Sunday, November 29, 2015

The Tuning Fork

I commented the following at Z's blog:

Many people speak of a "God shaped hole" that is like a missing puzzle piece that some will find in themselves that they then see that Jesus fits perfectly.

I believe that we have a "spirit" that as dead as it might be still reacts to the Gospel much as a tuning fork reacts to another similarly tuned fork in "sympathetic vibration".
God's word sets a "ringing" in the hearer that is tuned to it that they respond, recognizing the truth of what is being spoken to them.
(End of comment.)
Therefore, those that would respond to God, when God's Word is presented in contrast to some other words that are lies, will recognize the difference, like comparing a straight stick against a crooked stick.

It's been said that when a broken clock was placed in a clock shop for repair, it would often start up again, it's mechanism "resonating" with the vibration of the ticking of the working clocks.

Last night, a very dear friend, one of my closest, told me of her husband having witnessed to a coworker on an installation job, years ago.
It had, as often does, just started as a discussion, but as Jim presented biblical truth to the man, he got argumentative.
Jim looked at him and said, "I'm not talking to you about this anymore. I'm not throwing pearls before swine." and stopped talking to him.

Jim later was talking to a prominent local pastor, Bruce Gunn (who has quite a testimony), and Bruce told Jim that a man had been talking to him and told Bruce of his journey to faith.
He said that it had begun with a coworker presenting the word to him and then after his arguing, the coworker saying, "I'm not talking to you about this anymore. I'm not throwing pearls before swine."
It bothered this man that he was told this in such a way.
Remember, that what Jim had actually quoted (pearls before swine) was scripture .
All scripture has a result. God's word does not return void.

While talking to Bruce, the man asked if he knew a Jim Belz, the man who had spoken to him thus.
Bruce couldn't wait to tell Jim.
We often don't know the results of our work for God.

Bonus, unrelated story:
I was at breakfast yesterday with a guy who also calls in to the Bennett show, Angry Tom.
I know Tom on social media and we finally met in meatspace.

He told me how he was hitchhiking as a youth (his family had money, he had a car and a motorcycle, but he liked meeting diverse people) when a man picked him up and asked "If you were to die today, do you know where you would go?"
Tom answered "Purgatory" and David Wilkerson, author of "The Cross and the Switchblade", and later Founding Pastor of Times Square Church in NYC, of led him to the Lord.

That's cool, but David Wilkerson led a soul to the Lord the same as any one of us can and have.
It's our calling.



8 comments:

  1. Each of us has the capability, and sometimes the opportunity...

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  2. It's in our wiring. This is really good.

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  3. Blogs need a "Like" button.
    Comments like those above this one need one too.

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  4. Ed,

    Fantastic reminder. I especially like this:

    Remember, that what Jim had actually quoted (pearls before swine) was scripture . All scripture has a result. God's word does not return void.

    Relationship evangelism is all well and good, but it's the Word that converts people (or hardens them).

    Thanks for this post. Glad to hear it today.
    Alec

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  5. Glad I read this one, too. Meatspace? Sounds like there ought to be an all-you-can-eat buffet involved.

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