July 8, 2009 by johngoetsch
The first revival meeting I ever preached was in Rock Island, Illinois, back in the early 1970s. The church had another evangelist coming to preach to their adults but wanted someone to hold a children’s crusade in conjunction with that revival. I gladly accepted. That week the workers did a fantastic job of bringing boys and girls. God was at work. Children were being saved nightly, and I was having the time of my life.
One night after I dismissed the children, I was walking across the parking lot to the main building to say goodnight to the pastor when I suddenly felt a tug on my coattail. I turned around, and there stood a little six-year-old boy by the name of Matt Webb. He had ridden one of the buses to the service. His clothes were crumpled, his hair matted, and tears were trickling down his dirty face. He looked up at me and said, “Mister, does God love me too?” I’m sure glad I didn’t have to tell Matt that night that God only loved important people and that Jesus only died for a few. I’m glad that Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. Scripture doesn’t qualify the lost; it just says in Romans 5:8 that He died for sinners. (I think we all qualify.)
I will admit that to me much of the world is not very lovable. We see people in every culture turning away from God and living in wicked sin. Like Jonah of old, it is easy to develop the attitude that the world deserves God’s wrath and judgment. But the Bible states that “God so loved the world” (John 3:16). In fact, right after that wonderful verse, God states, “For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” In 2 Peter 3:9 we read that “the Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Paul agrees in 1 Timothy 2:3–4 when he writes, “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” Read more »
Tags: Calvinism, El Salvador, Soulwinning
Categories: Soulwinning •
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February 17, 2009 by johngoetsch
In life there is nothing more consistent than the passing of time. We attempt to slow it down and even at times make it stand still, but it is undeterred, steadily marching onward. Benjamin Franklin said, “Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time; for that’s the stuff life is made of.” Time is irretrievable. You cannot repeat it or relive it. In life, there is no such thing as instant replay. The minutes that travel with us each day have eternity wrapped up inside them. How are you using yours?
The metaphors God uses in the Bible to describe our lives are sobering. In James 4:14, He calls life a “vapour.” In 1 Chronicles 29:15, He describes it as a “shadow.” In Job 7:6—a “weaver’s shuttle.” In Job 9:25 He likens life to a hurrying messenger or “post.” In Isaiah 40:6–7, the prophet declares: “All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass.”
Unless the Lord returns first, each of us will one day find our way to a cemetery. At the head of the grave our family will place a headstone with our name, date of our birth, and date of our death. Between those two dates will be a tiny dash. It won’t take the engraver of the stone long to place that dash there, but it will represent our entire lives. Just as God said—our lives will be reduced to a simple dash.
What we do with that dash is completely up to us. The story is told of an old Norwegian who had kept very careful notes of his life in a series of notebooks he kept on the shelf of his business. On his eightieth birthday he went to the store and pulled the books from the shelf and began to compute his life. He was surprised to find that he had spent five of his eighty years waiting for people. He had spent six months tying neckties, three months scolding children, and eight days telling dogs to lie down and be quiet. When I read that rather humorous account, I wondered if he ever took a few minutes to listen to the Gospel and pray the sinner’s prayer. If he did, I wonder how much time he had spent in church, in prayer, reading his Bible, or telling others about Christ. Read more »
Tags: Investing, Soulwinning
Categories: Investing, Soulwinning •
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November 19, 2008 by johngoetsch
Lessons from a Flight Deck
It was a routine flight: traffic to the airport was great; security lines moved quickly; boarding went smoothly; departure and landing were right on schedule. The two and a half hour flight went by quickly as I had brought with me more than enough to keep me busy. As we prepared for landing, I put everything away, leaned back with my eyes closed and waited for touchdown. As the wheels screeched on the pavement below, I was awakened out of my five minute cat-nap and looked out into the darkness from my window seat.
The flight attendant was now giving announcements as we approached the gate but a seriousness characterized the tone of her voice. She said, “Ladies and gentlemen, we are going to ask you to remain in your seats upon arrival for just a few moments. We have an emergency medical team meeting our plane to assist a passenger who has become ill. Please be courteous and remain in your seats until the paramedics can board the plane and provide assistance.” As we approached the gate, I could see the ambulance in place with lights flashing.
Everyone on the plane was silent. It was so unlike a normal arrival. Usually people are on cell phones as they push and shove to grab their carry-on baggage and maneuver toward the exit. As inconspicuously as possible each of us began to glance over the seat in front and behind us in hopes that perhaps we could spot this person in trouble. As the door opened and four paramedics came on board, I was surprised to learn that the lady in need was just two rows behind me on the opposite side of the plane. In a matter of moments they lifted her off the floor where she was lying between the seats and carried her off the plane to the waiting ambulance. Read more »
Tags: Emergency, Flying, To-do-list
Categories: Soulwinning •
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October 17, 2008 by johngoetsch
Most of us are not interested in spending money on something that is broken. We are reluctant to buy a used car until we have done a thorough check with Carfax to ensure ourselves that we are not getting stuck with someone else’s junk. The words “valuable” and “broken” do not seem to fit in the same sentence, unless you are looking at things from God’s paradigm.
Our lives have great value to God. In Mark 8:36, Jesus declared: “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” The Lord indicates here that our souls are worth more than the entire world. Think about the price that God paid in order for our soul to be saved: “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).
But while our lives in God’s eyes are valuable, they are only of practical use to God when broken. The truth is, God delights in and uses broken things. “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise” (Psalm 51:17). “The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit” (Psalm 34:18).
