A church he visited with in USA, a guy came up after and said ‘Ever since we talked about being missional we’ve stopped doing evangelism.’

Uh oh

Being missional is not just acts of kindness

We have to announce that Jesus is Lord of all, we’re not being missional.

 

David Bosch, ‘Of course words are necessary, unexplained deeds in themselves do not constitute the mission of God’s people.’

 

Yes the church that was once so attaraction only focused; Come to us has turned around to ‘Go.’

 

Colossians 4:2-6

 

Paul advocates 2 pronged approach;

 

1)   Some people are gifted as evangelists, and he’s one of them, with a translocal call. There are also local evangelists in a particular place.

(PRAY for opportunity for them, and that they’re BOLD to seize them and CLARITY in how they present Christ). But he doesn’t say ‘And I will pray the same for you… He says

 

2)   YOU make the most of every opportunity with outsiders, love people, and answer them.

 

This says not everyone is an evangelist. For MOST people, our primary mode is not in public settings but in response to people’s questions.

 

1Pet 3: Be READY to give an answer – when they ask.

Get ready to answer people’s questions, because your life raises questions.

Don’t live the same as everyone else.

If you take the same holidays, live the same comfortable way, spend money the same, what would they possibly ask you about?

Nobody’s asking you to dish out drawings on napkins or tracts or gospel cubes.

Some people are uniquely bold proclaimers.

 

Instead – live a weird life, exquisitely different – so people want to know who you are, and who you know.

Then when they ask. Tell.

 

This is how Christianity subverted the Roman empire and transformed history. Julian the Apostate the C4th Caesar said ‘We’ll lose this empire to the Christians because they feed people not part of their tribe, they care for the dying and weak, and tend their graves if they die, treat their wives well, treat slaves as brothers.’ That subverted everything society did.

So he told his people to OUTLOVE not OUTLAW them.

And they couldn’t do it.

You can’t make a pagan governor love someone. It’s not a strategy. It’s the Holy Spirit.

 

And it was so counter cultural it raised the question that the answer was only Jesus.

Be intriguing.

Don’t live like anyone else. Except Jesus.

 

Paul tells Titus what he wants the men and women etc. not to do. A long list – alternate lifestyle. Why are we getting all this?

 

Verse 10 – ‘If you life this way you will make the gospel attractive…’

Live the way nobody else like you does.

 

If nobody’s asking you the question – you have some questions to ask yourself. Live by the values of the gospel, and people will ask you WHY?

 

In San Francisco he and Alan Hirsch were told to go to the subterranean shoe room.

Started by a guy who was a church planter, who loved shoes.

 

When people come in here, I say, ‘Can I help you?’

And you say ‘I’m just looking’

–       Well if you have time – if you join me on the seat here and share your life story I will tell you what kind of shoes you want.

 

They pour out the story and then I go and select a pair of shoes. ‘Is this what you’re looking for?’

And I sell a lot of shoes.

Then they ask “Who are you? Are you some Buddhist guru? A psychologist?’

 

Then I said ‘Since I became a listener, in a city where nobody gets listened to – I’ve spoken to people a hundred times more about Jesus than when I was a church planter.’

HOW QUESTIONABLE IS YOUR LIFE?

It’s a sacramental vocation.

If you’re an evangelist – be bold and clear

If you’re not – live a questionable life!