Evangelist-- Bringer of Good News?

What do you think of when you hear the word “Evangelist” or “Evangelism”? I don’t know about you, but I used to have a pretty skewed understanding of what those words meant. I’m not sure if my misunderstanding was just my limited life experience, but those words used to conjure up images of bible-thumping “fire-and-brimstone” preachers. Even my own attempts at “evangelism” as a teenager were actually more like an insurance sales pitch: We’re bad people. Jesus died so that God will let us into Heaven when we die. We just need to say the “magic words” and try to follow the rules and then we have a ticket to eternal bliss after we leave this sorry planet, instead of going to hell.

All of this is a far cry from the “messenger of Good News”, that an “Evangelist” is supposed to be. We need to decide what the “good news” actually is. Is the “good news” that life on this planet is depressing and meaningless, and that death is even more painful if we don’t get our ticket stamped? Or is the Good News that Heaven came to earth. That God became human. That God wants an actual relationship with each and every one of us?

Jesus is the good news. Jesus didn’t just come to stamp admission tickets into heaven. Jesus came to give us the opportunity to have a personal and intimate relationship with God himself. Jesus gives us the gift of forgiveness. The gift of redemption. He gives us the gift of friendship and love. He gives us the gifts of Heaven now. Being a Christian doesn’t mean enduring a meaningless life in hopes of getting into Heaven someday. Being a Christian means befriending Christ and pursuing a loving relationship with God so that he can establish the Kingdom of Heaven through us.

Evangelism isn’t some kind of religious sales pitch. Evangelists are children of God that are so in love with their Savior that they just can’t help but bubble over with excitement when they talk to others about this amazing relationship. This isn’t some cosmic numbers game with God and the Devil competing for souls! This is a loving God who refuses to force himself on anyone, but freely offers choice. This is a God who humbled himself and became human so that he could pursue us and relate to us.

And THIS is GOOD NEWS!  

How It All Began

" ¹ In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

Genesis 1:1 NLT

This is one of the most recognizable verses in the entire Bible. This is the verse that began it all. This is the verse that begins the story of time. Our story. The story of a loving God and his wayward children. The story of rebellion and anger that turned to forgiveness and peace. A story that has yet to come to its conclusion.

Since this story began, people have questioned the Author. We have all questioned this story's validity. We have questioned its wisdom. Even those who lived to see the events of the story take place first-hand had their doubts...but this is why our story is a faith story. It's not a textbook or a self-help book. It's not a fairytale. It's a love story with an open invitation. It's my love story. It's your love story. It's God's love story.

People will continue to doubt and theorize. They will put their faith in other things--be it other gods, themselves, or science. However, this story does not need our faith to exist. The story will continue to unfold despite our disbelief or doubting. Is it really so hard to believe that an all-powerful, loving God exists? Look at the world around you! Look at how perfectly the intricacies of this world work in harmony. Is it merely coincidence that our world is in the perfect spot in the solar system to support life? Is it merely coincidence that we are the only sentient beings on earth? The only beings that have Faith? Is it merely coincidence that there are countless cycles put into motion on this planet to support and sustain life? 

Perhaps a better questions is how, if not by God's hand, did this world come into being? How does nothing become something? Moreover, how does nothing become a glorious, amazing, awesome, functional, beautiful, wonderful something? 

There are always the "what abouts" in a doubted faith. What about the dinosaurs? What about carbon dating?  What about evolution? Really, is it so hard to believe that an all-powerful God couldn't create this wonderful world with strange creatures, with a sense of age, and with the ability to adapt? Perhaps the dinosaurs were all killed in the Great Flood. Perhaps mankind killed them all. Perhaps God just put funny-looking skeletons in the ground just to capture our imaginations. 

As far as the earth's apparent age is concerned, we must remember that God created Adam and Eve as adults... not as babies. Is it inconceivable to think He did not do the same with the Earth? God created the Earth as its "adult" self...not as a primordial "baby". Contrary to popular belief, evolution and creation are not mutually exclusive beliefs. God is a keen engineer and created this world with the ability to self-sustain and adapt. He created amazing creatures with the ability to adapt to the changing world. He set time into motion to begin this story, and he will end time with Eternity once the story of Earth has been fulfilled.

It all began with God. The world was spoken into existence by Him. I don't know about you, but when I look at the world around me--- in all its amazing glory--- I don't have a hard time believing it.

