Go Tell It on the Mountain, Over the Hills, and to Your Neighbor!
“Go, tell it on the mountains,over the hills and everywhere,go, tell it on the mountain,that Jesus Christ is born.” Go Tell it on the Mountain is an African American spiritual song dating back to 1865. It is now known as a Christmas hymn announcing that Jesus Christ is born. When I sing this wondrous song, I think of Isaiah 52:7, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” As the hymn begins, it announces that we need to proclaim Jesus from the mountains, over the hills to everywhere. But I often think that the church that so joyously sings this classic during the Advent season fails to see the disconnect. They seldom realize that they neglect to share the good news with the people that the Lord has brought into their life. Instead of climbing a mountain, or going overseas, maybe we need to begin by crossing our street and telling our neighbor the glorious gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We need to sing Go & Tell it to your neighbor that Jesus Christ is born. In John chapter four, we see a perfect example of this with the Samaritan woman telling her neighbors of finding Jesus Christ. In John 4:25-26, we read: The woman said, “I know that Messiah (called Christ) is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am He.” Immediately she wanted to share her faith with others, so she went into the village and told the men she had met the Messiah. John 4:28-30 goes on to say: Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” They came out of the town and made their way toward Him.” As disciples of Jesus begin to realize that the Lord wants them to bloom where He has planted them, they will open their eyes to see that the harvest field is all around them. As the Samaritan woman told her neighbors about Jesus, we see the Lord opening their hearts to come to faith in Him. We read in John 4:39-42, Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and He stayed two days. And because of His words, many more became believers. They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this Man really is the Savior of the world.” These Samaritans began their spiritual walk by trusting in what their neighbor said. “Now we know!” was their happy testimony and the joy of a faithful neighbor who told them about Jesus. I wrote the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop to help disciples of Jesus not only begin to pray for their neighbor’s salvation but also learn how to tell them about the gospel of Jesus Christ. I received this testimonial from Lance, who took the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop and began to pray for his neighbor Ray. Lance did not tell it on the mountain, but he told Ray across the street. Here is Lance’s story: Several years ago, a new family moved in next door, right at the same time we were preparing to sell our house. Ray was friendly from the start, and he seemed genuinely disappointed when he learned we were actively trying to sell. It was easy to see that Ray needed Jesus from the first interaction. So, I began to pray for his salvation. A month later, we found our next house and were mere hours from putting our house on the market and locking in an offer on the new house. Then something strange happened. Our realtor called and said the seller had backed out, sold to another buyer, and had no recourse. It didn’t seem fair or logical, and we were very disappointed, so we decided to end the search and unpack our boxes. Over the next two years, Ray and I swapped stories about home improvement projects. He would text me to ask how I remodeled this or that or where an electrical or plumbing line ran. Beyond our house similarities, Ray’s preschool son was the same age as my preschool daughter, which resulted in several outdoor conversations as the kids played together. Many days a week, I would stop to pray, asking God to draw Ray to Himself, that Ray would seek to know Him, that Ray would believe the Scriptures, that Ray would believe in Christ and become saved. There was zero evidence of spiritual interest in all my interactions with Ray. His God was making money, evident by the long hours he worked to serve that master. Recently, Ray and I went to breakfast. After an hour of good food and conversation, I told Ray about a man in our church who went into cardiac arrest right at the start of the sermon. Thankfully a nurse and a defibrillator were close by, thus saving him from certain physical death. Ray then shared that he had been in a severe car accident five years earlier and had almost died. So, I asked the question, “Ray, what if you had died that day? Where would you be now?” Ray asked, “What do you mean, like heaven or hell? I don’t know.” “Ray,” I said, “would you like to know where you would’ve gone?” “Yes,” he said. So, I asked him if he was a good person, to which he answered the way most lost people do, with a confident “yes.” I went through several of the 10 Commandments, which are God’s mirror, to show us how far from perfection
Changing the World, One Person at a Time
