White Wing Messenger? - Church of God of Prophecy

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A Soul-Winning Church T Today’s church continues to cry out for God’s blessings, for we long to be led by the Holy Spirit and experience spiritual and numerical growth. However, the question must be asked, “Why should God bless us when we refuse to become what He has called us to be?” What concerns God is our effective ministry to the hearts and minds of unsaved people, not our preferences, procedures, or programs. We have strayed from our real purpose for existing; our existence is in fulfilling Jesus’ mission to reach the lost. Our purpose is not in maintaining our churches, but, rather, to invade the world and save the perishing. William Fay, the author of Share Jesus Without Fear, states, “. . . as few as five to ten percent of the people in an average church have shared their faith in the past year . . . and one hundred thousand churches will close their doors this decade.” 1 He goes on to say that the foundational reason for these sad statistics is the choice church members make in choosing the sin of silence over being obedient to the call and mission of Jesus. We have forgotten our purpose as Christians, which is to become the disciples in Christ’s priestly prayer in John 17:20–26 and in the Great Commission of Matthew 28:18–20. Jesus’ commandment to witness to the unsaved is a constant theme throughout the New Testament. Dr. Jerry Pipes and Victor Lee state, “A verse-byverse review of the words of Jesus in the four Gospels reveals at least 35 statements that could be understood as statements of purpose.” 2 They give three of these passages as being central to His declaration: Luke 19:10, John 18:37, and Matthew 20:28. “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which is lost” (Luke 19:10 NKJV, italics mine). In this passage, there are two crucial elements of Jesus’ mission: the first is to seek, for Jesus sought after the lost by coming to them in the flesh so they may receive the truth; and He came to save them from their sin, giving them hope for eternal life. “For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” (John 18:37 NKJV, italics mine). His statement, “for this 6 WWM JUNE 2011 WWW.WHITEWINGMESSENGER.ORG
cause,” leaves no doubt that this is a mission statement, and it carries His central purpose to bear witness to the truth. “Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28 NKJV, italics mine). When Jesus sought out the lost, He did so to serve them. The primary way He served them was to give His perfect life for the sinful lives of humanity as a ransom for as many as would believe on Him. It’s clear that the Evangelists of the New Testament Gospels understood the importance of Christ’s mission, and clearly they wanted you and I to understand this importance as well. The Great Commission is clearly found in five places, not by chance, in each of the Gospels and the Book of Acts. 3 In each of these passages, Jesus’ purpose takes the form of a command for every believer. The passages are Matthew 28:18–20, Mark 16:15, Luke 24:47, 48, John 20:21, and Acts 1:8. This clear message presents us with the tremendous challenge of sharing Jesus. Jesus always supplies sufficient grace, which is the unmerited favor that gives us the desire and the power to do His will, with every command given to each believer. The Holy Spirit empowers us to do His will, and His Word provides the principles we need to accomplish His mission. David Wheeler, in his chapter “Spiritual Farming,” states, “Effective evangelism never violates the principles of the harvest. The best way to recapture success in evangelism is to return to these principles.” 4 The church must return to the process of spiritual farming if we are to see the spiritual power and growth we long to see. God has not abandoned us; it is believers abandoning the principles of the harvest that results in our lack of fruitfulness. We blame all kinds of sins for our sterile congregations, but the primary sin we must address is the sin of silence. David Wheeler gives us at least four key truths about the principles of the spiritual harvest: 1. The harvest is a process, not an event. In modernity, we came to know evangelism as an event such as a revival service or a personal soul-winning encounter, but the truth is the harvest requires the laborious process of spiritual farming. 2. More than one element is involved in the harvest. In order to ensure a harvest, someone must plant seed. The seed must be watered. God has to make it come to life, grow, and bear fruit. In other words, it is God who gives the increase of salvation, and it can only come from Him (1 Corinthians 3:6–9). 3. Different people play different roles in the harvest. Some plant, and others water. 4. Every aspect is equally important. If no one plants the seed, there will never be a harvest. If no one waters the seed, it will never grow and produce fruit. 5 According to William Fay, nonbelievers must hear the Gospel an average of 7.6 times before they receive it. 6 The process ends with a nonbeliever accepting Christ as their Savior, but it begins with believers plowing the fields with prayer and need-meeting service. Then the seed of the Gospel must be planted, watered, and cared for. The more believers pray, serve, and plant the seed, the greater the harvest. It is our responsibility as believers to be obedient to God’s command to participate in the process of evangelism. One caution must be given here: while living a life of Christian integrity is important to the process of evangelism, it is not enough to fulfill our calling to Christ’s mission. “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach [verbal communication] unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!’” (Romans 10:14, 15 NASB, italics mine). Every believer is responsible for verbally sharing Jesus with the unsaved. Let’s accept the challenge to intentionally evangelize the lost for the Kingdom of God. There is nothing that will bring spiritual fulfillment to your life like the process of sharing Jesus! ______________ 1 William Fay and Linda Evans Shepherd, Share Jesus Without Fear (Nashville, TN: B & H Publishing Group, 1999), pp. 6, 7. 2 Dr. Jerry Pipes and Victor Lee, Family to Family: Leaving a Lasting Legacy (North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1999), p. 27. 3 Ibid., p. 28. 4 Dave Early and David Wheeler, Evangelism Is . . . How to Share Jesus With Passion and Confidence (Nashville, TN: B & H Academic Publishing Group, 2010), pp. 85–92. 5 Ibid., pp. 85, 86. 6 Fay and Shepherd, p. 11. John A. Stone, Pastor Keith Street Ministries Cleveland, Tennessee WWM JUNE 2011 7
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