A Biblical Response to the MFE’s – Most Frequent Excuses
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Jesus told us in Matthew 28:16: All authority in Heaven and on Earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations. Notice there are no qualifiers. He didn’t say, “Go all ye who are ministers, or pastors, or paid, or trained, or extroverts, or rich or poor.”
God’s call to us, verified and repeated throughout the New Testament, is universal. It’s the one thing God expects you to do.
Sharing your faith is not a gift, it’s a mandate! Jesus didn’t say go into the world all of you who are “gifted.” He said go into the world (every Christian) and tell people about Him. It’s the one thing God expects you to do. It’s the single most important thing God expects you to do. That’s why it’s called the Great Commission.
Notice He doesn’t say go into the world and pray or read your Bible. He said go into the world and tell people about Him. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations . . . (Matt 28:19). There’s no grey area on this subject! Jesus requires you to tell people about Him . . . regardless of your “giftings.”
Everyone has different “giftings.” Some are loud, some are not. Some are academic, and some are not. Some have areas of special interest, and some do not. Spirit led Christians move everyone, every day, closer to Jesus. The truth is, God uses each of our unique personalities to connect us with people no one else can reach.
Again, Jesus didn’t say, “Go ye into the world all of you who are qualified or trained or paid.” There is no mention of that in the Bible. Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?” And all three times, when he answered yes, Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep” (John 21:11). All of us are surrounded every day by lost, spiritually hungry sheep, who God expects us to feed.
It should be noted that the most prolific faith sharers are new Christians! They can’t stop themselves. They may not know a single verse of scripture! They’re not trained and, by the world’s standards, not qualified. But their zeal, their love for God (I was blind and now I see) changes the minds of those around them.
When you’re living for God’s purpose, He orchestrates your steps . . . and the steps of those He’s leading to you!
That’s the Holy Spirit speaking through them, just as He wants to speak through you. It has nothing to do with training and everything to do with your love for God and allowing God to speak through you to the lost.
Thank God for the millions of people who have been ushered into the Kingdom of God by Evangelism training programs. But most Christians will never experience an Evangelism training program . . . and will use this as their excuse to never share their faith. But as much as you might use this excuse, and believe it to be valid, it contradicts scripture.
No preparation is needed! Mark 13:11 tells us: Just say whatever is given to you at the time (when you’re sharing your faith), for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. John 14:26 explains how this works in more detail: But the Holy Spirt, whom the Father will send in My Name, will teach you all things, and bring to remembrance (scriptures you may not have thought about for years) whatsoever I have said unto you.
This is how the Holy Spirit wants to work through you! It’s incredible! You can’t explain this without experiencing it. Luke 12:12 removes all doubt by explaining: The Holy Spirit will teach you at the time (of sharing your faith) what needs to be said. All you have to do is be available and listen to His voice.
The majority of faith sharing opportunities come through spontaneous, God-ordained conversations, with people you don’t know and will never see again. It’s impossible to prepare for these conversations.
From being in line at Starbucks, or in an aisle at Walmart, sitting in a waiting room, or talking with an operator on the phone, your job is to move everyone, every day, closer to Jesus . . . regardless of how little time you have with them. And it’s so easy when you allow God to give you the words to say when you need them, if only to say, “God Bless you,” with an inspired moment of eye contact.
“Your job is to move everyone, every day, closer to Jesus… regardless of how little time you have with them.”
At any given time, you’re surrounded by people suffering things you can’t begin to imagine – The spouse just filed papers, cancer was just discovered, the son committed suicide, bills can’t be paid. And no one cares until you, a stranger, allows God to love that person through you – and two lives are changed forever! When you experience God loving strangers through you, and watching their lives change in front of you, that’s when you experience the thrill of being a follower of Jesus Christ.
Best of all, you never have to leave your comfort zone! God has no interest in giving you a separate “faith sharing personality.” That would be absurd! He made you just like you are to reach people no one else can reach. It’s not about memorization, or recitation, or a manufactured persona that brings glory to you rather than to God. Saying the same thing a second time to another unsaved person strikes of reading a script, rather than following the lead of the Holy Spirit. Don’t go there!
The thought of memorizing what to say, or forcing a conversation, is not normal conversation, nor should it be when sharing your faith. Jesus told us very simply, in John 13:35: By this all will know that you are My Disciples, if you have love for one another. It’s time to put aside the collecting of scalps. Simply love on everyone, in the name of the Lord, for the sole purpose of loving on everyone. When you do that correctly, lives will change.
