Tag Archives: evangelism

May 27, 2019 · 7:24 am

WHY?

Peninsula Community Church

May 26, 2019

John 3:16-21 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

This weekend has been established as a national holiday to celebrate Memorial Day. It is the day we honor those who have given their lives so we can live free as a nation and as individuals. It is noteworthy that Memorial Day began shortly after the Civil War in 1856. The families and survivors of the Union Army were passionate about honoring those who gave their life during the Civil War. They would visit and place flowers on the graves of those who died. After World War I and all wars after that, those who died were honored. Memorial Day serves as a reminder of the price paid for our freedom.

For so many, this weekend is associated with the beginning of summer, but the reality is it is less about the start of summer and much more about the lives who were sacrificed for our freedom. It is a time to remember why they died. Today, we are reminded these men died so we could be free. They died so we could worship and speak freely, even if we do not agree with the worship or speech of another person. They paid that price with their lives. On a side note, it is so sad that those freedoms are being encroached upon and being eroded in big ways.

Last week we noted that to understand discipleship we needed to know the why more than the how of evangelism and discipleship. The how and mechanics of what we do is important, but the why of what we do is even more critical. Without the why, we can become mechanical and programmatic in our approach to discipleship. For a few minutes this morning I would like to consider the why of discipleship and evangelism. In other words, we will look at why we do what we do.

Last we week we were reminded that while salvation is important, growth in Christ in terms of discipleship was the focus of the “Great Commission.” So, why do we disciple others? Why does it matter? Why should we share Jesus with those we encounter and within our sphere of influence? The answer lies in this passage before us today. We are called to be disciples and we are to disciple others because of John 3:16. We do so because God so loved the world.

This sin filled, depraved, godless world has been and still is loved by God. He loved it so much that He sent His son to die on the cross not for one sin but for all sin. This is the most incredible part of this passage. He did not die for some people, He died for all people. He died for the world, the whole world. He died for all mankind regardless of social standing, financial standing, or even one’s looks. Thank God for that. There is not one person who was not on the mind of Christ when He hung on the cross. We are all covered by the sacrifice He gave.

Why did He do this? He did so in order that every person who would believe in Him might have eternal life, and not just eternal life but abundant life. You see Jesus did not come to help us just escape hell. He did not die so that we could join a Christian social club. He died so we could live and live freely in a world that seeks to shackle us with fear, anxiety, and deceit. He died so that anyone who would believe in Him and accept Him would be received as His child. Through acceptance of Christ his or her name is written into the Book of Life.

We must understand that salvation is not automatic. You must choose to accept Christ as your Savior. The sad part is that not all will be saved because they will refuse to choose Him. Instead they will reject Christ and His provision for abundant life. The truth is that not every person will be saved but the opportunity for salvation is available for all people. This includes the worst of all mankind and it includes the best of all mankind. We must all accept Christ on our own and for ourselves. We cannot depend on our friends or our family. We must accept Him personally.

Because of God’s love there is great misunderstanding of some doctrine that is being propagated by some in the church today. There is so much that is based in human ideology and not God’s theology. I have stated this before. We must be assured that our presuppositions are formed by Scripture and not the other way around. We must not allow our presuppositions to determine our beliefs, but we must allow God’s word to form our beliefs. When we start from the basis of our own beliefs, and we are looking for Scripture to give us answers to support our beliefs, we have failed to allow the Word of God to be the roadmap of our life. In a world that is encouraging us to jettison all absolutes and live by our own moral compass, we as believers need to heed the call of God to live by the word and not our own beliefs.

With that said, I would suggest to you that there are four motivating factors for our work in discipleship and evangelism. It is these motivating factors that define for us the why of discipleship. First of all, the love of Christ compels us. As we look at this passage let me let you in on a secret. God did not create the world, sling it into existence and then forget about it. He loved the world before its foundation. He loved the world when mankind failed in the Garden and sin came rushing into their minds and hearts. He loves the world just as much today as He did then. It is that love that compels us to share Christ with others. It is that love that constrains us to accomplish His will. Listen to Paul’s words. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died (2 Corinthians 5:14 NIV). In the ESV the word is Christ’s love controls us.

So, why do we do this? We do so because the love of Christ overwhelms us. We do so because the love of Christ motivates us to speak truth in love to those we encounter and to those to whom we have been given influence. When we embrace the love He has for us and that love overwhelms us and motivates us to share our faith with others.

Second, we are commanded by Christ to disciple. The love of God experienced through the work Christ done on our behalf motivates us to obey God’s call to be discipled and to disciple. If you remember, last week we found that Jesus commands His disciples to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). Peter says to all Christians, “Be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15, NIV).

We disciple because it is a part of the plan executed by God. Think about this, God could have used any means possible to share His love. He could have just spoken directly to those around us. But for some strange reason, He chose us. He chose this imperfect, sinful creature created by God to be the vessel He would work through to touch people and to give them the word of hope.

