CROSS Conference Podcast

John Piper looks at the life and incredible ministry of William Tyndale to encourage students in missions. Christians for centuries have been blessed by the Lord’s usage of this man.

John Piper is is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, and studied at Wheaton College, Fuller Theological Seminary (BD), and the University of Munich (DTh). For six years he taught Biblical Studies at Bethel College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and in 1980 accepted the call to serve as pastor at Bethlehem. John is the author of more than 40 books, including Let the Nations Be Glad: The Supremacy of God in Missions and Desiring God, and more than 30 years of his preaching and teaching is available at DesiringGod.org. John and his wife, Noel, have four sons, one daughter, and twelve grandchildren.

How have women played a crucial part in the spread of the gospel to the nations of the world? Why is it important to look back to women who have helped pave the way? Peering into the lives of several of them helps answer these questions—and helps spur us on today.

Kathleen B. Nielson is director of women’s initiatives for The Gospel Coalition. She holds a Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University. She has taught in the English departments at Vanderbilt, Bethel College (MN), and Wheaton College. She authors the Living Word Bible studies (P&R), as well as various articles, poems, and a book—Bible Study: Following the Ways of the Word. Kathleen speaks extensively at women’s conferences, and has directed and taught women’s Bible studies at several churches. The Nielsons have three grown sons, two daughters-in-law, and two grandchildren.

Every Christian should be a disciple-maker. Every Christian has a gift for the building up of the church. The evangelization of the entire world will only come through Christians crossing ethno- and linguistic-cultural barriers.

Richard Chin serves as the National Director of the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students, and the South Pacific Regional Secretary for the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. Based at Wollongong University, he also serves as a University chaplain with a team that proclaims Christ to local and international students. Richard is married to Brownyn, and they have four growing children. He is a Malaysian born Chinese Aussie, who loves God, family, and Asian food.

Reaching unreached peoples with the gospel is the heart of CROSS. But what are unreached peoples? Zane Pratt answers in this breakout session.

Zane Pratt is the dean of Billy Graham School of Missions and Evangelism and associate professor of Christian missions. Zane holds a B.A. from Duke University, an M.Div. from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and is a Ph.D. Candidate from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Zane served as a church planter and pastor in New England and as an Army Reserve chaplain before appointment for overseas service in 1991. He lived and worked in Central Asia until 2011, the last 10 years of which he had regional leadership responsibilities. He has written multiple articles in a volume on the theology of missions published by Broadman and Holman in the fall of 2011.

How is the prosperity gospel crippling the Church? Dr. Ellis explains why this is the greatest challenge he’s seen to the Church.

Dr. Ellis is an ordained elder in the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and has been a professor at Westminster Theological Seminary and Redeemer Seminary. He is a pioneer thinker in the area of urban ministry and the development of African American men. Dr. Ellis has taught extensively on the need for the church to engage Islam. He holds a B.A. from Hampton University, a M.A. from Westminster, and a D.Phil from Oxford Graduate School. He is married to Karen Ellis, and they have a blog called “Prophets of Culture”.

Who or what is charged with building God’s Kingdom and how do they go about doing it? Pastors Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert weigh in on this question in this breakout.

Kevin DeYoung has been the senior pastor at University Reformed Church in East Lansing, Michigan, since August 2004. Prior to serving at URC, Kevin was the associate pastor at First Reformed Church in Orange City, Iowa. Kevin holds a Master of Divintiy from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He is the author of several books, including The Hole in Our Holiness, The Good News We Almost Forgot, and Just Do Something. Kevin and his wife, Trisha, have five children.

Greg Gilbert is senior pastor of Third Avenue Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, and the author of What Is the Gospel? He holds degrees from Yale University (B.A.) and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div.). Greg is married to, Moriah, and they have three children.

In the enormous missions field of East Asia, pioneer efforts need to be coupled with church-strengthening efforts in order to help the amazing growth of the last 30 years bear lasting fruit. The potential missionary to East Asia needs to think about preparing well, landing well, and launching well to be a part of what God is doing to build his church in this amazing country.

Mark Collins works in East Asia. He holds a BS in Political Science from James Madison University and an MDiv from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He grew up in Fairfax, VA. Mark has been married to his wife, Megan for 10 years and they have 5 children with one on the way. He enjoys basketball and football. Mark desires to see healthy, missions-minded churches planted in urban centers throughout East Asia. He hopes these churches would be able to bless that area of the world and be a pipeline of blessing to some of the hardest to reach areas in the world.

Do your own issues preclude you from going to the mission field? Zane Pratt teaches on how to navigate this question and life situations while considering cross-cultural missions.

Zane Pratt is the dean of Billy Graham School of Missions and Evangelism and associate professor of Christian missions. Zane holds a B.A. from Duke University, an M.Div. from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and is a Ph.D. Candidate from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Zane served as a church planter and pastor in New England and as an Army Reserve chaplain before appointment for overseas service in 1991. He lived and worked in Central Asia until 2011, the last 10 years of which he had regional leadership responsibilities. He has written multiple articles in a volume on the theology of missions published by Broadman and Holman in the fall of 2011.

Looking at the years 1555-1664, Elias Medeiros explains what has been said and spread about the Reformers (especially John Calvin) and the propagation of the gospel to all the nations. He looks at where the Reformation started and who started it. He argues that it may not be what people typically read; he offers two case studies and resources for further study.

Dr. Elias Medeiros is the Harriet Barbour Professor of Missions and the Missions Department Chairman at Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, MS. He is an ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church of Brazil since January 1975. Prior to come to RTS in 1993, he worked with youth camping ministries in Northeast Brazil; “church planter missionary” in the Amazon jungle; as an urban church planter in Northeast Brazil; pastored churches in the State of Paraiba, Brazil; taught at the Presbyterian Seminary in Brazil; and worked as Academic Dean at the Evangelical Missions Center in South Brazil. He is also a member of the “Global Diaspora Network Advisory Board” of “Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization” and of the “Evangelical Brazilian Diaspora Movement.” He has been happily married to Fokjelina, a beautiful Dutch lady, for almost 38 years by God’s grace and strength. They have three children and six grand-daughters.

What qualifies someone as a missionary? Are all Christians missionaries? Why or why not? Mack Stiles tackles fundamental questions like these in this breakout.

Mack Stiles is CEO of Gulf Digital Solutions and general secretary for the Fellowship of Christian UAE Students (FOCUS) in the United Arab Emirates. He has worked for many years with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in the United States. He is the author of Marks of the Messenger and Speaking of Jesus. Mack enjoys photography and snow skiing, but most of all loves thinking through how to apply the gospel of grace to issues confronting students in the university world. He is married to Leeann, and they are parents of three sons.