As I reflected this afternoon on the words of “How Deep the Father’s
Love,” I was reminded and convicted of a truth that I, and probably other Christians,
overlook. We have been given a Divine, eternal, invincible grace: that God
would humble Himself to the point of becoming a man; that the God-man, Jesus
Christ, would live his life exceeding the expectations set by man and meeting
the mandates set by God; that this perfect man, after living a life which no
human has or can match, gave Himself up to be ridiculed, tortured, and brutally
murdered in the most shameful way; that before His dying breath, He asked that
God forgive His murderers; that after dying, after lying in a tomb for three days,
Jesus Christ was resurrected by His own power, as He had foretold to His
disciples; that He, after spending time with His disciples, ascended to Heaven;
that He did not abandon His followers, but sent His Spirit to live amongst
them; and that He has promised everlasting salvation to anyone who believes in
Him and repents of their sin.
There exists no story greater than this. There can exist no story
greater than this, because this is the story which God Himself has orchestrated
and which He is bringing to completion. Indeed, because of the greatness of
this story, we who have been changed by it are compelled to share it with
others, so that they might also share in our Joy and Life.
Yet we often consider this a burden. We often consider this a task that
we are called to complete, but which bears no real consequence when we leave it
unfulfilled.
Thus the truth I was reminded of: we are called to share and show the
Gospel because, if we do not, people will go to hell. In the balance
between life and eternity, there hang millions, billions of souls, who, upon
encountering the King in their current state, would be damned for their sin and
punished beyond the end of time.
Allow me to note that I’m not saying we are responsible for other
people’s salvation—we aren’t, and thank God for it, or none of us would have
that salvation. However, we must remember that the command to share the Gospel,
the call to make disciples, was the last thing said by Christ before He
ascended into heaven. These were his last words, not just passing remarks.
The question this raised in me was simple: Do I care enough?
Do I care enough about the people around me that I’m willing to risk
discomfort, risk even my relationship with them, so that they might hear and
respond to the Great Story?
