This month taught me to be bold in sharing the gospel I learned this through a remarkable missionary and evangelist named Ana.
Ana is one of the most courageous believers I have had the privilege to meet. She taught me what it was to be strong and stubborn while still submitting and respecting leadership. She is a loving nurturing mother who is a weapon of mass destruction to the enemy’s plans for Craiova. She is passionate about reaching the lost and loving the widows, orphans, and people that are dismissed by society. She doesn’t care about her reputation she only cares about serving and loving others well while furthering the reach of the gospel in Romania. I was her unofficial mentee for the month. And she redefined my views of what it means to be a Christian and what it means to preach the gospel.
Some Christians don’t really know why they themselves are Christians so its intimidating to share their faith.
A Christian is not a title given to someone who’s family goes to church occasionally. A Christian is a disciple of Christ obedient in furthering the gospel message and creating more disciples. A Christian is someone willing to dirty their own reputation in the hope that they can love those rejected by society. A Christian is not a Christian because they do nice things or work really hard to be a good person; A Christian is someone who knows they are saved not by works but faith in Christ alone (Ephesians 2:8-10, Galatians 2:16).
The orthodox Christian faith here in Romania believes that they have to work really hard to get into heaven. That maybe if they do just enough good deeds they will be able to tip the scales and get into heaven. They often quote James 2:24 which seems to contradict that faith alone is our salvation. If you read the surrounding passage you realize what James meant by his statement in verse 24. Works are a testament of faith to the unbelievers while faith in Jesus alone is what your salvation rests on.
Faith in Hebrew is Emunah; which describes much more than believing a statement about God. It is living a life of full reliance upon him and trusting in him. Another good definition of faith is an active trust in God where you believe what he says is true and that results in action (Hebrews 11:1).
Key verses on what it means to be a disciple are scattered all throughout the bible. I will highlight a couple below and I encourage you to take some time with no distractions, grab a pen and a journal and see what God shows you through these verses. (Matthew 28:18-20, Matthew 10:38, Mark 8:24, Isaiah 61:1-9, Matthew 16:19, James 1:27)
Now that we’ve defined what it means to be a disciple lets talk about what it means to preach the gospel. In Acts 8:1-4 the early church was facing severe persecution and fear yet they “preached the word wherever they went.” It doesn’t matter if we are in peace, war, trials, up for a big promotion, or even too busy- We must always share the gospel. People are dying everyday and going to hell just because we are too uncomfortable to open up about Jesus. Rediscover the urgency of the lifesaving message of Christ.
It its better to walk away looking like a fool than to never see that person again and regret not sharing the gospel with them.
Romans 10:14 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?
Someone has to be willing to step out in faith and tell the people around them the good news. And the good news is that it doesn’t have to be weird unless you make it weird. So many times just over the last couple of months God has come up organically in normal conversations. One time I ran into a woman while thrift shopping with a squad mate and she asked us questions that lead to us sharing the gospel with her, praying over her, and giving her a bible.
Evangelism isn’t something you schedule, or something you do on a missions trip, but something you live out daily in your normal life.
So often you will hear among the World Race community “Ministry is life and life is ministry.” This concept of living is allowing yourself to be interruptible at any point; even when you are busy, late to meet someone, exhausted, or just need some alone time. And in that interruption listening and connecting with others, taking the time to share about God and what he’s done in your life, or even praying for someone.
A big missing component in the “American Christian experience” is that we lack discipling and community.
We are so isolated to just saying hi at church on the weekends, and maybe sending a couple texts every now and then if someone hasn’t shown up in a while. We weren’t meant to live this life alone. God created us to crave human connection, intimacy, and community. New believers and seasoned believers alike need someone to come alongside them and do life together while pointing to Jesus. A big concept I have learned through this last month is the art of discipling new believers or those searching for Christ. Sometimes that looks like regularly asking them to coffee and being vulnerable enough to ask deep questions about their life. It looks like not always having the answers but instead pointing to God as the answer. It looks like loving and accepting others where they are at and not focusing on fixing them.
My challenges for you to take action are:
1) Share about what God is currently doing in your life with at least one coworker or acquaintance.
2) Reach out to someone at church and schedule time to meet with them over coffee or dinner. Really dig in deep and be willing to go beyond surface level conversation and connect.
