Whoever is of a generous heart, let him bring the Lord’s contribution . . . (Ex 35:5)

When God made the nation of Israel into his own special possession, he gave instructions for building a tabernacle to demonstrate his presence in the midst of his people. It was a wonderful gift. Adam and Eve had forfeited the blessing of fellowship with God through their sin, but now God was reversing the sentence of judgement and coming to dwell with his people. No human being rich or poor could have caused God to do this; but God, because he loved Israel and had chosen her to be his own, decided to demonstrate his love and saving power in this way.

Though the gift was God’s, he invited his people to share in the joy by contributing to the material needs of the tabernacle: gold, silver, bronze, yarn and linen. Whoever was of a generous heart was invited to give. How wonderful it is to see what happened: the craftsmen who were doing the work said to Moses, “The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that the Lord has commanded us to do” (Ex 36:5). The people must have grasped something of the joy and privilege of experiencing God’s presence in their midst.

We do not have a tabernacle today, but God lives among us in an even more powerful way: the church, composed of people from many different nations, is “being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (Eph 2:22). And as God’s people we are invited to contribute materially to the building of that body in various ways. First and foremost we give to our own local churches, because God wonderfully allows us to experience His presence there; but it is also our joy to give to the work and the people of God beyond our own churches (e.g. 1 Cor 16:1-3).

We invite you to consider the opportunity of helping to build and strengthen the body of Christ by giving to Sovereign Grace Theological Seminary. The Seminary is based in Zambia, but is active throughout southern Africa by means of a distance learning programme. It is our privilege to help train pastors to feed and care for God’s flock, especially in their local churches. Though our efforts have been small up to now, we are grateful for the fruit that the Lord has given to our labour. You can read some of the testimonies we have received from our students here.

While we are deeply grateful to the Lord for these positive testimonies, we are also aware of our shortcomings. We need to expand our administration, as well as our academic staff, if we are to continue providing a worthwhile ministry to the body of Christ in southern Africa and beyond. The four churches in Lusaka which have taken responsibility for the Seminary are supporting the core costs through their own sacrificial giving, but we would love to see the wider body of Christ sharing with us in this great work.

The Exodus 35 Campaign is an initiative through which individuals (who are already giving faithfully to their own local churches) can help us in the task of raising up leaders for the church in southern Africa and beyond. We are aiming to enlist two hundred partners who will each contribute $20 per month to the work of the Seminary. (Of course, you may wish to contribute more or less according to the way God has blessed you.) Such an army of supporters, each contributing a little according to their means will make a huge impact on our ministry and, through it, on the body of Christ in our region.

We therefore invite you to consider sharing with us in this work. Your contribution will help to train men who will proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ with power and conviction; it will help to establish churches in small towns like Mongu (in the Western Province of Zambia) and great cities like Cape Town, Johannesburg and Harare; it will help prepare the saints to be blameless on the day of Christ; it will enhance our experience of the Lord’s presence dwelling in our very midst!

If you would like to share with us in this grace of giving, here is an easy way of doing so, using your credit/debit card:

Go to our donations page (secure transaction hosted by GivenGain) and complete the online form. Select "Exodus 35 Campaign" in the projects box so that we know that you are giving to this project. The $20 per month is a suggested amount. You can enter any amount you choose.