God’s Invitation
Man, like dried leaves driven by the summer wind, is carried farther and farther away from God (Isaiah 64:6). The tragic truth is that he has no power to stop it or control his direction. Sin has made its dwelling within man (Romans 7:15–17), attacking and influencing him from within. Left to himself, man is hopeless and doomed to eternal separation from God.
Yet God could not give man up so easily. He loved humanity with a love beyond human understanding. He made a way—and that way has been completed.
“It is finished,” was the triumphant cry on Calvary’s cross that brought hope even to the vilest of men. Salvation, like a bountiful feast, has been prepared for this sin-darkened world. Now, as before, God through Jesus Christ extends His loving invitation to all.
Through the prophet Isaiah, God declared:
“Come now, and let us reason together… though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”
In the New Testament, the Lord Himself says:
“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
God’s Invitation to Salvation
The Bible portrays God as One who continually seeks those who have gone astray. In the Garden of Eden, when man first fell into sin, God searched for Adam and Eve. Out of deep concern and love, He called, “Where are you?”
The Lord Jesus Christ affirmed this divine mission:
“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
This same concern is seen today as God sends His messengers throughout the earth. Whenever a person hears the preaching of the gospel through God’s sent ones, he is receiving God’s invitation to salvation and forgiveness of sins (2 Thessalonians 2:14).
God’s Invitation to Discipleship
“The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.” This was the condition during the time of the Lord—and it is even more urgent today due to the tremendous growth of the world’s population. God’s call for disciples is more pressing than ever.
Jesus Christ declared in Mark 8:34–35:
“Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.”
The rewards of God’s calling cannot be measured in money or material things. The glory and honor promised by the Lord are beyond compare. As written in John 12:26:
“If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.”
God has reserved the highest honor for those who choose to serve Him.
God’s Invitation to Watch
In Mark 13, the Lord gives a solemn command:
“And what I say to you, I say to all: WATCH!”
Revelation 3:3 explains the meaning of this command:
“Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent…”
To watch, therefore, is to remain spiritually alert—holding firmly to what has been taught by God’s sent ones, and living faithfully until the coming of the Lord.
The promise is given in Luke 12:37:
“Blessed are those servants whom the Master, when He comes, will find watching… He will gird Himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them.”
God’s invitation calls us to draw nearer to Him—into salvation, into discipleship, and into spiritual watchfulness.
So let everyone WATCH.