The Evangelist as a Sower.

In the New Testament both Jesus and Paul use the metaphor of the sower
for the evangelist or proclaimer of the good news. From Jesus’ parable
of the sower (or ‘of the soils’) the evangelist should learn to be
develop three of the attributes found in the sower. The first
attribute we notice in the sower is that he is generous in his
sowing. He had plenty of seed and spread it widely, causing it to land
on different types of soils. We too should be generous in our
sharing of the message of grace-as Jesus encouraged us :‘freely you
have received so freely give! We should not be stingy with this
message nor seek to keep to ourselves, our family, friends or
countrymen but rather share it with all, even to those whom we
consider don't deserve it-for of course we don't deserve it! Of course
this doesn’t mean that we should ‘throw our pearls before swine’
as the Master told us, but we should still be generous and seek to
spread it where we have an opportunity to do so.
As Charles Wesley declared:

Come sinners to the gospel feast
Let every one be Jesu’s guest.
There need not one be left behind
For God has bidden all mankind.

The second attribute I see in the sower is that he is man who has faith.
He believes that the seed has power to take root, grow and
reproduce-it is what seeds do! We too should should have faith when we
sow the seed of God’s word. As Paul declared regarding the gospel: I
am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the
salvation of everyone who believes. We should not lose heart or become
weary in well doing –keep sowing, keep praying and God will give the
growth and if it lands on good soil it could produce a crop, 'some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.'

The third attribute I see in the sower is that he is patient as he
waits for the seed to grow. He does not panic despite the weather be
it rain, hail, snow or scorching sun! The evangelist likewise should take
encouragement to wait patiently when he shares the gospel. This is
also seen when God speaks in the book of Isaiah :

As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

The seed will take time to develop in the ground then after its time
has been fulfilled the fruit will be seen for all to see.

Paul also emphasises that it is not the sower that gives the growth,
but God. It is not the sower that can boast or receive any glory, but
God. Our calling is not to give the growth, rather our calling is to sow generously, in faith and patiently that in due time God would give growth to the seed sown in his name.
AK


Send me,' he cries, his sin-purged lips with altar fires aglow:
'I'll bear the living message of free forgiving love;
O let me win the wand'rers to the path that leads above.'
`Spite all the ties of nature, he leaves his friends and home,
A lonely witness o'er the world, despised and poor, to roam.
Nought takes he for his service, but freely in His name
Who sent him and supplies his need, the Gospel would proclaim.
Within his yearning bosom, love to the Savior reigns:
In all the labors of his life no other power constrains.
Deep are his tender feelings, sweet is his pleading tone,
As he described the glories of yon Man on Heaven's throne.
His heart the heavy burden of sinful souls must bear;
He wrestles for them at God's throne through hours of midnight prayer.
Eternity before him more real than Time appears:
Oh, wonder not he pleadeth with the eloquence of tears!
Anointed by God's Spirit, trained at the Master's feet,
Commissioned and sent forth by Him, all furnished and complete.
No human art or wisdom his talent could assist:
A heavenly-moulded, God-sent man is the evangelist.
He is the weeping sower who shall with singing come,
Bringing his gathered sheaves from earth to Heaven's harvest home.
And when with joy he lays them down at the Master's feet,
His own 'Well done! thou faithful one,' will make his bliss
complete.—William Blane

Apostles To The People By Hugh T. Kerr

Toyohiko Kagawa (1888-1960)

"The message of these expansive evangelists was simple and direct. Christian faith, they all agreed, whatever its personal rewards in terms of religious assurance, also promised education, health, and social progress to all sorts of deprived and oppressed peoples. In our less romantic age, we may smile at this simplistic creed, sugar-coated with token benefits, thinly hiding a political and economic policy of western imperialism…. But it would be futile to impugn the motives of these apostles to the people. Their record of astonishing achievements is available for all to examine."

AN epic chapter in modern Christian history is waiting to be assembled from the biographies of a dozen extraordinary pioneers of fifty to seventy-five years ago. From the turn of the century, 1900, to about 1925 and a little later, a steady succession of unusual emissaries provided spectacular Christian witness to untold numbers of people in many parts of the world.

E. Stanley Jones (1884-1973)


We are not talking about that enormous cloud of witnesses, men and women, young and old, of every country and denomination, who girdled the globe about the same time as representatives of the great foreign missionary movement sponsored by so many churches. Their names, and their faithfulness and endurance, are written in the book of life. That, too, is a chapter that needs re-writing for our day.

We are thinking, rather, of a special group of about a dozen who were distinguished not only for their mass evangelism but more especially for what might be called their benevolent philanthropy. Here is a partial roll-call:

James Emman Kwegyir Aggrey (1875-1927)
General Evangeline Booth (1865-1939)
G. Sherwood Eddy (1871-1963)
Sir Wilfred Grenfell (1865-1940)
Sam Higginbottom (1874-1958)
Sheldon Jackson (1834-1909)
E. Stanley Jones (1884-1973)
Toyohiko Kagawa (1888-1960)
Frank Laubach (1884-1970)
John R. Mott (1865-1955)
Sadhu Sundar Singh (1889-1933)
Robert E. Speer (1867-1947).

I

The message of these expansive evangelists was simple and direct. Christian faith, they all agreed, whatever its personal rewards in terms of religious assurance, also promised education, health, and social progress to all sorts of deprived and oppressed peoples. In our less romantic age, we may smile at this simplistic creed, sugar-coated with token benefits, thinly hiding a political and economic policy of western imperialism. Well, that may be part of the story, and the debunking of the foreign missionary enterprise has gone on apace in recent years. But it would be futile to impugn the motives of these apostles to the people. Their record of astonishing achievements is available for all to examine.

Sadhu Sundar Singh (1889-1933)


Though active just the day-before-yesterday, these extraordinary humanitarians are almost forgotten in our day. Often self-appointed and fiercely independent, these ambassadors to the poor, the oppressed, and the derelicts of society were untiring in their life-long witness that Christian faith uplifts, enlightens, heals, and empowers all who accept the message of Good News. Well-known in their own times, they should not be forgotten in our time, for they still stand as models of excellence especially in an age such as ours that belittles selfless service, mass evangelism, and ambitious programs of social betterment for marginal people.

What distinguishes this particular group from other mass evangelists of yesterday or today was their social and humanitarian conviction that Christian faith could make a real difference for multitudes of people in their quality of life. So they organized schools and colleges, they taught the illiterate to read and write, they provided health and medical facilities, they fed the undernourished, they combatted epidemic disease, they introduced new farming and agricultural techniques, they gave outcasts a caring community, and-most of all-they held out hope to the hopeless.

In many instances they were the only ones devising such programs. No one else was doing it, not government, not university education, not the free-thinkers or agnostics, not the humanists or artists, not the scientists or political theorists. The humanitarian movement of 1900-1925 was inspired by specific Christian principles, naive and guileless perhaps, but conceived and carried out on a grand scale.

Today our mass evangelists, Billy Graham, Oral Roberts, Rev. Ike, Sun Myung Moon, are mostly interested in preaching their brand of the faith, soliciting decisions and contributions from the churched and the unchurched. They are primarily concerned with personal religious experience, not social or humanitarian programs for the poor and the indigent of society. Some are interested in education and faith healing, and all would doubtless say they offered their hearers a chance for a better life.

Frank Laubach (1884-1970)
But the evangelists of the first quarter of the twentieth century, the ones we're talking about, seemed to reverse the expected sequence. They didn't usually ask people to accept Jesus Christ so they could receive promised educational or medical dividends. They appeared to be genuinely interested in helping people who needed help. It is true they also preached the gospel, made converts, and based their social programs squarely on their Christian faith. But unlike Billy Graham, for example, who says he is so busy winning souls for Christ that he has no time or inclination for social witness, these earlier mass missionaries were humanitarians first and evangelists second. Or, they probably would have preferred to say, their understanding of evangelism included social witness whether anyone was converted or not.

Hugh T. Kerr is Professor of Systematic Theology, Emeritus, Princeton Theological Seminary, and Editor of THEOLOGY TODAY'

For the rest of this thoughtful and perhaps controversial( especially in regard to his critism of Billy Graham) essay go to http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/apr1978/v35-1-article4.htm

The Call to Evangelize :John Stott

John Stott is both a theologian and an evangelist. I only started reading his books about fifteen years ago but since that time I have made it my aim to collect all that he has written. Today being in his eighties, he is now retired from ministry and suffers from ill health. Like St Paul of old, his background could easily have given him a great sense of superiority : he comes from an upper middle class family( his father Sir Arnold Stott was a Harley Street doctor), he has a top Cambridge degree and for the last 40 years has exercised a world famous ministry(it was Dr Stott who penned much of the Lausanne Covenant). Yet despite this he is one of the most humble people I have had the pleasure of meeting.He also never married, becoming, in the words of Jesus, 'a Eunuch for the kingdom', devoting his time to spreading the gospel through teaching and evangelism.His passion for Christ and the lost have been a great inspiration to many thousands of people including myself and I would therefore thoroughly recommend all his writings to you. Here I have included a few of his thoughts on evangelism which I hope you will be helpful.AK

'No-one can ...'

