The spiritual condition of America, politics, culture, and current events, analyzed through the lens of scripture. Welcome to the Alex McFarland Show. The Great Commission. What do you think of when you hear the Great Commission? Hi, Alex McFarland here.
Welcome to the program. We have got a fantastic show today. and just one of the most interesting voices you'll hear in many a day. We're going to meet a colleague that is with a worldwide ministry, but I want to set this up and talk about the assignment, the Great Commission. In Matthew 28, 18 through 20, the Lord Jesus, He was on His way back to heaven, but He said, go into all the world, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
But he also said this, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. No doubt, if you're a Christian, you're familiar with the Great Commission. Maybe your church has helped send missionaries and done your part to take the gospel around the world.
Well, for, oh, I don't know, 20 years, as I've been traveling, speaking in media, I've always heard of God TV. And I heard that, at least at one point, they were based out of Jerusalem. And I just thought that was so amazing that from the city of God, Jerusalem, the gospel is going forth to Jerusalem, Judea, the outermost parts of the earth. That's Acts 1-8. But with me here is a brand new friend.
Just met this dear brother. We're going to talk at length. His name is Fergus Scarfe. He's originally from Britain. He's one of the principal leaders of God TV.
and he has got just fantastic news about what the Lord is doing on this planet to reach people for Christ. We hear a lot of bad news and I know there are things about which we are concerned, but folks, I just want you to enjoy our conversation about the Great Commission, about what the Lord is doing, because here in the 21st century, the Spirit of God is going forth, the message of Jesus is being told, and the souls of people are being saved. God TV is a big part of that.
So are you and I. But what an honor to tell us more and to converse about the most important thing of all, which is Jesus, Fergus Scarfe of God TV. We welcome you. Alex, thanks so much. It's a pleasure to be a part of this program.
Well, thank you for your time. I want to hear about your ministries and God TV. But first of all, I want to hear your story. How did the Lord find you? And how did God bring you to this point in your journey, sir?
So 36, 37 years ago, I was a member of a classical symphony orchestra.
So I'm a performing musician, a young professional, and I was in a very, very difficult place in my mental health. I was potentially suicidal and I did not know whom to turn to. I tried all the things the world tells you. I had tried to climb up the greasy pole of success, sex, drugs and rock and roll. none of it works and there was a member of the orchestra a wonderful musician who just sat there during rehearsal breaks reading scripture and he'd underline the words of the bible in pencil pencil pencil line after line after line going through page after page and I looked at this young man and thought he has something I don't and he said to me one time he said you know he said what you really need to know is you need to know Jesus now I used to be a carster in Westminster Abbey I'd done the whole church thing.
But this was different. This was a relationship that sounded amazing, but could it possibly be true? And so at the beginning of 1990, I had been on a chamber music tour of Mexico and had my name on the poster and exciting things. But the further I got in my career, the emptier I felt inside. And so I asked him, I said, can I come to church with you?
And I wasn't sure what to expect, but it certainly wasn't a warehouse in the outskirts of Miami. And there was a, you know, every people from all over the place, different languages, and they were all praising this Jesus. And I walked out, he'd been there early for the rehearsal, and I walked out and I just wandered around. I just didn't know what to do. And he came and found me and he said, I said, I'm desperate.
I need help. And he led me in what we call the sinner's prayer, but really it's the welcome prayer. It's the prayer that where you ask this living God that you cannot see to come into your heart, to make you whole again, to forgive you of the sins that were all around me. And I didn't know what it all meant. It wasn't formal.
It wasn't, you know, he didn't kneel. I was literally standing outside a church on a hot Miami January day. but I trusted my friend. I knew he meant me no harm. He wished the best for me and I entered into a relationship with a God I cannot see.
Now I'd love to tell you overnight everything changed and there was this abracadabra moment. There wasn't but six, nine, twelve months later I was no longer suicidal. I was reading this precious book that had come to life to me. I was part of a church community. I was hearing words, genuinely words of life.
And from the inside out, my life was changing. And 36, 37 years later, there is no greater truth. I mean, we were talking just off set a little earlier that if this thing be true, I mean, our understanding of it's not full by any means, but if this thing be true, there is nothing else that matters. You know, C.S. Lewis and me being an American, you being originally a Brit, you do know we love C.S.
Lewis. But C.S. Lewis said, if Jesus is the risen son of God, he is of infinite importance. If he is not, he's of no importance. Lewis said the one thing he cannot be is of moderate importance.
