WHY IS IT THAT PEOPLE ARE MORE COMFORTABLE INVITING PEOPLE TO CHURCH OR JUST DOING A GOOD WORK THAN IN SHARING THEIR FAITH IN CHRIST WITH OTHERS?-Part 4

This is part 4 of a 4 part series based on a question which was asked dealing with my blog on “When Did We Start Confusing Community Service With Evangelism?”

2^nd Peter 1:10-11

¹⁰Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; ¹¹ for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”

Reason 4-They don’t share their faith because they have not really believed

I have always said if you are a Christian and you share Jesus with someone, when that person comes to Christ you will never be the same again.  I not only believe that statement, but I stand by it because I have lead people to Christ.

Several years ago in 1982, right before I graduated high school, I attended Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas.  One particular Sunday morning God got a hold of this small congregation and lit a fire within His people.  It was a move of God that I had never experienced before, and to this day have not seen anything like it.  Suddenly people were inviting folks to church and were going out and witnessing on the streets.  That night I was scheduled to preach since the pastor was home sick.  I invited a friend to come with me who I knew was lost.  My friend was a year younger than I was and got along with me very well.  After preaching I gave a public invitation where people were allowed to come to the front of the auditorium and state their need for Jesus as Savior.  Many people came forward to accept Christ including my friend.  My friend graduated in 1983 and became an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician).  He was buried in February, 2012 after dying from bone cancer.  You never know what may happen to someone later in life.

Christians cannot get around the idea that we are witnesses of light to a lost world in darkness.  Our Christianity invades our every perspective in every area.  When I came to Christ I went from being pro-abortion to being pro-life.  I went from saying let everyone live like they want, to everyone should be living for Jesus.

I believe there are two major indicators that can help people know whether they are Christians or not.  They are the most basic of indicators.  One is church attendance.  I plan on dealing with the link between church attendance and salvation in a later blog.  The second is the willingness to share the faith.  When you come to Christ your life still has moments and places of self-absorptions.   God has to constantly work on those areas, but over all you have a different prospective on life and a deeper concern for the eternal dilemma others are in.  You care about the eternal destiny of those you know and don’t know.  There should be an increased desire to reach people with the gospel. 

There are two ways in which people will decide to reach the lost; missions and witnessing.  Mary and I choose to support missions work because they can reach people groups that we could never reach.  Witnessing is the act of sharing our faith in what we say, how we treat others, what we do, and the willingness to point out when people are wrong while discussing the good news of Jesus Christ with them.

My concern rides that if people are allowing the world to dictate to them if they should be a witness; if their fears dominate their love for the lost; and they show consistent signs of laziness on their part, there is a very real possibility that they are lost.  In other words they do not know the Savior.  I cannot share with you what I do not have.  If you need ten dollars but I do not have it, I cannot give it to you.  The same is true of faith.  If you have no faith, you can’t share it.  If you don’t know Jesus as Savior, you cannot introduce Him to someone else.

There is a story which is told about W.A. Criswell the late pastor of First Baptist Church, Dallas.  The way the story was conveyed to me is there was a gentleman who got into a heated debate with Dr. Criswell.  In the midst of this fiery exchange the gentleman told Dr. Criswell that he is narrow-minded because he believed that only Baptist was going to Heaven.  In term Dr. Criswell quipped back and told him that he was more narrow-minded than that; he (Dr. Criswell) believed that only half of them were going.

The idea that the story conveys is that not everyone in a church pew or on a church membership role is a Christian.  They may be a Christian by name but not by ownership.  Another thought is that they make a profession but don’t have the possession.

Jesus in Matthew 7:21-23 warns, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. ²² Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ ²³ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”

