The Joy of Sharing Your Faith | The Life-Saving Message

You're listening to A New Beginning with Greg Laurie, a podcast made possible by Harvest Partners, helping people everywhere know God.

Visit our website and learn more about Harvest Partners at harvest.org. We all recommend things all the time, so let's put it a new way. Go into all the world and recommend the gospel. Greg Laurie is both a pastor and an evangelist. His giftedness at sharing the gospel is obvious.

More than six million people have attended his Harvest Crusades, and more than 500,000 have registered decisions of faith. So today on A New Beginning, he helps us consider a few things about sharing our faith. We have a life-saving message, and we just can't keep that to ourselves. And those who do share it experience a thrilling sense of satisfaction like no other. Let's learn more.

Alright, let me start with a question. What are you afraid of? According to a study that was done of the top fears of most people, among the top ones were claustrophobia. That's a fear of small spaces. Then there's the fear of bugs. I think it's called anachrophobia. And then there's the fear of snakes and other critters like that.

Then there's the fear of heights. But the number one fear of most people is public speaking. Public speaking. How many of you have the fear of public speaking? Raise your hand.

Okay, I want you to come up now. It's true, we have that fear. In fact, it was Mark Twain who said, and I quote, there are two types of speakers, those who get nervous and those who are liars, end quote. So, you know, we all have the nerves and we get up to speak, and I have to say that's why I was so surprised when God called me at around 18 years old to be an evangelist. That was the last thing I ever aspired to be. I never was a public speaker.

I was more of a behind the scenes kind of a person. It was not something I really wanted to do, but it's a calling God put on my life. But listen, Jesus has called every Christian, young and old, men and women, no matter what, to go into all the world and preach the gospel. Let's tell us that 95% of Christians have never led a person to Christ. 95% have not led another person to Christ.

Also, only 2% of church goers have invited an unchurched person to church in the last year, and 59% of all Christians say they seldom or never share their faith with others. Now, why is that? One of the top reasons is the fear of rejection. Another would be anxiety.

Maybe they'll ask a question you can't answer. Or maybe feeling you're not the best example. I would say it this way. There's one thing that believers and non-believers have in common. We're both uptight about evangelism. Non-believers are uptight about being evangelized, and believers are uptight about evangelizing.

And I want to help you to change that way of thinking. I want you to discover not the mere duty of sharing your faith, but the joy of sharing your faith. So, what is the gospel?

Of course, the word gospel simply means good news. So, let's use an example. Let's say that you found a cure for cancer. You decided you wanted to share that with others.

I hope you would want to do that, of course. You would, in effect, be evangelizing for your cause. That's all it is. Take the gospel out of it. If you're passionate about something, you will find yourself evangelizing for it. And I suggest to you that there are people that are called to be an evangelist that have never stood behind a pulpit. Some of the most effective evangelists I've met are not preachers. They're just committed Christians that have that gifting.

You say, how do you know if you're gifted to do that? Well, it starts with a passion and a concern for non-believers. But it's an ability to articulate the gospel. It's a kind of a person that will engage somebody and want to share this message.

You may have this gift in your life. But let's take the word evangelism out of the picture here and just use another word, recommendation. Now, we do that all the time. Recommendation, advocating for something, endorsing something.

So let's put it a new way. Go into all the world and endorse the gospel. Go into all the world and recommend the gospel. We all recommend things all the time. I mean, you ask me a question.

I have an opinion on almost everything. So you say, Greg, what is the best burger? OK, let me ask you a question. What kind of a burger? A take-up burger or a restaurant burger? No, take-up burger. Well, it's In-N-Out Burger for sure. And then here's the way you need to order the In-N-Out Burger. I have my own order and I think my order is better than anyone else's order. And I order it animal style with chopped chilis on it.

OK, so that's what I do. But here's what I've discovered about In-N-Out for me personally. I only like it as a guilty pleasure. When I have In-N-Out for lunch, I don't like it. I have to eat it 10 o'clock at night when I'm not supposed to after I've already had dinner. That's when I like In-N-Out.

Am I alone in this? That's the way it works for me. And I would say, OK, now Taco Bell. I love Taco Bell and I'll tell you exactly what to order there. I have all kinds of opinions. What about this movie or what about this product?

I'll tell you what I think. So we all do this all the time. I mean, we're in a place we've never been to before and we want to get something to eat. So we go to Yelp and we believe in the opinions of complete strangers. Oh look, a bunch of random people that I've never met before like this place. Let's go there.

Because those people took the time to make a recommendation. OK, so we'll get passionate about a great burger. Yet we're not passionate about the most important message of all time. The message of the gospel. Go into all the world and recommend the gospel. Go into all the world and advocate for the gospel. Bringing me to point number one. Effective sharing starts with caring.

