It's Wise To Win Souls

Scripture

1 Corinthians 3:5–8 NKJV

5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

Proverbs 11:30 NKJV

30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise.

1 Corinthians 3:5–8 NKJV

5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

1 Corinthians 3:5–17 NKJV

5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building. 10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. 16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

1 Corinthians 3:

Proverbs 11:30 NKJV

30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise.

Proverbs 11:30 NKJV

30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise.

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

Short Story

Let me tell you a story about an unsaved elderly woman and a Christian man. An unsaved elderly woman and a Christian man lived next door to one another for years. They would have long conversations about life. They would eat dinner with each other and even go shopping with each other. They saw each other as FRIENDS. As years and time went by, the Christian man was convicted because he had not shared jesus with the unsaved elderly woman. He was hesitant to bring up the topic because he felt too much time had passed and that bringing up Jesus would change the dynamics of the relationship.

One day, the Christian man was so convicted that he went over to the elderly woman’s house and told her about Jesus. When he was done sharing with her, she asked

“Are you saying that unless I accept Jesus as my personal Savior and Lord, then instead of spending eternity in Heaven, then I could be spending eternity in hell?”

“Are you saying that unless I accept Jesus as my personal Savior and Lord, then instead of spending eternity in Heaven, then I could be spending eternity in hell?” He replied, “Yes.”

He replied, “Yes.”

She then asked him “Have you known and believed this the entire time you have known me?”

He replied, “Yes.”

She said, “Get out of my house, for you are no friend to me. For had you been a true friend you would have told me years ago.”

The moral of the story is that if you really believe in Heaven and Hell, and you believe that Jesus is truly the best thing that has ever happen to you, then it’s difficult to be a true friend to someone without really telling them about Jesus. To not share Jesus with people you are close to would mean either you hate or don’t really care about the person, or you are not fully convinced that they need Jesus.

Today, as we talk a little about soul winning, I want you to know that we are not just talking about knocking on doors, but we also are not just talking about bringing people to church. When we talk about winning souls, we are talking about using EVERY avenue that Jesus provides for us to bring someone to Christ and providing them the necessary resources for them to stay in Christ. Whether it be through the use of technology, through preaching, through teaching Sunday School or Bible Study, through door knocking, through small groups, through discipleship or whatever other means to bring someone to Christ and providing them the necessary resources for them to stay in Christ.

There are Planters and Waterers

In , Paul writes to the church at the Corinth, and says that when it comes to soul winning, we are called to plant and we are called to water, but God is the one who gives the increase. I other words, we can’t make anybody accept Jesus, we can’t make anybody repent, we can’t make anybody give their life to Jesus, all we can do is plant and water.

When it comes to soul winning, there are planters and their are waterers. Planters are those who break up the soil and plant the seeds. They are the ones who make initial contact with the individual. They are your door knockers, they are the preachers on Sunday morning, the gospel music artists you listen to on the radio, the choir you hear on Sunday morning. They are the ones that introduce the topic of Jesus to someone first. They are the ones who plants the seed of God’s Word.

The waterers on the other hand, are those who nurture the seeds that have been planted. Those are your Sunday School and Bible Study teachers. Those are your small group and ministry leaders. Those are the ones that take you by the hand and walk with you as you grow in Christ. The waterers are those who nurture the seed for spiritual growth.

There are planters and there are waterers.

Not Everyone Can Be A Planter/Waterer

But there is a caveat. A caution.

Not everybody can be planters at the same time and and not everybody can be waterers at the same time. For if everybody was a planter, then there would be a lot of seeds in the ground, but no one to nurture them for growth. In other words, we can have a lot of people sitting in the pews, but we don’t have a lot of people to help them grow. So like the parable of sower, when the thistles and thorns of life begin to choke them and the heat of trial and hardship begin to scorch them, they whither and die, because they don’t have deep roots in their relationship with Jesus.

You have heard me preach before on how a Christian’s development process is like a woman who is pregnant. Just because the woman became pregnant, doesn’t necessarily mean the woman gave birth to new life. Being pregnant just means that a seed was planted. But unless that seed is nurtured and properly taken care of for the next 9 months, a woman can find herself with a stillborn baby.

Likewise, we can have a bunch of planters, but UNLESS THERE ARE SOME WATERERS that are standing nearby to nurture the seeds to maturity and growth, then the church will find itself having a bunch of spiritual miscarriages.

Not everybody can be a planter, but we need waterers.

On the flipside, not everybody can be a waterer at the same time, because if everybody was a waterer then there would be no seeds to water. In other words, we would have a bunch of people willing to teach Bible Study, willing to teach Sunday School, willing to disciple on-on-one, but if there are no planters in the church, then eventually there will be nobody to teach in Bible Study, nobody to teach in Sunday School, nobody to disciples, and ultimately, nobody in the church.

And if everyone was a waterer, then there would be no seeds to water.

We need both planters and waterers.

You Don’t Get To Choose Which One You Want to Be

Now noticed what I said. I didn’t say everybody can’t be a planter. I didn’t say everybody can’t be a waterer. But I said everybody can’t be a planter or waterer at the same time.

In my experience and through the reading of God’s Word, I have come to the understanding that being a planter or waterer is not a matter of choice. In other words, it is not a matter of choosing whether you want to be a planter OR a waterer…and then once you choose you are always that. But rather what it really looks like, is that sometimes God is going to require you to be a planter and sometimes God is going require you to be a waterer.

Let me give you an example. Let’s say I am comfortable with being a waterer. I am comfortable with nurturing someone who is already seeking Christ, but I’m not comfortable with with making initial contact.