It is grievously mistaken to suggest that the purpose of
evangelism is to cajole sinners into doing what they can
perfectly well do if only they put their minds to it and
pull themselves together. This the Bible emphatically
denies.

Consider these two statements: 'No one can say
"Jesus is Lord" except by the Holy Spirit' (1 Cor. 12:3).
'No one can come to me unless the Father ... draws him'
(Jn. 6:44). We need to hear much more in the church of
this 'no-one can', this natural inability of men to believe
in Christ or to come to Christ. Only the Spirit can reveal
Christ to men; only the Father can draw men to Christ. And
without this double work of the Father and the Spirit no-
one can reach the Son.

It is quite true that Jesus also
said 'you are not willing to come to me that you may have
life' (Jn. 5:40, lit.), and that the human mind finds it
impossible neatly to resolve the tension between this
'cannot' and this 'will not'. But both are true, and man's
refusal to come does not cancel out his inability without
grace to do so.

The chief evangelist

Now who is to be the messenger?
The first and fundamental answer to this question is 'God
himself'. The gospel is God's gospel. He conceived it.
He gave it its content. He publishes it. The fact that he
has committed to us both 'the ministry of reconciliation'
and 'the message of reconciliation' (1 Cor. 5:18-19) does
not alter this. He acted 'through Christ' to achieve the
reconciliation and now acts 'through us' to announce it.
But he still remains himself both reconciler and preacher.
He has used other and more exalted agencies through whom
to publish salvation before partially delegating the work
to the church. Apart from Old Testament prophets, the
first herald of the gospel was an angel, and the first
announcement of it was accompanied by a display of the
glory of the Lord and greeted by the worship of the
heavenly host.
Next, God sent his Son, who was himself both the
messenger and the message. For God sent a 'word ... to
Israel, preaching good news of peace by Jesus Christ' (Acts
10:36). So Jesus not only 'made peace' between God and
man, Jew and Gentile, but also 'preached peace' (Eph. 2:14-
17). He went about Palestine announcing the good news of
the kingdom.
Next, God sent his Spirit to bear witness to Christ. So
the Father himself witnesses to the Son through the Spirit.
And only now does he give the church a privileged share in
the testimony: 'and you also will bear witness' (Jn.
15:27, lit.)
It is essential to remember these humbling truths. The
chief evangelist is God the Father, and he proclaimed the
evangel through his angel, his Son and his Spirit before he
entrusted any part of the task to men. This was the order.
The church comes at the bottom of the list. And the
church's witness will always be subordinate to the
Spirit's.

--From "Our Guilty Silence"

The consent of the mind

Evangelistic preaching has too often consisted of a
prolonged appeal for decision when the congregation have
been given no substance upon which the decision is to be
made. But the gospel is not fundamentally an invitation to
men to do anything. It is a declaration of what God has
done in Christ on the cross for their salvation. The
invitation cannot properly be given before the declaration
has been made. Men must grasp the truth before they are
asked to respond to it. It is true that man's intellect is
finite and fallen, but he must never be asked to murder it.
If he comes to Jesus Christ in repentance and faith, it
must be with the full consent of his mind. Much of the
leakage of converts after evangelistic campaigns is due to
the evangelist's disregard of this. If it be said that we
cannot consider man's mind in our evangelistic preaching
because it is darkened, I can only reply that the apostles
were of a different opinion.

--From "The Preacher's Portrait"

Paul the persuader

Paul's presentation of the gospel was serious, well
reasoned and persuasive. Because he believed the gospel to
be true, he was not afraid to engage the minds of his
hearers. He did not simply proclaim his message in a 'take
it or leave it' fashion; instead, he marshalled arguments
to support and demonstrate his case. He was seeking to
convince in order to convert, and in fact, as Luke makes
plain, many were 'persuaded'. Luke indicates, moreover,
that this was Paul's method even in Corinth. What he
renounced in Corinth (see 1 Cor. 1 - 2) was the wisdom of
the world, not the wisdom of God, and the rhetoric of
Greeks, not the use of arguments. Arguments of course are
no substitute for the work of the Holy Spirit. But then
trust in the Holy Spirit is no substitute for arguments
either. We must never set them over against each other as
alternatives. No, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth,
and he brings people to faith in Jesus not in spite of the
evidence, but because of the evidence, when he opens their
minds to attend to it.

--From "The Message of Acts"


John Stott preaching in his mid eighties.

The Marks of an Apostle

Still, I want it made clear that I've never gotten anything out of this for myself, and that I'm not writing now to get something. I'd rather die than give anyone ammunition to discredit me or impugn my motives. If I proclaim the Message, it's not to get something out of it for myself. I'm compelled to do it, and doomed if I don't! If this was my own idea of just another way to make a living, I'd expect some pay. But since it's not my idea but something solemnly entrusted to me, why would I expect to get paid? So am I getting anything out of it? Yes, as a matter of fact: the pleasure of proclaiming the Message at no cost to you. You don't even have to pay my expenses!

Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn't take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I've become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn't just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!

You've all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You're after one that's gold eternally.

I don't know about you, but I'm running hard for the finish line. I'm giving it everything I've got. No sloppy living for me! I'm staying alert and in top condition. I'm not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.

Paul to the Corinthians

The Sheep and the Goats: Keith Green

I'd never heard this 'song' by Keith Green before today-but how often do I need to hear and heed its message-I put my hands up-I'm guilty!
I've also included Keith singing 'Open your eyes' in which he again challenges us to do authentic mission.

Who was John Sung?

In answer to this question, John Sung was the greatest evangelist in China, some say the world, in the twentieth century. As a teenager I read several books by and about the great chinese Christian leaders among them were Wang Ming Dao, Watchman Nee, David Yang and John Sung.One book that springs to mind at the time was 'Three of China's mighty men' by Leslie Lyall which gave a short biography of the first three mentioned, but I never did read his biography of John Sung :'Flame for God in the Far East'. As you will see from this recent talk which I pasted below, John Sung was a tremendously passionate as well as interesting character.He was to die at the relatively young age of 42.I hope you will enjoy reading article and that it will encourage you to find out more about these great Christians who can still inspire us today.Many of them died in prison for their faith, and it was through their sacrifice that has resulted in such a large and vibrant church in China today. It also has modern day relevance in that the liberalism faced by the evangelical church a hundred years ago is now ago very much on the agenda seen in the current debates with some streams of the 'emerging church' over the virgin birth, the divinity of Christ,authority of Scripture,Christ being the only way etc. Be encouraged.AK
THE REAL CONVERSION OF DR. JOHN SUNG by Dr. R. L. Hymers, Jr.

A sermon preached at the Baptist Tabernacle of Los Angeles
Saturday Evening, June 6, 2009

“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:36).

June 4, 2009 marked the twentieth anniversary of the “Tiananmen Square Massacre.” For six weeks in 1989, thousands of Chinese, mostly students, peacefully demonstrated against the Communist government, calling for more freedom of thought. Then, in the early hours of June 4, the government’s army opened fire on thousands of unarmed demonstrators, killing unnumbered thousands and leaving thousands more injured. Hong Yujian watched the violence unfolding in Beijing on television as an exchange student at the University of Pennsylvania. He said that the Tiananmen Square Massacre made him question his hope in science and democracy and led to him becoming a Christian.

He says the massacre at Tiananmen helped him and others see their own sin and need for Christ: “I think God used it to pave the way and prepare the heart of the Chinese people” (World Magazine, June 6, 2009, p. 38).

World Magazine says,

The growth rate of Christianity in China has exploded over the past 20 years. Experts cite rapid urbanization and a growing number of influential thinkers embracing Christ. OMF International (formerly China Inland Mission) estimates there are some 70 million Christians in China. The group says Protestant Christians in China numbered less than 1 million in 1949 [when the Communist government took over] (ibid.).

Dr. C. L. Cagan, a statistician, estimates that there are now about 700 conversions to Christianity every hour, 24 hours a day, in China.

The history of Christianity in China ought to be extremely interesting to Christians everywhere. The modern missionary movement in China can be said to have begun with Robert Morrison (1782-1834). Morrison was sent to China by the London Missionary Society in 1807. Aided by his colleague, William Milne, he translated the entire Bible into Chinese by 1821. During his 27 years in China only a few Chinese were baptized – yet all of them remained faithful Christians. Morrison’s Chinese translation of the Bible, and printing of gospel literature, became the foundation of evangelical Christianity in China.

In 1853 an English medical doctor, James Hudson Taylor, sailed for China. In 1860 he founded the China Inland Mission, now known as the Overseas Missionary Fellowship. Taylor’s associates eventually spread throughout the whole interior of China. Hudson Taylor died in Changsha in 1905.