I could talk to you all day long about how to share the gospel, how to start a conversation, how to answer a difficult question and so forth. But really, none of that matters if you don't care. It starts with a concern for people.

And here's something that is an established fact of the universe. We don't like to share. We don't. Go back to your childhood when you were a little kid. Did you like to share your toys with others?

Probably not. And we're that way in life. We want it for ourselves.

We don't want to necessarily share it with someone else. And I think if we're honest, and we may not like to admit this, but the reason many of us don't tell others about Jesus is we just don't care about them. Hey, we'll say, I've got my eternal life. I know where I'm going when I die. And I'm happy in this relationship with God, but I don't want to inconvenience myself.

And I really don't care that much about that person. Even worse, we can start seeing non-believers as the enemy. In these morally and politically charged times, people are more divided than any time I can remember in my lifetime.

People are extremely angry at each other. And now with social media, that's all amplified. We can attack one another. And as Christians, we can get caught up into this. And we can start seeing that non-believer that maybe has made a lifestyle choice that is contrary to Scripture. Or a political choice we don't agree with.

Or some other choice. And suddenly they have become, in our minds, the mortal enemy. They're not the enemy. And if they've made bad decisions, they need to meet Christ who can change their life. They're not the enemy. They're under the control of the enemy. And here's what the Bible says we're supposed to do as believers.

First of all, be patient with them. And then it tells us that we should pray that they come to their senses and escape from the devil's trap. For they're being held captive by him to do whatever he wants.

So it starts with a concern and a burden. In Acts chapter 17, the apostle Paul went to the city of Athens. We read that as he walked through Athens, he was deeply troubled by all of the idols. You see, in Athens, he erected images to so many gods. There were thousands and thousands of idols in Athens.

In fact, it was said in that day, it's easier to find a god with a small g in Athens than a person. So Paul's walking around and his heart is getting stirred. And the word that is used there for stirred means that he was irritated and aroused to anger.

Another translation would be hot and mad. So when I look at culture, I get angry. Ah, this isn't right. Why is this happening? Why is that happening? Okay, but this is what's important.

What are we supposed to do after that? I mean, think about what's happening with so many people today, especially young people. I just read that the US Surgeon General says we're facing an urgent public health crisis. According to his statement, and I quote, there's a devastating decline in the mental health of kids across the country. The rates of suicide, self-harm, anxiety, and depression are up among adolescents. And by the way, this is a trend that began before the pandemic. According to the CDC, hospital admissions data show the number of teen girls who have been suicidal has increased 50% since 2019.

2019, that's not that long ago, is it? So young people are depressed, filled with anxiety, concerned about their future, and in many cases, even suicidal. This should concern us. This should move us.

And what should we do? We need to share Jesus with them. We need to share Jesus with them. We need to tell them there's a God in heaven who loves them. And whatever they're going through, they can get through it. And God has a plan and a purpose for their life.

We have to care. We have to see them as Jesus sees them, as sheep without a shepherd, as people that need a Savior. Instead of cursing the darkness, we need to turn on the light.

And how do we do it? By proclaiming, advocating for, and recommending the gospel of Jesus Christ. Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. So many listeners have commented on the help they receive from Pastor Greg's teachings. God's word ministers to them, and it often gets them through some of their darkest hours.

Hi, Pastor Greg. I want to send you an enormous thank you. In spite of the unrelenting years' worth of storms I've been going through, Jesus has been my rock, in large part through your daily podcast messages. Your humor made me laugh on days when I struggled not to cry. And your impactful, practical message picked me up on days I felt like I was on the floor.

While the storms in my life have not subsided, they no longer make me feel like I'm drowning. God bless you, Pastor Greg, for your constant support and encouragement. We're so happy that these daily studies are touching and changing lives.

If your life has been impacted, would you tell us your story? Email Pastor Greg. Send it to Greg at harvest dot org.

Again, that's Greg at harvest dot org. Well, today, Pastor Greg is presenting a message called The Joy of Sharing Your Faith. He continues by taking us to God's word. Let's read now the words of Paul in Romans 10.

I'm going to read verses 14 to 15. Paul says, How can they call on Him to save them unless they believe in Him? How can they believe in Him if they've never heard about Him? How can they hear about Him unless someone tells them?

And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? This is why this Scripture says, How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news. Look at your feet for a moment.

Look at them. You have beautiful feet. Now, when we admire a feature in someone, we don't generally notice their feet. We might say, Oh, I love their eyes. Or, I love their hair. I never have people say that to me.

Or, Oh, you're beautiful in this way or that way. We don't generally say, Man, you have amazing feet. I've just been looking at those feet of yours.

