Some Things are Important, but Some Things are Vital!

Read: Acts 13:15-52; 2 Corinthians 5:20

Decades ago, my husband met Horatio. Not his name, but I'll call him that since I can't remember this gentleman's real name. Back when this story occurred, my husband was working at a facility that helped blind people learn skills that would hopefully lead to their employment. More than not, the clients were folks that had recently become blind due to accident, crime or lots of other causes. My husband taught craft. The goal of his classes was more than teaching a craft skill. It was also to help people begin to relax more in social settings. That is where he got to know Horatio. From what my husband was told, Horatio had become blind in both eyes on two different occasions. Both accidents occurred while he plied his trade as a roofer. Not once but twice he was injured badly by nails striking his eyes. I know it seems impossible, but Horatio said it was true. That was why Horatio was at the rehab center. Finally, the time came for Horatio to go home for the weekend. Clients were asked to stay at the center for several weeks to adjust to new routines before leaving for a time away, and Horatio was more than excited to spend the weekend with his wife. However, when Monday came, and Horatio returned to the center, no one could have guessed how the weekend had played out for him. That is, until they saw Horatio who was badly bruised. When asked what happened to him, Horatio said that He had anticipated a romantic evening with his wife. He had showered and had decided to run and leap on to the bed. Sadly, some important information hadn't reached him. His wife forgot to tell him that she had rearranged the bedroom furniture in his absence; therefore, Horatio had sustained multiple injuries. He dealt with this unexpected setback with his customary humor.

I think that most people would agree that Horatio dealt with unnecessary discomfort due to the important information he hadn't received; however, we who belong to Jesus have been given information that is far more than merely important. It is vital because believing it not only changes our lives in the here and now, it also changes our eternal destiny. No wonder we want everyone to know this vital information. It is too wonderful to keep to ourselves. Let's look a bit, if we may into what the Bible says about this vital information we have to share.

In 2 Corinthians 5:20, Paul says that we are ambassadors who carry God's message. It is important that we remember that it is His message. It is not up to us to add to it or take away from His truth. An ambassador speaks on behalf of someone or some organization or country. What a privilege it is to speak on behalf of the King of Kings Who is the Creator/Redeemer. The message? That it is His desire that people be reconciled to Him. We have the privilege of holding out this vital truth. That is that we all come into the world at enmity with God, and that is why a reconciliation is vital. The Good News? Almighty God has done everything to make such a reconciliation possible, John 3:16; 2 Corinthians 5:21.

Even as I type this, I know that the need for a reconciliation between us and God seems unnecessary to so many. Many don't even believe there is a gulf between us and God. This chasm was the result of Adam and Eve's disobedience, Genesis 3. May I say with love and respect to anyone who might find this truth hard to swallow, that not believing it doesn't mean that such a chasm doesn't exist.

Let's think back to Horatio's story. The fact that he didn't know about the furniture's having been rearranged didn't keep him from injury, and not believing what the Bible says about needing reconciliation with Holy God doesn't negate the consequences of not receiving God's offer of salvation. An eternity in hell away from the One Who longs for each one to come to Him, John 8:24; 2 Peter 3:9. Talk about vital information. With that in mind, let's consider how Paul felt about the precious truths God gave him to hold out.

In Acts 13:15-41, we see Paul in the synagogue as he preached to his Jewish hearers and the Gentiles who feared God. When given the chance to speak, Paul didn't mince words. He spoke of the history of the Jews and that Jesus had been promised in the scriptures that were familiar to them. He was their Messiah. He spoke of the salvation and justification that Jesus provided. If they would only receive it. He never held back, and he boldly proclaimed Jesus' resurrection from the dead. The response? Some believed and wanted to know more, but out of jealousy, some of the Jews who didn't believe contradicted Paul and expelled them from their region, Acts 13:50. What to do when a vital message has been rejected? Paul shook the dust from his feet and turned to the Gentiles. We know that this action wasn't taken because of a lack of love for his people, Romans 9:1-3. He was saying that he had given them the message. What they did with it was up to them, and how Paul longed for them to recognize their Promised One.

We too sometimes face rejection or apathy when we speak to others about the Way of Salvation, John 14:6. Like Paul, we don't ever stop loving those who say no to God's offer. Instead, we can walk through the next open doors God might hold out to us. Who knows whose heart God might be preparing, and we want to be ready to speak into that life. When we are faithful ambassadors, and we know we all fall short at times, we will be able to look back like Paul did in Acts 20:19-21. That is where the apostle told the Ephesian elders that he had faithfully shared the message God gave him to the Jews and the Greeks. He had not held back anything that could have benefited them.

He was a faithful ambassador, and in our spheres of influence, we can be like him.

Sharing the vital information.