Have you ever been burdened to go and give out tracts, or to speak to your neighbor about the Lord, or to engage in some other type of gospel work? Or have you ever been asked by a fellow Christian to join him in such activities? No doubt, all of our readers, if truly saved, have experienced this—hopefully many times in their lives since new birth. But doesn’t it often happen that before you have an opportunity to act upon such a thought or burden that you start thinking of all sorts of excuses why you should not engage in such activity? And more often than not, perhaps, the burden passes away without the deed being accomplished.
What are some of the excuses we think of for not doing gospel work?
1. I might be rebuffed or mocked by someone.
2. I might meet someone from the office while I am giving out tracts, and that person might tell others at the office what I was doing, and what will they think of me then?
3. I might be challenged with a question that I cannot answer.
4. If it is the Lord’s purpose for certain persons to be saved, He can accomplish this purpose without my help.
5. If Mr. X, with whom I lost my temper last month, sees me giving out tracts, he will think I am a hypocrite!
6. I have a headache.
7. I have too much else to do (the children’s swing set needs another coat of paint, I haven’t read last night’s newspaper or this week’s Newsweek yet, the bathroom faucet has been dripping for the past two months and something should be done about it).
8. I have too much else to do (I should take the children on an outing today).
9. I have too much else to do (I should be studying for next week’s Bible study; I should be writing that article I promised for Words of Truth).
We could go on and on thinking of excuses why we should not do the work that is so pleasing to the Lord-sowing the seed of the gospel. Whenever one has a thought or desire to do work for the Lord, particularly when that work is aimed at wresting lost souls out of Satan’s kingdom, we can be certain that Satan and his helpers are going to be making every attempt to prevent thought or desire from resulting in action.
It might be useful to consider some of the excuses just listed so that we can be prepared to respond to them in the right way.
One of the greatest hindrances to gospel work is pride. This often takes the form of fear that our reputation or popularity among our neighbors or colleagues may be adversely affected if we are “caught” doing gospel work or witnessing for Christ. About the only way to deal with this is to confess to God our pride, to recognize it as sin and as something abhorrent to God. “Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord” (Prov. 16:5; see also 8:13). We must remember that we belong to the One who “made Himself of no reputation” (Phil. 2:7).
What about the problem of being rebuffed or mocked by someone? Consider the words of the Lord Jesus in John 15:19,20:“The world hates you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.” Far from being a problem, should it not rather be counted a privilege to suffer for Him who suffered so much for us? “If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him” (2 Tim. 2:12). “Unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake” (Phil. 1:29).
Concerning excuse number three, what will people think of me if I cannot defend my faith or answer all of their questions or objections? Won’t that be worse than not talking to them at all? The response to this is that most persons have great respect for the person who is willing to admit that he does not have all the answers. If you find you are not immediately able to answer a certain question, ask the other person if he would be willing to meet with you on another occasion to discuss the matter further after you have had an opportunity to think about it and to search the Scriptures to find the answer. Among other things, this will also reveal whether the other person is sincere in his questioning or is just trifling with you and with God.
As to excuse number four, it is most certainly true that the Lord can save persons without my help. But consider the following illustration:My son comes to me one day and says, in a very frustrated tone of voice, “Daddy, will you help me with my model airplane? I can’t get the wings to stick to the fuselage.” I look up at him over my newspaper and reply, “Son, if God wants the wings to stick to the fuselage, He will find a way for it to be done.” Whereupon he says, “Okay, Dad. Say, I have an idea. I’ll ask Mr. Matthews next door. He is good at fixing things.” Do you get the point? The airplane gets put together, but Daddy loses out on the blessing of helping his son, and misses a wonderful opportunity to strengthen the relationship with his son. In like manner do we lose out on the blessing of working with and for the Lord in the matter of winning souls to Himself.
If you are afraid of being called a hypocrite because of your ungodly behavior in the past toward another, the solution is simple—simple in theory, that is, but oh, so difficult to carry out in practice. If I have sinned against my neighbor or offended him in any way, it is my obligation to go to him and confess my sin and ask his forgiveness (Jas. 5:16). And it does not matter if he was wrong too—even if his part of the wrong was 95 percent and mine only five percent. It is still my obligation to confess my sin to him and seek his forgiveness. “If you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave there your gift before the altar, and go your way; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift” (Matt. 5:23,24).
If the excuse is “I am not feeling well,” try to imagine what your response would be if a friend called and asked you to play tennis with him or go to a concert with him. Often this excuse
is offered as a substitute to excuses number one and two, for it is easier on the conscience than those other two.
Perhaps the most common excuses for not working for the Lord are those of “no time” or “too much else to do.” Now, God has no intention for us to neglect our responsibilities in the home or at work; that is, it is never valid to shirk our earthly responsibilities by saying we have to spend our time serving the Lord. But the Lord does expect to be placed first in our lives, and if we set aside time to devote to Him (whether for studying the Bible, praying, or working for Him), He will honor us by helping us to be more efficient in our other duties and responsibilities. We will find that we are spending less time cleaning up messes, correcting mistakes, taking the car to be fixed, and the like, if we have given Christ the time due to Him each day.
With regard to excuse number eight, it is important to maintain a proper balance between the time devoted to the family and time devoted to the Lord. Neither should be stressed to the neglect of the other. (Thus, this particular excuse may indeed be valid at times, that is, the Lord may prefer that the time be spent with the family—cementing those relationships—rather than away ministering to others.) Often the two can be effectively combined. For instance, the home can be an effective sphere for evangelism by having our children’s friends over to spend the night and presenting the gospel to them as they join in the family devotions, as well as our joining with the children in their games. Often, if one is not particularly gifted in evangelism, a person might use the excuse that he is too busy exercising his gift (be it teaching, pastoring, helping, or whatever) to engage in evangelistic work. But it is clear from Scripture that God intends for all of His children, whatever their gift might be, to cultivate a longing desire for the salvation of souls, to be “fishers of men.” “Do the work of an evangelist” (2 Tim. 4:5).
May the Lord encourage each of us in the work of the gospel. May we value the love of Christ and of the Father toward us, and the sacrificial work accomplished for us at Calvary. May we have a compassion for the lost, hell-bound souls around us on every hand. There is no want of opportunity to give out the gospel, to speak a word for our dear Saviour. May we gird up our loins and be ready for each opportunity as it arises. And may we be cognizant of Satan’s devices to hinder us from capitalizing on these opportunities, and not yield to the excuses he plants in our minds. “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16).