ICS Daily Devotions
The Power of the Gospel
Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
When we preach the Gospel, we must not rely on our own strength because the power is in the Gospel itself. Neither should we be afraid of rejection for we are much like the mail man who is only responsible for delivering the mail. We cannot force someone to take notice of that particular piece of mail, nor do we bear the brunt of the reaction that person has towards the mail. However, if the message is not delivered, then it would be our fault and not the Holy Spirit’s.
John 16:7-8 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
The Holy Spirit is a person and good at soul winning. We do not have to assume His responsibility, and we cannot do what only the Holy Spirit can do, which is to convince people that Jesus is the Son of God and bring freedom from sin. If we try to do the Holy Spirit’s job, we will only end up bringing condemnation instead of conviction, and bondage from rules instead of freedom from sin.
We need to know that it is the Word that brings results. While we are responsible for sharing the Gospel, we are not responsible for seeing that people come into the kingdom of God, so we are free from guilt. Our job is only to plant the seed, and God will cause it to grow.
Sermon Series: Evangelism
