the key to evangelism: hospitality?

Steve Childers of Reformed Theological Seminary stated recently that the key to evangelism in the 21st century will be hospitality.

I can’t help but think one thing….

Hospitality has always has been the key to evangelism.  But not in the way one might assume.

While talk of hospitality in evangelism brings to mind Christians having non-Christians into our homes, inviting pagans to dinner is not exactly what I read in the New Testament.  Don’t get me wrong; I’m not at all arguing against being kind to strangers.  Inviting the neighborhood over for a barbecue is a great way to build relationships.  So is hosting the little league end-of-the-year party.

But my understanding of hospitality’s primary role in evangelism is exactly the opposite.

a report on cpm training

Last week, I spent three nights and parts of four days in Mwakiwasha village, teaching a seminar on CPM.  [To read more on what I taught and the nature of that seminar, see cpm training: a turning point in my ministry.]  This is an initial report on how I believe that seminar went — both the good and the bad.

There were 15-20 people in attendance at each of the sessions, representing three churches.  The group was about half men and half women, with the Mwakiwasha church (the host church) represented far better than the others — as was expected.  We spent roughly 20 hours in class and also ate most of our meals together, sometimes discussing further what we’d studied that day.

cpm training: a turning point in my ministry

Tomorrow I’m going to Mwakiwasha village to teach the Discovery Bible Study process and Church Planting Movements.  I’m posting today, partly to (as per usual) let you guys know what we’re up to in Geita, but mostly to ask you to pray over the seminar.

[If you don't care to read about my plans for evangelism in the villages surrounding Geita, I understand -- this is a long post.  But please skip to the end and pray over the requests I've listed.  I very much would appreciate that.]

There will be representatives present from four or five churches in the area, totaling 12-20 people.  We will begin the seminar with worship on Sunday evening and then three days of classes, likely four classes per day with a time of worship each evening.

The first things I’ll teach (and briefly) are:

• Why group Bible study is important (vs. a lone teacher)
• Why obedience-based Bible study is important (vs. knowledge-based)
• How to do an oral inductive Bible study (a sort of 3-column Bible study)

The reason I’m wanting to teach the above subjects quickly is that once we’ve worked through the above material, the remainder of the seminar’s studies will be done in small groups using the inductive Bible study method.  I will very much limit my actual teaching beyond initially touching on these three subjects.

over-contextualization: an obstacle-less christianity

The gospel is an affront to all men.  An easily accepted form of Christianity is not indeed a form of Christianity.  

contextualization and paul in athens

Are we under-contextualizing the gospel?  Or are we over-contextualizing it?

The second half of Acts 17 is a beautiful picture of Paul presenting the good news in a meeting of the Areopagus in Athens.  It is contextualization at its best.  But what is contextualization, some might ask?  

waiting tables, washing feet: a gratuities tutorial

image courtesy of ethisphere.com

[I recently came across this infographicfrom Conde Nast Traveler.  It highlights tipping customs all over the world, and even explains in detail what is expected here in the United States.  Then I remembered a blog post I'd written about how Christians are often poor tippers -- and, therefore, poor witnesses for Christ.  Here is that essay.]

 

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At a restaurant during Sunday lunch:

• “Do you have any idea how expensive it is to feed a family of five AND leave a 20% tip?!”
• “If I wanted to clean up after my kids, we’d have eaten at home.”
• “We paid to eat here, and we’ll sit at this table until we’ve fully enjoyed our time of Christian fellowship.”
• “Although I’m a Christian, I’m a stingy, selfish, inconsiderate person and don’t mind showing it in public — especially to someone as lowly as a waitress at Chili’s.  Now where were we?  Oh, yeah, I was critiquing today’s sermon…”

One of my favorite bloggers is Randy Morgan, over at Your Best Life Later.  I just read his latest post titled “The Sunday Lunch Crowd,” and wanted to send you his way.  It’s worth a read, especially if you ever go out to dinner on Sunday afternoons.  I’m going to add to his thoughts just a few of my own below.

I Was a Waiter Once…

Waiting tables paid for the last year of my undergraduate degree.  I never liked working the Sunday lunch crowd, despite the fact that they were all “like me” and Christian.  Randy addressed, in his essay, both the horrible tips and the large groups who sit forever, preventing their servers from making any cash above the miserly gratuities, which they’ve so begrudgingly given.

But one thing Randy didn’t mention was the way these “good Christian” families generally make no attempt to clean up after their kids. I’ve even heard some Christian mothers say, “If I wanted to clean up after my kids, we’d have eaten at home.”  I’m not saying these parents need to bus tables or wash dishes.  But they could at least pick up a few of the messy fragments of crayons that were smashed with salt shakers after being dipped in honey mustard sauce.  They could transfer some of the half-eaten french fries and chicken fingers from their tables to their plates.  Or they could utilize a few of the extra napkins they asked for in an attempt to at least begin the process of cleaning their second bottle of ketchup off the wall — or was that the first bottle… and the reason for the second?

