Vince Deagler

hi again.  in a related post i suggested the body of christ can and should grow in 2 distinct ways.  the body should grow to full spiritual maturity so that it can realistically function as the body of christ.  but out of that reality should come the 2nd type of growth, reaching other people for christ.  If you remember christ’s teaching in matt 28:18-20 he tells us to make disciples of all nations.  a disciple is a follower of/practitioner of christ’s teaching.  the language of this text suggests this to be a normal activity for the body of christ (as you are going…), as it was with jesus himself.  in fact jesus even prayed in john 17 for those who would believe in the future.  it is impossible to conclude a non-growing church (a church failing to reach others for christ) would ever be the norm.  no, in scripture the expectation, the model is numerical growth.  now i’m not gonna delve into all the variables that effect growth in an individual church.  people move, people die, people pursue ministry opportunities elsewhere.  any given church will have to reach new people just to break even numerically.  i understand that, but that is not what i want to focus on.  i want to focus on the simple fact that a healthy body will grow, and reaching new people for christ is one of the indicators.

since that is true, and building on what we presented in earlier posts, i would like to present a somewhat simple plan that when followed will result in reaching new people for christ.

1.  how about we all live authentic christian lives.  think about all the “knocks” you hear on christianity.  how many of them are valid, in that they truly represent christ and christianity?  isn’t it true that most of the negativity is foreign to authentic christianity?  in other words, the criticism is not really against christianity, it’s against a mutated/distorted version of christianity.  the best way to change that misperception is having the body of christ live authentic christian lives.

2.  i believe christ is the head of the church, that without him we can do nothing, and that we can plant and water but only he can give the increase.  because i believe this, i believe prayer is very important to the process of reaching new people for christ.  i often refer to it as praying evangelistically.  coming to christ is a process and people are at different places in their spiritual journeys.  as such i pray for myself that i will be discerning to seize the opportunities god gives me and wisdom to articulate his loving offer with clarity.  i pray for those who surround me, that god would be working in their lives to prepare them to receive the good news because in the parable of the sower it was that prepared soil that was productive.  we all are surrounded by people, many of them need christ, which ones are you praying for?

3.  to expand on #”s 1 and 2, may i suggest we not only live authentically and pray evangelistically, let’s also be on the look out to develop what i call evangelistic relationships.  please do not misunderstand this to be anything but genuine.  we all have people in our lives who need christ.  this need may be the very reason god has brought you together.  so why not build a relation with them where they can see you model christ likeness over time, in real life settings, and when the time is right you can share what christ has done for you and would like to do for them.  it can be as natural as telling a friend about the great meal you had at a local eatery.

4.  the 4th step in this process recognizes the importance of community.  as a pastor i want our church to be a resource and an asset in your efforts to reach your friends for christ.  we are presently doing a series on the family in our church.  whether you are a committed believer or not, family is probably important to you.  we made little inviting cards for our members to use to invite their friends with the idea that should they come, we can further their spiritual journey.  in fact, if they did come, you could enter a spiritual conversation with them by simply asking “what did you think?”.  not every gathering will be equally beneficial for everyone, so a bit of discernment is warranted.  but learning to invite to appropriate gatherings can be effective in reaching others for christ.

5.  the last step in this process is learning how to verbalize “the gospel”.  i don’t believe there is any one right way to do this.  i have been exposed to a number of different training methods (living proof, contagious christianity, evangelism explosion), they are all good.  find an approach that works for you, and use it.  the more the individuals who make up the body are able to effectively share their faith, the more likely it is that the body will be growing.

the whole idea of evangelism can be pretty scary.  too often we think god expects us to be billy grahm like.  no, he wants you to be you and me to be me.  but as we grow in our faith he wants us to become less like ourselves and more like him.  and guess what, he shared his faith.  let’s follow in his steps.  thanks for reading.  blessings, vince.