In 1901 John Sung was born. He became known as the greatest evangelist in the history of China. Thousands of those who were converted under his preaching remained faithful to Christ after the Communists took over in 1949. In the last 60 years the number of Christians in China has exploded in the greatest revival of Christianity in modern history. Tonight I am going to tell you the remarkable story of Dr. John Sung. I will begin by giving an outline of his life from Dr. Elgin S. Moyer.

John Sung (1901-1944), nationally famous Chinese evangelist; born in Hinghwa, Fukien, China; son of a Methodist pastor. Confessed Christ about age nine [?]. Brilliant student; studied at Wesleyan University, Ohio State University, and Union Theological Seminary. Received Ph.D. in chemistry. Returned to China to preach the Gospel rather than teach science. Spent fifteen years in evangelistic preaching throughout China and surrounding countries with unique power and influence (Elgin S. Moyer, Ph.D., Who Was Who in Church History, Moody Press, 1968 edition, p. 394).

Now that is just a brief sketch of John Sung’s life. Going back in more detail, I do not believe he was converted at the age of nine. I do not believe he was converted until February, 1927.

John Sung himself believed that he was not converted until he went through a spiritual crisis in America many years later. When he was nine years old a revival occurred in Hinghwa. Within a month there were about 3,000 professions. On Good Friday morning he heard a sermon on “Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.” The preacher contrasted the sleeping Disciples with the fearlessness of Jesus. Many people wept with grief at the end of the sermon. Among the mourners was John Sung, the nine-year-old son of the Methodist preacher. It seems to me that John Sung “dedicated” his life to Christ but was not truly converted at this time. Like my former pastor, Dr. Timothy Lin (whose father was also a preacher), John Sung began to preach and help his father by the age of thirteen. But, also like Dr. Lin, he had not yet experienced real conversion. He was a diligent student and finished high school at the top of his class. During this time he became known as the “little pastor.” But in spite of all his zeal and activity his heart was not completely satisfied. The work he was doing in ministry he described as “spectacular as the blue of a kingfisher’s feather, abundant as summer foliage, but without a single plucking of fresh fruit to offer to the Lord Jesus” (Leslie T. Lyall, A Biography of John Sung, China Inland Mission, 1965 edition, p. 15).

In 1919, Sung, now 18 years old, decided to go to America, and was accepted at Ohio Wesleyan University with free tuition. He began a pre-medical and pre-theological curriculum, but dropped the pre-theological courses and decided to specialize in mathematics and chemistry. He went to church regularly and organized evangelistic bands among the students. But during his final term he began to neglect Bible study and prayer, and cheated on one of his examination papers. He graduated in 1923 cum laude, as one of four students at the head of a class of three hundred. He was awarded the gold medal and the cash prize for physics and chemistry, was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa Fraternity, an exclusive society of the foremost scholars, and was given a gold key, a badge of great distinction in scholarship.

He was now offered scholarships from many universities, including Harvard. He accepted a scholarship for a Master of Science degree at Ohio State University. He finished this degree in only nine months! He was offered a scholarship to study medicine at Harvard. He was given another offer to study at a seminary. He felt he should study theology, but the fame that had come to him blunted his desire to become a minister. Instead he entered a doctoral program in chemistry at Ohio State University. He completed his Ph.D. in just twenty-one months! Thus he became the first Chinese to earn a Ph.D. He was described in the newspaper as “Ohio’s most famous student.” “But deep in his heart there was no peace. A growing spiritual unrest showed itself in periods of deep depression” (Lyall, ibid., p. 22).

During this time he came under the influence of liberal theology, and their teaching of the “social gospel.” Liberal theology teaches that Jesus is a noble example, but not the Saviour. It seems to me that John Sung thought of Jesus as a “noble example” when he was nine years old, and for that reason he had a false conversion back then. But God was still calling him. One evening as he sat alone he seemed to hear the voice of God say to him, “What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” FOR THE REST OF THE MESSAGE SEE THE FIRST COMMENT.

Missional Church Life: Jonathan Dodson

This a great post which gives ideas on how the church can be missional ( evangelistic, outgoing, inclusive,friendly to outsiders,Christ-like,unselfish) on a day to day basis in the world.The question we must ask ourselves is not: 'is it right' which most Christians would agree that it is, but rather 'am I prepared to pay the price'. It should also be said that many committed followers of Christ are often too busy with Church work, to even dare think about doing some of these things! We may have to therefore prioritise our time.Remember no one says on their death bed: 'If only I spent more hours at the office' and no Christian will ever say : 'If only I went to more committee meetings'! But they may say if only I had spent more time with my kids or wife,or in prayer, or reaching the lost. Think and pray it over this and see how you could be a little more 'missional'.AK


Eat with Non-Christians

We all eat three meals a day. Why not make a habit of sharing one of those meals with a non-Christian or with a family of non-Christians? Go to lunch with a co-worker, not by yourself. Invite the neighbors over for family dinner. If it’s too much work to cook a big dinner, just order pizza and put the focus on conversation. When you go out for a meal, invite a non-Christian friend. Or take your family to family-style restaurants where you can sit at the table with strangers and strike up conversations. Have cookouts and invite Christians and non-Christians. Flee the Christian subculture.

Walk, Don’t Drive

If you live in a walkable area, make a practice of getting out and walking around your neighborhood, apartment complex, or campus. Instead of driving to the mailbox or convenience store, walk to get mail or groceries. Be deliberate in your walk. Say hello to people you don’t know. Strike up conversations. Attract attention by walking the dog, carrying along a 6-pack to share, bringing the kids. Make friends. Get out of your house! Last night I spent an hour outside gardening with my family. We had good conversations with about four of our neighbors. Take interest in your neighbors. Ask questions. Engage. Pray as you go. Save some gas, the planet, and some people.

Be a Regular

Instead of hopping all over the city for gas, groceries, haircuts, eating out, and coffee, go to the same places at the same times. Get to know the staff. Smile. Ask questions. Be a regular. I have friends at coffee shops all over the city. My friends at Starbucks donate a ton of leftover pastries to our church 2-3 times a week. We use them for church gatherings and occasionally give them to the homeless. Build relationships. Be a regular.

Hobby with Non-Christians

Pick a hobby that you can share. Get out and do something you enjoy with others. Try city league sports or local rowing and cycling teams. Share your hobby by teaching lessons, such as sewing, piano, knitting, or tennis lessons. Be prayerful. Be intentional. Be winsome. Have fun. Be yourself.

Talk to Your Co-workers.

How hard is that? Take your breaks with intentionality. Go out with your team or task force after work. Show interest in your co-workers. Pick four and pray for them. Form moms’ groups in your neighborhood and don’t make them exclusively non-Christian. Schedule play dates with the neighbors’ kids. Work on mission.

Volunteer with Non-Profits.

Find a non-profit in your part of the city and take a Saturday a month to serve your city. Bring your neighbors, your friends, or your small group. Spend time with your church serving your city. Once a month. You can do it!

Participate in City Events

Instead of playing XBox, watching TV, or surfing the net, participate in city events. Go to fundraisers, festivals, cleanups, summer shows, and concerts. Participate missionally. Strike up conversation. Study the culture. Reflect on what you see and hear. Pray for the city. Love the city. Participate with the city.

Serve Your Neighbors.

Help a neighbor by weeding, mowing, building a cabinet, or fixing a car. Stop by the neighborhood association or apartment office and ask if there is anything you can do to help improve things. Ask your local Police and Fire Stations if there is anything you can do to help them. Get creative. Just serve!

The Prodigal Daughter-Drama

I would encourage you to watch this amazing piece of drama. Though it starts slowly it gently building up to a most powerful finish.

UNDERSTANDING AND RESPONDING TO THE MUSLIM CHALLENGE

If you have 25 minutes to spare and want to understand and respond to the Muslim challenge I would encourage you to listen to this excellent video. It is clear that the speaker Phil Parshall who has spent some 40 years working among Muslims has a very great love for those of that faith.In this lecture he provides a short history of Islam and concludes that in order to reach them with the gospel the Church must contexualise the gospel and make it relevant to the people they seek to reach. AK

'GOD'S SHIP' : LOGOS HOPE IN BELFAST

Yesterday morning I made my way down to the Belfast docks to have breakfast on the O.M. (Operation Mobilization)missionary ship Logos Hope.To be honest, as I was driving up towards the docks and saw the ship, my breath was taken away. Then on greeting the OM-er at the gangway I got so emotional that I was nearly in tears as I gave him a hug ;so this was the great ship that I had heard so much about for so long: the ship that God gave George Verwer and his friends to bring Christ to the world!

The Logos Hope is funded by Christians throughout the world and at the moment the crew consists of Christians from 45 nationalities. The morning I spent there was a great blessing as I talked to the missionaries, listening to their stories about how God has used them to change the lives of those who are without hope, and also of course, buying a few books on their great bookshop(it is in fact is the largest floating bookshop in the world!)

