When it comes to sharing their faith, most Christians get nervous. It's a difficult task to be sure. After all, it's not easy to know exactly what to say or how to explain things or answer questions. Plus a lot of Christians might feel they are being invasive or rude by sharing their faith with a stranger out of the blue. We usually think that if someone wanted to know about our faith, they'd ask.
Other times people open the door and practically invite you to share the things of God with them. I had one of those times today. And I blew it.
A woman called the church office today and asked if we "did baptisms" at our church. I must admit that the question caught me a bit off guard, so I answered hesitantly, almost questioning: "Yes?"
She then said, "Are you a non-denominational church? I'm not sure what kind of church you are, whether you're Catholic, Presbyterian, or whatever."
"We're a Baptist church," I answered.
"Oh, OK," she said. "I just need to get my son baptized."
By this time I had pretty much pieced together what she was driving at. At first I didn't realize that she was not affiliated with our church in any way. I didn't realize she was "baptism shopping."
"Uh, how old is your son?" I asked.
"He's seven months old," she responded.
"Oh. Um, we don't baptize infants at our church. Just children and adults who have professed faith in Jesus. You'll need to contact a different church."
"OK, thanks," she said, and hung up the phone.
After I hung up the phone, I was still reeling a bit from what had just transpired in that short conversation, but I definitely knew on thing: "You blew it!"
What a perfect chance to share the gospel with someone! Here was this woman, telling me that she was going to engage in a spiritual activity, and I had the chance to share with her the meaning of baptism, and why we believe it is performed on believers and not on infants. I had a humongous foot in the door to open up a spiritual conversation with her, but what did I say?
"You'll need to contact a different church."
FAIL.
But this wasn't the only fail I've had recently in the evangelism department. This past January Riverview participated in Project Home with another local church, in which we helped to provide emergency housing for those in need. Here again, I had a golden opportunity to provide a reason for the hope that lies within me, but here again, I blew it.
As the Project Home "host" for the evening, I was instructed to tell the residents that their last chance for a smoke break was at 8:30 PM. So at about 8:20 I went around and asked everyone if they smoked, and if so, they should take their last break now. I found a couple people in the lounge area talking and asked, "Do you all smoke?"
"Yeah," one lady answered. "Everybody here smokes. You probably wouldn't know what that's like though, since you're a good Christian."
I then proceeded to tell her that no, I was in fact not a good Christian, and that's why I need Jesus. I'm actually a very bad person with none of my own goodness, and that before God, I am a filthy sinner deserving God's judgment. I have broken his law. I have acted in ways that are an affront to God's nature and authority. I deserve hell. But God, being rich in mercy, even when we were dead in our trespasses, sent forth his Son to live a perfect and sinless life. He took all of the sin that I had committed onto himself and paid the penalty that belonged to me by dying on a cross. God crushed his own Son instead of me. And Jesus proved he was God and that the sacrifice was sufficient by rising from the dead. He has regenerated me and given me a new heart and new nature, so that now the sins that I once loved, I hate, and the things I once hated, I love. So no, there is nothing good about me except the alien righteousness that was imputed to me through Christ so I can now come before God as clean and pure.
Actually, I didn't say any of that. Instead, I gave a nervous chuckle and said they needed to take their last smoke break of the night, to which the woman and her companion said they already had.
I missed another opportunity to share the gospel that was served up to me on a tee.
If nothing else, these examples are good reminders for us to thank God that the eternal destinies of people do not rely on our efforts. Instead, God is sovereign over how, when, and if people will hear and believe the gospel. If it were all up to me saying the right words at the right time, then pretty much everyone would be damned to hell, because I'm flawed. I don't make the most of opportunities, and I don't say the right things. So praise God that he does his work even if and when I botch it and blow a chance to share the gospel with someone. And it's also a good reminder to keep our eyes and ears open for every chance to share the good news.
Towards the end of the most recent presidential election cycle, it was reported that Billy Graham had removed Mormonism from his website's cult directory. This happened reportedly after Graham met privately with Mitt Romney, presumably for the purpose of securing Graham's nomination. Knowing that Graham maintains sway over many evangelicals, it makes sense that Romney didn't want to be portrayed to them as being a member of a cult. Thus the removal. I posted briefly about this incident when it occurred.
Unfortunately (for the gospel) it turns out that the negative speculation surrounding this event was well founded, as this statement from Franklin Graham confirms that the motivation for the removal of Mormonism from their "cult page," and now the subsequent removal of the cult page altogether, is to not offend people or call them names. Franklin Graham says that he can't see preaching the gospel and name calling (which is what he considers labeling certain beliefs and people as "cults") going together. He has therefore removed the page.
Graham says, "If I want to win people to Christ, how can I call them names?" Like what? Mormon? Is that derogatory? No, it simply describes who the people are and the belief system they ascribe to.
Graham's website defined a cult as "any group which teaches doctrines or beliefs that deviate from the biblical message of the Christian faith. It is very important that we recognize cults and avoid any involvement with them. Cults often teach some Christian truth mixed with error, which may be difficult to detect."
To be sure, religious groups classified as cults according to the definition above are not a part of orthodox Christianity, and therefore do not have any eternal, effectual, salvific value. Or, in other words, they don't save. Wouldn't you think it'd be important to have a clear idea of the identity of such groups? I would. But apparently Franklin Graham seems to think that such distinction amounts to "name calling."
Billy Graham's media representative chimed in by saying "Mr. Graham's calling is not to pass judgment, but to proclaim the biblical truth that Jesus is the only way to heaven, allowing every individual and group to fall along that plumb line." What's ironic about this statement about a commitment to not judging people, and citing Jesus as the only exclusive way to God is, in and of itself, judgmental.
Moreover, the Bible is replete with instructions to call out those who do not preach and/or teach the truth, and to have nothing to do with them. It even calls out false teachers by name at points. Why? Because these false teachers and false religions were leading people astray and into hell. Isn't that worth calling a spade a spade? Isn't that worth a potential offense? I think it is.
But more than that, it must be understood that the gospel is, by its very nature, offensive. You don't need to call anyone names or single anyone out. The gospel does that all by itself, and it does it very well. But still, Graham's media rep said that if Graham were to do or say something that would alienate an audience, he wouldn't be able to reach them. In my opinion, the gospel itself alienates an audience. In fact, the Bible tells us that it is foolishness to those who are perishing. Of course it alienates! Of course it divides! That's what it is designed to do. If the gospel is designed to offend the hard-hearted sinner, then any attempt to soften that offense is unwise and unloving. To pretend that we have to repair bridges or water down the truth so as not to offend is anti-biblical.
The problem with what the Billy Graham folks have done is not so much a relational or PR problem, but a shift in understanding of the purpose and nature of the gospel. Moreover, it's a bait and switch method of evangelism that seeks to befriend people and find commonality with them so as to win their friendship before giving them the hard news of repentance and faith. It's dishonest.
God knows the great work that Billy Graham has done through his obedience to the Great Commission. It's a shame to see his ministry lose its integrity. But then how do we explain Franklin Graham? He's also done some amazing work, which my own church just participated in through Operation Christmas Child. Hopefully we can chalk this and other recent Billy Graham blunders to his old age.
John MacArthur aptly commented on the situation thusly: "We have no right to redefine salvation in our own terms in order to be popular or in order to be accepted. True and historic Christianity has never been confused about what it means to be a Christian."