I have learned over the years that Evangelism is Relational. It begins with your relationship with Jesus Christ. It spreads within the circle of relationships you have with family, co-workers, neighbors, and others that the Lord has brought into your lives. Evangelism begins not with talking to others about Jesus but by talking with Jesus about others. Over 35+ years of pastoral ministry, I have learned that very few believers pray for the lost by name. A recent Lifeway study surveyed what people typically request when they pray. The study revealed that among people who pray, more people prayed to win the lottery than praying for others who have no faith. Not only do few believers pray for the salvation of others, but even fewer are sharing the gospel with others. Billy Graham once said that 90% of the Church today has never shared the gospel with someone else. I now serve full-time with Go & Tell Ministries, which seeks to equip the Church to share the gospel using practical and straightforward evangelism and discipleship tools. One of those tools is the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop. It is a 3-hour workshop that teaches your Church to share their faith with others. I taught the Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop at an RCA Church in Detroit last month. Their group was very engaged with the seminar and was excited to begin to pray for the salvation of others. I left the weekend very encouraged with their response, and I was praying for the Lord to raise workers for the harvest field from our time together. Last week I received a text from the pastor of the Church in Detroit. He said: “Hey Jim, we have a celebration testimony from your Go & Tell Evangelism Workshop. Talina attended the workshop, and she was able to share Jesus in the way you taught. She called me and was so excited to share that her Uncle decided to repent of his sins and profess faith in Jesus. There is more to her testimony that makes it so amazing, and I think you would like to hear from her.” I was excited to hear from the pastor, and I immediately texted Talina. I think she was even more excited to share the story with me because she responded soon after. This is Talina’s testimonial: “Hi Jim. First, thank you so much for being at Grace Church that day. My Uncle Tim lost his son two weeks ago. He was missing for over a year. He had got on drugs and finally walked out one day and never heard another word. Timmy (my cousin) was 32-years-old. Two weeks ago, my Uncle got the call no parent ever wants. They found his skeletal remains in an attic in Detroit. He had been there about a year. Of course, my Aunt Jane and Tim were beyond words. I went to them and gave them my condolences. I am close to all of them. At first, it wasn’t easy being there. My Uncle didn’t believe in God. How could God do something or allow something like this to happen? He didn’t want to hear any God stuff, so I would go over and sit, often feeling like I was taking a verbal assault for believing. But that was okay. I just listened and prayed for them. We had a quiet dinner last week when his remains came home cremated. There was not much said at the dinner table that night. But my Uncle said something that gave me hope. He said that he hoped he would see Timmy again. So I have been going over every few days, just listening to them and speaking when needed (and crying when I can’t help it). This past Monday night, I went over, and my Uncle asked me to come out to the garage; he wanted to talk to me. So out I went. He asked me if I thought he’d see Timmy again. He told me that he couldn’t imagine seeing him again. I told him my beliefs in God. And how that gave me peace in anything that happens. I told him it wasn’t God who took His son and let all these terrible things happen in the world. It goes back from the fall of man and sin. So, he started crying and asked me what I was going to do. I asked if I could pray with him. Shockingly, he said yes. I held his hand, and we prayed. Afterward, I asked him: “Uncle Tim, have you ever lied?” He said, yeah. I then asked him: “Have you ever stolen anything?” He giggled and said, well yeah. I wondered, “Have you ever committed adultery (and Jesus said lust is adultery in the Sermon of the Mount)?” He said, okay, Talina, yes, yes, I’m a sinner. I said, “Okay, so if you had to stand before God and He asked if you were to go to hell or heaven, what would you say?” He started crying and said, well, I believe I have sinned against God, I would go to hell. But if I believe what you are saying, then I’d be saved. I asked him, “And why would you go to heaven?” He sat for a minute and said God sent Jesus to die for our sins. He stopped and said, GOD SENT HIS SON TO DIE FOR ME? I said exactly. He said Talina, I get it, and I believe it! It was absolutely beautiful. I never felt or seen anything like it. If I died today, I would feel complete. I’ve never witnessed someone believe in Jesus and have hope like that for the first time. The only thing I could compare it with would be watching a child be born.” After I read her text, I was rejoicing in Tim’s salvation like the angels in heaven (Luke 15:7, 10), and I was rejoicing in Talina’s walk with Jesus as she lovingly and boldly shared the gospel with her Uncle Tim. I then shared with Talina 2 Corinthians 5:17-20: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a
Starting and finishing lines are not the same.
