For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. This is
a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe. (1 Tim. 4:7-10)
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus our most wonderful Lord,
Greetings again from the Breakers. May and June have been busy months, and went by so fast it’s hard to believe they are already over. God was good and allowed us some much needed fellowship.
FAMILY AND FRIENDS
We were blessed to have my cousin from Texas visit us in May for a few days. Then, my Mom from Oklahoma visited later for a few weeks. They kept us busy doing things every day, and it was a blessing to spend time with them, but also a little tiring. Yet, it’s always a great “pick me up” when family visits. I only wish they lived closer!
We also had many visits from old friends that we haven’t seen in years. It was strange how many people just called us up out of the blue and wanted to come visit. We enjoyed their company immensely!
In June, our Pastor, Raul Reyes, from Mexico came and spent five days with us. What a blessing to have a Pastor who cares enough about you to spend time with you! While here, we spent many hours reading and re-reading the Valera 1602 Purified Spanish Bible, and discussing various places that may need further revision. They are still working on making sure that version reads correctly and we are in the process of reading and rereading it over and over. Please pray for them and the work. The 1602 P, even in it’s current state, is still the best whole Spanish Bible available today!
FROM FAR AWAY
Even though we are in the United states, we still get many phone calls from people all over the Spanish-speaking world. Some are pastors and missionaries, while others are friends or fellow Christians. One call in June came from a native Honduran pastor who had some Bible questions. So even though we aren’t in Honduras anymore, we still find we are able to have an influence there and help the works we’ve started, and even help train local pastors. Please pray for them.
FEEDBACK
I get emails all the time from people asking about the Spanish Bible, salvation, rightly dividing, and many other Bible topics. Often I get some great emails from people who are very grateful for my website and my stand for the truth of salvation (i.e. salvation by faith in the BLOOD of JESUS CHRIST, rather than by faith in one’s own works). This prayer letter, I thought I’d include an example of one of the many emails I get. You can read it at the end of this letter.
FATIGUE
“Things fall apart” is the title of a book I read not too long ago by the Nigerian author Chinua Achebe. The title says it all, things do indeed: “fall apart.” So, in June I had to do some work on our house, trying to bring it up to par, because it’s falling apart. I’m replacing rotten wood siding, and painting the whole house. This is a project I put off for quite some time, but now I find I have some time to do it. I also learned some interesting lessons while working. Think of a house as a person. Many people are only concerned with their outside and how they look to others, while their inside is filthy and full of corruption. Yet others are more concerned with the inside and keeping it clean, while letting the outside go, and not fixing it up. Which are you? My desire is to make sure both the inside and outside look good.
When we are saved, Jesus cleans our inside, when he washes our soul in his precious blood. We then, need to clean up the outside as well, to be a good example to others. Yet some Christians desire to be dirty still both inside and out.
Anyway, I’ve been so tired lately with all the physical labour of fixing up this house. It’s a much bigger job than I thought. And that’s another lesson I learned: it takes W-O-R-K sometimes to get things where they need to be, just like it takes work for us to live a spiritual life. I know God’s still working on me, and I’m active working as I try to please him. But I can honestly say it’s worth it! It’s great to look back on what you once were and what you are now and see how God worked on you, just like it’s nice to look at how this old house once looked and how nice it’s starting to become. To some w-o-r-k is a four letter word. But to others, like me, it’s truly a blessing, as it produces fruit. And how sweet it is!
FURTHERING THE GOSPEL
We are still printing and passing out tracts in both English and Spanish. We find that Hispanic people in our area are mostly found in flea markets and the downtown areas, so we go there from time to time to pass out tracts and talk with them. I also love to sample their homemade tacos at times. (How carnal of me!) Also, we find Hispanic people are always going to garage sales as well, so we go early on Saturday mornings and you would be surprised how many Spanish tracts we are able to pass out in just a few hours as we go from house to house.
I also make it a point to try to speak to English speakers about the Gospel. Sadly, few today care to hear. But I’m finding that the most open ones are down-home country folk. There is a great difference between city people and country people. And in these last days, it seems like a lot of city folk just don’t care about God and the Bible. Yet, many country people still have some semblance of a belief in God, and have heard the gospel at least once from their parents or grandparents. So at least the seed has been planted, and it’s great to often hear from people we give tracts to saying things like, “Oh, thanks, I truly need this!” or “Oh, yeah, I heard about this when I was younger.”
Still there is much confusion. Where we live, most people are Southern Baptist or Charismatic. And often they are religious but lost. These people are hard to deal with because they have been brainwashed by another gospel. They believe in works for salvation, and it’s hard to change the minds of people like this who have over several generations become accustomed to following tradition rather the truths of the scriptures. But we try and we trust God to open their eyes. The before-mentioned email I give at the end of this prayer letter delves into a little of those “traditions” and shows the testimony of a person who has seen the truth and gotten saved in spite of religious denomination’s preaching something other than the true Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
FUN
I am a King James Bible believer. I love the KJV. So a few months ago, I decided I’d just go verse by verse from the King James and translate it into Spanish. I also made sure to look at all the Reina-Valera versions as I did so, in order to see what words were used in those versions, hoping to retain the oldest Reina-Valera words, but making sure it truly read with the King James. It has been a real blessing to me to do this. As of now, I’ve finished the books of: Genesis, John, Romans, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, and Jude. I’m also a third of the way through Proverbs as well, and I’ve got a Missionary friend in Spain who is helping me proofread my work.
