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

Without a Vision

Without a Vision

What if you had a secret formula with the power to cure a thousand ills of the human race? Would you not then freely give up this formula to be distributed to all in need and thereby prevent the death of multitudes?

I am sure you would, unless you were without conscience, and filled with greed, intending to profit from the suffering of others.

I am assuming, however, that you and I are not of that kind and do everything in our power to prevent millions of our generation from perishing.

My point is that we do have that secret formula that has the power to save our generation from a fate worse than death.

Where [there is] no vision, the people perish:
but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. (Proverbs 29:18 – AKJV)

Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained,
But happy is he who keeps the law. (Proverbs 29:18 – NASB)

We have such a vision: the Gospel of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ has been revealed to us:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16 – NASB)

No one need perish once the Gospel has been communicated to them. The Gospel is still the primary responsibility of the church:

 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20 – NASB)

It is up to you and me to communicate this “vision” to the masses.

Without a Vision

 © Tuesday 21st March 1995 – by Christopher Shennan)

Where [there is] no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. (Proverbs 29:18 – AKJV)

“Without a vision the people perish,”

Without a vision the multitudes die.

For the eyes grow dim; hope can’t flourish

When the heart can’t lift in search of the sky.

The human spirit has to dream and reach for

The highest and best that God can provide,

But often, it seems, there’s nothing to search for,

And nothing to stir cold hearts deep inside.

Grant a vision, Lord, to hearts made of stone,

To eyes that are blinded, or growing dim.

Reveal all your glory to those alone —

And those still hungering and thirsting for Him.

Why should those perish who have never heard,

While I hold in my heart Christ’s living Word?

Please visit My website: www.christophershennan.ca
My blog: https://christophershennan.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CNShennan
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristopherShennanAuthor

Engraved illustration of the “chariot vision” of the Biblical book of Ezekiel, chapter 1, after an earlier illustration by Matthaeus (Matthäus) Merian (1593-1650), for his “Icones Biblicae” (a.k.a. “Iconum Biblicarum”).Copy by unknown artist after illustration by Matthaeus (Matthäus) Merian the elder (1593-1650.) This work is in the public domain the United States, and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or less.

Our Heart’s Condition

Our Heart’s Condition

The Parable of the Sower is familiar to most Bible readers.

The Sower (representing Jesus Christ) sows the seed of the Gospel) scatters His seed indiscriminately over the earth, without regard to whether the place the seed is receptive to it, or not. He gives every kind of soil a chance to be fruitful.

The central idea of this parable is that the soil (representing the human heart) either has the capacity to receive the seed and be fruitful, or it does not. That is the core issue here.

You see the seed is how God initiates a relationship with men and women. It is all about the seed. Jesus is the sower and he scatters the seed of the Gospel to everyone. If this seed finds an entrance in the human heart, He can establish a connection – a relationship with the, Once he does that he can begin transforming their lives.

If, however, something comes between and prevents that seed from gaining entrance, that man or woman is prevented from having a meaningful relationship with God. It is all about the seed, (God’s Word), and the soil, (the condition of the human heart) that determines whether we can know God or not.

This is a basic reality. You cannot know God if you do not receive His Word and believe what it says. If you receive this seed, you can know Him; if the condition of your heart prevents the seed from entering your heart, you will be excluded from having a meaningful relationship with Him. It’s as simple as that.

I should point out that this Parable of the Sower does not tell us how to prepare our hearts to receive God’s seed; it merely states the present condition of the soil, and its consequences. This information is provided elsewhere in Scripture.

So, if I detect my heart’s condition is not receptive to the seed of God’s Word, can it be changed, and if so, how?

Hosea and Jeremiah together have the answer:

Break up your fallow ground,
For it is time to seek the Lord
Until He comes to rain righteousness on you. (Hosea 10:12b – NASB)

“Is not My word like fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock? (Jeremiah 23:29 – NASB)

• The hard, unreceptive ground of our hearts must be broken up.

The responsibility to do this is ours.  God tells us to; Break up your fallow ground,
For it is time to seek the Lord. Don’t put it off; time is of the essence.

• God’s promise is that, once the fallow ground is broken up, He will rain down righteousness upon us:

Until He comes to rain righteousness on you.

