The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

— Romans 6:23

We didn’t overload Sharon (see Feb. 9) right away with all kinds of information on how to become a Christian when she first attended our group. We simply explained the way of salvation and knew that the Holy Spirit would keep working in her to bring her to faith in Christ.

During those weeks I was training our group members in several ways to present the way of salvation. One day I explained how we can use Romans 6:23 in a one-verse method to share the gospel. Working through the verse phrase by phrase as I sketched a cross on a whiteboard, I showed how we can explain this verse to others.

“Wages must be paid,” I said; “they’re not optional. And death is the required wage, or result, of sin. Gifts, however, are optional. The giver can opt to give—and once a gift is offered, a person can opt to receive it or not. God offers eternal life through Christ and his death on the cross.”

“At this point,” I said to the group, “you can ask the person who is listening, ‘Do you want to receive this gift?’”

Then immediately Sharon raised her hand and exclaimed, “I do!” So, right there and then, Sharon received Christ as her Lord and Savior. She later returned to her home town, and before long she called us to ask how she could start a group like ours in her new location. She was ready to share with others what she had learned.

Lord, there are people around us who need you. Help us to explain your salvation to them in a simple, clear way. Amen.