Have Compassion On Them

Open Heavens Daily Devotion by Pastor E. A. Adeboye
Sunday October 12

HAVE COMPASSION ON THEM

Memorise:
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:19
Read: Matthew 9:36-38

36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;
38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
Message
Our God is a counting God who is interested in numbers. He is interested in your advancement. He is interested in your prosperity, peace of mind and growth. Candidly, God is interested in the growth of His Church – local, national and global. There are many secrets of church growth which include: good biblical leadership, mobilising the congregation, a balanced spiritual diet, prayer, faith, answers to prayers, evangelistic outreaches, creativity & resourcefulness, finance etc. Are you a Christian worker or a minister of the gospel? Is your church or parish a growing church? For a church to grow, she must be interested in growth. Such a church must cater for the needs of the spirit, soul and body of her members. There is real fellowship in a growing church. It must be blessed with an obedient Pastor, who is a positive thinker. A growing church is committed to reaching the unreached for Christ and using evangelistic methods that work.

Aggressive evangelism is a secret of church growth. It is a process whereby the presentation of the gospel is done zealously, compassionately and in a Christ-like manner. Aggressive evangelism takes two forms which are: aggressive personal evangelism and aggressive mass evangelism (i.e. evangelism to a group of people). Are you a soul winner? Soul winners are wise. Aggressive evangelism is what sincere soul winners practice. This requires genuine consecration, commitment and resolute determination. Aggressive evangelism is a secret of church growth for many reasons. First, it produces abundant and lasting results. Second, it embraces all the other principles of church growth. Third, it motivates Christians to pray. Fourth, it succeeds where other methods fail. For aggressive evangelism to be effective, there must be thorough preparation. This includes spiritual preparation in form of prayer and fasting, humility, obedience to the voice of the Spirit, holiness, consecration and willingness to do the work. There should also be physical preparation in the form of audience analysis, getting the site for the outreach and forming a committee that will assist in the work. The message of aggressive evangelism should be heart-felt and presented with conviction (Acts 2:36). It must be Spirit-inspired in order to bring about repentance and joy (Acts 8:5-8). Finally, the fruits of aggressive evangelism (souls) must be guarded jealously and preserved in love till they meet Christ in glory. This is made possible through equally aggressive follow-up and discipleship. A church that engages in aggressive evangelism will grow spiritually and numerically, and Christ’s Name will be glorified.

Action Point:
Share the gospel with at least one soul today. Be aggressive in evangelism