Every six weeks our church sends a group of guys to the Dakota County Jail in Hastings, Minnesota. The guys go down to minister to the inmates there. Dakota County Jail is essentially an interim holding station for inmates. In other words, guys go to Dakota County if they are awaiting sentencing a court date, or something else in their legal proceedings. Because of this, there is a high turnover rate, and most of the guys we minister to won't be there the next time we come down. They will have either been sentence and therefore moved to a different facility, or perhaps even released after their court date. It's always a special privilege for me to go with the guys to the jail and minister.
Dakota County Jail is remarkably similar on the exterior and interior to a mid-sized high school. The exterior of the building looks almost identical to the building where I attended high school, and the interior is very much like a high school. There are classrooms, a library, and even a gymnasium. The only thing that makes it feel like a jail is the jump suits the inmates wear, and the fact that all the doors lock behind you. The color of the jumpsuits worn by the inmates is determined by the level of security they are under. In other words, guys in minimum security will wear a certain colored jump suit. Guys in maximum security will wear a different color. There are, I think, five different levels of security in the jail, and guys from each level come to "church" on Sunday mornings.
The service is held in the gymnasium, and about 100 of the jail's 250-280 inmates attend the service which, when you think about it, is a pretty significant percentage. Most of the guys look as though they have lived a hard life, and that is because they have. A lot of the guys have stories about why they are where they are, that they are more than willing to talk about.
I've had the opportunity to preach at the jail several times now, and I have to say that it is one of the most unusual places where one can preach. For one thing, I am never sure how to present my message. This is an audience with whom I have little in common - at least externally. I have never been to jail, nor have I ever been arrested or even in significant trouble with the law. The worst I've ever been through was a court date for a traffic violation (which I was acquitted of, I might add). I'm also concerned that, because of the seeming disconnect that I have with the inmates, I might lose authenticity with my audience. That is, they might see through me, that I am a goody-two-shoes. Thirdly, whenever I preach I am worried about being too technical when I say things. Most of the guys in the jail have either never set foot in a church or haven't been since childhood. So I usually try to keep my words and concepts pretty simple. Thankfully, every time I've had the opportunity to preach at the jail, none of my fears have been realized and I think I've been able to communicate in an authentic, real, and understandable way.
Today I was asked to preach once again, and I chose Psalm 139 as my topic. I had planned to talk about what God knows about each of us, and to go into issues about thoughts and attitudes of the heart, and how they condemn us before God. This wasn't quite how it went down, however. A lot of the guys who go with the church down to the jail have been to jail themselves, and have great stories to tell the inmates about how God can reform and change lives - even lives that have been in jail. Needless to say, as great as these testimonies are, they take time, and sometimes the preaching time is cut a bit short. That's fine. I think those guys from Riverview who share their testimony have just as - if not more - important things to say as I do.
Today my time was cut to about 12 minutes, and I tried to take advantage of it. I spent a bit of time on sin and God's knowledge of our sinful condition, but I also wanted to spend some time on verses 7-12 of Psalm 139. These verses talk about how we cannot escape God's presence, no matter where we go. God is present everywhere - in the highest heights and the lowest low. And I think this applies not just to our physical circumstances, but also to spiritual ones. When we are as low as we can get - which a lot of guys are, being in jail - God still can and does occupy those spaces, and he is able to hear and respond to the cries of those who would trust in him.
Can you imagine being in jail? Cut off from loved ones, from the outside world, from any kind of gainful employment, from any kind of "normal" life, not to mention the damage to one's reputation that a time in jail can incur. I can imagine how it would be easy to lose hope very quickly in such circumstances. In the context of jail and what inmates are feeling while they are in jail, I think it's important to communicate that even these guys where they are have access to God. They are no less able to call out to God because they are in jail, or because they may have committed serious crimes for which they are or will be punished.
My evidence of this was the story of Jonah and how he - even from the belly of a fish swimming around in the ocean - was able to call out to God. If jail seems like a hopeless place, imagine being in the belly of a fish! It certainly can't seem too much more hopeless than that. But even though Jonah was in the belly of a fish, God heard his prayer. God was able to meet him even in that place, as God is able to meet anyone in any place they are - even in jail. All you must do is call out to him in repentance and faith.
I really like going to the jail. In some ways, it's a forgotten mission field. Let's face it: most people don't consider inmates as being a very desirable group of people, and indeed, most of them aren't - at least on the outside. Plus, I think we are predisposed that prisoners are either "too far gone" to be interested in the things of God, or that they have displayed by the actions that landed them in jail that they aren't able to believe the Bible. Nothing could be further from the truth! These guys are looking for answers. They are looking for hope. After all, most of them are at the lowest points in their lives. They are dying for something solid to hold on to.
Ministering to prisoners isn't easy. Sometimes ministries aren't even allowed access to prisoners. In this sense, Dakota County is great. They let us come in and do whatever we want with them, with very few restrictions. It just takes time and a lot of faith that God will do something.
These inmates are who they are: sinners in need of the gospel. Their hearts are no more wicked than mine was, and God did something with that. He can certainly do some amazing work with prisoners.
I read an interesting post this morning that I've been pondering all day. It has to do with the challenge to summarize the gospel in seven words or less. In other words, are you able to communicate the message of the gospel - that all people have willfully sinned against God and deserve the punishment of hell but can receive forgiveness for said sin by grace through faith in the Christ God sacrificially gave to die on your behalf, thereby accepting the punishment you so richly deserve, but being raised from the dead on the third day, all of which was for the glory of God - in seven words or less? Seven words? That's a challenge. Even the sentence that I used to (inadequately) summarize the gospel contains 63 words. Good luck with seven.
Apparently this question was posed to people in the form of a survey, and the attempts from several people to summarize the gospel in seven words are interesting, to say the least. In most cases, the summaries fell far short. But given the immensity of the task, I have sympathy for those who perhaps came up short. The author of the post says that the summary he believes to be most adequate is actually a quote from 2 Corinthians 5:19: "God was in Christ, reconciling the world." Some of the other attempts completely miss the essence of the gospel. Some don't even mention Christ. And some are downright legalistic. (Such as one person who attempts to summarize the gospel as "Love your neighbor as yourself." Uh, that's no gospel. That's a law.)
Like I said, I've been thinking about this all day, trying to come up with my own summary. But each time I come up with something, I quickly find a reason that it's not enough - there's just too much to communicate in seven words. The author of the post seems to think that it's important to also communicate a sense of God's sovereignty in the statement - that it was God who instigated the gospel story for his own glory. I agree. This just makes it harder, however! I like the approach of using scripture to summarize the gospel, because I certainly can't come up with something adequate.
I guess the point is that it would be a good exercise to think about how we would share the gospel succinctly, briefly, and adequately in a short amount of time or words. Preach the gospel, in season and out of season - not just when it's convenient, or when we're prepared, or when we've done enough studying. What would you say if you had limited time and limited words to communicate the truth of the gospel? This is something I'll continue to ponder.
If you've ever needed a real life example of how screwed up our concept of what the church actually is, here it is for you. You probably didn't know it, but "National Back to Church Sunday" is scheduled for September 16. What is "National Back to Church Sunday" (NBTCS)? It's a date when supposedly all Christians are supposed to invite all of their friends and family members "back to church." They've even made a cheesy rap song to try and make it cool and "relevant." The site declares that NBTCS is "the single largest annual community outreach in the nation." I have a few issues with this.