Speak to us, if you would, Fergus, about Jesus rose from the dead. He was nailed to a cross. He was laid in a grave. Three days later, he conquered death. Christ is risen.
What does that mean to you and I in the 21st century? It means it's all worth it. It means that 95% of the things we feel, the things we see, and the things we know are just not that important.
Now, you've got to make sure you put food on the kids' table. You've got to make sure you go to work on a Monday morning. But if there is a risen Lord, a Lord that not just defeated death, but conquered it and made a show of it openly, then we can have confidence in the face of death, in the face of lack, in the face of disease, in the face of discomfort to know that if God be for us, who or what can ever be against us?
So as we look both to the cross, but then as we look to the empty tomb, to the stone rolled back, we have the privilege of knowing that he did that for us. He did not need to prove himself. He always was God. He always will be God. He is God.
He was seated at the right hand of the Father. They didn't need to come to earth to show us anything. And yet he came. He came as a man taking our place and dying a sinner's death on a horrible, horrible cross. Yet God could not leave him in the grave.
Justice would not permit it. And for our sake, for our lives, for our benefit, he is risen. And as being risen, conquered hell, death and the grave.
now living in each one of our lives with the promise that he will come back in glory we can now look forward to an eternity of eternity of eternities that doesn start at the day we pass It starts at the day we receive And walking in that world then life starts to make sense. Amen. You know, I'm reminded of an old hymn. It says, living he loved me, dying he saved me, buried he carried my sins far away. One day he's coming, a glorious day.
That's truth. Folks, we've got to take a brief break. We're going to continue our conversation with Fergus Scarfe of God TV. Before we take our first break, what is the website of God TV? www.god.tv.
Stay tuned, folks. We're back after this. Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this. Hey, producer Mike here for the Alex McFarland show.
And I'm here with Alex in the studio. Alex, I was just thinking about the Cove and the great time I had last summer out there with my wife. It's coming up again this summer. What's going on? Oh, wow, Mike.
Well, thank you. We love the Billy Graham Conference Center in Western North Carolina. It is beautiful. The presence of God is so strong there because, you know, Billy Graham and his wife, they prayer walked over those hillsides and a visit to the Cove will change your life forever. I'm going to be there July 17 through 19 teaching Bible prophecy.
Then I'll be back July 27 through 31 with world-renowned scholar Gary Habermas teaching apologetics, how to defend the faith confidently in any situation.
So go to the website, thecove.org, T-H-E-C-O-V-E, thecove.org. Make your reservation, and we'd love to see you there in the summer of 2026. He's been called trusted, truthful, and timely. Welcome back to The Alex McFarland Show. Welcome back to the program.
Alex McFarland's here. By the way, these shows are archived. We're on all the social media platforms, plus alexmcfarland.com, where there are also over 200 articles that the Lord has allowed me to write, and you can listen again. Maybe you want to share this with somebody, or maybe you want to go back, and maybe you yourself are at a point that it's time for you to make that decision and trust Christ. Let me say, in the strongest possible terms, it is no accident that you're hearing this today.
We'll pick this up with Brother Fergus here in just a moment, but I want to remind you about United in Prayer. We send out a devotional every Tuesday. It's a personal devotional, how you can pray, how you can deeply get in touch with the God who loves you. Go to, if you would, alexmcfarland.com slash unitedinprayer. It's all free.
It's just for you. We are excited about Jesus. And just as we found Christ and his faithfulness, you can too. We always say this, Jesus is as close by as a prayer. But Fergus, before the break, we were talking about not only God TV, but your journey.
I want you to elaborate on this, if you would. You said, you know, you didn't magically have all your problems disappear.
So is it fair to say salvation is an event and it's a journey? There's the moment you come to Christ. Then there's the journey. Speak to that, if you would.
Well, I mean, the day we get married is not the day we get married. It's the day we in fact announce the start of the rest of our lives.
So whether that be squeezing the toothpaste in the middle or who designs the dishwasher, that's the one in our house, or what temperature do you set the thermostat at? It's the likeness of two becoming one. And when we give our lives to Christ, when we ask him to be Lord and Savior, when we let him into the darkest recesses of our lives and he sheds both his light and his forgiveness, then we are in a position to walk out the rest of our lives knowing that we are his, knowing that we are in his care, knowing that his love has a destiny planned for each one of our lives. But that doesn't start overnight, but it does start.
