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Emmanuel Northwood Advent Service
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Motivation is key to everything we do. It's so much easier to accomplish something when you're genuinely motivated—and conversely, lack of motivation is often what stops us from doing important things.
When it comes to sharing our faith, motivation is equally critical. So what should motivate us to share the gospel? Paul highlights three key motives in 2 Corinthians 5:11–6:2.
Fear of the Lord isn't about being afraid of God as if He were angry or threatening. Rather, it's about having a right respect and reverence for an awesome and holy God. As Proverbs 9:10 reminds us, "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."
God is almighty—both in His love and compassion toward us, and in His power as the Creator of the universe. He draws near to us with grace, yet He is also the one who will one day judge the earth. Understanding that all people will one day face the judgment seat of Christ should motivate us to share the good news of Jesus so that others might be saved.
In verse 14, Paul writes that "Christ's love compels us." Love is always the primary motivator for sharing our faith. Once you've experienced the love of God—once you've tasted and seen that He is good—you're never the same. That love compels you to share it with others.
Think of someone you genuinely love. You naturally want good things for them. In the same way, when we truly love people, we want them to know Jesus. The most loving thing we can do is to pray for them and share the gospel with them.
We've received extraordinary blessings through Jesus:
When we truly grasp what Jesus has done for us on the cross, we become excited about it. And we naturally share what excites us with others. The question Paul challenges us with is this: Are we as excited about what Jesus has done for us as we are about other things in life? When that excitement overflows, it becomes natural to share the good news with those around us.
But being on mission isn't just an individual calling—it's a communal one.
Here's a challenging question: How many of us would describe ourselves as Christians? And how many of us would also describe ourselves as missionaries? These two things are inseparable. To be a disciple of Jesus Christ means to be willing to share the good news—whether across the world, across our street, or across a coffee table.
Paul presents two complementary roles for us:
We are Christ's ambassadors. Like an ambassador to a foreign nation, we represent God's kingdom with authority to speak on behalf of Christ and His message of hope and reconciliation.
We are co-workers. We work in partnership with God (though it's an unbalanced partnership—God does far more than we do) and in partnership with one another. We're called to use our different gifts together to grow God's kingdom.
Each of us is called to different people—different families, friendship groups, and colleagues. We all have different gifts. Not everyone is called to be an evangelist; some are pastors, teachers, or others. But we're all called to work together, using our gifts to advance God's kingdom as a community.
Here's the beautiful truth: It's far easier to do scary things together than alone. Taking first steps in evangelism, in mission, in reaching out—these become less frightening when we gather as a group. Whether through existing small groups or new gatherings of neighbors, we can do missional work together. We might host a Christmas drinks party, sing carols on our street, or come up with other creative ideas. The key is to be on mission together as co-workers, not trying to do everything alone.
As we approach Christmas and think about loving our community, let's be intentional about finding ways to be on mission together. Think creatively about what that might look like—not just at Christmas, but throughout the year.
We follow a Savior who is relentlessly out to grow God's kingdom. The question for each of us is: Are we following His example? Are we following Jesus as He is at work in the world today?
