DEEPER LIF SEARCH THE SCRIPTURE
SEARCH THE SCRIPTURE by Pastor Kumuyi of the Deeper Christian Life Ministry for today is here. Digest the word of the lord and pray believing.
ADULT STS LESSON 99
TOPIC: CHRIST’S CALL TO SOUL-WINNING
MEMORY VERSE: “…And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men” (Luke 5:10).
TEXT: Luke 5:1-39
In this chapter, Christ calls His disciples to soul-winning and fruitfulness. As He stood by the lake of Genesaret, multitudes, which consisted of a mixed crowd of sincere seekers and not very sincere ones (John 2:23-25), thronged Him. The eagerness displayed by some of the people that came to Christ is commendable. He responded positively to their yearnings as they pressed on Him to hear the word of God. As believers, we should be moved with compassion to reach out to the teeming multitude of sinners who are silently crying for salvation (Acts 16:9).
PRIMARY QUALIFICATION AND COMMISSIONING OF SOUL-WINNERS
Luke 5:1-11; Matthew 4:17-22; Mark 1:16-20; John 1:35-42; Psalm 51:17; Isaiah 57:15; Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20
The Lord used Peter’s boat after a courteous request, from where He reached His audience. He politely requested him to shift his ship away from land to create a good position and an enabling environment for the preaching of God’s word. The application of courtesy and wisdom in soul-winning will open the hearts of more people to receive the word of life. On the part of Jesus, we are challenged by His unquenchable and tireless zeal to preach the gospel anytime and anywhere. Though this event took place early in the morning, He already had a crowd gathered, and He preached to them. Later, He directed Peter to the place he should cast his net for a catch, after he and other fishermen had toiled all night without success. While Peter was initially reluctant, he quickly complied in faith and obedience, “Nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net” (Luke 5:5). Though an experienced fisherman himself, Peter accepted the advice from the Lord and as a result, made great harvest of fishes. His response demonstrates the value of humility and implicit obedience, With the great catch, he recognized the goodness of God, which led him to repentance (Romans 2:4), having realized his sinfulness. “When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord (Luke 5:8). It is worthy to note that it was after this process of repentance and conversion that the Lord commissioned Peter and the other disciples: “Fear not: from henceforth thou shalt catch men. And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him” (Luke 5:10,11). The phrase “CATCH MEN” underscores the command to win souls. This is a solemn charge to all believers. We must give all our treasures, time and talents to fulfil the great commission (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20).
POTENCY OF PRAYER IN SOUL-WINNING MINISTRY
Luke 5:12-26; Matthew 4:23-25;9:1-8; John 20:30,31; Acts 4:31,33; 10:38; Mark 16:15-20; Luke 10:1719
From the passage, two spectacular miracles stand out; namely, One, The cleansing of the leper (verses 12-15) and Two, The healing of the paralytic man (verses 18-26). These miracles confirm and support Christ’s threefold ministry of teaching, preaching and healing: “And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people” (Matthew 4:23). The faith of the leper was remarkable as he besought the Lord saying, “…if thou wilt, thou canst me clean” (verse 12). While some may see this as a sign of faithlessness, this leper did not express doubt concerning Christ’s willingness: rather, he came as a supplicant with no inherent right to be healed, but cast himself on the mercy and grace of the Lord. To touch a leper is dangerous medically, defiling religiously and degrading socially (Leviticus 13:1-59). But the Savior was not defiled when He touched him and the leper was instantly healed. “And immediately the leprosy departed from him” (Luke
