October 11, 2013

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

DEVELOP REDEMPTIVE FRIENDSHIPS

First and foremost, develop your personal faith friendship with Jesus. It all flows from that!

Would you say your life has been profoundly and positively impacted by a friend or friends?

If you are sold on the power of friendship, are you developing redemptive friendships?

What’s a redemptive friendship?

It is a friendship that you intentionally develop with the goal of leading this friend to Christ.

The challenge is the longer you have been a Christian the fewer non-Christian friends you will tend to have. It will take an intentional effort to develop new redemptive relationships.

FOUR STEPS TO DEVELOPING REDEMPTIVE FRIENDSHIPS:

STEP ONE: Become Aware

-       Who are the non-believers God has placed under my influence?

-       Which one am I most connected to?

-       Which one of them is most spiritually receptive right now?

STEP TWO:  Commit to Prayer

Pray daily for their salvation.

STEP THREE:  Show You Care

Caring equals:

-          Time/availability

-          Compassion/empathy

-          Giving assistance/meeting needs

-          Resources

-          Be their “go to” person

STEP FOUR:  Be Ready to Care

Understand how God wired you:

  John the Baptist = Aggressive Evangelist

  Peter = Confrontational

  Andrew = Invitational

  Jesus = Relational

  Martha = Serving (Mother Teresa)

Know a plan:

-          Roman Road

-          Bridge to Life

-          Four Laws

-          ABCD Plan

Challenge:  Do I understand and embrace how God has wired me so I can plan my evangelism strategy accordingly?

October 10, 2013

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Acts 1:8

The Christian life is what happens between "forgiven" and "forever".

No one knows how long a period that will span, but the New Testament is quite clear on what should happen during that span of time. 

Those of us who are Christ-followers somewhere on the road between "forgiven" and "forever" are called (and commanded) to be witnesses to the grace and goodness of God.

Are you a witness?

In fact, everyone is a witness because non-believers are watching your life and are drawing conclusions about the validity of your faith.

So, what sort of witness are you? What is your life saying about the grace and goodness of God?

If you want to become an effective witness and add an element of excitement to your life between "forgiven" and "forever" I recommend you consider 3-D living. I know 3-D living will make you a better witness and I believe it will add a new dimension to your life!

What is 3-D living?

It is a plan for witnessing to your friends who haven't found a personal faith in Jesus Christ.

The first D stands for Develop redemptive friendships.

The second D stands for Discover stories.

And the final D stands for Discern the next steps.

Over the next several posts I will be explaining this strategy in detail. But for now I want to make the point that you ARE A WITNESS. You are called to be an effective witness. You won't be an effective witness unless you have a plan that you intentionally execute on a daily basis.

Do you have a plan to be a powerful witness?

What sort of a witness will you be today?

October 9, 2013

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

As a Christian it is natural to be excited about how God has forgiven you and set you free from your past. I think most Christians get excited about that.

And Christians get happy about the future God has provided for them through the grace of Jesus Christ. 

So believers have forgiveness and freedom for their past and they have forever in their future.

It seems to me that where Christians struggle the most is in the present. What is a Christian supposed to do between his spiritual "birth" and his physical death? That can be a period of fifty or sixty years. How should those years be spent?

Jesus had a definite idea about what His followers should be doing. They are to be witnesses.

What is a witness? What does a witness do?

First, a witness tells what he knows.

So, what do you think a Christian should know?  

A Christian should know God and know Him well!

A Christian should know God's Word and know it well.

If you were called to witness what you know about your faith, what would you say?

Second, a witness tells what he has seen.

A Christian should be able to tell about the changes he has seen God make in his life.

A Christian should also be about how he has seen God work in his family and in his church.

If you were called as a witness what have you seen that you could tell others about?

Third, a witness is loyal to what he knows and what he has seen.

In Greek, the word for witnesses is "martures,' from which we get the English word martyr. It means being loyal to Jesus no matter the cost and speaking up for him even when others oppose you. 

Are you able to do that? 

What is a Christian supposed to do between "forgiven" and "forever"?

You are to be a witness - His witness.

October 8, 2013

"No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future,nor any powers,  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."  Romans 8:37-39

Love is the heart of the Great Commandment and it is also the heart of the Great Commission! 

Love leads to life-change! And not just superficial change but a fundamental spiritual transformation. Love has that power because love is committed, and love is courageous, and love is confrontational and it is consistent. 

