”And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.“
I recently had a conversation with a minister and friend and we reasoned that if God’s intention was for every individual to be saved for their sole personal enjoyment and reward, then whenever we confess Christ as Lord we should be taken up to heaven since we have met the set goal.
There is a common saying that salvation is personal, and though that is true in the sense of a decision man has to willingly make and be deliberately be committed to; it is not complete. The essence of the Holy Spirit dwelling in you bodily is so that your whole life and being can testify of the divine leadership that now rules your life. It is so that your likeness to God may be restored and put to display, and in there, those that see you, hear you and encounter you, can receive of the blessing you yourself enjoy as a Christ follower.
That is why we as believers are regularly contrasted to things such as light, or salt, or cities on a hill. All three have one thing in common: they stand out. Nothing compares to a room that has good lighting, nothing pings and stings than overly salted food or food with no salt at all. Nothing also beats the dazzling beauty of a house tucked on a hill, even if watched from afar.
In our theme scripture, we receive an express command from our Master, to not treat our own salvation as final destination but to invite as many as we can reach by all means possible. Even in so doing, always keep to mind that God is gentle, and that places a demand on you too, to be gentle in all you attempt to do in His name.
Beware however, not to mistake gentleness with compromise. To every act of gentleness, whether a word spoken in love or a radical action done in charity, it must all be done with order and with the utmost degree of truth which is consistent with The Word. Hallelujah!
Prayer: Father, I thank you for this word. I am conscious of my responsibility to spread the Good News by the gifts and resources availed to me. Help me recognize my appointments and give me the grace to do all that I put my mind to with excellence and an upright spirit, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
CI.
