Our New Life is to be Shared

Our new life allows us to share new life with others.

2 Corinthians 5:16-21
16 So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ
merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!17 This means that anyone who
belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
18 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has
given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to
himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of
reconciliation. 20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak
for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the
offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Samuel Morris was the only native African on board a ship crossing the Atlantic in September
1891. He had agreed to work to pay for his passage on the trip to the U.S., but the crew had
strong prejudices against Africans. He frequently was beaten and given dangerous assignments.
Abuse was not new to Samuel. His birth name was “Kaboo,” and his father was a tribal chief in
Liberia (in western Africa). As a boy, he was captured by a rival clan. During one of the many
moments of torture, he saw a bright light and heard a voice telling him to flee.

Somehow he escaped into the jungle, making his way to Monrovia, Liberia’s capital. There, he
heard a missionary speak about Paul’s conversion. Thinking about his own experiences, Kaboo
related to Paul’s story and committed his life to Christ. He was baptized as “Samuel Morris,” a
name suggested by the missionary.

Growing in faith, he particularly desired to learn more about the Holy Spirit. He decided to go to
America to meet Stephen Merritt, a pastor whose works he had read. He tried to put into practice
all he knew about the Spirit. Trusting Him completely, Samuel walked to Robertsport, Liberia’s
port city. Looking for a ship heading for America, he found a willing captain but the man was
not kind or encouraging.

During the difficult ocean voyage, his faith never wavered. Throughout the journey, the crew
heard him sing Gospel songs and saw him praying. And by the time the ship docked in New
York, the captain and most of the crew had accepted Christ because of his witness.

Triple D: His story reveals the supernatural ways God transforms a life and transforms others
because of it. Devote your life to him. Have faith and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you.