Once upon a time, there was a village of fishermen who loved
to fish. They gathered to form a fishing society with the vision to promote
fishing all over the country. They published books on the benefits of fishing as
a hobby and as a career. They organized seminars on the latest technology for
boats, baits and fishing equipment. At these forums, they sang songs about the
joys of fishing. They also hired experts to research on the migration patterns
and breeding habits of various fishes. They were so busy with all these
activities that there was no time left… to fish.
Until one fine day, a young girl actually decided to sail
out to the ocean and cast a net into the waters. Lo and behold, she caught a huge
load of fish. Instantly she became famous. She was invited to write a book about
her adventures. She was asked to share her amazing experience at fishing
conferences and travel the world to lobby for cross-cultural fishing. Of
course, she too became so busy that she forgot… to fish…
This is a parable... Spend 2 minutes to discuss what this
parable is about. When Jesus called his disciples, He said: Follow me and I
will make you fishers of men. This is a
call for them be with Him, to give their lives to Him and bring people into His
kingdom. It’s a call to evangelism… to make disciples of all peoples. And you
can’t make disciples unless you are first a disciple. We find those fishermen
funny but more often than not, we Christians can be a lot like them. We can
attend trainings, read books and sing songs about evangelism so much so that
the only thing we forgot to do is to evangelize. Really… how much of our
personal life or even our church activities can really be intentionally
evangelistic?
Ouch… this is going to be a tough sermon this morning.
Whenever the topic of evangelism crops up, I think a lot of us squirm with a
sense of guilt… a sense of inadequacy… believe me, I know that feeling all too
well. But there is hope because Jesus says come to me, follow me, learn from
me, trust in me and I will make you fishers of men. There’s a promise. He will
do it. He will make us fishers of men. But will we follow?
Romans 10:13-15
For, “Everyone who
calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
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? As it is written: “How beautiful are the
feet of those who bring good news!”
CDPC Puchong: We are a SIMPLE church. We are committed to
preaching through chunks of Scripture week in, week out to see how all of them
point to our Savior the Lord Jesus. Our desire is for all of our lives (in the
workplace, family and in the city) to be shaped by His truth, His grace and His
justice. One of our key values is to make disciples of all people groups… ergo,
City “Discipleship”. This year, we really want to focus on Making Disciples (through
evangelism, pastoral care and growing leaders). That’s our top priority. Why? Because
we want to be a gospel-centered church. Because if we don’t do that, then we
are not living up to our name. And because “gospel”, “community” and “mission” are
at the heart of the book of Romans.
As you may know, this month, we are continuing our
exposition on Romans 9-11. We have journeyed through 8 chapters last year and
it’s good to just back up a little bit and see where we are. What is the
purpose of this letter? Well, Paul is writing because he plans to go and bring
the gospel to Spain .
And he plans to stop over at the church in Rome
first for evangelism, for ministry and for mutual encouragement. So it’s like a
mission newsletter – Paul needs some assistance to preach the gospel somewhere
which no one has gone before. He needs the church’s support in prayer, help and
perhaps finance. Mission is always a community project, a church project. Even
an apostle doesn’t want to go it alone. But the church in Rome
doesn’t know him personally so he wrote this epistle to introduce himself as an
apostle to the Gentiles and what his gospel message is all about. He ended up
writing up one of the most important and influential books of all time but it’s
good to remember that he didn’t set out to write a theological textbook. Its
core concern is missional. It’s a manifesto, a public declaration for
evangelism.
And the other main purpose of writing the epistle relates to
a problem faced by the church itself. It was culturally mixed with a Gentile
majority and a Jewish minority. The controversy of whether obeying the law and
circumcision as boundary markers that segregate you as a member of God’s people
was unsettling the church. There were those who wanted to obey food laws and
ceremonial regulations, and others who didn’t. Paul wanted to step in and say:
The people of God are defined by faith in Christ alone. Your cultural, ethnic
differences are transcended by Christ so you now stand united in the gospel of
grace.
