Embracing the Open Door: Paul’s Call to Evangelism

Posted on by korgrocker

“In the meantime, I will be staying here at Ephesus until the Festival of Pentecost. There is a wide-open door for a great work here, although many oppose me. When Timothy comes, don’t intimidate him. He is doing the Lord’s work, just as I am. Don’t let anyone treat him with contempt. Send him on his way with your blessing when he returns to me. I expect him to come with the other believers.”
1 Corinthians 16:8-11 NLT

Paul was staying in Ephesus when he wrote 1 Corinthians, and a substantial distance of over 500 kilometres across the Aegean Sea separated the two congregations. Without a postal system, Paul would have relied on a merchant or some other traveller to transport the letter. But Paul was apparently reluctant to leave Ephesus at that time because there was a “wide-open door for a great work” in that city. We note that this “great work” was not easy for Paul because many opposed him. But that was never going to stop Paul from doing the Lord’s work, no matter the consequences. We can read about one of the dangers Paul faced in Acts 19, when the silversmiths in Ephesus started a riot because they feared their business would suffer from Paul’s evangelism. There was fierce opposition to the Good News about Jesus in those days, as the devil tried desperately to stop his worldly kingdom from being eroded.

If we fast-forward to today, to our 21st-century Western societies, we find a distinct lack of emotion expressed toward the Gospel. But resistance to the things of God is still here in the UK, as we are increasingly finding out that British Christians are being persecuted for “crimes” such as silent prayer and, as a recent case exposed, for preaching the Gospel from John 3:16, both within the abortion clinic buffer zones that have been established in this country. Sadly, we have had a series of governments that have passed laws that go against Biblical truth, and even more sadly, Christians here have let it happen. 

“The harvest is great”

But as we look around our cities, villages and towns, what do we see? Churches with dwindling congregations? Worldliness abounding through a plethora of betting shops and drinking houses? People pursuing hedonistic activities but neglecting their souls? I’m sure Paul looked around Ephesus and observed much the same, because human nature hasn’t changed much over the times in between. But rather than view what was happening as a negative, Paul instead considered the opportunities for preaching the Gospel, describing the city of Ephesus as a “wide-open door”. Jesus looked around at the people in Galilee and saw an opportunity. We read in Matthew 9:36-38,  “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields””. When Jesus was in Samaria, He felt the same way, and He said to His disciples, “You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest”. So, the problem with reaching our societies for Christ might not lie so much with the message as with the lack of people preaching it. So, as we look at the people around us, what do we see? A mission field just waiting for someone to bring in a harvest of souls, or a place of barrenness incapable of producing any fruit?

“The Lord opened her heart”

Even Christians will discourage their fellow believers from reaching out to those around them. There are many excuses offered, and I was recently told by a minister’s wife that there is little point in reaching out to strangers during my morning walks because evangelism is only really effective with people we already know. But such thoughts didn’t stop Paul, and they won’t stop me either. We read about Paul and Silas’ visit to Philippi in Acts 16:13-14, “On the Sabbath we went a little way outside the city to a riverbank, where we thought people would be meeting for prayer, and we sat down to speak with some women who had gathered there. One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth, who worshipped God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying”. God went before Paul and prepared the way. And He will do the same for us, as we commit our ways to Him.

Today, we must always be prepared to share the Gospel and our testimonies. The “wide-open door” is still there, and God is still in the business of preparing the way. How prepared are we, though? What stops us from reaching out to people? Fear of what they might say? Fear of rejection? Paul experienced all of this and worse. Yes, we will experience knockbacks, but even in contact with others, we might just plant a seed that will grow over time into someone finally accepting Jesus for themselves. So today, we must look at the day ahead and commit it to God, asking Him to show us who He wants us to share Jesus with. 

