Privilege and Responsibility

 “He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.’”   (Mark 16:15 NIV)

   It is our privilege to experience the joy of salvation, and it is our responsibility to pass it on to everyone.  Salvation is not a gift to be kept hidden; it is a gift to talk about.  The greatest joy in my life is knowing that I will spend eternity with Jesus in a place that He has prepared for me.  Yes, Jesus loves me enough to prepare a place just for me, and He will prepare one for you also.  (See John 3:2,3.)

That is the greatest privilege that I have—a place prepared for me in heaven by my Savior.

    It’s not the only privilege that I received when I accepted Jesus as my Savior and Lord.  I received His gift of peace, His peace, not peace as the world defines it.   (See John 14:27.)  Peace seems to be one of the main desires of everyone, peace at home, peace at work, and peace between nations.  I know where to find peace in my personal life, and that’s in the arms of Jesus, in the lap of Father God, and in the counseling of the Holy Spirit.  It is my responsibility as a Christian to pass that information on to anyone who is seeking peace.

   “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10 KJV)  I have the privilege of great joy, “joy of the Lord,” in fact.   When I think of my Savior, Jesus, joy enters my heart.  Joy is more than momentary happiness; it is a pervading sense that entered my heart when I received Jesus.  Guess what, it’s also my responsibility to pass the “joy of the Lord” on to all who want it.

   Jesus healed many people while He was physically here on the earth.  He still does  today through the prayers of believers and by the laying on of hands of those anointed for a healing ministry.  I know this to be true because I observed a miraculous healing of my wife fifteen years ago.  Don’t you think that it is my responsibility to pass this information along, also?

  The great commission quoted in the Scripture above lays out the responsibility of all Jesus’ followers to spread the good news about Jesus throughout all the world.   If I had a sure cure for cancer, wouldn’t I be obligated to share it with the world.  I know of a sure cure for something much worse than cancer, damnation.   Cancer can just kill the body.  At the death of the body, cancer has done all the harm it can do, but damnation, eternity in hell, starts once the body has died and it continues forever.  Then the spirit begins its constant torture that lasts forever—no breaks, just physical and mental pain for eternity.  I know the 100% effective cure for that—acceptance of Jesus as Savior and Lord.   There is no other cure.