do we really care about the lost?

[blondeambition3]

sometimes, i dont care about the lost. im worse for it, and know i need work and help there. when i meet directly with people who do not believe, i care quickly, but when i pass them on the street, i find my self cold. pray for myself and people like me that God would give us a burden to help those forgotten in our lives who do not know the Lord.

I will pray 'with' you and 'for' you because I too am like you at times....

"Heavenly Father, give us YOUR Eyes, your Ears, your Hands and YOUR Heart to see, hear, do and love as you. Make us the vessels in Christ you have purposed us to be and then fill us with your Word so we can speak with boldness and with POWER the revelation of the Gospel of Christ so that we may effectively reach the lost for you. In Jesus' holy name we pray Father, and to YOU be all the honor praise & Glory forever & ever... Amen"

 

[LisaLisa]

i will pray 'with' you and 'for' you because i too am like you at times....

"heavenly father, give us your eyes, your ears, your hands and your heart to see, hear, do and love as you. Make us the vessels in christ you have purposed us to be and then fill us with your word so we can speak with boldness and with power the revelation of the gospel of christ so that we may effectively reach the lost for you. In jesus' holy name we pray father, and to you be all the honor praise & glory forever & ever... Amen"

amen !!!!!!!!!!!

 

[NuGalicia]

Jesus didn't have a problem identifying the lost (Lk 19:10). We won't find treasure in the dark (Isa 45:3) if we don't know what we're looking for.

So I agree that:

...You have to listen to the Holy Spirit. He prepares the way. I can't imagine going into the inner city alone handing out tracks to a gang. You need to listen to God...

I went to San Fransisco's projects to invite kids to an Easter egg hunt. Nearly every block I noticed a shrine of empty alcohol bottles, around a photograph. Gang members told me these were memorials to their fallen members, those who'd died from gang violence. I was amazed at their respect toward these shrines, and asked if they'd mind if I photographed one. Instead of shooting me, the whole gang gathered around the shrine for a picture. Then they told me how they respected what us Christians were doing in their ghetto by busing kids to an Easter egg hunt. No barriers, just love. Saints & sinners, equal but different.

We all knew who we were without judgement or hypocrisy, because:
"By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother." 1 Jn 3:10

The original question was:

What are we supposed to do in order to draw the lost to Jesus?

and my vote is to:

Love them...

 

[lmrasch]

While I certainly understand your point of view, I have to challenge that someone caused you to lose your faith. We all believe what we believe because we choose to believe it. We then go about building a case to justify our belief. No one's hypocrisy has caused anyone to lose their faith. It may add to one's "wall of evidence" why what I believe is justified, but it doesn't cause you to believe it. People believe what they want to believe... for whatever reason.. usually because they see it as necessary to take care of themselves.

I understand discouragement with the church and religious systems within Christianity... but really, that has nothing to do with whether or not Jesus is real or if what he said is true. Our ability to incorporate his truth into our lives is a statement about who we are ... not about who He is.

to paraphrase your statement.. (Christians are great at appearing self-righteous.) Christians are great at being human. Many times we don't know how to be anything else. And when we learn how to be truly Christ-like, in one small area of their lives, no one points a finger at us and says "look how great they are"... "look at what they've learned and how they've implemented it". Why? Because that is not what the system and society wants to see. The judgment about "self-righteous" is in the eye of the beholder.

On the other subject you brought up....
re: the statement about universal healthcare... trying to avoid getting political.... This has everything to do with the heart of the individual. When the state or the system takes away an individuals choice to give, then it is no longer giving. Organized-forced giving is no giving at all. When an individual gives out of their own charitable heart, God honors and blesses that. When the gov't takes it from us to give to others it is no longer a choice and the heart is eliminated from the equation. Charity is supposed to be an act of one's will out of love. Not because the gov't says so. In reality, the gov't is just another religion, set out to perpetuate itself. It doesn't create anything ... it justifies it's own existence by imposing its will upon others. Gov't ... like religion is designed to impose upon others that which it does not trust they will do for themselves. i.e. force all to give because they believe that others cannot be trusted to be charitable. or worse yet, force other to give so that I get mine. It is a proven fact that people give far more when they choose to than when the govt forces them to. As a side note... food for thought... Christians give 80% of all charitable donations ... world wide. I wouldn't call that hypocrisy.

