When no one listens to you Preach!
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What would you say if I told you, you were standing on the mission field?
Intro
Intro
Illus: A preacher and his son went into a restaurant one day. They were asked for a name to put down to hold their reservation. He said: “Can it be any name.” She said “yes.” He responded: “Jesus.” One lady chuckled while the other stood in silence. He responded: “there is only 2 of us though, not 13.” The lady laughed. The lady in silence just stared. It was clear to this preacher that the joke was lost on at least one.
We do not live in a world that is Christian, nor do they even know the story of Jesus.
As the first truly post-Christian generation, and numerically the largest, Generation Z will be the most influential religious force in the West and the heart of the missional challenge facing the Christian church.
White, James Emery. Meet Generation Z: Understanding and Reaching the New Post-Christian World (pp. 11-12). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
Problem: The church can turn people off by being preachy.
Arrogant, self-righteous, prideful, sinless
Paul and Barnabas enter into an area where they may not be a synagogue, and they worship other gods
Barnabas was called Zeus - King and thunder god in Greek mythology. He appoints other gods to their roles. He is seen by the Greeks as a weather god.
Paul was called Hermes - Son of Zeus. Messenger of the gods. Might tell us that Paul was the messenger for Zeus and the gods.
Paul and Barnabas are now faced with a real dilemma. They don’t have the luxury of a pulpit in the church, filled with knowledgable Christians. They are in a purely heathen town where they worship Greek gods.
Drama
Drama
God often uses cosmic or tragic events to draw the Christian and heathen together
Rather than seeing an us and them, and looking for ways to preach we need to realize that God also uses us in a more real and personal way to evangelize.
I want to encourage you that there is first:
A huge need for the gospel in our world and in the upcoming generations to know God
You can in very simple an easy ways be a missionary and evangelist today
Doctrine
Doctrine
Be present
They did not hide, but came out with urgency
“Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.
But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out,
There was urgency and expediency in their movement
He shows them they are all creatures
They knew how God responded to blasphemy
APP: One of the best ways to start the evangelism process is to be present with the heathen
Don’t exclude yourselves from them
Don’t hide
With urgency run out and bring them the message, the gospel
Be real
Paul’s argument is covertly theological
It is mainly relational
“Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.
Be yourself
Discuss that we all worship something
“Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.
The world often views the Christian as arrogant or self-righteous
Let people know we are all men - one nature, created in the image of God
APP: Challenge the notion that Christians are above other people. We are all sinners in need of God’s grace.
Be vulnerable
Paul and Barnabas tore their clothes as they went out
Why?
A sign of sorrow and grief - David and Abner in
Abner leaves Saul’s army to join David’s army
Joab believing him to be a spy and not a true ally, kills him
David’s repsonse is:
Then David said to Joab and to all the people who were with him, “Tear your clothes and put on sackcloth and mourn before Abner.” And King David followed the bier.
Paul and Barnabas tore their clothes to convey two things:
Their own sinfulness and grief
To show their own vulnerability - sinners in need of God’s grace.
App: You will get further in evangelism when you show your vulnerability and are real with people.
Illus: We live in a world where the culture is mostly involved with social media. We get in a world where we can use personas. We are comfortable there. People only se us as we want them to see us. The kids today almost know nothing of being real and vulnerable with each other.
But because social media is their nature, so is seeking its immediate affirmation and acceptance, “since that’s where all their peers are and where many of the important conversations happen,” writes Jeremy Finch. “They curate different social media personas in order to please each audience and minimize conflict or controversy.” Or as one sixteen-year-old from Arizona said, “We filter out whatever flaws we may have, to create the ideal image.”34
Meet Generation Z, James Emory White
White, James Emery. Meet Generation Z: Understanding and Reaching the New Post-Christian World (pp. 44-45). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
The Christian should be the most comfortable with our vulnerability. We were made low so that we saw our need for Christ. When we come together we should know that each of us has been vulnerable enough to have seen our need for Christ. And, as we grow in grace and in the body we see others vulnerability.
Be a witness
Once we have done these things then we can begin to discuss God and our theology
To God’s work in creation
“Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.
Paul is comparing Zeus to God, a living God
To God’s sovereignty throughout man’s history
In past generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.
Acts
To God’s providence in creation
Yet he did not leave himself without witness, for he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.”
Doxology
Doxology
The world does need the voice of the church. The heathen do need to hear the word of God. The medium by which we do that however is not always the same.
How do we walk out the door today and start sharing the gospel? It is rather easy.
It’s in every day conversation!
Stop preaching, the world isn’t listening. Stop working, the world isn’t watching. Start building relationships and find opportunities to discuss Jesus.
Not all cultures will listen to a sermon by the preacher. Not all people you come in contact will respond to the same method of sharing Jesus.
Rather, we need to become so familiar with Jesus and what he has done to bring salvation to the world that we are creative in sharing it in various contexts.
We cannot always start by preaching to the world. We have to first earn their trust, so we have a voice. We have to engage them in very ordinary and common ways.
I’ve always marveled at how Jesus could proclaim absolute truth without compromise to those far from God and then those very people would invite him to their parties.
White, James Emery. Meet Generation Z: Understanding and Reaching the New Post-Christian World (p. 82). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
He entered Jericho and was passing through. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
Luke 19:11
We look for formulas and programs, services and processes. The simple truth is that the early Christians were very much like Jesus, so much so that the name Christian, meaning “little Christ,” came into existence ().
White, James Emery. Meet Generation Z: Understanding and Reaching the New Post-Christian World (p. 82). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
We need to get back to being like Christ if we ever hope to share the gospel with the world.
We need to be able to:
Sit with the woman at the well (Jn 4)
eat with the tax collectors and sinners (Mk 2:15-17)
weep with Mary and Martha (Jn 11:27-35)