As Christians, we understand that the world needs God’s love, and if they are to truly receive God’s love, they must obey His word (Acts 2:38-41; 8:12-14). This being true, what the world needs now is for us to fulfill our sacred responsibility of convincing them of the need to obey God (2 Cor. 5:11), which means we must be willing and ready to share the gospel of Christ. Yet, for that to happen, what does the church need today?
Renewed Hope
When it may seem that the society around us may be crumbling, do we expect to make a difference in the world with the gospel? We must remain the “pillar and ground of truth” (1 Tim. 3:15). We must rise above the immorality of the society and keep ourselves pure and on a higher ground. We do this by refocusing on Jesus Christ, just as the Hebrew Christians were to consider Him in times of trouble (Heb. 3:1). We must consider His faithfulness and example and seek to imitate Him (Heb. 12:3). By consider our Lord, it will bring us to a great confidence and hope while living in a crumbling society.
Renewed Faith
After calming the sea, our Savior asked His disciples, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” (Mark 4:10). These questions can be asked to many Christians today. Often, the most zealous Christians are new converts. Typically, they whole-heartedly appreciate their salvation, and they are ready to share the gospel of Christ. However, it is sad when they learn that most of their brethren are not filled with the same zeal. Instead, they are filled with excuses and complacency, which is the product of a dead faith (James 2).
Renewed Zeal
Sadly, if the congregation is stagnant, new converts will more than likely become the same, go somewhere else, or just quit the church altogether. Therefore, we need rekindle the fire in our souls for the Lord and His kingdom. It is not enough to have Bible knowledge. We must have knowledge and zeal because zeal is incomplete without knowledge (Romans 10:2-3). In the same way, a knowledge of God’s word is useless without the necessary zeal to teach it. We must view each day as an opportunity to eagerly prove our faith by our good works (James 2:17-18). If we were to be renewed in these ways, imagine the tremendous difference that we can make in the work of the church, in the world, and in the lives of our Christian family.