How Did The Gospel Come Unto You?

1 Thessalonians 1:5
For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance, as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.

I have seen a lot of men go "street preaching". I have nothing against this practice, but a few times I have seen that certain men shout and scream sentences that have nothing to do with the gospel message of the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Most of these men center their boisterous verbal barrage on elevating translations to a position equal or higher than the gospel itself. It is a rare thing to hear a Christ centered, Christ honoring presentation of the gospel. They replace the true power of God for a power of voice, Loudness does not equal power of God. Waving the Bible above the crowd is not a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. And when all is said and done I wonder what those who are within ear shot think and say about the manner of men they are.

Please do not think that we should clam up as Christian witnesses. I am not against street preaching or tract distribution, or for that matter any legitimate God powered witness.

For our gospel came not unto you in word only.

The number one thing we should consider as we prepare to witness the gospel to anyone is, it is not just a plan of certain words in a certain order that brings the saving knowledge to the lost.

Memorizing a plan or road to salvation is a good thing that every Christian should be actively involved in everyday, but that is only a small part of the whole process of being an effective soul winner.

You can know and repeat enough words to "present" the gospel, and yet no fruit for the labor expended. We need to take a hard look at our life and see if our words and actions are equally effective!

...for our gospel came... in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance,

Many Christians do not spend the time with the Lord to do any good because they lack the power of God in their lives and in their actions. (Yes this often includes me!). I have the privilege to preach almost everyday. I am involved in 5 Bible Studies, I can get to the point I can "do" the program, but lack true power in the work of God.

We must be totally directed and lead by the Holy Spirit. God gave us the best gift in His Holy Spirit! He (not us) will guide, and help, and draw sinners to the Lord Jesus Christ! Without the Holy Spirit NOTHING of eternal value will ever come out of any speeches we could ever make.

I am afraid much of our rhetoric never leaves the hearer with assurance, because we our selves do not have the assurance of the message we are preaching.

As ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.

We do have the right words! We have the right leader (the Holy Spirit) to be effective every time we present the Gospel. But I find that most of the time my words and my actions toward the lost are not equal. I can come off as "better than" them because I am a "preacher"! We have a great responsibility to be a TOTAL CHRISTIAN! Our words are important, and our actions towards the lost are equally important.

I ask myself; How do I present the gospel to others?