Catch The Vision
When we talk about vision sometimes, we make it more then really what it is. However, vision in its simplest form is simply being able to see something. Today I would like to point out the importance of something Jesus wanted us to see. He wanted us to see how valuable and precious we are to Him.
Notice what John 3:16 says “For God expressed His love for the world in this way: He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not face everlasting destruction, but will have everlasting life” (The Voice Bible, 2012).
He wanted us to see that we are precious and loved by God. He sent His only Son to die a horrific death so we would never have to face eternal separation and destruction from God, and we could be in His presence continually by simply deciding to choose everlasting life through Jesus.
For most of us our daily lives are filled with many decisions throughout our day such as what are we going to wear, where are going to eat, what we going to eat, where to get gas for the car, and the list could go on and on, right? Some decisions we make can be life-changing decisions such as buying a new car or house, or even what city to live in. And though there are many decisions we will navigate through in life, none is more important than where will you spend eternity. How do we do this you might ask? We choose Christ
2 Corinthians 5:17-18 (New Living Translation Bible, 1996) tells us what happens when we choose Christ, “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him.”
Our old life is gone, and we have entered a new life with God through Christ Jesus. Even better, this gift of eternal life is free. This means no matter how hard we work for it, we cannot attain salvation through our labor. Why? Jesus did all the work for us and paid the price by buying our redemption through salvation. The best part is that He is giving it away for free to anyone and everyone who will take it. The decision is yours to accept this free gift or not. To spend eternity in everlasting life or eternal destruction.
After Jesus gave the disciples the same free gift He is offering to us, Jesus allowed the disciples the opportunity to catch His vision when He told them in Mark 16:15 (New Living Translation Bible, 1996) “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned.”
What were the disciples to do? They were to proclaim (preach) the good news. This proclamation then required a response from the hearer which in turn created a decision to believe the information or to deny it. We do not have to coherence people into believing that Jesus has the key to eternal life. We proclaim the good news of salvation and allow people to accept or deny this truth.
However, Paul said in Romans 10:13-15 (New Living Translation Bible, 1996), “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent?" and that is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”
So, here is the call to action then, will you catch the same vision from Jesus like the disciples did and take the Gospel which is good news to a lost and hurting world? If so, then you have caught the vision.
References
The Voice Bible, (2012) The Voice Bible Online. https://www.biblegateway.com/
New Living Translation Bible. (1996). New Living Translation Online. https://www.biblegateway.com/