][Obstacles here]
Why do you think many of these people groups remain unreached with the Gospel?
There are also obstacles on our end as Christians.
– I have found that many Christians do no know what God is doing or why they should engage in His work overseas.
– Many Christians don’t know that there are entire language groups of people who will be born, live, and die without once hearing about Jesus Christ, meeting a Christian, seeing a Bible, or visiting a church.
- Some Christians are aware God’s plan and the needs in the world, but they just don’t know what to do about it.
- Sometimes people just lack faith in God. We are all tempted to fear the unknown. That fear keeps many people from obeying God.
- False beliefs or false teaching about God’s character, His plan and our role in the ministry of reconciliation lead people to disobey God.
- Another thing is money. Many Christians ask me, “If I become a missionary, how will I pay for it? How will I feed my family. My answer is, “I don’t know. Trust God, start moving, and see what He will do.” God cares about you more than the lilies and sparrows. Take a step of faith based on His written word.
- Syncretism – In Papua New Guinea, many UPPG are singing songs you would recognize from Sunday School. They learned them from missionaries and cults who did not bother to learn their language. Since they didn’t understand the message, they mixed what they think they heard, and filled in the gaps with what they believed already. When you learn their language and culture, they will tell you they have no idea about the God of the Bible, their problem with sin, or the identity of Jesus Christ.
- No laborers – Many Christians are untrained or unwilling to go.
38) [Objective]
The objective of missions is to glorify God.
We glorify God:
- by delivering His message of reconciliation,
- by leading lost souls to salvation,
- by establishing thriving communities of obedient Christ-followers there as witnesses of His glory in that community and the regions beyond.
39) [Matter]
Why do the unengaged people groups matter?
We already looked at Mark 16:15 about the command of Jesus to go preach to every creature.
God has a plan that started before Creation and continues into all of eternity. It includes people from every ethnic group.
In fact, God has made some promises that He intends to fulfill.
Some of those promises relate to people who refuse to respond to Him by faith in His word.
40) [He is not willing]
First let’s look at God’s heart as revealed in 2 Peter 3:9b. He is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
Second, Jesus told us to go tell all people.
The Unreached Unengaged People Groups have not yet heard about God’s grace and forgiveness through Jesus.
God so loved that world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish by have everlasting life. John 3:16
There are many more passages of scripture that spell out His heart for the nations.
God is perfect in goodness and justice. His goodness demands justice.
For all of us who have sinned, that is bad news.
41) [Destiny]
What happens to people who have no access to the Good News about Jesus Christ?
[Go over SOME of these briefly, or maybe ONE for the sake of time.]
“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” – Hebrews 9:27
“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one” – Romans 3:10
“For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” – Romans 3:23
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” – Romans 6:23
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”
– John 3:36
‘And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” – Revelation 20:13-15
“He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” – John 3:18
“As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” – Matthew 13:40-42
“But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” – Revelation 21:8
“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent?” – Romans 10:13-17
42) [God’s Heart 1]
- Genesis 12:1-3 – “…in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (to Abram)
- Malachi 1:11 – “…from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles (nations)…”
- Romans 10:13-15 – “…how shall they hear without a preacher and how shall they preach except they be sent?” (to the Roman church)
- Genesis 26:4 – “… in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed…” (to Isaac)
- Genesis 28-13-15 – “… in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” (to Jacob)
- Deuteronomy 4:5-6 – “… Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes…” (to national Israel)
43) [God’s Heart 2]
- Joshua 2:9-11 – “… as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.” (Rahab)
- 1 Samuel 17:45-46 – David to Goliath “… that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.”
- 1 Kings 10:23-24 – “… all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.”
- Psalm 46:10 – “… I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
- Psalm 67:1-7 – “…That thy way may be known upon earth… Thy saving health among all nations.”
44) [God’s Heart 3]
- Daniel 3:28-29 – “…there is no other God that can deliver after this sort. (King Neb.)
- Isaiah 49:6 – “… I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, That thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.”
- Malachi 1:11 – “… For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same My name shall be great among the Gentiles;
- Matthew 24:14 – “… And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations…”
- Matthew 28:18-20 – “… Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo I am with you alway.”
45) [God’s Heart 4]
- Luke 24:44-47 – “…And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem…”
- Mark 16:15 – “… Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”
- Acts 1:8 – “… and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
- Romans 1:5 – “… By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name…”
- Romans 15:20 – “… so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named…” (Paul to the Romans)
- Revelation 5:9 – “… thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.”
46) What should we teach?
Obedience.
First, we need to teach the identity and work of Jesus Christ. That starts in Genesis 1:1.
We teach all that He commanded us.
Then, we teach people to obey all that Christ commanded us.
47) What should we teach?
All power – in heaven and on earth is mine
Therefore, go to all nations [ethnos]
- Preaching
- Baptizing
- Teaching obedience
to all that I have commanded
48) Matthew 28:20
…Teaching them to
observe (obey, follow)
all things whatsoever
I have commanded you…
49) Faith comes by hearing
Who will tell them about Jesus?
50)[Languages]
There are 7.396 languages in the world.
How many have a complete Bible? 756
51) [Global Scripture Access]