In the wake of the siege of Rome by the barbarians in 410 A.D., Augustine defended Christianity against the accusation that Christianity had weaken the Roman Empire thereby making it vulnerable to the attack. Thus, came The City of God.

Hinting at the truth of passages like Acts 18:10 and Jude 3-4, Augustine wrote the following:

But (the City of Christ) must remember that, in the ranks of its enemies, lie hid fellow citizens to be, and that it is well to bear with them as enemies until we can reach them in their profession of faith. In like manner, the City of God itself, so long as it is a wayfarer on earth, harbors within its ranks a number of those who, though externally associated in the common bond of the sacraments, will not be associated in the eternal felicity of the saints…

There is little reason to abandon hope of reclaiming some of these (godless) persons, for among our most notorious adversaries are men destined to be friends, however little they know it. On earth, these two cities are linked and fused together, only to be separated at the Last Judgment. (Augustine, City of God, abridged [Garden City, NY: Image Books, 1958), 63-64.

Is there any better call to evangelism?

You’ve probably noticed from the news coverage that this week is the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, i.e. Hajj. It’s been particularly news-worthy because the president of the predominantly Shi’a Muslim and Islamic Republic of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is on the pilgrimage and thereby inadvertently causing sectarian tension in the Sunni dominated kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The Hajj is one of the Five Pillars of Islam expected of all adult Muslims physically and financially able (Quran 2.196-203). It is a once in a lifetime pilgrimage to Mecca located in Saudia Arabia, the birthplace of Islam. It is a week long festival filled with a variety of activities. Circling the Kabah that is centered in the Grand Mosque (picture above) and kissing the “Black Stone” is the apex of the Hajj. Yesterday pilgrims visited and prayed on the plains of Arafat where the Prophet Muhhammad preached his last sermon. Last night they gathered stones for today’s “Stoning the Devil” where they cast stones at the rock of Mina. At the end of the Hajj, pilgrims will sacrifice an animal, usually a sheep, in remembrance of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, not Isaac according to Islamic tradition.

If you want to know more about the Hajj, here is a good internet source. But in this post I want to point out two ways I think Christians can be praying for Muslims during Hajj.

1. Safety: Every year a number of Muslims die either to, from, or on the Hajj. They are trampled to death by the crowds, die from heat exhaustion, killed by sectarian violence (oh the irony since they dress in solid white garments symbolizing purity and global unity), and the list goes on. In addition, a Muslim is immediately granted Paradise and considered a martyr to die while on the pilgrimage. So it’s fitting to pray that God would see fit to spare many lives during this year’s pilgrimage.

2. Freedom from Spiritual Deception: From a biblical worldview, one of the best ways to describe Muslims is that they are spiritually deceived into believing in a false god and false gospel (injil).  For example, they believe Allah is the only true, eternal, wise, omniscient, transcendent god.  He begot none nor was he begotten.  Furthermore, Jesus was only a prophet and Muhammad came as the “seal” of all prophets with the fullest and final revelation - the Qur’an.  In addition, Jews and Christians (”People of the Book”) have perverted and falsified the scriptures.  Thus, they can no longer be trusted.  And for a Muslim to find favor with Allah, he is required to observe a number of things and included are the Five Pillars; one of which they are observing this week. 

Pray that Muslims will hear the gospel and know that God is finally not pleased with their sacrifices and pilgrimages.  Pray that they will no longer be deceived by the devil into believing the falsehood of Islam but will experience the freedom of knowing Jesus Christ who is “the way, the truth, and the life”.

There’s nothing worse than a long delay between a two-part series, albeit you’re not refreshing the home page every hour in suspense of part 2. In part one, I summarized Christianity Today’s recent article about the new, “cutting edge evangelism. I now want to give a brief assessment of it.

1. Evangelism methods are often controversial and continually being revised. This is just the reality we live in. Billy Graham is nearing the end of his life and thousands, maybe millions, of people have been affected by his ministry. But his methods weren’t sheltered from criticisms and controversies. The same could be said of the endless list of personal evangelism tracts and methods. There may be many reasons why criticism and controversy is inherent to evangelism methodology. For example, it can be attributed partly to the fact that Scripture just isn’t very specific about how one ought to fulfill the Great Commission. The command is very clear but the method isn’t. The apostles’ example is descriptive but not entirely prescriptive. Therefore, we should not be surprised by this article. I’m not saying the new trend is right or wrong. I’m just saying that given the pattern of the last half century and the lack of Scripture’s specificity then one ought not be taken aback by evangelism that would be called “new” and “cutting edge.”

2. Church planting and church reform should go hand-in-hand. This article never talks about church reform per se, but it does mention the difference between “established” and “newly planted churches. ” Here’s the logic: According to the research, most churches stop looking out after about 15 years; thus, they stop growing. Church plants, however, are looking out; thus, they are growing at a faster rate. Churches, therefore, need to plant churches in order to reach out. The article then went on to describe the similarities between domestic planting and overseas planting.

Well, I’m all for planting churches. But what about the thousands of dwindling churches that are planted but need reforming and reviving? What about the thousands of seemingly unattractive churches that have buildings and membership but need strong leadership and biblical preaching to become once again a bright light? Can those churches be a means of “cutting edge” evangelism? I think they should be and by God’s grace can be.

Unfortunately, there seems to be a false assumption that church reform is to the exclusion of evangelism. In other words, reform looks “in” and planting looks “out.” When in reality, reform looks inward and outward. Just take expositional preaching, the most essential component of reform, as an example.

Expositional preaching reorients a church’s worldview, priorities, purpose, and the list could go on. The Holy Spirit transforms lives through the preaching of God’s word. That transformation causes churches and Christians to be “salt” and “light.” In addition, they mature in brotherly love so that all men know they are Christ’s disciples by their love for one another.

