Rev. Dr. Paul Jinadu

L. E. Maxwell, Bible teacher and principal at the Prairie Bible Institute in Alberta, Canada, wrote of how students came to a knowledge of salvation. Some were “moved by fear” and others were “moved by love.” He noted that between 1931 and 1949, of the 2,507 students, nearly sixty-five percent were moved by fear, and only six percent were moved by love. The remaining twenty-nine percent came with another motive or could not remember why they came to the Saviour.

This side of Judgment Day, one can only surmise as to how those not moved by fear ever found a place of repentance. This thought provokes the following inquiries:

  • When they found a place of repentance, of what did they repent? It must have been “sin.”
  • When they understood that they had sinned against God, did they not fear at all? Didn’t they have reverence enough for God to produce the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom?
  • When they turned from sin, how did they “flee from the wrath to come” without fear?
  • If they were “moved by the love of God” seen in the cross, did they not fear at the extreme to which God went to redeem them because of their sin?

As Christians, have they yet come to a point of fearing God? What do they think when they read that God killed a husband and wife because they broke the Ninth Commandment (Acts 5:1–10)? Do they conclude that the psalmist was misguided when he wrote, “My flesh trembles for fear of You, and I am afraid of Your judgments” (Psalm 119:120)? Have they obeyed the command of Jesus: “I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!” (Luke 12:5)? Psalm 2:11 commands, “Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.” The early Church did just that; they walked “in the fear of the Lord” (Acts 9:31). Do they have Paul’s motive for seeking the lost: “Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men” (2 Corinthians 5:11)? Scripture makes it very clear what it is that causes men to flee from sin. It’s the “fear of the Lord” (Proverbs16:6). Understandably, Maxwell’s conclusion was not a concern that so many had fled to Christ in fear, but that some hadn’t.

A wise man once said, “Most I fear God. Next to Him, I fear him that fears Him not.” If someone has no fear of God, he will lie to you, steal from you, and even kill you . . . if he thinks he can get away with it.

A NEW GOSPEL PRESENTATION

A well-known charismatic couple, whose aim is to reach millions with the gospel, say that they have discovered a new method to get people saved. They maintain that an angel told the woman how to get instant decisions.

Let’s assume that you are in a restaurant and you want a waitress to make a decision for Christ. This is what you would say: “Do you know there are two kinds of beautiful waitresses?”

Their answer: “Really?”

Then you say, “Yes! Those who are saved and those who are about to be. Which one are you?” If their answer is anything other than, “I am saved,” say, “Repeat this after me: ‘Father, forgive my sins. Jesus, come into my heart. Make me the kind of person You want me to be. Thank You for saving me.’” Now, ask the person: “Where is Jesus right now?” If they answer, “In my heart,” say, “Congratulations on being a child of God!” If their answer is anything else, have them repeat the prayer after you again. 

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