1. There are two interesting words in the name of this event, the first being "back." This refers to the calling back of those who have left the church and have sought meaning in life elsewhere. Calling someone to church - specifically "back" to church makes me wonder why they were ever there in the first place. It can't be that they used to go because they were genuinely converted and then backslid. No, scripture says that believers congregate with other believers. Maybe not in the traditional Sunday morning way, but they do have fellowship with other believers. In fact, they must. So let's get our ideas straight: we're not calling Christians back to church, we're calling unbelievers to church. If they had been before but stopped going, they're still unbelievers. We're not inviting darkness to have fellowship with light, because it can't. I wonder if the event organizers have thought through this.
The other word that I find to be interesting in the title of this event is "Sunday." The site states that churches who participated in the event last year saw an average increase of 26% on NBTCS. Hmm. I wonder what the attendance was the week after? Getting people, especially goats, to come to church for one week is nothing to brag about, nor do I think it's a victory. In fact, church pews are lined with unbelievers every week - why have an annual Sunday for them? It's not hard to draw a crowd for a Sunday. It's much harder, and requires much more prayer and dedication to preach the unpopular message of the gospel over and over again, sometimes seeing no results, calling all men everywhere to repent and believe the gospel.
2. The church needs to rethink the concept of outreach. The website claims that this week is the single biggest national outreach event in the country. When did inviting people to come in to church become outreach? Shouldn't "outreach" have a decidedly outward moving feel to it? I would think outreach would be more like taking the gospel to the streets, rather than taking the people to a show disguised as a church.
3. This event is nothing more than a marketing gimmick, and since when does the church rely on gimmicks (OK, the modern church relies on them quite a bit, to its shame)? In commenting on this event on his Facebook page, Voddie Baucham said this is really nothing more than "Cheesy marketing of the Church of the Living God." He's right on, and his emphasis is on the nose. We serve the living God, whose glorious deeds are recorded in scripture, not to mention who sent his Son as a sacrifice for the salvation of all who would believe through repentance and faith. But apparently that's not enough. That's not enticing enough to draw the crowds. And it really isn't. In fact, the Bible says the gospel is foolishness to those who are perishing. Why do we expect them to fill our churches? Moreover, if the perishing are filling our churches, then we might want to step back and reexamine what we're doing. Because what are they drawn to? It certainly isn't the gospel (Romans 3.10-11, 1 Corinthians 1.18).
My posting's been a bit light this week (it seems light, that is, even though I think I have the usual number of posts) due to this being the week that Riverview members hold Backyard Bible Clubs (ByBC's) in their homes throughout the community. Riverview seeks to equip members to be evangelists in their communities by helping them hold these clubs one week each year. That week happens to be this week. Needless to say, I'm a tad busier this week than other weeks.
Backyard Bible Club is one of the most effective means of "outreach ministry" (whatever that is) that I think Riverview does. It has some of the most direct interaction with the community - much more than other "outreach ministries" that actually "reach out" by inviting people to church. Not so with ByBC. This ministry begins in the home and proclaims the gospel from where people live. There's a significant difference between this kind of ministry and inviting someone to an event or even to a church service.
Although the ministry is geared toward children, there's a significant amount of family outreach as well. Children Desiring God (our ByBC curriculum publisher) does a fantastic job of involving families in what their children are doing throughout the week. Not only that, but relationships between parents are formed, and families who hold a ByBC at their house are solidified as a believing household within the community. Who knows what kind of impact this could have in the future? Maybe someone from the community needs counseling or is going through something difficult, or has questions or doubts about the faith. Well, now they know of at least one family in the neighborhood who they could talk to or pray with. What a great opportunity.
My sister Rachel, who has faithfully held Bible clubs for the past five years, has said that what she likes most about holding a ByBC is that her children are essentially transformed into "mini-evangelists" (her words, not mine). Her kids openly ask their friends to come to their house and learn about Jesus. This communicates volumes to their friends. Essentially what it says to other kids and families is this: "Our family loves Jesus, and we want you to love him to. In fact, we'd like you to come over to our house and hear about Jesus." This is totally different than asking someone to come to church to hear a minister or speaker talk about Jesus. This is personal. This is the real deal.
The impact of ByBC is hard to measure, but one thing can be sure: the gospel is going out. I have been reminded of this as I've gone from club to club this week leading songs and taking pictures and videos of the clubs. While leading songs at my sister's house, I realized that my voice bounced off some of the surrounding houses quite well, especially since I was speaking loudly so as to be heard by all the kids. I bet my words echoed all the way down the block! Not to mention the kids singing the words from 1 Peter 3.18 and John 1.12 at the top of their lungs. You can't miss these messages. I smirked when I realized that the next door neighbor was rinsing out his garbage cans, listening to us talk about Jesus and the gospel. Hopefully he was eavesdropping.
More than 50 kids (and their families) have heard the gospel this week. Let's pray God does something with it.
Our senior high students just returned from camp today, and as people do in this day in age, they immediately began flooding my Facebook feed with pictures and camp-related status updates. It got me thinking about my own experiences at camp.
I first visited Village Creek Bible Camp when I was just a young boy. In fact, I think my family started going when I was just barely old enough to begin forming memories that lasted on into my later years. In other words, I was pretty young. When i made it into third grade I started going to summer camps with other kids my age. I kept going at least once every year through, I think, my freshman year of high school. By that time, camp just wasn't my thing. I was somewhat of an introverted loner, and needless to say, the camp environment isn't very conducive to introverted loners. But although I stopped going to the summer camps, I still attended Youth Quake every year in the fall. But the fact that I stopped going after I was in high school, and the fact that I was somewhat of an introvert through most of my life doesn't mean that camp did not have a significant impact on my life, both physically and spiritually. I can still vividly remember most of my experiences at camp, my counselors, and the week-long friendships I developed over the years. I can even remember many of the camp pastors that spoke to me as a child and teenager, even their faces and the content of their messages.
It kind of goes without saying that camp can be a huge part of a kid's life, and it can have a huge impact on the way kids are formed spiritually. In recent years I have been honored to be down at camp several times, being that camp pastor that I can remember so vividly from my own experiences. It's been my pleasure to go down to camp each year (several times per year, even) to preach to the kids that are down there. I've been able to preach to senior highers, junior highers, and most recently, "Junior Campers." Junior Campers are kids between 3rd and 6th grade. Having been the camp pastor for multiple age groups, I can say that I prefer to be a part of the Junior Camps the most. The kids are still young enough that they don't care about boys or girls, or how they look, and none of them are too cool to have fun and just be themselves. It's fun to see the kids just let loose.
But one thing I've noticed at camp since I've been an adult, and particularly a camp pastor, is that the camp pastor bears an incredible responsibility for sound teaching and preaching when giving messages to kids in the camp environment. Camp can be a very emotionally manipulative place. This isn't by design, nor is it the goal of the camp's ministry to be emotionally manipulative - it just sort of happens. Village Creek doesn't allow kids to have access to TV, MP3 players, internet, computers, etc. Basically, the kids are stripped of all the modern accommodations they are accustomed to at home, and are forced to "rough it" for a week. It really forces kids out of their comfort zones relationally, and invites them to use the time for spiritual endeavors and to build relationships.
