God is not a secret to be hid in our lives. The crucifixion is not a secret in my life but a tragedy turned into a victory that gives all freedom and I celebrate that every moment.
Jesus Christ is not just a part of who I am but He exists in every fiber and every being of my life.
Not just at church. Not just during religious holidays.
Not just at work. Not just with words.
Not just around Christian people but around all people everywhere.
“You are never closer in your relationship (your personal everyday, every moment relationship) with Christ than when you are sharing Christ in your relationships.”
God Himself has designed that everything in the church be done by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
We are a Spirit filled church.
We are a supernatural church.
We need more than great music, good dramas, incredible video clips, jump houses, pizza parties and ice cream socials.
We need the all powerful, all knowing, always in attendance, supernatural power of the Holy Spirit!
Acts 1:8 challenges us to “Go and BE my witnesses.”
It does not say, “Go and DO witnessing.”
Sharing Christ is not a project, or a weekend retreat, it is a lifestyle!!!
We in the church have got to understand that REAL MINISTRY is not so much about doing as it is about BEING.
God called us to be witnesses.
But some of us have entered the “Witness Protection Program” and we are waiting for the perfect opportune time to share our testimony.
Proverbs 11:30 “The godly are like trees that bear life-giving fruit, and those who save lives are wise.”
FACT #1
The godly are like trees that bear life-giving fruit.
My life is an authentication, a proof of, a demonstration of, evidence if you will, of the working change that Jesus Christ has made in my life!
I am a living, breathing, walking, talking, testimony of the Life Giving, Life changing power of Christ!
FACT #2
“Those who save lives are wise.”
Which means:
“You are never wiser in your life than when you are winning souls.” (WHEN--DENOTES A SPECIFIC MOMENT IN TIME)
Want to get closer to God? Introduce them to Him!
When I begin to stop bearing life-giving fruit I begin to become ungodly and unstable. As if I was double-minded. I used to believe that Christ could change lives but I’ve not seen anything recently to confirm that ability. “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”
The three commitments of a soul winner are...
1. A soul winner is committed to God and His ways regardless of the consequences.
Proverbs 24:11,12 “Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don't stand back and let them die. 12Don't try to avoid responsibility by saying you didn't know about it. For God knows all hearts, and he sees you. He keeps watch over your soul, and he knows you knew! And he will judge all people according to what they have done.”
2 Timothy 3:12 “Yes and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.”
2. A soul winner is committed to seeing the lost won at any cost.
Illustrate here:
24 hours in a day 7 days in a week 168 hours in a week 168 feet of string-2 sheets of paper
So this means that if the Church-the Pastors-the Youth Pastors have you only 2 hours of those 168 hours in that week.
That’s only 1.2% of Spiritual influence.
And that’s 98.8% of Outside influencers-Parental Influences-School-Work-Sports
3. A soul winner uses his/her resources, his/her time, and his/her life to win others to Christ.
I like what Paul says in 1 Cor 9:19 “I made myself a servant unto all, that I might gain the more."
Didn’t Jesus say, "From henceforth thou shall catch men"?
Who ever told you to stop or to never try?
Resources-income-possessions-wealth-property-assets
Time-my most valuable commodity
Life -I only have one. Existence-being-living-days-years
Andrew brought Simon- just one. But that was many, for under God, Simon brought three thousand souls in one day!
It has been estimated that close to 95% of church members have never lead anyone to Christ.
1. We fear rejection.
1 in 25 creates a relationship with Jesus Christ and believes.
It takes 24 NO’s to get a YES but all 25 are important and we shouldn’t take it personally.
The question is: are we increasing spiritually and numerically if not how can we increase spiritually and numerically?
He has designed us, designated us, and He desires us to increase.
The Spirit of God has given us good news to share with the world and He has put up barriers.
He put up the cross, He’s put up the blood, He’s put up the Holy Spirit and He said don’t go to hell, don’t blaspheme the Holy Spirit, don’t resist my Holy Spirit.
“Jesus said if I be lifted up I will draw all men, women, and children unto myself.”
Lift Him up. Live the Christian life with all you’ve got.
Live it like you were the last Christian on earth.
Live it bearing the fruits of the Spirit.
Love God with all your heart, your soul, your mind and your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.
How did they increase the church in the bible?
You know what they did they arrested Paul and Silas, they beat them, they stripped them, they chained them and they threw them in prison but at midnight the scripture said, “At midnight they prayed and sang praises.”
Acts.16:25 “And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.”
I was reading this story over and over and the Lord said every now and again the devil makes a mistake. He said if you’ll read that I’ll show you Satan’s worst mistake in this whole story.
I read it, he beat them, he stripped them, he chained them, threw them in the prison over and over and over and then one day I saw it.
The devil made a mistake not when he beat them, not when he attacked them, not when he stripped them, not when he chained them, but he put Paul and Silas in the same cell!
Because Jesus had already said, “If any two of them get together and begin to lift me up there is no prison house strong enough to hold them.”
We have got to come together as a team unified in the work of Jesus Christ!
What if he’d had put Paul in the same cell as sister drama that just wants to criticize and find fault with everybody?
I don’t think they’d of had a miracle.
But you know you got a problem when you open your mouth and say “Halle” and the person beside you says “lujah.” And you say “Thank ya” and they say “Jesus!”
Then here’s what sealed the deal for me the scripture said, Acts.16:26 “And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed.”
Just two of them in that prison were praising while the rest of them were all bound up. But when two of them started praising everyone’s bands got loosed.
If we praise Him then the rest of the world will get loose.
“When you grieve the Holy Spirit it is something that you do to Him, when you quench the Spirit it is something that you do to yourself.”
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