We know that preparing for judgment is the most important thing in this life. Jesus taught that if we were to “gain the whole world, and lose our own soul” we would be making a terrible trade (Mark 8:36,37).

Knowing this to be true, we should earnestly seek to convince others - especially those closest to us - of the urgency of obeying the gospel. Everything we do and say should be calculated to produce the salvation of their souls.

It is a sad thing to see some Christians who don’t seem to understand that they are negatively impacting these people who should be most important to them. When unbelievers (even our own family and close friends) can observe us compromising our spiritual priorities (including forsaking the assemblies) in order to engage (oftentimes with them) in other activities (such as ballgames, parties, secular organizations, etc.), we have given them a firm push in the direction of hell.

Paul urged Titus to “show thyself a pattern of good works” (Titus 2:7). And he told Timothy to be “an example of the believers” (1 Timothy 4:12). It is clear that the apostle understood that the teaching and preaching of these two young evangelists would be either helped or hindered by the kind of personal examples they portrayed. Surely it is the same with us.

If we are genuinely concerned about the souls of others, common sense dictates that we should never let them see us compromise our faith or priorities.

Think about it Christian. Are you helping others - especially those closest to you - to go to heaven or to hell?

by Greg Gwin Via The Beacon 12/14/2010

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