“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.” (Prov. 11:30)
The reason that we speak to people about where their soul will reside for all eternity has many different reasons, we desire to see the Lord glorified and if one more comes to Him, then there is one more to glorify Him. We know their end if they do not repent, and there is no escape, no reprieve from that place, but I believe at the forefront of our minds one of the main reasons is because we understand the grace of God in this matter, we were not worthy to be chosen and we spend much of our time wondering why us, why choose me Lord.
We have been blessed by the Holy Spirit to understand 1st John 4:19, “We love him, because he first loved us.” with a love that called a lost sinner in rebellion against Him to Himself. We were not worthy of such a calling, yet He chose us.
So, we speak to them, we try to convince them that even as they are right now, they are loved, that He will accept them just as they are, and that He loves them so much that He will not leave them where they are as He draws them closer to Himself, they will be changed, just as we are being changed, transformed by the blessings of the Holy Spirit for the glory of God.
“Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: (Acts 3:6a)
We do not promise them riches, fame or fortune, or any of the things of this world, we do not promise them health or the diminishing of whatever ailment they may be in, we do not tell the lame they will walk or the blind that they will see, we tell them that they are loved today, and promise them that they will be loved throughout all eternity.
There is no statement from us that they must do this or that, no rules or regulations, no traditions or laws they must adhere to, simply one truth, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” (Romans 10:9)
Our testimony may assist them, who we were before Christ, who we are now, and why. For many of us, if they look upon our lives now, they may wonder, “With all that has happened to you since you gave your life to Jesus Christ, why do you continue?”
Love.
Because He loved me enough to take upon Himself the wrath of God that was set to fall upon me, because He suffered death for me, because I was guilty, and He paid the price.
Because He loves me.
You can tell them about the eternal Kingdom that awaits all who call upon His name, about joy forevermore, about life eternal in unspeakable happiness, about eternal peace, but all you have to offer them today is the knowledge, the truth, that they are loved. The Lord offers healing of the heart, He offers a peace that passes all understanding, of contentment in whatever state we may be found in, of the assurance of a love that will never end, that will continuously grow forever.
Unless the love of the Lord Jesus Christ is flowing through you, they will never hear these words coming from your lips, unless you willingly submit to the will of the Father by the power of the Holy Spirit because of the love that has been given to you through the Lord Jesus Christ, you will walk right past them.
If we are not loving, if we are not kind and compassionate, if we do not show a concern for their immortal soul, we are nothing.
“Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” (Romans 13:8)
