World Renewal International
Monday, April 2, 2007
Don't Go Fishing In the Bathtub!
Wow! I so appreciate the comments you folks left. Obviously, we all care about the state of the church of Jesus Christ today and want it to be fruitful. Dan mentioned my use of the need for "cultural relevance." I would agree that when we see those words used today that sometimes we need to put on the yellow caution light and check out what someone is really saying when they use that phrase. I think I am most concerned about this in the area of winning people to Christ. My example is how many of the churches I minister in seem to expect lost, unchurched people to come to the church in order to find Christ. Metaphorically, this is like fishing in my bathtub. It is very convenient but not very effective.
Now remember, I am an appointed evangelist for the Evangelical Friends Church. God uses me to win people to Christ. I have seen, only to God's credit, thousands of people walk down aisles in auditoriums, most of them churches, and receive Christ as their Savior after I have preached and given an invitation for them to come to Christ. However, none of those folks probably came to Christ without someone sharing Christ with them in their daily life in a culturally relevant testimony or dialogue. Studies show that 95% of those who come to Christ do so because of the influence of a Christian friend or family member. When they have walked down the aisle in a service I have preached, I am just the closer. I did not plant the seed, I did not water and cultivate that person. Someone else did the farming, I am just the custom combine. If we wait until people come to church services to be convinced of Christ's invitation to know him, then we are living in the past when people went to church to meet Christ. There was a time when that was more culturally relevant than now.
Peter wrote, "Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect." 1 Peter 3:15b NIV. Preparation for me is to be able to speak in more than Christian terminology but in words people understand. This is true for me whether I am standing on a stage or sitting in a restaurant. If it is in a restaurant or some more intimate situation than the stage monologue then there is always opportunity for dialogue. Today, with so little knowledge of Christian truth in the average listener we need dialogue as much as possible to ensue what the listeners are really hearing from us. I should not "dumb it down" or "water down the Gospel" but it does need to be in words that the listener can relate to. I need to be prepared.
I am also doing my best that my presentation of the Gospel in preaching is "culturally relevant". Yes, in this culture that is so focused on visual, what we see I use pictures, movies, object lessons, picture stories and anything else get their attention, to keep their attention and help them understand. I feel Jesus did the same. He used the sheep, the trees, the mountains and anything else he could use to get his listeners attention and to help them understand and remember his teaching. He did not do this because his audience was as visually oriented as ours, but only 5% of his audience could read or write. Few were taking notes and no one was recording his words except those who played a part in recording the scriptures. He used many methods to help them understand and remember. Our audiences need the same, but because we are overrun with information and remember little and we are used to learning with graphics and visual aids.
Saturday night at Liberty Church, near Georgetown, IL., we had advertised that Mike Cruse (pictured today) would give his testimony describing how he came to Christ. Mike was ready and prepared. Everyone there understood his words and folks did respond. We did see first time commitments to Christ. Mike told how he started playing and singing in bars when he was 14. He also started drinking at this age. Drinking and playing in bars eventually led him to using drugs. He did this for over 30 years.
Mike found Christ five years ago after he had lost his second marriage and his children did not want to be around him because of the intoxication. He found himself wearing a ankle bracelet because he was under house arrest. He was found guilty of a felony for his second DWI. His house arrest was being served at his parents because he had lost everything else and had no place to go. His mother had left the television on to TBN and went on to bed late at night. He scoffed at the ministry he saw on the television. Yet he found himself on his knees at 3 AM crying out to God to save him. God did just that. Mike says, "I felt fire in my body." Mike has been clean since. He started singing with us about two years ago. I have told him that he is the only staff person World Renewal Intl has who found the Lord while wearing an ankle bracelet, but I sure hope he is not the last. Praise the Lord for what wonderful things he does in our lives.
Thanks for stopping by.
:: posted by Gary Wright, 6:40 PM
2 Comments:
Gary,
Thanks for putting in a picture of Mike. I am so thankful God uses his testimony to win others. I sure miss those guys. The church really struggles with the issue of Cultural Relevancy. That is a big concern of mine for the body. I love her but I grieve over her too.
Dan Downer
Thanks for putting in a picture of Mike. I am so thankful God uses his testimony to win others. I sure miss those guys. The church really struggles with the issue of Cultural Relevancy. That is a big concern of mine for the body. I love her but I grieve over her too.
Dan Downer
Amen!!!
