Romans 10:13-17
"for WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED."
How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, "HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!" However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, "LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?" So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
Luke 9: 57-62 ESV
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus“Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
I applied for a summer missions project yesterday. I heard about this project a few months ago. Two speakers were talking about the trip and the hope there. They were talking about how millions of people are being saved in the area we're going. They were talking about a huge revival that is happening unlike an I've ever seen or heard about before. I was shocked because this was the first time that I had heard about there being hope in this part of the world at all. My passion for the area started there, but I was being practical. I know that I"m called to be a missionary, but now? I've never even been out of the country before. It makes much more sense to go on a trip to San Diego first. Let me get my feet wet before I jump into the ocean. Then I went to the leadership overnight where I heard a mini lecture about this project. In between these two meetings God has been bombarding me and stretching me in preparation for my decision to apply for the project, but like usual I was being practical by I was planning a Trip to est Asia in a year or so. God broke down my barriers with the verses above. If you see the Romans text one can infer the following: God sends his servants. His servants preach. People hear. Hearers believe. Believers call. Everyone who calls is saved. God has given us the great commission. He calls us to go. God sends his servants, and I am his servant. I am acting out this Romans passage. Also, when you look at the Luke text, there ate these people who are willing to follow after Jesus, but this is what he says, To be a follower of Christ I will need to abandon my family for the cause of the Lord. I will need to give up my comfort and family for the advancement of the Gospel. I will need to take up my cross and follow Him abandoning all else. Is this crazy? Well, yes, but I"m willing to give up my earthly things and desires in order to see the advancement of the Gospel and to see lives changed. I have committed to abandon my desires, my comfort, my life, and my family for Jesus. God will be using me to changes the lives of students in there, and in the process he will be changing me.
