January 27, 2022

Proverbs 3: 27  (NIV)

Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act.

No man makes a greater mistake that he who does nothing because he knows it is not everything.*

While this proverb advises us not to withhold good from those who deserve it, Jesus raises the bar. In his one-on-one ministry, he did not discriminate between the deserving and the undeserving. He didn’t even target just those with whom he would be successful – the rich young man, for example, went away sad. (Matthew 19: 16-22.)

Someone has posed the question: “Was Jesus more productive when he fed 5,000 or when he talked to Nicodemus, or when he discipled the Twelve?"* Whether you are called to preach to a congregation of thousands or your ministry is to an audience of one, “[h]elping to bring people to Christ is still about helping one person at a time.”* Sometimes there is nothing we can do about injustice or poverty or hopelessness. But sometimes we can make a difference. Pray that God will make you alert to opportunities to use your power to act for good.

Making an impact on one soul for Jesus’ sake is still what it’s all about.*