God Hath Spoken

by Harris J. Dark

Remember, God has charged us to preach the gospel to everybody, and one soul is worth more than all the money in the world. If by ever so much use of the daily press, we can accomplish the salvation of just one soul it would be worth a million times what it cost. If we will stop to consider the value of just one soul, we will see the great importance of using every means that we can to win lost souls for Christ. Now, I’m just naming some different activities here which will help us to fulfill this duty, or to reach the objective of evangelizing our own community. Do not think that this list is complete; it is intended rather to be suggestive. Perhaps you can think of other means which would also help in accomplishing this task.

V
Distributing Tracts

But even after we have done all these things there will still be some people who are not yet reached. The church here has been engaged in publishing and distributing tracts. This is another means which we can use to reach our neighbors. I wish we had some system of regularly placing tracts, appropriate tracts, in every home in this community. We can help to preach the gospel to the world by carrying tracts in person to those who live in our neighborhood, and by placing tracts in public places—the Y. M. C. A., the Y. W. C. A., the bus station, the Union Station, and other such places. The churches of Christ in general have neglected this opportunity; if you doubt this statement, visit some of these places—hospitals, terminals, etc.—and you will realize that we have been letting an opportunity slip by us in this respect.

Then our tracts in the church lobby may be used to serve a good purpose. I’m glad that Brother Billingsley has taken the initiative in providing some racks for them, because the truth should be displayed just as effectively as possible. I believe that you will agree that in the past the tracts in the lobby have not been attractively arranged. If I should preach a sermon as ragged in its appearance as that display of tracts has been, you would fire me. You’d say you didn’t want the truth wrapped up in that sort of a garment. We need to look out after details and take advantage of every possible means to make the preaching of the gospel more effective. Paul said, “For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; to them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you” (1 Cor. 9:19-23).

VI
Personal Evangelism

In addition to all these methods, personal evangelism should be greatly emphasized. Here is perhaps the greatest weakness in the method of the churches of Christ today. On this point, we are allowing some advocates of error to run circles around us. Here is a great unworked field which, when properly worked, will bring results of which we have not yet dreamed.

The Bible does not command people to come to our public meetings. If we can reach them by these public meetings, that’s fine. If we can persuade them to come so that we may preach the gospel to a large number at once, that’s fine. But what will we do for those who don’t come? The Bible says “Go.” We have not fully discharged our duty when we invite people to come to us. And we haven’t always invited them! There are, I am sure, hundreds of people living almost in sight of this building who have not received a personal invitation to attend the meetings at this place.

They ought to receive at least a personal invitation. But even then, that’s not sufficient. If they still don’t come, it becomes our duty to go to them. Have we obeyed the great commission, even in reference to East Nashville, until we do so? It will help a great deal if we have a prospect file, both general and individual. Every good insurance agent in this town has a prospect file. He knows to whom he will try to sell insurance in the next few days. And we ought to use the same practical common sense in executing the work of the Lord that men use in selling insurance.

I went to a place one time to hold a meeting where they had made very elaborate preparations. They had appointed many committees. They had an advertising committee, a publicity committee, a parking committee, a flower committee, and an ushering committee, and everything else you can think of except one little item. They had failed to consider who might be saved during the meeting, and when I asked one of the elders whom he expected to be baptized, he hesitated, thought for a while, and finally named one of the boys who had been coming to the services. They expected to have forty or fifty additions, but they had never thought about who these additions would be.

What would you think of an automobile salesman with no prospects in mind, who went in on Monday morning and told the sales manager that he was going to sell five automobiles during the week? The sales manager would probably ask, “Well, to whom?” The agent would reply, “Oh, I don’t know; I just believe there must be five people in town who’ll buy from me this week.” Do you think the sales manager would be encouraged? Why he would realize that the salesman didn’t know what he was talking about. Every congregation ought to have a prospect list, and every individual worker in the Lord’s kingdom ought to have a prospect list. Whom will you try to save during the next twelve months? Every Christian should be a soul winner for Jesus, and you can lead someone to Christ if you are willing to be used by him in so doing. There is much more that could be said along this line if time permitted.