You know, it's an amazing thing. Did you know that there are feet models in addition to your standard model? If they're showing footwear, they're people that actually their feet will be used. And there's hand models. I don't know if you know this, but I was asked to be a hand model once.

I was surprised because I don't think I have very attractive hands. But they said, Yes, we want your hands on the cover of our magazine. And I agreed. I was very excited. Until they found out the title of the magazine is Old and Decomposing. And I thought, What?

But they did it anyway because they pay me ten bucks. Okay, so. But really, what this is saying, beautiful feet means, it would better be translated full bloom. So think of a blossoming flower. So the idea being communicated here is you bloom to life when you share the gospel. When you share the gospel, you're doing as a Christian what you should be doing. The gospel by its very design is not meant to be hoarded. It's meant to be shared. Bringing me to point number two.

Listen to this. And this is the most important point of this message. Sharing the gospel is life giving to us as well as the person we are sharing with.

Let me say that again. Sharing the gospel is life giving to us as Christians as well as the person we are sharing with. Far too often we think of sharing our faith as something that's hard, undesirable, something we really don't want to do.

But it's life giving to the one who's hearing it and it's life giving to you too. Another translation of the word beautiful as in how beautiful are the feet of those that share the gospel is lively. How lively are the feet of those that preach the gospel of peace. So if you want happy feet, if you want to spring in your step, tell others about Jesus.

I honestly believe this is the key to personal revival. To share your faith. And I find that new believers make the most effective evangelists. Have you noticed that? Those that have known the Lord for the longest usually share the gospel less. And those that have known the Lord only for a short time often share the gospel more.

Why do you think that is? I think it's because when you first come to Christ you're just so amazed by what God has done for you. You're so thrilled that God is forgiving you of your sin. You're so close to it. And you can't wait to tell other people about it.

But when you've known the Lord for a while you start to take these things for granted. My son Jonathan and his family have two pet rats. And that's all I have to say about that.

No. And they have a snake too. Or had a snake. Christopher, my grandson, had this little pet snake and little king snake.

And as you may know they eat live prey. Mice or rats or depending on the size of the snake. Maybe a rabbit. Occasionally a human.

Hopefully not. So you go down to the pet store and you buy little mice or feeder rats. And they don't cost much or a couple of bucks and you feed it to the snake. So Jonathan and Christopher went down to the pet store and they got this little feeder rat.

Cost them a couple of bucks. Put it in the cage with the snake. And the snake looked at it and struck. And started to coil around the rat. And the rat somehow freed himself. And next thing you know the rat is sort of sniffing the face of the snake. And they realize this snake is probably not going to eat this rat. Jonathan takes the rat out of the cage. Puts it in another cage and says we will take it back.

And get a smaller rat or mouse for the snake. But his daughter Allie fell in love with the rat. A little bit later he found that she had set the cage up. And she had given him a name.

And had little places for food. And so now she has adopted this rat. And I think she named the rat Tilly. And so he realized okay we now have a pet rat. But as it turns out it was a great little pet.

I don't know if you know this. Rats make great pets. They are very friendly. And so they are enjoying this rat. So they decide maybe we should get another rat. So they start doing some research on rats. And they find this sort of rat that has a pedigree. It is a little fancier this rat. He came with his own adoption papers. In fact when he arrived they said you are the owners of this rat.

Okay. But the problem with the second rat is he was a little I don't know snooty. I didn't know rats could be snooty.

It is almost like he knows I have a pedigree. And they did some research and found out I didn't know there were rats like walnuts. So the first rat Tilly which they found out was a boy so they changed his name to Louie.

Anyway so Louie didn't need a lot of research to figure that one out. So Louie would eat a walnut. Loves the walnut.

So excited. They bring the walnut to the second rat. Was it Remy?

Would you name Remy? And Remy was like I don't want the walnut. And then they went into the fridge and got some really nice cheese.

Really good cheese. Remy didn't want that either. This is a loose arrogant rat. I said to Jonathan you should take that rat back and feed him to the snake. That is how heartless I am. See so what is the point of all of this? Well the first rat reminds me of a new convert and the second rat reminds me of a somewhat jaded believer.

Jesus says to whom much is forgiven that one loves more. So the first rat has been this is awesome. I was going to be snake food. Now I am eating walnuts.

I am happy. I have been saved. Second rat he wasn't saved. He has a pedigree. He has personal papers. And he doesn't appreciate all that has happened. That is why he should be fed to the snake immediately. In the same way we should never lose that gratefulness for what Christ has done for us.

Right? Pastor Greg Laurie with a great illustration of how we need to display the zeal of a new believer. No matter how long we have walked with the Lord.

Good insight today here on A New Beginning. Now Pastor Greg let's speak to someone who isn't a new believer. They are not a long time believer. They don't really know if they are a Christian at all.