Romans 10: Being a Voice for Christ

"8 'The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,' that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: ⁹That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. ¹¹As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame...¹⁴How can [non-believers] call on the One they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?"

It's relatively easy for me to write about my faith in God. It's also very comfortable for me to discuss the finer points of my faith with other Christians. However, it can be incredibly difficult for me to discuss my faith with those who are not Christians. Yesterday, I had an anonymous person post a couple comments on various blog posts (Hello, Mr/Ms. Anonymous! I prayed for you this afternoon!). This person is, presumably, an atheist... or at least not a Christian. They questioned my faith. They questioned my integrity. It gave me pause.

At least here I have the luxury of taking my time to respond. I can read and re-read comments and monitor my response before proceeding. I can take the time to make sure I answer in love. Or, alternatively, I can simply delete an offensive comment and put it out of my mind. I, however, do not have this luxury out in the "real" world. 

In the real world I don't always have the option to think over my responses for a couple hours. I often have to respond within a few seconds, and make sure that not only do I say the proper words, but that I say those words properly. I need to keep my emotions bridled and respond out of love... even in the heat of the moment. I don't have the protection of time, distance, and relative anonymity the internet offers. 

Witnessing, as we Christians call it, has become a very difficult thing to do in this New Age Millenium. We can share some of our beliefs with relative ease (with the exception being in the presence of those who love being argumentative or hostile towards the faith), as most agree that we are all entitled to our own opinions. However, it gets difficult when our beliefs go against the "norm" set by the secular world. It gets even more difficult when we have to tell people they're wrong. 

I find myself living in fear of the reactions of others when it comes to bringing up my beliefs. However, I have come to realize, it's not up to me to make people change. That's God's job. My job is merely to offer those around me the opportunity to hear and understand the Truth. If they are hostile towards it, or would really rather not hear it... then there isn't really anything I can do. My duty is to continue loving that person and showing them what a Christ-led life looks like... but it's not my place to "convince" anyone. God saves people. 

However, I try never to hide my beliefs. Most people know I am a Christian within a week of knowing me. From there I seek to build a loving and sincere relationship with those around me so that we can get to the point where I can bring my faith into the conversation. The first time this opportunity arises is always scary. I know that what I need to say will likely make the listener uncomfortable. I just have to pray that God speaks to their heart through my words. God's Holy Spirit needs to be acting as a liaison between a Christian and a non-Christian before anything miraculous happens. If God is not directing the conversation, it won't matter how eloquent or convincing I think I am... I'll be speaking to the person's mind, rather than their heart. 

God,

Thank you for being there for me. I publicly acknowledge You as my God, my Lord, and Jesus as my Saviour. I understand that it would be incredibly insulting to Your Son and the sacrifice He made if I kept quiet and failed to tell others about the Gift You gave me. I also understand that it would be incredibly cruel of me not to tell others about You and give them the opportunity to accept Your gift as well. Replace any fears or trepidation I have with faith and confidence. Please tell your Holy Spirit to act as a liaison in all my conversations. I don't want to be speaking to people's minds... I want you to speak to people's hearts.

Thanks

-Me

Romans 3: Salvation

^"20Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

 ²¹But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. ²²This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, ²³for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— ²⁶he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus." (Romans 3:20-26 NIV)

Yay! The hopeful turn-around I was telling you about!  

The first part of Romans, is much like the first part of this chapter. It discusses the sinful nature of people and how none of us is perfect. None of us can even really be declared "good" people. Because of this, none of us deserve the amazing gift of eternal life in Heaven, living alongside a perfect God. However, the above verses can give us hope.

No, we're not perfect. Because of that, the previous idea of living according to the Law (in other words, trying to be "good enough" to get into Heaven by following "the rules") was burdensome and impossible. God saw this and as a result He sent his Son, Jesus, to live a perfect life for us... and to sacrifice that perfect life to take our place in receiving our deserved punishment. 

The "rules" have their place. As it's written in verse 20, people become aware of how terrible they are by understanding what the "rules" are... and realizing just how many they break on a daily basis. The laws do not save anyone in and of themselves, but they do make people aware of the fact that they need saving. By looking at the rules God expects of us, we realize that NONE of us has lived up to His rules...not a single person. 

