What Does The Bible Say About Soul Winning?

The Bible, the written record of mankind's history and future, includes the account of Genesis 3. In Genesis 3, Satan (having already fallen from heaven) entered into a serpent (Revelation 20:2) and deceived Eve, the first woman - to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, which God had directly commanded both her and Adam, the man, not to eat from, because they would experience spiritual death. Once Adam also ate the fruit, all of God's perfect creation became corrupted by sin. James describes sin: "...each of you is tempted when you are dragged away by your own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full grown, gives birth to death" (James 1:14-15). When creation was corrupted, which  "has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time" (Romans 8:22), sin began, with each successive generation, to degrade humanity as a whole - both spiritually and biologically. (Photo Credit to: Bible - HSV Bible)

However, a few millenniums later, God entered into His Creation (John 1; Hebrews 1; Philippians 2; Colossians 1) in the form of God the Son - Jesus Christ - and, after living on this planet for more than thirty-three years, He was accused of blasphemy for claiming to be God, and was nailed to a Roman cross. That Jesus existed is a historical fact, attested by many historians and persons of Christ's day. Another historical fact is that three days after His crucifixion, the tomb of this Jesus of Nazareth, who claimed to be God - was empty. How the tomb got empty is what people disagree on, but for more on that, see Resurrection series from April. Jesus rose from the dead three days after His crucifixion, and is now sitting at the right hand of the Father, and by sacrificing Himself, paid the fine for mankind, so that we are not bound by sin any longer if we would only accept Him as Lord and Savior.

But does the Bible actually command Christians to "win souls?" Contrary to the claims of some Christians, the Bible does indeed tell us to "win souls" for the kingdom of Heaven. Though it is helpful to know the basics of Apologetics, and the basic arguments for the defense of Christianity, even someone who has just become Christian can win souls. In fact, studies have shown that people who have just become Christian are more likely to try to save others than those who have been Christians for a long while, because of the passion and excitement. This is not representative of every Christian - old and new - merely that as Christians, we are indeed commanded by the Bible to save others.

Let us examine a few key verses in our endeavor to discover what God's Word tells us on this important subject. In Mark 16:15, Jesus says, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." Here we find that Jesus, commanding His disciples and likewise commanding us, reveals that we are to "preach to all creation." Now, this does not mean stand in front of a dog or a tree and begin to relay the account of the Fall of Man, the Global Flood, the Tower of Babel, the birth, life, death and resurrection of Christ - it means to preach to and consequently save a person. More often than not, we do not try to speak with others about Christianity for several reasons: 1) we believe we are not prepared enough, 2) we believe we will make a fool of ourselves or are too embarrassed to speak up, 3) we make up some excuse, or 4) we simply do not recognize the importance of the soul.

You see, Solomon wrote in Proverbs 11:30, "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and those who win souls are wise." Not only are those who win soul winners wise, but they are also following the direct command of God Himself. If we disobey this command, we are no better off than Adam and Eve, who disobeyed God's direct command - simply to not eat a particular kind of fruit, but that any other tree with fruit they were free to eat from, and they could not follow this command! This is not to say that if you do not speak with others about Jesus that you are like Adam and Eve, or even that you are in danger of condemnation, though this will be touched upon later in the entry - but to say this: if God gives us a simple command, and this is the same God who parted the Red Sea (Exodus 12), who rose from the dead (Matthew 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; John 21), who walked on water (Matthew 14:22-33), who stopped the sun in the sky (Joshua 10) and moved it ten steps backward (2nd Kings 20), who spoke, and the universe came into existence (Genesis 1; Psalm 33), who walked among us (John 1), the same God who did all these things - if we do not obey His direct command, we have no excuse.

Consider John 15:16 which says, "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit - fruit that will last..." Though Jesus was saying this to His disciples the night before His death, it still applies to us as Christians. This is not the fruit of the Spirit, which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, self-control, the like (Galatians 5:22-23), but the fruit of a Christian is other Christians, which is what Christ had implied. Evidently the disciples were not literally going to bear fruit from their own being, and as Christ taught in such a way, He had commanded the disciples to "go and bear fruit - fruit that will last," meaning to go and save others, and the fruit of the Christian, as noted, is other Christians.

The infamous John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." But verses 17-18 continue, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only Son." According to this passage, someone who has not trusted in Christ as Savior stands condemned already.

In Luke 16:19-31, we read the account of the rich man, Lazarus and Abraham. The rich man, who in life enjoyed earthly pleasures and never turned to God - and Lazarus, who sat at the gate of the rich man (who is unnamed in the text) and begged, longing to eat whatever fell off of the rich man's table (Luke 16:19-21). The rich man later died, and went to Hell, whereas Lazarus the beggar also died, but went to "Abraham's bosom" (Paradise section of the core before Christ opened the way to Heaven). Jesus relayed that the rich man "looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him... 'I beg you, Father, send Lazarus to my family, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets, let them listen to them.' 'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to the, they will repent.' He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead'" (Luke 19:23-24a, 27-31).

