Letters From India

Rise and Expansion of the Christian Church

In India

Introduction

This booklet began as an e-mail correspondence between two friends.  Michael and Sangat were Bible school classmates in the United States during the early 1980’s.  Both went separate ways, Michael a businessman in Virginia and Sangat an evangelist in India.  The friendship was renewed a year ago and grew as Sangat shared with Michael about his Christian home fellowship ministry in India. 

Gospel of power

These letters record the growth of a Christian church based solely on the power resident in the gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is the calling card of signs, miracles and wonders that most of us have never seen but have only read about in the pages of our Bibles between the Gospel of John and the Epistle to the Romans.  This is the story of a 21^st century Book of Acts.  Without radio, television or relentless appeals for partnerships and funds, this ministry is changing lives from the teeming streets of Delhi to the mountain villages of the Himalayas and the plains of south India.  Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims are responding to the gospel of Jesus Christ because of its power to heal, raise the dead, cast out devil spirits, and meet the basic needs of daily life are never guaranteed.

Family construction business

In these pages, you will meet Sangat Bains, born of an Indian father and a Japanese mother.  Sangat was raised in Japan and India, but it was at a college in the United States where Jesus Christ changed his life and future.  This is not the account of an individual but of a family construction business:

Jesus Christ is the foreman and God the sole proprietor.  In these pages, you will meet fellow laborers—Bhupinder, Gulab Singh, Gopal, Shanti, the unforgettable Mohan Lal, and many other members in God’s family construction crew.

Sum of all teaching

Look Only To God, is the basic message that Sangat has been teaching in India since his arrival in the early 1980s. In many ways it is the sum of all teachings in that trust in God and God alone is the desired end result of all biblical activity be it bible study, prayer or church attendance. The joy and charm of this study is its simplicity. The reader will feel his ability to look to and trust God grow, with each turn of the page.

The Amazing Testimony of Mohan Lal Sharma

Hi Michael,

God bless you, Marsha, your children and the believers abundantly.

The following are testimonies and principles on how people receive deliverance from God. You will see that it is done by declaring the absoluteness of the Word of God and His wonderful works. This certainly inspires many to have faith to receive deliverance, be saved, and to come to an accurate knowledge of God.

I visited Mohan Lal Sharma at Ashok Vihar, Delhi, with Ashish and Rajan this Sunday October 12, 2003. We went to hear how God’s Word was spreading in his hometown, Adhiaksh, in the Amethi district, about 500 miles east of Delhi. In the past nine-month period, as he injured his leg, for the recovery he went back to his home.

Mohan Lal became a Christian about a year and half ago and as far as knowledge of the Word of God is concerned, he did not know much.  While he was in Delhi, he was busy with work and did not attend any Bible classes, but he was faithful in attending fellowships. Mohan Lal knew the basic Truth that God is able to answer prayers and the importance of sharing his testimony of what God did for him and that God can do the same for them.

Broken leg opens doors of utterance

About nine months ago, Mohan Lal suffered a broken leg in an auto accident.  He returned to his hometown, Alam, to heal.  He walked quickly, believing God would heal him as he walked.

One day, while he was walking in the market of his hometown, a Muslim acquaintance, Alam, about 35 years old (same age as Mohan Lal), a businessman and a leader of Muslim community; saw him and called him to come to his shop.  Alam asked him how he could walk so quickly since he had only recently broken his leg. Alam had also been in an accident a long time before Mohan Lal and suffered a leg injury. Alam was curious since he still had serious pains in his knees.

 Mohan Lal then told him that God healed his leg. He was able to walk so quickly because that he had made his request known to God with thanksgiving. He told Alam that if he wanted to walk, then he too should pray to the True God and he would be walking right away.

The next day Mohan Lal saw Alam walking nearby his house so he called him and asked him why he was walking. (God had already shown Mohan Lal that Alam had been healed.) Alam explained to him that he did exactly what Mohan Lal told him to do, that is, to make his desire known to God with faith and thanksgiving that God has heard his prayer.  He said that immediately after he had spoken to God, the pain in his knee vanished, and he was able to walk.

