Tag: evangelism

Ascending & Sending, Part 1: The Mission

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(Luke 24:44-53)

Sometimes it’s simple, sometimes it’s complex. A classroom assignment or work project can involve many steps and different layers, or it can consist of one straight-forward requirement that can be carried out and completed with relative ease. The task may be for each student or employee individually, or it may be for a group that is assigned to work together. The more complex the project and the more people involved, the more necessary it is to provide clarity on what the finished project is supposed to look like.

Before Jesus ascended, he reiterated for his disciples what their assignment, their mission, was. As you reflect on the words Jesus spoke to them, would you describe the mission Jesus was sending them to carry out as simple or complex? He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (v.46-47).

Admittedly, it might sound pretty complex. The promised Messiah, the Savior about whom God had prophesied throughout history, first had to suffer, die, and then rise from the dead. We’re already multiple steps into it – sounds pretty complex!

However, when we remember it is the risen Lord himself speaking these words to them, we realize that the heavy lifting in the assignment has already been done! The suffering, dying, and rising from the dead which had to take place had obviously been carried out. The impossible part of the mission had been made possible by Jesus. What was left was not so complex at all.

Repentance and forgiveness of sins would be preached everywhere. That’s what was left. We should probably understand those two terms if we’re going to figure out this mission. So let’s strip them of their churchiness and make sure we know what we’re talking about.

That’s important because sometimes we throw around words and phrases in the church and forget that not everyone actually grasps their meaning yet. So we just keep using the same words, assuming everyone knows what we’re talking about, only they don’t. But, since they also don’t want to look foolish, don’t ask about them and just nod in agreement to go along with the crowd.

If repentance is going to be preached everywhere, we absolutely must know what it means. Simply put, it’s alerting people to turn around. Turn around. It’s caring enough about other people to let them know they’re going the wrong way. Turn around. It’s warning them about the danger ahead that is waiting for them if they keep on their current path. Turn around.

Picture the police car you first spot as a speck in your rearview mirror, appearing out of nowhere. Then, before you can blink, the view of his vehicle has completely filled your mirror because he sped right up to your bumper. The nervousness kicks in. Then, he pulls out of that lane right alongside you and slows to your exact speed. He looks over at you, makes eye contact, and then makes the dreaded gesture, pointing for you to pull over. Your heart sinks and your mind is racing to try to figure out what you did wrong. When he walks up to your window, you’re fully expecting him to drop the hammer on you.

Only he doesn’t.

That’s because he was pulling you over to let you know that you drove right past a warning sign that the road ahead was closed. He informs you that just ahead, around a particularly dangerous curve, a rock slide has left the road impassible. The reason he pulled you over was to warn you of the danger before it was too late. He’s telling you to turn around for your own safety.

That’s repentance. Out of care and concern for others, we’re lovingly warning them about the danger ahead if they don’t turn around. 

But there’s more to the mission Jesus shared with his disciples. He also said that forgiveness will be preached.

While this may be – and certainly ought to be – among one of the most frequently spoken and heard words in the church, do we really get what it means? The word “forgive” here literally means to release or let go, to send away.

So when Jesus says our mission is to follow up our “Turn around” warning of repentance with the news that a person’s sin has been let go or sent away, we are giving people everything they need for salvation! Repentance and forgiveness are like a one-two punch. When we call others to turn around, we have something substantial to follow it up with!

That’s it. There’s the mission. The church’s mission. Your mission. My mission. “Turn around. Your sins have been let go.” 

It’s also important that we don’t wrongly extend the mission. That is, when we have made that message known to others, we sometimes extend the mission to take on the responsibility of the person hearing it. We imagine that it is our job to convince them to believe it. And if they don’t, we conclude that we must have failed at the mission Jesus gave us.

But the response others have to our words is not a part of our mission. Jesus didn’t add the responsibility of convincing others to believe to our mission. That’s his work, as we’ll see more in part two of this post.

Think back to the officer warning the driver about the impassible road ahead. If the driver had disregarded the officer’s warning and sped on ahead, screeched around the corner, and smashed into the huge boulders that had spilled across the road, that wouldn’t mean the officer failed to do his job. The officer wouldn’t be at fault for the driver who disregarded his clear warning at his own risk.

