As I sit here it’s currently 2 a.m. on a Monday morning. It’s one of those sleepless nights where my mind will not stop. Perhaps you can relate. I have these nights from time to time; although I must admit that the last couple of weeks have had more than a fair share of sleepless nights. My sleepless nights are always for the same reason—people. As a pastor my heart’s desire is to help people find God’s will for their lives. Over the years I have discovered the joy of being used by God to minister to others in a way that helps them discover God’s will in the various situations of their lives. But although this task God has called me to has its moments of joy, it also brings nights like this one. My heart grieves for those Christians who live in apathy and give no indication that they care about God’s will, their church, or living to glorify God. If some people were to read this they would probably say, “who cares how others live their lives” or “their spiritual life is not my problem.” But as a Christian I cannot have this mindset. As a disciple of Christ, I have fallen in love with my brothers and sisters of the faith. When I see people who claim to be Christians yet they refuse to forsake everything for our Lord, or I see people who drag themselves to church on Sunday morning but are not living as true disciples of Jesus Christ, my heart is deeply grieved. I grieve because someone I love is living outside the will of our Heavenly Father.

 

If you are a believer and have no idea what I’m talking about (a.k.a. you’ve never grieved for the soul of another), then you are not obeying the Lord’s Great Commission to make disciples (Matthew 28:19, 20). Making disciples requires you to love others. It is a sad tragedy that many Christians will live out their lives upon this earth and never experience the joy and divine blessings that come from being used by God to influence others to follow Christ and discover his will. This is not something you can do on your own terms. Jesus said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple…So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26-27, 33). Have you come to a place where you truly grieve for your wayward brothers and sisters in Christ? Do you grieve for the lost souls of this world? If not, then I dare say you will never obey Christ’s command to make disciples.

 

How does one come to a place where they do love others so much that they grieve over a concern for their soul?

 

• Pray for Them. I don’t mean a short, quick, and thoughtless prayer. I encourage you to spend many hours a week praying for people. If you truly believe that God’s Word is true and that He answers prayers, then one of the greatest ways to practice love is to regularly pray for others. Prayer not only reaches the throne room of God, it also changes your heart and causes you to grow in your love for others.

• Show Them Kindness. I don’t mean to just be nice to them. You need to intentionally go out of your way to show them kindness. Offer them the chance to feel the love of God through you. Even if they reject it, do not ever stop showing them love through kindness.

• Confront Them. This is absolutely the hardest thing I have to do. When a person claims to be a Christian, yet they are not living in the will of God, they need to be confronted. Part of making disciples is being a church member that loves his/her brothers and sisters enough to confront them about their sin or their apathy. The only way to defeat the fear of confronting others is to love them more than yourself. Believe me, I know it’s not easy. But I am also aware that it’s better to confront a brother or sister in Christ, than it is to let them fall into a lifestyle of sin.