Third, a love for the lost compels us. A love for the lost should compel us to have compassion for those in need, and everyone’s greatest need is eternal salvation. We saw before that it is love that should compel us as a motivation for discipleship. To effectively accomplish this we must have a love for those to whom we are being sent.

To understand that love we must consider how richly God has loved us. See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him (1 John 3:1). Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another (1 John 4:7-11).

And finally, we disciple because we have a love for God. Our ultimate motivation in evangelism must be to see God glorified, and God is glorified when the truth about Him is known and made known. Thus our desire should be to glorify God by proclaiming the truth about Him as often as we can. This motivation will sustain us when our love for others may run dry. If we are to faithfully evangelize despite rejection, opposition, and even persecution, our deepest motivation must be to glorify God. You see perfect love casts at all fear. When our love for God overwhelms us, we are motivated by faith and not the individual we are sharing hope with.

So why do we disciple others? We do so because of the love of God who sent His son and the love that is manifested in our hearts.

For an audio of this message go to http://pccministry.org/messages.

Stewardship of the Gospel

Peninsula Community Church

Stewardship of the Gospel

June 22, 2014

Colossians 1:24-29 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

As we look at this passage this morning, I would ask that you stop for a moment and consider how it was that you came to know Christ. My guess would be that it happened by way of a personal contact with someone in your life. It could have been a parent, a teacher, a coach, a good friend, or a co-worker. Now I also understand that your actual conversion or acceptance of Christ may have occurred at a church service, a revival meeting, or as you were alone but I am sure that even in that case there was someone who played a pivotal role in bringing you to that place of decision. The fact is relationships play an incredible role in seeing people come to Christ. It is noteworthy that studies have shown that the average person requires 5 significant encounters before receiving Christ as their personal Savior. This does not negate the power of the Holy Sprit to convict, but He works through His people to bring the hope of the Gospel to others. The Holy Spirit is always at work, but we get to share in the joy of the process.

It is for that reason that Paul acknowledges that he had been called to steward the Gospel of Christ. His focus was to make the Word of God fully known to everyone he encountered. He recognized that the Gospel had not been presented for him alone, but that it must be shared with others. In particular, he was called to minister to the Gentiles who were considered nonbelievers in his day. To facilitate this, he presented three ways to make the Word of God known. First, there is proclamation which carries with it the idea that the message is presented as a herald, it is done so urgently and it is spoken authoritatively. Secondly, there is warning which is reproof intended to correct a behavior that does not align itself to the word of God. And, lastly there is teaching which deals with specific issues of ignorance and lack of knowledge in certain Biblical concepts and principles. The key here is to speak to one’s emotions but also one’s heart must be enlightened as well.

Paul also deals with sharing the gospel at the end of his letter to the Colossians. Listen to what Paul says in Colossians 4:2-6. Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

In this passage, Paul sets the example for us by praying for opportunities to present the Gospel. Paul proposes that the Colossians should pray for opportunities to share their faith with others. In particular, he requests prayer for open doors to share His faith. He knew that the God of all creation, who knows the hearts of man, also knows what they need to hear at any particular moment. So for that reason, Paul is asking for prayer that the need of the individual and the message will be united as led by the Holy Spirit.

Let me ask you a question? How often do you pray for opportunities to share the gospel? I can assure you that if you pray and if you keep your heart open to God, you will find many opportunities to speak to others about Christ. When we pray for open doors, we must then walk with an expectant heart, for there should be an expectation that God will open doors to share His word, if we ask Him.

The door of opportunity may include those who are battling issues in their life. It could be a next door neighbor who wants to talk. It could be having your friends and neighbors, who do not know Christ, in your home or at a restaurant, so that they get to know you better. It has been proven that most people today will not automatically come to church unless they get to know us first. I want to challenge you to consider to find a few friends, neighbors, or family members that you will share Christ with this year. Pray about having them at your home. Live out the example of Christ before them. Preach the gospel and when necessary use words.

Secondly, Paul tells us to walk in wisdom toward outsiders. First of all we don’t unload everything we know in one moment. We also attempt to ascertain the specific questions being asked so that we can answer the specific questions being asked. Too often, we are answering questions that are not being asked. I am convinced that if we sincerely answer the questions being asked by individuals that we will be given the opportunity later to ask the questions they are not asking. When answering questions, we must answer them in a way that points to Christ and to the Gospel as a means to secure their hope and the answers to life’s issues. We must recognize that there are many today who have no knowledge of the Scriptures. They do not have the anchor of hope found in the Gospel as most people, even believers, have failed to make the gospel a functional part of their life. It is for that reason that we must not assume that those we speak with have even a precursory knowledge of the Word.

We must also guard against always trying to a point. We do not share our faith with others to propagate our particular doctrinal nuance or even our favorite Scripture. Instead, we are to be sensitive to the needs and concerns of others. Through wisdom, in our everyday life, we have the opportunity to steward the Gospel in a way that honors God, that brings Him joy, and that expands the Kingdom of God. When we look at the needs of others we will see them in a different light.