This is why Jesus is so important to our Salvation. He lived by all the rules, as only God's Son could. But he didn't just take his free ticket into Heaven and leave us to fend for ourselves. No, instead He allowed God to give Him the punishment that everyone else deserved. By doing so, we are able to still have the chance to go to Heaven... we only need to believe and accept that Jesus did indeed settle our debts. Anyone who believes that Jesus came to earth, died for our sins, and rose again, gets a fancy stamp placed across their record... "PAID IN FULL". However, those who choose not to believe and refuse to hand over their record will not be allowed into Heaven. They made their choice. God can not have sinful people wandering around Heaven. If people don't get their sinful debts settled while still in this life, it's too late. 

This is why God practices "forbearance" with us. This is basically a fancy word that means He's delaying our judgement. We all deserve to be punished for the terrible things we do. However, God has chosen to delay punishment so that we might have the chance to make things right. So that we would have the opportunity to ask for forgiveness and to accept Christ. If God wasn't such a patient God, we'd all be doomed. 

As someone who is notoriously short on patience sometimes, I am amazed and so thankful for God's patience with me. I know I get extremely frustrated and angry at people who make the same stupid mistakes over and over and over again. However, I also make stupid mistakes repeatedly. Fortunately for me, God is a lot more patient with me than I tend to be with other people. I am thankful that God has given me a way to be forgiven. I am thankful that God gave me the chance to ask Jesus for help. To believe.

It's so simple. And yet two-thirds of the world still chooses to ignore Christ. Two-thirds of the world has crumpled their record of sins to their chest and refuses to let Christ have them. They refuse to have their debts settled and their sins "paid in full". People don't understand... God doesn't send people to Hell, people choose to go to Hell. All God requires of us is to believe and accept what Jesus did for us. The amazing gift He gave to us. 

Would we really be surprised if we were never allowed into a person's house if, after they gave us an EXTREMELY expensive gift---say, perhaps, a house, free and clear---we chose to destroy the gift? We walked up to that house, lit it on fire, and watched it burn to the ground? It's quite simple. All God asks of us is that we accept the gift He's given us and be thankful for it. None of us deserve that gift, but all of us are offered it. 

I don't know about you, but this imperfect Stumbler has a lot of debts that need settling. I am extremely thankful that Jesus has paid my debts for me. I hope I can live a life from now on that is good and doesn't incur anymore sins. I don't want to tarnish the gift I've been given by taking it for granted. 




Thank you, God for your Son. Thank you, Jesus, for your generosity.

Dear Lost Friend,

I am a Christian. You are not.

I love you dearly. I know it bothers you that I can't let you have your beliefs and keep mine to myself. I know that our world teaches tolerance, but when it comes to this I just can't stand by in silence and "tolerate" your self-destruction.

You see, my beliefs teach me about Love and Salvation. From where I'm standing, I can see that the path you're on is heading towards a cliff. You scold me for being rude in my attempts to correct your path. I plead with you to see the danger ahead. The closer and closer you get to the edge, the more desperate I become in my attempts to sway you.

From your perspective, you can only see the sunny horizon ahead. You are enjoying your freedom and having fun. You are happy with your path and are happy to let others have theirs. You do not understand why I am so concerned with changing your path. But there is something missing... I know you can feel it. There is no bridge ahead...and I know where to find that Bridge!

You must understand, I would not be a very good friend if I did not at least try to point out the cliff ahead. It would be the worst kind of evil to see a friend headed towards peril and say nothing--do nothing--only sit back and watch you fall. My apparent intolerance for your path is truly out of love and the sincerest concern one person can have for another. I have no hidden agenda. I am not trying to prove a point or to "win". Quite the contrary, I wish for you to win. To find the path to eternal life is, after all, a prize well worth the change in direction.

But, dear friend, I do not want to hasten you towards the cliff in my attempts to change your path. I've cautioned you, I've warned you, I've pleaded with you. There is nothing more I can do. It is up to God to speak to your heart; and it is up to you to choose to listen. I must now continue down my path. There are others--so many others--who are heading towards cliffs of their own. I need to warn them too, before it is too late.

Sincerely, Lovingly, and Humbly,
Your "Intolerant" Christian Friend

(Or... if you prefer... a fellow Atheist, Penn, sums up the same sentiment here)

God Loves Annoying People

Some people just get on my nerves. You know the type... people who don't know when to stop talking. People who are rude or stupid and don't know it. People whose words just make you cringe with disbelief. People you just want to take by the shoulders and give them a good shake while yelling "Shuuuuuuuuuuuuut uuuuuuuuuuuuup!!" --as much for their sake as yours.

