Cultivating Relationships

"I once heard a man walk up to a woman and say, 'How are your kidneys today?' That's the truth! I actually heard the man ask that question. Her response? Did she hit him with her purse? No, she said the following: 'Oh, they're much better today, thank you, Doctor.' I overheard those words in a hospital room. The doctor had earned the right to ask that personal question. If you doubt that, stop the next lady you meet on the street and ask it yourself, and see what happens. All of which is to say, we need to earn the right to ask personal questions."

D. James Kennedy, Evangelism Explosion

As I have often shared before, personal evangelism isn't easy. Uncertainties and challenges abound, but we are called to share the gospel through our personal relationships. But if we never take the time to build those relationships, how can the gospel be shared with those not yet following Christ? Here are a few thinking points that might help:

*Be deliberate! These relationships don't "just happen" very often. We must intentionally pursue relationships with those that aren't Christians. Our tendency is fueled by the homogeneous principle of like-attracting-like. We are comfortable with our own. But the gospel demands that we deliberately break the ranks of the easy and familiar to reach the unbeliever. In other words, go out of your way to begin to develop friendships with those that don't yet love Jesus!

*Be dependent! We can't do this in our own power; we must be completely dependent on the Holy Spirit. If left to my own devices, I will never place myself in situations that are tense and potentially messy, which personal evangelism can often be. And if I do place myself into these situations, I don't have the ability on my own to convey anything worthwhile. That's why I must pray, pray, pray. That's why I must be constantly led by the Spirit, dependent on Him for leading and empowerment.

*Be diligent! Don't give up. Relationships take time. We must let them develop naturally, over the course of time. Trust must be established. Common ground, such as likes and dislikes, must be established. The rhythms of communication must be established. Too often, we become frustrated when our initial attempts are thwarted. Don't bail out; keep plugging away, knowing what good might be coming: someone learning to love Jesus Christ. That's motivation enough.

Turning Back? Why?

"After this many of his disciples turned back and longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the Twelve, 'Do you want to go away as well?'" John 6:66-67 (ESV)

I spoke today at a noon Lenten service hosted by our local Presbyterian church, using the above text in my sermon. While reading this passage of John, I have often wondered why the many deserted Jesus, and yet the few remained. Here are some clues that I have discovered in and around the passage that surrounds these verses:

1. The "many" would not listen to Jesus. The trouble begins in verse 60: "When many of his disciples heard it, they said, 'This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?'" What is "it"? The conversation of the preceding verses, most likely the intense statements of verses 53-58, dealing with Jesus' body and blood. Unless we listen to Jesus, we are, in his own words, "not of God" and "not of the truth". In their minds, it was easier to leave than to deal with the hard, harsh, and sometimes bizarre sounding words of this crazy Galilean. So they went away.

2. The "many" failed to embrace Jesus as Lord. They refuse to acknowledge the absolute authority of the One they have been following. When we come to a working understanding of lordship, we welcome the entirety of Jesus' teaching into our lives. But please don't misunderstand! Welcoming does not mean that I like everything and never have questions, reservations, and sometimes terrible struggles with God's revealed will for my life. But because He alone is Lord, I press on, doing what He wants me to do, understanding that He has every right to make demands of my mind, emotions, and will. Which leads to the next point:

3. The "many" missed the eternal significance of what was being said. Read Peter's words, expressed in verses 68 and 69. The Twelve know that Jesus is speaking as God! And, although greatly imperfect at times, they listen to Jesus as the voice above all other voices. He alone has the words that lead to eternal life. When we miss Jesus, we miss the things that he says. And when we miss the things that He says, we miss Jesus. The "many", failing to recognize the true identity of Christ, treated His teaching as dispensable. It is not-because Jesus is Lord!

4. Peter seems to distinguish between the "many" that left and those that remained by way of the word "believed" in verse 69. Those that believed stayed and followed Christ. Those that didn't believe went away. This is why an accurate and continual explanation of the gospel is essential in making certain that "believers" really do believe. Because if they don't, they will "turn back and no longer walk" with Christ.

Fighting Boredom!

"God, your way is holy. What god is great like our God?" Psalm 77:13

Let's be honest. Sometimes we think that church is boring. But we must recognize that our boredom and disinterest are rooted in our own sinful devices. Granted, there may be multiple causes for our boredom, but there is one certain solution to combat every single one of them: the greatness of God! Consider the axiom of old: finitum non capax infinitum. Meaning, literally, that the "finite cannot grasp the fullness of the infinite." This Sunday, when the temptation comes to let the mind wander into thoughts of lunch, doodles on the church bulletin, or your neighbor's taste in clothes, bring back into focus the greatness of God. There is no god like Him! Let's let this truth saturate our singing, praying, and listening. Let's praise Him as the Creator and King that the scriptures reveal Him to be. I have found that when I consider that I am the finite meeting with the Infinite, boredom can't stay. Distractions lose their footing. Disinterest flees. As you enter your church sanctuary this Sunday, ask yourself the question of the psalmist: "What god is great like our God?"

