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Evangelism, rewards or repercussions

by Michael Adams  
5/14/2012 / Christian Living

Preach The Word
Ezekiel 3: 16-21,"And It came to pass at the end of seven days, that that the word of the LORD came to me saying, Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.

When I say unto the wicked thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked ways, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.

Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall surely die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.

Again, when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at thine hand.

Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul."

We are told by God almighty to WARN the wicked of their sin, today we want to look the other way, not pay attention to it. We are compelled wrongly that if it doesn't effect me then who cares it is on the wicked. God said to warn him or his blood will be required at our very hand. We knew he was wrong, he needed our love, concern and devotion to God to warn him of his ways. We need to preach the word be ready to reach the lost for Christ. We are in the last days, God said His Holy Spirit would not always strive with man; it is up to Christians to reach the lost. It is up to us to bring up the erring child of God.

II Timothy 4: 2-4 PREACH THE WORD; be instant in season, out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and DOCTRINE.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn way their ears from the truth, and be turned unto fables.

Paring Ezekiel and Timothy here God is telling us to warn the wicked with all truth, to be diligent spreading the Word, both to warn the lost and edify the erring child of God. Lift them up with compassion, show the care, the love Christ showed to us when we were lost in our sin.

Jesus has commissioned us to go out and preach and teach in His name. To let a lost and dying world know there is no other name under heaven by which we are to be saved than that of our precious Saviour Jesus Christ. Jesus said to compel them to come in, whatever it takes we are to show the lost Grace through Faith, and that not of ourselves but by Christ not of any work we can do, but that it is a gift, a gift from God not of our works lest any man should boast. Today, especially these days we live in, we need to go out and compel them to come in. We are in the greatest days of apostasy the church has ever known, therefore, it is up to us, the saved baptized body of believers to reach the lost for Christ.

We are a new testament church fully entrusted with the Gospel of Christ. JESUS in the great commission compels us to go out and preach the word, evangelize to the lost. Jesus said,"GO YE", and we as Christians are to go, go to the world and tell of the love of Jesus! I know I can preach the word, I know I can sit and talk to a lost man about his eternal fate. I have people say to me they just do not know enough to reach anyone, my friend, oh my friend yes you do. You do know enough. You remember the day and time you gave your life to Christ? Do you remember how it felt having the burden of your sin debt lifted? Do you remember the day you went into the waters of baptism, and the preacher lay you back under the waters? Do you remember that feeling? Then yes you know enough, you may not quote scripture, you may not know every chapter and verse of God's word, BUT, you know enough, you know what Jesus did for you!

We were put in trust of the Gospel of Christ, God has trusted us to take His very own word out and preach to the lost, I Thes. 2:4. We all have some kind of ability to reach the lost, I Tim 4:1-4 tells us not to neglect the gift we have. God gave it, you use it. II Tim. 1:18 says not to be ashamed of the Gospel. If you hide it in your heart it's the same as showing shame. Spread it out give it out, all to glorify God. John 20:21,"As my Father sent me, even so send I you", Jesus telling us to go. In Mark 1, Matt. 4, Matt. 28 Acts 1, we are told to go, and these are just a few times mentioned.

I have heard some great qoutes from sermons telling us to go.

Dr. Wayne Burke said,"We are to go and glow, so the lost and the church grow; go glow and grow.

Pastor Terrell Hudson said of evangelism and witnessing,"We are to have convictions, endurance, compassion, and submission to God. He also said,"All the angels of heaven cannot make the lost get saved if they say no, BUT, all the demons of hell cannot stop them if they say yes".

Dr. Lee Roberson said,"For God to use you, you must have rock ribbed convictions".

Results of evangelism may never be known if we don't put on our walking shoes and lay the leather to the road. I heard an old preacher say,"that leather bound Bible will never give you its full potential until you put some shoe leather with it".

One even older preacher was talking of going out on visitation one night. He had a heart problem and was not feeling as if he could walk through a neighborhood to take out God's word. He met those at church that were going and said how bad he felt, and that after they prayed for those going out he was going to get his prescription filled and head home. Waiting in line that evening, waiting for his prescription, he started talking to another gentleman also waiting. He introduced himself and said he was heading home to rest even though he was supposed to be out on visitation. The man asked what visitation is and where they go. So the preacher explained meeting on Thursday evenings at church and going door to door asking people to come visit our church. He said how we go out to surrounding neighborhoods and knock on doors. The man said that the church must not be close to him because no one has ever knocked on his door. And asked where the church is located. The pastor smiled and told him just up the hill here behind the store. Confused the man asked if it was the one that looked like a big ship and had a long steeple with a cross. The Pastor smiled and said it sure was, and asked if the man knew about it. Sorrowfully the man said no, and he had lived in the shadows of that steeple and cross for years. No one had ever came to his door. The pastor said it wasn't too late to come and visit sometime, but the man hung his head and tearfully said,"you don't get it, I have never been invited, I have lived in this shadow of your church for years, and no one has ever been to my home to invite me". The pastor was in shock, how could we have neighbors so close that we don't pay any attention? He apologized and extended an invitation to the man, pleading him to come. Smiling the man said yes he would be there Sunday, all he ever wanted was an invitation.
How many are in your shadows? How many are so close we don't see them because we look so far out? My friends evangelism starts in our own backyards, with love and grace and compassion to bring the lost in. Most people that will come just want to be invited. Who will you invite this Sunday to your church? Who will you have compassion for, have concern for, who will you invite?

Results happen when we go, people may say yes, they may well say no, but we are to go.

Rewards will happen when we go. We may reach that one who gives their life over to Christ and we can rejoice in the Lord with them.

Repercussions will happen if we do not go. God one day will show us the times we did not say a word when we could have won a soul for Him.

The choice is yours, follow, go out into all the world (backyards) and tell of Jesus. or to deny HIM, to be ashamed of HIS word. It's up to you, what will you do?

One more quote, a simple message, "A preacher who will preach from the pulpit for a paycheck, but will not go out into the streets for free, is a professional speaker. A church member, though they sing and pray and raise their hands in church but will not go out to the hedges and highways of the world is a hypocrite".

It's up to you now, what will you do? God is waiting for an answer, and people are dying everyday, what will you say?

All scripture from the KJV Bible.

Michael is an evangelist serving from South Dayton Baptist Church in Moraine, Ohio. He has given his life to serve God in evangelism and pulpit supply for over 100 area churches. He is married to his wife Tammy the love of his life. Together they travel and spread the great news of Jesus Christ.

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