God’s Word Makes Faith Come Alive
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?
Romans 10:14 (NIV)
Do you remember the first time you heard the Good News of Salvation? How many times did you hear it before you understood and chose to believe in Jesus Christ? Studies show that the average person needs to hear the Gospel three times before they accept Jesus as their Lord.
Who has received salvation without hearing the Gospel? No one.
God’s plan from the beginning of the Christian church was that His people would tell the world about Jesus. For some believers, witnessing seems daunting. We want to leave it to the experts — the pastors or those with the gift of evangelism. But when we read about the early church in Acts, we realize there are no qualifications for sharing the Gospel effectively, except to believe. The first Christians were powerful witnesses who turned the world upside-down because the Holy Spirit was in them, not because of their own ability to speak well or attract a crowd.
The truth is, we don’t save anyone, and knowing that should take the pressure off. We are called to love others, invest in their lives, pray for them, and be genuine about our relationship with Jesus. As we talk with our neighbors, friends, and family like we would another believer, they will either stop spending time with us or they will become curious and want to know more. That’s when we have the privilege of sharing the Gospel with them and directing them to sound Biblical teaching, like that found on KCIS Radio.
The great missionary, Paul, talked about the journey of coming to faith in 1 Corinthians, chapter 3, when he warned the church not to exalt people. He explained that one person plants a seed of faith and another person waters it, but it is only God who makes it grow. In verse 7 Paul wrote,
So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything,
but only God, who makes things grow.
Paul didn’t take credit for anyone’s salvation. He knew his role was simply to be a witness to Jesus, the only One who can save. The Lord is at work drawing people to Himself, and He uses us as one step in their journey. Sometimes that journey takes years, but we can trust that the powerful Word of God is at work and that God wants them to know Him more than we could ever want it.
PRAYER: Father, help me to be genuine with everyone I know and not to hide my faith in You. Make me an accurate witness of who You are. Show me who You want me to befriend and pray for, and in Your timing, open the door for me to witness to them. Help me to share you freely. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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