Well, what tends to happen when kids are separated from everything they're comfortable with in their normal lives, including their parents, they're pretty much open to anything you have to say. Literally. I could preach for a week that God wants the kids to believe that the sky is green, and I'm pretty sure most of them would adopt that into their worldview by week's end. Therefore, it seems to me that the minister has to be all the more careful about the message he or she preaches while at camp, because the kids will believe it.
Some camp pastors realize this incredible responsibility, but most, sadly, don't. Again, I don't think this is necessarily the camp's problem, or that they could actually do anything to prevent this from happening - it just happens. It falls on the minister to be aware of the emotional state of the kids, and what the camp experience does to kids emotionally, and then to preach in light of that reality. I find it to be dangerous, and even irresponsible, to burden kids (which one can do even with the gospel message) with teaching about what they should do, or what they shouldn't do. Kids in this situation often do and commit to things they aren't ready to do and haven't thought through. Then when they leave camp and the emotional high departs, they feel either like failures or phonies, or because the emotional high leaves, their supposed commitment to the faith departs as well. In the end, the only actual thing they experienced during the week was a surging of emotions. I've seen this happen with every age of kids.
This leads to the most dangerous part of camp, in my opinion: the danger of creating false converts. A false convert is someone who believes themselves to be truly converted to the Christian faith, but in reality, has only had an emotional response. Camp is not the only environment where false converts are created. A lot of "church kids" are false converts because they believe themselves to be saved due to their long-term attendance at a particular church, or because their families are Christians and they believe themselves to be saved by association. People can also be falsely converted by emotional pulls at evangelistic meetings, concerts, Billy Graham crusades, etc. The danger for false converts is obviously that they believe themselves to be saved but in reality they are not. Such a person will most likely not be open or receptive to the gospel again because, according to the false convert, they are already a Christian (see 2 Peter 2.20)
Having been a camp pastor several times now, I can attest to the difficulty of preaching in the camp environment, and how hard it is to not play on the emotions of the kids. Personally, I've made it my own policy to never have an "altar call" or give an "invitation" to believe the gospel. I don't want to put kids in a position where they might more faith in the supposed sincerity of an emotional response than in the genuine conviction of the Holy Spirit. Personally, I think if God can save kids who hear my preaching, he can do it with or without an altar call or an invitation. It's not as though some kids will be lost to eternal damnation because the camp pastor doesn't invite them to say the Sinner's Prayer. God can and will save those kids he is calling to himself in one way or another.
I have also made it a policy to accompany our Junior Campers from Riverview when they go to camp each summer, whether I'm the camp pastor for that week or not. I figure someone needs to be there just to see what's going on, what's being preached, and how the kids react to it. It's not likely that parents will get an accurate account from their kid when they get home (Parent: "How was camp?" Kid: "Fun!" Parent: "What did you learn?" Kid: "We learned about God.") I'll be headed down to camp tomorrow for this very reason. I won't be speaking at the camp (I already did that earlier this summer), but I will be there for our kids, and to see how they react to the gospel.
In general, I praise God for the ministry of Village Creek Bible Camp, both for the impact it's had on my life over the years, and also for the continuing gospel work they do in the lives of hundreds of kids who go there each year. May they continue to follow God's leading and facilitate the preaching of the gospel in the unique ways that have been afforded to them.
A couple weeks ago I delivered this message that argued that as Christians go about in ministry and evangelism, they are to do so as lambs. In other words, with courtesy, meekness, humility, gentleness, respect, and love.
I was emailed this video today, of Penn Jillette (of Penn & Teller fame). Penn was recently ministered to by a Christian who gave him a Bible and encouraged him to read it. Considering that Penn is a raving, staunch, God-hating atheist, he had some very positive things to say about the experience, and about the guy who witnessed to him. It just goes to show how important it is to be a lamb amongst wolves, and not a wolf amongst wolves.
I receive a weekly email from Group publishing that provides tips for children's and other ministries. The quality of the "tips" are hit and miss, but I found this week's tip particularly interesting (and to be filed in the "miss" category). This week's tip was entitled "Irresistible Evangelism" and is transcribed in bold type below. I've got some issues with what Group publishing considers "irresistible evangelism," so I put my own commentary in regular type. Judge for yourself.
As evangelistic results in the United States and throughout the Western world reach all-time lows, perhaps it's time to ask whether the problem is the messsage or the messengers.
Ok, they asked, so I'll answer. In one way, the message IS the problem. The Bible says that men are haters of God, and at enmity with God, and that the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. In other words, sinners are naturally hardened to the gospel. So when they hear the message of "Repent and believe," they immediately don't like the message. This doesn't absolve them of their responsibility to respond, however. So in one sense, the message is the problem.
In another sense, the message is NOT the problem. Because if the message is true, then it doesn't matter how unattractive it is. Even if it is disagreeable, truth is truth. It is therefore the responsibility of the hearer to respond to truth.
The problem certainly can't be the messengers. The messengers have been screwing it up for the last 2000 years, and yet people have come to salvation. If the success of evangelism depended upon the messengers, we'd be in a lot of trouble. Thank God that he's the one who does the saving, election, and work. This does not, however, absolve Christians of their responsibility to be obedient to the great commission.
If the most popular books on the shelves of your local bookstores are any indication, people are very interested in spirituality. On the Internet, spiritual sites receive hits more frequently than sites with any other nonpornographic subject matter. So how can we become (and train others to become) messengers who not only get heard but see the fruit and positive results that God desires?
Most spiritual books and websites that deal with spirituality are popular because they deal with what John MacArthur calls "Christianity Lite." In other words, it's a brand of Christianity that exists to solve a person's problems, meet their emotional needs (more on that further down), assure them success, and make them feel good about themselves. None of these things are at the heart of the true gospel. So it's not accurate to say that spiritual books and websites (Christian or otherwise) are popular because people are searching for God. They're usually just seeking to gratify themselves in some way.
On the topic of conversion, there is no biblical guarantee that any evangelist will ever live to see the fruit of his labor. God does the saving, and God works in his own time. Consider Noah: that man preached for hundreds of years and didn't see one convert. Did he change his message? No.
The messages that are likely to get through to a person's heart are the messages addressed to that person's individual needs. People have four layers of needs, and we frequently need to work through those layers in turn.
When you boil it all down, people only have 1 need: salvation. Plus, where the heck are they getting these "four layers of needs" from? Is that based on science? Also, it's not accurate to think that you have to peel away the layers of people like an onion in order for them to listen to you or interact with you. Again, truth is truth, whether I know you or not. It definitely helps to have a holistic approach, but it is certainly not necessary or vital for "successful" evangelism.
1) Physical needs. We start by meeting physical needs creatively and consistently. To do so, we must learn the skill of active kindness.
See above. I'm all for meeting physical needs, but they are not an end in an of themselves. They also aren't a means to an end. People can have all of their physical needs met and still go to hell. Also, how much time should I take to meet physical needs before I introduce the gospel. However long it is, isn't it possible that this person could die while still in the "having their needs met" period? Christians are always supposed to be loving and meeting needs. Do this in tandem with sharing the gospel.
2) Emotional/Relational needs. To better meet people's emotional and relational needs, we must brush up on active listening skills.
