So we're talking about "take heart, take action," and I want to flip it for a bit
at the beginning of this session. I think part of the challenge that we have in
taking action is that we have lost heart, and so I want to review perhaps some of
the ways that we are our hardest challenged. A little bit about about my
background: as far as evangelist evangelism goes I've had a passion for
sharing the Gospel from a very early age. When I was in eighth grade I got in
trouble in my neighborhood because I had convinced all the neighborhood kids to
get baptized and I baptized them. And I was in-- I grew up in Texas and one of the
neighbor families that we were particularly good friends with were the
Boggess family and he was a Baptist preacher and his kids were baptized and
they were very upset they wouldn't let me play with them any longer so I
learned persecution as an early age as well.
Then I went into high school and asked my pastor, "What can I do to to evangelize, to
witness?" and he said, "Well, we have a group that goes out Monday and and we visit, we
visit people who visited the church or we just go to neighborhoods and knock on
doors." I said "I'd love to do that, I want to do that." But I have to tell you, I'm
not some super spiritual evangelist. Every time I had to knock on a door cold
I was praying "Please Lord don't let them be home, please Lord don't let them be
home." You know, because there was a bit of a heart issue--I had a passion but I also
had a little bit of a heart issue, so this is a near and dear topic to me as
well. I'm gonna begin by going back to the passage that we reference quite a
bit, but I want to give you a quick outline.
We're going to be talking about first taking action thinking theologically--so
this is an outline of the presentation-- and then we're gonna take heart what is
what is the heart that we have, the heart for the captives. So this is an overview
of where we're going and I want to begin by looking at this passage... (and it is not
going anywhere we just went through this and it was like yeah Seth it'll work
fine yeah)... But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people
for his possession that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you
out of darkness into his marvelous light. You are a royal priesthood, a holy nation.
This is where our heart begins; our heart begins because we have been baptized
into the priesthood. Now this is not the pastoral office--it's distinct from
that. But Luther says in Baptism we are brought into the priesthood and in fact
the words of Absolution given by a young child have the same power and validity
as the pastor because of the priesthood. And you notice it's not just a
priesthood that stands by itself to be the priest but it's to be priests who
proclaim, who speak forth of Jesus Christ, his glory, his grace, to declare the
praises. That's us. We speak forth-- and the Greek word that occurs here has
the word "angel" in it and we get the word angel from it because we are messengers
but we go out; it's ex messenger--to go out, to go forth. That's what we are to do.
So we're to take action. We're not just baptized to sit but we are baptized to
take action. I love that quote from Luther; I wish I had that--I could have
used this and saved myself some time... but it was an excellent quote. So why don't
we take action? What holds us back? What are some issues that are
challenging our heart? There's a theological component to this.
Here's a quote from a Lutheran who has said "We do not contribute to the
salvation of souls, therefore our evangelism efforts will not make a
difference in the number of those being saved." Now there is some truth in this
statement. We do not save anyone, right? It's the Holy Spirit who works
salvation, works faith in the heart of the believer and that salvation was won
for people on the cross. Jesus Christ died on the cross for all people, so
there's truth in this statement. But there is an application of this
statement which is misleading, an application which takes away the heart.