I've never heard anyone say "Why should I pay for someone else's health care?". That is an assumption of what is being said. I have heard plenty of people say, "I want my charitable acts to be my decision... not the gov'ts". It may be the most effective way to pay for healthcare for all. But it isn't the most effective way to provide it.

Well said Hy...glad to see you here, been missing your posts .

 

[HyOnLyph]

Well said Hy...glad to see you here, been missing your posts .

thanks, that's nice of you to say so. I pop in and read a few from day to day.

by the way... that purple atty you PIF'd to me is still going strong.

 

[blondeambition3]

Well said Hy...glad to see you here, been missing your posts .

me too Hy!

 

[HyOnLyph]

me too Hy!

Thanks so much.

 

[lmrasch]

sometimes, i dont care about the lost. im worse for it, and know i need work and help there. when i meet directly with people who do not believe, i care quickly, but when i pass them on the street, i find my self cold. pray for myself and people like me that God would give us a burden to help those forgotten in our lives who do not know the Lord.

This scripture has been laid on my heart the last couple of days...the lost see the things happening in the news, they feel pressed in from all sides, they don't know who to trust in government and even if they have darkened the doorway of a church, they have left disheartened.

I can totally relate! Some times as Christians we fall into this type of thinking as well. We need to ask for the mind of Christ during these times...what was his thought process? Did he just throw his hands in the air and give up when times got hard or turn a blind eye? Or, did he commend his ways to the One who was able to keep him, so that many would be saved?

Matthew 9
35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

This was Jesus...the one that saves us...he had compassion, could see their distress. He was among them, yet told the disciples to "ask" the Lord of the harvest to send out workers.

ASK! ASK! and ASK AGAIN!


If we ourselves are tired and weary, we can go to the one who understands and ask for him to make our legs strong and give us his heart of compassion to truly see with our hearts what HE ALONE IS ABLE TO DO in the lives of others. Do not be disheartened, it is not us that saves, but Jesus and he can break through our discouragement if we are truly seeking.

Jesus didn't have a problem identifying the lost (Lk 19:10). We won't find treasure in the dark (Isa 45:3) if we don't know what we're looking for.

So I agree that:


I went to San Fransisco's projects to invite kids to an Easter egg hunt. Nearly every block I noticed a shrine of empty alcohol bottles, around a photograph. Gang members told me these were memorials to their fallen members, those who'd died from gang violence. I was amazed at their respect toward these shrines, and asked if they'd mind if I photographed one. Instead of shooting me, the whole gang gathered around the shrine for a picture. Then they told me how they respected what us Christians were doing in their ghetto by busing kids to an Easter egg hunt. No barriers, just love. Saints & sinners, equal but different.

We all knew who we were without judgement or hypocrisy, because:
"By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother." 1 Jn 3:10

Amen to that....Lord give us a heart and courage to keep on fighting the good fight...what a blessing it is to be used.

 

[lmrasch]

thanks, that's nice of you to say so. I pop in and read a few from day to day.

by the way... that purple atty you PIF'd to me is still going strong.

YAY! Glad it's still workin

 

[Saintscruiser]

I will pray 'with' you and 'for' you because I too am like you at times....

"Heavenly Father, give us YOUR Eyes, your Ears, your Hands and YOUR Heart to see, hear, do and love as you. Make us the vessels in Christ you have purposed us to be and then fill us with your Word so we can speak with boldness and with POWER the revelation of the Gospel of Christ so that we may effectively reach the lost for you. In Jesus' holy name we pray Father, and to YOU be all the honor praise & Glory forever & ever... Amen"

AMEIN Cuz/Sister!

 

[TheMathClub]

i would say, judging by context that they are referring to those who do not believe. though i wouldnt get hung on the terminoligy

 

[LisaLisa]

thanks, that's nice of you to say so. I pop in and read a few from day to day.

by the way... that purple atty you PIF'd to me is still going strong.

Hey brother, always good to see you!

 

[LisaLisa]

sometimes, i dont care about the lost. im worse for it, and know i need work and help there. when i meet directly with people who do not believe, i care quickly, but when i pass them on the street, i find my self cold. pray for myself and people like me that God would give us a burden to help those forgotten in our lives who do not know the Lord.

You are very honest, and that's awesome! Your admission of this short coming, and your willingness to change it, it just really inspiring to me because it shows such a great heart.

 

[HyOnLyph]

Hey brother, always good to see you!

Thanks Lisa, you guys are gonna make me

 

[KellyinAZ]

My father in law has always said;

"You work with hypocrites, you eat with hypocrites, you go to family reunions with hypocrites, why would you expect that you wouldn't go to church with them?"

