OPEN: VIDEO: Linebacker Evangelism (offered on-line by Sermoncentral.com)
APPLY: I fell in love with that video the first time I saw it because it makes fun of the idea of forced evangelism (something I HAVE to do!) while at the same time highlighting why we often don’t talk to others about our Jesus.
Why don’t we talk to others more about our faith in Christ?
Mostly it comes down to our having the wrong attitudes
· Fear of rejection
· Selfishness – the desire to keep my faith to myself
· And the Prideful belief that other people aren’t good enough for Jesus
But all those wrong attitudes boil down to some very basic questions:
· How badly do I want to share my faith?
· How badly do I want people to love my Jesus?
· How much do I love my Jesus?
As the linebacker in the video says:
“The World needs our message: For God so loved the world – He wants to communicate it through you”
So, the question comes down the attitude of “want to”.
If you want to do something badly enough… you’ll find a way to do it.
ILLUS: A couple of year ago, there was a story in the news about the fans of the Philadelphia Eagles who were going to Super Bowl 39 (XXXIX)… their first Super Bowl in 24 years.
Kevin O’Donoghue was 11 years-old when the Eagles made it to their last Superbowl appearance and he promised himself that he would be there if the team ever went again.
He told his wife, "I don’t care if we have to mortgage our house, I’m going."
She agreed and O’Donoghue paid $4,000 for a package that included:
· a round trip airfare,
· four nights in a hotel,
· and ONE ticket to the game.
The trip was financed through a home equity loan which they obtained by putting up their house as collateral on the loan.
Mortgage banks in the area said that many Eagles fans asked about refinancing mortgages or taking out home equity loans (with payments of $100 extra a month) to pay for a trip that O’Donoghue called "the chance of a lifetime”.
These people were literally “bowled over” by their desire to be at that Super Bowl event. They literally loved their team so much - and valued the event so seriously – they’d pay any price to get where they wanted to go.
So, (the question for us is) how badly do we want to get to where God wants us to go?
You see, that was the problem Ananias faced
He loved God,
He was a leading Christian in the Damascus church…
But he wasn’t sure how badly he wanted to get to where God wants him to go.
Acts 9 tells us that…
“The Lord told (Ananias), ‘Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.’” Acts 9:11-12
Now, that would seem like a great privilege.
God singles Ananias out to go and do a special task for Him. But Ananias appears to be in no hurry to go out and do this.
In the next two verses we find Ananias telling God "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name." Acts 9:13-14
In other words, Ananias bows in prayer and says to God…
“Are you crazy?”
“Do you know who this guy is?”
“He hurts people!!! He’ll hurt me!!!”
Of course, Ananias ends up going… but only because somebody bigger than a 350 lb. linebacker (God) told him to.
Now in Ananias’ case – it wasn’t pride or selfishness that caused him to hesitate. It Was Outright Fear! You could say it was fear of rejection… but we all know it went a little deeper than that.
And that’s why a lot of us don’t share our faith. We’re afraid of rejection.
And let’s face it… it does happen.
ILLUS: When George Stephens (a great brother who lived a very hard drinking/hard living lifestyle, and who recently passed away) became a Christian, the people at his workplace often made fun of him in the lunchroom. They were trying to get him to get into a fight so they could prove that Christianity didn’t work.
But George walked away.
Once upon a time, he would have cleaned house, but now he just picked up his lunch tray and walked to another table. How was George able to keep his faith and walk away from the insults?
George did it because he knew what was at stake.
As the linebacker in the video says:
“Fear of rejection? Let me talk to you about fear!
4th and one - Jerry Rice, what’s he going to do?
That doesn’t compare to 4th and one in eternity.”
4th and one in eternity is what we’re talking about here.
There are people on the edge of the greatest decision of eternity… and you’re the player God wants in the field to go for the win.
As the evangelism linebacker said
“It doesn’t matter who rejects us because we’re always accepted by Christ who loves us”
God loves us… and he counts on us to make the difference in reaching others with salvation.
ILLUS: When the Colts beat the Patriots a couple of weeks ago (the 2007 AFC championship) two of the key touchdowns were scored by people who don’t ordinarily get to do stuff like that.
· And a Colt’s linebacker caught a pass inside just across the line for another touchdown.
