By Andrew Bills —
One day while going door to door to share Christ, a woman answered her front door who was very interested in the gospel of Jesus Christ. But, within moments she kept telling me to whisper because she didn’t want her husband to know that she was listening to a preacher. So as I continued sharing, she constantly kept looking back over her shoulder in fear. So, I finally inquired as to what was the matter.
She told me that her husband hates preachers, the Bible and God and even threatens Christians throughout the city and again she motioned for me to whisper to her. As her face filled with fear and stress, I told her that Christ loved her and died to set her free. The more I shared, she cried and began to reach out for Jesus Christ. But, suddenly I began to hear this loud animal like growling in the background. Then she screamed “please run” and quickly motioned me away from the door. The sound grew louder, then as I backed up a few steps, her husband came bursting through the door like a manic to get me.
I quickly thought about The Apostle Paul and how he went from city to city preaching the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Some of the cities received his message but others threw him out and one even stoned him. What compelled him to later return to those cities, even the more hostile ones? It’s the love of Christ Jesus which is shed in our hearts that compels us to go onward and take the good news to the world, even despite the dangers of persecution.
Romans 10: 13-14 NIV says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”
Rejection, slander, criticism, mockery, unkind words and ungodly gestures are just a few of experiences that no one likes having as you’re trying to share the good news of Christ to people. Although you’re concerned about their eternal life, because they’re dead in their sins, they think that you’re trying to shove your religion down their throats and may even attempt to say or do ungodly things to scare or stop you.
Having preached on the streets, door to door witnessing, park rallies and through a variety of other methods, while I’ve encountered numerous negative experiences, none can compare with the overwhelming joy when you lead a sinner to Jesus Christ or encourage a person, whose faith has been shipwrecked, to return back to the church and begin studying the Bible again.
Are you aware that all Heaven rejoices when a sinner comes to Christ? Heaven isn’t moved by the NBA Finals, the World Series, the Stanley Cup or even the Academy Awards. No, all Heaven rejoices when a sinner opens his or her heart to Christ and a multitude of sins have been repented of and forgiven by God.
The reason for negative reactions to our witness is that people are bound in the sins in which they actually believe that they love or are held prisoner too and they don’t want to be told or reminded of God’s eternal judgment that’s to come. They want to walk in their own will and have things their way, so they do all that they can, as they’re influenced or led by Satan to try to withstand the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Continuing with my experience, repulsed by my message, the husband came bursting through the front door after pushing his wife to the side, growling like a wild animal in an attempt to scare me. He suddenly got right up into my face and angrily told me what he thought of God, the Bible, preachers and especially me.
I looked him straight in the eyes and told him about the love of Jesus and the blood that was shed on Calvary’s Cross just for him. (I had earlier thought that if I’m going down, I’m going down lifting up my Lord and Savior).
He ceased the growling and told me that he was a Muslim and rejected the foolishness that Jesus was God. Again, I kept sharing Christ as his frightened wife kept watching from the door.
He finally shook my hand but said that he didn’t want anything to do with Jesus, asked me to leave his premises, not to come back and walked away into the house. I stood out on his walkway and prayed for a few moments then left.
That next Sunday, the wife came to church with her teenage son and they both gave their lives to Jesus Christ. She told me that she knew her husband would be upset about it but she needed Jesus.
Again, although some people will be repulsed by us and our message, we must continue to share our hope with gentleness and grace and believe that Christ will change hardened hearts and set people free from their sins.
THEREFORE, HAVE FAITH IN GOD!
