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When we started broadcasting to China
there were two million Christians in China.
But now after all these years,
it has grown to ninety
million Christians in China.
Throughout history,
God has been on mission to reach the nations. He does this through people who are
willing to submit their lives to Him in faith.
Robert Bowman was one of these men.
Christian Radio City Manila, Philippines.
It all began here
at 6 p.m. on the night of June 4th, 1948
with the initial broadcast of DZAS.
It was envisioned by
John Broger, William Robertson, myself.
Doctor Bowman attended Southern California Bible School in Pasadena,
currently known as Vanguard University.
It was there that Bob found spiritual maturity.
A remark from a teacher that struck him was,
"Bob, what are to Jesus Christ is far more important than
anything you will ever do for Him."
This statement caused him to submit his life to Christ,
and to whatever Christ had in store for him.
In the chapel of Southern California Bible School
there was a world map. Bob saw this map in his head repeatedly
as he meditated over the vast areas of land
that were untouched by the gospel. Most of these areas were unreached by
missionaries
and Bob thought, "if radio can bring non-believers to Christ, here in America,
why not use it to reach people in far away places?"
Here in the Philippine countryside, I want you to meet
a trophy of God's grace.
I did not believe in God.
It came as a surprise to myself when I found that
people love other people even if they do not know them.
In 1945,
FEBC was founded to share Jesus Christ with the people of China.
It has since grown into a large network of
radio stations broadcasting the message of Jesus Christ's redemption to people
throughout the world, focusing mainly on Asia.
Bob Bowman said,
From the beginning we were driven by two things:
a passion to obey God, and compassion for people who didn't know Christ
Now, we knew that this was the essence and the Great Commission
and we also knew there was no turning back once we put our hearts together.
We had a few ideas about how we might do it,
but God had other ideas. He first showed us
we couldn't do it, and that he would do it himself
through us.
Bob Bowman never claimed to have an extravagant talent,
an incredibly brilliant mind, or a spirit of self achievement. He had a surrendered
human heart. That was all God needed to shape him
into the man of obedience.
The passion Bob had for reaching the lost
was all supplied and gifted by the Lord
for his own glory.
Why does Far East Broadcasting Company
broadcast the message of the gospel?
It's because we love people,
and we want them to know that God loves them, too.
I was overcome by the realization that
this is what FEBC is all about.
It's ministering in God's name to countless
individuals for whom Christ died.
Who perhaps would never hear if there were no missionary radio.
The worth of a single soul in God's eyes is
more valuable than the whole world.
It is the
individual for whom Christ died,
including men and women with heartbreaking physical needs.
Patients in the Central Luzon leprosarium.
Lives blighted by the dread disease that so
isolates them from life in a normal society,
find comfort in the daily broadcasts of FEBC Radio.
One of the most important ways
Bob Bowman was able to identify God leading him in his life
was by the peace in his heart.
If you come to the time
that you're struggling with something that is very significant
and you don't have peace about it
you just keep waiting until you have peace.
And when the Lord puts peace in your heart
you can know he's talking.
Bob found that peace.
Radio is the spiritual lifeline
to these who are so completely isolated
from all other means of hearing the word.
Bob Bowman was also extremely careful
to keep preaching the gospel as FEBC's
main focus. He advised,
We have to be careful that we always maintain
the vision that God gave, and use these other things on the side
as things that can be used along the way. And don't
let that take your eyes off of the mark.
Millions of people each year contact this organization
in response to the gospel message being broadcast.
Yet Bob never took credit.
When we look at what God has done, I mean, until you see it all along a map,
the world and what's going on everywhere,
you're blown over.
When I look at that, I say, well,
I don't know why God chose me to be one of the ones that helped to found it.
The scripture says, "He chooses the foolish things of the
world to confound the wise."
Bob Bowman's life is the story of changed hearts through Christ
only to glorify God. Because of
one man's faithfulness, FEBC
continues to broadcast the message until
the Lord returns. As Bob Bowman constantly repeated
the words of William Carey, "Attempt great things for God.
Expect great things from God."
We at FEBC are so committed to fulfill the legacy
started some seventy years ago by Bob Bowman,
we will never let him down.
This is the joyful thing, the legacy. And I often
say to people, it's
your ministry, and you
are the ones with us that are accomplishing this.
We praise God for you and I think
the legacy of FEBC is simply the millions of souls that have come
to faith in Christ throughout the vast
Asian area during these times.
The legacy is, these are the people,
Lord Jesus, that we bring to place before you.
Your kindness and bringing them to faith
in yourself, having their sins forgiven
entering the joyous kingdom of
our Lord Jesus Christ.