300 Muslims and 200 Hindus converted

Alam then began to give his testimony to his many Muslim friends. Today about 300 Muslims are attending Mohan Lal’s fellowship, in addition to 200 or so Hindus; daily the number is increasing.

I asked Mohan Lal what he did in his fellowship since he was a new believer and while in Delhi, he did not conduct his own fellowship, even though he witnessed to people a lot.  He said that he had fellowship daily in his home which is a big one and able to accommodate a large number of people.  He said that he began his fellowship with prayer and a time for sharing of testimonies. The sharing lasted over an hour since many people had testimonies of deliverance or answers to prayer from God. We too had a time of sharing of testimonies during our fellowships here in Delhi and Mohan Lal incorporated that into his fellowship.

I believe declaring God’s great works to others and praising Him during fellowship is one of the great keys for God to add people to the fellowship.

Acts 2:47

Praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

Sharing the great works and deliverance from God and giving glory to God is our praise to Him, and this inspires people to believe Him. It shows people that indeed God is able.

The power of Absolute Truth

After sharing of testimonies, Mohan Lal would teach the simple Word of God that he knew which is: Our God is able. Nothing is impossible for God to do for people. We are to make requests to Him with thanksgiving and with faith. We shall absolutely receive the answer to our prayers.

He really believes these, and so he taught these Absolute Truths with all boldness to the believers in his fellowship.  Mohan Lal would then close his fellowship. At the time he did not know how to speak in tongues, interpret or prophecy.  But he did know he could heal the sick and cast out devil spirits, and he did know God would give him knowledge and wisdom. Yesterday I led Mohan Lal into speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues and prophecy.  I showed him how simple it was operate these manifestations, so that he could do the same for the believers in his hometown.

Signs, miracles and wonders

One day during a fellowship, a high-ranking police official from the district came to his house accompanied by his security men and several vehicles. The saints did not know why the police force came to the house.   Some said they came to arrest Mohan Lal for conducting religious activities.  Mohan Lal is a man with courage and boldness, and he told his nephew, Bhola, to go to the entrance gate of the house and not to let the police officer to enter.

 He instructed Bhola to ask him why he came to his house.  Bhola stopped the police officer at the gate and asked the nature of his visit. The officer said he came to see Mohan Lal and that this was a personal and not an official visit. He said his eighteen-year- old daughter was blind. He had heard from someone that Mohan Lal could heal the sick.  Bhola, who is seventeen years old, said to the high-ranking police officer that if he desired deliverance from the True God, then he had to be humble. He should take off his uniform, which manifested the pride of man-given power and authority.  The officer immediately returned to his car and changed into simple clothes and entered Mohan Lal’s house with his daughter.

Blind girl instantly healed

Mohan Lal said to the officer that his daughter would immediately recover her sight if he believed that God could do this.  The man said he believed that God could recover his daughter’s blindness.  Then Mohan Lal asked his daughter how many fingers she saw while having his hand opened with his five fingers.  She said five.  Then her father, the high-ranking police officer, gave thanks to God.  Mohan Lal told her to tell the color of his clothes; she said the correct color.  Since this time, the police officer has become a regular member of the fellowship. He too has given testimony to many of the great deliverance and the wonderful work that the True God did for his beloved daughter.

Chief voodoo magician believes

One of the greatest voodoo magicians in his area who cast spells, (that is, to send a devil spirit to harm people by receiving payment from his clients) also began to attend Mohan Lal’s fellowship because he understood how the power that Mohan Lal demonstrated was greater than his own spells.  He had placed a spell on Mohan Lal and not only did it not work but the devil spirit involved returned and attacked the voodoo chief. This made a great impact on his community and many attended Mohan Lal’s fellowship.

Voodoo priests kill: True God restores life

A newly married girl, about twenty, who lived near Mahan Lal’s home had a  problem with fits. The family invited voodoo priests to their house to cure her. During  the exorcising ritual the priests beat the girl on the back to drive out the evil spirits. During the violent beating, the girl fell to the ground and died.  When the family realized that the girl was dead, they beat their chests and howled in extreme anguish and sorrow.   

Mohan Lal heard the commotion and as he entered the house, he saw many in anguish and beating their chests, showing their