Step 3: Ask for help from God
We need God to help us to do His work, and he tells us to ask: “For every one who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, the door shall be opened. And what father is there among you, who, if his son asks for a slice of bread, will offer him a stone? or if he asks for a fish, will instead of a fish offer him a snake? or if he asks for an egg, will offer him a scorpion? If you then, with all your human frailty, know how to give your children gifts that are good for them, how much more certainly will your Father who is in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" (Luke 11:10-13 WNT). This verse is not actually about how we ask for physical things but telling us to ask for the Spirit of God. We therefore need to ask God for His Spirit, it is not something we should just take for granted as possessing.
Matthew chapter seven has a slightly different rendering. It starts out the same “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find…”, but in verses 11-12 it concludes: “If you then, imperfect as you are, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in Heaven give good things to those who ask Him! Everything, therefore, be it what it may, that you would have men do to you, do you also the same to them; for in this the Law and the Prophets are summed up” (Mat 7:7-12 WNT). This is the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. Yet the context that this famous verse is found in is one of asking and seeking and finding for ourselves, but God turns it around and throws it back at us by saying, if you want something for yourself you must be willing to do it for others first. Through these two parallel scriptures our relationship with other people and with God giving us His Spirit are shown to be intrinsically linked. Therefore if we are to be given the Spirit of God we must be willing to give to others what we also want.
The Spirit of God is also essential as it is our guide to understand the very mind of God and His plan for mankind. “But as it is written, ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love Him’. But God has revealed them to us by His Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things,” (1 Cor 2: 9-13) After we have learnt these things verse 13 tells us we are to also teach them: ….“These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” When we know the truth we should speak it out, but not with our own wisdom but with the guidance from the Spirit of God. In doing so we use the very mind of God to help others: “For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that He may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” (v 16).
The Spirit also guides us in understanding what the Bible means so that we can wield it like a sword: “For the Word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing apart of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Heb 4:12). And as we discussed in the introduction we must “fan into flames the gift of God that is within....” (2 Tim 1:6-7). And we must not neglect to do this or the Spirit of God will be removed from us (1 Thes 5:19).
God does not give us His Spirit without expecting that we do something with it. It is not a gift that we keep for our own use, for it actually flows out of us toward others: “He who believes on Me, as the Scripture has said, "Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." But He spoke this about the Spirit, which they who believed on Him should receive…” (John 7:38-39).
We should also use the Spirit to help us to pray for others: “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;” (Eph 6:18).
Christ promised that we would have instruction from God through the Holy Spirit: “But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance, whatever I have said to you.” (John 14:16). But what is it that Christ said? If we do not read the Bible we will not know. With all this help from the Spirit we therefore also need something else: the knowledge of Gods Word, which is the next step.
Step 4: Prepare yourself with the scriptures
Are you “ready always to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason of the hope in you, with meekness and fear”? (1 Pet 3:15). In order to be ready we obviously need to know the Bible. It is through the pages of the Bible that Timothy was instructed: “and that from a babe you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim 3:15) As the only scripture available when Timothy was young were the Old Testament then it is evident that the entire Bible is valuable for a Christian to read and be instructed by.
Therefore it is essential to “Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Tim 2:15). This is not a one off event either, for we need to “continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”(2 Peter 3:18) Our study continues “until we all come into the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a full-grown man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we no longer may be infants, tossed to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine, in the dishonesty of men, in cunning craftiness, to the wiles of deceit. But that you, speaking the truth in love, may in all things grow up to Him who is the Head, even Christ.” (Eph 4:14-15) This overcoming and growing will continue until the very end of our life (1 John 5:4-5, Rev 2:25, 3:5, 3:12, 3:21, 21:7).
To study the Bible every day would therefore seem a reasonable course of action. We could also memorise key scriptures so that we are not embarrassed at critical questions. However, we are told that it is not wise to argue with people about doctrine: “Do not have anything to do with foolish and stupid discussions, because you know they breed arguments. A servant of the Lord must not argue. Instead, he must be kind to everyone, teachable, willing to suffer wrong, and gentle in refuting his opponents. After all, maybe God will allow them to repent and to come to a full knowledge of the truth, so that they might escape from the devil's snare, even though they've been held captive by him to do his will”. (2 Tim 2:23-25 ISV).
