34) TELLING OTHERS ABOUT JESUS
GOSPEL STRATEGY RELATING TO PEOPLE
TEXT: 1 Corinthians 9:19-23
BRIEF RECAP
By now most of you are probably becoming more than familiar with,
The challenge found in Luke 1:1 - which makes reference to:
“...A declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us”.
And based of the mention of this principle...
Every week we look to open the Bible to make sure our beliefs in the Lord.
In our latest series of lessons...
We have opened the Word of God to explore more closely
The things we believe about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
And in way of a brief review
I think it is pretty clear based on what the Bible teaches...
And based on what we have already learnt during this study,
That once we have accepted Christ as our Saviour - through the glorious truth of the Gospel,
That it’s God’s will for us - to then to seek to freely share the Gospel with others.
For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth - 1 Timothy 2:3-4
Furthermore, the Scriptures teach us that God doesn’t want anyone going to Hell.
The Lord is …Not willing that any should perish,
but that all should come to repentance - 2 Peter 3:9.
For this reason, Jesus said to the disciples in Mark 16:15:
...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel.
Again in Matthew 28, in what we now refer to as “The Great Commission”,
Jesus said: All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, (Mat 28:18-19)…
And again the thing we are to be teaching…to be proclaiming and preaching openly
Is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
I think it’s interesting that in Matthew 28 Jesus declared to His:
All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
“All Power” - not some power or a little power – but all power.
The term Power itself used here in the Greek speaks of “Authority”.
And for me, this is not just about us listening to what Christ has to say…
Recognizing the authority of God that rests upon Him,
But also about understanding how Jesus is also empowering us…
As His disciples to complete a task.
“Because I have all the power in Heaven and Earth” - Jesus said] – “Go you therefore”
“Go out in my power and under my authority - and do what needs to be done.”
And of course, we know what needs to be done – right?
We need to Teach the Gospel before all Nations.
Simply put – once we get saved…
Jesus wants us to tell others how they can be saved too.
Once we have come to hear and accept the truth of the Gospel...
It is God’s will – that we then go out and share the Gospel with others.
Remember the term Gospel itself means:
To bring “good news” or to declare “glad tidings”.
So this need not be an burdensome task...
Because this is a wonderful message that we have all been called to share.
And it’s a message this world so desperately needs to hear.
The Gospel is the good news of Jesus Christ,
And it’s the promise of eternal Salvation through Him...
That stands as glad tidings to all who hear it.
How do we Share?
So we know then what God wants us as his disciples to do - But how do we do it?
How do we effectively share this glorious message with others?
Well as we discovered last week - thankfully this is not as hard as it may seem.
In fact, through the Scriptures we see many examples...
Of How the earlier disciples who came before us – shared the Gospel.
And for me – one of the most obvious examples to look and learn from...
Comes through the Apostle Paul’s life and ministry.
In fact, in Romans 1:1 the Bible says that: Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle,
separated unto the gospel of God,
So this was Paul’s whole focus and the intent behind his ministry,
He was whole heartedly committed to doing what God had called him to do...
In separated himself for preaching and declaration of the Gospel before others.
But How did He do it?
And more to the point – How are we to do it?
Well as we study the Scriptures, we are able to discover from the example of the Apostle Paul’s life,
How – like him, we to can answer God’s Calling...
And under Christ’s Power and authority - effectively share the Gospel with others.
Last week we saw that Paul did two things when he shared the Gospel:
1) He proclaimed the Word Of God to people, and...
2) He did this Any Way he Could!
And we have a lot to learn from this.
Because we too need to declare the Gospel through the Word,
And we need to declare the Gospel in a workable way...
So that people can understand.
1) DECLARING THE GOSPEL THROUGH THE WORD
Remember what Paul declared in Romans 10:17:
So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.
It’s is absolutely imperative that when we share the Gospel...
We do so through the Word of God.
The Gospel is not our message – it’s God’s message.
Our words do not save people – it’s the Word of God that leads others to salvation.
The Bible teaches us that – Jesus is the Living Word (John 1:1+14).
The Bible shows us that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6)
Jesus said – Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me - John 5:39.
You see, God’s Word provides the full message and story of the Gospel.
And it’s only through the Scriptures...
That people are pointed towards their need for a Saviour,
And shown how that need can be met through Christ.
