“Earthly wisdom is doing what comes naturally. Godly wisdom is doing what the Holy Spirit compels us to do.” – Charles Stanley
Do you feel compelled to share your faith? Nowadays we don’t like to use strong words like command, constrain, or compel. Webster defines COMPEL—to drive or urge forcefully or irresistibly; to cause to do or occur by overwhelming pressure. Scripture uses this word to describe apostolic ministry movement and the preaching of the Gospel to those who have not yet heard it. Is sharing your faith with those who don’t know Jesus an urgent matter for you?
Paul wrote to Ephesian elders in Acts 20, “You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.” (Acts 20:20-24) There was nothing that could keep Paul from preaching Jesus. Christ followers fulfill the Great Commission—to go into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature, and make disciples of every nation—because we are compelled to do so by the Holy Spirit, by the Word of God and by Jesus Christ Himself.
Jesus, in the Parable of the Great Banquet, describes God as a Master who commands his servant to invite many guests to His banquet. The invitees offered excuses why they could or would not attend the Master’s feast. One had an important business deal, another had recently been married. The Bible says, “The servant came back and reported this to his Master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ ‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ “Then the Master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’ ” (Luke 14:21-24) Many in the Church are lamenting the declining numbers of Christians participating in worship services before and after the pandemic. God is not concerned about insiders who reject Him or seem too busy…He tells us to GO out into the streets and invite and compel others to join in the Feast of the Lord. That’s what The Warehouse Church, OTR will do this coming Sunday. June 5, 2022 from 12-3pm Worship in Washington Park. We’ll have lots of fun things for kids, music and worship, We’ll preach the Gospel, pray, have a community love feast and communion. The address is 1230 Elm Street Cincinnati OH 45202. We hope to see you there!