So we aren’t at fault when others refuse to believe and act on our warning: “Turn around. Your sins have been let go.” Our mission is simply to proclaim it.

So how are we doing with that mission? If we’re lagging, there might be a reason.

Take note of another detail Luke shares in this account. It’s an important one. After Jesus explained that everything written about him in the Bible has to be fulfilled, something remarkable happened: “Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures” (v.45). He made it make sense! That’s what Jesus does – he makes the Bible make sense, and he does the same thing today when we read the Bible. The more we read it, the more our minds are opened and the more it makes sense. While we’ll talk more in part two about the special Gift Jesus promised to help make that happen, for our purposes here, it’s enough to see that Jesus makes this make sense when we read it.

But if we don’t read the Scriptures, then it won’t make as much sense. And neither will our mission.

Very recently a comment made by a fellow believer reminded me of how important this was. He referred to himself as a Bible-reading Christian. At first I didn’t think anything of it, but it stuck with me later while working on this message.

His comment implied a distinction between two types of Christians: the general Christian and the Bible-reading Christian. Yes, it almost sounds absurd because we’d assume there is only one kind of Christian – the Bible-reading Christian. Yet, it’s true! There are some Christians who rarely, if ever, crack open their Bibles. Yes, it can still be said that they have saving faith – they believe Jesus is their Savior, and assuming that doesn’t change, they will end up in heaven. But… not before missing out on a huge reason why God makes us Christians in the first place: to carry out his mission!

So if his mission isn’t on your radar, or is unimportant to you, or isn’t something you can scrounge up the time to carry out, might it have something to do with the fact that you fall into that other category – the Christian who doesn’t read the Bible? If so, and if that doesn’t change, then I can guarantee that one of two things – or both of them! – is going to happen. Best-case scenario? You fritter away your precious time here on earth chasing after meaninglessness, but still squeeze into heaven because God’s grace is even big enough to drag your fizzling faith through the pearly gates. 

The other possibility is that your neglect of the Word, at being a Bible-reading believer, ends up leaving your faith completely malnourished. It then starves and you die, not just physically, but spiritually. Worst-case scenario? Both of those things happen. Your life is filled with meaninglessness and vain pursuits, which is then followed by spiritual death for eternity. 

But the message – our mission – is that no one has to experience either of those! Let Jesus make it make sense and open your mind through the Scriptures. Look what happened when the disciples had their minds opened! “Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God” (v.52-53). Joy! Praise! Where did it come from? Their minds had been opened and they knew their mission!

Do you think there is room for more joy and praise in your life? Do you think it might result from being more engaged in the mission Jesus gave his church? Let me give you two reasons why I think it will. 

First, you get to experience the awesome feeling of God working through you to possibly change someone else’s eternity. No, not everyone will hear and believe your message. But some will. And when God allows you to be a part of that process and uses you to bring someone into his kingdom, it’s at the same time one of the most humbling and exhilarating feelings you could ever experience. You’ll feel a joy and praise that you’ve never felt before.

The second reason you’ll experience more joy and praise in your life? Every time you are fulfilling our mission to proclaim this message to others, who else is hearing that message over and over again? You are!

The very message of repentance and forgiveness is reinforced and you are reassured each time you proclaim it to others. Don’t expect some logical explanation for that – it’s simply the promised power of the gospel. It works supernaturally, but it is the power that God uses in us, too, to build us up and strengthen us in our faith. So every time you carry out our mission, you also benefit from that same mission. 

Still not convinced? Still not sure you’ve got what it takes to carry out the mission Jesus gave you? Read on to part two, which covers the remarkable Ascension followup known as Pentecost, where we continue celebrating Jesus’ important work of ascending and sending, and our mission – as well as the means to carry it out.

