By Adrian and Anita Lovell / CMS Missionaries in Bolivia
For the love of Christ compels us, since we have reached this conclusion, that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died for them and was raised. (2 Cor 5:14-15)
Today, 20 per cent of Latin Americans identify as evangelical, compared to only 3 per cent in the 1960s. Growth has been fast, and leaders have emerged with admirable enthusiasm, a sincere desire to reach the lost and a deep love for God’s people.
However, while this statistic sounds impressive, only a very small percentage of pastors have been given the opportunity to undergo formal theological training. Some estimates suggest that it’s a mere 5 per cent. Unfortunately, this has exposed the church to false teaching, like the so-called prosperity gospel and legalism, which burdens believers with an unattainable and prescribed obedience.
Even so, the growth of the evangelical church across Latin America raises an exciting challenge. In this climate, God is using MOCLAM to offer something unique. MOCLAM trains Christian leaders to grow in their knowledge of God within the framework of biblical theology. By reading each part of Scripture through the lens of God’s unfolding salvation plan, false teaching is disarmed and believers are set free to serve, responding to Christ’s love. This in turn creates a desire in them to know God better and love him more.
Now in its fourth decade of existence, we see God at work through MOCLAM. In recent years, we have seen God strengthen his people in university ministries in Chile, Argentina, Mexico and Spain, where MOCLAM courses are being used to train up student and staff workers. We’ve also seen God stretch the use of MOCLAM to new fields, such as university ministry in Uruguay.
Furthermore, God is using MOCLAM to strengthen theological training for specific purposes: some denominations, such as the Anglican Church in Bolivia, Peru and Argentina, have chosen to use MOCLAM to train their leaders theologically. We’ve also seen different churches use MOCLAM to train their people, such as an Assemblies of God church in the Canary Islands. Enquiries regarding the courses are constant and come from a diverse range of countries. They reflect the need for theological formation among Christian leaders in the Spanish-speaking world, and the understanding that loving God and his people means knowing God better.
In recent years, we have witnessed a change: rather than being seen as a mission field, Latin America is now actively sending out missionaries into the world. We have seen this rise in Latin American missions firsthand in Adrian’s involvement with a Bolivian-run missionary training school. Young people commit to three years of intensive theoretical and practical mission training, with the first six MOCLAM subjects forming the theological foundation of their training. Adrian teaches one subject every six months in an intensive format, and his students continue to demonstrate great enthusiasm for gospel ministry. They are courageous in taking the gospel to people groups that are geographically and culturally isolated, and where the barriers to entry for foreign missionaries are high.
Their enthusiasm and courage flow from their genuine love of God. What they lack is the ability to pick up their Bible and understand and apply what they read in its literary and biblical context. This is the skill that MOCLAM teaches, and it shapes both them and their ministry. As God uses MOCLAM to train up missionaries, the impact is seen not only in Latin America, but further abroad.
After completing the Ephesians subject, one student, reflected, “Something that surprised me in the course is that everything is ‘in Christ’. God loved us ‘in Christ’. We can’t do anything to earn God’s grace. It can only be found ‘in Christ’. Salvation doesn’t depend on our actions, but on God’s. This is tremendously wonderful, and because of it, we must give God the glory for all eternity.”
Under God, MOCLAM continues to be strengthened and stretched as a tool for God’s people in the Spanish-speaking world. But there are many more opportunities than we have the capacity to pursue. We pray that God will provide more workers to accompany and equip Latino Christians as they preach the gospel faithfully and take it to new fields.
Adrian and Anita Lovell graduated from Moore College in 2009. Adrian currently serves as the International Director of MOCLAM.
Prayer points
- Thank God for his good work in the people of Latin America and beyond through MOCLAM.
- Ask God to equip and train Bible teachers for his church in Latin America who will preach his word faithfully and refute false teaching.
- Thank God for raising up Latin American missionaries, and ask him to bless and multiply their work as they take his gospel to the world.
