Soul Winning Illustrated
Moses R Cung
1. God's will
The reason why God created man was to have fellowship with him. There are angels in heaven already at the time, but he created humans on earth for that special purpose. God would have been very happy to have fellowship with Adam and Eve whom he created, just like when parents enjoy the company of their children. At the beginning of the creation, Adam and Eve were wrapped in God's glory, so they did not even need to wear clothes. There was no shame because there was no guilt. They could talk to God as they pleased. There were no animals or viruses to harm them. They lived happily without having to work. They enjoyed a worry-free existence. They did not have to suffer the likes of what we're suffering in our days like being under fear, stress and sicknesses.
2. Sin entered
Because of the deception of Satan, they ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, which was the act forbidden by God, and they became sinners. As God foretold, they died spiritually. The spirit cannot actually die. If it can, there will be no suffering in hell as made evident by the scriptures. Spiritual death means the disconnection between man and God. So, Adam and Eve could no longer have fellowship with God like before. Their bodies had also succumbed to death. But before they died, they had to endure all kinds of troubles and diseases. Every suffering we have to go through today is because of sin.
3. God's love
To God, the fall of man would have been like he had fallen into the pit of a lavatory. God must have been devastated by that incident. Man was impure with sin and all that was left for him was to die. Would there be any parents who would not rescue their children who fell into the pit of impurity. I don't believe there would be any parent who would say, "Why didn't you listen to me; I told you not the play; Look at you, you are as good as dead?" But bystanders, on the other hand, might actually say something like, "that mischievous child got what he deserves." However, as parents, would you not immediately rescue the child without thinking it twice? In the same way, God rescued the children he created from the pit of impurities because he loved them so much.
4. Big task
When God saved mankind, his rescue plan was not as easy going as some people would like to think. Because God had decreed that "the wages of sin is death," man needed to die bodily and spiritually. Even though God wanted to rescue the man, because God was a righteous judge, man's sin could not be forgiven without being judged first. For this reason, Jesus Christ, his son, was chosen before the creation of the world to save people. (1 Peter 1:20) But God did not immediately send his Son. Many human years have passed before sending him. (The wait might not have been that long for God though, since for God, one thousand years is like a day.)
5. Salvation completed
When God's appointed time came, He sent his only son Jesus into the world to carry out the work of salvation. It was impossible for God not to judge the sin of the man because "the wages (price tag) of sin is death" (Romans 6:23), and there was the need for the Lord Jesus Christ to come and die. God laid the sin of all mankind on His Son (Isaiah 53:6). The Son took away the sins of the world (John 1:29). Jesus Christ, according to the command of the Father, took the death penalty on the cross on behalf of all mankind (1 Corinthians 15:3). After being buried, resurrected and ascended into heaven, Jesus presented his blood to the Father, affirming the fulfillment of the penalty of sin by death for all mankind. (Hebrews 9:11-12) Thus, the Father's strict requirement of the reversal of death was satisfied with the punishment undertaken by the Son. Therefore, man no longer needs to die for his sin (since then), as his sin has already been forgiven. That is a short version of the good news of salvation.
6. Who to tell?
Even though God the Father no longer condemns people of the world because of what the Son did, if the people have never heard about the good news, they would still be going to hell. Who should be sent to tell the good news to these people?
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8)
God is not allowing the angels to preach about the salvation because they themselves are not the recipients of the salvation. They probably would not understand or appreciate the full extent of it. In real life, no one can testify about something that they themselves have not gone through. God does not want prophets to tell the good news like in the past either. He wants the believers who have been chosen from every nation to tell the good news. The reason why God wants to use the believers to tell the good news is because they are the ones who experienced their own salvation. They have their own motivation to talk about it because they are the ones who will escape from hell and go straight to heaven. Not only that, by sharing about that salvation, they themselves will rejoice and one day be rewarded in heaven as well for talking about it. Moreover, if you talk about the salvation, you will not be tempted to commit sin, and you will be able to have fellowship with God constantly. You will also be able to reject the temptation of sin, and will no longer be interested in the things of this world that belong to Satan. Therefore, God did not appoint angels and prophets, but the believers only. However, the believers do not realize God-given opportunity, thinking that it's enough for them if they have received their own salvation. And so, soon after they got saved, they chase after the world, which is owned by the enemy, and run away from God one by one to create their own world (Isaiah 53:6). It is very sad.