I’ll continue on translating the rest of the books of the Bible. I don’t know if this will ever catch on or be accepted by my fellow King James Bible Christians. But it has been a real blessing for me, and I can’t describe how joyful and comforting it is to have the words of my English infallible version in Spanish, and be able to read them and see the Spanish saying what my King James does! Please pray for this endeavor. People have said for years that you “can’t translate the King James into Spanish,” but that’s a load of hooey! You can! It’s been done in over 600 other languages. So why not Spanish?
FACING THE FUTURE
As most of you know, we are taking care of my 92 year old grandmother. God gave us our family for a reason, and we count it an honor to take care of her, especially when she’s done so much for us throughout our lifetime.
Yet, as we care for her, we are unable to travel like before, and therefore have to do most of our ministry from home and in our area. We are doing the best we can, and are grateful that in our limited capacity God is still using us.
My grandmother is doing well, but is slowly losing her sight and hearing. She’s also losing weight. But she is in great health otherwise. She might even live to be 100!
Thinking on this has made me concerned about the future and what it holds for us. I greatly desire to travel and preach, but in the meantime we are keeping busy for the Lord where we are. I honestly don’t know what the future will bring. But I know I should never give up on God, nor should I quit serving him. Maybe this is all so that I can have time to translate the KJV into Spanish! Who knows. All I know to do is to continue serving God anyway I can, anywhere I can, anytime I can. Please pray for us!
Because of Christ Jesus our Lord,
Robert Breaker
1 Sam. 12:24!
Email from a lady who shares her testimony with me:
“I am so very grateful that I found this [web] page of yours. I would love to talk to you, to tell you about my experience and what happened to me, it is pretty much similar to yours and your wife’s story. I questioned my salvation for over ten years. The first time anyone ever told me in my life about Jesus Christ was when I was 28. I thought I got saved at 28, but I was counting on “did I say the prayer right,” [and] “did I have enough faith?” I was putting myself into it....I bet I asked Jesus to save me ten thousand times...
My name is Barb. I started doing my own study and asking people at my church and other churches, I would just call them up. You have no idea how upsetting this was to me. I did my own research, almost every church says there are these STEPS to salvation, over sixty percent say you have to be willing to stop sinning, over forty percent say you have to admit, turn, believe, and receive. I had a pastor tell me that believing is not enough, you must ASK to receive. Some churches judge you on if you are saved based on your Christian life... They have these clever poems that are not found anywhere in the Bible.
[Like if he’s not “Lord of all, he’s not Lord at all”, etc.]
I, like your wife got hung up on those chick tracts... They cause confusion; most of those get you thinking that you have something to do with your salvation. I am telling you I struggled with this for many, many, many years... Through my studies I found out two things, most churches are Lordship salvation churches and some do not even know it. You cannot add anything to salvation, nothing at all...
Today, here is where I am, I know that when I die, I do not have a single thing to offer God of my own, I am a sinner and I am in trouble on my own. However, finally, I know that I am a saved child of God. It is ALL ABOUT THE BLOOD OF CHRIST, there is no other way. I know that Jesus died for me on the cross, was buried, and rose again. He died for us, all of us, all of the world. There are so many verses that say believe on Jesus. I finally get it....YEAH! IT IS FAITH ALONE IN CHRIST BLOOD ATONEMENT ALONE!
I was so confused for over ten years, especially when you go to church and hear the preachers constantly saying a different gospel or saying little clever sayings like "if" you are really saved then you will act this way, wear this, do this, and so on. I have learned the hard way, people probably think I am crazy, many get upset with me, but Paul said he was afraid this would happen.
It is simple to be saved, but the gospel has been tainted in many ways....thank you ever so much because you are absolutely correct. Just to let you know, my daughter is 14, last night before I found your page, I had to show her about relying on the prayer, you can ask people how do you know you are saved, they always say, “I said a prayer and asked Jesus in my heart!”
[But] I took her through Eph 2:8-9 and showed her the jailor in the prison, the thief on the cross, I have to keep going over things until she understands because unfortunately, she has heard all of what I have. Please pray for us! My husband is saved as well, he is the one who helped me understand better.”
THE GOSPEL FROM FIRST CORINTHIANS CHAPTER FIFTEEN:
1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you THE GOSPEL which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that CHRIST DIED FOR OUR SINS according to the scriptures;
4 And that HE WAS BURIED, and that HE ROSE AGAIN the third day according to the scriptures:
I just wanted to add something extra that my wife pointed out to me not to long ago as we read the scriptures together. It’s just too good to not mention it with this prayer letter. So here goes…
Notice in the passage above we read of the Gospel. But it’s not just that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and that he rose again. Look at the underlined word “how.” What an important word! It wasn’t just that Christ Jesus did those things, it’s HOW he did them! How did he die for our sins? He SHED HIS BLOOD! HOW was he buried? He was buried in the same ground that his blood ran down into, entombed by his own disciples. HOW did he rise again? By his own power, proving that he was indeed God manifest in the flesh! HOW did he do all this? According to the Scriptures. That is, he fulfilled ALL of the prophecies written of him in the Old Testament.
The gospel, then, is more than just WHAT Jesus did for us, it’s also HOW he did it! The easy answer is: by his own power and through his own blood! That’s just another reason I’m not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the POWER of God unto salvation… (Rom. 1:16). God bless and remember the “how” when you preach the gospel to others.
