The message was brought by Rev. Eddie Foster on August 6, 2023.
Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
We’re closer to the coming of the Lord than we’ve ever been. In this life we make sacrifices for what we think is important. So why are we not more concerned and invested in soul winning? We must not think it’s really all that important. Here are some reasons why it is.
The peril waiting for the lost is real. Every person who doesn’t accept Jesus Christ as Savior is already condemned. You don’t have to wait until you die to find this out. You will be in hell if you reject Jesus. John 3:17-18 bears this out. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. Hell is a real place. If you go to heaven it will be through the blood of Jesus or you’ll not go. Without Jesus you are already under the death penalty. Remember, the fact that we’re alive means we will never cease to exist. We will be somewhere in eternity. Knowing that, why doesn’t everyone get saved? Why don’t people want to go to a better land? I wish we could really grasp that people do in fact go to hell. If a person dies unsaved, he/she will go to hell. If we walked in hell one moment we would all try our best to reach people for Christ. The rich man opened his eyes in torment in hell. He had an overwhelming desire that his brothers not come there and wanted them to be warned. If the lost truly got a picture of hell, they’d run to find Christ.
The price paid to keep us out of hell was high. We’ll never understand the cruelness of the cross. It was a very high price to pay for our sins. Every sin from Adam forward was laid on Jesus Christ. He bore the penalty paying the debt. He gave his life as the sacrifice for our sin.
The byproducts of soul winning are good. Everything a pastor desires comes from soul winning. The more people we tell, the more who may get saved. This means more people attending services. We don’t reap more because we don’t sow more. It is through evangelism that the church grows. This is the responsibility of everyone, not just preachers. It produces joy in the life of a believer. It should make us happy when a lost person gets saved. That means their last breath here will make their first breath in eternity in glory! When someone is born again into the family of God we should rejoice. It will cause us to love more. Finances are important in all aspects of life. The primary goal of the church is to reach people to keep them out of hell. The more funds we have, the more we can help. Missionaries all over the world need our help. Are you giving to the work of the Lord?
The power of witnessing is real. God is working before we even get there. He prepares the way and works in and through us. Look at Philip and the Ethiopian. God was already working when Philip got there. Ananias was afraid to go speak to Saul after the Damascus Road experience but God was already working. When God instructs us to go, GO! We don’t do it alone. Jesus said he would be with us to the end of the world. Soul winning has barriers but we must see that the message of salvation goes out.
Most people don’t care if others get saved. We care when people get sick, lose a job or a loved one, but it seems not many are concerned about those perishing and on their way to hell. I challenge all of us to examine ourselves and then pray and ask God to help us be more concerned about winning others to Christ so they will not go to hell.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 