And it absolves us and says, "Don't take the word out. You're a royal priesthood but
don't worry about proclaiming because it doesn't really matter." And this is a
growing spirit within and among us, some who would look at this statement and say
this is this describes us. Another individual: "While we are evangelical we
are not focused on evangelism, in the sense that we do not believe it is our
efforts at outreach that add to the body of Christ." In other words, why do we do
evangelism? Why do we do outreach? It doesn't really matter. It's not going to
add to the body of Christ. Now again there's truth to this and we certainly
aren't the agents of action; it's the Holy Spirit, it's the Word. But it takes
away the sense of purpose; it takes away the heart. This lack of urgency is a
confusion, I believe, on an attempt of some to reconcile two teachings in
Scriptures. I hesitate to use the word doctrine because when we do talk about
doctrine, the other it's not really spoken of as a doctrine and it is just part of
our faith and that is first the doctrine of election. What does it mean to be
elect? What does it mean to be chosen of God, to be predestined? And the other is
the the teaching about mission or the theology of mission, the sense of
mission--what is mission or salvation of humanity? These are the two that get
confused, so how does it work? If God has chosen us, how does it work therefore
that God still says, "You will be my witnesses?" Those don't seem to
connect well, so how do we make them work? And this is an attempt to synthesize the
two together. From Scripture--I'm not going to read through all the verses
here but I list several that are, that identify the heart and soul of what it
means to be predestined or what it means to be chosen of God. Acts 13:48 is one of
the verses that's most often used to support this perspective when it talks
about the outcome of preaching the Gospel and it says, "When the Gentiles
heard the gospel, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord and all who
were appointed for eternal life believed." So there's this line: "All who were
appointed to eternal life believed." And that's connected in with Ephesians and
Peter and Romans, where we are told God predestines us; God has chosen us before
the foundations of the world. And so there is a very wonderful, comforting,
faith-strengthening component to the teaching of election, the doctrine of
election, that we do embrace. It is because God chose me that I believe and
that I'm here and that's a wonderful message of hope and life.
From the Confessions there are several places you can go to find to read more about this
and I've listed them on the screen here: you go to the Solid Declaration Article
11, the Epitome article 11, Luther's Bondage of the Will--you can find him
discussing and talking about this at great length and so it's helpful
to go back and to review those. It is a doctrine that has been much debated
amongst Lutherans and Protestants, and it is helpful to go back and to review
what do we believe about this teaching.
To summarize the sections of the Confessions, we are reminded that this is
a doctrine of comfort for the believer; that when Paul describes this teaching
he is speaking to believers and he's speaking to encourage them; he's speaking
to remind them of who they are in Christ and that their faith is rooted in
something greater than their experience, something greater than their feelings, so
evLen though I feel like God is distant or even though I recognized I'm not just
a poor miserable sinner--I'm a really good poor miserable sinner at that,
meaning I'm really good at sin. How can God like me? We can go back and
remind ourselves of what God has done in Baptism and what God has called us
to and that it's his work that saved me. And so it provides me comfort because
there's this continual battle within us where Satan wants us to doubt the gift
and God is shouting in your ear right now, "I chose you before Adam and Eve" and
that's our comfort. That's our joy. That's our peace. The Confessions say: "A
Christian should also think about the article of God's eternal election to the
extent that it is revealed in God's Word." That is, the Confessions are very
cautious to say, "Don't make more of this than Scripture." you see, the challenge is
God gives us what we need to know, but our brain wants to fill in all
the blanks; our logic wants to add to this, and so we get double predestination:
if God chose some, then that means God chose not to choose some. We don't
believe that. Yeah. it's logical. But we don't believe it. Why? Because Scripture doesn't
teach that. Because it's not in the Word of God. It's a logical inference but it's
not there, so we have to be cautious. "Therefore we reject when it is taught
that God does not want all people to repent and believe the Gospel; likewise
that God does not desire that everyone should be saved." So the Confessions say,
"Share the Gospel!" God has chosen those whom he has chosen to be saved.
