During the late fall of 2008, God began to nudge my heart for a new passion for evangelism. In prayer, I felt strongly convicted that my own preaching had become too “general” and not focused on pointing the unbeliever to Christ. At the same time I was finishing the manuscript on A Life Worth Living and was engrossed in Paul’s passion for the unbeliever and the message of mercy and grace. As a result some new messages began to come to my heart for those who did not know Christ. With a grateful heart, I began to see people showing up in the services who came forward to receive Christ and in almost every service where I preached Christ, the Savior, I’m seeing people come to the Lord. It has been so refreshing and has given a new momentum to my public ministry.

But God was not finished…

In thanking God for those who were receiving Him, I felt him pushing me deeper…probing and inquiring…who are you relating to in daily life that are not believers? I began to consider the many people I know and relate to on a daily basis…the search was disappointing.

I could not come up with 10 people I relate to on a daily basis who were unbelievers!

My professional ministerial career seems to insulates me from the unbelieving world. I deal with pastors, ministers, church leaders, families, etc. but few unbelievers and even then, the relationship is not friendship but pastoral in nature.

Yet, in my heart I know God is calling me to a life of WITNESS. So, what can I do?

• I joined a local gym.
• I’m changing habits for greater access to people outside my comfort circle.
• I’m getting to know my neighbors intentionally.

I love the story of the demon possessed man who, after deliverance, wanted to travel with Christ.  After he refused, Jesus simply told him–”go home and tell them what good things God has done for you!”  I have a story to tell.  It is a story of grace undeserved and mercy so needed.  I am a visible demonstration of God’s work in the life of one who needed grace.  I’m sure you are as well.   Yet, there is a new learning curve in my life as I get more engaged with this world where I live and the environments where God has positioned me for His glory.  Can you relate?

How many unbelievers do you know as friends?

Why is so difficult for ministers to connect to the unbelieving world beyond the pulpit experience?

What ideas do you have to share to open my world to those who need Christ?

I would love to hear from you this week.

I’ll be checking back.

Link to Forward Leadership Blog

It seems “religion” is becoming an ever more popular topic of discussion among politicians and the stars of movies and television these days. But, invariably, when their conversations turn to matters of faith, there’s a glaring omission in their professions. They firmly believe that “good” people who live “good” lives, loving and caring for others, are going to get into heaven. As if to validate their beliefs, a growing number of them are very active and vocal in charitable endeavors. But you seldom, if ever, hear any of them mention Jesus. It seems very few of them have any room for Him in their varied systems of belief.

The fact is, this questioning, or at least omitting of the New Testament doctrine of salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ seems to be spreading. The words vary, but the central theme remains, “How can God (at least the one Christians worship) say He is love and then condemn so many people to Hell on a technicality? Isn’t that just plain hypocritical!” I don’t doubt that some of you may have heard similar statements from friends or relatives and are struggling to give an answer. We’ve struggled to give those we love an answer too. What follows are the results of that struggle, prefaced by three things God set as the anchor points for His response: Read the rest of this entry »

Updated on Oct 25, 2008.

During my Bible Study time, I was reading in John chapter 3 when something “popped out” at me! In verse 23, the Scripture says, “Now Jesus was about thirty yeas old when he began his ministry.” Does that strike a note of interest in you? Or, maybe you have already examined this and recognized the enigma (something not easily explained or understood) that it poses?

Although I have read this many times before, the question that occurred to me – this time – was, “Why did Jesus WAIT?”

There are several similar situations that come to mind. One is the case of Lazarus who was dead and had already been in the tomb for four days (John 11:17)! Why didn’t Jesus do something a the first notice of Lazarus’ sickness? Or what about some of the healings? Like the case of the blind man in John chapter 9 where Jesus told the man to walk a half mile down a very steep slope to the Pool of Siloam in order to wash off the mud that Jesus put there. Robin Sampson in her excellent blog (Heart of Wisdom) asks the question, “why didn’t Jesus just heal him there?”
In John 2:46,47 (when Jesus was only 12 yrs old) Mary & Joseph found Jesus “in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.” (Emphasis mine) If Jesus was so smart at 12 that he “amazed” the Bible scholars of his day, why didn’t he go on the road as a child evangelist? Why did he wait another 18 years and then only have 3 or so years left for ministry?

