YBWNUI #4 USE IT TO SHARE THE GOOD NEWS Psalm 96 96:1 Oh sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth! 2 Sing to the LORD, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! 4 For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods. 5 For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the LORD made the heavens. 6 Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and beauty are in his sanctuary. 7 Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength! 8 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts! 9 Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness; tremble before him, all the earth! 10 Say among the nations, The LORD reigns! Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity. 11 Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; 12 let the field exult, and everything in it! Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy 13 before the LORD, for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness, and the peoples in his faithfulness. Pastor David Staff How often do you share the gospel God s good news of grace with someone who is far from God? The Psalm that we just read together suggests we declare or tell of His salvation from day to day. How s that for a challenge? If you re like most people in this worship center this morning, it is likely you haven t shared the gospel clearly with someone for many days perhaps for a long time. Here s what the research tells us. A study conducted by LifeWay Research found 80 percent of those who attend church one or more times a month, believe they have a personal responsibility to share their faith, but 61 1 P a g e Y B - W N U I # 4
percent have not told another person about how to become a Christian in the previous six months. [interestingly] Three-quarters of churchgoers say they feel comfortable in their ability to effectively communicate the gospel, [However] Overall, LifeWay Research found eight biblical attributes consistently evident in the lives of maturing believers. Of those eight, "Sharing Christ" has the lowest average score among Protestant church attendees. The survey also asked how many times they have personally, "invited an unchurched person to attend a church service or some other program at your church?" Nearly half (48 percent) of church attendees responded, "zero." i You might also find it interesting to listen to the Barna researchers. They discovered that The older you become and the more money you make, the less likely you are to share the gospel with someone who does not share your faith. The reasons for this are unclear. We might suppose that the older you are as a Christian, the more mature in Christ you are, the greater would be the eagerness to witness but that doesn t appear to be the case. Those who make $39K per year are more likely to share the gospel than those who make more. More positively, While the evangelistic practices of all other generations have either declined or remained static in the past few years, Millennials are the only generation among whom evangelism is significantly on the rise. Their faith-sharing practices have escalated from 56% in 2010 to 65% in 2013. Not only that, but born again Millennials ii share their faith more than any other generation today. Nearly two-thirds (65%) have presented the Gospel to another within the past year, in contrast to the national average of about half (52%) of born again Christians. iii If encountering this information feels to you like when you go to the doctor and she/he starts in on a small speech that makes you squirm a bit, that is not really my core intention. Don t get me wrong God can certainly use some good ole raw data to light a fire under us. But guilt never motivates for very long. What we need to feel is that being able to take a Bible and show someone how to join God s family and live forever with Him is one of the coolest and most exciting experiences to have. It s the chance to have the Holy Spirit prompt us, guide us, and open a heart through us if we will only give Him a chance. So what about being able to USE your bible to share the good news [Gospel]? We ve said that this book is a library, a library with a point: It s God revealing to us that God, who created all things, and who permitted freely chosen rebellion is reclaiming thru Christ His rule and redeeming thru Christ believing people So, how do you use this library to share the good news of God s grace? Here s today s teaching truth: 2 P a g e Y B - W N U I # 4
Let s unpack this truth idea. First, While every part of God s library of books points to the Person of God s Good News (of grace), disciples prepare to explain and offer GOD S GRACE clearly, wisely, and eagerly. Disciples prepare to Share the WHAT: Use Your Bible to Clearly Explain the Gospel Imagine for a moment that the person you ve been praying for and been a friend to for some time finally over lunch asks you something like [Can I ask you] why is this spiritual stuff so important to you? How would you begin to answer that question? Let s also imagine your reply is something like this: It s so important to me since I began a faith-relationship with the world s most important Person, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ showed me how much God loves me, and He s making me into a whole new person. Finally, let s imagine thirdly your friend says, What do you mean? Your friend opens the door, and you have a Bible on your phone, or perhaps in your bag/briefcase. Where would you go to show your friend that God s good news? 1 st you need to know Scriptures that speak the basics clearly Basic #1 Basic #2 Basic #3 Basic #4 Basic #5 RELATIONSHIP: God created us for relationship with Him (Psalm 139:1-6) SIN: We all in our own sinful way have wandered away from God (Is. 53:6) LOVE: In love, God searches for us and provides a way back to Him (Genesis 3:8, Luke 19:10) SACRIFICE: God s Son Jesus took our place to restore our relationship with God (1 Peter 3:18) FAITH: Believing in Christ brings new life in a relationship with God (John 3:16, 10:10b, Eph 2:8-9) Of course, there are a hundred ways to share these basics. And there are hundreds of verses. The point is that you and I take the time to personally, clearly UNDERSTAND the basics, and to PRACTICE sharing them simply and clearly as possible. On Friday, I met a new acquaintance at the public library who had recently moved here from the northwest. We exchanged business cards, and on the back of his was this: 3 P a g e Y B - W N U I # 4
