The Apostle Paul before he gave his heart to Jesus had a great passion to persecute the saints of the Lord. But once he became converted to the faith he spent the rest of his life working to see men saved. According to Pastor John MacArthur: “Paul’s supreme passion was to see men saved. He cared nothing for personal comfort, popularity, or reputation. He offered no compromise of the gospel, because he knew it is the only power available that can change lives for eternity.”1
While Paul suffered greatly for his boldness to proclaim the gospel, as we read in (2 Corinthians 11:23-28), his passion for the lost was so great that it made his suffering not only bearable but small in comparison to the mission and commission he had from the Lord as well as the great joy sharing the gospel gave him. For you see Paul understood that his personal comfort, popularity, and reputation, while important to him, had to take a backseat to the greater need of seeing souls rescued from eternal damnation.
Paul was single-minded with respect to proclaiming the gospel, so much so, that it consumed much of his waking hours. And when he wasn’t sharing the gospel Paul spent much time in prayer and worship. My friends while not all of us will be called into full-time evangelism, we all are called to share the gospel whenever the Lord opens a door to talk about Jesus. And while most of us, especially in America, won’t suffer like Paul for his faithfulness to the gospel, we often will get persecuted and mocked for sharing our message of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Now what about you fellow Christian. What’s your passion? Seeing souls saved should be the great passion for all of us. For in the last analysis what can be more important than sharing with family, friends, and even strangers the only message that has eternal consequences! While talking about the weather and asking family, friends, and strangers how their day is going has its place, in starting our conversations, we should do everything in our power to steer our conversations to the eternal things of the gospel. And while we may get ridiculed and even laughed at for telling people about Jesus, I can think of nothing more loving than warning people of the eternal consequences of rejecting the gospel.
In closing, if I can put it bluntly, our comfort and feelings are worth being assailed when it comes to the eternal destinies of those we come in contact with. So let’s get busy for there is a world that needs to hear the gospel!
1 Romans 1-8 Quotes by John F. MacArthur Jr. (goodreads.com)
“In starting our conversations, we should do everything in our power to steer our conversations to the eternal things of the gospel.”
As a new Christian, 55 years ago, I would hear about persecution for sharing the Gospel. That was always a non-starter for me. To remedy this fear and trepidation, I thought up ways to “steer our conversations to the eternal things” that had the element of winsomeness that described Jesus. People are more receptive when they sense genuineness and care in the messenger. Winsomeness, therefore, isn’t about manipulating emotions but fostering genuine connections. It’s about presenting the truth of the gospel in a manner that’s both inviting and compelling.
One way to engage people in a conversation about “eternal things” I discovered years ago was to tell them what their name means. This is a great method that has yielded amazing responses and is well suited to the restaurant server/customer relationship and store clerk at checkout counter. They usually have name tags, which makes it easy to surprise them by asking, “Do you know what your name means?” In my experience, about 90% say, “No!” I have an app on my phone that gives name meanings that I can quickly look up. For example, Curt means courteous and polite. I might tell him that his name says he is a lot like Jesus as described in the Bible. Your parents probably wanted that kind of son. I have had servers break down and cry upon hearing what their name means. I’ve done this so long that when I ask the question, some will say, “Yes, you told me before.” Many, with direct Biblical names, will readily say, “I’m a Christian!” It’s a fun and winsome way to start a meaningful conversation without concern of being persecuted.
A second suggestion is from my ex-pastor who used to go to Starbucks in the morning when they have long lines. While waiting, he would turn around and tell the person behind him that he prays every morning and without giving him personal details, can he pray for them. More than not, they would open up and accept the offer by telling him about some need or crisis in their life or someone they care about. There are times they will pray with him while they’re standing in line.
These are two tools that are easy to use and will yield many meaningful conversations. Try it the next time you eat out.