Reclaiming Souls
Genesis 11:9 - 12:3 Study 17
God created … and it was good. He created Man and said, “Very good”.
Just as He did when he created Angels, God created a thing called 'Freedom of choice'. We know what happened when some of the angels made a bad choice. We have read and studied about what happened when Eve and then Adam made a bad choice. The results were far – reaching. We read about Satan's demons (fallen angels) entering men in order to vicariously live out their lust.
We have read about a 'righteous' man that God called to preach to the masses … a call to repent 'or else!' And we read about the New Beginning that God made with Noah and his family. We read about the popular world-wide 'attitude' that did not take sin seriously. After the flood we saw this attitude in Ham, Noah's youngest son and likely also in Ham's youngest son. We read how this godless attitude culminated in a descendant of Noah named Nimrod, who took it on himself to be a conquering world leader. We recognized that the world of people was not all that many … perhaps a few thousand … and they were all his relatives. We read how he persuaded almost all of them to follow his lead in setting up an 'anti-god' monument.
Once again it appeared that Satan had succeeded in turning the hearts of the people against God. But then God put a stop to their 'united effort' to stand against Him. He reprogrammed their brains into different language groups, causing them to scatter and band together according to their new languages.
We realized that God had to keep someone from drowning in the flood, the reason being He had promised Eve a descendant that would crush Satan. He still has that in mind when he had to confront Nimrod and his supporters. By separating them into language groups he would slow down the evil plan of Satan to unite the world against Him. And in that 'slowing down' He would unfold His plan of Reclaiming Souls. We will read about that ultimate plan in Chapter 12:13.
But for now we go back to Genesis11:9.
From Babel God separated people into language groups. As God literally changed the programming of their left frontal lobes, He did this in an intentionally organized manner. Generally speaking, confusion resulted. But by re-reading the following verses we can see what God actually did:
Ge 10:1 ¶ Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood.
Ge 10:2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. …...... 5 By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.
Ge 10:6 ¶ And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. …................ 20 These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations.
Ge 10:21 ¶ Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. …... 31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.
Ge 10:32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.
So at this point we have at least three separate languages … Japhethites, Ham-ites, and Shemites. (Can you imagine blood brothers no longer being able to understand each other?) The seven sons of Japheth may each have been given a separate language, in which case, by counting the sons of each of Noah's three boys, we would have a total of sixteen different basic languages.
When did the confusion of tongues and the separation into 'language groups take place? Most biblical researchers agree that it was about 100 years after the flood. We have one statement in Genesis 10:25: “To Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan.”
Let's take a close look at this verse. He was given a name which means 'division'. BECAUSE in his days the earth was divided. How can a parent name his child an appropriate name for a particular reason … when that reason has not taken place yet? In other words, a parent could name his child 'division' because just prior to the birth a great division took place. So, picture this … the confusion of tongues takes place … a huge and strange event! A child is born right after that … and they name him 'division'. But get this, the scriptures say that 'in his days' the earth was divided … so either
I have mentioned the fact that kangaroos live in Australia. Look at the Australian tourism ad:
Australia teems with native animals, many of which are found only here.
Our unique animals are one of the many reasons people visit our country. Australia has more than 378 mammal species, 828 bird species, 4000 fish species, 300 species of lizards, 140 snake species, two crocodile species and around 50 types of marine mammal.
More than 80 per cent of our plants, mammals, reptiles and frogs are unique to Australia and are found no-where else. Some of our best-known animals are the kangaroo, koala, echidna, dingo, platypus, wallaby and wombat.
How did these unique creatures get from the ark … to Australia? We were told in one of the Psalms "He established the earth upon its foundations so that it will not totter forever and ever. Thou didst cover it with the deep as with a garment; the waters were standing above the mountains. At Thy rebuke they fled, at the sound of Thy thunder they hurried away. The mountains rose; the valleys sank down to the place which Thou didst establish for them. Thou didst set a boundary that they may not pass over, that they may not return to cover the earth." Psalm 104:5-9
This is how the flood waters receded. Some of the earth raised up and some sank down. The earth was 'buckling' or 'wrinkling' at the Lord's command. Valleys were formed in the ocean bed. Mountains were created. But continents? Not necessarily. The animals were all still in the ark at this point. The animals which are now unique to Australia came out of the ark with all the others. But if the continent of Australia is already formed, how will this large group of mammals etc., get there?
