Before abduction in South Africa, US missionary Josh Sullivan said he forgave man who robbed him
Months before he was abducted from his growing church in the impoverished Motherwell township in South Africa last Thursday, Tennessee missionary and married father of four, Josh Sullivan, said he was robbed of his wallet by a young neighborhood man who almost got killed for the crime.
Sullivan, 34, recounted the robbery during a sermon at Tri-City Baptist Church in late December. He said members of the community offered to put the thief to death on his behalf after he was caught but he forgave the man and used the opportunity to preach the Gospel to the community instead.
The story emerged as police in South Africa confirmed that Sullivan, who leads Fellowship Baptist Church in Motherwell, near the coastal city of Gqeberha formerly known as Port Elizabeth, was kidnapped by multiple armed men during a sermon. The kidnappers are now seeking an undisclosed ransom.
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Sullivan and his wife, Meagan, are members of Fellowship Baptist Church in Maryville, Tennessee, led by Pastor Tom Hatley.
Heather Shirley, the secretary at Fellowship Baptist Church in Maryville, told The Christian Post on Monday that the church could not disclose the amount of ransom being demanded by Sullivan’s kidnappers for safety reasons. She also could not confirm whether or not the kidnappers had provided any proof that he is still alive.
The church noted in a statement, however, that Sullivan and his wife first traveled to South Africa in 2015 for a six-month internship as part of their Bible training.
“It was during this time that the Lord began to stir their hearts specifically for the Xhosa people. They returned in 2018 as full-time church planting missionaries, determined to share the Gospel, and see lives changed,” the bio from the church states.
Sullivan spent two years at a language school to become fluent in Xhosa “so he could preach, disciple, and minister more effectively.”
“That dedication led to the planting of Fellowship Baptist Church in the township of Motherwell — a community that has become home to their hearts,” the church said. The couple have also taken in two Xhosa children to be a part of their household in South Africa.
Hatley told his congregants on Sunday morning that he has been speaking with Meagan Sullivan and some of the pastor’s children since his kidnapping and they are all eager for his release.
“We’re praying for Meagan; I’ve spoken to her several times since Thursday and I’ve even spoken to a few of the kids as well. And they want their daddy and Meagan wants her husband,” he said during a broadcast on Facebook.
“A man entered into his church then five others came in and they put everybody face down on the ground. And long story short they took Josh and his vehicle and cellphones and he’s been held ever since then. So we’re praying for his safety, we’re praying for a safe return,” Hatley said while noting that Christians all over the world are praying for his safe return.
On Feb. 7, Approximately two months before his kidnapping, Pastor Sullivan gave a tour of his church on his vlog, Faith on the Field. He described Motherwell as a densely populated township of about 400,000 people in the city of Port Elizabeth.
“Our church is the only independent fundamental Baptist church for all of the 400,000 people in this community. Obviously not enough, but the Lord has been working in our community and in our church,” Sullivan explained.
He said the church grew out of a Bible study he started in a rented house in 2020. A year after they began meeting, they were able to purchase the house and convert it into a church building. The church, he says, attracts about 80 worshipers weekly and has seen as many as 140 people in attendance and “many people saved.”
The journey, however, has not been without challenges.
In his sermon at Tri-City Baptist Church, Sullivan, who his church describes as a former “standout American football player at Maryville High School, where he was part of three state championship teams” described getting robbed just outside his church as he wrapped up a witnessing event outside his church one Saturday afternoon.
“I was standing on the street corner just across from the church while I was waiting for my wife to finish speaking with someone and somebody had come by and grabbed my attention,” Sullivan explained.
He said he didn’t realize that the person was distracting him as a part of a ruse to rob him until it was too late.
“As I began to speak to him someone came up and started reaching in my back pocket. Initially I thought someone was playing a trick on me because this had never happened before, and so, I'm slow to turn around because I was speaking to someone as well,” he said.
Sullivan said when he finally turned around to check what was happening, “It was some guy I've never seen before in my life. And by the time I turn around he's got my wallet and he's running down the street.”
He said he chased after the man but he was too fast for him. A woman from the neighborhood would later help him locate the robber who he identified as a 20-year-old man.
“I go inside his home. He lives with his aunt and uncle and I tell them the story. They're not too surprised. He had been in some trouble recently and so we exchange information,” he said.
As he was exchanging information with the suspect’s aunt, Sullivan said another group of about a hundred people from the community detained him and brought him to their house.
“They're giving him to me […] and so, I quickly grab him and take him inside to try to figure out what's going on. He had my wallet. His aunt and uncle were there, like I said, so I was able to speak to him. He gave me the wallet back. The Lord allows me to witness to him and we get everything figured out. He's very apologetic, and so I've got that settled,” he recalled.
The situation, however, wasn’t completely settled in the community, he explained. He said while more affluent communities in South Africa have normal police services, in impoverished areas like Motherwell, community justice is frequently the norm and the people were prepared to put the thief to death for the robbery.
“Now there's 200 people outside waiting for me to give some kind of report. So I finish up with them and as I'm heading outside, a totally different lady, I don't know who she is, she comes up to me and she says, ‘Well, are we going to burn him?’” he told members of the Tri-City Baptist Church.
“Some of y'all was [sic] shocked. Look on your faces. That's what I had. And of course we had learned the language but in my mind I'm thinking, is there a double meaning to this word,” Sullivan said.
“She can't be saying what I think she's saying, right? So I ask her again. She says, ‘No, look, we're ready to take him out. All you have to do is give the word.’”
Sullivan said once he realized the woman was serious he cried out to God for help.
“I thought, ‘Lord help me.’ And I get up. I'm in front of this lady's yard [...] I get up on a rock in front of 200 people and say, 'Look, I've forgiven him. He's given me the wallet back. I don't want anyone to hurt him. We're not here to take care of anybody,’” Sullivan said. “I want you to understand that not only maybe he sinned against me today but understand that we're all sinners.”
He said he went on to preach a whole sermon to the crowd that had gathered.
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