No More Play-Acting
When I was a boy we'd often hear sermons about the importance of "witnessing." I was made to understand that "winning people to Christ" was my job, and that the world was filled folks who were on their way to hell.
Once, after what must have been a particularly urgent challenge, I resolved to "witness" to someone in my public school the next day. I was only 10 or 11 yrs old and uneasy about trying this, but convinced it was my duty.
I found a school mate the next day and began telling him that he must ask Jesus into his heart, and that if he didn't, he would go to hell where there was eternal fire.
But it didn't ring true, and I knew it. It all seemed so unnatural and ridiculous, even unbelievable to me. The boy was bewildered, and I suddenly felt foolish. As the boy tried to make sense out of my words a little voice in my own head was saying, "wait a minute Pete... do you even believe what your telling this kid?"
Sunday morning's message revealed a better way. There is something wrong about "insisting" on evangelism, or "strategizing" over how to evangelize, or trying to discover "techniques" for effective evangelism.
What I took away Sunday morning was this: Evangelize we must! Yes! There is good news for those who are dead in sin. Repent they must! But effective evangelism requires only this: A love for Jesus Christ, a love for sinners, and the filling of the Spirit of God.
In other words, the whole thing has got to be real. You do not "strategize" your way to a love for the lost. It's there or it isn't. We must be constrained by the love of Christ, as St. Paul was. You don't strategize about how to be filled with the Spirit. He will fill us as He chooses.
Brothers and sisters may the Lord Himself equip us for the work of evangelism by giving us a love for the lost and the fullness of His Spirit. Play-acting doesn't work.
Once, after what must have been a particularly urgent challenge, I resolved to "witness" to someone in my public school the next day. I was only 10 or 11 yrs old and uneasy about trying this, but convinced it was my duty.
I found a school mate the next day and began telling him that he must ask Jesus into his heart, and that if he didn't, he would go to hell where there was eternal fire.
But it didn't ring true, and I knew it. It all seemed so unnatural and ridiculous, even unbelievable to me. The boy was bewildered, and I suddenly felt foolish. As the boy tried to make sense out of my words a little voice in my own head was saying, "wait a minute Pete... do you even believe what your telling this kid?"
Sunday morning's message revealed a better way. There is something wrong about "insisting" on evangelism, or "strategizing" over how to evangelize, or trying to discover "techniques" for effective evangelism.
What I took away Sunday morning was this: Evangelize we must! Yes! There is good news for those who are dead in sin. Repent they must! But effective evangelism requires only this: A love for Jesus Christ, a love for sinners, and the filling of the Spirit of God.
In other words, the whole thing has got to be real. You do not "strategize" your way to a love for the lost. It's there or it isn't. We must be constrained by the love of Christ, as St. Paul was. You don't strategize about how to be filled with the Spirit. He will fill us as He chooses.
Brothers and sisters may the Lord Himself equip us for the work of evangelism by giving us a love for the lost and the fullness of His Spirit. Play-acting doesn't work.
Labels: Evangelism, Guest Post
posted by Petros at
12:05 AM
2 Comments:
In my reading this morning I came across this verse and was reminded of what I had just read in your post. Especially when talking about being uneasy.
Matthew 6
31So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied
As I read this with your post in mind I changed this passage to read like this:
"So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had no peace and was being taken apart. And walking in the fear of man and in the uneasiness of their own spirits, it decreased.
Lord grant us peace and build us up. Help us to walk in the fear of You and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit and in doing so multiply us.
Yes Peter you are right. Thanks for the follow up to Jim Donohue's truly Spirit -filled message to a church hungry for more of that Spirit.
We must so "gather" with each other in fellowship, prayer, the Lord's Supper and teaching that we find ourselves full of faith in and love for Jesus with "power from on high"--ready to "go" into a needy world.
And then we must simply step forward into the world and speak the things we have seen and heard in Jesus.
We must pray, we must hunger, we must step forward in faith that god will go with us.
And we must speak of those "things we have both seen and heard in Christ". As the Spirit then falls, the walls will too.
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