Sharing Your Faith With Others
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INTRODUCTION:
INTRODUCTION:
Show video UNASHAMED.
It’s in moments like this that we see more than ever people turning towards God. Churches reporting record numbers in attendance the Sunday following the attack, polls reporting over 90 percent of America’s population involved in some kind of prayer and God being talked about freely on the job and at school.
We are not punching a time clock. Given a certain number of hours to Jesus a week.
Ginny is one of those people. In a recent article by Janet Chismar she writes.(Read Copy)
Ginny, like many American are struggling for answers in the wake of tragedy and we are the people to share with them Jesus. Why? Because we are those that He has transformed. We who have been baptized and are following Him have gone from being sinful to being clean. As we place our trust, He makes our burdens light. We are strangers here waiting for an eternal home that God has built and who better to share their faith than those who have been transformed. Can we answer all their questions? No, but we can point them to Jesus.
We are not punching a time clock. Given a certain number of hours to Jesus a week.
We are not doing this out of fear. For God did not give us a Spirit of fear.
Throughout history, since Moses went to rescue the Israelites, God has worked through people to proclaim His word. Today, God’s word will reach your co-workers, your class mates, your family and friends through you, but only if you will let Him.
We are not doing this because of pressure. I am not going to tell you, that you are a bad Christian if you do not share your faith and bring ten people to church next Sunday.
No, qouting from Paul, Paul tells us why we do this.
So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
2 Corinthians 5:16
We do this because God loves us and we love Him and becuase of that we love people.
Turn with me to , beginning in verse 15.
THE SITUATION:
The purpose of the letter is to encourage believers to stand fast while they endure suffering and distress in the present evil age.105 Achtemeier says that the letter is intended “to strengthen the readers in the ‘now’ of their suffering and persecution by assuring them that the future of glory will transform their present condition as surely as their present situation transformed them from their past.”106 They are encouraged to persevere, knowing that a great reward will be theirs on the day of salvation. Such perseverance is exhibited by living a godly life, living as good citizens, model slaves, gentle wives, and understanding husbands. When believers live in such a way, they indicate that they are placing their hope in God rather than in the joys and comforts of this world. Another way of describing 1 Peter is to say that those who hope and trust in God and in his future reward will have the strength to endure whatever comes their way in the present.
The purpose of the letter is to encourage believers to stand fast while they endure suffering and distress in the present evil age.105 Achtemeier says that the letter is intended “to strengthen the readers in the ‘now’ of their suffering and persecution by assuring them that the future of glory will transform their present condition as surely as their present situation transformed them from their past.”106 They are encouraged to persevere, knowing that a great reward will be theirs on the day of salvation. Such perseverance is exhibited by living a godly life, living as good citizens, model slaves, gentle wives, and understanding husbands. When believers live in such a way, they indicate that they are placing their hope in God rather than in the joys and comforts of this world. Another way of describing 1 Peter is to say that those who hope and trust in God and in his future reward will have the strength to endure whatever comes their way in the present.
The purpose of the letter is to encourage believers to stand fast while they endure suffering and distress in the present evil age. Achtemeier says that the letter is intended “to strengthen the readers in the ‘now’ of their suffering and persecution by assuring them that the future of glory will transform their present condition as surely as their present situation transformed them from their past.” They are encouraged to persevere, knowing that a great reward will be theirs on the day of salvation. Such perseverance is exhibited by living a godly life, living as good citizens, model slaves, gentle wives, and understanding husbands. When believers live in such a way, they indicate that they are placing their hope in God rather than in the joys and comforts of this world. Another way of describing 1 Peter is to say that those who hope and trust in God and in his future reward will have the strength to endure whatever comes their way in the present.
So Peter, is writing to a world where Christianity is unpopular. Where people cannot believe one would turn to Christianity, abandoning their freedoms for presecution and Christians are weary and tired seeing nothing but pain for their Godly choices. Imagine reaching people in that world?
We can! We live in that world today. We have no proof that Peter is writing at a time of Roman widespread persecution. In fact, most Scholars believe this is a local persecution that is not resulting in death, but loos of business, loss of family, loss of friends and maybe the occassional beating.
So what message does Peter have for us, God’s ambassadors, on how we share our faith with others? Let us today look at what God’s word has to say.
Turn with me to , beginning in verse 15.
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,
keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,
:15-16
POINT #1, IF HE IS NOT, YOU MUST MAKE JESUS THE LORD OF YOUR LIFE.
POINT #1, IF HE IS NOT, YOU MUST MAKE JESUS THE LORD OF YOUR LIFE.
Before you can ask someone to follow Christ, they must be able to see the difference He makes in your life. I hate it when I see a parent use the phrase, “Do as I say, not as I do.”
As Christians we must as Peter says a few verses earlier, Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
POINT #2, BE READY TO ANSWER
POINT #2, BE READY TO ANSWER
Imagine if you walked into the Doctors office tomorrow after a year between visits and the Doctor looked at you for a moment and said, “That’s it! You have pancreitis , let’s schedule to have your pancreas removed. You would probably ask a few questions. Would it instill confidence if the doctor answers you, “I don’t know I just think that’s the right course of action” Or your car mechanic says, “It will be $800.00” as soon as you walk through the door, without ever opening the hood. We really would not place much confidence in these people and their judgments, would we? Then why do we as Christians think that we can walk around not really knowing why we believe the things we do and expect others just to accept that. If you want people to believe, then you must be ready to answer.
POINT #3, DO IT WITH GENTLENESS AND RESPECT
POINT #3, DO IT WITH GENTLENESS AND RESPECT
where they are at with gentleness and respect and help them to come to know the God we serve. One night while we were in Trinidad this year, the mechanic that fixes Parkers van brought it back over to the house and Parker introduced us to Him. When the mechanic left Parker began to tell us about this man’s conversion. He told us it took 11 years to bring this man into a relationship with God. Parker was patient, he challenged him gently and respected the distance, if any the man was willing to take. Jesus had compassion on those that He came in contact with. It doesn’t take long to see how Jesus works. He would come into a community, meet people where they were at, meet their needs and then share with them the gospel. Don’t believe me: Look at the women caught in adultery; the 5000 he fed; those that he healed. We must approach people about God gently and respect the distance they are willing to go. This week they might attend a church activity with you, or a devotional, next week they might come to church.
POINT #4, WALK THE WALK AND TALK THE TALK
POINT #4, WALK THE WALK AND TALK THE TALK
This morning I hope you feel a little more confident about walking out those doors and sharing your faith. It is an opportune time. I love this church so much because one of the things I can see in us is the potential to just bust this building open at the seams with the many people we could pack in here. Why have we not gotten there…I’m not sure. Maybe for some, we have not been living our lives in a way that looks all that different. For others, maybe we are scared that we will mess everything up. I believe if we let Him, God will dissolve all these barriers away like he did with Moses and we will be able to see ourselves truly as a light to this community. If you have a need to make Jesus the Lord of your life, whether by putting Him on in baptism or by asking the body for help to be the person God is calling you to be. Then I pray you will come forward as we stand and sing.