Christians have the motivating power and willingness to preach the Lord Jesus as the gospel to others because they have Him as the center of their being. He not only fills the void, the emptiness, within them but also meets all their inward needs. Many people in the world recognize that Christians have a motivating power within them. However, this power is not of the Christians themselves. Rather, this power is God Himself becoming the motivating power within them. An electric fan does not spin continuously by itself. It spins because electricity flows into it to be its power. Christians have the motivating power to preach, testify, and proclaim the Lord Jesus as the gospel to their relatives, friends, and everyone not because they have any power in themselves but because the Lord Jesus in them has become their motivating power. The motivating power of the gospel does not come from man, nor does it depend on man, but it comes from Christ motivating His believers within.
For this reason, we Christians often feel that there is something “burning” within us to the extent that we cannot help but preach the Lord Jesus to others. There is a fire burning within us, stirring up our burden for the gospel (cf. Luke 12:49; 2 Tim. 1:6-7). It is not that we are enthusiastic; rather, the Lord is touching us and motivating us. He desires that we would preach the gospel to all our relatives and friends, saying to them, “Your life is like everyone else’s life. Your real need is the Lord of the universe. Without the Lord, your life is meaningless and aimless. When you receive the Lord, you will have joy and satisfaction.”
The Bible tells us the way to receive God and to gain Him. Acts 17:27 says that God is not far from each one of us, and Romans 10:8 says that the word of the faith is in our mouth and in our heart. Although man fell and was far away from God, God became a man to seek and to save those who are lost (Luke 19:10). He died for us on the cross and was resurrected from the dead to become the life-giving Spirit (Acts 2:23; Phil 2:8; 1 Cor. 15:45; 2 Cor 3:17a). Then He ascended to the heavens and poured Himself out as the Spirit so that He can reach everyone who believes in Him (Acts 2:17, 21).
Today it does not matter what time it is or where we are, nor does it matter who we are; as long as we are willing to open our heart and call upon the name of the Lord Jesus, we will receive God as our Savior and our life, and immediately there will be a change in our heart (v. 21; Ezek 36:26-27). Initially, we might have been full of darkness, but after receiving the Lord, we will be light in Him (Eph. 5:8). We might have been weak, wavering, and in turmoil within, but after receiving the Lord, we will be full of peace and strength and will be unwavering and secure (Col. 3:15). Once we receive the Lord Jesus, we will have a center and a power that calms us. As a result, we will have a joyful human life, a living filled with light, and a proper conduct. This is the positive result of the Lord Jesus entering into us to rearrange our human life and satisfy our inward need.
This is not an empty theory or a mere saying but a spiritual reality and a fact in the universe. Today the Lord is the Spirit who can enter into us so that we may be satisfied in spirit and turn from darkness to light. As long as the Lord enters into him, even a vile and corrupt person can become a good and loving person.
In the past I had a friend who studied in Japan, and after he returned to China, he held a high position in the political circle. He eventually became the mayor of Tientsin, a special municipality. However, when I met him some time later, he was lying on a hospital bed. As soon as he saw me, he cried and said to me, “I have tasted many kinds of enjoyment, received a high education, and held a high position. Regarding material possessions, I am rich. Concerning my family, my wife and children are all by my side, and I can say that I have a happy family. However, as I lie on this hospital bed, I am sorrowful within, and I do not know why I am sorrowful. I feel that I lack something and that I desire something more, yet I do not know what I lack or how to obtain it. Can you please help me to solve this problem?”
After he spoke, I did not answer immediately. Rather, I calmed down and then spoke to him softly. I said to him, “This is a very simple matter. The real meaning of human life is God Himself. In a sense, your experience is proper and complete. You have had many kinds of enjoyment, received a high education, and held a high position. You are also rich in material possessions and have a happy family. Some may say that you have everything. However, you still have a need deep within you. This need is God Himself. You are a person with a large intellectual capacity. Please consider, why you are here? What is the meaning of your existence? Actually, your life is for God, and God is the meaning of your life. Without God, your life is meaningless. What you are lacking inside is God Himself.”
As soon as he heard these words, his eyes lit up, and he asked, “How can I obtain God?” I replied, “Today God is the Spirit who has been poured out on all flesh. He is waiting to enter into those who believe in and receive Him. If you open your heart and pray a simple and sincere prayer to receive Him as your Savior, He will immediately come into you.”
At first he was a little doubtful and asked if it was really that simple to receive God. I responded, “Yes, it is that simple. Do not be surprised. The things that people need the most can often be obtained in the simplest ways. Consider the sunlight and the air. These two are great needs to man, yet it is very simple for man to obtain the sunlight and breathe in the air. God is man’s greatest need, and it is likewise very simple for man to receive Him. I encourage you to try it right now.” He immediately agreed and prayed on the bed to receive the Lord. After praying, he said to me, “I used to oppose Christianity. I never allowed my wife to join any Christian meetings or my children to receive education in Christian schools. However, I want you to know that now from this day forward, I want my children and my wife to attend the meetings.” I asked why he wanted this, and he said, “After I prayed, there seemed to be a ray of light shining within me.” Then I said to him, “This is a good beginning, and I hope that you can pray to the Lord in this way every day.”