5:13). Imagine the boundless joy of the helpless and hopeless leper to be completely healed! “And he charged him to tell no man, but go and shew thyself to the Priest, and offer for thy cleansing, according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. But so much the more went there a fame about him, and great multitudes came together to hear and to be healed of their infirmity” (verses 14,15). In the Old Testament, people who had previously been certified as lepers and claimed to be cured had to go through a proper form of discharge from the priests before being allowed to move freely in the society (Leviticus 14:1-32). Therefore, Jesus instructed this man to obey the law as a true witness to the power of God to heal and deliver. Christ also revealed the secret of unparalleled success in ministry to deliver lost humanity from the shackles of Satan. “And he withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.” There was no doubt that His time of communion with the Father was the source of His supernatural power (Luke 3:21; 6:12; 9:18,29; 11:1; 22:44). The early disciples also gave ample time to prayer (Acts 1:14; 2:42; 3:1; 4:31,33; 6:3,4; 12:5). The efficacy of fervent prayer is not only seen in the boldness to preach the Word but also in follow-up and conservation of the fruits of evangelism (Galatians 4:19). Believers who desire a fruitful harvest in soul-winning ministry must spend quality time in fervent prayers. As Jesus Christ taught in Capernaum, the Pharisees and doctors sat by and watched, and “…the power of the Lord was present to heal them” (verse 17). The Pharisees who had been critical of Christ’s ministry were definitely confounded by the manifestation of God’s power that usually attended His meetings. Their reaction could not stop His commitment to the work of rescuing men from the bondage of sin and Satan. A soul-winner must learn that in the midst of negative reactions and stiff opposition, the Lord will manifest His power and lift up the standard against any opposing power (Acts 13:4-12). The manifestation of the gifts of the spirits in their ministry to bring solutions to people’s problems and draw sinners to Christ (Acts 4:29-33; Mark 16:17-20). The friends of the paralyzed man had strong faith that Jesus would heal him and showed it by their determination to bring him to the Lord (verses 18,19). The four men demonstrated compassion, commitment, courage and creativity. In the face of the difficulty of passing through the crowd, their ingenuity made a way for them. This is a challenge to all soul-winners. There should be no excuse or barriers in bringing people to Christ. We must listen to the Holy Spirit to insight into how to overcome barriers in the mission fields. In healing the paralytic man, one fact becomes obvious: Christ identified sin as being largely the root cause of sicknesses and diseases. Thus, as the Son of God, He demonstrated His power to forgive sins (verses 20,24). The paralyzed man received a double miracle: salvation and physical healing (Psalm 103:2,3). We also learn the need to bring our physically challenged friends, families, neighbors and the afflicted to the Lord so that they can receive and enjoy a double cure for sin and diseases from the Lord (Matthew 11:28).
PROVEN METHODS OF SOUL-WINNING
Luke 5:27- 39; Matthew 9:9-13; John 1:40-42; Acts 8:29-35
“And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he said unto him, Follow me. And he left all, rose up, and followed him” (Luke 5:27,28). Levi, also known as Matthew (Matthew 9:9), was a Jewish tax collector for the Roman government. These tax collectors were often addressed as “Publicans And Sinners” (verse 30; Matthew 9:10,11).
Someone rightly observed that in resolving to follow Christ, a) Levi lost a comfortable job but he found a destiny.
Levi lost a good income but he found honor.
Levi lost a comfortable security but he found an adventure, the like of which he never dreamed.