Dear Father God. There are many people around us who, in their spirits, desperately need to hear about You and Your saving grace. Please go before us, preparing the way, and please give us the courage we need to share Your Good News. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Sting of Death

Posted on by korgrocker

“Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power.”
1 Corinthians 15:54-56 NLT

Imagine that day, when we find ourselves back in a body, no longer a spirit being. But this won’t be any body, much like our old one with all its aches and pains, and sinful tendencies. This will be a body that will never die. It will never let us down. It will be there for us forever. Too much to believe? But that is what Paul wrote in these verses before us today. So how is it going to happen? In 1 Corinthians 15:52, Paul wrote, “It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed”. 

In Matthew 24, Jesus was replying to a question from the disciples about when the world would come to an end. It’s a question we might have too, because if we look at what has happened in our world since the start of the twentieth century, we wonder how life can continue. Two world wars, and even now, there is another war going on in the eastern boundaries of Europe. But Jesus was clear. He said, “Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come” (Matthew 24:7-8). However, other events must happen before the “last trumpet” is sounded. At the end of all the apocalyptic events Jesus described will be a sign that no one will miss. “And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven” (Matthew 24:30-31). But one day, sooner or later, our life as a human being will come to an end. Our physical bodies will be consigned to the grave and will return to dust as God told Adam in Genesis 3:19, “By the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made. For you were made from dust, and to dust you will return“. But our souls/spirits continue to live forever. Believers will find themselves in Paradise (Heaven): Luke 23:43, “And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise”. Everyone else will end up in Hades or Sheol, different names for the Place of the Dead: Luke 16:22-23, “Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet. The rich man also died and was buried, and he went to the place of the dead. There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side”.

“For the wages of sin is death“

So we get a good idea of what the “sting of death” is all about when we consider what could happen after death. Believers, those who have put their trust in Christ, and have repented of their sins, and have accepted righteousness through Him, will have nothing to fear, and there is therefore no “sting” involved. But those who are unbelievers are unrepentant sinners, and so they will experience a spiritual death in the life to come. Paul wrote, “For sin is the sting that results in death“. God never intended Adam and Eve to experience death, but it was something they brought upon themselves through their sin, and human beings have been sinners ever since. Of course, we also realise that sin has a “sting” that impacts unbelievers within their natural lives, because their spirits will be dead and perishing. Whatever our state, sin alienates mankind from God: Isaiah 59:2, “It’s your sins that have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore”. Consequently, sin, if unaddressed, will lead to eternal death: Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord“.

Once again, I find myself writing that people have a choice about where they will spend eternity. It seems to be a theme that runs through much of Paul’s letters, and I’m sure he implored people to make the right choice at every opportunity. So must we, and I’m always looking for people with whom I can share the love of Jesus. But I was thinking today: what if someone came up to me and told me they had life-changing news that could change my life forever? I know what my answer to them would be today, because I have embraced the message and believe it, but it wasn’t always so. We must ask God to prepare the hearts and minds of the next person He wants us to share the Good News about His Son with. Thankfully, due to the persistence of a Godly man, I am a child of God who doesn’t fear the “sting of death”. We, too, must persist, helping someone to become a child of God as well.

Dear Father God. Thank You for Your saving grace and for Jesus who died for our sins, taking on our punishment so that we wouldn’t have to. We praise and worship You today. Amen.

The Sign of Tongues

Posted on by korgrocker

“So you see that speaking in tongues is a sign, not for believers, but for unbelievers. Prophecy, however, is for the benefit of believers, not unbelievers. Even so, if unbelievers or people who don’t understand these things come into your church meeting and hear everyone speaking in an unknown language, they will think you are crazy. But if all of you are prophesying, and unbelievers or people who don’t understand these things come into your meeting, they will be convicted of sin and judged by what you say. As they listen, their secret thoughts will be exposed, and they will fall to their knees and worship God, declaring, “God is truly here among you.””
1 Corinthians 14:22-25 NLT

Paul seems to contradict himself in these verses today. On the one hand, he said that speaking in tongues is a sign for unbelievers, but then he says that “if unbelievers or people who don’t understand these things come into your church meeting and hear everyone speaking in an unknown language, they will think you are crazy”. Which is it? If we extend what this all means to today’s Western churches, then we can see the problem. Most established churches have a liturgy that excludes the possibility of speaking in tongues in public during the meeting. I can just imagine that the church wardens would descend on such a person and, unless they desisted from their message, they would be escorted out the door. Those churches with a freer form of service, such as the one I attend, still only rarely hear the public message of tongues, although it features greatly in personal prayer and praying for healing, for example. But someone walking in off the street and hearing a church full of people all speaking out their messages in tongues would very quickly reach the conclusion that everyone there is mad! 

