By Robin Sam
GREETINGS in the Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who told the curious disciples of John the Baptist in John 1:39, ‘Come and see.’
One of my favorite chapters in the Bible is 1 Kings 18. That’s where Elijah uttered one of the classic lines ever said by a man of God. Verse 21 says: And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” One of the saddest lines ever that marked the mindset of a stubborn people followed: ‘But the people answered him not a word.’ Can you imagine that? The people had nothing to say to Elijah’s altar call. Absolutely nothing!
Dear reader, we live in a generation that is passive to God and hyperactive to the works of the devil. Today, if you present the Gospel to someone you are likely to be met with cold stares. But if you were to glorify the deeds of a philanthropist or talk at length about the acting prowess of a film-star or croon the latest song of a hip-hop or rock singer, you are sure to collect a sizeable crowd around you. Such is the way of the world.
You don’t need to do a research to find out the reason behind this – the world is in the grip of the vile one. The challenge thrown at Bible-believing Christians is not at identifying what’s good and what’s evil. It’s in discerning the difference between what’s right and what seems like right. The devil has always been in the business of duplication. Believers need to realize what he churns out is only a cheap imitation. He duplicates to appropriate the divine blessings reserved for those who trust in Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:14 has this to say about the devil’s ruse: ‘And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.’ Do you know why satan masquerades as a messenger of light? It’s because, Jesus proclaimed to all who would listen that He Himself was the ‘light of the world’ (John 8:12). Jesus did not stop with that. He said to His disciples ‘you are the light of the world’ (Matthew 5:14). What a glorious privilege we have in Jesus Christ – we are called to be like Him.
Today, the devil and his agents (the cultic churches) are working overtime to make the believers stumble. While the Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses are going door to door campaigning for their master – the fallen angel – evangelical Christians are contented to be hearers of the Word and not doers. We adore our pastors, we relish their sermons and want more of them every week, but we will not so much as clear our throats to share the Gospel with even our intimate friends. Where are we heading to? Aren’t we called to be ambassadors of Christ? Aren’t we called to have the marks of the Lord on us?
Most of the time, we don’t do much for Christ because we don’t care enough for the people around us. By his own admission, Paul was an apostle to the gentiles (Romans 11:13) while Peter was acknowledged as the apostle to Jews. Yet, Paul made his heart’s cry plain to all in Romans 10:1. He said: ‘Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved.’ The man who refused to build on another man’s foundation (Romans 15:20) was so zealous for the souls of his own people that he prayed for them.
It’s my prayer that you will resolve today to share the Gospel with as many people as possible. Perhaps, you think you don’t have the avenues, the time and the resources to do it. Begin with a prayer for burden of perishing souls, a simple testimony about how the Lord saved you and transformed you. Hand over a Gospel tract to someone you know, take a photo copy of this month’s cover story and mail it to someone whom you know is struggling in his married life. Walk over to the nearest Christian bookstore, order more copies of The Christian Messenger magazines and send them to your relatives and friends. Partner with our missions organization, Messenger Missions, in taking the Gospel to people in our country. If you do that, the rewards the Lord assures you, will be great in eternity.
