I have given some thought to evangelism as of late. I have listened to discussions on the hour in which we live, who to share with, and how to share. How would I "share" Jesus?
I thought of an allegory of sorts. If Jenn, my wife, was always talking about her groom, and someone wanted to meet me, it could look like any of these scenes. These are some takes on how I would have described Him in the past...
"You've come to meet my groom-to-be? He is so wonderful. He is kind and compassionate, always listening. He is so wonderful. Let me
A.) take you upstairs to his room. I'd love to show you his room.
B.) take you into the kitchen. I can show you our calendar and how many activities we do together.
C.) take you upstairs . I have all his love letters to me bound together in a book.
D.) show you my jewelry box. He has given me so much jewelry. Then I can show you all of the gifts He's bought me over the years.
E.) show you all the things he's done around here. He's so good at doing my honey-do list!
F.) get you to help me with all this stuff I need to get done for him. I know if I don't do all this stuff and stay busy, he's going to get mad. But he's so wonderful.
G.) go get him and introduce you to him. We can sit back and take a rest, all of us together. He has blessed me in so many ways!
I think if I was at the door, and the response was A-F, my initial response would be, "Did he die? Has he left on vacation? Why can't I meet him?" Maybe that's where the world is with His bride. Kind of reminds me of Elijah, mocking the folks worshiping their idols and waiting for their false gods to deliver them. Or, is it what Jesus said? Have we waited too long, so we've started beating each other up (Lk12:45)? I think we have emotionally and spiritually in our hurts, angst, and disappointments...
I can remember in the early part of my walk, if someone asked about my journey, I'd tell them where I went to church, tell them about a pastor or teacher, or all the things we did at the church. But as I moved into the discipline of prayer, I made my list of what I wanted or what other people wanted and took it to God. Many times that led to disappointment when my list didn't get done just as I wanted. Then we moved into charismatic flavors of the church, and it was all about the gifts. You have to move in the gifts. And you better be busy pressing in, praying for stuff in a certain way for a certain length of time, or else He'll get mad and smite our state, town, country, etc. And if it is really important, starve yourself - He'll change His mind if He sees His bride starving herself! Then, let's make the form different - as if religion at home in a home church is any different than any other religious institution. Wayne Jacobsen likes to say, "At least the Pope is in Rome."
Let's call sin for what it is - It is doing anything apart from Him.
Sound familiar? Paul could write that today. God's terms, be still and know Him. Rest. Enter into His rest. It still means works - fruit - but through faith. It's effortless. If it is works without faith or *for* Him, without entering His rest, it's exhausting. Rest apart from Him is merely laziness and life in the lust of the flesh...and that's not rest!
The culmination of this journey is summed up in a Person. Not in the word. Not in the law. Not in experiences. Not in gifts. Not even in blessings. I'm thankful for all those things as a bonus to the Person of Jesus, and the relationship with Him. Unfortunately I still stay too busy to see Him in everyday unfolding of life. Today has enough worry of it's own. See what unfolds as He puts things and people on our hearts. Live loved!
I thought of an allegory of sorts. If Jenn, my wife, was always talking about her groom, and someone wanted to meet me, it could look like any of these scenes. These are some takes on how I would have described Him in the past...
"You've come to meet my groom-to-be? He is so wonderful. He is kind and compassionate, always listening. He is so wonderful. Let me
A.) take you upstairs to his room. I'd love to show you his room.
B.) take you into the kitchen. I can show you our calendar and how many activities we do together.
C.) take you upstairs . I have all his love letters to me bound together in a book.
D.) show you my jewelry box. He has given me so much jewelry. Then I can show you all of the gifts He's bought me over the years.
E.) show you all the things he's done around here. He's so good at doing my honey-do list!
F.) get you to help me with all this stuff I need to get done for him. I know if I don't do all this stuff and stay busy, he's going to get mad. But he's so wonderful.
G.) go get him and introduce you to him. We can sit back and take a rest, all of us together. He has blessed me in so many ways!
I think if I was at the door, and the response was A-F, my initial response would be, "Did he die? Has he left on vacation? Why can't I meet him?" Maybe that's where the world is with His bride. Kind of reminds me of Elijah, mocking the folks worshiping their idols and waiting for their false gods to deliver them. Or, is it what Jesus said? Have we waited too long, so we've started beating each other up (Lk12:45)? I think we have emotionally and spiritually in our hurts, angst, and disappointments...
I can remember in the early part of my walk, if someone asked about my journey, I'd tell them where I went to church, tell them about a pastor or teacher, or all the things we did at the church. But as I moved into the discipline of prayer, I made my list of what I wanted or what other people wanted and took it to God. Many times that led to disappointment when my list didn't get done just as I wanted. Then we moved into charismatic flavors of the church, and it was all about the gifts. You have to move in the gifts. And you better be busy pressing in, praying for stuff in a certain way for a certain length of time, or else He'll get mad and smite our state, town, country, etc. And if it is really important, starve yourself - He'll change His mind if He sees His bride starving herself! Then, let's make the form different - as if religion at home in a home church is any different than any other religious institution. Wayne Jacobsen likes to say, "At least the Pope is in Rome."
Let's call sin for what it is - It is doing anything apart from Him.
I have been there myself [heartache for the lost], I know their deal and devotion; their problem is not their passion, but their ignorance. They are tirelessly busy with their own efforts to justify themselves while blatantly ignoring the fact that God already justified them in Christ. -Romans 10:2-3 MirrorThe message puts it this way:
I readily admit that the Jews are impressively energetic regarding God—but they are doing everything exactly backward. They don’t seem to realize that this comprehensive setting-things-right that is salvation is God’s business, and a most flourishing business it is. Right across the street they set up their own salvation shops and noisily hawk their wares. After all these years of refusing to really deal with God on his terms, insisting instead on making their own deals, they have nothing to show for it.
Sound familiar? Paul could write that today. God's terms, be still and know Him. Rest. Enter into His rest. It still means works - fruit - but through faith. It's effortless. If it is works without faith or *for* Him, without entering His rest, it's exhausting. Rest apart from Him is merely laziness and life in the lust of the flesh...and that's not rest!
The culmination of this journey is summed up in a Person. Not in the word. Not in the law. Not in experiences. Not in gifts. Not even in blessings. I'm thankful for all those things as a bonus to the Person of Jesus, and the relationship with Him. Unfortunately I still stay too busy to see Him in everyday unfolding of life. Today has enough worry of it's own. See what unfolds as He puts things and people on our hearts. Live loved!
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