Living And Giving The Gospel

It is coming soon, I mean, the students camp for the BB & GB seniors (secondary school students) on the 11-13 June 2009. We hope to get 100 students to this 3 days camp. In this camp there will be lots of physical events and the evenings will be used for Praise and Worship with an evangelistic focus. There are a few important truths about reaching out to people.

Let us think about the thief hung on the cross next to Jesus. He was given the capital punishment and with blood coming out from of his hands and feet, he turned to Jesus and said: “Lord, remember me” and Jesus replied: “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). This was a case of conversion at the last moment of life. From here we can learn three important truths about conversion.

1. No one is beyond salvation. There might be people whom you have written off as hopeless for Christ. You may have tried everything you know to win that person and you may be convinced that he/she will never respond. When you are tempted to think that your friend is beyond the reach of salvation, remember the thief on the cross.

2. Our godly life is the most effective evangelism tool. Socrates once called words “stupid things.” The real message is in your life. Words are indispensable in sharing the Good News but very often we have the tendency to talk too much. Our godly life will do more talking than our words. We should learn to let God do the work in people’s lives. We also need to keep an open ear and a prayerful heart when we try to reach people. God will give us the appropriate words at just the right time. The thief knew that Jesus had done nothing wrong and he chose to believe (Lk 23:41). It was Jesus’ life that convicted him to faith.

3. God accepts simple faith. The thief had a criminal past. What did he do to qualify for heaven? He did not prove himself worthy of eternal life and neither did he had the chance even if he wanted to amend his life. Why did Jesus give him the promise of eternal life? It is simply—faith, nothing more nothing less. That is all that God required for a person to qualify for eternal life. That is what we can offer when we share Jesus with our friends. What God requires is simple faith.

When the opportunity arises, be ready to share the wonderful things that God has done in your life. BUT words alone is not enough. The real message is in your life.