When I was a public accountant, one of my clients was in the Wells Fargo Building Downtown. The building had two sides of elevators and depending on your access card, it enabled you to either go to the left elevators or the right elevators. In addition, there could be 50 floors, but the access card only allowed you to go to the floors in which the card permitted. In addition, once I got to the floor, in order to get into the room where my team of other accountants were sitting, I had to use my access card.

I had to go through three levels of access.

We had a 30-person team in which I sometime spent 16 hours a day, 80 hours a week working alongside them. And if there was anyone else that was a Christian, I didn’t know about it. But they knew I was.

Today I no longer have access to that building, those elevators and that room.

What am I trying to say? Regardless of whether or not you are comfortable with being a planter, everybody in here has a sphere of influence that God has called you specifically to plant some seeds. (Example: Child, relative, sisters, brother, mother, father, friend, neighbor, co-worker) You may not be the one to disciples them, but you are called to plant the seed of Jesus.

Not everybody can be planters at the same time and and not everybody can be waterers at the same time. For if everybody was a planter, then there would be a lot of seeds in the ground, but no one to nurture them for growth. And if everyone was a water

It’s FRUIT, Not What you SAY

In , the writer Solomon says “ the fruit of the righteous is like a tree of life.” Now notice what it doesn’t say. It doesn’t say that the words of the righteous is a tree of life, but the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life. In other words, it’s not about what you say about Jesus that becomes a tree of life, but its how you live for Jesus that becomes a tree of life. It’s not enough to just tell somebody that Jesus is Jehovah Jireh, my provider, if you always worried all the time. It’s not enough to just say Jesus is Jehovah Nissi, my banner or my victory, if you’re not walking victoriously. It’s not enough to just say that Jesus is rock of my Salvation, if I’m living like I’m not saved.

There may be somebody that may want to say “Well they are not suppose to look at me, they are suppose to look at Jesus.” That sounds good. But that’s not what Jesus said. Jesus said that the way they will know that you are my disciples, is by your love for one another.THAT’S FRUIT. Jesus said, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven.

A wise man once put it to me like this. “Preach the gospel. Use words if necessary.”

There may be somebody that may want to say “Well they are not suppose to look at me, they are suppose to look at Jesus.” That sounds good. But that’s not what Jesus said. Jesus said that the way they will know that you are my disciples, is by your love for one another.THAT’S FRUIT. Jesus said, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven.

The tree of life is not a result of what you say, but it is a result of the fruit that you allow God to produce in you.

A wise man once put it to me like this. “Preach the gospel. Use words if necessary.”

What is a Fruit?

A wise man once put it to me like this. “Preach the gospel. Use words if necessary.”

Now does anybody know what makes a fruit a fruit? In order for a fruit to be correctly labeled a fruit, then it must have a seed. In the book of Genesis, God told Adam and Eve that I have given you every seed-bearing plant and fruit to eat. In other words, I haven’t just given you food for a day or haven’t just given you food for a week, but I have supplied you with food that has the capability of reproducing itself for eternity.

The reason why the fruit of the righteous is like a tree of life is because when you produce fruit, it has seeds. When you produce love, it has seeds. When you produce patience, it has seeds. When you produce joy, it has seeds. And when you plant those seeds into your friend’s life, your friend produces seed-bearing fruit. And when your friend takes her seeds and plants it in her brother’s life, her brother produces seed-bearing fruit. And when your friend’s brother takes his seeds and plants it in his co-worker’s life, his co-worker produces seed-bearing fruit. And when your friend’s brother co-worker takes her seeds and plants it in her child’s life, her child produces seed-bearing fruit. And when your friend’s brother co-worker child takes his seeds to school and plants it in his classmate’s life, his classmate produces seed-bearing fruit.

It becomes a tree of life. And it all started with you.

Those Who Win Souls Are Wise

In other words

Disciples make disciples

Proverbs goes on to say, that those who win souls are wise. Now notice that it’s not saying that winning souls make you wise, but it’s saying that if you are wise, you win souls. It’s like me saying those who put out fire, are firemen. It’s not putting out fire that makes them firemen. But rather they put out fires because they are firemen. Likewise, winning souls, don’t make us wise, but those who are wise make a habit of winning souls.

So here is the question. “Why do wise people win souls?” It’s very simple.

The reason why wise people win souls is because they understand that Jesus is the solution to the human problem.

When I think about the isms that plight our world. Sexism. Ageism. Racism.

When I think about Homelessness and Poverty.

When I think about the Trayvon Martins and Oscar Grants.

When I think about the massacre that took place in the historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina.

When I think about the KKK.

When I think about the massacre in a gay night club in Orlando, Florida.

When I think about how airplane paths and railroads are positioned mainly in neighborhoods of people of color.

When I think about how a woman can work the same job as a man and yet get paid much less.

When I think about how I can drive Downtown, and watch skyscraper buildings be continually built while Skid Row lies right next to it.

When I think about how our property taxes is what funds our public education system and how that means if I grow up in a poor neighborhood and attend the school up the street with no labs and book editions from 4 years ago, then I’m most likely to have an inferior educational experience than my more affluent counterparts.

When I think about all these things.

I don’t see a legal issue. I don’t see a social issue. I don’t see a policy issue. But I see a sin issue.

And a wise person wins souls, because they recognize that law can’t solve these problems, but only Jesus can.

Poverty

Sexism

Racism

Ageism

That’s not to say that you don’t fight to change law, but a wise person wins souls because they understand that laws are not designed to change people. They are designed to control behavior. And only Jesus can change the heart.

A wise person wins souls, because they understand that if they want to see a better tomorrow, then the gospel must go forth.

The isms

Taxes