Articles

(There is a special message at the end of this article for those who might happen to read this and do not have Jesus in their life and are looking for peace and a way to better understand the present-day insanity and confusion.)

Almost all of us have one or more family members who, though exposed to the Truth of the Gospel, have not been willing to respond to it. It is not uncommon for this knowledge to have an almost debilitating effect at times on us who know His Truth.

I believe it would be very rare to find any family in which every member has repented and received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. If you were to have such a family, I hope you understand just how blessed you are.

For the rest of us, our concern for lost family members never abates, and it is reignited every time we see them or communicate with them by phone or email.

That is as it relates to family members, but I believe all of us, at the very least, know friends and acquaintances who are lost as well, and those same thoughts come to mind in that case, too, because we, like the Lord, do not want anyone to perish.

God knows every thought in our minds and hearts, and I believe that one reason he has provided us with the Wisdom of His Word is so that we can endure each day with the strength that is found in trusting Him.

As present world events and circumstances strongly indicate, we are finally at the threshold of the End of the Age, and so our sense of urgency for salvation of the lost is stronger than ever.

My wife and I have personal experience with respect to this, but we, thanks to God’s Word, have come to a place where we have peace with it.

I don’t mean to imply that we have become indifferent or unconcerned about family members, friends, and even strangers that we meet who are living in a lost state.

Instead, we are at peace with ourselves in our hearts and our spirits and in God’s process. We praise the Lord more than ever for His guidance and the Truth found in His Word.

We have made sure that all these people have heard of their need to repent and receive the One and Only Savior that is Jesus Christ; that they understand that He and He alone is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; that no one comes to the Father except by Him.

If they do not respond, or refuse, then we offer to answer any questions or discuss Jesus at any time, but we do not press and “do more harm than good,” both to them as well as to ourselves by assuming responsibility for something we cannot do.

We understand that most will not be initially receptive according to God’s own Word and that understanding is the source of our strength to act and pray according to it.

So, we witness to them by example in our everyday walk with Him so that they see a contrast between “the world” and its lies, deceit and emptiness, and our lives lived with peace, contentment and reverence for the Lord.

Having done these things to the best of our ability, we have done all that we can and, more importantly, all that we are required to do according to God’s Word.

We are, by understanding this, able to give a reason for the hope that is in us:

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”(1 Peter 3:15).

We are prepared in season and out of season when opportunities to witness are presented to us. Those opportunities, we understand, must be initiated by the Holy Spirit, or they will not be likely to be fruitful.

“Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching” (2 Timothy 4:2).

Though this verse was directed to Timothy as a pastor, we are all part of a “priesthood.”

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).

Our role (and even Paul’s and Apollos’ role) in God’s plan and purpose is made clear to us in this most important verse:

“I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth” (1 Corinthians 3:6-7). Emphasis added by me.

It is God the Holy Spirit alone who can convict any unsaved person of their sin and their need to repent. While He may do that through our witness, it is not us who would be doing so, and we should not be discouraged if we do not see any “results” at that time.

The Holy Spirit knows when it is “the right time” for someone to respond to His call.

When we understand our limitations and, therefore, the parameters of our assignment, we are better able to serve the Lord in the way He intends. Our expectations are realistic. We may still be disappointed, but it is held within its proper perspective.

When we understand that we cannot save anyone, no matter how much we want them to be saved, we come to a further place in our relationship to God and our service to Christ.

We come to placing our complete trust in God and not ourselves.

I believe that God places trusting Him at the same level as loving Him, as He is the One and Only Trustworthy and True.

In what is often referred to as “The Great Commission,” there is no mention of a requirement to be “successful” but only to plant the seed of the Gospel and to water it; thus, there are no unrealistic expectations placed on us.

“He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation'” (Mark 16:15).

And He also said:

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

Now to the crux of this article.

If we believe that the Word of God is inerrant and the Holy Spirit is the true author of every word, then we must trust in these principles:

“And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified” (Romans 8:28-30). Emphasis added by me.

And Jesus’ statement makes it abundantly clear that we can Trust Him:

“And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of those He has given Me but raise them up at the last day” (John 6:39).

When we become anxious and sad about this very personal and heartfelt matter, we find that God has, as ever, anticipated it and offers us His Wisdom and Comfort in advance.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

My beloved wife and I have placed the people we pray for in the hands of the God we trust in, for that is where they already are.

Because of this, we continue to pray for them without ceasing, anxious but not anxious, grateful to the Lord who understands us so well. In full confidence, we are able to experience the peace promised to us in His Word. That peace truly does surpass understanding.

By praying diligently, we also join our will to the will of God and join in His plan for eternity.

I hope you will find this perspective helpful, trust in the Lord for the results, and continue to pray without ceasing.

God Bless you all.

The special message I promised you:

For anyone who may read this article and has not trusted in Jesus Christ and therefore has no hope or peace in your life.

You can have hope. You can have the peace that Jesus has promised to all who have made Him their Lord and Savior. The peace that passes understanding.

It requires that you come before God on His terms and that you do so in your living years.

And, what are His terms according to His Word?

Genuine repentance (turning to God instead of continuing to reject or ignore Him).
Confession of sins (that you are a sinner and acknowledge that to God).
That you understand that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).
To acknowledge to God that you are unable to pay that debt.
Belief that Jesus Christ paid your death sentence for you on the cross and rose from the grave three days later, conquering death, just as He promised.
To believe that Jesus is the Way, the only Way, that God has established by which humans may be saved from the consequences of their sin and rebellion.

God has made it absolutely clear that there is no one who comes before Him, under His terms, that will be refused.

No one: no race, no color, no country of origin, regardless of any previous belief system: no one.
No matter what your past sins have been, God can and WILL forgive you because He says He will.
Salvation is available to everyone without any exceptions.