The key is that many people will do things that are spectacular, fun, and impressive.  They will speak eloquently and discuss things that seem to make sense to the hearer.  They may even be the cream of the crop; the best of the best; the very people we look up too. They may be the most impressive preacher(s) we have ever heard.   But they won’t be believers.  They will have made a great show, however they will be people of “lawlessness.”  They will have broken the two hinge commandments.  Love God with every bit of their being[1] and love their neighbor as themselves.[2]  How is this “lawlessness” reflected?  They did not love God enough to repent of their own sin and turn to Jesus Christ as Savior by believing on Him alone.  And they did not love their neighbor enough to tell the good news of what happened to them.  They did not do the will of the Father.  What is the will of the Father?  For us to confess our sinfulness to Him, turn from our own ways; turn to Jesus Christ believing He is the only way to eternal salvation as a result of what He did on the cross and the fact that He is bodily rose from the dead.  Then we are to share this with everyone we come into contact with.  This is one of the reasons for John MacArthur writing his book The Gospel According To Jesus.  “In Matthew 7, the Lord gives us a glimpse of the coming judgment and the tragedy of those who will stand before the throne with high expectations but only a verbal profession or mere intellectual knowledge.”[3]  While I may not totally agree with everything he states or the way he states it the point of the book has to be taken.  Just because people say they are believers doesn’t mean they are. 

Out of all four thoughts on this subject this is easily the most dangerous one.  Not only is the eternity of those who are outside the church walls threatened, but those within the walls are as well.  I cannot emphasis enough that the reason so many people show so little concern for the eternity of others, is because they do not have eternal life.  It is eternal life that only comes from Jesus Christ and needs to be seen as well as heard by the rest of the world.

I will end with a final thought next week called, “What do we do now?”

His Servant Together With You,

Steven Swaim
President and Founder, Be Devoted Ministries

(All Bible quotations are from the NASB)

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[1] Deuteronomy 6:5

[2] Leviticus 19:18

[3] John F. MacArthur, Jr.  The Gospel According To Jesus.  Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI, 1988.  Pg. 188

MEMORIAL DAY MESSAGE

(Joshua 4:1-8)

¹Now when all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying, ² “ Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe, ³ and command them, saying, ‘Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet are standing firm, and carry them over with you and lay them down in the lodging place where you will lodge tonight.’” ⁴ So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe; ⁵ and Joshua said to them, “Cross again to the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel. ⁶ Let this be a sign among you, so that when your children ask later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ ⁷ then you shall say to them, ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’ So these stones shall become a memorial to the sons of Israel forever.”

⁸ Thus the sons of Israel did as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, just as the Lord spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel; and they carried them over with them to the lodging place and put them down there.

Memorial Days History

Memorial Day was originally known as Dedication Day.  It was established on May 5, 1868 three years after the Civil War.  It was renamed to Memorial Day by President Lyndon B. Johnson in May, 1968.  The date was changed from every May 30 to the last Monday every May in 1971.  It was meant to be a date of remembrance of those who had sacrificed their lives for the United States of America during times of armed conflict.  Over the years it has gone from being a time of community celebration to commercialization.[1]

The First Memorial Day

Some four thousand years ago God had brought the nation of Israel out of bondage by the leadership of Moses.[2]  After a long travel they arrived at Mount Sinai and received the Ten Commandments.[3]  God led them from Mount Sinai to the Promised Land where they sent twelve spies into the land.  When they returned ten of the twelve gave a very bad report, while two (Joshua and Caleb) gave a favorable report.  This resulted in the whole nation rebelling against God, using their “concern” for their children as an excuse.  The consequence was a curse from God who tells them that they would wonder through the wilderness for forty years (one year for each day the spies were in the land).  He also tells them that their children (the next generation) would be the ones who would take the land.  Only Joshua and Caleb are allowed to enter the land and lead the next generation.[4]  By the time we arrive at Joshua chapter 1 forty years have passed and the passage we read above is the beginning of the fulfillment of the promise God made to the first generation.  They have crossed the swollen Jordan River on dry land by command of God through Joshua.[5]  This is reminiscent of what happen to the first generation as they escaped Pharaoh’s army at the Red Sea.[6]  Now God is commanding them to take up stones out of the middle of the Jordan River and stack them up as a memorial of what has just happened.

There are several things that can be seen from this passage.  First, each tribe is represented in the memorial.  In verse 2 God commands them, “Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe.”   It was something that everyone was to be aware of and participate in.  Second, it was meant to provoke questions from the generations to follow.  Verse 6 states, “Let this be a sign among you, so that when your children ask later, saying, ‘what do these stones mean to you?’”  God knew that the memory of all that had happen would fade more and more with each passing generation.  The book of Judges is all about that very thing occurring.  Last, the questions were meant to provoke an answer, “then you shall say to them, ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’  So these stones shall become a memorial to the sons of Israel forever” (v. 7).  The message was to be specific and it was to be shared.