What does the Bible say?
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved – Acts 4:12
You see - Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.
The word Faith used there is the Greek term Pistis
Which speaks of “an inner conviction” or “firm belief in the truth”.
It literally means “to win over” or “to persuade”.
Paul says - the only way we are going to win over and persuade people of the truth,
Is if they Hear the Word of God.
And this is the first thing Paul always endeavoured to do,
He declared the Gospel – using the Word of God.
2) DECLARING THE GOSPEL IN A WORKABLE WAY
The next thing he did was look to meet people on their level,
And share the Word with them in a way they could easily understand.
In 1 Corinthians Chapter 9 we find Paul talking directly about His personal ministry,
And interestingly enough - he explains his whole strategy and approach
When it comes to talking to others about the Lord.
He effectively says: “look – this is HOW I share the Gospel.”
19 For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all,
that I might win more of them.
Paul says – “I am not subject to anyone…
But I have made myself a servant to everyone,
So that I can “win” more souls to Christ.”
And then he continues in saying this:
To the Jews, I became as a Jew, in order to win the Jews.
To those under the law, I became as one under the law…
To those [gentiles] outside the law, I came to them as one outside the law…
To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. (1 Corinthians 9:20-22)
You see, Paul tried to relate to people right where they were at,
And he tried to meet them on their level…whatever level they were on,
So that he could more effectively share with them Jesus.
And Paul wasn’t narrow in his approach either...he tried to share with everyone.
He shared Jesus with the Jews…
And he shared Jesus with the Gentiles...
He shared Jesus with hyper religious law livers…
And he shared Jesus with people who had no religious background at all.
And Paul perhaps sums it up best in his own words when he said:
...I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.
And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you 1 Cor 9:22-23
You see, sharing the Gospel is actually all about People.
It’s People that God wants to save…
It’s People who we are endeavouring to share with,
And it’s People that we want to reach with the salvation of Jesus Christ.
So Paul’s whole philosophy when it came to sharing Jesus was rather simple...
He basically looked to meet everyone he could right where they are at.
He looked to get close them and to meet them on their level,
So that he could share the Word of God with them in a way they could understand.
HOW TO TELL OTHERS ABOUT JESUS
So that’s what we learned last week...
We talked about how we can proclaim the Gospel,
And we looked to the example of the Apostle Paul
As he simply looked to share the Word of God with people...
In a way they could understand.
With the reminder of our lesson today...
I thought we would look at this principle being put into practice.
I want us to look at how the Word of God and the Gospel can be freely shared
By meeting people right where they are at.
Today I want to look at two Scriptural examples...
Showing how we can Evangelise within our Homes,
And then go to Evangelise outside of our Homes.
In other words, I want to talk about...
How we can proclaim the Gospel to close family and loved ones,
As well as to strangers and any others we meet.
EVANGELISIM INSIDE THE HOME
Turn with me now to John chapter 1 – and lets begin by looking at Evangelising within our homes.
Now our focus is really going to be on verses 40 and 41...
But for the sake of the wider context here,
Lets first pick up our reading back in verse 35:
35 Again the next day after John stood [this is John the Baptist], and two of his disciples;
36 And looking upon Jesus as He walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.
Now lets just be clear on what is happening.
Here we have John the Baptist – to which jesus said:
…Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet
than John the Baptist (Lk 7:28)
And the same man tasked with preparing the way for the Lord (Lk 1:76, Lk 3:4).
And here we find John the Baptist having two of his own disciples or followers with him.
And he points them towards Jesus - Behold the Lamb of God - he said.
Neat picture right – because everything taught under the Old Testament
Was actually leading up to this point.
Remember everything under the OT was all about the Law and the 10 Commandments.
The Law stood as God’s perfect standard for life and living…
And it pointed people towards their sin - because no man could live upto the law (Jam 2:10).
And during this time – worship of the Lord, both in the Tabernacle, and later in the Temple, Centered entirely around a sacrificial system.
Blood needed to be shed to atone for the sins of the people.
And the priests offered up lambs upon the alter before God for the forgiveness of sins.
All of this of course pictured the perfect sacrifice of Jesus,
Who would one day come to lay down His life upon the cross…
“As a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45).
All the people under the OT worshipped this way.
