For Thought and Meditation - Friday, July 23
Good morning all. A little late this morning as the week is catching up to me. So much to do so little time to do it. Have a safe and blessed day.
Friday, July 23, 2021 - Pastor Greg Laurie
A Bridge for the Gospel
“I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done.”
—Philippians 3:7
There’s a lot of power in the simplicity of a changed life. The man who was born blind told others, “I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!” (John 9:25 NLT).
And the Samaritan woman testified of Jesus, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?” (John 4:29 NLT). Then “the people came streaming from the village to see him” (verse 30 NLT).
When you can share the before and after of what God has done in your life, it can speak to people in a special way. Perhaps they would never imagine that you were once who you were and did what you did, because Jesus Christ has completely transformed you.
It’s interesting how often the apostle Paul, who was a brilliant orator and a wonderful intellect, would use his testimony to speak to people. We see in Acts 24 that when he was speaking before the Roman governor, he began with his own story of how he came to faith. And then he went to the essential message of the gospel.
When you’re telling your story, however, accuracy is important. So is truthfulness, because some people’s testimonies seem to become more dramatic with the passing of time.
Another problem is that some Christians make their past sound more appealing than their present. That makes me wonder whether they fully understand what it means to be a Christian and what their lives before Christ really were.
I love the way Paul put it: “I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:7–8 NLT).
Telling your story is a powerful bridge for the gospel message.
