Winning Souls is Wise

Winning Souls is Wise

“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.” (Proverbs 11:30 – KJV)

We all have to pursue the wisdom found in Christ alone:

But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God… (1 Corinthians 1:30 – NASB)

There is, however a wisdom all true followers of Christ ought to pursue almost more than any other – the wisdom involved in winning souls for Christ.

“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.” (Proverbs 11:30 – KJV)

I knew such a man who possessed such wisdom. I have since lost contact with him, but, in the days of our youth he had a heart for evangelism such as I have seldom seen. His name is Colin Wylie, a pastor of a church in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Colin was in the habit of taking his youth group downtown to the Johannesburg City Hall. We were all gathered there one evening handing out tracts, and seeking to engage people in conversation. Most people simply shrugged and moved on.

Without warning Colin, taking up on something D.L. Moody had once done, laid his Bible down flat on the sidewalk and covered it with his jacket.  That done he began walking circles around it, pointing dramatically at all the while shouting, “It’s alive! It’s alive!

Within moments a crowd began to gather around us, almost threatening to disrupt the traffic.

At that point Colin snatched his jacket away and held the Bible up for all to see, crying, “The Bible is alive! The message of the Bible can save you!”

He then, to a virtually captive audience, proceeded to give a brief but powerful Gospel message.

Call it foolish; call it reckless, but many people stood transfixed that day listening to the Gospel, who may never otherwise have heard it. Using every means at his disposal, Colin has since seen many people ushered into the Kingdom of God:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes… (Romans 1: 16 – NASB

The Wise Man

(© 13th July 1992 – by Christopher Shennan)

“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.” (Proverbs 11:30 – KJV

He that winneth souls is wiser

Than all the wisdom known

And in the previous ages,

The winds of time have flown.

The wisdom of the ancients,

Well gathered over time,

Can’t approach the brilliance

Of a poor soul-winner’s mind.

For the simple soul that hungers

To do the Father’s will,

And seeks to bring lost sinners

To the foot of Calvary’s hill:

The Spirit of God grants insight

Into the ways of men

That far transcends the genius

Of the famed with brush or pen.

Now the wisdom of the ancients

May well accomplish much;

If applied with zeal and rigor,

Could achieve the expert’s touch.

But the man who’s set on serving

His Lord and also others,

Is a man who’s always making

His foes into his brothers.

Bring your prize if you’ve a mind to:

Won in the halls of fame,

Or in a great place of learning

Of prestigious name.

And I will bring a soul winner,

Whom the world will not applaud,

But who’s won the sweet approval

Of Jesus Christ his Lord.

 

Photo by Jesus Army. Copyright. Used under the CC BY-SA 2.5 license. No changes were made to this photo

The Ministry of Tears

(Picture in public domain)

The Ministry of Tears

2 Corinthians 2:1-4

And when they had come to him, he said to them,

   “You yourselves know, from the first day that I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me through the plots of the Jews… (Acts 20:18-9 – NASB)

Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears. (Acts 20:32 – NASB)

Robert Murray McCheyne was a minister of great power in the mid-nineteenth century. God used him in a mighty outpouring of His Spirit in revival. He served God with such intensity some believe it led to his early death at the age of twenty nine. His ministry lasted only seven-and a half years, yet his influence continues to the present day.

After his death a visitor came to the church where the man of God had preached. He engaged in conversation with the custodian of the church. He enquired as to the secret of the preacher`s effectiveness in ministry.

The custodian, a man who had been close to the minister asked the visitor if he really wished to know. The visitor replied in the affirmative.

“Follow me,” the custodian commanded, and led the visitor into the minister’s study. “Sit behind the desk,” he further instructed.

When the visitor had complied, he said, “Now put your elbows on the desk and your head in your hands.” When this was done the custodian said, “Now weep.”

But the tour was not over.

The custodian now led the visitor into the sanctuary. The pulpit was of the kind common in that era, built high above the congregation, with a winding wooden staircase giving access to its summit.

Climb into the pulpit and lean over .pews with your arms outstretched, as if you were pleading with the congregation.”

Entering into his role, the visitor followed the instructions given to him..

“Now weep,” The custodian said.

God grant us all tears as we minister to, and intercede for, the lost.

Give me Tears

(© Saturday 3^rd January 2015 – by Christopher Shennan)

Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears. (Acts 20:32 – NASB)

Lord, please grant me the grace to weep,

And plead for revival to come;

Let me not rise up from my knees

Till I’m sure the work has been done.

Lord, let tears flow unabated,

As I ask that mercy should fall

Upon the lost and the weary

Until upon Christ they will call.

The words that I speak have no power

Till all have been drenched in my tears;

I know when my heart is aching

For sinners, that God always hears.

Oh what would I give for a heart

That knows how to weep for the lost?

I’d give all my treasures on earth,

And care not just how much it cost.

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Peasant Sitting by the Fireplace  (‘Worn Out’), by Vincent Van Gogh. 1881. In the Public Domain.