JOHANNES THEODORUS VAN DER KEMP

The world is not a very pleasant place. It has all kinds of bad, wicked and evil things happening. Many times, people do things that are evil in the sight of God and man, yet, they justify it, and defend it with all their might. Discrimination of fellow human beings, based on colour and race, is one among the worst of all evils, that befell us, because of our sin and rebellion in the Garden of Eden. This th hard reality of the human heart.

How then should we respond as the Church, the ambassadors of God? Sadly, we have been the perpetrators is many such crimes, either, actively or passively. Even not expressing our opinion clearly, in itself is wrong, though, it may not have any impact on the situation.

However, Johannes Theodorus van der Kemp, of Holland, who arrives in South Africa, today, 1 March in 1799, is a man who felt compelled in his heart, to stand against the evil of discrimination based on colour and race of the natives of Africa. 

During his lifetime, he redeems many slaves from their “white masters,”  with his own money, and tries to break down European settlers’ resistance to mission work. Following the death of his Dutch wife, he marries an indigenous African woman. They have four children together, leading to outrage among the Europeans settlers in Africa.

May the LORD help us raise many more like Johannes Theodorus van der Kemp. So God help us.