Thank You for Bringing the Word of God to Africa
One year ago, your support enabled Ligonier to begin sending thousands of Reformation Study Bibles to Africa in partnership with the Rosemary Jensen Bible Foundation. And since then, we’ve been hard at work providing free copies to pastors, church leaders, and students in ten African countries. Thank you for making this possible.
The original goal was to distribute at least thirty-six thousand study Bibles by 2028. But with your generosity and over ten thousand study Bibles delivered already, we are well ahead of this target.
Mrs. Rosemary Jensen commented, “Thanks to Ligonier Ministries, the project is going better than I could have dreamed. Ligonier has pledged to give Reformation Study Bibles to incoming seminary students in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia every year for the next eight years. The Rafiki Foundation ships these Bibles to Africa free of charge. To God be the glory!”
There is a theological famine facing many countries in Africa, and trusted study Bibles are an essential means of building up the local church. “The only way to know the gospel is through the Scriptures,” Mrs. Jensen said. “But good study Bibles are not available in most African countries. Where they can be found, they would cost two months’ pay. Children don’t own Bibles. I believe that God has called me to put my own financial resources and those of like-minded donors into giving the Word of God to those who do not have access to good Bibles.”
Dr. R.C. Sproul had his own striking vision for this outreach: “I do believe that the next great awakening of this world is just waiting for us in Africa. I wish everybody would contribute to this project.”
The Westminster Christian Institute Uganda recently received copies of the Reformation Study Bible for students there. Two of its leaders, Dr. Emma Kiwanuka and Fred Kabenge, commented, “Ligonier has been a great blessing to many churches in Africa that cherish the Reformed heritage. Not many faithful servants of the Lord have access to good resource centers with Reformed study material. With the Reformation Study Bible, an average pastor serving in Africa can now have access to significant Reformed teaching that can enable him to guide and appropriately shepherd the church of God.”
This outreach is vital in strengthening the African church, especially in areas where Christians are being persecuted for their faith. For example, in Nigeria we are hearing reports of genocide, with more than six thousand people killed in 2018 alone. Mrs. Karen Elliott, executive director of the Rafiki Foundation, said, “The situation in Nigeria is quite tense. I’ve seen it with my own eyes—military checkpoints every thirty miles it seems, sandbags, machine guns, soldiers. After seeing the internal displaced persons camps and vacant villages due to the Fulani [Muslim militia] attacks on Christians, I am even more convinced that getting God’s Word out to the people in Africa is the best help we can bring.”
Mrs. Elliott has seen the impact of the study Bibles firsthand: “As these dear believers face war and poverty, a right view of God helps them stand firm and respond in a Christ-like manner, to continue to minister in the face of great odds, and to trust God to deal with their adversaries like the early Christians did.”
Because of your generous gifts, a total of $395,000 has been raised in only one year toward our overall target of $450,000.
John Petersen, director of advancement for Ligonier, said, “These Reformation Study Bibles are making an immediate impact on the lives of brothers and sisters in Christ across Africa. We are thrilled that Christians have responded so generously to this project over the past year.”
Thank you for being a part of something that is having an eternal impact on so many who are desperately in need of discipleship resources like the Reformation Study Bible.
Learn more about the Study Bibles for Africa outreach at Ligonier.org/africa.