The Power Of The Spoken Word Is Not To Be Underestimated

³⁹ Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” ⁴⁰ So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. ⁴¹ And because of his words many more became believers.

⁴² They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

Say Something

Sometimes, the most important thing to do is just to say something:

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

Since faith comes through hearing the message, if we don’t tell other people, how will they come to faith?  God not only uses people, but also the heavens above to speak about Himself:

¹ The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
³ They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
⁴ Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
⁵ It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
⁶ It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.

Even the skies proclaim the work of His hands.  All creation bears witness to Him:

¹⁸ The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, ¹⁹ since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. ²⁰ For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

God prefers that people hear testimony about Himself from people, for we are more persuasive, and people are more able to relate to our experiences.

Seed the Soil

When we speak about Almighty God and His Son, Jesus Christ, we are sowing spiritual seed in the hearts of whomever may hear.  It takes a great effort to prepare the soil, fertilize it, and get it ready for the farmer to plant seed.  The Holy Spirit, using the trials of life, gets the soil of our hearts ready for the seed of the Gospel.

And like all seed, it needs to be watered, and the soil needs to be weeded.  If we don’t, the soil will dry up, and the seed will die.  Paul used this analogy as well:

I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.

It is important to remember that our job is to plant and water.  God is the one who prepares the soil, and makes the seed grow.  That’s not our responsibility.  Many people take on the burden of results when that solely belongs to God.  Then, when it takes time for the seed to grow, they grow discouraged.  Just as seed takes time to germinate and grow, so too does the word of God in the lives of many people.

Hefty Harvest

And when the plant has reached full maturity, it is time to harvest it.  We have been given the wonderful opportunity to see the work that God has done in someone’s life come to fruition when they believe upon The Lord Jesus Christ and give their life back to Him.  God uses us to help people make the final leap from faith to action.

These are very simple things that disciples of Christ can do, and have been commanded to do.  Yet for some reason, many are not engaging in the tasks that we have been assigned.  Whether it is fear of rejection (you are just the mailman!), not knowing the right answers (be a Berean – study the scriptures!), or whatever else it may be, we need to be engaged in the business with which our King has entrusted us.  Let us be found faithful in our responsibilities so that we will not be ashamed when He returns.

A Qualifying Question

Let’s ask a question:  Am I actively seeking out opportunities to witness to people about the work that God has been doing in my life and the lives of His people?

A short prayer of preparation:

Father in Heaven, give me a heart that is burdened for the lost.  Help me to be more attentive to those who do not know You, and share the good news with them.  Strengthen me when I am challenged, and help me to overcome all obstacles that I may face when speaking about You.  Give me an opportunity today to share You with someone who doesn’t know You, and help me to be content in just doing that.  And when it is time, help me to be one of the workers sent into the fields to harvest those whose soil has been prepared and whose seed has matured.  This I ask in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Want more? Why not try A. B. Simpson or A. W. Tozer?