How Does It Relate?

Today our Memorial Day is meant to remind us that freedom comes with a price so also were the stones meant to remind the children of Israel of God’s goodness and grace.  Those of us who are Christians have a greater memorial than that celebrated in America or by Israel.  Today, every time we open our Bibles, every time we take the Lord’s Supper, every time we go to worship, every time we bow to pray, we are reminded of this greater memorial.  It is the memorial of the cross of Christ and His empty tomb.  Notice the three things in the passage apply to us.  First, all of us are expected to tell the good news.  Paul wrote in Romans 10:14, “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed?  How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard?  And how will they hear without a preacher?”  The idea is that someone has to tell, it might as well be you and me.  Second, our lives should provoke a question.  People should see and hear us knowing we are different.  That should cause them to ask questions about who we are and what we believe.  Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”  Our lives are to reflect Christ in a genuine fashion in what we do and how we live.  Last, there is a specific answer that is to be given regarding our faith.  Peter writes in 1^st Peter 3:15, “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.”

So this Memorial Day let’s remember our fallen heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice.  But at the same time let’s not forget the One who made the ultimate sacrifice for the sins for the world.  A sacrifice that allows all who repent (turning from their sins) and believe (placing total trust in the resurrected Savior) to have eternal life.  Then just as we are willing to share the stories of those lost in combat for liberties sake, let’s be willing to share that good news of salvation to all that are around us.  After all which is greater liberty or salvation?

Have a blessed Memorial Day,

Steven Swaim
President and Founder, Be Devoted Ministries

(All passages quoted are from the NASB)

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[1] http://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html

[2] Exodus 1-15

[3] Exodus 19-21

[4] Numbers 13-14

[5] Joshua 3

[6] Exodus 14

WHY IS IT THAT PEOPLE ARE MORE COMFORTABLE INVITING PEOPLE TO CHURCH OR JUST DOING A GOOD WORK THAN IN SHARING THEIR FAITH IN CHRIST WITH OTHERS?-Part 3

This is part 3 of a 4 part series based on a question which was asked dealing with my blog on “When Did We Start Confusing Community Service With Evangelism?”

Proverbs 19:15

Laziness casts into a deep sleep,
And an idle man will suffer hunger.

James 1:22

But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.

(All Bible quotations are from the New American Standard Bible [NASB])

The world is sleeping in the dark,
That the church can't fight, cause it's asleep in the light,
How can you be so dead, when you've been so well fed,
Jesus rose from the grave, and you, you can't even get out of bed,
Oh, Jesus rose from the dead, come on, get out of your bed.
ASLEEP IN THE LIGHT-Keith Green

Reason 3-People are lazy and accommodating

Chaucer is contributed with saying that idle hands are the devil’s workshop.  That idea has more truth than many of us would like to think.  Laziness breads boredom; boredom often breads mischievousness; mischievousness often breads irresponsibility; and irresponsibility will often leads to destructive behaviors that can be irreversible.  We live in a world where laziness can rule in so many areas that it may even be mistaken for productivity.  It has been unofficially noted that some of the laziest people in the world are also some of the most intelligent because they know how to get out of work.  The problem with laziness is that it always leads to an accommodating spirit.  Why?  Because, people who do not want to be distressed with responsibility.  So they will allow almost anything to happen in order to keep from upsetting the apple cart.

In his last book, The Great Evangelical Disaster, Francis Schaeffer pointed out that much of what was wrong with the churches as far back as 1984 was the issue of accommodation.

“Here is the great evangelical disaster-the failure of the evangelical world to stand for truth as truth.  There is only one word for this-namely accommodation:  the evangelical church has accommodated to the world spirit of the age.  First,…on Scripture, so that many who call themselves evangelicals hold a weakened view of the Bible and no longer affirm the truth of all the Bible teaches-truth not only in religious matters but in the areas of science and history and morality…And second, there has been accommodation on the issues, with no clear stand being taken even on matters of life and death.”[1]

It’s hard to read these words and believe that 28 years ago this man wrote like a prophet.  He so understood the history of his past and understood his present trends that he was able to predict the future movements of what was to happen.  In fact he identifies a group of dangerous movements that he classifies as the “new neo-orthodoxy.”  When he finishes describing them anyone can recognize that this is nothing more than the Emergent church movement in its inception. 