I can deal with the purposely annoying. People who are trying to irritate you are easy. You just ignore them and when they see there is no fun to be had, they move on. The ignorantly annoying are the real problem. They are oblivious to the irritation they are causing those around them, and no one really wants to inform them of how stupid they are being for fear of looking like a jerk.

I always imagine Peter was probably one of these blissfully unaware "annoyers". Simon Peter. Yeah, the top disciple in Jesus' hand-picked Twelve.

Stick with me here. Accounts of Peter in the Bible often make me sit back and laugh a little. You honestly have to give your head a shake at some of the stuff this guy did.

First, some background. Simon Peter was a fisherman by trade. And I hope you don't have any illusions in your mind as to what this career entailed. It was not the relaxing afternoon in the sun that recreational fishers rave about. This was hard work. Being a fisherman in those days was probably the equivalent to being an oil rig worker today. It was hard, rough work; typically done by equally hard, rough people. Simon Peter was not the man you see pictured in Church murals with long flowing white robes and perfectly groomed hair. Simon Peter was a tough man. Jesus hand-picked this rough-around-the-edges man to be a part of his group. To be student, and to become a teacher. To be a friend.

There were some days, though, when I imagine even Jesus wanted to cringe, drop his face into his palms, and shake his head at Simon Peter.  Here are a few paraphrased instances directly out of the New Testament:

Matthew 14: 28-31 -- Jesus walks on water. Peter decides he wants to join him. Peter takes a couple steps across the water and begins to sink. He ends up floundering about like a fool and screaming for help.

John 13:2-11 --Jesus washes his disciples' feet as a symbolic gesture of servanthood. Peter ruins the serious moment by refusing to let Jesus wash his feet. Jesus explains (metaphorically) that he needs to do this for his disciples or they can have nothing to do with him. Peter over-compensates for his initial refusal by telling Jesus to go ahead and give him a complete bath!

Matthew 16:21-23 --Peter basically tries to tell Jesus he shouldn't have to go through with all this crucifixion/suffering-for-our-sins stuff. Jesus refers to Peter as "Satan" for inadvertently trying to tempt Him from completing the purpose He was sent to Earth for... and would have therefore essentially damned the entire human race.

Matthew 26:69-75 --After all this time and all Jesus' patience, love, and friendship to Simon Peter... Jesus comes to his hour of greatest need, and Peter denies even knowing him--not once, not twice, but three times!

I don't know about you, but if I had an aquaintance or friend who undermined the most important things I tried to do/say and then refused to even acknowledge my existence when I needed him most... I'd be pretty darn irritated. But Jesus instead chose to love this guy. Jesus gently (and sometimes not-so-gently) corrected Peter. Simon Peter ended up growing in his faith and becoming one of the most well-known and beloved biblical characters. He is even seen as the First Pope in the Catholic faith!

Jesus chose and honoured this simple man with many faults. Jesus showed patience and "tough-love" with this man who was probably not the easiest guy to get along with. God showed love and mercy to this flawed, annoying man... so we probably should do the same with the irritating people in our own lives.

But there's a bigger moral to this story than "Love Annoying People". There is greater hope to this story. God demonstrated love, patience, mercy, and forgiveness to some of the worst people you can imagine. Some were merely annoying, while others were downright evil (Hello? Have you met Paul? The Christian-killer-extraordinaire formerly known as "Saul"?)

No matter how terrible you think you or others around you are, just remember that our God has a track record of turning the biggest losers and scum-of-the-earth types into the best, most honoured Christian leaders of all time.

That is indeed a comforting thought to a Stumbler like me who has spent a lot of time feeling and acting like a Loser. :)

God,

Thank you so much for forgiving and accepting losers. It's good to know that you forgave a guy who denied your Son's existence, because I know that means you'll forgive me for the stupid stuff I do too. It reminds me that you never turn your back on people like me, even though I might occasionally turn my back on you.

I ask you, God, if you would please help me to have the same patience that Jesus had with Simon Peter when I encounter irritating or rude people in my own life. It's really difficult for me not to get frustrated with people and lose my temper.

Thanks again,
Me