Whom shall I send? Lord, send me!
As we go about sowing the Good News of the Gospel, what should we expect? As we evangelize in Canada, Poland, Japan, or Indonesia, what response should we expect?
When the Lord revealed Himself in a vision to Isaiah, in all His holiness and glory, Isaiah was so shocked that he pronounced a curse on himself, believing God would destroy him due to his own sin. After a seraphim touched Isaiah’s lips with a coal and said, “your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for,” God asked, “Whom shall I send?”
Isaiah answered, “Send me!”
God said, “Go!”
God then told Isaiah that the people will not respond.
Isaiah asked, “Okay, so how long do I do that for… a week or two?”
God instructed Isaiah to stay on mission no matter what because there was a remnant that would eventually be reached. (See Isaiah 6.)
Faithfulness and perseverance are critical for effective evangelism, according to the Lord. Jesus outlines what we should expect people’s responses to the Gospel to be in the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13). The disciples thought that everyone would want to listen and join in on the Kingdom after hearing about it. Jesus burst their bubble. “People will treat you like they treated me,” the Lord warns in Matthew 13, 15, and 16 — and before His death, Jesus was treated with indifference and hostility in addition to being welcomed.
In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus takes us from what we can see to what we must understand when it comes to our expectations concerning our evangelistic efforts. The “seed” (Gospel) will fall on different “soils” (human hearts):
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Hard soil (vs. 4) represents the heart that doesn’t connect or care (vs. 19)
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Rocky soil (vs. 5) represents the heart that receives the Good News but doesn’t count the cost (vs. 21)
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Thorny soil (vs. 7) represents the heart that is double-minded and won’t give up the world’s lies (vs. 22)
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Good soil (vs. 8) represents the heart that receives the Gospel and bears fruit (vs. 23)
A Couple of Reflections
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Only one soil bears fruit.
The common theme of the receptivity (heart condition) of the first three soils is that they don’t bear fruit. But, in actuality, some growth does occur in all four soils. There is some response to the seed seeking to germinate but in three cases, the seed is ultimately rejected.If this is what we can expect from the Gospel, then we’re going to need to learn to be faithful and persevere as we present it in winsome ways.
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The soil determines the fruit.
Starting in verse 9, Jesus tells us He wants us to understand this parable. One thing He wants us to understand is that it is the condition of the soil, not the skill of the sower or even the seed itself, which is critical to our effectiveness in evangelism.Once again, our faithfulness and perseverance are pivotal to the fruitful response of spiritual seekers.
We’re talking about Evangelism at FNC 2025
Our theme for FNC 2025 (November 3-5, 2025) is “Fan the Flame” with special speaker and evangelist Dr. Bill Hogg who will be challenging our delegates to double our efforts in reaching our nation for Christ. We also gather on November 4 at 2:00pm EST to vote on our revised Fellowship National Affirmation of Faith. Hope to see you at FNC 2025.