Evangelism
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It sounds like a real churchy term, evangelism. When I hear the word evangelism I think of a stranger standing in front of me telling me how much I need Jesus in my life and how they can help me get there. I think of the one time I was at the truck stop bathroom and the last thing I was expecting when getting my toilet paper was a track falling out in front of me. I think of the folks picketing out front of abortion clinics. Evangelism elicits lots of ideas about what it is. I want to challenge you to the idea that evangelism is simply building relationships. There are programs that can help you with growing in your ability to share your faith and to be a witness but none of those will matter until you realize and apply the aspect of evangelism as relationships. This morning we will be in Matthew chapter 9 verses 9-13. In this passage we will see an aspect of Jesus and His disciples that I believe we often overlook. Jesus and his disciples built relationships. They got involved in peoples lives and they did so with the ones that the religious ones of the time would consider unclean or not worthy of their time.
One Sunday evening, William Booth was walking in London with his son, Bramwell, who was then 12 or 13 years old. The father surprised the son by taking him into a saloon! The place was crowded with men and women, many of them bearing on their faces the marks of vice and crime; some were drunk. The fumes of alcohol and tobacco were poisonous. "Willie," Booth said to his son, "These are our people; these are the people I want you to live for and bring to Christ." Years later, Bramwell Booth wrote, "The impression never left me."
I’m not telling you to go into a bar, but what I am telling you is that you need to have this same heart. We need to have the heart for those lost around us. The church survives when it turns inward and takes care of itself, it thrives when it turns outward and reaches those in need. Today in the scripture we will see that Evangelism is a part of the call, Evangelism is relational, Evangelism is merciful.
Evangelism is part of the call
Evangelism is part of the call
9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.
Most of us in here are here because we have given our hearts to Jesus. After giving your heart to Jesus you are called. WE are not called to save ourselves and forget everyone else. We are called to show the love of Jesus to the World. The reason we are given salvation is because it is the greatest gift, it is not though a gift that runs out once you receive it. Let me ask you this, if you walked into a store and won 1,000,000 dollars just for walking in and if you found out that every person who walks in would win 1,000,000 how many people would you tell? Would you only tell people you liked? I think most of us would run to people in the street to tell them to go into that store! We are called like Matthew was called to share the story of Christ. What was it that Matthew did? He got up and followed Jesus and as a part of following Jesus he was immediately taught to recline at the table and to spend time with sinners. Why? I believe it was to teach him the true goal of salvation. The reason that we receive salvation is so that we can be the next vessel through which God uses to share the word. The problem through is that many of us are stuck in a cycle of selfishness. We believe that salvation was for us and only for us and that now that we have it we have what we need. Truth is if you read your Bible and you believe what it says you should be sharing the Word and building relationships that are showing the Love of Christ so others can escape the desperate situation they are in.
A mother was preparing pancakes for her sons, Kevin, 5, and Ryan, 3. The boys began to argue over who would get the first pancake. Their mother saw the opportunity for a moral lesson. “If Jesus were sitting here, He would say, ‘Let my brother have the first pancake; I can wait.” Kevin turned to his younger brother and said, “Ryan, you be Jesus!”
You may not be like these 2 boys and be outright selfish but what would you call it if you had the greatest gift in the world and kept it to yourself? What does the scripture say about what we are supposed to do?
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
14 To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.
15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
6 and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.
21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”
Salvation is not a secured ending for you or a great way to close a chapter in your life it is the beginning of your calling! Salvation is the same thing for you as happened to Matthew. When the spirit calls and you answer unto salvation you are then called to go and to share the message. Evangelism is not an evangelists job, not the pastors job, not the deacons job, it is the job of every believer and we who call ourselves believers should understand that it is a part of our salvation. We are called to share in the story of salvation and to tell others about the love of a God who cares deeply for them! So how do we do this?
