13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners. 7 And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. ~ Matthew 9:13; 12:7
Jesus was actually quoting Hosea 6:6 “For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.” From the very beginning, God was concerned for the lost, those who are stumbling through life. He wants them saved. But not even some of our church elders are interested in evangelism. Most churches do not prioritize targeting and evangelizing the lost; they are without a plan, neither to reach nor to equip the saints for good work and maybe that is the cause of the lack of motivation to reach the lost.
The early Church made evangelizing a priority with their preaching. Paul single-handedly turned the whole world upside down. Men, women, and children were coming to the saving knowledge of Jesus by the thousands on a daily basis.
They endured ridicule, whippings, prison, and the confiscation of their property for the right to evangelize. We, today’s Christians, are so lukewarm with our beliefs that the people we work with don’t even know we are Christians, and if they catch wind that we are, it is plain that it is in religion only. But God is not pleased with our lack of evangelizing. That is our great commission. Be His witnesses because He is concerned about the lost.
The Church has become lazy and apathetic, with no sense of urgency to reach lost people. We sit back and think to ourselves that evangelizing is the pastor’s job; that’s what he gets paid to do. Others are embarrassed or too politically correct to witness to a lost and dying world who do not know their right hand from their left.
LORD forbid we offend someone trying to save their soul from an eternity in a burning fiery lake of fire. How is it that we can have unrepented members coming to church Sunday after Sunday for years and never accept Jesus as LORD and Savior? That is incredulous. We may not be concerned about the lost, but trust me, God is very, very concerned. Will He come back and find us doing what he left us to do? Finding the lost and disciplining them.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Evangelize.
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