ho are we that preach salvation? I am sure it
is plain to God what we are. Sometimes we are counted as crazy and sometimes
we are right in our mind. Yet it is all for the sake of someone's salvation.
For the love that is in Jesus Christ towards us compels us to share the
gospel. And this is the message that we preach, Jesus died once for all; and
everyone that we baptize, we baptize into Christ. So we preach that we should
no longer live for ourselves but for the one that died for us and rose again.
The Holy Spirit bears witness to our hearts, the Spirit of the one true God
living in us, our installment until He redeems us and join Him eternally.
For the love of Christ constrains us, because
we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all,
that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died
for them and rose again. Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according
to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now
we know Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is ‘in Christ’, he is a new
creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now
all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ,
and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was ‘in
Christ’ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to
them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore we are
Advocates for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you
on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to
be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. -- 2
Corinthians 5:14-21
We then, as workers together with Him also
plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: "In an
acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped
you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
-- 2 Cor 6:1-2
We Are Ministers Of Reconciliation Of God’s
Grace
We then, as workers together with Him also
plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: "In an
acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped
you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
-- 2 Cor. 6:1-2
We Are Charged With Preaching The Truth
I charge you therefore before God and the Lord
Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His
kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince,
rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come
when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires,
because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and
they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
-- 2 Ti. 4:1-4
We Are To Present The Gospel By Manifesting
The Truth In Our Lives
Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we
have received mercy, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced the hidden
things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God
deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every
man's conscience in the sight of God. But even if our gospel is veiled, it is
veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has
blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of
Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach
ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus'
sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness who has
shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in
the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that
the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. -- 2 Cor. 4:1-7
We Need To Discipline Our Tongue To Reach
Maturity
My brethren, let not many of you
become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. For we all
stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect
man, able also to bridle the whole body. Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths
that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. Look also at ships:
although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by
a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires. Even so the tongue is a little
member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles!
And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our
members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature;
and it is set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile
and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. But no man
can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we
bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the
similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My
brethren, these things ought not to be so. -- James 3:1-10
ince we are the children of God, we should be
do the work our Father has called us to do. If we have received His Spirit of
love then we should realize that we are all one ‘in Christ’. There is no
other Gospel; we were all called out of the darkness and into His marvelous
light. God calls us out of the world to accomplish His will. God calls us to
holiness and obedience, and to share the Good News of the great hope of
salvation ‘in Christ’ with the world. This happens every time we lift Jesus
up and give due respect to the Word of God, His Holy Bible. The inspirited,
or inspired Word of God gives His church the fullness of His Spirit and
direction to reach His disobedient children. We must put away
self-interpretations of Scripture by rightly dividing the Word of God. We
must learn to correlate the entire Word of God to establish sound doctrine.
We have a ministry of reconciliation
that is two-fold: we are to reconcile humanity to God, and reconcile our
personal differences. We need to treat the members of God's family as
brothers and sisters, or as spiritual fathers and mothers. When we accept
each other for our individuality, all things will be possible to the children
of God. We need to change our way of thinking when God gives us a deeper
revelation of the truth. Are we willing to change and accept God's will by
taking up our cross and following Him? God calls us to serve our Lord Jesus
Christ in the service of others.
The Holy Spirit directs us to put
away the swords, our own pet doctrines, and stop fighting among ourselves to
do God's will. Instead we are to love one another. If a person wants to
preach the Gospel of Peace, he has to practice what he preaches, or he should
stay at home. There is no difference; we are all part of the ministry of
reconciliation. God is not a respecter of people; He does not esteem any
individual more highly than another. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is
neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one
‘in Christ’ Jesus. -- Galatians 3:28
Therefore let us prepare ourselves
with the whole armor of God and begin to seek His will. For He says: "In an
acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped
you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
-- 2 Cor 6:2 We are in an age of unprecedented Grace; God’s presence is
working in us. We are expecting the soon return of our Lord Jesus Christ. It
is not the time to sit around and look for signs of His coming. Its time to
start working the fields and bring in the harvest of the earth. The fields
are white!
There are two very important
attributes for the Christian to consider: 1) maturity and 2) compassion. Now
is the time to ask ourselves if we are seriously willing to grow up. We need
to remain faithful and find compassion to reach out with the love of God.
What we need to think about are priorities. What are your priorities going to
be? Do we love our neighbors enough to be there for them? Would they reach
out to us for help? Will we be ready if there is an opportunity even when it
is not convenient or when it is embarrassing?
God loves us and suffered the
degradation of the crucifixion. Sharing His love with others is one way to
truly take up His cross and follow Him. To see ourselves on the Cross with
Him will take maturity on our part. This is the message we need to share with
them: 'Jesus died for all the sins of the world.' Everyone who receives
Christ receives eternal life.
I am not to preach, ‘The Gospel
according to Sherman.' The only things I have or know God gave to me directly
or indirectly. We may know Jesus as the personal friend that He is willing to
be to each one of us. We came to Him through the preaching of the Word. We
accepted salvation on the same terms. The way most of us received the Good
News of the Gospel was through His Saints. They revealed Jesus through the
Word of God, the Holy Bible. The Good News we heard is that salvation is the
gift of God, and we received eternal life ‘in Christ’. ‘For by grace you have
been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
not of works, lest anyone should boast.’ -- Ep. 2:8-9
We are the children of God through
the sacrifice of His Son. The Gospel calls us to live sacrificially. The
love of God obligates us to share this Good News, the benefits of the Cross.
Everyone who asks Jesus into their heart as their Savior receives the promise.
Anyone can receive the gift of God's salvation. Without a doubt we can see
God’s love for us, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten
Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting
life." --John 3:16
By receiving Jesus every believer
has eternal security in Him, "And I give them eternal life, and they shall
never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand." -- John 10:28
Faith in the atonement by the death,
burial, resurrection, and ascension of our Lord for all of our sins sets us
free from the bondage of death and the power of sin. God will not bring our
past sins to remembrance. God wants everyone to know that He accepts us ‘in
Christ’ and loves us. He hates the sin but loves the sinner. We understand
the truth through the inspired Word through His servant Paul’s writings, 'But
God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us. -- Rom. 5:8
Now if the love of God is in us we
will put off our old nature, the flesh, because we want to draw closer to
God. When we separate ourselves from the worldly ways we begin to understand
what love is. Love is unselfish and enables us to take up our Cross and
follow His footsteps. We love Him because He first loved us. -- 1 John 4:19
We are a new creation ‘in Christ’
Jesus and free from all the cares and fears of this world. There is no fear
in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But
he who fears has not been made perfect in love. -- 1 John 4:18
We can fulfill the law of the Spirit
as easily as believing and obeying God's Words, "Teacher, which is the great
commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him," 'You shall love the LORD your God
with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' "This is
the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love
your neighbor as yourself.' "On these two commandments hang all the Law and
the Prophets."- Mt 22:36-40
The Lord wants
our relationships to develop from the love of God. We need to set our
priorities and share the love of God with others: Accepting His love and
sharing it with our family, friends and neighbors is the will of God. Then we
learn to joyfully participate in life through trials and tribulation knowing
Christ is in us and that we can expect greater joy in the world to come.
Amen!