REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Jabez Yeo, now a friend of AMI, was first posted on May 19, 2015.
Devotional Thought for This Morning
“Sharing the Gospel with Someone Who Never Heard It … in America!”
Revelation 7:9
After this I {John} looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
Being a young person, I may sound quite naïve, but I have come to realize at least this much about the purpose of life: somewhere along the way, we must be involved in God’s mission to reach the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Allow me to share an experience that really drove that point home.
Last year, I had the opportunity to meet Nancy, a Chinese student who began coming to our Bible study for international students. Like many Chinese students, Nancy grew up an atheist and had never heard about Jesus. Thankfully, we had the privilege of sharing the Gospel with Nancy, and a few months later, one of our leaders enthusiastically shared some great news: the night before, Jesus had appeared in Nancy’s dreams and assured her of His love. As our leader described the joy that Nancy now displayed, I was overwhelmed by God’s amazing grace and power.
Truly, Nancy’s testimony displays the biblical truth that God desires people from all nations to know and worship Him. God’s heart for the nations can be seen, not just in the Great Commission, but in the Abrahamic blessing (Gen. 12:1-3), and many of the Psalms (Psalm 67, 96, etc.). In His sovereignty, God has not only sent some to the ends of the earth to share His love but has also brought some who do not know Him, including many international students, right to our doorsteps. Thus, we have the incredible opportunity in today’s globalized world to bring the Gospel to those who have not heard it.
Furthermore, sharing Christ with international students can also be strategically important. According to Intervarsity, 40% of the world’s leaders have studied higher education in the U.S., including leaders such as Gandhi and Benjamin Netanyahu. Many international students also come from “closed” countries such as Saudi Arabia, where any non-Muslim activity, such as evangelism, is forbidden. Yet in 2014, there were over 111,000 Saudi students in the U.S. (!) with more expected in the coming years. Indeed, just as Jesus declared, the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few (Matt. 9:37).
While some of us will not be called to leave our homes to share the Gospel, are we even sharing it to those God has brought to us? Let’s pray for courage as we embody Christ to those who have never heard of Him.
Prayer:Lord, thank You for blessing me with many things, but most of all, for blessing me with a relationship with You. Thank You for Your sovereignty in bringing many who do not know You into my midst. May Your love compel me to live for You and to share about You with others. In Your Name I pray, Amen
Bible Reading for Today: Nehemiah 1
Lunch Break Study
Read Genesis 12:1-3 (ESV): Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
Gal. 3:7-8: Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.
Questions to Consider
1. What is the part that God promises to do for Abraham’s descendants in the Abrahamic Covenant?
2. What is the part that Abraham’s descendents are expected to fulfill?
3. Ultimately, what does this mean to you and me? What is the ultimate blessing from God for the nations? Who is supposed to carry out that mission of God?
Notes
1. God promises to bless the descendants of Abraham, that is, the nation of Israel, by making it a great and prosperous nation.
2. Israel, having become prominent and prosperous by God, is to be the channel of His blessing among the nations.
3. The ultimate blessing is the hearing and then believing the Gospel of Jesus Christ (i.e., being justified before God by believing in the person and work of Christ). The church, as the spiritual descendant of Abraham, is commissioned to carry out this task.
Evening Reflection
As you look back to this day, did you have an opportunity to share your faith with anyone? How did you handle that situation? Remember what Paul said in Philemon 1:6: “I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.” Pray for opportunity as well as boldness.