· The center scooped up a fumbled ball at the one and drove across the goal line for the score.
These were not the star players.
There were not the guys you would expect to make touchdowns.
But they did!
And they did it because they did their job.
They struggled to win for their coach.
And because they were faithful, their team won.
In the same way, Ananias - when he overcame his fear - was faithful to his coach.
And because he was faithful, his name is written down in Scripture
He is known in heaven and on earth as the man who baptized Saul (Paul) into Christ.
And it’s the only time his name is ever recorded in the Bible.
I. Now there was another reason Ananias didn’t want to witness to Paul
The first reason was fear… but the other reason was: Paul wasn’t church material.
Paul wasn’t the kind of guy people would want to sit next to in church.
In fact, when Paul later went to Jerusalem… nobody would go near him.
He had been responsible for the first Christian’s death by stoning.
He was the ringleader of those who stoned Stephen to death outside the city
And he made it his goal in life to make sure the other followers of Christ either died or were put in prison.
This man was not a good candidate to be part of the church.
He was an enemy of Christ because of what he had done.
Even today there are people who are enemies of Jesus
Did you know that?
In fact, you were once one of them…
Paul wrote in Colossians: “Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior.” Colossians 1:21
Paul wrote to the church at Corinth and said
“Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
I Corinthians 6:9-11
ILLUS: As I was working on this sermon, I was standing in line at the grocery store and overheard the conversation of a couple standing behind me.
They were cursing. I mean, the words they were using ugly/ nasty words. And I found myself being angry.
But then I realized these were people Jesus had died for… and they were behaving just like you would expect pagans to behave.
They weren’t Christians… why should they worry about their language in public?
Why should they be concerned about where they lived, or how they treated others.
If they go out and party… or cheat on their spouses… or get drunk on Saturday nite why should it matter.
They’re going to hell anyway!!!
And the only thing that’s going to make any difference in their life is if we tell them about Jesus
The only way any difference will be made in their destiny is if we invite them to come to church with us where they can hear about God’s love.
Otherwise… why should they change?
Paul didn’t change because Ananias disapproved of his lifestyle.
Paul didn’t change because the church at Jerusalem wanted nothing to do with him
Paul didn’t care about the opinion of the church.
He didn’t care about the opinion of Christians in his community.
The only time Paul was ready to change was when he came face to face with Jesus. And when that happened, Paul couldn’t change fast enough.
He spends three whole days fasting and praying
He spends three whole days asking for God to make a difference in his life.
And then Ananias stops in for coffee
· He tells Paul about God’s will for his life
· He ministers to Paul’s needs by laying his hands on Paul’s eyes… and heals/ blindness
· And then he asks Paul to make a decision.
In Acts 22:16 we’re told that Ananias
“…what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.”
And when Paul came up out of the water, he was a changed man.
He later wrote about this experience in Romans 6
We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.” Romans 6:2b-5
You only have to know 5 things when you talk to a friend about Christ.
There’s only 5 things they need to understand to become a Christian
1. Do they believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of the Living God
2. Do they believe they have sinned – and are they willing to turn away from that
3. Are they willing to make Jesus the Lord of their lives
4. Are they ready to lay hold of God’s forgiveness by being baptized in water?
5. Are they willing to live for Jesus from now on?
CLOSE: Pat Summerall has been a very famous football commentator for the past 50 years with the national Football League. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1952 and played with the Chicago Cardinals and New York Giants until 1961.
After his retirement from the game, he joined CBS as a broadcaster, and in 1993 switched to Fox. During his CBS years he and a fellow broadcaster partied hard off the field.
"We raised Cain. I was the first guy at the bar and the last to leave."
But then, Summerall was told that if he kept on drinking he was going to die. He checked himself into the Betty Ford Clinic and while he was there his counselor urged him to seek a better life through faith.
At age 66, Pat Summerall was baptized into Christ. In USA Today he told a reporter that
when the minister "leaned me back in the water, I never felt so helpless.”
Summerall told USA Today "I knew I just became a Christian. I can’t tell you how great life has been since then."
(Victor Knowles, Peace on Earth Ministries, Joplin, Mo. Citation: USA Today, January 30, 2002)
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