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10. Christ Will Free You from Selfishness to Serve Others
Be strong in the Lord and his mighty power! Accept the example of our Lord Jesus to serve others practically under the guidance of his love. Deny yourself and don’t care only for your own family. Recognize and discover the people around you. They need your help. Serve them in the joy of the Lord. Every mature believer finds the best example of ministering to others in our great Master. Christ said:
Have you ever realized the astonishing fact that Christ never asked for money for his various services? He served the people day and night and sacrificed himself to redeem sinners. This continuous service for unworthy people became the mark of the followers of Christ. They do not wait to receive help, but follow his example of giving themselves for others in word, deed and prayer. The love of Christ is leading them.
Jesus declared:
The Holy Spirit guides the followers of Christ to accomplish this divine commandment. What a privilege to present the good news of salvation to the unsaved! A heart full of joy and thanksgiving cannot be silent, but speaks and witnesses about what the Lord has done for him. Peter, the first of the apostles, confessed in front of the religious court of his days, after they ordered the followers of Christ to be quiet and to stop propagating and teaching in the name of Jesus:
How can you sleep well and rest, knowing that your friends and relatives are damned by the wrath of God? Maybe they are still spiritually dead in trespasses and sins! Why don’t you tell them the good news of Christ’s salvation? The light of God in your mind and the powerful love of Christ in your heart should drive you forward to testify about your Savior Jesus Christ so that they too can be saved and not remain lost.
A Muslim high school student in Casablanca, Morocco, began to love Christ and believed in his salvation. The student was so impressed by the personality of Jesus and was so enthusiastic about his power that he bought thirty-five New Testaments to give to each student in his class. The Holy Spirit guides and moves us to a wise witness for many people.
Jesus promised his disciples:
Perhaps you will experience that not everybody is ready to listen to the Holy Gospel. Many reject the crucified Savior and hate his cross. They do not know what they are doing. In such a case you have only two ways of bringing divine salvation nearer to them, either by continuous prayer for those who refuse Christ or by serving them silently. For a long time it was officially forbidden to spread the word of God in China, the country with the largest population in our world. But the believers there won many atheists to Christ by their silent witness and patient service. The atheists felt an extraordinary power and saw the love of God working in those Christians. This teaches us that our testimony for Christ does not work by words alone, but the Spirit of Christ speaks through a holy life too.
A medical student in Cairo wrote a letter saying, I cannot talk about my new faith at home because I am a girl. My family adheres strictly to the religion and traditions of our forefathers. Please pray for me that I can live a holy life, remaining humble, and not complaining at home, so that my family can sense how the love of the Holy Spirit is working in my weakness. This is exactly what the Lord Jesus said to his disciples,
Do you realize that the Spirit of Christ is ready to give you beautiful, divine fruits? Paul, the apostle, wrote to the Galatians saying,
Meditate on each expression of this golden verse and ask God to make it real in your life. Take part in the opportunity to receive all these fruits of the Holy Spirit. Then you will live with joy and peace all your life.