Powerfully Communicating the Gospel

By Doug Olsen
of
www.MyRedeemer.org -
"The Bible: It's
all about Jesus!"
Powerfully Communicating the Gospel
There are three
parts to us as a human being: our body, soul and spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
At our house church this week we listed some of the ways that these parts of us
can communicate --specifically-- communicate the gospel.
- Through our body we can show kindness, give love, listen with sincerity,
be patient (long-suffering), provide help, read the Bible, sing praises, make
music and pray. Also, by being trustworthy (faithful), not rude, not proud
(humble) and respectful.
- With our soul we can demonstrate kindness, give love, listen, pray,
respect and show empathy. (Since the soul and body are so tightly connected,
it was difficult to think of them as being separate entities; that is why we
listed them in both places.)
- By our spirit we receive knowledge of God, His teaching, understanding of
Him, and get to know His caring, compassionate nature.
We have been
designed such that our parts fit together in order. Our spirit talks with our
soul and our soul directs our body. It's with our soul and body that we
communicate with people. However, it's with our spirit that we communicate with
God through His Holy Spirit.
Next, we looked at the best that each of these parts can do as found in 1
Corinthians 13 --and we will look at that Scripture shortly.
- The body's best communication of the gospel is done by giving all
that it considers important --food, security, money, even life itself-- to
someone else.
- The soul's best is telling everyone (not only those close, but also
foreigners) about God's good news of salvation and all that it
entails.
- And the spirit's best is done through a deep understanding of God
--His character, nature, attitudes and plan.
Not surprisingly, the worst communication looks very much like the best. The
difference between them is the simply the motivation behind them. It's when the
body, soul or spirit does things for the wrong reason --done out of selfishness
--done without God's agape love.
- The body's worst: "If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my
body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing." (1 Corinthians
13:3)
- The soul's worst: "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but
have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal." (1
Corinthians 13:1) If I tell others what the Bible says out of context --in
order to prove a point or further my agenda-- I am like a jack hammer in a
small room. If my speech is filled with political or social chatter, I am
merely adding confusion to an already chaotic world.
- And the spirit's worst: "If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all
mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains,
but have not love, I am nothing." (1 Corinthians 13:2) In this case, I would
have a great understanding of God and trust Him perfectly --He might even say
"You've got it!" But I would be a fruitless tree for starving souls because I
keep it all to myself.
Each part of this human being that I call me, was created
for communicating God's agape love and nothing else. So what is that love?
Here's that famous 1 Corinthians 13 passage.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it
does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is
not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil
but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes,
always perseveres. Love never fails. (1 Corinthians
13:4-8a)
Let's sum this up with the
rest of that opening passage (the one describing our body as having three parts
--found in 1 Thessalonians 5) with a few of my words in between.
Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who
work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold
them in the highest regard in love because of their work. (1 Thessalonians
5:12-13a)
Keep in mind that
God uses people to communicate His word to us. Allow them to be human, too. They
will fail and fall just like the rest of us. Yet they are His messengers
bringing His message --the good news of Jesus Christ-- to a hurting
world.
Live in peace with each other. And we urge you,
brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be
patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but
always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. (1 Thessalonians
5:13b-16)
Above everything else, live at peace --let's put aside our
differences, our hurt feelings, our anger and bitterness, our position which
deserves respect, our pride. These are all self-serving in nature and are not
good for communicating our Lord's gospel. Let's do what ever we can with Him in
mind --considering others as being more important than ourselves. (You are not
alone in battling these thoughts which are at war against the gospel, we all
have them.)
Be joyful always; pray continually; give
thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (1
Thessalonians 5:17-18)
Joy is not the same as
happiness; we know that. Joy has to do with inner peace and the security that
comes along with it. It's through prayer that He makes all things bearable. And
remember, when struggling with doing what God wants --loving people, espeically
the ones that don't deserve it-- give thanks. It is these very circumstances
that we are going through that God is using to transform you and me into the
image of His Son.
Do not put out the
Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on
to the good. Avoid every kind of evil. (1 Thessalonians 5:19-22)
What ever is going on in your life --from boredom to
turmoil-- keep in mind that the Holy Spirit is actively at work in you. And
don't just listen to people --no matter how influential they may be. Being
people, we get off track at times. Read your Bible and ask God to reveal His
truth to you about your troubles and questions.
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you
through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he
will do it. (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)
God is
at work changing us. He is the potter and we are His clay. He is our Creator,
our Savior, our Redeemer, our Strength and our Shield. All that goes on in life
is part of the sanctifying work that He is doing. He is working in each part of
us (body, soul and spirit) so that we will be complete when Jesus comes to
gather us together. And yes, He is faithful --He can be relied upon to complete
all that He set out to do in each one of us. It's His agape love that binds us
to Him and to each other. Amen? Indeed, Amen!
Not only is Mr. Olsen a wonderful, Christian,
writer and teacher, he is also a good friend. He and his wife have
a house church in Texas where they and their family of conregants worship the
Lord and strive to make a spiritual difference.
More of his
outstanding teachings can be found at www.MyRedeemer.org.