Last week we left off with the encouragement to live a peaceful life so that those around us may see it and wonder how they themselves may receive such an abundant life filled with true peace, joy and hope. Therefore, we must always be ready to give an account for the life we have received in Jesus! We are instructed to do so in 1 Peter 3:15-16 which says “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. (NIV)
As we are instructed in 1 Peter, we must always be prepared to share the gospel of Christ with others and we must do so with gentleness! Let us always remember that we are all imperfect sinners and we all need Jesus! We ourselves are imperfect sinners and yet God has rescued us from all sin and death in His Son, Jesus, who loves us and gave Himself for us to reconcile us to God by the shedding of His blood for us! It is God alone who we sin against and yet it is God who has blessed us with His free gift of salvation in Jesus! We do not deserve the salvation we have received in Jesus, because of our sinful nature we deserve punishment and death, but God has blessed us with His perfect grace in our Savior Jesus! God opened our eyes to the truth about our sinful nature so that we came to understand and admit that we are in fact sinners and God taught us about our need for Jesus to save us! God blessed us with our faith in Jesus so that we believe in Him and we accepted Him as our personal Lord and Savior receiving eternal life in Him and eternal forgiveness for every single one of our past, present and future sins in Jesus! It is not because of who we are or what we did that we are saved but it is by the perfect grace of God who called us out of darkness revealing the truth to us and blessing us with faith in Jesus to receive eternal life in Him! God has blessed us with everything we need and everything we do not deserve in our Savior Jesus who loves us and gave Himself for us! We are imperfect sinners who have been redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus who paid the full price for us! Let us always walk humbly with our God and be careful and faithful to see all people as we should, for all people are imperfect sinners who need Jesus just like us! Praise God that we have been blessed with our faith in Jesus to receive eternal life in Him! We are now children of God and Jesus lives in our inner being as our personal Lord and Savior! It is no longer us who lives but it is Jesus who lives in us and He is our life! (Galatians 2:20, Colossians 3:4) We are the vessel through which Jesus shares His truth and love with others! Jesus is the light of life, (John 1:4) and He lives in us constantly shining His light of life through us for all to see! Praise God that we have been called to eternal life in our Savior Jesus and praise God that we get to be the vessel through which Jesus shares His gospel with everyone around us!
Titus 2:11 says “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. (NIV) God offers salvation to all people! We must share the gospel of Jesus with gentleness and respect having compassion for all people, for we know that we ourselves are sinners as well and thankfully God shared the gospel of Jesus with us and God blessed us with our faith to believe in Jesus and accept Him as our personal Lord and Savior to receive eternal life in Him, even though we do not deserve it! Romans 10:13-15 says that “for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” (NIV) We have been redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus and now God is sharing the gospel of Christ through us! God is sending us as the vessels through which He shares His gospel of truth with others and we have been blessed with beautiful feet that bring the good news about salvation in Jesus! Romans 10:17 says that “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. (NIV) Let us be faithful in sharing the gospel of Jesus with the gentleness and love that God showed us as He shared the gospel of Jesus with us, the gospel of our salvation!
Sharing the gospel of Jesus includes sharing the Word of God. In order to share the Word of God we must know what the Word of God says! We must be faithful in reading God’s Word and studying His Word! 2 Timothy 3:16 says that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (NIV) As we read in 2 Timothy, the Word of God prepares us to be thoroughly equipped for every good work and that includes sharing the gospel of Christ! So let us be faithful in reading and studying God’s Word! Let us be faithful in meditating on God’s Word! Not only do we need to be faithful in reading God’s Word but we must also be faithful in doing what God’s Word instructs us to do! James 1:22 says “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. (NIV) We must do what God’s Word instructs us to do, being faithful to keep God’s commands! James 1:25 says “But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. (NIV) We must be faithful in reading God’s Word and doing what His Word says and we will be blessed for doing so! In order to live according to God’s Word we must know what His Word says and we must do what God instructs us to do. As we live by God’s Word others are able to see us doing so and they may then start to wonder how they can receive the life that we have in Jesus which may present the opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus with them as we give our account for the life that we have in Jesus that is filled with true peace, hope and joy!
