Sam was delivered out of the Church of Rome as an adult, same as I, and he walked a tough road as he witnessed the truth and endured the wrath of family and friend alike for his stand for the Lord Jesus and Bible truth. By the time I met him, the Lord had brought eternal life to most of his family, including father & mother, sisters, brothers, and cousins. He loved the Lord, and we loved him in the Lord. Patesville Baptist Church graciously adopted us Yankees into their church family, and Sam was our Pastor for about 3 years, until we moved here to Iowa in October, 2005. (So, to our dear friends Stevie, Johnny & Sally, Carol, Charlie & Jane, and Cheryl - if you're reading this, we love you and miss you!)
Sam taught me an important truth regarding evangelism, in his common-sense, homespun way. I probably was sharing with him my desire and efforts to evangelize and witness to those around me, and maybe expressing some frustration that so often, it seems that people just don't get it. Sam just said, "You can't pick the egg." And he said a lot in that little phrase. Sam went on to explain, so I will try to share that with you.
I was by no means a "city boy", having lived many years in the northwestern Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and was recently moved from there to the very rural backcountry of Hancock County, Kentucky. I had a chicken coop (came with the house and the dog - really, there was a dog there when we moved in, fleas & ticks and all!), but I knew very little about the nuances of chicken life. Sam's analogy to the new birth was profound, and Frank Chirico suggested today that I write something about it. So, here goes....God is a masterful designer, and there are so many awesome things in the design & function of the lowly chicken egg that show his handiwork. We see his marvelous creations all around us, yet it is easy to take them for granted. Do a study on the chicken egg - it'll blow you away. But, to be brief, a chick growing in the egg has an egg tooth, a sharp protuberance that allows an emerging chick to break through the hard outer shell during a process called "pipping". As the chick grows in the egg, it reaches a size where it can no longer obtain enough oxygen through the pores in the egg shell. It breaks into the air sack (that space you see when you peel a hard-boiled egg; yep, its there for a reason) and gets just enough extra air so it can do the work of breaking through the hard shell using it's egg tooth, just like you see in the picture above.
Once the shell is broken through, the chick must struggle to free itself. It looks like a real struggle for the baby bird, and it is. However, if you try to "help" the baby chick by picking the egg, the chick will emerge and die. The reason is, the struggle to fully emerge from the shell is necessary to get it's lungs & muscles working properly. By "helping" the chick, in reality you are destroying it.
When we share the hope of the gospel with others, we do so with an earnest desire that they might be saved. But a man cannot be saved without understanding who he is in relation to a Holy God; what sin is and its consequences; the justice of God, and the righteousness of his commandments; to come to a right knowledge of his sin & its penalty; that "...God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16). In short, that man or woman has to come to repentance toward God, and exercise saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21). And all you and I can do is deliver the message of truth from God's word. If we try to get a response to the gospel using emotional appeal (stirring music, "every head bowed, every eye closed, no one is looking around...raise your hand...come to the altar) or some other method to get a "decision", or pray a prayer for salvation, brothers, we are picking the egg. And this, I believe, is what has filled our churches with false converts, not only in the pews, but in the pulpits! Marketing techniques work in the world of business, but in the business of men's souls, God has to bring them to that place where they are convinced and convicted, and turn to the Lord who bled and died on Calvary for them. All the sales gimmicks in the world won't get them there.
I was relating to Frank this morning a circumstance that happened to me last week, which led to this article. I had a couple of encounters with a man I met last year - in fact, it was June 8th, 2012 - because I wrote it down on one of my prayer chalkboards (see the highlighted area on the upper left of the picture below). Kit is a man from Austin, Texas who has relatives in the area. He was sitting at a picnic table at a small park across from my office, and I engaged him in conversation, witnessed to him and gave him a 180 DVD when we parted. Kit comes from a devout Irish Catholic family, and has plans to be married in Ireland in December of this year. He's a professed agnostic, has genuine questions, and we had a good conversation back then. I saw him one other time late in 2012 when I was out on a street corner with a witnessing cross.
But I met him again last week Wednesday at that same small park by my office. We talked briefly, and I urged him to look to Jesus alone and not his religion for salvation. (As a former Roman Catholic, I was able to relate to things from his religious background). We parted in good spirits, and I commended him to the Lord, who is able to "save to the uttermost." On Friday, I got out of work later than planned, and since it was nearly 5 PM already, I thought I'd get out on the corner too late, having missed some of the heavier traffic. But somewhat reluctantly, I went, and as I put my cross together and turned to the street, there was Kit standing on the other corner, a Hardee's bag in hand, and coming my way.
He was amazed that we ran into each other again - and it was kinda weird - maybe more so when I told him I almost didn't come out. We talked further, and I again presented the clear, simple gospel, discussed the difference between the religious experience of the Roman church and the living, risen Savior. Kit was apparently moved, and expressed sincere desire to buy me a cup of coffee and talk some more about these things. He took my cell phone (he already has both my email & this website address) and said he would contact me before leaving town on Tuesday.
Well, that was last Tuesday, and I have yet to hear from Kit. (Kit, if you read this, you owe me a phone call, dude!) But I'm not bummed. I told Kit that I wasn't trying to get him to make some emotional commitment or anything: he's got to come to that place of understanding & faith in Jesus Christ, on his own. See, as bad as I want Kit to be saved, I've learned the lesson Sam Gray taught me. I'm not going to pick the egg. I was faithful to deliver the message. I pray for Kit. I want him to be saved, and so does God (1 Timothy 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9) But he's got to respond to the truth God has given him: he knows God exists (Romans 1:17-20) and is in rebellion to him. He has the witness of God's law written in his heart; he has a conscience. He's heard the gospel truth, which "...is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth,...." (Romans 1:16).
IN CONCLUSION:
I hope this helps you when you're tempted to get frustrated, discouraged, or bummed-out about your efforts to reach the lost. Don't pick the egg, man. God is faithful; He knows how to hatch a chicken, and he knows how to save a sinner. Let's trust him to do what he promised, and rejoice for every opportunity God gives us to present the precious and only Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, to those around us who are perishing. It's not about you - it's about HIM. In the end, it is all about HIM!
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