Don’t Miss the Mission

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(Acts 5:12, 17-32)

Unless you’re an employee showing up for your shift, when you make a stop at In and Out or Chick-Fil-A, you aren’t there to roll up your sleeves and get to work; you’re there expecting to be served whatever you ordered to eat. When you walk into Home Depot, you aren’t there to seek out customers who look lost and offer to help them find what they’re looking for, or to stock shelves with products; you’re there to grab what you need to start or finish that DIY project at home. The same is true of Target, Aldi, Best Buy, etc. – when we pull into the parking lots of these places, it’s because we’re there to get something that we want or need. We aren’t there to check in and see if they’re short-staffed or need a hand with anything. We’re there as customers, consumers who intend to pay for a product or service, expecting to get what we want. 

And there’s nothing wrong with that at all, as all of these places exist to provide you with a service or product. They want your business – in fact they need your business; they rely on it to stay in business themselves. They know that if they don’t provide the good service or good product you expect, then you’re likely to take your business somewhere else. They know there are plenty of other options you could choose, so they will do what they think they need to in order to keep you as a customer. 

Is it possible that our consumer culture could – or perhaps already has begun to – rub off on churches? More to the point, is it possible for similar expectations to drive the “bottom line” in our own congregations? It could if churches (including yours?) aren’t careful and lose sight of why they exist in the first place.

What we’re talking about could easily be caused by one or both of two things: 1) It could be driven by a consumer mentality of congregation members demanding to be served in the way that a customer expects, and/or 2) it could be driven by a the church leadership holding to a business mindset that is only interested in the bottom line and hitting the numbers to generate as many happy customers as possible. 

So how do we avoid either of these traps? How do we avoid being driven by a consumer mentality that views church as just another place that should be concerned with the customer’s happiness and meeting the customer’s needs as they determine them? How do we avoid becoming a business consumed with the bottom line and doing whatever it takes to get more people in the pew and get bigger and bigger with the goal of… getting bigger and bigger, as if that’s why churches exist?

We remember that as the church, the gathering of believers, we have a very special and specific mission. After the Holy Spirit had been poured out on believers at Pentecost, allowing them to perform miracles, signs, and wonders, “the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail” (v.17-18). The followers of Jesus were getting more attention than the self-righteous religious elite of the day, and they wanted it to stop, so they put them behind bars. But when the church is on mission, God isn’t going to hesitate to intervene and open doors – on this occasion, quite literally! “But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life” (v.19-20). 

The believers were carrying out their mission, and when arrested for it, what did the Lord’s messenger tell them to do as he freed them? There was no pivoting or plan B. His message was, “keep it up! Go right back where you were and tell everyone about the new life you now have in the crucified and resurrected Savior, Jesus Christ!” They were arrested for carrying out their mission, and then were not only directed to keep it up, but to keep it up in precisely the same place that would have put them most at risk – right back on the home turf of the religious leaders! 

But the most shocking part was not what the angel told them to do; it was that they did it! “At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people” (v.21). The apostles did exactly as they had been told! This would be the part of the movie where we cringe when we see something bad happen to the overmatched hero, and rather than taking his lumps and moving on, he gets right back up and after it again! It goes against common sense and wise judgment! There’s a fine line between being fearless and foolish, and it might appear initially that the apostles’ actions are closer to the side of foolish.

To provide context to their actions, let’s contrast the behavior of the apostles in Acts with the actions of the disciples from John’s Gospel. The difference? John records for us that the disciples were gathered together with the doors locked “for fear of the Jewish leaders” (John 20:19). Fear! They had locked themselves in out of fear.

In Acts, though, the very Jewish leaders they feared had indeed carried out exactly what the disciples were afraid of and put them in jail. But there was no fear! No hesitation. No trepidation. Why? What had changed?

Yes, some time had passed between that first night on the day of Jesus’ Resurrection and the early church after Pentecost, at least a couple of months. Nevertheless, self-imposed hiding behind locked doors versus breaking out of the very jail you once feared, to engage in the same behavior that put you there in the first place – that’s a pretty drastic change! What accounts for it?

They had been giving a mission, and a special one at that – a mission given to them by a guy who died and then came alive again! This was not your garden-variety mission by any means!

Neither is ours, for it is the same. We have been given a mission by a guy who died and came alive again! Is that any less impressive simply because more time has passed since the day it originally took place? It’s so easy to forget, isn’t it, even with Easter having taken place so recently – we worship someone who died and then came back to life!

