When it comes to sharing the Gospel, what better place to start than with the very words of Jesus.

THE PARABLE OF THE LOST SHEEP (Luke 15:1-7)
“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”

In this parable, Jesus is emphasizing the value of every single person. “It is not God’s will that any should perish but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) Jesus’s heart is set on rescuing the “one” lost sheep that is out there. He’s asking you and me to go with him and find the lost sheep, one at a time. Our prayer should be “Lord help me find one more. Just one more Lord.” And notice that he says there is REJOICING in Heaven over one sinner who repents. WOW!

Let’s make Heaven REJOICE! Let’s go find the “one”.

● The “one” who has wandered and strayed away
● The “one” who has lost their way and don’t know how to get back home.
● The “one” who is broken and wounded and hurting
● The “one” who feels forgotten and unloved
● The “one” who is lost and scared of dying
● The “one” who is about to be attacked by the enemy

Have you ever had someone that you love get on a plane to go somewhere faraway? You know that you will not see them for a long time and you are going to miss them. Farewells can be hard. After the person that you love has left, you begin to think on the last words that they spoke and those words become very special to you. Maybe it was, “I love you!”, “I’ll see you soon!” Jesus left us with some very important last departing words that I think we are all are somewhat familiar.

THE GREAT COMMISSION
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 28:19-20)

That is the Great Commission. We could even call it the Great Command. Most of us understand that God has called and commissioned each of us to go out into the world and share the Gospel. But, for some reason very few of us do. Maybe we are not thinking correctly about the unsaved as we should. Jesus thought of them as lost sheep. Maybe we should too. Sheep who are lost, defenseless, wandering, lonely, scared… desperately looking for someone to point them the way.  One of those “lost sheep” may just be waiting on someone like you to tell them. That very someone may exactly be you!

SHARING THE GOSPEL CAN BE SCARY

I get it though. Sharing the Gospel can be scary and intimidating. Most of us do not feel adequate or smart enough or bold enough to share the Gospel. I’m right there with you. I struggle with that too. But, we could really take a lot of the pressure off of ourselves if we would just get it in our heads that we are not the ones who are responsible for the result. It is the Holy Spirit’s job to convict and to save. God has only asked us to open our mouths and share! Just talk about what God has done in our life. Just talk about the goodness of God. We seem to be able to talk about everything else in the world, why can’t we talk about the best news that is out there? If we are simply obedient and do our small part in sharing the love of Jesus, then we can leave the rest to God.

What is our mission? To make Jesus known! To simply SHARE!

Have you ever had that feeling that you were supposed to go and talk to someone about the Gospel? Maybe just to go and pray with them, share a scripture with them. But, you got nervous or scared and so you didn’t. Afterwards you wish that you had and you even feel bad that you didn’t. God put that person on your heart at that moment for a reason! You were the one that God called to speak to that person. Our simple act of obedience, might be the very thing that opens a door for someone to begin the journey of a life-saving change. That is huge! We do not want to let that opportunity pass us by because we will never have that exact opportunity again. 

So, why are we scared? Probably the number one reason is honestly, because we are not Prepared.

BE PREPARED

We all want to share the Gospel! I really believe that in our hearts we really do want to be able to share the Gospel! But for different reasons we feel scared. We get nervous. We feel unqualified. We are afraid of saying the wrong thing. We don’t know how they will respond. We are afraid of being rejected. There are a million reasons.

Success in sharing the Gospel is not measured by whether someone comes to salvation in that moment. God did not put that pressure on us. Success is our obedience in telling them about Jesus. If we have Jesus inside of us, then we have everything that it takes to tell others about Jesus, we just have to do it!

So, how do we get over being scared? By simply being prepared! Expect to share! Anticipate an opportunity to share. Look for someone to share. We don’t share because we don’t prepare. When is the last time that you intentionally looked for someone to talk to about Jesus? We go weeks or months or years without even looking for some one to talk to about Jesus. And if we don’t look for them then we won’t find them. But if we plan ahead, we prepared ahead and we look ahead, we will see that one. And then we will be ready at a moment’s notice when God calls us live out the Great Commission.

1 Peter 3:15 says, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”

Here are a few ways to make yourself ready.

PREPARE TO SHARE!

1. Pray Before Engage
Pray for a burden, for a passion, for opportunities, for boldness, confidence, and for obedience to share

2. Prepare your Story
Prepare to tell your story in 2 minutes. What was your life like before Jesus & what is God doing in your life now?

3. Memorize some basic Scripture
John 3:16
Romans 3:23,6:23 & 10:13

4. Know some Gospel Conversation Starters
Have a few Gospel Conversations Starters in your back pocket to help transition into sharing the Gospel 

5. Go Share!
Open your heart and your mouth!
What is the worst that could happen?

Jesus said, “Behold, I AM WITH YOU!” He is not sending us out there by ourselves. He wants you to succeed more than you want to succeed so he’s going with you!

“GOSPEL CONVERSATION STARTERS” 
• Do you have any spiritual beliefs?
• Do you have any religious beliefs?
• Do you attend a church?
• What holidays do you celebrate?
• How can I pray for you?
• Have you ever heard of Jesus?
• Has anyone ever told you that you are loved by Jesus?
• Have you heard of the Bible?
• Do you read the Bible?
• Do you ever pray?
• To whom do you pray?
• Can I share my story with you?
• Can I tell you how Jesus has changed my life?
• Have you ever heard of the gospel?
• Where do you find purpose in life?
• What do you believe happens after you die?
• We live in a broken world, which is why I’m so thankful for Jesus. Do you know Him?
• If it were not for Jesus, my life would be completely different. Do you know Him?
• What do you think it takes to get to Heaven?
• Have you ever thought about why you were created?
• If it weren’t for Jesus, I would be…

Let’s go find one lost sheep today!

(Gospel Conversation Starters taken from NAMBEVANGELISM.com)