Episode 2791 - Lesson 12 - Monday June 15 - Unforced but With Power 🔋

Unforced but With PowerHave you ever wondered how Jesus maintained the motivation to labor, heal, comfort, preach, and teach so many people day after day? We’re told that “when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd” (Matt. 9:36, NKJV). It was Jesus’ love and compassion toward humankind that drove His labor. In a similar way, God’s love in us should compel us to feel the burden of leading souls to Him and to His truth (2 Cor. 5:14).Have you ever looked at the faces of strangers in a crowd and thought ahead to eternity, to wonder if they know Jesus? Have you ever felt what can only be the love of God in you toward a stranger in need? God’s love in us compels us to feel the burden of leading souls to Him. Jeremiah expressed this when he said, “His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, and I could not” (Jer. 20:9, NKJV).However, when we share God with others, we should never try to force someone to accept God or His Bible truth. Coercion goes against the very heart of God’s character. God didn’t force Adam and Eve to stay away from the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 2:16-17). He didn’t force people into the ark to be saved from the Flood (Gen. 7:1). He didn’t force the Israelites to remain in their covenant with Him (Deut. 4:29-31). Instead, He met their needs (Matt. 4:23-25) and then invited them to follow Him. Jesus never forced anyone to follow Him or His truth, but He never gives up on us (Matt. 23:37).As we witness, our approach should always mirror Jesus’ approach. Ellen G. White says, “It is no part of Christ’s mission to compel men to receive Him. It is Satan, and men actuated by his spirit, that seek to compel the conscience…. There can be no more conclusive evidence that we possess the spirit of Satan than the disposition to hurt and destroy those who do not appreciate our work, or who act contrary to our ideas.”--The Desire of Ages, p. 487.We must allow ourselves to be a conduit for God’s service. We live in a world that hates the truth, but that reality shouldn’t prevent us from sharing it in thoughtful, loving ways. Remember that it’s often our own personal testimony that will carry the most weight, particularly in the early stages of witnessing (Rev. 12:11).Read 2 Peter 3:18. In what ways are you growing in grace and knowledge? How is this evident in your interactions with those around you?