Before It Is Too Late
Feb 9, 2025 | by The Fellowship
As a young professional who graduated from college a couple of years ago, I accepted a position with a corporation that sent me to a district office to gain experience in the field. Other graduates arrived there in the same time frame and since none of us knew anyone in the town, we quickly became a friend group to do things together. On Sundays, I visited a number of churches and eventually joined one.
I also attend a Monday night Bible Study class where we are studying the Book of Revelation. We just finished Chapters 10 and 11. The Apostle John was given a little scroll to eat by an angel, and it tasted sweet but soured in his stomach. Our group talked about how the Word of God is easy to take in, but difficult to put into practice. And that God’s words are sweet, but the coming judgment for unbelievers can make your stomach hurt.
One of my lesson questions asked: “How willing are you to actively witness about God and His truth? What holds you back?” That is when I started feeling convicted about sharing the Gospel with others. I felt confused about how to go about telling my friends, most of whom are non-believers. The eternal suffering that will result if they do not learn about Jesus and accept the truth of the Gospel concerns me greatly.
One night I attempted to go to sleep, but the Holy Spirit was very loud. I really do not know how to describe it; normally I feel the Holy Spirit with a buzzing feeling in my chest, but this particular late night the best word I can use to describe it is loud … and loud to the point that I could not rest or sleep and had to get up and read the Bible.
I asked the Sprit what to read and opened up a page in Isaiah which spoke of the destruction of Israel. This made me even more troubled due to the similarities in Revelation. The Spirit led me to read different chapters in the Bible about what it means to be a Christian in the world and how I am supposed to put it into practice. Believers are to do good, reach out to the lost, pray, and act according to God’s instructions.
After wrestling for a few hours that late night, my key takeaways from the Spirit were that I am not of the world and therefore, I am instead an enemy of the world. I get left out of some things that my friends do, not because I am a bad friend, but because there is spiritual warfare going on. As a believer in Christ, I have the Spirit residing inside of me, but my friends do not. Therefore, they have nothing to help guard their souls.
When the Spirit is not present, anything else can enter. Satan will strive to make sure that I stay separated from these people, so they do not get to experience God, thus ensuring that the evil residing within them gets to stay. I have learned that I need to not only pray for their salvation, but to get out of my comfort zone and reach out to them. Their salvation is worth my discomfort!
I am alert as never before for opportunities to share personal stories of how the Lord has worked in my life and how I have a personal relationship with Him. I do not need to worry about what to say because the Spirit is there to help me. He is the One who will touch their hearts to receive the Gospel. My part is to share my salvation story and the blessings that come from belonging to the Savior … before it is too late.
Be very careful, then, how you live –
not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity,
because the days are evil.
Ephesians 5:15-16