I believe that every Born-Again believer will agree with me when I say that, to see our lost family members and our lost friends refusing to follow Jesus is both, painful and frustrated. At times, it seems like the more we pray and the more we witness to them, the worst they get. With this article I hope to take away our frustration by making the point that humans do not have the power or ability to make the choice to be saved. To start making this point lets go to John 1:12-13,

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, ¹³ who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (NASB)

We are born again not because of the will of man, but completely because the will of God. We are indeed chosen. Peter makes my point when he states, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;” I Peter 2:9 (NASB). The Apostle Paul makes this point very clear in Ephesians 2:8-9 when he states, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹ not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (NASB)

Based on these verses we need to stay away from the idea that folks can make a decision to accept Christ. It is clear that God is the one choosing us, and it is Him, by Grace, who releases the faith to believe this Gospel. Remember that folks who are not believers are spiritually blind (I John 14:17-20 / 2 Corinthians 4:4). Also, folks who are not saved considered the Gospel foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:18). How God determines who to save and who not to save and why? I don’t know! What I know is that God is perfect in his judgements; the Bible tells us that his judgments are true and righteous (Revelation 19:2).

I am saying all these things directly from Scripture; I believe that the Lord wants to take frustration from our hearts as it relates to family and friends who are not saved. I also believe that the Lord wants to make clear that we also have a job to do as it relates to the unsaved. I believe the order of these duties are important:

1. Pray for the lost: Paul stated in Romans 10:1, “Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their ” (NASB) As we recognize that we can’t save anybody; we must throw out our frustrations and go to God in intercession for the lost. There was a man who minister to me for 5 years before I got saved. There was a lady who told me that she prayed for me to get save for five years also. She added that she was close from giving up.
2. We have a duty to love one another as an evangelistic tool: Jesus told us in John 13:35, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (NASB) The only thing that will make us authentic disciples of Jesus Christ is our love for one another. In a world of so many ideological, politics and ethnic divisions, only the church will display true unconditional love (Agape love). As the church becomes more and more purify and, as the church gets ready for the coming of the Lord, the world will be able to witness people of different nations, different ethnic backgrounds, skin complexion, etc. coming together as a true family. That will impress them! That will get their attention! We will not only meet on Sundays and call ourselves a multicultural church. We will share our lives, eat in each other’s home, celebrate birthdays, have fun together, etc. The world will be astonished as such unity and will not question our Christianity. Even if they don’t agree, they will know we are real, and, I believe, they will be attracted by such unity.
3. Preach the Gospel: Romans 10:14 tells us, “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher?” (NASB). It is essential that we preach the gospel to the loss. By the gospel I mean the life, the death and resurrection of Chris and, the salvation that is found ONLY through Him. We must not water down the message. Preach the gospel! Another point that I want to make here is, that I have been guilty of teaching God’s principles to the lost; that is a waste of time. As we established before, the lost are blind to God’s righteousness. We are called to preach the gospel to the lost and disciple the believer… period! Many pastors have become psychologist, they have become political and they have become financial advisors, and, in the process, they have totally forgotten the Gospel. Preach the Gospel, that is our job! God will do the rest.
4. Be an Agent of Good Works on this Earth: Jesus told us, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (NASB) Listen, salvation is not by works, nobody is good enough and is able to do enough works to be save; if this is so, Jesus died in vain (Galatians 2:21). However, after we are saved, we have a duty to do good works as an external manifestation of our internal faith in God. James 2:20 tells us, “You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?” (NIV)

In conclusion, the miracle of salvation is all God’s Work entirely. Salvation is a supernatural event that can’t be duplicated by humans. By God’s grace, however, He has given us a job to do. We are called to pray for the lost, to love one another, to preach the gospel and to be agents of good works on this earth. That is how we cooperate with God’s plan.