Welcome back to Ignite!
You know, I often call faith sharing a team spot – AND it is. It’s exactly that! It’s extremely rare when someone genuinely accepts Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior – with one conversation. And even then, there had to be Christians before you – Team Members – who prepared that person – for you to take them across the finish line.
It’s interesting, but when the Holy Spirit has people prepared to accept the Lord before you meet them – it almost doesn’t matter what you say. They’re going to accept the Lord no matter what. So whenever you’re that last person to speak to a person before they make their decision, know that you didn’t do that alone. There may have been 20 people before you – sharing their faith with that person – that prepared them for that moment. It’s a Team Sport!
In spite of whatever you’ve been taught about Evangelism, there’s not a single scripture that remotely suggests that you should always lead people to Salvation in one conversation. And yet, in the early days of my faith-sharing experiences, I felt like a failure when I DIDN’T lead someone to the Lord in one setting.
Jesus actually talked about this in John 4:37 saying I sent you to harvest where you did not plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to GATHER the harvest – what JOY awaits both the planter and the harvester alike. This destroys the thought that faith sharing is an individual sport. It’s a Team Sport!
AND did you get that: What JOY awaits both the planter AND the harvester alike. This is a message for another day, but God always fills your life with JOY when you lead people to Jesus. If you want more joy in your life, this is how you do it!
In John 15:11 Jesus actually says when you bear fruit – when you lead people to Jesus – My Joy will remain with you (no matter what’s happening around you or to you) and (get this) Your Joy Will Be Full. Wow! That’s one of the great promises of the Bible – from Jesus Himself. That’s in John 15:11.
But back to faith sharing being a Team Sport. In Matthew 13 and Mark 4, the parable about the sower – sowing seeds on a footpath, on rocky soil, amongst thorns, on hard ground, and on fertile soil – shouts the message that we’re sharing our faith with all types of people who need all different types of approaches to connect with their specific needs.
And for every one of them, except for those described as fertile soil – who actually receive the Lord with your one conversation – every one of the people you share your faith with – will require more Christians – more “Team Members” if you will – moving them closer to Jesus – for them to flourish in their faith.
A friend of mine saw on Facebook that I was in Naples, Florida for a few days, called me, and asked me if I would meet with a friend of his – who he’d just given a Bible to AND had just moved to Naples. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity, we had a great two-hour lunch talking about the Lord, and now I’ve introduced him to other Christians and he’s growing like a weed spiritually.
That’s the way it works. And even for those described as being fertile soil, when you hit paydirt – and you get to lead them across the finish line into Salvation, you know it took a lot of Christians before you – I mean Team Members – to make them fertile soil – for your words.
So – in your celebration, remember it wasn’t just you. But you got to be the last member of the team to lead them to Jesus! Praise God!
Janet/Brandon/Jordan Story.
This is exciting stuff!!! You know – I’m friends with so many wonderful people – who believe in God but don’t serve Him – who believe that their ‘fun life’ would be over if they became a Christian. It’s tragic! They have no idea what they’re missing . . . as the things that bring them, fulfillment are so trivial- compared to things Eternal.
I love every part of my life. I have many passions. I’m not just singular focused! But nothing – I mean NOTHING I do and enjoy in life compares to getting people across the line and into Heaven. I mean, I’ll be celebrating Jordan’s being in Heaven – a 1000 years from now. That beats the sox off of great experiences or great victories or great accomplishments – that are short-lived . . . and soon forgotten.
I know this is a different message . . . and you’ve never associated faith sharing with having fun before. But it is! It’s deadly serious, but what could be more fun than being part of the team that lead Jordan, a Jew, to Jesus – and then watching him lead other people to Jesus. I mean come on . . . and God’s having fun WITH us! Luke 15:10 tells us there’s rejoicing in the Presence of God over one sinner who repents. That’s an entirely different level of fun . . . ABOVE everything else I enjoy in life!
Unbelievers – and a lot of Christians – have no idea how much fun it is to be a Christian, and how wonderful it is to know that God’s having fun with us – when we’re giving Him Joy – by leading people to Him . . . and get this, Nehemiah 8:10 tells us The Joy of the Lord is OUR strength. Do you want to have fun? Do you want to be happy? Would you like to know you just made God happy? Then follow God’s Lead – Join The Team – and start leading people to Jesus! It changes everything!
