I. Introduction
A. This evening I want us to think outside the box:
1. That is, outside of the box that is the 4 walls of this church.
2. Perhaps even outside the box of our preconceived notions of what evangelism is all about.
B. I want to start with asking Sister Van Brocklyn to come and share some recent experiences that she had.
II. Sister Van Brocklyn’s Testimony
A. She testifies to being “stuck” in 3 airports waiting for flights and God give her opportunity to minister to those who are hurting and need someone to care about them.
III. Be Like Jesus
A. In light of Sister Van Brocklyn’s testimony I have a question that I’d like you to ponder.
B. Are we called to be like Jesus?
1. 1 John 2:1-6 (NIV) My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. 3We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. 4The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.
C. In John 13 Jesus washed the feet of His disciples and when He was done He explained why He had done it.
1. In that explanation He said in:
2. John 13:15 (NIV) I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.
3. I believe that this applies to more than foot-washing.
4. I believe it means we should follow Jesus’ example in every area of our lives — including who and how to evangelize the lost.
D. Now I would be the first in line to say that I fail to follow Jesus as I ought to.
E. I fail to follow Him in His example in:
1. Prayer
2. Fasting
3. Self under the control of the Holy Spirit
4. Holiness
5. Right motivations (the supreme motivation being to do the Father’s will)
F. I fall far short in so many areas.
G. If you would be honest you would have to agree that you fall short as well.
H. James said in James 3:2 (NIV) We all stumble in many ways. …
I. But tonight I want us to think about how we might fail to follow Jesus in His example of evangelism.
1. That is, taking the Gospel, the good news, to those who are ignorant of it.
J. Oh, but pastor, that’s how I do it.
1. I follow Jesus’ pattern of evangelism.
2. Maybe so, but indulge me — allow me to challenge your thinking about this area.
K. How might we fail to follow the pattern of Jesus?
1. I think we focus on the wrong people.
IV. Reaching People
A. Read Text
B. I submit that we spend far too much time reaching out to “healthy” “righteous” people.
1. The Pharisees and Sadducees of our day.
C. Jesus said quite clearly in
1. Matthew 5:20 (NIV) … I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
D. The Pharisees and Sadducees were very righteous people:
1. They went to church.
2. They paid their tithes
3. They were good Bible-thumping, Law-observing, street-praying, sinner-avoidant people.
E. You couldn’t ask for anything better could you?
F. The problem was that their righteousness was self-righteousness.
1. They were so self-righteous that Jesus couldn’t save them.
2. Not wouldn’t, couldn’t.
G. David Langerfeld writing in the THE DAILY ENCOURAGER tells the story of a man taking a trip on an old wooden sailing ship.
1. He was out on the deck one day and saw one of the crew-members climbing the ropes, going up to the crow’s nest.
2. When he was about half way up, the ship pitched to one side and he was thrown overboard.
3. When he hit the water, he began to scream for help, and flail his arms wildly, as he struggled to survive.
4. The traveler watched as a sailor walked over to the rail of the ship, and calmly observed the man in the water.
5. After a short while the man in the water tired, and began to sink.
6. Immediately the sailor standing by the rail jumped overboard, and rescued the drowning victim.
7. After both men were safely on board, the traveler went over to the rescuer and asked, “why did you wait so long to jump in the water and rescue this man?”
8. He calmly replied, “I have found that as long as a man is struggling in the water, there is a greater chance that he will get us both drowned if I jump in too quickly, and try to save him.”
9. I have learned that it is better to let them struggle awhile, and when they come to the end of their own strength, I can then jump in and rescue them.
H. Jesus can’t save the Pharisees and Sadducees because they wouldn’t turn lose of their self-righteousness to cling to Him.
I. Isaiah 64:4-7 (NIV) Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him. 5You come to the help of those who gladly do right, who remember your ways. But when we continued to sin against them, you were angry. How then can we be saved? 6All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away. 7No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and made us waste away because of our sins.
J. Self-righteousness dooms us to hell.
1. We can’t enter heaven in our sin-stained garments.
2. In our garments of self-righteousness we are destined for hell.
3. Only as we have been washed in the blood of Jesus can we have salvation.
K. Pastor, I still don’t get it.
L. Let me be clear.
M. We want to evangelize people who look like us:
1. (Refer to Powerpoint) (Photos of clean-cut, smiling people.)
N. We spend a lot of efforts on people who used to be in church.
1. That is just good marketing strategy.
2. (Read from Knock Your Socks Off Customer Service…)
O. It is counterintuitive to go after people who have never known Jesus.
1. Not to mention, it’s a lot harder.
P. But the reality is that so many who have drifted out of church and settled on the sofa are content to be where they are at spiritually.
1. It is unlikely that dozens and hundreds of phone calls, postcards, letters, emails, face-to-face conversations, etc are going to change that condition.
2. There is only One person who can change their perceptions of spirituality: the Holy Spirit.
i. Which just happens to be one of His jobs.
Q. I’m not saying to completely give up on the church dropouts.
1. We should pray for them.
2. When we get a chance, instead of offering a sugar-coated invitation to pretty please come back to church, maybe we need to be honest with them.
3. Maybe we need to tell them that, as a fruit inspector, and that’s what Jesus called us to be, it doesn’t seem that they are where they should be with God and that they should be afraid, very afraid, because hell is hot and it lasts forever (no matter what other preachers say).
4. Jesus said in Matthew 7:15-23 (NIV) “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 21“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ 23Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
R. So maybe we need to adopt a different strategy.
1. Instead of going after these fine, good-looking people (POWERPOINT)
2. We need to go after these:
i. (POWERPOINT) (Photos of drug addicts, alcoholics, prostitues, etc.)
S. Let me read something to you that really got me to thinking this way:
1. Article from Spring 2009 Leadership Journal: Messy, Costly, Dirty Ministry by Mark Buchanan.
T. It just really seems to be the way Jesus did it.
U. Matthew 21:28-32 (NIV) “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’ 29“ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. 30“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. 31“Which of the two did what his father wanted?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.
V. Luke 4:25-28 (NIV) I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. 26Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. 27And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.” 28All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.
1. Self-righteous people are quick to anger.
W. Following Jesus’ pattern of spreading the good news will be messy, costly and dirty.
1. Quite honestly I don’t want to do it.
2. My flesh doesn’t want to do it.
X. But if you will join with me in prayer, I believe that God will bring the worst of the worst in:
1. He will save them.
2. He will clean them up.
3. He will make them into workers.
Y. We just have to break out of our complacency and ask the Lord to rekindle the burden for those who are sick,
1. A burden for sinners.
V. Conclusion
A. I close with this:
B. There is a tiny harbor town on the ocean shore where many ships have crashed on the rocks in violent weather.
1. This town became well-known because of a dedicated rescue team which aided mariners in distress.
2. The rescue team would rally to the sound of the siren and rush to the scene of the accident, risking life and limb to save the sailors from drowning.
3. As time went on, the citizens of that tiny town raised enough money to build a rescue station close to the shore.
4. While this greatly facilitated the operation, it softened the dedicated team as well.
5. As time went by they added some of the comforts and conveniences that other rescue stations had.
6. Through the years the rescue station became a social club where the town’s people gathered to have fun and relax.
7. Ships would still crash upon the rocks, the alarm would still sound, but eventually no one responded.
8. They were reluctant to leave their comforts because their commitment to rescue the miserable mariners was no match for their complacency.
VI. Altar