This should never be your concern! Bigotry has no regard for another person’s state of mind, life experiences, or current problems. It’s narrowminded, prejudice, and antagonistic against anyone whose views and actions are not in conformity. This is the antithesis of loving your neighbors as yourselves (Mark 12:30).
The word “Gospel” comes from the word, “God-spell,” meaning, “Good News.” The Good News of the Gospel is that God loves us! Jesus told us people will see us as His Disciples, not bigots, when we allow His love to flow through us to them, without condemnation. All of us have fallen short of the glory of God.
We can’t force people into becoming Christians. It comes through recognizing that God loves all of us the same! He wants to cleanse us from unrighteousness, clothe us in His righteousness, and give us His gift of Eternal Life. Even more amazing: God uses us to deliver this amazing message to the lost. Quite literally, your mission field is everyone around you.
When you’re in public, 80% of those around you are lost and headed for Eternity in Hell. Their lifestyles, goals, and aspirations are decidedly different from the truth of God’s Word. And it’s normal to interact with them without thinking of their Eternal destiny, without realizing God has supernaturally brought you together for His purpose!
Here’s the game changer! The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and He delighteth in His way (Psalm 37:23). When you’re living for God’s purpose, He orchestrates your steps . . . and the steps of those He’s leading to you! That’s the end of frustration and the beginning of understanding that God allows bad things to happen for a reason. This is when every unexpected delay in your life, AND every surprise conversation, shouts the message God is up to something – and your life becomes an adventure.
It doesn’t matter if they’re male or female, black or white, rich or poor, powerful or powerless, or how vile and obnoxious they might be. God loves everyone as much as you and He wants them to enjoy Heaven with you, because of you! That’s why He inserted you into their lives, if only for a moment. This is why serving God turns every day into an adventure.
“It has nothing to do with training and everything to do with your love for God and allowing God to speak through you to the lost”
Here’s the shocker! The most fun comes from loving the most unloveable. Those who are hurting the most, hurt people the most. That’s what they do! The surprise comes when their preconceived ideas of who you are and your judgment of them is overwhelmed by God’s love flowing through you to them! It’s hard for them to stay mad when you’re telling them God loves them. Every person wants to believe that’s possible!
The first time you see people change, in an instant, from laughter or mocking, to tears and remorse, will shock you . . . until it becomes your expectation. There’s nothing more fun or rewarding than allowing God to love the unlovable, through you. That’s the antithesis of bigotry!!!
Without a focus on Christ’s heart, that none should be lost, most conversations with strangers are cordial, brief and unremarkable. But when you look at those around you with God’s heart, their words and deeds will break your heart when you realize how far they are from God. And that will prompt you to love on them and allow God to love on them through you!
It is, of course, the famous question of, “Which comes first . . . the chicken or the egg?” Do I have enough faith to share my faith, or do I need to share my faith to get enough faith?
And the answer to that question is always yes! Because both are correct. You’ve been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. So, anyone wondering if they have the faith to share their faith, already has faith. They’ve already expressed their faith in Jesus Christ and received their crown of Eternal Life to confirm it. God already knows you have faith.
But the question being asked by many Christians is whether or not they have enough faith to share their faith. The disturbing side of that question is the statistical reality that 80% of Christians are living in fear. While we’re called people of faith, most of us are living in fear, which is the opposite of faith . . . and without faith it’s impossible to please God.
This is a major impediment for most American Christians today. Prayers are not being answered, and steps are not being directed because of lack of faith. There’s little difference today between the fears of the world and the fears of the Church.
“Do I have enough faith to share my faith, or do I need to share my faith to get enough faith?”
Wholehearted, unwavering faith is the prerequisite for God answering our prayers (James 1:2) and directing our steps (Proverbs 3:5). On the surface, it appears the achievement of “wholehearted” faith is the most basic requirement expected from God AND our most unreachable goal. For those of us who have tried, it’s impossible to muster up wholehearted faith by our own efforts. But God wouldn’t demand that we have wholehearted faith were it not achievable.
Simply said, we have faith when we know that God, without question, is God! Regardless of your protestations of faith, the status of your heart reveals the genuineness of your faith. When your heart is at rest, your trust is fixed on God no matter what’s going on in your life! You know that God is God! The question is, how do you get there?