If we are to be a light, then our light must be of some value to others, so first of all we need to avoid arguments by having the wisdom to resist responding provocatively to “foolish and stupid discussions”. Our attitude therefore should not be argumentative, but rather we should gently inform people of the facts as we see them.
We must have the scriptural knowledge and a gentle attitude to be able to respond to the needs of others. Yet what are these needs, and how do we know what they are? In order to find out we need to be watching where God is leading us, which is the next step.
Step 5: Keep your eyes open for those who may respond.
While God could call people by showing amazing miracles or by talking directly talking with them (as he did with the apostle Paul in Acts 22: 6-12) this was not, nor is it today, the normal means of a new Christian being called. Instead God has sent YOU into the world as a light for people to be drawn toward. An essential part therefore of your role as a light is to also be alert for those people who may respond positively to you.
Our response to them should be humble and also caring about their perspective and understanding: “Don't do anything from selfish ambition or from a cheap desire to boast, but be humble toward one another, always considering others (as) better than yourselves. And look out for one another's interests, not just for your own. (Phil 2:3-4)
Through the Holy Spirit we can ask God for insight to be able to understand who it is that He is calling. When someone comes to Christ it is not simply because of our effort but it obviously also God’s will and motivation upon them. We are working in a team with God, and this is the way he wants it.
What is our role in people coming to Christ? “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up in the last day.” (John 6:44) In this context we appear to have no role whatsoever in the calling for that is the exclusive role of the Father. Yet we read that God is not working alone in this job, he needs and wants help: “Jesus went about all the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest." (Mat 9:35-38).
We are the laborers. We therefore have an integral part in the work of God, however we don’t actually call people to Christ. We are a light to the world and people are drawn to this light, which is the light of God. They will then ask us about God, and we should be ready to respond. This method of communication is one of the most passive you could imagine. It is not one of knocking on doors or preaching on street corners. It is simply following the example of the motivation of compassion which moved Christ; the compassion to help people in need. This will then attract people to ask us about Christ, and we will then tell them.
At the time of Christ he did many miracles, as did the apostles during the first few years of the Church. And God may provide such miracles today if he sees fit, but Gods direction is generally more subtle today than on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit fell on people with fire and a mighty wind (Acts 2:1-5). Also the way forward is not the other extreme of God giving omens or miracles to open doors, although it may certainly happen. Some people get so caught up in looking for a sign that any bent twig may guide them into a new path!
What is more common today than omens and sighs, and is indeed more valuable, is Gods gift of wisdom: “For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it. (Pro 8:11) We are also clearly told how we can get wisdom: “But if any of you lack wisdom, you should pray to God, who will give it to you; because God gives generously and graciously to all. But when you pray, you must believe and not doubt at all. Whoever doubts is like a wave in the sea that is driven and blown about by the wind. If you are like that, unable to make up your mind and undecided in all you do, you must not think that you will receive anything from the Lord.” (Jam 1:5-7)
We also can ask for Gods gift of strength to support our courage: “Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart (Ps 27:14).” If we have some small amount of courage to wait on God, then he will strengthen our heart to have more courage!
God will however only give to you if you ask Him, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Mat 7:7) Instead of clear signs from God we are more often required to go ahead with no obvious outcome from the start. “Therefore I say to you, All things, whatever you ask, praying, believe that you shall receive them, and it will be to you. (Mark 11:24) Such faith is not easy, but it too is a gift from God: “For by such grace you have been saved through faith. This (faith) does not come from you; it is the gift of God”. (Eph 2:8)
We therefore have a lot of help from God to be able to keep our eyes open to see who is responding and how to respond to them. Yet we cannot really be able to respond appropriately to people’s deep motivations unless we are willing to relate to them intimately, which is the next step. - which is covered in the next and final blog on this series.
