By Ladi Ayodeji
Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, wants every Christian to win souls. That is the most important assignment in the life of all believers. It’s the whole duty of the regenerated man and nothing more.
Jesus came into our world to deliver the sinner from eternal hell. He didn’t come here to make you rich, famous, powerful, or smart, as some think.
You won’t find anywhere in the Bible where it is written that anyone is required to make people rich, as some teach. There is no anointing for riches or prosperity in the holy writ.
Preachers who focus on wealth creation are not preaching the truth. They are preaching a theology of the stomach, which is alien to our faith.
Some claim that the prosperity message is a soul-winning strategy. If that were true, why are so many churches empty on Sundays? Some well-meaning evangelists offer material incentives to unbelievers to bring them to church, but that’s wrong.
The truth is, no amount of gimmicks—including welfare packages—can grow the church of Jesus Christ other than the Word of God.
Don’t promote any concept of soul-winning that isn’t centered on the Word, for the Word of God is rich and powerful; it’s a two-edged sword, according to the Bible. It can pierce the soul—nothing else can do that.
Publicity, comedy, music, money-making strategies, motivational teachings, food and drinks, welfare packages, charisma of a preacher—none of these can keep people in church. They may pull crowds, but once the effects wear off, the crowd disappears.
Churches often sponsor young people through university, but when they graduate and secure high-profile jobs, they move to other “happening” churches that fit their new social status. They forget their humble beginnings and their source.
Therefore, all a preacher needs to do is give them the Word and let the Holy Spirit convict them. He knows how to reach those He wants.
For all that Jesus did, how many souls did He win? On the day of His resurrection, His disciples were supposed to gather around His grave, expecting Him to rise, but none of them showed up—only Mary Magdalene did.
This, to my mind, means that only this woman believed Jesus would rise on the third day as He promised. If the disciples believed, they didn’t demonstrate it.
The point is, a preacher’s job is to preach the Word and let the Holy Spirit take control.
It should be understood that whatever gift—whether physical, spiritual, or intellectual— a believer has, can be used to evangelize the Kingdom of God. A pretty woman could use her beauty to draw men to Christ, rather than to seduce them into sexual immorality.
An academic should use their intellectual capacity to promote the gospel, rather than flaunting needless erudition against the Word of God.
Whatever you have, including wealth, use it to the glory of God. That is pleasing to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, who died to redeem us from the kingdom of darkness into His marvelous light. Using our gifts for God’s glory is imperative, as such endowments were given to promote His Kingdom in the first place.
The current practice of moving people from church to church is not evangelism. Stealing members from other churches is not evangelism. Obsession with numbers does not enhance church growth.
What grows the church is the Word and its correct application. We are admonished to rightly divide the Word of God. It is possible to divide it wrongly, as many do today.
A lot of preachers use the pulpit to promote their image, malign other preachers, and create division in the Body of Christ. That’s not the gospel mandate we were given.
Anyone who wants to evangelize should do so with love, humility, sound knowledge of the Word, and sufficient understanding of the gospel and the message of Christ.
A campaigner of the gospel should not condemn unbelievers, sinners, or those who are yet to be saved. Instead, the unsaved should be given the message in truth and love.
A campaigner only needs to tell people what the Bible says, in a way that avoids provoking argument or resistance.
Unbelievers already have enough stress—don’t add to it. We should offer them the hope of redemption, the love of God, and His mercy, which endures forever, amen.
References: 2 Tim 4:2-4, 2 Tim 2:15-16, Mark 16:15-18, Mark 3:24.
Ladi Ayodeji is a Counselor, Speaker, Author, and Pastor. He can be reached via WhatsApp at 09059243094
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