They followed a covenant established under God’s law,
And held to the teachings of the prophets…
Who declared of the time the promised messiah would one day come.
The people under the OT looked forward to the coming of Christ.
And now here we all are, all these many years latter,
Worshipping under the NT, established under a covenant of Grace,
And we Look back to the fulfillment of the law and every prophecy…
Concerning the promised coming of the Messiah.
And of course right in the middle – we find the life and ministry of John the Baptist
Who bridged these times perfectly between the Old and New Covenants,
And “prepared the way of the Lord and made His paths straight” (Mat 3:3),
And what did John the Baptist say: Behold the Lamb of God!
“This is it! This is what we have been waiting for!” – John said
“Jesus is the promised Messiah – the perfect sacrifice to do away with all others”
And then he turned to his disciples and said - “follow Him”.
And the Scriptures tell us that at that point they left John and started to follow Jesus.
Now Understanding all of this, drop down and Read with me now verse 40:
40 One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.
41 He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.
And notice also just the first six words of verse 42:
42 And he brought him to Jesus.
Now let’s consider this.
Andrew having come to see and know Christ, - through the ministry of John the Baptist,
Then immediately goes and seeks to tell his brother.
The first burden on his heart after coming to know Christ as the Messiah,
Was the need and desire to go and tell his brother this wonderful truth.
Brethren we too need to be like Andrew.
We need to bring our families and loved ones to know Jesus.
Just like Andrew we need to declare the message of the messiah…
And the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those of our own house.
In fact, when it comes to proclaiming the Gospel…
Often it is within our own families and homes that the need is greatest.
Not all of our family members may accept our invitation to come to know Jesus
But it’s a good place to start.
You see - you know your family.
Your intimately acquainted with them.
You know their likes and dislikes,
You know their needs and desires…
You know their strengths and weaknesses like few others can – because you are family.
This places you in a really good position…
To reach out and meet them - right on their level with the truth.
This places you in a great position to declare the Word of God openly with them…
In way they can best understand.
Remember – Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.
Who will share the Gospel truth with your family – if not for you?
Please don’t sit back to wait and hope for others to share the Gospel with those you love.
Hold to God’s promise – and know that He will empower and equip you for this task.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us that - through the Scriptures…
We are…thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
That means, we are “fully equipped” through the Word of God for every aspect of ministry,
Including the sharing and declaration of the Gospel with all those closest to us.
The Truth Brings Division
Now please don’t misunderstand me – because I am not saying this will always be easy.
You see, the truth of God will not always be freely accepted,
And in many cases may even by rejected by those we love.
Jesus openly declared in Matthew 10:34-36:
34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
36 And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.
You see the Word of God and the truth of the Gospel cuts – its like a sword Jesus says
And it can bring division and contention into a household.
But brethren the Gospel message must be declared…
3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
And Brethren consider this – if you do not love and care for your family enough…
To share the Gospel with them – who else will?
I want to share an Example with you all.
I know of a Pastor in India who grew up in a devout Hindu home.
And at the age of 17 he came to know Jesus Christ as his personal saviour...
And he began to profess to be a Christian to his family.
But his Father was offended and declared him to have brought great insult and shame...
Not just to his own family - but to the entire village.
One day In a fit of rage, his father disowned him and even tried to strangle him to death.
Thankfully his mother intervened and he escaped.
And for years this Pastor was estranged from his own family because of the truth of the Gospel
That he so desperately wanted to share with those of his own household.
But such is the glory of God and the power of the Gospel...
That both his sister and mother came to know Christ,
And by Gods grace eventually even his own father too!
And at the age of 85–this dear Pastor had the privilege of baptising his own father into a local church
Such is the power of the gospel – and the example of the fruit that can be born
From those who have the heart to share Jesus with their own families. Amen!
I can tell you that even my own grandfather...
Repeatedly shared the Gospel with a member of our family.
And repeatedly the message and reality of Christ was rejected by...
All the way up until the day he died – but praise the Lord...
Because just 5 hours before he died he too came to know Christ.
Such is the hope of the gospel – and the very reason why we share with those of our own families,
It’s because Christ is the one and only means to salvation...
And He is willing to work through us – so that everyone within our homes and families can be saved.
The Bible shows us that when Andrew came to know Jesus as the Messiah,
The first thing he did - was go and tell his brother this great truth.