So there is the process of renunciation of the dark side and then sanctification into his light. And that is a process that takes us not only into eternity, but it is the process that should be the most important thing for the rest of our lives. And it is a wonderful journey. Not always fun. If you read Hebrews chapter 12, it says that the Lord will discipline us.
Oops, oops, oops. But he came, as you said, from Matthew 28 to make disciples of all nations, not just converts, not just followers, but sons and daughters of the living God. You have children, we have children, and we train them up in the way that they should go. and when we let the Lord allow our lives to be trained by his spirit, to be trained by pastors and elders, the books we read, the things we observe and the things we carry, then suddenly we can grow from glory unto glory into the perfect day. And I don't think in many ways we take the rest of our lives seriously enough.
It's the start of that wonderful relationship, But that's not the relationship. It's the journey that we then take that makes that sanctified life the only life worth living. Indeed. And even in the hard times, we look back and we see his faithfulness. And yes, by the way, into the lives of godly, faithful Christians, sometimes hard times come along.
But in those hard times, I think we learn more about the faithfulness, the wisdom and the goodness of God and the blessings of God that we may not have learned any other way. I want to ask you this. Traveling the world as you do, on behalf of God TV, what are you seeing? Oftentimes here in our American evangelical bubble, we find it hard to see beyond the borders. But God is doing great things in China, in the Middle East, in South America, even in North and South Korea.
What are you seeing about what Almighty God is doing to redeem the lives and souls of people? He's doing it. That's it. We may not be seeing it. We live in the wondrous comfort of the West, which in many ways is glorious, but actually it can often be like a lobster being boiled in the pot.
And we see a church growing in China that is genuinely glorious. We see converts coming disciples at the cost of their lives in Iran. Just weeks ago, somewhere between 20, 30, 40,000 people in Iran were killed because they were protesting for freedom. They are, many among them, are our own brothers and sisters that laid down their lives for the truth they believe in. You know, we hear and remember the story of Columbine when there was that one young lady who was accused of being a believer.
Cassie Bernon. And she said, oh, yes, I am. And that statement of faith cost her her life, but it actually didn't cost her anything because she entered into the presence of glory. And I wonder the faith that we see around the world often in the midst of extraordinary unprecedented persecution is because in fact the Lord glory is being revealed in his body And certainly as somebody who lives in the West who loves the West who prays for the West who cries before the Lord for our own nations to be sanctified as only he can do, we should not miss what the Lord is showing. He is showing off in our brothers and sisters around the world, the walk that they walk, and the walk that we can walk if we'll genuinely lend our lives to him.
You know, we talk about Jesus as Savior, but ultimately it's Jesus as Lord. And we need to be a people where he is the boss. You know, one of my favorite stories, and I want you to comment on this, and by the way, if you're just tuning in, we're talking with Fergus Scarfe of God TV, an incredible ministry that I want everyone to be aware of. I love the story. You're talking about we've lost nothing, even if we die for Jesus.
Okay, one of the great missionary stories was the story of John Calvert and John Gaddy, who went to the Fiji Islands that were known in the 1800s as the Cannibal Isles. And they couldn't even hire a ship to take them down there. And they had money, and they wanted to go. and they finally were able to book a ship to go to the Cannibal Isles. And in route, the ship's captain said, you will die and everyone with you will die if you go to the Fiji Islands.
They're cannibals. If you go there, you're going to die. And James Calvert said, I died before I ever got on the boat.
Now there's a monument, and I looked up, There was like the 150th anniversary just a couple years ago. And the Ephesians that became Christian, they said, when the missionaries arrived, there were no Christians. When the missionaries died, there were no more cannibals. I mean, it's one of the great missionaries. But speak to us about what Paul might have meant when he said, I die daily.
Well, it's the opportunity we have. what of our, and I don't mean this discomfortingly, but what about our rotting selfish flesh are we not wanting to place before the cross? You know, it was interesting. I was talking to somebody a little earlier today and hearing their testimony, and she was talking about unforgiveness.
Now, unforgiveness is a very interesting thing because it's not the fact that there wasn't wrong. There was terrible wrong.
Somebody had done something to each one of us, and rightly we could not get justice so it remains unresolved and unforgiven but she said eventually I had the courage as led by the spirit of the Lord to place it at Jesus feet and walk away why don't we do that in every aspect of our lives if it's the good bit Lord I bless you for the tremendous increase in my work our business is flourishing our factories are growing my ministry in some way is blessed. Our family's doing well. Little Johnny's doing great in kindergarten. I lay that, sir, at your feet. My body's not functioning.