They can't mark a moment when they made that decision for the Lord. Well they just need to hear more. They need to hear what the essential gospel message is. And I have got a great resource for you. We have set up a web page that is called KnowGod.org You go there, I have a video presentation of how you accept Christ, lead you in a prayer. And then it links to other spiritual resources that will help you grow spiritually. So just go to KnowGod.org Do it right now.

Alright. Well Pastor Greg we are talking about the movie Fame. So many people want to be famous. Especially young people. You know social media influencers. They want to be social media influencers. They want fame. And yet so many famous people would love to have a day of anonymity. That's true. They would love to have a day.

They would just go walk around the mall or go to the beach or go grocery shopping. But once you are famous you can't take a day off. And you just can't quit. I mean Taylor Swift if she wants to just say I am done. I am not going to be famous anymore. No she is famous for life.

Yeah she is. Well the most famous man I ever met. And I have met some famous people. Met a few presidents. I met some movie stars, rock stars. But you know the most famous man I ever met was Billy Graham.

He is a historical figure on the Time Magazine's most influential people list for more times than any other person who ever lived. And it's funny because when I would be out and about with Billy. Because I was helping him toward the end of his ministry with his sermons. I was helping him with illustrations. I spent a lot of time with him.

We had a lot of meals together. Billy somehow thought that wearing a ball cap would disguise him. But you know Billy's face. The profile of Billy Graham looked like something that would be on Mount Rushmore. He had very distinctive features. Easy to spot. He was tall.

Really stood out. And so he always had the ball cap. And it never worked. And one day he lost his ball cap. And he said Greg would you get me another ball cap.

I said sure Billy. I went down to the local mall. I felt like I was on a mission for God. Like I'm going to buy a ball cap for Billy Graham. And I went into this store that had more ball caps than any store I've ever been to before. I was completely overwhelmed.

I didn't even take the time to get his hat size. But I did my best job I could. And I came back very excited and gave him the cap.

He thanked me. And I saw a picture in the paper the next day. And he's in a car wearing the ball cap.

Being recognized I might add. And then he lost it the next day. That's why he always had to keep replacing them. But the thing with Billy and fame is he just wore it so well. He knew it came from God. He knew he should give glory to God. And he was a humble man.

And he was accessible. So you know fame can be a good thing if you use it for God's glory. And use it to build a bridge to bring people to Christ. And it can be a very destructive thing. I've likened it to fire. You know you can have a meal cooked on fire. You can have a campfire. You can do great things with fire.

And fire can destroy homes and forests and much more. So it's sort of the same with fame. It can be a good thing if used right. It can be a bad thing if used wrongly. So we just need to understand it's not good or bad in and of itself. It is what it is. But if you look to fame in and of itself to fill the void in your life.

You'll be unhappy. The same could be said of money. You know money is not evil. Sometimes you hear people say you know the Bible says money is the root of all evil. Actually the Bible does not say that does it? The Bible says Paul speaking the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Which while some have coveted after they've erred from the faith and pierced their souls through. So the idea is the love of money not money.

Money is neutral. So you can take your money and use it for God's glory. You know here's a little suggestion. Invest some in our ministry. Because then you lay up for yourself treasure in heaven. So we're offering a book right now called Fame where I talk about this and more. And we'll send it to you for your gift of any size. And whatever you send financially will be used to reach more people with the gospel and the teaching of the word of God. So you can use your money for good or you can use it for bad.

It's really up to you. The same is true of fame. Yeah, that's right. Well we'd like to send a copy of this new book your way to thank you for partnering with us. To thank you for laying up treasure in heaven. Your investment helps us bring the gospel to many more people through radio, film, books and so many other avenues. It's such an important time for that. You can make your donation and request the book by calling 1-800-821-3300. And today is our last opportunity to mention this so get in touch right away. 1-800-821-3300.

Or go online to harvest.org. And don't forget the new movie also called Fame. Pastor Greg speaks with Daryl Strawberry and Alice Cooper and others.

People who know how destructive the lure of fame can be. It's a feature length film and we hope you'll watch along with your whole family. It's especially relevant for young people. You can watch the movie right now at our new Harvest Media platform at harvest.org. And it's also on other streaming platforms such as Roku, Apple TV, Samsung, Amazon Fire and Google Play.

It's free to watch. Well next time more insights on the importance of sharing the good news that leads to eternal life. Pastor Greg brings the finale to his series called Timeless. Join us here on A New Beginning with pastor and Bible teacher Greg Laurie. This is the day, the day when life begins. Hey everybody thanks for listening to A New Beginning. This is a podcast made possible by Harvest Partners. So for more content that can help you know God and equip you to make Him known to others. Or to learn more about how you can become a Harvest Partner just go to harvest.org.