I see only one way. God had them more or less grouped together. Then, in the days of Peleg .. God literally divided the earth. He caused the earth to buckle even more. He caused it to form even higher mountains, such as Everest. The flood waters covered the highest mountains that were 'pre-flood' but would not have had to cover Everest … because it had not even been formed yet.
God created even more and deeper valleys at the bottom of the ocean. These unique Australian animals may have migrated many thousand of miles across dry land … and then God could have caused the earth to 'drop' all around the land and form the continent of Australia … Or the animals may not have had to travel very far at all … just a few miles, and then God sent a rift or crack to one side of them … caused the rift to widen and then over a period of time caused that continent to 'drift' into its present place, taking in the animals with it.
That, as you likely know, is referred to as 'continental drift'. 1 So there you have it … animals unique to Australia drifted with the continent. Any other areas on earth that have animals unique to their local would have been created in like manner.
So now we can move on to God's plan for reclaiming souls.
Ezekiel 33:11 "Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! ...
Although God had to judge the fallen race and take them off the face of the earth … he took no pleasure in it. He much rather would have had them turn to Him. God 'so loved the world that He sent His one and only Son' to die in the place of sinners, so that they can turn to God and freely receive forgiveness. God planned to do this in the very beginning. This is what He had promised Eve2 in Genesis 3:14,15.
In Genesis 11:10 is the beginning of the record of Shem's descendants. This list will end in verse 26 with a man named Terah. Then in verse 27 we are directed to a very particular list as Moses 'zooms' in on Terah and his descendants.
Terah is the father of three sons: Although Abram is listed first, he actually is the youngest. He is listed in this order because he is 'first' in preeminence. The rest of the book of Genesis will follow the life of Abram; his son Isaac, his grandson Jacob whose name God changed to Israel, and his twelve great grandsons who would be known as the 'children of Israel'.
Paul says in Romans that eternal life has to do with faith … as is seen in the life of Abram, who 'believed God' and God credited to him 'righteousness.'
God calls Abram … to a geographical location and to a mission. He had called Noah and commissioned him to preach to the lost world. How is this different? How is Abram supposed to do what Noah could not accomplish?
God's method of reclaiming souls is changing from using 'word of mouth' by righteous people (for example: Seth, Enoch, Methuselah, Noah etc.) and transferring to using a righteous nation to reach the lost. God will make a special and unique nation from the descendants of Abram
Ge 11:28-32
Verse 31 indicates that Terah is the one who 'took' his son, Abram, his daughter-in-law, Sarah, and his grandson 'Lot' … and headed for the promised land. This is not actually how it happened.
Ge 12:1 – God spoke directly to Abram. He said 'leave your father's household'. It would never 'do' for it to have been written, “So Abram took his wife, his nephew and his father and left for the land that God would show him.” There was a 'patriarchal' pride that existed back then. There is no way that Terah would have gone with Abram unless he could make it appear as his idea. He was the father. He was the leader.
The party stops and settles in Haran. This city has the same name as Terah's dead son. Perhaps that is why he stopped there? Some have suggested that Terah had actually named this place after his son. Whatever the case, Abram does not know where he is headed. He needs directions from God.
Heb 11:8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
It appears that Abram did not hear from God after that 'first' call until after his father died. Likely he would have heard sooner if he had left father behind, as God had instructed him.
Abram, whose name was changed to Abraham, was a righteous man. He was a follower of God. Noah's Godly son Shem was still alive. Abram followed Noah's and Shem's faith and not that of his father, Terah … who was not only an idol worshiper but likely manufactured and sold them.