As a significant reward, he became one of the twelve apostles and was honored to write the gospel which bears his name. It is important to note that when we leave all to follow the Lord, the blessings are unquantifiable (Matthew 19:27-29; 1 Corinthians 2:9). Christ’s disciples were called to fish for men. The work of soul-winning has various similarities with a fisherman’s job. First, the fisherman manifests in the process of fishing and employs diverse strategies. In traditional fishing, nets, hooks and traps are used. Successful soul-winning requires the use of diverse strategies, which include personal evangelism, mass evangelism, campaigns, literature evangelism, carriage evangelism, conventional and social media evangelism. We need to seek wisdom and the deployment of the right strategies in evangelism. Second, the fisherman employs baits. The gospel should be well-packaged and made attractive in its presentation. Soul-winners should present the gospel intelligently to sinners (Acts 8:35; 26:27,28; John 4:7,26; 3:2,3). Third, fishing is an occupation that requires the relevant skill, dedication and devotion of time and talent. Fourth, a fisherman who toils without catching like Peter will not give up or allow discouragement to make him abandon the work. Fifth, as Peter enclosed many fishes when he followed the Lord’s direction, the work of soul-winning will be Fruitful when believers depend on the Holy Spirit and follow the Lord’s guidance (Acts 8:26,29,35; John 15:15; Philippians 4:13). Sixth, the fisherman has reward for his labor. The soul-winner shall surely receive rewards From the Lord (Proverbs 11:30; Daniel 12:3). “And Levi made him a great feast in his own house: and there was a great company of publicans and of others that sat down with them (verse 29). In modern parlance, Levi organized a “Party” for his professional colleagues with Jesus as Guest of honor. This afforded him the privilege of witnessing publicly to them concerning his new faith in Christ. Here, we learn that while Levi was won through personal evangelism, he held a feast for Christ to reach his associates and acquaintances. As laudable as Levi’s motive for organizing the feast was, the scribes and Pharisees found fault with it. They criticized Christ and murmured that He ate with publicans and sinners. In their bigotry and hypocrisy, they missed the wonder of Christ’s condescension and grace to all. The publicans and sinners were excommunicated from the synagogue but Jesus accepted them. He gave them the opportunity to turn to God and begin a new life. Believers must avoid the attitude of bigotry and faultfinding like the Pharisees who came to Levi’s feast as watchdogs but did not experience the pardon, grace and peace of God that others enjoyed. Jesus simply answered the scribes and Pharisees by re-emphasizing the purpose of His coming into the world. “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (verse 32). The mission of Christ on earth is summarized in these words. Every message of the soul-winner should call people to repentance and point them to Christ. Observe that the next tactic of the Pharisees was to interrogate Jesus on the custom of fasting. “And they said unto him, Why do the disciples of John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees; but thine eat and drink?” (verse 33). The Lord answered, in effect, that there was no reason for the disciples to fast while He was still with them. He pointed to the time when He would be “taken away from them” (that is, His crucifixion); then they would fast as an expression of their grief. Scriptures fasting is enjoined as found in the Scriptures (Isaiah 13:2; Acts 13:2; Mark 9:29). It is beneficial for contemporary believers in our personal walk with and work for the Lord. In the concluding verses of our text, following the question and accusation of the Pharisees, the Lord dwelt on three parables to portray the new dispensation, which had begun and there could be no mixing of the new and the old (Luke 5:36-39). In the first parable, the “Old” garment speaks of the legal system or dispensation, while the “New” garment pictures the era of grace. An attempt to mix law and grace results in the spoiling of both. In verses 37 and 38, the second parable exposes the folly of putting a new wine into an old bottle or wineskin. The wineskins burst and the wine is spilled. This demonstrates that the outmoded tradition, rituals and ordinances of Judaism were too rigid to accommodate the joy of the new dispensation of grace. In verse 39, the third parable states, “No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, the old is better”. This analogy explains why some people in Israel had trouble accepting Christ. This verse is paradoxical as it exposes the unwillingness of many Jews to believe the gospel. It also pictures the natural reluctance of men these days to abandon the old ways of religious tradition for Christianity. The new dispensation of grace is better than the old because it is “…a better covenant, which was established upon better promises” (Hebrews 8:6). Some, who pride themselves in church membership and religious affiliations, lack the evidence of the new birth. We need to pray for their salvation as Paul did for Israel and reach them through the preaching of the gospel (Romans 10:1-3).
Questions For Review:
What is the challenge before present-day gospel ministers concerning the mixed crowd that attend our church programmes?
From Peter’s encounter with the Lord, what is the basic qualification to be a soul-winner?
From Christ’s personal example, what is the place of prayer in the soul-winning ministry?
What significant role can the demonstration of divine power play in soul-winning ministry?
What can soul-winners learn from the four men who brought their friend to Jesus?
Identify and discuss the different methods of soul- winning.
What is the place of parables in Christ’s method of reaching the people?
