Helping the Lost Progress toward Faith and Action

Photo used by permission Damon Hart-Davis

An older church planter startled me. “Mark,” he said. “I appreciated that you said new believers typically know more lost people. In all my years of ministry, I never thought about training up a new believer to share their faith. And I wanted you to know I’ll be going out with them to share Jesus with their family and friends. I’m headed out right now to start that in my ministry.”

You could see the determination in his eyes. It wasn’t too late for him to learn and act.

Americans are saturated in a sensual world that is vibrant and 3D. It moves and engages them. It provides community experiences, even if it’s avatar substitutes interacting on online gaming.

Now, look at how most churches provide evangelism and discipleship that relies on “sit and get” discipleship. Come to the class. Come hear the preacher. Watch this performance. Are we expecting believers to just be spectators? Kyle Idleman has a good thing going with his book, Not a Fan. The book is a call to get out of the stands where the fans passively sit and onto the playing field.

Living out the faith is important for others who are watching our lives and how it benefits them. It can’t be done inside church walls and cocooning in our homes. Did Jesus bring the lost into His life? Or did He take the Gospel into their lives? As we interact, we watch the lost grow in their faith until Jesus is Lord. And then seamlessly, we walk with them into newness of life, encouraging them to bear spiritual fruit to the glory of God.

Healthcare professionals advise one hour of exercise each day. Have you tried it? What a transformation that brings! Jesus said make disciple-making a lifestyle of every moment of every day. And that brings spiritual transformation.