God's plans are to reach out to lost souls through the network of people that he would create from Abram. They would be more than just descendants … they would be a commissioned group. A holy nation. A 'different' people. God would make them to be very different from the world … so that they could be seen, noticed and heard.
In Jesus day He had this to say:
Mt 23:15 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
Are you familiar with the word, proselyte?
The dictionary says:
a person who has converted from one opinion, religion, or party to another, especially recently.
The bible Greek dictionary says:
“one who has come over from a Gentile religion to Judaism”
Jesus is criticizing … not the method which the Pharisees were using, he was criticizing the result. He was saying, “You travel sea and land to make a convert”. That is outreach. That is missionary activity. That is an intentional method used by Israel to reach out to gentiles and get them to convert to the one and only true God. It was God's established method to use Israel to reclaim souls. But Jesus said it was failing. He said, you make a convert … but they are still going to hell. And he said, “You yourselves are going to hell”. Why would the converts be twice as much a child of hell? Number one, they were already headed for hell initially … then they were convinced of the need to change … and then changed. The problem was that they changed to a system of Jewish good works and law keeping and not to a faith based belief in God. So, number two, they are still headed for hell only now they think they are saved.
How dangerous it is for a person to convert to something … and think that now they are OK. They base their security on the words of the 'soul-winner'. Jesus blames the Pharisees for knowing better.
How is God 're-claiming' souls today? Through the church? Yes, but are you familiar with the Bible scripture which says so?
First of all look at this very clear and foundational verse:
Eph 3:21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
God has arranged things so that he gets glory through the church. That is not a particular denomination of church. It is any group of believers who have agreed or covenanted together to be a local group to hold up the witness of who Jesus is and make known that through faith in Him is salvation … the only way of salvation.
Actually Jesus said it much better than I just did. He said in Matthew 28:18-20 …
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them (the first small church), saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
Not everyone in a church is gifted identically like someone else in the church. So when it comes to 're-claiming' souls … so that the wicked can be warned and persuaded to turn to God, who in the church is 'up to the task”?
The preacher? Often that is who it is left up to. He is seen as 'the professional'. And there is some Biblical support for this;
The Apostle Paul wrote this to a young minister: But you, (Timothy) keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. 2Timothy 4:5
But what about Spiritual Gifts?
Eph 4:11 It was He (God) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
By the very definition of 'gift' we understand it to be an ability that comes easily to a person. If we were to say it comes 'naturally' we are defining a talent to which we are genetically predisposed. For example, not everyone is born analytical … but those who were might make a good mechanic. Not everyone has an 'eye' that can see things and then duplicate them on a canvas but some are born with that talent. The same might be said for 'carrying a tune'.
But when it comes to the above verse, this is talking about particular abilities that we discover as believers that we have a 'bent' toward. Further to that, it can be an ability that we did NOT possess at the time we became believers, but we developed an extreme desire for it, prayed for it … and ultimately got it.
1Co 12:31 But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.
So:
In addition to the above,
What can we do besides just 'being ourselves' and waiting for someone to ask the question?
1Co 9:22 “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.”
That takes 'some doing'. It speaks of never losing sight of our focus for being here … trying to save the lost. It speaks of adjusting our personal preferences or setting them aside so that we can have more of a chance of being heard.
Summing up – God is a God of creation and love. That is why he made man. That is why He gave him the power of freedom of choice. The risk that man would make wrong choices was there from the beginning. And man did make the wrong choice. And God has creatively been reaching out to reclaim those who choose the wrong.
His method and desire is to create a 'new person' inside of every individual. He made us in His image to be creative in the way that we join Him in re-claiming the lost.
I trust this series on Genesis Beginnings was enjoyable, and to some degree, stretching in your knowledge and understanding which you had as you entered this study, and that it will be a great component in equipping you to join God in reaching the lost.
1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continental_drift
2 Ge 3:14 ¶ So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."
God created … and it was good. He created Man and said, “Very good”.
