Balancing Act
"Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others." 2 Corinthians 5:11 (NLT)
In my last few posts, I have talked about following the lead of the Spirit as you move through life for the sowing of much Gospel seed. By doing so, you will see crops rise from the dirt. For many, they read posts, books, attend seminars and have conversations about these sort of things and somehow conclude they should take a more laissez-faire approach in living missionally. Paul seemed to have a different understanding than a laissez-faire mindset. We would do well to learn from him.
Many in the church are reacting to what I call 'forced evangelism.' Forced evangelism takes place when a leader decides that an organization is not seeing enough evangelistic activity, often measured by the lack of new believers. The leader embarks on finding a great way to increase the gathering in of souls. This is not a bad motivation but at some point, the leader chooses a method to employ and then handcuffs the people to it. Whether intentional or not, the people affiliated with the church now feel compelled, bad or even forced to apply the method of evangelism suggested. This comes in the usual ways of canned or cold turkey approaches that really do not fit either the mindset of the Christian or their prey.
I can understand the swing away from forced evangelism to a more relational evangelism. Relational evangelism often ends us as an excuse to not share the truth about Jesus with our words, "we'll just make friends and then they'll know we are Christians." There must be pieces of ground in the middle of these two ends where Jesus can be shared naturally and with a strong work ethic.
In 2 Corinthians 5:11, Paul says he works hard to persuade men. This sounds like it could fit into the forced evangelism camp but keep reading. In verse 14 Paul says, "Christ's love controls us." This is the key to being bold and relational in sharing Christ. When we come in touch with the deep love of Jesus in our souls, we can do nothing but be compelled to talk about Jesus as often as possible. A heart that has fresh understanding about Jesus' love for us always responds with sharing His story with others and inviting them to walk with Jesus too.
It is my strong belief that Jesus gives us opportunities to talk about His love for the world daily as we engage people. It is the reason we are here on this planet, not only to receive eternal life but to invite others to receive it too. Jesus gave His life for this privilege. Is his love compelling us? If it is, we will be about our Father's business which is being ambassadors for the Kingdom of Heaven. We'll explore that idea next time.
Ed - there is a lot that could be said in response to this post, but let me just react from personal experience. There was a time when I did evangelism because it was the "right thing to do". In fact I was one of those folks who came up with a program so that our church could do evangelism better. God's grace brought a few people in the door, but that was it.
ReplyDeleteMy personal circumstances changed and God reminded me how broken I was and how dependent I was on him. It allowed me to see others differently. I could see that they were broken and lost like I was, and that God was calling them, just as he had called me. I put aside all of the evangelistic tricks I had learned and turned to prayer, patience and perserverance.
I prayed for specific people; I waited patiently for God open a door; and then I stuck with them until they could either stand own their own or God told me it was time to let them go.
In response to your question "Is his love compelling us?" The answer for me is most of the time. When it is, things click. When I let my ego and vain ambitions get in the way, it can get ugly. I am thankful for His grace to cover my weakness.
Jeff
Hi Jeff,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by to read and comment. I hope that I, like you, allow the love of Christ to compel me more often than not. It is a life long battle but I'll struggle until I am with him. If there is anyway that I/we can serve you in your neck of the woods, just let me know.