ICS Daily Devotions
The Father’s Heart for the Lost
Romans 10:14-15 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who [b]preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!”
The Gospel is not good news to those who don’t get to hear it. In other words, the unpreached Gospel is no Gospel at all. When the Holy Spirit prompts and leads us to share the gospel with someone, we need to be humble and obedient enough to respond. The nearer we get to God and the more intimately we know Him, the more likely that we are to catch and not miss His heart for the lost.
Luke 15:4-5 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
These verses capture our heavenly Father’s heart for the lost. He would leave the ninety-nine to go after the one which is lost until He finds it, and He does not want anyone to perish but for all to come to repentance. This is why He sent His only Son, Jesus, so that the world might be saved through Him.
Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
While Jesus was on earth, He had an urgency to preach the Gospel, and in His last words, He sent all of us to do the same. May we all catch the Father’s heart for the lost and preach the Gospel with the same urgency that Jesus did.
Sermon Series: Evangelism