Ok, but what does this have to do with evangelism? Plus, I fear that far too often Christians just "talk" to people without ever asserting any biblical truth. If all we do is listen to each other's feelings and emotions, no one will ever believe anything.
3) Directional needs. To help people in the big directional questions of their lives, we need the skill of active wondering. This usually takes the form of asking questions that provoke people to think deeply about things and discover new insights-often giving you clues to the best way to approach them in layer 4.
"The skill of active wondering"? Give me a break. The only question people need to think deeply about is, "what will happen to YOU when you die?"
4) Spiritual needs. Once we've worked through the first three layers, people will subconsciously grant us the right (and credibility) to practice the final skill, active sharing.
Again, I'd just like to ask: what happens if the person I am "witnessing" to dies in layer 2, before I got to layer 4? Have I taken too much time meeting their needs? This whole model smacks of relational or "friendship" evangelism, and it just doesn't work - it's not practical, it's not realistic.
Also, I disagree with the notion that I have to earn the right or possess some sort of credibility in order to be heard. Either the message is true or it's not. And when I think about it, I can't think of ANYWHERE in the Bible where Jesus or the apostles EVER used an evangelistic method like the one listed above. Certainly Jesus and the apostles met the physical needs of others, listened to their stories, and asked them the "big" questions of life. But they never did it as a means of witnessing to them.
Our lives, as ordinary and mundane as they may seem, can have a wonderful and eternal influence on the lives of others!
Indeed, however the influence will be most effective, and most "irresistible" when done biblically.
No, not Calvin & Hobbes (although they're pretty good too!) - John Calvin.
Calvin on evangelism (from the Institutes): "Because we know not who belongs to the number of the predestinated, or does not belong, our desire ought to be that all may be saved; and hence every person we meet, we will desire to be with us a partaker of peace. But our peace will rest upon the sons of peace. Wherefore, on our part, let correction be used as a harsh yet salutary medicine for all, that they may neither perish, nor destroy others. To God it will belong to make it available to those whom he has foreknown and predestineated."
In other words: be obedient, preach the gospel, and God will use your obedience to save those whom he will (the elect).
Allow me to recommend Tim Challies' post to you from today. He interestingly talks about how Christians are, and aren't the greatest hindrance to the gospel. Ultimately, God is sovereign over his gospel - and its propagation, and he will use us in the state we are in to see his kingdom come.
One of my sisters recently found herself in the unwanted position of potentially having to end a friendship for the sake of the gospel. My sister had been witnessing to one of her friends, and this woman was very closed to the things of God - she wanted nothing to do with him, and she thought that anybody who was a Christian was a judgmental, bigoted, jerk (which is odd, considering that she's friends with my sister!). It finally came to a head a few weeks ago: the woman became very angry at my sister's insistence on biblical truth, and she flipped her lid. My sister didn't want it to happen, but the relationship is most likely over - all because this woman hates God. I told my sister that it was the right thing to do, and to try to compromise and remain friends with her would be compromising the truth and the gospel. My sister sent her an email explaining that her motives were pure, and that she harbored no ill-will towards her. To my knowledge, no response to her email has come as of yet.
A couple weeks ago, the Sunday School class at my church that I frequent (Don't Waste Your Life) was talking about risk, and specifically, risk for the sake of the gospel and the glory of God. As Americans, I think we have a hard time risking things in our life for the glory of God mostly because we live in such a safe country that prides itself on religious freedom. Christians in other countries fear persecution or even martyrdom for their faith. We suffer no such thing in this country.
What then can I risk for Christ? To answer this question, you need to start thinking outside of the box. First, you need to take physical harm, pain, or death out of the picture because again, those aren't things we worry about in America. Therefore, risk in our context is probably something more like risking finances or possessions by giving them to ministry, or risking relationships by entering into them with the specific intention of delivering the gospel. As my sister can testify to, people's hearts are naturally hard and don't want to have anything to do with the gospel. Knowing that then, and entering into a relationship for the specific purpose of preaching the gospel could have seemingly disastrous consequences. In other words...risk.
I recently came across a good article that basically says what I've said above. Rick James, the article's author, makes the case that martyrdom in the USA has nothing to do with pain and death. Instead it has everything to do with the potential death of your reputation, or the potential death of a relationship you are in for the sake of the gospel. I highly recommend the article to you.
The catch is, however, that Christians in this country usually only risk if they're forced into it. In other words, people only stand up for the gospel and biblical truth if they're forced into a corner. That's a completely defensive and backwards attitude. Christians need to be intentionally entering into relationships knowing that both their reputation and the relationship itself is on the line because of the gospel, and they need to be willing to sacrifice both for the sake of God's word going forth.
As stated earlier, Christians in other countriese are persecuted and killed for their faith. We face nothing of the sort in our country. Our response to that fact? Praise God that he has blessed us with religious freedom. Our second response should be an undying willingness (and actually, eagerness) to risk our reputation and friendship with others for the sake of the gospel.
When compared to what Christians in other countries go through, American martyrdom really isn't that bad.
(Note: I am by no means equating the minor "pain in the butt" type of persecution that Americans experience to the persecution that Christians experience over seas. The two are not comparable. I am simply saying that any "persecution" that might be experienced in America is extremely tolerable, and we should be living our lives in such a way as to seek it out for the glory of the gospel.)
I found this great article by Johnny Mac in my email and thought I would post it here. It's definitely not the typical evangelical diatribe. It is however, a good reminder that our hope is in the power of the gospel to transform hearts and lives - not politicians or governments. If only Christians put as much time into studying and reading their Bibles as they did into politics and government...
With the nation focused on the November elections, we thought a post on politics might be appropriate. The point of this article is not that we should abstain from any participation in the political process, but rather that we must keep our priorities straight as Christians. After all, the gospel, not politics, is the only true solution to our nation’s moral crisis.
We can’t protect or expand the cause of Christ by human political and social activism, no matter how great or sincere the efforts. Ours is a spiritual battle waged against worldly ideologies and dogmas arrayed against God, and we achieve victory over them only with the weapon of Scripture. The apostle Paul writes: “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:3-5).
We must reject all that is ungodly and false and never compromise God’s standards of righteousness. We can do that in part by desiring the improvement of society’s moral standards and by approving of measures that would conform government more toward righteousness. We do grieve over the rampant indecency, vulgarity, lack of courtesy and respect for others, deceitfulness, self-indulgent materialism, and violence that is corroding society. But in our efforts to support what is good and wholesome, reject what is evil and corrupt, and make a profoundly positive impact on our culture, we must use God’s methods and maintain scriptural priorities.
God is not calling us to wage a culture war that would seek to transform our countries into “Christian nations.” To devote all, or even most, of our time, energy, money, and strategy to putting a facade of morality on the world or over our governmental and political institutions is to badly misunderstand our roles as Christians in a spiritually lost world.
God has above all else called the church to bring sinful people to salvation through Jesus Christ. Even as the apostle Paul described his mission to unbelievers, so it is the primary task of all Christians to reach out to the lost “to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me [Christ]” (Acts 26:18; cf. Ex. 19:6; 1 Pet. 2:5, 9).