Be encouraged with the fact that it is God who shares the gospel of Jesus with others through you! Philippians 2:13 says “for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. (NIV) All those who believe in Jesus Christ and accept Him as their personal Lord and Savior receive the Holy Spirit of God in their inner being! Ephesians 1:13-14 says “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his gory. (NIV) The Holy Spirit of God lives in the inner being of every person who believes in Jesus and has accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior! If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, then the Holy Spirit lives in you and He is constantly sharing His truth and love with others through you! 2 Peter 1:20-21 says that “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (NIV) As a child of God, who has accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, you have been sealed with the promised Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit of God lives in your inner being! The Holy Spirit will speak through you and share the gospel of Christ with others! 1 Corinthians 2:12-13 says that “What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. (NIV) The Holy Spirit will speak through you and share the gospel of Christ through you! Do not worry about what you will say for it is not you who is sharing the truth but it is God’s Holy Spirit sharing the truth through you! What an incredible blessing! As Matthew 10:19-20 says “But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. (NIV) So do not worry about what to say or if it will be said right, for it is not you speaking it is the Holy Spirit of God speaking through you! Study God’s Word, be prepared and remember God will speak through you!
I encourage all of you to pray about sharing the gospel of Christ! We are instructed in God’s Word to be faithful in prayer. (Romans 12:12) Humble yourself before the Lord and pray that He will prepare you in every way according to His perfect will! Remember, to believe that you have what you are asking for in prayer and it will be yours! (Mark 11:24) God is faithful even when we are not and God is in control of all things! God’s will is always done and God always works all things out for the good of His children! (Romans 8:28) Remember that it is God who works in you to do His will and to live in a manner that glorifies Him! (Philippians 2:13) God will prepare you and He will speak through you! Pray that God will make you to be faithful in reading His Word, studying His word and doing exactly what His Word instructs you to do, and believe that He will do it because He will!
It is also important to remember that we must not be frightened in any way by those who oppose us! Remember that Philippians 1:27-28 says “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. (NIV) So do not be frightened in any way and enjoy being the vessel through which God shares the gospel of Christ with others! Below are some Bible Verses that will be helpful in sharing the gospel of Jesus with others! Everyone is encouraged to study these verses and it would benefit us all to memorize them as well! Do not get discouraged about memorizing Bible Verses! Pray to God and ask Him to help you memorize each Bible Verse and believe that He will do so because He will! You can read and learn more about memorizing Scripture in this previous blog post, 6 Tips for Memorizing Scripture. It may be helpful to you to write the Bible Verses below down and carry them with you. Writing the Scriptures down may also help you to memorize them better! You could also find it helpful to highlight or mark the Bible Verses below in your Bible and keep it with you wherever you go so that you can easily access the passages of Scripture to share with others! Remember, God will prepare you and God will speak through you! God will share the gospel of Jesus through you! Enjoy being the vessel through which God shares His truth and love with others and enjoy this blessed eternal life to which you have been called in your Savior Jesus and praise God without ceasing!
We all sin.
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 3:23, NIV
Our sin separates us from God.
But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
Isaiah 59:2, NIV
Our sin leads to death.
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:23, NIV
Jesus Christ died on the cross to save us from our sins and all who believe in Him receive eternal life in Him.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16, NIV
Salvation is only found in Jesus.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
Acts 4:12, NIV
If we come to understand and admit that we are sinners and that we need Jesus to save us and if we believe in our hearts that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins and that He rose to life again, then we can invite Jesus into our hearts and our lives as our personal Lord and Savior.
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Romans 10:9, NIV
If you have come to understand and admit that you are a sinner and that you need Jesus to save you and if you believe in your heart that Jesus died on the cross to save you from your sins and that He rose to life again, then you can invite Jesus into your heart and your life as your personal Lord and Savior. You can pray a prayer like this:
Dear Heavenly Father,
I know that I am a sinner and that I need Jesus to save me. I believe that Jesus died on the cross to save me from my sins and that He rose to life again. God I am sorry for my sin. I invite Jesus into my heart and my life as my personal Lord and Savior. I commit my life to you.
In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
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