I’ve been meaning to note an article by Christianity Today that was published about a month ago. Due to busyness I’m just now getting time to comment on it. It’s entitled “Go and Plant Churches of All Peoples” by Tim Stafford. Let me briefly summarize.

Mention the word “evangelism” and what comes to mind? Fifty years ago it would be evangelism crusades such as the Billy Graham Crusades. Thirty years ago programs like “Evangelism Explosion” and “Four Spiritual Laws” would come to mind in personal evangelism. Well, that was fifty and thirty years ago. Today there are fewer and fewer crusades and many churches are still teaching personal evangelism. But the new “cutting edge” evangelism is church planting.

This new or, depending on your perspective, old form of evangelism stems from a few things. First, many churches with younger leadership are frustrated with the lack of growth from current methodologies. Second, church planting networks like Acts 29 Network are rethinking biblical evangelism and its methods. They see church planting as essential to the local church’s nature. Third, researchers have found a trend that new churches are growing at a faster conversion rate than older churches. The trend is for churches to look “inward” instead of “outward” after about 15 years. Whereas church plants have to look outward in order to survive.

And yet church planting doesn’t look the same as it did in the second half of the 20th century. Many church planters are targeting immigrants, “which means adjusting church traditions to diverse ethnic cultures.” Furthermore, it produces “niche audiences.” The SBC’s NAMB effort in California is a prime example. And this isn’t a manufacturing of diversity. It simply reflects the “neighborhood’s” changing nature. Emerging church plant efforts have been extremely successful because of their “unconventional” and “non-institutional spirit” and methodologies.

Church planters also have a different perspective than their predecessors. America is seen as a “mission field” with the same barriers as those overseas - “religion, language, tribe, caste, and socioeconomic status.” Church planters are learning from missionaries overseas and using their methods to penetrate the culture with the gospel and provide places for disciples to mature. Thus, planters are domestic missionaries with the “same sociological perspective” as their overseas counterparts.

In addition, they believe it’s a faulty assumption that the U.S. is a post-Christian nation. It’s half-Christian and half post-Christian. And these new “missionaries” are penetrating the “post-Christian pockets.” Although some new churches fail, all face the same “demographic” difficulties. And it’s here where the “entrepreneurial, independent, and stubborn personalities” that mark the “new” missionaries persevere in obedience to the Great Commission. Therefore, “a church that seeks to obey the Great Commission will keep sending out missionaries” even if that means “they never leave home.”

Don’t assume from the title that I’m going to start criticizing an evangelistic method whereby non-Christians don’t feel threatened by the gospel. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Any faithful gospel presentation should be life threatening. This is a post about the non-threatening nature of evangelism Christians experience in most “western” societies but is completely unheard of in most parts of the world.

I just ask the question what do we feel threatened by when we share the gospel? Over half the prayer requests last night were about evangelistic opportunities. And praise God for them! But what is it that we’re afraid of at that key moment where we know the conversation could change, that the gospel truth couldn’t have a more ripe opportunity? Usually, it’s some level of embarrassment, awkwardness, or feeling uncomfortable and misunderstood. Some times it’s the reality that we’ll be viewed as intolerant, narrow-minded, or unintelligent. Maybe it’s the feeling of isolation and abandonment. I don’t down play the fact that all these reasons coupled with our sinful nature become stumbling blocks to sharing the gospel. I know it to be true for myself. All these, however, begin to pale when faced with something far more sever and threatening.

I’ll confess that I feel completely inadequate writing about the sufferings Christians experience in other countries. I can’t even begin to sympathize with these brothers and sisters. But for the past month now my attention has been captivated by their stories. (I’ve been studying Islam for a curriculum, and their stories give texture to my studies.)

So what’s the point? First, remember that our risk of suffering pales compared to others. So let’s continue to pray that God would give us boldness and conviction to evangelize. Second, pray for those who are suffering true abandonment, isolation, and even death.

I am going to talk more about a favorite theme — our community and neighborhood. This past Saturday I saw a friend who was a Seminary student. After completing his degree, he stayed here in Louisville for ministry. If you think that I have embraced Old Louisville and the city of Louisville, you haven’t heard anything until you have talked with this guy. He knows everyone and knows everything that is happening around here. There are moments when I verge on envy of his knowledge and connections, but I long ago faced up to the reality that I do not have the time or relational energy to talk with as many people and for as long as he is able to do. I can however raise awareness about our community and further our goal of indigenous evangelism.

To that end, I draw your attention to the Greater Louisville Project. If you read this summary of goals, you will see that this city has especially targeted a demographic group to recruit and retain in the city that matches our demographic profile as a church. We sometimes worry about the generations we don’t have. Rather than complain about the people we don’t have, see how what we have matches a “need” in the life of the city. Hopefully our new Deacon of Outreach help us think about how the city’s needs might be an opportunity for us to become known and to know more people. Hopefully, all of us will continue to think and to pray about how our lives can be folded into the life of this neighborhood and city to the end of demonstrating the truth of the Gospel.

Okay, Stott doesn’t use the word “missional,” but he does remind us in this excerpt quoted by Carl Henry in 1967 of the responsiblity of believers to take the Gospel into the world:

How can we become so one with secular men and women, as Christ became one with us, that we express and demonstrate our love for them, and win a right to share with them the good news of Christ?  I am not content to shout the Gospel at them from a remote and sheltered vantage ground; I want to become their friend and argue it out with them side by side; I want to witness Christ among them in their very midst.  Just how to do this is an urgent question to which we must address ourselves seriously if we would follow in the footsteps of our Master.

What a challenge this is to leave our “remote and sheltered” places and make sure we are taking the Gospel into our community with our lives.