Share the Gospel to all people because you know what? God wants all people to be
saved! And if you read more into this section of the Confessions it's so
powerful there! They point out: this is not an illusion; God is not playing some
kind of a game where "Yeah, I want all people to be saved, wink wink, but only a
few are gonna actually be saved because I've actually only chosen a few select
people." No, the Confessions say God's genuine desire is that all men, all
people, should be saved and come to the knowledge of salvation. And this is where
we get into the teaching of mission, the teaching and the doctrine of of God
sending us out into the mission: John 3:16-17, for God so loved the world--
you know that passage by heart. It is God's love and he sent his son into the
world, not just a piece of the world. To the world. 1 Timothy 2:4 and again
I'm not going to read through all of these sections, "It is God who desires all
people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth." God desires
that all should be saved. Romans 10:14-17 Paul says, "How then will they
call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in
him whom they have not never heard? And how are they to hear without someone
preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As
it is written--How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news. But
they've not all obeyed the Gospel, for Isaiah says, 'Lord, who has believed what
he has heard from us?' So faith comes from hearing
and hearing through the word of Christ." So faith comes through the means; the
faith, salvation given to us through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross but
the power of his resurrection comes through the means--the word; the word
comes from hearing, and hearing comes through those who proclaim--the
priesthood: you and me. It's not that God needs us; it's that God invites us to
share in the joy, and this is why I love 1 Corinthians 9. Paul talks about
doing everything possible to win as many people as possible--and it's interesting
language as many people as possible--to be saved. But he does this to participate
in the Gospel that is to be a part of the joy of seeing people come to faith;
the joy of experiencing people come to salvation. If you've ever had that
opportunity to be able to witness to someone whose eyes are open by the power
of the Holy Spirit to see the truth, and the joy, the excitement that is on their
face and in their heart as this tremendous burden is lifted from them. I
think as Christians, and especially Lutherans who are baptized in the faith,
we don't have a complete understanding of what it's like to live
apart from Jesus Christ. We don't know what it's like to live apart from a
loving Father. And it's pure hell. It is living each day with a sense of total
hopelessness; it is living each day knowing that my next day is totally
dependent on me and my ability to manipulate others or the system, my
ability to work hard and hope that it all works out. But it's all dependent
upon me; there is no one. And what do I do with my brokenness? And what do I do with
my guilt and my shame? I deny it or I am consumed by it. And that's a life apart
from Jesus Christ. We get the opportunity as priests to
absolve the broken; to restore that which was lost. That's what God calls us to,
that's the heart of the Father. "The Holy Spirit wills to effect the repentance of
faith in us through the Word and the Sacraments." This is absolutely true. "The
Holy Spirit does not effect conversion without means, he uses the preaching and
and hearing of God's Word to accomplish it." That God uses the
proclamation of his Word to accomplish this gift. So is there a difference? In
the Confessions it talks about preaching the Word and Proclamation which is what
occurs in Peter; the priesthood of all believers. Preaching is the public
preaching it is a preaching for the church from the church it is what is
reserved for those who have been called in the office of public ministry. They
are the preachers of the Word. we are the Proclaimers of the Word, those who
declare the glory, the greatness, the excellence of God our Father. "You are a
chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging t>o his own
possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who
called you out of darkness into marvelous light." Now I'm from the south
and I know that Paul was from the south as well because in the Greek he's saying
you all, or the less formal y'all. You all are a royal priesthood. Plural. Goes out.
Have you been baptized? You're royal priesthood! Why is this good news? Because
you have the opportunity to share the Gospel; you have the opportunity to
declare the glory of him who called you out of darkness and into marMvelous light.
"Making the power and the validity of the divine means of grace itself dependent
on the right of ordination is doubly abominable, since ordination is only a
human, namely, a church ordinance, not however a divine
ordinance. By making God's business dependent on human institution one
nullifies God commandment through man's commandment, and therefore places the
latter (man's commandment) above the former (God's commandment). This is not at
all to diminish the office of public ministry or ordination, that which set
people apart, but it is to remind us that the Confessions in our church history is
a strong laity. A laity which is clearly rooted in its
identity as a priest as the office of priesthood--the holy priesthood--and that
is the heart that God has given us and that we reclaim today. We'll move forward
to talk about this. (this is gonna move for a little bit) So what does it mean to be a
witness? What does it mean to evangelize? What does it mean to speak forth the
power of God, the Word of God? Is it kind of like this? (There is no audio)
All right, so is that a good example of evangelism? Is that what you're
here for? You know, I had a pastor who said, "Is it gonna be practical? I want to
make sure it's practical." This is not what you do, so just so you know, don't go
home with this. So what do we mean by evangelism? The problem we have is we
have images in our brain metaphors that go through our minds that shape how we
think about evangelism, and they're somewhat flawed.