This past weekend, I was in the Boston area to teach the Go and Tell Evangelism Workshop and preach at Fairlawn CRC church. I flew into Logan Airport in Boston and was happy to meet my church contact, Brandon. We had a great lunch together and talked about the Boston area. As we were driving to the church, he told me that we were near the starting line of the Boston marathon and asked me if I wanted to see it. I was excited to hear this and told him I would love to visit this famous landmark. I was excited to stand on top of the starting line of the world’s oldest and best-known marathon. As I stood on the starting line, I thought of the passage in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore, I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others. I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” Brandon told me that he had run in the race five times and talked about the training, hard work, and joy in completing the race. The Boston Marathon usually is in the spring on Patriots Day. Due to covid, the race was held in the fall this year. I shared that I have a friend who ran in the Boston Marathon just a week ago. I shared how proud I was of this former college student who attended my church when she ran track in college. I told him that Felicia is now a kindergarten teacher in Michigan. When she ran the Boston Marathon, I followed along with her race progress on the official website. On the Boston Marathon website, you can write an encouraging note to the runners. I was blessed to read the messages from her students and school: “We are so proud of you! You are amazing! You’re doing great! Keep going-we are watching!” After the race, Felicia shared how awesome it was to receive so much support and encouragement to spur her on to finish the race. I thought of the passage in Hebrews 12:1, which says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” I was able to stand on the Boston Marathon finish line the following day. As I reflected on standing on this great race’s starting and finishing line, I realized something. One of the problems in the church today is when people profess faith in Jesus; they think that the starting line and the finish line are the same spots. When we profess faith in Jesus, that is when we start to run the race for God’s glory. I think many Christians think that their salvation date is also the finishing line. They believe they are saved, and eternal life is secure, but they neglect to run the race that is marked out for them for the glory of God. They live life in the way they want, but that’s not the race the Lord has for us. We are to live for the glory of God, and we are to run this race for Jesus. After we profess faith in Jesus, we are to live our life for the glory of God. The Boston Marathon is exactly 26 miles and 386 yards, but we do not know how long our race for Jesus will be. It might be a race of a year, five years, ten years, or fifty years but we have a race marked out before us. The Scriptures tell us that there’re going to be people who will try to discourage us from running this race. Galatians 5:7-8 says, “You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you.” The Bible warns us that people will seek to hinder us from running the race and get us off the course that the Lord has for us. I just read a heartbreaking story about getting led off the racecourse recently at the Quad Cities Marathon in Moline, Illinois. The two marathon front-runners were about halfway to the finish line when they spotted a marathon volunteer cycling through the route. They both followed the marathon volunteer, who mistakenly led both runners off the course. They were both automatically disqualified from the race, which is also a Boston Marathon qualifier event. I want to ask you if anyone is seeking to dissuade you from running the race the Lord has marked out for you? Are people discouraging you from reading the word of God, praying for others, praying for the lost by name, sharing the love of Jesus by your deeds and words, or discouraging you from meeting with other believers? The Bible warns us that the enemy will seek to keep us from finishing this race. Over the years, I have seen many people be led off the Lord’s course laid out for them. Are you running the race the Lord has for you or has someone led you astray? I do not know how long I must run this race of life for the glory of God, but I do know that I want to finish the race well. As Felicia ran the Boston Marathon for the first time, her friends, students, and family encouraged her to
Pray for the lost by name.
One of the most important things to do before you share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others is that you need to pray for the lost by their name. You need to pray daily for the lost. You are praying for those people that God has put in your sphere of influence. You need to pray for them by their name that they would come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Trusting that the Lord will not only use you but through your prayers, He will send someone else to share the gospel with them. One of my favorite stories is how the Lord sent a believer to share the gospel with an unbeliever found in Acts 8:26-35. “Now, an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep, He was led to the slaughter and like a lamb, before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth. In his humiliation, justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth.” And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Then Philip opened his mouth and beginning with this Scripture, he told him the good news about Jesus.” When I read this text, I notice two important things: First, how God brought Phillip to share the gospel with the Ethiopian eunuch. Secondly, I wonder who the person is that gave the