If you heard a similar story today of someone being put to death and then buried – all with plenty of eyewitnesses – only to hear that he came back to life, the story would be everywhere! Every major news outlet would be running related stories 24/7 and social media would be blowing up over it. We wouldn’t be able to stop talking about it!

So why is it so easy to stop talking about the most prominent dead guy to ever come alive again? Because we assume people won’t believe us? That wouldn’t shut us up if something similar happened today, so why should it shut us up just because it happened over 2,000 years ago?

Some would say it’s because the church has neglected its focus on evangelism. Such a conclusion is the opinion of many who study church culture and metrics. They would say that one of the biggest struggles the church faces today is in the area of evangelism. Churches don’t prioritize it like they should. Members either aren’t equipped to evangelize or aren’t empowered or impassioned to do so. Might that be the case here? That’s probably a question for you to answer. 

Why are your church? Is it just the religious version of In and Out or Chik-Fil-A  – you’re there because it appeals to your personal preferences and does church the way you like it? Are you there as a customer to be served, or because you’re on a mission, looking to be serving others? Speaking of mission, do you know what your church’s mission or tag line is?

Ours is Seeking the Lost, Serving the Found. Notice what isn’t included there: Show up sometimes on Sundays when it’s not inconvenient and you’re good to go.

Obviously, Sunday morning worship is the heartbeat of what the church does – it is hugely important! But, just as a body has so many other essential and necessary functions than just the heart beating, so the church also has so much more going on than Sunday morning worship. Sunday morning worship isn’t the finish line to cross each week; it’s the starting blocks, where we position ourselves to get the best possible start to carrying out our mission each week!

To imagine it any other way is to not only redefine what church membership means and what the church’s mission is, but to blatantly disobey what God has commanded us to do as believers. It really is that simple. When the apostles were set free from jail, they were told what to do and they obeyed. Later on, as they found themselves in trouble once again for carrying out their mission, what was their response? “Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!” (v.29). They were obeying what God had told them to do. 

When we entirely disregard or are indifferent to what we have been commanded to do as believers, we are disobeying God’s direct orders and failing to carry out the mission he’s given us. And where does that leave us? It drags us back to Calvary yet again, prior to the empty tomb, right back to where we are forced to face the painful reality of our rebellious disregard of Jesus’ mission for his church. There, plain as day, as I scan the endless list of all my other sins for which my Savior was crucified, it is listed: disinterested, disobedient disregard for the very mission for which Jesus gave up his life.

And I am then instantly reminded of why I need to return here to this place – to church – as often as possible. Here I see the cross front and center, yes – but also to witness the white of Easter, the embrace the confidence of the empty tomb, to remember that the Resurrection means I am redeemed and restored from my rebellion. The very mission of Christ’s church that I so often think so little of is his mission to me, too, for I need to hear of my forgiveness. I need his grace. I need to be assured yet another week that no, God has not and will not forsake me, even in my most stubborn moments. So I need to hear his mission to me to renew the zeal of his mission for me. 

Starbucks used to want to be the “third place.” After home and work, they set out to be the third place people would gather at to spend time. A number of factors, like the convenience of mobile orders, led them to change their business model. Once they realized how quickly they could churn out more drinks and serve more customers, they were less interested in a cozy, welcoming lobby, and more interested in volume and speed: more drinks, faster drinks, would mean increased profit margins.

Meanwhile, as local coffee shops continued to pop up nearby, providing the comfortable make-yourself-at-home vibe that Starbucks used to be known for, and having baristas that got to know their customers, Starbucks had some serious competition. Suddenly, the short-term boom in business sort of popped like a pin-pricked balloon. For that reason, you may have noticed recent efforts to restore that “third place” culture that they first became known for. The tables and chairs that were removed from the lobbies, leaving them eerily vacant and open, have been returning. Free refills are being offered to encourage customers to hang around and linger for a bit while sipping their beverage.

So what happened? Some would say that they became more concerned about satisfying shareholders than caring for their customers. They lost sight of their mission.