Just as He did when he created Angels, God created a thing called 'Freedom of choice'. We know what happened when some of the angels made a bad choice. We have read and studied about what happened when Eve and then Adam made a bad choice. The results were far – reaching. We read about Satan's demons (fallen angels) entering men in order to vicariously live out their lust.
We have read about a 'righteous' man that God called to preach to the masses … a call to repent 'or else!' And we read about the New Beginning that God made with Noah and his family. We read about the popular world-wide 'attitude' that did not take sin seriously. After the flood we saw this attitude in Ham, Noah's youngest son and likely also in Ham's youngest son. We read how this godless attitude culminated in a descendant of Noah named Nimrod, who took it on himself to be a conquering world leader. We recognized that the world of people was not all that many … perhaps a few thousand … and they were all his relatives. We read how he persuaded almost all of them to follow his lead in setting up an 'anti-god' monument.
Once again it appeared that Satan had succeeded in turning the hearts of the people against God. But then God put a stop to their 'united effort' to stand against Him. He reprogrammed their brains into different language groups, causing them to scatter and band together according to their new languages.
We realized that God had to keep someone from drowning in the flood, the reason being He had promised Eve a descendant that would crush Satan. He still has that in mind when he had to confront Nimrod and his supporters. By separating them into language groups he would slow down the evil plan of Satan to unite the world against Him. And in that 'slowing down' He would unfold His plan of Reclaiming Souls. We will read about that ultimate plan in Chapter 12:13.
But for now we go back to Genesis11:9.
From Babel God separated people into language groups. As God literally changed the programming of their left frontal lobes, He did this in an intentionally organized manner. Generally speaking, confusion resulted. But by re-reading the following verses we can see what God actually did:
Ge 10:1 ¶ Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood.
Ge 10:2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. …...... 5 By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.
Ge 10:6 ¶ And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. …................ 20 These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations.
Ge 10:21 ¶ Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. …... 31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.
Ge 10:32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.
So at this point we have at least three separate languages … Japhethites, Ham-ites, and Shemites. (Can you imagine blood brothers no longer being able to understand each other?) The seven sons of Japheth may each have been given a separate language, in which case, by counting the sons of each of Noah's three boys, we would have a total of sixteen different basic languages.
When did the confusion of tongues and the separation into 'language groups take place? Most biblical researchers agree that it was about 100 years after the flood. We have one statement in Genesis 10:25: “To Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan.”
Let's take a close look at this verse. He was given a name which means 'division'. BECAUSE in his days the earth was divided. How can a parent name his child an appropriate name for a particular reason … when that reason has not taken place yet? In other words, a parent could name his child 'division' because just prior to the birth a great division took place. So, picture this … the confusion of tongues takes place … a huge and strange event! A child is born right after that … and they name him 'division'. But get this, the scriptures say that 'in his days' the earth was divided … so either
- he went by a different name until then, and then his name was changed to 'division'
- The parents were given a 'heads up' prophecy about the upcoming confusion of tongues.
I have mentioned the fact that kangaroos live in Australia. Look at the Australian tourism ad:
Australia teems with native animals, many of which are found only here.
Our unique animals are one of the many reasons people visit our country. Australia has more than 378 mammal species, 828 bird species, 4000 fish species, 300 species of lizards, 140 snake species, two crocodile species and around 50 types of marine mammal.
More than 80 per cent of our plants, mammals, reptiles and frogs are unique to Australia and are found no-where else. Some of our best-known animals are the kangaroo, koala, echidna, dingo, platypus, wallaby and wombat.
How did these unique creatures get from the ark … to Australia? We were told in one of the Psalms "He established the earth upon its foundations so that it will not totter forever and ever. Thou didst cover it with the deep as with a garment; the waters were standing above the mountains. At Thy rebuke they fled, at the sound of Thy thunder they hurried away. The mountains rose; the valleys sank down to the place which Thou didst establish for them. Thou didst set a boundary that they may not pass over, that they may not return to cover the earth." Psalm 104:5-9
This is how the flood waters receded. Some of the earth raised up and some sank down. The earth was 'buckling' or 'wrinkling' at the Lord's command. Valleys were formed in the ocean bed. Mountains were created. But continents? Not necessarily. The animals were all still in the ark at this point. The animals which are now unique to Australia came out of the ark with all the others. But if the continent of Australia is already formed, how will this large group of mammals etc., get there?