If you are in Belfast this week,or hear that the Logos is in a Port near you in the future, please take the opportunity to pay them a visit and learn how they seek to bring hope to a world in pain and need.Below I have listed their three main purposes which was taken directly from their website.AK

THEIR PURPOSE-BRINGING KNOWLEDGE,HELP & HOPE TO THE PEOPLE OF THE WORLD

1.BRINGING KNOWLEDGE

Logos Hope visits port cities throughout the world, supplying vital literature resources, encouraging inter-cultural understanding, training young people for more effective life and service, promoting greater global awareness, providing practical aid and sharing a message of hope in God wherever there is opportunity.Aid and relief work, is an expression of God's love and concern for needy people. In terms of Logos Hope’s future destinations, this will include providing medical aid, construction projects, major donations of literature, as well as spontaneous gifts of food and clothing.

2.BRINGING HELP

Aid and relief work, is an expression of God's love and concern for needy people. In terms of Logos Hope’s future destinations, this will include providing medical aid, construction projects, major donations of literature, as well as spontaneous gifts of food and clothing.

Ship’s personnel will also be donating textbooks and reference volumes to schools, libraries, colleges and universities, distributing medical or food supplies, renovating clinics and orphanages, and assisting in the construction of schools and church buildings.

3.BRINGING HOPE
The Logos Hope community lives and works together on board as a practical outworking of their service for God. In today’s troubled world this example of harmony and unity among international diversity, is a powerful witness.

Each crew member has a personal, living faith in God, stemming from a restored relationship with Him, bringing hope, meaning and focus to his or her life. The ship community desires to share this message of hope in a restored relationship with God in the ports visited. This is done with greatest respect for and sensitivity towards the culture of the community hosting the ship.

THE FINAL SAY IN THE BOOK OFJONAH: BROTHER ANDREW

"But the Lord said, 'You have been concerned about this vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?'" (Jonah 4:10-11).

God has the final say in the book of Jonah.

Jonah sulks next to the withered remains of a lush vine. The sun is hot. A scorching east wind buffets him. There is no air conditioning. No comfortable sofa to sit on. And Jonah doesn't like the drama playing out in front of him, but he can't change the channel. All he can do is listen to God's voice-over commentary.

Jonah believes he has rights. He has a right to some comfort. He has a right to that vine even though he didn't plant it or water it or fertilize it.

God believes the people of Nineveh have rights. They have a right to know that God is angry with them and has judged their wicked behavior. They also have a right to know that if they repent, God offers them grace. Nineveh has a right to know the way of salvation.

But Nineveh can never know of their rights unless Jonah gives up his right to live his own life in his own way.

So whose rights prevail? Jonah can go to the nursery and select another tree to plant for his shade and comfort. But if the Ninevites don't hear God's message, what hope do they have? They are lost!

It's a matter of perspective, and Jonah definitely has the wrong perspective. So God sets him straight.

I think also God desires for Jonah to feel just a little of what God feels for this city. God has compassion for Nineveh. For people who don't know their right hand from their left. Is he talking about the children? Or the mental and physical limitations of Ninevites? Or simply ignorant people? Jonah never asks.

God also has compassion for the animals. They are part of His creation. It was God who told Israel not to muzzle an ox while it is working, which produced Paul's statement, "Does God take care of the oxen?" (I Corinthians 9:9). Jonah, if you don't care for the people, shouldn't you at least care what happens to the animals?

When God stops speaking, Jonah has nothing to say. The book is finished. We are left to wonder about Jonah's reply. Nothing? Is Jonah listening? Is he rebuked and prepared to change his attitude? Or will he sit and continue to pout? Or perhaps he will run away again, turn his back on Nineveh, never pray for them, never follow-up on them to find out if their repentance led to a long-term transformation.

The choice is Jonah's.

The choice is ours.

Today we are left to wonder if we, God's people, will have any compassion for a lost world.

Core Values of 'The Crowded House'

I was impressed when I read the core values of a group of churches called 'The Crowed House'led by Dr Tim Chester who I first heard speaking at Cliff College some years ago. No matter what church you belong to, these certainly seem to be biblical values that we may well want to make our own. What do YOU think of them? Do you think they would work well in practice or are they just grand notions that will be forgotten once one of the 'churches'within the group really gets big and ends up promoting itself? AK

The Crowded House is a family of church planting networks. Our congregations are committed to working together within, and between, networks around the following shared aspirations. They are a statement of our distinctives and are not intended to be a judgment on those with gospel commitment who do things differently.

In obedience to Christ and for his glory, we are committed to:
1. The priority of the gospel
('community in mission')
We are committed to filling ordinary life with gospel intentionality, pastoring one another with the gospel and sharing the gospel with unbelievers. We challenge one another to be sacrificial, servant-hearted, risk-taking and flexible because the gospel has priority over our comfort, preferences, security and traditions. We will not let Christian activity be just one part of our lives.

2. Mission through community
We are committed to communicating the gospel message in the context of a gospel community. As we build relationships with people and share the gospel message, we want to introduce them to Christian community. We want people to experience church as a network of relationships rather than a meeting you attend or a place you enter. We will not put on evangelistic missions outside the context of a Christian community.

3. Home as the primary location of church
We want a reproducible model of church without any trappings that might impede freedom and flexibility. We are committed to homes as a context for all or most of church life with home shaping the ethos of church. When congregations use other buildings, those buildings will not be viewed as the main focus of mission.

4. Sharing our lives as extended family
We are committed to sharing our lives in Christian community, caring for one another, discipling one another and resolving conflict. We expect one another to make decisions with regard to the implications for the church and to make significant decisions in consultation with the church. We will not let conflict continue unresolved, nor view church simply as a meeting you attend.

5. Inclusive communities
We are committed to welcoming broken people and making church accessible to unbelievers. We want to offer a sense of belonging, and be communities of grace in which people can be open and vulnerable. We will not let our welcome be dependent on adherence to any cultural norms not demanded by the gospel.

6. Working for city renewal
We are committed to working for neighbourhood and city renewal – redressing injustice, pursuing reconciliation and welcoming the marginalized. We celebrate the diversity of cultures in our local contexts while recognising the need for gospel renewal. We encourage one another to glorify God and serve others through the workplace, business, community projects, government and artistic endeavour. We will not make a division between spiritual and non-spiritual activities.

7. Growing by starting churches and church planting networks
We are committed to starting new congregations. We will work together within, between and beyond our networks of missionary congregations. Our vision is to collaborate in a wider church planting movement to litter the world with communities of light. We will not develop into single, large congregations, nor become insular.

8. Prayer as a missionary activity
Recognising that God is the primary agent and orchestrator of mission, we view prayer as a missionary activity. We want prayer to be both a regular community discipline, and an impromptu response to needs and opportunities. We will not assume we are in control of mission, nor rob God of his glory by boasting of our achievements.

9. Everyone exercising gospel ministry
We are committed to every Christian seeing themselves as a missionary and exercising gospel ministry in every aspect of life. We shape activities around gospel opportunities, and the gifts and passions of church members. Leadership is not about control, but setting a missional vision by modelling and teaching the gospel so creating a culture in which everyone flourishes in ministry. We will not make distinctions between full-time and nonfull-time ministers.

10. Shaped by the Bible
We want our lives and our life together to be formed and shaped by the Bible’s story of redemption. We believe the Bible to be the reliable, authoritative and sufficient word of God, and are therefore committed to good Bible learning. We will not act on the basis of tradition, habit or pragmatism without reflection on the Bible. We will not see Bible teaching as an end in itself, but as that which must shape our thinking and action.

For more information about the Crowded House check out the website at http://www.thecrowdedhouse.org/

'Jonah the prophet who ran away' by Brother Andrew of Open Doors

"But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord" (Jonah 1:3).

It is easier to identify with Jonah than with any other prophet. Others are so holy. Jonah is so much like us.

God says: Go ye!

Jonah says: No!

Jonah's basic problem: he had too much love for himself. He thought: "God will make a fool of me. I'll lose face."

He refused to be a fool for Christ.

He wanted God, but not God's kingdom. He wanted blessing without responsibility.

He was not making people ripe for hell. He just let them go to hell. He had no compassion for the lost.

What he did have was money. So rather than going east to Iraq, he headed west and bought a ticket on a Mediterranean cruise. He figured it was his money and he could spend it any way he chose. He didn't stop to think that he was spending God's money. Jonah pays with God's money to escape from God's call.

There is a burden on us. It's called the Great Commission. "Go into all the world and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19a). I believe God has called enough people in each generation to fulfill the Great Commission in their lifetime. But too many have run away.

Where is our compassion? God is not willing that ANY should perish! That applies to Nineveh and Amsterdam and New York. WE are responsible for the Ninevehs of this world.

