Colossians 4:5-6
Purpose #5: Reach
Introduction
A. How many people get scared when they hear the preacher say reach.
B. I wont make you raise you hand this time
C. But honestly, how many people think, oh now, he is going to want me to stand out on the corner and preach fire and brimstone
D. He is going to want me to go downtown and hand out tracks
E. He is going to want me to memorize the master plan of evangelism and go over the script
F. I admit sometimes the thought of reaching people can be scary
G. However, we know that we are told to reach people in the Bible
H. Please understand this is not an exhaustive study, this is meant to be a practical and applicable study on reaching
I. Today we are going to look at
a. The why
b. The who
c. And the how to reach
I. The Why
A. Explanation
1. When we talk about reaching people we have to ask the question WHY?
2. It is a fair question.
3. Why do we care?
4. Why should we reach someone?
5. Why would they care what we have to say?
6. Why would they listen to me?
7. These are valid questions.
8. They do have answers however
9. Turn to Romans 10:14-15
10. The Bible makes it very clear, why we have to reach people
B. Application
1. What does that mean for our Church
2. It is the purpose of the church to be reaching
3. It is our job as a church to be reaching people for Christ
4. This is not something that is meant for one or two people
5. The work of reaching is everybody job
6. Here is the reality folks, and some days I wish this was not true, People who die without knowing Christ go to hell
7. The Bible Does not care if they lived a good life
8. The Bible does not make an excuse if they did not hear
9. Read Romans 1:19-20
10. The question is do we care about people enough to reach them?
C. Illustration
1. When I was doing my internship at Oak Hill I worked closely with a one of the pastors who is now a missionary in France. Paul was always coming up with ways to scheme and make money. I had to pick him up at the airport. His plane got in early and while he was waiting he started to return peoples buggies and receive the $.25 for doing so. See people did not car enough to receive that quarter.
2. Granted that is a quarter, but we often get that same attitude when reaching people
3. We ask is this really worth it. It is if you don’t want people going to hell.
4. Sorry I am so blunt, that is the truth
II. The Who
A. Explanation
1. Who should we be reaching?
2. The reality of the situation is that we, referring to Bakerstown Alliance, are not going to be able to reach everybody
3. The good news about that is there are other Bible believing Churches that can reach people we can’t, Bakerstown Pres, Bakerstown Methodist, Grace Evangelical Free…
4. However, that does not mean that we can slack of on our job of reaching people
5. Who are you naturally attracted to?
6. People who are like you
7. Think about it, you find people who are going through the same things in life as you are
8. When you were in school you hung out with people in your grade
9. When you went to college you started to become friends with people in your major
10. When you graduated and went to work, your friend became the people you work with
11. When you had a kid, next thing you know you found other people who had a kid, began taking turns watching each other’s kid and forming a special bond
12. Is this always true? Of course not, but it is a good guide line
B. Application
1. So what does this mean for our church?
2. Despite what I have read in different church growth books and such, I do not feel this area has one homogeneous group
3. In the Mars Pine Richland Hampton area there is not one specific group
4. You could not sit down and describe how everyone is in this community,
5. That is ok, In fact that is ok
6. That will allow us to find our special niche
7. The easiest person for us to reach is the people who are like us
8. Why? Cause we instantly have a common bond, because of that common bond they will trust you
C. Illustration
1. Let me give you an example of how this works. Adam Sandler in the Movie Billy Madison had to go back to school in order to graduate without help from his dad to take over the family business. When he was in third grade they were one a field trip and one of the kids peed his pants. Well Adam Sandler then grabbed a water and spilled it on himself on purpose and said “It is cool to pea you pants” Next thing you know every kid peed his pants
2. Why did that work?
3. Because they all trusted him because he was one of them.
4. People will trust you if you are one of them a lot easier then if your just an outsider
5. This sounds like we are trying to exclude people, but it is not meant to be that way.
6. I am reminded of a old peanuts cartoon (by the way I have the greatest book in my office “the Gospel according to Peanuts”(but this one is not in there)) in this comic Charlie Brown is shooting a bow and arrow and then going to where the arrow landed and drawing a target around it. When Lucy saw this she asked why he was doing this, he said because I never miss.
7. As funny as that might be, that is what we try to do at the church. We throw arrows out there without trying to think about what we are aiming at
8. We need to know who we are trying to reach and aim for the target in mind
III. The How
A. Explanation
1. Many people have written many book about reaching people
2. Given these great step by step ways to reach people
3. However they are all different
4. Which one is right? Well to answer that question we have to look to the Bible?
5. In Acts 2:14-16 We have the lets just call it Billy Graham mode
6. In Acts 8:26-35 We have the do you understand this approach
7. In 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12 We have the friendship approach
8. Notice something hear they all accomplish the purpose of reaching people
9. Which one worked better? Well to answer that you would have to ask the people who were reach, inevitably they would tell you the method that was used on them was the best
10. There is no correct way to reach someone, The only time you can go wrong is when you don’t reach people
B. Application
1. What does this mean for our Church?
2. Notice the people that were reached in these examples had a different need
3. When we come in contact with people often we will find a need
C. Illustration
1. Another peanuts cartoon has snoopy sitting out in the cold snow looking cold. So Charlie and Linus talk to snoopy to comfort him. And what do they say “Be of good cheer snoopy. Yet be of Good cheer. Their snoopy sits, still cold, and now wondering what that was all about.
2. That is not the way to reach people
3. Let me give you some practical ways to reach people in our community
4. You might be talking to someone in our community who is lonely; they have no one to talk to, how do you reach them?
a) Invite them to a church dinner, invite them to church with your friends, you both have to eat take them out to supper, use that time to eat and reach
5. You might find someone in your community that just is running out of energy and has no time with for his wife.
a) What if you offered to mow their lawn and watch their kids and let him and his wife enjoy a night out, they would ask why you are offerings, and you would tell them out of love for them and to show Christ in their life and they would say WOW
6. You might find someone our community whose husband health is failing and they are scared and are falling apart
a) Then you do what Cheryl has done with her neighbor, offer to help clean and drive and help them out in whatever way is possible
7. You might find someone in our community who son has a brain tumor and the chance of survival are slim and the mother is feeling bad that she never got her kids dedicated
a) Well then you assemble as many as you can from the church together on Tuesday evening drive down to Children’s Hospital and have the dedication service at the hospital for someone who has never been to our church
8. That is reaching! That is what is about
9. Showing God’s Love
10. How you do that when God is love, well that depends on the situation
Conclusion
A. Reaching people is a purpose of the Church
B. Not a suggestion
C. It is really easy for me to come us with different ways to reach people
D. It is not hard for me to figure out who we should be targeting
E. It is not hard for me to know why we should be reaching people
F. The hard part comes when we have to do it
G. The problem is not many people will disagree with reaching people as a purpose
H. The problem is doing it
I. Turn to Colossians 4:5-6
J. Be wise in the way you act to outsiders
K. Intentionally go about reaching people
L. Keep the goal of reaching in mind when you come in contact with people
M. It will pay off, it might take time, you might not be the one who gets to harvest the crop
N. You might be the one who plants the seed, every step is important
O. Do your part, Reach people
P. By the way I have asked you every week so I will ask you again
Q. What can we do as a church to better fulfill the purpose of reaching?
R. If you have any