So we-- first of all, we have the sense that evangelism is just what the
missionary does and this is the old-- really old understanding. Dr. Rast is
gonna be I think talking more about this that that our old understanding we
talked about in Missouri senators evangelist it's what or in Germany
actually what is evangelism it's what the missionary does and in it made sense
because most of Europe was actually in the church it was a church it was a
church to environment if you weren't part of the church you know in some
places you actually were killed so so you were part of the church there was
not a lot of there were a lot of people who didn't believe but there were a lot
of people who were not in the church so evangelism was something that
missionaries do it's not really an issue so much today but it is in our history
it's part of our DNA evangelism of the foreign mission field
a more common metaphor in our culture and pervasive since the Reformation
especially amongst Protestant is that evangelism is like being a peddler or a
Salesman and that is we have to use persuasive
arguments and reason to bring people to the point where they make a decision for
Jesus Christ and this is a pervasive image of evangelism even so that it
challenges us as Christians as Lutheran's so when I think about
evangelism I think I have to bring someone to the point where you know they
have to make a decision for Christ but I know as a Lutheran I'm not supposed to
make a decision for Christ therefore I'm gonna come up with a different way but
it's still I still have to get you to the edge so you take that leap of faith
and it's a lot of just that's a great deal of burden on us that's a great deal
of pressure on us how do I do that what words do I say and so there are all
kinds of methods have come up the four spiritual laws the Kennedy program the
dialogue evangelism program and they're all centered around this moment of
decision and that I have to come up with reasons for you to believe and as a
result of that image many people say I'm not an evangelist I'm not a witness
because I I don't know what I'm gonna say and if I mess it up they're gonna go
to hell you know I don't want to do that
there's also a common trend to think about evangelism as a reformer that is
it's my task to reform your life and so in the video clip that we saw just a few
minutes ago you saw the guy up on the rooftop and you saw the decision
theology and you also saw you know get rid of those cigarettes stop your sinful
ways your shameful ways stop doing this and today it looks a lot like believe in
creationism it looks like you know don't practice homosexuality oppose same-sex
marriage it's trying to reform culture without touching the heart and it's
interesting I went through and looked in the history of great evangelistic
movements in North America not just North America the world and
there's actually been four Great Awakenings I'm trying to see if I can
find my notes to make sure I get the date well maybe I want to give you the
dates but first first Great Awakening happened in 1700s where there was this
tremendous revival that occurred in Europe and it and it got sidetracked by
the fight and poverty and reforms in poverty and this is actually where we
get like Sunday school movement and things like that came from that Great
Awakening Second Great Awakening in the late 1700s to the mid 1800s and this is
where you had tremendous Street Preachers occurring in in Europe and
England and also in coming in here to North America and people were coming to
faith the ranks of churches were filling it once again with people who had fallen
away and that movement got sidetracked and consumed by the ablution n't and and
that certainly was something that needed to be addressed but it went from
proclaiming Christ to proclaiming the abolishment of slavery and from the
pulpits and the momentum was lost for salvation you see if we don't convert
people's hearts we're never gonna convert our culture it starts with the
heart but Satan has a way of putting up this social need that is so great and
and we respond to that social need and we forget it's actually about the heart
and it's happened in the last two great awakenings as well
in the 1850s to 1920s you had this revival of the great preachers of here
in the United States tent revivals spawned a great movement of an increase
in spirituality here in North America and then that was lost to the temperance
movement and people went after that evil liquor you know and and that became the
movement that took over the Christianity the the mission of the church and then
finally in the 50s and 60s and early 70s you had the rise of the Jesus Movement
that was consumed by anti-war and the anti-war movement and so we can look
through history and see how this happens that Christians who have this calling as
priests to proclaim the excellencies of our God get caught up in reforming
culture and it is a challenge today where we begin our evangelism by trying
to reform the person instead of letting the Holy Spirit reform the heart there's
a sense today that evangelism is about membership we need to get people into
our church we need to get people to join our church and become part of our