If you put all your trust for salvation in Jesus, and Him only, you can follow that prayer up by simply saying, “Thank you, Father God, for hearing my prayer and saving me,” because we can trust Him to keep His Word. He always has. He always will.

“Truly, Truly, I say to you that he who hears My words and believes the One who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned. He has crossed from death to life” (John 5:24).

There are no answers and there is no hope in the world by governments, organizations, politics or politicians. There are only lies and deception. But you can have the Truth and the peace you seek.

The answers are in the Word of God—The Bible. If you ask God, with all your heart, He will hear you.

“And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13).

Pro Salvator Vigilans

To contact me: canoeman96@gmail.com

Matthew 5:14-16

¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

This week, my family and I and a few friends went to the Ark Encounter in Kentucky. Wow! Simply wow! I would encourage you to go if you can and see what the Ark may have looked like. See the size of the vessel and see how the space could easily have housed many animals and the food the people needed and left a lot of space for walking, as well as giving the families space to live. I was astonished by the amount of people that we saw there. We met people from Oklahoma, Iowa, Michigan, Illinois and many others. The parking lot was quite full, and the buses were full, taking people from the parking lots to the actual facility.

When we were through, we had the chance to enjoy several concerts with Southern Gospel bands. In this auditorium, there may have been a thousand people or so who were worshiping the Lord. As we were there, we learned that over the eight years that the Ark Encounter has been open, some 50 hotels had been built in the area. This tells me that Christians from all over the world have attended and have the economic capacity to drive change if we want to. We could have more and more faith-based businesses if we wished to, but we don’t.

Brothers and Sisters, the verses in Matthew that we are considering tell us that we, you and I, are light. We are to shed light into the dark corners of the world, exposing evil and offering guidance to Jesus, the Way. But many of us have shrunk into the shadows ourselves. In Matthew 5:13, we are called ‘salt.’

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”

Salt, as we know, flavors food, but it is most often used as a preservative. Salt slows down the breakdown of foods and allows it to last longer. We are supposed to preserve the people of the earth, to help them have more time to see the grace of God and have the opportunity to be saved. We are a preservative that is supposed to slow down the societal breakdown and slow the coming judgment. We are here to extend God’s grace, extend God’s patience, and offer more and more opportunities to be saved. There are a lot of us. No one thought that a Bible-based ‘amusement’ park would be viable, but it is. It is economically viable to the Christians who invested in it and for the secular businesses around them.

If we want bad businesses to stop existing, Christians have the financial power to do so. We can focus our money on either bolstering or bankrupting a business. We have seen that with companies like Chick-fil-A and Hobby Lobby. If we want businesses to thrive and not have to open 7 days a week, we can do that. This is the kind of salt and light that we are called to be. We have the power to make or break things. If we wanted ‘drag-queen’ story hour to stop, we could. Just take our kids out of the schools and home school instead, and start more church-based Christian schools; we have the economic power and the financial ability to do so if we want. It would appear that we do not want to.

If we wanted, we could run and fund those campaigns to put Godly men and women on our school boards, on our city councils, and on our state/provincial legislators and truly make lasting changes that would last for generations.

Imagine what would have happened in the last 8 years if President Trump had not nominated conservative judges to the US Supreme Court. Roe vs Wade would not have been revisited and overturned, as well as many laws supporting gun ownership and the like would have been struck down, further empowering the government. Imagine what would happen here in Canada if we had seriously fiscal and morally conservative majorities in our Parliament? But somewhere along the line, somewhere in our history, we Christians became hands-off when it came to politics.

We did not want to lead any longer; we just sat in the background and hoped for the best. Look where that has gotten us. The drag queens are mainstream, and we are the fringe, and there are millions more of us than they. We stopped being salt and light. We stopped slowing the decay, and we have stood by as these people who Jesus died for are heading to Hell, and we have become spectators to their demise. ‘They are just getting what they deserve,’ but that is the whole point of the Gospel: the people, we included, DO NOT get what we deserve; instead, we are graced into the loving family of God.

Sadly, a large part of the Christian populace has stopped sharing the Gospel. We just stopped telling others about Jesus. We stopped making a difference, and this is what light and salt do best; they make a difference for the good. We stopped being light in the dark places. We stopped being salt in the rotting places. Now, the world we are leaving our kids is darker than it has ever been, and the rot is pungent. We stopped slowing the decay. But if we wanted to, we still could slow the rotting and shed light on the darkness; we have the economic power and the population density to do it.

I have a pastoral acquaintance who once commented that he had not properly prepared for retirement because he thought Jesus would have come back by now. Jesus has not come back, and we don’t know when He will.

What will happen to the world we leave our kids and grandkids if we refuse to invest our money and economic powers in the good?

What if there were Biblical theme parks all over?

What if all conservative churches made a covenant not to allow any more of our kids to be raised by LGBTQ teachers and the like?

What if we stopped supporting businesses that were hostile to godly beliefs and put our money or started businesses that did not even have to be preachy, just not hostile to the Lord?

What if we truly wanted to be Light and Salt?

What if we could picture everyone we meet in Hell for 5 seconds? How would that change our lives and the way we live? How would it change me? How would it change our churches?

What if by being salt and light we bought a little more time, a little more grace to offer a few more people the opportunity to be saved?

The Ark Encounter was eye-opening, not only to the Ark story itself in Genesis 6-9 but the power that we have as God’s people to affect change if we want to. I pray we will want to. There are millions of lost people that need us to want to.

God bless you,

Dr. Sean Gooding
Pastor of Mississauga Missionary Baptist Church

How To Connect with Us

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Grieving for The Lost: Witnessing In Perspective :: By Dave Hubley

The Ark Encounter :: By Sean Gooding