May we never lose sight of ours. May we never lose sight of the mission Jesus gave us to carry out together. May we never miss out on our mission together, so that others don’t miss out on meeting the same loving Savior we know and love, Jesus Christ. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Connect My Worship with My Mission

Heavenly Father,
Sundays are sacred. The grace and forgiveness you long to lavish on your guests as you serve us with your Word and Sacrament in worship are our lifeline. All depends on it! Let me treasure your house as the place I frequent to freely receive your richest blessings, not only to nourish my soul and spirit, but also to equip and inspire me to carry out your mission, the work of your church.

Keep your mission always before me, and provide me with clarity to see when and how I get to be a part of it on a daily basis. Let me be a conduit of your grace and good news for others. Help me to view worship not as the end and ultimate goal each week, but more like the pre-game pep talk, reminding me of who I am and inspiring me to go out and give your mission every ounce of energy that I possibly can every day. Fill me up this morning – and every Sunday, Lord – to faithfully and fully give myself to you and your mission. 

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Make Your Mission Mine

Dear Jesus,
Keep me on mission – not mine, but yours. The daily grind can keep me from remembering that as one who has been bought and paid for by you, I have also been set aside for your purposes. In addition to your general call to daily put my faith into practice in all walks of life, you commission believers to spread your gospel to the ends of the earth. So many are blindly stumbling in the darkness of unbelief, either unconcerned or unaware that they stand lost and condemned without you.

Unloose my tongue so that the joy of salvation spills from my lips as freely and effortlessly as possible. Make me as passionate for your mission as you were to secure salvation for all. Place me in situations that provide the setting to point others to your grace and forgiveness. Give me ears that are willing to listen for opportunities to bring you into the conversation and make you known. Fill me with passion to fervently and faithfully carry out your mission.

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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For Worship as Evangelism

Heavenly Father,
Sundays are sacred. They are a staple for the spiritual health of believers, but they also serve as one of the best evangelism tools. When visitors join us for worship, they see, hear, and sing the good news of the gospel, which is able to make them wise for salvation. Lead congregations to warmly welcome visitors for worship, and to thoughtfully consider how to make their worship experience a pleasant one. Help churches see the importance of taking care of their facilities so that visitors are left with a favorable impression. When churches do have visitors, facilitate faithful follow-up so that connections can be made that lead to more of Jesus in the future. 

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Remove Barriers to the Gospel

All-Powerful God,
When it comes to your gifts of salvation and the faith necessary to receive it, you deliver those gifts through your Word. However, you don’t only work through your Word, but oversee all things in the universe to suit your purposes, bless your people, and even serve those who are lost in unbelief.

With that in mind, I humbly ask you to arrange whatever is necessary to remove any obstacles that may be hindering the hearts of my unbelieving friends and family from hearing and believing your Word. Take away anything that might be clouding their reason, obstructing their common sense, or deceiving their hearts. While doing so won’t directly save anyone, I pray that it may clear a path for the gospel to reach their ears and ultimately their souls. Do all that is in your power to give the Holy Spirit the opportunity to transform their hearts and change their eternity.

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

Have Faith in Your Feet

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(Romans 10:12-17)

It’s required to navigate icy walkways in the midwest after a snowstorm. The hiker on a precipitous trail needs it. So does the baby learning to walk. The older we get the more we struggle with it. Having faith in one’s feet. When our steps are uncertain or unsure, we’re more likely to misstep or stumble. When we step forward sure-footed and with confidence, however, we’re usually alright. It makes a difference to have faith in our feet. Each step depends on it.

Paul says it’s important, too, albeit for a much more important reason. When we have faith in our feet as we carry out the mission Jesus has invited each one of us to join him on, we have what amounts to the difference between life and death for others. When our feet bring the good news to others, we have what the Holy Spirit uses to create faith. So let’s make sure we have faith in our feet for the reason that matters most. 

First, Paul reminds us why faith is so important: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (v.13). To state it as simply as possible, believers of Jesus Christ go to heaven. So, then, how does one become a believer? Paul lays out how that happens by essentially reverse-engineering the process. “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?” (v.14-15a). 

In order to believe in Jesus Christ, a person first has to hear about him to know who he is. And, if anyone is going to hear about him to know who he is, that means someone has to communicate that to them. And, to know who is responsible for communicating that to them, one has to know who’s responsible for it. 