We have become a culture of accommodation and the churches are beginning to reflect this.  At present there is an often unheard war in play between the varying forms of worship services.  I call this “warship” because of the conflict it stirs when brought up.  It is the struggle between Traditional worship verses Contemporize worship verse Southern Gospel style verses Cowboy churches verses Liturgical services.  Truthfully I believe that we will be judged for falling into these camps and not being obedient to Christ about reach out to the lost.  In reality the type of worship that we provide has extremely little to do with if people join a church or if they come to Christ; rather it is the depth of involvement within the worship, style does not matter.[2] Evangelical events such as revivals, seminars, community outreach services, and etcetera have no real tangible statistics to say that they work any better.   What we are discovering and continue to rediscover is that personal, one on one, evangelism is still the most effective way to reach people with the gospel.  Occasionally we will notice a group of people (people groups) who have moved into an area that need to be reached with the gospel.  But because no one has any real connection to that group mission work may be required not just basic evangelism.

Churches become lazy and accommodating to the culture because individual Christians have yielded over the personal responsibility of reaching neighbors, friends, family, and acquaintances to a program that invites people to churches, events, or classes.  This is easier than inviting them to the Kingdom of God through faith in Jesus Christ.  What we forget is that leaving it up to the pastor during the preaching time can often be non-productive because most lost people may have no idea what the pastor is discussing.  We hope that people will see our good works and ask questions when Jesus warned in Matthew 7:6, “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.”  The point that Jesus is making is to be careful about the motivation of those good works.  To the eyes of the lost a church or church group should do good things, because they are Christians.  The reality is that we should do it because we love our neighbor and want them to come to Christ, therefore the work itself should always be accompanied with a gospel presentation.

The bottom line is that people don’t’ really want to share the good news because they are too lazy.  It is much easier to argue over what kind of worship service we should have or split a church over the issue, than it is to make a personal commitment to reach the lost one on one.  It is much easier to bring someone to a class or seminar than build a relationship where they will see our inconsistencies.  As a result they will be forced to see God’s grace at work and we will be called upon to explain that grace.  This calls for more than just reading through the Bible every year.  It will demand that we strengthen our knowledge in the deep things of Scripture through personal study.

One final point, I have noticed, through the years, that churches that really grow and have a real impact on people and on their communities are the ones where members are involved in personal evangelism.  They don’t wait for the church to come up with a plan or program.  They don’t wait for the next big event.  They are busy about the Father’s business, sharing the gospel and taking a stand for Christ.  Everything else is nothing more than window dressing. 

“¹⁴ How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed?  How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard?  And how will they hear without a preacher?  ¹⁵ How will they preach unless they are sent?  Just as it is written, ‘HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS TO GOOD THINGS!’…¹⁷ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”-Romans 10:14-15, 17 (NASB)

Are you sharing?

Let me know what you think.

Steven Swaim
President and Founder, Be Devoted Ministries

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[1] Francis A Schaeffer, The Great Evangelical Disaster, Crossway Books, Westchester, IL.  1984. Pg. 37

[2] http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/5-barna-update/85-focus-on-qworship-warsq-hides-the-real-issues-regarding-connection-to-god

The Forgotten Mother

(Genesis 29:31-32, 35)-NASB

“³¹ Now the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, and He opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. ³² Leah conceived and bore a son and named him Reuben, for she said, ‘Because the Lord has seen my affliction; surely now my husband will love me.’

³⁵ And she conceived again and bore a son and said, ‘This time I will praise the Lord.’ Therefore she named him Judah. Then she stopped bearing.”

The history of Mother’s Day can be traced back as far as the ancient Egyptian pagan rituals were mothers were considered blessed by the gods by having children.  In modern America, Mother’s Day can be traced back to Julia Ward Howe in 1872.  Julia Ward Howe is best known for writing the song The Battle Hymn of the Republic.  But the holiday that we celebrate was inspired by Anna Jarvis which was instituted in 1912.  Today it is a multi-billion dollar business which has everyone from the florist, to the chocolate candy manufacturers, to the restaurant industry cashing in heavy.[1]

Today I would like to speak about mothers.  Their importance in our lives is extreme.  If a child has a good mother, but a bad father, he or she is more likely to develop a strong moral compass.  William Ross Wallace in his titled mother’s day poem said it best, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle Is the Hand That Rules the World.  There is something extremely innate about the tie between mothers and their children.  I know that so much of what I have gone through in my life would have little meaning had it not been for my mom.  At the same time I look at the life of one of my nephews who is setting in prison for at least 15 to 30 years for aggravated assault, kidnapping, and robbery.  His life has been filled turmoil and the main source of irritation has been a single mother who never cared to have anything to do with him.  One moment of showing love to him from her would change everything.

