Luke 19:10 reminds us of the reason GOD sent JESUS to planet Earth. His mission was simple: “The Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.” Why? I Peter 3:8b: “(The Lord) is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”
I read the story of Eva Hart, a survivor, who recounted the experience of the night of April 15, 1912, when the Titanic hit an iceberg and plunged 12,000 feet to the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. Some 2 hours and 40 minutes after an iceberg tore a 300-foot gash in the starboard side, Hart “saw all the horror of its sinking, and I heard, even more dreadful, the cries of drowning people.”
Although 20 lifeboats and rafts were launched – too few and only partially filled – most passengers ended up struggling in the icy seas while those boats waited a safe distance away.
Hart recalled, “Lifeboat #14 did row back to the scene after the unsinkable ship slipped from sight at 2:20 am. Alone, it chased cries in the darkness, seeking and saving a precious few. Incredibly, no other boat joined it. Some were already overloaded, but in virtually every other boat, those already saved rowed their half-filled boats aimlessly in the night, listening to the cries of the lost. Each feared a crush of unknown swimmers would cling to their craft, eventually swamping it.
Using this story as an analogy, one Christian wrote, “I came to seek and to save the lost, our Savior said. And he commissioned us to do the same. But we face a large obstacle: fear. While people drown in the treacherous waters around us, we are tempted to stay dry and make certain no one rocks the boat.”
How do we respond to the natural emotion of fear when it comes to sharing our faith. I John 4:8 provides the answer: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” In other words, when our love for JESUS is strong, then that love overcomes the fear in our hearts.
As a body of believers called “Redemption Hill Church,” we live in a city in which 90% of its residents are “unchurched.” Let us pray for opportunities to share the gospel. John 20:21 reminds us of our responsibility to fulfill JESUS’ mission: JESUS said, “As the Father has sent Me, even so I am sending you.”
Pastor Mike