Monte Hebrón on the radio: Taking the gospel beyond the church

On Friday nights, Iglesia Bautista Monte Hebrón carried its preaching beyond the congregation through a one-hour broadcast on 1140 AM. Beginning in November 2010, the program aired from 9:00 to 10:00 p.m. and continued for several years. Different men took turns preaching, while listeners called to report their response to the gospel. Some calls came from more than 500 miles away.[1][4]

Noé Montelongo’s invitation

The opportunity began with an invitation from Noé Montelongo. Already involved in radio broadcasting, he invited Monte Hebrón to rent a time slot on the station. His own program occupied the hour immediately after Monte Hebrón’s Friday broadcast.[4]

That arrangement gave the church a regular place on the air. Rather than a single special broadcast, the rented hour became a weekly commitment, supported by the congregation and shared by a number of preachers over the years.[1][4]

A weekly hour of evangelistic preaching

The program began in November 2010. By January 2011, church members were paying the weekly broadcast fee of $100. Their support sustained the church’s regular place on the air.[1]

Jonathan Ashcraft oversaw the program. Its format included two sermons on salvation during the hour, giving the participating preachers an opportunity to explain the gospel and invite listeners to receive Christ.[3]

The preaching was shared among different men during the broadcast’s several-year run. Among those specifically identified in the surviving accounts are Jonathan and his father, Tommy Ashcraft. On one Friday in September 2011, Jonathan preached the first message and Tommy the second.[2][4]

This shared responsibility made the radio hour an extension of the church’s evangelistic work. Members helped pay for the airtime, men went to the station to preach, and listeners could respond while the program was being transmitted.[1][2][3][4]

Calls from far beyond Monterrey

The station’s reported power was 50,000 watts, with reception extending several hundred miles. The distance became more than a technical description when callers began responding from places far beyond the church’s immediate surroundings.[1]

By January 26, 2011, more than 60 people had called to say that they had prayed to receive Christ as Saviour. Calls had already come from more than 500 miles away. These figures recorded the responses reported by callers; they were not a count of the total listening audience.[1]

The response continued later that year. Following the September broadcast in which Jonathan and Tommy preached, 20 people called to report that they had prayed and trusted Christ. One caller was again more than 500 miles away.[2]

For a church whose personal outreach depended on workers going into neighborhoods, homes, and bus-route communities, radio provided another way to reach people. The weekly messages could be heard by listeners whom the participating preachers had never met and who lived well beyond the congregation’s normal visiting area.[1][2]

Manuel: From listening to personal involvement

One listener’s experience connected the broadcast directly with life in the church. A young man named Manuel heard the program and subsequently attended Monte Hebrón. He made a public profession of faith and was baptized.[3]

His involvement did not end with attendance. By February 2012, Manuel had begun witnessing to others himself. He led his first person to Christ, then led four more people to Christ during a subsequent Saturday of bus visitation.[3]

Only his first name is preserved in the account, but the sequence is clear: a radio listener came to church, publicly professed his faith, was baptized, and began participating in the congregation’s outreach. His experience illustrates how the broadcast could lead to a continuing connection with the church and its work.[3]

A ministry sustained over several years

The Friday program continued for several years, with many different men participating in the preaching. The available accounts establish its November 2010 beginning and describe its work during 2011 and early 2012; an exact closing date has not yet been established.[1][2][3][4]

Its place in Monte Hebrón’s history brings together several forms of service: Noé Montelongo’s invitation, the congregation’s financial support, Jonathan’s oversight, and the men who preached during the weekly hour. Through their combined efforts, the church’s evangelistic message reached both distant callers and listeners such as Manuel, who became personally involved in its ministry.[1][2][3][4]