Jason,
Those words are unfortunately very true. If we as Christians behave like hypocrites why would any sane person believe one single word that comes out of our mouths, especially if those words are about God and the Holy Trinity?
Kelly
In God We Trust

 

[cskalash]

Honestly i don't believe in god, well i don't believe anything related to that, specially in churches, been raised as Christian but honestly i just don't believe in it. Although i live my life more as Christian then many Christians out there. I believe that's what it's important.

 

[HyOnLyph]

Jason,
Those words are unfortunately very true. If we as Christians behave like hypocrites why would any sane person believe one single word that comes out of our mouths, especially if those words are about God and the Holy Trinity?
Kelly
In God We Trust

I think we throw around the word "Hypocrite" way too much. It seems to be a word that the world has used to excuse themselves and justify their denial of God and Christ. And we've bought into it.

If someone professes to be a Christian and struggles with every day life, they are human. If someone professes to be perfect, knowing that they are living a double life so to speak.... THEN they are a hypocrite. I know very few Believers who profess to be a shining example of what it means to be Christ-like. And those that profess how holy they are... usually do it because of their insecurity. As long as we believe we are human, we'll act like it.

Our life as a Christian is not about how great we are... It's about how great HE is. And that's the difference.

 

[TheMathClub]

"Honestly i don't believe in god, well i don't believe anything related to that, specially in churches, been raised as Christian but honestly i just don't believe in it. Although i live my life more as Christian then many Christians out there. I believe that's what it's important. "

good to see your trying to be a decent human being not enough people, regardless of their beliefs, strive for decency. i wont judge you man, if you need something, pm me, i'll be glad to help if i can

 

[KellyinAZ]

HyOnLyph,

I believe there are many Christians who are hypocrites. I say this because there are people who claim to be Christians and believe in abortion, same sex marriage, adultery, idolatry and many other things that are simply not Christian. I agree that none of us are perfect for only Christ was perfect, but there are many who go against His teachings and believe they are shining examples of Christianity. Don't you think that those people are hypocrites?
Kelly
In God We Trust

 

[HyOnLyph]

HyOnLyph,

I believe there are many Christians who are hypocrites. I say this because there are people who claim to be Christians and believe in abortion, same sex marriage, adultery, idolatry and many other things that are simply not Christian. I agree that none of us are perfect for only Christ was perfect, but there are many who go against His teachings and believe they are shining examples of Christianity. Don't you think that those people are hypocrites?
Kelly
In God We Trust

Hi Kelly,
First, please know that it is not my intention to be argumentative. I am commenting on the way I see things.

Do I think those people are hypocrites? Well that's crux of the question.... does my judgement make them hypocrites or is it their own heart? I don't believe a Christian is a hypocrite just because they believe in abortion. If a Christian believes that life doesn't begin until late term or at birth... then they are not going against their beliefs in Christ to support abortion. Or if a young woman is so afraid of her future that she truly believes that abortion is her only option... or at least the option that will make her fear stop... then she is to be pitied and helped, not judged as a hypocrite. (granted, she may be trading her fear for guilt and remorse, but she doesn't know that at the time.)

As to your other examples that are "simply not Christian"... they may be "not Christian" by some people's standards and even by my standards... but they are not hypocrisy if the person believes one way and has struggled and/or fallen. It is not hypocrisy for one to even convince themselves that they are somehow correct in their actions. It is only hypocricy when a person professes something about themselves knowing full well that they aren't living it.

You see... hypocrisy is about whether or not I'm true to what I believe. If I believe that being a Christian included allowing snakes to bite me and I subject myself to such rituals, as mis-guided as that may seem to me, it's not hypocrisy.

In my opinion, It is not even hypocrisy for someone to be in an adulterous relationship and profess that Jesus is the Christ and that Christ is the answer or that one should follow Christ. I can be living one way and know that Jesus is the way and say so. That isn't hypocrisy. What is hypocrisy is when I make a statement about my righteousness and how you should be living like me, knowing that either I don't believe it or am not walking in it. I don't see that very often. I do see people accuse Christians of doing it, but in reality that is more about their own judgments and perceptions than it is about the intentions of the Christian they are accusing.

For me to judge that someone is a hypocrite, is to presume that I know the intentions of their heart. Fear, denial, ignorance... is not hypocricy.

Does that make sense?