congregation evangelism is about getting people to join your church so we go out
to hand out stuff that has our church logo on it or we go out and we give
circulars that say come and see what we're doing in our church because we
have a great church this really in the 80s in the mid 90s was the genesis of
most of the contemporary church movements worship movements let's create
an exciting event and then invite people to come and see what it was about and
again it wasn't evangelism its marketing there might be a place for that but
that's not evangelistic laymen sees of him who called you out of darkness it
goes to the heart of our Father for God so loved the world that He gave His only
Son this is what motivated God to send his son it was love for the world it is
this heart that the father has that the world that all would hear the gospel and
believe so I want to think about what do you think about two alternatives to help
you capture the heart of the father think about captivity think about
captives so rather than being a peddler rather than being a reformer rather than
being somebody who is marketing the church let's think about the captives
Jesus said God has anointed me to proclaim the good news he's quoting from
Isaiah he sent me to proclaim liberty or freedom
for the captives now why are people captive what what causes someone to be
captive the root for this word is interesting there are several reasons
you can become captive because you commit a crime so I am in prison because
of my guilt and so I deserve to be in prison I can be in prison because I am
held by my addictive behaviors so I am a prisoner to my addictive behaviors to my
desire for women for wine for drugs whatever it might be gambling this is a
prison we become captives finally because we are taken as a prize in war
and this is the root for this word the root for this word that occurs here is
somebody who has taken captive taken hostage or kidnapped by the enemy so the
first two I'm responsible for its my brokenness that caused us so I'm getting
what I deserve it's easy to think about captives in
that way and say you know I'd love to share Jesus with you but you're kind of
getting what you deserve you're a jerk and I'm not gonna do it
I'm not gonna share Jesus don't do that but anyway that's it'd be easier to do
that but now think about everyone who doesn't know Jesus they are being held
as a kidnap victim by the enemy and how that changes your sense of urgency when
I was in South Dakota as a pastor we had a boy in the neighboring community that
was kidnapped Jacob Wetterling and immediately the call went out he was
kidnapped taken and he was a group of two other boys a brother and a neighbor
and the guy took him left the two boys so they ran home everybody knew in other
words it happened immediately that region and was activated and we began
searching for Jacob we spent weekend after weekend organizing groups to go
and to hunt through the fields through the vacant farms through the buildings
trying to find Jacob we were desperate to find this young boy and that that
desperation is what the father has for those for his children who are being
held in captivity by the enemy and it is out of that desperation that broken
heart that the father says join me in hunting for the lost seeking that which
is lost that which was taken captive this image helps us to regain that sense
of urgency it you see every moment that that child is in captivity is held for
the parent and probably not much better for the child in captivity and so the
rescue is certain in that God has chosen those he he's predestined those yes
that's that's true but what about today what about every day that that person
lives without the gospel of Jesus Christ every day that person lives without the
joy in the hope of salvation what about that day and God says you are my royal
priesthood let's go out let's connect let's let's engage our community let's
make a difference for these people let's seize the day I think I like about the
image of captives is that it gives us a sense of urgency freedom is certain not
for Jacob and other people like him but for those God has chosen those who he
has has chosen certain but the timeline is uncertain let's make it as short as
possible let's get people out out of captivity as quickly as possible the
captives cannot free themselves in fact I've I've read you know Elizabeth smarts
a book describing her time in captivity and the mentality that occurs
where the person being held captive begins to believe this is what I deserve
this is kind of my life this is who I am now and they can lose their identity and
be take on the identity of their captor and that's what we're living in with
right now people that are convinced that their identity is in the stuff of this
world and the brokenness of this world because they've been held captive so
long are our society our culture's been held captive for so long this is who we
are they can't save themselves it takes a rescuer and power the power
of freedom begins with hope and that's what we declare we declare the hope that
is in Jesus Christ not some distant hope that maybe it'll happen but the real
certain hope that is ours in Jesus Christ the confidence that we have Jesus