It’s often said that one something is everyone’s responsibility, then it ends up being no one’s responsibility. In other words, unless a responsibility is delegated to a certain specific person or group, then everyone tends to assume someone else is taking care of it. Ultimately, because everyone assumes someone else is taking care of it, no one does it. The thing is left undone.

But when it comes to the process Paul is describing here, it really is everyone’s responsibility. Every Christian was called to communicate Christ when they were called to Christ. To be a follower of Christ is to a disciple-maker of others. It isn’t complicated. You don’t need me to dissect these words and walk you through the process of disciple-making, because what is asked of us couldn’t be easier: people who know Jesus talk Jesus to people who don’t know Jesus. Pretty simple, right? Not complicated at all. 

So rather than focusing on how we do that or why we don’t, or how to overcome whatever hangups we have, or addressing any fears we might have, or dismantling the excuses we shield ourselves with, we’re going to give more of our attention to the important outcome. It’s the person on the other side who makes this process so important. Here’s the why that drives all of it: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (v.17). 

This verse, coupled with verse thirteen, is essentially everything we’re about. If someone asks you why your church exists, why it’s here, don’t get so caught up in everything else that you forget that we’re here to lead people to be saved by calling on the name of the Lord, and that happens only when faith receives and believes everything Jesus has done for them. That is why we are here. We want everyone to be saved. 

Do we speak enough about that these days? Are we more concerned about offending someone or making someone angry? Maybe it’s a lack of knowledge. Maybe it’s indifference. Whatever is behind it, we cannot stick our heads in the sand and pretend to ignore the reality for everyone who does not call on the name of the Lord: they will be cut off from him forever. 

There is a real hell, and everyone without faith in Jesus will end up there. And I think part of the reason we as Christians may not be as comfortable speaking about it is because we are so concerned about giving the impression to outsiders that we somehow derive a sick, twisted joy from getting to declare that. We feel as if nonbelievers have pegged us as getting a kick out of telling all the sinners out there in the world that they’re going to hell, so they better shape up. They see it as an “us vs. them” thing rather than the reality that we’re all on the same sinking ship of sin, it’s just that in Jesus, we’ve found the only life boat that can rescue us. 

While on this hard topic of hell and how we handle it with nonbelievers, it also affords us the chance to ask ourselves how/if we have contributed to the negative perception others have of us in this area. Do they notice us more naturally talking to them about going to hell than about Jesus taking them to heaven? Are we more comfortable announcing warnings than we are the good news? Is it possible that nonbelievers know we’re believers, but are surprised that we don’t talk more about it or care enough about them to share what’s important? Do they interpret our silence as indifference or a lack of concern about them? 

In a video over fifteen years old, a man expressed his admiration for Christians sharing their faith. He talked about a time someone handed him a Gideon’s Bible, and the impact it had on him. He said, “If you believe there is a heaven and hell, and you think it’s not worth telling someone about it, how much do you have to hate him to not proselytize? To believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell people? This man cared enough about me to proselytize.” While the man in the video was sure to point out that this kind effort didn’t change his mind about being an atheist, we can appreciate the point he is making. You may recognize the man in the video: self-proclaimed atheist, Penn Fraser Jillette, half of the comedic magician duo known as Penn and Teller. 

Whatever the reason for our lack of evangelism efforts, we need to go back and apply these verses to ourselves. We need to repent and rejoice that all of our sins have been forgiven, including our dismissal of our calling as Christians to evangelize. Make no mistake – that sin is as deadly and damnable as any other, and even more damaging than many other sins, because not only does that sin accuse and condemn you and me, but it also by default leaves our neighbor who never heard the gospel lost in unbelief! So when Christians clam up, we sin against our holy God, but we also leave our neighbor condemned in his ignorance. Lord, have mercy on us for forgetting and neglecting our own spiritual health and that of our neighbor when we refuse to be the beautiful feet bringing good news to others! 