The Bible is replete with mothers of all kinds.  Good ones, bad ones, funny ones, strange ones, smart ones, and of course foolish ones.   Most people when they focus on a mother for a study will look at Eve, or Hannah (Samuel’s mother) or Elizabeth (John the Baptist’s mom) or Mary, mother of Jesus or even Timothy’s mother and grandmother.  But there are other women in the Bible who give us a clear picture of the needs and hopes that moms have as well as the insight into what is or is not a good characterization of a mom.

One such mother in the Bible that I believe is often overlooked is Jacob’s wife, Leah.  The story starts in Genesis chapter 29:18 where Jacob confesses his love for Rachel, Leah’s younger sister.  Evidently, according to Laban, Leah and Rachel’s father, the older sister has to be given away in marriage first.[2]  None of this is explained to Jacob up front; so a deal is made between that Jacob would work for Rachel for seven years.  The way the deal goes is that at the end of the Jacob would get Rachel as his wife and he would be allowed to go back to his home in Canaan where his father Isaac and mother Rebecka lived.[3]  As a side note Laban is his uncle.[4]

The Bible says that seven years past like a brief moment in time.[5]  Finally the time has come, the wedding feast is thrown, and the bride enters the tent to spend the night with the groom.[6]  Sounds cool and appear to be the perfect love story, however the next morning Jacob wakes up to find that Laban had given him a special wedding gift.  The bride was not Rachel, but Leah![7]  The passage that follows breaks out into all kinds of outrage and anger.  Jacob is beside himself.  So a new deal is made and Jacob would receive Rachel upfront for an additional seven years of labor.[8]  This sets the scene for what is about to happen for the rest of Jacob’s life.

There are three things to note about Leah from the quoted scriptures above.  First, she was not the most loved person around.  Verse 31 states that she was “unloved.”  Not the greatest feeling.   The Bible gives us some small details about Leah.  Not only was she the first born,[9] but she is also someone with very week vision.[10]  Some theologians believe that the comment about her eyes may have a lot to do with her overall physical appearance.[11]  In other words she may have been a very weak looking person.  According to those who believe this is true, Rachel may have been a fairly big bone woman giving her the appearance of being stronger.[12]  This would make sense considering the fact that what was needed for that time period was be strength, not beauty.  If the appearance issue is true it would have even more to do with feeling unloved since most men may have gone after Rachel to court rather than Leah.  We have to take one more look at this issue of being “unloved.”  How do you think she felt when her dad slipped her into Jacob’s tent rather than letting Rachel marry him.  Talk about a shotgun wedding!  This takes the cake.

The second thing we see is that Leah knew she was not loved in verse 32.  This shows up at the birth of Reuben.  The meaning behind the name Reuben is given, “…‘Because the Lord has seen my affliction; surely now my husband will love me.’”  She could tell that Jacob didn’t love her.  She longed to have his affection.  Her father had betrayed her with the treachery on the wedding night.  Jacob had never showed interest in her before, what was to say he would now.  However, because a son was involved maybe things would be different; or at least that was her hope.  Feeling unloved did not keep her from loving, serving, or staying with Jacob.  Some may contribute this attitude with the day and age they were living, which may be true.  That being said, I believe that there was something deeper at work, something that kept things intact at the worst possible moments, which leads us to our third point.