If they will not listen to Moses and the Prophets - i.e. the Old Testament - why would they listen if someone rose from the dead, i.e., Jesus Christ? Though this was a literal account, it can also be applied to the Christian. Matthew cited several Old Testament prophecies to affirm that Jesus was the promised Messiah, as did Mark, Dr. Luke and John. Independent research from The Truth Ministries concluded that the resurrection of Christ is the only valid explanation for the empty tomb. Concerning Moses and the Prophets - the Old Testament - if someone does not understand why they need Christ, why would they choose to accept Him? That is the reason why this ministry utilizes much of the Old Testament regarding soul winning.

According to Christ, "What good is it for you to gain the whole world, yet forfeit your soul? Or what can you give in exchange for your soul?" (Mark 8:36-37). To Jesus, one soul is worth more than the entire world, this ought to speak something into us. This world also consists of more than just material, contrary to the teachings of evolutionists, secularists and humanists (for more information on materialism's unfounded basis, see entry: "Does Information Provide Evidence For A Divine Creator?"), and 1st John 2:15-17 says, "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If you love the world, love for the Father is not in you. For everything in the world - the cravings of sinful people, the lust of their eyes and their boasting about what they have and do - comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever [in Heaven]."

But what of Hell? John 3:36 warns, "...whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on them." Even if a soul is in Hell a million years, "God's wrath remains on them." This is because God is perfect, and sin is destroyed in His presence. Hell is the only place in the Universe where God is not present, and being utterly absent of God, it is a horrible, eternal fire, filled with naught but pain and anguish, where "their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched" (Isaiah 66:24; cf. Mark 9:48). How could one man, one being, God in the flesh, die for the sins of humanity - some have asked. They argue, "If man cannot pay for their sins while in Hell for eternity, how could Jesus take six hours to pay for our sins?"

Curtis Hudson says, "...even those who die and go to Hell will never know how much Jesus suffered because they will never suffer enough to pay the debt; and Jesus suffered enough to pay it full. How can one individual suffer so much in such a short time? The only way I can explain it is to remind you that Jesus Christ was infinite, and we are finites; and no number of finities equals infinitude, no matter how large the number. If the sin debt was to be paid, either the finite must suffer infinitely, or the infinite must suffer finitely."[1] God is infinite, and Jesus is God, therefore it is understandable that an infinite being can pay for the sins of finite beings. Though many do not realize it, humans focus often on outward things - money, sex, drugs, love, material possessions - and while money is required for many things, prescribed drugs can be medically beneficial, love comes from God and it is good that a man and a woman should not be alone, and though sex is designed by God (for marriage), and you need clothes to wear on your body - all of these things are finite. Nothing is more important than your eternal destiny, and this is not a lofty claim to make, but a valid one.

Paul teaches in 2nd Corinthians 9:6, "Remember this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously." Whoever "sows sparingly" into the hearts and minds of people the message of Christianity will also "reap sparingly." This is not specifically a promise that whoever you speak to about Christianity will become a Christian, but that the more you sow, the more you reap. Matthew 6:26 says, "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet our heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" You reap according to what you sow. We are humans, not birds - therefore, sow, and reap.

Indeed, Psalm 126:6 promises, "Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them." The verse prior says, "Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy." Essentially, as Christians, we may weep for the souls of men and women, but once we carry out the command of the Creator, we will find that though we may not find success every time, we will nonetheless "return with songs of joy." Point being: soul winners come back rejoicing. Simon Peter (also called Cephas) was told in Luke 5:10, "Don't be afraid, from now on you will fish for people." In other words, Jesus commanded His disciples to be "fishers of men," or "soul winners."

In fact, perhaps the most direct command from Jesus comes from what is known as the "Great Commission" in Matthew 28:18-20, which He said after His resurrection, "All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." If we make the claim that Jesus did not command us to win souls, we are denying Jesus, because much of His ministry was spent not only in miracles, but in soul winning. John 15:2 says, "[The Father] cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that you will be even more fruitful." Jesus clearly taught that we are to "bear fruit," or in other words, save others.

This ministry has spent a great deal of time demonstrating that Christianity is valid, reliable, true, and accurate. We have shown that Jesus truly existed, concluded that the Resurrection is the only valid explanation for the empty tomb after examining the numerous theories, concluded that Jesus did indeed claim to be God, and that He is coming again, just as He said, and soon. We also concluded that the Bible is the accurate, inerrant, Word of God - historically and archaeologically attested, and remarkably preserved through the ages. As Christians, if we believe this to be the absolute truth, why is it that many of us - surely not all - by many of us have difficulty speaking up about our faith to others?

