“Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and have made for themselves a god of gold! Yet now, if You will forgive their sin – but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.”
-Exodus 32:31-32 (NKJV)
-Exodus 32:31-32 (NKJV)
We see here in Exodus 32 the love Moses had for the Israelites. The Israelites had sinned against God by making a god of gold to worship and they deserved what was coming to them, but Moses intercedes on their behalf and asks God to forgive their sin. Then he takes it a step further and asks to have his name blotted out of the Book of Life if God is unwilling to forgive their sin. Wow, now that is love! In fact, it reminds me of the love Christ has for each of us.
Can you imagine caring so much for a nation or even an individual that you would be willing to have your name blotted out of the Book of Life? Maybe you can, but I find it difficult to fully comprehend. While some may consider me to be fairly bold with my faith, the reality is, it is easy to be bold when you are surrounded by like minded individuals. I find that when I am in the presence of those who need the Lord most, I am least likely to put my faith out there. I often shrink away from the opportunity to share Christ with others, fearing it would make things awkward or that they would think I was “wack job.” I recently watched a “Penn Says” segment on YouTube where Penn Gillette, an outspoken atheist, makes the following statement,
“If you believe there’s a heaven and hell and people could be going to hell or not getting eternal life or whatever; and you think, ‘Well, it’s not worth telling them this because it would make it socially awkward.’ And atheists will think that people shouldn’t proselytize, ‘Just leave me alone, keep your religion to yourself.’ How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? I mean if I believed, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that a truck was going to hit you and you didn’t believe it and that truck was bearing down on you, there’s a certain point where I tackle you and this is more important than that.” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JHS8adO3hM)
One’s salvation is more important that an oncoming truck, after all, this isn’t just life and death but eternal life and eternal death. Yet, we as Christians so often hide our faith from the world. We are so afraid to look different than the rest of the world and yet if we are truly walking with Christ, we cannot help but look different for we are not of the world. “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:19) We have been called to share the gospel with every creature, “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.”(Mark 16:15-16) How much must we hate someone to not share the truth of Christ?
I am challenged today by the love Moses showed toward the Israelites and who Jesus has called me to be as a disciple of Christ. I wonder how it might look if I truly loved my neighbor, how my conversations and actions might be different. I pray that you will be challenged today to step outside your comfort zone and be open and willing to go where the Spirit leads you in your interactions with others.
Can you imagine caring so much for a nation or even an individual that you would be willing to have your name blotted out of the Book of Life? Maybe you can, but I find it difficult to fully comprehend. While some may consider me to be fairly bold with my faith, the reality is, it is easy to be bold when you are surrounded by like minded individuals. I find that when I am in the presence of those who need the Lord most, I am least likely to put my faith out there. I often shrink away from the opportunity to share Christ with others, fearing it would make things awkward or that they would think I was “wack job.” I recently watched a “Penn Says” segment on YouTube where Penn Gillette, an outspoken atheist, makes the following statement,
“If you believe there’s a heaven and hell and people could be going to hell or not getting eternal life or whatever; and you think, ‘Well, it’s not worth telling them this because it would make it socially awkward.’ And atheists will think that people shouldn’t proselytize, ‘Just leave me alone, keep your religion to yourself.’ How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? I mean if I believed, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that a truck was going to hit you and you didn’t believe it and that truck was bearing down on you, there’s a certain point where I tackle you and this is more important than that.” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JHS8adO3hM)
One’s salvation is more important that an oncoming truck, after all, this isn’t just life and death but eternal life and eternal death. Yet, we as Christians so often hide our faith from the world. We are so afraid to look different than the rest of the world and yet if we are truly walking with Christ, we cannot help but look different for we are not of the world. “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:19) We have been called to share the gospel with every creature, “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.”(Mark 16:15-16) How much must we hate someone to not share the truth of Christ?
I am challenged today by the love Moses showed toward the Israelites and who Jesus has called me to be as a disciple of Christ. I wonder how it might look if I truly loved my neighbor, how my conversations and actions might be different. I pray that you will be challenged today to step outside your comfort zone and be open and willing to go where the Spirit leads you in your interactions with others.
COACH'S CALL TO ACTION
- Where or when do you shy away from sharing Christ with others?
- What is it that causes you to shy away?
- How would it look to have faith enough to trust the Holy Spirit to go where He sends you and to give you the words to speak?
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