Guess what? That means gospel, mission and community are at
the forefront of the epistle. David Chong didn’t come up with these brilliant ideas
by himself, in case you are wondering. It’s not just a CDPC idea. It is a
biblical priority. They are all central concerns in the book of Romans, and if
you miss those things, you haven’t grasped it yet.
From the passage we read just now and the rest of Romans
9-11, we can see at least 3 things about
1) The
urgency of evangelism
2) The
hope of evangelism
3) The
purpose of evangelism
If you recall, the broad outline of Roman goes something
like this imaginary chat. Paul says: “I am eager to preach the gospel. I am not
ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of salvation for everyone who
believes (first to the Jews, then to the Gentiles).” Why, Paul, who do they need to be saved? “Because God’s holy anger is
revealed against all who suppress the truth in wickedness.”
Well, how have they done that? “The Gentiles have suppressed
the knowledge of God available to them in creation and the moral law written in
their hearts. They are without excuse. The Jews have the revelation of God’s
written law but they break the law. They cannot keep the law. So all of
humanity have sinned and come short of God’s standards.”
What then is the solution? That’s why the gospel is so
urgent. Why it’s so necessary.
We need the righteousness of God that is given though faith
in Jesus Christ to all who believe. All who believe are declared righteous (not
guilty) on the basis of what Christ has done on the cross. He redeemed us from
sin. He turned away God’s holy anger through His sacrifice for us, on our
behalf. Not by obeying the law, but by what Christ has done for us – His life,
death and resurrection.
That’s why there is no
difference between Jews and Gentiles, rich and poor, bumiputra or non-bumiputra:
Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Saved from what? Our universal need is to be freed from the
guilt of sin. From the controlling power of sin. From the condemnation of sin. Saved
from God’s holy judgment. There is no distinction between Jews and Gentiles,
Indonesians, Malaysians, Egyptians and Americans. We are all sinners and we all
need Christ for salvation. All nations (the entire human race) must hear the
gospel. That’s the scope of evangelism: It’s world-embracing. Among us are
young people who have traveled hundreds of miles, away from home and family, to
be here in Malaysia
precisely because of this urgency, this longing to see Christ lifted up, adored
and treasured in hearts of peoples from every nation. A sister here told me of
a Bible study she’s part of with a Mongolian, Mainland Chinese, Omani, American
and Egyptian. Like United Nations. Wow, wouldn’t you like to be part of a Bible
study like that? Isn’t that beautiful?
My heart’s desire for CDPC is that we become partners in the
gospel with these young people and support them in any way we can. My heart’s
desire is that we all catch a glimpse of Paul’s heart, his longing, his agony,
his yearning for the salvation of people… “I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish
in my heart. For I could wish
that I myself were cursed and cut off from
Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own
race, the people of Israel
But Paul is reflecting His Master’s heart… he yearns for
their salvation so much that he was ready to cursed for their sake. That’s the
heart of carrying the cross. The only people for whom I have that kind of
anguish and sorrow are for my own father and mother who are not yet believers.
For them, yes, I could gladly and willingly wish if it were at all possible to
trade places with them. But that’s nowhere near the kind of sorrow and love
that Jesus and Paul had for the salvation of even their enemies. Those who
rejected and opposed them… So our prayer this morning is that the Holy Spirit
would melt our hearts and give us the same intensity, the same love and
longing. That’s the heart of mission, the urgency of evangelism.
The hope of
evangelism:
To call on Jesus’ name is to ask Him to save us according to
who He is and what he has done. See, you are the one who must call on the name
of the Lord. Nobody can do it for you. And everyone who calls on His name will be saved. There is no such thing as
a person trusts and obeys the gospel but gets turned down by God. “Sorry, I
know you decided to put your trust in Christ alone but so sorry, you are not one
of the chosen ones.” It doesn’t work that way. Everyone who calls on the name
of the Lord will be saved.
