- by Dr. Ken Matto
-
- (2 Tim 1:16 KJV) The Lord give mercy unto the house
of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain:
Onesiphorus is only mentioned twice in the Bible, both times in the book of
2 Timothy. His name means “one who profits or profit bringer.” We read that
he and his household had refreshed him. The word “refreshed” carries with it
the idea of getting a second wind or reviving. I know when the weather is
hot, many find refreshment in the air conditioning or with a cold drink.
Here Paul is speaking of a spiritual refreshment when he comes in contact
with Christians who have not allowed themselves to succumb to apostasy. It
is a rare thing these days to find any Christians who have not allowed
themselves to be carried away with every wind of doctrine.
In December, normally our thoughts turn to the impending Christmas season
and with it comes the airing of probably one of the best movies ever made,
simply because it had a sense of reality to it. I am speaking of “It’s a
Wonderful Life” with Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. As you know Clarence the
Angel was trying to earn his wings and he was assigned to George Bailey when
he was considering committing suicide when his Savings and Loan came up
short because his Uncle Billy lost the $8,000 deposit in the evil Mr.
Potter’s bank. So George Bailey goes out to a bridge ready to jump off and
when he attempts to do so, Clarence jumps in first and then afterwards in
the watchman’s shack on the bridge, George makes the statement that it would
have been better had he not been born. Then Clarence allows that to be the
case. He was never born and when he went back into town, he knew everybody
but no one knew him. Then Clarence was able to reveal to him how important
his life is especially since he saved his brother’s life and prevented the
druggist, Mr. Gower, from accidentally poisoning one of his customers. If
George wasn’t there, then his brother would have died and the patient would
have been poisoned. Of course, at the end of the movie, no matter how bad
the situation was, he learned a valuable lesson, that every life is
important because of the way it touches countless others.
The theme of that movie reminds me so much of the Christian life. No matter
who we are or what our social status is in this life, we will touch
thousands of people in our life and the majority of them we will never even
meet in this life. For example, if you gave $25 to World Missionary Press to print tracts,
they will print 625 for that amount. Those tracts may be sent to countries
like Iraq or Ecuador. The people who receive them will not know who funded
it but will receive them. This is just one scenario. If you gave that for 12
months, you would reach 7500 people or more in one year. What about sending
back one tract with a bill. Suppose the person who reads it becomes saved,
then they begin to do the same thing and now you have one convert who is now
sending tracts. Suppose in their life they send out tracts and 100 become
saved. From your one tract, thousands will be reached in the process of
time. This is why the Bible counsels us not look down upon doing small
things. (Zec 4:10 KJV) For who hath
despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the
plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the
LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.
Every Christian life has value and even though we may be in a situation
which prevents us from having a large ministry, every Christian life has the
potential to reach thousands for Christ. You became saved because God got
the Word of God to you in some manner. It could have been through a tract,
radio ministry, or even short-wave ministry. It doesn’t matter because
whatever the medium was it was funded by faithful Christians. From the time
of the first century, Christianity was spread by word of mouth and the
written page. We became saved because someone told someone who told someone
down through the centuries until someone told us or funded the way we heard
the gospel. We may never know, until we get to Glory, who was in our
spiritual line. This is why we are to remain faithful in our Christian walk
so we may continue the sending forth of the Gospel to the next generation.
It does not matter how small your contribution is as long as you are
remaining faithful in whatever part the Lord assigns you.
You may not reach more than ten people, but those ten people will eventually
fan out in their ministry. Your involvement in their life will perpetuate
their involvement in the lives of others. Christians have been responsible
over the years for even supplying things like clothing and medical care to
those who may never become saved. We not only reach those whom God has
chosen for salvation, but we reach countless of those who never become
saved. A Christian rescue mission will never turn anyone away which results
in many benefiting from the Christian community. I can just imagine how many
thousands the Pacific Garden Mission (www.pgm.org)
in Chicago has reached since it opened in 1877, 127 years ago. Then think
about how many who had become saved and then went into similar work. Right
here in New Jersey is a place called America’s Keswick (www.americaskeswick.org)
which offers the “Colony of Mercy” which has been ministering to alcoholics
since 1897. I had an opportunity to be a part of this ministry and one of
the great things about it, that those who become saved begin to live
Christian lives where families are restored and couples come back together.
