Let us sing hymn 933:
I have a Savior, He’s pleading in glory,
A dear loving Savior, though earth-friends be few;
And now He is watching in tenderness o’er me,
But oh, that my Savior were your Savior too!
For you I am praying, for you I am praying,
For you I am praying, I’m praying for you.
Hymns, #933
When you preach the gospel to your relative or classmate, do not argue with him. You may sing a hymn to him. Everyone loves music. Although he may refuse to believe in Jesus, his heart is not made of iron or stone but of flesh. The hymn we just sang says:
For you I am praying, for you I am praying,
For you I am praying, I’m praying for you.
When you sing like this, his heart will be softened.
In order to do anything we need the skill and the technique. When you preach the gospel, do not argue with people. Do not be inflexible. If they will not believe, do not insist that they believe or tell them that if they do not believe, they will go to hell. If you do this, they will say, “I would rather go to hell!” This is useless. You must change your way. If they reject the gospel, you should not say anything to further provoke them. Instead, you may say, “Let me sing a hymn to you.” Then begin to sing to them. If you keep singing, they will be moved. Let us sing another hymn:
You are fallen in sin; you are suffering in pain.
Why don’t you repent right now, and be free from sin?
You’re walking in evil, there are traps everywhere.
You will surely fall if you do not turn!
Jesus wants to save you, He is waiting to heal you.
Why not open your heart today and receive Him?
Chinese Hymns, #715
I like this hymn very much. I call this “The Hymn of a Sinner’s History” because it persuades people to believe in the Lord on the one hand, and it tells the history of the sinner on the other hand. Verse three says:
Dying years, increasing yet decreasing,
Life is but a cloud.
Who knows if it will not vanish tomorrow?
All mothers like to see their children celebrating their first birthday. But when a person grows old, he does not enjoy his birthday anymore. If I have ninety dollars in my pocket, and I have spent eighty-one dollars already, I must be careful; I have only nine dollars left. Apparently, our years are increasing; actually, they are decreasing. As your age increases by a year, your life decreases by a year. Our age is like a bank deposit. Our savings are limited, but our spending is continuous. With money there is still the possibility of control, but you have no way to control your age. For this reason, man is somewhat disappointed with his life.
When you come to verse three, you can start preaching the gospel: “O friends, you are living in sin. You are in the hand of the devil. Your end is just death. Time is passing by, day by day. All men, rich or poor, noble or humble, are going down the same way. No one can escape. But when the Lord Jesus came, He ‘died to bruise the devil, and bore our sins.’ A person without the Savior is like a man under the hand of a surgeon on the operating table; he is being cut at the surgeon’s will. But the Lord came, and He nullified death and manifested life.” You should tell your friends that although they have grieved the Lord, He is still ready to save. Although they have rejected Him, He is still waiting for them.
You should sing gospel songs to your relatives and friends. You should also help them to sing along with you. Sometimes it is better to sing than to preach. Let us sing together hymn 1065:
O how great His salvation! O how great His salvation!
O how great His salvation! Jesus saves me now!
Jesus breaks ev’ry fetter! Jesus breaks ev’ry fetter!
Jesus breaks ev’ry fetter! Jesus sets me free!
Hymns, #1065
Parents like to hear their children sing. When you visit your relatives, you may first give their children some candy and then teach them to sing a simple hymn. Their parents may be unhappy if you persuade them to believe in Jesus. But they will pay much attention to their children’s singing. When they hear the songs, they will be touched.