On the other hand, Paul said that the same random person, an unbeliever, who walked into the church and found messages of prophecy being spoken out, would be able to understand what was being said and would be convicted of sin. This would be because the Holy Spirit brings the prophecies. We know the ministry of the Holy Spirit from what Jesus said, referring to the time when the Comforter comes, in John 16:8, “And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment”. Paul said such people, hearing the prophecy being spoken, would “fall to their knees and worship God, declaring, “God is truly here among [them]””. 

“God is truly here”

This was all good practical advice from Paul, as he appealed to the intelligence of the Corinthian believers, and logically explained something that, surprisingly, had not occurred to them. But why should Paul be concerned about what unbelievers think? That is an easy question to answer, because Paul was not only an Apostle, but was an extraordinarily effective evangelist. He was very concerned about the salvation of the peoples in his time, and in particular, his fellow Jews. He wrote to the Romans, “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” (Romans 9:2-4a). Later on in Romans, Paul wrote, “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation” (Romans 15:20). And we can read from 2 Corinthians 11 what Paul suffered in the process of evangelism.

We pilgrims, too, must be concerned about what people think. Too many Christians adopt an offensive attitude toward the unsaved people around them. They behave in ways that demand a contemptuous response rather than one that is attractive and able to perhaps open a door for the Gospel to be delivered. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, “Though I am free and belong to no-one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings“. In that context, Paul perhaps foresaw a situation in which a believer invited an unsaved neighbour into the church. What would this person find there? Chaos with the church members babbling away in tongues, or a place where there were prophetic messages, bringing conviction of sin?

“Is the Holy Spirit alive
and well in my church?”

We pilgrims go to a church, I’m sure. Do we feel comfortable about inviting our friends and neighbours there, or is it a place that, deep down, we’re ashamed of? Is it a place where the Holy Spirit is alive and well, and able to bring messages through His gifts that will bring conviction of sin? If we think not, or we’re not sure, perhaps some further prayerful thought is required about where our spiritual home should be.

Dear Father God. We want to be in the place where You want us to be. It must be a place where Your Spirit is free to live and move in the hearts and minds of believers, and where You can be freely worshipped. Please lead and guide us, we pray, and help us to reach out to those around us with the Gospel and Your message of hope. In the name of Your dear Son, Jesus. Amen.


World Identity

Posted on by korgrocker

“Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy. I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do. Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world. And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.”
John 17:13-19 NLT

Who do we pilgrims identify with – those unbelieving people in the world around us, or the believers in our Christian communities and fellowships? Unfortunately there is no grey area in the middle. Jesus said that functioning believers, disciples and pilgrims like us, will be hated by the people in the societies around us, people who are soaked in their sins and heading for a lost eternity. And Jesus prayed that His disciples, and pilgrims everywhere by extension, would be kept safe from the enemy, the “evil one”. He made the statement that such people as us “do not belong to this world”. 

But how do we pilgrims reconcile the Great Commission, to “go into all the world to make disciples”, with the need to keep ourselves separate from the world and, by implication, all of its ways? This was always a challenge to me in an office environment, where the behaviour of those around me was unacceptable for a Kingdom man, with the gossip, the blasphemous language, the flirting, the invitations to attend parties and join the team at the local pub after work, and so on. Sometimes I felt like an outcast, shunned by the people in my team, and assigned work that was less collaborative as a result. But how could a child of the King ever be involved in the ways of the world, a different kingdom, where their “king” was the devil? 

