He That Winneth Souls Is Wise No. 15

They would show samples of the beautiful cards they produce and close each commercial with these words for potential buyers to consider, "When you CARE enough to send the VERY BEST!"

The message was clear, even to children, that if you really CARED for someone you would be willing to give the VERY BEST.

That same message needs to be preached from the pulpits of our churches across America. If we really CARE for the souls of man, we will be willing to give the VERY BEST that we have.

God gave us the ultimate example. Look at John 3:16, We mread. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

That God should love mankind to this extent is astounding! This LOVE and CARE was mind boggling to the Psalmist.

He said, Psalm 8:4, "What is man, that thou art mindful of Him?"

Illus: When we read these verses that tell us about God's CARE for us, we think of a beautiful girl that all the fellows desperately want to date. When the beautiful girl gets ready to marry, what man does she marry? She picks a man who is so ugly he looks like he has been whipped with an ugly stick every day of his life. What everyone cannot figure out is - WHY would such a beautiful girl CARE about an ugly fellow?

That would cause all of us to wonder, but there is something that should cause us to wonder even more than that. Why would God so love us that He would give His only begotten Son to die for our sins and allow us to dwell with Him for eternity?. There is only one answer, "He CARED enough to give the VERY BEST!" God wants us to have that same attitude of CARING for other people, that we would be willing to give the best of ourselves to them.

Illus: Why is soul winning not a daily part of many Christian's lives? They do not CARE. When we CARE we will SHARE.

Notice, in our text, God shows us two kinds of people that you will find in the church today. They are:

1. The caring.

In Verses 34-40, We read, "Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, he have done it unto me." These verses definitely speak to the caring Christian!

2. The non-caring.

In Verses 41-46, We read, "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."

There is a strong IMPLICATION in these verses. That is, if you are saved, you CARE, and if you are not saved you do NOT CARE about anything except yourself.

The context our text refers to is set in the time of the tribulation. The Bible teaches us, in Rev. 13:16-17, that no one will be able to buy or sell food unless he has the mark of the beast on his right hand, or on his forehead. The anti-Christ will use the necessities of life to try to force every human on this earth to serve him. But, God always has a remnant. Those who are saved during the tribulation, who CARE for others will give "...so much as..." a glass of water to God's messengers.