Instruments of the Divine Workman

And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; 

and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.

Exodus 9:16

God was preparing Moses as His divine instrument even as He let Pharaoh  know that in his destruction the Egyptians would come to know of God.  

And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them.  Exodus 7:5

It is indeed a wonderful thing to become a citizen of the Kingdom of God; it's what God wants and what He intends.    As a believer, we are part of the Body of Christ sent out to a lost and dying world to share the good news of the Gospel. But this spiritual body is directed, controlled, and energized by the spiritual head, functioning like a natural body which is guided by the natural head.  However, we should understand that we are invited in with a purpose.  We are to reach out to those that are still in the kingdom of darkness and render to them God's plan of evangelism for reaching the world with the Gospel as revealed in Acts 1:8:

→           Jesus Christ is the content of the message.

→           Disciples are the messengers of the Gospel empowered by the Holy Spirit.

→           The whole world is the recipient of the message.

The Word of God; God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and prayer all combine their spiritual forces within the messengers of the Gospel enabling us to bear powerful witness to the Gospel.

The Gospel has the power within it to accomplish spiritual birth in a receptive soul:

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  Romans 1:16

We do not have to be a gifted speaker to be a messenger of the Gospel. All that is necessary is that we share the Gospel message which alone has the power to save man.

When we share God's Word, the hearer's faith does not rest on our wisdom or skillful delivery:

So that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.   1 Corinthians 2:5

We can also be assured that God's Word does not return void. It will accomplish God's purposes:

So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.  Isaiah 55:11  

The Word releases the powerful demonstration of signs and wonders to follow, which convinces unbelievers of the truth of the Gospel:   

Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.   Mark 16:20

God is the one who changes a person's life through the born-again experience. You can witness, preach, and teach the Gospel to the best of your ability, 

but only God can convert a soul. 

Once we understand this, much of our worry about sharing the gospel is relieved.

We are simply the messengers,  human instruments for the divine workman. It is impossible for us to convert someone. The born-again experience is conceived and birthed by God. When a person is born again, he is "begotten of God":

Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God; and every one that loveth Him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of Him.   1 John 5:1

Jesus is the one who gave the mandate of evangelism and sent the Holy Spirit to equip us for the task. He is the one who works with us with confirming signs and wonders:

 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; hey shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.   Mark 16:17-18

In New Testament times, the Holy Spirit drew the crowds to the messengers of the Gospel. How else can we explain the throngs that followed their ministries? There were no newspapers, radio, or television advertisements in biblical days.

In addition to modern methods to attract the masses, we should take time to tarry in our upper rooms like the early Church did until we, too, are endued with power from on high. It is the Holy Spirit that convicts men and convinces them of the necessity of salvation. Proven evangelistic methods are useful in spreading the Gospel, but God does not want us to depend upon them. We must depend on the convicting power of the Holy Spirit:

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you. And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment. John 16:7-8

It is the power of the Holy Spirit that energizes evangelism. The disciples became effective, active witnesses after they experienced that power (Acts 1:8 & 2).

Nothing in the realm of the spiritual can succeed without prayer.   Just as a natural body must be attached to the head in proper alignment of nerves, bone, and muscle in order to function, the spiritual body must be in contact with the spiritual head, the Lord Jesus Christ. This contact is made through prayer.

But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,  (Jude 1:20)

Jesus is the vine and we are the branches where the fruit is borne. Jesus is the stalk and root that gives life to the branches. The picture is one of mutual dependence. He depends on us to bear the fruit, we depend on Him for spiritual life and energy (John 15). This relationship cannot exist without proper contact between us and the Lord. 

And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying,  Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.  And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.  Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me.  And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.  Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?  And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.  Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.   Matthew 17:14-21

The disciples were unable to minister to a young boy because of lack of prayer. Prayer is not a preliminary to the actual work - - it is the work!

Prayer should precede evangelism. In Luke 10:1-24, Jesus tells His disciples to pray (vs 2), then He tells them to go (vs 3). Praying precedes the going. In Acts 2 they prayed 10 days, preached for several minutes, and 3000 were saved.

Praying "evangelistically" means that you pray for:

→      Laborers in the harvest 
   
 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers
  are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth     labourers into his harvest.   Luke 10:2

→       The Gospel to have "free course" 

     "Free course" means to "run or swiftly advance." 

     Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free
     course, and be glorified, even as it is with you: And that we may be
     delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.  
           2 Thessalonians 3:1-2 

→      Opportunity:  

      Apostle Paul asks for prayer for himself that God would open a "door of utterance" that he might share the Gospel.

            Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of      
            utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in      
            bonds:  Colossians 4:3  

→      Boldness: 

       Apostle Paul asked the Ephesian Church to pray that he might share the Gospel boldly 

       And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my
       mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,  Ephesians 6:19

→      Salvation: 

       It is Biblical to pray for people to get saved. Apostle Paul prayed for Israel that they might be saved.

       Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they
       might be saved.   Romans 10:1

→      Peace: 

      Apostle Paul tells us to pray for those in authority so we can lead a peaceful life. He says to do this because it is good in the eyes of God who "desires all men to be saved." The Gospel spreads more rapidly in peaceful conditions, not hindered by persecution, war zones, travel restrictions, etc.  

      I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions,    
      and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are
      in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness
      and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our
      Saviour; who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the
      knowledge of the truth.   1 Timothy 2:1-4  

A measure of success may follow our prayerless undertakings for the Kingdom of God, but our efforts fall short of what could be accomplished if we were to recognize the vital function of prayer.

(Biblical Studies)

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