Pass It On

By Christi Morley

August 30, 2025

I couldn’t take my eyes off the flame. As a little girl, I wasn’t allowed to play with matches or candles, but at Christmas Eve service, a flame was passed right to me! As we sang “Silent Night,” someone lit the tall, white candle that my mom was holding, and then she leaned over and lit mine. Then I lit my sister’s candle. I stared at the flame I was holding…so lovely! The dark sanctuary began to glow as more and more candles were lit, as each of us passed on the flame that had been passed to us.  

I still love Christmas Eve candlelight service, for many reasons, one of which is passing on the glorious flame from one candle to the next. At Christmastime we celebrate that a Savior came into the world, and when we recognize that and invite Him into our hearts, a flame is lit within us! The Bible calls Christians the light of the world.  

And once we know the immeasurable joy of walking through life with Jesus as Lord, how could we not pass it on to others? Our God wants everyone to come to repentance and to know Him. He loves everyone, and we have the incredible privilege of passing on the good news of what Jesus Christ has done for humanity to the others who do not yet know Him. 

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Several months ago, I spent some extended time alone with God to seek His vision for Arise Women’s Ministry for the coming year, to see what He wanted us to focus on. What I heard Him say was, “Share the gospel…so that none should perish.”  

What did He mean by that? I knew in my heart what God meant, but I wanted to understand even more, so I looked up a definition of “share the gospel.” 

To "share the gospel" is to communicate the "good news" of Christianity—the story of Jesus Christ's life, death, and resurrection—to others, inviting them to place their faith in Him for salvation and a relationship with God.  

So, God was telling me that He wants us (Arise Women’s Ministry leadership) to inspire and equip women to share the gospel. I am 100% on board with that!  

But what did God mean by this part: “…so that none should perish”? I looked up the verse in the Bible that says that. 

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 

2 Peter 3:9 

Our gracious God provided a means for our salvation through Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection, and now our gracious God waits patiently for all to come to repentance. If you know Jesus, you know how incredible this gift of grace and salvation is!! But what about those who don’t yet know? Who is going to tell them?  

Jesus Christ told us to tell them. We are His “Plan A” for sharing the gospel with a lost world! While this task may seem daunting and many of us don’t know the HOW or the WHEN, we can be assured of the WHY. 

We share the gospel because God loves every one of us! 

“For God so loved that world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” 

John 3:16 

We share the gospel because Jesus told us to! 

“Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’” 

Matthew 18:18-20 

We share the gospel because if we were lost and were going to “perish,” we would want someone to share the good news with us so that we could experience eternal life with God instead! 

“Do unto others as you would want them to do to you.” 

Luke 6:31 

We share the gospel because it is the greatest purpose we could live for! 

“Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.” 

1 Corinthians 9:19-23 

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As far as HOW and WHEN to share the gospel, we won’t always know in advance, but we can watch and wait for God’s leading. The greatest tools you have as a follower of Christ are: 

-His Word. The Bible tells you Who God is and what He desires for His people. The Bible also explains the gospel, the good news, about Jesus, so hide it in your heart so you can more easily share it with others! 

-The Holy Spirit. He dwells within you and will prompt you to speak to particular people and will teach you what to say when the time comes! 

-Prayer. Ask God to give you a heart for the lost! Ask God to provide opportunities to tell other about Jesus! Ask God to help you be ready and to have courage when the opportunity comes! 

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Friend, I want to encourage you in this: however long you may live on this earth, that time is incredibly short in the light of all eternity. Because of this, we are called to use the time we are given to serve our Lord Jesus with all that we have, and to build His eternal kingdom by sharing the gospel with as many people as we can while we are here. When I get to Heaven, I want there to be people who are there because I lived, acted and spoke in a way that showed them who Jesus is, and made them want to know Him and accept Him too. I can think of no more precious offering to give my King than to help more of His children turn to Him, accept Him, love Him, and follow Him. And then they will be able to take that light of the world and pass it on to others, to please the King that they can now call their own, King Jesus.  

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I’d like to leave you with a hymn we sometimes sang at Sunday evening service when I was a kid. It’s called “Pass It On.” 

It only takes a spark 

To get a fire going 

And soon all those around 

Can warm up in its glowing… 

That’s how it is with God’s love 

Once you’ve experienced it 

You spread His love 

To everyone 

You want to pass it on 

Listen to the song on YouTube

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If you are a woman who wants to be better equipped to share the gospel, join us this year (2025-2026) in Arise Women’s Ministry. We are focusing our Bible studies and our Moms of Grace meetings on sharing the gospel.