Matthew, Mark and Luke all record a story of Jesus sending out His followers with instructions to spread His good news. Each time, the details of his instructions differed slightly but one element always remained the same.
Matthew 10:11 says: “Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave.”
Mark 6:10 says: “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town.”
Luke 5:5–7 says: “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.”
The principle is very clear. Find a house. Stay there.
I don’t think this negates the efforts of those who evangelize door to door or those who engage in street preaching. I do think we should recognize that those methods are not necessarily the primary evangelistic method recommended by Jesus.
Jesus’ Plan for Sharing the Gospel
Jesus wanted his followers to meet people and develop relationships with them. He wanted his followers to share their life with people, to eat with them, to enjoy time with them. He wanted his followers to engage the highs and lows of life with people; to work through the regular struggles of every relationship. Very clearly Jesus told his followers, “Don’t move from house to house.”
Sadly, the longer they are part of a church, most Christians gradually lose all contact with the outside world. They fill their lives by going house to house with other Christians. There are few or no persons of peace in their life which means they have few or no opportunities to share the Gospel with those who most need it. This was not Jesus’ plan.
Find a Person of Peace
I wonder how difficult it would be to find a person of peace today? Who is that one person with whom I can build a relationship? Who is that one person who will welcome me into their life even though they may not share my beliefs? How might that relationship change me? How might it change them? How might it change the world?
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