Several years ago, my wife Clélie worked with her youth group to make care packages for soldiers. She gathered the information about a particular unit – their wants and needs, what could and could not be sent. As she prepared, she received an email with the info from a soldier in the unit. The last lines grabbed my attention. They read: “I’m off to fight the terrorists. Have a good, one. Garrett.”

When I read that, I thought: “That’s just an everyday part of his life right now. He’s off to fight.” He still has family. He still has work. But his life right now is lived on the front lines.

we live on the front lines

While we may not be on the front lines of fighting like that, we do live our lives on the front lines of faith. Now, I imagine we have not thought about it this way. The truth remains, though, we are the ones sent to this world that’s so full of darkness and despair. We are the ones who have to fight our way in the darkness with the light of Jesus Christ.

That’s why the text in Acts 1.8 (NLT) stands so powerfully, “…[ya’ll] will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere – in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Jesus sends us into this world to tell the story of his life.

gotta share

Let’s be clear: We must share our faith in this world. We must tell folks that there is a savior. Telling about Jesus is not optional equipment in our Christian lives. God calls us, equips us, and empowers us to do the work of ministry – and a big part of what we must do is sharing our faith.

Did you know that almost 90% of people coming to the church for the first time come because someone they know invited them? That inviting, that faith-sharing, is grounded in the seeking and loving of our gracious God. God seeks us. God loves us. These are the basics, the standard equipment, in thinking about sharing our faith: God seeks us and God loves us.

Faith sharing is not my idea. Faith-sharing is God’s idea, and the clearest picture of God reaching for humanity emerges in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the ultimate and perfect expression of God’s seeking to be in relationship with us. God sent Jesus to show us who God is, and Jesus came for our healing, our wholeness, and our salvation.

Believe it or not, telling about Jesus should be a regular part of our everyday lives. John Stott tells it this way, “Evangelism is the normal life of the church and can never be an optional extra.” God calls us to live our lives on the front lines of faith, sharing the good news of Jesus Christ.

Somebody in your life needs to hear this good news.

A text for the table: Acts 1.4-11.

Photo Credit: Sharing, Rail Package (Taiwan).