Sermon 6-27-04 John 20
I was reading and this struck me [that’s good news] canned plan
Mary to disciples…she is excited
Your story
Wimberly book…remember your faith story
Do you remember when you became a Christian?
How far away is that story
Some distance comes naturally
But we must work on any relationship
When you are excited about something, you want to tell
Maybe there is someone God is calling you to invite
There are people out there wating for you
When was the last time that you invited someone to church
Difference between invinting them to church and telling them about jesus
Sunday school class, do you have a plan for growth?
Do we really want to invite others
The church may get too big…I may get uncomfortable
It wont be like I want it to be
People I don’t like may come here
Are we primarily focused on whatr we want and get out of church or is our focus at church to help others find faith in jesus
The newspaper ad: Jesus is hanging on the cross. Scribbled across the Crucifixion are these words: "Of course people with pierced body parts are welcome in our church."
For whence should the City of God originally begin or progressively develop or ultimately attain its end unless the life of the saints were a social one? --St. Augustine, The City of God, xix, 426.
Someone is on your mind??
Authentic efforts
There is a "Peanuts" comic strip in which Linus is listening carefully as his sister, Lucy, boasts about her religious faith and her potential as an evangelist. She says to Linus: "I could be a terrific evangelist. Do you know that kid who sits behind me in school? I convinced him that my religion is better than his religion." Linus asks: "How did you do that?"Lucy replies: "I hit him with my lunch box."
Jesus avoided conversations that tried to persuade by analyzing fine points of the law (cf. the scribes and Pharisees). Rather, he helped people picture the kingdom of God, and he invited them to see themselves in the picture.
People are best invited by the authentic pieces of who you are
Our challenge? To evangelize a world for Christ "when churches are dismissed as no more than sandals (gentle Jesus, meek and mild), candles (boring preachers lacking style), or scandals (glitzy con men running wild)" (13).-See Hughes' Talking to the World in the Days to Come (Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman Press, 1991).
Conclusion- reverse offering
The evangelistic harvest is always urgent. The destiny of men and of nations is always being decided. Every generation is crucial; every generation is strategic. But we are not responsible for the past generation, and we cannot bear full responsibility for the next one. However, we do have our generation! God will hold us responsible at the Judgment Seat of Christ for how well we fulfilled our responsibilities and took advantage of our opportunities. --Billy Graham
I was reading and this struck me [that’s good news] canned plan
Mary to disciples…she is excited
Your story
Wimberly book…remember your faith story
Do you remember when you became a Christian?
How far away is that story
Some distance comes naturally
But we must work on any relationship
When you are excited about something, you want to tell
Maybe there is someone God is calling you to invite
There are people out there wating for you
When was the last time that you invited someone to church
Difference between invinting them to church and telling them about jesus
Sunday school class, do you have a plan for growth?
Do we really want to invite others
The church may get too big…I may get uncomfortable
It wont be like I want it to be
People I don’t like may come here
Are we primarily focused on whatr we want and get out of church or is our focus at church to help others find faith in jesus
The newspaper ad: Jesus is hanging on the cross. Scribbled across the Crucifixion are these words: "Of course people with pierced body parts are welcome in our church."
For whence should the City of God originally begin or progressively develop or ultimately attain its end unless the life of the saints were a social one? --St. Augustine, The City of God, xix, 426.
Someone is on your mind??
Authentic efforts
There is a "Peanuts" comic strip in which Linus is listening carefully as his sister, Lucy, boasts about her religious faith and her potential as an evangelist. She says to Linus: "I could be a terrific evangelist. Do you know that kid who sits behind me in school? I convinced him that my religion is better than his religion." Linus asks: "How did you do that?"Lucy replies: "I hit him with my lunch box."
Jesus avoided conversations that tried to persuade by analyzing fine points of the law (cf. the scribes and Pharisees). Rather, he helped people picture the kingdom of God, and he invited them to see themselves in the picture.
People are best invited by the authentic pieces of who you are
Our challenge? To evangelize a world for Christ "when churches are dismissed as no more than sandals (gentle Jesus, meek and mild), candles (boring preachers lacking style), or scandals (glitzy con men running wild)" (13).-See Hughes' Talking to the World in the Days to Come (Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman Press, 1991).
Conclusion- reverse offering
The evangelistic harvest is always urgent. The destiny of men and of nations is always being decided. Every generation is crucial; every generation is strategic. But we are not responsible for the past generation, and we cannot bear full responsibility for the next one. However, we do have our generation! God will hold us responsible at the Judgment Seat of Christ for how well we fulfilled our responsibilities and took advantage of our opportunities. --Billy Graham
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