This was the only occasion on which I saw him after he was hospitalized. Later, I heard that he passed away not long after my visit. However, I received a report that just before he passed away, his last words to his wife and children were, “I have believed in Jesus, and I am genuinely happy. I hope that you can all attend the church meetings to hear the gospel and receive Jesus as your Savior.” Although this person was highly educated, had held a high position, and had tasted many kinds of human enjoyment, he left with such last words. This is because in him the deepest and ultimate need of human life, which nothing except God can satisfy, had been met.
Man has a need for physical and psychological enjoyment and for spiritual satisfaction as well. It is true that there are many kinds of material supply on earth to meet man’s need for his existence, and it is true that without these supplies the human life cannot be sustained. However, we need to recognize that in our deepest part there is another need that far surpasses our material needs.
After World War I, many people had blind faith in the advancement of the material world. As a result, many German young people studied science in order to pursue material enjoyment. From that time the material civilization made great progress, yet this progress led to World War II. During and after the Second World War, the Germans suffered the most because they had paid the most attention to advancing the material, physical things and to scientific progress. After the First World War and prior to the Second World War, many young people went to Germany for advanced studies. At that time, if anyone mentioned anything about belief in God, people would scorn him and say, “This person is outdated and is not living in the present age.” However, those who visited Germany after World War II could testify that on every Lord’s Day, almost every Christian meeting place was full of people. Many people were considering and asking questions about God. Many people realized that improvements in the material realm could not solve the problems of human life. Thus, they were seeking the Lord inwardly. This proves that the spiritual need deep within man’s heart surpasses the material needs of man’s physical body.
If man takes care of only his material needs and the improvement of his outward environment without maintaining an inward stability and without having a center deep in his heart, he will often make the mistake of taking the improvement of his outward environment and the meeting of his material needs as ends in themselves. Therefore, man needs an inner center, a stabilizing power within him, so that he can properly use the material things and properly enjoy the psychological things. This shows that there is a need deep within man and that this need is greater than the outward material needs.
I once met a friend in Tsingtao who had studied medicine and had become a doctor. When he saw me, the first thing he said to me was, “I do not feel that I have peace and satisfaction within.” I asked him, “Why don’t you have peace and satisfaction within? You are a person in the upper class. You have received a high level of education, and you have a first-class career. Is it that you do not have a happy family? Are you in want financially?” He replied, “I do not have any problems with my outward circumstances; rather, my problem is in my inward frame of mind. I always feel that I lack something within, and I do not know what it is.”
I smiled and said to him, “What you lack is God. You lack the Lord of the universe, and you feel empty because you do not have Him within you. I do not need to give you many teachings. Please consider, when you are thirsty, you can quench your thirst only by drinking some water, which is easy to obtain. This same principle can be applied to your present inward lack. You have a need within that can be satisfied only by God, and it is easy to receive Him into you. God is Spirit, and He is omnipresent; He is everywhere at the same time. You only need to open your heart, call upon the name of Jesus, and believe in Him by receiving Him as your Savior. If you do this, you will spontaneously have a sense within that God has flowed into you. This is similar to radio waves being transmitted into a radio. You can try this right now.” He agreed, and he prayed with me.
After praying, he said that he had tasted something. Then I said to him, “When you go home, you should pray again. You only need to come before the Lord sincerely and speak to Him from the depths of your being, from the feeling in your heart. If you have the sense that you have wronged others, you should confess these sins before God and receive the Lord’s cleansing. When you confess and receive His cleansing in this way, He will forgive your sins and enter into you to satisfy the needs in your human life.” This is the simplest way for us to gain God.
God is our spiritual sunlight, food, and drink. When we do not have Him, we have the inner sense of darkness, hunger, thirst, emptiness, and dissatisfaction. God is also life to us; without Him we are dead and depressed. We are neither lively nor fresh and are without vitality.
In summary, without God, man is in darkness and is hungry, thirsty, and disappointed. Without God, man’s life will not be proper, families will neither be happy nor on the right track, and society will become chaotic and disorderly. However, those who have God will be in the light and will be proper persons; families that have God will be happy, satisfied, and on the right track; and a society that has God will be peaceful, harmonious, and glorious. Therefore, every person, every family, and every society needs God. Without Jesus, who is God, everything is a chasing after wind. With Jesus, a vain human life will become meaningful, a family will become sweet and perfect, and society will be full of harmony.
Hymns, #1024 says, “You need Jesus! You need Jesus! / Men and women all need Him! / To escape from vanity, / To obtain reality, / To make life significant, / Yes, you need Jesus!” If we have Jesus, our human life will not be empty but full of satisfaction because He is what we need, and He is the One in whom we can trust. With Him we have everything. If we receive Him, our life of vanity will turn into a song.