Raising Your Standard: Week Three

Evangelism

Huge book about how to bring people to a point that they would want to follow Jesus.

Try to learn a whole bunch of content about anti-Christian arguments

Learn to defend Christianity so the person would see how irrational they were being.

Pridefully, it made me feel superior because I was learning more intellectually

THAT was the problem

More interested in whether I felt like I was fulfilling a Christian requirement than the actual person

So, instead of being about loving the other person enough to share, it became about me feeling guilty if I wasn’t sharing.

Well, if that’s your approach, you’re necessarily going to feel a lot of weight to do it “right”

I’m guessing many of you have struggled similarly

Do I know enough?

Am I smart enough?

What do people have to know?

What if I get it wrong?

Let’s look at a more loving and less complicated standard, which is actually the more Biblical standard.

Let’s start with Jesus’ words in Matthew

Matthew 28:18–20 NKJV

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 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.” Amen.

Pretty simple formula Jesus offers

Make disciples of all nations by...

Baptizing

Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.

Note what Jesus does not say about evangelism

Does not say that you need to know every single thing there is to know about the Bible

About all matters of faith

About internal disputes the church has had throughout history

He doesn’t even say you have to have…A Sinner’s Prayer...

GASP!

Why?

KISS Principle

If you note in the New Testament, it was usually the people who were complicating faith that messed it up the most.

Jesus says...

Matthew 22:37–40 NKJV

Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

The religious leaders spent more time trying to find loopholes for love, than they actually tried to love!

New laws, new power grabs

But Jesus keeps it simple

Go into all nations baptizing

And after they are baptized, teach them to obey all I have commanded you

It’s so simple!

Perhaps even offensively simple.

Paul writes about this in 1 Corinthians...

1 Corinthians 1:20–23 NKJV

Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness,

When it comes to evangelism, beware the complicated argument

The gospel is this...

Humanity is sinful

Jesus saved us through His life, death, and resurrection

Repent and turn toward Jesus

Be baptized

Our first example of this simple approach occurs on the Day of Pentecost…which we celebrate today, by the way!

The Church has received the indwelling gift of the Holy Spirit and Peter begins to preach

Recounts the story of Jesus, to include his crucifixion for their sins, and his resurrection!

Acts 2:38–39 NKJV

Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

Again...Repent and be baptized

Two promises…Remission of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit

3000 people responded on that day.

Over the course of their lives, the apostles went into all the world proclaiming that relatively simple message

But HOW???

Ethiopian Eunuch

Acts 8:29–31 NKJV

Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and overtake this chariot.” So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him.

Acts 8:35–38 NKJV

Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.

Notice Philip’s approach

He obeys God

He befriends the eunuch

He explains as well as he can

He asks if the eunuch believes

He baptizes him

And then he’s whisked away

Acts 2:38 NKJV

Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

It’s really that simple

This week, I don’t ask you to convert someone

Just be a friend!

See the need

Explain what you can…get back to them if you’re stumped

Ask if they want to follow Jesus

Baptize

And then the journey begins...Which is where we will pick up next week

Raising our standards for following Jesus

Amen