When one is called to serve in court, he or she does not question it, but does so as a duty. Likewise, Jesus, who is the highest authority in all of the universe, has commanded us to win souls, despite what some may say. Jesus clearly taught that Christians are to save others, and apologetics greatly aids in this endeavor. Dr. John Rice points out the sevenfold sin of not winning souls: 1) The Sin of Disobedience to Christ; 2) The Sin of Little Love for Christ (John 14:15); 3) The Sin of Not Following Christ; 4) The Sin of Not Abiding in Christ; 5) The Sin of Dishonesty in a Sacred Trust; 6) The Sin of the Shortsighted Fool; 7) The Sin of Blood Guilt - the Manslaughter of Souls![2] 

In Luke 5:32, Jesus said, "I have not come to call the righteous, but the sinners to repentance." Paul says in 1st Timothy 1:15, "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners..." Also, Luke 15:7 records, "I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent." As noted, the three and a half year long ministry of Jesus certainly had a clear focus on soul winning. According to Dr. John Rice:

"The ministry of Jesus was largely one of personal soul winning. He won Nicodemus in one night. He won the woman at the well of Sychar in Samaria. He won the woman taken in adultery. He won the sinner woman who wept over His feet at the home of Simon the Pharisee. He won the Gadarene demoniac, Mary Magdalene, and the woman who stooped to touch the hem of His garment in a throng. He won Zacchaeus the publican and Levi, another of the same kind. It was His daily business. Soul winning was the normal thing for individual Christians in Bible times. John the Baptist pointed Andrew and John to Jesus. Andrew won Peter. Jesus won Philip. Philip won Nathanael. The woman at the well of Sychar, a new convert, won many in her own town the same day she was saved. The jailer at Philippi found Christ at midnight and before morning had his whole family saved and baptized! When persecution began at Jerusalem, scattering all except the preachers, then 'they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word' (Acts 8:4)."[3]

Revelation 22:16-17 says, "I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." Jesus said that He had sent His angel to testify to those in the churches, "And let him that heareth say, Come." Everyone who hears the message of Christianity is commanded to tell the lost to come. If we disobey the direct commands of Christ, we are disobeying Him. Remember that for disobedience and rebellion, King Saul lost his kingdom, and he and his house were rejected by God. God had the prophet Samuel say to Saul: "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has also rejected you from being king" (1st Samuel 15:22-23).

Jesus said in Matthew 4:19, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." In Mark 1:17 He said, "Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people." Daniel 12:2-3 says, "And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever." Says Rice, "Oh, how bright will be the shining of soul winners in Heaven! They that turn many to righteousness shall shine 'as the stars for ever and ever.'"[4] Along with paying for the past, present and future sins of humanity with His life, Jesus "came to seek and save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). Indeed, we are told in James 5:20, "Whoever turns a sinner from the way of error will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins."

Ezekiel 3:17-19 reveal an important aspect of this subject, "I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their lives, those wicked people will die in their sins, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked and they do not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, they will die for their sins; but you will have saved yourself" (emphasis mine). If you do not save souls, you are guilty - their blood is on your hands for failing to fulfill your duty. In this case, if Ezekiel did not warn the Israelites of their sins, their blood would be on his hands. Ezekiel warned Israel and then God delivered his soul. Likewise, if we do not warn others about the punishment for sin, which is a very real, tangible thing, their blood will be on our hands - we will be held "accountable for their blood."

In Acts 1:8, Jesus says to His disciples, "...you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." We are to go and do likewise. God has given us marching orders, and expects us to follow them.  We cannot do much for God, but what we can do is be His "witnesses... to the ends of the earth." As Paul taught the church that they should save those in "Judea first," likewise, we ought to save those in our own neighborhood first before going off to mission trips in China, India, Ghana, the like. This is not to say that you cannot go on a mission trip before, but bear in mind that we should also be sure, either before or after a trip, to save those around us, even if we feel embarrassed - which we should not. In fact, "If any of you are ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels" (Mark 8:38). 

