He That Winneth Souls Is Wise

To see that this is the case, all you have to do is observe what people seem to want from the church. For example, some see the church as:

• A drug center to reach an emotional high. They get depressed and they want to come to church for a “Fix”

• A social club where they can socialize with people

• A business place to find prospects for business

• A gambling casino, where they can place five dollars in the offering plate and you might get $100 to $1000 in return

It is obvious that many of the churches have been sidetracked.

Illus: The church today is somewhat like our social security system in this country. It started off providing people with a supplement for retirement. But through the years, politicians wanting to stay in office have added program after program to the social security system, and they almost have bankrupted the system. There is certainly nothing wrong with many of these programs, it is just that there is not enough money to pay for them.

Likewise, God started the church off to do two things.

• To edify the believers through the preaching and teaching of God’s Word

• To reach the sinners with the gospel of Christ

But we have added program after program to the church. And there certainly is nothing wrong with many of these programs, but the only problem is that folks have forgotten the purpose of the church, and have programmed God out of the church.

The church today desperately needs to return to the two-fold purpose of the church. They must not ignore the purpose God placed the church here to accomplish. THE CHURCH TODAY HAS GOTTEN SIDETRACKED!

As you read of that great soul winner, the apostle Paul, you see that he never got sidetracked. He was always conscious of reaching the lost wherever he went.

Let’s see what Paul can teach us about reaching the lost for Christ. Let's look at -

I. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A SOUL WINNER

Some could never win anyone to Christ because they do not live a godly life.

A. A SOUL WINNER MUST BE A VIRTUOUS PERSON

Look at verse 14, "And I myself also am persuaded of you, my brethren, that ye also are FULL OF GOODNESS, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another."

Paul shows us the first characteristic of a soul winner; that is that he be, "...full of goodness..." If a soul winner is not obedient to God's Word, it is practically impossible for that person to convert others to Christ. Instead, people laugh at them and their hypocrisy.

Illus: Someone said this about hypocrites: “Rest assured, a hypocrite never INTENDS to be what he PRETENDS to be.”

Everyone despises a hypocrite.

Illus: Remember in the early 80’s and 90’s when some of the television preachers were exposed for their hypocrisy? When their sinful lifestyles were exposed, they became the subject of the jokes of every comedian on television.

Some professing Christians could do God a great service by never letting anyone know they claim to be saved.

Illus: One lost man tells of how a woman came to the store where he was employed. He tried to assist her, and because she was trying to save a few pennies, she literally became angry. In front of his boss, and a half dozen customers, she became very angry and red faced, and told him he was stupid! That lost man very seldom went to church, but decided to visit a church when he was invited by a concerned Christian. When he got there, guess who he saw singing in the choir - yes, that same woman who had been so rude and publicly embarrassed him! When this concerned Christian asked him to come back, he said this, “Not as long as that hypocrite I saw singing in the choir is there.” Then he told what happened, and he said, “If she ever leaves the church, let me know….I will come back, but not until then!”

All across this nation, we have Christians who put on their robe of righteousness on Sunday, then on Monday morning they take it off and live for the devil during the week. But these people never win anyone to Christ.

Paul lets us know that we must be “...full of goodness...” if we are going to win souls.

B. A SOUL WINNER MUST BE A KNOWLEDGEABLE PERSON

Again, verse 14, "...full of knowledge..." A person who desires to be a soul winner needs to know what the Bible says a person must do to be saved.

In 1 Peter 3:15b, we read, "...and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear." We should be skillful in the use of God's Word.