And he has! Remember, the good news we fail to share is also the good news we need to hear: we are fully forgiven in Christ. Let the Lord’s words to Isaiah resonate in our hearts: “your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for” (6:7). Let Jesus’ words to Simon Peter ease our fears and sharpen our focus: “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people” (Luke 5:10). Without fear, and filled with faith, we embrace Christ’s calling to fish for people.

Let’s be clear. The only way anyone can be saved is through faith in Jesus. How does the Holy Spirit create faith in a person’s heart? Through the good news of the gospel, that in Jesus, sinners have the Savior they need. 

Let’s also be clear. That means that the family living two houses down from you will not come to faith because you are a good neighbor. Your boss and co-workers will not  come to faith because you are the understanding and patient employee. Your friend will not come to faith because you are a good listener when she is struggling. The panhandler will not come to faith in Jesus because you gave him lunch or a couple bucks. Your family member will not come to faith because you were trying to be sensitive and not “push your religion” on him. Now, are all of these things good things? Yes! Do we want to be and do these things? Yes, absolutely!

But they can’t be the only thing. No one will come to faith unless we take that next step and share the good news, for “faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (Romans 10:17). Don’t leave the job of letting your light shine undone by avoiding the crucial step of sharing the only message that creates faith. 

What difference can you really make? It depends on whether or not you believe that what Paul wrote about God is true. Is he the “Lord of all [who] richly blesses all who call on him…?” (v.12). If he is, then believe he’ll richly bless your efforts, and let’s get to work in leading others to call on him so that he can also richly bless them. Let’s get to work in leading others to call on him because ““Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (v.13). Let’s go out and earn the reputation of having beautiful feet. Let’s get our beautiful feet to work bringing the good news to wherever we live, and marvel at God doing his thing through our efforts.

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Comfort the Mourning

Loving Redeemer,
You came into a world all too familiar with the grief of loss. You experienced it firsthand as you mourned the loss of your dear friend, Lazarus. Yet in that moment of grief you unveiled a powerful demonstration of why you came into this world: to minimize mourning and ensure that it will one day come to an end altogether. In raising Lazarus from the dead you foreshadowed your own resurrection, which would limit death’s reach and hold out eternal life to all who believe. 

Having risen and ascended, you now entrust that message of salvation and eternal life to us. No matter the cause of mourning, we have the solution. Make me bold to proclaim it, that those covered in tears and ashes of sadness may know joy again. As I speak your words of hope and life to others, turn grieving to gladness and sorrow to splendor. Lift up those weighed down by the crushing blow of death and grant them life to the fullest here and now and for eternity.

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Free the Captives

Loving Redeemer,
As Isaiah prophesied, you came to proclaim freedom for captives and release from darkness for prisoners. The imagery of being imprisoned paints a powerful picture of how trapped so many are by their sin. While many experience the physical consequences of their sin, literally serving time behind bars as convicted criminals, Isaiah’s visual applies primarily to those who are figuratively and spiritually captive. For those ensnared by addictions to vices like drugs, alcohol, or pornography, it is as if they are held captive and are slaves to such things. Others feel imprisoned by guilt, unable to free themselves from it no matter how hard they try.

You’ve tasked me as your messenger to proclaim the freedom you won for them. Let me make known to them that your saving work has thrown open all prison doors – those of guilt, addiction, and all other enslavement. Let your gospel be for them the key to set them free, and compel me to go to work with that key as often as possible – the prisoners are waiting to be free!

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Bind up the Brokenhearted

Loving Redeemer,
For more reasons than we could possible imagine, many are brokenhearted. Their hearts are heavy because they grieve the loss of loved ones. Their hearts hurt because others have harmed them, sometimes emotionally; other times physically. Their hearts are broken because their own past wrongs leave footprints of guilt that they cannot sweep away. 

You saw this when you walked among us. You hurt alongside the brokenhearted. But you also came to heal them, to bind them up. With your powerful touch and your healing words, you restored and made well again.

You give us the same powerful Word to bind up the brokenhearted. Let me speak that Word with the confidence and courage that it can heal wounds and soothe spirits. As I speak your Word, let the medicine of your grace and forgiveness, your mercy and relentless love, bind up the brokenhearted as only you can do, and as personally and intimately as each individual needs it. 

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.