For those of us who are Christians, the only thing that will matter 100 years from now is how many people are in Heaven because of our influence . . . because of your influence. Think about that . . . and then tell me what your most important task is from now until your last breath.
God made sharing your faith His First Priority! He didn’t say go into the world and read your Bible, or Pray, or Be a Good Person, or even Feed the Poor. There’s a ton of scripture demanding that we do all of those things. But – at the top of the heap, God told us to go into the world and proclaim the Gospel . . . to move everyone, every day closer to Jesus. Because when we do that, WE’LL BE on our knees and WE’LL BE in the Word and doing good things and feeding the poor and everything else every Christian is called to do!
I tend to see things in pictures – often – weird pictures. And I see faith-sharing like a pinball machine, with the flippers on the side that propel the ball forward toward the goal OR backward depending on your level of focus and your skill level.
And, when you view unbelievers as that ball, your level of focus on the lost around you AND your skill level in leading everyone, every day closer to Jesus – will determine if you move them closer or further away from God. Play it wrong, do something not honoring God with someone watching you – and you’ll move them further away from God. And that’s so easy to do!
Jesus describes you, in Matthew 5:14 as a City Set on a Hill that cannot be hidden. Let your light shine before others – so they will see your good works and give Glory to God. And – the opposite is also true – so that they will NOT see bad works and be driven – away from God. It’s a full-time joy!
Here’s an example! A common example – back when we had open churches! Christians love to go out to eat together after church. So they take over a large table talking about God, make too much noise, demand too much service, stay too long, and then stiff the waiter. Christians are notorious cheap tippers!
Do you think they moved that server closer or further away from God? Without even knowing it! There’s a thousand ways for us to do that – carelessly – without knowing it! That’s why our focus, your focus, should be on moving everyone – including every server in every restaurant – moving everyone, every day closer to Jesus!
You – see you’re continually being watched by those around you. In fact, everything you do and say is moving everyone watching you – closer or further away from God . . . whether you know it or not!
I had a guy come up to me at a huge Car Guy event, several years ago, to tell me that I was partly responsible for his becoming a Christian. I never saw this guy before! He explained that he heard I was a Christian and started watching me at Car Guy events, where we were both in attendance, over a period of several years. And the consistency of my walk and how I treated people played a key role in his finally coming to the Lord – without my ever talking to him. And then he added, now I’m telling people about Jesus. We got a new Team Member!!!
You see, whether you like it or not, you’re in full-time ministry. God’s assigned you your position on the team, and you need to play your position, every moment like it’s the bottom of the ninth in the last game of the world series. Be on your toes, as I Peter 3 says, always be ready to give a clear presentation of the hope that’s within you – looking for that chance to drive to the basket or shoot the shot that wins the game. But knowing – people’s Eternity hangs in the balance!
Think about it! It’s such a relief to know that you’re part of a team – and you don’t have to do it all by yourself. Most people, like 80% of our population, have a negative view of Christians. So it’s interruptive to most people when they find themselves being loved on by a Christian. Believe it or not, Just THAT moves most people closer to Jesus. Can you imagine what would happen if we all did that?
I’m not talking about doing good things. Being good makes people like you – and even respect you – but being good doesn’t get you or anyone else into Heaven. It’s not the cup of water that leads people to Jesus. It’s the cup of water in Jesus’ name, that brings glory to God.
When you love on people, make sure they know your love is coming from God – so that God gets the Glory – if only by saying, and looking into their eyes and meaning it when you say goodbye – God Bless You!
This is where the Team concept really pays off! You don’t have to do it by yourself in one sitting. It’s God’s timing! Not Yours! Take each opportunity to move everyone as far as you can go – and then let them go.
You can do that – even with momentary encounters like a cashier in a store or an operator on the phone. Just be happy, love on them, compliment them, wish them a good day, and THEN say “And God Bless You”.
If we all just did that, with everyone we meet, we’d ignite America with Revival in 30 Days. Even the hardest of hearts will change if they’re continually confronted with loving Christians. That’s our BIGGEST opportunity! And you can’t do it alone. It’s a Team Sport!
See you next time!
