Living Among the Lost

“Dead” isn’t a metaphor. In the book of Ephesians, God presents a brutal truth. “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). A passing glance might suggest He is offering up a comparison—along the lines of you were “dead” as in figurative-dead. Not so. It’s important to understand that in this case, this is literally dead.

Any confusion might come from a basic misunderstanding of spiritual death. When someone’s soul is entangled in sin, it is spiritual death—a lethal separation from the Creator. “But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God” (Isaiah 59:1-2). This is not a poetic device; this is a straight-forward description of the reality of spiritual destruction. So when God warns us that the “wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23), it literally means death—in this case, spiritual death. And in essence, it is far worse than physical death alone. The decay of someone’s physical form is not nearly as dark a concept as the decay of a soul.

It is important to carve this truth in our mind to make sure we understand the terrible tragedy of a “life” without Jesus. Before we were Christians, we were nothing more than dead—in the truest sense of the word. The more we grasp the wretched existence we escaped, the more we begin to appreciate our salvation. Otherwise, gratitude tends to fade and our Savior becomes only a mild hero that we might honor with an occasional nod every Sunday.

But this leads to the next truth, which might be even more difficult to face. If existence without Jesus is death, then the world is full of dead people. Don’t let the religious ambience of our culture fool you. “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). Being acquainted with Jesus is not life. The key is obedience, not familiarity. This realization is unnerving, especially when you begin to fully realize the peril of those around you.   

When faced with this, there are options. One option is to soften the edges of what it means to be “lost.” Worldly rationalization can provide a philosophical spin in which the lost are merely spiritually troubled. It is not so hard to create in our own minds a scenario in which only really, really evil people will be lost. This can make it easier to get through the day.

However, the trade-off is two-fold: our own previous situation before we were saved becomes less significant and our Savior becomes less of a Savior and more like a passerby who simply lent a helping hand. Gratitude fades. In addition, we become of no use in the actual rescue. Instead of joining in the effort to pull people to safety, we comfort ourselves with false teaching that relegates virtually everyone to being a “good” person.

There is an added difficulty in the world’s perspective of us. If we remain hard and fast about the terms of condemnation as described in the Word, we come across as unloving. The irony is that a lack of love can mainly be found among those who are handing out the rose-colored glasses. This is why it is so vital that everything we do is done in a loving way.

So here you are—one of the living, now walking a world of death. It can be overwhelming when you live with your eyes wide open. The world will try to numb you, but it’s important for your sake and the sake of the lost that you keep your perspective crystal clear. Live in joy, but don’t lose the pain of loving the lost.

It’s not easy to reach them. They’ve heard all the words. The post-modern world has been jaded by a thousand religious pop-mantras that have been drained of meaning. It’s hard to get anyone’s attention when all you have at your disposal sounds like a bag of clichés. So it’s got to be more than just words. Your words must be joined with action. “Jesus is Lord” and “God loves you,” will sound like nothing more than bumper stickers unless these are clearly seen in your life.

This means your Christianity has to be the real thing. The low-impact earthly version might rattle some cages, but it won’t set anyone free. If you really care about the lost, it’s important that your light shine, not just give off a faint glow. You will not only have to make sure you stand in contrast to worldly people, but also in contrast to mere religious people.

This might make any Christian feel overwhelmed—especially when you begin to realize a genuine Christian might be more unusual than has often been portrayed. But there’s a lot of good news concerning the saving of the lost.

First of all, much of your influence of the lost will probably happen during the “insignificant” moments—interactions that were not on your agenda. Although conscious, focused efforts can be extremely effective, it’s important to keep in mind that Zaccheus and the Samaritan woman were not saved through a program. It was just another day, during regular relatively mundane things.

Your influence might hit someone right in the heart when you aren’t even thinking about spiritual things. The lost will often be watching you as you go about your everyday drudgeries, but there will be something different about the way you do them.

Another reason you can be somewhat relieved is that you don’t have to appear to be perfect. This is good, because you aren’t. In fact, a great deal of good can be done when those who are lost see how you handle your mistakes. Even when you mess up, you can have a powerful impact.

Ultimately, it’s not about you. You might very well be the instrument that God uses to bring about their rescue, but it won’t be because you were clever or insightful or spectacularly wise. Ultimately, it comes down to the dead soul confronted with the love and mercy of God as seen through a living soul.

Don’t underestimate the power of the gospel for salvation. And above all, don’t underestimate the power of the gospel for salvation as seen through you.

(reprinted from The Rocky Mountain Christian September 2009)