If we do not evangelize the lost and make disciples of new converts, nothing else we do for people--no matter how beneficial it seems--is of any eternal consequence. Whether a person is an atheist or a theist, a criminal or a model citizen, sexually promiscuous and perverse or strictly moral and virtuous, a greedy materialist or a gracious philanthropist--if he does not have a saving relationship to Christ, he is going to hell. It makes no difference if an unsaved person is for or against abortion, a political liberal or a conservative, a prostitute or a police officer, he will spend eternity apart from God unless he repents and believes the gospel.
When the church takes a stance that emphasizes political activism and social moralizing, it always diverts energy and resources away from evangelization. Such an antagonistic position toward the established secular culture invariably leads believers to feel hostile not only to unsaved government leaders with whom they disagree, but also antagonistic toward the unsaved residents of that culture--neighbors and fellow citizens they ought to love, pray for, and share the gospel with. To me it is unthinkable that we become enemies of the very people we seek to win to Christ, our potential brothers and sisters in the Lord.
Author John Seel pens words that apply in principle to Christians everywhere and summarize well the believer’s perspective on political involvement:
A politicized faith not only blurs our priorities, but weakens our loyalties. Our primary citizenship is not on earth but in heaven. … Though few evangelicals would deny this truth in theory, the language of our spiritual citizenship frequently gets wrapped in the red, white and blue. Rather than acting as resident aliens of a heavenly kingdom, too often we sound [and act] like resident apologists for a Christian America. … Unless we reject the false reliance on the illusion of Christian America, evangelicalism will continue to distort the gospel and thwart a genuine biblical identity….American evangelicalism is now covered by layers and layers of historically shaped attitudes that obscure our original biblical core. (The Evangelical Pulpit [Grand Rapids: Baker, 1993], 106-7)
By means of faithful preaching and godly living, believers are to be the conscience of whatever nation they reside in. You can confront the culture not with the political and social activism of man’s wisdom, but with the spiritual power of God’s Word. Using temporal methods to promote legislative and judicial change, and resorting to external efforts of lobbying and intimidation to achieve some sort of “Christian morality” in society is not our calling--and has no eternal value. Only the gospel rescues sinners from sin, death, and hell.
Today saw day one of the Deeper conference, and it absolutely lived up to my expectations. I was blessed by the teaching of Ray Comfort, E.Z., Johnny Hunt, Paul Washer, and Kirk Cameron. The highlights of the day came when I got to meet most of these guys (check here for some updated pics).
Here are some of the things that I was particularly impressed by:
1. Ray Comfort's straightforward message about there being NO excuse to not be involved in sharing our faith (he was much more straightforward in this message than I have seen/heard from him before), and his admonission for Christians to get over their lame excuses and get busy.
2. Although it wasn't the main point of his message, Emeal "E.Z" Zwayne got me to think about something I hadn't thought of before: the depth of Jesus' humility in the incarnation, and especially in the crucifixion. Think about it: Jesus made himself subservient to his own creation. He was not only limited by his own humanity, but he also allowed himself to be mocked by tongues that he created. He allowed himself to be slandered by brains that he had formed with his own hands. He allowed himself to be hung on a cross, made by a tree that he had fashioned. He allowed elements from the earth itself to be formed into nails that would pierce his hands. The thought of the Creator allowing his own creation to abuse him is astounding in the context of the gospel - knowing who we are and who he is.
3. Paul Washer hit it out of the park, as he usually does. I especially appreciated his breakout session, where he talked about the several problems with the four spiritual laws (I know that's a huge statement that really requires more explanation, but I don't have time right now - I'll get into it some other time!).
4. The time of worship was really incredible - just one piano and 2500 voices. Also, there were several readings throughout the singing which aided in focusing on God.
So far, the trip and the conference have been worth the 34 hour, 2100 mile round trip! I'm looking forward to day two.
I'm super excited for this. It's a conference put on by Living Waters that's being held in October in Atlanta. It's my first trip down south, plus a lot of my favorite speakers and guys I really admire will be speaking at the event. I can't wait.
I'm probably most excited to see Paul Washer. I got turned on to his preaching a couple years ago, and haven't been the same since. He pulls no punches, and doesn't apologize for the sometimes for being the vessel used to communicate God's rebuke. If you've never heard of him, get a taste by watching this video. It'll take you about an hour to watch (I heard one guy call this sermon a "56 minute kidney punch" - that's pretty accurate), but it's well worth it.
If I were able to line up all the speakers I ever wanted to hear preach in my life, these guys would all make the list. The Mrs. and I are going to make a week of it and drive down. Like I said, I can't wait.
I’m posting this a tad early because I’m going on a mini-vacation Sunday afternoon and won’t be back until Tuesday, and I didn’t want to wait that long in the week to post.
The very first thing we see in this passage is Jesus spending ALL NIGHT in prayer before he’s about to make a very significant decision when it comes to his ministry on earth, and the ministry that will continue after he leaves. The lesson? Prayer is important. Important enough to spend LOTS of time in it – especially in the dawning of a big life decision. Spend time seeking God.
Then Jesus calls his disciples to himself. A disciple (mathetes) is literally someone who is a student, or a learner. So in other words, Jesus has students and he calls them together for class. That being said, ANYONE who followed Jesus to learn from what he sand and did was his disciple. So at this point in the scripture, there could’ve been potentially hundreds of people that Jesus calls together. But Jesus’ focus is on 12 specific disciples of his, and he makes them apostles.
What is an apostle? Good question. An apostle (apostolos) is literally an ambassador or a messenger: he that is sent. Jesus is saying to 12 of his disciples here that they have graduated to the next level. He is now making them apostles.
This doesn’t mean that they STOP learning (being disciples), however. The text says that he ALSO made them apostles. They are to be sent out, and always learning as they go. Now they’ve just got another job of going out and delivering the message.
Who is an apostle? Another good question. Check out Hebrews 3.1:
Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus.
Jesus was an Apostle. He came to earth as the ambassador of God, sent to deliver to the people of earth the message of salvation through repentance and faith in his life, death and resurrection and sacrifice for sin. In a very real and literal way, Jesus was a messenger – he was an ambassador with a job to do – thus, by the literal sense of the word, Jesus was an apostle.
Usually, when the New Testament uses the word “apostle,” it’s speaking specifically about the 12 that are called here in this passage from Luke. They got the honor of being the original apostles of Jesus Christ. But also (and in a more generic sense), all believers are apostles. Check out Romans 1.5:
Through Him and for his name’s sake, we have received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the nations to the obedience that comes from faith.
It would appear here that when an individual comes to Christ for salvation, he or she receives 2 things: 1) saving grace – unmerited favor through the substitutionary death of Christ on the cross, and 2) apostleship – the state of having been sent into the world with the gospel of Jesus. Why do we receive apostleship? Paul says: “to call people from among all the nations to the obedience that comes from faith.” In other words, so that all may people may come to faith in Christ to the glory of God. So then the answer to the question “Who is an apostle” when we look at the example of the lives of the disciples is: ANYONE who follows Christ and will bring his gospel to the world. So, in some form or in some sense, you my friend, are an apostle of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Where is an apostle sent? Look at Matthew 10.5-6:
These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Where is an apostle sent? To the people where they live. Jesus sends his disciples out to preach the kingdom of God, and he basically says, “Go to the people you know.” Don’t go to the Gentiles or Samaritans yet – go to the peeps within your sphere of influence. Go to the peeps you rub shoulders with – who speak same language as you – the peeps you know. But that’s not the only place an apostle is sent to. Look at Matthew 28.19:
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Where is an apostle sent? To the nations. After telling them to go to the people within their sphere of influence, Jesus then tells his disciples out to preach the gospel to people they DON’T know. But even more than that – we’re talking people in other countries. People who speak different languages and live in different cultures that seem weird and foreign to us. People you DON’T rub shoulders with – countries where there aren’t any other Christians to preach the gospel to them. Jesus tells his disciples (apostles): GO TO THEM.
