“Nothing comes close to the power of God’s Word to change your life.” These were the first words I heard Tayseer (Tass) Abu Saada speak. I had never met Tass, but was immediately drawn to his winsome and captivating personality. In 2001, Tass had come from his home near Kansas City to speak at a summer “School of Missions” workshop for Global Initiative: Reaching Muslim Peoples.
Tass was born in Gaza and raised as a Muslim. He spent years serving in the Middle East as a sniper in the Palestine Liberation Organization––even serving a stint as driver for Yasser Arafat, the leader of the PLO. Eventually, Tass’s father felt he was losing his son to radicalism and, as a last resort, sent him to the U.S. to study.
In the U.S., Tass met Charlie, a born-again businessman who faithfully shared Jesus with him. Charlie said, “Tass, you must believe that Jesus is the Son of God.” Tass answered, “That’s enough! Do you think I am crazy? First, you tell me that I must love my enemies and now you tell me that Jesus is the Son of God. I really want to leave now.”
One day, Charlie opened the New Testament and read aloud to Tass the entire first chapter of John’s Gospel. Realizing these verses were speaking about the divinity of Jesus, Tass began to shake uncontrollably and “lost consciousness.” Within minutes, Tass rose to his knees with his hands raised and asked Jesus to be his Lord and King. Charlie asked Tass, “What happened and what were you thinking?” Tass responded that he had seen a light and out of the light came a voice saying, “I am the Truth, the Life, and the Way. Follow me.” Finally, Tass said to Charlie, “These words from Scripture have convinced me that Jesus is the Son of God and I want Him to be my Lord and Savior.” Tass had a revelation from God that caused him to declare, as did Simon Peter, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16, NKJV).
Back in 2001, as he shared his conversion testimony—from being a Muslim terrorist to a sold-out follower of Jesus Christ—it was evident that he was “the real deal.” No joking around, no ambiguity about his intentions, no personal agenda to promote—just the explicit setting forth of the power of the gospel to dramatically change a life—especially his life! I clearly remember his bottom line:
I can’t waste time on unimportant matters. If you do not wish to engage in sharing the gospel with the lost, especially Muslims, then you probably won’t have a lot in common with me. I am already middle-aged, so I have one goal—and it is to spend the rest of my life sharing the life-changing gospel of Jesus with as many Muslims as possible.
Tass went on to found and direct Seeds of Hope, a humanitarian organization operating in the Middle East. Tass regularly appears on Christian TV, speaks at various events around the world, and has written his autobiography, entitled, Once an Arafat Man: The True Story of How a PLO Sniper Found a New Life. Regardless of the venue, his bottom line remains the same: “I have one goal—and it is to spend the rest of my life sharing the life-changing gospel of Jesus with as many Muslims as possible.”
How about you?
Are you passionate to share the life-transforming gospel of Jesus Christ with hurting people who are lost and without the hope only found in Jesus?
If not, ask the Lord to give you His heart for reaching the lost.
"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)
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
(John 3:16)
Let this song be a catalyst for developing a God-given passion for reaching the lost!
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