Why do we not weep for Muslims? Yes, why don't we weep for fundamentalists? Is it because we'd rather be entertained?

A man must be either entertained or challenged. It costs all your money to be entertained: television, radio, literature, cruises, time share condominiums, sport, travel (that includes the Holy Land), luxuries, food, eating out... (plus all at the expense of "family life.") And then, we've LOST all, everything.

We put so much on credit that there's nothing left for God's work. We borrow for "things." Do we ever borrow for missions? We cannot give what we do not have, and "to have" is unscriptural - the verb "to have" is not in the Hebrew language. However "to be" is; it is even God's name.

It costs nothing to be challenged - only your life.

We're stewards.

All that we have is entrusted to us.

And one day we must give an account (Romans 14:12).

Jonah ran because he saw opportunities as an enemy instead of the enemy as his biggest opportunity.

Carlos and Michaela Lozano

Please pray for my very good friends Carlos and Michaela Lozano who are at present learning the Cambodian language before they go out to serve God in that very needy country.Carlos who is originally from Argentina, met his young wife to be, while serving on an O.M. ship. Michaela who is originally from Germany was brought up by her missionary parents in Japan. They have also both studied at the Belfast Bible College, each gaining a degree in Theology with Michaela taking on an extra year of study to do her Masters degree which she passed in June 08. They also were among the leaders in the Youth Outreach group with myself and others in Belfast, so their going is a great loss to us.

Carlos' many talents include being an excellent magician and being able to walk around on his hands for several minutes! He can also 'put his hand' to almost anything, whether electrical or mechanical, which will prove useful as a missionary. On the other hand, Michaela's gifts include working with children, as well as being a surperb linguist and dramatist.But more than that, they both have a heart of love for God and the lost, and it has been a joy spending time with them.

They will be sorely missed by all who know them in Ireland and we pray that God would protect them from harm and grant them much fruit for their labour in that country.
Carlos in Cambodia last year.

Conversion stories wanted: Do people still get converted in a Postmodern age?

In this post I invite everyone who has had a 'conversion' experience to write about it here! Whether you consider your conversion to have been a process or through a crisis point in your life, it does not matter. It also does not have to be like Mr Spurgeon's as in the previous post, rather, feel free to describe it in your own way, whether in a short paragraph or a much longer piece of writing, as you desire.I would love to here from you.It may also give someone the opportunity to do this for the first time and for others who read it,through your story encourage those who are still 'on the journey to Christ'. Many thanks to all those who have so far told their great story. I will be putting them on as a separate post on my new blog http://storiesofconversion.blogspot.com/
If you would like to participate, just click the comment link,found at the below the last comment made,then write your story.Peace and Grace. AK

Motives for Mission

In this article I will examine what I consider to be the highest motives we can have for being involved in Christian mission. I would appreciate any feedback on what you consider to be your own strong motivations for mission and evangelism.Peace and Grace.

The mission of the Church may be defined as “what God has sent the Church into the world to do.” This includes both evangelistic and social responsibilities. Many speak of our mission, but what about our motivations for mission? Scripture has much to say about not only our actions, but also about the reasons and motives behind these actions. It is God who tries (Jeremiah 12:3), knows (Psalm 44:21) and searches (Jeremiah 17:10) the heart. He does not judge by outward appearance. Indeed, even in our worship he discerns whether we are worshipping with both our hearts and our lips (1 Samuel 16:7; Matthew 15:8). In 2 Corinthians 13:3, Paul declares, “If I give away all I have and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” In Philippians 1:15-17, he acknowledges that the gospel can be preached from motives of goodwill and love as well as from envy, rivalry, selfish ambition and insincerity.

The Love of God
It should be understood that the Church’s mission is more than a good or even a great activity that the Church does. Christian mission springs from the very heart of the Godhead. Both the Old and the New Testament have much to say regarding the missio dei and both reveal God’s love for humankind in its spiritual and physical dimensions. The “love of God,” as a motive for mission, contains at least three elements significant for mission:

(1) God’s love for us,

(2) our love for God, which is proved by our obedience to God (John 14:15) and

(3) God’s love working through us to reach others.

The love of the missionary God is seen in the act of the Father giving up his only begotten Son in the incarnation, and his Son being willing to live a life of self-sacrifice and ultimately to die on the cross for humankind (John 3:16; Romans 8:32; Matthew 20:28). In 1 John 4:19 we are also reminded that “we love because he first loved us.” If our response is to truly love Christ in return for what he has done for us, we must obey his commands. God expects his disciples to be motivated by his love. We can do this because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts (Romans 5:5). Jesus, who commanded us to love one another, also promised that if we obeyed him, the world would know that we were his (John 13:34-35).

This love is more than just a fleeting emotional feeling; it is an act of the will and a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:1). This love also compelled Paul in his mission (2 Corinthians 5:14). Jesus Christ said to his disciples “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you” (John 20:21). As disciples, we are obliged to follow his example. Our love for God must be shown in “incarnational mission.” We are to identify with those we seek to reach, entering their worlds, their pains and their sorrows.

Many Christians list obedience as being a primary motive for fulfilling the missionary task. I would agree; however, obedience should necessarily flow from our love for God. John R. W. Stott once said that “loving obedience to God and his Christ is the first evangelistic incentive” as obedience is “the fruit and proof of love.”1 If obedience does not come from a heart motivated by the love of God, there is a danger of the missionary task becoming legalistic and lacking God’s blessing.

The Fear of God
It is sometimes perceived that the “fear of the Lord” (meaning, to be concerned with a God of judgment) is not relevant for those living since the New Testament era. It is true that the fear of the Lord seems more prominent in the Old Testament than the New Testament. Nevertheless, the New Testament still concerns itself with this important subject. God is still holy (Hebrews 12:14; 2 Corinthians 7:1) and there is still a final judgment (Matthew 25:41).

The fear of the Lord means living our lives to please the Lord. While on earth, Jesus sought to please his Father. Christians must also seek to please God and live a life worthy of him (Colossians 1:10). In 1 Corinthians 5:9, Paul writes that it was his goal to please God. Why was he motivated as he was? Verse 10 says, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” As a result, Paul encouraged his readers to “persuade men” (v.11).

Michael Green notes, “This fear of which he speaks is not the craven fear of the underdog, but the loving fear of the friend and trusted servant who dreads disappointing his beloved Master.”2 He goes on to write, “This fear was a contributory factor in the ceaseless evangelistic activity of the apostle Paul.”3 In seeking to persuade men, we can begin to understand Paul’s concern for those who were not in Christ. Paul saw himself as similar to the prophet Ezekiel, who had been called to be God’s watchman as he declared to the Ephesian elders, “Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all of you, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:26). He believed he was “an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God” (2 Timothy 1), a herald and teacher (1 Timothy 1:11) and an ambassador of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20).

He was like Isaiah, who having seen God in his awesome majesty, could not refuse his invitation to “go and tell this people” (Isaiah 6:9). Like Jeremiah, Paul could not hold in God’s Word. This holy compulsion was a combination of both the love of God for the people and a grave concern that the trust committed to Paul should be discharged (1 Corinthians 9:17). The Church’s mission should still be motivated by a healthy appreciation of the fear of God, which will give to the Church a sense of its own holy calling to reach the lost. The Church will then become fearless in the midst of fierce opposition. Paul the great missionary had to endure great sufferings in order to fulfill the ministry to which God had called him.

The Glory of God
Perhaps the greatest motive for mission and evangelism is for the glory of God. As with the love of God, the glory of God can have more than one dimension. The first is that we evangelize in order that God would be glorified. The second is that we evangelize in order to receive glory and praise from God (as opposed to man). Both motives are important and biblical. First, we will look at evangelizing to receive glory or praise from God.

John said of the Pharisees that “they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God” (John 12:43). Jesus himself declared that he did not receive glory from men (John 5:41); rather, he was approved by his Father at his baptism (Mark 1:11) and exalted because of his obedience on earth (Philippians 2:9-11). The idea that we should not strive for a reward from God is unbiblical. The Bible is clear that all will be judged by Christ (Daniel 12:3; Romans 14:10,12; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Revelation 20:12,15). Though there is “no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1), it would appear that judgment for believers is for reward instead of punishment. Luke 19:17 implies there may be different degrees of rewards for believers for service rendered. Paul in his ministry was careful to build with quality material so he would not be put to shame when God put his work to the test (1 Corinthians 3:15). Whatever our reward may be, it should be a strong incentive for evangelism and mission.

