a few more years shall roll

An historical event last evening at my church . . . for the first time to the best of our knowledge, a sermon was preached in a foreign language and translated for the congregation. It was a beautiful testimony to the worldwide body of Christ, as we were exhorted and encouraged by someone who spoke powerfully, although in another tongue. I mentioned to the speaker and the translator later last night that hearing a sermon piece by piece as I waited for the translation allowed the content to soak in more deeply for me. Also, because the sermon was translated, they had to winnow it down to a much shorter version than their original, which meant that no words were wasted. I would not necessarily desire a translated sermon every week, but last night’s sermon, and the entire service was a taste of the life to come where every tribe, tongue, and nation will sing before the Lord.

I also had the thought as I was talking to some friends after the service that so often American pastors or workers go to preach to other nations and use translators (not that there’s anything wrong with that!), but what a privilege to have the nations come to us. And what a privilege to learn from our brothers.

And, yes, I did sing along with the doxology which was the benediction for the service.