Saturday, June 28, 2014

Salvation Isn't for You

Week 4 here in Thailand, and the Lord has already done so much just in my own heart.

I can feel Him pruning me, stripping away the pieces of myself, in order to make me more like Him. And its definitely not easy. Its painful and its hard. Conviction isn't fun. But how necessary it is for us to constantly be emptied of ourselves, in order to be filled with Him. 

I've realized how blinded my eyes have been towards people. I walk down the streets and pass them without a thought or a care to who they are or what they've been through. They're just another busy person. The clerk at the grocery store. The man selling tea on the side of the road. The frustrated couple walking through the mall. The girl sitting and eating alone at a restaurant. 

Each one of these people have stories. They have hurts and hang-ups. They have a past and a future. But most importantly, they have a soul

But for so long I have been treating people as just people. Walking past them unconcerned. Because I've been so caught up in my own world, with my plans and my to-do lists. I've been busy with my own areas of "ministry," picking and choosing who I think that needs Jesus the most. Often, I've just been too busy to stop and care.

Caring takes energy. It takes time. It means being intentional. And sometimes, it means welcoming interruptions. 

This week we walked down the same street that we have been frequenting almost every day, prayerfully ready to share Christ's love with girls in the bars and build new friendships. Almost every night we had passed a homeless man with only one leg sitting and begging. 

"This isn't why I'm here" I thought. I came to reach out to prostitutes and girls in this area. Ministering to the homeless wasn't what I signed up for. 

But the Lord convicted me of my blindness. How could I be so focused on what I thought my mission was, and not stop and care for those in need? 

So we did. Two girls on my team brought him food. We sat and listened. His name is Keezo. And he shared his heart with us. He spoke honestly about his struggles and his need. He lost his leg by stepping on a mine in Myanmar. He has been to church and read his bible. But the only picture of Christianity that he has seen is works-based. Giving your time and your money to the church. Doing. He was so bitter towards God because of this false gospel that he had been shown. 

And what he said next keeps ringing in my ears,

"I have met many Christians, and they talk, talk, talk. 
But where is the love?"

And I couldn't help but agree with this humble man that sits and begs day after day.

And as I read statistics like: There are over 6,000 unreached people groups in the world, over 2.1 billion people are without access to the gospel, for each unreached people group there are 600 churches, and there are 151,600 people are dying every day.

I can't help but to agree with Keezo.

Where is the love?


If we truly loved God and people like we say we do, why are so many christians still sitting in the church? Why aren't we out there telling our neighbors and everyone we meet about Christ's love? Why aren't we being Jesus' hands and feet? Why isn't true discipleship happening in our own backyard?


But most of all, why are only a select few "going"?
When did Jesus ever say that it is a special calling to "go" and make disciples? It's a command.

Often I think the church is quick to claim God's comforting promises of scripture, like "Cast all your burdens on Him, because He cares for you" but slow to obey God's commands:

Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation." Mark 16:15

"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," Matthew 28:19

"For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.” Acts 13:47



Why do we think that we can claim the comforts and benefits of being God's children, yet completely ignore God's clear commands to "go" and to make disciples? Why is it okay for us, as followers of Christ, to not be making every effort to share the truth of the gospel with the lost? Why is it okay for American churches to be building bigger buildings with fancy flat screens, when thousands are dying each day that have never heard the name of Jesus?

Its not okay.

I truly believe that God didn't save me just for me.
Yes, He does personally love me and He completely changed my dead heart and brought it to life.
But He didn't stop there. Because if His only purpose for my life was for the salvation of my soul, why am I even still here?

Why not just let me die and go straight into His presence, where I could enjoy a full and perfect relationship with Him, without all the struggles and temptations of living in this world?

I am here today and I have been saved in order to proclaim Him and His glory. 

Salvation isn't only for us. Its not only about us. Its for others. 
Its for the nations. Its ultimately for God's glory.

I heard recently that God's gospel found me on its way to someone else.

After being here this summer, I truly believe that statement.

God has placed us here, for such a time as this. So, will our lives obediently reflect His calling to all believers to go and make disciples? Or will we rest content in our comfortable American christianity, too fearful to let go of the blessings and comforts that God has graced us with? 

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