PREACHED:OL,11-1
INTRODUCTION:
I. Several years ago, diet Pepsi had a conflicting message?
A. One the front of the bottle it
advertised “one calorie” but on the back—Zero calories!
1. Somebody,
“Why?”
a. Zero calories sounds impossible to
the consumer and they didn’t want to raise the skepticism of a cynical public.
1) Calorie-wise, Diet Pepsi was better than
advertised.
II. What about the gospel?
A. Is it better than we advertise?
Too long I’ve laid me down to sleep;
And prayed the Lord my soul to keep.
I must awake before I die,
And grasp that time is passing by.
I must arise and tell the lost;
Despite my plans…despite the cost!
Too long I’ve laid me down to sleep,
While precious souls around me weep.
I must awake before I die,
And grasp my time is passing by.
1. Rom 13:11,12. “Besides this
you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For
salvation is nearer to us than when we first believed. The night is far gone;
the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on
the armor of light.”
a. Paul says, it is time to get serious
about our religion!
B. The angel announced to the shepherds the
birth of Jesus:
1. “Fear not, for behold, I bring you
good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born
this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord,” (Luke 2:10,11)
a. Notice:
1) It’s
good news for all!
a) Not good news until it is shared!!
III. What motivates soul-winning and
evangelism?
A. Let me insist, this morning, that
there are 5 “P’s” that motivate to soul-winning.
DISCUSSION:
ΠFirst of all, the need of lost
souls must become PERSONAL.
A. I John 5:19; Gal 1:4
B. “The whole world” or “The present evil
age” can be viewed impersonally:
1. It
doesn’t have a “face.”
a. For example, there is a difference
between dropping a bomb on a city from 10,000 feet and looking a man in the eye
in the heat of battle and pulling the trigger!
1) The result is the same, but one has a
“face” and the other doesn’t!
b. It’s one thing to say, “There are
thousands of lost souls in Abilene,” and another to say, “Joe, my next door neighbor, is lost.”
C. Jesus felt compassion for the “multitudes”
(Mt 9:36), but he had just healed two blind men and a mute (Mt 9:27-34).
D. Effective evangelism is Personal Evangelism!
Second,
In reaching the lost, we must know the POWER.
A.
Like the Eveready commercials, we’ve got to be able
to say, “I’ve got the power!”
B. Rom 1:16
1. Mk
16:15,16
C. There is an apocryphal parable that
illustrates our dilemma in reaching the lost:
1. Once upon a time—spring with healing
power. Anyone who drank from its waters was cured.
a. Fame
produced a city around it!
1) Resort hotels, stores, homes, etc.
2. One day, many years later, a visitor
asked, “Where is the spring that produced all of this?”
a. Nobody remembered!
3. In the midst of their building and
internal progress they had lost the spring of purpose!
Ž Third, To reach the lost souls of
Abilene, our efforts must be PRACTICAL.
A. Mt 13:24. “The kingdom of
heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.”
1. This passage gives rise to another
observation:
a. A seed is only as effective as the skill
of the farmer in plowing, cultivating, weeding, watering, protecting from
destructive pests and driving out ignorant beasts who would trample or consume
the young plants before they reach maturity.
2. Don’t ask the “lazy” farmer if you can
make a living at farming or to tell you the benefits of hard work!
a. Talk to the active, inventive, alert,
self-disciplined and sacrificial!
b. I Tim 4:6,7. “If you put these
things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Jesus Christ, being trained
in the words of faith…train yourself for godliness…”
Four, our evangelistic effort
must be PASSIONATE.
A. Rom 1:14,15. “I am under obligation…so
I am eager to preach the gospel…”
I Cor 9:16. “For if I
preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is
laid upon me.”
II Cor 11:29. “Who is
made to fall, and I am not indignant…”
B. One writer commenting on the Jewish
accusation on the day of Pentecost that the disciples were “filled with new
wine,” asked:
1. Has anyone ever charged you with being
drunk with your Christianity? Oh God, how seldom men have thought us drunk!”
Fifth and finally, evangelism and
reaching the lost must be PRIMARY.
A. There is an old song that rings, “Enjoy
yourself, it’s later than you think.”
1. But the Christian anthem should ring
forth, “Prepare yourself, it’s later than you think!”
B. There’s a lot of talk about the debt
load of the average American.
1. Some experts challenge people to pay off
all their debts and get to the point that you can pay cash for everything, and
stop being a slave to your creditors.
2. Paul made an interesting observation
about debt:
a. Rom 13:8. “Owe no one
anything, except to love each other…”
(1) The one debt we should never get rid of
is the obligation to love!
(a) God’s great love for us was seen at
Calvary. Our great love for Him and for others is seen in our sharing the
gospel with the lost!
CONCLUSION:
I. Let’s ask some summary questions:
A. Can you put a “face” on the lost?
Do you have confidence in the
power of the gospel and do you know enough to share it?
How moved are you by the
spiritual condition of the lost?
Where does evangelism fit on your
“Things-I- have-do-today” list?
B. In an age of spiritual ambiguity and
non- judgmentalism, it is so easy to be intimidated and silenced, but let’s
find strength in the words of the Psalmist:
1. “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he
is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! Let the redeemed of the
Lord say so…” (Psa 107:1,2).