Evangelism is relational
Evangelism is relational
10 And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
Evangelism is not about telling people that they are horrible and they need Jesus because look at how much better than them we are and Jesus can make them that way too. Evangelism is not checking off the box and handing someone a track that may or may not have any understanding into that persons life. Evangelism is building relationships. Getting into the trenches with people and understanding their lives. Living like Christ in front of others and showing the love of Christ with them not when they become perfect or start living the way we want them to live. It is about showing them the love of Christ where they are and in their lives now. We overlook this passage of scripture and how important it is. It says what? It says that Jesus was reclining at the table with sinners and tax collectors. What was the significance of reclining at the table? A meal in this time would be eaten and then guests would leave, those who desired fellowship would recline at the table indicating that they wanted to stay longer and to have fellowship. It is one thing to eat with someone and it is something else to recline at the table with someone. We still have this custom today. If you want to eat with someone but you don't really want to spend too much time with them, what do you do? Thats right you invite them to go out to eat. You invite people to your house when you want to have fellowship because you are less inclined you are reclined or comfortable and you want them there to have fellowship. You fellowship with people that you want to be friends with. Jesus did not just want to be an acquaintance to the tax collectors and sinners he wanted to fellowship with them and show them that he cared. Jesus was taking time to dive into their lives and to relax with them. This does not mean that Jesus was partaking in their sinful nature but He did care enough to spend time with the. Jesus did not view himself as more important than others . Notice though who did think they were more important or too holy to associate with sinners. Thats right the Pharisees. They came in and saw themselves as so important that they would never recline with the sinners and tax collectors. This is a delicate balance in faith. While you do not want to be pulled into bad habits of those around you, you still need to desire to have relationships with the lost and see them as worthy of your time. It is time for the church to begin building relationships with people and getting to be a part of their lives. Earn the right to speak into peoples lives.
As a supervisor at a secular company I get the distinct opportunity to build relationships with others around me. I have recently been able to share my faith more and more with people. It is not happening because I walk up to people and talk to them about faith, instead I talk to them respectfully and build relationships. As we begin to talk about their lives and my life I introduce the fact that I am a pastor to which most of them are shocked. Not because I look or sound like them but because I do not look or sound like what they think pastors are like. They share this view of most believers by the way. They see the normal conversations I have, they hear me apologize when I make mistakes, they see me treating all people with respect. When I talk to them I take a few minutes to talk about their lives and not only about work. As I build these relationships I open the right to speak into their lives and to be there when they need an ear to talk to. As they speak I listen, I do not jump in there with scripture I simply listen and enjoy the fellowship with them. As the conversations continue most the time I am able to pray with them or for them or to let them know that I am praying for them. They often times begin to ask questions or to say I need to get my life right and there it is my opportunity to speak the love of God into their lives. It is the relationship that opens the opportunity to speak to them about the love of Christ.
How are you earning the right to speak love into peoples lives? How are you earning their respect? We cannot go the route of simply throwing words out there, the world is beyond that they want to see believers with action behind them. Its said best like this, no one cares how much you know until they know how much you care. We are called to build these relationships and to earn the right to speak to others.
15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.
13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
The theme in all of these scriptures is that it is not just a track or a passing phrase to someone. Don’t get me wrong there are places for those and they are not horrible if they help you, they however should not replace the fact that we are called to build relationships. These relationships are hard because the people we will spend time with to build the relationships don’t act or sound like us or do the things that we think they should so how do we handle this? We handle this with mercy.
Evangelism is merciful
Evangelism is merciful
12 But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Jesus called the Pharisees on the mat because they spent their time telling everyone about the sacrifices they must make to be found holy and they spend their time telling others how much better they were than them. In this last sentence Jesus uses their Old Testament Scripture against them.
6 For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,
the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
Jesus embarrasses the Pharisees because they cannot argue against their own scripture. They would accept you if you lived the way they thought you should, looked like them, acted like them. The fact is that we are called to love people the way they are where they are. We should not tell the world to come to us and look and smell like us so they can be saved. We need to have mercy as God has mercy and seek to love people in the depths of their sin. Jesus did not wait for us to be perfect before He fellowship-ed with us He loved us while we were sinners and while he had the right to condemn us He showed mercy. The way you have fellowship with non believers is by first seeing the mercy God showed to you then sharing that same mercy with them. Jesus does not want people who are perfect He wants people who love Him and show mercy as He shows mercy.
One difference between grace and mercy is that grace is getting what we don’t deserve (favour), and mercy is not getting what we do deserve (justice). R.T. Kendall Total Forgiveness
We are called to be merciful and to love the world around us. We are not to put on them the weight of a life they cannot live on their own but to share in the same mercy that was given to us.
36 Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.
13 For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.
Are you living a life of Evangelism? Do you see this as a part and a calling in your salvation? If not it is time to change that and to seek the same love for others that you have recieved. Are you living a life building relationships with others? We should seek to build relationships. Im here to tell you this may not look like what Christians think it should look like, Jesus didn’t care what the Pharisees thought He cared more about the lost than his own image. The last part of this and the greatest of all is that we are not called to condemn people but to show mercy. To love like Christ and to love others not after they find Jesus but while they are sinners. We can fill this church and change this world if we will live this way. We are called to live relational evangelism.