We will now look at what I believe to be the purest motive for mission: that God himself would be glorified and honored. God the Father “exalted (Jesus) to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow” (Philippians 2:9-10). Paul instructed the Corinthians that even ordinary things should be done for God’s glory (1 Corinthians 3:1). How much more should we seek to honor and glorify the name of Jesus Christ in the work of evangelism! The Church also seeks to win over those under the control of Satan, that they may serve and honor the true and living God. As Elijah declared himself to be “very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts” (1 Kings 19:14), so Paul also claimed that his own ministry was “for (Christ’s) name’s sake” (Romans 1:5). Likewise, the missional Church as the bride of Christ must be spurred on with a holy jealousy to bring honor to his name. M. Thomas Thangaraj rightly points out that “an adoration of God leads to a profound sense of love and gratitude to God, which in turn motivates us for engagement with others in mission.”4

Conclusion
The prophet Jeremiah warns us that “the heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure”(Jeremiah 17:9). It is not surprising that an assessment of motivations for mission should prove to have a sobering effect on the Church. The Church should therefore be prepared to listen to both the Word and the world in its criticisms of it, so as not to become self-deceived (Hebrews 4:12; Proverbs 18:13). The three positive motives for assessing mission listed above naturally intertwine like a threefold cord (Ecclesiastes 4:12). Mission and the motivation for mission should be seen as originating from God and should result in the Church following the example of Jesus, who in holy obedience, love and seeking to glorify the Father, came “to seek and save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). AK

Endnotes
1. Stott, John. 1967. Our Guilty Silence. London: Hodder and Stoughton. 18.
2. Green, Michael. 1995. Evangelism in the Early Church. Guildford: Eagle. 29.
3. Ibid. 297.
4. Thangaraj, M. Thomas. 1999. The Common Task. Nashville: Abingdon Press. 149.


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The Street Evangelist

This is a true story about a street evangelist, and as Romanos my very good Eastern Orthodox friend comments: 'it has all the the hallmarks of authenticity'.I agree with the writer Gary Tresidder,that though this evangelist's name may not be known to men,in heaven he,and those like him, will be well known. May it inspire the readers of this post to be faithful in the ministrythe Lord has given them,however unknown and unrecognised it may be(2 Cor.6.9).

In the beginning days of July 1970, there was a man who lived in Houston, Texas. Though of slight build and shorter than average height, he had been given a tremendous ministry. The Lord had chosen him to be a “street preacher” and he had accepted the calling. But there was to be more involved in this occupation than standing on a corner and handing out tracts. The Lord wanted him to minister to the lost souls that lived and died in the area known as the Houston Underground. This district was located near the center of Houston within viewing distance of the M&M factory.

An area that can be described as the Playground of the Devil would suffice to express the environment where this man was to minister. The remnants of the Hippie counter-culture had drifted here from all points of the compass. Other drifters of more nefarious pasts also were attracted to the area. They brought with themselves their own ingredients. They brought the drugs – barbiturates, amphetamines, the hallucinogenic and heroin. They also brought their gods – Krishna, Santeria (Voodoo), and Astrology. They also carried with them the seeds of their own destruction – violence.

Armed with only his faith that the Lord would protect him and a Bible, he entered into this arena of Hell. Only a believer who is secure in his belief would walk these mean streets at nights carrying an old worn leather covered Bible with thumb-eared edges. His suit was worn and shiny in spots. He wore a white shirt and an out-of-date narrow tie. But shining through this frail frame was a presence that was more than him. The denizens of this dark world never bothered him. They did their best to avoid him – the one they called “The Preacher Man.”

Into this scene of chaos appeared another individual. He was a drifter from many places. In his aimless trek he had seen the climates of the North, East and West. Having allegiance to none and respect for no one, he came seeking what he could take. He was one of the Hippies who had fled the violence that had overtaken the movement in larger cities. His appearance was tall and scraggly like a scarecrow. His clothes looked typical for those in the place he found himself. He wore a pair of jeans with a garrison belt, sandals, and a shirt that had probably hadn’t seen soap and water since it was first purchased. His hair was long and unkempt. His eyes blazed with the fire created from drugs and lack of sleep. This young man was “strung-out” from a series of LSD trips and amphetamine highs. In his present condition it was not even necessary for him to consume any more of those drugs. He could be walking down the street, and just thinking about idle thoughts and in the next moment his daydreaming would turn into the drug induced hallucinations into which he was fond of retreating. This was the condition of the youth the night these two individuals crossed paths.

On the night they met, the street evangelist prepared his path before him. He asked the Lord to set before him those who He wanted to be saved from Destruction. His ministry to the Lost wasn’t to be like a sideshow barker. He wasn’t to stand on a corner and yell about the End of the World. He also wasn’t supposed to walk through the throngs that were on the streets and give the gospel tracts that many want to do and call “witnessing the Gospel”. He was only to approach those that the Lord wanted for His Purpose and to do as the Lord directed. After he received his assurance from the Lord, he set out to perform the Lord’s assignment. At the same time the wild-eyed drifter was headed in the same direction, but with a different purpose in mind. He was going to the Underground to look for what he could beg or scrounge to support his need for drugs and the blissful state of nothingness they brought.

The young man wandered from place to place on the heavily populated streets of Houston’s Underground district. He avoided the strip joints and other honky-tonks because he didn’t have any money to even pay the cover charge. Besides, they weren’t the people with whom he associated anyway. He preferred the company of like creatures as himself – the hippies and drug abusers. After visiting several of the shops that catered to his type of clientele, he came across a leather shop that made items for tourists and the rich. He walked into the small shop and looked around at the merchandise. Finally he saw a bundle of leather strips and pieces that the shop owner had left over from several of his projects. The young man knew he could fashion some of the pieces into items that he could sell.

“How much you want for that bundle of stuff?” the young man asked.

“Two bucks”, responded the clerk.

“OK”, replied the drifter as he fished two worn-out dollar bills out of his pocket.

As the man was handing the clerk the two dollars, the clerk leaned over the counter and looked out the storefront window. “Oh, no. Here comes that damn street preacher again. I wish he would just get out of here and leave us alone.” The clerk looked up at the drifter and said, “You better make sure he doesn’t get a hold of you.”

The young man ambled to the front door of the shop and started out the door. As he came to the steps that led down from the shop onto the sidewalk, he stopped. It was as if a bolt of lightening had run from his head to the bottom of his feet. He felt as if fear had shaken everything inside him. He had trouble even feeling the fingers of his hand. Everything felt dislocated. The only thought that was coherent is his mind was to look up from the steps below his feet. As he did, he saw the eyes of a skinny little man across the street. Those eyes were looking directly into his eyes. Also seeing the old worn book that the man had pressed to his chest, he knew with certainty that this was the “Preacher Man” he had just been warned about. Inside his mind he also knew with all certainty that this man was purposing to talk to him.

“Damn, I’ve got to get out of here.” This was the next thought that raced through the drifter’s mind. Fear consumed the man as he tried to hurry down the steps. He knew that this was one of the most important things he would ever have to do – flee. All at once a group of partygoers passed in front the stairway, blocking his action. After they passed, he looked to see if his way was clear. But there was one more obstruction in front of him. There standing squarely in front of him stood his enemy – the man with the Bible.

The street evangelist looked up at the tall unkempt man in front of him. He saw the wild and dangerous eyes that now were touched with fear. He knew that without any doubt that this was the man that the Lord had sent him to see.

The street preacher spoke to the man who was trying to bolt like a rabbit in a cage. He said, “ You’re running from God.” Though spoken softly, it was if a hammer had struck the drifter. The young man staggered. Even though he didn’t understand what the little evangelist meant, he knew that it was true. The man looked back up at the drifter and said, “May I talk to you about your need for the Lord?”

Looking down at the street evangelist, the young man thought that this was the craziest little man he had ever met – and maybe the most dangerous he would ever run across. He felt that if he listened to this man, something in his life would change forever. He couldn’t come back to the life he enjoyed. “No.” he responded.

Undaunted in his faith and assured in the conviction that this was the man he was to tell about the Gospel, the little street preacher spoke again. “Then, may I pray for you?” He asked.

Hoping that this would get the weird little man away from him, the drifter responded, “Sure go ahead.”

“Lord”, started the little man, “I lift up this man before Your Throne. He doesn’t know who you are. But I know that he is one that You have chosen for Your Kingdom. I ask that You make his life so miserable that he will come running to You. I pray in Jesus’ Name, Amen.” The short simple prayer asking God to direct the paths of this drifter from the pathway to Hell to the Feet of the Lord was like an arrow striking the heart. The drifter was stone cold sober; he couldn’t feel the effects of any of the drugs that were coursing through his veins. The drifter shook his head as if he was trying to remove a headache. He looked down again – the little man was gone. He started running…

Thirty years have come and gone since that singular event – the crossing of paths between a skinny little street preacher and the Hippie drifter. The intercession of that skinny little street evangelist, insignificant in man’s eyes but great in the Lord’s eyes, came to fruition. His name may never mentioned to the annals of Man’s times, but you may be assured that his name is recorded in the Lord’s book of faithful servants.