But there’s even another place that Jesus sends his apostles:
John 17.15, 18, 21 – I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 18) As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 21) …that they may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.
Where is an apostle sent? To the world. This is a rather generic sending, but it’s worthy of examination. First, Jesus sent his disciples to places they were familiar with & knew well – pretty specific. Then, Jesus gets a little more abstract and sends them into “all the nations” – places that are unfamiliar and maybe even a little scary or intimidating. Then Jesus bottoms out in the abstract department by NOT narrowing down who his disciples were to go to at all: not just a certain city, not just a certain people-group, not even just a certain country, but to the ENTIRE WORLD. In other words, the apostle is sent to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to each and every individual in the world. That’s a lot of people! True, but think of it like this: the apostle of Jesus Christ is to bring the gospel to each and every individual in his or her world: the people you work with – the people you go to school with – your friends – your family – the guy you pass walking down the street – the people standing in line behind you at the Kwiki Mart – everyone who walks into and out of your world is someone that you have been commissioned to bring the gospel to.
So, we’ve answered the questions of what an apostle is, who apostles are, and where an apostle is sent. So then, what does an apostle do? Here are a couple good examples: when Jesus SENDS the apostles out in Matthew 10 (read it for yourself – I’ll just summarize), he gives them instructions about what they’re supposed to DO: preach the gospel, do incredible things in the name of God, give freely to all, depend upon God for all things, go into the world, be filled with the Spirit, be like Christ, expect to be hated for his message, conquer fear with boldness in Christ, trust God to provide, preach from the housetops, don’t fear hatred and persecution, and deny all else to follow Christ. This is what the disciples (the learners) did when they became ambassadors – when they were sent out to preach the gospel. This is what an apostle DOES – read Matthew 10 for the specifics.
Another good example is the entire book of Acts – “The Acts of the Apostles.” What did the apostles do? They went about preaching the gospel and their stories are in the book of Acts. It’s the things that they did as they went about preaching the gospel. Basically all the things that Jesus told his disciples to do when he sent them out. This is literally all they do in the book of acts – go out into the world, and be witnesses to the gospel through the power of God in their lives. And because they were OBEDIENT to the call to go, the gospel went out among the nations and spread, and people came to Christ. All because a group of regular, average guys who all came from different backgrounds, lifestyles, careers, social statuses were focused on being obedient to do what they had been SENT to do.
One of my recent seminary assignments was to go over my past with a fine toothed comb and examine how God has been working in my life (even in my childhood) to prepare me for where I am right now, and to prepare me for where he may lead me in the future. It was an extremely beneficial exercise, and I’d encourage you to do the same. How has God worked in your life to prepare you to be who you are today in order to go into the world and preach the gospel to all creatures? Do you realize that you are, in some sense, an apostle of Jesus Christ? That you have been SENT with the good news of the gospel? If you do realize this biblical fact, then you must ask yourself some questions:
Where will you go? Will you go to the people who you work with? To the people you live with? To your family? To the people you live next door to? To the people you go to school with? To that guy across the street who you always wave to but never talk to? Will you go to the nations? Will you go across the ocean to an unreached country that needs to hear the gospel? Will you go to live and minister in uncomfortable and unfamiliar places? Will you go to the world? Will you walk down the street and pass a guy on the sidewalk, and will your heart break because you KNOW that this guy needs Jesus? Will you reach out in compassion with the gospel to the person standing in line behind you? If you are to be an apostle, you MUST go SOMEWHERE – these are your choices.
What will you do? Will you preach? Will you preach from the housetops? Will you do incredible things in the name of God? Will you go about giving freely to all? Will you depend upon God for all things in life? Will you go into the world? Will you be filled with the Spirit? Will you strive to be like Christ? Will you receive hatred and persecution with gladness because you trust God? Will you conquer fear with boldness in Christ? Will you trust God to provide in any and every situation? Will you deny all else to follow Christ?
But the bottom line is WILL YOU BE OBEDIENT? If you are to be a disciple of Christ, if you are to be an apostle of Christ, if you are to be a follower of Christ, if you are to be a servant of Christ, IF YOU ARE TO BE A CHRISTIAN these are decisions you MUST make, because:
Only one life, ‘twill soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Before you go any further in this blog, watch this video:
This video is a witness encounter between Ray Comfort (the guy with the microphone) and P-Nasty (you can probably guess which one he is). This video is taken from one of the "Way of the Master" videos that we use in our evangelism training course (which you MUST do if you haven't already!). In one of our recent classes, one of the students saw this video and was outraged. He thought that anyone who would assume that P-Nasty was not a believer was judgmental and hypocritical, because we of course don't know what is going on in P-Nasty's heart, and even by his own admission he "accepted the fact that G-J-uh, Jesus Christ died for my sins, you know what I'm saying? He died for my sins, he gave me another chance. If it wasn't for Jesus Christ I wouldn't be here right now." Earlier in the interview, Ray told P-Nasty that he needed God's forgiveness, and P-Nasty responded by asking, "How do you know I ain't got His forgiveness?" and Ray responded by saying, "I know what's coming out of your mouth, and that's what's coming out of your heart - it gives me a clue." The student in our class thought this was the epitome of judgmentalism and legalism. What do you think? Was Ray right in "judging" the man as not being saved and as needing forgiveness?
In this past week's scripture and message, we saw the Pharisees judge the disciples as being unspiritual because they didn't spend all their time fasting and praying. Apparently, fasting and prayer were some important marks of true spirituality in that day, and since they weren't particularly observed in the lives of Jesus' disciples, they were judged as not spiritual. Jesus rebukes the Pharisees by saying that their brand of fasting and prayer isn't authentic because it's done out of a desire to fulfill a ritual and that there's no spiritual meaning behind it. Jesus would later go on to say that fasting and prayer aren't rituals - they're deep acts of communion with God. And he also goes on to say that the brand of fasting and prayer that the Pharisees are promoting isn't anything like the kind that Jesus is encouraging. In fact, they're so different, the two can't co-exist.
This should teach us as Christians a couple things: 1) we can't go around judging people by what they do and what they don't do, because we can't see their hearts. In other words, actions are actions, and they only mean something if they're done with pure worshipful motivations - which we can't see. Thus, we can't judge a person's spiritual authenticity by what they're doing - it might be authentic, and it might be phony - we just can't know for sure. 2) We need to be making sure that our own spiritual actions (prayer, fasting, Bible reading, serving, singing, communion, etc.) are done in truth, and in a desire for worship and communion with God. Anything NOT done with such motivation is worthless, and is not the kind of spirituality that Jesus demands from his followers.
