Salvation for the Lost

Welcome to the Prayer and Faith Podcast.   As we come together today to pray, I hope this will be a blessing to you and your family.  As a reminder all verses are taken from the ESV or English Standard Version translation of the bible.

Faith Builder Verse

LUKE  17:6

And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

1 CHRONICLES 16:34

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!

The Estimated population of the world is 7.6 billion people. It is estimated there are approximately 2.2 billion Christians in the World and bear in mind many of those aren’t really believers at all.   They claim Christianity as their faith by way of the culture they live in or their family, not by their own faith in Jesus Christ.   But that means there are at minimum 5.4 billion lost people in the world.  These are people who are all over the globe, but they may also be your neighbor, your co-worker, even your family members.

What can we do about this.  The scripture makes it clear, we can pray and we can tell.   

First of all, people have to hear the Gospel.   Jesus made clear in the Gospels that we should pray for God to send laborers into his harvest.

MATTHEW 9:36-38

36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

This is a critical prayer that the Lord himself told us to pray.   Why laborers?   Because unbelievers have to hear the Gospel first.  Without hearing, they can’t be converted.    They have to hear about Jesus before they can believe in him.   That’s fundamental.   This is made clear in Romans:

ROMANS 10: 8-17

8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); 9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?[c] And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

We have more of a responsibility, than just praying, however.  It is our job to go and preach the Gospel.  No believer gets a pass in this area.   You may be the only person who will share Jesus to the people you work with, go to school with, interact with or that are in your family.  You must tell them about Jesus.  You must share the Gospel with people in your life.

MARK 1614-16

4 Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. 15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

ACTS 1:8

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

What does a witness do?  He or She gives testimony to what they know to be the truth.   So, you as a a believer, are empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a witness.  You are empowered to testify about Jesus Christ.

But there is another part of the equation.  Are the hearts of the people hearing the Gospel receptive.  

2 PETER 3:9

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

PROVERBS 21:1

The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;

    he turns it wherever he will.

So we desire for the hearts of people to be receptive to the Gospel and to the Lord Jesus, so that they will repent.  Satan however, will do everything he can to keep them from hearing and receiving the Words of Life.   However, Satan is not the final authority.  God is.  God can change the heart of anyone he desires.  Our prayer will be for God to move on the hearts of those who hear the Gospel, to believe it and to respond to it.  We will also ask the Lord to twart the plans of the enemy.

Prayer Points:

Pray for God to send laborers into the harvest

Pray that God will make us  and every believer effective witnesses to share the Gospel and testify of the Lord

Pray that God will turn the hearts of those hearing the Gospel so they can and will respond and pray that God thwarts the plan of the enemy.

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