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What Jesus Can Do For You

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One night not long ago, here in the USA, our team was having a live call-in television program. We were answering people’s questions and trying to lead them to faith in Jesus Christ, of course. That night, just as the program was coming to an end, a boy called up – a young fellow.

He said to me, “Mr. Palau, my name is David. I’m 17, a senior in high school, and I’m from another religion. All of my friends in the high school are Christians and many of them are trying to get me to become a Christian. I want to ask you this, what can Jesus do for me that I can’t do for myself? And why should I open my heart to Him?”

What a question! I was so excited to answer that for David. We talked for quite awhile, and then I told him, “David, the bottom line is this: Jesus will give purpose and meaning to your life. He will make a tremendous difference in your life because He’s God. You’ll never be the same, and finally He will give you eternal life.”

You know, there are people all around us wondering that same thing: What can Jesus do for me? In John 10:10 Jesus says, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

We, as Christians, have the answer that the world is searching for. The question is, are we sharing this answer with others in our world? I encourage you to do it. The Lord will use you. So, do it!

Fear God, Not Man

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Here’s a question for you. Are you afraid of God or man? It’s a question we should all ask ourselves from time to time, especially when it comes to evangelism. We need to be more concerned about what God thinks of us rather than what people think about us.

In I Cor. 9, the apostle Paul says he uses whatever evangelism method works for the particular group of people he’s sharing with. Paul didn’t care if some think he’s strange, or sacreligious. He says, “I am free and I belong to no man.” In another passage he writes, “If I serve men, I would not be a servant of Christ.”

Don’t fear man. Respect, yes. Fear, no. It’s a tough command to follow, but so important! Sometimes it helps me to remember that no matter what others think of the way I’m presenting the Gospel, the Bible says that it’s priestly work. Yeah, priestly work!

Paul himself writes about “the priestly duty of proclaiming the Gospel.” I love that. So however you go about sharing the Good News, remember you are doing priestly work. Whatever your method, (as long as it is ethical) don’t worry about what the world says. As you replace your fear of man with a fear of God, you’ll be even more empowered to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ and that helps people everywhere.

Building Up Your Faith

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Every believer in Jesus Christ has received unique gifts from the Holy Spirit. We’re given these gifts to develop, to enjoy, and to help draw people to the Savior. Yet you may say, “But Luis, how can I experience the truth of these gifts so that I’m using them to bring others into His Kingdom? I don’t know how?”

The key is to build up your faith to the point where you not only believe in your gifts, but you actually begin to experience them.

Romans 10:17 says, “Faith comes by hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” So, spending time alone with God, in His word, builds your faith and your gifts. The more you read the Word and meditate, the more your faith is strengthened. It’s not something you can work up by sheer will power or by some form of self-inducement.

Stick with Scriptures prayfully and your faith will grow. Give God time. As you read, the Holy Spirit will begin to speak to your mind, and you will understand how God wants you to use your gifts. He’ll show you how to bless a friend, when to encourage a co-worker, when to spread the Good News Gospel.

So, be encouraged! The One who gave us the gifts is the same One who lives within us. Therefore, allow Jesus to empower you today to carry out the calling that He’s given you to spread His Good News.

Be Joyful Always

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I love this statement that C.S. Lewis makes in one of his books: “Joy,” he says, “Joy is the serious business of heaven.” If I interpret that thought correctly, it means that heaven, namely God, is very interested in His people enjoying life. God wants us to live a joyful life, a happy life, a contented life.

I think one of the best ways we can witness for Jesus Christ is simply by being joyful. Many non-believers have the perception that Christians are sour-faced, angry people who live by a set of legalistic rules that keeps them from having fun. Who would want to follow a religion like that?

But, the Bible paints a very different picture. Paul says in First Thessalonians 5:16: “Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances. This is God’s will for you in Jesus Christ.”

Now, we can’t do this on our own, especially when hard times come. But that’s the beauty of the Holy Spirit, the indwelling Jesus Christ. He gives us the ability to be joyful and hopeful, even in dire circumstances, because we have the promises of His Word.

Why don’t you ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit and therefore His joy today? When you approach life this way, then people will be drawn to the life of Christ flowing out of your spirit.

Taking Up Your Cross

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As followers of Jesus Christ, we have been promised that the Spirit of Christ dwells within each one of us. By our day-to-day choices, we can either squelch the Spirit of God, or allow Him to grow in us even more. This is a basic truth, especially when we’re confronted with a decision on whether or not to share our faith.

In Matthew 16:24 Jesus says, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

What does it mean to take up your cross? Several years ago, I felt the Lord explain it to me this way: Every time my will crosses what God has told me to do, and I choose God’s way instead of mine, that is Jesus at work in me. That is taking up my cross.

The instant you choose, day-by-day, God’s revealed will over your own egotistical will, something dies and then something comes alive. What dies are your selfish, wrong ways. What comes alive is Christ’s Spirit in you. And He produces fabulous results in you and through you. You are cooperating with God Almighty! Is that living or what!?!?

Do you really want to please the Lord and be fruitful? Then taking up your cross is the way to do it. So the next time you’re wondering whether or not to share your faith and you hear God’s voice telling you to go for it, remember that choosing God’s will, over your own, is always the best way to live!