Chapter One
There was a person by the name of Jesus Christ.
He probably lived a very good and moral life.
I think he was an ethical person.
Whether or not he was more is not important.
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Betty M., U4 from BaltimorePerhaps you would not expect John E., a college freshman in Wisconsin,
to be interested in attending church. After all, John was
raised with little Christian church background. Most of his days in any
kind of religious setting were spent in a Universalist-Unitarian church.
And of course the Universalist-Unitarians do not believe in a fully
divine Christ since they do not believe in a Trinitarian God. But they do
believe that all people will ultimately make it to heaven, a concept for
which they have no clear understanding. But now John is not attending
any kind of religious institution. Yet he still gave this incredible
response: "I probably would attend a church if someone invited me,
and the closer the friend the more likely I would be to attend."
Researcher Travis Fleming is a Ph.D. student at the Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary, where I serve as dean. Travis has a heart for
evangelism. Yet Travis, like most of the researchers, admitted that
this research exercise was an eye-opening experience.
In telling us about his encounter with John E., Travis noted: "I
am grateful to Dr. Rainer for allowing me to work on this research
team for unchurched persons. It has been an enlightening experience
for me. It has made those of us on the team step away from the confines
of the seminary classroom to enter into the minds and the lives
of people who do not have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.
Conducting these numerous interviews showed me there are people
all over the United States who are just a conversation or a relationship
away from being introduced to Jesus Christ."
The sad note about Travis's word is that John E. may never have
heard the gospel unless this research project had intersected with his
life. When asked about his concept of God, John gave a muddled yet
sincere response: "He's a higher being. I picture him as . I really
don't know . he's up there somewhere." Yet John, despite all his
confusion, is ready to go to church if invited. But no one has invited
him to church. And no one ever explained the gospel of Jesus Christ
until Travis interviewed him.
Travis was grateful for the opportunity to interview John, who
could best be described as a U4, resistant but not antagonistic toward
the gospel. Yet Travis also quickly realized that other Christians
would have to enter into John's life for him to become more receptive
to the gospel. "I presume it is going to take one of John's friends
to share Christ with him," Travis mused. "John will listen. That is
why the local church and laypersons are so important. Each one must
reach one! We must 'always be prepared to give an answer to everyone
who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have'"
(1 Peter 3:15).
Why This Book Is for You
I cannot know what caused you to begin reading this book. Perhaps
your pastor suggested you read it. Perhaps you were intrigued
by the title and you have a desire to reach out to your friends and
neighbors who are not Christians and do not attend church. Or perhaps
you know that you could be doing something more to be obedient
to God's command to make disciples of all nations (Matt.
28:19).
Whatever your motivation, I am grateful to God for the opportunity
to share with you the work of the research team. But it is my
prayer and desire to see this book become more than an academic
exercise. Indeed, as I was leading the team in one of our meetings,
Travis commented that he wished this information would be written
for all Christians, not just pastors, ministers, staff, and leaders in
Christian organizations. I took Travis's suggestion to heart and wrote
this book for all who are followers of Christ.
Readers who have read my earlier books will notice similarities
in this book. You will see some statistics and some charts, but you
will also sense the heart of a pastor. Before I came to Southern Seminary
on February 1, 1994, I served as pastor of four churches in Indiana,
Kentucky, Florida, and Alabama. One of my primary passions
in pastoral ministry has always been to communicate God's vision
for reaching the lost. Such is the heartbeat of this book.
Before We Go Further: Eight Tough Questions
If you are willing to hear from the mouths and hearts of lost
people, and if you really believe that lost people matter to God, let
us pause a moment before we get into the interviews, data, and statistics.
Let us be reminded that evangelism, including personal evangelism,
begins with God. It is not some human endeavor that
depends on magical words, the latest methodologies, or cutting-edge
research.
Reaching the unchurched is spiritual warfare. Satan will oppose us
at every effort we make to reach lost people. We cannot proceed in
our own power. In my pastoral and academic ministries, I have seen
Satan thwart the witness of believers in myriad ways. The following
eight questions are meant to address some of those areas in which
our opportunities to be a witness for the Savior can be stymied.
1. How is your prayer life? Most of us, if we are honest with God
and ourselves, would admit that we are too busy for our own good.
Life's demands sometimes cause us to replace the good for the best.
Time in prayer is often the loser when we look at our checklist of to-do
items.
Prayer is an awesome opportunity to come into the presence of
the living God. Prayer is an incredible picture of the demonstration
of God's desire to have fellowship with his creation. Immediately
after the apostle Paul described the full armor of God for spiritual
warfare in Ephesians 6:10-17, he said, "Pray in the Spirit on all occasions
with all kinds of prayers and requests"(v. 18). Prayer is our
source of power to fight the schemes of Satan as we try to reach the
unchurched world around us.
We cannot expect to reach our unchurched friends, neighbors, and
family members if we are not men and women of prayer. I encourage
you to begin each day with a prayer similar to this: "According
to your will, Lord, allow me this day to cross the path of someone
with whom I can share the love of Christ." See how God will answer
that prayer! How is your prayer life?
2. Whom did you tell about Jesus today? I recently finished a consultation
visit with a church in the Midwest. In addition to my role
as dean of a seminary, I am president of a church consultation firm
called the Rainer Group. As part of the preparatory work, our consultation
team interviewed dozens of church members.
One question I asked in a particular interview was a straightforward
"Do you share your faith on a regular basis?"
In addition to the usual hesitation, excuse-making, and defensive
behavior, the response of this person was not common in my interviews.
"How do you," the middle-aged man asked, "share your faith
on a regular basis?"
My response may have seemed curt at the time, but it also seemed
the right thing to say. "Just do it," I replied.
Before I finished my work at this church, this same man
approached me and began to speak with tears flowing from his eyes:
"I left our interview pretty offended. But your words would not
leave my mind: 'Just do it.' I realized that my failure to share my faith
was nothing more than disobedience, sin against God. I just wanted
you to know that I told someone about Jesus for the first time in my
life yesterday." The man really began to lose his composure as he
barely got the last few words out of his mouth: "The person I told
about Jesus accepted him last night. He was my sixteen-year-old
son."
When we fail to share our faith, we sin against God. Jesus told us
in his last words before he ascended into heaven, "You will be my
witnesses" (Acts 1:8). No option or out was given. Whom did you
tell about Jesus today?
3. How is your family life? The last three decades have provided
clear evidence that one of Satan's most effective strategies against
Christians has been to attack the family. When a Christian's family is
in turmoil, his or her witness to the unchurched is damaged significantly.
I wish my best illustration of this reality were not so personal.
You see, my speaking and consulting ministry involves considerable
travel. All of my sons are now grown and living on their own or at
college. But when they were at home, I found myself struggling to
keep a right balance between my work and my family.
My wife, Nellie Jo, did a remarkable job of working with my secretary
to make certain I missed very few of my boys' special events,
particularly the athletic events in which they were so actively
involved. Still, I began to accept more and more invitations. I can see
now that my own ego and sinful self-centeredness explained my
inability to say no.
One afternoon one of my sons brought one of his Christian mentors
to our home. The young man asked me to sit down as my son
shared something with me. Simply stated, my son said that he missed
me. I may have been sitting in the stands of the athletic events cheering
him on, but I had not been there for him just to talk, to spend
time together.
(Continues.)
