Paul wrote in Romans 1:14-15 that "I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. So as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the Gospel to you that are in Rome also."
This word "debtor" means one who is delinquent in the repayment of a debt. So you have a 60 month payment plan on your car? You are not a debtor to GMAC unless you fall behind. At that point, you get the phone calls and letters.
Paul was using the word "debtor" to explain how he viewed himself in relation to the spreading of the Gospel (verse 15). Now, if the great Apostle Paul were a debtor in his efforts to spread the Gospel, where does that leave me?
I've shared the Gospel from time to time in my newspaper column (which you can read at www.thecherokeean.com), I have preached it from the pulpits of the churches that I have preached at. I preached it at Denson Springs MBC when I pastored there. But, have I been effective at sharing the Gospel with my co-workers? What about my friends? What about the families I try to minister to through coaching U6 soccer, or those whom I write newspaper stories about? Did I put my best efforts forward to spread the Gospel to the Slocum/Grapeland/Elkhart communities when I was at Denson Springs?
I fear that I have to give myself a failing grade on the above questions. It is my prayer that God light a fire under me to motivate me to do everything I can to spread the Gospel as much as possible. I am capable of accomplishing a lot. If there is anything I learned from Denson Springs, it is that I can achieve goals. I can work. I can crank out a lot of output, both at my secular job and at my church. What I need is to have that effort more focused, toward doing what God called me to do, and toward what would be best for His Kingdom.
My wife bought a poster that said, "One voice can make a song, one life can change the world." While we know where the world is headed, if we follow God and put our best efforts forward, we can impact some lives.
4 comments:
Great first post. We can change the world and impact the Kingdom. If we will focus on God's Kingdom and not ours, his will be impacted!
good to see you joined the bloggin world. will be good to keep connected on what is happening in you and your family's lives!
Hi Brent and Tawm. Long time no see. I hope to be in better contact with y'all now.
Really liked your message "Sinning by Proxy". It is so easy to do that in the most subtle of ways. I wouldn't dare as a Christian to watch Jerry Springer. That is too obvious for me. But God often reminds me of the old testament verse where we should not take pleasure in others sins. That temptation can come in the form of "praying for sister so-and-so" and naming details, to watching "Easy Rider" for history sake if you're from that generation, or even watching the history channel if what your feelings about what you view do not line up with God's word. Ouch! You mean I can't seethe at the deeds of Hitler on the History Channel? You can't if you are guilty of not loving your brother in Christ, **all brothers** red, yellow, black and white, as the children's song goes. These are just extreme examples. It can be based on anything that is your weak spot as a christian. It is easy to be disgusted by someone elses sin. It is harder to look for our own sins without justifying them. As usual Leland, the truth of God's word shines it's light in our hearts to expose our deeds and bring us closer to the Lord Jesus Christ.
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