“We Will Never Let You Leave This Village Alive!” – 50 People Accept Jesus in Nalagunta in the Face of Death Threats
Feb 26, 2016 1765
In the power of the Holy Spirit, Pr Joseph Usala pointed to the all-powerful Christ as the only true God and Saviour.
In the village of Nalagunta, India, 50 people have given their lives to Jesus at an evangelistic meeting conducted in the face of death threats by locals. In spite of great opposition 250 people came out to hear the gospel for the first time in their lives.
Nalagunta is an isolated tribal village, where the Hindu villagers have been worshipping idols for countless generations. This village is a great distance away from the closest proper town, and it has no proper roads to it. For this reason, the people who live there don’t usually travel outside their village.
Eswar, a 21 year old man from Nalagunta, came to know about Jesus thorough the Good News Unlimited TV programme. Excited by his new faith and wanting to share Jesus with his family and friends, Eswar invited Pastor Joseph and his co-pastors to come to his village and share the gospel in his village.
However, when they arrived in Nalagunta, many people were upset and said they wouldn’t allow the Christian evangelistic meetings to be conducted in the village. But Pr Joseph and his fellow pastors started praying, and full of faith, they started the meeting anyway, even there was no one in the audience.
While they prayed, a gang of men came and abused and threatened them, saying,
If you continue your meeting, we will never let you leave this village alive!
In the face of these threats, Pr Joseph and his fellow pastors opened their Bibles and started reading and praying, broadcasting the Word of God and their prayers throughout the entire village through the sound system.
By the grace of God, people slowly started coming. Eswar brought instruments and started singing songs praising Jesus. First children came and then adults started coming also. Pastor Joseph preached the Gospel to them and 50 people accepted Jesus Christ into their lives as their Lord and Saviour.
The people who accepted Jesus are filled with joy. Here is what some of them are saying:
Kiran, a 23 year old man, says,
I had never heard about Jesus since my birth. It is first time through this Gospel Evangelism I have come to know about Jesus. I feel so happy and give thanks to Jesus who is such a great God and did many miracles and came to give us the Good News about salvation.
Ramya is a 45 year old woman. Hearing the Gospel preached through the sound system, she came and sat at the back of the meeting. She says,
It is so heart touching. I never heard about Jesus in my life. So through this meeting I have come to know about Jesus. I am so thankful to Pastor Joseph and to the co-pastors who have shared the Gospel with us.
Ramudu is a 55 years old man. His Hindu family did not allow him to leave his house and go to the meeting. With much difficulty, he was able to go and listen to the meeting from a distance, hidden in the shadows of the night, and there he accepted Jesus. He says,
I praise Jesus who has changed my life. Through the preaching of the Good News I have learnt about Jesus and it has led me to accept him in my life. Now I am so happy and glad. Thank you to Jesus and the pastors who have done great work here in my village.
Sudhra is a 65 year old woman. Tired of Hinduism, she was one of the first to come to the Gospel evangelism. She says,
I had never heard about Jesus and his great works that he has done to save us. It is only through the preaching of the gospel that I have come to know about Jesus. I am so happy and for the rest of my life I shall share the news about Jesus house to house. My soul is saved in the mighty holy name of Jesus. I am so thankful to pastor Joseph and his co-pastors who had come to my village for doing this Gospel Evangelism.
Do you remember Eswar, the young many who was converted through the Good News Unlimited TV programme, and who invited Pr Joseph to his village? Now Eswar is overjoyed that so many people in his village have come to know about Jesus. He is amazed at the power of Jesus. He says,
It is wonderful and marvelous to see the Gospel work like this in my village. My village people have been doing idol worship rituals for many years. Now tonight by the preaching of the Gospel, people have accepted Jesus and there is lot of change in my village. So I am so thankful for Jesus in my life on behalf of my villagers who have been living without knowing about Jesus.
− Ella Rodionoff
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