I see only one way. God had them more or less grouped together. Then, in the days of Peleg .. God literally divided the earth. He caused the earth to buckle even more. He caused it to form even higher mountains, such as Everest. The flood waters covered the highest mountains that were 'pre-flood' but would not have had to cover Everest … because it had not even been formed yet.
God created even more and deeper valleys at the bottom of the ocean. These unique Australian animals may have migrated many thousand of miles across dry land … and then God could have caused the earth to 'drop' all around the land and form the continent of Australia … Or the animals may not have had to travel very far at all … just a few miles, and then God sent a rift or crack to one side of them … caused the rift to widen and then over a period of time caused that continent to 'drift' into its present place, taking in the animals with it.
That, as you likely know, is referred to as 'continental drift'. 1 So there you have it … animals unique to Australia drifted with the continent. Any other areas on earth that have animals unique to their local would have been created in like manner.
So now we can move on to God's plan for reclaiming souls.
Ezekiel 33:11 "Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! ...
Although God had to judge the fallen race and take them off the face of the earth … he took no pleasure in it. He much rather would have had them turn to Him. God 'so loved the world that He sent His one and only Son' to die in the place of sinners, so that they can turn to God and freely receive forgiveness. God planned to do this in the very beginning. This is what He had promised Eve2 in Genesis 3:14,15.
In Genesis 11:10 is the beginning of the record of Shem's descendants. This list will end in verse 26 with a man named Terah. Then in verse 27 we are directed to a very particular list as Moses 'zooms' in on Terah and his descendants.
Terah is the father of three sons: Although Abram is listed first, he actually is the youngest. He is listed in this order because he is 'first' in preeminence. The rest of the book of Genesis will follow the life of Abram; his son Isaac, his grandson Jacob whose name God changed to Israel, and his twelve great grandsons who would be known as the 'children of Israel'.
Paul says in Romans that eternal life has to do with faith … as is seen in the life of Abram, who 'believed God' and God credited to him 'righteousness.'
God calls Abram … to a geographical location and to a mission. He had called Noah and commissioned him to preach to the lost world. How is this different? How is Abram supposed to do what Noah could not accomplish?
God's method of reclaiming souls is changing from using 'word of mouth' by righteous people (for example: Seth, Enoch, Methuselah, Noah etc.) and transferring to using a righteous nation to reach the lost. God will make a special and unique nation from the descendants of Abram
Ge 11:28-32
Verse 31 indicates that Terah is the one who 'took' his son, Abram, his daughter-in-law, Sarah, and his grandson 'Lot' … and headed for the promised land. This is not actually how it happened.
Ge 12:1 – God spoke directly to Abram. He said 'leave your father's household'. It would never 'do' for it to have been written, “So Abram took his wife, his nephew and his father and left for the land that God would show him.” There was a 'patriarchal' pride that existed back then. There is no way that Terah would have gone with Abram unless he could make it appear as his idea. He was the father. He was the leader.
The party stops and settles in Haran. This city has the same name as Terah's dead son. Perhaps that is why he stopped there? Some have suggested that Terah had actually named this place after his son. Whatever the case, Abram does not know where he is headed. He needs directions from God.
Heb 11:8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
It appears that Abram did not hear from God after that 'first' call until after his father died. Likely he would have heard sooner if he had left father behind, as God had instructed him.
Abram, whose name was changed to Abraham, was a righteous man. He was a follower of God. Noah's Godly son Shem was still alive. Abram followed Noah's and Shem's faith and not that of his father, Terah … who was not only an idol worshiper but likely manufactured and sold them.
God's plans are to reach out to lost souls through the network of people that he would create from Abram. They would be more than just descendants … they would be a commissioned group. A holy nation. A 'different' people. God would make them to be very different from the world … so that they could be seen, noticed and heard.
