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“Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature” is not an option. It’s a commandment. The message is clear. There’s no denying it or excusing ourselves. We must simply have the faith to obey, even if it means going out not knowing whither we go.1
Jesus made it quite clear that all Christians are ordained to preach the Gospel when He said in John 15:16, “Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit.”
Therefore, it is not just a nice thing to do when we feel like it or can find the time, but it is the God-given job and responsibility of all of His true children, as Paul expressed, “For though I preach the Gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me: yea, woe is unto me if I preach not the Gospel.”2
This is why we devote our time and energies to preaching the Gospel to every creature and winning their souls to Jesus Christ and His service for others.3 That’s what we’re here for: to win people to Christ! For “herein is My Father glorified, that ye bearmuch fruit; so shall ye be My disciples.”4
Regardless of nationality, country, color, or creed, the heart of man is the same the world over, and his heartaches and sorrows and sins and pains and fear of death are the same. His longings, loves, and hunger for God and His truth, for joy and happiness and peace of mind, are God-created, and the same in men the world over.
Even though many people are seeking genuine love, they seldom, if ever, find it. For there are never enough of God’s people who are willing to show them His real love. As Jesus Himself said, “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few. Therefore,” He commanded, “pray ye the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth laborers into His harvest.”5
Only the supernatural, miracle-working power of the Holy Spirit of God Himself can do the job and win their hearts, bring them to a decision, and cause them to be bornagain as new creatures. Therefore, God has promised an anointing of this very power to His witnesses to help them lead others to Him. “Ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. And ye shall be witnesses unto Me.”6 The purpose of the power is for witnessing.
We’ve got nothing but God, so let’s show them His Spirit! As Paul said, “My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.”7 It’s this fiery anointing that counts.
If you haven’t got the fire, I don’t care how “good” a witness you are; it’s just cold, dead icicles of facts and figures, and you’ll never set anyone else on fire without it! As Jesus said, “Without Me, ye can do nothing.”8
But if you do your part, and “abide in the vine,” yielding yourself to Him in submission and humility, then the Lord will do His part, and inspire you, or fill you with His Spirit, so you can “bear much fruit”—newborn babes into the kingdom of God.9
As a young preacher with real love for the lost and a sincere desire to try to win the lost the churches had failed to reach, I tried everything I could think of, dreamed up every method I could imagine to try to carry the Gospel to them. I preached on the streets and in the parks; I sang at the top of my voice; I showed pictures and movies anywhere I possibly could—to reach people with the message of God’s love! But it was still the meeting method and the mass evangelism approach, which only had moderate success.
Then, one day I found out the exciting truth and thrilling fact that you could win more souls witnessing individually to individual people wherever you could find them, anywhere, any time, all the time, everywhere to everybody! You have to search them out individually, personally, with tender loving care and personal attention. Jesus said that the good shepherd “calleth his own sheep by name (personally, individually) and leadeth them out.”10
As children of God, you should have love and compassion for everyone—young or old, rich or poor, strong or weak, even if you don’t like them—“every creature!” However, God’s Spirit will lead you especially to those who really need your loving help, and who will respond in appreciation, just as the Spirit will also lead them to you.
God’s Spirit goes where there are open and receptive hearts that are hungry. He seeks the low and the humble and the contrite heart, but resists the proud. His Word says, “The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich (or full) He hath sent empty away. … For God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.”11
In leading people to the Lord, you often have to inspire their faith in you before they can believe in God. You are their link with God. As Jesus said, “He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”12
You must establish points of contact with them. There must be something in common in order for people to communicate. Use the kind of language that will win them. If it takes strong language to get the point across, use it! If it takes sweeter language, use that. Ask God for wisdom.13
One of the most needed abilities in witnessing is adaptability: being able to beanything to reach anybody and to become all things to all men. This tactic of adaptability was largely responsible for much of the apostle Paul’s soul-winning success. He said, “To the Jews, I became as a Jew; that I might gain (win) the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them. ... I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.”14
Sometimes, all people need is for someone to listen, and that’s half the job of being a witness. Let’s not fail them in showing them we’re willing to listen to their troubles. Often they’re really hungriest for fellowship and companionship and real love and sympathy, just somebody to talk to, to relieve their loneliness and to feel like somebody cares and shares their misery and their needs and problems.
(Prophecy:) “Can you not hear the heartcry of their bosom? To love is to weep with them, to cry with them, to suffer with them that suffer, and to feel the agony of heart with them whose hearts are broken!”
Originally published May 1975. Updated and republished September 2012.
Read by Peter Amsterdam.
1 Hebrews 11:8.
2 1 Corinthians 9:16. See also Ezekiel 3:17–19.
3 Mark 16:15.
4 John 15:8.
5 Matthew 9:37–38.
6 Acts 1:8.
7 1 Corinthians 2:4–5.
8 John 15:5.
9 See John 15:1–8.
10 John 10:3.
11 Psalm 34:18; Luke 1:53; 1 Peter 5:5.
12 John 13:20.
13 James 1:5.
14 1 Corinthians 9:20, 22.
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