The world’s leading audio Bible ministry has released eight new Audio Drama New Testament recordings, bringing the total number of versions available to 359 and the total number of languages to 333.
Of the new language groups represented, the Koma language group in Ghana is the smallest with only 3,800 people. And with not a single Koma person believed to be literate, the newly released Audio Bible will finally provide a chance for the group to hear God’s Word in their own “heart language.”
“That’s why Faith Comes By Hearing records and uses audio Bibles to reach the world,” said Morgan Jackson, the ministry’s international director, in a report. “We believe God’s Word is for all people, especially those with the least access.”
According to the ministry, 70 percent of the world’s 6.6 billion people live and learn in oral cultures. And these oral people groups cannot, do not, or choose not to read. Furthermore, about half the world’s population also lives on less than $2 a day.
Knowing this, Faith Comes By Hearing has for the past 36 years been making God’s Word accessible to the nations of the world through audio Bibles and has recorded the Word of God in hundreds of languages spoken all over the globe.
“We’ve found that starting Bible listening groups is the best way to evangelize a people group,” Jackson said. “Once people begin to hear God’s Word in their own language, they will take the same Audio Bibles that witnessed to them to their family and friends. When they hear Jesus say, ‘Pick up your cross and follow me,’ they just do it.”
And more than just recording the Word of God, the ministry also produces tools to deliver the Word, including the “Proclaimer,” a self-powered audio player that can be used in the most remote and rugged locations. The Proclaimer’s embedded microchip is pre-loaded with the New Testament in the heart languages of the world, allowing indigenous believers take these Audio Bibles into their own villages and begin listening groups.
“The heart of Faith Comes By Hearing is to make disciples among the poor and illiterate,” said Jackson.
“We do this by starting Bible listening groups,” he explained.
Faith Comes By Hearing’s goal is to record audio Bibles in 2,000 languages by 2016 and, in doing so, reach 97 percent of the world’s population.
The ministry is also encouraging Bible listening in areas where literacy rates are relatively high compared to others, including the United States.
In January, the ministry will launch “You’ve Got the Time Houston,” a campaign to get every man, woman, and child in the Houston and Galveston areas listening to the Word of God.
To date, nearly 59,000 churches across the United States have already participated in Faith Comes By Hearing's Audio Bible listening programs.
As part of its effort, the ministry has produced an MP3 version of these Audio New Testament recordings for web download. Visitors can download any of the ministry’s more than 300 Audio Bibles at no charge, including the newly released recordings
The new recordings include:
• Dan, East – Cote d’Ivoire
• Garhwali – India
• Kimochi (Mochi) – Tanzania
• Koma (Konni) – Ghana
• Ndau – Mozambique
• Quechua, North Bolivia – Bolivia
• Mooré - Burkina Faso
• New American Bible – USA
