A Tale of Two Drowning Men
It is often asked by those who want to promote more evangelism that if a man was drowning in a lake, would we be morally responsible to go and throw the guy a lifejacket and try to save him from drowning? Of course we would.
Now imagine that two men were drowning in a lake, one not too far from the shoreline and the other far off in the middle of the lake. You see a handful of people running towards the closest drowning man ready to jump in and try to save him. The second man, however, continues to struggle by himself in the middle of the lake far from any help. What should we do in this situation? Where should our primary lifesaving focus lie? With the man who has the most dire need.
How is it any different for Christians to focus their evangelistic efforts primarily on saving those who are geographically closest to them in places where the Gospel is so widely available, while millions perish around the world without the Gospel ever having been preached to them? Where should our primary lifesaving focus lie? With him who has the greatest need, or the least?
In fact, the only way I can personally justify (with a clear conscience) spending any length of time in the States being involved in personal evangelism (as opposed to catching the next flight back to Asia) is the hope that some American who God saves as a result of my labors might someday be raised up as a missionary to reach out to these Gospel-deprived regions of the world. That is, I console myself in my evangelism in placees like America and Peru, by praying and trusting that God will use those who are converted to some day go and take the Gospel to the true ends of the earth.
Some might counter that America does not have the Gospel like it should, and that there is still so much to do there. I agree that this is sometimes the case. However, America (and much of Latin America) cannot honestly be compared with the unreached villages that I see every day here in Asia¡¯s highlands. If, by way of comparison, America is in the midst of a sustained drought where 50% less rain is falling than usual, then most of Asia¡¯s highlands would be akin to the Atacama Desert in northern Chile where less than than 1 mm of rain falls on a yearly basis, and some areas never receive even a drop of rain. There is really no comparison.
What do I seek to accomplish with this blog? I simply want to encourage all true believers to examine their lives to see if God would not have them do more for the unreached around the world, or even go there as missionaries themselves. If there were indeed two men drowning in a lake, one close to the shore with many people there to help, and the other far from the shore without anyone to save him, we would need to hear a voice from Heaven telling us not to go and save the second man, before we could in good conscience try to help the first.
Let me end this post with a quote from the famous missionary to China, Hudson Taylor:
If in the sight of God you cannot say you are sure that you have a special call to stay at home, why are you disobeying the Saviour’s plain command to go? Why are you refusing to come to the help of the Lord against the mighty? If, however, it is perfectly clear that duty (not inclination, not pleasure, not business) detains you at home, are you labouring in prayer for these needy ones as you might? Is your influence used to advance the cause of God among them? Are your means as largely employed as they should be in helping forward their salvation?”
