"Good News About Grace" in American Sign LanguageSample

Who Will Be In Heaven Because Of You?
By Rick Warren

“The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me — to tell people the Good News about God’s grace.” (Acts 20:24 NCV)

The Bible says in Acts 20:24, “The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me — to tell people the Good News about God’s grace” (NCV).

Notice it doesn’t say the most important thing in life is to get married, fund your retirement, travel a lot, become famous, or pay off the house. It says the most important thing in life is to fulfill your mission. If Jesus died on the cross for you so that you can fulfill your mission and you don’t do it, that is a massive, eternal waste.

God put you on Earth for a purpose. He has a mission that only you can fulfill. Part of that mission is to tell other people the Good News of God’s grace. You know Christ because somebody told you about him. Now, who are you going to tell?

If somebody died for you, wouldn’t you want to know about it? Jesus died for every single person in the world. This weekend, the typical American will sit at home watching TV, with a soda or beer, maybe reading the newspaper, kicked back and relaxed — and totally unaware that Jesus Christ died for him and unaware of the grace that is available to him.

The Bible tells us in 2 Peter that the Lord is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. God wants everybody in his family, and because God cares, we must care.

We’re approaching the Easter season. At this time of year, people are more open to an invitation to come to church than at any other time of the year. Don’t waste that opportunity! Do not go to an Easter service to hear the best news in the world without bringing someone with you who needs to hear it for the first time. If you can’t think of anyone, start praying that God would open up your heart to see people around you who are desperate for the Good News. They are running from fad to therapy to books, trying to find fulfillment in an affair, work, a sport, or a hobby. There’s this gaping hole in their lives that only the grace of God can fill.

The way we show our gratitude for the grace of God is by making our own lives count, by living a life of extravagant generosity, and by telling as many people as we can about the Good News.

Is anybody going to be in Heaven because of you?

Talk It Over

Who can you invite to attend an Easter service with you? How will you approach that person?

What keeps you from sharing the Good News with people around you?

Take some time to write out your testimony so that you are better prepared to share it when God provides the opportunity.