Jesus said in Matthew 5, “You are the salt of the earth” and “You are the light of the world”. And He finished this section  with “In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father” (Matthew 5:16). In a dark world we are beacons of hope but, as such, vulnerable to attacks from the enemy. Our behaviour is of course influenced by our relationship with God. As an example, in Daniel 1:8 we read, “But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods”. The Jewish exiles and Daniel behaved in a way conducive with the Law of Moses. On the other hand, we read in Matthew 9:10-11, “Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?”” It is possible for believers to enter the border territory between the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of the world, but with fear and trembling, and with much care. But after all, how else can we reach the lost with the Good news of eternal life?

Peter wrote, “ … for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). ‭‭We are a people sanctified by the blood of Jesus, and because of that the devil can’t touch us – unless we let him!

Dear Heavenly Father. Thank You for Your protection and care. Please lead us to those people in the world who You have chosen, and keep us safe in the process. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Natural Evangelism

Posted on by korgrocker

“Many in the crowd had seen Jesus call Lazarus from the tomb, raising him from the dead, and they were telling others about it. That was the reason so many went out to meet him—because they had heard about this miraculous sign. Then the Pharisees said to each other, “There’s nothing we can do. Look, everyone has gone after him!””
John 12:17-19 NLT

For those people who believed that evangelism didn’t start until after the Day of Pentecost, referring to that tremendous sermon from Peter after which three thousand men were saved, and which we can read in Acts 2, then they have missed something. The news about the raising of Lazarus from the dead, a miracle initially observed by a “crowd” of people (perhaps thirty or forty?), spread quickly through Jerusalem and the surrounding areas and even to the Passover visitors. The people who observed Lazarus emerge from the grave still wrapped in his graveclothes would never forget what had happened before their eyes, and they couldn’t wait to go and tell someone. A natural response to something out of the ordinary. But isn’t that evangelism?

Another remarkable event took place on the Day of Pentecost, when the people in the upper room, who had just experienced the tongues of fire and the ruach of God rushing through the place, burst out onto the streets of Jerusalem, speaking in languages native to the many visitors who had come for the Feast. Isn’t that evangelism?

The Pharisees were at a loss to know what to do. The amazing miracle that Jesus had committed had become common knowledge in that area and the people flocked out to see Him as he rode the donkey up the road into Jerusalem. In despair, they realised that they had been deserted, and didn’t have the following amongst the people that they had previously enjoyed. Their teaching was heavy and boring. They were unable to demonstrate miracles. And no amount of threats could stop the people from following the Man who did such amazing things. Isn’t that the result of evangelism?

We pilgrims have experienced a remarkable miracle ourselves. That the Creator God of the Universe would love us so much that through His Son, Jesus, He has allowed us to enter His presence sinless and righteous, and has ensured that we will be with Him for all eternity. That’s a miracle, and one that we cannot but tell everyone we meet. It’s a message that will not often be welcomed. Faced with a choice, people will prefer the pleasures of sin over the assurance of an eternity spent with God. But we pilgrims pray every day and ask God to lead us to just the right person who will be receptive to hear our miraculous message. We are not all great evangelists preaching messages to thousands of people. We might be like the teenager who persuaded a friend to go to church with him, and the friend was saved. That friend was Billy Graham. We don’t know what happened to the teenager, but we do know that he was faithful in doing what God had asked him to do.

So who knows – the next time we share our messages of hope, there might be another Billy Graham waiting to hear what we have to say. Isn’t that evangelism?

Dear God. Your love has motivated us to the point that we cannot help but tell others about all that You have done for us. Please lead us to the right people. In Jesus name. Amen.

