(posted : Wednesday Mar 31, 2010)
I was involved the other day in a conversation about health care and politics. (Talk about a lousy way to start a blog!) One well meaning person said, "Well, everything that is happening should really make more Christians share the Gospel more." I started thinking about that, and I started thinking about motivation. Quickly, I realized that we should not need world events, or death of a family member or 9/11 or earthquakes in Haiti to motivate us to share the beautiful story of Jesus with others. I realized that when someone truly understands the Gospel, that is the motivation to share the Gospel.
I was involved the other day in a conversation about health care and politics. (Talk about a lousy way to start a blog!) One well meaning person said, "Well, everything that is happening should really make more Christians share the Gospel more." I started thinking about that, and I started thinking about motivation. Quickly, I realized that we should not need world events, or death of a family member or 9/11 or earthquakes in Haiti to motivate us to share the beautiful story of Jesus with others. I realized that when someone truly understands the Gospel, that is the motivation to share the Gospel.
What is the Gospel? The Gospel is the good news that Jesus loves each of us very much. He left heaven to come to earth to live a perfect life and die a sacrificial death. When Jesus blood was shed, it was done so as a covering for our sins. Jesus died and was buried. But on the third day, He rose out of the grave proving He had power over sin, death and Satan. He died to set us free. He died to give us a way out of hell and into heaven. Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father but by Me."
All that is required is faith. "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved." There is no amount of good deeds to be done. Jesus did it all.
Jesus' death freed us, redeemed us, saved us, released us, covered us, bought us, adopted us, cleansed us, and renamed us. There are no amount of words that we can say or write or think to accurately describe all that Jesus has done for us. But this I know: I was on the path to hell, and Jesus turned me around and set me on the path to heaven.
We will never fully grasp the Gospel on this side of eternity, however, we can grasp more and more of it with each passing day. And as we do, we are more and more struck with the horrors of hell and the amazing way out through Jesus. We see people the way God sees them; we see them as sheep without a shepherd. We recognize death not as the end of this life, but of the start of the next life. And we desire for all to join us in heaven.
As we understand the Gospel more, we can be more obedient to the command of the Great Commission - that we are to share the Gospel with all people of all languages, races, skin colors and religions. We become more compassionate, more loving and more kind. We become more and more like Jesus Christ.
I know way too many people who never share the Gospel with anyone. They claim to be too scared or did not have an opportunity. But really, they just haven't spent time with Jesus.
One of my favorite verses is Acts 4:13, "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, the marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus."
When we spend time with Jesus, we can't help but talk about Him to others. When we spend time with Jesus, we become more passionate about Him. And others notice.
Spend time with Jesus. Get to know Him. And be motivated by what Jesus has done for you, and the fact that you want Him to affect others' lives as well.
Share the Gospel.
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