“May those who wait for You not be ashamed through me, O Lord God of hosts; May those who seek You not be dishonored through me, O God of Israel.” Psalm 69:6
It was an accident really! Unintentional though it might have been, it STILL created a disturbance. Well, at least in ONE individual anyway. But with the help of the Holy Spirit, I was jarred into remembering it while it was fresh, and to commit to NOT embarrassing someone in public again! That is… if I can HELP it!
In front of about 40 people I picked one gal to make a point. Our families have spent time together on vacation and I’ve known her for several years. That said, I had no way of anticipating her failure to answer the question, “if you were to die today, would you KNOW for CERTAIN YOU would go to Heaven?” Her answer, “Well I think so?” Made the WHOLE room go… “OHHHHHH!” Which meant there was NO way I could back up!
She is a sweet, kind and quiet sort of gal. Very polite and not wanting to be the center of attention. But she found herself there, unexpectedly! Interestingly enough, her brother had had the EXACT same experience several months ago. But he’s a tough guy and it didn’t bother him like it did his sister. Last night, as he sat beside her, he tried to give her brotherly advice, “DON’T YOU LIE NOW!” Which only caused her face to redden even more!
As it turns out, she already had been saved, and remembered the time she asked Jesus Christ for forgiveness of her sin and Him into her heart. In reality, SHE shouldn’t have been embarrassed as much as the person who had shared the Gospel with her! Because whoever did, failed to make the point of salvation CRYSTAL CLEAR! Because HOPING so and KNOWING so are 2 different things.
EVERY Christian is called to share the Gospel of Salvation with people in their world. But there ARE distinctions. As Gregory Koukl says in his book ‘Tactics,’ Some of us are planters, while some of us are reapers. Unfortunately, planters who are not reapers, will often use that point as reason to not plant! And they SHOULD be embarrassed.
For me, there is NOTHING more important on this Earth than knowing, loving and following Jesus Christ. He is my Creator, life giver, forgiver and sustainer for my whole reason to be here on this planet in the first place. He asks ME to SHARE HIM with those who do not know Him. Doing so should NEVER be an embarrassment for me. Neither should embarrassing others. So I apologize to our young and future powerful planter if you got a little red-faced. But I am sure you are VERY clear now.
Are YOU embarrassed to share Jesus?