Waiting tables was the catalyst for me to reevaluate my Christian witness through tipping.  If you are a Christian, you represent Christ everywhere you go and in everything you do — but ESPECIALLY on Sunday afternoon when you’re dressed in your Sunday best, church bulletin in hand (to get 10% off your total meal purchase).*  And just in case anyone is still wondering, leaving a gospel tract is not an acceptable substitute for tipping.

And the Best Tippers Are…

Some of the best tippers I had were big groups of drinkers and college girls with their dad’s credit cards. Next were my regulars, who were also those whom I enjoyed serving the most — real conversation and real appreciation… and sometimes leftover portions of dessert (illegal for me to eat?).

But the best tippers (far and away) are always other waiters.  I would double my tips on a Friday or Saturday night with one 8-top if the waitstaff from the restaurant next door came in for drinks after work.  There’s a lot to be said for empathy.  When you understand someone else’s situation, you’re much more likely to respond appropriately and in love.

Mandatory Service for All Christians?

Maybe the church should ask its members to fulfill a mandatory service requirement, waiting tables in the restaurant industry.  Funny, isn’t it (or sad), that it’s almost impossible to imagine many of our church members humbly fulfilling that position of service?

And you know what I think… if we’re not willing to wait tables, we’re for sure not willing to wash feet.

Recap

• Randy Morgan is the man.
• The Sunday lunch crowd DOES NOT represent Christ well.
• As a matter of fact, large groups of alcoholics are more generous, kind, and thoughtful than are Sunday lunch Christians.
• Gospel tracts are not suitable for tipping.  [Nor, in my opinion, are they suitable for evangelism.]
• Servers should not eat their customers’ leftovers.
• If I’m ever in charge of a church, there will be a mandatory requirement that all members wait tables for a period of at least one month.
• If you can’t leave a generous tip, don’t go out to eat.  [This one wasn't covered in the post, but should've been.]
• Please think about how you act in public, and how it reflects on my God.

* You know the 10% you save with that church bulletin would be a great start for a tip.  And it’s basically free.

commission and discipleship

Only when we realize mission can not be accomplished by our own authority should we turn our minds towards it.  Evangelism is Jesus’ responsibility.  And our participation in his mission is only possible because of our participation in him.  Jesus does, however, by his authority commission us.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  – Matthew 28:19-20a

Perhaps it would be useful if we listed a few things to which Jesus does not call us in this passage.  We are NOT commissioned to:

• convince people to believe a particular list of doctrines.
• get people into a church building on Sunday morning (or any other day and time).
• plant churches.

We ARE commissioned to make disciples.  I’m not suggesting planting churches is wrong.  Or that inviting a friend to worship with you on Sunday is a mistake.  I’m only listing a few (a very few) of those things which have seemed to take precedence over disciple-making these days.  Even my own mission team here in Tanzania is often referred to as a “church-planting team.”  I much prefer the term “disciple-making,” because our focus isn’t on churches but on disciples.

So what’s a disciple?

Jesus, in this passage,* defines a disciple as a baptized person who is learning to obey all of his commands.

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John King, one of my mentors in Christ, wrote a 3-post series for me on discipleship.  You can find his thoughts here:

• introduction to discipleship

• who is a disciple?

• making disciples

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You know Jesus never once used the word Christian?  Actually, a pretty good (I think excellent) argument can be made that the word Christian, all three times it is used in the Bible (yes, a whopping three), is meant as a derogatory term for followers of Jesus — and was not how they referred to themselves.  The term believers is used more often (I read 14 times), but never by Jesus.

Jesus only refers to his followers as disciples, students, or learners — all of those being translations of the same word (mathetes).**  I wonder if there’s not something to that?  Christianity has in many ways become about merely believing in Jesus, adhering to particular doctrines, and/or church attendance.  Perhaps we’d be better off simply thinking of ourselves as students at the feet of Jesus?

Jesus’ description of a disciple is both straightforward and clear, but we must not confuse simple definitions with simple tasks.  Jesus’ words absolutely necessitate obedience to his teachings — something many of our definitions of Christian don’t necessarily involve.  I’m afraid we’ve so wanted to distance ourselves from works-based religion that we’ve muddled (if not ignored) the very words of Jesus.

