During my vision of hell, one of the things Jesus said to me was, “My people make excuses why they don’t witness. They say, ‘I didn’t feel led.’ They fear man rather than God.”
Of course, we each need to be led by the Holy Spirit when we witness to others, but many times we use that as an excuse. We refrain from sharing the way of salvation with others because we fear people more than we fear God. What does it mean to fear God rather than people?
To fear God means we obey Him (Deut. 6 and 17). In Acts 5:29 (NKJV), Peter said, “We ought to obey God rather then men.” Jesus told us to go into the whole world and preach the gospel. This is a command to every believer. We should obey Him and not fear what man will think about the gospel or what their response will be. Anything God commands us to do is not a burden. His yoke is easy and His burden is light, and He will give us the grace to do it.
This command to witness doesn’t mean you have to quit your job and go to some foreign land. We all have a sphere of influence, and we should watch for opportunities to share the way of salvation with others in our own sphere. The best way to share Christ is by our life example; it speaks volumes. The world observes how we live.
– Do we forgive those who are harsh toward us?
– Do we show kindness to those who speak evil of us?
– Do we participate in dirty jokes or bad language?
– Do we work with excellence and show up on time?
– Do we speak evil of others?
– Do we complain?
– Do we help others?
These are things people notice. If we are good examples, then when we share about the goodness of God, they will be much more receptive to hear what we have to say. We don’t have to memorize all the Scripture. We can simply share what God has done for us. We can offer to pray for someone who is going through a tough time.
Showing we care is essential to softening a person’s heart before we share about Jesus. If we share about what Jesus did for each of us when He died on the cross, the power to convict them is in the preaching of the cross.
It’s not about our ability but about the power that resides in the Word of God to impact people’s lives. {eoa}
Bill Wiese is the author of New York Times best selling book, 23 Minutes In Hell, the story of his life-changing visit to hell in 1998. Bill has since authored six additional book titles and continues to share his experience around the world. He and his wife Annette founded Soul Choice Ministries in late 2006 and have dedicated their lives to reaching the unsaved. For more information about Bill Wiese and Soul Choice Ministries, please visit us at soulchoiceministries.org/. You can find more of Bill’s teachings at youtube.com/user/BillWieseTV.