That question is answered once and for all in Isaiah 43:10: Thus saith the Lord, I appointed you as my Witness so that you might know and believe and understand that I am God! Nothing will ever again shake your faith once you experience God speaking through you and changing lives in front of you. That battle is over!
When you became a Christian, you accepted, by your faith, that Jesus Christ is your Savior and Lord. As a Christ-follower, God has called you to live your life for His purpose (to seek and save the lost) to fulfill His Great Commission – to be His Ambassador and His reconciler to the lost.
God made no exceptions when He called you to share your faith! Because He knows that when you share your faith, you’ll have wholehearted faith! And that’s when He obligates Himself to Direct Your Steps and Answer Your Prayers.
It’s been said no matter how little time you have, you always have time for what’s most important to you. Here’s the bottom line: It’s not about how much time you have, but how you choose to use it.
Psalm 90:12 tells us: Our time belongs to God. Every moment is His, and we are under the most solemn obligation to use it for His Glory. It’s so easy to forget that God created us and can end our life at any moment. Every breath we take is a gift from God. We have this solemn obligation to use this brief time we have on earth as He’s directed us to use it.
Unfortunately, most Christians spend most of their time, energy, and emotions on things having nothing to do with God – or Eternity. Here’s a quick test: What have you done today, and doing every day, that will be of value forever? For Christians, the ultimate answer to that question is how many people will be in Heaven BECAUSE of what you’re doing? Anything else you’ve accomplished today, no matter how great and spectacular it may appear, will be meaningless in Heaven.
When asked which is the greatest Commandment, Jesus answered, loving Him and loving your neighbor as yourself. And He continued by saying doing these two Commandments will fulfill all of them. This is huge! When you love your neighbor as yourself, you’ll be as concerned for their Salvation as you are your own.
“It’s not about how much time you have, it’s about how you use it.”
“It’s not about how much time you have, it’s about how you use it. It echoes the message.”
This is where the law of the Old Testament is fulfilled in the New. You are Christ’s Ambassador (II Cor 5:20). When your focus is on moving everyone, every day, closer to Jesus, you’re doing everything possible in everything you do, to represent God correctly – so they can see God through you and want what you have!
Sharing your faith has nothing to do with your shortage of time and everything to do with how you want to spend your time. Do you want to build your treasures here on earth or in Heaven?
This is the weakest excuse of them all. And sadly, most of those who say they’re sharing their faith actually believe they’re sharing their faith by being a good person.
But this is the antithesis of the Gospel. Isaiah 64:6 tell us: Our righteousness is as filthy rags. Romans 3:10 explains: None of us is righteous, not even one. Ephesians 2:8 puts this completely to rest: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith (In Jesus Christ) and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.
The Apostle Paul lived his life exactly as he expressed it in Galatians 6:14: As for me, may I never boast about anything except the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that Cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died.
Unless, and until, we understand our sinfulness, with our only hope being in the death and resurrection of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ – we cannot be saved NOR can we influence anyone else to be saved. Being a good person can’t get you or anyone else into Heaven.
There are many who say they love God whose hearts are far from Him. Most are Biblically illiterate, have no idea who He is, but still believe they love Him. Millions pray to Him regularly, both out of tradition and wanting to believe they’re still in good standing in good standing with Him – simply because of their faithfulness in praying.
This becomes far more serious inside the Church. Most churchgoing, born again believers in America today are living in fear. Of course, living in fear is the opposite of living in faith. Living in fear tells God you don’t trust Him. And you can’t love a God you can’t trust.
Living in fear contradicts the Gospel. The scriptural thread of how loving God transforms your life begins when Jesus told us, in John 14:15: If you love me, you will obey my Commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper (the Holy Spirit) who will stay with you forever. Obeying God’s Commandments fulfills the promise of the Holy Spirit guiding you through the rest of your life! Notice how it all fits together!
When asked which is the greatest Commandment, Jesus said, loving Him and loving those around you as yourself. The connection could not be more obvious or transparent. You prove to God that you love Him by honoring His Commandments, the chief of which is loving Him and allowing Him to love everyone around you, through you!
It is true! God knows you love Him – when you obey Him and lead everyone around you to Him. It’s called the Great Commission!
Barry’s podcast destroys all the fears of faith sharing by understanding how sharing your faith ignites your faith – and your life!
There are no reasons for not sharing your faith . . . only excuses! God’s call to us, verified and repeated throughout the New Testament, is universal. All of us are called to tell people about Jesus!
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