He purposely had a tool right at hand to use or for God s Spirit to use when someone looked at his card later on. 2 nd - And one of the most effective things to do is to have a Bible, to open it, and let your friend read the verse and discover what it says for himself/herself. I often say, Read this out loud and then ask, What do you hear that verse saying? Something special something that the Holy Spirit does in those moments happens. Disciples Share with WISDOM: the Bible urges a wise sharing of the gospel. Colossians 4:2-6 4:2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. 3 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison 4 that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. 5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Look more carefully at what we just read. Paul said, Let s PRAY continually, steadfastly for several things. First (vs.3), to know when God is opening a door for the word, so that declaring the mystery of Christ is done when God provides the opportunity. Second (vs.4), for God to help make it clear, how I ought to speak when sharing the gospel. Third, (vs.5), let s pray about walking in wisdom toward outsiders (i.e., those not yet in God s family) and making the best use of the time God gives us. Fourth, (vs. 6) pray about the way you might talk. Pray that your speech be gracious, conversations that are tasty and good. Pray that you might know how you ought to answer each person. Is that the way you/i pray? Lord, today is Monday! I ve got about 16-17 hours to be awake today. I ve got these appointments, these things to do; I ll be seeing these people. Some of them are 4 P a g e Y B - W N U I # 4
not in your family yet. Is there a door you ll open? Will you guide my tongue? Will you give me insight how to hang with them? Will they find your grace in my interaction with them? Sharing with wisdom. Bill Hybels of Willow Creek Church wisely suggests that sharing with wisdom means 3-D living. iv DEVELOP friendships See people around you through the lens of radical inclusiveness. You see someone through a What would --- be like if God ruled and reigned in his life? He/she would be incredible! lens. How did Jesus do this? Matthew 9:9-13 why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners? DISCOVER stories intentionally discover their stories. Learn what life has been like for them. What they dream about. What is going well, and what in their estimation needs work (p.84). In doing this, you earn the right to have conversation about significant things. Do you think this is what Paul meant when he wrote 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 all things to all kinds of people? DISCERN next steps - in the context of a friendship, having listened well, we then are in a position to serve this new friend with a suggested resource. (Hybels) Resource providers are servant-minded people who make it a habit of uncovering the needs around them and then meeting them as naturally and effectively as possible (p.94). You serve as a pipeline for a resource they can interact with, perhaps discover some help from the Lord a small booklet, a CD, perhaps a link to a Right Now Media video. You look for a chance to offer something, and then discuss it over your next lunch hour together. 2 Corinthians 5:20 ambassadors God making an appeal through us Pastor Brent puts it simply take the time for prayer, care and share and in that order. Every part of God s BOOK points to the Person of God s Good News (Christ), disciples prepare to explain and offer GOD S GRACE clearly, wisely, and eagerly. Someone put it like this: Disciples Share from PASSION: the Bible motivates prayerful sharing the gospel As the cool haze dissipated during the early morning hours of May 7, 1954, construction began for a five mile bridge that would link the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan. It was quite an achievement since the waters below, called the Mackinac Straits, were previously only served by ferries, often causing travel delays of up to 36 hours. Requiring more than a million steel bolts, 466,300 cubic yards of concrete, 42,000 miles of cable wire, 11,350 workers and nearly a billion dollars, the engineering feat was final opened to the public exactly 3 ½ years of grueling labor later. That s a lot of trouble to go for a single bridge. But throughout history, people have gone to such lengths in undertaking this kind of monumental feat. Any guesses why? The desire to span a chasm is just that great. People on one cliff want to visit residents on another cliff. Merchants want to reach customers on the other side. Families and friends want access to 5 P a g e Y B - W N U I # 4
each other. Since the beginning of time, sensing vast differences separating them, people have been consumed by the desire to somehow get over the chasm separating them from God. But how? v How do you build a bridge to God? The answer is God built a bridge to us. At enormous cost and at great personal sacrifice. Why? Because He has a passion for restored relationship with us. That s why Jesus hung out with tax gatherers and sinners. That s why he was always saying to His disciples, Let s get to the next town, village (cf. Mark 2:38). That s why he said, Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men (Mark 1:17) I have come to seek and to save that which is lost (Luke19:10) and I didn t come to be served, but to give up my life as a ransom for many (Matt 20:28). CONCLUSION You and I can do this. We re Jesus disciples, and we are following Him. Disciples prepare to explain and offer GOD S GRACE clearly: they ve taken the time to know the basics and where they are found wisely: they pray about God opening doors as they develop friendships, discover stories, and discern next steps eagerly: they are eager to share that God has built a bridge to us. It s Jesus and we can come to God by faith through him. What about you today? Are you ready to step into the relationship with God He has created you for? It starts with a simple prayer of faith like this Father God Thank you for building a bridge to me. Thank you for sending your Son into our world. Right now, I choose to believe that He died for My wandering off, my sin, and rose alive from the grave in victory. Right now, I receive your forgiveness. Right now, I trust in Christ, in Him alone, for My salvation, my righteousness, my becoming a child in Your family. This is a new start for me. I m eager to grow as your child and a disciple of your Son. Amen. Copyright 2018 David A. Staff All rights reserved 6 P a g e Y B - W N U I # 4
i http://www.lifeway.com/article/research-survey-sharing-christ-2012 ii There are no precise dates for when this cohort starts or ends; demographers and researchers typically use the early 1980s as starting birth years and the mid-1990s to early 2000s as ending birth years. iii https://www.barna.com/research/is-evangelism-going-out-of-style/ Since tracking began in 1996, the data show born again Busters, who are currently in their thirties and forties (63%), were evangelizing at an all-time high in 1998. However, evangelism practice among Busters is down to 48% today. Among the Boomer generation (born between 1946 and 1964), nearly two-thirds of born again Boomers (65%) shared their faith in 2007, but today, this has dropped to less than half (49%). The outreach efforts of born again Elders (ages 68 and older), on the other hand, have remained fairly steady over the past several decades. Today, Elders (53%) share their faith just about as much as the average born again Christian (52%). iv Bill Hybels, Just Walk Across the Room: Simple Steps Pointing People to Faith (Zondervan, 2006), pp.59-112. v Hybels, 133. 7 P a g e Y B - W N U I # 4