The Christian's Responsibility Toward The World
Timothy M. Cedarland
Table of Contents
The Christian's Responsibility Toward the World
What a wonderful thing it is for every believer to know that their sins are forgiven, and that they have a home in heaven prepared for them by their Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. And too, what a wonderful hope we have in knowing that at any moment we might hear that shout and be caught away from this poor world, to meet the Lord in the air and to be forever with the One who loved us and gave Himself for us!
But why is it that God has chosen to leave us here instead of taking us to be with Him the moment we are saved? Are we not left here to represent Christ in this foreign land in which we roam, to shine as lights in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, to be ambassadors for Christ, to preach the message of the glorious gospel to those around us? Is it not the responsibility of every believer to warn those around us of the coming judgment?
Many are headed for a lost eternity in Hell, and yet as believers we go on indifferent to the needs of those about us. If a child were to step out onto a busy street, certainly we would try to rescue it! If our neighbor’s house were on fire and he were asleep inside, would we not seek to warn him of his danger? Yet many of our neighbors and friends are in far greater danger than that of being inside a burning house. They are asleep in their sins and in danger of losing their souls for eternity! It is indeed our responsibility to warn them of their condition. Paul could say, “Woe unto me if I preach not the gospel,” and “knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men” (2 Cor. 5:11).
Not only is it the responsibility of the Christian to spread the gospel, but it is a privilege that should be motivated by love for Christ. Paul could say, “The love of Christ constraineth us” (2 Cor. 5:14). If we really have a genuine love for Christ, if our hearts are really taken up with Him, then we will not be able to keep from speaking about Him. Peter and John could say, “We cannot help but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). If we have been with the Lord and enjoyed His presence it will flow out to others around us. Jesus said to His disciples at the end of John 15, “And ye also shall bear witness of me because ye have been with me.” It is a wonderful thing to enjoy the blessed truths of Scripture, but there needs to be that outflow to others around us lest we become stagnant in our Christian life. D. L. Moody once said, “Why is the Dead Sea dead? Because it only receives, it never gives.” Freely we have received, freely we should give. May the Lord help us to be sensitive to the lost and perishing around us. May we wake up and realize that, “This is a day of good tidings!” (2 Kings 7:9).
The time is short. The coming of the Lord is near! Soon the day of grace will be over and there will be no more opportunities to speak a word for Christ or to have compassion on the multitudes as Jesus did. May we be faithful in the work that He has given each of us to do, so that we might have the joy of hearing those words from the lips of our Lord Jesus, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”
Tim Cedarland
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