Leah evidently had a relationship with God.  This can be seen from three different angles.  First, according verse 31 it states, “Now the Lord saw that Leah was unloved,…”  While we know that the Lord sees everything (the doctrine of omniscience)[13] I think that He shows careful attention to His child.[14]  This would be an example of it; the Lord saw her situation and responded in a way that would give her some assurance.  The second way we can see she had a relationship with God is found in how she names her children.  With Reuben she talks about the Lord seeing her circumstances and with Judah in verse 33 she names him out of praise to God.  I believe this shows an acute awareness of the presence and person of God.  She knows He is present with her during her time of difficulty.  Last, we see that she had a relationship with God based on what her sister, Rachel, did that she didn’t do.  In a later chapter God instructs Jacob to leave.[15]  As they prepare to leave Rachel sneaks back to her father’s house and steals some idols that they worshipped.[16]  Leah did not do this, but Rachel did.  On a circumstantial level alone there appears to be a much deeper relationship with Yahweh.

While overlooked, Leah plays a very important part in all of our lives.  Not only does she reflect the qualities of faithfulness, a relationship with God, and endurance, but she is a person of importance historically.  Through Leah comes Judah; from Judah comes Boaz; from Boaz comes King David; from King David comes King Solomon; from King Solomon comes a whole host of family which leads to Joseph and Mary.  And from Mary comes Jesus the Christ, Savior of the world.[17][18]

From a mothers hand and heartache comes the gospel message of salvation and hope.  Little did she know that it would come to this, but I am certain that she continues to praise the God who included her son in His lineage.  From Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made on the cross along with His great and glorious bodily resurrection we find salvation.  The ugly that we see come from Jacob, Leah, and Rachel’s lives are only representative of the ugly that God sees in our lives every day.  He is displeased with us and with our rebellion against Him, but He loves us.  Because of that love, He became a man, suffered on a cross because of our sin and rose from the dead three days later to give us hope and salvation if we just ask Him for it.

There are two points I wish to make regarding Leah’s life and Judah’s legacy leading to our Savior.  One, you as a mom may feel that your days are spent in loveless, worthless, daily, endless junk.  Remember that it is a relationship with God that sustains you.  Two, you don’t really know who you are raising.  If you read the rest of Genesis you will see that Judah was not the brightest nor was he the most morally spectacular son.  However, he was the most repentant and in the end the wisest.  While Joseph, his half younger brother, shines the most at the latter half of the book, if you read it carefully it is Judah who begins to display leadership toward doing the right thing.   So don’t despair, that child who you cry over today, may be the leader or raising the leader who God uses to share the gospel in the most dramatic way ever seen.

God’s Blessing On All The Moms!

Steven Swaim
President and Founder, Be Devoted Ministries

Please feel free to share any of my material with friends and family.  Invite them to visit this website.

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[1] http://www.dayformothers.com/mothers-day-history/

[2] Genesis 29:26

[3] Ibid, 29:18-20

[4] Ibid, 27:43

[5] Ibid, 29:20

[6] Ibid, 29:21-24

[7] Ibid, 29:25

[8] Ibid, 29:30

[9] Ibid, 29:16

[10] Ibid, 29:17

[11] John H. Walton, The NIV Application Commentary-Genesis.  Zondervan, Grand Rapid, MI, 2001.  Pg. 586

[12] Ibid

[13] Proverbs 15:11

[14] Romans 8:28

[15] Genesis 31:11-13

[16] Ibid, 31:19

[17] Matthew 1

[18] Luke 1:26-38

WHY IS IT THAT PEOPLE ARE MORE COMFORTABLE INVITING PEOPLE TO CHURCH OR JUST DOING A GOOD WORK THAN IN SHARING THEIR FAITH IN CHRIST WITH OTHERS?-Part 2

This is part 2 of a 4 part series based on a question which was asked dealing with my blog on “When Did We Start Confusing Community Service With Evangelism?”

Reason 2-People are genuinely afraid

2 Timothy 2:6-9 (NASB)

^“6 For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. ⁷ For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.

⁸ Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, ⁹ who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity,…”

Being an introvert is not always easy.  We have a tendency to shy away from criticism and challenges that seem insurmountable.  We also feel pushed around by the world of extroverts who want to rule and often ruin lives by doing things without giving any thought to what the consequence of said actions.  We can be pushed into action often when we are either insulted to the point that we realize that an intellectually inferior person is mocking us, or if the lives of those we love are threatened.  Introverts in reality can be more self-conscience and more selfless than extroverts because we give thought to what the actions can bring.  A few introverts like the spotlight and having public affairs, but most enjoy the idea of being left alone and intellectually resolving issues.  At the same time we are not perfect and find ourselves having to be pushed into action rather than acting before the necessity arises.  