7. Not my responsibility
God the Father planned the work of salvation, and God the Son effortlessly came down to earth to fulfill it. No! The Son came down to earth with much difficulties and great sufferings at every turn. After suffering as a slave, he completed his assigned task by dying on the cross. But those who are saved go about their own business without bothering to talk about the salvation gift. They are simply too busy with their private lives. When asked if they talk to others about God's salvation, they would give similar answer to this, "Can't you see I'm too busy? Why are you keep asking me about that subject? I have been supporting you pastors and evangelists financially. Shouldn't that be enough? Consider youself fortunate if I come to church every Sunday, sitting at the pew, listening to the sermons you guys preached. I am very tired; I don't get enough sleep. You can't blame me for not talking about it. If you keep bothering me like this, I will stop coming to your church. If I go to other churches with my donations, the pastors there would welcome me with open arms and they would say to me, thank you, sir." So and so forth.
8. God is very surprised
The pastor is not requiring the believers to talk about the salvation. It is God himself who asks them to talk about it. It is also the most important task for mankind. God prepared this work many years in advance because it was so important. Like we said earlier, Jesus also went down to this dirty world, which was for him like going down to the pit of lavatory. He suffered all kinds of hardships, and was scorned and ridiculed. The Father and the Son must have expected that those who are saved would be very excited because they see how they're very much loved, and would want to share the good news of salvation to others as well. When the woman of Samaria came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, she got very excited that she left her water pot and brought the good news to the people of Samaria. (John 4:28-30) The Father and the Son would have thought the believers would exuberantly go and tell their parents, siblings, relatives, and co-workers. However, they give various excuses like: there is no time for me; I don't know how to speak; I'm too tired to carry a conversation, and so on. They opt to participate in the great commission only with their donations and prayers while staying at home comfortably. If those who have been saved do not speak, who shall be sent? Shall the angels be sent? Meanwhile, the Father and the Son are shaking their head because thousands of people of this world are falling into the pit of hell every day.
9. The Son always listens to the Father
To those who believed in his name, God gave the right to become children of God. (John 1:12) Is it not normal for children to listen to their parents and do the thing the parents ask them do? It is not appropriate for children to demand to be fed and cared for by their parents? Using that logic, God must assume that the children whom he loved much would do what he asks them to do. In reality, believers are like children who only want to eat and drink and don't even want to wash their own dishes. I can imagine how astonished God must have been because his children simply go to wherever they want and do not want to do what they are being asked to do. "What kind of children have I given birth to?" God must be really shocked. Meanwhile, God's children argue with the Pastor, "Did our parents give birth just to forced us to work? And you, go spread the good news yourself, don't bother us." God must be so frustrated that he wouldn't know what to make of it.
10. God misjudges his children
Believers gathered together at the house of a church member and sang this hymn: "Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way! Thou art the Potter, I am the clay." Upon hearing the singing, God's eyes sparkled with excitement. "My children finally have accepted me as the potter because they have started singing like that." He thought he might finally be able to make and mold them the way he always wanted to. So, he waited until after the meeting to reason with them. However, as soon as the service was over, the worshippers no longer remembered God. They couldn't hear their name even if called. They became deaf. It was as though they did not sing that song. Moreover, they were only anxious to drink coffee and bread served by the hosts. Appalled, God sighed quietly. "Didn't they sing that song a while ago? Now they don't care about me anymore." God looked at the heavens. (Isaiah 1:2) "Oh well, as humans, they need to eat food for their bodies. I'll wait until they finish eating," God relented. When they're finally done eating, and said whatever they needed to be said, they left. God was still hopeful, "They left because need to go home since the hour is late. I might have a chance to meet them tomorrow!"
11. God still not connects the dots
"Another day has arrived. My children have gone to work and school. Now they are going to share about my wonderful salvation news to people around them," God once again was feeling upbeat. However, his children failed to talk about the salvation. They only talked with their co-workers about where to go for shopping to make big "savings," not the kind of "savings" God was hoping. They gossiped about people, food, and other worldly stuff. When God heard one of their co-workers complaining about some problem she's facing, God thought, "Ok, This time, they might take advantage and introduce her to me; they would tell her that I could help her" That didn't happen either. God's children looked at the girl with disdain, then turned their attention away from her. By now, God was beside himself.
12. Knowing God's will
Once again, God's children gathered together and prayed like this: "Father God, reveal to us your will. And also, our families and friends who have not yet been saved will go to hell. They won't accept and believe what we told them (In reality, they did not even have the guts to tell them). Lord, please work in their hearts and make them understand. We rely on you. We trust in you, Lord, because you can do all things." God was very surprised. "Didn't my children already know my will? Why are they asking me aboutit? I don't even have many wishes. My only will is that everyone be saved and know the truth. (2 Tim 2:4) They could even recite that passage without reading the Bible. Why are they still asking me," God was awestruck by the behavior of his children.