One “answer” to Jesus’ 18 year delay in ministry is probably found in verse 52 – which I believe is one of the most profound verses in the entire Bible. The verse is its self an enigma, “Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.” The only part of that that I can say I understand (at least partially) is that Jesus grew in stature. Although he could have been placed on this earth full-grown, he came as a little baby and underwent the struggles of physical growth – just like you and I must do.

BUT, beyond physical growth, the verse tells us that he also grew in wisdom. One reason that Jesus did not begin his ministry at the age of 12 is that he had to grow in wisdom. That is likely a problem that all of us face as well. In order to be successful, we must first acquire wisdom – and often, by the time we become “wise,” we are too old to do much about it! <grin>.

Later, Matthew recorded, (13:54) “Coming to his home town, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. ‘Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?’” Apparently, Jesus satisfied the requirement that he grow in wisdom (and every other requirement of the Messiah). (Check out the next post for more about the acquisition of wisdom.)

I especially like the old BBC sitcom “Keeping Up Appearances.” Here is a short description from the www.tv.com website…

Patricia Routledge played Hyacinth Bucket, a woman who pretended to be upper-class but wasn’t. To side herself with Britain’s top ten percent, Hyacinth insisted her surname be pronounced “bouquet.” Her attention to cleanliness, candlelight suppers, and desire to sing gave pain to her husband Richard and her neighbors.

The name of the show is so descriptive of how a lot of people try to live. Hyacinth wanted to be something that she was not. Many people today want to be more than they really are – but are unwilling to pay the price to accomplish their desires.

On the other hand, the people in Berea (Acts 17) were NOT “nobility” by birth but they chose to develop a more noble character. They demonstrated characteristics that the Bible described as “noble character.”

Acts 17:10-12 As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue.  11 Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.  12 Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.

There are at least three qualities of noble Christian Character which the people in Berea demonstrated:

1. They were open to hear – Paul preached the same message in Thessalonica & in Berea but the responses were very different. The people of Thessalonica rejected the message & started a riot while the Bereans “RECEIVED the message with great eagerness.”
2. They were loyal to truth – The excitement of hearing about Jesus & that He fulfilled the Biblical prophecies of the Messiah had to be CHECKED OUT. Each day, they “examined the Scriptures” to make certain that what they were hearing was actually true.
3. They were wise to chose – The emotional component of hearing that Messiah has come was balanced with the intellectual component of checking it against the Bible. The result was a decision to accept it and “Many of the Jews BELIEVED”

I preached this message today and the audio of that service is available below, the sermon notes and a video clip from the “appearances” show are all on the other side of the break.  Read the rest of this entry »

(This post was last updated on July 5, 2008)

There is little question that in America, advertising is big business. That is because business is big — and business is not content — they must sell MORE. To do that, advertisers have DEVELOPED a market for things that we otherwise would not need or even want. “Christmas” (or Valentine’s Day, or Mother’s Day, etc.) is just another word for hyper-consumerism.

For a little fun (combined with a generous measure of “That’s us, alright!”) jump over to Reverend Billy’s Church of Stop Shopping! The current article is named after the movie that was released about Reverend Billy and his (not particularly Christian) crusade and “church.” I have not seen the movie but the trailer is hilarious.

Listen to the choir sing “Stop Shopping”…[podcast]http://www.revbilly.com/ekit/serm/music/stop_shopping2.mp3[/podcast]

I especially like some of the articles on their blog. One article describes how to do “shopdropping.” That is the opposite of shoplifting. You need to read the article to get the full picture. However, there may be some new techniques here that the church could use.

What is good about the site/blog: It is funny but it is also a “wake-up call” about the problems of massive consumer debt and our attempt to “keep up with get ahead of the Joneses” – and every other neighbor within 50 miles.

What is bad about the entire Reverend Billy thing (other than he is an entertainer – rather than a true pastor/teacher/preacher): It makes we wonder, “Why haven’t *I* done more preaching of this nature?”