What is true in the “normal” realm of life has a tendency to be true in the “spiritual” realm of life, even though that neither of those can be separated like our post-modern friends would prefer.  Since this is true in a “spiritual” since it is especially true in the arena of evangelism.  I know the fear of knocking on a door, or approaching someone on a sidewalk, or talking to a person on the street, or inviting myself into the home of someone who is a total stranger just to talk to them about becoming a member of the Kingdom of God.

This is not at all unusual, and according to the verses above this would appear to be what was going on with Timothy, Paul’s spiritual son.  There are three things that make this apparent.  First, he tells Timothy to renew the gift that God has given him, which we find out in chapter 4:2 is preaching the gospel (v. 6).  Paul also notes to Timothy that there are three things that come from God which should rule our lives over fear:  power, love and discipline (self-control) (v. 7).  The word used for power is the common Greek word δυνάμεως (dunameos) that we get the word which can reflect strength or ability[1].  Therefore God gave to Timothy, as He gives to us, the strength or ability to speak the gospel; the love for Him and for others to tell the good news of Jesus Christ; and the self- control and soundness of mind to know how to share the grace of God for salvation to others.  As a result there should be no shame in regards to who Jesus is, what He has done for us, or for those saints who are suffering for His cause (v. 8).  In fact we are called to “join in” the suffering which those who have been mistreated for the gospel’s sake.  In fact the Greek word used for “join in” is συγκακοπάθησον (sugkakopatheo) which helps give the idea of suffering hand in hand with the other person as family.[2] [3] All of this should be done with two understandings:  (1) It should be done in the power of God (v. 8); and (2) It should be done with the call of God as a constant reminder (v. 9).  As Christians then, and now, suffer at the hands of people who are in complete rebellion against God, it must be remembered why we are grieving.  If Christ and His suffering for our sins are forgotten, then faithfulness to the cause will diminish.

So, what are the fear factors that are involved in reason number two?  One is fear based on the pier pressure from society as a whole.  That was discussed in the last article.  The second reason might be because of personality.  Not everyone is willing to push themselves to go out and constantly be on the forefront of sharing their thoughts on every subject under the sun.  This is what I was discussing earlier.  The third reason might be because of a lack of knowledge.  There are two reasons for this:  (a) People don’t take time to read, memorize, or study their Bibles.  Therefore they do not know what it says and are not able to articulate its message.  There is an old saying, “Ignorance is no excuse.”  At www.bedevoteministries.com I have a small power point set up that gives the six essential to studying the Bible.  You are invited to go view it, learn from it and use it.  (b)  People are scared that they may not share the message correctly.  In my experiences I have learned that the greatest way of not sharing the message correctly, is not to share the message at all.  It is not only the sure fire way of making a mistake, but it is also cruelty at its highest. 

The final reason that people fear to share the gospel is out of pure laziness.  I’ll talk about this a little further, but in this situation fear becomes an excuse.  What people will say is that they are afraid of witnessing or sharing the gospel, when in fact they just simply do not want to.  They don’t care about the needs around them, there is no concerned for those who are going to spend eternity burning in Hell, they are unwilling to take time to read or study the Word of God afraid that they may become convicted of their inactivity.  The reality is that their fear is misplaced.  They fear the desire of God more than the people they are going to discuss the good news with. 

Fear is something that should be reserved toward God, not something that we hold within ourselves.  We should not fear what the world may say, or if we do or do not know enough.  Our fear should simply be toward God alone.  Our Lord Jesus said in Matthew 10:28, “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”  It is His Son who has sent us forward with the authority which is needed.  He has given us the needed resources (power), the deep concern for others (love), and the soundness of what to believe (discipline) in order to reach our world with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Let me know what you think.

Steven Swaim

President and Founder, Be Devoted Ministries

Please feel free in contacting me if you would like for me to speak to your church or group.

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[1] Stephen D. Renn.  Expository Dictionary Of Bible Words.  Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., Peabody, Massachusetts. 2005.  Pg. 4

[2] Ibid. Pg. 536

[3] Bruce M. Metzger.  Lexical Aids For Students Of New Testament Greek.  Theological Book Agency, Princeton, NJ.  1977. Pg. 40