I meet with my friend once a month, and we talk for hours. I told her that I recently discovered that I have crossed the threshold into old age. I think I had shingles. And only old people get shingles. Right? And I told her that I had been going to the local farmers market every Saturday morning. One of the vendors that I found is a soap maker. I’ve begun buying my soap and shampoo from this family. After the shingles popped up, I visited my local soap maker and unexpectedly found a soap called Problem Skin. After using it for a few days on my itchy skin and then covering it with beef tallow, I discovered that the shingles were gone. And boy. Was I ever relieved. The soap lady even suggested using their salve to help with the nerve pain. And it worked, too.
Oh. I wasn’t looking for a soap called Problem Skin to soothe my itchy skin, but I found it anyway. I didn’t even know that a homemade soap could be used as a treatment for shingles, as well as for eczema and poison ivy and other rashes. But the soap actually works. I’m amazed and relieved.
My friend and I also talked about many other things that day. We talked about our faith. We talked about politics and conspiracy theories. We talked about work. We talked about family. We prayed together. And as we sat out in the warm sunshine, the time together felt like a breath of fresh air. It was good to be with her again.
I realized later how simple and easy it was to tell her about the new soap I had found that helped with my itchy skin. If I’ve found a treatment that works for me, why wouldn’t I want to tell others about it? Maybe it would work for them, too. I’m no doctor, so don’t take this as medical advice. I just know that it worked for me.
I recalled how the soap maker had explained some of the other soaps in her shop. She told me how she used the shampoo soap and now only needed to wash her hair once a week. Another soap she mentioned had one ingredient that was a natural deodorant. She bathes with the soap and hasn’t used deodorant in over ten years. She was excited to explain all the different natural soaps she and her husband made. She didn’t hesitate to talk about her life’s work, and she placed a business card in the bag with each purchase. She wanted everyone to know about her handmade soap. And she wanted others to share it with their family and friends.
The husband and wife soap making team are in the process of handing the business over to the next generation. They’re busy teaching soap making to their daughter and son-in-law, so the family can continue the small business for many more years.
But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!” Romans 10:14-15
If it’s so easy to tell someone about a new product I’ve found, why isn’t it easy to tell someone about the God I serve? Why isn’t it easy to tell them how he is the best and most trusted friend I’ve ever found? Why isn’t it easy to tell them that he loves me unconditionally, and he loves everyone equally? Why isn’t it easy for me to tell someone else who is also made in God’s image that they too can have a close personal relationship with him? Why isn’t it easy for me to tell someone that God forgave all my sins, and he’ll forgive theirs too if they ask? I would hope someone would tell me about God if I hadn’t learned about him early on in my life. Why would anyone hide such good news?
If we call ourselves Christians and really believe without a shadow of a doubt that the Bible is God’s Good News to the world, why do we keep quiet about it? Oh. We are quick to say that we are supposed to hide God’s Word in our hearts so that we might not sin against him. We are only fooling ourselves if we think that means we’re to keep the good news to ourselves. What that verse is telling us is that we need to study God’s Word and make it real in our lives. But do we even do that?
I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Psalms 119:11
And then, what about the verse that asks how people can believe in God if they never hear about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? How do we explain keeping our lips sealed when we know the secret to eternal life and keep it only to ourselves?
Just as the soap lady is so eager to share her message, all who call themselves followers of Christ must willingly share the Good News that has been shared with us.
How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate someone to believe everlasting life is possible and not tell them that?
Penn Jillette
Even Penn Jillette, the outspoken atheist magician, knows that if the good news of Jesus Christ is actually true, then we who believe must not keep it to ourselves. And he is right. Maybe calling the act of silence hatred seems a bit strong, but keeping quiet about a life-saving faith certainly doesn’t sound very loving, either.
No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. Matthew 5:15
Mercy for the Day 