Are we worried we don’t possess within ourselves the ability to be obedient to Jesus’ teachings?  If so, I happily concede this point.  This I see as one more reason it’s so very important we read The Great Commission within its context.  Remember that Jesus couches our assignment (and his description of a disciple) in these words:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

and

“Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” 

Obedience to Jesus is assumed in the life of a disciple.  But so is the presence and authority of Christ.  Just as participation in mission is made possible only through participation in Christ, so is obedience to his words.

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This post is the third in a series on The Great Commission.  Other posts can be found here:

• worship (even when in doubt)

• unqualified and powerless for mission

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* And I do try these days, as much as is possible, to let each passage interpret itself.

** With the exception of referring to the 12 as apostles.

unqualified and powerless for mission

When talk turns to evangelism and disciple-making, we sometimes hear statements like these:

• I just don’t know if I can do it.
• It’s not really my gift; evangelism is not one of my abilities.
• That’s not something I can accomplish.
• I don’t have the proper authority, do I?

I won’t argue with those who make these statements; I agree with them.  I think that’s probably why Jesus couches The Great Commission in the words he does (in bold):

Then Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” – Matthew 28:18-20

Jesus makes it very clear that our participation in mission is only possible because of our participation in him.

Making disciples is the work of Christ.  And success will only be by his authority, with his power, and because of his abilities.  You and I both are wholly unqualified to be missionaries and bringers of good news — except through our relationship with Christ.  

All authority in heaven and earth has been given to Jesus Christ, and it is by this authority that disciples are made.  It is also by this authority that Jesus has commissioned us to be workers and harvesters in his kingdom.

And perhaps some of the best news of all is that Jesus will be with us forever.  Mission will never be our endeavor.

We’ve done a great disservice to mission work everywhere by reading The Great Commission with Jesus’ opening and closing statements edited away.  Much harm has been done to Christianity because of this (false) belief that successful evangelism is somehow a result of the evangelist’s abilities.

I pray we can be unqualified and powerless, so Christ can accomplish his mission through us.

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[This post is the second in a little series on The Great Commission.  The first post is here: worship (even when in doubt).]

 

obedience as evidence, love as motivation

This Sunday I’ll be preaching on John 14 in the village of Bilyahilu (I’m driving a truck this time).  And this passage (vv. 30-31) in particular stood out to me during my studies:

I can’t talk with you guys much longer, because Satan’s coming; I’ll need to get going.  It’s not that he’s more powerful than me — Lord (that’s me) knows that’s not the case.  It’s just really important for the world to see how much I love my Father.  That’s why I do everything he says, because I love him.

My Thoughts

• Jesus is leaving because Satan is coming.  It’s not an issue of power, though — Jesus isn’t afraid of Satan.  Rather he’s simply being obedient to his Father.  The Father wants Jesus to leave earth.
• Why does the Father want the Son to leave earth?  I’m going to suggest (according to the context of John 14) it’s so the Holy Spirit can be sent to Jesus’ followers.
• Jesus’s love for his Father compels him to do everything he is commanded. Love is Jesus’ motivation for obedience.
• Jesus stresses the importance of showing the world how much he loves his Father.  It is through his obedience that this occurs.  Obedience, then, displays, and is the evidence of, love.

What I’ve Learned

• There is a key relationship implied here — the relationship between love and obedience.  Love is to be our motivation for obedience to God, and obedience to God demonstrates to the world our love for him.
• A Christian who is not obedient to God does not love him — and, then, is no Christian at all.
• The world won’t be won over by our carefully worded arguments and intelligent thoughts.  Nor will they recognize us as belonging to God by our programs and events.  Rather they will know we love God by our obedience to him.
• I believe one could make a very good argument that the best method or strategy for mission is simply being obedient to God.

 

educational pontificating

image courtesy of davidajacobs.com

Some time ago I was engaged in an online discussion concerning Jesus’ purposes for coming to earth (there are many).  I offered that I was fairly certain it’s not possible to separate and fully distinguish between those purposes — and that such a western mindset might not be helpful anyway.  But if pushed to sum it all up, I supposed giving glory to God would top my list.

There was some disagreement, though, as others felt the salvation of man was Jesus’ chief priority.  The discussion was intelligent and challenging, yet polite and Christlike.  And then someone posted this:

It is this kind of “educational” pontificating that leaves the lost…LOST.

It is part of the reason the Church is shrinking in the US now. We spend too much time pontificating the mission and not enough time doing the mission.

Is it the “Overall” mission? WHO CARES…the lost still need Him!

Other than the insinuation that those of us involved in the discussion are not very involved in actually reaching out to the lost, I thought this comment was appropriate.  There is an awful lot of time spent discussing and debating the word of God — not that this in itself is wrong.  But there are certainly times when I myself ought to be doing… and am found only to be talking.