Jesus said in Luke 10:2, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” At this time Jesus was sending men out before Him, two by two, as heralds of the kingdom of God. Few were ready to do the work of sharing the message of God’s kingdom, but a great harvest awaited if they would go to the work. On another occasion, Jesus said, “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!” (Jn. 4:35). The time to bring people into the Lord’s kingdom is now. Let us pray for more soul winners in the Lord’s church who will work to bring in a great harvest.

Paul was one of the greatest soul winners in the history of the church; by the grace of God, he labored more abundantly than the other apostles (1 Cor. 15:10). He trained others to do the work he was doing. In Acts 16:1-3, Paul took Timothy under his wing and had him go with him on his journey. Timothy was Paul’s fellow worker with God (1 Thess. 3:2). Timothy stood out because, instead of seeking his own interests, he cared for the souls of others; Paul and Timothy served with one another in the gospel like father and son (Phil. 2:19-24). Paul told Timothy, “Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you” (1 Tim. 4:16). Paul’s final charge to Timothy included these words: “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching” (2 Tim. 4:2). While others would turn away from the truth, Paul urged Timothy to “be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry” (2 Tim. 4:5).

Timothy would have to carry on the work after Paul went to be with the Lord. Yet, just as Paul had found Timothy, a faithful worker to whom he could teach the crucial vocation of being an evangelist, so also Timothy was to commit what he had learned to faithful men who could teach others also (2 Tim. 2:2). The church of the living God is the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15). As the people of God, we uphold the truth of the gospel for the world to see.

When the Godhead asked, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Isaiah replied, “Here am I; send me” (Isa. 6:8). Let us have the same attitude today regarding the work of evangelism. Not all of us are to preach before an audience. Much of Jesus’ work was one-on-one conversations with people like Nicodemus (Jn. 3:1-19) and the Samaritan woman (Jn. 4:1-30). Have a Bible study with someone in your circle of influence. If you are not able to lead a Bible study, you can invite someone who is able to lead into your home to study with one of your friends. The word of God is the seed of the kingdom (Lk. 8:11). If we plant the seed in the hearts of those around us, God has promised a great harvest.