Matthew 3:12
“His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
This and repentance was the whole of John’s message. It’s an uncomfortable one. It’s a message that is like a slap. It get’s one’s attention. It provides visions of hell. No one wants to go there.
He is preparing the way for the Lord. He is tilling the ground, getting people’s minds and hearts ready for the gospel. This is not it, but he is preparing the way for Jesus.
I can recall watching someone share the gospel. He stopped and made the observation that the listener didn’t have any conviction of sin. He was right. She wasn’t open to the message as she didn’t accept the bad news, that she was a sinner in need of salvation. I have tried sharing the gospel under similar circumstances. I kept trying to make it palatable. I should have stopped as I was casting pearls before swine.
I heard the same guy teach about evangelism. He said if there isn’t any conviction, then we need to talk about the law and how we’ve broken it. And further that we will pay for it or we need to allow Jesus to do so. That’s what John is doing, speaking about the law and judgement.
This is rarely done today. I usually would hear it from street preachers. Most people ignore them. It’s seen as old fashioned and outdated.
I do remember not being ready. A fellow student was sharing the gospel with me. I was offended. I responded that I go to church. That was interesting because he saw me go forward at a christian concert. I may have been saved at that time. There was much I didn’t know. The next eight months I would talk about it a lot. God was doing a work. My mom and I were watching christian television almost nightly. We prayed the prayer again. We knew more. That was another big night.
Are we to share about judgement? Sometimes. It all depends on the situation and the condition of the person’s heart. If there is conviction of sin, they need the gospel. If there isn’t conviction, but open to talk, then yes. If not open, then the time isn’t right. We should pray for them.
These can be tough conversations. Paul asks this of the Ephesians, “Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will boldly make known the mystery of the gospel”, (6:19). We need boldness.
Lord, give us boldness to share Your message. Also give us wisdom as to the condition of their hearts.