Daily Encouragement Net (Archive/Print Edition)

Friday, April 28, 2006

"I'm A Whosoever!"

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:13).

When I pastored in New England we had a special day in our church called "Friend Day." We had promoted this day as an opportunity for our regular church people to especially invite unchurched friends and family members to the Sunday service. As I recall we had the largest attendance on "Friend Day" the entire time I served that church.

A young man visited that Sunday who had quite a story. He was from Cape Verde (an island off the coast of Africa) and was deaf and partially blind. He had moved to America several years earlier and learned sign language. Prior to that he was unable to communicate with anyone, including his own parents.

During the fellowship meal following the service he wanted to speak to me (through an interpreter). He asked my permission to visit the church again. I suppose he wondered that since he came as a friend on this special day it might be a one time offer! Well of course I assured him that he was welcome any time and we would be very pleased to have him back.

I love to preach the Gospel. Consider that word "whosoever" found in the daily text. It doesn't limit anybody. I have a lapel pin that declares, "I'm a whosoever." Indeed I am. And so is a relatively unknown skinny, deaf young man from Africa. And so are you! "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:13). Now that's good news!

Be encouraged today,

Stephen C. Weber

Brooksyne's prayer: Jesus, Your death on the cross makes it possible that whosoever calls upon Your name will be saved. I'm so glad You didn't limit the whosoevers to only the rich, the intellectual, the charming, or the famous. You are present in the most remote village as well as the overcrowded city, to every tribe and tongue, every color and race. You make Yourself known to all peoples of all lands, the whosoevers of our world. How precious it is to know that I am more than just a whosoever, for You know me by name and You even call me Your own.

A candid thought: The great universal call "whosoever" is a call from the Holy God to the fallen human race to come, to believe, to repent of sin and to begin the transforming process of living obediently and in holiness as God's children. As I studied and worked on this subject today I was grieved that the wonderful concept of "whosoever" is being used by some to justify continued disobedience to God in living in sin and perversion. In the background of the podcast today Brooksyne is playing "Come Just As You Are". Although God indeed invites all to come just as we are, we are not to stay just as we are, but to change, repenting of and forsaking sin.

"Come Just As You Are" (audio link)

Another song that comes to mind that we can all sing and rejoice in is "He Knows My Name"
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