13. Are my children insane?
"I have completed all the work of salvation. I'm just asking them to proclaim the good news so that their joy may be complete. But now, why are they asking me to convince their loved ones on their behalf? Is there ever an occasion where children ask their parents to do this and that? They also scream and cry loudly to me once a week just to annoy me (Amos 5:21-23). They ask me to do their job again and again." God is now wondering if his children have gone crazy!
14. Revival and spiritual awakening
God's children held a meeting and had a discussion:
"We need to have the spiritual awakening in our church. Otherwise, everyone is falling asleep. What ever shall we do?"
"We should fast and pray," suggested one.
"We should invite the evangelist," said another.
And the decision was made to invite an evangelist and hold a Revival service.
God looked at the believers and thought, "My children are going to starve. Whatever shall I do to understand them!"
So the church invited their choice evangelist and held a revival meeting. It was like a war zone. The place was loud with the guitars, keyboards and drums, and the singers were singing at the top of their lung. The evangelist was loud too. The whole church was very emotional and very satisfied. They gathered together and prayed a lot. They cried out aloud like the prophets of Baal. But God could not understand their prayers and needs. He was wondering what his children were doing. "What were they crying and shouting about." Then, their gathering came to an end. The church thanked the evangelist they invited and rewarded generously.
"This time our revival meeting was very successful. Everyone was upbeat and encouraged." They were reminiscing their experience of the evening service. "The evangelist was very good. He could recite all the scriptures without ever opening the Bible," said one. "It was very good because we heard things that we haven't heard. No one fell asleep." Everyone laughed and proclaimed the event a success. "We should do that again next year," they decided.
They had the gathering for the revival and spiritual awakening, but they still did not plan to do what God has asked them do. They went away with joy and satisfaction. God could not understand them.
15. God finally got it
Once again, God's children were singing more songs at the church. "Save the lost;" "Heal the sick;" "Go and spread the news. Oh, thou believers;" They sang the songs enthusiastically. Now, God began to realize that His children were not singing the songs to do what the songs say they should do. They sang the songs because the songwriters wrote them that way. Now that God had figured it out, he no longer expects anything much from his children. They prayed again, "Lord, use us the way you want to." By then God had finally got it. They prayed only with their lips but they didn't really intend to carry out the task even if he asked them to do. God then stopped listening to their prayers because he had enough of hearing. "From now on, I will listen to the prayers of a small group of people who actually are working hard in my ministry." (Isaiah 1:11-17) However, no one had any bad feelings because they didn't know that God had stopped listening to their prayers. Days, months, and years had passed. Yet God's children failed to understand; No lesson had been learned. Very sad indeed.
16. Things that stupefy God
God has come to notice that there are some people who see the ministry of God as an opportunity of life advancement, and squeeze themselves in to attend Bible school. And there are some who pretend to be doing God's work for financial gain. (1 Timothy 6:5) Some people thought that without getting a degree from a reputable Bible school, they would not be able to do God's work. (In reality, God does not require anyone to hold a degree in order to work for him.) And so, once these people received a degree, they again pondered, "Nowadays, you can't do much with just one degree; No one will be impressed; So I must get another degree." However, the more degrees they got, the more they believed in their own abilities, and by then, they would not want to submit to the leadership of others. So they started to think big like what kind of new denominational Bible can I publish; what kind of new school can I start; and how can I build a new ministry. At that point, God no longer acknowledged them. But since they never did rely on God to start with, it was not a problem for them that God did not acknowledge them. So then, using various skills and academic degrees, they established (God's?) ministries. In their line of business, the office would be of prime importance. Folders must be neatly organized. Then they would write a lot to communicate with their donors. They got busy themselves with a lot of office work. They didn't even have time for worship, nor time for fasting and prayer. They are super busy with their work, but no time and activities for catching the lost souls. They don't even know how to catch a lost soul. Whether people were saved or not is not that important in their thinking. The only thing that would be of important for them is to get new members for their church (Matthew 23:15) They just want members who could support the church, and who could follow the instruction of the leadership. As such, "godliness" is very beneficial for these people (1 Timothy 6:5). Now that they could build a sizable church, they could now use things they could not use before; they could eat food that they could not previously. They might say it's the grace of God, but God did not know them. But that's not a problem because from the beginning, they were not in the ministry to carry out the will of God. They were satisfied because they could do things as they please. Satan was jubilant and mocking God.
