Reading: Matt 9:36 – 10:1

Our Lord Jesus Christ saw the crowd helpless like sheep without a shepherd; and He was moved with compassion because of His love for them. He responded with two requisites:

Asked the disciples to pray to the Lord to send laborers to His harvest.
Called His disciples and sent them on their first mission trip.

There are three points that I want you to remember.

1. Motivation

It was the Lord’s love for the lost souls that had motivated Him to send the disciples. Love for the lost is the big motive of every evangelist without which you cannot move nor reach out.

Wherever Jesus went, He had compassion for the people. “And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them” ( Matt 14:14), “Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, I have compassion on the multitude because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat” (Matt 15-32). Without love for the lost souls, you cannot react. Some people may have the attitude of Cain “Am I my brother’s guard?” To this I would reply, “Yes, you are!”

How can you have this compassion for the lost souls in your heart?

Go to the Lord and ask him to teach you. “But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another” (1Thess 4:9).

Ask the Lord to plant this love in your heart by the Holy Spirit; for God is love. If we are truly Christian we will have this love.

2. A Sense of Purpose

A part of you as a Christian is to witness; and it is not an option. You are created to glorify God by your behavior and by your words. In doing so, you will witness to your Lord. Ask yourself if it is your purpose in life. Also, are you willing to sacrifice time, money, and may be being ridiculed for witnessing to the others?

Look at the Samaritan woman, she went and brought her whole town to the Lord. Listen what Jesus told his disciples when they had found Him talking to her, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish His work”. This was essential to the Lord and should be the same to us. It should be our "food" to accomplish the Father’s will by bringing the lost souls back to the Lord.

This purpose was very clear to our Lord Jesus Christ, "I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do", John 17:4. Sometimes in our life we loose focus and we forget why we are here on earth. What is the purpose? I hope the purpose is clear; it is to do God's will, be a witness and glorify his name. It is our call!

3. Experience God’s Divine Love in your heart.

If you experience the love of God, you will be compelled to witness and talk about the Lord to every one you meet. You cannot contain yourself; as you always want to share this love with every one. After Andrew had met the Lord, he went and called his brother Peter. Also, Philip after having tasted and experienced the Lord, went and called his brother urging him to go see for himself. Listen what Jesus has said, "As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love" (John 15-9). It is our natural response to the love of God, if we experience Him, we will go and make His name known.

Someone may ask; “how do we experience the love of God in our heart?” It is very simple. "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15). If you keep His commandments, you will experience His love. "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you" (John 15:12).