• The means to break up our fallow ground has been provided.

not My word like fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock? (Jeremiah 23:29 – NASB)

All we have to do is to seriously engage ourselves with God’s Word, and a process of transformation will begin. The fire will burn up the thorns and the hammer will break up the rock hard condition of our hearts. In time, the soil of our hearts will become more and more receptive to the seed of God’s Word. It is certain to be a painful process, but the rewards will justify any pain and anguish endured.

A Change of Heart

(© Friday 17^th April 2015 0 by Christopher Shennan)

…Break up your fallow ground,
For it is time to seek the Lord
Until He comes to rain righteousness on you. (Hosea 10:12b – NASB)

“Is not My word like fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock? (Jeremiah 23:29 – NASB))

Some think that their heart’s condition,

Is beyond their power to change;

They accept their wayward nature,

Is beyond their scope and range.

Its true God alone can change you,

But He’s called you to play your part;

He’s called you to make an effort

To prepare the ground of your heart.

There’s a process you must follow;

There’s a sowing of seed you must do.

The fallow ground must be broken,

Before God’s seed can enter you.

How can I break this hardness?

How can I dig up this hard ground?

How can I make my heart answer

To God’s Voice I hear all around?

God’s Word is just like a fire,

Like a hammer that shatters stone;

Has power to make my heart listen,

And to receive God’s seed alone.

So I’ll let God’s Word disturb me;

I’ll let it fertilize my soul –

It will change my disposition,

And make my broken spirit whole.

Please visit My website: www.christophershennan.ca
My blog: https://christophershennan.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CNShennan
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristopherShennanAuthor

The Sower (Le semeur) by James Tissot. This image is in the public domain.

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)

Few things can compare with the joy on the face of someone who has recently come to Christ and had their sins forgiven (as exemplified by the girl in the picture above).

Multiply that a hundred times if you happen to be the one who has explained the Gospel to them and led them to Christ.

I have learned I don’t have to be clever to be the instrument in God’s hand to bring someone to Christ. All I have to do is explain the Gospel to them with clarity and compassion. It is not I who performs the miracle. The miracle lies in the message of the Gospel itself:

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. ¹⁷ For in it [the] righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous [man] shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16 – NASB)

The Gospel is the power of God; not in you, or me, or the gifted preacher. So long as the Gospel is presented clearly and with loving intent, the Holy Spirit will apply it to each individual. If the individual is receptive to the truth, the miracle of salvation will take place. Our part is simply to be faithful by explain it in terms that person can understand.

Yet the Scripture tells us the soul-winner is wise. What makes the soul-winner wise?

• The soul-winner is wise when he or she actually gets out there to share the Gospel. They don’t make the excuse they are not gifted in that way, or it is not their “thing,” as I have heard some declare.

• The soul-winner is wise to realize God has called every follower of Christ to share the Gospel, not just a chosen few.

• The soul-winner is wise in recognizing the power to win souls is inherent in the Gospel message; he is confident the Gospel seed will do its own work. All he needs to do is scatter it and the Holy Spirit will a apply it to those who here it.

• The soul-winner is wise to know that prayer is the indispensable companion to spreading of the Gospel. He does not depend upon a “method” alone, but uses prayer to prepare the ground for sowing, and to water the seed for growing.

The question is, “How wise are you? How wise am I? Are we actually getting out there to declare the Good News. If we are, know that God counts us among the wise.

The Wise Man

(13th July 1992)

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

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.

 Please visit My website: http://www.christophershennan.ca
My blog: https://christophershennan.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CNShennan
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristopherShennanAuthor

Camp Worship by Paul M. Walsh. Copyright. Used under the CC BY 2.0 license; please note the Disclaimer at this link. We have made no changes to this photograph. Lacey Johnson, 9, left, and Jasmine Anderson, 9, right, and Jaimie Brown, 10, in the center background, weep and raise their hands, after listening to a gospel presentation by Jason Mansur, a children’s minister from Harvestime Church of Eau Claire, Wis., while at the Assembly Park Bible Camp, in Lake Nebagmon, Wis., on Monday, July 30, 2007. Anderson said that she wanted to “grow closer