Acts 2:38-39 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

This is another way of expressing the Great Commission, expressed memorably by Jesus just before His ascension. (Matthew 28:18-20) Doubled up like this, there’s no question that God means it! Jesus spoke it to those who were to exercise it, and Peter spoke it to those who were receiving it, but we fit into both categories. If we have repented, been forgiven, and received the Holy Spirit as a gift, then we are to go into all the world and make disciples for Jesus Christ. It’s just that simple. However, a sad percentage of Christians are satisfied with just their own salvation, declining to share the Gospel with anyone else. We make all sorts of excuses – I don’t speak clearly, I’m too busy, nobody will listen, I’ve never been to seminary (!) – and the list goes on and on. Not one of those holds any water at all, and can be refuted easily from the Bible. We tend to compare ourselves to famous evangelists, and disqualify ourselves before we even start. That’s a terrible mistake, because it cuts us out of the flow of God’s plan of salvation for the world, and there’s no greater joy that being included in that flow.

I’m very much preaching to myself here. My excuse was simply, “I’m not gifted as an evangelist.” How stupid! I’m gifted in various other ways, and grateful to be so, but exercising any one of those giftings requires effort on my part, and I was simply too lazy to evangelize! In any case, the gifts don’t belong to us, but rather to the One who gives them, and we are accountable to Him for how we use them. Right now I am discovering the joy of making use of the opportunities God gives me for sharing His truth with others, and I’m grateful! I will probably never speak to stadiums full of people, seeing thousands come to Christ at one time, the way Billy Graham and Reinhard Bonke did, but that’s not the point. I am to seek out the opportunities God gives me to share the Gospel and make full use of each one, for the salvation of souls and for His glory.

Father, thank You for what You’ve been doing in me in recent months – years, actually – in opening my eyes to the joys of evangelism. I do pray that those to whom I’m currently ministering would come to full commitment soon, and that I will recognize each new person You bring to me as well, so that Your plan of salvation may be wonderfully fulfilled, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!