Obedience Leads to Lasting Fruit
They wanted to know why a stranger would come among them to help them.
In Ethiopia, Samuel, an established church planter, responded to the Lord’s call to go farther west and proclaim Christ to tribes that had yet to hear the Gospel. He knew that he could not march into the community and proclaim Christ without a proper plan. The people remained dedicated to their historic religious beliefs and had no intention of following any other god or religion. Yet, Samuel believed the Lord had a purpose for this group of people and was obedient to follow the directive to go and preach the Word of God. Samuel arrived at his destination, but before he spoke of the Gospel he began to work alongside his new acquaintances sharing the labor in their day-to-day lives. When one family’s home caught on fire, he quickly assisted in every way possible including providing a small amount of money to help build a new dwelling for them. His kindness and service did not go unnoticed. The people began asking questions. They wanted to know why a stranger would come among them to help them. It was just the platform the church planter had been waiting for. He told everyone about Jesus and how the Lord had sent him precisely because He loved them. In that initial gathering, one man repented and accepted Jesus as Savior. He then led his entire extended family to know Jesus, as well. In his first act as a believer, this man gave land to build a church. Such a gift was significant, as any property was nearly impossible to come by in that area. The growing church has become a place for people to come and experience the Lord’s power and forgiveness. As the message of the Gospel spreads, more and more have turned from their beliefs based on Islam, to accept Jesus as the Messiah who they had been searching for.
In Romans 5:19, we read: For it is through one man’s disobedience that many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the One, the many will be made righteous.
Jesus is building His Kingdom in this region because of the faithfulness of one man who obeyed the call on his life to follow Jesus wherever He may lead.
They wanted to know why a stranger would come among them to help them.
