Likewise, be talkative about telling people the gospel (which means “good news”) of Jesus Christ. I am sure you have tasted of the goodness of the salvation that comes from Jesus. This goodness includes the following. Your sins will send you to hell. Now, however, Jesus has washed away all your sins. You are spared hell. Not only so, you are guaranteed eternal life and a place in heaven, a place of eternal joy (John 14:1-4). Death is no longer frightening. In fact, it opens the gates to heaven. Previously, you were a slave of sin. You could not break free from evil and destructive habits. But Jesus has set you free from sin. You have the strength to live a holy life. For once after a long time, you feel clean. Of course, we still sin. But we can, as we labour at growing spiritually by God’s help, break free from our sinful habits (Rom 6:6-7). We can experience the peace that transcends all understanding even as we face sufferings and uncertainties in life. God gives us this peace when we pray (Phil 4:6-7). We can carry on forever listing down the goodness of Jesus’ salvation.

I urge you to be talkative, not talkative as in a student who does not pay attention in class [!]. Rather, be talkative about Jesus. I must commend some people in our midst. When they meet people, they would grab every opportunity to talk about Jesus. They invite people to church. They don’t feel embarrassed or paiseh. If you see them, some may think in this way: “You are very pushy,” or “overly zealous.” I agree that we must speak the gospel at the right moment, as Proverbs 25:11 says, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver” (English Standard Version). But you must speak the gospel! Don’t wait and wait and wait and wait and wait forever. You are wasting time. Sometimes the opportunity never comes because death takes away that opportunity, or because you will not see this person again. Rather, carpe diem! This Latin phrase means, “make the most of the present time and give little thought to the future.” Stop waiting for the best time.

Hence, be talkative about the gospel. Wherever you go or whoever you meet, “preach the Word, be prepared in season and out of season” (2 Tim 4:2). Do not bother if people think you are mad or irritating. Just be talkative: preach the gospel! If you do this, you will have a high chance of leading people to Christ. If you want to lead people to Christ, and you do not open your mouth, how can God use you to save souls?

Create opportunities to share the gospel with strangers: talk to the taxi-driver who is stuck with you for 20 minutes; be creative and brave, and strike conversation with a stranger. When you are with friends or relatives, telling them the gospel is easy because you do not need to think very hard of ways to begin a conversation. You can begin a conversation related to children, studies, work, sickness, or some news, and bring in the need to know God. The difficulty with sharing the gospel is not opportunity. It is the willingness to share. Thus, be talkative about Jesus. If you work hard, I am sure the Lord can use you to lead a lost soul to Christ.