October-December
One of the aspects of the plan of salvation that amazes me is that God calls us to be part of it! Matthew 28:19 says, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19).
A few Sabbaths ago, I was able to take part in an outreach and evangelism project in Washington, DC. All day, we all talked and prayed with people as we passed out copies of Steps to Christ, The Desire of Ages, and The Great Controversy. In total, we passed out about 50–60,000 thousand books and prayed with countless people. Some people even sat down and started reading the books right then and there, while others in our group were walking around the national mall with mics and speakers, preaching about the good news and the Sabbath. This experience and many others have shown me how God is working on people’s hearts. And that many are wholeheartedly seeking after the truth.
We are told: “The distribution of our literature is one means by which the message is to be proclaimed. Let every believer scatter broadcast tracts and leaflets and books containing the message for this time. Colporteurs [workers] are needed who will go forth to circulate our publications everywhere.”—The Southern Watchman, January 5, 1904.
This is the great commission that Christ gives to His disciples. And these are some of the last words Christ said while on earth. But this was not something new that He only told the disciples at that moment. This had been His calling for them since the start, when He gave the invitation and assurance, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
Like Christ called the disciples to be fishers of men, He is calling every one of us to do the same.
“All true believers will become fishers of men. They will pray for wisdom and will walk in accordance with the prayer: ‘Ye are the light of the world.’ ‘Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.’ ”—Christ Triumphant, p. 231.
All true believers will become fishers of men because a true disciple is a disciple-maker.
We are awaiting the second coming of Christ. And as we wait, we tend to look for signs that tell us we are living in the last days. Matthew 24:4–12 tell us of false Christs, wars, rumors of wars, earthquakes and natural disasters, persecution, and false prophets. We tend to focus on these verses, but we are missing the most important verse.
“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14).
This is the sign of the end! And it is the same commission quoted above from Matthew 28:19.
“The heaven-appointed purpose of giving the gospel to the world in this generation is the noblest that can appeal to any human being. It opens a field of effort to everyone whose heart Christ has touched.”—A Call to Stand Apart, p. 64.
We are to be partners with Christ in the gospel mission. God has had workers in every age of human history, and the Lord is calling every one of us saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Our reply to this divine call should be: “Here am I; send me” (Isaiah 6:8).
God is not dependent on anyone to support His work; the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy clarify that He could have used the angels in heaven—or even the very stones—to proclaim who He is and what He has done. He is not dependent on our resources; every beast of the forest and the cattle upon a thousand hills are His! (Psalm 50:10, 11). God does not call us into the work because He needs us. God calls everyone because it is in our best eternal interest to be colaborers with Christ.
“There will be no one saved in heaven with a starless crown. If you enter, there will be some soul in the courts of glory that has found an entrance there through your instrumentality.”—The Signs of the Times, June 6, 1892.
If we as believers are not working together with Christ to seek and save the lost, we are missing the whole point of our salvation.
God blessed Israel so they could bless all nations. God tells Abraham, “In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.” Why? “Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws” (Genesis 26:4, 5).
Making this personal, God called you to Him so you could call others! In Revelation 22:17 it says, “Let him that heareth say Come.”
If you have heard God’s voice in your life, then you will tell others, “Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?” (John 4:29).
Everyone has a part to play!
Paul describes the church as a body where each member plays a critical part in its function, and no one is left out. Yet, as modern-day Christians, we tend to go to church, listen to a sermon, and then go about our lives until the next Sabbath comes along. For many of us, it has become a religion of complacency and consumerism. But Christianity was meant to be a religion of action!
“Who will go forth to labor in wisdom and grace and the love of Christ for those nigh and afar off? Who will sacrifice ease and pleasure, and enter the places of error, superstition, and darkness, working earnestly and perseveringly, speaking the truth in simplicity, praying in faith, doing house-to-house labor? Who at this time will go forth without the camp, imbued with the power of the Holy Spirit, bearing reproach for Christ’s sake, opening the Scriptures to the people, and calling them to repentance?”—The Colporteur Evangelist, p. 26.
This year is coming to a close; what have we done as individuals to further the great commission? How many people have you told about the love of your life, Jesus Christ? How many invitations have you given to church or Bible studies? Do people even know who you serve? Are we living lives that embody Romans 1:16—“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek”?
The Lord is calling every one of us to stop being a pew warmer and instead to do our part according to our talents. His command is to multiply! Who will respond to His call to become a fisher of men? Who will become an active part of the body instead of just dead weight?
Jesus risked everything to save you and me. Will you, with a grateful and thankful heart, do the same? What will you risk to make an effort to save at least one soul for the eternal kingdom—to have a star in your crown, as an everlasting thank-you note to Jesus for what He did for you? Are you grateful for the part He has given you to play in this plan of cosmic and eternal proportions? If so, answer God’s call today!