Spread the Gospel

I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. ⁷ So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.

1 Corinthians 3:6-7, ESV

As a Christian it can be overwhelming knowing the ONE thing we are to do is spread the gospel. To tell everyone we meet the message of the cross. To lead them to the saving knowledge of the one true God. That’s no small feet.

But as Paul tells the church of Corinth in the above passage (the I refers to Paul), we only play a part in spreading the gospel. We might be a seed planter, like Paul, who is the first to share the message of eternal life with Christ – this free gift available to all. Or we might be like Apollos (a teacher who’s story is told more in 2 Corinthians), someone watering the seed, who continues to share the message and maybe fills in the blanks, give more information, or just encourages someone further along into excepting Christ.

Here is the thing, those rolls are important, BUT you see that next part in that list? It tells us that only God can cause that seed to grow. This doesn’t diminish our roll but reminds us that the power comes through Christ in us as we share the message. We have to do our part in the garden of saving souls, but ultimately, God takes what we planted and/or watered and grows it into a person who accepts the message of salvation and choose to follow him and receive the free gift of salvation.

As you plant or water seeds in your life and feel like it is falling on deaf ears, just that God is right there with and will grow those seeds. We might never get to see the growth, but God is faithful in doing his part.