In Jesus day He had this to say:
Mt 23:15 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
Are you familiar with the word, proselyte?
The dictionary says:
a person who has converted from one opinion, religion, or party to another, especially recently.
The bible Greek dictionary says:
“one who has come over from a Gentile religion to Judaism”
Jesus is criticizing … not the method which the Pharisees were using, he was criticizing the result. He was saying, “You travel sea and land to make a convert”. That is outreach. That is missionary activity. That is an intentional method used by Israel to reach out to gentiles and get them to convert to the one and only true God. It was God's established method to use Israel to reclaim souls. But Jesus said it was failing. He said, you make a convert … but they are still going to hell. And he said, “You yourselves are going to hell”. Why would the converts be twice as much a child of hell? Number one, they were already headed for hell initially … then they were convinced of the need to change … and then changed. The problem was that they changed to a system of Jewish good works and law keeping and not to a faith based belief in God. So, number two, they are still headed for hell only now they think they are saved.
How dangerous it is for a person to convert to something … and think that now they are OK. They base their security on the words of the 'soul-winner'. Jesus blames the Pharisees for knowing better.
How is God 're-claiming' souls today? Through the church? Yes, but are you familiar with the Bible scripture which says so?
First of all look at this very clear and foundational verse:
Eph 3:21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
God has arranged things so that he gets glory through the church. That is not a particular denomination of church. It is any group of believers who have agreed or covenanted together to be a local group to hold up the witness of who Jesus is and make known that through faith in Him is salvation … the only way of salvation.
Actually Jesus said it much better than I just did. He said in Matthew 28:18-20 …
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them (the first small church), saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
Not everyone in a church is gifted identically like someone else in the church. So when it comes to 're-claiming' souls … so that the wicked can be warned and persuaded to turn to God, who in the church is 'up to the task”?
The preacher? Often that is who it is left up to. He is seen as 'the professional'. And there is some Biblical support for this;
The Apostle Paul wrote this to a young minister: But you, (Timothy) keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. 2Timothy 4:5
But what about Spiritual Gifts?
Eph 4:11 It was He (God) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
By the very definition of 'gift' we understand it to be an ability that comes easily to a person. If we were to say it comes 'naturally' we are defining a talent to which we are genetically predisposed. For example, not everyone is born analytical … but those who were might make a good mechanic. Not everyone has an 'eye' that can see things and then duplicate them on a canvas but some are born with that talent. The same might be said for 'carrying a tune'.
But when it comes to the above verse, this is talking about particular abilities that we discover as believers that we have a 'bent' toward. Further to that, it can be an ability that we did NOT possess at the time we became believers, but we developed an extreme desire for it, prayed for it … and ultimately got it.
1Co 12:31 But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.
So:
- Pastors should 'do the work of an evangelist'
- Persons who have the 'gift' of evangelism should evangelize (re-claim souls)
- And finally we all have a testimony to share
In addition to the above,
- churches have used various programs to try to re-claim the lost.
- Various individuals, such as Billy Graham, made it a focal point to host campaigns designed specifically to bring sinners to faith in Christ.
What can we do besides just 'being ourselves' and waiting for someone to ask the question?
1Co 9:22 “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.”
That takes 'some doing'. It speaks of never losing sight of our focus for being here … trying to save the lost. It speaks of adjusting our personal preferences or setting them aside so that we can have more of a chance of being heard.
Summing up – God is a God of creation and love. That is why he made man. That is why He gave him the power of freedom of choice. The risk that man would make wrong choices was there from the beginning. And man did make the wrong choice. And God has creatively been reaching out to reclaim those who choose the wrong.
His method and desire is to create a 'new person' inside of every individual. He made us in His image to be creative in the way that we join Him in re-claiming the lost.
I trust this series on Genesis Beginnings was enjoyable, and to some degree, stretching in your knowledge and understanding which you had as you entered this study, and that it will be a great component in equipping you to join God in reaching the lost.
1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continental_drift
2 Ge 3:14 ¶ So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."