Things aren't well. I'm struggling. Father, I lay it at your feet. And then when that becomes the norm and not the exception, we find and walk in a peace that passes what we understand. And once we have found that place of understanding in him.
Remember in Acts chapter 16, there's a wonderful story of Paul and Silas. They had been sent on the mission field. They'd done a good Jesus day. They'd preached the gospel. They'd seen converts.
They'd done the Jesus stuff. And what thanks did they get for it? They got thrown in jail. They got thrown in the stocks whereby you could not see without candlelight. And what were they doing at the midnight hour?
Were they complaining? Were they bitter? They They were praising God to the extent to which everybody heard it. What do they know that we have forgotten? In the best sense, there are no secrets.
What Paul knew, what Paul walked in can be known today if we'll lead the life with the calling and with the sense of destiny and with the sense of purpose that he too was walking out. He walked in victory even though he was in chains. And if we had that witness before the lost, they would want to know, what are you smoking? What are you drinking? And where can I find it?
We've got to take a break. We're going to come back, folks. More challenge, motivation, inspiration from Fergus Scarfe of God TV. Alex McFarland saying, stay tuned. We're back after this brief break.
Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this. Producer Mike for the Alex McFarland Show, listen to this. Alex is the Christian voice we need right now. I love listening to him and the guests he has on the show are just amazing.
I highly recommend his podcast. Great words, Alex.
Well, we give God the glory. We thank the listeners for kind sentiments like that, but we give God all the glory. But folks, please listen in, spread the word. You're spreading the gospel. Tell others about our programming, and we sincerely thank you.
He's been called trusted, truthful, and timely. Welcome back to The Alex McFarland Show. Welcome back to the program. Alex McFarland here. We're going to resume our conversation with our dear brother from God TV.
I want to remind everybody of a couple of things. Summer is coming quickly. I know here as the East Coast has just had one of the biggest snowfalls in 30 years, you might not be thinking about the summer.
However, I want to invite you to come to the Billy Graham Training Center in Western North Carolina, The Cove. It is fantastic. If you've been there, you know what I'm talking about. I'm going to be there July 17 through 19 teaching our brand new book on Bible prophecy, 100 Questions on Prophecy and the End Times. That's a three-day seminar.
They've invited me to teach that, and I would love for you to be a part of it. Then, just shortly thereafter, I will be back July 27 through 31. This is really significant. Dr. Gary Habermas, the world expert on the resurrection of Christ.
He and I have been friends for 30 years. Honestly, one of the most compelling speakers you'll ever hear. He and I will be there together July 17 through 31 on apologetics. And I feel so honored that Will Graham has invited us to do a deep dive on how to defend the faith. Imagine how to share your faith confidently in any situation.
Now, the website is thecove.org, T-H-E-C-O-V-E, thecove.org. It's filling up fast. It always does. We'd love for you to be there.
So this upcoming summer, invest a weekend that will count for eternity and come to the Cove and let's drill down deeply together in the Word of God.
Well, someone who's given his life to that, I'm just so humbled and honored to be with Fergus Scarfe of God TV. First of all, I want to say thank you for the work you've done, you and your staff building this global network. I mean, literally, the sun never sets. I've got to ask you, what do we find on God TV? Oh, some of the finest preachers from around the world, a rich variety of new and traditional content.
But not only on God TV the linear channel which you can watch across the United States on many many channels but also through our unique God TV Plus app You can download it on your phone both on Android and on Apple And literally there are thousands and thousands and thousands and thousands of hours of conferences and worship and teaching materials. And that we see not only as a great opportunity to evangelize, but also to disciple and to actually encourage people in their walk with the Lord. either in your personal journey or the ministry, what's been the biggest challenge you ever faced and how did the Lord bring you through that? Wow. I think that the biggest challenge we face is we don't live in heaven yet.
We don't live in a place where the kingdom is manifest. My wife and I for the last several years have lived in Great Britain, which is a great honor. And the history and the heritage of that nation is perhaps even unprecedented. But at the moment, things aren't necessarily great. And even though there are signs of encouragement, what we're talking about, a quiet revival where in fact people are suddenly coming to faith and they're reading their Bibles and they're being discipled in the things of the Father.
But we live in a world where we are yearning for something we cannot see. And as I look back on my life, I see too many times when I've settled for the compromise, where I've settled for just being me. And that's a terrible thing when we realize that he's either king or he's not. And we know him to be king. And the opportunity we have, whether it be through radio, whether it be through television, through the internet, through our own personal outreach on social media, is to share that it is good news.
