Good Morning MABC family,
We just finished up our series on evangelism. I imagine that some of you are probably really glad that the series is over. Witnessing and outreach can be uncomfortable to many but it is vitally important for the work of the kingdom. In one article I recently read it said that most churches decline because they forget the reason they exist. They have become so focused on survival that they forget the mission given to the church. After these past six weeks you should know the mission of the church by heart! The church exists to share the good news of Jesus, his death on our behalf and his resurrection to prove that there is life beyond physical death.
I want to remind you that there are two seasons in the life of the church where inviting others to join you on Sunda is made easier. One is Christmas and the other is Easter. Christmas is by far the most popular but without Easter our faith is in vain (I Cor 15:14-20). If Christ had not risen from the dead there would be no reason for us to gather every Sunday. Without the resurrection, the good news of Jesus is not really good news. Sure, there will be occasional days or events throughout the calendar year to invite people but nothing as exciting as those two days. There will stories of Easter egg hunts, the Cadbury Bunny in TV commercials, and even articles about what happened to Jesus’ body in the news. People won’t be talking about a local “Invite a Friend” Sunday anywhere else but in our church.
I don’t know if you are familiar with the magic and comedy duo of Penn and Teller but Penn Jillette made an interesting statement about people of faith in regards to the sharing of the gospel. He said, “I am an atheist. I don’t respect people who don’t proselytize.” Proselytize means sharing your faith, trying to convert people. That’s not a word we use much in faith speak anymore. He continued by saying “If you believe there’s a heaven and hell and that people could be going to hell, how much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize?” If an atheist realizes that followers of Christ have an obligation to share the gospel, shouldn’t we – as professed followers of Jesus – have that same sense of duty?
This coming Sunday is the Easter Cantata, A Living Hope. It is the first activity of celebrating Easter that we have. Who will you invite? Will you get out of your comfort zone and invite someone to join you in the pew?
I will not be in the office this morning as we have a Ministries Team meeting Thursday afternoon so I will spend some time in the office them. I will be there for AWANAs tonight and in the office at 2:30 pm on Wednesday. We also kick off a study of the Holy Spirit on Wednesday beginning at 7:15 pm.
Have a great week. Meet someone new…someone outside of your “holy huddle.”
Pastor Rick