But the problem is: there are a million and one reasons why
people would not want to call on His name. They are too busy. They are too
obsessed with what the world has to offer. They are too self-satisfied with
their own achievements. They thought it would cost them too much freedom. You
know, if you have ever tried to share the gospel, there are just so many, many obstacles/excuses
that people give for not coming to faith. What hope is there for us to bring
our friends into our homes, into this church to listen to the gospel? It seems
like a distant fantasy… Maybe in our hearts we have given up hope long ago so
we have stopped even trying. What’s the use? What’s the point? I know that
feeling…
But then again, that’s exactly how we once were, right? We
too were once hardened in rebellion against God, we too were once too proud to
acknowledge Him, we too were once substituting other gods instead of worshiping
Him. We were too worldly. We were just like that. What hope did we have?
That’s why Paul says in Romans 9: “It does not, therefore, depend
on your human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy. He
has mercy on whom he has mercy and he hardens whom he wants to harden.” There
is no hope unless and until God overcomes our rebellion by His love. There is
no hope unless and until He opens up our blind eyes by the light of His word,
and until the Holy Spirit melts our heart of stone and replace it with a heart
beating with new life.
The only thing that prevents evangelism from being pointless
is the sovereign grace of God… The only thing that gives you and I hope in
pressing on with the gospel is the effectual call of the Holy Spirit. The only
thing that keeps us going when all hope is lost is the assurance that God so
sovereign that he can bring the most hardened sinner to faith… That’s the hope
of evangelism that drove missionaries and evangelists to the ends of the world.
That’s the hope that drives us (CDPC) to be salt and light in Puchong.
Back in those days, people do not have the Internet or
television so important news from the king travel by means of a herald. The
herald would run for many miles to the marketplace and announce the good news:
Our king has returned to Jerusalem .
He will restore the nation. You will all return from exile. So Paul quoted
Isaiah: How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim
peace and salvation. The logic is simple there can be no salvation without
calling on Christ, and no calling on him without faith, there is no believing
in Him without hearing him, no hearing without the preaching of the gospel and
no preaching without preachers sent. And so Christ sends you and I to be
heralds of the gospel.
Now, what is the purpose or goal of evangelism? Evangelism
is not an end in itself. Mission
exists because worship does not. Evangelism gathers and unites us with the
people of God, an inclusive community that transcends racial barriers… a family
united in Christ of both Jews and Gentiles. In Romans 11 the picture is that of
an olive tree where believing Gentiles like wild olives are grafted in and
believing Jews are grafted back. We share the same history of faith that
extends back to the promise to Abraham. We stand in solidarity with the persecuted
people of God all over the world. The way we worship together, the way we serve
each other and treat one another especially when we disagree and have theological
differences should model the gospel of grace.
But the ultimate goal of evangelism is the glory of God! That’s
why Paul ends chapter 11 with worship – “For from him and through him and to
him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen”. All that exists came
from Him… He is the creator… all that we are and all that we have are sustained
through Him… and why everything came into being and what is the reason for
their being? The answer is: For Him and to him are all things. He is the
source, the means and the goal of all things.
So we have seen the urgency of evangelism, the hope of
evangelism and the goal of evangelism… You may wonder: How can we evangelize?
What should we practically do?
Let
me share this true story from Michael Ramsden, whom I met at a youth conference
in Bali . He is an evangelist in Europe :
Conversations
over the course of normal, ordinary life that points the way to Christ … Sometimes
we just plan a seed, other times we soften the soil. Sometimes we water the
plant, other times we reap the harvest. It is God who makes it grow and bear
fruit.
And I
really have nothing more profound to say today than that.
Talk
to the people you meet in church this morning… especially those whom you have
never met before. Our guests who are here for the first time… The last thing
you want to see when you bring a friend or student from Oman
to church is to see her checking her Facebook alone at one corner while the
rest of us were chatting among ourselves… Be welcoming, get to know people and
where appropriate, pray for them… invite them over for lunch… Show them the
hospitality of Christ… Serve them… Fetch them home, if necessary… Befriend the
families who come to the library… Play and read story books to their children… It
is holiday season with the Lunar New Year coming this Friday. A lot of us will
balik kampong, visit relatives, friends, colleagues and open houses… Those are
the contexts in which conversational evangelism can happen.
Let’s
not become fishermen who were so busy singing and talking about fishing that
they have no time left to fish.
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