It is absolutely thrilling when the Lord uses us to bring someone to the knowledge of His saving Grace. It encourages us to want to repeat the process. If we began by sharing our personal salvation testimony, we are encouraged to share it more frequently. If we began by sharing the Gospel, we are encouraged to share it more frequently. But a stubborn fact remains. For everyone we lead to the Lord's salvation, scores will reject His message. Those rejections can accumulate. If we see them as personal rejection of ourselves or failures of ourselves to effectively communicate they can become an obstacle to our holy boldness. Insurance salesmen are trained to expect twenty rejections for each sale and often speak of "collecting the no!", until they have collected enough that they finally get a yes! Too often, we approach the spiritual by trying to apply what works in the natural.
The Church is supposed to lead the culture, reform the culture, and watch the culture be transformed by the Word, the Spirit, and Gospel. However, I often hear churches today instead adopting the culture, and in that also adopting secular sales and marketing rhetoric. Individual churches speak of "marketing their brand" as if they stood separated from Christ, and even applying secular marketing methods to the gospel. We are not called to be "brand evangelists" for Christ.
The message of Christ is meant to be transferred by attraction rather than promotion. What reflection of Christ in me will attract someone to saving faith? Often we are more like the servants in the kitchen at Downton Abbey, gossiping about those who reside in the same home rather than loving them so much that we are distinguished by that love. Jesus said --
But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. (Luke 6:35 NKJV)
Love is the most distinguishing reflection of Christ. Radical love, love that loves its enemies, hoping for nothing in return, is virtually non existent outside of hearts transformed by Christ. Too often it resides in seclusion within the those hearts which have found it. Jesus also said -
But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. (Luke 6:32 KNJV) Has your love reached beyond those easy to love family and Christian friends, or does it appear only where it is comfortable?
The door to the Gospel is most easily opened by the power of love. Not some fictitious love, feigned for sake of opportunity, but simple love, genuine love, the love of God which has taken residence in our hearts. In 1 Corinthians 13, the Lord assures us of the power of love with this simple verse -
Love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:8 NKJV)
That's a promise from God. Test it. Try being the love of Christ in the lives of those for whom you are praying that they will find saving Grace, and watch the door to the Gospel fly open!
Love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:8 NKJV)
Copyright 2013 Mission of the Master Ministries, Inc. May be quoted or reprinted in whole or in part without prior permission if a link is provided to http://wordworkswednesday
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