But then, back to P-Nasty: was Ray right in "judging" him as being unsaved? This question requires some consideration. Since we can't know the hearts of people, the best we can do is form a hypothesis based upon the evidence of the fruit of their life. Are they living in holiness? Are they bearing "fruit in keeping with repentance?" Is the fruit of the Holy Spirit evident in their life? Are they communing with God on a regular basis (prayer, reading the Bible, etc. - again, these are mere actions, but they are actions that should be evident in the life of a Christian)? The Bible tells us that "out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks." This is one of the things that Ray says to P-Nasty: he says that he can tell that P-Nasty does not have God's forgiveness because of what is coming out of his mouth, which is ultimately coming out of his heart. And what was coming out of his heart/mouth? Self-righteousness; a love for sin; a refusal to admit his offense before God; by these things, Ray (rightly, I believe) determines that P-Nasty is not a believer. These are merely some criteria by which we can "judge" others to see if they are in the faith, but of course, this must be done lovingly and reverently, not done to condemn (but do know that scripture commands us to confront those who claim Christ but who are steeped in sin).
A lot of people toss around the old "judge not, lest ye be judged," phrase quite a bit these days. They say that Jesus never judged anyone. WRONG! Jesus judged everyone he came into contact with, as do you and I. It's impossible to live life and interact with people without making some kind of judgment about them. Plus, Jesus ALWAYS judged sin as being wrong, and the sinner as needing to be saved (he can do that since he's God). Thus, when we encounter sinners, we can make a similar judgment: sin is wrong, and sinners need to be saved. What that verse speaks to is making a moral judgment on someone because of their actions - condemning them - which is not for mankind to do, but for God alone. Instead, it's our job to love them, preach the gospel to them and introduce them to Jesus.
Here then, is what I think about P-Nasty. He says that he has God's forgiveness, and that he "accepted" the fact that Jesus Christ died for his sins (spiritual action). While I can't make a definite decision about the truth of this claim because I can't see his heart, I can form a hypothesis by the evidence of his actions, which are still steeped in sin and unrighteousness. Since the Bible calls believers to flee from sin, and to be living in righteousness, I can make a conclusion that he is indeed not saved, and that he indeed needs Jesus. I can't make a moral decision regarding him, though, and condemn him, because I can't see his heart. I can't determine what he believes in truth. Only God can do that. Thus, it's my job to love P-Nasty and to warn him that his professed lifestyle is not what the Bible says a believer should be doing, and I can encourage him to examine himself - examine his heart, his sin, his desires, his motivations, etc. as compared to scripture and make a decision based upon that examination.
So was Ray a Pharisee by "judging" P-Nasty because he didn't see him "fasting and praying?" Definitely not in the same sense that the Pharisees were judging the disciples. Ray used the evidence he saw in the guy's life and formed a conclusion - then he loved him enough to tell him about Jesus. He didn't make a moral or spiritual judgment on P-Nasty. Instead, he reached out in compassion. Let us go and do likewise.
One of the main points of my message this past week was that we, as Christ-followers, need to be coming up with creative ways to bring the lost to Jesus. In the story of Jesus healing the paralytic, we have the example of his friends who, when they saw that Jesus was inaccessible through the front door, they had to use their brains and their creativity to find a way to get their paralyzed friend to the feet of Jesus. Their solution? Lower him through the roof. This solution was, I think, creative and a demonstration of the commitment of these guys to make sure that their friend saw Jesus.
Also worthy of our consideration in this narrative, however, is the realization that not only what these guys did required some ingenuity, but it also required some work. Allow me to explain.
Jewish houses in the first century B.C. consisted of walls that were made of field stones held together by dried mud and clay. The houses usually consisted of a few rooms that were usually open to the entire house. This made it ideal for Jesus to be in - he could be in one room, yet accessed by the entire crowd that was in the house.
Most houses had simple and easy roof access, either through a ladder in the interior of the house, or by some steps on one of the exterior walls (we'll assume that this house had exterior roof access for the purposes of this story).
The roofs of the houses were typically supported by wood beams that were laid across the width of the supporting walls of the rooms in the house. And then on top of the beams were brush and shrubs mixed with mud and clay, which are then packed down into a smooth surface.
So then, here is the assumed process that these guys had to follow in order to accomplish their task of lowering their friend to Jesus:
1) They first had to carry the paralyzed man up the stairs to get to the top of the house. I was recently a pall bearer at my uncle's funeral (the first time I had ever done such a thing). Myself and, I think, five other guys carried my uncle's casket down steps from the church and loaded it into the hearse. I can testify to you that carrying a human body is not an easy thing - even if it's just a short distance. I can also attest to the difficulty of carrying a human body up or down steps - the whole process becomes even more difficult.
2) Once atop the roof, these men had to make their way through the roof. This would have been difficult, and probably would have required at least some use of tools. The mixture of brush, shrubs, and dried mud would have made for a thick, hard surface. Luke's gospel says that this mud mixture was formed into tiles that these guys peeled away. Even still, this would have been an enormously difficult task, not to mention having to do so while making sure that no significant chunks of roof fell into the house on the people inside. If you think about it, this hole probably had to be at least 6 feet by 4 feet in order to fit a prostrate male. That's a darn big hole in the roof.
3) This endeavor to bring their friend to Jesus required sacrifice on the part of the friends. These guys sacrificed their time to do this, and they also had to put in a significant amount of effort. Not to mention all that, but this is not their house. They are inflicting damage to someone else's house. Do you think the home owner was excited that his roof was being torn apart? Probably not. I'm sure that he insisted upon being reimbursed for the damages to his property, and this reimbursement no doubt came from the pockets of the friends. Thus, they were willing to not only do the work, but also pay for the damages.
4) Once they were on the roof and the whole had been created, the friends had to find a way to lower the paralytic down. See my earlier paragraph on the surprising weight of the human body. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been to lower this guy down to Jesus, while keeping his bed level so he didn't fall off, and making sure he wasn't dropped, etc. It had to be very difficult. And not only that, but these guys had to find rope to attach to the bed in order to lower him down (probably at least four 20-foot lengths of rope).
I could go on and on about all of the remarkable details that surrounded this display of compassion on the part of these friends. The point is that getting your friends before Jesus probably won't (actually, most assuredly won't) be an easy thing to do. Here are some parallels between the actions these friends took, and the actions we need to take to get people in front of Jesus:
1) It's going to take a lot of work on your part. In most instances you'll have to sacrifice your own personal time. Also, you'll most likely have to sacrifice some of your skill and labors - you'll have to work at it, and it'll probably be hard work.
2) Sometimes it might even require you to sacrifice financially - maybe the cost of a cup of coffee, or the cost of gas to pick someone up to go to church or a Bible study. The point is, you'll probably have to foot the bill sometimes.
3) Also, it's going to require careful skill and accuracy. You'll have to be careful about what you say. You'll have to be strategic and purposeful in your actions. You'll have to plan out how you're going to go about getting the lost in front of Jesus.
What it all comes down to is that these friends of the paralytic were determined to get their friend in front of Jesus. That was their priority, and they were going to take steps in order to make it happen. They knew it would be difficult - they knew it would be demanding - they knew it would require sacrifice - they knew it would require precision. They knew all these things. But they also knew the importance of the encounter. They knew that this guy HAD to get in front of Jesus, so they were willing to do what it took to get the job done.
Let us go and do likewise, doing anything and everything we can, striving to get the lost - those who need an encounter with Jesus - to his feet.