Thirdly, make the best use of your time. When God opens a door, go through it. If it seems a door is open, then enter through that door. It is at that moment we do not have to pray about the open door, we simply go through but we never go beyond the level that the door is open.

Fourthly, let your speech be gracious. While we speak the truth in love, we must be careful and not be too quick to judge those we are speaking with. I have seen this illustrated personally for me. In 1981, I was doing inner city Bible fellowships in NYC and the five Burroughs. One the fellowships I led was in the Bronx. We were averaging 40 to 50 adults each time we met. It was a lively group and they seemed to be growing and maturing in Christ. All was well until my overseer came to one of the meetings. He did two things that set things into a tail spin. First, he began to push that the group should become a church. This was something the group was in no way ready to do at that time. Most of them were young believers who did not have a concept of church, and what little ideas they had about the church were negatively couched. The second issue was that he began to vehemently argue against alcohol consumption of any kind. To fully understand why this was a problem, 90% of those in attendance were Italian and they consumed a glass of wine or a beer at almost every meal. In fact, my overseer and two of the men who were key leaders in the group fiercely argued over this issue. It became quite heated. Needless to say, we never met again after that. My point here is that sometimes we major on things that we do not need to major on. Once a person matures and grows in Christ, they will come to these decisions on their own or by being lovely taught the truth.

Paul also admonished us that our speech should be and must be seasoned with salt. Salt is an amazing thing. Salt under applied makes the item seem bland. Without salt there is little taste. Too often, we present the gospel in a way that is bland and without excitement. But I am glad that the Gospel is alive and brings life to those who hear it. The Gospel presented correctly will move us and motivate us to joy. Salt also can be overused and the item we are tasting will be rejected, as it will be too salty. We must be careful also and not use a salt substitute. This does not mean that we cannot use philosophers and current thought to make a point but we must always point them to Christ. Paul was the master at this as witnessed by his encounter with the people of Athens. He found common ground so that he could speak into their lives. As he was meeting with them in the midst of Aeropagus in Acts 17, Paul does not condemn them. He notes that they are indeed very religious. He moved on their sense of self worth by way of the gods they worshipped. Then he was very wise as he found a way to turn the discussion to God. He commented that he saw that they had an altar set up to the “unknown god.” He used that as a launch point to tell them about the unknown god they worshipped. In the end, not everyone joined him but many did. The point is Paul began at a point of commonality and used that to bring them to a discussion about God.

In essence, Paul is saying let’s have a measured response to the questions being answered. To do this we must experience the Word of God for ourselves so that it is a supernatural natural response for us to give an answer because we have tried the principle and know that it works. We must love the gospel. We must Live the gospel. We must Give the gospel.

For an Audio copy of this message you may go to www.pccministry.org

Being a Church on Mission

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Mark 16:15 – And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.

What does it mean to be a Church on Mission – Being a church on mission means that we are intentional and deliberate about reaching others for Christ. It means we are missionaries without ever leaving our zip code. It means we do missions right where God has planted us—in our community, on the job, with family, at school or wherever you find people who are not churched or may be unsaved and have a need for a personal encounter with Christ.

Notice two words in this definition:

1. We are intentional – We purpose in our heart to reach our community for Christ. This does not happen by accident, it must be a lifestyle where we desire to see those around have a personal encounter with a living God.

2. We are deliberate – We watch for opportunities to share our faith with others and to be Christ to others by demonstrating Christ’s love for all. Someone has said that we should preach all of the time and some times we use words.

Notice that word “program” is not used in the definition. This is not about establishing another program in the church but rather it is about a lifestyle of passionately displaying the life of Christ so that others can experience His love and mercy. We should also note here that we do not save anyone but it is a work of the Holy Spirit. Our job is to watch for where God is working and work for Him.

Four core values of being on mission

Every believer a missionary: In the New Testament we do not see a Biblical distinction between evangelism and missions. In fact, the word “mission” or “missions” is never used. We are called to share the message of hope to all we encounter that are open to hear the message.

2 Timothy 4:1-5 – I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Colossians 4:6 – Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

We need to build relationships because in building relationships with others people will be more open to hear the message of Christ’s love. So spend some time getting to know others so that trust will grow. Think about how you came to know Christ. Was it not from a personal encounter with someone who loved you enough to share Christ with you? The scripture tells us to “go into all of the world.” It has been said that “People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

We need to love exceptionally because our actions speak louder than our words. Maybe you have become aware of some hardship or simply a project your neighbor or co-worker is facing. Is there some way that you and your family may help in these things? Jesus knew our actions would speak as loud as our message, so he taught us to “let our light shine before other men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

We need to proclaim courageously as this kind of evangelism is different than proclamation evangelism. You may not share the gospel the first time you meet, but be sensitive to the Spirit’s work and when He opens the door of opportunity, don’t wait too long before you lead the conversation to spiritual things and to the good news about Jesus Christ.

Tag Archives: evangelism

WHY?

Stewardship of the Gospel

Being a Church on Mission

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