A Response to the Post-Christian Culture - REACHING The Lost

Preliminary:

I believe God gives burdens to some people for the lost - I also believe God has given a commission to all of us to ...

Mark 16:15 “15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

He, as of now, hasn’t sent us to “all nations” but he has sent us to Wichita, KS.

This is where we are - and this is where we are to teach and bring people to Christ.

I do not claim to have all the answers - but we have prayed and prayed for vision - which is good - but we also have to act - which is hard

I’ve been praying not so much for vision but for strength and boldness to “JUST DO IT”

In the next few Sunday Nights I want to do a series on Evangelism with some ideas and challenges that I believe will help us in this area.

I hope you will join me in this endeavor, I want to attempt to break out of my comfort zone and attempt to do something for Jesus.

I want to look at two scriptures tonight to kick off this series I’m calling GO YE!

1 Cor 9:19-23 and Jude 16-23 (mention these a couple of times.)

The connection between these two passages is an idea, a desire, a hope to win people to Christ by any way possible.

Lets start with 1 Cor. 9:19-23

1 Corinthians 9:19–23 KJV 1900

19 For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. 20 And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; 21 To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. 22 To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 23 And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.

Now I want to look at Jude 16-23

Jude 16–23 KJV 1900

16 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men’s persons in admiration because of advantage. 17 But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; 18 how that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. 19 These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit. 20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. 22 And of some have compassion, making a difference: 23 and others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.

Introduction:

On average everyone has about 6-8 unchurched friends, relatives, associates

That means you - everyone of you - have about 7 people or so in your life who is unchurched.

Those unchurched people has anywhere from 12-14 friends, relatives and associates who are unchurched. Twice as many

What I want us to think about over the next few weeks - is what can I do about it?

These are seven people that I know who may be going to hell unless I can help show them Christ.

There are three main models of evangelism

Teacher

Salesmen

Friendship

They all have their pro’s and cons but I will primarily be focusing on the friendship model as here at Wichita we attempt to already live out the friendship model amongst ourselves - we just want to extend that out into our community.

I’m talking about “being made all things to all men for the Gospel’s sake” and even having to pull some out of the fire.

The Three Dynamics of the Great Commission prelude

I am going to spend one session talking about each of these in greater depth but tonight I want to give you an over view of three critical dynamics associated with the Great Commission.

First of all what is the Great Commission?

Matthew 28:19 “19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”

The three dynamics are

Personal evangelism - again I am going to be emphasizing the Friendship model - This should lead to

Church planting/Church growth/discipleship - Gathering believers and the evangelized and interested pre-churched into local churches.

Compassionate Ministry - Includes reaching out to the poor and oppressed and even working to weaken and dissolve structural and institutional injustice. (I will be talking more about social justice its dangers and necessities in another series coming up later this fall). Wesley called this Acts of Mercy - its love in action and we will talk more about it later.

These dynamics separately will become useless and ineffective only partial evangelism. Together they form a full-orbed evangelism. They become the central components of world-change

Now I shouldn’t have to tell you - this isn’t our responsibility to win the world - It is our job to work where we are. Sis. Jean isn’t expected to make all of the millions maybe billions of dollars Koch industries makes in a year - but if she does her job, and everyone else does their job it increases the odds of profit and income.

So we aren’t making the industry - Jesus is building the church

We aren’t saving souls - that's the work of the Holy Spirit

We are only doing our part to share the Gospel Message - which we have power to do by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit within us.

Now to do this effectively I think vision is important.

Doctor Mike Avery and Dr. Larry Smith wrote a book several years ago called The CALL: Essays to the Conservative Holiness Movement I purchased the Kindle version shortly after it was published and have read it several times. It is a great book to be challenged by.

In one chapter they offer what they feel to be the vision components to save or rescue the Conservative Holiness Movement

I want to adapt those and talk about - not saving Wichita Bible Holiness Church - because that is not our mission - our mission is spreading the Gospel and the truth of Scriptural Holiness to the lost and dying around us

In Wichita, and its surrounding communities.

Four Vision Components:

UpReach. I believe prayer and worship are two core elements that are struggling to survive in ways that truly impact the CHM. We live in a post Christian culture where not only do men sin with no sense of remorse, but where anti-Biblical values and anti-Christian views are entrenched at the highest levels of the institutions that undergird and govern our society. Only prayer can break such a stronghold. We must once again become a praying church.

The culture we are called to win is one that is lonely, empty and materialistic. Men and women are desperately seeking for something they do not have – something transcendent.

OutReach. Many holiness churches began as storefront missions. They located where the sinners were because they believed it was their main job to see sinners saved, sanctified and established in the family of God. It seems that the CHM no longer believes that this is its main mission, and unfortunately the statistics support such a conclusion. The CHM has become primarily a preservation movement.

InReach. According to Dr. Brian Black, there are approximately 3,000 churches in the USA that in some way identify with the CHM. (Compare this to the North American church numbers for the Nazarenes, 4,800; the Wesleyans, 1,710; and the Free Methodists, 957.) With all these churches and all the individual talent within the CHM, one would think the movement could and should be doing something significant for the Kingdom of God.

However, we are resource rich and cooperation poor. We have miserably failed to reach within – to join hands and unite for the greater good of advancing the work of God in church planting, education, printing, missions and compassionate care.

Instead of one or two strong mission organizations, there are thirty-one struggling ones.

Instead of one or two strong colleges there are eight struggling ones.

Instead of one strong holiness church in town there are four “family controlled” struggling ones.

Cooperation for stewardship reasons alone would free up millions of dollars to further the Kingdom and the message of scriptural holiness!

No movement on earth could gain more from just simply working together than could the CHM.

DownReach. The CHM has a wealth of Biblical, theological, doctrinal and practical teaching that is not being passed down to new Christians or to younger generations.

The CHM needs a renewed commitment to

discipleship,

mentoring

and preaching.

Discipleship is the perfect arena to “teach” many things that should not and cannot be adequately “preached.”

Mentoring is the key to helping our immature converts and young people maneuver the choppy waters of life successfully.

Just keeping the few converts we do have coupled with saving our own would double our population numbers within a few years.

...Preaching in today’s world needs to be passionate explanation with the goal of transformation and application. Postmodern minds today don’t want someone “yelling” at them. They want someone explaining the Bible and giving ways to apply it to life right now!

Avery, Michael; Smith, Larry . The CALL: Essays to the Conservative Holiness Movement (p. 165-174). Revivalist Press. Kindle Edition.

I have a dream - I don’t think its an impossible dream

I have a dream that each one of us will reach out to three or four of our seven unchurched and maybe in the process reach out to some of the unknowns in our communities and out of those some will come to Christ. They may or may not attend here - but that is Kingdom Work

That is becoming whatever necessary to for the Gospel’s sake

That is rescuing some from the burning

May God help us to GO AND PREACH AND TEACH

Pray with me this week that God would prepare our hearts to receive insight, guidance, and boldness in declaring His name.

Lets pray.