BE PREPARED TO EVANGELIZE

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Colossians 4:5-6

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

In yesterday’s message from Colossians 4, we found the Apostle Paul asking his brothers and sisters in Colossae to pray for him, specifically for continued opportunities to evangelize to others. He not only hoped for more Gospel work to come his way but to also be able to communicate the good news clearly to ensure maximum understanding by those he spoke to.

It’s important to note here that everyone who has chosen to believe in Jesus as Savior is called by Him to be an evangelist through the Great Commission. Here was the tasker:

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Matthew 28:19-20a

All Christ believers are called to action so to ensure that everyone hears about Jesus and the salvation God offers Him. And so we all should be joining Paul in praying for Gospel-sharing opportunities each and every day.

But what are we to do when those occasions happen? What considerations need to be in play as we tell others about Jesus?

We find the answer in today’s passage. Look again at verses 5 and 6:

Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. Colossians 4:5-6

How are we to operate within Gospel-sharing opportunities?

First, we have to exercise wisdom in the way we conduct ourselves when discussing the Gospel with outsiders, those who have not committed to Christ. Every person is different and so we can’t approach everyone the same. We have to meet people where they are and get to know them to find the right angle to communicate Jesus with them. Wisdom helps us be patient to be most effective and it also reminds us to trust in the leading of the Holy Spirit who will always help show us the best way to bring the good news of salvation to others.

The second thing we need to do when carrying out daily evangelism is to “make the most of every opportunity”.

Perhaps the easiest way to do this is to keep in mind the urgency within every Gospel-sharing experience. The unsaved person is on their way to God’s eternal judgment in Hell. Death won’t be the end for them anymore than it is for a person in Christ and an evangelist has the chance to help a person see their need for a Savior.

In the end translation, there’s simply too much at stake to not make the most of every Gospel-sharing opportunity the Lord brings our way.

Finally, the scriptures advise us to allow our conversations to be “full of grace” and “seasoned with salt”.

Any discussion about salvation must include an explanation of grace. This can include God’s grace as displayed by offering up His Son to die in our place. God requires nothing from us in return but to simply believe in Jesus to be saved. I have always liked to share the gift of grace by treating the word “grace” as the following acronym:

God’s

Reward

At

Christ’s

Expense

Within every evangelism opportunity, we must be prepared to talk about grace.

But what about the salt seasoning? What is that all about?

The answer comes in thinking about salt and why it is used.

When applied to food, salt enhances the flavor of what is being eaten. It makes it more palatable.

In biblical times, salt was also used as a preservative, applied to meat to prolong its usefulness before spoiling.

As Christians share the good news of salvation through Jesus with others, they must ensure that it is interesting to the listener, seasoned so that the listener understands how their life will be enhanced and preserved through placing their belief in Christ. That’s what it means to season Gospel conversations with “salt”.

Friends, we need to pray for the Lord to bring us Gospel-sharing opportunities every day but we also need to be prepared so to maximize those opportunities when they come. Our passage today has equipped us to ensure we do just that.

Thanks be to God for the gift of His Word!

Amen.  

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com