The Apostle Paul understood compelling love - "But I want to share one more powerful aspect of love - love is compelling! If we are “out of our mind,” as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again." II Corinthians 5:13-15

I'm sure you are familiar with the saying, "You do for love what you wouldn't do for money." That is another way of expressing the compelling power of love.

It is the love of God that compelled Him to speak creation into existence to sustain His prized creation, Adam.

It is the love of God that compelled Him to extend mercy and grace toward Adam and Eve after they abused His love by their self-centered love.

It is the love of God that compelled Him to send His only begotten Son, Jesus, to suffer and die for the sins of the world.

It was the love of Jesus that compelled Him to empty Himself, leave Heaven and come to earth as a baby in a feed trough.

And, it was the love of Jesus that compelled Him to surrender to an agonizing death on the cross to atone for the sins of the world.

When you have received the love of God through Christ by faith, you will be compelled to share His love with those you love. If you are not compelled by His love you should make sure you really have it. 

His love is compelling!

October 7, 2013

"One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. ’The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’There is no commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:28-31

What we know as the Great Commandment came in response to a question. Jesus is good with answers. No one has been better! In fact, HE IS THE ANSWER!

In answering the question about the Great Commandment He also provides a valuable insight to the Great Commission. 

Love is the deal! Love is the motive, the message and the means for winning converts and making disciples.

Love means commitment, love means courage, love means confronting, but love also means consistency.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." I Cor. 13:4-8

In an unstable and unpredictable world, people want to know what they can count on and WHO they can count on. The consistency of God's love manifest in the life of a believer is a powerful influence for evangelism.

Stability was one of the things I craved as a youngster when I discovered the safety of a small, loving Wesleyan Church. The consistent love and acceptance I experienced within that fellowship moved me from a believer to a disciple.

Love is constant because it acts it doesn't react.

Love is constant because it is rooted in righteousness.

Love is constant because it is grounded in a relationship with Jesus, the Rock of Ages.

As you try to reach your spiritually uncommitted friends, the consistency of your love will be a winning factor.

Will you make sure you are "rooted and grounded" in the love of God today?

October 6, 2013

"Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." Romans 12:11 (TNIV)

“Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame." Romans 12:11 (The Message)

What are you passionate about?

How do you fuel that passion?

What robs you of your passion?

Those are some of the issues addressed in this middle section of Romans 12.

How do you define passion? Is it an emotional state? Is it an attitude? Is it a spiritual condition?

Here, Paul defines it as a level of commitment. He equates it with "zeal".

Commitment implies a narrowed focus. When you are committed to numerous things you are, in fact, not committed. You may have multiple interests but minimal commitment. Most people nowadays can relate to the concept of being "over committed".

What happens to over committed people? Don't they usually become over stressed? Once you are over stressed what happens to your passion? What happens to your energy level? What happens to your level of performance?

I established at the beginning of this series that God calls you to the purpose of overcoming evil with His goodness. But what are the chances of overcoming evil if you are overwhelmed by too many commitments?

"But, Brad" you argue, "The things I am committed to are all good things! Isn't that how you overcome evil?"

While I will give you that if you are going to be overwhelmed it is better to be overwhelmed with good things than by bad things, but the net result is pretty much the same. In my experience, the

most common hindrance to believers overcoming evil WITH good is being overcome BY good. Doing the good things is usually what prevents you from doing the best things.

"So," you ask, "How do I narrow my focus? How do I prioritize my commitments?"

Discover that and you will take a giant step toward living with passion. I will give you a hint, Jesus said, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

October 5, 2013

"But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ"  Ephesians 4:15

We have asserted that love is the motivation, the mission and the means behind evangelism and discipleship.

The love that can sustain effective evangelism over a lifetime is a committed love, a courageous love, and in this lesson we will see that it is confronting love. 

Godly love is willing to confront an attitude or an action that is ungodly.

How can you say you love your brother if you notice inappropriate behavior and fail to confront it?

Love believes the best of brothers and sisters in faith. Love calls out the best in those others. That means encouraging the right and holy things in fellow believers but it also means confronting them kindly when they are careless toward sin.

Notice I said confront not criticize.

There is a big difference between the two.

When you confront your goal is to help your brother. You confront by beginning with a positive compliment, then confront the problem and end with a prayer and a promise to help be part of the solution.

Criticism is usually not meant to be helpful. Often a critical comment is made in a bad spirit to defame or discourage another. Most criticisms are given to point out a weakness or failure without a promise to help.
Who do you love enough to confront?

Who do you trust enough to allow them permission to confront you?