As for the drifter and what happened to him. Eventually, he found the peace that comes with knowing the Lord, though it took another year and a half. But that’s another story…

Gary Tresidder
http://www.tresidder.net/

'Hearing the Gospel for the first time' by David Dunbar of Missional Journal

...Jesus' teaching about the kingdom resonated deeply with the hopes and aspirations of his first hearers, while also challenging some of their most cherished assumptions... ......This is what always happens when the gospel confronts specific cultures and people groups: there are elements that attract and elements that repel. The danger in all this is that any culture, including the culture of North America, tends to suppress or distort aspects of the gospel that are incompatible with it. Darrell Guder calls this problem "reductionism."


Missional churches are concerned for both the fruitful reception and faithful communication of the gospel. So the question is, how does the church in America stumble over the good news of the kingdom? Where might reductionism be obscuring or domesticating the strong words of Jesus and the apostles?



In this article and the next I suggest a few places where the kingdom teaching of Jesus confronts deeply ingrained cultural/theological assumptions in the lives of many Christians, including me.


Eschatological reduction



The teaching of Jesus focuses on the present and the future. In many places we find an emphasis on the kingdom as a present reality. It is present in the power of Jesus to heal (Matt. 4:23), and to exorcise demons (Matt. 12:28; Luke 11:20), and to feed the multitudes. The kingdom is working in the world like seed germinating in a field, or yeast fermenting in bread. It becomes visible in the lives of Jesus' disciples who "seek first his kingdom and his righteousness" (Matt. 6:33) and who endure persecution even as they pray for their persecutors (Matt. 5:11, 44).


On the other hand, the fullness of the kingdom awaits the end of the age. Only then will the wicked and the righteous be separated finally and forever (Matt.13:40-43). This is the renewal of all things (Matt. 19:28), when the King gathers with his disciples for the banquet of eternal celebration (Luke 14:15).



What is important for the missional church is balancing these two aspects--present and future. Reductionism occurs when we play one off against the other. If the church focuses too much on the present reality of the kingdom, it runs the risk of slipping into mere religious humanitarianism. This was modeled for us in the last century by Protestant liberalism. This type of reductionism entices us to lose sight of the kingdom as a supernatural reality that remains ever dependant upon the initiating and sustaining grace of God.


But there is also the risk that we will focus too much on the future aspects of the kingdom. This also was modeled in the twentieth century as many streams of fundamentalism reacted to liberalism by cultural withdrawal. Perhaps the most extreme cases were found in churches immersed in Dispensational theology. The older expressions of this theology believed the kingdom was specifically Jewish in its focus and had been "postponed" until the completion of "the times of the Gentiles." Such theology easily leads to a posture of separation and isolation from the surrounding culture--seeking God's kingdom and righteousness (Matt. 6:33) is generally understood as a privatized "getting right with God"--what Dallas Willard aptly calls "the gospel of sin-management."



In contrast, a balanced eschatology is holistic. It understands salvation as a reality that is "already-but-not-yet." It touches all of life--private and public; individual and corporate; local, national, and international. Jesus taught us to pray "your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." The second clause explains the first: the kingdom comes as God's will is done on earth.



Therefore, missional churches don't just ask, "How can we preach to more people?" or, "How can we grow larger congregations?" They ask, "What would our community (or nation, or world) look like if God's will were done on earth today?" Certainly part of the answer is that people would know and love the one living and true God who has revealed himself in Christ. But wouldn't it also mean that injustice would be righted? That broken marriages would be restored? That abused children would be cared for? The oppressed liberated? The weak, the sick, and the hungry cared for?


Missional churches believe that the gospel addresses all of life and that being God's missionary people means taking this holistic ministry to the world. Scot McKnight recently wrote that the atonement is not just something that God does for us, but rather is what he does in us in such a way that we are called to participate with God in his redemptive work. The church therefore is called to incarnate the principles of a world set right with God and by God. "A thoroughly biblical understanding of atonement, then, is earthy," says McKnight. "It is about restored relations with God and with self, but also with others and with the world--in the here and now." (A Community Called Atonement [Abingdon, 2007], p. 132)



The idea of incarnating the gospel is critical. It reminds us that the mission of the church is patterned on the mission of Jesus. The incarnation of the Son of God was not an abstract metaphysical process for improving the world. It was God taking the form of a specific Jewish male in Palestine during the reign of the first Roman emperor Augustus. Jesus came to a specific people at a specific time and place in history.


Missional churches believe that the gospel still has this aspect of particularity and contextuality. They believe that the Spirit of God will lead them to embody the good news in fresh and distinctive ways for their own communities, and they cultivate a spirit of discernment which allows them to be "laborers together with God" in their specific context.

What is Evangelism?

This post is the first of a series I want to do on the subject of Evangelism, and among other things I want to examine the questions:
What is evangelism?
Why should we evangelise in the first place?
How is God involved in this work?
What does the New Testament tell us about these things?
Why do we as conscientious Christians feel guilty when we don’t evangelise?

For those Christians who hate the very idea of evangelism I must remind them that at one time or another someone shared the gospel with them,in other words, evangelised them.

Evangelism: What is it and would we want to do it?
Positive impressions of evangelism and evangelists :
 John Wesley preaching to thousands of coal miners and seeing them respond in faith to the gospel.
 David Wilkinson working among the street gangs in New York made famous in the book ‘The cross and the switchblade.’

Nicky Cruz the famous convert of David Wilkinson

 The quiet witness shown through the love and patience of a Sunday School teacher, B.B. Officer, mother, father, aunt or uncle that God used to draw you to Christ.
Negative impressions of Evangelism
 The button holer, the pushy evangelist who is arrogant and rude and says to all he meets ‘Are you saved?’, and will not believe you if you say you are already a Christian.
Roger Carswell writes: ‘ The popular caricature of the evangelist is of someone sweeping into town in a blaze of glory:; extravagant dress, luxurious lifestyle, exaggerated claims and charismatic personality. Brash, belligerent, beguiling and boastful are the characteristics of the evangelist picked up and promoted by the media in films like Elmer Gantry and Leap of faith.’

Certainly, if we have been touched by the love of God and experienced his forgiveness we will want to share it with others. But we often find it difficult: even Paul spoke of the conflicts he had in trying to evangelise.

But read what Matthew Parris,a former M.P. and one of the 'grumpy old men' in the programme with that name, wrote in the Times:

The New Testament offers a picture of a God who doesn't sound at all vague to me. He has sent his Son to earth. He has distinct plans both for his Son and for mankind. He knows each of us personally and can communicate directly with us. We are capable of forming a direct relationship, individually, with him, and are commanded to do so. We are told this can be done only through his Son. And we are offered the prospect of eternal life - an afterlife in happy, blissful, …glorious circumstances… Friends, if I believe that, or even a tenth of that, how could I care which version of the Prayer Book was being used? I would drop my job, sell my house, throw away my possessions, leave my acquaintances and set out into the world with a burning desire to know more and when I had found out more, to act upon it and to tell others.

Do these words not challenge even the most fervent of evangelists?



In his book Evangelism through the local Church Michael Green lists three definitions which I would like to look at. By examining these different definitions we can view evangelism from different perspectives as one would hold up a diamond to be examined from different angles.

The first one is Evangelism as OVERFLOW
He writes
‘overflow gives the right nuance,of someone who is so full of joy about Jesus
Christ,that it overflows as surely as a bath that is filled to overflowing with water. It is a natural thing. It is a very obvious thing.’
One has only to think of some new born Christian who is full of excitement and joy. He wants to tell the world. He is often unashamed of what he says or does.

A few years ago I organized a school reunion for my fifth year class mates who were with me in 1975. That makes me middle aged! One of the former pupils I contacted had been a Christian when I had been at school. He recalls, as I had forgotten, how I used to talk to him each day as we walked home from school together. Despite my amateurish efforts he still become a Christian then. However he later got involved in a very strict authoritarian fellowship and was burnt off and ended up far away from God.
When we met at the reunion Thirty years later his many years in the military service had taken its toll, he had become physically very unwell and also suffered from post traumatic stress.
To cut a long story short. After an initial rejection of my invitation to find comfort and help in certain Scriptures (his email which I still have reads:
‘I don’t want to go down that road’)he later became positively warm towards the things of God when we went out for coffee a month later. Within weeks he was sharing his new found faith and even asked his boss, who was having business problems had he tried about praying it. He told me he couldn't help it: it just came out. It had become so natural for him to tell all and sundry about his faith in God and he believed everybody could have the same relationship.

He even sometimes would get distressed about his wife and tell her that she was not right with God,even though she had been the one who had gone to church before I had met up with him again. I obviously had to encourage him to be patient with her and let her see from his life how he had changed. Nevertheless, all this came from the overflow that was in his heart. Later his wife came to have a strong faith and they both now led a fellowship group in County Down.

