“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19, NIV)
Golfers play golf.
Bowlers bowl.
Smokers smoke.
Drinkers drink.
Fishermen fish.
Followers of Jesus fish for men.
If golfers don’t play, bowlers don’t bowl, smokers don’t smoke, drinkers don’t drink, fishermen don’t fish and followers of Christ don’t fish for men, are they really what they say they are?
Recently, while meeting with a college golfer, he shared his spiritual journey of coming to faith in Christ more than 10 years ago. As the lunch conversation deepened, he revealed his solid knowledge of God’s Word in various areas. This young man knew that salvation was by faith in Christ alone. He knew that people who don’t believe in Christ will face the consequences of their sin. He had never shared the gospel message.
Imagine that you found the cure for cancer; you have the long sought recipe for the cure. Then you stuff the recipe in a glass jar and bury it in your backyard and don’t tell anyone. You cannot call that a good thing! What could potentially happen if you shared the recipe? How many lives would be saved?
Likewise, imagine that you found the cure for the eternal cancer, the eternal cancer being sin. The cure is salvation by faith in Christ for the forgiveness of sins. You write down the cure, put it in a glass jar, and bury it in your backyard. Again, this is not a good thing! What could potentially happen if you shared the cure? How many lives would be saved?
Before coming to faith at the age of 19, I would hear about sharing the gospel, and it seemed that only “priests or ministers” could do that. As a brand-new believer, the opinion of others frightened me into not sharing the gospel message. Now, 19 years after coming to faith, I see evangelism as a privilege. The greatest gift I could ever give someone is the message of the gospel. If I gave someone 10 million dollars, that would pale in comparison to sharing the faith with them.
Ultimately, only God can change a person’s heart, but he has planned for sinful people like you and me to share the hope we have in Christ. The gospel is the most valuable thing I have, and it is the greatest gift that I can share with others. God desires for seed to be sown and produce a hundredfold. He desires for people to have beautiful feet that spread the gospel of grace through faith. He desires for servants to multiply what they have been given. He has some harsh words for the servant who buries the master’s treasure in the dirt.
Bowlers bowl. Smokers smoke. Drinkers drink. Followers fish.
—
Korky Kemp
February 26, 2013
Copyright 2013 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.