Say to them, 'As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord,
I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.' Ezekiel 33:11
The Bible gives a clear picture of God's heart concerning lost sinners. If the condition of the lost is clearly understood, those who believe in Christ will do all they can to see that this Gospel of the Kingdom is preached to as many as possible. One of the ways this has been accomplished is through the estab- lishment of mission organisations or agencies that work alongside church- es to facilitate the proclamation of the Gospel. The Sudan Interior Mission
(SIM)[1] is one such organization whose first missionaries had the burden to reach the interior of Africa, especially the geographical area known, prior to colonial rule, as the Central Sudan. They arrived in this land, now known as Nigeria, in the year 1893. After years of faithful witnessing and teach- ing, churches were established and the converts assumed the burden and re- sponsibility to take this Gospel of the Kingdom to others. They developed a lifestyle of evangelism and took the message they received to those around them. They moved out first to their relatives and neighbours, and then to more distant places to those of different tribes and cultures from their own.
In order to facilitate the evangelism outreach of African Christians, SIM helped to organize a mission society for Africans. It was first known as the African Missionary Society (AMS) of the Sudan Interior Mission (SIM). AMS was born out of the early burden and vision passed on to the believers in the newly established SIM churches. The churches were eventually or- ganized into a denomination called the Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA). Today the mission society is known as the Evangelical Missionary Society (EMS) of ECWA.
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Since EMS was first established in 1948, hundreds of African mission- aries have been sent out to preach the Gospel and establish churches among those who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour. God continues to use EMS missionaries towards the expansion of the Kingdom of God in Nigeria and in other parts of Africa, and beyond. They continue to partici- pate in the vision, established long ago, that all may have the opportunity to hear the Good News of salvation in Christ.
The first 50 years of the story of how EMS participated in the vision of reaching the lost is the subject of this book. We say, with the writer of Psalm 126:3, "The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy." One of the tragedies in Israel's history after the death of Joshua, one of the great heroes of faith, is recorded for us in Judges 2:10-11: "Another genera- tion grew up who knew neither the Lord, nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served Baal."
This book provides a way for future generations to hear and understand what God has done in the past through His servants who served God as missionaries with EMS. He is waiting to do even more through those who are ready to serve Him today. May God use this brief story of the work of EMS to encourage and challenge many to give themselves more completely to participate in God's plan to reconcile all creation to Himself.