“For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.” – I Thessalonians 1:5
I have good news for you today about the Good News! Here it is: the success of evangelism doesn’t depend on you. You don’t have to have a silver tongue, a doctorate in theology, or deep insight into the human heart.
God only requires two things from you: a conviction of the truth and the willingness to speak that truth to the best of your ability. Then he adds two things of his own: divine power to trample the forces of hell and the Holy Spirit to restore and renew broken hearts.
Never worry about your human limitations. Don’t beat yourself up because you “botched” an opportunity. Don’t fall into despair because your sin got in the way of the message (repent, yes – but don’t despair!). God is so much bigger than your limitations, your failings, and your sins. After all, that’s what the Good News is all about!
- Has anything ever kept you from sharing the Good News with others? If so, what?
- Where have you seen God’s perfect grace work through your imperfections to accomplish his will?
- Ask God for an opportunity to share the Good News!
Copyright © 2010, Paula J. Marolewski. All rights reserved.
“Now all the tax-gatherers and the sinners were coming near to [Jesus] to listen to him. And both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, ‘This man receives sinners and eats with them.’” – Luke 15:1-2
A word of warning: it can be all too easy to immure yourself in the Christian community. To only have friendships with Christians, to engage in activities exclusively with Christians, and to focus all your attention on Christians.
When you do, it can be very easy to slip into another attitude: looking down on anyone who associates with non-Christians. Getting on your religious high-horse and throwing up your hands in horror at anyone who (heavens!) befriends a practicing homosexual, a drug addict, an adulterer, a convicted felon … or even just an unchurched neighbor. After all, we must avoid the corruption of the world, right?
Yes, we must. But not by hiding away in ivory towers. Jesus kept himself unstained by the world, but he ate every day with tax-gatherers, sinners, and prostitutes. He touched lepers, unclean women, and the demon-possessed. He associated with Samaritans, Syrophoenicians, and Romans. He was, simply, “the friend of sinners.”
We are called to follow his example.
- Have you ever looked down on someone because they had friends who were “questionable”?
- Have you ever avoided befriending someone because of their sin, past or present?
- Would you rather live in the safety of the church than be a light of the world? If so, why?
Copyright © 2010, Paula J. Marolewski. All rights reserved.
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Evangelism. We’re all supposed to share the Good News with the people around us, but we often fail to do so. We’re afraid of rocking the boat, afraid of being inadequate to the task, afraid of rupturing the relationships we have with others.
But I wonder … is the real problem on occasion actually a matter of the heart? That we have lost our love for the lost?
If we really love someone and want to see them saved from an eternity in hell, isn’t it a measure of that love that we are willing to rock the boat to give them the opportunity to gain that infinite reward? Isn’t it worth stumbling for the right words, even opening our mouth and putting our foot in it, if it will give the true Word of God the chance to be heard? If our relationship with someone is really of value to us, don’t we want it to continue – forever?
Have we lost our love for the lost? “For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son…” (John 3:16).
What are we willing to give?
How much do we truly love?
© 2009 Paula Marolewski, www.SinkYourRoots.com
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