The Devotional – Fight the good fight of Faith (Part 7)

The Devotional – Fight the good fight of Faith (Part 7)

Comment: Many times as a homeowner we find something in the house or property to repair. There is not a day that slips by that we do not notice a dripping faucet or a hinge on a door that needs a little tweak or replacement. If these things are ignored, it will not be long before these are broken and the list of broken things becomes LARGE. As the use of these become an inconvenience it is necessary to make a distinction on which to repair first. Priority and distinction run hand in hand and if there is going to be any repair at all we must first make a distinction as to which will be first on the priority list. 

Devotional: Jude 1:22-25 – I have said this many times; the Word of the Living God is AWESOME and the writers as they are led by the Holy Spirit make wonderful and penetrating challenges. These challenges exhort us to always be ready to give an account of our faith to others; yet the gospel of God belongs to God and I like what Jude says, in that many times when we are willing to share the gospel with someone, yet the Holy Spirit is seeking to make a distinction as to when and how.

If you care to look around your family, friends and neighbors you will notice many who are broken and unsaved. Some will be religious, some irreligious and some just plainly lewd and unclean. Nationally today we are religiously, irreligious and unclean. The fault as I see it is that as the universal and local church of Christ we have ignored the unsaved. Our priorities are not made with distinction and many of our churches are dead to the gospel – Revelation 3:1-6.

Yes, we ought to be ready to share the gospel; however, sometimes our compassion for someone at a moment in time is a human response and not a lead in by the Holy Spirit to present the gospel. Presenting the gospel of Christ to someone whom the Holy Spirit has not prepared is not rewarding, thus we ought to be sensitive through prayer to the leading of the Holy Spirit who alone will place convection on the soul of those in need of salvation. 

Most children of God shy away from those who are immoral and unclean as described in Galatians 5:19-21, in fact, I believe we are simply afraid that if we mingle as we might be led astray. Of course this can be a real problem if we are not properly sanctified and set apart for the gospel, see 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 as before Christ was made real in our life by the grace of God and before our faith agreed with God’s grace we were just like the world.

God will open doors to present the gospel and yes we ought to have fear, but that fear is not a fear of failure; it is a godly fear which is able to snatch the unholy out of the pending fire. If we fail to use the tools provided by God we will not demonstrate the MERCY of God to those whom God will snatch out of the world; we must not forget, the gospel belongs to God and so does the souls He is saving; Ezekiel 18:4.