The process of salvation is a mystery; anyone saved can attest to this fact. It’s impossible to explain how a person understands the salvation message, accepts Christ, and suddenly becomes a totally new person (see 2 Corinthians 5:17). Jesus commissioned His disciples (including Christians of all ages) to go and preach the gospel to the whole world (see Matthew 28:19-20).
Nicodemus, a
Jewish religious leader, was perplexed about the idea of being born again.
Jesus’ explanation of that process was to compare it to how the wind blows:
“The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell
where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are
born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).
Thank God,
our only responsibility in all of this is to share the message, water the Word,
and excitedly reap the harvest. Only God can give the increase through the Holy
Spirit. Luke, the physician narrating the experience in Macedonia, shared how
Lydia, the purple cloth seller from Thyatira, was saved. “As she listened to
us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying. She and
her household were baptized” (Acts 16:14). This is a mystery! Jesus clearly
teaches that only God can draw people to Him: “No one can come to me unless the
Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up”
(John 6:44). Our responsibility, therefore, is not to convict anyone of sin or
convert them; that’s God’s domain.
Our role is
minimal yet vital; let’s take it seriously. We need to start by praying for
people in our sphere of influence: the Lord will prepare their hearts and open doors at the right time for us to share. We’ll need to be watchful
and not miss opportunities.
Once, Jesus
said to the crowd following Him, “When I am lifted up from the earth,
I will draw everyone to myself” (John 12:32). But what does that mean? Of
course, He was referring to His crucifixion, the sacrifice through which
salvation would be available to us sinners. But how else could He be lifted up?
Whatever we can do to make Him known will be a way of lifting Him up. We need
to put Him on display as much as possible. The way we can lift Him up is
through sharing the salvation message verbally, and allowing Him to live
through us, so people will notice the transformation in our lives and the
impact the Word of God has on us.
As long as
we are in this world, there will always be people who need to hear the gospel,
and we are God’s tools and agents for accomplishing that purpose. Time is
running out! How long before we’re individually called home and our
time of sharing will be over? How much longer before those who need to hear it
are called away, and they go to a Christ-less eternity? And how much longer
before the Lord returns to judge the world, and grace is no longer available?
Since we don’t have answers to these questions, let’s work diligently as though
any day we are here could be the last.
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