Ethiopian eunuch the scriptures? Who prayed for his salvation, that he would come to know Jesus Christ? It is incredible to see how God led the Ethiopian eunuch to read the exact text that talked about Jesus dying on the cross. When you pray for the lost by name, God not only will move you to share the gospel with them, but he may send someone else to answer your prayer! Two weeks ago, I met Bob at Panera Bread to visit and talk about our spiritual walks with Jesus. Bob is one of my good friends, and he is also a prayer and financial supporter for Go & Tell Ministries. As we were talking, he began to share his heartfelt compassion for his nephew. Alan is 68 years old and had received prostate cancer a year before. He was now in a nursing home under hospice care and knew he didn’t have much time to live. Bob said to me, “ Jim, you know it’s hard to share the gospel with family members. I’ve tried, and I’ve struggled, but I am praying for Alan and his salvation.” As we talked, I looked at Bob, and I asked him where Alan was living. Bob told me that he was in town, at a nursing home nearby. I looked at Bob and said, “I’ll go share with Alan. Let’s go together and visit him.” A few days later, Bob and I met Alan in his nursing home. As we talked with Alan, I introduced myself, and I asked about Alan’s background. We talked about Alan’s family, and he shared with me about his wife, Jeanne. He lovingly shared that they have been married for almost 50 years. He talked about how he worked at the same job for over 44 years and had retired five years ago. He spoke about his three sons, his grandkids, and the life he had lived. I asked him about his church background, and he shared about his church attendance. Then I asked him if I could ask him a spiritual question, and he said “yes.” I asked Alan, “If you were to stand before God, and he would ask you: Why should I let you into My heaven, what would you say?” He was taken back by that big question and said he does not know. I said, “I know it is a big question, Alan, but I know you’re facing that big question right now.” He responded by basically saying that he is a good person, tries to be good, and tried to live a good life. I said, “Alan, you know that God’s standards of goodness are far different than ours. His standard is much higher than ours, and He doesn’t grade on a curve. Can we look at God’s standards of goodness and see how well you’ve done?” He agreed, and I said: “Let’s look at God’s standards of goodness found in the ten commandments. One of those commandments is: Thou shall not lie. Have you ever lied?” He responded, yes, and I asked him, what do you call someone who lies? He replied: “A liar.” So, I explained that another command is: Thou shall not steal. Have you ever stolen? He said yes, and I asked him what you call someone who steals, and he said, “A thief.” I lovingly looked at Alan and said to him, “Alan, you just admitted to me that you’re a lying thief before a holy God, and we haven’t looked at the other commandments. If you stood before God, would you be innocent or guilty of breaking His laws?” He paused and humbly said to me that he would be found guilty of
What Is Your Anchor?
In our devotional today, I want to ask you a couple questions: Where do you find strength in times of trouble? What is the anchor for your soul to help you to endure the storms of life? Jesus’ words found in John 16:33 are more relevant today than ever. In that passage, John 16:33, Jesus said: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Jesus told us in this passage that while we live in this world, we will have trouble. If you have read the paper, watched the news, followed the information on social media these past weeks, months, or even the past year, we have seen trouble reign throughout the world. The past year has brought trouble in so many different ways that I have never seen in my life. The question comes up often: How do you find peace during a crisis in the world or trouble within your own life? Where is the place that you find strength for your soul? Jesus talked about this in the Sermon of the Mount (Matthew 7:24-27), when he told the wise and foolish builders. 24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” The meaning of this parable is quite apparent: proper foundations are necessary. But Jesus’ sermon was not concerned with house construction or building code violations. The spiritual meaning of the parable is found in Matthew 7:24: “Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” We are each building a life. The proper foundation for a life is Jesus’ words—not just the hearing of them, but the doing of them, too. It seems at times that everything in the world makes us turn away from God’s words. And often, our feelings pull us toward doing the exact opposite of what the Bible says. But a wise man will follow the words of God despite these pressures because he trusts God. In Jesus’ words, even during the storms of life, you can stand and have peace with Him. Do you know people who have found their strength, their foundation, and their anchor in Jesus during the storms of life? I spent last weekend in Indianapolis to visit some family and friends for the weekend. I called a high school friend whom we have kept in contact with through social media. I called him, and we set up a time to meet for breakfast. I was sitting at the booth, enjoying my hot coffee, when Mark walked into the restaurant. We greeted each other and sat down to catch up on the past forty years. We talked about our faith, occupation, and the journey we chose since high school. I asked him about his family, and he shared about his lovely wife Kelly and their three kids. He talked about his oldest daughter, Michelle, and spoke about his twins: Michael and Alyssa. When he mentioned Alyssa, his voice