To Whom do We Preach?

from:
[url=http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/articles/sent.html]To Whom Am I Sent[/url] (A great article!)
By Chip Brodgen

"Arise therefore, go down and go with them,
doubting nothing; for I have sent them"
(Acts 10:20, NKJV).

It was God Who told Cornelius to send for Peter. It was God Who told Peter to go to Cornelius. When God brought these two together, Peter had hardly begun to speak when the Spirit fell on those who were listening. It should be seen that the success of the mission to Cornelius' house had less to do with Peter's ability to speak and more to do with the audience's ability to hear. When we speak only to whom we are sent then we will see dramatic results.

Trying to speak to everyone in general and no one in particular is a colossal waste of time and demonstrates poor stewardship. We ought not to give ten coins to someone who can only handle five, and we ought not to give five coins to someone who cannot handle even one.

It is clear that much time is wasted trying to convince, persuade, plead, argue, teach, and help people to whom God has not sent us. If we will wait for the Spirit of God we will save ourselves a lot of time, effort and energy. A worker who indiscriminately throws precious seed on rocky ground and gives pearls to pigs is not being a wise, faithful, and profitable servant.

I suppose this word applies to all of Christ's followers, not just preachers. When we order our lives under the Spirit's direction, we will indeed be effective in the proclamation of the Good News!

More from article:
There are three aspects of being sent: going only WHEN you are sent, going only WHERE you are sent, and speaking only to WHOM you are sent. We will look at each three more particularly.... [url=http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/articles/sent.html]Read on. [/url]