I have been blessed in so many ways. My life journey has carried me to numerous nations around the world. Every day, someone contacts me or responds to one of my devotionals, which requires a translation program for me to be able to read it. I love that. In my travels, there have been times when I preached in English, Jose Rubio would translate into Spanish, and a third person would then translate it into the native tongue where we were. That’s when preaching really gets interesting!

One translation of Ephesians 2:14 says, “For He Himself (Jesus) is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.” In the spiritual sense, the Bible breaks us down into two groups: Jews and Gentiles. We could also look at it as people who are saved or lost. Two groups. Within both of these groups, there are barriers, like differences in language, culture, history, and sometimes hostility. This can make it difficult for the Gospel to be shared with everyone. The nation of Chad is said to have over 100 ethic groups. Togo has 37 tribal groups that speak 39 languages. They have almost no common culture or history. Some languages are almost extinct, except for a very few.

Jesus destroyed the cultural and racial barrier through his death so that people of all groups can be reconciled to God. Our challenge is to break down any barriers that prevent us from sharing God’s love with all people. The only hope a sinful world has is Jesus, and God has commissioned us to take this message to the world.