August 15, 2024: More on Friend Day

“The next day, John was standing with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this and followed Jesus. When Jesus turned and noticed them following him, he asked them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” “Come and you’ll see,” he replied. So they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about four in the afternoon. Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard John and followed him. He first found his own brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated “the Christ”), and he brought Simon to Jesus. When Jesus saw him, he said, “You are Simon, son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which is translated “Peter”).” (John 1:35–42, CSB)

Love compels us to share Jesus with our family, our friends, and our neighbors. But most people are averse to evangelism programs that compel them to take on the role of a salesman. There are always those who are particularly gifted for that role, but most of us are not. It is a false choice to assume we must either become something we are not in order to evangelize or forego fulfilling our scriptural mandate. We have been given every necessary gift to fulfill our Great Commission duty.

Andrew was a follower of John the Baptist. He was with his teacher when John saw Jesus. John exclaimed, “Look, the Lamb of God!” (John 1:35). Andrew and another of John’s disciples then followed Jesus. Andrew recognized Jesus as Messiah. Andrew was invited by Jesus to come and stay with Jesus that day. He did so, but first he went and told his brother, Simon Peter, that they had “found the Messiah!” and he brought him to Jesus. Later in the same chapter, after Philip became a follower of Jesus, he invited his friend Nathanael to also come and see for himself whether Jesus was the promised Messiah. In each of these instances, the one who was a believer used an existing relationship, whether kinship or friendship, to “bridge” another person to a relationship with Jesus.

For most of us, this is what evangelism looks like. We meet the Master, and we are compelled by love to bring others to Him. It does not require memorizing a script or to put a “hard sell” on anyone. While some have been given a gift of evangelism, the rest of us are called to bring others along in a way that is natural to our gifts. Don’t get me wrong, it still requires that we take a risk, but we do not have to be something we are not.

On September 8, we will hold Friend Day at Saint Timothy’s. You are asked to invite your unchurched friends and neighbors to worship with us. After the services on Friend Day we will have a dinner for all of our members and our guests. This time of fellowship will allow us to get to know our new guests and help them feel welcome. But, we’re not stopping there; we will follow up with our guests to share God’s love with them and encourage them to continue worshipping with us.