died on the cross for you and through his death you are forgiven and there's a
father waiting for a reunion with you right now to come and join me that is
the hope that we have the final image that I want to leave you with is the
image of that wait a second that's not the final image but this isn't Exiles to
those who are elect exiles of the dispersion this is this is the getting
into the priesthood there must be I must have slipped a sky
slide this is the priesthood the final image is the priesthood so Paul begins
our Peter begins his epistle to those who are elect exiles of the dispersion
and Pontius Galatia Cappadocia Asia and Bithynia according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father in the sanctification of the Spirit for obedience to Jesus
Christ and the sprinkling of his blood you notice Peter
so he's going to in a chapter later he's going to say you are a royal priesthood
now he's saying you're scattered you're dispersed but you are chosen you are
elect for a purpose for obedience and for the sprinkling of his blood I think
there's so much in these two words
about to say about our calling as evangelists are calling as priests so
the idea of obedience this is that we are called to be obedient to the family
values god's family values but it's not the obedience of like law driven
obedience it's not the obedience of do this or i will no longer choose you
peters already established you've been chosen
he's already established you have been elect he's already established you and
God your good Jesus Jesus's blood has covered you there's no
problem here but as God's chosen and elect people we
walk obediently and in in carrying out the family values and this is why I love
what Luther does with the Ten Commandments and the small catechism
where he takes the law first and then he gives us the opportunity second because
I believe that's what Peter is doing here is he's giving us the opportunity
Oh be Dias isn't like I got to do this it is this is what we have the
opportunity and the privilege to do now that we have been chosen and elected and
for the sprinkling of the blood for the sprinkling of the blood what does that
mean I don't have a definitive answer there's several good interpretations for
this and I think that they all can be very powerful I think part of this if if
I'm reading into first Peter chapter 2 into this verse is that this is what it
means to proclaim the greatness of God to declare the excellencies of God that
is that we are sprinkling God's gospel grace which is the blood of Jesus Christ
the the gift of eternal life where we go we're sprinkling this good news and it
is the blood that brings forth life it is the blood that redeems thing that
sanctifies this is a blood that makes whole that which was torn apart and so
Peter is saying you have been elect and chosen by God to go about sprinkling
this blood to give hope where there is no hope
and I think back to the Old Testament sacrifices when the priests would dip
that his branch into the blood and he would sprinkle the people and he was
sprinkle blood on a home that had was declared leprous and that had been
cleaned in order for someone to live in that home the blood had to be sprinkled
on it first so that it would be holy and that was a good thing and that someone
who was declared unclean and unfit had the blood sprinkled and they were
declared holy and righteous and God is giving us the chance to change the world
by sharing the good news sprinkling of the blood there's healing through the
blood the priesthood so this is the last image just the final points that I want
to bring out I'm gonna make sure what I'm doing with time it's excuse me a
second I want to make sure that I am NOT I'm good yep so this gets us to the
final image the priesthood and there's a great deal that we could talk about with
the priesthood and I would encourage you to go back and read in the Old Testament
you know those sections you don't like to read because they're kind of boring
about all the rules and everything and think about how well this obviously
points toward Jesus Christ every Old Testament image of the priest it's there
to share with us something about Jesus Christ and the work of Jesus Christ the
book of Hebrews makes that abundantly clear but it also tells us a little bit
about our calling because we are also royal priesthood we are of that royal
priesthood and you'll see as you read through the Old Testament that the
priests spoke for the people and this priest
spoke to the people from God and that this priest spoke words of truth and
sometimes it wasn't welcome truth you have leprosy you can't live with your
family any longer and then sometimes it was words of truth that were wonderful
you are clean go in peace your sins are forgiven go in peace
your father has accepted your sacrifice go in peace be healed
behold go in peace and so as priests we have that opportunity to do that we have
the opportunity to heal and to restore you are a royal priesthood this is a
long quote for Martin Luther so I didn't get the short quote I should have done
this short quote this is a long quote and we're not gonna read through all of
this quote it's it's in your in your page it's in your handout in its
entirety it is so powerful but I think because it's so long people don't don't
