Today we live in a world that seems radically changed from just
fifty years ago. So many people have
been indoctrinated with false gods and false religions. When you talk about the true God today many
people will want to know what god you are talking about, like the Apostle Paul
faced on Mars Hill where they worshiped many gods. Read about it in Acts chapter 17. Athens was full of idolatry and Paul even found
an altar to an unknown god. It is hard to
imagine that people would worship something they did not know, or one that didn’t
even have a name, but that was the case. Fifty years ago when you mentioned God most
people automatically knew who you were referring to but it is different in many
cases today. Today it seems like you
need to be more knowledgeable and more prepared to present your case for Christ
and that will take lots of studying God’s Word, daily prayer and some fasting
but even that won’t be enough. You can
do all these things and you should, but without the conviction and empowerment
of the Holy Spirit and God drawing them to Jesus they will think it is nonsense.
Have you ever witnessed and had people just seem to blow you
off or just respond with sarcasm or have some listened intently but in the end
walked away unresponsive? Don’t get
discouraged, just keep planting seeds. The
harvest is always there but we don’t always get to reap the harvest. Think of a garden, it doesn’t grow without preparation.
The ground needs to be tilled and cleared
and the seeds need to be planted then watered and sometimes fertilizer needs to
be applied, then it takes patience for the sprouts to appear before the full
grown plant can be harvested. Someone
had to prepare the soil and plant the seed and apply the water and fertilizer before
someone could reap the harvest, but each person had a share in the reaping. I think that is the way it is in witnessing,
some sow and some reap but God gives the increase. In other words, God always is responsible for
the new life that takes place in that person or the seed that was planted.
Paul said it this way in 1 Corinthians 3:1-8, “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as
to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with
milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it,
and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there
are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like
mere men? For when one says, ‘I am of Paul,’ and another, ‘I am of Apollos,’
are you not carnal?
Who then is Paul, and
who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to
each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither
he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.
Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own
reward according to his own labor.”
Paul was speaking to what he called carnal Christians because
they were divided, some following Paul and some Apollos, when they should have
been focused on Christ, the author and finisher of their faith. It said this in the footnotes in my Bible, “Our
teachers should be respected but we should never place them on pedestals that
create barriers between people or as a substitute for our devotion to Christ. God’s work involves many different individuals
with a variety of gifts and abilities. There
are no superstars in this task, only team members preforming their own special roles.
We become useful members of God’s team by
setting aside our desires to receive glory for what we do. Don’t seek the praise that comes from people because
it is comparatively worthless; instead, seek the approval that comes from God.”
I just want to encourage you to hang in there and not give up;
you are an important part of the team. Enough
said! I hope I have blessed you and
encouraged you today. May the good Lord
bless you and yours and may you have a super day!!
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