Profound Simplicity
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. - (Romans 1:16)
My granddaughter Rylie heard a story in Sunday School about the boy that ran away from home. So I said, “Well, tell me the story.”
So she told me the entire story of the prodigal son: “This boy ran away from his dad, and he did bad things. And then he realized what he did was wrong, and he came home to his dad.”
“What did his dad do?” I asked. “Did his dad spank him?”
“No. No. His dad threw his arms around him and loved him and kissed him.”
“That’s right. So what do you think that story means? Who is the dad?”
“Well, the dad is like God.”
She got it. Jesus told truths so profound that the greatest minds can spend hours, even years, discussing them, but so simple that a child can understand them.
A philosophical argument has its place. However, there is power in the message of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. And I have found that if I will just stand up and proclaim this message, that God will do amazing things—not because I am a great preacher, but because I have a great message and have confidence in it. I also believe that when I proclaim it, people will respond. And they do, because it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes.
We all can proclaim this simple message—so simple that a child can understand it—because that is where the power is. That is what moves people.
The apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2: 2).
An effective evangelistic message will make a beeline to the cross.
Copyright © 2012 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org
and
Listen to Greg Laurie's daily broadcast on OnePlace.com.
Watch Greg Laurie's weekly television broadcast on LightSource.com.
SPECIAL OFFER
“Do you value the teaching and encouragement you receive from A New Beginning with Greg Laurie?"
In Six Hours One Friday, Max Lucado conveys how God brought about the ultimate good from the suffering and death of Jesus Christ.
A great pre-Easter read, Six Hours One Friday will be sent to you in thanks for your gift to Harvest Ministries today.