softened, and his words were slower. He shared how they were born on August 29, 1988, and that Alyssa had passed on November 17, 1990. Mark went on to tell me that he was taking Michael to the truck in his car seat and getting him buckled in. When he pulled away, the tragedy unfolded. Somehow Alyssa had sneaked out of the house, got behind the truck, and his vehicle ran over her. The following minutes were filled with anguish, panic, and activity as his wife (a nurse) sought to help Alyssa, and they hurried off to the hospital. He looked up at me and shared with a tear in his eyes that that was the hardest thing he had to endure, and it is still difficult to this day. As he shared about the storm that blew against his family, he talked about his faith in Jesus. He explained how his love for Jesus got him through those stormy dark days and nights in the past and how his faith in Jesus helps him in the present bad days. Then, he looked up and straight into my eyes, and Mark said: “But Jim, because of Jesus, I will see her, hold her and be with her again. That hope gives me strength and helps in the present storms of life.” After he told me about his hope this anchor for his soul, my eyes were wet. In Hebrews 6:19, it says: “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” We finished our breakfast and talked about that old age is not for the faint of heart. I had Mark promise not to tell my wife or post on the web the amount of salt I put on my fried potatoes. After he laughed, he talked about the hip replacement surgery coming up in October and the pain he daily endures on the farm. I told him I would pray for the upcoming surgery, and as he left, I knew that his faith in Jesus would help him endure any future storm because Jesus had walked him through the worst storm. Someday in the future, his faith in Jesus would bring him back into the arms of His loving Savior and his little Alyssa. As 1 Peter 1:9 says, “for you
That is Why They Call Him Jesus
“Hey Jim, someone is on the phone for you. I cannot tell if they know you or if it is another solicitor,” My wife yelled to me downstairs while I was riding my exercise bike in our basement. I begrudgingly got off my exercise bike thinking I was receiving another unsolicited phone call while I climbed the steps. “Hello, this is Jim,” I said while I waited for another rehearsed sales pitch. “Hey Pastor, my family and I attended your church fifteen years ago when you pastored at Alliance Community Church.” As Mike introduced himself to me on the phone, I was able to remember him and his family. I responded, “Mike, it is so nice to hear from you. How is your wife Jen doing?” Mike began to share and update me on his family and how that they had moved to Cocoa Beach, Florida several years ago because of work. Mike then began to share why he was calling. “I wish I was calling with good news, but I felt I was led by the Lord last night to find you and ask you if you would be able visit my Uncle Ken who is dying of cancer.” He continued, “He has been moved to a hospice wing in a Fort Wayne hospital and I am pretty sure he is not a Christian.” As Mike continued to share with me, I learned that his Uncle Ken and Aunt Traci had never attended church nor had they shown much interest in Jesus. Mike was concerned for his uncle’s salvation and shared with me that he had never explained the gospel of Christ to his uncle. As Mike was praying that night for his Uncle Ken’s salvation, the Lord had led him to find me and ask if I would be able to make a visit and share the gospel with Ken. After hearing Mike’s story, I looked at my clock and realized it was getting late on a Saturday night. I asked Mike if it would be okay if I visited Ken Sunday after our Sunday morning worship service. Mike responded, “Pastor thank you so much!” “I don’t know if Ken will be awake (he was in a coma) or able to speak but I wanted him to hear the gospel and God’s love for him before he died.” After Mike and I prayed on the phone for Ken’s salvation, I knew that I would have to share this story with my church on Sunday morning. I asked our church family to pray for the Lord to bless this divine appointment by having Ken awake and alert and for the Lord to open his heart to respond to the gospel of Jesus. As I walked into Ken’s hospital room, I saw his wife Traci on the phone and Ken watching the Green Bay Packers football game with his Packers blanket covering him. Traci got off the phone and I introduced myself: “Hi Ken and Traci. I am Pastor Jim and your nephew Mike from Florida called me to request that I come and visit with you.” They shared how they have not seen Mike for several years; however, they were thankful to have a visit with me. As I was trying to get a conversation started, I commented on Ken being a Packers fan and how I have been a Bears fan for many years. Once I said that, I thought that was probably not the best way to get a die-hard Packers fan to be open to the gospel; however, Ken responded with a broken voice, “The…bears…are playing well…this year.” He gave me the remote to turn off the Packers game so we could visit and talk about why I had come…to prepare him for death and eternity. I asked Traci how long they have been married and she said proudly (with a tear in her eye), “We have been married 17 years and we lived together for two years before that.” As we talked about life, family, and work, I also heard from them that they did not attend church. I looked at Ken and said, “May I ask you a spiritual question?” He replied affirmatively and I said, “If you were to stand before God and He asked you, ‘Why should I let you into my heaven?’ what would you say?” Ken and Traci both told me they had no idea what they would say to that question. I informed Ken that was why his nephew Mike asked me to come see him, “because he wanted you to know how to get to heaven and be prepared to meet God.” I told Ken and Traci that most people think they get to heaven by having more good deeds than bad deeds. . .would they agree? They agreed, so I asked them if I could ask them a few questions in regards to God’s Law (The Ten Commandments) to see how they measured up. As Ken nodded his head towards me, I asked him several questions: “Have you ever told a lie (breaking the 9th commandment)? What would you call someone who lied? (He said yes, and responded a liar.) Have you ever stolen anything? What do you call someone who has stolen something (He said yes, and a thief)? Have you ever coveted for someone’s else things? (He said yes). I looked at Ken and Traci and said compassionately, “By your own admission, you are a lying covetous thief at heart and we only looked at a few of the commandments. Would you say that you were innocent or guilty before God for breaking His Law?” Ken responded with a laugh and said “You…got me…I would be guilty.” I responded, “Ken, I am not trying to ‘get you,’ but I have another big question for you. Since you admit you are guilty before God for breaking His law, would you go to heaven or hell when you die?” There was a silent hush in the room when Ken admitted
Death Is Nothing To Laugh About
I just read these statistics about the death rate: One hundred twenty people die each minute in the world. Seven thousand four hundred twenty-five people die each hour in the world. One hundred seventy-eight thousand people die each day in the world. Sixty-five million die each year in the world. Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 7:2, “It is better to go to the house of mourning than a house of feasting because death is the destiny of everyone, and the living should take this to heart.” It’s essential to think about death, prepare for death, and to be prepared to meet God after death. I just read this past week that someone my age had just passed away. A famous comedian that I admired, a man named Norm MacDonald, died over the weekend. I’m unsure what his faith journey was, but I read several articles about him over the weekend. One thing I do know about his faith journey is that he struggled with the fear of death. He battled cancer for the past 10 years, and he was unsure what would happen after he died. He was known as a great comedian. He had made a lot of money, acquired lots of fame, but he struggled with life. He shared publicly about his struggle with gambling. He said he once went to a psychiatrist and was being treated for gambling. The psychiatrist said to him: “You gamble to avoid life.” In his deadpan response, he said: “Well, isn’t that why you do everything?” He went on to say, “I’d rather fear losing money on a football game than ruminate all night about my upcoming illness and death. My biggest problem is ruminating about death. If I could get over that somehow. I read books about it, that Becker book, Denial of Death.” When he talked about his fear of death, it made me think about what the writer in Hebrews said. Hebrews 2:14-15, “Since the children have flesh and blood, Jesus too shared in their humanity so that by his death He might destroy him who holds the power of death that is a devil and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” Norm MacDonald said this about faith and death: “God is the best. That’s what I’m trying to get to is God. Faith is the only salvation in every great novel I read, but I don’t know how to get it. I don’t know how to believe suddenly. I’m too stupid or proud or pretend I’m smart enough. I came to it a long time ago that I have to control everything, but I struggle with faith. It’s tough to keep believing because it’s the hardest thing to believe. Maybe I’m not deep enough.” It was the saddest thing to hear these quotes as he struggled with the fear of death. He feared meeting God and knew he had to have faith, but he didn’t know whom to have faith in or how to have faith. Paul wrote in Romans 10:13-16, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news.” As believers, we are commanded to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others. The latest studies have shown that one in one people will die. Everyone will die and meet God. That fear of death that consumed Norm also consumes many other people. Norm needed to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ and salvation in Him. He needed to know that he is a sinner separated from God now and for eternity because of his sins. The one thing he needed to do was to repent and confess his sins before a holy God and then trust that Jesus’s death and resurrection would restore him to God. Norm needed to have faith in Jesus. Norm needed someone to share the gospel with him. Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” Jesus took away his sins on the cross, and Norm would be forgiven of his sins if he had asked Jesus to forgive him. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all in righteousness.” When you are born again and know Jesus as your Savior and Lord, death does not have victory over you. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:54b-57, “… death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Death is nothing to laugh about. Apart from Jesus Christ, there is no salvation (Acts 4:12). I mourn the loss of Norm MacDonald. I don’t know where he was in his faith journey or where he is now in eternity. But by thinking of him and ruminating over his fear of death, I realized that I need to Go & Tell others the glorious, good news of Jesus Christ. I need to share with others the gospel of Jesus Christ and that salvation is found only in Him. Through Jesus, death will be swallowed up in victory. I pray that you will Go & Tell others our salvation in Jesus for the glory of God.