In Depth:  Martin Horton

the Bible in action

Martin Horton

When did you last buy a Bible? Was it as a gift or because your well-loved copy was falling apart? How easy was it to choose?

With more than 60 versions of the Bible in English, choosing a new Bible might take a while: you might even suffer from ‘Bible decision fatigue’– a genuine phenomenon, according to Bible Gateway.

the Bible in action

Martin Horton

It was an ordinary day in May. People were going about their everyday business, living their lives, and then it struck – a landslide. A wall of mud and earth swept over Mulitaka in the Enga Province in Papua New Guinea (PNG), leaving devastation in its wake, with hundreds killed.

As the Enga people know full well, death can come at any time. Two months later, the Enga New Testament was launched. It was a day of much rejoicing, as Enga is PNG’s most spoken local language.

the Bible in action

Martin Horton

When did you last prepare a sacrifice?

I’m hoping the answer is never – especially if it’s an animal or human one.

the Bible in action

Martin Horton

Imagine for a moment that you are a Christian in 1348. The Black Death is claiming lives throughout your community. And the Bible is in Latin, which neither you nor the priest understand.

Your priest is telling you the plague is a punishment from God, and if you give money to the Church you’ll gain access to heaven. You can’t read and you don’t understand Latin, so you give money you can’t afford because you fear the priest – and God.

the Bible in action

Martin Horton

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not defeated it. (John 1:5 Easy-to-Read Version)

At times, it feels that the darkness is stronger than ever before. That’s what the enemy would have us believe – that evil is winning, and believers are dwindling. But as the verse above declares, that’s not true. God’s light is overcoming the darkness all around the world. Take this story from Nigeria as an example:

the Bible in action

Martin Horton

Have you ever experienced persecution for your faith? Did you find that verses from the Bible helped you to stand strong during that troubling time?

Perhaps ‘Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer’ (Rev.2:10) or ‘Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?’ (Rom.8:35) were comforting.

the Bible in action

Martin Horton

When you went to church last Sunday, did you know you’d be coming home afterwards? Back to preparing the Sunday lunch, an afternoon stroll, resting before the week ahead…

Imagine if going to church was literally taking your life in your hands – running the risk of an explosion, or gunmen bursting into the congregation; not knowing if you’d see your friends and family again, let alone prepare lunch for them.