As we saw in last night’s blog, the mission of Christ was to seek and to save that which is lost.  The whole reason for Jesus coming into this world was to save souls.  Today, He fulfills His mission through the church.  While we cannot save anyone ourselves, we can seek the lost, and it is our job to do so.  Our mission is to seek the lost by planting the spiritual seed of the kingdom into the hearts of men.

There are many ways that we can attempt to reach people for Christ.  The most obvious one is by preaching the good news about Jesus (Acts 8:35).  This is what is involved in the great commission.

Matthew 28:19 (ESV)
¹⁹  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

These are the marching orders for every soldier in the army of the Lord.  It involves spreading the gospel of Christ by word of mouth.  It demands that we not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ in any way.  We cannot worry about what others will think when they learn that we are disciples of Christ, nor can we be afraid of what they might do.  Souls are at stake, and the only chance that they have of salvation is hearing and obeying the gospel.  In Romans 10:14, Paul asked, “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?”  It is impossible to live a Christ-centered life without being willing to tell others about Jesus.

We can also reach people by showing them what it means to live for Christ.  If we are truly living Christ-centered lives, it will be seen by others.  When men from Cyprus and Cyrene went to Antioch and preached the gospel, many believed and accepted Jesus as Lord (Acts 11:20-21).  The church in Jerusalem heard that the gospel had been preached at Antioch, so they sent Barnabas to see what was happening.  Notice what Barnabas found when he got there.

Acts 11:22-23 (ESV)
²²  The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. ²³  When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose,

Barnabas saw the “grace of God” at work in the lives of those who obeyed the gospel.  The demonstration of the grace of God working in our lives should never stop.  People should see the change in us after we obey the gospel.  This is what Jesus called letting your light shine before others (Matthew 5:16).  We can have a great impact on the souls of men, not only by preaching the Word, but by living according to it.  In Acts 11, after telling us that Barnabas had seen the grace of God in the new saints at Antioch, the very next verse says, “And a great many people were added to the Lord (Acts 11:24).  Yes, much of that was due to the goodness of Barnabas, but the converted lives of the saints had something to do with it as well.

A part of being a true disciple of Christ involves seeking to save the lost.  We can do this in two ways.  First, by living for Christ, and then, by telling others about Him.  This combination leads others to Jesus and reveals that we are living Christ-centered lives.  

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.