Dear Church Family,
Terry Johnson has much to teach us about sharing our faith with others in his book “When Grace Comes Home.” These insights will free you to tell others about the saving work of Jesus. One of the great blessings of being a follower of Jesus comes when one is used by God to bring another person to saving faith. Sadly, many miss out on this blessing.
Terry gives three reasons why we are to evangelize. In quick order, the Bible clearly commands His people to proclaim the Gospel. We need look no further than the Great Commission at the end of Matthew 28 to understand it is not a mere suggestion. Second, God’s uses people to communicate the saving message of salvation by faith alone in Jesus. The means do vary some – they include prayer, preaching, teaching, one-on-one sharing, etc. God spoke once through a donkey, but the typical way is using people. It remains a supernatural act of the Holy Spirit as seen in John 3:5-8.
Sharing our faith empowered by grace gives one “spiritual advantages.” When evangelizing we can depend totally on God. By grace we know a sinner “cannot convert himself, and we cannot convert him. The making of a Christian does not lie in the natural ability of the preacher or the listener. God must convert him.” Whenever someone is converted a miracle has taken place. A person who was dead in their sin has been raised to life through the sovereign hand of God.
There is no need to rely on some special technique. We can rest in the ordinary means of grace. The great missionary Paul often refers to his weakness, lack of persuasive words, fear and trembling, etc. Yet Paul trusted in the power of God to accomplish what no human could do. We pray for God to convert people. We speak the truths of the Bible knowing that “Faith comes by hearing and hearing from the Word of God. This frees us from any “coercive methods” that use psychological ploys, fall promises, herd mentality and even “multiple stanzas of soft music such as ‘Just As I Am.’” The holy God calls us to faithfully proclaim truth in all settings and not compromise His truth for any reason.
Last, when we grasp how deep God’s love is for sinners such as us, we must want to tell others of this love. Doing so will not diminish God’s love for us in any way. The result as God works to convert people is that more and more people around the world will be singing praise to God. We will see the coming of His kingdom in glorious ways. Our glory will be given to God for it is God alone who can work salvation!
May we be used by God to bring many to saving faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
With great hope in His grace,
Pastor Gillikin