Open Your Eyes | Now and Later
Main Verse:
"Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.”
- John 4:35-36, NIV
Main Points:
1. The Great Commission to share Jesus and the Gospel with the entire world is urgent and it’s go-time right now!
2. We have to learn to live in the identity of Christ, because in the end our lives are measured according to Jesus Christ and nothing else. All that matters in the end is whether or not we have given our life to Christ and His mission!
3. Everyone struggles with the thought of having lived a meaningless and fruitless life, but Christ has given the world a way to know with absolute certainty that they are living lives of significance, purpose, value, meaning, and fruitfulness - to live a life which spreads the Word of God so that through that sharing others may come to know eternal salvation in Jesus.
4. The timing is absolutely critical, people are leading lost lives with eternal consequences, the sick are waiting on the doctor, but the good news is that Jesus has already given the world the cure to the sickness - He is calling right now for workers willing to go out and deliver the cure.
Action Step:
1. Begin a conversation with God about your integrity, priorities, and resources.
Questions:
1. How can you start being the light of Jesus to the world? Are there any excuses which have been holding you back from getting involved with sharing the Gospel? What can you do to change that?
2. Are there any misalignments in your integrity, priorities, and/or resources? If so, what is God telling you to do about it?
3. Have you been letting the world and your lifestyle hold you back from accepting Jesus’ awesome task of sharing the Gospel with the world? How can you remain in the world, but not let the world deter you from fulfilling the Great Commission?
4. What is the greatest act of love one can show according to Scripture? How can we show this love to the world?