Whitewashing the Fence

This Jambi Malay woman is using a very thin white paint to whitewash her bamboo fence in front of her house. The paint is such poor quality that it will need to be done at least once a year, but she has more time than money. When it is newly done it looks just as good as if she had used quality paint.

The process of whitewashing is similar to the method they use to take care of their sin problem. Sumatrans try to cover over their sin problem with a thin veneer of good works. When it is newly applied it looks just as good as the finished work of Christ, but underneath the root problem remains and soon shows through again.

Pray for the peoples of Sumatra to realize the problem with a works based salvation.

Pray for believers to rest in the finished work of Christ and not fall into a legalistic works religion.

Pray for the Gospel to be boldly and broadly proclaimed on Sumatra.