How to transition from being children of the Light to proclaimers of the Truth
In this dark world, believers are called upon to be lights on a hill – salt of the earth. They are meant to stand out – taste different – and sometimes accept the consequences. Rejection. Retribution. When a person steps out in faith, they can’t help but stand out in faith. And people living in darkness do not like to be exposed by a believer’s light and a proclamation of the Truth.
How can you transition from being children of Light to proclaimers of the Truth?
A life in Christ is not meant to be in a cocoon – wrapped up cozily in a life constantly surrounded by Christian friends or a church culture. A life in Christ spreads out its wings and reveals the beauty and the majesty of a Risen Lord.
Salt is only effective when it is sprinkled out of its saltshaker and into the world.
But there lies a danger. We can get so wrapped up into the world that our light can be dimmed or even extinguished. Jesus warns his disciples about salt losing its saltiness. We are to be in the world, not of the world. We can stand in awe of the beauty of the world, but be careful to not be attracted by the world.
“You must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.” (Eph. 4:17b)
There seems to be a bridge that Jesus is asking us to cross. Garnered in the safety of His Word, gathered in the security of fellow believers, we are to step across the bridge and into the world for one distinct purpose – to reach out and help Christ find His lost sheep. Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross for those lost sheep in the world. They are God’s children that He created. And like any parent that mourns over a child that has rejected or separated themselves from their presence, God desires reconciliation for all His children. And He uses you to pass along this message… “I have forgiven you. Believe me and come home!”
How can I cross over the bridge and begin to share this message with others? How can I transition from being a children of light or salt of the earth and proclaim the gospel to others?
We are given a clue from Christ on how to prepare our hearts and minds to transition from being children of light to proclaimers of the Truth.
“Jesus provides three steps to creating zeal for evangelism: 1) compassion 2) vision 3) prayer.”
We begin to transition from being children of Light to proclaimers of Truth by being in the Truth. We recognize our role by being messengers – not converters. By being in the Light, we convey love from the Light. Love builds a bridge that provides permission to speak on part of the lost, knowledge on part of the believer, and boldness in Christ to cross over. We transition to the gospel by engaging a person with simple message.
“Your sins have been forgiven. Now God promises you, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, the One who took your sins on Himself and give you His Holiness, and you will be saved.”
“Each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor.” (Eph. 4:25)
We have lost the spark of evangelism. Like a coming tide, the attractiveness of the world has absorbed our Christian culture. We seek to change morals through a political process rather than a transformed spirit. We are not only afraid to talk speak truthfully to our neighbor, but we don’t even know their names. We are hiding behind the masks of social media attempting to portray an outward picture that is different than the turmoil of an internal reality. People are struggling and they need our help!
Beware of signs of hardened hearts: They are darkened in their understanding (biblical ignorance), separated from the life of God (turned off by organized religion), and lost all sensitivity (given themselves over to sensuality] to the consequence of their sin. Hardened hearts do not reject the messenger, but the message. Evangelists have what people need. They have to be brought to the point where they are made aware of that need.
What does it mean to be children of Light?
The world hasn’t changed, but perhaps the church has.
Those who know and treasure the doctrine of justification and embrace His message of grace can hardly keep quiet about it.
“God’s verdict of “Not guilty!” operates independently of any response on part of the individual. Because of sin, Christ paid the death penalty on behalf of the world. By Christ’s resurrection, God the Father publicly declared that the world was no longer guilty because of what Christ has already done. The responsibility of an evangelist is simply to get the message out.” (David Valleskey)
Related Posts:
Sharing the Message of the Cross
Two lessons on evangelism for the tongue-tied
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