W.B. Riley (1861-1947) once said, "...some Abyssinians took prisoner a British subject by the name of Campbell. They carried him to the fortress of Magdala and consigned him to a dungeon without showing cause for the deed. It took six months for Great Britain to discover this. Then when she demanded an instantaneous release, King Theodore haughtily refused. In less than ten days, ten thousand British soldiers were on shipboard sailing down the coast to a point where they disembarked. They then marched seven hundred miles under a burning sun up the mountain heights and unto the very dungeon where the prisoner was hid. There they gave battle. The gates were torn down, the prisoner was lifted upon their soldiers and borne down the mountainside, and thence to the ship. It cost the British government $25 million to release that man. Such was the value they put upon the life and liberty of one English subject! But God puts a greater price upon the life and liberty of a single soul. That is why He summoned all Heaven to its redemption and appointed His Son chief Captain and Leader to effect its liberty."[5]

In Matthew 9:36-38 we read, "When [Jesus] saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.'" Jesus was not speaking of a literal harvest of crops, this much is evident from the phrase, "He saw the crowd, He had compassion on them..." and then proceed to say that "the workers are few." In Psalm 142:4 we read, "No man cared for my soul..." Do we wish to be one who does not care for another soul? The human soul is more valuable than any of us realize. It is more valuable than all of the gold and silver in the world, more valuable than this very planet, more valuable than precious gems or hoards. We ought to echo Romans 1:16, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes..."

Dr. Tom Wallace has said, "One one occasion Dr. Bob Gray got so burdened about winning someone, he prayed early in the morning that the Lord would give him a soul that day. He had that on his heart as he drove to his early morning radio broadcast. As he got out on the expressway to Jacksonville and headed downtown, he saw a fellow sticking out his thumb. The Spirit of the Lord seemed to say, There's your man. So Dr. Gray pulled over and said, 'Jump in, fellow. Where are you going?' 'I'm going downtown.' As Dr. Gray started back out on the expressway, he said to him, 'I didn't mean, 'Where are you going today?' but 'Where are you going when you die?'' The fellow said, 'I haven't thought much about that.' Dr. Gray engaged him in conversation about it. The man listened intently. Then Dr. Gray asked, 'Do you mind if I pull off the highway and explain this to you?' 'I'll be glad for you to,' he answered. They did so; and Dr. Gray took out his New Testament, showed him some verses and led right up to the point where he said, 'Why don't you bow your head and let's both pray. Then you can receive Christ as your Savior.' The fellow did it. Then as he wiped a little tear out of his eye, he reached into his pocket, pulled out the revolver, laid it on the seat and said, 'Sir, as I hitchhiked I had determined that whoever picked me up, I would make him pull off the highway. Then I would kill him and steal his car, dump his body and go on my way to another state. Sir, if you hadn't talked to me about this, you could have been a dead man by now!'"[6]

1st Corinthians 7:29 reveals, "the time is short." Though this was said by Paul ca.55 AD, this statement is still relevant today, and even more so, because we can easily determine that events of the end times are beginning to occur in rapid succession. Though the final stage of events could occur hundreds of years from now, it seems evident that humanity will not go on for much longer without these events occurring soon, but it would be unwise of us to set any dates. Jesus said in Luke 14:21 and 23, "Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame... Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house may be full." As the Lord said in John 20:21, "As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." 

We were bought with a price (1st Corinthians 6:19-20), do not make it in vain. Romans 10:13 says, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Isaiah 40:29-31 relays, "He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." Mark 16:15 commands, "Preach the Gospel." Matthew 5:14 demonstrates the Christian's position: "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden." Do not hide as a Christian, but save as many as you can. Speak up about your faith, you do not need to know the ins and outs of Christianity, you do not need to have a Ph.D.. Though it is good to know the basics of Apologetics, "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17).

Jesus told Peter in John 21:15-17, "Feed my sheep." Not long after, Peter won over 3000 people in a single day (Acts 2:41). God reveals to mankind that "If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and if you believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9). You cannot enter heaven by being "good enough," or doing enough "good deeds," or even by entering into limbo to "pay for your sins" - because Jesus already has, no man can pay for his or her sins. That is why accepting Christ is crucial to entrance into Heaven. One second after we pass on from this life, it is too late to make a decision. We do not need to have the answers to every single question there is, though there are answers to many of these. What we need is salvation, since, like our ancestors Adam and Eve, we continue to disobey the direct commands of God. Jesus commanded us to win souls - and just as He said, "go and make disciples of all nations..." (Matthew 28:19).

Thank you for taking the time to read this entry of "The Truth." We understand that there are those who will disagree with our beliefs, conclusions, and our methods of defending Christianity, yet it is our hope that you take the information presented to you into consideration. We can only provide the information, it is up to the individual to decide what to do with it. Feel free to email vexx801@yahoo.com or thetruth.ministryweb@gmail.com with any questions, comments, concerns, or prayer requests that you may have - but we ask that you remain civil, or we will exercise the right to not respond. Also feel free to visit The Truth Ministry's facebook page or the main ministry website. Take care, and God bless you, reader. Troy Hillman 

Sources:

[1] Curtis Hudson, et al. Great Preaching on Soul Winning. Murfreesboro, TN: Sword of the Lord Publishers. 1989. pp.17. Print.

[2] Ibid, pp. 27

[3] Ibid, pp.27-28

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid, pp. 90

[6] Ibid, pp.201-202