From Pastor Tim's Desk
Dear Loved Ones of God,
For the past several weeks the focus at Cherokee has been on evangelism—that is sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ with someone. One of the biggest barriers to our faith sharing is when our “what ifs?” kick in. What if the folks I’m sharing with think that I’m obnoxious like some of the folks who have tried to witness to me? What if they ask a question about the Bible I can’t answer? What if they bring up an objection and I don’t know how to respond? Just how do I bring a person to Christ? What are the steps?
Today I’d like to introduce you to what I call “Come and See” evangelism. The phrase comes from John 1:46. Jesus invites Phillip to follow him, and then the scriptures tell us that Phillip finds another future disciple, Nathaniel. Phillip tells Nathaniel that he has found Jesus, who Phillip believes is the promised Messiah. Nathaniel is skeptical and voices his doubts. In response Phillip merely says, “Come and see.”
I like that response. Phillip doesn’t get into a detailed argument about who is qualified to be the Messiah. Phillip doesn’t insist on his way. Phillip doesn’t defend his point of view. Phillip simply offers Nathaniel a chance to come and decide for himself.
There are a lot of folks like Nathaniel in the world. They have grown up hearing all kinds of promises. They have grown weary of promises that remain unmet. Many of these Nathaniel-like folks even have some prejudices about “so called Christian folk.” How do we witness to the “Nathaniels” of this world?
How about just issuing an invitation? How about saying, “Come and see”? When we issue that invitation, we are not making extravagant claims. We are not seeking to manipulate. We are saying I trust your good judgment, come and see for yourself, then you decide. I think that’s a good way to practice evangelism. Simply inviting people to come and see for themselves—decide for themselves. What could be simpler? What could be more respectful and honest of another?
This season leading up to Easter is a great time to invite folks to church. It’s a great time to say, come and see. Will you join me this season in issuing some come and see invitations to your non-churched friends?
Tim