17. How they find members
The minister approached his relatives. "Don't you know that I am your blood brother? Will you not help me? I'm starting a church. Don't forget that I am your blood relative, Even Gideon's son Abimelech said this to his mother's family. 'Do the sons of Gideon rule you well? Don't forget I am your flesh and blood' then they replied, 'Yes, you are our blood relative,' so they gave him seventy shekels. Abimelech hired them with that money and let them carry out the work.'" (Judge 9:14).
"So I need your support." His relatives responded, "Yes, that's right. Nowadays, if we don't help our own relatives and friends, people will look down on us. Even if God doesn't anoint you, let that be. It doesn't matter if it's God's will or not, isn't it a shame if we don't help each other? Don't worry. We will absolutely help you." With that, they held a commemorative dinner with glee. After that, they assigned job positions to each other: "You be the receptionist;" "You be office director;" and so, they were very happy to employ and congratulate each other.
18. What they don't realize
However, what they didn't realize was that the sons of Shechem and Abimelech fought against each other soon after. Not one of them was left alive. In the same way, the false minister of God was able to lead a good ministry for a while like Abimelech did. He was very proud of himself to be advised by others. How pitiful of him since sooner or later his future will be like Abimelech's.
19. No purpose in serving God
The fake minister was not recognized by God because God did not choose and send him. He went to the Bible schools own his own with great expectation, and piled up one degree after another, but he did not even care to understand the salvation of God. He was into more on the physical salvation than the spiritual one. Because he was only interested in saving people from physical sufferings, he was very satisfied when he reached his goal. Catching the lost soul was not even in his dreams or imagination. For him to go to heaven, or not to go to heaven was not important. What was more important for him was to receive worldly blessings while on earth. Christ said, seek first the kingdom and righteousness (Matthew 6:33), but that was not for him. Therefore, he had absolutely no interest in catching the lost souls and raising his own spiritul babies.
20. Satan was happy
The minister was not catching lost souls, but he was very busy. He had a lot of meetings to attend. He had a lot of writings to do and to communicate with his supporters. He simply was too busy with office work. For that Satan was very pleased. Satan said, "I have many fake servants of God, and I could even distract true servants of God. Because of my servants, even believers are not listening to the preaching of the true servants of God. Their works have been hampered. Even the true servants of God were impressed with my fake servants. They couldn't take it anymore. In the end, they will all be under the palm of my hands, even now, many have come to my fold. There are fewer and fewer workers on God's side." Satan was heard gloating and laughing aloud.
21. One worldly blessing after another
Fake ministers of God did not catch the lost souls, but they bought and built one amazing house after another. They bought the latest model car as soon as it hit the showroom. They owned slick computers and had super-fast internet access. The lost souls approached to them, but they didn't know how to catch them. Those lost souls might be dead spiritually, but they were the source of his worldly blessings so the minister happily welcomed their support.
22. Even true servants of God could not resist
When a true servant of God saw the gradual improvement of the life of the fake minister, he thought, "These ministers are enjoying many blessings the world has to offer. But look! I am poor. Nobody cares about me. I do not receive much worldly blessings either. Why don't I do like they do." So, he gave up on catching the lost souls and raising his own spiritual children. He then started to follow the footsteps of the fake minister. "I am not the only one, Demas also left Paul because he loved the world more, " he reassured himself. (2 Timothy 4:10).
23. Some great joy
God sees a few real ministers among many false ministers. These are people who actually are catching the lost souls despite enduring many hardships. Those who pursue the lost souls do not have time to care about worldly blessings, office positions, and praise from people. They are working day and night, just thinking about how to catch the lost souls. Whenever a lost soul is caught, there is great joy in heaven (Luke 15:7-10). Things on earth that could cause great joy in the heavens are not earthly properties, high paying jobs, academic degrees, nor good deeds and virtues. No matter how fragile the lost souls may be, once they repent and are saved, the heavens will be filled with joy. Heaven is excitedly waiting for the day of the arrival of those who could make the heavens rejoice because God will greatly reward them on that day. (1 Corinthians 3:12-15)
24. Let us not despair
Nothing in the world lasts forever. Only human spirits will. Therefore, those who are catching the lost souls should not feel let-down. When the time comes, you will receive praise from the above. Let us hope for that day to come soon; let us reject all temptations; and let us do the best we can to capture the wondering souls while we can. Let our remaining days on this earth be spent to accomplish what God wants us to do.
Excerpts from Reason for Soul Winning
Disclaimer: God did not actually say anything like the way we portrayed in this article. We just want to dramatize to make our point across.
