Convicted, Convinced, Concerned

I love coffee.  I love to play board games.  I love to decorate my house for the various seasons.  I love to camp and hike and explore God's beautiful world.  I'm passionate about being creative.  I can lose myself in making cards with my rubber stamps and collection of "stamping utensils."  I don't quilt, but I can wander a quilt store for hours and put fabrics together and just imagine.  I am thrilled to help my friends decorate or accessorize or brainstorm ideas for a new project.  I color with crayons and a coloring book, scrapbook with scissors and glue, and shop my closet for new outfits.  Being creative isn't just something I enjoy, it's who I am, it's part of my DNA. 

In Paul's first letter to the Corinthian church he talks about something he is passionate about, something that is ingrained in his soul, part of his DNA.  Paul was passionate over winning others to Jesus Christ.  He is so into evangelism that he declares  he would make himself "a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible."  (1 Corinthians 9:19) Can you imagine -- altering your day-to-day existence so that someone else (who you may not even know very well!) can be saved by the love and grace of Jesus Christ. 

As a believer in Jesus, one of His disciples, I am given the responsibility to reconcile others to God (2 Cor. 5:18).  I'm to live in such a way that my life reflects who Jesus is and help bring others to a point in their life where they can experience the joy and freedom of being part of the family of God (Phil 2:1-11).

I am to be involved with evangelism (Matthew 28:18-20).

Evangelism is a scary word to me, it makes me think of standing on a street corner and preaching to anyone who will listen.  Or I think of going door to door and sharing the "4 Spiritual Laws" or the "Roman Road" to people I have never met.  That's not really my jam.  I'd much rather be playing with my crafty tools and having a hey day with all sorts of colorful elements. And though the concepts that Paul projects in 1 Corinthians 9 are daunting, they are still doable, though I may need to creatively adapt a bit so that I can still live in my own skin.

I see three things in Paul that I can emulate, that I'm okay with, and can work with within the boundaries of my own personality.   First of all, Paul was convicted of the grace and truth of Jesus Christ.  Paul is somewhat of a bulldozer.  I would never want to get in an argument with him, I would end up in the corner crying! He doesn't just say what he believes, he declares it with force and confident assurance that it is absolute truth. In I Corinthians 1:18 Paul states, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." In verse 23, "… we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles" Paul then follows in the very next verse proclaiming Christ is the power and wisdom of God. In chapter 5, Paul professes Christ has been sacrificed as our Passover lamb (v.7); in chapter 6 he stresses "you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ…" (v.11); in chapter 6 and 7 he repeats "you were bought at a price." (6:20 and 7:23). Jesus Christ dramatically changed the person of Paul, so much so that God changed his name from Saul to Paul.  Jesus Christ rescued and redeemed Paul and restored him to a life of purpose. Nothing was going to change the conviction Paul had to be committed to his Lord and Savior.

Secondly, Paul was convinced he could make a difference.  Paul doesn't talk about hoping to win some for Christ.  He doesn't hem-haw around the issue, saying he might like to influence others some day.  In verse 19 of 1 Corinthians 9 he states, "…I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible"; verse 20, "… so as to win those under the law."  Paul tells his readers "I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air" (verse 26). Paul acted in such a manner that you know, without question, that he  believed his actions would make a difference in some one's life. We make choices all  the time because we are convinced there will be a particular result: I drink coffee every morning convinced it will help wake me up; I exercise (even though I don't like it) convinced it will help keep me capable and moving as my body ages; I make cards and mail them to others convinced it will encourage and uplift; I avoid too many carbohydrates convinced it will help keep my weight in balance.  I am convinced you are no different, you make choices convinced of a certain outcome.  Paul was convinced that when he shared the good news of Jesus Christ, God would use it for His glory, and people would be saved just as he had been. 

The third thing I see is that Paul was concerned for those around him.  He didn't just choose a specific group of people that he was willing to interact with and share with.  He didn't stick with those who were similar to him, with the same heritage, and general view of life.  Paul cared enough for each person he encountered that he was literally willing to give things up if that would help him relate better to the person he was sharing Christ with.  I believe Paul's concern grew out of the truth that he was convicted over the goodness of God, and he believed each person should receive the opportunity to be overwhelmed with God's abundant blessing, just as he had been.  Paul, the bulldozer dude, cared. 

Paul displayed three characteristics when he evangelized: he was convicted of the truth; he was convinced he could make a difference; and he was truly concerned for those he encountered.  Even as I write down what I discovered, I'm left with a question hanging in the air.  Where am I falling short?  Am I as overwhelmingly convicted of the truth that Jesus Christ died for me, redeemed me and rescued me? Am I convicted to the core that Jesus offers me amazing and abundant grace so that I can have a relationship with God Almighty.  Am I convicted by the truth that Jesus did something for me that I could never in a million years do for myself, and what's been given to me is exactly what my soul longs for?  Am I convinced I can make a difference?  Do I believe God is big enough, trustworthy enough to take what I do and say and use it to influence someone to move one step closer to knowing acceptance, freedom and unfailing love?  Am I concerned for those around me; deeply caring for their eternal soul?  Do I want more for those in my sphere of influence than a good day, or a happy life?  I have come to the conclusion that if I feel I am lacking in concern for others, or in confidence to make a difference, it stems from my lack of conviction that Jesus has saved me from a horror beyond my imagination.  If I am short on conviction it's because I've lost a passion for what Christ has done for  me. That's where I need to begin: encountering again the grace and goodness of God, being overwhelmed by the truth of who He is in power and glory, and recognizing that I am literally nothing without Him.