And because of Andrews heart - Peter was able to be brought to Jesus as well.
Do we not all also have Brothers, sisters, mothers and fathers that need to hear the Gospel truth?
Then why not let God work through you – to accomplish this task
Why not do what Andrew did – and lead them to Jesus.
EVANGELISIM OUTSIDE THE HOME
You see, in this regard we all can have a ministry...
We can all bear forth fruit to the Lord as we begin to share the Word of God,
And proclaim the truth of the Gospel right in our very homes.
This is a part of God’s calling for us all.
But that is only where the calling begins – because just as we can Evangelise within our homes,
So too can we Evangelise outside of our homes.
What did Jesus say? He said...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel. (Mark 16:15)
He said: All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, (Mat 28:18-19)
You see, Jesus doesn’t want us to just sit at home.
That may be a good place to start Evangelising...
But eventually we need to mature in our walk and relationship with God,
And we need to answer His full calling in our life...
A calling to get up and go!
Paul didn’t just sit down and wait for people to come to him...
No he got up went to others in order to proclaim the Gospel.
Turn with me now to Acts 16:13-15
13 And on the sabbath we went out [Paul is not sitting at home - he went out…] of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.
Now notice the scene here – because Paul went out…
But he didn’t just wander aimlessly and end up at a random place.
He went to a place where he knew people would be.
And what’s more – he knew that the riverside…
Was a place where women frequently gathered to pray. Verse 14:
14 And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.
15 And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there.
Now in this instance, it appears that Lydia was already saved,
Because we are told in verse 14 that she was already worshipping God when she heard Paul speak.
And of course, we find her gathered with other women by the river to pray.
But what is interesting is that Paul went out with the intent of sharing the Gospel...
And he went actively seeking people to share with – in a place he knew people would be.
And please notice that this trip was not without fruit either – because we are told in verse 14
That Lydia’s heart was opened by the Lord and that she accepted the Word that Paul shared,
So that even she herself was baptised.
I recently heard of another story a Pastor friend told me
Where like Paul – he too set out to seek people that he could share the Gospel with.
And He went to a Hindu temple – a place where again people were accustomed to gather and pray.
And there he met the priest, and being from a Hindu backround himself,
He began to share with Him Jesus.
And He said Priest was shocked – never before having heard anyone tell him about Jesus,
And openly admitting that no other God or Goddess of his religion,
Had willing sacrificed themself for the sins of mankind.
And praise God – this priest has asked to know more...
And has invited the Pastor back to again share the Gospel truth with him.
This is what can come from going.
This is what can happen as we surrender to God’s calling,
And as we look to rely on His power and authority to boldly declare the Gospel truth.
Persecution Sharing the Gospel
And yes brethren I know – the great opposition that can be faced...
When trying to preach the truth in this way.
I know of the persecution many of you are under...
I have seen the blood and I have felt your pain.
And I know that much of the opposition comes from those of other religions.
Brethren it was no different during the times of the prophets and early disciples
Or even during earthly ministry of Christ Himself.
1 John 3:13 simply says - Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.
In other words, don’t be surprised if you face heavy opposition while trying to follow Christ.
2 Timothy 3:12 says this: Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
This is going to happen – there will be those who stand against you...
As you seek to preach the truth and declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Apostle Paul actually asked others to pray for him in this regard saying:
…that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
Paul didn’t shy away from God’s calling when it got hard...
He prayed for boldness so that the Gospel could be shared.
Of course, in order for the Gospel to be shared before others outside of our homes,
We need to first be willing to “go” to them and proclaim the message.
I love the words of Proverbs 11:30-31 which says:
30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
31 Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more the wicked and the sinner.
In other words God will dish out just rewards in the end.
Listen to what Paul says in Galatians because he gives us great assurance saying:
And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not
(Gal 6:9)
Brethren Don’t give up – keep going – stay the course...
And hold to the truth of what God has called you to do – knowing this,
We shall all one day reap what we sow.
Jesus said this in revelation 22:12: And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Brethren we know what we are to be doing...
We are to Go and proclaim the truth of the Gospel before all that we can.
We are to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ inside our homes – and with our families and loved ones.
And we are to share the Gospel with those outside of our homes...
And with all that we meet.
We are called to Evangelise in our Homes and to Evangelise Outside of Homes
