The Torah Network

4 yrs

A BOLD SPIRIT

Roger Storms, pastor of First Christian Church in Chandler AZ tells the following story: [One Sunday a car had broken down in the alley behind our facilities and the driver had jacked up the car and crawled underneath to work on the problem. Suddenly, we heard him scream for help. The jack had slipped and the car had come down on top of him. Someone shouted, [Call 911] and a couple of people ran for the phone. Several of our men gathered around the large car and strained to lift it off the trapped man. Nurses from our congregation were rounded up and brought to the scene. Somehow the men were able to ease the car’s weight off the man and he was pulled free. Our nurses checked him over; he was scratched up and shaken, but otherwise okay. When this man was in peril, the people from the church did all that they could to help, risking themselves and inconveniencing themselves. Whatever was necessary to save this man they were ready to try. Not once did they wonder what the man would think of them and not once were they embarrassed to reach out a helping, compassionate hand.] How we need this same attitude when it comes to rescuing those in the greatest peril; the danger of losing life eternally. How badly we need a boldness of spirit that gives us the guts to tell other people about our Adonai and Saviour Yeshua Moshiach. [But sanctify Adonai YHVH in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: -- 1 Peter 3:15. I have no doubt that many people avoid that verse like the plague. We all know that as soon as someone starts talking about evangelism we begin to shake in our shoes and immediately begin to think of reasons not to do it. But it really does not have to be that way; we can learn to have the boldness necessary if we will just follow some simple guidelines. I am not saying that it is easy or that it will always come naturally to us, but if we will follow these guidelines, it will give us the kind of confidence that we need.

1 -- SHARE YOUR STORY:

Now when I say, [Share Your Story] that is exactly what I mean. Whether you know it or not you already possess the most powerful witnessing tool that YHVH ever invented. It is not an extravagant evangelistic program; it is not something that takes a lot of training and it doesn’t require memorization. What you have, that no one else has, is the story of how you became a believer and how YHVH is presently working in your life: That’s it! Your story might not seem that dramatic; you have heard testimonies from former hell’s Angels, Prostitutes, Drug Dealers and maybe your story is not as exciting. Maybe you attended church all of your life, got saved when you were in primary school and have never really had a [wild period] in your life. Well let me tell you something, there are plenty of people that need to hear that. They need to hear that it is possible to come to Moshiach at a young age and stick with the program throughout life. While I love to hear of YHVH picking people up off the streets and turning their lives around, I also love to hear about those people that have never strayed. The fact of the matter is, it is not important to the non believer whether your story is impressive or not, what matters is that you have a story that can help them come into their own relationship with YHVH. Once Yeshua healed a demon-possessed man and the man begged to go with Yeshua on His travels: [Howbeit Yeshua suffered him not, but saith unto him, go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things Adonai hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.] -- Mark 5:19. What was Yeshua telling him? Go home and share your story. In the book of Acts, both Peter and Paul over and over again tell their personal story of what Yeshua had done for them. Paul was forever telling about his Damascus Road experience while Peter told of the various experiences, he had with Moshiach. Now how do you tell your story? You simply tell your friends and loved ones what Moshiach has done for you, how He is working in your life today and how you have His promise for a never-ending future with Him. If there is one thing your non believing friend are looking for, whether they know it yet or not, is the peace and assurance that can only be found in Yeshua Moshiach. When you tell them your story and that story includes the key to real joy, security, the absence of guilt and the assurance of a future with a loving YHVH, they will want to hear what you have to say. If they ask questions and you do not know the answers, you tell them that you do not know but you are willing to find out. You do not have to be a walking theological encyclopaedia to tell others your story. I have had people ask me how long they need to be a believer before they begin telling others about Moshiach. My answer: [About two seconds!] Once you have experienced it yourself you are ready to tell others about it.

2 -- LOVE THE UNCHURCHED:

True love for a non-believer always precedes the telling of our story. Until I have a heart of compassion, I will not see the necessity of sharing the Good News of Yeshua Moshiach with other people. The flip side of that is that if I am not sharing the Good News of Yeshua Moshiach with other people, it is questionable if I have a heart of compassion at all. I know that sounds harsh and I am not trying to condemn here, but it is beyond my comprehension how we could have the cure for the world’s ills and not be willing to share it with the world. Let us say that somehow, I developed the perfect formula for curing every type of cancer that has ever afflicted humankind. This treatment was tested in every possible situation and it worked without fail every time it was administered. I had the formula manufactured and had a large supply of it that I carried around on my person wherever I went. But there was one problem; I decided that I didn’t want to share it with anyone. I would walk through the Cancer Ward at the hospital, past rooms that held people that were going to die if they didn’t find a cure. I would receive prayer requests from the church telling me of people who had this dreaded disease, yet I refused to let anyone have the cure. Now if that story was true, would you say that I loved those people who were dying? Would you say that I had a heart of compassion? Would you say that I was becoming more and more like Yeshua Moshiach with each passing day? Of course not! You would say that I was the most heartless, cruel, uncaring person that had ever lived if I was unwilling to share the cure. Now I want you to shake you up a little bit; you and I have the cure for something that is much worse than cancer. We have the cure for the sin that is separating our non believing friends from YHVH. We have the formula that will change their eternal destiny from one of endless sorrow to one of eternal joy. We have, in our story, in our lives, the message of the Cross of Yeshua Moshiach, the good news of salvation that is the hope of the world. And if we truly love the people around us, we will share this cure with them. If we do not, we are no better than the person that refuses to share the cure for cancer with those people who are dying. [And all things are of YHVH, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Yeshua Moshiach, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; to wit, that YHVH was in Moshiach, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.] -- 2 Corinthians 5:18-19. What is YHVH saying? He is saying that it is up to us to tell the story, He is not going to do it for us and He is given us the responsibility to share. Now how does this give me a boldness of spirit? By putting into perspective, the eternal destiny of people who do not know Yeshua Moshiach! When I begin seeing people in terms of where they will spend their future without end it stirs within me a love that was unknown before. We must cultivate a deeper understanding of [lost-ness] if we are ever going to love people enough to tell the story.

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