Deeds from Creeds

"I have said it before, and I'll write it here again: we need another Reformation-and this one needs to be about deeds, not creeds. Many have misunderstood me and and said, 'Oh, he doesn't believe in creeds!' I believe in creeds. I preach on creeds with frequency. But the issue is not creeds alone. Creeds must be turned into deeds. It's not one or another. It's both. We must do and teach the kind of behavior that goes with sound doctrine. We must be doers of the Word. We only believe the parts of the Bible we actually do. You may say, 'I believe in witnessing.' Do you do it? No? Then you don't really believe in it. 'I believe in tithing.' Do you do it? No? Then you don't really believe in it...We only believe what we actually do.

Rick Warren, from his chapter in Thinking. Loving. Doing.

Consider a Compassion Sunday!

Many of you that frequent this site know that my family and church support Compassion International (CI). CI is a Christian ministry that reaches impoverished children throughout the world with physical help and spiritual nurturing. Their statement of mission is simple: "Releasing children from poverty in Jesus' name." You and your church have an opportunity to help this worthwhile cause by planning a Compassion Sunday for your local congregation. This year's event is targeted for April 22, but another Sunday can be chosen to better fit your church's schedule. Information can be obtained by visiting compassionsunday.com or by phoning CI directly @ 1-888-503-4585. This event can be easily tailored to fit into any service type or size. Participation may be as simple as having a current child sponsor share for a few minutes about the impact of CI, or it can be as involved as having the entire service's theme built around our helping the poor as a response to the gospel. It's simple. It's flexible. It's effective. Please give prayerful consideration to this idea in the coming weeks. Approach your pastor with the information. Take it to your Sunday School classes and small group meetings. However you choose, just get involved! On behalf of the often forgotten, I thank you.

Another Moore Monday!

"A few weeks ago my buddy Vicky was getting ready for work when she heard a beeper going off somewhere in her house. She was a tad perplexed, since she didn't own a beeper. She reasoned it was her husband's, knew he'd be in trouble without it, and started trying to find it. The sound was so loud she was sure it was in the room with her, but she searched in vain. She looked under the cushions of her couch and chairs. She looked behind the TV. She exhausted one room and looked in another. No matter where Vicky went, the sound was the same. No 'getting hotter', no 'getting colder.' Just a steady beep. Imagine her surprise when she realized the beep was coming from inside of her. The battery on her pacemaker was going out and sounding an alarm. She didn't even know her pacemaker had an alarm. You may not know you have one either, but you do. When it goes off, you've got to learn to listen to it. The hardest part may be that you won't always understand why the beeper is going off-why God is directing you to back off from a situation or relationship. The warning may not make any human sense. When this happens, beware of rationalizing yourself into a pit! Mind what the Holy Spirit is telling you even if you don't know why. You may live on for years without clear understanding, but you can praise God by faith, knowing that He veered your car in a different direction to keep you out of some kind of ditch."

Beth Moore, Get Out Of That Pit

Bend Me!

Last week, my seven-year old son made a rather honest statement while expressing his dissatisfaction with our choice of restaurants. He wanted to go to...McDonald's! Shocking, I know.
But we didn't eat at McDonald's. In voicing his displeasure he exclaimed, "But I want to do what I want to do!" Isn't that the exact root of sin? We want to do what we want to do. If sinners created a social club or organization, that would be a perfect mantra for advertisement. Think about it...Sinners: Doing What We Want Since 6000 B.C. Or Want It. Do It. Sinners. But we must yield our will to God. We must learn to want what He wants. We are taught this surrender by the Holy Spirit as God continues to shape us into the image of Jesus. Recently, I read of the Welsh revival that began in 1904. God used a young man by the name of Evan Roberts as an instrument in reaching people with the gospel. Evan's prayer, inspired by the words of another, was simple: "O Lord, bend me!" Evan initially preached to seventeen young people who responded to his appeal for repentance and obedience. Within a half year, tens of thousands were converted and sweeping social changes came as a result. If only I would learn to humbly pray, "O Lord, bend me!" Bend me away from what I want and toward what you want. May your desires become my desires. Instead of clinging to my ideas and yearnings, may I surrender them to you. May I do what you want me to do, and not what I want to do. O Lord, bend me!