The need is great for Christians to proclaim the full truth of the Biblical gospel and trust God to effectually work in the hearts of people, as sometimes the way we evangelize is far fom what Jesus taught and His apostles practiced.
Why is it that the church has so many who "make decisions" yet so few who are actually committed to Christ, live transformed lives, and deny themselves & take up the cross of discipleship & follow Him? Why is it that so many who have said “yes” to Christ (and who have been told by somebody that they are now eternally saved) will apparently one day stand before Him and hear Him say the words of Matthew 7:23, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness”?
Could it be because too often what these people have said “yes” to isn’t the gospel at all, but an abbreviated form of the truth that has barely mentioned the character of God and the nature of sin? Could it be that in our zeal to reach the lost and save as many as possible we are proclaiming a gospel of our own design--a gospel designed not to offend, a gospel that can be accepted by proud, unrepentant people who don't understand who God is or how grievously they have offended Him with their sin?
We need to be more familiar with the evangelism of Jesus (like with Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman at the well, and the rich young ruler) and the evangelism of the apostles than we are with the current popular techniques to get a crowd and get positive responses. We need to trust the Biblical gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit and not our own persuasiveness. We need to remember that we are like Ezekiel, called to speak God's Word to a bunch of dry bones, trusting God to raise up a great army for His name. We need to be faithful to speak the truth!
Pastor Jeff Ryan
Calvary Bible Church
Rogers City, MI
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