You know, it's not just a great opinion. It's not a great wish. It's not just, with great respect, it's not Disney or the Hallmark Channel. This is news. And unlike many of our news channels, it's really news.
And it's good news. and we get to share that gospel. Just think of the number of people who are just like each one of us were, not knowing the Father, being lost in hopelessness, being lost in fear, making terrible decisions in our lives. And the knowledge of Jesus will change our destinies forever. And I just want to give whatever the rest of my life is to make sure that when we get to go to heaven and what an extraordinary privilege that will be, we take as many people with us.
Fergus, does every believer have a role to play in the Great Commission? Amen. He did not just commission the fivefold, oh, preachers go into all the world and preach the gospel. He called us all. We are all members of his body.
Now, whether we're the little toe at the end or the ear or the eye or whatever bit we are, whether we're the bits on the inside that don't get to be seen too often, thank goodness, We are all called. We're all commissioned. We're all equipped. It's the same Bible. It's the same living God.
It's the same precious Holy Spirit. And we're sharing the same news of a risen Savior.
So if you're listening out there and you don't feel quite ready, that's okay. None of us do. And more to the point, none of us are called to do this alone. We're called to do this in community. We're called to do this under the leadership and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Maybe, maybe we should use a little wisdom. Maybe we should read one of Alex's books, maybe two, and actually get ready to share the thing that is and surely must be the most precious thing of all. We get to share the good news of eternal life, our sins forgiven, our destinies transformed, no longer hell bound, but heaven sent. Amen. It's an amazing time in which we live.
I mean, think about it. We have the internet in the palm of our hand. We have a computer that I'm told is more powerful than the computers that ran the rockets to the moon. The library of Congress is in the palm of our hand. For one thing, I think people of previous eras, you know, would just be amazed at what we have.
I believe that the internet, digital content is really going to be, is being, and will be used by God to take the name of Jesus to the very ends of the earth. You know, Habakkuk, I love the Old Testament book of Habakkuk that says one day, the knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. Speak to us. We're almost out of time, but this is so exciting. Do you believe that all this technology, God is using it to take salvation to the human race?
Yes. Unfortunately, he's not the only one that's using this technology. And we're living in a realm where independent countries, where our nations, where neighbors down the street, where forces of darkness are using the internet often with greater success and greater discipleship than the church of our Lord Jesus Christ. And we as the body, we cannot be asleep. What is it?
The greatest army in the whole wide world is the sleeping giant of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to redeem, to buy these things back and use these great tools of communication, these amazing tools of knowledge and interest and insight and wisdom, and use them all for the glory of God, which is why we're all called and which is why we all need to be about the master's business. Give us your website one more time. We must talk further. I know that very soon you're going to be at NRB.
You've got a big announcement about the global ministry. And so folks, I want to encourage you to visit their website, avail yourself to all their content. And we'll talk further, but I've got one more thought. But before we have to dismiss your website again, Fergus. www.god.tv.
Folks, I've shared this before, but I had a Kodak moment. I'm showing my age. I was in West Virginia at a youth rally. And I said, there was a Kodak moment and teens came up and they said, what does that mean?
Well, you know, a snapshot that was just so vivid, it changed your life. I was a believer one week. I was going to church at Macedonia Baptist on a Sunday night. Buford Smith, he's in heaven, but he was six feet, 13 inches tall, old retired minister. I was just a believer for a week.
He looked at me as I was going in the door. He said, young man, will there be anybody in heaven because of you? And I stumbled and I stammered and I said, anybody in heaven, it's because of Jesus. And he smiled. He said, good answer.
He said, young man, and he pointed this long bony finger at me. He said, live your life so at least one person, somebody would be in heaven because of you.
Now, folks, that was 37 years ago. And that challenge drives me to this day. And down through the decades, I give you the word that Buford Smith gave me. I know Fergus Scarfe is living it out.
So are so many others. But do something so that somebody is in heaven because of you. May God bless you. Thank you for listening. Stay bold, stand strong, and remember Jesus is as close by as a prayer.
Alex McFarlane Ministries are made possible through the prayers and financial support of partners like you For over 20 years this ministry has been bringing individuals into a personal relationship with Christ and has been equipping people to stand strong for truth Learn more and donate securely online at alexmcfarlane.com You may also reach us by calling 1-877-YES-GOD-1. Thanks for joining us. We'll see you again on the next edition of the Alex McFarland Show.