All of this is free to the men by means of donations by caring Christians.
Even the simple act of writing a check can help change a life.
In the movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life” when George Bailey started realizing
how important his life really was, he wanted to go back and begin to live
again. This is how we would react if we came to the understanding that our
life is as important as those famous people on TV. As Christians, we don’t
need to be famous to make an impact in this life for the Gospel. All we need
is to be faithful to Christ in our mission and He will handle the extent of
our ministries. I have mentioned from time to time brother David Berkowitz,
ex Son of Sam, who now has a ministry which reaches beyond the walls of the
prison where he is incarcerated for life. He ministers the Gospel to many
people, through in person visits and through tapes which are made by those
who come to interview him. Through the efforts of one prisoner who gave him
a tract in 1987, he now ministers the Gospel to many prisoners and is an
assistant to the Chaplain.
I know a person who became saved by finding a tract which was left in a row
boat. This person read it and became saved. The smallest contribution in the
kingdom of God, not necessarily money, can yield great results. This is why
the Lord used the parable of the Mustard Seed in Matthew 13. It is one of
the smallest seeds yet when it is sown properly it grows into a great tree.
Your spiritual family tree is built the same way. You plant a small seed and
when that seed germinates in the soul of another, you begin to have a large
spiritual family that will grow until the last day when the Lord reaps the
harvest.
Another interesting lesson the Lord Jesus Christ taught when He was here on
earth is found in Luke 16:9. (Luke 16:9
KJV) And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of
unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting
habitations. How does one make friends with money?
By using it according to the principles taught in Scripture. John Wesley
gave some good advice on the handling of money. He stated, “Make all you
can, Save all you can, and Give all you can.” This is excellent advice,
especially in the giving department. This is what the Lord had in mind. We
make friends with unrighteous mammon when we invest it in the kingdom of God
and those who become saved through the ministries we support will welcome us
into Heaven. Now I don’t pretend to know exactly what that entails but
nevertheless there will be joy in the hearts of many who became saved
through our faithfulness in living and imparting the Christian Faith.
Even though we may be in tough situations in our Christian walk, we can look
at it and realize that it is a wonderful life. Some may be reading this or
some may be given this who feel that they have had no impact on others for
the Kingdom of God. Think back for a moment, was there anyone you told about
the Gospel? Did you help out at church? Did you help support missions? Were
you a personal friend to someone in a crisis time in their life? If you look
back, you will find many ways that you may have impacted someone. It may
have only been a Mustard Seed but Mustard Seeds in the hands of God are akin
to a forest. If you gave someone a tract and they rebuked you for it, you
definitely made an impact for the Kingdom of God. Count also the times you
were rebuffed for the Gospel’s sake. Remember salvation and its timing are
not in your hands but they are totally in God’s hands. Noah preached for a
century and how many were in the Ark? Eight! I have had the following little
saying pasted in the inside cover of my Bible for about 20 years and it
says, “Noah was faithful to God’s message even though there were no
results.” Keep that in mind. We are to be faithful whether we see one
thousand persons become saved or none.
Even if you see none become saved, you are making an impact for the Kingdom
of God. We do not need to see the results, they are in the hands of God. At
the outset of World War 2, Winston Churchill stated on radio, “Give us the
tools and we will finish the job.” God has given us the tools but He will
finish the job when the last one on the last day becomes saved. Let us get
the word out to this world. The Word is the Tool! When we sow that word, God
will not allow it to return void because He says it will accomplish what He
sends it out to do. It will either be sent out to save or to judge. Let God
decide amongst the two, you just be faithful.
(12/03/04)
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