When traveling, I purchase most things with a credit card, but I also make sure that I have a little bit of cash on me for those incidentals along the way. In fact, it is kind of nice to have a twenty dollar bill or two in my pocket. But while that twenty dollar bill has value, it is not always practically useful. It will not buy a can of soda from a vending machine, or serve me well at a laundromat or car wash. For that reason, I keep the ashtray of my car filled with quarters. A twenty dollar bill and eighty quarters have the same value, but the eighty quarters can be used to buy just about anything, whereas the twenty dollar bill is limited in its usefulness. Read more »
Tags: Broken, Feeding of the Five Thousand, Job, Useful, Valuable
Categories: Soulwinning, Usefulness •
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June 10, 2008 by johngoetsch
Where have all of the orchards gone? I tell you, we have destroyed them! You and I are responsible. The fruit trees have been hewn down and destroyed, and we are suffering from malnutrition as a result. “We wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness. We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men. We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far off from us. For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them; in transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood. And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment” (Isaiah 59:9b-15).
For 150 years America has managed to live without a national revival. Had it not been for the First Great Awakening of the 1740’s, America as we have known it, would have never been born. The fearless preaching of evangelists in the early days of this country kept the nation on its knees before God in times of war, difficulty, corruption, and vice. In the darkest moments of our history, God has raised up mighty preachers to thunder His Word in church houses, barns, and town squares. In days of expansion and exploration the camp meetings, brush arbors, and tent revivals kept our focus on God. A couple of generations ago, nearly every Christian would testify of a life-changing decision made in a revival campaign held in a local church. Read more »
Tags: Fruit, Investing, Money, Soulwinning
Categories: Fruit, Soulwinning •
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November 12, 2007 by johngoetsch
I had just finished preaching four times to several hundred teenagers at a harvest rally in Norfolk, Virginia. The youth pastor drove me to the airport where I was to catch a plane to Baltimore, Maryland. I was scheduled on US Airways, Flight 4476, to Philadelphia and then on to Baltimore. The airport in Norfolk was easy to find. When I arrived, there were no lines at the ticket counter, whatsoever. I proceeded to the kiosk where I checked in without a problem, and then I headed for Gate A-11. The terminal was amazingly desolate. I breezed through security in about fifteen seconds! Gate A-11 was at the end of the terminal, and when I arrived, the flight was scheduled to leave in about forty minutes at 7:50 pm, but there was not a soul in sight! After checking my emails and phone messages, I made my way back down the terminal to see if I could find someone—anyone.
At about Gate A-6, I spotted a US Airways agent and asked her about my flight. She quickly checked the computer and said, “Oh, yes, that flight is on time, and you are checked-in and ready to go.” I made my way back to the gate and was pleased to see that another passenger had arrived—a college-aged young lady, who smiled and said: “It doesn’t look like many people are going to Philadelphia.” I jokingly remarked, “Well, I just checked, and they said that you were flying the plane and I’m serving the peanuts.”
An agent appeared about ten minutes before our flight was to leave and called us to the gate—both of us! We were the only two passengers on a plane that easily could seat over one hundred people. We walked through the gate and outside where three baggage handlers were waiting for us. Because neither of us had checked-in any luggage, I handed my carry-on to one of the three men and humorously said: “Here put this in the back. You guys need to earn your pay.” Read more »
Tags: Empty, Flying, Fruit
Categories: Soulwinning •
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January 16, 2007 by johngoetsch
Years ago I was preaching a revival in Iowa. While I was there, I met a man by the name of Bill Maxwell. Bill was in his forties and was mentally handicapped. Through the course of hearing the Word of God, Bill had trusted Christ as his Saviour. However, due to his handicap, he was very limited in what he could comprehend. I bought Bill a Bible, since he did not have one, and as a result, we became instant friends. Knowing he could read to a degree, I asked him from time to time if he was having his daily devotions. The answer always came back—“Yes.”
One day, I was sitting in my office and the secretary said there was a call from Bill Maxwell. I picked up thephone and Bill said, “Brother Goetsch, I was reading my Bible, and I found this awesome verse…you need to see it!”
I said, “Bill, I would be glad to see the verse. Tell me where to find it.”
He said, “Okay, turn to John. It’s in chapter three.”
I said, “Alright Bill, I’m there. Which verse are you looking at?”
Bill responded, “Verse sixteen.” Then he started to read, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
He said, “Isn’t that a great verse? Everybody ought to know that verse!” Read more »
Tags: Calvinism, Compromise, Soulwinning, Sovereignty
Categories: Soulwinning, Sovereignty •
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November 17, 2006 by johngoetsch
From time to time I hear people criticizing Fundamental Christianity as too negative. They often point to the “legalistic” rules of the Bible, the “hell fire and brimstone” preaching, or the conservative lifestyle of its followers as reasons for rejecting the message of God. The very word Baptist, or fundamentalist, or even Christian scares them. They fear that an acceptance of Bible truth will make their life miserable and lonely.
Recently, I was preaching the 30th year anniversary for Pastor Jim Bailey and the Bible Baptist Church in Ukiah, California. On Saturday morning, I joined the church family as they were endeavoring to knock on every door in town for the Anniversary Sunday. The pastor dropped me off at some apartment buildings, and I started down the short entrance to the building to knock some doors. As I approached the first building, a middle-aged woman came out of her apartment. I greeted her with a friendly, “Good Morning,” but she brushed past me, scowled gruffly, and uttered a few choice words. I chalked it up to her probably having a rough morning and proceeded to the first door.
When I got to the upper floor of the second building, I could see across the street from the apartments where I was working. I noticed this same lady sitting in a chair in front of a small white building that appeared to be some kind of a business. I thought, “Maybe I’ll get a chance to speak with her again if I cross the street on my way back to the car.” When I finished the apartments about an hour later, I headed across the street, but to my dismay, she was gone. Read more »
Tags: Emerging Church, Soulwinning
Categories: Soulwinning, Uncategorized •
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