Regarding this week's in other words

"You act more like a Christian by your influence on the lost, then the saved people you impress."~ Dr. Alvin Reid ~

I had quite a time on deciding how to approach this week's quote. I appreciate Dr. Reid's website and his work on making the general Christian population aware of the lost. I may be adding some of his books to my reading list in the near future. However this quote gave me some trouble. At first glance it is a very meaningful quote talking about how we should not spend our time trying to impress the saved, but influencing the lost. I have come to the conclusion that I have two general opinions about this quote.

First, who exactly is the lost, and the saved? I know that this may sound like a very basic easy answer. But before you rush off to mentally answer me think for a moment. The structure of today's society especially in the United States has changed. It was once easily assumed that anyone attending a church knew the basic fundamentals of faith. They generally when asked could tell you about Moses, Joshua, Adam and Eve, Esther, Jacob, Peter, John the Baptist, and especially Jesus. When it came time to put into words the salvation message, they could do it.

However today, many of the people who cross the threshold into a church building today struggle with the above stories. They do not understand even the basic tenets of what it means to have faith in Jesus. I recently heard a preacher equate having faith with being positive in one's outlook on life. Yes, being positive does play a role. But when you stand one day at the throne of Jesus, will you be rewarded eternal life simply because you were a positive person. NO. Eternal life is a gift from God, and must be accepted personally, through repentance. If one could be positive and gain eternal life...then Jesus' death is meaningless. No, Jesus died for our sins. How many people in churches today really understand the meaning of my last sentence: Jesus died for our sins. ??? How many know what to do to gain eternal life? How many people pick up a Bible and read it faithfully? Therefore the definition of the lost and the saved are not as clear as they once were. "There are plenty of 'lost' people warming many churches pews. "


Secondly, since the definitions of lost and saved people are now blurred in today's society I want to encourage you, (and me...I'm speaking to myself too. ) to simply be a light among everybody.

14 You are the light of the world—like a city on a mountain, glowing in the night for all to see. 15 Don't hide your light under a basket! Instead, put it on a stand and let it shine for all. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
Matt 5:14-16 (NLT)

8 But when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, you will receive power and will tell people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Acts 1:8 (NLT)

I will always remember when I lived in the Southwest U.S. on the Indian reservation. Often when I travelled off of the reservation to get supplies, a distance of 92 miles, I would come home in the dark. Man, it was dark!!! After leaving that town and turning north, I would enter a period of driving where the only thing that was visible were the stars, the headlights of a oncoming car (rarely) and animals' eyes as they scurried across the road....roadrunners in particular. I knew that there were mesas and hogans somewhere out in the darkness. After quite a long period of time, I would see WAY off in the distance, high atop a mesa..LIGHTS! Although not my particular village, but nonetheless a welcome relief. Once I saw those village lights, I knew that I was on the home stretch. I still had about 10 or more miles to go, but I was nearing home. Then, after a few more miles, I would round a bend, and crest a small hill, and behold the lights of my own village. {sidenote: The words to the Christmas carol, "O little town of Bethlehem" drew new meaning after my experiences on the reservation}.

We, you and I are to be like those village lights in the dark desert, shining faithfully to passersby. Our lives, living for Jesus will be a light both to the lost, the saved, and those in between. If we don't worry about impressing or influencing, but merely be faithful to Jesus in our walk; then our lights will shine so that others may see the light of Jesus through us. Be faithful to Jesus, then He will see that our lights are spotted by the people who need to see them.


For more takes on the above quote click here for more participants in this meme.