A Changed Heart

Posted on by korgrocker

“For you are not a true Jew just because you were born of Jewish parents or because you have gone through the ceremony of circumcision. No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people.”
Romans 2:28-29 NLT

The writer of the Roman letter, Saul of Tarsus, later to be called Paul, had a change of heart one day. It was a dramatic, cataclysmic event that totally changed his life. But it wasn’t just his heart that was changed. The narrative starts in Acts 8, with a mention of a man called Saul witnessing the murder of the first Christian martyr, Stephen. And Saul was so incensed by what he perceived as a dangerous threat, posed by the early Christians who were referred to as “the Way”, to the sanctity of the Jewish religion, that he started to persecute them. We read in Acts 8:3, “But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison”. Dramatic stuff. The story continues in the next chapter. We read in Acts 9:1, “Meanwhile, Saul was uttering threats with every breath and was eager to kill the Lord’s followers. So he went to the high priest”. Equipped with letters of authority, Saul headed off to Damascus to create mayhem there. But on the Damascus Road, something even more dramatic happened. We read in Acts 9:3-5, “As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting!” Blinded by the light in his vision, and after a few days, Saul was baptised, publicly declaring his conversion to become a follower of Jesus. That encounter with the risen Jesus totally upended Saul’s life. But then something equally as dramatic occurred. We read in Acts 9:19b-20, “… Saul stayed with the believers in Damascus for a few days. And immediately he began preaching about Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is indeed the Son of God!”” A “change of heart“? I would say so!

For us pilgrims, we too had a “change of heart“. It may not have been so dramatic as Saul’s, on that Damascus Road. But it would have been real nevertheless. That point in our lives when we turned around, from a life of evil and wickedness, and instead turned towards Jesus, bringing our sins to the foot of His cross at Calvary. And there we received the forgiveness that our spirits yearned for. Through God’s on-going grace and mercy, the offer remains.

But following his “change of heart”, Saul became Paul and one of the most effective evangelists this world has ever seen. We too have a mission. The manifestation of God’s grace through Jesus in our lives cannot be suppressed within us. We have to shout it out. Especially in these last days as the persecution of Christians increases day by day, drip by drip. We may feel that there is no persecution of Christians in our Western societies, but just this week the Scottish Government approved legislation allowing 16-year olds to self-certify which gender they wanted to adopt, in the process cutting right across the God-given order of gender and sexuality. That’s persecution. And in another instance, a woman was arrested in England this week for silently praying outside a closed abortion clinic. It appear that she was not allowed to think her prayers. That’s persecution. 

The early Christians didn’t care about persecution and neither must we. In these dark days we can only keep praying for those in our families and communities, that they too may experience a “change of heart” assuring and ensuring their salvation. And we pray too for our countries. Please join me in praying for Scotland, and particularly for those who have been badly let down by deluded Scottish politicians who, rather than help young people face their challenges with compassion, instead enable them, even encourage them, to embark on a ruinous journey of personal confusion that will not end well before God’s throne.

Father God. We ask for forgiveness for all those who are intent on disrupting Your ways. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Great Assembly

Posted on by korgrocker

“I have not kept the good news of Your justice hidden in my heart; I have talked about Your faithfulness and saving power. I have told everyone in the great assembly of Your unfailing love and faithfulness.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭40:10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

David, the Psalmist behind Psalm 40, never hid his relationship with his loving Heavenly Father from the people around him. He always communicated things about God – His justice, faithfulness, saving power, unfailing love – to those around him in the “great assembly”, as we can see from this verse. These were things about God that he had experienced through a life spent close to God. That is not to say he was perfect and never sinned (Bathsheba?) or made mistakes but his heart was after God all his life. And so, David told people around him all the things he knew about God. He was a natural evangelist.

As a Christian I have a story to tell. Through the things God has done for me, my faith in Him has grown. I have experienced His grace and mercy, His love and kindness, His faithfulness even when I haven’t been faithful. He has put a hope for the future in my heart so real and pressing that it is bursting out to inform others.

But this “great assembly”. Is it the church we attend? It could be, but God’s heart is for the lost. Luke records this verse in his Gospel, “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent” – Luke 15:7. C.S Lewis said, “The salvation of a single soul is more important than the production or preservation of all the epics and tragedies in the world“. So the “great assembly” consists of our friends, family, and community, not just the church we attend. We may not be Billy Grahams, speaking to thousands in one rally after another. But I am, as the quotation from J.T.Hiles says, “a beggar telling another beggar where to find bread“. 

So, like David, we must take every opportunity to tell others the “good news” about God. May we never be guilty of keeping it to ourselves.