It is often true that some new Christians make the best evangelists. They more readily know what they have been saved from and want to tell others. Remember the demoniac in Mark 5 who had been delivered of a legion of demons? He begged Jesus to let him go with him .
Do you remember what Jesus said to him ?
"Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you."
So the man went away and began to tell everyone in the towns where he lived how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.’
That is evangelism as OVERFLOW.
What an amazing encouragement to tell our story of how much God has done for us. But what if you don't feel that you are full to overflowing? Don't worry, the Master evangelist himself has promised us this: 'If any man thirsts, let him come on to me and drink and out of his belly will flow rivers of living water'. You can come now.





The second definition that Michael Green quotes is by the missionary D.T Niles :

‘Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread’

This is a very well known definition of evangelism and there is certainly a sense in which it is true : We are like beggars being wholly dependant on God and we are to tell similar beggars who are without food where they can find spiritual food.

Nevertheless, those who have found the bread of life lose their beggar status and will have become ‘children of God’. We therefore don’t go out as beggars, we go out as children of the King, but who still are nevertheless dependant on our heavenly Father.

Having known this definition for many years I often wondered where he got it from and if it had any biblical story. If there is one I think it must be from 2 Kings 7.
In this story Jerusalem had been under siege and the people were about to die of starvation. Meanwhile

3 ..there were four men with leprosy [at the entrance of the city gate. They said to each other, "Why stay here until we die? 4 If we say, 'We'll go into the city'-the famine is there, and we will die. And if we stay here, we will die. So let's go over to the camp of the Arameans and surrender. If they spare us, we live; if they kill us, then we die."

Anyway they went over to the Camp and discovered that God had done something to frighten the attackers away leaving food and precious possessions behind.

It says 'They ate and drank, and carried away silver, gold and clothes, and went off and hid them. They returned and entered another tent and took some things from it and hid them also.

9 Then they said to each other, "We're not doing right. This is a day of good news and we are keeping it to ourselves. If we wait until daylight, punishment will overtake us. Let's go at once and report this to the royal palace."

We are like these beggars, only in our case we are spiritual beggars and have found spiritual food. Then,like the lepers we then decide not to keep this 'good news' to ourselves but to share it with our starving neighbours.

Whether D.T. Niles the famous missionary had this in mind when he stated that evangelism was ‘one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread’ I can’t be sure. But it certainly is the closest biblical reference I’’ve found.

The question is :Do we consider those whom we meet each day as mere beggars without Christ? As regards evangelism, they often don't realise their great spiritual need. We need therefore to pray that God will reveal their need to them.Then as we set apart Christ as Lord of our hearts, be prepared to give an answer to those who ask us the reason for the hope that we have, and as Peter encourages us:to do this with gentleness and respect.

I will look at a more comprehensive definition of evangelism.

William Temple the late Archbishop of Canterbury wrote:

'To evangelise is so to present Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, that men shall come to put their trust in God through him, to accept him as their Saviour, and serve him as their king in the fellowship of his Church’
This statement is good in that it differentiates evangelism from 'mission'. Mission may be defined as ‘everything God sends the church into the world to do.’ Mission will of course include evangelism but it will also include social action, social justice, fighting for the rights of the poor, the weak and the voiceless.

Some would also include caring for God‘s world as part of Mission and that the Church should be 'Green' and involved with environmental issues. This has been championed by Tony Campolo and now even George Verwer of O.M.

But here Temple defines Evangelism as presenting Jesus Christ and the Good news which is in Him (through his life death and exaltation)so that people can put their full trust in God through Him as their saviour.

In a similar vein John Wesley defined saving faith as:
'not only(mental) assent to the whole gospel of Christ, but also a full reliance on the blood of Christ; a trust in the merits of his life, death, and resurrection; a full dependence upon him as our atonement and our life, as given for us, and living in us; and as a consequence, a closing with him, and cleaving to him, as our "wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption," or, in one word, our salvation'.

John Wesley

Temple’s definition also shows that Jesus is not to be seen in isolation from the Father. As it states ‘we put our trust in God through Christ.’
It is clear that the God of the New Testament is thoroughly trinitarian.
’For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.’ The Son did not come of his initiative but went in willing obedience to the Father.
Likewise Temple adds the work of the third person of the Trinity, emphasising that it is by the power of the Holy Spirit that enables men and women to come to Christ. The human evangelist can not do it alone. Even though they may be used by God’s Spirit. As Jesus tells us in the gospel of John
'When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment'. John 16:8

Neither can we bring regeneration or spiritual enlightenment to the man or woman who is spiritually blind. Again it is only by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Of course we can persuade, encourage and challenge people :but it only by the Spirit of God that can save men and women. Jesus told the disciples ‘You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will be my witnesses.’ If we are filled with the Holy Spirit surely the Spirit will also stir us to tell others about Christ. Spurgeon was right when he wrote:‘God has only one worker’ and that is the Holy Spirit.We must always rely on His power and leading.

This definition also points out that those who hear are brought to the point where at last they must make a decision. Will they bow down and serve the King or not. The process before they make a decision may have been short or a long one. This does not matter; what matters is that they are brought to the point where they will decide.
It shows that the goal of evangelism is not that they sign the Church membership roll or that they go twice on a Sunday:the goal is that they become disciples of Christ. As disciples the young Christians are learners and it is primarily in the Church that they will be taught. God has put various ministries within the Church in order to build up the disciples. In Ephesians 4 Paul tells us that when Christ ascended on high

'he led captives in his train
and gave gifts to men'.
" It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

As Green states, the evangelist is not out for mere ‘decisions’ .. He is out for disciples --and not for himself, his church or organisation, but disciples of Jesus Christ.’ The goal of discipleship is become mature, in other words: to be like Christ.

Though this is a well known evangelical definition of evangelism it has come in for some criticism. Jim Packer the Reformed theologian disagrees with the form of this definition because it defines evangelism in terms of success. It begins ‘To evangelise is so to present Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, that men SHALL come to put their trust in God through him’.Packer argues: 'The way to tell whether you have been evangelising is not to ask whether conversions are known to have resulted from your witness.It is to ask whether you are faithfully making known the gospel message'.
In other words we should faithfully proclaim the message and then leave the results with God.

Nevertheless the goal of evangelism is that men and woman will be persuaded and souls will be saved. Later in this series we will hopefully look at what is a faithful proclamation of the gospel.In a post-modern culture persuasion is very much a dirty word,however as we shall see in a future post it was part and parcel of Paul's method of evangelism. Remember 'the almost Christian' in Acts when Agrippa says to Paul in Acts 26:28
'Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian'.
Other translations have it:"Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?" Either way a strong element of persuasion was used by Paul.

Paul preaching in Athens

Perhaps the fullest definition of evangelism is found in the Lausanne Covenant of 1974 which was edited by John Stott.As is often the case with regard to Stott's writings it is the most thorough and probably the best I've come across.It should be noted that in the proclamation of the 'Good News', he stresses that the Christian life should not be presented to the non-Christian as a 'bed of roses' stating:'In issuing the Gospel invitation we have no liberty to conceal the cost of discipleship.Jesus still calls all who would follow him to deny themselves, take up their cross, and identify themselves with his new community'.

How often the gospel is presented in a way that makes the the hearer think that if they come to Christ all their problems will vanish, and not only that, they can expect good health and great wealth all their days.What a travesty of the truth this is bearing in mind that the gospels clearly show that Christ was not only a poor man but died in pain at the age of thirty three. Our Lord also told his followers:'Remember the words I spoke to you: "No servant is greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also".

To make it easier to study I have broken this definition down into 5 subsections.

a) To evangelize is to spread the good news that Jesus Christ died for our sins and was raised from the dead according to the Scriptures, and that as the reigning Lord he now offers the forgiveness of sins and the liberating gift of the Spirit to all who repent and believe.

b) Our Christian presence in the world is indispensable to evangelism, and so is that kind of dialogue whose purpose is to listen sensitively in order to understand.

c) But evangelism itself is the proclamation of the historical, biblical Christ as Saviour and Lord, with a view to persuading people to come to him personally and so be reconciled to God.

d) In issuing the Gospel invitation we have no liberty to conceal the cost of discipleship. Jesus still calls all who would follow him to deny themselves, take up their cross, and identify themselves with his new community.

e)The results of evangelism include obedience to Christ, incorporation into his church and responsible service in the world.
All these definitions( including those in the previous post) take for granted that the 'evangelist' first of all knows Christ himself. We can not share what we do not have ourselves! The OVERFLOW is a result of first of all being filled with God ourselves: ( If any man thirst, let him come to me and drink and out of his belly will flow...) The beggar has already been fed and then tells others where to get bread. Presenting Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit takes for granted that the 'evangelist' or 'witness' knows Christ and is living by his power.Our presence in the world is also important.In the world we must be prepared to mix with people and listen to them in order that we might understand their angst and concerns. Then when the opportunity arises to faithfully proclaim the message of grace and forgiveness through Christ. That is why the motto 'To know Christ and make Him known' is most apt for those who seek to reach the lost for Christ.