Daily Devotional for Saturday, April 8

Paul Summarizes His Ministry

“Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men,” Acts 20:26.

A famous quote from the 1800’s says, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” We all know what that means. We do not have to actively participate in evil for it to win. All we have to do is nothing. It means those choosing not to act are just as complicit in the triumph of evil as the ones doing the evil. Did you know that in many locales, if one observes abuse of a child but does not report it, the charges against the observer are as severe as those against the abuser? It is called failure to protect. Again, inaction makes one guilty in many cases.
A similar thought can be applied to the preaching of the gospel message. All it takes for a lost soul to be headed to hell is for us to remain silent. I imagine if we all thought of it that way, it might change our perspective about witnessing to the lost and, if we do not think of it that way, maybe we should. Paul did, and Paul had a clear conscience in the matter. In our devotional passage, Paul was not bragging about his accomplishments in the gospel ministry. He was simply telling us the facts. After summarizing all he had done, Paul boldly declared that his hands were clean of the blood of all men. Like a watchman on a tower, Paul had always proclaimed the warning of judgment to come and how others could escape that judgment.
That is what you should want to be able to say. None of us want to leave this life knowing we had a chance to tell a lost soul about Jesus and passed it up. I think you want to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” and not “Why did you never tell so and so about me?” What if the very people you declined to witness to were able to ask that question of you?

THOUGHT: How do you think it makes Jesus feel, knowing He suffered so much and died, to see us never tell anyone about it?

Wally Fry