10/05/2014

    The last line of Proverbs 11:30 brings to light one of the greatest needs of any age, the need to reach lost souls. Every period of history is populated with its majority lost in sin.  Only the most ignorant or naïve would dispute this fact.

   Scripture attests to the fact that many people are lost in sin. In the first three chapters of his letter to Rome, Paul shows how all have sinned and fall short of God’s glorious standard (Rom. 3:10, 23). Regarding this tragic condition, Jesus reminded His disciples that the fields “are white unto harvest” (John 4:35), “but the laborers are few” (Mat. 9:37). What should we do with these chilling truths? This question takes us back to Proverbs 11:30. Let us look at the whole verse. It reads, “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who is wise wins souls.”

   In the first line of the verse the inspired poet compares the life of a righteous person to fruit on a tree of life. What kind of fruit could the life of a righteous person produce that has something to do with life? The remainder of the verse answers the question; he wins souls. Note too, that this influential life style is no accident; it is the product of wisdom. Wisdom dictates that every righteous person live his or her life with a view to the positive impact such a life might have on other people. A corresponding thought is brought out in Proverbs 12:26 where we read, “The righteous is a guide to his neighbor, But the way of the wicked leads them astray.”

   In the light of these two verses, each of us needs to honestly ask ourselves, “Where would my life lead another person?” “Would they see Christ living in me and thus be pointed in the direction of life, or would they be lead astray?” These are hard and sobering questions, but worthy of our consideration. By using the word of God to probe the depths of our soul we can uncover the intentions of our heart (Hebrews 4:12). This will help us identify our motives and allow us to make the necessary adjustments so that we can be good guides to our neighbors and hopefully “win souls”.

   At this point we should be reminded that we are not responsible for the response of others to good examples of righteous living. We know that because some people hate light and love darkness, they may reject the way of righteousness (John 3:19-20). We should not take this reaction personally. When people spurn godliness, they are rebelling against the Lord (Jn. 15:18). Such experiences can be discouraging, but we must not let Satan get the upper hand. He would like nothing better than for us to give up and stop trying to win souls. This would be unwise.

   Let us make the wise choice and do our best to point precious souls to the Savior. Be a “soul winner”!

KD