take time to read through it but it is very powerful as Luther describes how we
imitate Christ in incarnation or living so what I'm advocating as a good form of
evangelism to bring it to bring this into what's practical incarnation alleve
angel' ISM incarnation a' living and I've had several people say well you
know that where is it you where do you get that out where that's a strange term
you know Christ was God incarnate well Martin Luther actually came up with the
idea and he's describing it here in this freedom of the Christian he's describing
incarnation evangelism incarnation of witness and it's lengthy and so it
doesn't get a lot of quotation because you really do need to read it in context
I'm gonna skip through a section of it because you know he can be very succinct
into the point and then sometimes Luther is what time am I supposed to be done
I'm in QA right now so read through this section that's where I'm gonna end read
through this section but what Luther is saying is I thought you said you're fine
and so I was like I've got another ten minutes okay
read through this section here and you will see that while Luther is saying is
he is saying to us that just as Christ took on human flesh take on the the
flesh and blood of your neighbor be a be a neighbor to your neighbor and be a
part of their life a part of your community
and share Jesus as you love your neighbor and it's a very powerful
section especially to you know toward the end where he ties it all together
and even says just as Christ took on flesh to take on your sin your
brokenness take on the flesh of your neighborhood your community your
neighbor to take on their sin to be Jesus to them
that's what evangelism is about that's what the rescue is about being Jesus qat
any questions none any questions clarifications even have mics that will
come around I see Mike over here great one second Paul thank you I guess the
question for me is after we've kind of identified the improper ways of
evangelism what's your method what's your approach can you put that in a way
that is practical I'm a I'm a clergy so I'm registering with you on all this
stuff what I'm saying in terms of our congregations what's your approach
there's a story told about DL Moody somebody came up to him and said I don't
like the way you evangelize your evangelism method mr. moody and he said
well what's your method he says well I don't have one this is what I like my
method better than your not method yes yeah yes so incarnation evangelism is
the method I encourage and and Greg Finke to be honest that's what he's
gonna be talking about so I'm kind of setting him up he can pay me some money
extra money back there Greg I'm setting him that's what that's what it's about
being a good neighbor and just waiting for opportunities to share now I do and
there's a good book it's called God's pace and it's on conversational
evangelism I do encourage churches to teach their members conversational
evangelism which is just taking opportunities to share the gospel but
within context of a conversation so it is not a speech that I've
prescribed but it is a conversation using good questions not to direct and
manipulate the conversation but actually you know when you're a good neighbor to
somebody and you're and you're living out your Christian faith they they ask
questions and how do I take that opportunity to share the gospel so God
spaced by Pollack beginning of his first name but that's a very good resource to
teach this dr. Casper Todd thank you very much for your presentation
as I look back in my in my life the the model of bringing someone to a decision
dialogue evangelism or a Kennedy what that what that did for me was at that
time in my life really gave me what is the gospel yes and I think maybe there's
a there's a question before the question do our people know the gospel I mean
they they trust in Christ I'm not saying that they don't get that but but there
is a transaction that takes place when when someone becomes a child of God has
worked about this holy spirit but but what is that transaction it's relational
it's it's judgment set free it's all those things how do we speak to that and
how do we help our people say okay this is how God wants to set people free
how do I communicate that in my relationships with them yeah very good
good coming yes there's one way in back one more question that we'll have a
break I just puts a little pressure on you
Randy okay well I on the concept of the elect I was unsure what that meant
because I was taught we don't believe in once saved always saved
all right so you could lose your salvation but someone told me about
election is you are a believer you've been a believer
truly believe and accept Christ as your Savior and now you are Alzheimer or old
and dementia yeah or for whatever reason you're you
you aren't in the right frame of mind and you can say or your family can be
comforted in knowing that you are part of the elect because you were a believer
and we get caught up with with election but being a member of the elect yep
very good appreciate it thank you okay Thank You Todd thank you very much
appreciate thank you
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